Dean McDonald to Retire; Thaddeus Seymour Succeeds Him

PROFESSOR JOSEPH L. MCDONALD, after 36 years at Dartmouth and seven years as Dean of the College, will retire at the end of the present college year. Dean McDonald has served in his present capacity since 1952 and will leave office with the highest tributes from students, faculty and administrative colleagues. President Dickey has announced that his successor will be Thaddeus Seymour, Assistant Professor of English, who becomes Dean on August 1.

Like Dean McDonald before him, Professor Seymour will move to this high office from the faculty and will take over a position that has been filled by many great Dartmouth figures through the years. He began his career at Dartmouth in 1954 as a member of the English Department and since then has taught courses primarily in his special field, eighteenth century English literature. His scholarly article concerning "English Literature" and another one on 'American Literature" appear in the New InternationalYearbook.

Since he has been at Dartmouth, Professor Seymour has been active with the faculty group formulating the new English curriculum; and he has served as a member of the departmental committees on student writing, student English, and comprehensive examinations. He has aided the admissions office by interviewing prospective students who come to Hanover, and spring vacations have often found him on tour speaking before secondary school gatherings and alumni groups.

There are few phases of Dartmouth life that have not engaged Professor Seymour's active interest and participation, and he has a knack for getting close to students, understanding their views and problems, and winning their confidence. Standing well over six feet and possessed of a deep, resonant voice, he immediately commands the respect and attention of all present. In addition to a full-time teaching schedule and his many administrative activities, he found the time up until this year to spend many spring and fall afternoons down on the Connecticut River as coach of the Dartmouth Rowing Club crews. Under his experienced guidance the Dartmouth crews have come a long way toward regaining their winning ways, and rowing has assumed a prominent place among the athletic activities on the campus.

Born in New York City, Professor Seymour was graduated from the Kent School, attended Princeton, and received his B.A. from Stanford in 1950. The University of North Carolina awarded him his Ph.D. in English after five years of study during which he was a teaching fellow and a recipient of the University's Order of the Golden Fleece. In 1948 he married the former Polly Gnagy of Wichita, Kansas, and they have four children.

With Dean McDonald's retirement, Dartmouth will lose a popular campus personality and a man admired and respected by all parts of the Dartmouth family. As teacher for nearly thirty years and Dean since 1952 he has made thousands of Dartmouth men the beneficiaries of his wise judgment and innate kindness. President Dickey, in announcing the retirement, said: "Dean McDonald has earned a place in that select company of great deans whose deepest satisfactions are gained by helping students when the going is roughest. The beneficiaries of his compassion are not only the students and parents who have had his help, but all those who know that it is available at any hour, for the asking."

Joseph L. McDonald came to Dartmouth in 1923 as an instructor in economics, after teaching at the University of Minnesota, St. Thomas College, and the Wharton School of Finance of the University of Pennsylvania. In 1930 he assumed a full professorship at Dartmouth and was also made Professor of Foreign Trade at Tuck School. Born in Coldwater, Ohio, he was graduated from the University of Indiana in 1915 and then studied economics at the Columbia University graduate school.

Dean McDonald has traveled extensively in Europe and Latin America studying trade and related subjects. In 1937 he was principal agricultural economist for the United States Department of Agriculture. He is a member of the American Economic Association and the Royal Economic Society.

In the issue announcing Dean McDonald's impending retirement, TheDartmouth, never lavish with its praise of deans, printed the following editorial:

Dean McDonald is a gentleman whose sensitivity has established a tradition of leadership, guidance, and friendship in the dean's office. He brought to his office a warmth and kindness that have won the complete respect of the Hanover community. As a teacher, friend, and counsellor, he has helped many men find themselves both in their academic and personal lives. His retirement will represent a great loss to the College.

Taking over the office of dean at a difficult time, he has shown a continuing faith in students, both as individuals and as a body. He has helped them toward self-discipline. He has understood and been sympathetic with both their abilities and their shortcomings.

Students have forced him to administer the rules of the College, but he has always acted judiciously. He has taken a personal interest in the cases of the students and has helped to educate them morally.

He has always remained sensitive to the demands of the students. He has kept close contact with them and has respected their point of view. When called upon to take action, he has demonstrated a knowledge of what is best for them. No matter what had to be done, he knew the way to achieve their cooperation and support.

The job of dean is a most difficult and often thankless one. There seems to be little reward for giving up the pleasures of the classroom and research to take over the tasks of the dean. But there is no service more challenging than as dean to shape the future of young men.

The universal respect that Dean McDonald has built up is proof that he has done the finest job possible. We were fortunate to have had the wisdom of his council. We are proud to have been students under him.

Dean McDonald and Professor Seymour in Parkhurst Hall