Aaron Brumbaugh
Encyclopedia
Aaron John Brumbaugh was a higher education administrator and professor of education, and the sixth president of Shimer College
.
Brumbaugh was born in Hartville, Ohio
in early 1893. He subsequently became a teacher and superintendent in local schools, before traveling to Mount Morris College
in Mount Morris, Illinois
, where he received his BA in 1914. He served as the superintendent of the Mount Morris schools from 1914 to 1915, and as professor of English at Mount Morris College from 1915 to 1918. In 1918 he received his MA from the University of Chicago
, and was named Dean at Mount Morris College. In 1921 he became president of Mount Morris College, a position which he held until resigning in 1925.
Brumbaugh taught at the University of Chicago beginning in 1926, and completed his Ph.D. there in 1929 with a dissertation on the authority of school boards as defined by the courts. He became an Associate Professor in 1935 and rose to full Professor the following year, holding that rank until his retirement in 1944. In 1937, he became president of the American College Personnel Association
.
In 1941, Robert Maynard Hutchins appointed Brumbaugh Dean of Students at the College of the University of Chicago
. He had previously held the position of Acting Dean. Brumbaugh retired from the university in 1944 but remained active in professional associations.
As president of Shimer College in Mount Carroll, Illinois
from 1950 to 1954, Brumbaugh presided over the transition of the Shimer curriculum from a women's junior college
to a four-year coeducational Great Books
college. He was the first president to preside over the school under its current name, as the name was changed from "Frances Shimer College" to "Shimer College" at the time that the school became coeducational.
In 1955, Brumbaugh left Shimer to take a staff position with the Southern Regional Education Board
in Atlanta, Georgia. He held this position until retiring for the second time in 1970. He and his wife then moved to Florida.
Shimer College
Shimer College is a very small, private, undergraduate liberal arts college in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. Founded by Frances Wood Shimer in 1853 in the frontier town of Mt. Carroll, Illinois, it was a women's school for most of its first century. It joined with the University of...
.
Brumbaugh was born in Hartville, Ohio
Hartville, Ohio
Hartville is a village in Stark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,174 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Canton–Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area....
in early 1893. He subsequently became a teacher and superintendent in local schools, before traveling to Mount Morris College
Mount Morris College
Mount Morris College was a religious college affiliated with the Church of the Brethren in Mount Morris, Illinois. The original institution at this location was Rock River Seminary, which was founded by the Methodist Church in 1839. The Methodists closed Rock River Seminary in 1878 and subsequently...
in Mount Morris, Illinois
Mount Morris, Illinois
Mount Morris is a village in Mount Morris Township, Ogle County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,998 at the 2010 census, down from 3,013 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Mount Morris is located at ....
, where he received his BA in 1914. He served as the superintendent of the Mount Morris schools from 1914 to 1915, and as professor of English at Mount Morris College from 1915 to 1918. In 1918 he received his MA from the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, and was named Dean at Mount Morris College. In 1921 he became president of Mount Morris College, a position which he held until resigning in 1925.
Brumbaugh taught at the University of Chicago beginning in 1926, and completed his Ph.D. there in 1929 with a dissertation on the authority of school boards as defined by the courts. He became an Associate Professor in 1935 and rose to full Professor the following year, holding that rank until his retirement in 1944. In 1937, he became president of the American College Personnel Association
American College Personnel Association
American College Personnel Association - College Student Educators International is a major student affairs association headquartered in Washington, D.C. at the National Center for Higher Education....
.
In 1941, Robert Maynard Hutchins appointed Brumbaugh Dean of Students at the College of the University of Chicago
College of the University of Chicago
The College is the sole undergraduate institution and one of the oldest components of the University of Chicago, emerging contemporaneously with the university at large in 1892...
. He had previously held the position of Acting Dean. Brumbaugh retired from the university in 1944 but remained active in professional associations.
As president of Shimer College in Mount Carroll, Illinois
Mount Carroll, Illinois
Mount Carroll is a city in Carroll County, Illinois, United States-History:Shimer College was established in Mt. Carroll in 1853, but mounting debts forced a move to Waukegan, Illinois in 1979. The campus now is home to several organizations, most notably the Campbell Center for Historic...
from 1950 to 1954, Brumbaugh presided over the transition of the Shimer curriculum from a women's junior college
Junior college
The term junior college refers to different educational institutions in different countries.-India:In India, most states provide schooling through 12th grade...
to a four-year coeducational Great Books
Great Books
Great Books refers primarily to a group of books that tradition, and various institutions and authorities, have regarded as constituting or best expressing the foundations of Western culture ; derivatively the term also refers to a curriculum or method of education based around a list of such books...
college. He was the first president to preside over the school under its current name, as the name was changed from "Frances Shimer College" to "Shimer College" at the time that the school became coeducational.
In 1955, Brumbaugh left Shimer to take a staff position with the Southern Regional Education Board
Southern Regional Education Board
The Southern Regional Education Board is a nonprofit organization based in Atlanta, Georgia that works to improve education in its 16 member states in the southeastern United States: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma,...
in Atlanta, Georgia. He held this position until retiring for the second time in 1970. He and his wife then moved to Florida.
See also
- History of Shimer CollegeHistory of Shimer CollegeThe history of Shimer College begins in 1853, and has involved a series of crises and profound changes. Because of this, the college is often symbolized by a phoenix which is reborn from its own ashes...