Kenneth G. Wilson (author)
Encyclopedia
Kenneth George Wilson was an author, professor of English and vice president at the University of Connecticut
. His best-known work is The Columbia Guide to Standard American English, published in 1993.
Through the 1970s Wilson served as UConn's vice president for academic programs or academic affairs. With the 1974 change in title, the vice presidency replaced the provost as the university's chief academic office. He had been dean of the university's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences from 1966 to 1970 and head of the English department in 1965-66.
"Many of his contemporaries credit Wilson with starting the process of making UConn a nationally respected university," a university press release http://news.uconn.edu/2003/March/rel03015.htm and the university magazine, Advance, said at the time of his death in 2003. http://advance.uconn.edu/2003/030317/03031704.htm
Wilson returned to teaching in 1981 and retired in 1989. He had joined UConn's Storrs campus faculty in 1951 as an instructor and rose to be a full professor. A graduate of Albion College
in Albion, Mich., Wilson earned his master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan
. He was a native of Akron
, Ohio
.
He is the subject of an article in Contemporary Authors (December 2007) by Thomson Gale
.
When the Columbia Guide was published online by Bartleby.com
in 2001, the site said of Wilson's book: "A vigorous assessment of how our language is best written and spoken and how we can use it most effectively, this guide is the ideal handbook of language etiquette: friendly, sensible, reliable, and fun to read."
The electronic edition continues to be offered through licenses to libraries and other institutions.
The Guide has 6,500 entries, including both descriptive and prescriptive examples. The electronic edition features 4,300 hyperlinked cross-references.
In the book's introduction, Wilson called standard American English usage "linguistic good manners, sensitively and accurately matched to context — to listeners or readers, to situation, and to purpose."
University of Connecticut
The admission rate to the University of Connecticut is about 50% and has been steadily decreasing, with about 28,000 prospective students applying for admission to the freshman class in recent years. Approximately 40,000 prospective students tour the main campus in Storrs annually...
. His best-known work is The Columbia Guide to Standard American English, published in 1993.
Through the 1970s Wilson served as UConn's vice president for academic programs or academic affairs. With the 1974 change in title, the vice presidency replaced the provost as the university's chief academic office. He had been dean of the university's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences from 1966 to 1970 and head of the English department in 1965-66.
"Many of his contemporaries credit Wilson with starting the process of making UConn a nationally respected university," a university press release http://news.uconn.edu/2003/March/rel03015.htm and the university magazine, Advance, said at the time of his death in 2003. http://advance.uconn.edu/2003/030317/03031704.htm
Wilson returned to teaching in 1981 and retired in 1989. He had joined UConn's Storrs campus faculty in 1951 as an instructor and rose to be a full professor. A graduate of Albion College
Albion College
Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are...
in Albion, Mich., Wilson earned his master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
. He was a native of Akron
Akron
-Settlements:Canada* Akron, OntarioSouth Africa* Akron, South AfricaUnited States* Akron, Alabama* Akron, Colorado* Akron, Indiana* Akron, Iowa* Akron, Michigan* Akron, New York* Akron, Pennsylvania* Akron, West Virginia* Akron Township, Illinois...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
.
He is the subject of an article in Contemporary Authors (December 2007) by Thomson Gale
Thomson Gale
Gale is an educational publishing company based in Farmington Hills, Michigan, the United States, in the western suburbs of Detroit. It was part of the Thomson Learning division of the Thomson Corporation, a Canadian company, but became part of Cengage Learning in 2007.The company, formerly known...
.
When the Columbia Guide was published online by Bartleby.com
Bartleby.com
Bartleby.com is an electronic text archive, headquartered in New York and named after Herman Melville's story "Bartleby the Scrivener". It was founded under the name "Project Bartleby" in January 1993 by Steven H. van Leeuwen as a personal, non-profit collection of classic literature on the website...
in 2001, the site said of Wilson's book: "A vigorous assessment of how our language is best written and spoken and how we can use it most effectively, this guide is the ideal handbook of language etiquette: friendly, sensible, reliable, and fun to read."
The electronic edition continues to be offered through licenses to libraries and other institutions.
The Guide has 6,500 entries, including both descriptive and prescriptive examples. The electronic edition features 4,300 hyperlinked cross-references.
In the book's introduction, Wilson called standard American English usage "linguistic good manners, sensitively and accurately matched to context — to listeners or readers, to situation, and to purpose."