Collection inventory

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Thomas F. Green Papers

An inventory of his papers at the Syracuse University Archives

Sponsor: The processing of this collection was made possible through the generosity of Marion W. Meyer G'55.

Finding aid created by: Mary Skaden
Date: 2013

Revision history:

Biography

Thomas F. Green taught at Syracuse University's School of Education from 1964 to 1993, where he contributed greatly to academic understandings of the relation between education and social factors, the development of educational policy research, and the Cultural Foundations of Education. Although his title was undeniably 'educator,' his identification as a philosopher underpinned everything he did.

Born on February 8, 1927, Green was a native of Lincoln, Nebraska and the son of a civil engineer and a writer. His boyhood home was filled with intellectuals and writers, such as Willa Cather, Marie Sandoz, John Neidhardt, and Roscoe Pound. He received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and political science in 1948 and a master’s degree in philosophy in 1949, both from the University of Nebraska, before teaching at the School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City, South Dakota and Michigan State University.

Green joined Syracuse University's School of Education in 1964, teaching classes focused on education and philosophy. Green and other professors attempted to foster interdisciplinary perspectives among their students in order to better study the influences and problems of education in terms of social and human activities. This growing focus would eventually solidify into the Cultural Foundations of Education, which continues to study and analyze the inequalities in education. Green’s work in the classroom and his genuine attitude toward his students and peers ultimately earned him the title of Margaret O. Slocum Professor of Education in 1980.

Green’s other contributions at the University included helping to establish the Education Policy Research Center (1967) and directing the Division of Education and Social Policy (1974). He was also involved with the Syracuse University Press Board of Editors and served as a member of various committees for Hendricks Chapel, a role he took on enthusiastically due to his interest in theology.

Simultaneously, Green was also involved in a variety of external projects and endeavors concerned with educational policy and the institutional system’s purpose and function. He received the honor of being named a Guggenheim Fellow in 1968 for his focus on education and the transmission of moral ideas. He was also a Whitehead Fellow at Harvard University, a fellow and consultant with the National Institution of Education, and president of the Philosophy of Education Society. He published numerous articles, monographs, and several books, including Education and Pluralism: Ideal and Reality (1966), Predicting the Behavior of the Educational System (1980), and Voices: the Educational Formation of Conscience (1999).

Thomas Green retired from Syracuse University in 1993. Until his death in February of 2006, Green continued to write on the issues affecting the learning system and contribute in other ways to the developing field of education.

Scope and Content Note

The Thomas F. Green Papers contain correspondence from Green’s time at the School of Education, specifically from 1976 to 1982. These letters reference a variety of Green’s endeavors, such as consultation appointments, publications, critical discussions of educational issues, and other professional topics.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

Please note that the collection is housed off-site, and advance notice is required to allow time to have the materials brought to the Reading Room on campus.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from University Archives,
Special Collections Research Center
Syracuse University Libraries and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Related Material

In addition to these papers, the Syracuse University Archives also holds a clipping file for Thomas F. Green.

Selected Search Terms

Names

Green, Thomas F.
Syracuse University.
Syracuse University. -- School of Education.

Subjects

Educational policy.
Philosophy and education.
Teacher education.
College teachers.
Higher education.

Types of Material

Correspondence.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Thomas F. Green Papers,
University Archives,
Special Collections Research Center
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

The material in this collection was donated to the Archives by Thomas Green in 2000.

Processing Information

Items are housed in acid-free boxes and folders, with the original order maintained. Damaging materials such as staples and paperclips were removed.

Arrangement

The items are arranged in chronological order.

Table of Contents

Correspondence

Inventory