Robert Hazard Edwards
Encyclopedia
Robert Hazard Edwards is an American educator who was the seventh president of Carleton College
and the thirteenth president of Bowdoin College
.
, Edwards attended Princeton University
, graduating magna cum laude. He also earned a B.A. and an M.A. at Cambridge University and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School
. In 1961, after law school, he earned admission to the U.S. federal bar. For several years he worked for the U.S. State Department on matters related to Africa
n countries that had been colonies
and were making the transition to independent nationhood. After leaving the U.S. government, he joined the Ford Foundation
, where he worked from 1965 to 1977 in Pakistan
and New York, heading the foundation's Middle East and Africa Office.
to join the Secretariat of His Highness the Aga Khan
, heading the Department of Health, Education and Housing. He also served on the board of trustees of Aga Khan University
from 1987-1990.
Additionally, the sizes of both the faculty and student body where expanded, from 130.8 to 154.8, and from 1410 to 1600, respectively. In the midst of a $135 million capital campaign starting in 1994 and ending in 1998 (with $136 million), the college's campus and academic programs were dramatically expanded. During his tenure, many Academic buildings were constructed or renovated included Druckenmiller, Cleaveland and Searles Halls, Memorial Hall and Wish Theatres, Hawthorne Longfellow Library and the Coastal Studies Center. Additionally, several new residential halls, a new student union, a new fitness center, and a new dining complex were built and several new programs were established including the Educational Technology Center, the Learning and Teaching Center, the Off-Campus Studies office, and the Coastal Studies Program.
In 1999, Edwards became a member of the board of trustees of Aga Khan University again. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
in 2000 and was succeeded by current president Barry Mills in 2001.
Colby College
awarded Edwards an honorary degree in 2001.
Carleton College
Carleton College is an independent non-sectarian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, USA. The college enrolls 1,958 undergraduate students, and employs 198 full-time faculty members. In 2012 U.S...
and the thirteenth president of Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is...
.
Education and early career
A graduate of Deerfield AcademyDeerfield Academy
Deerfield Academy is an independent, coeducational boarding school in Deerfield, Massachusetts, United States. It is a four-year college-preparatory school with approximately 600 students and about 100 faculty, all of whom live on or near campus....
, Edwards attended Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, graduating magna cum laude. He also earned a B.A. and an M.A. at Cambridge University and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
. In 1961, after law school, he earned admission to the U.S. federal bar. For several years he worked for the U.S. State Department on matters related to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n countries that had been colonies
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
and were making the transition to independent nationhood. After leaving the U.S. government, he joined the Ford Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
, where he worked from 1965 to 1977 in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and New York, heading the foundation's Middle East and Africa Office.
Carleton College
In 1977 Edwards became president of Carleton College. As Carleton's president, he helped launch the "Science, Technology, and Public Policy" program and expanded and remodeled the school's library. When he left in 1986, he received an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters.Work for the Aga Khan
After leaving Carleton, Edwards returned to Pakistan, going to KarachiKarachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
to join the Secretariat of His Highness the Aga Khan
Aga Khan
Aga Khan is the hereditary title of the Imam of the largest branch of the Ismā'īlī followers of the Shī‘a faith. They affirm the Imamat of the descendants of Ismail ibn Jafar, eldest son of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, while the larger Twelver branch of Shi`ism follows Ismail's younger brother Musa...
, heading the Department of Health, Education and Housing. He also served on the board of trustees of Aga Khan University
Aga Khan University
The Aga Khan University is a coeducational research university spread over three continents. It was granted its charter in 1983 as Pakistan's first private, autonomous university. AKU was founded by His Highness the Aga Khan, and is part of the Aga Khan Development Network...
from 1987-1990.
Bowdoin College
In 1990, he became president of Bowdoin, where he significantly changed the college's governance and residential life. In 1995, he merged all board members from Trustees and Overseers into a single Board of Trustees. The next year,the Trustees voted to phase out fraternities, immediately terminating the recruitment of new members, and to abolish fraternities entirely by 2000. The college acquired all fraternity chapter houses by the summer of 2000, to be absorbed after renovation into the college's new residential house system.Additionally, the sizes of both the faculty and student body where expanded, from 130.8 to 154.8, and from 1410 to 1600, respectively. In the midst of a $135 million capital campaign starting in 1994 and ending in 1998 (with $136 million), the college's campus and academic programs were dramatically expanded. During his tenure, many Academic buildings were constructed or renovated included Druckenmiller, Cleaveland and Searles Halls, Memorial Hall and Wish Theatres, Hawthorne Longfellow Library and the Coastal Studies Center. Additionally, several new residential halls, a new student union, a new fitness center, and a new dining complex were built and several new programs were established including the Educational Technology Center, the Learning and Teaching Center, the Off-Campus Studies office, and the Coastal Studies Program.
In 1999, Edwards became a member of the board of trustees of Aga Khan University again. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
in 2000 and was succeeded by current president Barry Mills in 2001.
Colby College
Colby College
Colby College is a private liberal arts college located on Mayflower Hill in Waterville, Maine. Founded in 1813, it is the 12th-oldest independent liberal arts college in the United States...
awarded Edwards an honorary degree in 2001.
External links
- Robert H. Edwards, Administrative Records, 1950-2002.
- History of the President's Office, Carleton College
- http://www.aku.edu/university/bot/rhe.shtml
- http://www.carlwiki.org/Robert_Edwards