Archives: Guide to Assistant to the President (Bert Dotson) Records, 1960-1975

Title:  Assistant to the President (Bert Dotson) Records
Dates:  1960-1975
Collection number:  A-032
Size:  30 document boxes (12 cubic feet)
Description:  The Assistant to the President (Bert Dotson) Records document the founding and early years of the college.  The records include correspondence and other administrative records from the office of Bert Dotson, assistant to the president, 1965-1982, as well as records from the office of Dale Parnell, president, 1965-1968.
Access Restrictions:  None, collection is open for research
Provenance:  Administrative transfer
Processed by:  Revell Carr, 1999; Elizabeth Uhlig, 2006
Citation:  Assistant to the President (Bert Dotson) Records, 1960-1975 (A-032), Lane Community College Archives, Eugene, Oregon

Repository:
Lane Community College
Archives and Records Management
Elizabeth M. Uhlig, Archivist
4000 East 30th Avenue
Eugene, Oregon 97405 USA
Telephone: (541) 463-5466
Fax: (541) 463--3996
Email: archives@lanecc.edu

Biography: Bert Dotson

Bert Dotson, born in Eugene in 1923, was assistant to the president, 1964-1982. Prior to 1964 he had graduated from Eugene High School, received a B.S. in Architecture and Allied Arts from the University of Oregon in 1951, and in 1961 completed a Masters in General Studies and a Masters in Education also from the University of Oregon. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, with active service in Europe, during which he progressed from private to first sergeant.

Dotson worked as an instructor at Springfield High School from 1951 to 1957 and then as dean of boys until 1959 when he was appointed curriculum supervisor for the Springfield School District. From 1963 to 1964 he was the district director of research and publications for the Springfield School District.

In February of 1964 Dotson was appointed executive secretary of a community college study committee and charged with paving the way for a ballot measure that could create Lane Community College. He took charge of a public relations campaign intended to convince local citizens of the importance and usefulness of, and need for, a community college. In the fall elections of 1964 voters approved the idea of LCC. 

The first LCC Board of Education appointed Dotson the college's first administrative assistant. He worked to create the first budget, find classroom space, hire staff and faculty, and select the college's first president, Dale Parnell. Dotson was also instrumental in the passage of a $10 million bond levy and serial levy and the acquisition of matching state funds for the construction of the LCC campus on East 30th Ave. Dotson continued in his position as LCC administrative assistant / assistant to the president until 1982, working under four presidents.

Biography: Dale Parnell

Dale Parnell was educated at Willamette University (B.A., 1951) and at the University of Oregon (M.Ed., 1956, D.Ed., 1964) and served as principal of Springfield High School and superintendent of Lane Intermediate Education District.  He was instrumental in founding Lane Community College and served as its first president from 1965-1968. He was appointed Oregon superintendent of public instruction in 1968 by Governor Tom McCall.

In 1974 he became chancellor of San Diego Community College and in 1976 he became president of San Joaquin Delta Community College. He was president of the American Association of Community Colleges from 1981-1991, followed by a year as Oregon's community college commissioner. 

He helped establish the Western Center for Community College Development at Oregon State University in 1992 where he taught before retiring in 1997. Since then he has been a visiting professor at the University of South Florida in Tampa. His many publications include the book The Neglected Majority, published in 1985.

Scope & Content Note

This collection includes records from the office of Bert Dotson, Assistant to the President (1964-1971) as well as records from the office of LCC President Dale Parnell (1965-1968).  These records are the core group of records documenting the founding and early years of the college.

The collection is divided into 14 series.

• Series A: Campus Planning & Construction Records, 1964-1970
  • Files relating to the planning and construction of the East 30th Street campus, including floorplans and preliminary sketches.
• Series B: Curriculum Records, 1965-1972
  • Curriculum files include notes relating to the development of  LCC's various departments and the types of courses to be offered at the college.
• Series C: Election Records, 1964-1971
  • Election files are primarily concerned with bond and serial levy elections in Lane County.
• Series D: External Organizations Records, 1966-1971
  • Correspondence with local, state and national organizations that were involved with or consulted during the early years of the college.
• Series E: Financial Records, 1966-1971
  • Financial records generally consist of budget summaries and audit reports.
• Series F: Grants & Contracts, 1964-1972
  • This series contains correspondence, proposals, and applications for grants and contracts.
• Series G: Internal Departments, Programs and Committee Records, 1965-1971
  • Communications between the president's office and various departments and committees within the college. Many of these internal communications are concerned with the creation of important aspects of LCC, including the flight technology department, the library, the athletics program, and KLCC.
• Series H: Institutional Organizational Records, 1964-1971
  • Files concerning the early organization of the college including the Institutional Bill of Rights, and the first charts showing the proposed organization of the administration. Another collection of files details the early organization of the college including the Institutional Bill of Rights, and the first charts showing the proposed organization of the administration.
• Series I: Legal Counsel Records, 1995-1971
  • Files contain correspondence with the college's first attorney, Edward C. Harms.
• Series J: Personnel Services Records, 1965-1971
  • Files from the personnel services department contain job descriptions, proposed salaries, hiring procedures, and details of the search for LCC's first president.
• Series K: President's Office Records, 1965-1970
  • Includes correspondence from the desks of Bert Dotson and Dale Parnell on a number of topics, including the selection of the president's cabinet and the LCC advisory committee.
• Series L: Reports and Statistics, 1960-1971
  • Reports from different areas of the college, including early reports on the need for a community college in Lane County, and surveys of students.
• Series M: Subject Files, 1965-1972
  • Subject files cover a wide array of subjects, including details about the creation of the LCC official seal, the campuses at Cottage Grove and Florence, internships, and exchange programs. Some of the most interesting correspondence is found in this section, particularly a letter from NASA regarding a request to have an astronaut speak at LCC commencement, and a series of letters concerning rock concerts by the Grateful Dead and Iron Butterfly on the LCC campus.
• Series N: Subject and Other Administrative Records, 1960-1972
  • This is a group of records that was transferred to the Archives from the President's Office after the initial transfer and arrangement of this collection. These records include subject files, committee records, and departmental records. They date from 1960-1972 and document the early years of the college, including early records of the Library/Learning Resource Center, 1965-1971, and the financial records of the Lane County Community College Study Committee, 1964-1965.

Finding Aid

For a detailed finding aid which includes a complete list of the contents of this collection, refer to:

• Guide to Assistant to the President (Bert Dotson) Records (NWDA Web site)
• Guide to Assistant to the President (Bert Dotson) Records
• Guide to Assistant to the President (Bert Dotson) Records

Related Resources

• On-line exhibits:
  • Lane Community College: The Parnell Years. This exhibit is based on the book written by Larry Romine which describes the founding and early years of the college and Bert Dotson's role in establishing the college.
  • Counting the Ballots on October 19, 1964. Larry Romine tells the story about the night of October 19, 1964, when the citizens of Eugene voted to establish the community college.
• Related Collection:
  • President's Office (Dale Parnell) Records, 1964-1969 (A-033). Dale Parnell was the first president of Lane Community College, 1965-1968.
• Oral History:The Archives has several oral histories that cover the founding and early years of the college.
  • Bert Dotson: Assistant to the President, 1965-1982
  • Dale Parnell: President, 1965-1968
  • Larry Romine: Director of Institutional Advancement, 1968-1992; Member of Board of Directors, 1997-2001, 2002-present.