UCLA: The Masters, The Doctorate and “Professor” Baldwin

When WWII ended in 1945, Corporal Baldwin went to UCLA earning both his Master of Arts Degree (1947) and his Doctor of Education Degree (1952). But, a funny thing happened on the way to the Masters Degree. Corporal Baldwin was discharged too late to start the fall semester at UCLA. This left him with an interval of about 4 or 5 months to wait. As you (the reader) have probably discovered by now, Woody is not one to sit still and do nothing. He didn't want to take a job in industry under the delusion that it would be permanent, so he took a civil service test and got employment at the Amarillo Air Base. Woody had good secretarial skills and was still a shorthand whiz. By this time they had lowered the speed requirements in typing and shorthand to almost nothing as employees were hard to get. As a matter of course, he got 100 points on all the skill tests. He also got 5 points for being a veteran so the total score was 105. They didn't know how to classify him. Woody was over the limits for a person to be a secretary and they finally made up a category of assistant office manager.

Woody’s boss, the office manager, was very cold to him. He finally figured out that she thought he had been brought in to replace her. Ironically, she was single and having an extramarital affair with the Colonel in charge of their division. They would “have lunch together” every day. Woody finally figured out why she didn't like him and confessed that he planned to be there only four months. Not surprisingly, that changed her attitude 180 degrees and Woody subsequently became a favorite of the Colonel because now the secret lovers could take two-hour lunch breaks instead of one, as there was someone to leave in charge during her "lunch hour." Funny how the fickle finger of fate works for Woody.

During the post-war era, everyone was busy trying to make up for the time lost in the Army. “This is not meant,” said Woody, “to sound unpatriotic. It was just that the War took three or four years out of your life — of what should be the most productive years of your life.”Everyone, it seemed, was busy. The American businesses could not keep up with the demand because during the war, every piece of metal, rubber, etc. had gone to the war effort. It was a few years before anyone could buy a new car. Woody’s mother dyed his old Army shirts different colors because new clothes were hard to buy. You could tell which students were veterans because they all wore plain-toed shoes for several years, until they could buy new ones.

While at UCLA Baldwin finally had financial assistance in the form of the G.I. Bill. The GI Bill was a godsend for a lot of servicemen. This was the first time Baldwin had assistance in paying for his education. All his previous schooling had been paid for from his work, and there were no cheap student loans available. One had to pay up front for the education, books and other expenses. The G.I. Bill assistance just barely lasted long enough and ended the year he achieved his Doctorate degree. On as related note, he bought his first car, a second-hand Chevy; made on the payment plan of course. His second Chevrolet, a red ’56 convertible, was his transportation when he moved to Boston.

Due partly to Professor Musselman’s reference letter, when still young Baldwin had been attending UCLA less than one semester, the new department chairman hired him as a teaching assistant in shorthand. Woody had not fully finished his first semester in the assistant’s position when the regular shorthand teacher retired. The department chairman asked if he would like a permanent position on the faculty. Woody says, “What a break for a guy who had not even finished his masters degree to be hired onto the faculty of such an esteemed university!”

As a Master’s Degree candidate, appointed to the faculty of the College of Business Education of the UCLA Faculty (in 1948), Woody was obligated to work towards a Doctorate if he was to teach on the college level. Woody writes, “After I started teaching in l947, I continued my studies and got my Doctor of Education degree in 1952. I look back and wonder how I pursued a full program of graduate studies and taught a full load, but I was young and motivated, especially after starting my teaching career at the collegiate level. A huge number of ex-servicemen went back to college after the war and since I had started teaching so young, I was younger than many of my students.”

Doctoral Candidate Woodrow Baldwin still keeps his dissertation which presents the research and findings on “History of Shorthand Instruction in Schools of the United States.” A 455 page document typewritten on one side of thin and carbon compliant paper. Dr. Baldwin’s degree is a Doctorate in Education [Ed.D.], which has a slight distinction from a Doctor of Philosophy [Ph.D.]; in that the later includes the requirement for a language proficiency. The dissertation committee that supervised Baldwin’s dissertation, consisting of his primary adviser and committee members, advised him that there was no need to pursue the language requirement, considering that shorthand was a language itself.

UCLA had recently received a large collection of books related to teaching shorthand. The primary advisor of the committee, Professor Sam Wanous, was also Baldwin’s boss and department head and he insisted on the topic of the dissertation. Baldwin hated the topic and had wanted his dissertation to be on the psychology of skill learning. He says he pouted for about a year and then finally accepted his fate and began work on the designated topic which had been forced on him. The books, over which the topic had been determined, turned out to be totally worthless as a source of research.

The eventual content of the dissertation covered the many phases of shorthand instruction and the numerous changes in their evolution from the time shorthand was first taught during the colonial days of American history until 1950. The thesis showed that shorthand was first taught in America principally by the apprenticeship and individual study methods. The business college, public high school, and college became dominating influences only during succeeding periods — that during colonial times, shorthand was used mainly for reporting sermons and public speeches and only when the typewriter was invented did shorthand became an office tool. Baldwin covered the many hundreds of shorthand systems invented, from the first major system introduced in America by Isaac and Benn Pitman to the system of John Robert Gregg.

Baldwin did manage to include some of his originally desired thesis topic by expanding on how little is known about the methodology of teaching. Around 1920 psychologists began to study the principles of skill learning because there had been no means for dispensing information prior to that. Teaching methods changed from stress upon rule memorization to rule application, from isolated word drills to contextual word drills, and from writing to reading as the major learning activity.

Professor Baldwin concluded in his thesis that one of the greatest advances that had been made in shorthand was training in transcription. The purpose of the course is to train stenographers to transcribe shorthand notes onto the typewriter rapidly and to produce copy ready to be mailed. As early shorthand teachers were trained in business colleges; and, while they were skilled in writing shorthand, they knew little about teaching methods.

A small consolation to the young Professor was the fact that the dissertation became required reading material for the graduate course taught by Professor Wanous. One could also assume that the Department Head pushed Baldwin to write the thesis to avoid doing the research himself. The cost to the doctoral candidate to produce the thesis give an interesting perspective to modern day costs. On May 1, 1952 the bill for professional services rendered reads 116 hours @ $2.50 per hour. Not a bad rate by today’s standards. Although the thesis was required reading, Baldwin received no royalties from the copies.

Professor Woodrow W. Baldwin loved teaching at UCLA. Besides teaching, he was involved in many student activities and thoroughly enjoyed the interactions with the students. He was sponsor of the Southern Campus Yearbook, faculty sponsor of the Crew team, member of the Chancellor's advisory committee (two faculty members, two from administration and 2 or 3 students), sponsor of the Chinese Club, and sponsor of the Business Education Club.

The UCLA Mardi Gras was an annual event sponsored by fraternities, sororities and independent groups to raise money for a Kids Camp which UCLA ran during the summer. Normally not given to making prideful statements, Woody wrote, “I am very proud of the fact that I was twice selected as UCLA's most popular professor. One of these carried with it the title of ‘King of the Mardi Gras.’". In the 1955 Yearbook there is a photo of Professor Baldwin on the ceremonial throne with robe and adornments. The very run-up to the event, with the ranking of 1st place, 2nd place and so forth, merited much attention on the campus:

Dr. Woodrow W. Baldwin displaced Capt. Richard Hurley as leader in the Mardi Gras King contest with 6,083 votes to Capt. Joseph Conte's second place total of 3,856. Hurley was in third place with 3,521 votes. Deadline for the Mardi Gras King Contest has been extended until today so that interested Bruins can have more time to push their favorite professor to the top. The faculty member chosen as king will present the award for the best decorated booth and the other booth awards will be given out by the movie star to be disclosed next week.

Letters from former students show the love and respect Professor Baldwin received from his students. One student wrote:

Dear Mr. Baldwin, In my opinion you are the ideal professor. You conducted the class intelligently and efficiently and at the same time created an atmosphere of friendliness — I have never before seen an instructor that possessed all three of these qualities. If I ever hold a responsible position in life, I will try to conduct myself and my actions in the same manner that you do.

Another student wrote, as part of a written response to a request, from the students, for course improvement ideas:

The major reason for the success of the class is your attitude. You have an excellent approach to the students. At all times you remember that we are human beings who have lives outside the schoolroom. You encourage us to express our ideas in the class discussions and to enjoy ourselves during the class sessions. You speak our language. You have accomplished something which only the best teachers can accomplish. You have won the respect and admiration of your students because you are a good teacher. At the same time you have won the enthusiasm of your students because you are a good "guy". I think the course is fine just the way it is.

Baldwin says “The downside of the teaching job at UCLA was that he was the junior member of the department, and it would take a full career lifetime to ever advance to department chairman.”

Baldwin’s teaching style was very informal and he showed interest in the students. He made a point of noticing things like a new engagement ring and would compliment the student. Baldwin taught technical subjects within the Business Education Department. Students seeking a Business Administration major also took his courses and at UCLA these were considered elective courses. Later on, at Simmons, the courses he taught were required. At UCLA he was teaching teachers how to teach. Often they were older and could actually have had more direct teaching experience than he did. This presented a challenge for the young Junior Professor. How to keep interest, engage the class, and not be seen as a know-it-all. He avoided attempts to impress. As a grader, Professor Baldwin had a reputation for being tough and picky but fair and likable.

Baldwin was friendly with the students. Enough so that he did encounter one nuisance “crush” with one student at UCLA. The young lady was quite difficult to ignore and it took all his skill to make it clear that her grades were dependent on her performance, not on how much affection she tried to show towards the professor. Later, at Simmons College, he was one level removed from the students, by being Dean of the Department, and didn’t have that kind of problem again.

There were other problems to deal with at the time. McCarthyism was rampant with thousands of Americans accused of being Communists or communist sympathizers and subject to aggressive investigations. Suspicions were often given credence despite questionable evidence, and the level of threat posed by a person's real or supposed associations or beliefs was often greatly exaggerated. In many cases, simply being subpoenaed by one of the committees was sufficient cause to be fired. Many people suffered loss of employment, destruction of their careers, and even imprisonment. Suspected homosexuality was also a common cause for being targeted. The hunt for sexual perverts, who were presumed to be subversive by nature, resulted in thousands being harassed and denied employment. Blacklists were at work in universities and schools at all levels, and in many other fields. As college professors, Baldwin and his colleagues were carefully watched as persons of influence whose words or deeds could be in any way interpreted as Communist.

For Professor Baldwin, the witch hunt was “scary as hell” as he was just starting a teaching career at UCLA. Entrapment was used constantly by the police, and gays were afraid to make an issue of it because they could lose their jobs. It was a tragic time for a gay man to live in Los Angeles, and Baldwin had moved to L.A. because he thought it would be the best place to be; a place where he could be comfortable in his own skin. To be arrested and severely punished you did not have to be caught in a sexual act; you had merely to be present at a gathering of gays to be prosecuted. Two of Baldwin’s best friends were arrested. One of his college roommates, Joe, was attending a very proper cocktail party where nothing outlandish (no sex was taking place) was going on. It was in a second floor apartment and the police used ladders to enter through a bedroom window. They arrested everyone there and the next day all their names were published on the front page of the Los Angeles Times with their home addresses and places of employment. Joe was a dedicated teacher in one of the high schools of the Los Angeles school system, but that was forever his last day of teaching. Not only was his job jeopardized, his entire career was down the drain. He was fired immediately, his family now knew he was gay, and shortly afterwards he committed suicide. This scenario with slight modifications took place all over the United States. Suicide was not uncommon in those days.

Woody’s best friend from Amarillo was arrested (he doesn't remember the exact circumstances now) and this friend wanted him to come to the court hearing. Woody did attend the hearing. The friend was lucky; he got off with a fine of $1,000 and a $1,000 lawyer's fee. This was a lot of money in those days, when a new car would cost less than $1,000. His name was not published so he was able to continue his job as assistant choir master and assistant organists for one of the most prominent churches in L.A., which was attended by many movie stars. His position as a musician instead of a teacher, and his association with the upper crust of society, may have been a large influence in his being able to continue his career.

Woody arrived in Los Angeles before his Navy friend Russ Jenter, but not by much. When Russ joined him in L.A. after such a lengthy break in their friendship, housing was so tight that they first rented just a room. Apartments were out of the question. Woody’s Army buddy and mentor, Brockbank, lived with an older woman who owned a big three-story house who rented rooms and small apartments. Student, and later Professor, Baldwin lived there off and on throughout his first six years in L.A. He and Russ later got their first apartment by moving in with a friend. Being recently divorced, the friend offered to share his very small apartment with them until they could find an apartment for themselves. That worked out all right until they finally found an apartment over a garage. Their own home. A nice setup.

The relationship was not an exclusive one for the fellows and lasted about 4 years, until 1950 when Woody broke it off. Russ never quite recovered from the shock, but the situation for Woody had become unbearable. Woody says, “Russ got on my nerves terribly, and while I was working in San Francisco in the summer of 1950, I asked him to move out before I returned to L.A.” Woody says he “can't explain why he was no longer enamored with Russ.” He reluctantly elucidated, “I think he over-worshipped me and I don't react well to that kind of relationship. He was too subservient.” The last Christmas card Woody received from Russ said “You were the only person I ever loved.”Russell E. Jenter died shortly after the last card, in 2004, at the age of 88. It is still on Woody’s conscience that he hurt a truly fine man. In conclusion he says; "That's life, but it hurts.” When speaking of being in love, Woody wrote in later years, “We've all been there. Maybe we've been in love two times or maybe three or even a hundred times. How many of these times do we now realize were just infatuations, sexual attractions, rebound reactions, etc., and how many were really love in its meaningful sense?”

Woody was also dating women while at UCLA, and not just as a cover for his romantic encounters with same-sex partners. Students at UCLA thought of him as a real womanizer. He was a favorite as a fraternity party chaperone because he was looser with the rules. The encounters actually brought him close to marriage again. The lady he was dating, who had a 5 year old son from a previous relationship, was a very attractive woman. In the 1953 photos from the college dances, she is the woman in the Tyrolean Jacket. She had been a student in an evening course and had invited Professor Baldwin to her place for a drink but, as he was in a student/teacher relationship with her, he had to decline the invitation. The following semester she repeated the invitation, since she was no longer a student at UCLA, and they had a swinging affair for about six months, until Woody “just saw it was time to break it off.”

Woody hasn't had dogs or cats as part of his life but he did make an attempt to have a bird as a pet when he was at UCLA. Somebody had given him a beautiful six foot tall iron birdcage and he felt he should put something in it. For $1.50 each he bought two parakeets and named them Aristotle and Mr. Feathers, even though he thought he was getting a male and female pair. Aristotle caught a cold so, being a proper pet owner, he took the bird to the Vet. A $19.00 Vet bill for a $1.50 bird is a story not forgotten and prompted him to purchase a medical book of parakeet diseases, in case there were any subsequent illnesses

When he moved from Los Angeles he sold the large cage, empty of birds at that time, and purchased two new birds and a small cage in Boston. In that Boston apartment hot water was limited and while Woody was drawing a hot bath he decided to clean the bird's cage. Somehow the bird managed to land in the hot water and nearly drowned, not something covered by the medical book. His upstairs neighbor was a nurse who recommended an eyedropper of whiskey to stimulate the bird, and this seemed to work, followed by a few days positioned under a house lamp for heat. Woodrow didn't understand that birds need a perch or they lose the ability to grasp. A couple of days under the lamp and he had one flat footed bird, who couldn't manage a perch. In fact, the bird eventually lost his feet entirely but still managed to get around.

The third and last pair were John-John and Caroline, named of course because of the Kennedy family. When Caroline decided to peck John-John to death, Woody decided he had had enough of birds. In his later years he traveled too much as a Professor, and even later in retirement, to keep pets.

Professor Baldwin admits he did have one other significant affair with a man while at UCLA, but won’t go into details as the person may still be living at the time of this writing. He does allow it lasted for about six years and ended shortly after Woody moved to Boston in 1956. The gentleman had moved in with Woody shortly after Russ left and then followed him to Boston, but he hated it there and went back to L.A. He was only a part of Baldwin’s new life in Boston for a very short time. Because this fellow had not been supportive of his professional success, Baldwin was glad when the relationship ended. Professor Baldwin wanted to make the most of the good fortune of attaining a full time teaching job at a prestigious university. A non-supportive relationship would have been detrimental to the future. Baldwin commented about the relationship; “He was constantly belittling me and my career; I guess he was jealous because he only had a clerical job in an insurance company. For a romance to be successful, I think each party needs to be supportive of the other.” For the next ten years Woody had youthful romances, but never lived with anyone.

Woody experienced a “normal” social life in Los Angeles. He says he was very career focused and the social life consisted mostly of college contacts with faculty and older students. There were three other business education chums while he was working on his doctoral degree and all were very close; even socially. Two of them went on to join Woody on the faculty and the third (who incidentally was the younger brother of Chairman Sam Wanous) lost touch with the group. They were all about the same age and their boss referred to them as the Gruesome Foursome. Woody says that, “in true college spirit they drank heavily on weekends.” Although he smoked a bit at UCLA, it never became a habit. When the regular smokers were over and bummed a smoke they always asked him how old the package was. Baldwin says he believes Bill Clinton:

The news about President Clinton's smoking of pot became a joke because he said he never inhaled. I think I'm the only person who believed that. I did the same thing when I was in a situation where it was easier to pretend for social reasons to smoke pot. But I never inhaled.

The heavy social drinking took it’s toll at times and Baldwin always had the fear of losing control. He made the mistake, early in his career of wearing the same clothes for the second day of class. A student made the joking comment: “Doc didn’t go home last night.” and Baldwin was always careful from then on to wear something different each day and therefore to avoid leaving the impression that he had been out all night.

The other three professors of the department married, and although Woody kept up with them for years, two are dead and he has lost track of the third. Woody has commented more than a few times, “how strange it feels to outlive so many of my peers and even so many of the younger friends.” When he’s in one of the "old age sucks" moods, he reminds himself that “many of my friends never had the opportunity to experience life as fully as I have. They left this world too soon in life.” He lost young buddies in the World War. The loss of these friends in the war still influences Baldwin. He says he, “has not learned why humans cannot find a better way of settling differences between nations (or even within them) than taking the precious lives of innocent human beings.” Depression comes easily to him when he thinks of the wonderful, promising young friends who died in wars. He wonders, “Is one life any more precious, mine or theirs?” He doesn't think so, yet their lives were snuffed out by war.

Woody was always a very socially engaged person, happiest when surrounded by his fellow humans and heavily involved in the growth of his immediate group. He was never one to step outside the system and try to change things in the traditional “activist” manner. Throughout his career and even in retirement Woody always chose his friends and associates carefully and worked from the inside organizations to be an active participant and to effect change where he saw it might be needed.

Professor Baldwin taught two summers (1949 and 1950) at the University of San Francisco. His students were almost all teachers and it was a delightful experience. One of the Gruesome Foursome from UCLA was also there. They were housed in student dormitories, and taught one graduate course together; his only experience at team teaching. There was an alternate offer during his second summer from the Navy to head up an educational program they wanted to start at the Oakland base. They offered Professor Baldwin a good rank as an officer and a promise that he would stay at Oakland. This was during the days of the initial major hostilities of the Korean War in 1950. It was hard to turn down the offer because there was always the possibility that he might be called back into service. A rank as an officer was far better than going back into the Army as a private again. But the career at UCLA was just getting started and Baldwin was extremely grateful for the opportunity to teach there; the start of his career in collegiate teaching. He decided to refuse the Navy offer and, of course as things turned out, has always been glad he did since he was fortunate enough not to be called back into service. Another close brush with another war in which thousands died. He has never taken for granted the twists of fate from which he benefitted.

Woody was president of the California Business Education Association. He still keeps a letter from President Reagan, who was head of the screen actors guild at the time The letter is a short one declining the offer to attend a meeting of the California Business Education Association. But Woody thinks it is funny to have and wonders if it will have any significant monetary value for his heirs.

Woody’s original intent, when pursuing the Masters degree at UCLA, was to teach at the high school level. Beginning teaching at the University level was another one of the Baldwin pieces of luck. Although UCLA was a “publish or perish” university, and this was also the case later at Simmons College, Woody was able to stick with what he loved most, teaching. He never enjoyed research, being more of a people person, and he thoroughly enjoyed the interaction of teaching. At UCLA Professor Baldwin was involved in teaching teachers how to teach. The department was educating educators, not teaching students directly, but this still provided the people interaction he craved. Often he was teaching people older than himself. Part of his responsibilities was to develop a Business Communications correspondence course for the University. While on the staff at UCLA he taught courses for the American Institute of Banking and did consulting work for Lockheed Aircraft Company, Twentieth Century-Fox Studios and the Crosby Foundation.

It seems inevitable that a few years into his teaching career the Gregg Publishing Company which Woody first encountered in junior college, would hear again of this shorthand whiz now established at UCLA. Gregg Publishing hired him for a summer as a ghost writer on a textbook that was being revised. That eventually led to an offer when he was at Simmons in 1958, to author the text “Gregg Speed Building for Colleges” and to write “ A Guide for the Teaching of Shorthand and Transcription.” The royalties from the former book, updated again in 1966, paid for the house he later bought in Boston.

Professor and Dean at Simmons

Founded by Boston businessman John Simmons in 1899, Simmons College was the first four-year women’s college to combine a classical education with practical work experience. Founded in 1902, the Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS) was one of the first schools of its kind in North America, and remains among the most well-known and prestigious in the U.S. Simmons’s undergraduate women’s college today provides a strong liberal arts education integrated with career preparation. The Simmons MBA program was founded in 1973 with the efforts of Professor Baldwin and other colleagues in the field and is designed to teach the essentials of a classic business degree.

How did the shorthand whiz get to Simmons College in Boston? The president of the Gregg Publishing company, gave a speech at UCLA and invited Professor Baldwin for a drink after the lecture. By this time Baldwin had been teaching at UCLA for ten years. The president of Gregg asked if he would consider leaving UCLA for a very good job on the east coast. Although Professor Baldwin was extremely happy where he was, the offer of a Department Chair in a renowned women's college in Boston was worth at least a consideration. The president asked if he would be willing to visit the college. Baldwin said he would visit though with no serious intention of leaving UCLA. The connection with Gregg Publishing Company was something Baldwin valued also and he allowed the visit more as a way to appease the request and maintain amiable relations with the publisher, rather than snub an important business relationship.

The Gregg Publishing president immediately, in Baldwin’s presence, called the President of Simmons and said, "I've found the ideal person to head your School of Business." Professor Baldwin’s degrees in business gave him the depth, the Gregg president felt, to chair a school of management. Once again, we see him getting the jump on the system because of his career focus and the honors awarded from his determination to succeed. References seemed to always flow ahead of him, prior to interviews or the usual system of applications. Opportunities opened which he was not even seeking. Baldwin salary as a Junior Professor at UCLA in 1956 was $4,800 a year. The offer at Simmons was nearly double that.

Professor Baldwin went to Simmons campus and liked what he saw. He resigned as Assistant Professor of Education at UCLA in 1956, accepted the position as Director of Simmons College of Business Administration, and spent the next 26 years at Simmons until retirement in 1982. As he relates it, “My entire professional life had been influenced by my election as substitute teacher in my high school shorthand class. Talk about luck!!” But when looked at through the lens of nearly a hundred years you, the reader, can see how similar influences persisted. One cannot attribute this only to luck. He has always been engaged with his peers at some social and organizational level. He has always striven to succeed and, most often, to excel. His humorous and charming personality must be included in the list of positive influences on his luck. He remains humble by calling the chances “luck” but we can see, in the broader outline, that his own efforts were as much an influence as any concept of luck.

Woody commented in a later interview, “I survived the culture shock of moving from Los Angeles to Boston. I don't think there are two cities that are more different.” Culture difference was that in California if something was new it was considered worthwhile and important, while in Boston if something was old and historical it was of greater importance.

People who know him are shocked to hear him say he was uncomfortable in a situation where he was a stranger to everyone there. Professor Baldwin was always on the go and appeared full of self-confidence. Despite his out-going professional manners, it was not easy for him to belly up to a group of people he don't know, introduce himself and try to get into their conversation. The new city was more than a bit strange and he was challenged to overcome his uncomfortable feelings. But he says, “I was anything but shy.”

When he moved to Simmons College, Professor Baldwin was allowed to teach only one course a semester, a rule that applied to all the heads of schools. This was one of the down sides of the Simmons job as teaching was one of his favorite activities. Baldwin threw away his lecture notes and teaching materials every five years or so to assure he did not develop a repetitious and boring class style. He thoroughly enjoyed the interaction with the class and this live interaction required he approach the lectures with a freshness or the students attention would drift.

Baldwin also found it was easier to teach and keep the personal relationship with the students when he was closer to the same age. As he got older he felt a distance from them due to the age difference. One of the advantages of the changing attitude towards dress code at the college in the 1970’s was the change from required formal attire, suit and tie, to simple sweater or shirt-sleeves and tie. The less formal dress reduced the social distance between teacher and student, although on days when he had meetings the suit was still a requirement.

Baldwin was brought to Simmons to change the entire direction of the Business School and he did just that. When he got there the whole emphasis was on skills and the highest positions Simmons College was training their graduates for were secretarial jobs. Simmons probably had the best reputation of any college in the quality of secretaries. As Department Chair, Baldwin’s directive was to change the school from secretarial to management, as that was the trend of the time. He developed the School of Management to broaden the education and preparation of women entering the career of management. When he first came to Simmons, the School of Management as it is now known, was known as the School of Secretarial Science. It was then changed to the School of Business Administration. The School of Management came about due to the effort and dedication of Professor Baldwin. Many alumnae were not pleased with the prospect and so his job was not easy. Baldwin had a president who was very supportive and he was able to accomplish his objectives for the School of Business.

There were many perks in the change from teaching at UCLA to administration at Simmons College; lots of travel, more pay, higher rank, more free time, flexible hours, etc. As head of the school of business, part of Baldwin’s job was public relations for the department, and the college wanted Professor Baldwin to belong to and to be an active participant in management groups. Woodrow enjoyed the groups since he learned a lot about current business practices from the guys who were making the decisions. He came up through the ranks to be president of the Boston chapter of the Administrative Management Society. The Administrative Management Society was a professional management society. It promoted the application of management methods for commerce and industry for the purpose of increasing productivity, lowering costs, and improving quality. It encouraged and participated in research while promoting sound employer/employee relations. The Boston chapter was one of the largest of the AMS which was the country’s largest management association. After the presidency, he was made chairman of the entire New England district. That tour of duty was followed by many years on the international board of directors. This involved a lot of travel, but the school picked up the tab (one of the perks of being department chairman). Oddly enough this institution is another of the things which Baldwin has out-lived; the Society having closed down in the late 1990’s.

From the college paper “The Simmons News” and later named “The Simmons Janus” we find additional evidence of how his career consumed the majority of Baldwin’s time, including much of his spare time. The newspaper mentions are:

“Dr. Baldwin Elected Head of Collegiate Retailers Association.”

Dr. Woodrow Baldwin, Director of the School of Business Administration and the Prince Program in Retailing Administration was elected as national president of the American Collegiate Retailing Association. [April 22, 1966]

“Baldwin New President of Administrative Management Society”

Dr. Woodrow W. Baldwin, chairman of the Department of Business Administration, has been elected president of Boston’s largest management association, the Administrative Management Society. [April 12, 1966]

“Baldwin Receives Award”

Dr. Woodrow W. Baldwin, chairman of the Department of Business Administration, has received the Administrative Management Society’s Diamond Merit Award which is given in recognition of outstanding services. [November 6, 1969]

“Study Real Cases”

An innovative approach to bringing together education and the business community is being undertaken by the Management department under Chairman Woodrow W. Baldwin. A series of 13 seminars, which began on January 27, involve real case studies presented by invited organizational officials for students and faculty to discuss and solve. [February 3, 1972]

“Panel Discusses Energy Problems”

Business manager Walter Steere along with Woodrow Baldwin, professor of management, and Barbara Sawtelle, assistant professor of economics, participated in a panel discussion “Are you running out of energy” on February 8. The speakers discussed the energy crisis in their respective fields. [February 22, 1974]

The name of the business division changed three times during his tenure and so did his title. When Dr. Baldwin first went to Simmons he was Professor of Business, then Director of the School of Business Administration and finally Chairman of the Department of Business Administration. Quite a group of titles for a young Professor! Then the school initiated a big overhaul of the entire departmental structure, and Baldwin was Chairman of the Department of Management and Professor of Management. He was the same person doing the same business during all these growth changes at Simmons College. At a University, he would have been called a Dean. He did publish while at Simmons and amongst those were the Gregg Speed Building textbook mentioned previously and “The Dynamic World of Education” and developed the publication Readings in Business.

Baldwin developed a totally new concept in teaching business, the Baldwin senior seminar, which tied together business and student groups. The seminar involved real life analysis of business situations, not just textbook cases. This was an innovative approach to bringing together education and the business community under the aegis of Chairman Woodrow W. Baldwin. In a news article from Simmons at the time we read:

In a series of thirteen seminars which began on January 27, invited officials of organizations ranging from the unusual to the avant-garde meet with junior and senior management students. These people from companies which rarely make management casebooks, present actual cases from their management experience which pose a wide variety of problems involving personnel, financing, and marketing. After the official’s introduction of the problem, the cases are discussed first by the students, and then by management professors with students and others in attendance. Invited guests have the opportunity to sit in on all thirteen sessions, thus gaining in effect a free management course as well as possible ideas for dealing with their stated problems

Professor Baldwin also served as advisor to students; a part of his responsibilities he favored. In 1961 he took an American Express tour as a chaperone for the students. This first time trip to Europe laid the groundwork for his later research on the business climate in Europe and gave him the material for his later lectures. The trip also gave him a feel for how to travel in Europe and he consequently traveled throughout Europe, visiting all the major countries except Russia, Portugal, Spain and Finland.

He was on the Advisory Committee for Establishment of School of Education [1956-1957], the Committee on Programs and Academic Standing [1956-1961], the Executive Committee [1956-1961], the Library Liaison Committee [1960-1962], the Committee on Educational Policy [1962], the Committee on New Grading System [1962], the Subcommittee of Educational Policy to study Continuing Education/Committee on Continuing Education [1962-1966]. Baldwin served on the Subcommittee of Committee on Educational Policy to study Interdisciplinary programs [1965-1966], the Subcommittee of Committee on Educational Policy to Study First Year Programs [1965-1966], the Joint Committee of Corporation and Faculty on Organizational Structure [1965] and the Faculty Council’s Subcommittee on Committee Structure [1966].

Baldwin found the worst part of the job was having to discipline someone. This was especially true of the faculty under his supervision. He com­pared himself to President LBJ, who wanted everyone to like him, and therefore he would avoid adversity at times when he should have been a part of it. During his tenure at Simmons he often felt if there wasn’t something to worry about, then he must be overlooking something. This sensitive side of Professor Baldwin’s nature made parts of his responsibilities at Simmons very difficult .

Because of his position as Department Chair of the School of Business of a prestigious women’s college, Professor Baldwin, for public relations purposes, had to belong to many professional organizations. The list is rather extensive. One would think looking at the list that they had to have a special committee to come up with some of the names. Baldwin was an extremely busy man while Department Chair at Simmons with too many assignments to include them all here. The academic schedule and what follows with it may explain his lack of any significant social life in the early years in Boston. He, like many in the academic field, found his work and his hobby were the same.

Professor Baldwin not only had a teaching career, he was also a public speaker. He spoke to many student and professional groups about business. One of his favorite topics was the student revolutionaries of the 60’s and their effects on business. The 1960s saw student activists gaining increased political prominence. Although not as violent in the protests as the west coast, the Boston area was very active in the protest movements of the 1960s. Baldwin would have liked to have been more active personally, but as head of a business school, he felt an obligation to maintain as low a profile as possible. He was a frequent speaker on the subject, “Is business waltzing through the rock generation?” The era of the 1960s was when college student activists were revolting against tradition in an effort to change attitudes and he gives them full credit for the revolution. Businessmen were very nervous about what these wild kids were going to be like when they entered their businesses. Baldwin was making speeches to business owners and managers about what they could expect from the generation of college kids who were leading the revolution. The intent of the speeches was to explain what the kids were saying with their sit-ins. Baldwin wrote:

Perhaps because I was lucky enough to be working with college students during the social revolution of the 1960s, I have great respect for the rebellious students of that era. They were criss-crossing the country to fight discrimination against blacks, burning bras to get equal rights for women, pressuring corporations to become less profit motivated and more socially conscious, etc.

There are no texts remaining of the many speeches he gave (quite a few), on the subject. Professor Baldwin also spoke outside the State; in Peoria, IL, Davenport, IA, and Providence, RI, to name a few. Baldwin also spoke to teacher groups on the subject. The lecture circuit snowballed as persons would come up to him and say, “Will you give that speech to my organization?” The position as head of a Management school positioned him as someone who should be an authority. He thought it was fun and the college supported him as it was good publicity for Simmons. The position allowed him to be active in the movement, but from within the establishment, rather than fighting from the outside. Baldwin has always felt that any change to society must be made within the context of the society: by changing the way a society “perceives,” rather than fighting the beliefs from outside. During our interviews ,Woody made a comparison with his present situation: “Since retirement and coming to Austin, I have spoken two or three times on the subject ‘Whatever happened to the good old 60s?’” With his characteristic Cheshire grin he con­cluded, “I loved it!”

He also traveled and taught on a wider variety of subjects. Research shows his presentations covered: Marketing Your Greatest Product — You!; European Businessmen’s Views on Business and Education. [Boston University]; You Think You Have Problems? — Listen to European Businessmen; Education for Retailing; Progressive Methods in Modern Retailing; and Must Teachers Sell Their Subject to Survive. He also gave a number of speeches about the women’s movement for equal rights.

Many of his former students have told him that he is the biggest reason for their success. He taught decision-making that is underpinned by critical thinking, advanced analytical skills, problem-solving capability in complex environments, and ethical and socially responsible management practices. In the files of the “Who is Woody Baldwin?” archives he has preserved since his retirement, one even finds a photograph from the famous dancer Vera-Ellen, principally celebrated for her filmed dance partnerships with Fred Astaire. The inscription reads, “Dear Mr. Baldwin, you made shorthand a pleasure. Thanks for being so very helpful.” A note from the current Dean of Registrars Office at Simmons recounts how pleased she was to have been a student of Professor Baldwin’s. Woody is well remembered at his College of 26 years.

At the initial interview with the president of Simmons he was asked, as casual conversation tied to the interview, if he had any plans for marriage or was he a confirmed bachelor. Baldwin replied that he, “was not a confirmed anything, although the periods of seriousness were getting further and further apart.” As his biographer this author wondered how Baldwin’s family handled his homosexuality, since by now it must have been somewhat obvious. Even today, he also has trouble defining himself strictly as a homosexual. Woody does not feel he has been limited, in his life, to loving only men. But, as he grew older he found his orientation solidified itself.

Coming from a Baptist church upbringing (and all the siblings and their children were active in the church) Professor Baldwin said he was very proud of the way they reacted to the realization that he was a gay man. It was never discussed but they all knew and no one seemed to love him any less for his sexual orientation. It was so much against their religion that he expected a much worse reaction as they eventually found out. Baldwin thinks the educational and professional background may have figured in their acceptance of his orientation, as he was the only one of the five kids who ever went to college. They were in awe of the title Dr. Professor Baldwin, which he had earned by getting a doctorate degree. He relates the following tale:

The nearest we ever came to discussing it, Zada (my middle sister) and Leora (the youngest) were travelling in my car to Arkansas to visit my brother and oldest sister who were living there, sometime after mother died in 1966. Zada was not fond of mother and at one time she said in the car that she blamed mother for my unhappy life. I had no idea what she was referring to, and I said, “I have had a wonderful life. What are you talking about. I thank God everyday for my happy and lucky life.” I made a joke of it. When we got to our destination in Arkansas I told my brother and sister about the incident. There was much silence. Leora called me back in the bedroom and told me I should stop making a joke of the situation or Zada would say something I would wish she hadn’t. I was grateful to Leora, as it had never occurred to me it was my homosexuality Zada was referring to.

Woody and his mother were very close. His sisters thought he was a bit of a “mama’s boy” and was overly favored because he was the youngest. Woody still has his mother’s stern portrait near his favorite easy chair, and he thinks highly of her and the efforts she made to raise him properly.

Professor Baldwin gave up the Department Chairmanship in 1977 and went back to teaching for the last five years of his employment at Simmons, until he took early retirement in 1982. This was partly due to the introduction of the new president at Simmons. When the school had changed from “schools” to “departments” he continued to serve as department chairman, but the reason he had been brought to Simmons was already a fait accompli. The new president at Simmons had never witnessed Woody’s significant accomplishments and never gave him the respect he had been accustomed to receiving. This contributed to his deciding for an early retirement from being Department Chair. The department needed somebody who could negotiate budgets, class sizes, salaries and such with the new President. Due to the friction between the President and Baldwin, Woody felt the department would suffer if he stayed as head of the department.

The friction started when Woody was first introduced to the new president with the compliment (meant for Woody) that if one wanted an honest answer then just ask Baldwin; that Baldwin was the one on campus from whom you could always get the truth about anything. Somehow this made new president Bill Holmes feel threatened by Woody’s elevated status at the college. Partly, Baldwin says, he was tired of the position since it involved handling lots of inter-departmental complaints and putting out structural and personnel fires. He enjoyed teaching and wanted to end his time at Simmons on a positive note and the new President would obviously make his life miserable if he re­tained his position as Department Chairman.

The new president did make him miserable, even to the end. All the other department heads, while Baldwin was there, who retired under President Park (the previous president) were given an honorary degree from Simmons. Although certainly deserving the honor; Professors Baldwin did not receive one from the new President Bill Holmes. An unfortunate circumstance, as it left Professor Baldwin with a hurt which continues to this day. Fortunately he does not dwell on this slight too often, but when he spoke about the time I noticed his sadness. On a more positive note: before his retirement when he returned to teaching, the new department head (his old job) was very respectful to him, unlike the college president, and acknowledged the great advancements Professor Baldwin had brought to Simmons.

Bruce Warren, from Simmons College, was a source for this incomplete section regarding Baldwin’s professional life. He is also the only one from Simmons to have kept in regular contact with Baldwin following retirement. Professor Baldwin hired Bruce to the college staff over 39 years ago and they have remained close friends. During his tenure under Woody he was promoted from his opening position as Assistant Professor of Business Management to Associate Professor. Warren since has progressed to Full Professor of Law and Management at Simmons. When the author of this sketch interviewed Bruce he commented, having seen the draft, that what was missing was the fact that, “Woody is the epitome of a gentleman.” Warren also wanted noted that Woody was a great mentor to young faculty. Professor Warren is the Faculty Senate President for 2010 and has taken on the task of correcting the historical record of Professor Baldwin’s accomplishments. The omissions on the web site regarding Professor Baldwin’s role in creating the MBA program at Simmons is another area Professor Warren is working to correct. It was Baldwin’s establishment of a committee to research development of an MBA program at Simmons that resulted in it’s eventual establishment in 1973. Baldwin appointed Warren, Henning (a Simmons Alumnus at Harvard) and others to look into creating the Program. True, it was Henning who ran with the ball, but it was Baldwin who set the game going and pointed the committee in the right direction.

Bruce Warren was appointed to be in charge of Baldwin’s retirement party and came to his office and asked if he minded if they invited Woody’s close personal friend Sean O’Neil to the party. (We’ll learn more about this long friendship in a short while.) Baldwin replied that he didn’t know whether O’Neill would come or not, but it would be all right with him if they asked him. And he did come. This was the first inkling Professor Baldwin had that anyone suspected he was in a relationship and he appreciated the discreet and respectful way the request was presented. As the retirement was in the early 1980’s there was considerably more tolerance for said relationships by that time. Nothing further was said or hinted concerning O’Neill’s attendance, who he was, or anything.

At the party, with the new department head’s persistence, O’Neil agreed to sing if she would sing with him. She said she would but only if the Simmons College President and his wife sang as well. The performance was hilarious, but O’Neil was the only one with a singing voice and the president’s wife was smashed. She said later it was the best retirement party she ever attended. It was there that the name “Unicorn” was applied to Woody when the past president of Simmons complimented Woody in his speech saying, “If there was an animal who embodied Woodrow’s qualities, that would have to be the Unicorn; a unique, rare, beautiful, and legendary creature.”

Baldwin’s Reading “Show Goers Group” gave a surprise party and he still has the silver punch bowl. The Lenox Singers also gave a retirement party and put on a small play, making fun of his years from childhood all the way to retirement. This was a very cleverly crafted show with the players taking parts from his years; one singing an amusing variation of “Little Town of Beth­lehem” as though he was a five year old in a church play and fidgeting about while picking his nose and so forth. One couple presented a sketch about his parents singing a mock song “Oh, I did Have a Baby.” and continuing with the song “What Name?” Woody remembers that one of the funnier lines was about the fact that “He’ll never get anywhere with a name like that!” The group had even managed to get a letter from the mayor of Dumas, Texas, where Baldwin was born, inviting him to come to Dumas and retire. This letter is also still with him. But, Woody Baldwin remains a very private person to this day. Finding even as much as you read here about his private life was a difficult task.

After retirement he gradually lost touch with folks from Simmons. One student with whom he remained in contact, Harriet Lee Elam-Thomas, went on to become the Ambassador to the Republic of Senegal and he was invited to attend her swearing in ceremony, and he did attend. In a related news article in the Simmons Review she credits Woodrow Baldwin, Director of the School of Business, as of particular note in shaping her professional aspirations. She was accepted to the “Experiment in International Living” program which she had initially declined because she did not have the money. With the help of Professor Baldwin, who arranged a $1000 scholarship from Boston businessmen, Harriet was able to spend the summer in Southern France. The experience whetted her appetite for Foreign Service work and propelled her into a distinguished and award-filled career. Baldwin was always very aware of the needs of others around him and made the extra effort to assist whenever possible. This creation of a connection between business associates and an aspiring student gives insight into the kind and thoughtful man now known as Woody. Harriet Lee Elam-Thomas was last heard from while living in Florida, and the Christmas cards ceased a few years prior to this writing. Woody has trouble sometimes understanding how he has out-lived so many people. All the older colleagues from there are gone, and all his associates at UCLA have also passed away.

Towards the end of his Simmons College career, after becoming chairman of the Council on Aging in his home town of Reading, MA, he began speaking about issues concerning aging and retirement. This focus had a significant influence on his second major post-retirement endeavor, as we will see later. At 60, Woodrow resigned his Deanship at Simmons, as he wanted to teach full time for the last five years of his career. He eventually retired early; in 1982 at age 62. For the following two years he had his “Woody’s Goodies” popcorn business and later launched his significant socially activist project.