Sixty-Year Ride through the World of Education

Rudolph H. Weingartner emigrated to New York from Nazi Germany in 1939. He earned his doctorate in philosophy from Columbia University. His career as a teacher and scholar has included chairing three philosophy departments, serving as dean at Northwestern, and as provost at the University of Pittsburgh. He has written books and articles on numerous topics and has variously pursued his strong interests in music and art.

Rudy Weingartner takes us on a gentle but invigorating ride through the groves of academe. It is a journey that will be of interest to anyone who has worked in a university, and I think it will fascinate many of those for whom a university education has been an important experience. The book also speaks to the centrality of the humanities in the construction of our higher education. Finally, it will fascinate anyone interested in the Americanization of a talented immigrant boy who makes the most of the remarkable educational opportunities available in this country. It is a wonderful read.

• Part 1 PrefaceChapter 2 Volksschule in HeidelbergChapter 3 Expulsion and DepartureChapter 4 Two Schools in ManhattanPart 5 I: Some Thoughts About Elementary SchoolChapter 6 Brooklyn TechChapter 7 The Mechanical CoursePart 8 II: Concerning High School EducationChapter 9 Interlude in the NavyChapter 10 Freshman Year in ColumbiaPart 11 III: On Required Courses for UndergraduatesChapter 12 Mostly HumanitiesChapter 13 A Start in PhilosophyPart 14 IV: On Liberal EducationChapter 15 Not Studying AbroadChapter 16 Graduate School Is DifferentChapter 17 Out of School AgainChapter 18 All but DissertationChapter 19 Writing a DissertationPart 20 V: On Graduate Education in the HumanitiesChapter 21 Launched as a TeacherChapter 22 On Learning How to TeachChapter 23 An Adult in San FranciscoChapter 24 Teaching and WritingChapter 25 The Mission of Undergraduate TeachingChapter 26 Administration and PoliticsChapter 27 The Blowup at San Fransisco StateChapter 28 Vassar is DifferentChapter 29 Chairing Philosophy at VassarPart 30 The Peculiar Task of Chairing a DepartmentChapter 31 BMOCPart 32 IX: What Liberal Arts Colleges Are Good ForChapter 33 FellowshipsChapter 34 Publish or PerishChapter 35 Northwestern: Making ChangesChapter 36 Busy, BusyChapter 37 Out of the OfficeChapter 38 Institutional Coherence and IdentityPart 39 XI: The True Nature of Academic AdministrationChapter 40 Between School and SchoolChapter 41 On Searching for Academic AdministratorsChapter 42 Provost at Pitt, BrieflyChapter 43 DenouementPart 44 XIII: On the Tendency to Transform Universities into CorporationsChapter 45 My Last Philosophy DepartmentChapter 46 Now with a BangPart 47 XIV: Retirement as Institutional NecessityChapter 48 Out of School for GoodPart 49 EndnotesPart 50 Index