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| {{Infobox |
{{Infobox person | ||
| |name = Blake R. Van Leer | |name = Blake R. Van Leer | ||
| |image = Blake Ragsdale Van Leer.gif | |image = Blake Ragsdale Van Leer.gif | ||
| | order = 5th | |||
| |caption = | |caption = | ||
| | title = ] of the ] | |||
| | term_start = 1944 | |||
| | term_end = 1956 | |||
| | predecessor = ] | |||
| | successor = ] | |||
| | order1 = | |||
| | title1 = Dean of Engineering ] | |||
| | term_start1 = 1932 | |||
| | term_end1 = 1937 | |||
| | title2 = Dean of Engineering ] | |||
| | term_start2 = 1937 | |||
| | term_end2 = 1941 | |||
| |branch={{Army|United States}} | |||
| |rank=] Colonel | |||
| |serviceyears = 1917–1953 | |||
| |commands=] ] | |||
| | battles = ]<br />] | |||
| | alma_mater = ]<br />]<br />] | |||
| |awards=] | |||
| |office4 = ] | |||
| |term_start4 = 1924 | |||
| |term_end4 = 1932 | |||
| |birth_date = August 16, 1893 | |birth_date = August 16, 1893 | ||
| |birth_place = ] | |birth_place = ] | ||
| |death_date = {{Death date and age|1956|1|23|1893|8|16}} | |death_date = {{Death date and age|1956|1|23|1893|8|16}} | ||
| |death_place = Atlanta, Georgia | |death_place = Atlanta, Georgia | ||
| |occupation = ] and ] | |occupation = ] | ||
| | spouse = ] | |||
| | children = ], ], Samuel Van Leer | |||
| }} | }} | ||
| '''Blake Ragsdale Van Leer''' |
'''Blake Ragsdale Van Leer''' (August 16, 1893 – January 23, 1956) was the fifth president of ] from 1944 until his death. | ||
| ==Early life and education== | ==Early life and education== | ||
| Van Leer was born in ]. After his father's death in 1897 he lived in a ] Orphanage in ], ]. He graduated with honours from ] in 1915 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. In 1924 he married ] in ]. | |||
| Van Leer was born in ]. After his father's death in 1897 he became an orphan without family and grew up in an ] Orphanage in ]. The same orphanage was subject to a book by ], ''Twelve Mighty Orphans'' and later adapted into a film, '']'', in 2021. He graduated with honours from ] in 1915 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. After ], he studied at University of Caen in France and returned to Berkeley where he received an M.S. in mechanical engineering. He later received a second master's degree from Purdue. Van Leer would also receive two honorary doctorates from ] and Purdue. In 1924 he married women right's advocate ] in ]. He was awarded a traveling scholarship from ] to study at ]. In the 1920s Van Leer was a student and then professor at Berkley. At the time some of the brightest engineers such as ] taught or attended here. Later ] recruited Van Leer for his fellowship program, which sent promising students and professors to cutting edge hydraulic labs with a focus on exposing them to practices he believed would be useful in solving river problems.<ref>{{cite magazine|year=1937|title=Research and development in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers|url=https://usace.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16021coll4/id/177/rec/5386|magazine=Improving the Common Stock of Knowledge|pages=54}}</ref> While working for the ], he would invent the California pipe method for measuring water.<ref>{{cite magazine|year=1937|title=NC State Alumni News |url=https://ocr.lib.ncsu.edu/ocr/ua/ua010_200-001-bx0001-011-004/ua010_200-001-bx0001-011-004.pdf|magazine=NC State|pages=7}}</ref> Van Leer also served as a member of city council of ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1928-07-15/ed-1/seq-13/|title = Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, July 15, 1928, Image 13|date = 15 July 1928|page = 13}}</ref> Van Leer also co wrote the book Fifty Years’ Progress in Hydraulics with ] who created the ].<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.osti.gov/pages/servlets/purl/1339294|doi=10.1115/1.4033976|title=History of the Fluids Engineering Division|year=2016|last1=Cooper|first1=Paul|last2=Samuel Martin|first2=C.|last3=O'Hern|first3=Timothy J.|journal=Journal of Fluids Engineering|volume=138|issue=10}}</ref> In 1930 Van Leer also lobbied congress to fund a National Museum of Engineering and Industry.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/To_Establish_a_Commission_on_a_National/usNFAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=blake+%22van+leer%22&pg=PA21&printsec=frontcover|title = To Establish a Commission on a National Museum of Engineering and Industry. Hearing Before a Subcommittee... On S. 454. May 27, 1930. (71-2).|year = 1930}}</ref> | |||
| His daughter ] also became an engineer<ref name="life19620914">{{cite magazine|year=1962|title=Mother's an Engineer |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z00EAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA106&pg=PA102#v=onepage&q&f=true|magazine=Life|pages=102–106}}</ref> and college president. | |||
| ==Dean== | |||
| From 1932 to 1937 he was a Dean at the ].<ref>{{cite web|title=History of the ECE Department: 1930-1939|url=http://www.ece.ufl.edu/about/history/1930s.htm|publisher=UFL|access-date=2009-06-11|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100603131920/http://www.ece.ufl.edu/about/history/1930s.htm|archive-date=2010-06-03}}</ref> Van Leer was hired as Dean to expand the engineering program, oversee all applications for federal funding and chair the Advanced Planning Committee. During his tenure at Florida, he also worked with the Florida State Planning Board and directed a number of engineering institutes in the state. In 1937 he became the Dean of the School of Engineering at ]. While there he started the graduate program for engineering. Later, he was initiated as an honorary of the NCSU chapter of ] Professional Engineering Fraternity. In 1940 Van Leer was chairman of the ] and led the federal governments focus on research, prompting SPEE to form the Engineering College Research Association (ECRA), which was more concerned with research than SPEE had ever been. The ECRA spoke for most engineering researchers, sought federal funds, and collected and published information on academic engineering research.<ref>https://sites.asee.org/se/wp-content/uploads/sites/56/2021/01/1940.pdf {{Bare URL PDF|date=March 2022}}</ref> Around 1940, with the permission of ], Van Leer gave half his time towards the North Carolina Office for Defense orders. In 1942, Van Leer successfully encouraged NC State's first women to pursue an engineering degree, 4-5 women would enroll and the first women graduated in 1941. He was interviewed by ] and stated there was particular demand for more women engineers in the U.S Navy and most defense departments were starting considerably late on recruiting women engineers.<ref>{{cite web|title=Defense demands women engineers |url=https://digitalcommons.winthrop.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1036&context=thejohnsonian1940s|publisher=thejohnsonian|date=1942-03-20}}</ref> One of his first women engineering students ] became the ]'s first female engineer. He resigned his post as Dean later in 1942 to take a military leave.<ref>{{cite web|title=Guide to the North Carolina State University College of Engineering Annual Reports|url=http://library.ncsu.edu/findingaids/ua105_002/#History|publisher=NCSU|access-date=2009-06-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140425024348/http://library.ncsu.edu/findingaids/ua105_002/#History|archive-date=2014-04-25|url-status=dead}}</ref> | |||
| ==Dean and officer== | |||
| ==Officer== | |||
| From 1932 to 1937 he was a Dean at the ].<ref>{{cite web|title=History of the ECE Department: 1930-1939|url=http://www.ece.ufl.edu/about/history/1930s.htm|publisher=UFL|accessdate=2009-06-11|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100603131920/http://www.ece.ufl.edu/about/history/1930s.htm|archivedate=2010-06-03}}</ref> In 1937 he became the Dean of the School of Engineering at ]. While there he initiated as an honorary of the NCSU chapter of ] Professional Engineering Fraternity. Around 1940, with the permission of ], Van Leer gave half his time towards the North Carolina Office for Defense orders. He resigned his post as Dean in 1942 to take a military leave.<ref>{{cite web|title= Guide to the North Carolina State University College of Engineering Annual Reports|url=http://library.ncsu.edu/findingaids/ua105_002/#History|publisher=NCSU|accessdate=2009-06-11}}</ref> | |||
| Van Leer's military career started with his appointment as second Lieutenant Engineer in the ] for the ] in July 1917. He was promoted after ] and became a Captain. During the war, he led engineering teams who built bridges in front of the main infantry to cross rivers and fought in 5 different battles. On one occasion his unit held an island for two days against enemy forces and several members of his unit were killed in action.<ref name="google.com">{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Full_Committee_Hearings_on_Universal_Mil/lNdEAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=world+war++Blake+%22Van+Leer%22&pg=PA4333&printsec=frontcover|title=Full Committee Hearings on Universal Military Training|year=1947|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office}}</ref> Van Leer was awarded the French ].<ref>{{cite web|title=History of the ECE Department: 1930-1939|url=https://issuu.com/gtalumni/docs/1944_22_4_8f851169a7a6f9|publisher=Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine|access-date=2013-07-09}}</ref> He was reappointed in 1925 as a Major for the ] and later became Lieutenant Colonel in October 1942 for the Army Specialized Training Division. At a hearing with congress, Van Leer defended Admiral ]'s plan for training and education for naval officers.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GSUtv6QbNI0C&dq=Princeton+University+Blake+%22Van+Leer%22&pg=PA3222 | title=Hearings | last1=House | first1=United States. Congress | year=1947 }}</ref> ] the following year and would later be appointed to the visitor board of the ] by President ].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Annual_register_of_the_United_States_Naval_Academy_%28IA_annualregisterof1011unit%29.pdf |title=Naval Academy visitor board | access-date=June 7, 2015}}</ref> Van Leer would remained active during several periods of his life, until he retired in 1953.<ref>{{cite web|title= Georgia Tech Library|url=https://finding-aids.library.gatech.edu/repositories/2/resources/445}}</ref> While being stationed in DC, he was a lecturer at ]. While in active duty, he frequently lobbied congress for Universal Military Training due to its positive results on youth.<ref name="google.com"/> | |||
| During the war he served as a ] officer (attaining the rank of ]), after which he returned to lead the school. | |||
| ==Georgia Tech== | ==Georgia Tech== | ||
| ]]] | ]]] | ||
| After ] he returned to become the President of ]. During his tenure the school admitted women for the first time<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Women: 30 Years at Tech|magazine=Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine|publisher=]|volume=58|number=1|year=1982|pages=9–13}}</ref> and began steps toward integration.<ref name="ens282">]</ref> He stood up to Georgia governor ]'s demand to bar ] from participating in the 1956 ] game between Georgia Tech and Grier's ]. He was also instrumental in making the school and Atlanta the first major research center in the ]. The building that houses Tech's school of ] bears his name.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ece.gatech.edu/about/ece-buildings|title=Campus Map: Van Leer Building|accessdate=2007-05-20}}</ref> | |||
| After ] Van Leer returned to become the President of ]. During his tenure the school, significantly expanded Georgia Tech, admitted women for the first time and began steps toward integration. Tech also became the largest engineering institute in the South and the third largest in the US and Canada.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Women: 30 Years at Tech|magazine=Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine|publisher=]|volume=58|number=1|year=1982|pages=9–13}}</ref><ref name="ens282">]</ref> Women being admitted to colleges and male dominated fields was a topic of debate in the 1950s. Van Leer advocated for women to join tech in 1948 and was met with immediate resistance by local officials. The board objected with concerns that women may suggest dress making classes or seek out husbands instead of serious careers. Van Leer stated he had been associated with coeducational institutions all his life and felt it wrong to discriminate against a student just because she's a woman. He began allowing women to enroll in night school and extension courses while waiting for the board of regents to vote.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Removing_Barriers/4ne1eNyUnwwC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=blake+%22van+leer%22&pg=PA48&printsec=frontcover|isbn=9780253111739|title=Removing Barriers: Women in Academic Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics|date=20 March 2006|publisher=Indiana University Press}}</ref> Following a failed attempt, In 1952 Van Leer narrowly pushed through a vote to allow women into Georgia Tech and his wife Ella would compliment this victory with setting up support groups for future female engineers. The victory would be met with protests from locals and media, The Atlanta Constitution ran a cartoon showing lingerie drying on clothesline from the main campus tower.<ref name=chambliss>{{cite news|last=Chambliss|first=John|title=Maryly Van Leer Peck, Former PCC President, Dies at 81|url=http://www.theledger.com/article/20111104/NEWS/111109708|access-date=26 March 2018|newspaper=TheLedger.com|date=November 4, 2011|archive-date=23 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223080116/http://www.theledger.com/article/20111104/NEWS/111109708|url-status=dead}}</ref> Van Leer would later advocate women be allowed in other colleges while urging more women to become engineers at various conferences.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1955/01/24/83349730.html?pageNumber=26|title=Pay in Engineering Viewed as Lagging}}</ref> | |||
| === Atlanta and Georgia Tech growth === | |||
| Van Leer also had a focus on making Atlanta the "] of the South."<ref>{{cite journal | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40581436 | title=Engineering the New South: Georgia Tech, 1885–1985 | journal=The Georgia Historical Quarterly | jstor=40581436 | access-date=2020-11-29| last1=Hair | first1=William I. | year=1985 | volume=69 | issue=4 | pages=509–517 }}</ref> In the mid 1940s, Van Leer was a member of the ] and also represented 10 Georgia colleges at the time, where he lobbied congress to not tear down student housing after the war and instead expand it.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Diposition_of_Temporary_War_Housing_Hear/gXHHvOPcqSMC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=blake+%22van+leer%22&pg=PA29&printsec=frontcover|title = Diposition of Temporary War Housing. Hearings ... On H.R. 5710 and H.R. 5022|year = 1948}}</ref> In 1946 Van Leer was appointed as a member to ] who had a focus to work against racism through influential ] starting with a declaration of anthropologists (among them was ]) and other scientists in 1950<ref>{{cite web |url = http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001269/126969eb.pdf |title = UNESCO. (1950). Statement by experts on race problems. Paris, 20 July 1950. UNESCO/SS/1. UNESDOC database |access-date = 8 June 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120407030543/http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001269/126969eb.pdf |archive-date = 7 April 2012 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Summary_Minutes_of_Meeting/3N_KlLQISQMC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=blake+%22van+leer%22&pg=PA35&printsec=frontcover|title=Summary Minutes of Meeting|year=1956|publisher=United States National Commission for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.}}</ref> Georgia Tech secured about $240,000 annually in sponsored research and purchased an ] for $13,000 ({{Inflation|US|13000|1946|r=-4|fmt=eq|cursign=$}}), the first such instrument in the ] and one of few in the United States at the time.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://smartech.gatech.edu/handle/1853/26051|title=New Microscope For Experiment Installed at Tech|work=]|date=1946-01-19|access-date=2010-01-26}}</ref> In May 1946 Van Leer lobbied government and business for funds for new facilities. The Research Building was expanded, and a $300,000 ({{Inflation|US|300000|1947|r=-6|fmt=eq|cursign=$}}) ] ] was given to Georgia Tech by ] in 1947.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gtri.gatech.edu/gtri75/our-75-years/ees-installs-"electro-mechanical-brain"|title=EES Installs "Electro-Mechanical Brain"|publisher=]|access-date=2010-01-26}}{{Dead link|date=June 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> A new $2,000,000 library was completed, new Textile and Architecture buildings completed and at the time the most modern gymnasium in the world was built.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://hnoc.minisisinc.com/thnoc/catalog/3/15417|title=THNOC Online Catalog}}</ref> In 1953, Van Leer assisted with helping ] establish a ] and production line in Marietta. Later in 1955 he helped set up a committee to assist with establishing a nuclear research facility, which would later become the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://web.stanford.edu/dept/HPS/TimLenoir/SiliconValley99/ScientificAtlanta.pdf |work=Stanford|title=THE CASE OF SCIENTIFIC ATLANTA|author=Richard S Combes|date=1999-02-26}}</ref> When the ] ruled that all money received in a year had to be spent that year; this was problematic because most government contracts span multiple years. Van Leer created a solution, a non-profit corporation that would manage contracts for research services and subsequently hire the Engineering Experiment Station to perform the research. The new organization would also handle patents garnered through research, and distribute funds garnered from contracts and patents as needed.<ref name="growth">{{cite web|url=http://www.gtri.gatech.edu/gtri75/our-75-years/solution-long-term-growth|title=A Solution to Long-Term Growth|publisher=]|access-date=2010-01-26}}</ref> Van Leer was instrumental in making the school and Atlanta the first major research center in the ]. Van Leer was also chairman of the ] where he helped increase international trade by almost 200 percent from Georgia while the country as a whole was down 5 percent. His plan for this was to continue to encourage foreign students to enroll. At the time as many as 250 students from other countries have graduated.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1954/11/27/84440679.html?pageNumber=29|title=GEORGIA REPORTS WORLD TRADE RISE; District Leads All Others in Southeast in Rate of Gain on Value of Goods Shipped}}</ref> The building that houses Tech's school of ] bears his name.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ece.gatech.edu/about/ece-buildings|title=Campus Map: Van Leer Building|access-date=2007-05-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/30/sports/how-to-get-to-bowl-games-and-then-win-them.html |work=New York Times|title=Bobby Dodd Interview|author=Bobby Dodd|date=1984-12-30}}</ref> | |||
| === 1956 Sugar Bowl === | |||
| {{see also|History of Georgia Tech#Sugar Bowl controversy}} | |||
| During the lead-up to one of the most important college football games in history, Van Leer stood up to Georgia governor ]'s demand to bar ] from participating in the ] game. This game was between Van Leer's ] and Grier's ]. In anticipation of Grier's presence against Georgia Tech, Georgia governor ], in December 1955, publicly sent a telegram to his state's Board of Regents imploring that teams from Georgia not engage in racially integrated events which had blacks either as participants or in the stands. Van Leer rejected this request, which was not a stand to serve him well in the 1950s. Van Leer was already catching heat for pushing through a vote to allow women in Georgia Tech. The board of regents commended Griffin for his stand on segregation and summoned Van Leer to discuss recent events and if the game should go through<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.jbhe.com/latest/news/1-12-06/gtech.html|title=A Half Century Ago, Georgia Tech Made a Racial Stand That Changed College Football Forever}}</ref> He was quoted: {{blockquote | |||
| |text=Either we’re going to the Sugar Bowl or you can find yourself another damn president of Georgia Tech. | |||
| }}Griffin would later request that Van Leer and Georgia Tech's players be punished. Governor requested investigations into the president's school and another state representative John P Drinkard recommended that all of Georgia Tech's state funding be cut off if they proceed. Van Leer also received death about allowing an integrated game to proceed.<ref>https://nationalblackguide.com/article/blake-van-leer-iii-and-rob-grier-jr-announce-future-film-project-bowl-game-armageddon.html</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/sheboygan-press-dec-05-1955-p-18/|title = Sheboygan Press Newspaper Archives, Dec 5, 1955, p. 18|date = 5 December 1955}}</ref> Van Leer still stuck to his statements and later received a standing ovation from the faculty senate.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fromtherumbleseat.com/2019/11/14/20914927/rearview-revisited-segregation-and-the-sugar-bowl-georgia-tech-pittsburgh-bobby-grier-1955-1956-game |publisher=Georgia Tech|title=Rearview Revisited: Segregation and the Sugar Bowl|author=Jake Grantl|date=2019-11-14|access-date=2019-11-14}}</ref> Two weeks after the game, Van Leer died of a heart attack on January 24, 1956 at the Atlanta Veterans Hospital.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=]|title=Blake Van Leer, Educator, Dead; Georgia Tech President Was 62—Barred Cancellation of Bowl Game Over Negro Hailed by Faculty Basketball Game Off|date=January 24, 1956}}</ref> The story is currently being produced by Van Leer's grandson and Bobby's son Rob Grier.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nationalblackguide.com/article/blake-van-leer-iii-and-rob-grier-jr-announce-future-film-project-bowl-game-armageddon.html |publisher=National Black Guide|title=Film Project|author=Jake Grantl|date=2021-03-15|access-date=2021-03-15}}</ref> | |||
| ==Southern Polytechnic State University== | |||
| ] | |||
| Van Leer founded ] which merged into ] in 2015.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Kennesaw State and Southern Polytechnic Will Consolidate {{!}} Communications {{!}} University System of Georgia|url=https://www.usg.edu/news/release/kennesaw_state_and_southern_polytechnic_will_consolidate|access-date=2021-11-23|website=www.usg.edu}}</ref> After World War II, the need for technicians spiked due to a major economic shift in Georgia from being a largely agricultural state to one that is more industry heavy.<ref>The Macon Telegraph, 3 March 1948</ref> The new industries required technicians to bridge the growing gap between engineers and craftsmen, effectively the gap between research/development and building/implementing. At the time, most technical institutes in the United States were in the northeastern states; thus the need for a technical institute in the south was great.<ref>W. L. Hughes, "A Brief Chronology of the Technical Institute Movement in America." The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), 1947.</ref> | |||
| In response to the growing demand, the president of the ], Colonel Blake R. Van Leer, sought to establish a technical institute program in Georgia. In 1945 he was approached by the ] (AIG) who shared their common desire to have such a program and offered Van Leer their support. It took years for Van Leer to convince the Board of Regents to give Georgia Tech authorization to establish a technical institute. On October 8, 1947 the authorization was granted. The location chosen for the fledgling institute was a Naval Air Station in Chamblee, GA, which eventually became the site of ].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://soar.kennesaw.edu/bitstream/handle/11360/1974/sp-51-03-spsuhist-20161026.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|title=Southern Polytechnic State University: The History|last=Bennett|first=Richard A.|publisher=Southern Polytechnic State University Foundation|year=1998}}</ref>{{Rp|1}} The first director was to be Professor Lawrence V. Johnson, and it was going to open under the name of '''The Technical Institute'''.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|4}} On March 24, 1948 The Technical Institute held registration for the spring quarter and 116 students enrolled (all but 10 World War II veterans), including one young woman named Barbara Hudson.<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|19,23}}<ref name=":1">{{cite web|url=http://engineering.kennesaw.edu/about/history.php|title=KSU {{!}} Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology - History|website=engineering.kennesaw.edu|language=en|access-date=2018-01-09}}</ref> The institute had a staff of 12.<ref name=":1" /> | |||
| ==Legacy== | |||
| Long after his death, Van Leer continues to be remembered through scholarships awards, a building that bears his name, sculptures, The 1956 Sugar Bowl, frequent stories about his tenure featured on various online news channels and his descendants.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fromtherumbleseat.com/2019/3/7/18253770/rearview-mirror-new-institute-order-blake-van-lear-georgia-tech-president-world-war-two-build-money|title=Rearview Mirror: New Institute Order|date=7 March 2019|access-date=2019-03-07}}</ref> Van Leer's son Samuel was quoted years later in the book saying his dad Could imagine a Ramblin Reck from Georga Tech being anyone, he did not concern himself with race or gender, just quality students and he was always progressive.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Women_and_Science_17th_Century_to_Presen/oAgrBwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1|title=Women and Science, 17th Century to Present: Pioneers, Activists and Protagonists|last=Andreolle|first=Donna Spalding|publisher=Cambridge Scholars|year=1970|isbn=9781443830676}}</ref> Unbeknown to Van Leer, his wife did a great deal of genealogy research due to him being an orphan and traced his roots to the ] and ], whose surname was used for ]'s identity and also an orphan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/06/19/batmans-real-name-fused-scottish-royalty-with-an-american-revolutionary-war-hero/|title=Batman's real name fused Scottish royalty with an American Revolutionary War hero|date=June 19, 2017}}</ref> | |||
| *The Van Leer Building on the Georgia Tech campus is dedicated to him. | |||
| *Artist ] sculpted a portrait plaque to honor his stance against Governor Griffin.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Atlanta_s_Public_Art/YE5FEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=blake+%22van+leer%22&pg=PA41&printsec=frontcover|isbn=9781467107396|title=Atlanta's Public Art|date=25 October 2021|publisher=Arcadia}}</ref> | |||
| Many of Van Leer's descendants would achieve notable careers in engineering, academia and or technology, e.g.: | |||
| Blake Ragsdale Van Leer had died of a heart attack on January 24, 1956 at the Atlanta Veterans Hospital.<ref>{{cite news|newspaper=]|title=Blake Van Leer, Educator, Dead; Georgia Tech President Was 62--Barred Cancellation of Bowl Game Over Negro Hailed by Faculty Basketball Game Off|date=January 24, 1956}}</ref> | |||
| *] (1930–2011), was an American academic, and the first female President of a Florida Community College, first female chemical engineer graduate from ], first woman to receive an M.S. and a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the ]. Peck also founded the ] | |||
| *] (1926–1997), held several prominent positions in the ] as a Captain, engineer and ].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fIJZKUQ6I7gC&q=Captain+Blake+Van+Leer+navy&pg=RA3-PA4|title=Navy Civil Engineer, Volumes 11-12|access-date=2020-02-03|date=1970-04-14}}</ref> He received a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from ], a Civil Engineering degree from ] and a Master's degree in Civil Engineering from ].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://finding-aids.library.gatech.edu/repositories/2/resources/445=false|title=Biography of Van Leer Family}}{{Dead link|date=June 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> | |||
| **Blake Van Leer II also became a civil engineer, developed waste transfer facilities, recycling facilities and waste to energy projects<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1995-07-16-1995197094-story.html|title=Baltimore Sun}}</ref> | |||
| ***Blake Van Leer III holds a successful career as an entrepreneur, investor and is a partner with business mogul ] on numerous companies. Van Leer III also supports Society of Women Engineers and campaigns to encourage women get involved with tech through Dream Fearlessly campaigns sponsored by AmFam and Amazon<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wraltechwire.com/2019/11/18/kathy-ireland-signs-on-with-charlotte-startup-real-estate-platform/|title=WRAL TechWire|date=18 November 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/inno/stories/profiles/2019/08/06/how-padlist-wants-to-make-finding-the-right-place.html|title=Business Journals}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/blake-van-leer-speak-miami-135200396.html | title=Blake van Leer to Speak at the Miami eCommerce Summit }}</ref> | |||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
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| ==Works cited== | ==Works cited== | ||
| *{{cite book|author=Robert C. McMath |
*{{cite book|author=]|author2=Ronald H. Bayor|author3=James E. Brittain|author4=Lawrence Foster|author5=August W. Giebelhaus|author6=Germaine M. Reed|title=Engineering the New South: Georgia Tech 1885–1985|publisher=]|location=Athens, GA|isbn=0-8203-0784-X|year=1985|ref=McM}} | ||
| *{{cite book|author=United States Bureau of Reclamation|author-link=United States Bureau of Reclamation|title=Measurement of Water for Irrigation Projects|publisher=]|location=Denver, CO|year=1953|ref=McM}} | |||
| ==External links== | ==External links== | ||
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| * from library | * from library | ||
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Revision as of 16:10, 1 July 2022
| Blake R. Van Leer | |
|---|---|
| File:Blake Ragsdale Van Leer.gif | |
| Born | August 16, 1893 Mangum, Oklahoma |
| Died | January 23, 1956(1956-01-23) (aged 62) Atlanta, Georgia |
| Occupation | University president |
Blake Ragsdale Van Leer (August 16, 1893 – January 23, 1956) was the fifth president of Georgia Institute of Technology from 1944 until his death.
Early life and education
Van Leer was born in Mangum, Oklahoma. After his father's death in 1897 he lived in a Masonic Orphanage in Galveston, Texas. He graduated with honours from Purdue University in 1915 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. In 1924 he married Ella Lillian Wall in Berkeley, California.
His daughter Maryly V. Peck also became an engineer and college president.
Dean and officer
From 1932 to 1937 he was a Dean at the University of Florida. In 1937 he became the Dean of the School of Engineering at NC State University. While there he initiated as an honorary of the NCSU chapter of Theta Tau Professional Engineering Fraternity. Around 1940, with the permission of Dean Harrelson, Van Leer gave half his time towards the North Carolina Office for Defense orders. He resigned his post as Dean in 1942 to take a military leave. During the war he served as a U.S. Army officer (attaining the rank of Colonel), after which he returned to lead the school.
Georgia Tech
After World War II he returned to become the President of Georgia Tech. During his tenure the school admitted women for the first time and began steps toward integration. He stood up to Georgia governor Marvin Griffin's demand to bar Bobby Grier from participating in the 1956 Sugar Bowl game between Georgia Tech and Grier's University of Pittsburgh. He was also instrumental in making the school and Atlanta the first major research center in the American South. The building that houses Tech's school of Electrical and Computer Engineering bears his name.
Blake Ragsdale Van Leer had died of a heart attack on January 24, 1956 at the Atlanta Veterans Hospital.
See also
References
- "Mother's an Engineer". Life. 1962. pp. 102–106.
- "History of the ECE Department: 1930-1939". UFL. Archived from the original on 2010-06-03. Retrieved 2009-06-11.
- "Guide to the North Carolina State University College of Engineering Annual Reports". NCSU. Retrieved 2009-06-11.
- "Women: 30 Years at Tech". Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine. Vol. 58, no. 1. Georgia Tech Alumni Association. 1982. pp. 9–13.
- McMath, p.282
- "Campus Map: Van Leer Building". Retrieved 2007-05-20.
- "Blake Van Leer, Educator, Dead; Georgia Tech President Was 62--Barred Cancellation of Bowl Game Over Negro Hailed by Faculty Basketball Game Off". The New York Times. January 24, 1956.
Works cited
- Robert C. McMath; Ronald H. Bayor; James E. Brittain; Lawrence Foster; August W. Giebelhaus; Germaine M. Reed (1985). Engineering the New South: Georgia Tech 1885–1985. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press. ISBN 0-8203-0784-X.
External links
- Van Leer family genealogy
- GIT profile from library
- Georgia Tech celebrates 50 years of women
- Official Army Register - 1956
| Presidents of Georgia Tech | |
|---|---|
# denotes interim president |