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Leadership in 1949

NCFR President Ernest Osborne

Ernest Osborne

1 Leave a comment on paragraph 1 0 Ernest G. Osborne became President of NCFR and held that post until the summer of 1950. Osborne (whose nickname was “Lank”) served through three Annual Conferences and was highly regarded as a family life educator at Teachers College of Columbia University, NY. He wrote a syndicated column called Family Scrapbook, which was popular. He died in 1963.

2 Leave a comment on paragraph 2 0 The following is an excerpt from Osborne’s Presidential Address:

3 Leave a comment on paragraph 3 0 There are many indications to give substance to the belief that one of the outstanding current sociological phenomena is the rapid acceleration of popular interest in the socio-psychological aspects of marriage and the family. . . 632 of the 1270 colleges replying to a questionnaire reported they were offering courses in marriage and/or family life. The growth in the numbers of such courses in the secondary field, though no such figures are available, is likewise striking. . .several of the youth-serving agencies have been giving considerable attention to marriage and family life emphases in their programs. . . Not only the number but the quality of articles on phases of marriage and family life appearing in national magazines and newspapers is noteworthy. The radio industry, though as yet failing to have found any thoroughly effective approaches to programs in the field, continues to experiment. . . we who work professionally in the field are faced with a tremendous challenge if we are to be at all adequate to the demand.

4 Leave a comment on paragraph 4 0 In 1949, Evelyn Millis Duvall had functioned not as Executive Secretary but as a consultant to NCFR. Alice Starr was named “assistant secretary,” but there was no permanent position of leadership at the headquarters. In preparation for the 1949 conference and Board meetings, Dr. Duvall prepared a “Headquarters Service Report for 1949” to show that she had continued to work very hard on NCFR’s behalf. This was later published in Marriage and Family Living (MFL), Vol. 12, No. 1, p. 18.

5 Leave a comment on paragraph 5 0 This report detailed Duvall‘s activities of the immediate year, some of which included finding employment and schools for more than 303 students and scholars who needed interpretation of research findings; consulting to 65 national, state, and local affiliates on policy and procedures of marriage and family offerings and agencies; assisting 181 colleges and community agencies in finding qualified personnel, resources, and curricula for marriage and family life; assisting authors and publishers in providing data, resources, and critical reading of manuscripts; assisting administrators and teachers in developing course curricula, syllabi, and class offerings in marriage and family education; serving counseling centers and clinics on standards and procedures, referral sources, and personnel; assisting in placing over 90 professionals in various family fields using vitae on file at headquarters; answering over 991 requests for reprints of articles, pamphlets, reports, and so on, at cost for exhibits and meetings; making 19 trips to state affiliates; and working to increase NCFR membership to close to 3,000 by 1949. Her report on the finances indicated that NCFR closed the year with a small surplus attained from paying no executive salary in the years of 1946, 1947, and 1948. Students were used as office help on an hourly basis.

6 Leave a comment on paragraph 6 0 Duvall recommended the following actions to be taken by the Board and officers of NCFR:

  1. 7 Leave a comment on paragraph 7 0
  2. Clarify national and state relationships to strengthen the organization and start an adequate program of  joint financing.
  3. Give the national committees more continuity through permanent membership in sections or through working projects carried on throughout the year, with modest financing if needed.
  4. Shift membership recruitment from the national group to the state affiliates.
  5. Strengthen MFL with an active editorial committee and special issues, regular departments, national committee project reports, and closer ties with membership.
  6. Pre-plan the Annual Conference responsibilities well ahead of time. Use a geographical rotation system; encourage functional committee cooperation with member needs and interests considered as primary values.
  7. Set financial policies on the basis of jobs needing to be done and needs of the organization.

8 Leave a comment on paragraph 8 0 New officers of NCFR for 1950 were as follows:

  • 9 Leave a comment on paragraph 9 0
  • President: Ernest G. Osborne
  • Secretary: Lena Levine
  • Treasurer: Max Rheinstein
  • Vice Presidents: Emily Hartshorn Mudd, Msgr. John O’Grady, and Katherine Taylor,
  • Editor, MFL: Gladys Groves
  • Associate Editor, MFL: Reuben Hill

10 Leave a comment on paragraph 10 0 Ernest Burgess finished the first issue of that volume of MFL, and Groves and Hill then did the rest.

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