Table of Contents
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Archives and Special Collections Finding Aids
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| Collection |
| Title: |
College of Computer Science
records |
| Dates: | 1971-2004 |
| Call Number: | A29 |
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Historical Note
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In 1979 President Kenneth G. Ryder encouraged incoming Provost Melvin Mark to create an administrative unit for computer science instruction. The problem of restructuring the extant interdisciplinary program was overcome with the aid of several consultants. The issue was territorial, with the theoretical aspect of the program linked to the Mathematics Department in the College of Arts and Sciences and the application aspect of the program linked to the College of Engineering. On 12 April 1982 the Faculty Senate, following a vigorous protest by the engineering faculty, resolved 25-10-3 to establish the first college in America devoted exclusively to computer science. The Board of Trustees approved the university's first new college in 17 years on 19 June 1982.
By Fall 1982, the college had a faculty of 11, including nine faculty members who volunteered from the College of Arts and Sciences Mathematics Department; significantly, no one volunteered from the College of Engineering. Paul Kalaghan became the first dean of the College of Computer Science in the summer of 1982. Nationwide recruitment brought an additional 12 faculty the next year and five the year after that for a total of 27 full-time faculty members. The undergraduate curriculum consists of computer languages, systems and networks, databases, graphics, and artificial intelligence.
The college established a graduate program, offering an M.S. in Computer Science, on 11 June 1984. A Ph.D. in Computer Science was approved by the Faculty Senate on 13 April 1987, and the first doctorate was awarded in 1989. The college was accredited in June 1986, leading to substantial grant funding, mostly in the areas of artificial intelligence, neural network imaging, and programmed language development. |
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| Bibliography |
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"Admissions Publications." A29, Box 2, Folders 6-7.
Frederick, Antoinette, "Northeastern University: Coming of Age: The Ryder Years, 1975-1989." Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1995. CALL NUMBER: LD4011.N22F732 1995 |
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