Office of the President -- Dr. Helen Popovich, 1983-1989, bulk 1983-1989 5.00 boxes 2.5 linear feet Linear Feet
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Dr. Helen Popovich, our third university president, the first woman to be FAU president, and the first woman to head a public university in Florida. Dr. Popovich graduated from the University of Texas-El Paso and received her doctorate in English from the University of Kansas. During her tenure, the population of Southeast Florida flourished, and the opportunity for FAU to expand and include first- and second-year students was well-timed. By late Fall of 1983, the Board of Regents approved the measure, and by the following year, the first class of freshmen started at FAU. Dr. Popovich worked to increase the enrollment of African American and Hispanic students. Serving the FAU community, she oversaw the Reuben O' D. Askew University Tower opening in downtown Fort Lauderdale, where students and faculty worked alongside business and industry executives. Dr. Popovich diversified the faculty and staff by supporting the appointment of women to professoriate and administrative roles. By 1986, the Women's Studies Certificate Program was created. In 1989, her last year in office, FAU reached the critical milestone of $10 million in sponsored research. Dr. Popovich's records reflect her internal and external University responsibilities as chief administrative officer of the University. The records include correspondence, memoranda, reports, minutes, agendas, clippings, photographs, publications, and other materials created and compiled by the Office of the President.
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