Heritage & History
- Milton G. Bassin
- 1966-1971
Dean of the College, Milton Bassin was named dean-in-charge, following the resignation of Acting President Murray Block in 1965. The following year he was selected from among 31 candidates as the College’s new president.
Bassin received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from City College in 1944 and his master’s degree from Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn in 1954. He began his career in higher education as an instructor in the original institute’s Department of Mechanical Technology in 1948, at age 23. From this position he rose to serve as chair of the Department of Mathematics and then to his first administrative post as associate dean of the College in 1964.
His administration dealt with the vast changes and unrest occurring both on campus and throughout the larger society as a result of the Vietnam War, the introduction of African-American and Latin-American Studies programs on campus, and the institution of Open Admissions across The City University of New York system. The period also saw the introduction and rapid expansion of the College’s Division of Continuing Education and its Adult Learning Center. In 1971, as he prepared to move on to become president of York College, Bassin oversaw the initial steps in the takeover of the Manhattan-based Voorhees Technical Institute.
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