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A Guide to the Records at the Indiana University Archives

Finding aid prepared by Crystal Matjasic.

Summary Information

Repository
Indiana University Archives
1320 East Tenth Street
Herman B Wells Library E460
Bloomington, IN 47405-7000
Phone: 812-855-1127
Email: archives@indiana.edu
http://www.libraries.iub.edu/archives

Creator
Indiana University.

Title
Indiana University Thailand Project records, 1953-1975,  bulk 1954-1962

Collection No.
C347

Extent
3 cubic feet (3 boxes)

Language
Materials are in English

Abstract
In 1954, the Indiana University School of Education partnered with the Prasan Mitr College of Education in Bangkok and the Thai Ministry of Education to develop programs in teacher education in Thailand. IU’s involvement in this area of the world expanded even further the following year when IU was contracted by the U.S. Foreign Operations Administration to assist in the development of an Institute of Public Administration at Thammasat University in Bangkok, Thailand. This collection consists of records created and collected by Willis Porter, Chief of the Party and later campus coordinator for the Thailand Project, and consists of correspondence, administrative files, reports, publications, and scrapbooks.

Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research. Advance notice required.

Administrative History

Willis Putnam Porter (1908-1985) received his B.A., M.A., and PhD from the University of Iowa. He joined the Indiana University faculty in 1954 as the Chief of the Party for the recently signed Thailand Contract. Porter remained in Thailand as head of the project and as a faculty member at the School of Education at Chulalongkorn University until 1957 when he returned to IU to serve as the campus coordinator of the Thailand Contract until 1962. From 1969-1972, Porter was on leave from IU to serve as special advisor to the National Education Council in Thailand for the Ford Foundation. He was instrumental in the development of the IU School of Education’s international education program and was associated with IU's Pakistan Project, the Afghanistan Project, and the Saudi Arabian Project. Porter retired in 1978.

In the 1950s, the United States government began to offer programs to developing nations to strengthen technology and governmental infrastructure. Contact between Indiana University and Thailand began in 1954 with an agreement between the IU School of Education, the Prasan Mitr College of Education in Bangkok, and the Thai Ministry of Education with funding from the U.S. Foreign Operations Administration to develop Thailand programs in teacher education. On May 3, 1955, IU was contracted to run the three year cooperative project between the University and Thailand's Thammasat University in Bangkok to establish an Institute of Public Administration. The primary objective was the formation of undergraduate and graduate education programs, and the establishment of facilities that would aid in the training of government officials and civil servants. The contract also provided aid for research programs, consultative services to the Thailand government, and training in the U.S. for Thai students. The contract was scheduled to terminate on February 24, 1958, but ultimately was extended for eight years.

Arrangement

Collection is organized into four series: Correspondence, Administrative files, Publications, and Scrapbooks.

Scope and Content Note

Records in this collection document the involvement of Indiana University's School of Education in developing teacher training programs in Thailand as well as the IU Department of Government's assistance in establishing an Institute of Public Administration at Thammasat University. Records were created or collection by Willis Porter, who served as the Chief of the Party and campus coordinator for the Thailand projects.

The Thailand Project records are organized into four series. The first series, Correspondence (1954-1967), is arranged alphabetically by folder title and includes correspondence with American participants, Thai participants, and the U.S. government. The "General correspondence" files include a wide variety of correspondence relating to funds, travel arrangements, and correspondence between Willis Porter and individuals interested in the program. Prominent correspondents include the governments of the United States and Thailand relating to contract details as well as correspondence with Harold Brinegar and Robert W. Richley, who succeeded Porter as Chief of the Party.

The second series, Administrative files, (1953-1975), is arranged alphabetically and includes files relating to the contracts, reports, and information for the Thailand participants. Prominent subjects include monthly and semi-annual reports on the activities of the Thailand Project, and materials relating to the development of the College of Education in Bangkok, Thailand.

The third series, Publications (1954-1957), is arranged alphabetically and consists of course catalogs and reports. Reports include those on the development of the College of Education in Bangkok and its role in Thailand’s national development.

The fourth series, Scrapbooks (1954-1960), is arranged alphabetically by folder title and includes articles and print materials collected by Porter relating to Thailand and the Thailand Project, such as publicity materials and articles on the activities and successes of the contract and IU's involvement.

• Indexing Terms

• The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in IUCAT, the IU Libraries' online catalog. Materials about related topics, persons or places can be found by searching the catalog using these terms.

• • Names
  • Porter, Willis P., 1908-1985.
  • Indiana University. Indiana University-Thammasat University Contract.
  • Mahawitthayalai Thammasat. Khana Ratthaprasasanasat.
  • Thailand. Krasuang Suksathikan.
• • Topics
  • Public Administration --Study and teaching --Thailand.
  • Teachers --Training of --Thailand.
  • University cooperation.
  • Educational exchanges --Thailand.
  • Educational exchanges --United States.

Separated Material

Material relating to security investigation data was removed and destroyed.

Administrative Information

Container List

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