1947

July 28. The executive committee met because President Luther N. Duncan had died two days earlier. They appointed Ralph Brown Draughon executive officer of the board of trustees until the full board could met. Draughon already was serving as secretary.

August 11. Draughon presented a statement regarding the qualifications for the new president which had been prepared by the academic faculty and the staff of the Extension Service and Experiment Station. The new president should have "the highest degree of personal integrity...profoundly based on Christian principles." Both he and his wife should "possess the social graces appropriate to the position." It would be "highly desirable" for the president to hold a Ph.D. degree, "or its earned equivalent," and that his own research should have "made meritorious contributions to knowledge." He should have broad experience as an academic administrator at a state-assisted university, understand the importance of teaching, research, and extension, and "the courage to take a positive and intelligent stand on important current moral and social issues." Draughon also presented a similar statement prepared by student leaders, which called for a president who was both an educator and administrator and who had "no political history or aspirations." The board selected Draughon as acting president. Berta Dunn became acting secretary of the board.

1948

October 1. Ralph Brown Draughon was unanimously elected president of the Alabama Polytechnic Institute as of this date.

1949

June 3. President Draughon called the board's attention to a policy approved and recorded in the minutes of November 21, 1947. This policy prohibited the support of any political candidate or partisan issue by API or any of its divisions, schools, or departments.

1953

January 9. The board discussed the need for screening faculty prior to appointment to prevent "the admission of subversives...or sexually perverted persons."

October 30. The post-war enrollment boom had caused API to request additional funds for on-campus instruction at the past session of the legislature. They thought they had coordinated this request with officials at the University of Alabama, but Tuscaloosa opposed the Auburn request and it did not pass. Apparently, some members of the legislature wanted to support Auburn, but did not want to become involved in a political battle over the matter.

1954

June 7. President Draughon reported on the recent decision of the United States Supreme Court regarding the constitutionality of segregated schools. He suggested that Auburn adopt a wait-and-see approach to this question, but noted that the school did not currently have any applications for admission from black students.

1956

February 15. President Draughon reported that Auburn had no applications from black students. Should one be received, the board would meet to discuss what action should be taken. He stated that the administration and board supported segregation and would defend its legality. Draughon further stated that every American citizen had a right to protest actions of the government, but he condemned violence.

1959

June 1. The board resolved that "Auburn--Alabama Land Grant University" would be a fitting name for the institution.

October 30. The board resolved that the name of the Alabama Polytechnic Institute be changed to Auburn University effective January 1, 1960, in accordance with act number 332 passed by the Alabama legislature on October 30, 1959.

1961

June 5. A Plainsman editorial on race relations created a disturbance on campus and violated what President Draughon stated as university policy on this matter: to preserve an atmosphere of free thought by avoiding incidents which would provoke "extremists" on either side of the issue. The board passed a resolution which required the editors of the Student Publications Board to advise the Dean of Student Affairs regarding "editorial or news items of public affairs having a bearing on the good name of Auburn University."

1962

November 9. The board met in executive session to discuss "what happened in Mississippi," especially because they had been told that the United States government would "not wait as long to send troops to Alabama as they did to Mississippi." Draughon said that, for the past ten years, Auburn had tried to avoid receiving an application from a qualified black candidate. If they did receive such an application, they could fight it through the legal system, but it probably would be "rammed down our throats."

1963

July 17. The board met for an "informal" meeting in Montgomery with Governor George C. Wallace. President Draughon announced that the purpose of the meeting was to discuss "the current situation with reference to Negro applicants." Since 1954, Auburn had received only 13 inquiries from black students "that were serious enough to cause...concern." None of these applicants ever completed the procedure. Draughon believed that this could not continue. He preferred to select a black student to break the color barrier at Auburn, but the board's policy was to avoid desegregation as long as possible and then to fight it in court. Most of all, Draughon wanted to avoid a public spectacle, which he thought had harmed other southern universities immeasurably. Trustee Samford called attention to a catalog statement which said Auburn "would never permit any Negro to register" until the school had "court orders to admit him." Governor Wallace agreed with the statement. He also said that, when the time came, law and order would be kept.

August 30. The registrar and the dean of the graduate school had been served with a summons and complaint regarding the admission of a black student. The board adopted a unanimous motion to exhaust all legal means to prevent the applicant from entering school and to carry the case to a higher court, if necessary. Governor Wallace was in touch by telephone during the meeting and indicated his support of this policy.

November 26. The board met in the governor's office to discuss preservation of the peace when on January 2, 1964, Harold Franklin, a black student, would be admitted to Auburn University. Auburn had tried to prevent Franklin's registration on the grounds that his undergraduate degree was from an unaccredited institution, but would not disrupt "the program and purpose" of the institution by defying a court decree. Governor Wallace said he would not "stand in the [school house] door, but he could not furnish a state bodyguard for Franklin while he was on campus. He would, however, "use whatever force might be necessary to keep anyone from being hurt." If violence broke out, Franklin might be removed from the campus. The governor went on record as being opposed to Franklin's admission and the board had not voted to admit him. His admission was the result of a federal court decree.

1964

November 6. Governor Wallace called for an executive session to hear the report of the screening committee he appointed to seek Ralph Brown Draughon's successor to the presidency of Auburn University.

1965

May 5. Frank P. Samford, chair of the presidential screening committee, nominated Harry M. Philpott as president of Auburn University. Trustees Bamberg and Pace voted against Philpott, who was nevertheless elected by the board.

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