Letter from Ned L. Smith to BGSU President William T. Jerome

6520 Brighton Drive
North Olmsted, Ohio
May 13, 1970

Mr. William T. Jerome, President
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green, Ohio

Dear Sir

I received your letter this date and must say that I was shocked and, in fact appalled that you would affix your signature to such a letter.

As far as I am concerned, your sole purpose as an educator is to see that the students receive the necessary instruction to complete the courses in their chosen field.

You apparently have chosen to take a stand with some students and faculty members at Bowling Green and involved yourself in political and social problems, thus resulting in, for all practical purposes, closing the university.

My son is a sophomore at Bowling Green and you are prolonging his earnest desire of obtaining an education. Incidentally, I am a graduate of Bowling Green and my views on Southeast Asia are that we should never have been there in the first place. I speak from practical experience as I spent two and a half years in that part of the world. However, I take particular offense that you would attempt to influence me in a letter of this type, when you should be exerting all your efforts to keeping the university open.

According to the newspapers you are closing the university. If this is true, let us be entirely honest and admit that it is because of fear of outside violence with which you cannot cope--not any particular desire for social reforms. You have the right to your own views, but express them on your own time and do not permit these views to interfer with your primary function, namely administration of what was a good university.

Sincerely yours

Ned L. Smith

Ned L. Smith

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