James Isbell Armstrong
Encyclopedia
James Isbell Armstrong is President Emeritus of Middlebury College
. Armstrong was appointed as Middlebury's 12th president in 1963 and served until 1975. Armstrong graduated from Princeton University
in 1941 and completed his Ph.D. there in 1949. He served as a professor of classics and Associate Dean without Portfolio at Princeton prior to his arrival at Middlebury.
Armstrong led Middlebury through the national political upheaval of the 1960s. On campus, student life for men and women were fully integrated for the first time. He created the month-long Winter Term which allows students to spend four weeks in January to enroll in one intensive course or pursue independent research or internships. Armstrong is credited with laying the groundwork for Middlebury's emergence as a nationally renowned institution, significantly growing the College's enrollment, endowment, and physical plant.
During Armstrong's tenure, the campus saw new styles of architecture reflecting changing national taste, including several controversial buildings. These include the Christian A. Johnson Memorial Building, the Science Center (demolished in 2001), and what has become known as Freeman International Center; all departed from the campus' traditional Georgian Revival style by adopting Brutalist architectural forms and exposed concrete.
Middlebury College
Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college located in Middlebury, Vermont, USA. Founded in 1800, it is one of the oldest liberal arts colleges in the United States. Drawing 2,400 undergraduates from all 50 United States and over 70 countries, Middlebury offers 44 majors in the arts,...
. Armstrong was appointed as Middlebury's 12th president in 1963 and served until 1975. Armstrong graduated from Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in 1941 and completed his Ph.D. there in 1949. He served as a professor of classics and Associate Dean without Portfolio at Princeton prior to his arrival at Middlebury.
Armstrong led Middlebury through the national political upheaval of the 1960s. On campus, student life for men and women were fully integrated for the first time. He created the month-long Winter Term which allows students to spend four weeks in January to enroll in one intensive course or pursue independent research or internships. Armstrong is credited with laying the groundwork for Middlebury's emergence as a nationally renowned institution, significantly growing the College's enrollment, endowment, and physical plant.
During Armstrong's tenure, the campus saw new styles of architecture reflecting changing national taste, including several controversial buildings. These include the Christian A. Johnson Memorial Building, the Science Center (demolished in 2001), and what has become known as Freeman International Center; all departed from the campus' traditional Georgian Revival style by adopting Brutalist architectural forms and exposed concrete.