Speeches

An initiative that began in 2017, the University Archives has begun to digitize items from the Historical Audio Recordings collection and other collections. We have sorted these recordings into four categories: Lectures and Presentations, Oral Histories, Performances and Speeches. Many of these recordings in the category of Speeches are related to Eastern Michigan University faculty, staff, and events occurring on campus, e.g. building dedications, retirements, and award ceremonies. The bulk of content from this collection is from the 1960s and 70s.

Printing is not supported at the primary Gallery Thumbnail page. Please first navigate to a specific Image before printing.

Switch View View Slideshow

Hannah Arendt, Commencement Address 1964

Hannah Arendt

Johanna "Hannah" Arendt (14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a German-born, American political theorist. Her eighteen books and numerous articles, on topics ranging from totalitarianism to epistemology, had a lasting influence on political theory. Arendt is widely considered one of the most important political philosophers of the twentieth century. In this address, Arendt emphasizes the importance of truth-seeking in the world outside of the university. The experience of education, Arendt says, is the experience of committing to the pursuit of truth, and once outside the bubble of academia, students will find this commitment to truth to be invaluable.
Vice President Alben Barkley, Centennial Address, 1949

Alben Barkley

Alben Barkley was United States Vice President under President Harry Truman. In this address, Barkley gives a thorough summary of the role of education in the last 100 years of the nation. Discussing the United States of America from its founding through World War II, Barkley explains that only through education can Americans overcome the fear that has permeated the American psyche in the wake of WWII.
James Brickley, Inaugural Address, 1975

James Brickley

Following the resignation of Eastern Michigan University President Harold Sponberg in 1974, the EMU Board of Regents named James Brickley (November 15, 1928 – September 28, 2001) to the office of president. A former FBI Special Agent and future Michigan Supreme Court Justice, Brickley begins by thanking Michigan Governor WIlliam Milliken for attending the day’s activities. Brickley then emphasizes the conundrum that is balancing increasing global interdependence with counteracting increasing “brain drain” amongst American universities. The greatest problem facing EMU and all universities, says Brickley, is how to adequately adjust the needs and demands of constantly changing social and economic patterns. Brickley discusses his plans to alleviate these issues during his tenure as president.
James Brickley, Address to the Fall Faculty Conference, 1976

James H. Brickley

Brickley served as United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan and as Lieutenant Governor of Michigan from 1971 to 1975 and again from 1979 to 1983 under Governor William Milliken. From 1975 until 1978 he was president of Eastern Michigan University. In this annual address to Eastern Michigan University faculty, Brickley outlines the difficulties facing EMU, naming two major areas of concern: continuing fiscal austerity, and continuing problems in enrollment. Brickley speaks on the causes and effects of the present budget crunch, detailing all programs cut, and the stripping down of several other programs. The ability to “move with the market,” Brickley says, is essential to surviving the fiscal difficulties then facing EMU.
Ronald Bridge, Bowen Field House Dedicatory Address, 1955

Ronald Bridge

On the behalf of the students of Michigan State Normal College, student body President Ronald Bridge thanks the parties responsible for the planning and construction of Bowen Field House.
Bingo Brown, Farewell Speech to Lloyd Olds and Elton Rynearson, 1963

James Bingo Brown

James “Bingo” Brown was one of the most beloved figures in Eastern Michigan University history. Coaching the football team in 1923 and 1924, Brown went on to be appointed Dean of Men in 1927, a position he held for 35 years until his retirement in 1962. Here, Brown delivers a heartfelt farewell address to Lloyd Olds and Elton Rynearson, detailing the ways in which Olds and Rynearson had given their lives over to their students to help guide them down that “golden roadbed of life.”
William F. Buckley, Winter Commencement Address, 1971

William F. Buckley

William F. Buckley Jr. was an American conservative author and television commentator, most notably on his own program, Firing Line, where he became known for his transatlantic accent and wide vocabulary. Regarded as one of the most important conservative intellectuals of his time, Buckley here lays out three concepts that he has taken from his association with the youth of 1971. First, Buckley emphasizes the younger generation’s affinity for new technologies, and explains that with every new technological advance, there are concerns as well as benefits. Second, Buckley has learned from the youth that reason will hold as much influence as romanticism in the decisions made by the graduating generation. Third, Buckley has realized that the youth of 1971 are fully able to determine that the idealism of others is just as valuable as their own idealism, though it may differ greatly. At the end of this recording, 5 honorary degrees are given, including one to Buckley, as well as another honorary degree to Motown Records founder Barry Gordy.
Senator Louis G. Christian, Bowen Field House Dedicatory Address, 1955

Louis Christian

Michigan Senator Louis G. Christian expresses his gratitude for being allowed a part in the building of Bowen Field House, remarking that a sound body is essential to a sound mind. Happy for Michigan State Normal College and the Ypsilanti community, Christian relates an “Arabian proverb:” “He who has health has hope; he who has hope has everything.”
Charles Colby, Centennial Address, 1949

Charles Colby

An alumni of Michigan State Normal College, class of 1906, and head of the Department of Geography at the University of Chicago, Charles C. Colby speaks in the address of the need for training teachers with an understanding and good judgement of an acceptable standard of living. In order to understand and judge this standard of living, Colby insists that teacher training in the field of economics is vital.
Donald Currie, University Library Dedicatory Address, 1967

Donald Currie

Donald Currie serve as dean of students at Eastern Michigan University until joining the staff of the Royal Oak public schools, where he served as superintendent. Still president of the EMU Alumni Association, Currie was asked to speak at the dedication ceremony for the new University Library. Currie speaks at length on the growth of the university libraries throughout the years, and notes that all library growth can be traced back to just three individuals -Elsie Andrews, E. Walfred Erickson, and Genevieve Walton- in the more than 100 years that the school has been in existence. Currie says that more than how many books a library has, the real success of a library is measured in how well it serves the academic community.
Timothy Dyer, Address at the Dedication of Bowen Field House, 1967

Timothy Dyer

Timothy Dyer served twelve years on the Board of Regents at Eastern Michigan University, and two years as Mayor of Ypsilanti. In this audio recording, Dyer explains the connection between the Ypsilanti community and Eastern Michigan University, stating that both entities coexist and that each must take the other into consideration. He congratulates EMU, on the behalf of the City of Ypsilanti, on the building of the new library.
Eugene B. Elliott, Inaugural Address, 1949

Eugene Elliott

Eugene B. Elliott was inaugurated as Michigan State Normal College President in 1949, and served until 1965. In his inaugural address, Elliott acknowledges his warm welcome from MSNC staff and administration before discussing the necessary “reconsecration” to the cause of education on the part of faculty and administration. This revisioning of the mission of MSNC, Elliott says, emphasizes teachers doing away with their “bags of tricks” used formerly to solve classroom problems, and instead utilizes flexibility and adaptability to move the institution and its students into the future. Elliott also speaks of the need for educated young people to halt the spread of totalitarianism around the globe.
Eugene Elliott, Bowen Field House Dedicatory Address, 1955

Eugene Elliott

Eugene Elliott was President of Michigan State Normal College and Eastern Michigan University from 1949-1965. In this address at the dedication of Bowen Field House, Elliott thanks all those who lent a hand in the planning, funding, and building of the structure. The new facility, he says, will meet the needs of a rapidly growing student body, as well as strengthen the values of students while it is being used 10-14 hours per day.
Eugene Elliott, ROTC Award Acceptance Speech, 1965

Eugene Elliott

Eugene Elliott served as Eastern Michigan University President, 1949-1965. This recording captures Elliott on the eve of retirement, accepting an award for outstanding performance from ROTC of EMU. Elliott discusses the importance of the ROTC program, and the great responsibility attached to military might. The recording, captured out of doors, is very windy at times.
Eugene B. Elliott, University Library Dedicatory Address, 1967

Eugene B. Elliott

Eugene Elliott served as Eastern Michigan University from 1949 to 1965. During Elliott’s tenure, the university underwent a period of growth unprecedented in its history. In this address, Elliott stresses the need to keep library development at the top of the list of university priorities. Elliott speaks to the fact that even in troubling socioeconomic times, libraries are of the utmost value, and that this new University Library, located at the center of campus, will act as “the intellectual heart, pumping new ideas through the veins of Eastern Michigan University.”
John R. Emens, Centennial Address, 1949

John Emens

Michigan State Normal College alum, John R. Emens, class of 1926, served as President of Ball State Teachers College, 1945-1968. In this address at Michigan State Normal College, Emens relates the history of MSNC, along with many of the lessons he learned while a student at the college. Emens also explains that the influence of MSNC is felt around the world, as many of the students and faculty of the institution have gone on to do great things globally.
E. Walfred Erickson, University Library Dedicatory Address, 1967

E. Walfred Erickson

E. Walfred Erickson, Head Librarian at Eastern Michigan University, gave this address at the University Library dedication ceremony. In the speech, Erickson thanks all parties at length who had a hand in the planning, funding, and construction of the new building, calling Eugene Elliott the “father of this child,” and Representative Joseph Warner, “the rich uncle of this child.”
Zolton Ferency Introduces G. Mennen Williams, 1966

Zolton Ferency

Zolton Ferency was a lawyer, political activist, and professor at Central Michigan University. Ferency ran unsuccessfully for governor of the State of Michigan in 1966. In this brief speech from the steps of Pease Auditorium in 1966, Ferency introduces his running mate, G. Mennen Williams, and warms the crowd up for primary speaker, Robert Kennedy.
Anna W. Field, Centennial Address, 1949

Anna W. Field

Anna W. Field taught in the Michigan Normal College Training School from 1915 until 1928, when she joined the Department of History at MSNC as a professor. Retiring in 1946 from the History Department, Field was selected to attend the dedication of the new Pierce Hall in 1949, and to give her remembrances of the original Pierce Hall. In this address, Field speaks of how the original building was the cultural center of Michigan Normal College, and how its growth and expansion mirrored the growth of MSNC itself.
Clyde Ford, Centennial Address, 1949

Richard Clyde Ford

Dr. Richard Clyde Ford was appointed head of the Department of Foreign Languages at Michigan State Normal College in 1903. An experienced world traveler and expert on the state of education in Michigan, Ford here gives an overview of Michigan State Normal College. Given in the context of the growth of Ypsilanti, Ford’s summary of MSNC features a biography of John Pierce, to whom Pierce Hall was being dedicated at the MSNC Centennial Celebration. The buildings on campus, states Pierce, are a present testament to the men and women who labored to grow the College to its current (1949) form. Ford also explains the connection between the creation of a school and the creation of culture.
Ralph Gilden Address, Announcement of the George Marshall Scholarship, 1967

Ralph Gilden

Ralph Gilden served in virtually every position at Eastern Michigan University in his 40 years at EMU. From organizing a parent’s organization, to faculty member, to administrator and even interim president when Harold Sponberg resigned in 1974, Gilden was a loyal servant to the university and the faculty and students who constituted it. In this audio recording, Gilden pays tribute to George Marshall by announcing the launch of a new scholarship in the former track coach’s name.
Ralph Gilden, Fall Faculty Luncheon Address, 1974

Ralph Gilden

Soon after graduating from Eastern Michigan University (then Michigan State Normal College) with honors in 1942 and lettering in track, he joined the faculty as associate professor in industrial education at Roosevelt Laboratory School, with time out to instruct with the United States Army Specialized Training Corps. Spending his entire 44 year career at EMU, he was the man known as “Dean Gilden”, dean of admissions and financial aid. He worked in 16 offices on campus and in many capacities, including associate registrar, director of Admissions, dean of Student Activities, dean of Admissions and Student Activities, dean of Admissions and Financial Aids, interim vice-president for Student Affairs, and he was one of the handful of men in the history of the University to serve as president. He served as interim president in 1974 during the University’s critical search for a new top administrator. In this address to new and old faculty at EMU, Gilden covers the gamut of institutional concerns, from declining enrollment to projected budgetary issues and physical structures. Gilden also stresses the need for transparency in administration, and suggests strategies to keep low-income students in school.
George Goodman, Mayor of Ypsilanti, Address to the Fall Faculty Luncheon, 1974

George Goodman

George Goodman was a lifelong Ypsilanti resident, having attended the Roosevelt School before graduating from Eastern Michigan University. Goodman served as mayor of Ypsilanti from 1971 until 1981. Concerned with the “orderly growth of the community,” Goodman here recaps the first 150 years of Ypsilanti, recounting both achievements and problems, before describing the city in terms of infrastructure, historic preservation, and the costs of new city resources such as bridges, fire trucks, and public transit. Dismissing the possibility of any major industrial powers making their homes in Ypsilanti, Goodman stresses Ypsilanti's need for the jobs and prestige that EMU brings to the community. Goodman also lists several ways in which the city and the university could improve their relations.
United States Senator Robert Griffin, Commencement Address, 1969

Robert Griffin

Robert Paul Griffin (November 6, 1923 – April 16, 2015) was a Republican U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator from the state of Michigan and Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. As a junior United States Senator from Michigan in 1969, Griffin here acknowledges that he is the “last obstacle between the graduates and their diplomas,” and remarks upon the distrust of the establishment felt by many college graduates of the late 1960’s. Rebellion, Griffin says, is essential to moving society forward, and he warns the students of the pitfalls of destructive rebellion. Destructive rebellion only leads to more destruction, while constructive rebellion has the potential to change American society in positive ways.
James M. Hare, Bowen Field House Dedicatory Address, 1955

James Hare

James Hare was Michigan Secretary of State from 1955-1970. In this address at the dedication of the new Field House, hare recalls his days playing various sports for Wayne State University in Detroit. Michigan Normal College, he says, was always dear to his heart, and he enjoyed his time competing here because of the lively school spirit. Hare also declares Bowen Field House to be a symbol of the direction the United States must take in the wake of World War II - that of active participant and not spectator.