The University Seminar Papers--represented in this series by paper copies as well as electronic files--consist of a series of detailed reports written between 1994 and 2010, compiled by various administrative departments of The New School, analyzing the history and current activities and functions of many facets of university administration. Begun under President Jonathan Fanton in 1994 with the title, “Discussion Papers,” the project was a joint initiative of the offices of the New School Provost and the Secretary of the Corporation, though other administrators contributed to the project, including New School deans and, occasionally, the president of The New School. The first two papers in the series are a report on the board of trustees and visiting committees of the New School for Social Research issued by Robert A. Gates, Secretary of the Corporation, on October 10, 1994, and a report on the faculty appointments process issued by Judith B. Walzer, Provost, in the Fall of 1994. The discussion papers were posted on The New School website, and focused on topics such as Facilities and Campus Planning, Technology and Computing, Student Services, the Annual Operating and Capital Budgets, Arts at The New School, The New School Diversity Initiative, and Academic Planning. Also included is a more outward-looking report on the state of federal and state support for higher education. A small number of papers examine aspects of academic programs, including undergraduate liberal studies and the arts.

From Fall 1999 to Spring 2004, the reports were referred to as “University Seminar Papers,” and as early as 2001, during the presidential term of Bob Kerrey, the papers were presented publicly at New School University as part of a series entitled, “The Seminar on the University,” billed as “a series of discussions designed to inform the New School community of University policies and initiatives” and intended to invite discussion from interested participants. In a 2002 paper on the budget submitted by provost, Elizabeth Dickey explains that the seminar was intended to be "an open discussion of policy issues and choices that ultimately will determine the final operating budget for the new year." From 2004 to 2007, the reports were referred to as “Discussion Papers” before reverting again to the previous title of “University Seminar Papers.” The latest of the Seminar Papers known to have been written is dated Spring of 2010, the final year of Bob Kerrey’s presidency.

Except for one unnumbered paper between 1994-1999, the papers are numbered consecutively in chronological order. While two of the 1999-2004 reports are numbered, the rest are not, and the archivist has not identified whether or not there was an intended numbering scheme.

Except where noted, both a paper and a born-digital copy were transferred to the archives. Where the note "digitized" appears, the paper copy was uploaded to digital collections, rather than the born-digital version--in most cases, the paper copy was formatted more cleanly, although at often the paper versions do not bear the numbers that the born-digital versions have.

References

“Discussion Papers.” New School for Social Research. 1996-2000. Web.Archive.org. Accessed June 12, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/19961112090607/http://www.newschool.edu/admin/discpapr/index.htm.

“Seminar on the University.” New School University: Office of the Secretary. 2001-2007. Web.Archive.org. Accessed June 12, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20020609052752/http://www.newschool.edu/admin/discpapr/index.htm.