Raymond B. Allen | |
|---|---|
 Allen in 1953 | |
| 1st Chancellor of the University of California, Los Angeles | |
| In office 1951–1959 | |
| Preceded by | Clarence Addison Dykstra (Provost) |
| Succeeded by | Vern Oliver Knudsen |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 7 August 1902 Cathay, North Dakota |
| Died | 15 March 1986 (aged 83) Fredericksburg, Virginia |
| Education | University of Minnesota (BA, MD, PhD) |
| Occupation | Medical doctor University Chancellor |
Raymond B. Allen (1902–1986) was an American educator. He served as the president of the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington, from 1946 to 1951, and as the first chancellor of the University of California, Los Angeles from 1951 to 1959.
Raymond Bernard Allen was born on August 7, 1902, in Cathay, North Dakota.[1][2][3] He attended the University of Minnesota, where he received a PhD and MD.[1][3]
He started his career as a general practitioner in Minot, North Dakota.[3][4]
He served as dean of the University of Illinois College of Medicine, dean of the Wayne State University School of Medicine and associate dean for graduate studies at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.[2][3][4]
He served as president of the University of Washington from 1946 to 1951.[1][2][4] He dismissed three Communist professors, arguing that "a Communist is incompetent to teach the truth."[2][4] However, he refused to give a list of texts taught at UW to the House Un-American Activities Committee.[2][4]
Allen briefly served as chair of the newly created Armed Forces Medical Policy Council in 1949.[5][6] He was director of the Psychological Strategy Board in 1952.[1][2][3]
When UCLA was granted co-equal status with UC Berkeley in 1951, its presiding officer was granted the title of chancellor. Allen was tapped as the newly autonomous UCLA's first chancellor, a post he held until 1959.[2][4] He was recommended for the job by Robert Gordon Sproul, who served as president of the University of California, serving from 1930 to 1958.[4] During his tenure, the UCLA Medical Center was built and the Schools of Medicine, Dentistry, and Nursing were developed, as well as the Neuropsychiatric Institute.[3] He resigned after a three-year investigation led to the revelation of corruption between football players and the Pacific Coast Conference.[3]
He also served as director of research and population dynamics for the Pan American Health Organization.[4] He was a Fellow of the Mayo Foundation.[4]
He had two sons, Charles and Raymond B. Allen Jr., and two daughters, Dorothy Allen and Barbara Sheard.[2][4] He retired in Virginia in 1967.[2][4] He died on March 15, 1986, in Fredericksburg, Virginia, at the age of eighty-three.[1][2][4]
