NCSU Libraries Focus Online

Volume 25 number 3 - Spring 2005

Exploring Change in America: The GI Bill Exhibit and Symposium

By Anna Dahlstein, External Relations

The NCSU Libraries' fall 2004 exhibit Transforming Society: The GI Bill Experience at NC State captured the attention of students, staff, alumni, and other visitors from the Raleigh community. Students viewing the exhibit, which ran from October 14 through December 22, expressed wonder at how quickly NC State expanded following the surge in enrollment in the late 1940s. Alumni from that era, who often balanced homework with childcare responsibilities, shared their recollections of living in temporary housing communities such as Trailwood and Vetville. Residents of the neighborhood across Hillsborough Street remarked that the GI Bill had shaped the vicinity, as the availability of housing loans for veterans boosted the construction of nearby homes. Instructors in NC State's ROTC programs were pleased that the exhibit included profiles of current ROTC students drawing Montgomery GI Bill benefits. In all these ways, the exhibit provided an excellent opportunity for many to reflect about the impact of the GI Bill on their lives.

While the exhibit focused on NC State's history, the November 12 symposium, "The GI Bill Experience," addressed the impact of the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 (GI Bill) on the state of North Carolina and the country as a whole. Keynote speaker Milton Greenberg, a professor and provost emeritus of American University who served as a paratrooper in World War II, offered a fascinating overview of the sweeping changes to American society, while also relating choice anecdotes. Professor Robert Serow of NC State's College of Education deftly moderated a panel that included Ted Meyer, a 1948 graduate of NC State; Si Harrington, the military collection archivist at the North Carolina Office of Archives and History in Raleigh; and Suzanne Mettler, an associate professor of political science at Syracuse University. Mettler presented the results of her research, which demonstrated that the GI Bill's educational and training provisions not only expanded access to social opportunity, but also prompted recipients to participate at higher levels in civic organizations and politics during the postwar era. All symposium attendees participated in breakout sessions where they discussed the personal significance of the 1944, Korea- and Vietnam-era, or current incarnation of the GI Bill. Finally, the audience reconvened to hear the Honorable Burley B. Mitchell Jr., former chief justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina, offer closing remarks for the afternoon event.

Following the symposium, more than 100 guests gathered in the ground floor Reading Room of the D. H. Hill Library for a reception and dinner in appreciation of the GI Bill and World War II veterans. Guests enjoyed a selection of Big Band music, toured the exhibit, and had the opportunity to interact with Milton Greenberg and the other speakers from the symposium. In his dinner remarks, then-Provost and Chancellor Designate James L. Oblinger paid tribute to the men and women of the "Greatest Generation" and thanked them for their invaluable contributions to America. Later in the program, Vice Provost and Director of Libraries Susan Nutter honored the World War II veterans in attendance by detailing where and how each of them had served in the war effort. She encouraged them to share their stories for posterity, highlighting some of the oral history projects underway at the Library of Congress, the State Archives of North Carolina, and the NCSU Libraries.

The NCSU Libraries would like to thank all of the individuals who volunteered their time, lent materials for the exhibit, and provided invaluable support for this project to mark the sixtieth anniversary of the GI Bill. These special people are recognized on the project Web site, which will provide long-term, online access to a large portion of the exhibit content. Please visit http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/exhibits/gibill/.