Raymond W. Fairchild
Served as President 1933-1955
Portrait Details
Artist
unknown
Canvas Size
31 1/4" x 25 1/2"
Creation Date
circa 1933
Raymond Fairchild Portrait
Fairchild always wore crisp suits that were fashionable for the time, including the geometric patterned tie featured in his painting. Fairchild was an organized and attentive president, as reflected by the artist in his painting.
Raymond Fairchild Portrait Details
The pen holder seen in the Fairchild photograph is the same pen holder found in Fairchild’s official portrait.
Raymond Fairchild
A tall man, Fairchild’s official duties included him presiding over graduation ceremonies.
Raymond Fairchild
ISNU’s WWII president had a lot on his plate. Fairchild fought to keep enrollment steady, to obtain funds for badly needed campus repairs, to shepherd the campus through a second world war, and toward the end of his tenure, fight his own health battles. In this photograph, Fairchild sits at his desk while looking over university paperwork. A sharp eye will notice the paperwork is sideways.
Raymond Fairchild
One of several official portraits of Raymond Fairchild during his years as ISNU’s eighth president.
Biography
Former Superintendent
Raymond W. Fairchild (1889-1956) was the eighth president of ISNU. He was also the second longest serving president in school history at twenty two years behind Felmley’s thirty year tenure. Fairchild came to the university during a period of controversy as the previous president resigned amid allegations of misconduct. An alumnus of Illinois Wesleyan University, the University of Michigan, the University of Chicago, and Northwestern University, Fairchild was highly educated and a well-known educator in the region. Fairchild served as the superintendent of schools in Elgin, Illinois before becoming the head of the Chicago Campus (then known as the McKinlock Campus) at Northwestern University. After Brown’s departure in 1933, Fairchild was appointed by the Normal School Board of Illinois to be ISNU’s eighth president.
Transformation of a Normal Campus
Several of the buildings on campus today were constructed during Fairchild’s tenure. While his predecessors had difficulty in obtaining construction funds, Fairchild was able to acquire financing for campus structures thanks in part to federal funding during World War II. Some of those buildings include Milner Library (the first Milner Library, now known as Williams Hall), the Administration Building (now known as Hovey Hall), Rambo House (demolished in 2016), the first Cardinal Court (demolished in 1962), the first Student Union (now known as Old Union), and Metcalf Elementary School.
Graduate Courses
Fairchild was also instrumental in bringing graduate coursework to campus, making ISNU the first of the normal schools in the state to offer graduate level training. He also worked to bring special education courses to all areas of teacher training, making ISNU one of the first schools in the nation to provide high level training in special education across all disciplines. Fairchild’s efforts to improve special education training were recognized in 1951 when the new special education building was named in his honor.
Illness Takes a President
In May 1954, Fairchild was forced to have his right leg amputated above the knee for an undisclosed illness. In his absence, the Teachers College Board chose Dean Arthur Larsen as acting president until Fairchild could return. However, Fairchild never regained his full health and stepped down from the presidency on August 15, 1955. Though he had started the work of the university’s centennial celebrations, he would not live to see them. Raymond Fairchild died on June 11, 1956. Funeral services were held in Capen Auditorium and Fairchild was buried in Evergreen Memorial Cemetery in Bloomington, Illinois.
Continued Research
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Raymond W. Fairchild Presidential Papers Finding Aid
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World War II Illinois State Normal University Campus Activities Collection