Finding Aid for the University Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence records

May 4 Collection - Box 102

Author: Prepared by Kenton Daniels, 1995
Revisions: Revised 2012; 2016; 2018 Extensively revised, Cara Gilgenbach
Descriptive Rules: DACS
Origination: Kent State University. Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence
Inclusive Dates: 1968-1971
Extent: 1 cubic foot (1 record storage box)
Physical Location: 12th floor; 11th floor (map case)

Historical Note: Soon after the shootings of May 4, 1970, at the request of President Robert I. White, Professor Charles F. Kegley officially became the chairman of the University Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence (UCICNV) on May 21, 1970. The commission was charged to "...recommend methods and procedures to implement a commitment to nonviolence at KSU." The commission membership totaled fifty-two including twenty students, twenty faculty members, ten administrators and staff personnel, and two representatives from the community. It met a total of thirty times during the summer of 1970, its final meeting was held September 16, 1970. This body is often referred, in shorthand, as the "Commission on Non-Violence" or the "Kegley Commission."

The Commission included nine task forces: ROTC, Peace Keeping, Student-Faculty Justice, Black Student Concerns, Political Action, Communications, Campus Security, Student Contact, and University Governance. All recommendations made by the Commission ultimately came from these task force meetings. Approximately thirty recommendations, or sets of recommendations, were made during the summer. Many were accepted by the university administration; some were modified, and a few were rejected. Some of the areas considered were ROTC visibility, selection of a new student ombudsman, twenty-four-hour desk operation in all dorms, an emergency communications system, high priority for black student concerns, a new identification card system, and extending full voting privileges to undergraduate students.

Scope and Content: This collection includes records created and compiled by Charles F. Kegley and other members of the UCICNV in the course of conducting its business in the months following the Kent State shootings. Included are operational records, meeting minutes, correspondence, task force records, formal recommendations created by the task forces, and subject files.

Arrangement: The collection is organized into the following series.

• Series 1: UCICNV Operational records
• Series 2: UCICNV Correspondence
• Series 3: UCICNV Task Forces records
• Series 4: UCICNV Recommendations
• Series 5: UCICNV Subject files

Acquisitions Note: These materials were compiled by Charles Kegley in his capacity as chair of the University Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence. The records were transferred to Special Collections and Archives in 1974.

Preferred Citation: University Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence records. May 4 Collection. Kent State University Libraries. Special Collections and Archives.

Processing Note: The collection was completely re-processed in 2018. It was formerly entitled the "Charles Kegley May 4 papers," but further analysis of the contents indicated that the collection should more appropriately be characterized as the records of the University Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence.

Related Material: The Commission on Non-Violence should not be confused with the Commission on KSU Violence (CKSUV), which was a separate body formed at the University in the wake of the May 1970 shootings. For information on the CKSUV, see Kent State University. Commission on KSU Violence records. Special Collections and Archives also holds the faculty papers of Charles F. Kegley that reflect Kegley's academic career beyond his role in the University Commission to Implement a Commitment to Non-Violence.

Restrictions on Access: Some information included in this collection is restricted due to the presence of information protected by privacy laws. This information has been redacted where present on documents in the collection. Un-redacted originals, in all cases, have been retained by Special Collections and Archives.

Sponsor: Digitization of this collection was funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

Series 1: UCICNV Operational records

May 4 Collection -- Box 102
Folder -- Contents

1. UCICNV: Charge and Members, 1970
   Scope and Content: Various documents articulating the UCICNV's charge, objectives, operating procedures, and membership. Also included are listings of the members of the Commission's numerous task forces.
2. UCICNV: Meeting records, May 1970
3. UCICNV: Meeting records, June 1970
4. UCICNV: Meeting records, July 1970
5. UCICNV: Meeting records, August 1970
6. UCICNV: Meeting records, September 1970
7. UCICNV: Press Releases and Clippings, 1970
8. UCICNV: Resolutions, 1970

Series 2: UCICNV Correspondence

Scope and Content: Most of the correspondence in this series is to/from Charles F. Kegley in his capacity as UCICNV chair. In some cases, correspondence consists of memos or letters on which Kegley was simply a copied recipient.

Related Material: The Task Forces records series below includes selected correspondence that is very specific to a task forces' activities.

May 4 Collection -- Box 102
Folder -- Contents

9. UCICNV: Correspondence: to Commission Members, June-September 1970
10. UCICNV: Correspondence: to/from Kegley, Charles F., May 1970
11. UCICNV: Correspondence: to/from Kegley, Charles F., June 1970
12. UCICNV: Correspondence: to/from Kegley, Charles F., July 1970
13. UCICNV: Correspondence: to/from Kegley, Charles F., August 1970
14. UCICNV: Correspondence: to/from Kegley, Charles F., September-November 1970
15. UCICNV: Correspondence: to/from White, Robert I., May-July 1970
16. UCICNV: Correspondence: to/from White, Robert I., August-September 1970

Series 3: UCICNV Task Forces records

May 4 Collection -- Box 102
Folder -- Contents

17. UCICNV: Task Force: Black Student Concerns, June-July 1970
18. UCICNV: Task Force: Campus Security, May-August 1970
19. UCICNV: Task Force: Communications, May-September 1970
20. UCICNV: Task Force: Fall Calendar, June 1970
21. UCICNV: Task Force: Peace Keeping, May-June 1970
22. UCICNV: Task Force: Political Action, June 1970
23. UCICNV: Task Force: ROTC, 1970
24. UCICNV: Task Force: Student Contact, May-August 1970
25. UCICNV: Task Force: Student-Faculty Justice, July 1970

Series 4: UCICNV Recommendations

Related Materials: Some information about recommendations as they were being formulated by the UCICNV Task Forces can be found in Series 3 Task Forces records.

May 4 Collection -- Box 102
Folder -- Contents

26. UCICNV: Recommendations: Actions Taken, June 1970
27. UCICNV: Recommendations: Compilation by Coordinator of Commissions, 1970
28. UCICNV: Recommendations: Summary Report, 1970-1971

Series 5: UCICNV Subject files

May 4 Collection -- Box 102
Folder -- Contents

29. UCICNV: Subject file: ABA Commission on Campus Government, undated
    Scope and Content: 36-page booklet with the full title of "Report of the American Bar Association Commission on Campus Government and Student Dissent."
30. UCICNV: Subject file: Am. Sub. H.B. 1219, 1970
31. UCICNV: Subject file: Black Student Recruitment, 1970
32. UCICNV: Subject file: Black United Students, 1968-1969
33. UCICNV: Subject file: Center for Peaceful Change, undated
34. UCICNV: Subject file: Committee on Political Education, 1970
35. UCICNV: Subject file: Concerned Citizens of KSU Community, 1968-1969
36. UCICNV: Subject file: Coordinator of Commissions, 1970
37. UCICNV: Subject file: Faculty Associates Program, 1970-1971
38. UCICNV: Subject file: First Annual Commemoration, April-May 1971
39. UCICNV: Subject file: Flyers and Leaflets, 1969-1971; undated
    Scope and Content: An assortment of flyers and other publications generated primarily by Kent State organizations. Some materials deal with the Portage County Grand Jury indictments and the so-called "Kent 25." Others deal with other activist events as well as student government.
40. UCICNV: Subject file: Human Relations Center, 1968-1971; undated
41. UCICNV: Subject file: Marshals, 1970; undated
42. UCICNV: Subject file: Notes from Special Meetings, 1970-1971
    Scope and Content: The origin and author of these handwritten notes are unknown. Appear to be notes taken at "special meetings" that dealt with aftermath and response in the wake of the shootings. One meeting's notes are in regard to comments made by Robert I. White. Each set of notes has the annotation "ASG/CSP" on the first page of notes.
43. UCICNV: Subject file: Official Statements, 1968-1970; undated
44. UCICNV: Subject file: Paper: "My Manifesto," August 1970
    Author: Thigpen, Donald A., Jr.
45. UCICNV: Subject file: Paper: "What Are We Learning from Current University Programs for Disadvantaged Students?" undated
    Author: Williams, Robert L.
    Restrictions on Access: This item is currently unavailable in digital format because permission could not be obtained from publisher. Please consult paper original in the collection for research use.
46. UCICNV: Subject file: Petition on 3.2 Beer and Live Entertainment, undated
    Scope and Content: A petition statement from Students of Kent State University regarding possible prohibitions on sale of 3.2 beer and live entertainment in Kent, Ohio.
47. UCICNV: Subject file: Questionnaire: Counseling and Group Resources Center, May 1970
48. UCICNV: Subject file: Report: Select Committee to Investigate Campus Disturbances, October 1970
    Scope and Content: Full title: "Interim Report of the Select Committee to Investigate Campus Disturbances to the 108th Ohio General Assembly Pursuant to Am. Sub. S. Con. R. No. 34."
49. UCICNV: Subject file: Report: Special State Grand Jury, December 2, 1970
    Scope and Content: Full title: "Report to the Special State Grand Jury: An Analysis."
    Author: Peabody, Robert R.
50. UCICNV: Subject file: Resolution: APGA Senate, March 1970
    Scope and Content: A resolution by the American Personnel and Guidance Association regarding the establishment of a Peace Commission by this body. This is accompanied by a 1968 presentation entitled "What Can We Do for World Peace" by Dwight L. Arnold.
51. UCICNV: Subject file: Security Information - Checkpoints, June-August 1970
    Physical Location: One item is oversized and is filed in the map case.
52. UCICNV: Subject file: Taxpayers Questions, August, 1970
53. UCICNV: Subject file: Think Week, 1970
54. UCICNV: Subject file: Universities National Anti-War Fund, undated