John G. Gilbert worked as the “education senator” alongside his close friend SIU President Delyte W. Morris in helping transform Southern Illinois University from a small teachers college to a
John G. Gilbert worked as the “education senator” alongside his close friend SIU President Delyte W. Morris in helping transform Southern Illinois University Carbondale from a small teachers college to a major university in the 1960s and 1970s.
The Morris Library is not only a prominent landmark on campus, it is a tribute to the lasting legacy of its namesake: Delyte W. Morris. SIU archivist Matt Gorzalski said, “I think the school would not have such a strong nameplate as it does now… I don’t even think we would even have our Edwardsville.
The year is 1968, and you’re a female student at SIU. You must attempt to wrestle success and financial independence from a male-dominated academic environment only just beginning to give women and people of color the first inches of equal ground. You are also treated differently in school policy itself, which condescends to tell female.