Clarence Addison Dykstra

Clarence Addison Dykstra (/ˈdaɪkstrə/ DYKE-strə; February 25, 1883 – May 6, 1950) was a U.S. government administrator.^[1] He served as the first city manager in the United States in Cincinnati, Ohio, after teaching government at the University of Chicago. He then became president of the University of Wisconsin (1937–1945) as well as the 1st Director of the Selective Service System between 1940 and 1941. He then became provost of UCLA from 1945 to 1950.

Clarence Addison Dykstra
Dykstra as chair of the National Defense Mediation Board (1941)
3rd Provost of the University of California, Los Angeles
In office 1945–1950
Preceded by	Earle Raymond Hedrick
Succeeded by	Raymond B. Allen (Chancellor)
1st Director of the Selective Service System
In office October 15, 1940 – April 1, 1941
President	Franklin D. Roosevelt
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Lewis Blaine Hershey
Personal details
Born	(1883-02-25)25 February 1883
Died	6 May 1950(1950-05-06) (aged 67)
Education	Iowa State University (BA) University of Chicago
Occupation	Government administrator University Chancellor

He also served as the efficiency director of the city's Department of Water and Power for Los Angeles before World War II. He argued that the city needed to be further decentralized by expanding highways and creating suburban communities.

Dykstra was appointed by President Roosevelt to chair the 11-member National Defense Mediation Board, an effort to settle wartime disputes.^[2] He served from March 19 to July 1, 1941.^[3]

Because Dykstra had already served as a university president before coming to UCLA, he "was incensed at what he considered demeaning treatment of the provost by UC’s universitywide administration".^[4] During his five years at UCLA, he was popular and loved by the UCLA community.^[4] His "death on the job was a galvanizing event at UCLA and among the southern regents" which fueled political momentum towards decentralization of the university bureaucracy.^[4]

Dykstra was also the first to advocate for and bring about the construction of student housing at UCLA. Dykstra Hall, which opened in 1959, was the first structure in UCLA's current undergraduate residential community. It was also the first co-ed residence hall in the country.^[5]

Notes

1. Clarence Dykstra Archived 2012-01-09 at the Wayback Machine
2. Rossevelt Establishes This 11-Man Defense Mediation Board Evening Courier. March 24, 1941.
3. Jaffe, Louis Leventhal; Rice, William; United States. Bureau of Labor Statistics (1942). Report on the Work of the National Defense Mediation Board, March 19, 1941 – January 12, 1942: Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, No. 714. G.P.O. p. ii.
4. Kerr, Clark (2001). The Gold and the Blue: A Personal Memoir of the University of California, 1949–1967, Volume 1. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 196. ISBN 9780520223677. Retrieved March 24, 2024.
5. "Dykstra Hall". UCLA Office of Residential Life. Retrieved 1 September 2012.

Academic offices
Preceded by George Sellery	Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin–Madison 1937–1945	Succeeded by Edwin Broun Fred
Non-profit organization positions
Preceded by Harold W. Dodds	President of the National Municipal League 1937–1940	Succeeded by John G. Winant