FRIDAY
ISSUE
Next Issue Tuesday
—
Vol. 32, No. 80
No. 1 and No. 2 Men of the Consolidated University of North Carolina
•V - - ' '• , I '
? 'wsv;?v£ r 'f/s t
ML mHHHR
§m i4|^m.V. - * *’'’»:■ ••.‘^~^.^‘o , " :^'*
fIHB '■'■■»■s§* iW jillßßßßllißß
ggjlm ~
111118 .BIIllllllllil»
\n ite
s£Hb£HH x ii
SMHB B Jl.\ : -:. u B.
g^^B|
|| l l;£'^2l^l^l^*^jfc^ Clll-« IByl|||§|| ( m p ' u
GOVERNOR LUTHER HODGES ANI) WILLIAM <’. FRIDAY
To University President in 36 Years
The son of Mr. and Mrs.'
Latham Friday, William C. Fri-j
_jlay was born at Rapine, Va., on
July Id, 1920.
In his early years, the family
moved to Dallas, N. C., so Uiat
his father could pursue his caiVr
m textiles. It was in Dallas thaj
Bill, as he is popularly and af
fectionately known, was reared,
and it was from the Gastonia'
High School that he was gradu
ated in 1937.
In high school Mr. Friday was
a member of the basketball team]
and a debater as well as active
other scholastic affairs. He
also a catcher on the first
American Legion baseball team
fielded by Cherryville.
Mr. Friday chose to attend
Wake Forest .College in 1937-38
because of his Baptist ties, but
Wi le Had If
This spring Governor Hodges
said of Mr. Friday:
“There comes a point of
crisis in University affairs
when somebody’s got to do
something and do it now...
This has been an outstanding
job, with courage and action and
decisiveness that we’ve needed.
And we’ve had it from Presi
dent Friday.
Dangerous Assignment
The best example of Bill Fri
day's quiet courage occurred De
flpmber 31, 1951 when he was
' acting dean of students here.
Someone telephoned him that a
student had gone berserk and
was terrorizing Battle-Vance-
Pettigrew Dormitory and an en
tire block of Franklin Street. The
student had a gun, and he was
shooting it. Three shots had
been fired from the revolver.
While people were
about, taking cover from danger,
Bill Friday walked deliberately
up to the boy. The student did
not fire. Four feet from the stu
dent, Friday stopped, spoke to
the boy. Then the student again
seemed to be about to lose con
trol of himself. He doubled his
fist. But at that moment a
policeman grabbed the student
and hgld him.
5 Cents a Copy
! then decided to change to the I
N. C. State College textile school
because of his father’s long ca
reer in the textile business.
■‘ At N. < State Mr. Friday was
active in extra-curricular func
tions which probably had a great
ideal of bearing upon his gradual
'yet speedy ascendancy to the
'presidency of the Consolidated
| University.
At State College, Mr. Friday
was president of the senior class
and later was named its perma
jnent president. He was also presi
dent of the North Carolina Fed
eration of Student Governments
and a member of the Golden
Chain.
Then he was graduated in 1941
with a bachelor’of science degree
and began waiting a call into
the Navy for service in World
War 11.
He wasn’t idle while waiting.
To fill in with^.something to do,
Mr. Friday took a job in the
office of the dean of students at
N. C. State. There, too, he became
acquainted with administrative
matters.
Finally called into service, Mr.
Friday was an ordance officer
with the rank of full lieutenant
from May 1942 through April
Victor Bryant Was
Chairman of Group
The selection committee of the
Board of Trustees entrusted to
recommend a president of the
Consolidated University was eom-
jposed of the following:
Victor S. Bryant of Durham,
chairman; Kemp D. Battle, Rocky
Mount; Horton Doughton, States
ville; Dr. Henry Mann, Engle-
Ihard; Rudolph Mintz, Wilming
ton; Mrs. Albert H. Latrop,
Asheville; Dr. Shahane Taylor,
Greensboro; W. Frank Taylor,
Goldsboro; and Mrs. Charles W.
Tillett, Charlotte.
Society President
In 1956 W. C. Friday served as
president of the North Carolina
i Cancer Society. When he gave
up the presidency, the society
presented him with a desk set in
token of his distinguished work.
The Chapel Hill Weekly
11916 at the Naval
’Depot at Portsmouth, Va.
Upon discharge from the Navy,
Mr. Friday entered the law school!
at the University here and was!
graduated in. 1948. During his'
tenure here, he wa.s elected presi-i
dent of the Law School Associ-j
ation and to membership in the!
Golden Fleece, the campus’ high !
est-ranking honor organization.
Upon graduation from the Law]
School, Mr. Friday was named
immediately as assistant to the
dean of students.
His quiet, tactful, and efficient
conduct of the duties entrusted
to him were observed by Presi
dent Gordon Gray, who chose him
for his personal assistant in 1951
and later as Secretary to the
Consolidated University.
With Mr. Gray, observers noted
that Mr. Friday performed “with
smooth efficiency and without
any fanfare.”
When Mr. Gray relinquished
the post of president, and was
succeeded by J. Harris Purks,
Mr. Purks retained Mr. Friday.
And when Mr. Purks was named
chairman of the State Board of
Higher Education, Mr. F’riday
succeeded him as acting presi
dent of the University.
That is the job he is now hold
ing and one of the many im
portant ones of his brief but full
life in which he has performed
ably. So ably that the presi
dential selection committee chose
him from more than 150 persons
i suggested for what many people
consider the No. 1 higher edu
cational post in the state.
*Stoat Arm *
During the presidency of
Gordon Gray, he referred to
Bill Friday, then his assistant
and secretary to the Consoli
dated University as:
“My stout right arm."
Roots for Woman’s College
An alumnus of b6th N. C. State
College and the University here,
Mr. Friday was asked recently
whether he’s impartial when Car-.
1 olina plays State in football. He
replied: “When State plays Caro-j
lina, I root for the Woman's Cot-j
lege."* I
CHAPEL HILL, N. C.. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1956
# j
Confidence Vote
When Bill Friday stepped
down as assistant dean of stu
! dents to become assistant to the
president of the Consolidated
University in 1951, the student
i body here paid tribute to him ;
in formal resolution and gave 1
him a vote of confidence. It !
was one of the few times in the
history of the University that
such a vote has been given an
official.
Everyone Claims Bill
Bill Friday, the man who will
be the next President of the Uni
versity. is an alumnus of three
North Carolina institutions of
higher learning. Wake Forest
alumni are 1 pleased to say that
the University of North Carolina
is being led by a Wake Forest
Baptist; that is where Bill Friday
was an undergraduate. State Col
lege people refer to Friday as
one of its most distinguished
graduates in textile engineering.
1 He also made a distinguished
record at Chapel Hill, receiving
his law degree in 1948.
F’riday’s a Family Man
Bill Friday is a family man.
His home and two daughters,
Frances, age four, and Mary
Howell, eight weeks, are his hob
i hies. He plays a bit of golf some
times and he tries to keep the
; grass growing in his yard, F’or
reading he favors history and
biography.
WE APPROVE
For the first time in the his
tory of the Chapel Hill Week
ly the entire front page is
i devoted to one subject. We
j feel that there is nothing more
i important to the well being of
this community than great
leadership at the University.
| In Bill Friday the University
will have available the vision
needed for the perplexing
problems in the years ahead.
The Weekly joins thousands
’i of other North Carolinians in
i offering congratulations to Mr.
j and Mrs. William Friday.
—The Editor*
Bill Friday Selected for
President of University
William C. Friday was selected Thursday for the pres
idency of the Consolidated University of North Carolina.
Announcement of Mr. Friday’s selection was made
about 12:30 p. m. by Archie Allen, secretary of the
Board of Trustees Executive committee. A call was is
ed to the full board of trustees to meet in Raleigh Oc
tober 26 to vote on the recommendation.
Thus Mr. Friday at the age of 36 will be the youngest
man ever to serve as head of the Consolidated Univer
sity. Younger men have served as chief of the Chapel
Hill part, but Mr. Friday (if elected by the full board of
trustees—and it is most certain that he will) will be the
youngest ever to head the three-fold institution at Ra
leigh, Greensboro and here.
For the University his immediate aims are the ones
he espoused every time he has a chance to talk about it:
a good faculty for the three-fold University ; maintain
ing an atmosphere where the quality of teaching is
high; continuing the tradition of superior teaching and
distinguished research, further attention to the Univer
sity's extension program. Mr. Friday has repeated that
Mr. Friday
Seems to
Please All
\ii tor S. Bryant, chairman
of the committee which select
ed Mr. Friday; “Mr. Friday
has courageously met and solv
ed many complex ami perplex
ing problems.”
William D. Carmichael, vice
president of th< Consolidated
University: “The Good Lord
always provides for North
Carolina. Once again the Uni
versity has risen above adver
sity, diversity, and perversity.
\\ e rejoice in the selection of
William Friday as president.
He is a'man of faith, dedica
tion, courage, vision and diplo
macy.”
Chancellor R. B. House; “The
best qualified man for the job."
*►* Robert M. Lester exec ute
director of the Southern, IVI,
row hip Fund: '“The selection
of Mr. Friday is a happy choice.
He is professionally trained,
administratively experienced,
and educationally competent.
His friendliness, quiet dignity,
and ability to listen and to de
cide give him a great advan
tage in facing the complicated
problems of modern higher
education. His knowledge of
I the State of North Carolina
will stand him in good stead
locally, and as he moves out
into association with leaders
of other prominent universities
i he will meet with skill and con
| fidenee all the requirements of
J the presidency of the Univer
j sity of North Carolina.”
; State Senator-nominate Ed
j win S. Lanier: “This selection
! pleases me very much.”
Rep. John W. Umstead: “1
have been for Hill Friday ever
since he was named acting
president of the University.
His accomplishments as acting
president are such that they
fully justify the trustees in
naming him to the post of per
i manent president.”
J. Maryon Saunders, secre
[ tary of the University Alumni
Association: “Bill Friday as
president will give the Univer
(Continued on page 12)
m AjKKmM WRMMMm JHk
■ Br J ■ f
>* I;. *”■ f W - ■
H. Jt
m , mm —Mfagftv JmMBMBFV:'. -V
I . W. D. CARMICHAEL IK. AND MR. FRIDAY
I I .
I I
«L •
{ w i Bvv
t V “f !
. a Jt
88988
B fl ■* ,i 7’ ' HBBH , «- S /'r 1
■ Bk Hj J|PH[ ’’*'7 i * ‘ K ”
Bi B B W *of
i mL *4
iii X^J
m Dj|la v-- v
II ■ W ‘ JBPf*
• JTM wgy** M
m bl \. *
. , - , ♦ . v * *- c BL I ; ■ jB-C-J'
*.x/ ' "BL i vNy •* 'mmem
MR. AND MRS. FRIDAY, MARY HOWELL AND FRANCES
Mrs. Friday Is a Home Builder
II) Helene Ivey
Although she is interested
in community and international
problems, Mrs. William C. Fri
day is essentially a wife and!
mother and home builder.
Even her career fitted her for!
this important role in life. Mrs !
] Friday was a home economics!
major at Meredith College and!
after graduation she was 4 the
home economist for the Carollina
Power and Light Company in
Raleigh. Later she took gradu
ate work in Public Health at
UNC and for three years taught
in the Public Health Department
here. Well balanced, beautifully
served meals, and physical and;
emotional health, are all taken'
for granted in the Friday home.
But all the expert knowledge
of food, care of children, and
artistic accomplishment only sup-^
$1 a Year in County; other rates on page 2
the University needs funds for maintaining faculty,
funds for strengthening the libraries, and funds for at
tracting competent new staff people.
Mr, Friday, in his casual conversation and in his easy
discussion of solid administrative topics affecting aca
demic life, is quick to perceive diverse aspects of a situ
ation and to compare and contrast desirable and less
desirable courses of action. He is both humanist and
scientist, and as one commentator put it he is the kind
of man who can ‘‘humanize the scientist and simonize
the humanists.”
People who have known Bill Friday—faculty, legis
lators, trustees, students, colleagues in the administra
tion of the University—invariably mention fundamental
qualities of his personality.
He’s modest, without being shy or timid. He’s quiet
spoken. but highly articulate, friendly and firm in what
he says. He is a man of decision, as demonstrated by the
several crucial questions that have faced the University
and have been resolved since he became Acting Presi
dent last March Ist.
plement the loving care Mrs. Fri-I
day gives her family. Quietly the
baby, Mary Howell Friday, slept i
in her arms. Later with genuine
! pleasure she welcomed her elder
| daughter, Frances Howell Fri-|
!day, home from kindergarten]
jThen this young mother let her!
child use her own pace in show
iflg what had been accomplished
in school that day.
Chapel -Mill Cha(l
By Louis Graves
Not till last Saturday,
when Mr. and Mrs. Carlos
[Lowrance of Fort Bragg
dropped in on us after the (
, did I learn
i that Jtfb and I were together
| at Lady Astor’s home in
London one night in June of
| 1919.
j During the Armistice the
\ Americans who had been in
j France in the First World
| War were scattered all over
I Europe on leaves of absence
jj — this was because of a scar
city of ships to take them
[jhome and I/ondon was
'swarming with them. Car
! los, on a four-months leave,
f was attending London Uni
\ versity. I was there in June
[ to serve as cannon fodder in
\ the early rounds of the ten-
I nis tournament at Wimble
don; or, you might say, as a
! guinea pig. Dean Mathey, 1
I my companion on leave, who
had ranked high on the j
I national list since leaving
I Princeton, was a serious con-
I tender.
Lady Astor was giving a
I series of weekly receptions
I for the soldiers. (The word
I soldiers in this piece means
I both enlisted men and offi
! cers.) At each of these gath
| erings there would be about
l a couple of hundred men and
Jahe would J»ave two or three
FRIDAY
ISSUE
Next Issue Tuesday
| Mrs. Friday’s attitude toward
her own accomplishments was
! well demonstrated when she was
asked about her art work. “Oh,
| l'm just trying to learn about it."
'Later she admitted that she’d
[printed the design on her dra
peries “because I couldn’t find
j any that were printed only
around the edges.” Silk screening
cloth and Christmas cards, sculp
turing and flower arranging are
among her “studies.” Her modes
ty is endearing to say the least.
Yet her results are beautiful.
Once hi a while she and her
husband play golf and more often
they work in their yard.
Mrs. F’riday has the student’s
viewpoint when confronted by
■problems, yet she seems to have
an innate sense of standards that
enables her to make effective de
cisions. Thus she radiates a posi
tive, gracious personality.
Mrs. F’riday is the former Miaa
Ida Willis Howell of Lumberton.
Active In Youth Activities
One of the first volunteers for
! service in Little League Baseball
in Chapel Hill was W. C. Friday.
He was the local league’s first
treasurer, and surrendered the
job in the second year only be
' cause of pressing duties as Act
ing President of the University.
i celebrities for them to meet
and talk with. On the night
Dean Mathey and (as I now
know) Carlos Lowrance and
I were there the distin
, guished guests were General
i Pershing, Lord Reading (the
! British equivalent of our
: Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court), and Rudyard Kip
ling. They were in genial,
t jolly humor as they chatted
! with the soldiers clustered
I around them.
i Carlos and I were evident
-ly together in the cluster
- around Kipling, for. when
; we exchanged reminiscence*
1 last Saturday, we had the
l (Continued on Pag* *) - '.,-4