Interview with Lee F. Browne - Caltech Oral Histories

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Browne–34 starts.” Anyway, this kid got so angry with me. He said, “I don’t want you to ever do anything for me.” And I said, “You mean again, because I’m the one that got you the Carnation scholarship.” And then he just went to pieces. He went on to flunk the course and left. COHEN: Can people giving a scholarship put that kind of— BROWNE: Yes. They can do anything they want to. There was a black lady here who was the financial aid director. I’ve forgotten what her name was. She showed me a letter once. This was not going against Caltech’s wishes or business, because I was involved with her in getting students and helping and making recommendations about students. She showed me a letter where this white guy had given $700,000, but in the letter [he stated that] he didn’t want any of it given to non-white students. COHEN: Can they do that? BROWNE: So she wouldn’t sign off on it, and they fired her. COHEN: Because of that? BROWNE: Yes. Because they can do that. COHEN: Because it’s a private school? BROWNE: Yes. COHEN: But they do take federal money. BROWNE: Not much, not much. For instance, the IRS used to come to me and say, “Now, tell me something about these programs. Are you sure that they’re doing what they’re supposed to do for all of the citizens?” And many, many times I saved Caltech by saying, “Look, half of the kids that I recommend for admission here are admitted, independent of their sex or their race or http://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechOH:OH_Browne_L
Browne–35 their nationality. So I’m certain that they are doing that now.” And four or five years I saved them from the IRS, because the IRS inspected them. COHEN: I see. So tell me, Lee, you went on with these programs, which you feel were quite successful. BROWNE: Yes. COHEN: I’m assuming that most of the time you must have liked being here and liked the people you were dealing with. BROWNE: Yes. Well, I didn’t have a problem with Caltech types, because I first came here in 1948 when I was a graduate student at UCLA. And I was treated all right then, and I was treated all right by Lee DuBridge. [As an example,] when I was at Blair they sent me a letter saying, “We are going to pay your salary for a month so you can come to our seventy-fifth celebration.” You know, stuff like that. COHEN: So they were nice. BROWNE: They were nice, yes. COHEN: So then, you eventually retired from this program. BROWNE: Yes, yes. COHEN: And was that because you felt it was time to retire already? BROWNE: No. I think that Everhart had some other plan. COHEN: So when Everhart came in, they said, “We want to go in a different direction”? http://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechOH:OH_Browne_L
Page 1 and 2: LEE F. BROWNE (b. 1922) INTERVIEWED
Page 3 and 4: Lee Brown with the Black Students U
Page 5 and 6: CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
Page 7 and 8: Browne-3 BROWNE: Oh, yes. But by th
Page 9 and 10: Browne-5 business of killing and cu
Page 11 and 12: Browne-7 COHEN: Yes. BROWNE: Well,
Page 13 and 14: Browne-9 BROWNE: Well, they said th
Page 15 and 16: Browne-11 BROWNE: So I wrote them.
Page 17 and 18: Browne-13 COHEN: Yes. BROWNE: And g
Page 19 and 20: Browne-15 BROWNE: So I did that. An
Page 21 and 22: Browne-17 COHEN: It was a very good
Page 23 and 24: Browne-19 he said that he didn’t
Page 25 and 26: Browne-21 BROWNE: You see? And I ha
Page 27 and 28: Browne-23 communities—“…that
Page 29 and 30: Browne-25 COHEN: And what was it ca
Page 31 and 32: Browne-27 COHEN: So you came in abo
Page 33 and 34: Browne-29 BROWNE: A large number of
Page 35 and 36: Browne-31 COHEN: Were you having fu
Page 37: Browne-33 COHEN: OK. BROWNE: And I
Page 41 and 42: Browne-37 COHEN: But now, I’m try
Page 43 and 44: Browne-39 COHEN: Can you tell me? B
Page 45 and 46: Browne-41 COHEN: There are still so
Page 47: Browne-43 COHEN: But you certainly

Interview with Lee F. Browne - Caltech Oral Histories

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