The U.S. President's Commission on National Goals was organized in February 1960 as a non-official body whose purpose was to develop a broad outline of national objectives and programs for the next decade and longer.

Composition

The commission operated under the auspices of the American Assembly (established by

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1950 as a non-partisan educational organization) and was financed by private sources through the Assembly. The Commission was headed by Dr. Henry Wriston, who was appointed by President Eisenhower on February 3, 1960. The other members of the Commission were Vice Chairman Frank Pace, Erwin D. Canham,

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, Colgate W. Darden, Jr., Crawford H. Greenewalt, Alfred M. Gruenther,

Learned Hand Billings Learned Hand ( ; January 27, 1872 – August 18, 1961) was an American jurist, lawyer, and judicial philosopher. He served as a federal trial judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York from 1909 to 1924 a ...

Clark Kerr Clark Kerr (May 17, 1911 – December 1, 2003) was an American economist and academic administrator. He was the first chancellor of the University of California, Berkeley, and twelfth president of the University of California. Early life and ...

, James R. Killian, Jr., William P. Bundy and

George Meany William George Meany (August 16, 1894 – January 10, 1980) was an American labor union administrator for 57 years. He was a vital figure in the creation of the AFL–CIO and served as its first president, from 1955 to 1979. Meany, the son of a ...

Activities

Of the numerous topics first visualized, fifteen were defined in the final report of the Commission. A writer was selected for each topic (i.e., goal) and was assisted by an ad hoc panel selected to counsel and criticize. And, as a general rule, one or more members of the Commission participated with each ad hoc panel. The Commission commented upon, approved or disapproved, the papers being written on the chosen topics. The completed report of the Commission (respecting President Eisenhower's request that its efforts be non-partisan) was sent to the president on November 16, 1960. The Report was published by

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on December 12, 1960 in both paperback and hardbound editions.American Assembly (1960). "Goals for Americans Comprising the Report of the President's Commission on National Goals and Chapters Submitted for Consideration of the Commission." New York: Columbia University Press.

Dissolution

The Commission ceased activity with the submission of its report to the president, but its offices remained open until approximately May 1961, so as to make further arrangements for publicizing the Commission's report through the use of the communications media and the establishment of numerous discussion groups. The Commission also heavily influenced political elections because of the private funds flowing through the organization.

References

External links

U.S. President's Commission on National Goals Records, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library
Federal government of the United States National Goals, Commission on {{US-gov-stub