John Henry Summerskill (March 26, 1925 – June 14, 1990) was a Canadian educator who served as the seventh president of

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...

in the 1960s. Prior to this he was vice president for student affairs at

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

. In the 1970s he was named president of Athens College in Greece. He later moved to New Jersey, where he established a vineyard and became president of the New Jersey Wine Growers Association.

Education

He was born and raised in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, where he attended public schools before graduating from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

excelling in football as well as academics. He received his PhD in clinical psychology from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

Academic career

Joining the faculty of Cornell in the 1950s, he remained in Ithaca as a member of the faculty and administrator for fifteen years at which time he was named president of San Francisco State. His tenure in San Francisco was marked by student protests and clashes with Governor Ronald Reagan. After two years of turmoil he abruptly departed for

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

. He worked in

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

at Haile Sellassie University (now Addis Ababa University) on a grant from the

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...

. Later he became president of Athens College in Greece.

Vintner

In the 1980s Dr. Summerskill retired from academic life and moved to

Belle Mead, New Jersey Belle Mead is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Montgomery Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States.Mimi LaFollette Summerskill Miriam LaFollette "Mimi" Summerskill (June 2, 1917January 31, 2008) was an American educator, author, political activist, and vineyard owner. Early life and education Mimi was the eldest of four children. She grew up in Colfax, Washington where he ...

. They sold their wine under the name LaFollette and he was chosen president of the New Jersey Wine Growers Association. Their vineyard became the gathering place for policy and political discussions. The 1989 harvest and the people who helped pick the grapes was featured in an article in the

Wine Spectator ''Wine Spectator'' is an American lifestyle magazine that focuses on wine and wine culture, and gives out ratings to certain types of wine. It publishes 15 issues per year with content that includes news, articles, profiles, and general entertain ...

Writer

He was a prolific writer, and his articles on a number of different subjects appeared in numerous publications. In the book, ''President Seven,'' he detailed his experiences at San Francisco State.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Summerskill, John 1925 births 1990 deaths Writers from California Writers from New Jersey Writers from Montreal Canadian expatriate writers in the United States Canadian emigrants to the United States Viticulturists Presidents of San Francisco State University Cornell University faculty McGill University alumni University of Pennsylvania alumni La Follette family 20th-century American academics