John Henry Summerskill (March 26, 1925 – June 14, 1990) was a Canadian educator who served as the seventh president of San Francisco State University in the 1960s. Prior to this he was vice president for student affairs at Cornell University. In the 1970s he was named president of

Athens College Athens College ( el, Κολλέγιο(ν) Αθηνών; formally Hellenic-American Educational Foundation (HAEF)) is a co-educational private preparatory school in Psychiko, Greece, a suburb of Athens, part of the Hellenic-American Educational ...

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, where he attended public schools before graduating from McGill University in Montreal excelling in football as well as academics. He received his

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clinical psychology Clinical psychology is an integration of social science, theory, and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically based distress or dysfunction and to promote subjective well-being and persona ...

from the University of Pennsylvania.

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 Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

. After two years of turmoil he abruptly departed for Ethiopia. He worked in Addis Ababa at Haile Sellassie University (now

Addis Ababa University Addis Ababa University (AAU) ( am, አዲስ አበባ ዩኒቨርሲቲ) is a national university located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is the oldest university in Ethiopia. AAU has thirteen campuses. Twelve of these are situated in Addis Ababa, ...

) on a grant from the Ford Foundation. Later he became president of

in Greece.

Vintner

In the 1980s Dr. Summerskill retired from academic life and moved to Belle Mead, New Jersey, where he established a vineyard with his wife,

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 h ...

. 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.

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