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June Goodman Collection

 Collection
Identifier: MS 009

Scope and Content Note

The June Goodman Collection documents her local activism in the 1960s. The collection focuses on Goodman's commitment to education, specifically her work with the Committee of 1,000 and its fight to improve and expand the Danbury school system in the 1960s. The collection chronicles the bitter nature of the debate. One side did not want to raise taxes while the other was shocked by the deplorable state of Danbury's public schools. This acrimonious battle was largely played out in the local newspaper The News-Times.

The collection spans from 1947 to 1997 with the bulk of the collection ranging from 1952-1967.

In the January 1964 issue of Redbook Magazine, Harold Mehling wrote an article entitled "How to Win the Fight for a New School." In this piece, he outlined the recent battle over the Danbury, Connecticut, public school system.

Although a small collection, the materials serve to vividly chronicle the fight for Danbury schools. The documents reveal that the school system was struggling for many years prior to the infamous battle of the early 1960s. Groups such as Citizen's Committee on Education, the Community Committee for High School Action, the Chamber of Commerce, the Education Committee, and the PTA all fought for improvements to the schools.

The Joint High School Fact Finding Committee voiced its lack of support for the movement. The presence of this group is also evident in the collection.

Of seemingly unrelated interest is a scrapbook from the Fair City Foundation from 1947 to 1950; it chronicles the civic organizations efforts to improve education, civic, and cultural life in Danbury. The volume may have fallen into Goodman's hands as a result of her involvement in Danbury city affairs.

The collection is comprised of newspaper articles, surveys, correspondence, reports, publicity materials, and scrapbooks. The clippings generally come from the Danbury News Times. Sometimes, they are fragments of articles; it appears that Goodman clipped only the relevant sections. Dates have tried to be established for all of the articles, but it is suggested the researcher double-check his or her research.

Dates

  • Creation: 1947-1997 , (Bulk 1952-1967)
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1952 - 1967

Creator

Access Restrictions

Open to researchers without restriction.

Use Restrictions

Permission to publish materials must be obtained in writing from the:
Ruth A. Haas Library
Archives and Special Collections
181 White Street
Danbury, CT 06810
Phone: 203-837-8992
E-mail: stevensb@wcsu.edu

Historical/Biographical Note

June Goodman devoted much of her life to the city of Danbury and the state of Connecticut. She was a passionate advocate of the arts and a strong voice for the improvement of the Danbury school system.

Born June Karelsen in New York in 1920, she graduated from Ohio's Oberlin College in 1941. In 1940, while still in college, she married William Goodman. The couple had five children: Douglas, Louis, Michael, Kitty, and Susan. In 1970, after raising her family, Goodman earned a master's degree in education from Western Connecticut State University.

June Goodman claimed that one of the greatest gifts her parents gave her was an appreciation and a passion for the performing arts. They also provided her with a sense of community and a commitment to helping others. Goodman combined her passion for the arts and her commitment to service and volunteerism to improve both the arts and education in Danbury. Her interest in the arts and her skill as a fundraiser helped lead to the founding of the Charles Ives Center for the Performing Arts at Western Connecticut State University in 1984. Her commitment to education led to the improvement and expansion of the Danbury school system in the 1960s. A commitment to the Democratic Party spurred her involvement in local government and political campaigns. During the course of her life, her local efforts drew the attention of other who called on her for involvement in state and national cause.

Goodman was a firm believer in the power of the arts in school. In the 1950s she launched a program in which local women volunteered to go into the public schools to deliver slide show lectures about the arts.

A former teacher, Goodman was a leader in a grass roots effort that pushed for the improvement and expansion of the school system. In 1960 she and her husband William formed, along with many concerned citizens, the Committee of 1,000, a group that worked for a $9.5 million school expansion program. A bitter fight, the group saw victory in 1962 when the construction of four new schools was approved.

In 1963 Goodman became the fourth woman to serve on the Danbury Board of Education. She served until 1969. During this time she advocated for the improvement and development of pre-school programs.

In 1975 Gov. Ella T. Grasso nominated Goodman for the State Board of Education. She served for many years, including six as the board's chairperson. She served also as the chairperson of the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education and also as chair of the State Task Force on Gifted and Talented Education.

Goodman was the Danbury Music Center's second executive director. In 1974 she was involved in the effort to persuade Leonard Bernstein and Michael Tilson Thomas to conduct concerts at the Danbury Fair grounds of music by Danbury composer Charles Ives. The concert sparked the idea that Danbury could support, and needed, a musical performance center. After years of work, the Charles Ives Center, for which Goodman raised money and served as vice-chairman, opened in 1984. She also served on the board for the National Theater of the Deaf in Chester.

For more than 40 years, Goodman was a close friend to the famed opera singer Marian Anderson, who also hailed from Danbury. In 1990, Goodman established the Marian Anderson Award fund, which provides grant assistance for talented opera singers throughout the country. Specifically, the award provides financial assistance for a mid-career singer.

Goodman was also a twenty-one-year member and two-time chairperson of the Connecticut Commission on the Arts and was Gov. Ella Grasso's representative to the National Governor's Association Subcommittee on the Arts.

June Goodman died on December 26, 1997 at the age of 77.

Extent

3.25 Linear Feet (, 3 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The June Goodman Collection documents her local activism in the 1960s. She received a master's degree in education from WestConn in 1970. The collection focuses on Goodman's commitment to education, specifically her work with the Committee of 1,000 and its fight to improve and expand the Danbury school system in the 1960s. Much of the collection chronicles the bitter nature of the debate.

Arrangement

Folders are arranged alphabetically.

The files are grouped into 1 series:

Missing Title

  1. Inventory

Provenance

Donated to the Archives in 2002.

General Physical Description note

1.5 linear feet (2 boxes)

Title
Guide to the June Goodman Collection
Status
Unverified Full Draft
Author
Meg Moughan
Language of description
English
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
Description is in English.
Edition statement
This version was derived from Goodman text.doc

Repository Details

Part of the Western Connecticut State University Archives and Special Collections Repository

Contact:
Haas Library
181 White St
Danbury 06810 USA US
203.837.8992
203.837.8322 (Fax)