Remembering Dr. James R. Blevins,
dean emeritus of the College of Liberal Arts
Dr.
James R. Blevins, dean emeritus of the College of Liberal Arts
and professor emeritus of English, died Monday, August 6. He is
survived by his wife Barbara; brothers Roger and Terry of
Statesville, North Carolina; brother Philip of Memphis,
Tennessee; sister Annis Womack of Centerville, Tennessee;
nephews, nieces, and a host of friends and admirers.
USI President H. Ray Hoops said, “Jim Blevins played a
significant role in the founding and growth of the University of
Southern Indiana. His contributions to the University and its
students will be remembered.”
When Blevins joined what was then Indiana State
University-Evansville in 1966 as assistant professor of English,
the University had 893 students and 17 full-time staff members
(including faculty and administration), and was housed in the
old Centennial School building.
A
Celebration of the Life of Jim Blevins was held on August 25,
2007 in New Harmony, Indiana. Alumni Paul Swanson ‘00,
Linda Negro, Charlene Tolbert , Jay Almon ‘84, William Hairston
‘91, and former faculty member Lulu Kamatoy presented
reflections. A letter from Joshua White was read by Alejandra
Wong and a letter from Dan Brumett was read by Phil Fisher,
dean emeritus of the College of Business. Matthew Graham,
associate professor of English read the poem
Blue Sonata that he
composed for the occasion.
When he retired 34 years later, USI had almost 8,700 students
and 420 full-time faculty and administrative staff members as
well as many part-time faculty members, and had recently opened
the $15.2 million Liberal Arts Center.
Blevins taught literature, film, and composition. He was chair
of the University’s Division of Humanities from 1969 until 1988,
when the divisions were organized into schools, and he was
appointed the first dean of the School of Liberal Arts. (The
designation was changed from “School” to “College” in 2005.)
Blevins virtually created the USI Theatre program from the
ground up. Under his leadership, the College of Liberal Arts
acquired the playhouse on Igleheart Avenue, assumed management
of The New Harmony Theatre, and joined the Indiana Department of
Natural Resources in producing Lincoln Amphitheatre.
During his tenure, USI developed the RopeWalk Writers Retreat,
the Center for Communal Studies, Historic Southern Indiana,
Historic New Harmony, and the New Harmony Gallery of
Contemporary Art.
Blevins was instrumental in the cultural development of the
region, served on the boards of several arts organizations, and
co-founded the USI Society for Arts and Humanities. In 1994, he
received the Mayor’s Art Award, the city’s most prestigious
award for contributions to the arts.
This year, the Blevins were honored as the Arts Council’s 2007
Arts Advocates of the Year, and The New Harmony Theatre’s 20th
anniversary season was dedicated to the couple.
At a dinner in their honor in June, Blevins said he had spent
all of his professional life at USI and had enjoyed a remarkably
rich career. He expressed a similar sentiment in 2000, saying,
“All of us who were here in the early days got caught up in the
growth and the possibilities.” He said he never had “the same
experience two years in a row” because of the dynamic change at
USI.
When Blevins retired in 2000, Dr. Thomas Wilhelmus, professor of
English, said, “Like David Rice, Jim Blevins laid the groundwork
for things at USI that will be around as long as the University
itself exists. Not only was he one of ‘the Founders’ of USI -
someone who helped determine the culture of its largest academic
unit during a period of unparalleled growth and development - he
did this work with intelligence, judgment, good taste, and a
remarkable eye to the future. He is what one journalist some
years ago called him, a visionary worthy of our gratitude and
respect.”
Memorial contributions may be made to the Jim
and Barbara Blevins Student Development Fund in the USI
Foundation.
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