Several weeks ago, the Milbank Library debuted its tribute to the late Lawrence A. Cremin, who was President of TC from 1974-84, on its Web site, MilbankWeb. The tribute includes remarks delivered at the dedication of the Cremin portrait (now hanging in the Library); video excerpts from several of Cremin's appearances on the television interview program Open Mind; a gallery of photographs; selected bibliographies of key Cremin writings, with excerpts from his published writings; information on the donation of his library to Milbank and on several memorial funds; writings from his TC presidency; and a gathering of remembrances by students, colleagues, and friends, including President Arthur Levine.

Lawrence Cremin holds a preeminent place among historians of education and is one of the most distinguished Teachers College presidents and faculty members. The curators of the site write that the exhibit shows "the essence of Dr. Cremin's contribution and personality through texts, images, and multimedia." They believe "the exhibit testifies to Lawrence Cremin's humanism and enlightenment."

President Levine, in his comments, wrote that "Larry Cremin was the guarantor of the progressive legacy of Teachers College. Throughout his too short career at TC as professor and president, he animated the College intellectually, leaving an indelible vision and a shadow which continues to guide TC."

The tribute to President Cremin was curated by Jane P. Franck, Director, and Allen Foresta, Head, Research Services, of the Milbank Library. Franck credits the Library staff with "bringing Lawrence Cremin from the past, to the present, and into the future."

She adds that "Our chief goal was to see how we could creatively introduce TC's scholarly resources to the cyberspace world by using existing library materials and the latest technology."

The exhibit address is http://lweb.tc.columbia.edu/exhibits/cremin/.

Published Wednesday, Apr. 10, 2002