He taught English for a year, then changed to history, which he taught at Yale from 1933, becoming an assistant professor in 1938, an associate professor in 1942, and a full professor in 1947. Griswold received a Ph.D. in the new field of History, the Arts and Letters, writing the first dissertation in American Studies in 1933. The American cult of success was the dissertation's subject, informed in part by Griswold's brief time on Wall Street between his graduation and the stock market crash of 1929. Griswold authored The Far Eastern Policy of the United States, Farming and Democracy, Essays on Education, In the University Tradition, and Liberal Education and the Democratic Ideal. Although Griswold was not a specialist in foreign affairs, his 1938 book on Far Eastern policy was an elegantly written and vigorous survey which for many years was the most influential work in the field.
In 1951, Griswold became President of Yale University, serving until his death in 1963. Griswold was unaware of his imminent rise to the presidency. The day of his elevation, he told his wife, "Thank God we're not in that racket," after they had lunched with a friend, the president of Mount Holyoke College. As president, Griswold is credited with tripling the university endowment to $375 million, building 26 new buildings and establishing research fellowships for young scholars, particularly in the sciences. He was arguably Yale's first modern president, and was widely quoted in the national media for his views on foreign affairs, amateur athletics, academic freedom, and in defense of the liberal arts against government intrusion. Griswold also worked in successful collaboration with Nathan Pusey, his counterpart at Harvard, to maintain amateurism in athletics among universities known now as the Ivy League. The decision to create the eleventh and twelfth residential colleges at Yale, known as Morse College and Ezra Stiles College, was made by Griswold. In 1952, he established Masters of Arts programs in teaching, affiliated with the traditional liberal arts departments. During World War II he headed special U.S. Army training programs in languages and civil affairs. Ben Kiernan is the current A. Whitney Griswold Professor of History at Yale.
Quotes
On ideas and the banishment of books:
Books won't stay banned. They won't burn. Ideas won't go to jail. In the long run of history, the censor and the inquisitor have always lost. The only sure weapon against bad ideas is better ideas. The source of better ideas is wisdom. The surest path to wisdom is a liberal education. —Alfred Whitney Griswold, "Essays on Education,"
