He assumed the presidency at Illinois State University in 1971. Berlo had high hopes for ISU, wanting it to become the premier undergraduate university in the state. One way Berlo did this was to have each academic department meet and decide where they could cut costs in order to reallocate funding. The cuts were seen in the elimination of academic programs and majors such as the Master’s in Physics and the Home EconomicsTeacher Education major, along with a reduction in admission to certain programs. Some controversial suggestions from Berlo were an added fee for on-campus health services and a family planning center. He also wanted to change the entire administrative structure of the university, which was met with heavy resistance from the Academic Senate of the university. One defining feature of Berlo’s presidency was the low morale seen among both faculty members and university students. His changing of faculty salaries without the concurrence of the faculty Academic Senate members and the centralization of governance at the university contributed to this. Berlo’s actions regarding who made decisions and the amount of power held by the Academic Senate, faculty members, and students who had been fighting for more power on campus upset all of these groups, and made them feel as if Berlo was ignoring the ISU Constitution and the Academic Senate. One notable part of Berlo’s time in office at ISU was the career of Doug Collins, a notable basketball player who went on to both play and coach in the NBA, along with play in the 1972 MunichSummer Olympics.
During Berlo’s time as president, the Board of Regents governing the university decided that the president should live in a residence provided by the university, and the cost of construction would become a point of contention. It was discovered that the charges told to the Board were not entirely correct, and the building of the residence was much more expensive than previously estimated or approved. An independent audit found that the house cost over $80,000 over its approved budget, and since he was the president of the university, Berlo ultimately took the fall for this. There were also other costs from Berlo that were criticized, such as his food arrangement with a dining center and his liquor bills, which were mildly controversial due to Normal being a dry town. Berlo resigned as president of ISU on May 30, 1973.
Later Years and Death
Berlo moved to St. Petersburg, Florida after resigning from the ISU presidency, where he worked for the Industrial Council of the YMCA. He died at the age of 66 on February 23, 1996, and was buried in the New Saint Marcus Cemetery and Mausoleum in Affton, Missouri.
