Robert M. Hutchins

Robert Maynard Hutchins (1899–1977) was an American educational philosopher and university administrator. He served as president of the University of Chicago from 1929 to 1951, where he championed liberal education and helped promote the Great Books movement. Hutchins argued for a curriculum grounded in enduring works and rigorous discussion, and he was a prominent public voice on the purposes of higher education. After leaving Chicago, he became president of the Fund for the Republic (1954–1961) and later chaired the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions. He was also associated with the Ford Foundation through his leadership of the Fund for the Republic.