James Herbert Case, Jr.

Who was James Herbert Case, Jr.?

James Herbert Case, Jr. was the 8th president of Washington & Jefferson College.

Case was born on October 26, 1906 in Plainfield, New Jersey. He graduated from Princeton University in 1929 and served with the United States Navy. Later, he served as secretary of Brown University.

He was elected president of Washington & Jefferson College on May 4, 1946 and inaugurated October 25, 1946. Fall 1946 saw the largest student body on record, 1047, with 75% of the students veterans of World War II. The college added a Division of Engineering in the former Catholic Church on the corner of Wheeling and South Lincoln Streets. On October 29, 1949, the college dedicated Mellon and Upperclass Dormitories. In June 1949, the Board of Trustees granted Case a one-year leave of absence to study the problems of small, independent, liberal arts colleges. On March 25, 1950, before the end of his leave, he resigned to take the presidency of Bard College. He died in New York Hospital on July 11, 1965, after a long illness.