]
]
This collection has access restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the FAQ section for more information.
Expand/collapse
Collection Overview
| Size | 15.0 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 12000 items) |
| Abstract | The Graduate and Professional Student Federation (GPSF) was founded in 1971 by graduate students at the university to represent their needs and interests to the Student Government and the university administration. It soon was recognized as a quasi-independent organization within Student Government and was granted seats in the student legislature. A particular interest of the federation has been ensuring that graduate students are not overlooked in the allocation of students fees. The bulk of the original accession pertains to a large-scale survey of the university's graduate students conducted by the Graduate and Professional Student Federation in 1984. The aim of the survey was to indentify problems associated with graduate curricula, policies affecting graduate students, and campus life. Included are the responses to the survey, as well as the final report. Also included are correspondence, constitutions, minutes, and lists of GPSF officers. The Addition of March 2012 consists of various records related to the administration, activities, and priorities of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation, 1968-2002. Included are correspondence; constitutions; agendas, minutes, and rosters of the GPSF Senate; histories of the GPSF; budget files; documents related to external committee appointments; student surveys; lobbying materials; and numerous subject files pertaining to issues and topics of interest to the GPSF, including child care, financial aid, student fees, tuition, health insurance for graduate students, research, campus committees, and other topics. There are also copies of various Student Government documents, including legislative bills and other items, assembled by GPSF members. |
| Creator | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Graduate and Professional Student Federation. |
| Language | English |
Expand/collapse
Information For Users
Expand/collapse
Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
Expand/collapse
Related Collections
Expand/collapse
Historical Information
The history of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation (GPSF) began in the late 1960s. At that time, Student Government at the university generally focused on the needs of the undergraduates, despite an increasing population of graduate and professional students. This discrepancy was especially apparent in the allocation of student fees, which primarily funded undergraduate institutions and organizations such as the Student Union. In 1968, a handful of graduate students chartered the Graduate Student Association (GSA) with hopes of addressing this inequity.
When the GSA disbanded in 1971, another organization, the Graduate Student Coordinating Committee (GSCC), quickly emerged to fill the void. In the beginning, the GSCC envisioned the creation of a new student government for graduate and professional students. After discussion and debate with university leaders and Student Government, the Graduate and Professional Student Federation emerged as a quasi-independent organization within Student Government and was allocated eight seats on the Campus Governing Council. With its position secured within Student Government, the organization called for the election of departmental officers. As intermediaries between the Graduate and Professional Student Federation and the graduate students, the departmental officers acted both as representatives and as distributors of student fees within each department.
Since its creation, the Graduate and Professional Student Federation has continually fought over the allocation of student fees. In 1979, after numerous attempts by Student Government to defund the organization, an amendment was passed guaranteeing that the Graduate and Professional Student Federation would receive at least 15 percent of the student fees paid by graduate students. In 1992, the Graduate and Professional Student Federation spearheaded an attempt to increase this percentage; this effort failed.
In the early 1980s, the Graduate and Professional Student Federation began to address a wider range of graduate students' needs. In 1982, the organization conducted a study to determine the feasibility of providing affordable health insurance. Then, in September 1984, it launched one of its most ambitious projects, a general survey of graduate and professional students. As Glen Macdonald, chairman of the Commission on Graduate and Professional Student Education, explained in a 1984 memo, "Its purpose [was] to locate and identify major problems with the curriculum, policy and campus life from a graduate student's perspective." Of the 7,053 surveys distributed, 1,750 (25 percent) were returned. The responses were then tabulated and, in February of 1986, the Graduate and Professional Student Federation published its findings. Overall, the survey found that most students were satisfied with the education they received at the university. Nevertheless, it also revealed numerous problems. These included a disorganized financial aid system, a lack of communication between faculty and students, inadequate access to Davis Library, a lack of child care services, and parking.
Back to Top
Expand/collapse
Scope and Content
The bulk of the original accession of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation records pertains to a survey of the university's graduate students conducted by the federation in 1984. The aim of the survey was to indentify problems associated with graduate curricula, policies affecting graduate students, and campus life. Included are the responses to the survey, as well as the final report. Also included are correspondence, constitutions, minutes, and lists of GPSF officers.
The Addition of March 2012 consists of various records related to the administration, activities, and priorities of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation, 1968-2002. Included are correspondence; constitutions; agendas, minutes, and rosters of the GPSF Senate; histories of the GPSF; budget files; documents related to external committee appointments; student surveys; lobbying materials; and numerous subject files pertaining to issues and topics of interest to the GPSF, including child care, financial aid, student fees, tuition, health insurance for graduate students, research, campus committees, and other topics. There are also copies of various Student Government documents, including legislative bills and other items, assembled by GPSF members.
Back to Top
Expand/collapse
Series Quick Links
Expand/collapse
Graduate and Professional Student Federation of the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill Records, 1971-1994.
Expand/collapse
Addition of March 2012, 1968-2002.
The Addition of March 2012 consists of various records related to the administration, activities, and priorities of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation, 1968-2002. Included are correspondence; constitutions; agendas, minutes, and rosters of the GPSF Senate; histories of the GPSF; budget files; documents related to external committee appointments; student surveys; lobbying materials; and numerous subject files pertaining to issues and topics of interest to the GPSF, including child care, financial aid, student fees, tuition, health insurance for graduate students, research, campus committees, and other topics. There are also copies of various Student Government documents, including legislative bills and other items, assembled by GPSF members.
Note that, for the most part, original file titles have been retained.
Expand/collapse
Addition of March 2012: Internal Files, 1968-2002.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Records document the internal administration, operation, and activities of the Graduate and Professional Student Federation and its officers, including GPSF Senate activities. Included are correspondence; constitutions; agendas, minutes, and rosters of the GPSF Senate; histories of the GPSF; budget files; documents related to external committee appointments; student surveys; lobbying materials; and other items.
Expand/collapse
Addition of March 2012: Student Government Files, 1988-1998.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Documents collected, and sometimes annotated, by Graduate and Professional Student Federation members who served on the Student Congress or who attended Student Government Executive Branch meetings. Materials include legislative bills, meeting minutes, and other items related to Student Government.
Bills, acts, and resolutions, 1988-1994 #40156, Subseries: "Addition of March 2012: Student Government Files, 1988-1998." Box 7 |
|
Executive Branch files: 1993-1998 #40156, Subseries: "Addition of March 2012: Student Government Files, 1988-1998." Box 7Includes meeting minutes, agendas, notes, officer materials, retreat materials, and reports. |
|
78th Congress, 1996-1997 #40156, Subseries: "Addition of March 2012: Student Government Files, 1988-1998." Box 7Includes information on ex-officio membership and the Student Code. |
|
79th Congress, 1997-1998 #40156, Subseries: "Addition of March 2012: Student Government Files, 1988-1998." Box 7 |
Expand/collapse
Addition of March 2012: Subject Files, 1975-2002.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Records relate to issues and topics of interest to the Graduate and Professional Student Federation, including child care, financial aid, student fees, tuition, health insurance, research, campus committees, and other matters.
Processed by: University Archives Staff, October 1995, March 2012
Encoded by: ByteManagers Inc., 2008
Updated because of addtion by Sara Mannheimer, March 2012
Back to Top