Butler, Nicholas Murray

During a 60-year career at Columbia University, Nicholas Murray Butler (1862–1947) stands as both an educational leader and a national statesman. After receiving his PhD in 1884, he joined the Department of Philosophy. His educational writings were clearly influenced by his studies of continental philosophy, which would often put him in sharp conflict with some of America's greatest pragmatic philosophers, such as John Dewey, who also taught at Columbia. By training and disposition, Butler was a man of strict traditional principles with students. Nevertheless, his educational leadership promoted academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas.

Professionally, he helped establish and lead Teachers College prior to and during its affiliation with Columbia University. His vision for Teachers College went beyond the strong influences of individual professors, such as John Dewey, Frank McMurray, and William Kilpatrick. He balanced their educationally progressive ideas with the long tenures of Edward Thorndike in statistical and psychological measurement and Paul Monroe in school administration, among others.

In 1901, he was named acting president of Columbia and was named president the following year. During his tenure as a professor and later president, Butler wrote over a dozen books, including The Meaning of Education (1898)—a forward-thinking text that sought to establish science and philosophy as the foundation of education. He founded the journal Educational Review, which he edited for 30 years.

By the early 1900s, Butler combined his academic pursuits with his interest in national and international politics. He was a delegate to Republican conventions and eventually became Taft's running mate on the Republican ticket in 1912. In subsequent elections, Butler sought the presidential nomination from the Republican Party for himself but failed. He remained a loyal Republican despite his differences on the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment, the role of government and the economy, and his support of local reform movements.

He was an advocate of peace through education, helping to establish and lead (1925–1945) the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His efforts on behalf of disarmament, international cooperation, and peace won him international recognition, culminating in his sharing the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize with Jane Addams. In addition, he served as president (1928–1941) of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Nicholas Murray Butler's academic and political accomplishments reflected a different role once held by educational leaders. That is, regardless of his position in the academy or politics, he spoke of American education in terms of a national system that encompassed public as well as private institutions. He found expression for America's ideals and national spirit not only in schools and universities but also through its churches, the press, and in arts and humanities. Within the public school system itself, Butler believed that the government's responsibility for education should coincide with the consent of the people. In other words, he found no constitutional basis to restrict the public's right to support education at any and all levels and for all ages. Most important, Butler thought it fundamental to American education and democracy that all taxpayers must equitably bear the responsibility for supporting schools. His political actions, internationally, nationally, and locally, made him one of the preeminent educational leaders and statesmen of his generation.

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