Abstract

The Education of Ronald Reagan

The membership on and the powers to appoint members to the governing boards of the university and state colleges gives the governor of California Ed Reinecke, a special position of power which the U.S. President Ronald Reagan has not hesitated to exercise in order to achieve his twin goals of restructuring the basic social fabric of California and furthering his own political ambitions. Public higher education in California is as critical an element in achieving these goals as it was in attaining the governorship. During his 1966 campaign, Reagan placed heavy emphasis on campus turmoil and on what was wrong with the university. It is a commonly held view that he rode the 1964 free speech movement at Berkeley to his seat in the governor's chair.