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Papers of
Frank Withrow
Processed by Jennifer A. Bull
June 1994
7.0 lin. ft.
Biography | Scope and Content | Provenance | Series Descriptions
Dr. Frank Withrow worked for many years with the United States Department of Education. During the 1980s, he served as the Director of the Division of Educational Technology under the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Educational Research and Improvement. He also worked as the Director of Division of Technology Resource Assessment and Development. When he retired in 1992, Dr. Withrow was head of the Star Schools Project. He is currently working with the Council of Chief State School Officers in Washington D.C.
The Papers of Frank Withrow span the years 1981 to 1990. The collection documents the development and funding of educational television programs during this period with an emphasis on math and science curricula. During the 1980s, the United States Department of Education through a joint-funding agreement with the National Science Foundation supported three such programs: 3-2-1 Contact, Square One TV by the Children's Television Workshop and the Voyage of the Mimi, produced by the Bank Street College of Education. The collection also contains papers related to the development of a proposed audiovisual series Great Teachers/Great Lessons by Frank Withrow. Types of documents included in the collection are: correspondence, reports, memoranda material, government forms. The collection also contains twelve audiovisual tapes.
The collection consists of four series:
- Series 1: Bank Street College of Education
- Series 2: Children's Television Workshop
- Series 3: Office of Educational Research and Development
- Series 4: Audiovisual and Computer Material
The Papers of Frank Withrow were donated to the National Public Broadcasting Archives, University of Maryland Libraries by Dr. Frank Withrow in October of 1993.
Series 1: Bank Street College of Education, 1981 - 1987 (2.0 lin. ft.)
Bank Street College of Education in New York City produced the educational television program, Voyage of the Mimi which premiered in 1982. The development of two seasons of Voyage of the Mimi programming represents the largest series in the collection. The subsequent development of a second season of Voyage of the Mimi is a testament to the great popularity of the series among teachers and its intended school-age audience. This series contains proposals, progress reports, and educational material for the program submitted by Bank Street College of Education as funding documentation to the United States Department of Education. In order to maintain funding, the program's progress was periodically monitored by the division of educational technology as evidenced by quarterly progress reports and various correspondent material. It is arranged chronologically
Series 2: Children's Television Workshop, 1983 - 1988 (1.5 lin. ft.)
Children's Television Workshop produced both 3-2-1 Contact, a scientifically-oriented educational television program and Square One TV which focused on mathematics. This series contains documentation related to the development and support of these programs. Funding was provided by both the Department of Education and the National Science Foundation. Documentation in this series includes the joint-funding agreement between these agencies as well as program proposals and quarterly progress reports. The U.S. Department of Education correspondence cover the years 1983 to 1988. Materials within this series are arranged chronologically.
Series 3: Office of Educational Research and Development, 1985 - 1986 (0.5 lin. ft.)
In the Fall of 1985, Dr. Frank Withrow began developing an educational television program he called Great Teachers/Great Lessons. Dr. Withrow subsequently drafted several proposals outlining the rationale of the program aiming to gain support of the educational technology group and the U.S. Department of Education Secretary, William Bennett. The proposal, which was presented to William Bennett in January 1986 was not accepted, and thus was never fully developed. Materials are arranged chronologically.
Series 4: Audiovisual and Computer Material, 1982 - 1991 (approx. 3.0 lin. ft.)
This series consists primarily of Voyage of the Mimi episodes and progress reports. The remainder of the tapes include two Spanish versions of Sesame Street produced by the Children's Television Workshop and a video on technology and the work place entitled, World of Work: Is Technology Stealing Your Job? The series also includes a Voyage of the Mimi computer activities package with four 5 1/4 inch computer floppy disks. The materials within this series are arranged chronologically and according to topic.
