Bridgewater State University
Bridgewater State University
"BSU’s most generous benefactors, Bruce and Patricia Bartlett, have taken the cause of free speech to heart, and are providing meaningful support for this most basic of American rights,” wrote John Winters, G ‘11, in Bridgewater magazine, “when Mr. and Mrs.Bruce Bartlett announced in 2022 the estabishment of the ‘Patricia Quinn, ’67, and Bruce, ’68, Bartlett Endowed Chair in Free Speech and Expression.’"
As BSU alumni know,,the “Bartlett College of Science and Mathematics” officially opened in 2012, a year after the Dana Mohler-Faria Science and Mathematics Center opened in September 2011.
Speaking of the latest Endowed Chair given by the Bartletts, Mrs. Bartlett wrote, “Bruce and I are excited and humbled to be able to help support courses in free speech and expression at Bridgewater State University."
President Fred Clark, ‘83, said in announcing the creation of the Patricia Quinn, ‘67, and Bruce Bartlett, '68, Endowed Chair in Free Speech and Expression, '"We are so deeply grateful to Bruce and Pat for their love and commitment to their alma mater and to our country. They are proud Americans with a deep appreciation for, and knowledge of, the importance of the founding of our nation was to the world, and the enduring values on which our democracy is built."
Professor of Philosophy Dr. Aeon J. Skoble was appointed the inaugural holder of the endowed chair.
“In his research, scholarship and teaching, Dr. Skoble has been a lucid and forceful exponent of the inherent value of free speech and its foundational role in democracy," continued Mr. Winters. "As chair, he will focus on four areas: teaching, scholarship, campus engagement and outreach, and mentoring and advising.”
Mr. Winters noted that the endowed chair is not the first time the Bartletts have sought to reinforce the most critical of lessons pertaining to our so-called American experiment.
“In December 2021, BSU announced the establishment of the ‘Bartlett Endowed Professorship for Civic Education and Engagement,’ which is currently held by Dr. Jo Hoffman of the Department of Elementary and Early Education," he said.
The couple also addressed the importance of free speech in the pages of a 2020 textbook they were instrumental in developing, The Massachusetts Chronicles: The History of Massachusetts from Earliest Times to the Present Day.
“The statement the Bartletts included in the publication made the point that 'free speech is the freedom that protects all the other freedoms … Free speech not only protects our liberties but also helps advance science and all aspects of our lives.' ”
"Not to be Ministered Unto
but to Minister"
In Dr. Turner's classic 2010 book, Not to be Ministered Unto but to Minister: Bridgewater State College, 1840-2010, he documented the interesting life of John J. Kelly, the sixth president of what was at the time Bridgewater State Teachers College, where he served as president from 1937 to 1951 (a total of fourteen years; President Kelly died suddenly while in office to be succeeded by Clement Maxwell, professor of English):
"John J. Kelly, who succeeded Zenos Scott in September, 1937, had already been a member of the faculty for 19 years at the time of his appointment," wrote Dr. Turner.
"For most of that period, he was also the dean of men. His long apprenticeship was reminiscent of the relationship between Arthur Boyden, class of 1869, principal from 1906 to 1931 and president, 1932, and his father, Albert G. Boyden, class 1849, principal from 1860 to 1906.
"In fact, the dean’s job really meant he served as an assistant to the president under both Arthur Boyden and Zenos Scott.
"A newspaper described his selection and notification: 'Dean John J. Kelly of the State Teachers College faculty was appointed president of the college by Education Commissioner James G. Reardon Wednesday with the
approval of his advisory board. Kelly received word at his home at 58 Stetson Street in Bridgewater last evening through telephone calls from Boston newspapermen and today the popular and well-liked dean is receiving the congratulations of his many friends and associates.'
"The new president was born in Worcester," continued Dr. Turner, on July 24, 1883, where he attended the public schools and St. John's school (more, following item below)
To read a story we published in the past, please click here:
This concludes the report for August 24, 2026
Next edition: Tuesday, September 8, 2026
following Labor Day