Biographical

Scope and Content The James Merritt Collection consists of personal files, correspondence, original work, and documents related to his academic and theological careers.  The collection contains four series in which folders are organized alphabetically.  Files within each folder are organized chronologically, and documents without designation of date placed after dated materials. Series one consists of biographical materials, which include family memorabilia, news clippings, family genealogy, and childhood schoolwork.  The second series contains documents related to Merritt’s academic career, such as correspondence, student work, and administrative reports and reviews.  General correspondence comprises the third series.  This series contains communications with students, academics, and professional institutions not directly related to other series or folders. Merritt’s participation in professional associations, societies, and conferences is documented in the fourth series, which consists of his peers’ conference papers, event materials, and related correspondence.  The fifth series contains original work, including published and unpublished essays, his conference papers and speech notes, as well as sermons and materials related to charity activities.  Series six and seven contain documents related to Merritt’s adult education: The sixth series consists of materials related to educational and philosophical studies, while the seventh consists of theological documents. Biographical Sketch James Willis Merritt was born on June 25, 1913, in Dundalk, Maryland.  He began his career as an educator at the age of 18, teaching fifth graders while fulfilling the requirements for his Bachelor of Science in Education at John Hopkins University.  After graduating in 1943, Merritt served in a US Navy Pacific fleet stationed in Makalapa, near Pearl Harbor, until 1945.  Afterwards, he resumed his elementary teaching in Baltimore County where he also served a short period as principal.  In 1946, he married Helen Virginia Henry, and in 1947 he completed his Master’s in Education.  He continued graduate course work on campus at Harvard until 1948, when he, Helen, and their young daughter, Deborah, moved to DeKalb, Illinois.  In the same year, Merritt began work at what was then Northern Illinois State Teacher’s College as an assistant director of Elementary School Student Teaching.  He later served as a professor of education as well as the regional chairman for the Area of History and Philosophy of Education.  While in DeKalb, James continued to work toward his Doctorate of Education through Harvard University, which he completed in 1951.  Until his retirement from Northern Illinois University in 1979, he participated in a variety of professional societies and conferences related to teaching and philosophy and continued graduate course work near home at University of Chicago and abroad at Cambridge University.  He also served as a Fulbright elementary school lecturer for a year in Japan.  After retirement, he completed a Master of Divinity degree at the Meadville Lombard Theological School, and carried out local pastoral care and services for the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb, where he was a founding member. James and Helen came to spend much of their time in DeKalb involved in preservation and philanthropy.  The couple was active in the preservation of the Gurler House and other nineteenth century homes in DeKalb.  They donated forty acres to DeKalb County, which became known as the Merritt Prairie, and gave notable gifts to Hope Haven as well as the Northern Illinois University Library Book fund.  The couple also donated multiple works of art to local libraries, schools and businesses, and endowed Northern Illinois University’s Helen Merritt Art Scholarship and Award for Distinguished Service in Philosophy of Education.  James was also involved in local politics as a democratic precinct committeeman and through letters to the editor regarding local conservation and public funding issues.  Due to their commitment to philanthropy and education, James and Helen received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 from the NIU Foundation.  James passed away on December 20, 2010, at the age of 97.