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Brigham Young Academy. Board of Trustees

 Organization

Dates

  • Existence: 1875 - 1903

Administrative History

The Board of Trustees (1875-1903) was the administrative authority and final policy-making body of Brigham Young Academy.

Brigham Young Academy was established October 16, 1875, under the direction of a local Board of Trustees. The initial members of the Board included A. O. Smoot, Myron Tanner, Leonard Harrington, Harvey H. Cluff, Wilson Dusenberry, William Bringhurst, and Martha Jane Knowlton Coray. The Board was given responsibility for selecting the school's principal, establishing rules of conduct, arranging for facilities, controlling matriculation of students, and hiring teachers. However, Brigham Young retained for his heirs the ability to appointed members to the Board of Trustees, as well as the power to veto decisions made by the Board. When a new deed of trust was enacted on November 11, 1890, visitatorial and appointive powers were transferred to the Board. The role of the Young family was retained through a new requirement that the Board include three heirs of Brigham Young as trustees. Under the new deed, the Board was granted the power to establish bylaws for school, acquire facilities, fill Board vacancies, and incorporate the school. In order to address financial challenges, the Board moved to incorporate the Academy on July 18, 1896, with the First Presidency serving as the sole stockholder of the new corporation with authority to select officers (three of which were still required to be descendants of Brigham Young). With this change, a new Board of Trustees was established, which included Brigham Young Jr., George Q. Cannon, Myron Tanner, Harvey H. Cluff, Wilson H. Dusenberry, Karl G. Maeser, David John, Susa Young Gates, Reed Smoot, Thomas R. Cutler, George D. Snell, and Joseph Don Carlos Young. The new trustees were officially appointed April 6, 1897. The structure of the Board remained unchanged until after the school was renamed Brigham Young University in 1903.

Citation:
Brigham Young University, 1975: v. 1 p. 65 (Board of Trustees; est. Oct. 16, 1875; initial members included A. O. Smoot, Myron Tanner, Leonard Harrington, Harvey H. Cluff, Wilson Dusenberry, William Bringhurst, and Martha Jane Knowlton Coray) p. 66 (Board selected principal) p. 73 (Board established rules, arranged for facilities, controlled matriculation of students, hiring of teachers) p. 140 (heirs of Brigham Young appointed members to the Board of Trustees) p. 141 (heirs of Brigham Young retained veto power on decisions made by the Board) p. 151 (new deed of trust on Nov. 11, 1890, placing visitatorial and appointive powers in the Board) p. 152 (Board granted power to establish bylaws for school, acquire facilities, fill Board vacancies, and incorporate the school; trustees required to include three heirs of Brigham Young, and Board members could be removed with 2/3 vote) p. 244 (Academy incorporated on July 18, 1896, and new Board of Trustees established, including Brigham Young Jr., George Q. Cannon, Myron Tanner, Harvey H. Cluff, Wilson H. Dusenberry, Karl G. Maeser, David John, Susa Young Gates, Reed Smoot, Thomas R. Cutler, George D. Snell, and Joseph Don Carlos Young) p. 245 (First Presidency made sole stockholders of corporation, with authority and power to select officers, three of which needed to be descendants of Brigham Young) p. 246 (new directors officially appointed Apr. 6, 1897) p. 516 (Oct. 23, 1903, Brigham Young Academy became Brigham Young University)

BYU organizational history, via WWW, Sept. 20, 2012 (Board of Trustees; est. 1903; originally consisted of president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, general authorities, local officials, and descendants of Brigham Young; reorganized in 1939 to include members of the Church General Board of Education; administrative authority for Brigham Young University and acts as the final policy-making body of the University)

Found in 2 Collections and/or Records:

Board of Trustees minutes, 1875-1985

 Series
Identifier: UA 6 Series 2
Scope and Contents

Contains minutes from meetings of the Board of Trustees. Includes records of administrative actions, including personnel decisions. Materials date from between 1875 and 1985.

Dates: 1875-1985

Board of Trustees records

 Collection
Identifier: UA 6
Scope and Contents

Contains the minutes from meetings of the Brigham Young University Board of Trustees. The minutes deal with the administration of Brigham Young University. They include information on faculty, finances, students, athletics, and other matters.

Dates: 1875-1985