PROPOSED VISIT TO CIA BY A GROUP OF DISTINGUISHED UNIVERSITY PRESIDENTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP86B00985R000300140022-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 14, 2001
• Sequence Number: 22
• Publication Date: July 15, 1977
• Content Type: MEMO

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SUBJECT Proposed Visit to CIA by a Group of
Distinguished University Presidents
policy than they were a few years ago, CIA continues to be a major
1. Purposes of Visit: Though students and faculty on campuses
across the country are less critical of the US government and foreign
15 July 1977
and guidelines governin
s with CIA issued by
Harvard and under consideration at other schools illustrate how strong
anti-Agency feeling still is. Gross misunderstandings of the
Agency's mission and activities are at the root of most of our problems
on campus, and many are based strictly on conjecture or on cases ten
or more years old. Even the well informed and sophisticated drafters
of the Harvard guidelines believed that the Agency is still involved
in activities that were discontinued years ago.
A modest but promising means of dispelling some of the myths
and misunderstandings about CIA is to invite a distinguished group of
university presidents to the Agency for VIP briefings and tours. A
main objective should be to explain on the record what types of rela-
tionships CIA has on campus and why they are important. Particular
emphasis should be placed on our research and analytical efforts and
on the extensive academic contacts that assist them. Agency spokesmen
should make clear in addition that CIA does not do many of the things
it is accused of: we do not use American citizens (academic or other-
wise) unwittingly; we do not use colleges or universities for cover
purposes; we do not conceal contractual research relationships from
appropriate university officials, etc. Thus, the primary purpose of
the proposed visit would be in the area of image building and rectifi-
cation.
Another important purpose would be to improve channels of
communication between CIA and leading academic centers. Any success
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we may have in improving a university president's understanding of the
Agency undoubtedly would have a favorable multiplier effect on campus.
All. of the universities on the initial list proposed below have pres-
tigious foreign area and other specialized research centers (see
Attachment A for a list) where analysis often complements or supple-
ments our own. Contacts between these centers and Agency analytical
components now consist almost entirely of individual relationships.
We should attempt to broaden them and to establish enduring institu-
tional ties with many of the research centers in order to promote
cooperative research.
STATINTL 2. Time and Place of Visit: The first visit should be held for
the better part of two days during the month of October. Most sessions
STATINTI should be conducted at the Headquarters building with special presen-
tations perhaps at Alternatively, the visiting presi-
dents could be flown to
late in the afternoon of the first
11111
day and spend the night t ere wi an evening program, Additional
STATINTL sessions could then be held on the second day at Headquarters and/or
3. A enda: It is recommended that the university presidents be
granted special Secret clearances for the visit and that they be
briefed candidly on a wide spectrum of Agency activities. Presenta-
tion by would appear to be essential elements in the pro-
gram, because of widespread concern in academia--most recently evident
in the Harvard guidelines--with CIA "spying" on campus. Representa-
tives of the two DDO divisions should describe the mission and oper-
ating procedures of their components with an eye toward assuaging
apprehensions about improper CIA activities in the US. Presentations
about photographic collection and analysis would be a key ingredient
and most likely ought to be allocated a large time block on the program.
The DDI's numerous analytical programs should also be a major
element of the program. Special and innovative research efforts
and other resource analysis, strategic research and verifi-
cation, personality and behavorial studies, etc.) should be included.
An effort should be made to formulate an individual presentation for
each president that would concentrate on an analytical area of partic-
ular interest to him.
Although our primary purposes in hosting a visit by univer-
sity presidents are in the area of image building and improving con-
tacts, our scheduling and presentations should scrupulously avoid the
appearances of a high-pitched public relations campaign. If such an
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impression predominated, our efforts might well be counterproductive.
One means of helping to avoid the appearances of a rigidly controlled
visit is to schedule separate, informal sessions for each president
with a group of alumni from his university drawn from throughout the
Agency. The agendas for these meetings should be left open for spon-
taneous and candid exchanges without the presence of senior Agency
officials.
4. Proposed Invitees: The following thirteen presidents (see
Attachment B for Who's Who in America bio sketches) of leading
American universities are recommended for the initial visit:
Peter Magrath
Norman Hackerman
Martin D. Woodin
John W. Oswald
Theodore Hesburgh
Robert Sproull
John Hogness
Henry K. Stanford
David Saxon
Clifton Wharton
Frederick Davison
Jerome Wiesner
Dallin H. Oaks
University of Minnesota
Rice University
Louisiana State University
Pennsylvania State University
Notre Dame University
University of Rochester
University of Washington
University of Miami
University of California
Michigan State University
at East Lansing
University of Georgia
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Brigham Young University
Each was recommended by and is considered
likely to be receptive to an invitation from mira Turner for a
visit to CIA. believe that all are generally
favorable toward CIA. They were drawn from a much larger list of
presidents who would be candidates for additional visits if the first
one is successful. The thirteen were chosen from the larger list for
a variety of reasons. All major regions of the country are represented
about equally. Public and private institutions are included, with
somewhat more in the former category. Two religiously affiliated
institutions are included. Enrollments vary from under 3,000 at Rice
to more than 85,000 in the California university system.
Protocol and compatability have been considered. It would
be inappropriate, for instance, to invite the chancellors of the
Berkeley or Los Angeles campuses of the University of California or
the. New Orleans campus of LSU without first inviting the head of the
entire university system. It would also be inadvisable to invite
-3-
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presidents of institutions of substantially different levels of
.prestige. All of those on the initial list are from prestigious,
highly respected universities regardless of their size or location.
We should not plan on all thirteen accepting our first
invitation. The ideal size for such a visit, in fact, most likely
would be five or six presidents. Having any more than that would tend
to undermine the VIP nature of the visit and give the appearances of
shabby public relations. It is recommended that invitations be sent
at the outset to eight or nine of the individuals on the list with
the expectation that at least a few will be unable to accept. Addi-
tional invitations from the initial list could be sent as soon as
enough regrets are received. Additional visits could be scheduled
for as often as every other month for a year or two. At?the rate of
six university presidents six times a year, more than 100 of the
leading universities and colleges could be reached within three years.
Attachments:
As Stated
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