Ayer, Perley.

Ayer, a native of New Hampshire, was educated at the University of New Hampshire (B.S. 1922), and at Cornell University (M.S. 1947). Prior to coming to Berea in 1947, he was employed as an extension agent in New Hampshire and as an instructor at Pleasant Hill Academy in Tennessee. He worked at Berea College as supervisor of an agricultural training program in the Foundation School; as a field representative for the Admissions office, and later as an instructor in sociology. By the time he was appointed executive secretary of the Council of the Southern Mountains in 1951, the organization had suffered decreased membership and diminished influence. During his fifteen-year tenure, Ayer is credited with reviving interest in the Council's programs and making it perhaps the largest and most significant social organization in the Appalachian Region.