Victor Pierpoint Morris served as interim president of the University of Oregon from 1953-1954 after University of Oregon's 8th president, Harry K. Newburn, resigned to become President of the Education and Television Center at the University of Montana.
Owen Meredith Wilson (1909-1998) became the ninth President of the University of Oregon (1954-1960). Wilson was known for his effort to make the the school a major university. To help achieve his goals for the university he worked hard to create a graduate school of high standing and to attract faculty members, deans, and department heads who had proven ability or high potential as scholars. Throughout his presidency he combined his noted ability to communicate with faculty members in their specialties with a solid belief that a university must offer a fertile ground for free exchange of all ideas. His efforts laid the groundwork for the the University of Oregon's election in 1969 into the prestigious Association of American Universities and moved it well on its way to becoming a distinguished university.
Source: "Presidential History" http://president.uoregon.edu/history
From the guide to the Office of the President: Victor Pierpont Morris (acting) and O. Meredith Wilson records, 1959-1961, (Special Collections and University Archives, University of Oregon Libraries)
