Minar, David W.

David William Minar was born in Portland Oregon, on April 12, 1925. Minar joined the faculty of Northwestern University in 1958, leaving briefly for the University of Washington in 1968. He returned to Northwestern in 1970 as the Chairman of the Department of Political Science. Minar remained at NU until his death in 1973.

After serving in the Army Air Corps from 1943 to 1946, Minar attended Reed College receiving a BA in 1949. He earned his MA (1951), and PhD (1956) degrees from the University of California at Berkeley. His dissertation topic was “Knowledge, Opinion, and Politics: Public Opinion as an Ingredient in Political Theory.”

Minar worked as a research and a teaching assistant at Berkeley from 1951 to 1954, and as an administrative analyst in the Office of the President at Berkeley (1955-1956). He became an Instructor in Political Science at Columbia, (1956-1958) and joined the faculty at Northwestern in 1958, serving as Visiting Assistant Professor of Political Science (1958-1960), Assistant Professor (1960-1963). Associate Professor (1963-1966), and Professor (1966-1968). In 1966-1967 Minar was Chairman of Northwestern's Center for Metropolitan Studies. In 1968 he accepted the position of Professor of Political Science and Chairman of that department at the University of Washington. He returned to Northwestern in 1970 as Professor of Political Science and Urban Affairs and Chairman of the Department of Political Science. Minar held those positions until his death, May 21, 1973, in Evanston.

A popular speaker, Minar also wrote and edited several books in addition to a number of articles and book reviews. He served on the Wilmette School Board and did considerable research and consulting work in the field of education, particularly its political aspect. Minar married Carola Hays and the couple had two children, Edward H. and Thomas J.

From the guide to the David W. Minar (1925-1973) Papers, 1943-1974, (Northwestern University Archives)