Dates

• Majority of material found within 1942 - 2015

Extent

12 boxes Linear Feet (Dr. Ruth Irene Shirey (December 2, 1942-February 20, 2015), Professor Emeritus in the Department of Geography and Regional Planning at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) where she taught geography from 1970 to 2007. A native of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Ruth Shirey was the daughter of Donald E. Shirey (1916-1989) and his wife Esther Irene Alwine Shirey (1915-1997). In 1965, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography Education from Indiana State College (ISC), which became Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) in 1966. She was a member of Gamma Theta Upsilon, the International Geography Honor Society. She earned her Master of Science in 1968 and her PhD in Geography in 1970 from the University of Tennessee. She was awarded a National Defense Education Act Title IV fellowship at the University of Tennessee in 1965-1968. She was married to Dr. Royce Walters, Professor Emeritus in the Department of History at IUP. Ruth Shirey was an assistant professor at Tennessee Tech University in 1968-1969. She joined the IUP faculty in 1970 where she taught for 37 years until her retirement in 2007. Dr. Shirey was the Chair of the Department of Geography and Regional Planning from 1977 to 1988, and she was also the Interim Associate Dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences from 1987 to 1989. In 1988, Dr. Shirey participated in a Fulbright faculty exchange with the University of Poona in India. Dr. Shirey and her husband Dr. Royce Walters were instrumental in the “Committee to Save John Sutton Hall” (Manuscript Group 39) in 1970s, which took initiatives to preserve the first building on campus. Dr. Shirey brought IUP international recognition when she served as the executive director of the National Council for Geographic Education from 1988 to 2002 and based its headquarters at IUP. Concurrently, she provided IUP prestige as she served as a state coordinator for the Pennsylvania Geographic Alliance from 1986 to 2002. In 2008, IUP honored Dr. Shirey with a Distinguished Alumni Award for achievements in academia and for contributions to geography education, research and administration. During her tenure at IUP, Dr. Shirey was awarded $1.8 million in external grant funding. Dr. Shirey received the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Outstanding Service Award for 1998–1999 and the IUP Graduate Dean’s Award for Outstanding Commitment to Sponsored Programs. She was honored with the Pennsylvania Geographical Society Distinguished Service Award in 2001 and the George J. Miller Award for Distinguished Service from the National Council for Geographic Education in 1996—the same year she was included in the Geographers on Film Series. She was also honored for her service to Gamma Theta Upsilon International Honor Society in 2003. Dr. Shirey was elected to the Society of Woman Geographers in 1980, and she was a life member of the Association of American Geographers, the National Council for Geographic Education, and the Conference of Latin American Geographers. This collections contains biographical and family information, correspondence, memorabilia, career and office files, and service awards earned by Dr. Ruth Shirey who was Professor Emeritus from the Department of Geography & Regional Planning at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). This collection was donated by Dr. Ruth Shirey and Dr. Royce Walters.)

Language of Materials

English