Dr. Frank Rose was president of the University from 1958 to 1969 and played an instrumental role in its desegregation on June 11, 1963. Having promised that he would ensure that federal laws were followed and that the campus would remain peaceful, he served as middleman between Governor George C. Wallace and the Justice Department of the Kennedy Administration.

Rose’s tenure as UA president saw many other positive changes on campus. Enrollment almost doubled; graduate school enrollment increased tenfold; and the full-time faculty more than doubled. Rose also helped to boost the University’s academic culture, working to recruit top students and faculty, raising undergraduate entrance requirements and committing to expanding programs for scholars.

Rose died Feb. 1, 1991.