Dr. Clifford O.T. Wieden


Principal, 1940-1943, 1946-1952
President, 1952-1969

Clifford Oscar Titus Wieden was born to a Baptist minister on August 30, 1902. His birthplace was Wilmington, Delaware, but he did not stay there too long, because his parents had to move around often from pastorate to pastorate. As a result of Wieden's father having migrated from Sweden, he grew up with a strong Swedish influence. In 1910, the Wieden family, with the exception of Wieden's mother who had recently passed away, moved to New Sweden, Maine, where Wieden lived as a farm boy.

Wieden attended a small, one-room schoolhouse in New Sweden. In this school, all classes of all grades were taught in one room and by one teacher, very much unlike what Wieden was used to having gone to urban schools. As a result of this, Wieden was more advanced than students in his own grade, so he skipped a grade in order to give the student a challenge. In 1915, Wieden graduated from New Sweden Elementary School, and the following year he entered his freshman year at Caribou High School, in Caribou, Maine. After four successful years of high school, Wieden was accepted to and attended Colby College. After one year at Colby College, Wieden transferred to Acadia University, a university predominantly known for studying of ministry, but to the dissatisfaction of Wieden's father, Wieden majored in Biology instead.

Upon Wieden's graduation from Acadia University in 1923, Wieden quickly found a job at Mapleton High School as a French teacher. Although this was not Wieden's area of expertise, he took the challenge and taught French, in addition to the two science classes he was hired to teach. That same year, Clifford O.T. Wieden married a young Latin teacher named Marguerite Hill. His father performed the marriage ceremony for them, as his wedding present to them.

That summer, Wieden went to Bates College to work on his M.A.. There he met numerous superintendents from around the state, and in the fall he attended a conference of superintendents in Castine, Maine. At this conference, Wieden was offered a few different jobs, and the one that he accepted was at Gorham State Teachers College in Gorham, Maine. At Gorham State Teachers College, Wieden was called upon, once again, to teach in areas of education that he was not trained in. This time, he was asked to teach English Grammar, Physical Education, and was requested to coach 2 basketball teams. With a little help from an English teacher and with some additional education at Colgate College to learn about Physical Education, Wieden was able to successfully fulfill what was asked of him.

At this time, Wieden and his wife lost their four year old son to a sudden illness. After this misfortune, Wieden changed significantly both in his personal and professional life. Prior to his son's death, Wieden was a strict man. Following this experience, Wieden became much more relaxed and did not place so much emphasis on discipline, as it was not as important to him as he had once believed. This change showed in his private and professional life.

Wieden remained a teacher in Gorham for 16 years, until there was an opening for principal at Aroostook State Normal School. In 1940, Wieden became principal of ASNS, and remained so for the 3 years before ASNS closed down as a result of the war. During the period that ASNS was closed, Principal Wieden, faculty, and students went to Washington State Normal School in Machias, Maine. In 1946, after the war was over, Wieden came back to ASNS to serve as principal. In 1953, when ASNS was upgraded to a four-year curriculum, the name of the school was changed to Aroostook State Teacher's College. Along with that change, came a change in the title of Wieden. His status was now as president, rather than as principal. Therefore, Wieden became the last principal and the first president of this school.

Over the time period from 1947 to 1969 when President Wieden retired, there were many important changes to the school that helped mold it to what it is today. Following are some of those changes.

On June 7, 1947 San Lorenzo Merriman's old home was acquired by ASNS and dedicated as the Merriman House. This was to serve as the principal's home. Also in that year, the Aroostook State Normal School was given Junior College status by the State Legislature. In 1950 the curriculum was upgraded once again, this time to a four-year program. 1952 marked the end of this institution as a Normal School, as it was renamed the Aroostook State Teacher's College (ASTC), and in that same year, Wieden was appointed president.

On February 10, 1952, Kappa Delta Phi, founded by Hubert Thibodeau, became the first fraternity on campus. In 1954 ASTC became a member of the Northeast College Conference for intercollegiate sports. Also in 1954, ASTC became the first site of a state-sponsored school of practical nursing; however, in 1962 that major moved to Northern Maine Vocational Technical Institute (now known as Northern Maine Technical College).

In 1958 the Health, Physical Education, and Recreation programs were established at ASTC. In 1960 a new building was completed. The purpose of this building was to house an auditorium, a gymnasium, and several classrooms. As a result of President Wieden's commitment to and influence on ASTC, the building, Wieden Hall, was named in honor of him.

In 1962 the Ben Marks Farm was purchased by ASTC for $60,000.00. The addition of this land added 123 acres to the present 27 acres, making the total campus size 150 acres. This was a welcome addition, especially considering the growing need for dormitories. In 1963 some of that need was fulfilled when Emerson Hall, a residence hall, was completed.

1964 was an important year for student financial aid, as this marked the beginning of the the Work-Study Program. In addition, the Equal Opportunity Grants were first awarded in this same year.

Another name change occurred in 1965 when Aroostook State Teacher's College was renamed Aroostook State College (ASC). This change was needed as a result of the growing curriculum which focused on other areas of study other than teaching.

Two more buildings were added to the campus in 1967 when Merriman Hall and Kelley Commons were constructed. Merriman Hall was built as a residence hall, and remains so today. Kelley Commons was built to fulfill the need for a cafeteria.

Once again, the name of this institution was changed. In order to reflect the fact that ASC had become a part of the University of Maine System, the name of ASC changed in 1968 to the Aroostook State College of the University of Maine. Also in 1968 another new building was added to the campus. This building, a classroom building, was named Folsom Hall.

Another two buildings were added to campus in 1969. One, Pullen Hall, was built as a classroom building, and the other, Park Hall, as a residence hall.

During President Wieden's time as head of this institution of higher learning, many changes were made to the campus. The campus grew from 27 to 150 acres, and from 3 to 10 buildings. In addition, the enrollment grew from 140 to 600 students. As a result of Wieden's commitment to this school and of his own superior knowledge, he was awarded two honorary doctorates. The first came in 1958 and the second in 1969. President Wieden retired as president in 1969, but in the years following his retirement before his death, Wieden remained an important figure to this institution. He annually attended some school events, such as the Awards Convocation held in April. This school owes a great deal of its success to the efforts of Dr. Clifford O.T. Wieden, and he will always be remembered by this institution.

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