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American academic

Douglas Maitland Knight (June 8, 1921 – January 23, 2005) was an American educator, businessman, and author. He was a former professor of literature at Yale University prior to his presidency at Lawrence College from 1954 to 1963. Stemming from his work at Lawrence College was his subsequent term as president of Duke University, where he served until he resigned in 1969 following student protests and the takeover of the university's main administrative building by students calling for a black cultural center and African American studies program, among other things. Controversy over these issues led to his transition into the business world at RCA and Questar Corporation. Knight never fully retired, and was known to consult for Questar's Board of Trustees years after his departure.

Douglas Maitland Knight was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After completing his doctoral studies, Knight remained at Yale undertaking research and would eventually make tenure. Knight was particularly interested in Alexander Pope, the great 18th century poet and translator of Homer. Dr. Knight also received 12 honorary degrees from colleges and universities throughout the country, including degrees from both of his former homes, Lawrence College and Duke University, as well as institutions such as Knox College and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

In 1954, 32 year old Knight was chosen to succeed Dr. Nathan M. Pusey as the President of Lawrence College.

The Duke Vigil was a weeklong silent demonstration that began on April 5, 1968, following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 450 students marched 3 miles to Dr. Knight's home to deliver the following list of demands for a restructuring of the university into something less threatening to African American students:
"(1) That he [Knight] sign an advertisement to be published in the Durham Morning Herald calling for a day of mourning; (2) That he press for the $1.60 wage for University employees; (3) That he resign from the then segregated Hope Valley Country Club; (4) That he appoint a committee of students, faculty and workers to make recommendations concerning collective bargaining and union recognition at Duke." Knight invited students into his home and spent the entire night negotiating the terms of their demands. Knight faced criticism from the Board of Trustees over his "permissiveness", but weathered the storm.

The timing of the Allen Building takeover coincided perfectly with a week long campus event known as Black Week. In the Black Week of 1969, Duke University's own African American paper, the Harambee, made its debut, featuring many incendiary articles on the standing of the Black students at Duke. The debut was spurred by the administration's sham "involvement" in the activities of Black Week. Neither President Knight nor his staff appeared at events celebrating African American culture and diversity. In a statement of purpose by the editorial board of the Harambee, the paper's message as well as the message behind Chuck Hopkins's abstract letter was summarized: "Blacks believe that the blatant racism, subtle bigotry, dehumanizing effects of shallow liberalism, and the belief that a white "superior" culture is liberating the minds of Black people, generated our present mentality. Moving from this point, Blacks believe that if the university community recognizes their acts of indignation and the students' frustrations, we can solve the problem." The majority of African American students at Duke were of the belief, however, that discussion could do no more for their complaints. It was with this in mind that the group of seventy some odd students invaded the offices of the Allen Building and barricaded the doors. In their list of demands, included below in Figure 1, the "Malcolm X Liberation School," as the group referred to themselves, cited additional reasons for the takeover. Among these, two major points were the admission criteria for Black students and the rumored budget cuts to Black scholarships coming in the following Fall. The response to the Takeover differed among the three main corpora of the school's community: the students, faculty, and administration. The student body's response was largely supportive of the movement. At the time of the expiration of the administration's one hour ultimatum to the occupants, over 2000 white students surrounded the Allen Building to protect the black students inside.

Knight chaired the National Commission for Libraries appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The book he co edited based on Commission work, Libraries At Large: Tradition, Innovation, and the National Interest, was the foundation for (PL 91 345) that established the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS).

Douglas Knight died in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, January 23, 2005, from complications arising from pneumonia. His wife, Grace Nicholas Knight—an extraordinary woman in her own right, died in 2008. He is survived by his four sons, Christopher, Douglas Jr., Thomas, and Stephen.