The Groups Scholars Program is a longstanding student support services initiative at Indiana University. It provides financial, academic, and social support to first-generation and underrepresented Indiana college students. The Groups Program began in 1968 under the leadership of Rozelle Boyd, Assistant Dean of Indiana University’s Junior Division. The initial pilot program saw the enrollment of 43 students, and the program has since grown substantially. As of 2022, the Groups program has enabled more than 13,000 students to attend Indiana University.
The matriculation process for Groups students differs from the standard college application procedure. Prospective participants attend an area visit in which they meet with a Groups-trained “recommender” in their area who assesses their potential to complete the program successfully. Eligible students are selected to join the program by these recommenders – comprised of Groups alumni, high school teachers and administrators, community organizers, social and welfare workers, and interested citizens. After the area visit, selected students attend an orientational campus visit, during which participants meet one another and make a commitment to fulfill the academic and administrative requirements of the program. Prior to beginning coursework in the Fall, Groups students also complete Summer-session courses on campus to prepare for college-level curriculum and to adjust to dorm life. Throughout their time at IU, the participants have access to an extensive support system, including academic advising, tutoring and mentoring, and enrollment in specialized courses.
When the records of the Groups Student Support Services program were initially processed at the IU Archives in 2006, the collection contained less than 2 cubic feet of material. Between 2017 and 2019 the IU Archives received several accruals from the unit, but they had not been incorporated into the collection until recently. These additional accruals have expanded our holdings from the office tenfold, and the collection now spans over 18 cubic feet.
Beyond just increasing the collection’s size, these recent accruals have completely transformed the character of the collection. It has always consisted chiefly of organizational records – that is, materials created and assembled by an administrative body in the course of its activities – but among the many formal administrative files now also resides a wealth of material that more fully captures the highly personal nature of the Groups program. Indeed, throughout the collection, materials highlight the organization’s interest in engaging with its diverse stakeholders, including students, alumni, and recommenders. For instance, the Student Services and Engagement subseries includes files related to student-focused programs and events, such as graduation ceremonies and awards receptions, summer theater productions, and even a student newsletter, the Groups Gab, which ran from 1970 to 1992 (see the images below). All told, the collection offers a comprehensive view of the Groups program’s internal and public-facing affairs.
I suspect one reason for this fullness in scope is the organization’s acute awareness of its own history and impact, not just on individual participants but also on the broader promotion of opportunities for diverse and underrepresented students in higher education. On a personal level, the collection includes multiple folders of correspondence from thankful alumni and newspaper clippings highlighting the many accomplishments of Groups participants. On a broader level, the collection includes a plethora of information pertaining to the social and political context out of which the program emerged in the 1960s (see C309 > Data and reports > Historical research). The organization’s connection to this history is evidenced by the several files related to milestone anniversary celebrations, which chronicle and commemorate the origins and growth of the program since its inception. In this way, the Groups program has continued to cultivate its own history, complete with legendary directors such as LaVerta L. Terry and Janice Wiggins, who both made indelible marks on the organization.
The conscious effort to document the organization’s own history is also evident from the diverse formats within the collection. The Realia series includes awards, pins, and even a wooden sign that was presumably used to designate the Groups office space (pictured in the thumbnail for this blog post). While the IU Archives retained a few of the trophies and plaques we received, most were returned to be housed with the office. Moreover, the nearly 4 cubic feet of photographs and other audiovisual material, which span the 1960s to 2018, give a sense of realness to the people, places, events, and ongoing legacy of the program. The diversity of this material suggests a sentimentality to the Groups program’s collecting habits: it’s clear they valued documenting all aspects of their activities – from paper to plaque, from the triumphant to the ordinary.
Throughout its history, the Groups Scholars program has sought to support and celebrate its students, many of whom credit the program for providing them with the tools to succeed at IU and beyond. These materials document not just the impact of the program on its thousands of participants, but also the legacy of progress IU has made in breaking down socioeconomic barriers to higher education. They reflect the care for and steadfast commitment to providing educational opportunities to Indiana’s underserved citizens. Provided that the Groups Scholars Program continues to flourish and cultivate its long history, the IU Archives will always be here to preserve it. I hope that the Groups Student Support Services collection will continue to grow.
