SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

A small collection of materials concerning his Domestic Council work on labor, education and veterans affairs and some items on his work with the Presidential Advisory Committee on Refugees assisting with the resettlement of Indochina refugees.

QUANTITY
1.0 linear feet (ca. 2,000 pages)

DONOR
Roger D. Semerad (accession number 80-14)

ACCESS
Open. Some items are temporarily restricted under terms of the donor's deed of gift, a copy of which is available on request, or under National Archives and Records Administration general restrictions (36 CFR 1256).

COPYRIGHT
Roger Semerad donated to the United States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to remain with them. Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public domain.

Prepared by Leesa Tobin & Joe Fugere, June 1982
[s:\bin\findaid\semerad, roger - papers.doc]

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

Roger D. Semerad

1940 - Born

1962 - Received B.A. degree from Union College in New York

1963-64 - Administrative Assistant, Research Foundation, State University of New York, Albany, New York

1965-66 - Coordinator, Federal Programs, State University College, Buffalo, New York

1966-67 - Fellow, U.S. Office of Education, Washington, D.C.

1967-69 - Director, Office of Federal Programs, American Association of State Colleges and Universities, Washington, D.C.

1969-70 - Director of Federal Relations, Division of Education, Health and Research, General Computing Corporation, New York

1970-72 - Executive Director, Secretary/Treasurer, University Associates, Inc., Washington, D.C.

1973 - President, Dumbarton Associates, Inc.

May 1974-Sept. 1975 - Domestic Council Staff Assistant for education, labor, and veterans affairs

May 1975-Jan. 1976 - Executive Director, President's Advisory Committee on Refugees

1976 - Vice President, American Retail Federation, Washington, D.C.

1980 - Executive Director of 1980 Republican Platform Committee

1981-1985 - Executive Vice President, Brookings Institution

1985-1988 - Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training

1988-1996 - Senior Vice President, American Express

Oct 13, 2012 - Died, Bethesda, Maryland

INTRODUCTION

Roger D. Semerad was appointed staff assistant to the Domestic Council by President Nixon in May 1974 and continued in this position during the Ford administration until September 1975. He was appointed by the President as Executive Director of the President's Advisory Committee on Refugees in May 1975 and left the administration when he completed his duties in January 1976.

As staff assistant in the Domestic Council, Semerad had responsibility for the areas of education, labor, and veterans affairs. Semerad's activities included legislative analysis and development of decision options; preparation of briefing papers; interaction and liaison work with citizen and special interest groups; and interagency troubleshooting and coordination of special events. David Lissy was named as Semerad's successor in September 1975 and continued with these activities until the end of the administration.

The President's Advisory Committee on Refugees was established in May 1975 to help deal with the influx of refugees brought about by the collapse of the South Vietnamese government. The Committee's responsibilities included advising the President on health and environmental matters related to the re-settlement, and the general well-being of the refugees and their families in their new American communities. In addition, the Committee sought to reduce redtape, organize regional meetings and conferences, serve as a contact for individual work opportunities and channel private resources to resettlement efforts.

The materials in this collection include only those items Mr. Semerad took with him when he left government service in 1976. Semerad turned over all his other Domestic Council files to David Lissy. These are now a part of the Ford Presidential Papers, in the Domestic Council files of David Lissy.

There is very little material in this collection that relates to Semerad's tenure as executive director of the President's Advisory Committee on Refugees. The records of the President' Advisory Committee on Refugees and the Interagency Task Force on Refugeesare available at the National Archives in Record Group 220. There are categories concerning both of these groups in the White House Central Files Subject File (FG 413 and ND 18-2).

Related Materials (June 1982)
The remainder of Semerad's materials can be found as part of the David Lissy Files. The records of the President's Advisory Committee on Refugees and the Interagency Task Force on Refugees are available at the National Archives in Record Group 220. There are categories concerning both of these groups in the White House Central Files Subject File (FG 413 and ND 18-2) and the Theodore Marrs Files.

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Chronological File, 1974-76.  (Boxes 1-2, 0.8 linear feet)
Outgoing correspondence and memoranda with some incoming items. Files for January - May 1975 are missing. Topics covered include: Department of Labor, National Labor Relations Board, pension reform, unemployment compensations, and handicapped workers; Veteran's Administration including education and training programs for veterans, medical care, and jobs; elementary, secondary, higher and vocational education. Also includes material concerning the re-settlement of Vietnamese refugees in the United States and Semerad's role as executive director of the President's Advisory Committee on Refugees in arranging regional conferences, meetings and seeking out refugee sponsors.

Arranged chronologically.

View container list for this series

Meetings File, 1975. (Boxes 2-3, 0.2 linear feet)
Invitations, acceptances, and printed matter relating to various organizations sponsoring or involved in meetings and conferences attended by Semerad as part of his Domestic Council responsibilities.

Arranged chronologically.

View container list for this series

CONTAINER LIST

Box 1 - Chronological File

• Sept.-Dec. 1974 and April-May 1975

Box 2 - Chronological File

• June 1975-Jan. 1976)

Box 2 (Continued) - Meetings File

• 1/16/75 - Union College Department of Political Science
• 1/17/75 - National Advisory Council on Vocational Education
• 1/17/75 - Black Leaders in Education and Labor
• 1/23/75 - Institute for Development of Educational Activities
• 2/27/75 - Committee on Academic Nondiscrimination and Integrity
• 3/5/75 - American University College of Public Affairs
• 3/12-13/75 - American Association of State Colleges and Universities
• 3/14/75 - American Association of State Colleges and Universities (rescheduled for May 8, 1975)

Box 3 - Meetings File

• 3/16/75 - North Carolina State University, Center for Occupational Education, Project EDNEED
• 3/25/75 - National Workshop - State Administrators of Community Service and Continuing Education
• 4/24/75 - State Higher Education Executive Officers
• 5/1/75 - President's Committee on Employment of the Handicapped
• 5/6/75 - McMurtry College Department of Political Science
• 5/7/75 - Illinois Regional Library Council