|
|
|
December 2007 Former Senior FDA Employee Donates Papers to Trachtenberg School
Emil Corwin, former public affairs officer for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), donated his collection of professional papers, memos, and reports detailing the federal government’s 1950s’ smoking cessation program to GW’s Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration on Nov. 8. Joseph J. Cordes, director of the school, accepted Corwin’s professional papers. During the presentation, Corwin, who is 104 years old, was accompanied by family friend and former GW professor Robert S. Cutler, now a professor at New Mexico State University. “It’s very useful to get historical documents from people who were involved in developing policies because we can look back and see how policies were directly developed,” says Cordes. “It could make for a very interesting student and faculty project.” When he retired in December 1999 from the FDA at age 96, Corwin was honored by President Bill Clinton in a special White House Oval Office ceremony as the oldest federal employee at the time. As a public affairs officer for the FDA for nearly 40 years, Corwin was responsible for addressing inquiries about public health. He worked on federal campaigns that raised awareness about the Surgeon General’s first report on the health risks of cigarettes, and his efforts helped to bring about the 1990 smoking ban on all U.S. airline flights. Prior to working at the FDA, Corwin was director of public information at the American Cancer Society, and a reporter and editor for various news organizations. He also did public relations work for NBC Radio Symphony conductor Arturo Toscanini and for the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Corwin says his papers contain a lot of valuable data, one-of-a-kind correspondence, and early FDA memos that will be useful for public policy research purposes. “I feel good that the Trachtenberg School has accepted them and that a new generation of public policy students may benefit from having information from the early days of the federal government’s program on smoking cessation in America,” says Corwin. “Just look around, now everywhere one sees the notice, ‘This Building is Smoke Free.’ I’m very proud of that!”
|
|
||
