Plimpton served as President of the College from 1960 to 1971. Under his leadership, the college committed itself to several projects and developments with lasting impact: The school introduced a new curriculum, raised $21 million in a capital campaign and constructed major campus buildings, including the Merrill Science Center and the Arms Music Center.
The Robert Frost Library, dedicated in October 1963 by President John F. Kennedy, was another such significant undertaking.
Later, when neighboring college presidents spoke seriously of jointly founding a new, more experimental college, it was Plimpton who secured the funding for its creation. This institution became Hampshire College, the final addition to the Five College system.
Toward the end of Plimpton's presidency, after receiving a student-approved resolution calling for the admission of women to the college, he appointed a commission to examine whether or not the college go co-ed. Though enacted after he left the College, their recommendations were approved in 1974 and the school began admitting women the following year.
Plimpton's most notable contributions to the College, however, may have been in dealing with the turbulent issues of the 1960s. Troubled by these controversies, he stated in 1970, "From my point of view, it is of great importance to be bothered a great deal by almost anything. I can think of very few issues that did not bother me greatly. Worry gets you doing the best you can. I would feel awful if anyone were in my position and things did not bother him."
Plimpton was noted for his sense of humor regarding his role as president during a time of incessant protests and tension. In an interview with the American College of Physicians Observer in 1985, he remarked comically, "If you're crazy enough to be a college president, the 1960s was the time to be it. I was personally responsible for the bombing of children in Birmingham, for napalm, Agent Orange, Vietnam, Cambodia and finally, I was responsible for the Kent State murders. That's a lot of sins to have on you."
Both a physician and an educator, Plimpton was born in Boston and grew up in the nearby town of Walpole. He attended Phillips Exeter Academy before graduating from Amherst College (Class of 1939) and Harvard Medical School (Class of 1943). Furthering his education, he earned a masters in biochemistry from Harvard in 1947 and a doctorate in medical science from Columbia University in 1952.
During World War II, Plimpton served overseas in the U.S. Army Medical Corps from 1944 to 1946, and then taught medicine at American University in Beirut from 1957 to 1959. Believing that a "doctor tries to educate people to live," he spent his subsequent years at the College working toward that end.
After his years as the College's president, Plimpton went on to New York where he was president of Downstate Medical School until 1978. He served as president of a third school-American University of Beirut-starting in 1984 after the previous president was assassinated. Though again presiding during a time marked by violence and hostage-taking, he held this post for three years.
Plimpton declared during his tenure at the College, "I still believe that the institutions of higher education are the most hopeful instruments that have been invented by man for creative change." Certainly he strove to do his part to help colleges fulfill that goal. He played a role here at the College, and his legacy will continue. Plimpton is survived by his wife of 65 years, Ruth (Talbot) Plimpton, along with his children David, Thomas, Edward and Anne.
A memorial service will be held for him on campus later this spring.