November 18, 1921 - February 18, 2010
Personal Data
Born: November 18, 1921, Sunnyside, WA
Died: February 18, 2010, Redwood City, CA
Married: Rosemary Watson, July 24, 1949
Two daughters: Mary D. Burke and Nancy D. Johnston
Education
1944 A. B. in English, Whitman College
1948 M. A. in Education, Stanford University
1957 EdD in School Administration, Stanford University
1964-65 Post Doctoral Study in Junior College Administration and Higher Education, Stanford University
Employment
1982 - 1967 Director of Adult Education, Palo Alto Unified School District
1970 - 1959 Instructor in Adult Education, University of California Extension, San Jose State University Extension
1969 - 1966 Consultant in Adult and Vocational Education, Santa Clara County Office of Education
1967 - 1958 Principal, Palo Alto Unified School District, Cubberley Adult School
1958 - 1957 Consultant, California State Department of Education, Bureau of Adult Education
1957 - 1954 Principal, Los Gatos Unified School District, Los Gatos Evening High School
Awards and Honors
Inducted into the International Adult and Continuing Hall of Fame, Class of 1996
Who’s Who in the West, Marquis Who’s Who Inc., 14th, 15th and 16th Editions
Membership-Professional Organizations
1978-1979 National Association for Public Continuing and Adult Education, President
American Association of Adult and Continuing Education,
Adult Education Association of the U.S.A
1973-1976 Association of California School Administrators, Adult Education Chair
California Council of Adult Education
Phi Delta Kappa
Publications
1990 Making foreign travel a professional experience. Adult Learning, 1(8), 21-22.
1978 Adult School Accreditation, You May Be Interested, Accrediting Commission for Schools of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, October 1978
1976 Adult Education Status Report, ACSA Special Report, Association of California School Administrators, Vol 6, No. 1
1975 (with Friedman, A.). Adult education "Johnny-come-lately" or "wave of the future"? Thrust for Educational Leadership, 4(5), 23-26.
1974 Adult education update, ACSA Special Report, Association of California School Administrators, Vol 3, No. 12
1972 Adult education in California. Status Report, ACSA Special Report, Association of California School Administrators, Vol 1, No. 4
1972 A look at adult education in the seventies. Administrators Swap Shop, National Association for Public Continuing and Adult Education.
1967 A study of the position of adult education administrator. Report of a Special Research Committee, California Association of Adult Education Administrators.
1962 Teachers and administrators in the adult education program. Journal Of Secondary Education, 3789-92.
1961 Careers in Adult Education. Adult Education Quarterly, 12(1), 3-7.
1960 Teaching and administrative personnel in adult education. Supplementary Research Report Number 8, California Teachers Association
1960 Publicizing local programs of adult education. Adult Education, 10(3), 144-145.
1959 Education is for adults too. California Teachers Association Journal, 5527-29.
Professional Interest Areas
Adult education
Vocational education
School district administration
School evaluation and accreditation
Education for teachers of adults
Adult education administration
Major Contributions to Adult Education
Administrator of a long established community adult education program for the Palo Alto Unified School District which enrolled about 8000 people annually in a community of about 60,000 during Damon’s tenure.
A strong advocate for increased recognition and funding for adult education programs by the California legislature during the period from 1960 through 1980.
Enabled the growth of adult education by mentoring and training adult education administrators nationally during his tenure as president of the National Association for Public Continuing and Adult Education (NAPCAE) (1978-79) and chairman of the Association of California School Administrators’ (ACSA) Adult Education Committee.
Instrumental in support and growth of administration of adult education programs globally as chair of NAPCAE’s International Unit (1982-92)
Played a leading role in the development of accreditation standards for adult education schools for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
Worked to accredit high school diploma programs on U.S. military bases in Japan and South Korea in 1974 and 1976.
As the AAACE's Educational Tours Chair, he established a German-American Exchange Program Fund to help defray the costs of hosting German delegations to the U.S.
Additional Resources
Photo Gallery
Video/Audio
Audio excerpt from an interview with Thomas F. Damon by Cuba Z. Miller http://www.caadultedhistory.org/audio/damon.asx found on California Adult Education History site
Interesting Facts
After graduating with Bachelor's, Damon enlisted in the Army and served under General George Patton in Germany in 1944 and 1945. He participated in the campaigns at The Ardennes, The Rhineland and Central Europe and received the American Theater Service Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Service Medal and the American Victory Medal.
Damon and his wife were avid world travelers and visited six continents and the Seven Wonders of the World.
References
Class of 1996: Tom Damon. (2012). In International Adult and Continuing Education Hall of Fame. Retrieved from http://www.halloffame.outreach.ou.edu/1996/damon.html
Damon, T. F. (1994). Oral history interview with Thomas F. (Tom) Damon/Interviewer Cuba Z. Miller. California Department of Education Adult Education Oral History Project. Los Altos, California.
Thomas F. Damon: Obituary/condolences. (2010). In MercuryNews.com. Retrieved from http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/mercurynews/obituary.aspx?n=thomas-f-damon&pid=140693890&fhid=2128
Thomas F. (Tom) Damon. (n.d.) In California Adult Education History. Retrieved from http://www.caadultedhistory.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=oralhist&name=damontrans