Dr. Frank L. McVey served UK as president from 1918 to 1940. An economist by training, he and his spouse, Frances Jewell McVey, promoted international activities on the UK campus.
Speaking to a convocation at UK in October, 1943, in the midst of World War II, McVey said that "The people of South America must be received by us on a basis of equality" adding that "we must accept these people with their differences and without condescension if we hope to be good neighbors."
McVey had recently returned from a three month stay in Venezuela during which he represented the United States government in planning for a national university. He noted that "people of the United States must first learn to understand the peoples and problems of South America" where better hospitals, roads, schools, sanitation, and public health are needed. He acknowledged that the challenge was great with "75 percent of the population illiterate and with prevalence of tuberculosis, syphilis, and malaria."
But Frank McVey knew if the United States would not help, who would?
Kentucky Kernel, October 8, 1943
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