Hubert Park Beck (1907 – January 16, 1989) was an American educational psychologist, and the writer of a book about the boards of trustees of 30 major U.S. universities.
[3] By studying the professions, income levels, ages, sexes and religions of trustees, Beck found that most of them were wealthy Protestant male businessmen, bankers or lawyers over 60.
[3][4][5] Beck argued that the trustees lacked an understanding of the working class or the under-privileged, and he added that they had no experience with teaching or academic research or administration.
[5] In a review for The Elementary School Journal, Thomas H. Hamilton of the University of Chicago agreed with Beck that the trustees' social status might be a problem, but he did not believe that appointing trustees with teaching or research experience would necessarily lead to better decisions.
"[3] Reviewing it for the American Sociological Review, Scott Nearing concluded, "His study substantiates and documents the oft-repeated observation that the same men who run the banks and factories and operate the railroads of the United States also control and direct the institutions of higher education.