Dr. Kenneth F. Herrold

SPRINGFIELD, VA- Dr. Kenneth F. Herrold, Professor Emeritus of psychology and education at Teachers College, Columbia University and an authority on group dynamics, died on November 22, 2007 in Springfield, Virginia. He was 94. Dr. Herrold taught and conducted research at Bucknell University, the University of Michigan, and at Columbia. In his early research at Teachers College in the late1940s, he studied the interaction of crew members on multiengine airplanes. This had become increasingly important following the development of large bombers during World War II. This research initiated his study of the dynamics of group behavior, which he pursued the rest of his career. In order to further this work, he founded Herrold Associates in New York City in 1953. Through Herrold Associates and later with the American Management Association, he was able to study behavior in large corporate environments, a field that would eventually mature into business psychology. While at Teachers College, he lectured throughout the United States, England, and Europe, and authored or coauthored over 100 articles and several books. As assistant professor of education he served as consultant for the U. S. Children's Bureau 1950 White House Conference on Children and Youth. He advised numerous corporations and government institutions on improving organizational effectiveness through better understanding of human interaction. He retired from Teachers College in 1978. Between 1970 and 1978, as a consultant to Bankers Trust Company, he helped integrate minority groups into the banking world and bring banking into under served areas of the Bronx. This effort to expand banking services into under served regions of New York City was one of his proudest endeavors, in keeping with his personal religious commitment to social justice. Kenneth Frederick Herrold was born August 23, 1913 in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, the son of Millie Else and Benton Elijah Herrold. He became an Eagle Scout (Gold Palms) and troop Scoutmaster. As a Scoutmaster he discovered his love of teaching. After receiving his Bachelor of Science from Bucknell in 1936, he lectured there in biology and physiology. He later attended Yale Divinity School before earning a Master of Science degree in Public Health at The University of Michigan in 1940, where he also taught. While an undergraduate at Bucknell, he met Elizabeth McMahan, daughter of Arthur and Lisle McMahan of Troy, Pennsylvania. They were married in 1941 at the First Presbyterian Church of Troy. Mrs. Herrold was a graduate of Bucknell and of Yale Divinity School, where she received a Master of Divinity degree. During World War II, Mr. Herrold served as a Navy ensign. Following the war, he entered Teachers College and was awarded the Doctor of Education degree in social psychology in 1948, and joined the faculty of Teachers College that same year. While he pursued his Doctorate, Mrs. Herrold was Assistant Director of the War Emergency Council of the YMCA/YWCA, and Assistant Director of the American Mission to Lepers in New York City. Dr. Herrold served as an Elder in the Presbyterian Church at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City and later at West Side Presbyterian Church in Ridgewood, New Jersey. He traced a life long love of music to singing in church choirs as a child. The Herrolds lived in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of New York City until 1959, when they moved to Ridgewood, New Jersey. In 1991, they moved to their home at Mountain Lake. Mrs. Herrold died in 1994. Dr. Herrold is survived by his children, Carolann Sharp and her husband Norman, of Alexandria, VA; Edmund and his wife Ellen Yamaguchi, of New York City; William and his wife Loretta, of Fairfax Station, VA; and John of New York City. In addition, he is survived by six grandchildren, Michael Sharp of Endicott, NY; Christopher Sharp of Arlington, VA; Cassidy and Dylan Herrold of Fairfax Station, VA; and Kristin and Emily Herrold of New York City. A memorial service is planned for December 15 at 2:00 PM at the First Presbyterian Church of Troy, PA. The Gerald W. Vickery Funeral Home, Inc. 110 West Main Street Troy, PA has been entrusted with the local arrangements. The family requests that gifts in memory of Kenneth Herrold be made to the Bradford County Library, RR3, Box 320, Troy, PA, 16947.