Rhyne Hall - University of Oklahoma - Norman, Oklahoma - People-Named Places on Waymarking.com

Dr. Jennings J. Rhyne

Dr. Jennings J. Rhyne was born on April 16, 1897 in Bessimer City, North Carolina. He excelled in his education, receiving his Doctorate in Sociology in 1925. He came to Oklahoma to become part of the OU faculty in 1927.

A simple search on his name pulls up books for which he is responsible for writing, one of which was Social and Community Problems of Oklahoma, published in 1929. In this book he made observations which are today sited by the National Parks Service. These observations are still being used today to identify with life on Route 66.

Rhyne Hall is named for Dr. Jennings J. Rhyne, who was a member of the University of Oklahoma faculty and Director of the School of Social Work for many years. Dr. Jennings J. Rhyne was born in Bessimer City, North Carolina on April 16, 1897. He attended the University of North Carolina, receiving his Bachelors of Economics in 1919, his Masters of Sociology in 1925, and his Ph.D. in Sociology in 1927. After his marriage to Clyde Margaret Russell in Chapel Hill, North Carolina that same year, he traveled to the University of Oklahoma to join the faculty on September 1, 1927.

When he began work at OU, he was an Assistant Professor of Sociology and the subsequent year he became the Director of the Department of Social Service. When the department reorganized in 1935, he became the director of the School of Social Work and served until 1950. He remained at the University of Oklahoma as full professor of Applied Sociology in the School of Social Work until his retirement in 1967. Beyond his activities as a Professor at the University, he also served on Governor Ernest Marland’s Executive Council in 1935 and 1936 to assist the drafting of Oklahoma public welfare legislation. Dr. Rhyne also served as a board member of the Oklahoma City Children’s Service Bureau and Children’s Joint Case Study.

He was the author of several books including: Social and Community Problems of Oklahoma, 1929 and Public Assistance Versus Public Education, 1943.

Rhyne Hall

This building was originally built to house the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity in 1928, which colonized on this campus in 1921. When the fraternity built a new residence, the structure was purchased by the University. The School of Social Work became the new occupant at that time, relocating from their previous home in the basement of Adams Hall. In 1977, the Board of Regents named this building for Dr. Jennings J. Rhyne, in honor of his long service to both the University of Oklahoma and the State of Oklahoma in the field of Social Work. At the time of his death on October 8, 1995, Regent G.T. Blankenship said, “Professor Rhyne’s activities throughout his career reflected a continued interest in problems of social and public welfare. His influence extended beyond the University through his leadership and compassion.”

-- Information taken from marker outside of the building.

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