Leonard Mather - Biography
Leonard
Mather's mother was born on a farm in Iowa in 1891 and when she was 11 years
old her family first came by covered wagon to Oregon, and then to Chico,
California. His father's father was a minister who came from Buffalo, New
York to Pomona at the urging of his sister and brother in law in 1882. He
became minister of the Pomona Methodist Church but disliked the Los Angeles
region and returned back to Buffalo after only one year. However, Buffalo
faced the worst winter and so he permanently moved back to Pomona the next
year.
Leonard's
father had been born in Pomona, lived only that one year in Buffalo, and then
returned back to Pomona to grow up. His dad graduated from Pomona College in
1907, majoring in Philosophy, Economics, and Political Science, and then
attended USC law school for only a few years. Though he did not complete law
school, he passed the bar exam and started teaching Constitutional Law at
Chico where he taught for two years and met his future wife who was a senior,
seven years younger.
After
marriage, Leonard's father taught one year at Monrovia and then moved back to
Pomona, upon the urging of his college friend Dr. Burton Hill, to teach at
Chaffey Junior College. Leonard attended Chaffey High School, meeting his
wife, Nellie, and graduating in 1935, and Chaffey Junior College, graduating
in 1937. He attended UC Berkeley, not sure what to major in but decided upon
Accounting with his father's urging.
Dr.
Burton Hill, a friend of his father's who had graduated from Pomona in 1906
and who had been the original prinicpal and superintendent of Chaffey Union
High School in 1912, suggested Leonard go into teaching. Hill was temporary
superintendent of Beverly Hills [School] District. Leonard received his
credential from Claremont Graduate School. He started teaching Algebra,
Physical Education, and Social Studies, in 1940 at Fontana Branch High
School, a branch of Chaffey high School. The next year he also taught a
Bookkeeping and Woodshop class.
Leonard
volunteered for World War II, and after returning home, he became the
Veteran's Advisor at Chaffey Junior College in 1945. He bought property in
Upland in 1948 and built his house in 1952, at the time when the groves were
being removed for suburbanization. He went back to Claremont Graduate School
and received a doctoral in educational administration. He then became the
Dean of Men at Chaffey Junior College.
He
participated in the 1955 and 1957 Bond Measures to decide whether to move the
high school or college. He became Dean of Students for only one semester at
the old campus. He clashed with the superintendent Dr. Milliken over who had
access to the bookstore income. Mather advocated that the student government
money and decisions about the bookstore income should be decided by the
students. Dr. Milliken wanted the school district to have precedence over the
money. In the short run Mather won the debate, though Milliken shifted the
whole bookstore operation to be administered by the college. He coordinated
the students' participation in the 1959-1960 move. Then Milliken demoted
Mather from Dean of Students to counselor of nursing at the new campus.
His son
graduated from Chaffey High School in 1960 with the first class at the new
location, graduating from Chaffey Junior College in 1962. Their daughter
graduated in 1963. He retired in 1977. He is currently an active member of
Kiwanis.
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