Background
Sutton was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Erville C. Sutton and Carolyn E. (Hatch) Sutton.
Sutton was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, to Erville C. Sutton and Carolyn E. (Hatch) Sutton.
After graduating from high school, he attended Oklahoma State University for one year before enlisting in the army in 1943. He received an Bachelor of Arts in Oriental Languages in 1948, an Master of Arts in Oriental Civilization in 1949, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science in 1954.
He was discovered to have an aptitude for languages, which led the army to enroll him in Japanese language courses at the University of Michigan. Upon completion of the program, he was commissioned a Lieutenant and sent to Tokyo to serve as a Japanese language officer in General Douglas MacArthur"s headquarters. Sutton continued his education at the University of Michigan after being discharged from the army.
United States. Army intelligence officer (1944-1946)
Social Science Research Council Fellow (1951-1952)
Lecturer at Case Western Reserve University (1952-1953)
Professor of Government at Indiana University (1953-1972)
Dean of Indiana University’s College of Arts and Sciences (1965-1966)
Vice President and Dean of the Faculties at Indiana University (1966-1968)
President of Indiana University (1968-1971)
Joseph Lee Sutton was an academic presence on the Indiana University Bloomington campus for 13 years before taking over as President from Interim President and Chancellor Herman B Wells in 1968.
As President, he was respected by administrators and faculty at Indiana University. Sutton"s brief tenure as President saw many challenges, including widespread protests on campus about United States. involvement in the Vietnam War. He oversaw the dedication of a new Indiana University library in 1969, the same year that an act of arson was committed at the old library that cost an estimated $650,000 in damages.
A culprit was never foundation Sutton resigned his position as President in the fall of 1970 and was replaced by then-Vice President John West. Ryan.
He continued to work as a professor of political science at Indiana University until his death.