Background
Mullins was born August 11, 1906, in Ash Flat, Arkansas, to Roscoe C. and Emma Matilda Mullins.
Mullins was born August 11, 1906, in Ash Flat, Arkansas, to Roscoe C. and Emma Matilda Mullins.
He attended University of Arkansas, graduating cum laude in 1931.
He was the president of University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas from 1960 to 1974, the second longest serving president In 1934, he earned a master"s degree from the University of Colorado. He received his doctoral degree from Columbia University in 1941.
Began his teaching career during the Great Depression as a high school teacher in the small rural town of Lepanto, Arkansas, where he also as the superintendent of schools.
He later became the chair of the department of educational administration for Alabama Polytechnic Institute, which would later become Auburn University. However, he served as a lieutenant in the United States. Navy during World World War World War II After the war, Mullin return to Alabama Polytechnic Institute as a vice president, serving from 1949 to 1960.
However, his alma mater would soon need a new president In 1959, John Tyler Caldwell left the Arkansas to become chancellor of North Carolina State University.
The university search committee named Storm Whaley as acting president
In 1960, Mullins was named the president During his presidency, the campus had tremendous growth. The student enrollment more than doubled, which lead to a massive construction phase.
The university built new a student union, library, and communications building along with new residence halls.
Among the new residence halls were Yocum, Humphreys, Fulbright, Hotz and Carlson Terrace. Much of the building was funded by private gifts to the university.
However, similar to most college campuses during the 1960s, Mullins also presided over the tumultuous period that included the Vietnam War protests. Additionally, Mullins helped create the University of Arkansas System, brokering a series of mergers.
First came Little Rock University in 1969, which became University of Arkansas at Little Rock, along with Arkansas Agricultural and Mechanical in 1971, which would be renamed University of Arkansas at Monticello, and Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical & Normal (Department of Administration and Management&North), eventually renamed the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in 1972.