1940-1949
The 1940s decade was one during which the country experienced tremendous conflict, sacrifice, victory and rebirth. During WWII, enrollment at the University of Florida College of Law decreased dramatically as young men enlisted to serve their country during its time of need. Women, for the first time, found work in large numbers outside the home and UF Law enrollment also included a significant number of women. The university became a co-educational institution in 1947, opening its doors to female undergraduate students for the first time. Following armistice, the student body at UF Law swelled with returning servicemen enrolling under the GI bill. African-American servicemen, accustomed to the desegregated ranks of the military, began challenging segregation in education and other social institutions at home. Deans Harry R. Trusler (1915-1947), Clifford W. Crandall (1947), and Henry Fenn (1948-1958), oversaw an increase in UF Law faculty members from seven to 17; the curriculum was revised; and the admissions process was strengthened.