[Letter of recommendation]

STATION HOSPITAL

Port Barrancas, Florida
October 8,1941

To Whom This May Concern Regarding Silberman, Henry K. Pvt. Serial No. 32008856, C.A.S.C. Fort Barrancas, Florida,

The above soldier desires to re-enter Medical School. I have been in close dally observation of this man and his duties sinoe his entrance to the C.A.S.C., about July 16, 1941. He served on the surgical ward for about 6 weeks and was transferred to the operating room, where he has remained to date.

I find this man to be honest, morally upright, energetic, responsible and unusually capable. I understand he has credit thru the 3rd year Medical School. I should like to recommend that this soldier be placed on a status necessary for his finishing his Medical School Training provided he can immediately be re-entered to a Class A Medical School.

Sincerely

Alexander F. Russell
Captain, Medical Corps,
Chief of Professional Services.

Approved :Charles B. Callard Lieut. Colonel, Medical Corps, Surgeon.

Course certificates: (1) Dated February 20, 1944 for "Area-Language Terms IV - VI"; (2) Dated March 4, 1944 for "Area & Language, Italian, Terms 4 & 5"

Text of letter of recommendation:

CORNELL UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE oF ARTS AND SCIENCES
ITHACA NEW YORK

Office of the Dean

January 24, 1946

To Whom It May Concern:

        I am happy to write a letter in support of Henry K. Silberman, I remember him well as one of the genuinely able men whom we had here at Cornell University in the Army Area and Language study curriculum. Mr. Silberman was a finished scholar in both the German and Italian languages. Against a good number of handicaps he was, nonetheless, able to rise to  commissioned rank In the American army. It was my experience that he was an able student, a cooperative person, and a reliable personalty. I think it can be stated without doubt that he has the qualifications necessary to renter the Medical School in order to finish his medical training. He will be a congenial member of a medical student body and of the medical profession,

Sincerely yours,

C.W. de Kiewiet
Dean

Notes:

Dad used to joke about being sent to Ithaca to learn German but then teaching Italian.  Cornell was one of 227 universities that participated in the "Army Specialized Training Program", but must have been an important one as the program was "vastly curtailed in February 1944." 

The dean signing the certificaes was different than the letter writer--Corenelius Betten, who retired as Dean on June 30, 1945.  Cornelis de Kiewiet presumably became Dean after Betten retired. According to one biographical note, "he directed Army Area and Language Programs in four foreign tongues, and an oral approach to language learning which he fostered was continued after the war." He subsequently became Provost and then, Acting President of Cornell, before becoming President of Rochester University in 1951.

The Ithaca newspaper ran some articles on the program (which was described as a nine-month program, focusing on spoken language),  as well as on the lives of spouses in Ithaca.