[Deathwatch] Henry Chauncey, Educational Testing Service founder, 97

[Deathwatch Central <cdw@slick.org>]

Henry Chauncey, founded the Educational Testing Service, dies at age 97

Wed Dec 4,12:16 PM ET

NEW YORK - Henry Chauncey, the man credited with turning the SAT into
an admission standard used by thousands of colleges and universities,
has died at age 97.

Chauncey founded the Educational Testing Service to administer the SAT
out of a belief that access to the nation's colleges should be decided
through merit, rather than through family connections.

"Henry believed that higher educational opportunity should not be
limited to the children of the wealthy," said ETS president Kurt
Landgraf.

"He believed that testing could help identify talent in people
regardless of their circumstances and provide guidance for important
life decisions."

Chauncey died Tuesday at his home in Shelburne, Vermont.

A former assistant dean at Harvard University, Chauncey started the
Princeton, New Jersey-based ETS in 1947 and served as its president
until 1970. He also was a director of the New York-based College Board,
the organization that sponsors the SAT.

During his tenure with ETS, higher education embraced standardized
tests as a determining factor in the college admissions process. The
SAT was taken by 1.3 million college-bound high school seniors in 2001.


Chauncey and ETS were also responsible for the Graduate Management
Admissions Test and other exams used around the world.