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Raymond G. McCarthy

Raymond G. McCarthy (1901-1964) was perhaps the first major figure to rise to prominence from within the alcohol studies field itself. He was also the pioneer of modern alcohol education. 

McCarthy was associated with the Center of Alcohol Studies from 1944 until his death in 1964 in various capacities, including director of the Yale Plan Clinics, director of the Summer School of Alcohol Studies, and professor of education.

Biography

Raymond Gerald McCarthy was born in Brockton, Massachusetts, on April 30, 1901. He studied social work at Boston College and earned a master’s degree in education from Harvard University in 1939. His early career was spent as a teacher and then superintendent of the Kingston, Massachusetts, public schools. 

McCarthy became interested in alcohol problems primarily through the writings of Richard R. Peabody and attended the first Summer School of Alcohol Studies (SSAS) at Yale University in 1943. There he met E. M. Jellinek, the director of the School, who was so impressed with McCarthy that he made him the first staff member of the newly-formed Yale Plan Clinics. McCarthy worked in the clinics for the next several years and ultimately became executive director. He was a key scholar and advocate for group-therapeutic treatments for alcoholism.

McCarthy was also well-known in his capacity as an educator. He served as SSAS Assistant Director (1953-1954), then Associate Director (1955-1960). When in 1962 the Yale Center of Alcohol Studies moved to Rutgers, along with SSAS, McCarthy became the director of the School, until his death. During that time, he substantially revised the curriculum to stress graduate-level training, laying the foundations of modern alcohol education.

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Raymond McCarthy (Photo: Rutgers Alcohol Studies Archive)

He was also a professor of education at the Center, both at Yale and at Rutgers, where he was instrumental in developing public health proposals and other educational materials. McCarthy held leadership positions in a myriad of organizations, including the alcoholism division of the departments of public health of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York, the North American Association of Alcoholism Programs, the Association for the Advancement of Instruction about Alcohol and Narcotics, and the American Public Health Association.

Career Highlights

Raymond McCarthy was known as a teacher, public school administrator, clinic administrator, alcoholism therapist, researcher, writer, lecturer, educational consultant, public health administrator, and Summer School director.

  • 1901     Born April 3, in Brockton, Massachusetts
  • 1925     Graduated from Boston College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in social work
  • 1928     Earns a Master of Arts degree from Harvard University
  • 1939     Earns a Master of Education degree from Harvard University
  • 1930-1933          Teaches social studies in Meriden High School in Connecticut
  • 1933-1936          Teaches social studies in Kingston High School in Massachusetts
  • 1936-1944          Serves as Superintendent of public schools in Kingston, Massachusetts
  • 1943      Enrolled as a student at the first session of the Summer School of Alcohol Studies
  • 1945      Becomes the first staff member of the Yale Plan Clinics as field investigator, devoting his major energies to therapy and clinical administration in the next two years
  • 1944     Becomes the executive director of the Yale Plan Clinics
  • 1946      Publishes "Group therapy in an outpatient clinic for the treatment of alcoholism," followed by more transcriptions of group therapy sessions (1949-1951), in the Quarterly Journal of Studies on Alcohol
  • 1948     Co-authors, with Edgar Douglas, "Instruction on alcohol problems in the public schools" in the Quarterly Journal of Studies on Alcohol, merging long professional experience with alcohol studies
  • 1949     Publishes his first book, Alcohol and social responsibility: A new educational approach, co-authored with Edgar M. Douglas
  • 1949     Starts to work with the Connecticut Commission on Alcoholism
  • 1949     Editor, Connecticut Review on Alcoholism
  • 1950      Leads group therapy sessions for patients at the Connecticut Commission’s Blue Hills hospital in Hartford
  • 1951     Director of educational activities of the Connecticut Commission on Alcoholism
  • 1951     Co-authors, with Robert Straus, "Nonaddictive pathological drinking patterns of homeless men," considered the classic study in differentiating types of so-called "alcoholics" and in presenting disciplined observation of relevant alcohol-use patterns in hypothesized categories of problem drinkers
  • 1951     Teaches the first Education Seminar at the Summer School of Alcohol Studies (SSAS)
  • 1951     Instrumental in organizing the Association for the Advancement of Instruction on Alcohol and Narcotics (AAIAN) with SSAS students of similar interests
  • 1951-1961          Serves as AAIAN Executive Secretary
  • 1953-1958          Developed and edited the AAIAN Newsletter
  • 1953     Appointed Research Associate in Applied Physiology and Assistant Director of the Summer School of Alcohol Studies
  • 1953      Appointed Director of Alcoholism Research, New York State Mental Health Commission
  • 1954-1961          Associate Professor of Health Education, Dept of Public Health at Yale University
  • 1955     Appointed Associate Director of the Summer School of Alcohol Studies, a position he held until 1960
  • 1958-1961          Developed and edited the AAIAN Bulletin, a legitimate professional journal
  • 1959     Editor of Drinking and Intoxication, a major publication in the field of alcohol studies, in some ways the logical successor to Alcohol, Science and Society, the basic text in the field since 1945.
  • 1959     Participates in the “Yale Reports” radio program with Selden Bacon
  • 1959     Editor of the Bulletin of the Association for the Advancement of Instruction on Alcohol and Narcotics, when the AAIAN Newsletter became Bulletin of the AAIAN, starting with the May 1959 issue, which evolved into the Journal of Alcohol Education in 1966
  • 1960-1961          Director, Massachusetts State Public Health Programs on Alcoholism
  • 1961     Leaves Yale, becomes Director, New York State, Division of Alcoholism, Department of Mental Hygiene
  • 1962      Rejoins the Center of Alcohol Studies, which moved to Rutgers, becomes Professor of Education
  • 1962     Appointed Director of the School, until his death, during which time he substantially revised the curriculum to stress graduate-level training
  • 1962     First Vice President of the North American Association of Alcoholism Programs (NAAAP)
  • 1963     Elected AAIAN President, served until his death
  • 1963     Elected NAAAP President
  • 1964     Publishes his fourth book, Alcohol Education for Classroom and Community.
  • 1964     Dies June 25, New Brunswick, NJ

Selected Publications

Additional Resources

From the Digital Alcohol Studies Archives