Bledsoe, Ralph C.: Files, 1981-1982

Office of Planning and Evaluation

Associate Director, 1981-1982

This collection is open in whole for research use. Some folders may still have withdrawn material due to Freedom of Information Act restrictions. Most frequently withdrawn material is national security classified material, personal privacy, protection of the President, etc.

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Scope and Content Note

Scope & Content

This is the first of four Ralph C. Bledsoe collections at the Reagan Library. This collection is Bledsoe's work product from his time at the Office of Planning and Evaluation. The Library has two more White House staff collections for Bledsoe, one for his work product within the Office of Policy Development, and one for his work product as Executive Secretary of the Domestic Policy Council. In addition the Library has a personal papers collection for Bledsoe consisting of pre-presidential material on management and public administration and post-presidential material from his tenure as Director of the Reagan Library.

The Ralph Bledsoe, Office of Planning and Evaluation collection consists of five series: SERIES I: Subject File; SERIES II: Memorandum; SERIES III: OPE Correspondence; SERIES IV: Reports; and SERIES V: Audio Material.

Series List

SERIES I: SUBJECT FILE 1981-1982

The Subject File consists of reports, articles, and charts pertaining to internal database development, government and private sector foresight, strategic planning, and various economic and social trends in the United States. The files are arranged alphabetically by folder title.

SERIES II: MEMORANDUMS 1981-1982

The Memorandums series consists of internal memorandums and reports regarding strategic evaluations and planning, monthly operational activities, and meeting agenda items of the Office of Planning and Evaluation. The files are arranged chronologically.

SERIES III: OFFICE OF PLANNING AND EVALUATION CORRESPONDENCE

The Office of Planning and Evaluation (OPE) Correspondence series consists of correspondence, publications, reports, and articles regarding OPE operational activities, functions, evaluations, policy and planning processes, personnel issues, and work plans. The files are arranged chronologically.

SERIES IV: REPORTS 1981-1982

The Reports series consists of graphs, charts, reports and lists regarding the Condition of Central Cities, the Growth of Governments, and the Economics of Health Care. This series also contains computer printouts of various White House events and OPE task summaries. The files are arranged alphabetically by folder title.

SERIES V: AUDIO MATERIAL, 1981-1982

The Audio series consists of audiocassettes with recordings of informal focus group discussions conducted by the market research firm, Prism Corporation, based in Washington, D.C. The audio recordings include group discussions on topics such as sources of current event information, important domestic issues facing the nation, and the relationship between and responsibilities of the Federal, State, and Local governments. All of the audiocassettes have been transferred to audiovisual storage.

Biography

Biography

Ralph C. Bledsoe was born on October 10, 1933, in Waco, Texas. Bledsoe received a bachelor’s degree from Texas A & M College in 1955, an MBA from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1962, and a master's degree and Ph.D. from the University of Southern California in Public Administration in 1968 and 1971, respectively.

Bledsoe worked for much of his academic studies at the System Development Corporation between 1958 and 1971. Mr. Bledsoe was a senior faculty member at the Federal Executive Institute in Charlottesville, Virginia from 1973 to 1980, and was director of the Emergency Management Institute in Emmitsburg, Maryland from 1980 to early 1981.

Mr. Bledsoe served as a consultant in the Office of Policy Development in early 1981 before joining the White House staff as Associate Director of the Office of Planning and Evaluation where he helped build the support system for the cabinet council system and helped evaluate the various cabinet councils.

In 1982 he was appointed Special Assistant to the President and Executive Secretary to the newly formed Cabinet Council on Management and Administration - responsible for government-wide policies pertaining to Executive Branch management, administrative and personnel issues, and supervising the “Reform 88” Task Force. At this time, he moved back to the Office of Policy Development as the Assistant Director, Office of Policy Development, Management and Administration, and from 1984-1985 he was the Executive Director of the Federal Property Review Board.

In 1985 he became Special Assistant to the President, Executive Secretary, Domestic Policy Council until late 1988 when he left the White House.

In 1988, Bledsoe was selected as the first Director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum where he oversaw the final construction of the building, the dedication of the Library, opening of the facility, and the early years of the Library and Museum. He transferred with the National Archives to Washington, DC in 1994 and was part of a reorganization task force creating a new management structure and functions for the National Archives and Records Administration. He retired from federal service sometime in the early 2000's.

Record Type

Textual

Last Modified Date

2024-03-13

WHORM Alpha File

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WHORM Subject File

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Bledsoe, Ralph C.: Files, 1981-1982

Box List

WHORM Alpha File

WHORM Subject File

Federal Papers

Donated Papers

Audiovisual

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