This collections contains records divided into the following series:

SERIES I: Administrative is divided into six subseries:

Subseries 1: Organization Documents (1943-1957) contains drafts and final versions of bylaws.

Subseries 2: Board of Trustees (1923-1966) includes the complete set of Minutes of the Meetings of the Board of Trustees, with three bound volumes and some unbound records, as well as records of the Executive Secretary, and correspondence to and from Trustees about Academy of Art business.

Subseries 3: Accreditation (1945-1973) includes self-study reports submitted to the North Central Association of Colleges and Universities and the 1969 Goals Conference.

Subseries 4: Committees (1943-1967) contains records of several Academy of Art committees: the Art Collection Committee, the General Utilities Committee, the Museum Committee, and a Special Committee set up in 1947 to assess the state of the Cranbrook Academy of Art.

Subseries 5: Presidents' Papers (1939-1973) is comprised predominantly of correspondence and contains some writings as well covering the Presidency of Eliel Saarinen and Zoltan Sepeshy.

Subseries 6: Public Relations (1966-1968) contains a draft and proposal for a public relations program. SERIES II: Construction Records (1925-1973) covers the initial construction of the Cranbrook Academy of Art buildings and subsequent development and maintenance. The records concerning expenditures provide a detailed cost analysis of construction materials and fixtures. SERIES III: Curriculum Development (1942-1972) consists of brochures of course announcements for Academy students as well as for children who participated in the activities of the Young People’s Art Center. There is also material from the Design Department, including academic requirements and the layout of the studios. In addition, there is a major follow-up study of Academy of Art Alumni, ordered in 1971 to assess the impact of the curriculum. SERIES IV: Financial (1928-1975) is particularly noteworthy for the Annual Financial Reports for the 1942-1954 period, Student Tuition Lists for the 1943-1966 period, Inventories, and correspondence related to Scholarships. The departmental inventories illustrate each department's holdings of equipment, supplies, and furnishings. Also of note are the records pertaining to Michael Gorman and the scholarship fund set up after his passing in 1958. The Hungarian Student Scholarship records show the involvement of the student council in bringing a Hungarian artist, Laszlo Ispansky, to Cranbrook during a politically charged time in Hungarian history.

SERIES V: Museum is divided into two subseries:

Subseries 1: Administrative (1942-1973) contains a variety of records concerning the Museum, which until 1973 was known as the Galleries of the Cranbrook Academy of Art. Among those are the Curator’s Reports to the Trustees and to the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees. Most noteworthy is a large selection of materials documenting the auction of the collections that the Academy of Art organized in 1972 to raise money.

Subseries 2: Collections and Exhibits (1951-1973) contains various inventories, as well as exhibition brochures and supporting documents.

SERIES VI: Personnel is divided into two subseries:

Subseries 1: Faculty/Staff (1941-1976) includes contractual employment agreements, lists of faculty appointments, and correspondence with job applicants and recruits including Harry Bertoia, Pierre Kleykamp, Carl Milles, and others.

Subseries 2: Topical (1941-1973) contains primarily records pertaining to benefits received by personnel at the Academy of Art, documents concerning firings and retirements, and union agreements.

SERIES VII: Student Life (1943-1989) primarily consists of student rosters, including those for students who were veterans. There are three types (or sets) of student rosters included here: Typescript Rosters, Printed Rosters, and Computer Generated Rosters. All three sets have been retained as, even though they overlap, they each contain some unique information. This series also includes commencement brochures and related materials, including the First Commencement ceremony of 1943, as well as the complete series of President Sepeshy’s Commencement speeches.

SERIES VIII: Topical (1944-1976) provides records pertaining to various issues of interest to the history of Cranbrook Academy of Art. There is a chronology of the Academy’s history, put together by curator Mary Riordan, and various memorabilia and brochures produced by the Academy. Documents about the proposal to create an Art Association in 1953 provide information about the condition of the Academy’s Museum and the thoughts of the Academy’s leaders on its objectives and future development.