Oluf M. Davidsen 1924—2008

When he retired in 1988, after 14 years as ACT’s fourth President, Oluf Davidsen had seen the staff grow from six to six hundred. By then, at his direction, ACT had assembled a staff of experts in key areas of test development, research, and corporate operations. The company was well on its way toward offering the broad range of programs and services for education and workforce development ACT is known for today.

During his presidency, Oluf also laid the foundation for future expansion of the ACT campus. He was instrumental in the acquisition of two large farms adjacent to the Lindquist Building on the edge of Iowa City that are now the site of the Tyler and Davidsen Buildings.

On October 15, 2003, Oluf and his family, friends, and colleagues attended the formal dedication of the new Davidsen Building, named in his honor. The comments Oluf made that day reflect his personality.

“I’m humbled. I know better than anyone else that the credit for ACT’s success belongs to so many people: the high school counselors, and the admission counselors and student services personnel at the colleges and universities we serve. They have been a great help in molding our services. And our success has also been deeply rooted in the measurement philosophy of founder E. F. Lindquist. But more than anyone else, the credit goes to all the employees for their dedication to the ACT mission of helping students with their transition from high school to college and on to the world of work. The dedication and commitment of these people is by far ACT’s major asset.”

Born and raised in Denmark, Oluf was a teenager during the German occupation in World War II. During these turbulent times, his father insisted that Oluf work on a farm in the summer. In the winter, he tutored his son in preparation for college entrance examinations. Oluf graduated from Jelling College in 1947. Postwar, he taught school in Schleswig, a long-disputed area that had been partitioned between Denmark and Germany. Later, as a volunteer, he did community rehabilitation and relief work in Austria. He also worked on reconstruction projects in Italy, where he met Florence (Penny) Chandler Kennedy, an American volunteer who would later become his wife.

Oluf’s long, varied career combined his interest in human development and learning with computer technology and management. He earned his PhD at the University of Wisconsin. His thesis research focused on foreign students in American colleges and relied—at the dawn of the computer era on campus—on computer-aided factor analysis. He was a college teacher and researcher and also worked briefly in administration in both banking and higher education before joining ACT.

Decades later, at the dedication of the Davidsen Building , ACT CEO and Chairman of the Board Dick Ferguson noted that Oluf helped to create a work environment in which people were free to think, innovate, and unite to serve the common good. His years were exciting and formative ones for the organization. Oluf quickly made his mark at ACT and will be remembered because he was so clearly a doer, not just an observer.

Oluf is survived by Penny, his wife of nearly sixty years, two sons (Erik and Steven), two daughters (Leslie Harrington and Christine Ringdahl), and eleven grandchildren.

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