University of Chicago official who reached out to neighborhoods
As the University of Chicago’s longtime head of community relations, Jonathan Kleinbard worked to strengthen and repair the university’s relationships with adjoining South Side neighborhoods such as Woodlawn and North Kenwood.
“He was a very helpful presence in dealing with problems that arose sometimes for individuals and sometimes in the community,” said retired U. of C. President Hanna Holborn Gray, who led the university from 1978 until 1993. “In a very quiet way, he created a larger role than his title would indicate.”
Kleinbard, 80, died of sepsis Oct. 16 at his home in Philadelphia, said his wife of 55 years, Joan.
Born in Philadelphia, Kleinbard grew up in a suburb of the city, Abington, and received a bachelor’s degree in English from Kenyon College in Ohio in 1960.
Kleinbard worked as a reporter for the Doylestown Daily Intelligencer in Pennsylvania and later was a reporter and editor for the United Press International wire service from 1961 until 1964, working in Philadelphia and London.
In 1965, Kleinbard moved to Chicago to join the staff of the university as an assistant director of development, overseeing publications. He co-edited a quarterly magazine and later became assistant director of the university’s Center for Policy Studies.
Kleinbard left the U. of C. in 1969 to move to Washington, D.C., to work in a senior position for a nonprofit group, the Children’s Foundation. He returned to the U. of C. in 1971 and was promoted in 1975 to vice president. He ultimately became the university’s vice president of community relations and the vice president of university news.
Kleinbard was the point person tasked with improving relations with the surrounding neighborhoods. He also was involved with the university’s land acquisitions, which sometimes sparked controversy in adjoining areas.
Kleinbard also focused heavily on campus safety, including working to build
ties between the University of Chicago Police Department and the Chicago Police Department.
“Jonathan Kleinbard believed the success of the university was inexorably tied to that of the community and the city in which it resides,” said retired University of Chicago Deputy police Chief Lee Caldwell.
“His vision and the ability to implement that vision will positively impact the entire community for decades to come. His early career in journalism sharpened the communication skills that he used relentlessly in improving the quality of life throughout the community.”
University of Chicago Law School professor Douglas Baird called Kleinbard “the consummate problem solver” and said he rebuilt bridges between the university and its surrounding communities. Kleinbard made sure those in the community knew they could reach him at all hours of the day or night, listing his home phone number right on his business card, Baird said.
Baird noted Kleinbard’s advocacy for restoring the Midway Plaisance in Hyde Park, which had been devastated by Dutch elm disease.
“The University of Chicago and its surrounding neighborhood would simply not be flourishing today had it not been for the many seeds Jonathan planted during his time here,” Baird said. “No one cared more about the mission at the university. He was no-nonsense and sometimes brusque, and it was all in service of his love for the university.”
Janis Bellow-Friedman, author Saul Bellow’s widow, said Kleinbard “took care of everyone.”
“It was never about payback or power,” BellowFriedman said. “There was no one this man did not put himself out for. He helped, befriended and outlived all the U. of C. dinosaurs: Saul Bellow, Allan Bloom, Edward Levi, David Grene (and) Ed Shils.”
Bellow used Kleinbard and his wife as the basis for a couple known as the Frosts in his 2000 novel “Ravelstein,” she said.
Kleinbard was the U. of C.’s point person on a battle with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development over the future of the federally financed Regents Park complex in Hyde Park, where many university staff and students live. Kleinbard was a vocal supporter of the property manager, Bruce Clinton, during his efforts in the early 1990s to take full control of the complex.
Former University of Chicago Board of Trustees Vice Chairwoman Valerie Jarrett said Kleinbard was “instrumental in bridging the historic divide between the University of Chicago and its surrounding neighborhoods.
“He understood the university’s responsibility to prove itself a worthy junior partner in the redevelopment of those neighborhoods and, with an indefatigable spirit, he developed bonds of trust with the wide and diverse range of stakeholders necessary to create positive change we see today.”
In 1997, Kleinbard left the U. of C. and took a job in St. Louis as the deputy director of the Missouri Botanical Garden. He held that role until retiring in 2004.
Kleinbard took to writing in retirement. He published a novel, “Sons,” in 2007, and was still writing up to his death, Joan Kleinbard said.
Kleinbard also is survived by two sisters, Pauline Goldstein and Alexa Roche; and two brothers, David and Peter.
Services were held.