Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
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Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
COUCHMAN, Gaylord M.
COUCHMAN, Gaylord M. (Popejoy, IA--Dubuque, IA, Aug. 30, 1975). MAYOR. Couchman, a member of the city council from 1968 to 1971, served as mayor of Dubuque in 1971. Ordained a Presbyterian minister in 1934, Couchman came to Dubuque as pastor of WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH in 1943. In 1953 he became president of the UNIVERSITY OF DUBUQUE, a position he held for fourteen years. Enrollment doubled, and the school's physical plant increased in value from $1 million to $6 million.
Couchman was president of the Dubuque Council of Churches (1946) and the Dubuque Ministerial Association (1947). He chaired the Iowa College President's Association in 1958. He was a member of the Advisory Committee on Approval Standards for the Iowa Department of Public Instruction (1965-1967) and the advisory committee of Catholic Charities.
Couchman was vice-chairman of the board of directors of AQUINAS INSTITUTE, director of the DUBUQUE BOYS' CLUB, and a member of the Dubuque Human Rights Commission. He chaired the Iowa Association of Private Colleges and Universities (1965-1968), and was vice-president of the Iowa College Foundation (1964-1965).
Upon his retirement as university president, Couchman served as director of church relations for the school unti1 1970 and helped manage the $4 million Major Gift Campaign for the university in 1974. He played a crucial role in founding the Iowa Tuition Grant Program that awards public funds to students attending private colleges.
