This collection consists of material separately donated by Lipsky and Olson which was combined in the Archives. The merged collection documents their joint research, research carried on by Lipsky alone, the non-teaching aspects of Lipsky's career, and the written products of their research. The papers are organized as BIOGRAPHICAL MATERIAL, CORRESPONDENCE, RESEARCH MATERIAL, LIPSKY CAREER FILES, and WRITINGS.

Vitas, press releases, and dust jacket text comprise the initial folder of BIOGRAPHICAL MATERIAL. The CORRESPONDENCE series consists of one folder of correspondence exchanged between Lipsky and Olson; one folder of correspondence exchanged with Transaction Press, which published much of their research; and one folder of correspondence with others.

The RESEARCH MATERIAL is subdivided into three alphabetical subject files: the first pertains to Lipsky's interest in the civil rights movement of the 1960s, the second pertains to the New York City rent strike research he carried out for his doctoral dissertation, and the third pertains to Lipsky and Olson's joint interest in the various commissions established to examine the sources of the race riots of the 1960s.

The civil rights subject files contain virtually no material pertaining to Lipsky's own activities in Mississippi during the summer of 1964, although the Holly Springs folder does contain letters he received in response to a fundraising appeal he sent to Northern friends in behalf of that community. Also included are several mimeographed form letters he received from Sid Walker and other volunteers who continued to work in Holly Springs through 1966. Several other folders (i.e. New York Ad Hoc Committee in Support of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and the Princeton Freedom Center) suggest Lipsky's civil rights interests in the North, but only a few items document his personal activities. Most important of these is the file on the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights for which Lipsky served as the representative of the Northern Student Movement (NSM). This folder, which chiefly consists of mimeographed memoranda for Washington representatives, includes a confidential memo from Thomas A. Frank about a January 29, 1965 meeting which discussed the possible membership of NSM and an undated draft memoranda prepared by Lipsky about LCCR's response to the murders of Mrs. Viola Liuzzo and Jonathan Daniels. The remainder of the series, and in particular the general SNCC file, consists of material collected by Lipsky. The SNCC file includes mimeographed minutes, memoranda, press material, reports and a handwritten letter (May 24, 1965) from Stokely Carmichael to Lucia Hatch about the differing protest philosophies of SNCC and SCLC. This and several other items in this file were originally in Hatch's possession, and according to Mr. Lipsky were shared with him by Ms. Hatch shortly after they were written.

Lipsky's rent strike research includes several folders of building data that is only summarized in his dissertation. This research investigated the relationship between building conditions, legal actions, and rent strikes. Several additional folders contain memoranda and data pertaining to the city agencies responsible for housing. Most important among the rent strike materials, however, are Lipsky's files on the grassroots organizations which sprang up at the time such as Chelsea Save Our Homes and Businesses Committee, the Community Council on Housing, and the Harlem Action Group. This material is not cited in Lipsky's bibliography, although it is quite useful because of the transitory nature of these groups. Typically, these folders contain handbills, notes, and clippings. Important original research is also represented by the typed notes about interviews Lipsky conducted with numerous city officials and with a few rent strike supporters. The notes on Jesse Gray, leader of the Harlem strike, however, do not reflect research interviews but rather the content of remarks Gray made in various public settings.

The riot commission research is arranged alphabetically into categories on the four commissions that were most extensively studied. Generally, each commission is represented by notes, miscellaneous official documents, clippings, and most importantly, by typed reports about the interviews conducted with various commission members and staff. The Mayor's Development Team in Detroit, the Kerner Commission, and the New Jersey riot commission are well represented in this way, but the Milwaukee riot is represented only by a single interview. Also in the Milwaukee file are typed notes about two 1967 press conferences conducted by Milwaukee Mayor Henry Maier; the actual tape recordings of these conferences have been assigned call number Audio 1669A. Most prominent among the interviewees are discussions with Robert Meyner (an interview characterized by Olson, however, as disappointing) and a transcription of a broadcast interview with Richard J. Hughes.

The LIPSKY CAREER FILES contain administrative files Lipsky created as special assistant to the chancellor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and as a consultant for Upward Bound, 1965-1968, and Action, 1977-1978. The alphabetically-arranged university files document Lipsky's special responsibility for increasing minority enrollment, and the file appears to be his official office records. While many folders contain convenience copies of the documents to and from other university faculty and staff that are not unique, a few items reflect Lipsky's special role. Most useful are the files on the evolution of the Black Studies curriculum (see the Ad Hoc Committee on Studies and Instruction on Race Relations and the Special Scholarship Advisory Committee, which operated under various titles and was sometimes known as the Doyle Committee.) These files include several memos drafted by Lipsky on a strategy for attracting 500 minority students to the University as well as a budget memo he prepared on the new curriculum. Also interesting is a confidential memo on the situation of Black athletes at the University that was prepared by James W. Cleary and a memo on the hiring of additional Black faculty.

The Upward Bound files are Lipsky's working files as a consultant hired by the Institute for Services to Education which in turn served as consultant to OEO for the Upward Bound program. The files include reports on educational facilities and programs around the United States, correspondence, press releases, guidelines, reports, expense reports, national meeting minutes and papers, and notes. Most useful are the site evaluations Lipsky prepared for UB programs at UW-Eau Claire, UW-Milwaukee, UW-Whitewater, and at other colleges and universities, as well as the evaluations he drafted about potential program sites in Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas. Several of the operating programs are also represented by newsletters and curricular materials.

The ACTION files represent several distinct functions that Lipsky fulfilled for that agency. In general, the files include policy papers, reports, finance and travel reports, correspondence with the White House and other ACTION officials, statements, memoranda, and proposals. The earliest files relate to work for the Evaluation Division and include memos, examples of material reviewed, notes, travel vouchers, and a copy of Lipsky's preliminary report (July 25, 1977). Several memos concern related evaluation work for OEO. A second phase of Lipsky's work for ACTION concerns the development of President Jimmy Carter's National Urban Policy. Lipsky's role in this began at an October 1977 conference for which he prepared one of the keynote addresses. A copy of this and related papers, together with reviewers' comments are included in this collection. Also included are several later program papers prepared by or reviewed by Lipsky.