I don't know if any of this is on any of the free sites like Rootsweb or not. I haven't used the others because when my sister and I decided to tackle the family tree in earnest last January, we went halves on a global subscription to Ancestry. However, you can get the newspaper articles by going to the NY Times archive page and searching. I think you still have to pay for anything after 1930 but there often is a "first paragraph" preview that let's you see what's in the article. The Google News Archive takes you to a website that you can subscribe to if you want to read articles there. Can't remember what it costs, but if you are going to an in depth search of your family, you can compare costs. I know Ancestry has a one month subscription and if you're organized, you can get a lot done in a month!
Dean of a college was probably a surprise! You don't often hit one like that!
Carol