John C. West served as Grand Forks superintendent of schools for four years before his selection as the sixth president of the University of North Dakota in 1933. A Minnesota native, he received his M.S. in 1926 and his Ph.D. in 1930 from UND, both in Education. His nineteen years as a public school superintendent offered considerable financial and management expertise, and an established reputation as an excellent public relations facilitator, a skill that would bode him well both on campus and with the public.

West’s presidency spanned the Great Depression, World War II, and the beginning of the Cold War. His financial acumen aided him in dealing with drastic University budgets cuts and salary reductions of the Depression. In the 1935 Dacotah, West philosophized:

“The spirit of 'Carry on’ is evident to the most casual observer. Indeed, adverse circumstances under which the personnel of the University has struggled, and is struggling, seem to have been incentive to greater endeavors. The morale of the faculty is high and the achievements of the student body are notable. Tempered in the crucible of adversity, we will acquire the strength and adaptability to withstand misfortune and 'Carry on’ till the world is able to make full use of the fine metal of our abilities.”

UND did "carry on" and utilized various New Deal programs that added $709,000 to the campus, which included construction of the Winter Sports Building, several small buildings, and a trade school dormitory, later renamed East Hall. Great Northern cabooses of “Camp Depression” offered free housing to male students who otherwise could not afford a college education. New Deal programs assisted these students with employment, as it did many other University students.

Although UND suffered during the Depression, it did not experience disaster. In 1938, UND maintained its North Central Association of Schools and Colleges accreditation and faculty turnover was lower in the 1930s than in other decades. Faculty research continued, producing high quality publications, and the Engineer's Council for Professional Development recognized the College of Engineering. From 1937 until outbreak of WWII, enrollment exceeded the 1929 record of 1,826 students. UND also was honored by visits from President Roosevelt in 1937 and Crown Prince Olav of Norway in 1939.

During World War II, the University responded. Several military camps were established on campus, training pilots, engineers, and medical and nursing recruits. As the war progressed, the male student population dropped dramatically. When veterans returned in large numbers, they faced a campus housing shortage, alleviated only in part by the erection of three blocks of "tin huts." In the 1947 Dacotah, West stated:

“Never have opportunities been so plentiful and never have dangers been so great…it is on your shoulders, the shoulders of the leaders and rulers of tomorrow, that we rest our faith in the future…We look to you now in peace as we looked to you in war…yours was a victory in war; may it be the supreme victory in peace…It is with a feeling of great security, that I salute the young people on the campus…the pride of the present and the hope of years to come.”

After the war, funding from the State Legislature initiated a campus building surge from 1947 through 1951, with over $2,890,000 appropriated for construction and equipment. A Medical Science building was completed; an Education Building replaced Woodworth Hall, which was destroyed by fire in 1949; a field house, engineering building, and two new dormitories, Johnstone and Hancock Halls were built; and, UND Alumni completed a successful fund drive to build the Memorial Union in 1951. The University also appointed many new faculty during this period and established new undergraduate and graduate programs.

After twenty-one years of service, President West retired in 1954, at the time, the longest serving state university president. He guided UND through tumultuous times, expanded the institution in “bricks and mortar,” and developed research programs, all while maintaining relative harmony.