Charles E. Shain (1915-2003) was the sixth president of Connecticut College, holding the position from 1962-1974. Shain received his undergraduate (1936) and graduate (1949) degrees from Princeton University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and awarded Woodrow Wilson and Scribner graduate fellowships. He studied in England twice, first at Cambridge University in 1937-38, then returning in 1952-53 under a Fulbright grant to the University of London.

During World War II Shain served in the Army Air Force in the Pacific, attaining the rank of major and receiving the Bronze Star for his services. A specialist in American literature, he joined the faculty of Carleton College in 1949 as Assistant Professor of English, becoming full Professor and chair of the Committee on American Studies in 1956. He remained at Carleton until 1962, when he left to assume the presidency of Connecticut College.

As president, Charles Shain led Connecticut College through the transition to coeducation in 1969, as well as the turbulence of the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War. Major events on campus during this era include the October 1969 moratorium and May 1970 campus strike against the Vietnam War, and a takeover of the college administration building by the student Afro-American Society in May 1971.

While fewer buildings were added during this time than under the two previous presidents, major projects included construction of Cummings Arts Center and Lazrus House, a cooperative dormitory, and planning for a new library that would double the existing capacity. Other notable undertakings during Shain's presidency were the Quest development campaign, which ran from 1966-1973 and raised almost $15 million, and the college's participation in the U.S.-India Women's College Exchange Program. Under this program, Connecticut College faculty members taught at Indian colleges for a year while Indian educators taught at the college.

After leaving Connecticut College, Shain worked for two years as director of the Institute for Off-Campus Experience and Cooperative Education. He retired in 1976 and moved to Maine, where he lived until his death.