The Board of Supervisors met in a special session at the end of June 1939 and Middleton was directed to take over the business management of the university. The school's finances were in a state of chaos, and it would take effort and time to dig out of the mess. The dean of the Law School, Paul M. Hebert, became the acting president, and Middleton became acting vice president and comptroller. Middleton chose two accounting professors, Dr. Daniel Borth and Dr. Mack Hornbeak, to work with him, and a New York firm was hired to come in and establish sound business procedures.