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This collection of interviews
explores the experiences of African American faculty
and senior staff at UC Berkeley as part of the broader
history of the University of California and its commitment
to access and diversity.
This series is grounded in the premise that higher education is
one of
the primary strategies for gaining social equality--access to employment
and income--for historically disadvantaged communities. Moreover, the
University, comprised of its students and faculty and administration,
with all of its intellectual and financial resources operates as a critical
touchstone in processes of systemic social change. Therefore the university
functions not simply as an educational institution, but also as a significant
site of past and future potential for imagining and crafting opportunity
for ethnic and racial groups formerly excluded from higher education.
This project recognizes that the University of California, as California's
premier public educational institution, plays a significant role in the
socio-economic mobility of all of California's residents. The story that
we hope will emerge from this project is a story of California--its
people and one of its most important public institutions.
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| Oral History Transcripts |
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Henrietta Harris
San Jose native Henrietta Harris taught courses in UC Berkeley's Drama department from 1954-1969. A formally trained classical singer and performer, she toured Europe and the United States performing a repertoire of German lieder, art songs, and spirituals. Ultimately she left the world of music for her passion: theatre. In 1964, she founded the Aldridge Players West, a pioneering black theatre ensemble that performed in San Francisco and toured historically black schools in the South.
Video Excerpt:
Henrietta Harris Video Clip |
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Reginald Jones
Professor Reginald Jones joined UC Berkeley's faculty in 1973 as professor of African American Studies and adjunct professor of Education. His work pushed the educational psychology field, challenging and debunking ideas held particularly with regard to minority and disabled children. He was committed to developing and nurturing future scholars in the field of psychology. |
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Smith, Mary Perry
Mary Perry Smith is a fiercely committed educator who was an advocate for young people as a local high school teacher, and as co-founder of the Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement program (MESA). Mrs. Perry Smith is also a key figure in East Bay cultural institutions with her longtime involvement with the Oakland Museum of California and the Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame. This interview offers some insight into Mrs. Perry Smith's commitment and philosophy with regard to education and community involvement.
Audio Excerpt:
Mary Perry Smith Audio Clip |
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Norvel Smith
Dr. Norvel Smith lived through several seminal chapters in the City of Oakland's history. Graduating from Berkeley with an EdD in 1956, he was the first African American Vice Chancellor in the UC System, serving as Vice Chancellor-Student Affairs from 1973-1982. He was President of Merritt Community College for five years, from 1968-1973. From 1963 to 1968, he entered the area of community development, as Director of the Oakland Department of Human Resources and Deputy Director of the Western Region Office of Economic Opportunity. Dr. Smith was part of a group of African American men, with its beginnings in the East Bay Democratic Club, who were important actors in East Bay politics in the decades after World War II.
Audio Excerpt:
Men of Tomorrow and East Bay Democratic Club |
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Michelle Woods Jones
Michele Woods Jones came to Berkeley from Monterey, California, as an undergraduate in 1966, lived in coop housing, and as a student saw the Third World Strike unfold around her. Upon graduating from college, Ms. Woods Jones became a counselor in the Educational Opportunity Program, then Director of Student Services, and finally Staff Ombudsperson. Woods Jones interview is unique because of the longevity of her relationship with Berkeleys campus and the different vantage points she brings from her student and professional experiences during an era of radical social transformation.
Video Excerpts:
Reflections on Third World Strike, Third World College, and changing times
Reflections on being a student at Berkeley
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Oral Histories In Progress
Banks, Bil -- Professor Emeritus of African
American Studies
Duster, Troy -- Professor Emeritus of
Sociology, Former Director of the Institute for the Study
of Social Change
Edwards, Harry -- Professor Emeritus
of Sociology
Ellis, Russ -- Professor Emeritus of
Architecture, former Vice Chancellor of Undergraduate
Affairs, former Faculty Equity Associate
Gibbs, J.T. -- Professor Emerita; Zellerbach
Family Fund Chair in Social Policy, Community Change,
and Practice
Lester, William A. -- Professor of Chemistry and Faculty Athletics Representative
Lovelace O'Neal, Mary -- Professor of
Art Practice
Wilkerson, Margaret -- Professor Emerita
of African American Studies and Drama Practice, former
Director of the Center for the Study, Education and Advancement
of Women
Wilson, Olly -- Composer and Professor Emeritus of Music, former Faculty Assistant for Affirmative Action
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Copyright
© 2007 The Regents of the University of California. All
Rights Reserved
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Last Updated: 10/08/07
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