Oral Histories

An initiative that began in 2017, the University Archives has begun to digitize items from the Historical Audio Recordings collection and other collections. We have sorted these recordings into four categories: Lectures and Presentations, Oral Histories, Performances and Speeches. At present the category of Oral Histories is the only category that we are actively adding to. With support from the Office of the Provost, the University Archives has been interviewing current and emeritus faculty, staff and students on their experiences at Eastern Michigan University.

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Margaret "Peg" Porter, Oral History Interview, 2023

Elizabeth Allen and Kat Hacanyan

Margaret "Peg" Porter, is a longtime Ypsilanti resident, Roosevelt High School alumna, and involved with local history as a member of the Ladies Literary Society. In this interview, Porter discusses her experiences growing up in Ypsilanti in the 1950s. Porter also recounted her education at Roosevelt, highlighting the small class sizes and the impact of her polio diagnosis in 1955. She also shares her involvement in extracurricular activities, such as the newspaper and yearbook, and her later career in education and disability rights advocacy. Porter emphasizes the importance of community connections and the legacy of Roosevelt's students and teachers.
Marisa Deluge, Oral History Interview, 2023

Marian Feinberg

Marian Feinberg, an EMU Historic Preservation graduate student, interviews Marisa Deluge, a performance artist and Ypsilanti resident for 19 years, for the Ypsilanti Bicentennial Celebration. Marisa describes her deep connection to Ypsilanti, her involvement in local businesses, and her commitment to the community. She highlights the city's supportive and collaborative creative scene, its resilience, and its inclusivity, particularly for the LGBTQ+ community and people of color. Marisa hopes Ypsilanti will continue to support local businesses, elect diverse leaders, and acknowledge native lands by the next bicentennial. She values being remembered as someone who cares, is curious, and actively engages with the community.
Mark Margolis, Interview, 2024

Micah Bookout

Throughout 2024, the city of Ann Arbor celebrated its 200th anniversary with community events, festivals, and art displays that highlighted its rich culture and history. To cap off the celebrations, in December 2024 the EMU Center for Oral History Research invited community members to Skyline High School to share what makes Ann Arbor special. In this interview, long-time Ann Arbor resident Mark Margolis talks about running a small business, the vibrant community he's found, and the city's changing landscape.
Marshall Jennings, October 22, 2018

Rachel Burns and Matt Jones

Marshall Jennings is an alumnus of Eastern Michigan University. Jennings was a highly involved student activist, serving as a member of Campus Service Corps. Jennings was an instrumental figure in discussions with administration on bettering conditions for African American students on campus, Jennings began his professional career at Eastern Michigan University working for admissions through recruiting and counseling. Jennings worked for two years as a counselor and recruiter for Eastern before going on to a long and successful career in higher education administration.
Marshall McLennan, Oral History Interview, 2019

Matt Jones and Alexis Braun Marks

Dr. Marshall McLennan arrived at Eastern MIchigan University in 1971 and served the Department of Geography and Geology until his retirement in 1999. In this interview, McLennan details his upbringing in California, Nevada and the Philippines before serving in the U.S. military, stationed in Munich, Germany. After a brief flirtation with becoming a Hollywood actor and studying cultural geography at the University of California - Berkeley under the tutelage of Carl Sauer, McLennan settled in at EMU and, in 1979, co-founded the EMU Historic Preservation program with Dr. Andrew Nazzaro. As director of the program, McLennan initiated a study of mill sites along the Huron River with Nazzaro, and worked to create working relationships between the Historic Preservation program and state historic preservation agencies. Instilling in his students the concept that historic preservation has been long associated with the psychological wellbeing of a place, McLennan worked with colleagues and students to successfully prevent the destruction of EMU’s Welch Hall. McLennan also discusses how working for large preservation agencies like the State Historic Preservation Review Board and Heritage Interpretation International can inform your teaching.
Martha Verda, Oral History Interview, 2007

Claudia Wasik

Martha Verda came to Michigan State Normal College in 1952 as an assistant professor of Special Education, and later became the Director of the Counceling Center in 1967. In this interview, conducted by EMU Physical Eduation professor Claudia Wasik, Verda describes the state of women's athletics at MSNC in the 1950s and 1960s, and details the change in women's athletics from intramurals to intercollegiate competition. Verda also discusses the relationshiop between men's and women's athletics, and explains that no contact with men's athletics was often better than hving contact with them.
"Marty," Interview, 2023

Brooke Boyst

On October 7, 2023, students from the EMU Archives and Oral History Program recorded the stories of EMU students past and present. Using the EMU Aerie, the Archives’ mobile oral history recording booth, student oral historians captured the formative experiences and perspectives of EMU alums from a variety of campus eras. Here, alum “Marty” (class of 1991) speaks of his first experiences on campus, mentor Carl Ojala, his work as a student employee at the Olds-Robb Recreation Center, and the importance of impactful management.
Mary Ellen Riordan, EMU Roles and Perspectives Interview, 1972

Mary Ellen Riordan

EMU Roles and Perspectives was taped television program broadcast from the campus of EMU, and produced by Robert Hoexter (1930-1978). Hoexter joined the faculty at the EMU School of Education in 1964, and served as Coordinator of Graduate Advising from 1969-1971. A member of the Faculty Senate from 1973-1976, Hoexter was elected vice-chairman from 1974-1975, and chairman, 1975-1976. In this episode of Roles and Perspectives, Hoexter interviews Mary Ellen Riordan, President Emerita of the Detroit Federation of Teachers, Local 231, AFL-CIO. Riordan blazed the trail for collective bargaining rights for teachers. This action resulted in the Michigan Legislature adopting the 1965 Public Employee Relations Act that gave teachers and all public employees the legal right to collective bargaining. Detroit was second only to New York in obtaining collective bargaining rights for teachers, a trend that would sweep the United States five years later. At her retirement, Ms. Riordan was president of one of the largest local unions in the nation, totaling more than 12,000 members. Before Riordan, no other union headed by a woman had exceeded several thousand members. In this discussion, Riordan answers the public perception that unionized public school teachers simply show up at 8:30, and leave at 3, exhibiting no passion for the job. Riordan details what it is that teachers are going home to: grading papers, contacting parents, organize lesson plans, making dinner for their families, etc. The aggression shown by teachers’ unions is not necessarily a reality, but more a fixation by the media to generate headlines, claims Riordan. While the media wants to talk about teacher salaries contributing to the struggling US economy, Riordan claims that what they should really be talking about are the enormous class sizes, lack of supplies, lack of textbooks, poor lunch programs, and the safety of students walking to and from school in Detroit.
Mary Larkin, Oral History Interview, 2024

Matt Jones and Kat Hacanyan

Mary Larkin was the second coordinator of the LBGT Resource Center at Eastern Michigan University from 2008 until 2019. In this interview, Larkin describes the atmosphere for queer students at EMU when she arrived as a student in 1995. Laying out the need for a dedicated center, Larkin explains the command structure of the LGBT-RC, and her place within it, detailing her running of the center in an inclusive manner where "it takes every insturment to make the band."
Mary Lou James, Oral History Interview, 2023

Brooke Boyst and Matt Jones

Mary Lou James was born and raised in Ypsilanti, Michigan, graduating from Roosevelt in 1947 and from Eastern Michigan University in 1951. In this interview Mary Lou explores her time growing up in Ypsilanti in the 1930s-40s, and recounts memories of going to Roosevelt revealing popular hangout spots, school dances, and what dating looked like back in the day. She also shares her experiences as a student at the Michigan State Normal College, being a sorority sister, and her marriage and children.
Mary & Terry Clark, Oral History Interviews, 2023

Hilary Hill, Chris Baker, and Matt Jones

Mary and Terry Clark are a married couple who began dating as elementary school students while attending the Roosevelt school. In this interview the couple speaks fondly of their time at Roosevelt, and each explain the extracurriculars they were involved in and the teachers that had an impact on their lives. They also discuss how they met, holding hands while walking to school, where the popular hang out spots were, and what the school meant to them.
Maya Walker, Interview, 2023

Brooke Boyst

On October 7, 2023, students from the EMU Archives and Oral History Program recorded the stories of EMU students past and present. Using the EMU Aerie, the Archives’ mobile oral history recording booth, student oral historians captured the formative experiences and perspectives of EMU alums from a variety of campus eras. Here, Early College Alliance student Maya Walker talks about her first day on campus and the initial shock of seeing such a large campus for the first time. She speaks on the importance of her Queer Literature class, and the usefulness of onsite testing during the pandemic.
Merrily Hart, Rachel Klayman, and Julie Roberts, Interview, 2024

Alexis Braun Marks

Throughout 2024, the city of Ann Arbor celebrated its 200th anniversary with community events, festivals, and art displays that highlighted its rich culture and history. To cap off the celebrations, in December 2024 the EMU Center for Oral History Research invited community members to Skyline High School to share what makes Ann Arbor special. In this interview, mother Merrily Hart and daughters Rachel Klayman and Julie Roberts talk about growing up in Ann Arbor close to family, attending the University of Michigan, and finding their ways back to each other after leaving.
Michael Beaugrand, Oral History Interview, 2022

Matt Jones

Michael Beaugrand was an active member of the Arm of Honor Fraternity from 1988 until 1994 and is the younger brother of fellow Arm of Honor member, Bob Beaugrand. In this interview, Beaugrand details his upbringing in Ypsilanti, the death of his younger brother in a car accident just off the EMU campus, and his stints in the US Military. Beaugrand talks about his mother, Geri Beaugrand, serving as advisor to the fraternity. Beaugrand talks of having no other options as a college hopeful, and his introduction to the fraternity. Beaugrand speaks of the hazing process, Hell Night, and the secrets to surviving a swatting session. Beaugrand competed in manyh intramural sports while in the fraternity, and participated in various renovation projects in the Arm house, including the purchase and renovation of the house following Arm of Honor's expulsion from EMU in 2015.
Michael Faunce, Ypsi Pride Interview, 2023

Akaiia Ridley

In June of 2023, The Eastern Michigan University Archives Oral History Program brought the EMUA Aerie to Depot Town in Ypsilanti during the Ypsi Pride festival to record the pride stories of the local community. Here, Michael talks about attending Ypsi Pride over the years, and being part of an open and affirming church.
Michael G. Nastos, March 28, 2019

Matt Jones and Alexis Braun Marks

Longtime broadcaster, music critic, and jazz aficionado Michael G. Nastos is best known for his work at WEMU-FM, the NPR affiliate station making its home in King Hall on the WEMU campus. Emeritus Senior Producer, Music Librarian, Assistant Music Director and full-time evening broadcaster at EMU for nearly thirty years, Nastos has written for Downbeat Magazine, Cadence magazine, Coda Jazz Forum, Swing Journal, and a host of other local and national music publications.
Michael Pappas, Oral History Interview, 2023

Matt Jones

Mike Pappas, brother of fellow Arm Tony Pappas, was an active member of the Arm of Honor Fraternity from 1970-1974, living in the Arm house fo the entirety of his stint at EMU. Growing up in Ypsilanti Township and Ann Arbor, Pappas describes the Seven Seas Restaurant, which his parents owned and lived above, and his formative years at St. John's Catholic School in Ypsilanti. Pappas describes the Ypsilanti he knew as a child and the differences between the local religious schools. Pappas describes hitchhikinig culture of the 1960s, and talks about how improtant the history fo the Arm of Honor was to pledging members. Pappas also discusses the sexual assault rampant in modern fraternity culture, Ted's Campus Drugs, and the comparisons between Animal House and the Arm of Honor.
Mike Colletta, Oral History Interview, 2022

Matt Jones

Mike Colletta was an active member of the Arm of Honor Fraternity from 1965 until 1969, and is now a member of the Arm of Honor Alumni Chapter. A first generation Detroiter born to Sicilian immigrants, Colletta describes his time at Allen Park High School and Michigan State University before coming to EMU with a friend to visit. Colletta talks about meeting with Dean of Students Ralph Gilden, the lost sense of community on the EMU campus, a failed Marine enlistment, and having a student deferment plus a married deferment from the armed services. Colletta describes meeting the Arms for the first time, using meal tickets for lunches at the Wolverine Grill, and details living in a fraternity house, the Arm initiation process, and how the experience of being an Arm prepared him for everything that came after college.
Mike Srock, Oral History Interview, 2022

Matt Jones

Mike Srock was an active member of the Arm of Honor Fraternity from 1965 until he was drafted by the US Armed Forces in 1967. Now an acclaimed Strength & Speed coach, Srock talks about his upbringing, education and athletic exposure in Detroit, before detailing his college experiences, academics, and friendships within the Arm of Honor. He details his off-campus living situation, the atmosphere at EMU in the 1960s, rushing for Arm of Honor, and the six kegs of beer won by his pledge class for various athletic achievements. He talks of fellow Arm Dennis Snary and his unusual method of intramural swimming. Srock describes the fraternity band, Bob Schneider and the Collegiates, and their focus on socializing instead of rehearsal. He speaks of the lifelong friendships gained from the fraternity, and talks about the annual Alumni Day, and meeting former Arms Pat Dignan and Red Miller. He also describes the Motown Revue held at Bowen Field House, and the roles that the Arms played in making the concert happen. Srock also talks about the challenge of coming back to the fraternity after serving in the War in Vietnam.
Mira Sussman, Oral History Interview, 2024

Cassandra Mitchell

Mira Sussman is the Resource Development Manager for Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County. In this interview, Sussman describes growing up in the Jewish community in Ann Arbor, her first time working at JFS in the employment program between 2005-2013, and how JFS evolved during her first time working there. Sussman explains how different resettlement services are at JFS now vs. the early 2000s, the resettlement process, and how COVID-19 has made resettling difficult due to lack of access to housing. Sussman also explores JFS’s collaboration with Eastern Michigan University in resettling 12 Afghan families into on-campus housing, storing mattresses and pillows in the Bowen Fieldhouse, and the logistics of housing these families both during these short stay at EMU and beyond.
Myrna Yeakle and Joan Sheard, Oral History Interview, 2022

Matt Jones

In 2021, Eastern Michigan University Archives lecturer Matt Jones began documenting the story of Ypsilanti’s Human Rights Ordinance #1279 in an effort to explore the ways in which local queer activism has evolved multi-generationally in Ypsilanti. What began as a refusal of service by a local print shop to a small EMU student group quickly turned into a years-long battle over who was deserving of basic human rights. To the LGBTQ activists and community members documented here, they had always been present in the community: working, paying taxes, painting their houses, mowing their lawns, attending council meetings, and even serving on council. This ordinance battle was about more than just LGBT rights—it was about protecting the human rights of all Ypsilantians. On January 27, 2022, Jones met with former members of Citizens for Community and Ypsilanti Campaign for Equality, and former EMU faculty, Myrna Yeakle and Joan Sheard. Yeakle and Sheard were both professors in the Department of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, and had met while working together. During their careers at EMU, they became trusted members of the community amongst their fellow LGBT colleagues, including Kathleen Russell. Yeakle and Sheard hit the ground running once they found out about the Tri-Pride incident, and met with neighbors and community organizers to push for an ordinance. Because of their experiences with hate and discrimination, and their status as an established "out" couple, they felt they had a responsibility to support the efforts to make the Ypsi community a more welcoming and safe space. Like other participants in this project, Yeakle and Sheard became important figures during the campaigns, working as Outreach officers within YCFE. In this interview, they shared their experiences as LGBT faculty on EMU's campus and how that translated to the Ypsi community, how important it was for the ordinance to be passed, and the broader implications of it all.
Nancy Halmhuber-Navarre, Oral History Interview, 2020

Matt Jones

Serving the students of EMU from 1979 until her retirement in 2004, Nancy Halmhuber-Navarre advocated for many changes in the teaching of exceptional students, was recognized for excellence and instruction and authored A Century of Excellence with Lynn Rockledge, the history of the EMU Department of Special Education. Halmhuber-Navarre received Emeritus status upon retirement.
Nancy Ross, Interview, 2023

Elizabeth Allen

In November of 2023, Eastern Michigan University’s LGBT Resource Center hosted an event in collaboration with the University Archives’ Oral History Program during Transgender Awareness Week where students could share their experiences with being part of the LGBT community on and off campus. EMU student Nancy Ross talks about their first introduction to queer identities, switching majors, and gender expression through roleplaying games like Dungeons and Dragons.
Natalia Payne, Interview, 2023

Brooke Boyst

On October 7, 2023, students from the EMU Archives and Oral History Program recorded the stories of EMU students past and present. Using the EMU Aerie, the Archives’ mobile oral history recording booth, student oral historians captured the formative experiences and perspectives of EMU alums from a variety of campus eras. Here, current student Natalia Payne talks about her long association with EMU beginning with her involvement in the Early College Alliance when she was 14 years old. Payne also speaks on the fear of school shootings and the drills carried out by students in preparation for such an event.
Odile Hugnot-Haber, Interview, 2024

Micah Bookout

Throughout 2024, the city of Ann Arbor celebrated its 200th anniversary with community events, festivals, and art displays that highlighted its rich culture and history. To cap off the celebrations, in December 2024 the EMU Center for Oral History Research invited community members to Skyline High School to share what makes Ann Arbor special. In this interview, Odile Hugnot-Haber talks about her journey to Ann Arbor, the struggles of collective activism and engagement, and how the city can start to make a change in the world.