Theme: Religious Studies
Katharine Jefferts Schori Oral History Interview
Life history interview conducted by Janice Dilg.
August 15, 2014
Katharine Jefferts Schori (b. 1954) has lived a life inspired by both science and
faith. Jefferts Schori received both a master's degree and a Ph.D. in Oceanography
from Oregon State University, in the process becoming the first female to earn a doctorate
from the university's Oceanography program. It was in Corvallis that Jefferts Schori
also grew more actively involved in the Episcopal Church, first as a lay member and
later as a member of the clergy. In 2000 Jefferts Schori entered into a more prominent
leadership role within the church when she was elected Bishop of the Nevada diocese.
And in 2006 she was elected to a nine-year term as Presiding Bishop and Primate of
the Episcopal Church, the first woman to occupy this role. Her interview focuses on
her upbringing and education, her development as a scientist and a woman of faith,
and her experiences as a leader within the Episcopal Church.
Paul Kopperman Oral History Interview
Life history interview conducted by Mike Dicianna.
September 2, 2014
Paul Kopperman (b. 1945) has taught history at OSU since his arrival in 1978. Specializing
in 18th century British military and medical history, Kopperman has also served as
advisor to both the OSU History Club and the OSU Religious Studies Club. An active
member of the local Jewish community, Kopperman has been closely associated with Holocaust
Remembrance Week at OSU from the time of its initial organization in 1986. Kopperman
has directed Remembrance Week activities since 1993 and, in this capacity, has been
responsible for bringing to campus several prominent scholars of genocide as well
as some two dozen Holocaust survivors. His interview focuses on his academic career,
growth and change in the regional Jewish community, and the history of Holocaust Remembrance
Week at Oregon State University.
David Robinson Oral History Interview
Life history interview conducted by Janice Dilg.
September 30, 2015
David Robinson (b. 1947) was a member of the OSU English faculty from 1976 to his
retirement in 2016, and held the Oregon Professorship in English - the OSU College
of Liberal Arts' first endowed chair - from its inception in 1991. Recognized internationally
as an authority on American Transcendentalist authors, Robinson has written numerous
books on Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, among other nineteenth century
American writers and philosophers. For fifteen years Robinson also directed the OSU
Center for the Humanities, an institute dedicated to improving the vitality and quality
of humanities teaching and research at Oregon State. His interview focuses on his
personal scholarly evolution; his memories of significant change within the OSU English
department; and his perspective on the broader advancement of the humanities over
a forty year career at OSU.