Interview with Raymond F. Betts, March 31, 1992

Interview Summary

At the beginning of this interview, Raymond F. Betts states he was born in New Jersey, politely declines to give his date of birth, and briefly talks about his parents, siblings, and family. He is jointly appointed as a professor in the History Department and Director of the Gaines Center for the Humanities at the University of Kentucky. He attended Rutgers University and received his Bachelor's degree in History. Betts began his graduate studies at Columbia University immediately after graduation from Rutgers after serving in the Army during the Korean War. He returned to Columbia to finish his graduate work, with a major in History and a minor in French. He received his Ph.D. from Columbia. He says being a teacher is an enjoyable and inspiring experience and that education is "the most formative element next to love".

Betts came to the University of Kentucky in 1971, in the capacity of Professor of French History. He is asked to describe a typical day at work and says most of his work is self-generated in terms of course development and research in addition to his teaching, and that his responsibilities are similar to that of a chairperson. Betts states he prefers teaching to filling out university forms and mentions a few of his activities in the "extramural world". He feels accessibility to the student is one of the most important qualities of a good professor and emphasizes that it is important for any historian to travel to the area related to the field they are studying. He discusses his conversations, literary versus historical, with other colleagues that have similar interests, and notes "this is his best academic experience". Betts says the academic tradition at U.K. is not seen to be as strong as the sports tradition and mentions the lack of campus-wide community.

Interview Keyword

Nature of Academic Work

Interview LC Subject

Betts, Raymond F. Betts, Raymond F.--Interviews University of Kentucky University of Kentucky--History

Interview Rights

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Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.