Interview with John W. Oswald, August 10, 1987

Interview Summary

Dr. John Oswald was president of the University of Kentucky from 1963-1968. In this interview he discusses his career path at the University of California, his mentor Clark Kerr, and why he wanted to become president of a university. He talks about his impressions of the University of Kentucky when he first arrived and the support he perceived for the changes he wanted to make.

He talks about his relationships with other administrators and faculty members at UK, including Thomas Clark, Albert Kirwan, and former president Frank Dickey. He discusses the policy changes he made that were considered controversial, which included redesigning the faculty retirement system, changing the undergraduate curriculum to include more required humanities courses for all majors, and instituting a policy of rotating department chairmanships every few years. He talks about other controversial incidents during his presidency which were caused when he attempted to make jokes.

Interview LC Subject

Oswald, John W. (John Wieland), 1917-1995 Oswald, John W. (John Wieland), 1917-1995--Interviews University of Kentucky University of Kentucky--History

Interview Rights

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

Interview Usage

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