Creator: George Axinn

Subjects: Anniversaries, Sesquicentennial

Description: George Axinn came to MSU in February 1953 as an Extension editor on a TV show called Country Crossroads which was produced in the quonset huts on the west side of campus and which led to his position as leader of the Extension Service Communications training program in 1954. From 1955 – 60 he served as Associate Director of Extension, taking a few years off to complete his PhD at the University of Wisconsin in Administration and Rural Sociology in 1958. Axinn returned to campus and continued his work in Extension, creating the Institute for Extension Personnel Development. Through this institute, he became coordinator of the MSU-Nigeria Program, assisting Nigeria to develop a university similar to American land-grant colleges. He was also involved in training the directors of the East Pakistan Center at Kamalia and of the West Pakistan Center at Peshawar.

In1976, Axinn served as MSU team leader of the MUCIA (Midwest Universities Consortium for International Activities)/AID project. MUCIA consisted of Indiana University, MSU, University of Illinois, and the University of Wisconsin and provided funds for research to improve overseas programs, most specifically in Rampur, Nepal. Axinn retired in 2003.

Topics/People Covered in the Interview include: Gordon Belson; Country Crossroads; Bob Crewl; Bob Deans; Bud Doan; Andy Doyle; James Feurig; Les Fishhaut; Ford Foundation; John Hannah; Sarah Hannah; Institute for Extension Personnel Development; George Johnson; Kellogg Foundation; Margaret McKeegan; M. Peter McPherson; Basic College; international programs; Kellogg Center; Office of International Programs; renaming "home economics" to "human ecology;" Vietnam Project; WKAR radio; MUCIA; Paul Miller; Russ Mawby; Roger Oxcell; Beatrice Paolucci; Lowell Priestor; Pat Ralston; Floyd Reeves; Earl Richardson; Rockefeller Foundation; Mohanon Sangju; Dick Swenson; Glen Taggert; John Useem; Ruth Useem; Durwood Varner; Harry Vogel; Sylvan Wentworth; Clifton Wharton

Date: July 22, 2003

Collection Number: UA 3

Language: English

Rights Management: Educational use only, no other permissions given. Copyright to this resource is held by Michigan State University and is provided here for educational purposes only. It may not be reproduced or distributed in any format without written permission of the University Archives & Historical Collections, Michigan State University.

Contributing Institution: University Archives & Historical Collections, Office of the Provost

Relation: Sesquicentennial Oral History Project

Contributor: MSU Archives and Historical Collections