Creator: Theodore Kennedy

Subjects: Anniversaries, Sesquicentennial

Description: Theodore (Ted) Kennedy received his MS degree from University of Wisconsin in 1943 and joined the MSU faculty in 1945 as an instructor in speech with a minor in American history. He also taught written and spoken English in MSU’s Basic College, a class that was later known as communication skills and eventually American Thought and Language (ATL).

In the late 1950s Kennedy helped Chuck Chamberlain in his bid for a Congressional seat by writing speeches for his TV appearances, and after he won, Kennedy worked for Chamberlain for 8 months when he moved to Washington.

Then in 1961 he returned to MSU and worked with Newt Winburne from the Student Affairs Office for University College to tighten up academic standards by creating a step scale to figure grade point averages for freshman and sophomore students. Kennedy also was one of the first professors to participate in teaching university classes in campus dormitories. He served as the official historian of his department until his retirement in 1884.

Topics/People Covered in the Interview include: Walter Adams; Dave Anderson; Mert Babcock; Paul Bagwell; Basic College; Sam Baskett; Bessey, Case, Dem, Wilson, Wonders Hall; Ed Blackman; Chuck Chamberlain; Marilyn Culpepper; Dwight Eisenhower; Steve Ellison; John Hannah; William Hesseltine; Ben Hickok; Jenison Fieldhouse; Bob Lemansk; Macklin Field; Blanche Martin; acdemic standards; MSU Board of Trustees; campus in 1945; coed dorms; smoking prohibition; student enrollment; student unrest in 1960s; University College; veterans of WW II enrolled as students; Fred Reeve; Rob Renwich; Gordon Sabine; Henry Silverman; Harold Sponberg; Ben Strandness; Clifton Wharton; G Mennon Williams; Newt Winburne; Bob Wright

Date: July 14, 2000

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