Interview with Joanne Sawyer, January 27, 2011

Partial Transcript: We're getting ready to go--

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer lists a number of positions she's held in her career, particularly her administrative roles at Transylvania University and Berea College. She remarks on her training in creative writing, and how that allowed her to succeed and present her ideas well.

Keywords: Berea College (Ky.); Kentucky Society of Professional Engineers; Transylvania University (Ky.); University of Louisville

Subjects: Creative writing; Public relations; Volunteers

Partial Transcript: So you started by talking about being, uh--your career.

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer discusses her and her husband's roles at Berea College, as well as the homes her family has lived in around Lexington.

Keywords: Berea College (Ky.); Engineering; Henry Clay High School, Lexington (Ky.); Kentucky River; University of Louisville

Subjects: Architecture; City planning; College administrators; Universities and colleges

Partial Transcript: I was the Dean of Admissions at Transy and then they gave me the...

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer talks about her role as Dean of Admissions at Transylvania University, and the unique opportunities afforded to college students by liberal arts colleges.

Keywords: Transylvania University (Ky.); University of Kentucky

Subjects: College admission officers; Creative writing; Liberal Arts College Movement; Universities and colleges

Partial Transcript: Sounds like you were a lot like that as a, as a parent, if you wanted your boys to explore...

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer discusses her love of the outdoors, how she took hiking trips with her family in the mountains, and how she worked at a lodge in New York as a child.

Keywords: Albany (Ky.); Appalachian Mountains; Eastern Kentucky; Family; Geology

Subjects: Families.; Recreation; Tourism

Partial Transcript: You mentioned also that--

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer recalls her experience as a student at a small women's college in West Virginia, and how that influenced her vision for her position at Berea College.

Keywords: Berea College (Ky.); Education--Study and teaching; Greenbrier College for Women (Lewisburg, W. Va.)

Subjects: Creative writing; Liberal Arts College Movement; Women's colleges

Partial Transcript: Now if I remember correctly, when you were at Greenbrier, you were dating your husband, your future husband, right?

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer remembers meeting her husband and the early years of their relationship. She also discusses her time as a student at UK.

Keywords: Great Smoky Mountains National Park; Greenbrier College for Women (Lewisburg, W. Va.); University of Kentucky

Subjects: Junior colleges; Marriage; Universities and colleges; Women's colleges

Partial Transcript: So you had these two boys just thirteen months apart?

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer discusses her children and grandchildren, and the lessons she's learned from raising them.

Keywords: Children; Grandchildren; Portland (Or.)

Subjects: Childbirth; Education; Families; Pregnancy; Prenatal education

Partial Transcript: You, you talk about your mom and dad liking to travel so much.

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer discusses learning foreign languages and a few other stories from her time at that college.

Keywords: Foreign languages; Greenbrier College; Horseback riding; The Greenbrier Hotel; Travel

Subjects: Language and languages--Study and teaching; White Sulphur Springs (W. Va.); Women's colleges

Partial Transcript: But here's what I want to know--

Segment Synopsis: Sawyer reflects generally about her life and lessons she would impart on her family and new college students. She also discusses her paternal and maternal grandparents, both of whom were state senators in Kentucky and West Virginia, respectively.

Keywords: Grandparents; Greenbrier College for Women (Lewisburg, W. Va.); Parents; State senators

Subjects: Elementary schools; Genealogy; Universities and colleges; Voting age