Excerpt from the Fall 2025 Extension
Compared to the other public assisted universities in Ohio, Wright State is relatively young, but its history, nearly 60 years, is filled with stories and memories of faculty and staff members who joined the institution and contributed much to its growth and success. In the late 1990’s, WSURA board members approached the University Libraries Special Collections and Archives unit for guidance and support in starting the Oral History Project, and it was agreed that this would become a collaborative project between the two entities. On April 4, 2001, Ken Davenport, former Director of Undergraduate Admissions, interviewed Donald Mohr, Wright State’s first Athletic Director and Financial Aid Director, thus beginning a partnership that to date has documented 53 interviews.
Special Collections and Archives is the host site for the interviews, with Chris Wydman, Archivist and Records Manager, ensuring that the video recordings are transcribed and later posted for viewing and/or reading access to any interested party. The board’s historical preservation representative, one of WSURA’s standing committee members, guides the interview much like a conversation between friends to uncover the interviewee’s early years, family and educational background and the trajectory that brought them to Wright State. University culture, the student body, administrative leadership, and changes to the campus footprint are some of the topics that are also shared, and viewers and readers could learn much more about the interviewee than they might have thought, even if they worked together for many years.
WSURA’s Oral History Project features several founding faculty members, original department heads in both the academic and student services units, as well as trailblazing leaders in WSU athletics. To locate online, go to corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/archives_retirees/ Each story is available in PDF form or as a digital recording. Let us know if you have recommendations for future interviews—we would appreciate your feedback!
