This oral history interview with Amo R. DeBernardis was conducted by Corbett S. Gottfried from April 9 to November 5, 1993. The interview was conducted in six sessions.

In the first interview session, conducted on April 9, 1993, DeBernardis discusses his family background and early life in the Portland, Oregon, area, including jobs he did during his childhood. He speaks at length about his early education and his teachers. He talks about his experience studying engineering at Oregon State University, including his classes, teachers, and how he decided to become a teacher. He also discusses his involvement in designing the Bonneville Dam while in college. He then talks about working as a shop teacher at Ockley Green Elementary School in Portland and working with students. He speaks briefly about his master's thesis, then talks about switching to becoming an education administrator and shares his philosophy on what makes a good administrator. He talks about his wife, Jessie Genevieve Hulery, and their children. He describes his service training officers in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

In the second interview session, conducted on April 16, 1993, DeBernardis continues discussing his service in the U.S. Navy during World War II and talks about the changes in education after the war. He describes working with Portland Public Schools in the late 1940s and 1950s; talks about his main accomplishments; and describes his educational philosophy. He then speaks about the beginnings of adult education in Oregon and about serving as Portland Community College's first president from 1961 to 1979. He describes the various programs PCC offered, the development of its campuses, and the opposition the fledgling college faced. He talks about the relationship between PCC and Portland Public Schools, other community colleges in the Portland Metro area, and about the Oregon State Department of Education. He discusses tuition rates and the value of the classes that PCC offers.

In the third interview session, conducted on April 23, 1993, DeBernardis continues discussing his service as Portland Community College's first president. He continues talking about the development of PCC's campuses and the value of the classes that PCC offers. He speaks about the business model of higher education, the formation of the community college district, and the teachers union. He talks about members of the PCC board during his presidency, teachers they hired, and his management style. He discusses PCC's curriculum and how it compared to a traditional four-year college and talks about the accreditation process.

In the fourth interview session, conducted on May 24, 1993, DeBernardis continues discussing his service as Portland Community College's first president. He talks about meeting the academic and personal needs of the students during the 1960s and 1970s. He describes the student services that PCC provided; talks about the value of vocational education programs; and shares his opinion on college athletic programs. He discusses the job placement programs at PCC, the role of the Oregon and federal departments of education, and the Oregon Community College Association. He also talks about the role of the Oregon Legislature in the development of PCC. He describes the mission of Portland Community College.

In the fifth interview session, conducted on June 10, 1993, DeBernardis continues discussing his service as Portland Community College's first president. He continues describing the mission of Portland Community College and revisits the topics of PCC's hiring practices and his major accomplishments during his presidency. He also discusses his failures and conflicts. He talks about his relationships with presidents at other community colleges in Oregon, budgeting concerns for a college, and PCC's relationship with Oregon 4-year colleges. He then speaks about his retirement activities and reflects on the challenges of leading a college. He also shares his philosophy on life.

In the sixth and final interview session, conducted on November 5, 1993, DeBernardis continues discussing his service as Portland Community College's first president. He speaks at length about the early development of PCC. He discusses how PCC differs from a traditional junior college, talks about the growth of the college, and describes the development of the student transfer program. He talks about hiring and firing teachers, his role as president of the college, and the decision-making process. He reflects on some of the decisions he was responsible for as president. He revisits the topic of his leadership philosophy and discusses the organizational structure of PCC.

This oral history interview with Barbara A. Mackenzie was conducted by Katy Barber at Mackenzie's home in Portland, Oregon, from September 27, 1999, to June 1, 2001. Barbara Mackenzie's son, Thomas R. Mackenzie, and Jan Dilg were also present during the sessions recorded in 2001. The interview was conducted in four sessions. The first part of session one was not recorded.

In the first interview session, conducted on September 27, 1999, Mackenzie discusses working as a teacher in Oregon and California, including working with marginalized groups in the San Francisco Bay Area and opposition she faced. She also talks about her work with the Red Cross in Virginia. She speaks about her role in relocating members of the Warm Springs, Yakama, Umatilla, and Nez Perce tribes during the building of The Dalles Dam at Celilo Falls. She talks about her relationship with Chief Tommy Thompson and Flora Cushinway Thompson of the Wyam people and shares stories about the Wyam way of life. She also talks about her work with Navajo people near Palm Springs, California.

In the second interview session, conducted on September 30, 1999, Mackenzie continues discussing her role in the relocation of members of the Warm Springs, Yakama, Umatilla, and Nez Perce tribes. She talks about her relationship with Flora Cushinway Thompson of the Wyam people, some of her advocacy on behalf of indigenous people, and where she felt the local authorities were neglecting indigenous people's needs. She also talks about Temmingway Moses, a Yakama woman who tended a cemetery near the Maryhill Museum in Washington; the attitudes of the population at The Dalles towards Native Americans; and her working relationship with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. She talks about Abe Sholoway, a Umatilla man who acted as interpreter; her efforts to get Native American marriages legally recognized; and attending the Pendleton Round-Up. She also talks about the processes of the relocation project and how she got involved. She shares her opinion about assimilation and the U.S. government's practice of tribal termination. She talks about her brother, Ralph Tudor, who served as undersecretary of the Interior under President Dwight D. Eisenhower and worked as an engineer on the Bay Bridge and Bay Area Rapid Transit in the San Francisco Bay Area. She also discusses some of her secretaries and revisits the topics of working as a teacher with marginalized groups in California and her work with the Red Cross in Virginia. She then talks about serving as executive for the Red Cross in Lincoln County, Oregon.

In the third interview session, conducted on January 16, 2001, Mackenzie discusses her family background and her early life and education in Sutherlin, Oregon. She also talks about the career of her brother, Ralph Tudor. She discusses her education at St. Mary's Academy and at Lincoln High School in Portland, her relationship with her mother, and her first teaching job near Bend. She talks about her college experiences at Western College for Women (now known as the Western Campus of Miami University) and at the Oregon Normal School (now known as Western Oregon University).

In the fourth interview session, conducted on June 1, 2001, Mackenzie discusses serving as executive for the Red Cross in Lincoln County, including organizing blood drives and working with veterans. She closes the interview by describing the town of Newport.

This oral history interview with Frank Ivancie was conducted by Clark Hansen at the home of Ivancie's daughter in Portland, Oregon, as part of the Ira and Lauretta Keller Oral History Series, which documented the history of the Portland Development Commission. The interview was conducted in two sessions, on April 17 and April 18, 2001, and was recorded simultaneously on four audiocassettes and two videocassettes. The second half of the first videocassette has no audio, but the audiocassette recording is complete; the audio missing from the video recording is on Audiocassette 2. Along with the interview recordings, this collection includes two color photographs of Ivancie.

In the first interview session, conducted on April 17, 2001, Ivancie discusses his family background and early life in Marble, Minnesota, and talks about the history of Marble. He speaks about his service in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. He discusses his involvement in politics while studying at the University of Minnesota and describes how he became a teacher and later principal in Burns, Oregon. He talks about life in Burns in the 1940s and 1950s, about teaching at a school on a U.S. Air Force base in England from 1953 to 1954, and about his reasons for moving to Portland in 1954. He also talks about his involvement with the Oregon Education Association, and describes how that experience led to his work as an executive assistant to Portland Mayor Terry Schrunk. He talks about Schunk's indictment for perjury, and about how Schrunk worked with the Portland City Council. He speaks at length about the work of the Portland Development Commission during Schrunk's time as mayor. He talks about members of the commission, particularly PDC chair Ira Keller, and describes some of the commission's development projects. He also talks about the role of the mayor in appointing people to various city commissions. He then discusses his campaign for a seat on the Portland City Council in 1966, talks about his work as a council member, and speaks about people he served with on the council.

In the second interview session, conducted on April 18, 2001, Ivancie discusses his work on the Portland Development Commission during his time on the Portland City Council. He talks about major construction projects the PDC worked on, including Memorial Coliseum and Tom McCall Waterfront Park. He discusses how the PDC worked with Portland Mayor Neil Goldschmidt, speaks about people he worked with on the city council, and shares his thoughts about Portland's form of government. He describes the transition to Connie McCready as mayor. He shares his reasons for supporting the construction of the Mount Hood Freeway, discusses the design and construction of the Portland Building and the Portlandia statue, and talks about his accomplishments overseeing the Water Bureau. He speaks about Portland's response to the ashfall resulting from the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. He closes the interview by discussing how Portland has changed since he left office in 1985, sharing his opinion about city government at the time of the interview, and talking about the 2000 presidential election.

This oral history interview with Helen J. Frye was conducted by Linda Dodds in Frye's chambers in Portland, Oregon, on March 19, 1981. In this interview, Frye discusses her family background and early life on a farm in Klamath County, Oregon. She talks about the difficult experience of a huge change in her family situation as a child, when she was reunited with her mother and brother after having been raised entirely by her grandparents. She then discusses attending the University of Oregon, including influential professors, and meeting and marrying William Frye. She talks about raising a family and how postpartum depression drove her to start her teaching career. She also discusses her involvement in politics, including William Frye's political campaigns. She then talks about attending the University of Oregon law school in 1963, including other women in her class, balancing family life, and starting to practice law.

She describes becoming a judge for the Lane County Circuit Court, including her appointment by Governor Tom McCall and her later campaign. She talks about how her gender affected the way defendants perceived her. She also discusses how this new position affected her marriage and her divorce in 1975. She talks briefly about serving as a judge for the U.S. District Court of Oregon. She closes the interview by discussing her current family life in 1981 and her plans for the future.

This oral history interview with Marjorie McDonald was conducted by Edna Kovacs in Corvallis, Oregon, on October 21, 1989. Kovacs begins the interview by presenting McDonald with a birthday present and by showing photographs to McDonald. McDonald then discusses her family background and early life in Indiana and Portland, Oregon, including her education. She also discusses her love of fishing. She reads and discusses some of her poetry. She talks about living in London, England, to learn Russian and discusses teaching Russian to high school students in Portland. She speaks about her collage artwork, describes some of her pieces, and talks about her art techniques. Kovacs then talks about some of her students and closes the interview by further discussing her own artwork.

This oral history interview with Mary E. Eyre was conducted by Vinita M. Howard at Eyre's home in Salem, Oregon, from October 6, 1989, to January 12, 1990. The interview was conducted in three sessions.

In the first interview session, conducted on October 6, 1989, Eyre discusses her family background and early life in Buckley, Illinois. She talks about a family trip to Oregon in 1902 and tells a story about an escaped prisoner who was making headlines at the time. She discusses her first year of school in Illinois. She then talks about life in Salem, Oregon, including the family banking business, the family home, and their neighborhood. She also talks about her education in Salem.

In the second interview session, conducted on October 12, 1989, Eyre continues discussing the family home and neighborhood in Salem, and describes features that were common in houses in the early 20th century, particularly woodsheds. She talks about her education in Salem; describes the old Capitol building and businesses in downtown Salem; and talks about the family's first car. She also briefly talks about some of the floods that affected Marion County in the early 20th century. She talks about anti-Semitic attitudes, popular fashions, and attending church. She speaks again about her education in Salem. She talks about cultural events, particularly those organized by Chautauquas; the lead-up to World War I; and the education of her siblings, as well as their families and careers. She discusses attending Willamette University, and describes the campus and student body. She then talks about her career as a high school teacher in North Bend, Oregon, and at North Salem High School. She talks about some of her students, including Cecil L. Edwards, Edith Green, and Mark Hatfield. She also discusses her own political beliefs.

In the third and final interview session, conducted on January 12, 1990, Eyre discusses her fan collection, and also describes some of her travels. She then talks about her 1963 run for the Oregon Legislature and her involvement in various organizations, including the teachers' union. She talks about school funding, mandatory retirement ages for teachers, and what she believes makes a good teacher. She closes the interview by discussing grading, year-round schooling, and her hopes for the future of Oregon.

This oral history interview with Olga S. Freeman was conducted by Linda S. Dodds in Eugene, Oregon, on September 17, 1981. At the time of the interview, Dodds' name was Linda S. Brody.

In this interview, Freeman discusses her early life on a farm in Colton, Oregon; attending Oregon State University; and working as a math teacher in Oregon and California. She then talks about settling in Eugene after her marriage to Neil Freeman, and about teaching mathematics at the University of Oregon from 1943 to 1949. She discusses how her involvement in Lane County politics began with a Democratic speechwriting contest in which she took second place, losing to future U. S. Rep. Edith Green. She talks about serving as precinct committee chair, her involvement with the League of Women Voters, and running for the Oregon Legislature in 1952. She discusses her reasons for joining the Democratic Party and her campaign for Lane County treasurer. She speaks at length about her accomplishments as treasurer. Freeman talks about feeling as if the county commissioners didn't hold the office of treasurer in high esteem and how that pushed her to run for Lane County clerk in 1960. She discusses her accomplishments as county clerk, then describes how the office of county clerk was changed to an appointed position rather than elected, which led to her losing the position. She closes the interview by talking about her activities during retirement, including freelance writing.