Tape 2, Side 2. This oral history interview with Frances McGill was conducted by Marian W. Kolisch at McGill’s home in Portland, Oregon, from May 21 to October 31, 1991. The interview was part of a series conducted by Oregon photographer Marian W. Kolisch to accompany portraits of Oregon artists, businesspeople, and politicians. The sound quality for Tape 2, Side 1 is extremely poor. The interview was conducted in five sessions. In the second interview session, conducted on July 22, 1991, McGill continues discussing her early life in Portland, including her family’s association with the Ladd family and her education at St. Mary’s Academy. She talks about her college experience at the University of Oregon, her mother’s cancer diagnosis and treatment, and working as a teacher in Clatskanie and near Beaverton, Oregon. She then speaks at length about teaching high school for Portland Public Schools after finishing her degree in 1925. She also describes a trip she took to Europe in 1928, and a trip to Providence, Rhode Island, in 1940-1941. She talks about working conditions for teachers in Portland, including her salary; briefly discusses attending Columbia University; and speaks at length about working as a school counselor for Portland Public Schools. She also discusses the leadership of PPS superintendent Willard B. Spalding. She then talks about her involvement in various education- and counseling-related Oregon organizations. In the third interview session, conducted on August 23, 1991, McGill discusses her involvement with the College Board. She speaks at length about her experience working as a school counselor on military bases in Germany, Italy, and Greece through the Department of Defense Schools after her retirement from Portland Public Schools in 1966. She describes her experiences living in Germany, Italy, and Greece, as well as traveling to France and the Middle East. She talks about her retirement in 1973 and traveling Europe for the next year.
McGill, Frances D. (Frances Dwane), 1901-1999