Oral History Program Karen Hutchins Bingham Interviewed by Heidi Forsyth 21 June 2008 i Oral History Program Weber State University Stewart Library Ogden, Utah Karen Hutchins Bingham Interviewed by Heidi Forsyth 21 June 2008 Copyright © 2012 by Weber State University, Stewart Library ii Mission Statement The Oral History Program of the Stewart Library was created to preserve the institutional history of Weber State University and the Davis, Ogden and Weber County communities. By conducting carefully researched, recorded, and transcribed interviews, the Oral History Program creates archival oral histories intended for the widest possible use. Interviews are conducted with the goal of eliciting from each participant a full and accurate account of events. The interviews are transcribed, edited for accuracy and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewees (as available), who are encouraged to augment or correct their spoken words. The reviewed and corrected transcripts are indexed, printed, and bound with photographs and illustrative materials as available. Archival copies are placed in University Archives. The Stewart Library also houses the original recording so researchers can gain a sense of the interviewee's voice and intonations. Project Description The Weber State College/University Student Projects have been created by students working with several different professors on the Weber State campus. The topics are varied and based on the student's interest or task for a specific assignment. These oral history assignments were created to help Weber State students learn the value and importance of recording public history and to benefit the expansion of the Weber State oral history collections. ____________________________________ Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account. It reflects personal opinion offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ____________________________________ Rights Management All literary rights in the manuscript, including the right to publish, are reserved to the Stewart Library of Weber State University. No part of the manuscript may be published without the written permission of the University Librarian. Requests for permission to publish should be addressed to the Administration Office, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, Utah, 84408. The request should include identification of the specific item and identification of the user. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Bingham, Karen Hutchins, an oral history by Heidi Forsyth, 32 June 2008, WSU Stewart Library Oral History Program, University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, UT. iii Abstract: The following is an oral history interview with Karen Hutchins Bingham. It is being conducted on June 21, 2008, by Heidi Forsyth at her home in North Ogden, Utah. The interview covers Karen’s undergraduate education at Weber State University. HF: Alright Karen, what is your date of birth? KB: January 14, 1958. HF: Where were you born, and at what hospital? KB: In Ogden, UT at the old McKay-Dee Hospital. HF: What were the names of your parents? KB: Spencer Keith Hutchins and Roma Woodward Hutchins. HF: Why did you choose Weber State to continue on with your education? KB: I lived in Southern California and I could of gone to school there, but I decided I needed to get away from bad influences. My grandmother and grandfather wanted me to come and live with them. I came to Ogden, UT to live with my grandmother, and that's why I went to Weber State. HF: Why not a California school? Just because of the bad influences or…. KB: Well I, my major was sociology and my minor was police science, and I didn't think. I guess that I thought the classes in the California colleges would be too radical. I don't know, I just needed to get away. I just really needed to get away. That's why I moved here, and I am glad that I did. 1 HF: So you lived with your grandma and grandpa, where did they live? KB: They lived in North Ogden, where I live now. My grandfather died the day after I moved in, so my grandmother really needed someone to live with her, to help take care of her. So that is why I stayed at their home. HF: So, your major was sociology, why did you pick that major? KB: I at that age felt that I wanted to become a juvenile probation officer/social worker, something of that sort, so that's why my major was sociology. HF: So your minor was police science? KB: It was police science with an emphasis on juvenile criminology so that I could go into that field of a probation officer, or a social worker, or to work in the youth corrections system. HF: What did your major mean to you and why did you choose that? What direction did you want to go with it? KB: I chose that because I got into trouble growing up and I felt that I had the ability to work with teenagers because I had a rough background growing up. That's why I chose this. I went and talked to an advisor and that's what they told me would be the best way to go. I thought that I could help young people get through the worst times of their lives by becoming a probation officer/social worker. HF: Did you continue on with college right after high school or did you wait? 2 KB: I graduated in the midterm of my senior year and graduated early. That was the end of January, and I started school spring semester and stayed. I didn't go to summer semester that year because I went home to graduate with the rest of my class and walk through the line. I then continued every quarter until I graduated. HF: Now they have a semester system, how long were quarters? KB: They were probably two and half months/three months. HF: So you went fall, spring and summer? KB: Yes, and winter. So winter, spring, summer, and fall; four quarters in a year. HF: So, how long did it take you to graduate, how many years? KB: Four years. I started in 1976 spring quarter and graduated in spring quarter of 1980. HF: How was the school in general, was it a commuter school like it is now? Did everyone drive or take the bus? Or were there people that lived on campus or close in the area? KB: They had the fraternity houses and they had a lot of apartments like they do now. I lived in North Ogden, so I rode the bus every day, until I worked later and then drove to school, and then after I got married I rode the bust to school because it was easier. People that lived in the community around me before I got married commuted to school, either by taking the bus or driving, just like they do today. HF: Was parking an issue when you did decided to drive? KB: Parking is always an issue up there. They didn’t have enough parking for the amount of students they had back then. I don't know how they can handle the parking situation 3 now with the amount of students that go there now. However, nowadays you don't have to pay for a bus fare because your student body card gets you on the bus for free. But when I was in college it only cost ten cents. It wasn't that big of an issue back then. HF: How much were parking passes? For a W pass now that's not super close to campus is about $50, and for an 'A' pass in front of the social science building is about $75. KB: I don't know. When I did drive I parked out on the street. So I have no clue what the parking passes were like. It was just easier to ride the bus because it went right by the social science building. HF: How much was tuition per quarter? KB: I had a basic education opportunity grant. For the first six months I had to pay out of state tuition, and my parents paid the difference between regular tuition and out of state tuition, and I paid the regular tuition until I qualified/once I became a resident for the basic education opportunity grant. I never had to pay for either books or school, which paid for everything. They don't have those anymore. HF: How much was out-of-state tuition? KB: It was $600 for a 12-15 credit hours, I can't remember. Per quarter. HF: How was the social aspect of Weber State? KB: I really didn't get involved in school activities, because I didn't have any friends up there, I had friends in my home ward that I went and did things with. I just didn't really have any friends at the college. I didn't get involved in the activities, I didn't go to the games, I 4 didn't do anything. I went to institute and I met a few people there, but I really didn't get involved. HF: Where you involved in any clubs pertaining to your major or anything? KB: No, well okay, I became a member of (pause) it wasn't a fraternity it was a...it was some type of academic, kind of like a fraternity or a sorority, but I only paid my dues for a couple of years and I didn't do it anymore. Then the only meetings that they had I didn't go to. HF: While in college, what did you do for extra money or for a job? KB: The first year I worked in a dry cleaners, and maybe worked there for a year and a half. After that I had like a field practicum where they paid you a stipend and I worked as a truant officer at Washington Jr. High School, when it was a Jr. High School, it is no longer there. I would take kids into my office (it was a special program with the police department) that were either ditching certain classes or failing really bad in certain classes. They would come into my office and we would discuss what the problem was, why they didn't want to go to class, and if they needed tutoring in a certain subject then I would help them with that. I would then go to school at night. I was getting school credit for what I was doing though, I was also getting my stipend. I would still go to school at night so I could take some extra classes. Then after that I worked at the deaf school as a dormitory supervisor, and I was in charge of 10 teenage girls for the school year of 1978- 1979. I lived on campus at the deaf school up on 20th and Monroe. I went to school during the day. While my girls went to school, I went to school. HF: During the time at the deaf school you didn't live with your grandmother anymore? 5 KB: No, I still came home to wash clothes, and to visit. HF: Did you work part time or full time as a student? KB: Well, at the dry cleaners it was part time, at the Jr. High it was full time, and at the deaf school it was full time. HF: Did you find it hard to go to school full time and work full time? KB: Yes, oh and before I graduated I worked at Lakeview Hospital in the psych ward, and I worked there full time. HF: What year did you get married? KB: 1979. HF: Did you find it hard to go to school when you got married? Or was it a totally different feel from when you were single? KB: It was my last year of school and anyone that's taking their last year or trying to graduate knows that the classes aren't easy. You have to do your thesis, you have to do more field practicum. I did work for Davis county juvenile as a probation officer, not as an official probation officer, however, since I was assigned to them and they needed help I had a case load of 360 kids, and I wasn't even getting paid for it. So it was a little bit different, you are getting used to being married, you are finishing out your school year, I had a new job at Lake View Hospital. It was very challenging, and very rough that first year of marriage. HF: So, was your husband going to school at the same time, or was he just working? 6 KB: He tried to go to school, but he just couldn't handle working and going to school, it was hard for him to learn from a book, he learned faster and better with on hands training then in school. So after I graduated, he stopped going to school. HF: When going to school, did you have a favorite class? KB: There were several classes that I enjoyed. I think one of the hardest classes I had, which was one of the most interesting and challenging classes that I enjoyed, was the deviant behavior class. That was because I had an instructor that was so off the wall that it freaked me out. I did have an institute class that I really enjoyed and tried not to miss, because the instructor was Joseph C. Murin, who was a covenant to the church, he was just an awesome instructor. HF: Did you have a least favorite class that you had to take that you hated? KB: I hated, I can't remember the name of the class, but it was another sociology class. I just hated it. I was always calling in sick on the day of the exam so I could go a different day to take the exam, because I just didn't like the class. HF: How did you feel about general education classes? KB: I hated general education classes. I had a history teacher that was so boring that I struggled to stay awake in his class he had a monotone voice that just about drove me nuts. I think I ended up with a C+ in that class because I just could not. I did kind of like my botany class, that was interesting. But the physical education class the only classes that I loved of that were bowling, and badminton. The other classes no. I really truly hated general education classes. 7 HF: Who was your favorite professor? KB: My favorite professor was also the one that I had a hard time with. That was L.K. Gillespie, who I think is still up there now. I think he is a department head. HF: What classes did he teach? KB: He taught the sociology classes, he taught deviant behavior, those types of classes. HF: Who was your least favorite professor? KB: That history teacher, I can't think of what his name was. I just hated it, he was horrible. HF: What were your grades like? Were you able to keep them up? KB: I did, actually when I graduated I was 3/10 of a point away from graduating cum lade. I believe that was because I took a Phys Ed class for a grade instead of credit, and if I would of done it by credit I would of graduated cum lade. I maintained pretty good grades. HF: Who was your academic advisor, and did they help when trying to figure out a major and a minor and figuring out your schedule? KB: L. K. Gillespie was my advisor, and he told me that I would not be able to succeed in the field I was going into, that I wasn't ready, and that I had problems of my own that I needed to deal with before I got into that field, and to prove that he was right and I was wrong. I applied for a job at MOEDA which is the Morgan, Weber, Davis county youth lock up detention center. He gave me a wonderful recommendation so that Tony Hassel would hire me because he wanted to prove that I couldn't handle it. He was right and I 8 was wrong. I learned the hard way that all the years of college that I did I couldn't handle it. HF: Did he write the recommendation before or after graduation? KB: Before. HF: Did that discourage you from continuing on, or did you press forward? KB: I pressed forward, I was almost done anyways. I just went ahead and finished. I still worked at the hospital for a while. I did use some of my skills there because we did do behavioral modification. HF: What were the wages for a detention officer back when you started? KB: They were bad then and they are even bad now. You don't get paid enough to do that job, but that's what I wanted to do. I could of worked for DCFS, but I know for a fact, that they make now with a bachelor’s degree, I think they make now about $30,000 a year. HF: When you graduated, what was your bachelor’s degree in? KB: It was in sociology. HF: Did you think about going on to get a master’s degree, or did you want to test the waters in your bachelor’s degree first? KB: I wanted to test the waters, but eventually I thought it would be a good idea, kind of, that maybe after working at the deaf school as a teacher for a semester that I wanted to go into special education. I started to study to take the GRE and trying to get accepted to the U of U in their special education program so I could get a Masters, then I got 9 pregnant with my daughter. It was in the middle of the winter and I didn't want to drive all the way to SLC and back for school, and so I stopped. HF: Did Weber State offer a master’s program in that field? KHB: At that time they did not. HF: Do you remember the president of the college when going there? KB: I have no clue. HF: What is it now that you do for a job? KB: I work at IRS as a technical lead over a team of 15 employees; I help practitioners, CPA's, lawyers with their business taxes. I help my employees with their work and technical questions. I also help them when there are personal issues that they are struggling with. I also help other technical leads with their jobs as well. HF: Although you are not in the field that you got your bachelor’s degree in, you still use your degree in what you are doing now? KB: Yes, that is correct. I feel that I didn't waste my time with that degree. I think it has helped me immensely in the job I am in and I am still learning on a day to day basis to become better at my job, but also my people skills. These skills are those that I started learning in college. HF: Do you at any time wish you would of gone into something else? KB: The only thing that I regret is that I should of gotten a job at IRS when I first moved to Utah and stopped fiddling around with other things, and then I might have just given up 10 college and stayed at IRS, and I would of made ten times more. I am already making a lot more now then what a social worker makes even with a masters. I don't regret getting my degree, but I don't think I would of gone into anything else. HF: So you are happy with your college experience and what you are doing now? KB: Yes. HF: When you were getting your degree you said you went to night classes, was there a big difference in night classes and day classes? KB: I don't think so. I think they were just as rigorous as the day classes. Night classes you have a whole different group of people. Days you have your normal college students, at night, especially the field I was in, you have police officers in the police science classes. In the sociology classes we had the social workers that were already in the field and were taking skill up classes. HF: Were they different from what they are now, once a week for three and half hours? KB: They were like a regular class, either two or three days a week. HF: Were there non-traditional students going to school like there are now when you were going to school? KB: Night classes had other professionals that were not the traditional students. HF: Do you remember the day you graduated? KB: I don't remember the actual day. I remember the things that happened. Two or three days they had a ceremony that they had for those spouses that put their other spouse 11 through college. It was nice, I did that for my husband. The day of graduation, back then they had everyone and their dog for one big ol' ceremony. It was forever, it lasted forever. HF: What year did you graduate? KB: 1980. 12