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Morris: This is an [interview with Dr. Leland Peterson, professor
in the Department of English at Old Dominion University.] The first question
is about your early background and why you chose a career in higher education.
Peterson: All right, first of all about my background, I did all
of my undergraduate and graduate work in English with a History minor
at the University of Minnesota. And let's see, I got my Ph.D. in 1962.
I had been at ODU, then the Norfolk College of William and Mary for
one year. And I came to the Norfolk College of William and Mary because
I was interested ... in Virginia. One of the reasons I had gone to Missouri
before that ... a lifelong interest in Mark Twain and [I] wanted to
visit his country a little bit.
And here of course, it was my interest in Jefferson and just things
Virginian. So, when I saw that there was an opening I wrote to Bill
Seward and we had the usual correspondence. So... I have never ... never
regretted the choice. It's been very interesting, you know, watching
the growth of the school this period of fifteen years.
And now the business of The Gadfly. Now The Gadfly, let's
see, I believe we started that about 1962. And a number of students
now got together and decided that we needed a literary magazine, and
they asked me if I'd be the advisor, and I was happy to do so. So, we
got under way and I don't believe that we ever published, well let's
see, I think we published about two issues the first year. Let's see,
I guess it did go up to maybe four issues per year in the heyday.
And of course there were controversial things in it before the 1968
issue, the fall of 1968 issue. But when that story came out in the fall
of '68, now Dave Russell's "The Immaculate Deception," I had
not seen the story before they decided to publish it. So, the first
time I saw it was when it appeared in the magazine. But that was all
in ... in accord with the official policy of the college on advisors,
faculty advisors and student publications.
Because, let's see, I believe it was in the fall of 1965 or the spring
of 1966, the Faculty Senate, of which I was then chairman, passed a
recommendation on to President Webb regarding the student press on campus.
And of course, one of the key points was that the faculty advisor shall
not act as censor. That the student editors were to be the sole judges
of what was to go into the student publications.
Whenever they asked my advice and they did so from time to time, you
know, is this good and should we put it in, I was happy to give my opinion.
But always it ... it was to be the student editors' final choice.
[2]
So, I was really quite surprised and ... let's see it must have been
March of '69, yeah, when I found out, you know, that my contract had
been withheld. Then, of course, I had this talk with President Webb,
and he told me the reasons. And of course, I still could not really
understand what the problem really was. As far as I was concerned, because
we did have this official policy which had been approved by President
Webb, you know. So, the whole thing as I look back upon it, now, you
know ... it was a highly unnecessary thing. Now, I have never really
made any investigation on my own, you know, into the various motives,
why Governor Godwin did what he did and President Webb did what he did,
and the Board of Visitors did what they did, and so on, or at least
the subcommittee on the Board of Visitors.
But I have never been entirely satisfied, you know, that it was only
just a matter of being an advisor to The Gadfly. It's possible.
It may have been. But yet, you know, to have made all of that fuss over
my being an advisor when the policy was very clear, and my duties were.
It's still difficult to understand,
Morris: Did you feel the article
was offensive?
Peterson: Well, no, not a problem. I'd been active of course in
the First Lutheran Church and at that time I was teaching an adult class,
I believe. And ...
Morris: Well, not necessarily offensive to you, but did you realize
that it--did you sort of say "Uh-oh and what a strain it is going
to be on me?"
Peterson: No, no, I didn't think, it never occurred to me that I
was going to be under any great pressure because of it. I thought, yes,
indeed there are people that will be upset, you know. The students,
you know, that have to make the choice, and ...
Morris: Did David Russell come
to you after the article was published and say, "We are going to
have some problems"?
Peterson: I don't recall him telling me that, though I had heard
some weeks, a couple of weeks, I believe it was, before President Webb
held back my contract that there were some problems. And again, I didn't
take it seriously ... really couldn't understand why. But as I recall
there was, I believe, a person who complained who was supposed to have
been some minister from Portsmouth who never did identify himself as
far as I know. I've never been able to understand why he should complain
to Governor Godwin instead of going to Lewis Webb first, or to me, or
the students, but directly to the State's highest elected official.
And then the director apparently comes down. The role of the subcommittee
and the Board of Visitors were supposed to advise President Webb to
withhold the contract. Now, who was on that subcommittee, I don't believe
I ever did get the names of those individuals.
Morris: Did you consider leaving
Old Dominion College?
Peterson: Well, at that
time, let's see, in '68 and '69 of course faculty positions were generally
available in number. There weren't problems of employment that we have
now. I had offers from time
[3]
to time and the good ones,
I always gave them consideration. But I don't think that I was not going
to leave Old Dominion just because of that incident. The Board of Visitors,
of course, the full board when we had the hearing and everything, I
think the Board there conducted itself properly and the questioning
was very respectable and fair. At that time one of the Board members
asked me whether I felt that any of this had come about because of my
political activities. Of course, at that time, I had been chairman of
the McCarthy for President local committee, a fairly local anti-Vietnam
worker and so on. Of course, I told the Board at that time I couldn't
see any connection. There was nothing visible as far as I was concerned.
I read in the paper within the last couple of years about the CIA harassment
of faculty members who had been active in the anti-Vietnam business;
well were they involved in anything like this.
I know the FBI has its freedom
of information act but I've never had the slightest interest in writing
to Washington to see what kind of dossier they may have on me, In fact,
I'm sure they have got something. But, you know, what the dirty trick
that came to light in the Watergate business, Who knows who actually
contacted Godwin and what kind of pressure was put on him? I don't know.
I am not going to make any investigation on my own in that matter.
Morris: How was the contract settlement
done?
Peterson: The Board, as
I recall, finally ordered President Webb to give me my contract with
the original recommendation for increase and so on, though he may have
knocked off a couple hundred from the increase. Frank Batten, of course
was very instrumental in seeing to it that the Board got things squared
away as they should be. I believe he was director at that time of the
Board of Visitors.
Morris: Do you feel that your troubles
led to President Webb's resignation shortly thereafter?
Peterson: No, he had announced
his resignation in the spring of '68, I believe.
Morris: Before the contract dispute.
Peterson: Yes, he had announced
his resignation at a fall meeting or a spring meeting before. But that
was another thing, of course, that puzzled me. I bothered me that he
should get involved in breakage like this when his resignation had already
been announced. Never could understand why would he want to go through
all of this in his last year.
Morris: Did the new administration
treat you fairly?
Peterson: Oh, yes. I don't
believe that there certainly wasn't any bias on the part of the new
administration because of what happened in the past. I've always been
on good personal terms of Lewis Webb you know. I see him from time to
time and we have amiable discussions.
[4]
Morris: Would you say that you
are more conservative today than you were in the 1960s?
Peterson: Well, I suppose
there is always a kind of a much more bit of conservatism as one gets
older. I am still voting the same way that I always did. I have always
been the liberal type of Democrat: Carter and Humphrey and McCarthy.
Morris: Have you seen a change
in the students on campus as far as being the so-called liberal radical
group towards conservatism?
Peterson: As far as student
publications are concerned we don't have anything now I believe that
is quite as outspoken, politically outspoken as what we had in, say
'66-'67. The SDS is an active chapter on campus and before this business,
they had published a poem in their newsletter and the Faculty Senate
defended them on that. Of course, I was the chairman of the Senate at
that time. I don't think we have as much political activism right now.
Perhaps for some good reasons like Vietnam being over and so on.
Morris: To change the subject,
how would you describe the growth of the English Department between the
time you came and the early '60s to 1977?
Peterson: I think, on the
whole, it has been quite good. We've got the graduate program under
way. Of course, we do not have as many applicants for the graduate program
as we had six or seven years ago, but it's still a good healthy program.
I participated in that the majors program on the undergraduate level,
which is holding its own. Of course the number of faculty members, let's
see,. from 1961 to 1977 we must have reached our peak of growth about
1970 or '71. The reorganizing of the curriculum, the changing of the
degree requirements--it meant, of course, that the English Department
did not have as many required courses within the curriculum. So that's
been another reason it has not been growing at the rate it was in the
past.
Morris: Has the influence changed
from modern writer to old writer or vice-versa or has there been any change?
Peterson: Well, most undergraduates
still prefer the more modern periods and I think that's generally been
true for quite a time and quite awhile. On the graduate level now we
get a fair number of students who go back to do work in the Renaissance,
in the 18th century and earlier. In fact today Deborah Heatwole is having
her oral examination and she has done a thesis on the sonnet cycle in
the Renaissance period.
Morris: Has your linguistics system
grown?
Peterson: Linguistics has
come up considerably. Of course, Dr. Seward,
was our only linguistics expert for awhile. So, we have some very competent
linguists in the department now.
[5]
Morris: Have you anything else
you would like to say? Any last statement for posterity?
Peterson: Well, I hope
I did the right thing. I hope the historians will be generous.
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