WEBERSHIRLEY-2008

Interview with Shirley Weber Ph.D., 2008

 

2008-07-02

 

Interviewer: Resnik, Susan

An oral history conducted by Susan Resnik, Ph.D. with former San Diego State University Professor Emeritus Shirley Weber on June 30th and July 2, 2008.

Shirley Weber received her Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, and Doctor of Philosophy in Speech Communications from the University of California, Los Angeles, specializing in African American movement studies, Marcus Garvey, and black language. In 1972, before completing her doctorate, Weber became an assistant professor of speech at San Diego State University. She helped to develop the curriculum for the then newly-created Africana Studies Department, eventually serving as its chair. She served on the National Council for Black Studies, and received the Outstanding Faculty Award six times. Doctor Weber also initiated the Alternative Spring Break, which takes students to South Africa in order to participate in cultural exchange and service activities. She also served as the Director of the Academy for Effectively Teaching African American Students and co-founded the W.E.B. DuBois Leadership Institute for Young Black Scholars.

This oral history focuses on Weber's early life, leading up to her professorship at San Diego State University. She discusses growing up in South Central Los Angeles, and the obstacles, culture shock and displacement she encountered while attending the University of California, Los Angeles. Doctor Weber also details her role in the development of the Africana Studies Department at SDSU, focusing on the constant need to justify the department's existence, mentoring students, community outreach, and the Alternative Spring Break program to South Africa. Towards the end of the recording, she discusses the San Diego African American community as well as her involvement in community activities and outreach.

This oral history was made possible by a grant from the John and Jane Adams Endowment for the Humanities and is part of the University Archives Multimedia Files Collection.

Shirley Weber; Shirley Nash; Susan Resnik; Professors; Oral Histories; Interviews; National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; David Nash; Mildred Cooper Nash; Alabama Nash; Elizabeth Cooper; Birdell Hood Cooper; Birdell Ross; Lucy Hood; Jack McFadden; Los Angeles housing projects; Bliss & Laughlin Steel Company; John Adams Junior High School; Manual Arts High School; The Ladies; Lois Nash; University of California, Los Angeles; Economic Opportunity Program; Molefi Kete Asante; Woodrow Wilson Fellows; Shirley Wilson; College dorm life; Us Organization; Black Panthers; Malcolm X Youth Center; Celestial Singers; Afro hair; Racial segregation; Black power; Black education; Emory J. Tolbert; Henrietta Vinton Davis; Amy Jacques Garvey; Black language; Thomas Harvey; Marcus Garvey; W. E. B. Du Bois; San Diego State University; Carrol Waymon; Harold Brown; Daniel Weber; Elijah Walter Miles; Black studies; African American studies; Kente cloths; Marlon Smith

5500 Campanile Drive

California - San Diego - San Diego State University

© San Diego State University. All rights reserved.

San Diego State Oral Histories

MS-0296

English

 

Digital

05:53:54

Yes

WEBERSHIRLEY-2008T

See WEBERSHIRLEY-2008T; more keywords: Human Behavior and Urban Development; H-BUD; EOP; Prescott S. "Nick" Nichols; Afro-American Studies; Danny L. Scarborough; San Diego State University Black Repertory Total Theatrical Experience; Bayview Baptist Church; Steve Beard; Robert C. Detweiler; African Arts Committee of Balboa Park; Jack Kimbrough; Kente cloths; The Amazing Break (MTV); Tony Robbins Leadership Camp; Africana Cultural Exposure: A Legacy of Resistance and Resiliency; Emerald Hills (San Diego); Valencia Park (San Diego); Johnson Elementary School (San Diego); Ladies Auxiliary for Christian Education; LACE; Southwestern Christian College; Spooks Ball (San Diego); Ashley Walker Hooper; Thelma Pryor; San Diego City Schools; Susan Davis; Anne Armstrong; Thomas W. Payzant; Bertha Pendleton; Improving the Achievement of African-American males; IAAAM; Golden Pyramid Scholars; National Alliance for Restructuring Schools; Hillary Clinton; William Jefferson Clinton; Sue Braun; School-based health care; Boy Scouts of America; Association of African-American Educators; Crawford High School; Deborah Brown; Diamonds in the Rough; Election campaigns; Proposition 209 (California); Akilah Faizah Weber; Akil Khalfani Weber; National Council for Black Studies; Ruby Dee; Ossie Davis; Western Journal of Black Studies; International Journal of Africana Studies

San Diego State University Library and Information Access, Special Collections and University Archives

Audio

MP3

324.00 MB