UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ARCHIVES
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT

Interview #573
UNDERWOOD-BULTMANN, ANDREW

UNDERWOOD-BULTMANN, Andrew (1980-    )
Undergraduate student; House fellow, Barnard Hall
At UW: 1999-

Interviewed: 2001	
Interviewer: Darcie Kileen
Length: 2 hours, 1 minute

Childhood and family; Musical education; Chadbourne Residential College; Diversity Mission Group; Steering Committee; William Cronon; Jennifer Gilbride-Brown; The Forum; Barnard Hall; Serving as House Fellow; Laura Armstrong; Sustainability of Chadbourne Residential College.

Interview Session (November 13, 2001): Tapes 1-2

Tape 1/Side 1

00:00:00	Interviewer’s introduction. 

00:00:22	AU talks about his childhood in Minnesota and his parents’ work at the University of Minnesota.  
	
00:01:17	An important person in AU's development was Joe Holmquist, his private percussion instructor and a professor at Macalester College. AU describes Holmquist's influence.  One of the most memorable experiences in high school culminated with the performance of one of AU’s music compositions by the concert band.  

00:05:07	When preparing for college, AU applied to only two universities.  He explains the high value his family places on public education and why he decided to attend UW.  

00:08:05 	AU talks about his decision to live in Chadbourne Residential College (CRC).  He says he did not know what to expect from CRC.  

00:10:31	AU describes CRC and discusses its uniqueness.  He calls it an experiment in integrating learning and living.

00:13:55	The week before classes start, freshmen orientation activities are welcome diversions, says AU, for first-year students.  He lists the people who were on staff during his first semester at CRC.  He talks about house fellows and interest groups during his first year.  

00:19:27	AU describes his early involvement in interest groups, as well as his position as the support staff member for the Diversity Mission Group.  He talks about how he ended up with this job as a first year student and describes his duties.  William Cronon subsequently asked AU to serve on the Steering Committee.  

00:25:35	AU gives an example of an event which was planned for Diversity Mission Group.  The group partnered with Richard Davis of the music department for an outing to Mt. Zion Baptist Church.  

00:30:43	End of side.  

Tape 1/Side 2

00:30:48	AU talks about the Diversity Mission Group outing to Mt. Zion Baptist Church.  He regrets that the group was not able to be more of a success.  

00:32:38	AU recounts his first year in CRC, saying he attended many activities.  He was committed to CRC.  

00:35:52	The summer between freshman and sophomore years, AU worked in Minneapolis. 

00:37:41	AU talks about the Forum, which is the student governance body of CRC.  AU was selected to be chairperson of the Forum by William Cronon, faculty director.  He explains his role as chairperson of the Forum during the 2000-2001 school year.  The weekly Forum meeting is the venue for the discussion of funding requests, announcements and other items.  

00:41:30	AU discusses his goals as chairperson. He wanted to connect CRC with student groups around campus in order to lessen the isolation of CRC and its students.  

00:46:46	One of the biggest issues which came before the Forum was the transition of Barnard Hall to a co-ed facility and its addition to CRC as a residential college.

00:51:02	AU talks about his other activities for the 2000-2001 school year.  He says the national presidential campaign occupied much of his time.  

00:53:02	Although he had entered UW with an interest in music composition, his plans changed quickly, says AU.  He is now majoring in art history.  

00:58:30	One of the activities which AU organized as chairperson of the Forum was a series of discussions on social issues.  The last discussion in the series featured Mayor Sue Bauman and Chancellor John Wiley.  

01:01:34 	End of side.  End of tape.

Tape 2/Side 1

01:01:35	AU talks about a discussion session in CRC with Mayor Sue Bauman and Chancellor John Wiley.

01:03:05	As part of the academic side of CRC, some UW courses are held in classrooms in Chadbourne.  AU discusses the Academic Mission Group and the involvement of staff member Mercedes Ramirez-Fernandez.

01:06:39	AU talks about the annual first-year experience national conference which he and other CRC residents attended.  

01:09:22	Barnard Hall became an extension of CRC in the 2001-02 school year.  AU talks about making Barnard co-ed and its envelopment into CRC.  

01:13:53	Becoming a house fellow was an interest for AU, and something he thought and inquired about during his sophomore year.  He talks about house fellow training, which he did not think was a useful exercise.  

01:20:35	AU discusses living and working as a house fellow.  Fellows are supervised and supported by the residence life coordinators with weekly meetings.  He explains the difference in the duties of CRC and other house fellows as defined by the students under their supervision.

01:26:10	House fellows’ responsibilities include attending meetings of the Forum to set an example for residents.  House fellows are not necessarily involved in the governance of CRC; the house fellow position is as a paid employee.

01:32:23	End of side.  

Tape 2/Side 2

01:32:24	AU talks about some of the goals he has for Barnard Hall.  He wanted Barnard to immediately be a vibrant extension of CRC.  Now, he says, he sees Barnard as an ongoing project.  AU enjoys working with his co-house fellow, Ellen Mary Hickman.  

01:38:30	AU discusses what he considers to be the greatest success of CRC: approaching learning in a different way.

01:40:31	One of the problems of CRC, says AU, is the development of tightly-knit groups of people, which can make it difficult for change to occur.  

01:46:25	One of the biggest changes at CRC was the departure of William Cronon as faculty director.  Mary Layoun has a different style; she has not become as involved with residents as was her predecessor.  

01:49:02	AU discusses the departure of Jennifer Gilbride-Brown as residence life coordinator and the arrival of Laura Armstrong in this position. AU wonders about the sustainability of CRC with the arrival of students who were not present at its development.  He worries that success might prove to be the downfall of CRC.

01:55:25	The new class of students is a great one, says AU.  He believes current residents and leaders have a responsibility to communicate CRC values and history to new students.  

01:57:20	After graduating from UW, AU says, graduate school is a probability for him.  He is unsure what he wants to pursue after graduation, but he feels strongly about continuing the type of work in which he is involved at CRC.  

01:59:00	CRC has been the central part of AU’s college experience.  He intends to remain involved with it until he leaves UW.  

01:59:42	AU remarks on the meaning of CRC for him.

02:01:25	End of interview.

END