Sweet MUMories Oral History Project - Jewell W. Clemons
Title
Sweet MUMories Oral History Project - Jewell W. Clemons
Description
Date
December 9, 2016
Duration
31:30 minutes
Transcription
Sweet MUMories Oral History Project
Transcript: Jewell W. Clemons, December 9, 2016
Donation record #Clemons.J.12092016.1
Transcribed by Jade Smallwood 07/13/2017. Approved for deposit by Marsha R. Robinson 06/20/2018
MRR My name is Marsha Robinson and we are recording an oral history with Jewell Clemons as part of the Sweet MUMories Oral History Project. This project marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Miami University Middletown, Ohio, campus. This interview is taking place on December 9, 2016, at the Gardner-Harvey Library. Mrs. Clemons, do I have your consent to proceed with this interview?
JWC Yes you do.
MRR Thank you. Could you please tell us what Miami University means to you and to your family?
JWC Yes, Miami University is like a family to me and I was very pleased to be able to come to the campus versus go to vocational training type school because I felt like I would do better in this academic atmosphere and I did receive my degree here, a cum laude degree. It was very special to my family and me because I had survived a very serious motor vehicle accident. And at the time I had sufficient memory loss and wasn’t really sure if I still had the capability to learn in an academic setting. My family was very encouraged but not really sure exactly how it would work out since I had been out of school for several years. Anyway, I was able to continue my education and graduate cum laude and we were all very excited about that. Two of my grandchildren have also attended classes here. My oldest grandson, he and I took one of the same classes, which was a History of Jazz. So that gave us like a little intergenerational connection to discuss how much we both enjoyed that class. Also, he’s very into computers and I was able to share with him my textbook on the Introduction to Computers and how big they used to be and he was pretty interested in seeing that information. He had no idea what the initial computers were like and how big they were and it might take up the space of a whole room and now you can actually use your computer on your cell phone now. So, it has been very interesting for our family to connect around some of my experiences at Miami.
MRR What year did you graduate?
JWC 1999.
MRR And what was your major?
JWC Sociology.
MRR At what level?
JWC Well actually, I received an associate’s degree in Sociology.
MRR Thank you. Some people have talked about the computers being so large. Did you ever use the computer lab? What were the computer facilities like when you started here?
JWC Well, we did have a computer lab and our assignments in this Introduction to Computer Science Using the Internet we had a lot of exercises that we had to go to the computer lab to work on, actually work on, that we could use for our class. It was a very important part of that class. We had assignments on a daily basis.
MRR Do you remember what kind of computers they were?
JWC I’m pretty sure they were all Dell computers if I remember correctly.
MRR My next question is could you tell us some more about some of your professors?
JWC Yes, well, that particular class I was telling you about, the computer science class, was actually taught by Dr. Cathy Bishop-Clark. And I saw her recently on a newsletter to see that she was the new Assistant Dean or the Acting Dean. I was very happy to see that she was still with the campus. We had a lot of interaction, you know, with all of the students, you know, in our homework assignments and she was an excellent instructor. I think I took something from each instructor that I had at Miami. Say for instance, just starting with study skills. Julie Shade was the instructor of that particular class. And you don’t really realize how important that is when you have been out of school for a while to develop those good study habits. And she, the class taught, say for instance, maybe you’re in a room surrounded by all these family pictures and then you’re studying and stop and say I remember that picture. You really want to be in an area where it’s distraction free. I know a lot of younger people like to study and listen to music and things like that but I wasn’t that kind of a student. One of the things that I learned from Julie Shade was, and I still use it today, is organizing your shopping list by department so you’re not running over here to get this and running over here to get that. So, whenever I have, especially when I have to send somebody else to pick up something for me and it’s a substantial list, it’s all organized by brand name. I even have the cost if I know it and if I will accept another brand so there is no room for confusion. I really appreciated that. Also she, that particular class, taught us how to use the library resources for research projects and that was the day when, I was telling you about when, the wheel came off my chair. We were on our way over here to learn how to use the library system whenever we had to do research projects or papers for our class.
MRR Could you tell us more about that day?
JWC That day, I said I was very pleased with the acceptance, help and support of all the traditional students. At that particular time there was a substantial hill between Johnston Hall and the library. So two fellow students were dutifully pushing me up the hill when one of the rims came off the tire of my front right wheel. And so we were all flabbergasted. It’s the whole class. We were all coming to the library as a group. Anyway, it just so happened that there were two young men in the doorway who had been working in the computer lab. They came out and they just, you know, rolled me in on the wheel, holding this side up. Then they went in the computer lab to find some tools to put my tire back on the rim for me. The rest of my class went on up to the library while I had to stay down there to get my chair fixed. But everybody was just so supportive anytime I had a problem, needed a door opened because they didn’t have automatic doors everywhere then. There was always somebody to move the chair, open a door, close a door, whatever I needed, there was always somebody to do that for me and I really appreciated that. It really made me feel like a part of the campus. That’s one of the things that I loved about here, is inclusion. They had things that everybody could come to, like Crazy Hat Day and little special things in Johnston Hall. They had the Soul Food lunch that they used to have. I don’t know if they still have that. I haven’t been back for a while. They still do that. The other movies that they would have for Black History Month and I thought that was really something special for me. I was just really impressed with almost every instructor that I had. Dr. Cynthia Lewiecki-Wilson was my professor for English 111 and she encouraged us to write stories about ourselves. And you just don’t realize how many stories there are in your life. Then you start to write them down and then other people think that they’re interesting. Then it encourages you to write more. We wrote journals. We wrote stories. You know, the contrast between 111 and 112 was in 112 I didn’t enjoy as much because I didn’t really feel like I was that skilled at interpreting other people’s writings as I was just writing about my life experiences and growing up in Middletown and stories like going to Dayton on the bus shopping with my sister. To me it was as exciting as going to New York for someone else. And going fishing with my grandmother—things of that nature. There were just so many experiences that you don’t realize somebody would be interested in hearing about until you write them down and you share with the class and they give you feedback and let you know how they feel about them. I was also impressed with the history on the college level. I think it’s so much like an expanded version from what you get in high school, you just touch on it. It gave me a better understanding of what the first interaction between the Native Americans and the colonists were. Actually, how the Native Americans actually had to help the colonists learn how to survive in the new land. You know, the planting, the fishing, the hunting, things of that nature. Whereas when you see the old Western movies, I think they depict Native Americans in a more negative light. It’s always the cowboys against the Indians and I think in people’s minds they may gather the information and think this was the only interaction they had. But when for a while, they actually were getting along. They had a peaceful coexistence for a while until the dominant culture decided “We want your land. We don’t really need you anymore. We know what we need to know.” And I just think that part of history is unfortunate.
MRR What is the vision of the committee that tried to bring the campus to this city? You said they wanted a liberal arts institution to help expand the horizons of the children and the adults in Middletown. Can you tell us more about growing up in Middletown and how the campus might have served its purpose of expanding horizons?
JWC I really think that that’s true because one thing I think the African American community and the other white community were very separate when I was growing up, with the exception of if we lived in that particular school district, we attended that same school. But as far as the interaction of us, say for instance, the children that we went to in our class, they were not going to be coming to our houses for our birthday parties or things of that nature. I think the diversity at the campus and making everybody feel equal and accepted, I think that is one of the attractions to the campus where everybody is important. Everybody is equal. You have your right to your opinion. They try to be supportive of any activities that you’re involved in. You are welcomed to be a part of whatever is going on at the campus. You can decide to be as little involved or as much involved as you want to be. And also to be able to take classes at different times and take classes around people’s work schedule. And you know, work with you to do what they can to help you to succeed at your own rate and at your own level. I think that’s one of the biggest draws of a college in Middletown versus like not having to go to a campus and stay on campus.
MRR In two stories you told us about the support that students receive and the sense of inclusion. Can you talk about some of the accommodations that the university made to make sure that you get what you need here?
JWC Right. Well one of the most important things is Financial Aid. You have your counselors making you aware of what’s out there that you can apply for, to help you understand the deadlines. I don’t know exactly how the financial forms are handled now. I know a lot of things are online but back then most of the applications were paper applications with deadlines; and made sure you understood that; and, that you could always come to them if you had a problem. Whatever area you had a concern about, it’s like they would have somebody with expertise to discuss that with you so you never had to feel like you were alone. There was always somebody there who would support you, whether it felt like you weren’t fitting in, whether you had a personal problem, a health issue, needed special accommodations as I often did. I was really impressed at the speed at which they got all the automatic doors in so I could go in and out freely. Like I said, I was really impressed with the fact they didn’t really feel like it was a bother, like make you feel like, “Oh, it’s a great inconvenience because we have to do this for you.” They were willing to just go the extra mile to make everybody feel comfortable and accepted and I think that was really a great part of a local campus.
MRR Did that accommodation and adjustment continue all the way through to the end of your career? Can you tell us about graduation day?
JWC It did. Okay, graduation day was very exciting. It was one of the few times I’ve ever been over to the Oxford campus but I had been in touch with the people who were in charge. Linda, you know, was spearheading everything and made sure that I would be able to go across the stage with the other students and get my degree. When I got there everything was already set up. They had rented the necessary equipment like a small elevator that I could go in and it took me up to stage level so that I could go across the stage and actually receive my degree so my family and friends could see me get my degree. And we were all very excited that day.
MRR You mentioned Linda. Can you tell us more about your relationship with Linda Watkins? How did you meet and what happened?
JWC Yes, Linda Watkins was the coordinator of Counseling and Disability Services. Not only was she making sure that the campus was accessible to me, she was also helping me to stay on track for graduation. I remember she knew that I played Scrabble with my friends on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So one day we were sitting in her office and she said “Do you realize if you gave up one of your Scrabble nights you can actually graduate in May?” And I said “I’m there. I’m doing it. Let’s do it.” So we did, I rearranged my Scrabble schedule so that I could graduate and it was really very exciting. She was excited for me to be able to go ahead and get that. We were working toward me completing my bachelor’s but at that particular time you couldn’t complete your bachelor's at the Middletown campus. You had to go to Oxford. So that would present another set of obstacles for me as far as getting over there. Then, as I said, one of my family members became seriously ill and I had to take over managing her household and finances for her. And between that, managing my life and my disability, and church activities and all the things I need to do for myself. I did complete the first year of my bachelors but I never did get back to finishing my second year.
MRR We now offer sixteen bachelor's degrees and one master’s at the regional campus. How will that change Middletown city?
JWC I think it’ll be the same way. There still are students who don’t have transportation. There are still students that are living at home, some still working part-time. I think that it will facilitate a lot more students to be able to complete their education rather than if they had to worry about how am I going to get to Oxford and also the cost if they were to stay on campus. I think that would make a big difference in Middletown. That will enable a lot more people to complete their education.
MRR Could you please tell us about any other students facing physical disabilities and how Miami made an impact on their lives?
JWC Well, I did have a friend who, later in my college career, was injured in an automobile accident, too. He wasn’t able to come back to school but that was always his goal and his dream but he had to get out of the rehabilitation facility so he could go back to school. So we would go and visit him and take him little mementos from school, like a hat and different little things to keep him encouraged and let him know. They wanted to make him realize was that whenever he was able to come back, whatever accommodations that he needed, that the campus would be here for him as they there for me. He was really looking forward to that. Unfortunately, he became more ill and passed away and he wasn’t able to come back. But that was always his dream and when he passed away Miami even had a presence at his funeral. He had his Miami cap on in the coffin and he also had a beautiful bouquet of flowers from the Miami family. His family was very pleased about that, too. And he had a fiancee and she also expressed to me how much Miami meant to him and she was very glad that the presence was still there even when he could no longer come back to school.
MRR What advice do you have for students, whether they’re traditional aged or non-traditional aged, so that they will also be successful here?
JWC Well, first of all, they have to believe in themselves. They have to want to do it, be willing to make the sacrifice of time and to be able to realize that this is for you. You have to basically invest in yourself. And you know, don’t be intimidated by it. Just start slow. Go at your own pace and don’t give up on your dream. Just keep doing. You know a journey begins with one step. A building starts with one brick. Just continue and don’t give up. There’s enough information out there now and it’s so much more accessible. If you don’t know, don’t be afraid to ask questions because there’s always somebody there that can show you and help you with financial aid or whatever you need. I think the opportunities are there. You just have to go get them.
MRR What is it about Miami Middletown in the first fifty years that you hope we keep for the next fifty years?
JWC I hope that this campus would always maintain its open-minded policy with inclusion. That you’ll always have and be in a manageable class size so you don’t feel like you’re a number. And I think that is one of the nice things about a smaller campus is that you can know the people. You can know the people that work at the bookstore. You can know your professors and develop a relationship with them. I think that my professors always seemed to be very accessible, very accommodating if you needed special help, if you needed extra time or if you needed to be absent or whatever. They were willing to work with you and I think that that is really important. Where I’ve never actually been in a class where they’ve had one hundred people and I’ve heard that. I think that if I were in a class that size I think I would feel like I was a number. I don’t feel like I would just be as an important part of the class as I would in a smaller community college where you would have smaller classes.
MRR Is there anything that you want future researchers to know about Miami University Middletown?
JWC I think I want people to realize what a really wonderful campus that Middletown has. I consider it a stellar institution that can produce stellar students. Not to minimize it, it’s a smaller campus or that it’s local but you can still get the same quality of an employee or administrator that you need from Miami Middletown that you could get anywhere in any other larger city or any other larger campus.
MRR I’d like to go back in time a bit, you said you graduated in 1999. Were you here during any of the economic recession and did you see a change in who the students were in the class during the recessions?
JWC No, I didn’t notice, wasn’t aware of, any of the problems that were associated with the economic recession in Middletown. Because students come and go and then they change and they drop and they add, you don’t really know the types of problems or issues that other students are having. It’s like sometimes you see them. Sometimes you don’t. Then sometimes you hear that they dropped or that they changed their career field. You don’t really know exactly what’s going on when you’re at a campus this size, especially when you are non-traditional. Maybe the younger students who are in the same age range, they may know more about what’s going on with the other students but I don’t think the non-traditional students are always aware of what’s going on around and how they affect the attendance or the progression of the students whether they matriculate or not.
MRR How does that affect the environment between students in the classroom?
JWC I’m not sure about that. Sometimes I think that maybe a younger student may feel like, if I don’t finish this class or pass this class, I can take it again later. I think the more non-traditional students are more likely to stick it out and realize that “This is a second time around for us. We need to get this now.” And also you might be raising a family, have maybe even more than one job; whereas a student who has not lived on their own or doesn’t have to be totally responsible for their own finances, they might have a different outlook. You know, if I don’t get it now I can get it later or I can always come back or I can always do this but I think non-traditional students don’t always feel that way.
MRR Your degree is in Sociology. How has that changed your outlook on people?
JWC My outlook on people has changed a lot through completing my sociology classes because originally I had also taken psychology classes before that time. It gave me a better understanding of, first of all, of group dynamics. It expanded my feeling on cultural diversity as in be accepting of people as human beings, not what they do or do not do, or what they believe or do not believe. It’s strictly up to them. You can separate the person from what there is about them that you don’t know, understand or like and whether you know or understand or it not, you still need to treat everybody with the same respect that you would appreciate being treated as. As we have discussed at different times, the opinion that I had of people who were in gangs years ago had dramatically changed when I understood the psychology sometimes of group members who are in a gang, that it’s a place where they got love and acceptance. For the first time they feel like somebody understands them. They feel like they’re needed, they’re really a part of something. When people are in a family they don’t feel a part for several reasons, you know. You never know what’s going on. Each family has their own dynamics, problems, issues, whatever. I have more empathy overall for people in general. Whether I sympathize with it, understand it, at least I can respect that, look for cause and effect. Well, that person is like that but you don’t know what they’ve been through. You don’t know why they are the way they are. I try to look at people, especially people with problems, in a different light altogether than I ever have—more broad minded.
MRR Is there anything else that you want to add to the record for this interview?
JWC No, I really did thoroughly enjoy my campus experience and I think I took something from each class and that’s rare, from each professor, from their teaching style and interaction. I didn’t think that I would really enjoy Zoology. I wasn’t really sure what it was but Dr. Alan Cady made it so exciting and so interesting and I am still, to this day, an avid recycler because of how he projected how we need to take care of our environment. I personally don’t feel like we’re going to run out of anything because I believe there’s somebody bigger than us in charge of the whole scheme, a supreme being. But I don’t think he cares that we recycle. I think it makes sense and to think about how is a can, a stainless steel can, how is it going to degrade until it becomes? There’s all these landfills and landfills and landfills. Why fill them up more if we don’t have to? I think recycling makes sense and just how he presented every phenomenon in the classroom. There was this colored chalk on the board and he was just really a very dynamic instructor for that type of class. Even the Botany class, it’s like being able to take a journey outside of the country to see the different types of plants and animals that live and thrive in other areas of the world, that was very exciting to me. Even geology, how rocks are actually formed and it’s so much more than rocks. How much they covered streams and rivers and all kinds of things like earthquakes and things like that. There are even so many different types of volcanos. You think of volcanos, you think of one. There’s all different types of volcanos depending on where they are. And I just really was happy to feel like I took something from each professor, each class. And I think that learning never ends. I’m always open to learning things and every now and then you get a chance to share something with somebody and I really enjoy that.
MRR Do I have your permission to discontinue this interview?
JWC Yes, you do.
MRR Thank you.
JWC I hope that I have contributed to something valuable for you.
MRR Yes, you have. Thank you very much.
JWC You’re so welcome.
Indexing terms:
History of Jazz
Sociology
Computer Lab
Cathy Bishop-Clark, Cathy
Shade, Julie
Oxford campus
Non-traditional students
Johnston Hall
Gardner-Harvey Library
Cynthia Lewiecki-Wilson, Cynthia
English 111
New York City
Native Americans
Colonists
Liberal Arts
Disability
Wheelchair
Study skills
Diversity
Inclusion
Graduation
Watkins, Linda
Counseling and Disability Services
Zoology
Cady, Alan
Grandchildren
Family
Botany
Soul Food Lunch
Black History Month
Crazy Hat Day
Geology
Transcript: Jewell W. Clemons, December 9, 2016
Donation record #Clemons.J.12092016.1
Transcribed by Jade Smallwood 07/13/2017. Approved for deposit by Marsha R. Robinson 06/20/2018
MRR My name is Marsha Robinson and we are recording an oral history with Jewell Clemons as part of the Sweet MUMories Oral History Project. This project marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Miami University Middletown, Ohio, campus. This interview is taking place on December 9, 2016, at the Gardner-Harvey Library. Mrs. Clemons, do I have your consent to proceed with this interview?
JWC Yes you do.
MRR Thank you. Could you please tell us what Miami University means to you and to your family?
JWC Yes, Miami University is like a family to me and I was very pleased to be able to come to the campus versus go to vocational training type school because I felt like I would do better in this academic atmosphere and I did receive my degree here, a cum laude degree. It was very special to my family and me because I had survived a very serious motor vehicle accident. And at the time I had sufficient memory loss and wasn’t really sure if I still had the capability to learn in an academic setting. My family was very encouraged but not really sure exactly how it would work out since I had been out of school for several years. Anyway, I was able to continue my education and graduate cum laude and we were all very excited about that. Two of my grandchildren have also attended classes here. My oldest grandson, he and I took one of the same classes, which was a History of Jazz. So that gave us like a little intergenerational connection to discuss how much we both enjoyed that class. Also, he’s very into computers and I was able to share with him my textbook on the Introduction to Computers and how big they used to be and he was pretty interested in seeing that information. He had no idea what the initial computers were like and how big they were and it might take up the space of a whole room and now you can actually use your computer on your cell phone now. So, it has been very interesting for our family to connect around some of my experiences at Miami.
MRR What year did you graduate?
JWC 1999.
MRR And what was your major?
JWC Sociology.
MRR At what level?
JWC Well actually, I received an associate’s degree in Sociology.
MRR Thank you. Some people have talked about the computers being so large. Did you ever use the computer lab? What were the computer facilities like when you started here?
JWC Well, we did have a computer lab and our assignments in this Introduction to Computer Science Using the Internet we had a lot of exercises that we had to go to the computer lab to work on, actually work on, that we could use for our class. It was a very important part of that class. We had assignments on a daily basis.
MRR Do you remember what kind of computers they were?
JWC I’m pretty sure they were all Dell computers if I remember correctly.
MRR My next question is could you tell us some more about some of your professors?
JWC Yes, well, that particular class I was telling you about, the computer science class, was actually taught by Dr. Cathy Bishop-Clark. And I saw her recently on a newsletter to see that she was the new Assistant Dean or the Acting Dean. I was very happy to see that she was still with the campus. We had a lot of interaction, you know, with all of the students, you know, in our homework assignments and she was an excellent instructor. I think I took something from each instructor that I had at Miami. Say for instance, just starting with study skills. Julie Shade was the instructor of that particular class. And you don’t really realize how important that is when you have been out of school for a while to develop those good study habits. And she, the class taught, say for instance, maybe you’re in a room surrounded by all these family pictures and then you’re studying and stop and say I remember that picture. You really want to be in an area where it’s distraction free. I know a lot of younger people like to study and listen to music and things like that but I wasn’t that kind of a student. One of the things that I learned from Julie Shade was, and I still use it today, is organizing your shopping list by department so you’re not running over here to get this and running over here to get that. So, whenever I have, especially when I have to send somebody else to pick up something for me and it’s a substantial list, it’s all organized by brand name. I even have the cost if I know it and if I will accept another brand so there is no room for confusion. I really appreciated that. Also she, that particular class, taught us how to use the library resources for research projects and that was the day when, I was telling you about when, the wheel came off my chair. We were on our way over here to learn how to use the library system whenever we had to do research projects or papers for our class.
MRR Could you tell us more about that day?
JWC That day, I said I was very pleased with the acceptance, help and support of all the traditional students. At that particular time there was a substantial hill between Johnston Hall and the library. So two fellow students were dutifully pushing me up the hill when one of the rims came off the tire of my front right wheel. And so we were all flabbergasted. It’s the whole class. We were all coming to the library as a group. Anyway, it just so happened that there were two young men in the doorway who had been working in the computer lab. They came out and they just, you know, rolled me in on the wheel, holding this side up. Then they went in the computer lab to find some tools to put my tire back on the rim for me. The rest of my class went on up to the library while I had to stay down there to get my chair fixed. But everybody was just so supportive anytime I had a problem, needed a door opened because they didn’t have automatic doors everywhere then. There was always somebody to move the chair, open a door, close a door, whatever I needed, there was always somebody to do that for me and I really appreciated that. It really made me feel like a part of the campus. That’s one of the things that I loved about here, is inclusion. They had things that everybody could come to, like Crazy Hat Day and little special things in Johnston Hall. They had the Soul Food lunch that they used to have. I don’t know if they still have that. I haven’t been back for a while. They still do that. The other movies that they would have for Black History Month and I thought that was really something special for me. I was just really impressed with almost every instructor that I had. Dr. Cynthia Lewiecki-Wilson was my professor for English 111 and she encouraged us to write stories about ourselves. And you just don’t realize how many stories there are in your life. Then you start to write them down and then other people think that they’re interesting. Then it encourages you to write more. We wrote journals. We wrote stories. You know, the contrast between 111 and 112 was in 112 I didn’t enjoy as much because I didn’t really feel like I was that skilled at interpreting other people’s writings as I was just writing about my life experiences and growing up in Middletown and stories like going to Dayton on the bus shopping with my sister. To me it was as exciting as going to New York for someone else. And going fishing with my grandmother—things of that nature. There were just so many experiences that you don’t realize somebody would be interested in hearing about until you write them down and you share with the class and they give you feedback and let you know how they feel about them. I was also impressed with the history on the college level. I think it’s so much like an expanded version from what you get in high school, you just touch on it. It gave me a better understanding of what the first interaction between the Native Americans and the colonists were. Actually, how the Native Americans actually had to help the colonists learn how to survive in the new land. You know, the planting, the fishing, the hunting, things of that nature. Whereas when you see the old Western movies, I think they depict Native Americans in a more negative light. It’s always the cowboys against the Indians and I think in people’s minds they may gather the information and think this was the only interaction they had. But when for a while, they actually were getting along. They had a peaceful coexistence for a while until the dominant culture decided “We want your land. We don’t really need you anymore. We know what we need to know.” And I just think that part of history is unfortunate.
MRR What is the vision of the committee that tried to bring the campus to this city? You said they wanted a liberal arts institution to help expand the horizons of the children and the adults in Middletown. Can you tell us more about growing up in Middletown and how the campus might have served its purpose of expanding horizons?
JWC I really think that that’s true because one thing I think the African American community and the other white community were very separate when I was growing up, with the exception of if we lived in that particular school district, we attended that same school. But as far as the interaction of us, say for instance, the children that we went to in our class, they were not going to be coming to our houses for our birthday parties or things of that nature. I think the diversity at the campus and making everybody feel equal and accepted, I think that is one of the attractions to the campus where everybody is important. Everybody is equal. You have your right to your opinion. They try to be supportive of any activities that you’re involved in. You are welcomed to be a part of whatever is going on at the campus. You can decide to be as little involved or as much involved as you want to be. And also to be able to take classes at different times and take classes around people’s work schedule. And you know, work with you to do what they can to help you to succeed at your own rate and at your own level. I think that’s one of the biggest draws of a college in Middletown versus like not having to go to a campus and stay on campus.
MRR In two stories you told us about the support that students receive and the sense of inclusion. Can you talk about some of the accommodations that the university made to make sure that you get what you need here?
JWC Right. Well one of the most important things is Financial Aid. You have your counselors making you aware of what’s out there that you can apply for, to help you understand the deadlines. I don’t know exactly how the financial forms are handled now. I know a lot of things are online but back then most of the applications were paper applications with deadlines; and made sure you understood that; and, that you could always come to them if you had a problem. Whatever area you had a concern about, it’s like they would have somebody with expertise to discuss that with you so you never had to feel like you were alone. There was always somebody there who would support you, whether it felt like you weren’t fitting in, whether you had a personal problem, a health issue, needed special accommodations as I often did. I was really impressed at the speed at which they got all the automatic doors in so I could go in and out freely. Like I said, I was really impressed with the fact they didn’t really feel like it was a bother, like make you feel like, “Oh, it’s a great inconvenience because we have to do this for you.” They were willing to just go the extra mile to make everybody feel comfortable and accepted and I think that was really a great part of a local campus.
MRR Did that accommodation and adjustment continue all the way through to the end of your career? Can you tell us about graduation day?
JWC It did. Okay, graduation day was very exciting. It was one of the few times I’ve ever been over to the Oxford campus but I had been in touch with the people who were in charge. Linda, you know, was spearheading everything and made sure that I would be able to go across the stage with the other students and get my degree. When I got there everything was already set up. They had rented the necessary equipment like a small elevator that I could go in and it took me up to stage level so that I could go across the stage and actually receive my degree so my family and friends could see me get my degree. And we were all very excited that day.
MRR You mentioned Linda. Can you tell us more about your relationship with Linda Watkins? How did you meet and what happened?
JWC Yes, Linda Watkins was the coordinator of Counseling and Disability Services. Not only was she making sure that the campus was accessible to me, she was also helping me to stay on track for graduation. I remember she knew that I played Scrabble with my friends on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So one day we were sitting in her office and she said “Do you realize if you gave up one of your Scrabble nights you can actually graduate in May?” And I said “I’m there. I’m doing it. Let’s do it.” So we did, I rearranged my Scrabble schedule so that I could graduate and it was really very exciting. She was excited for me to be able to go ahead and get that. We were working toward me completing my bachelor’s but at that particular time you couldn’t complete your bachelor's at the Middletown campus. You had to go to Oxford. So that would present another set of obstacles for me as far as getting over there. Then, as I said, one of my family members became seriously ill and I had to take over managing her household and finances for her. And between that, managing my life and my disability, and church activities and all the things I need to do for myself. I did complete the first year of my bachelors but I never did get back to finishing my second year.
MRR We now offer sixteen bachelor's degrees and one master’s at the regional campus. How will that change Middletown city?
JWC I think it’ll be the same way. There still are students who don’t have transportation. There are still students that are living at home, some still working part-time. I think that it will facilitate a lot more students to be able to complete their education rather than if they had to worry about how am I going to get to Oxford and also the cost if they were to stay on campus. I think that would make a big difference in Middletown. That will enable a lot more people to complete their education.
MRR Could you please tell us about any other students facing physical disabilities and how Miami made an impact on their lives?
JWC Well, I did have a friend who, later in my college career, was injured in an automobile accident, too. He wasn’t able to come back to school but that was always his goal and his dream but he had to get out of the rehabilitation facility so he could go back to school. So we would go and visit him and take him little mementos from school, like a hat and different little things to keep him encouraged and let him know. They wanted to make him realize was that whenever he was able to come back, whatever accommodations that he needed, that the campus would be here for him as they there for me. He was really looking forward to that. Unfortunately, he became more ill and passed away and he wasn’t able to come back. But that was always his dream and when he passed away Miami even had a presence at his funeral. He had his Miami cap on in the coffin and he also had a beautiful bouquet of flowers from the Miami family. His family was very pleased about that, too. And he had a fiancee and she also expressed to me how much Miami meant to him and she was very glad that the presence was still there even when he could no longer come back to school.
MRR What advice do you have for students, whether they’re traditional aged or non-traditional aged, so that they will also be successful here?
JWC Well, first of all, they have to believe in themselves. They have to want to do it, be willing to make the sacrifice of time and to be able to realize that this is for you. You have to basically invest in yourself. And you know, don’t be intimidated by it. Just start slow. Go at your own pace and don’t give up on your dream. Just keep doing. You know a journey begins with one step. A building starts with one brick. Just continue and don’t give up. There’s enough information out there now and it’s so much more accessible. If you don’t know, don’t be afraid to ask questions because there’s always somebody there that can show you and help you with financial aid or whatever you need. I think the opportunities are there. You just have to go get them.
MRR What is it about Miami Middletown in the first fifty years that you hope we keep for the next fifty years?
JWC I hope that this campus would always maintain its open-minded policy with inclusion. That you’ll always have and be in a manageable class size so you don’t feel like you’re a number. And I think that is one of the nice things about a smaller campus is that you can know the people. You can know the people that work at the bookstore. You can know your professors and develop a relationship with them. I think that my professors always seemed to be very accessible, very accommodating if you needed special help, if you needed extra time or if you needed to be absent or whatever. They were willing to work with you and I think that that is really important. Where I’ve never actually been in a class where they’ve had one hundred people and I’ve heard that. I think that if I were in a class that size I think I would feel like I was a number. I don’t feel like I would just be as an important part of the class as I would in a smaller community college where you would have smaller classes.
MRR Is there anything that you want future researchers to know about Miami University Middletown?
JWC I think I want people to realize what a really wonderful campus that Middletown has. I consider it a stellar institution that can produce stellar students. Not to minimize it, it’s a smaller campus or that it’s local but you can still get the same quality of an employee or administrator that you need from Miami Middletown that you could get anywhere in any other larger city or any other larger campus.
MRR I’d like to go back in time a bit, you said you graduated in 1999. Were you here during any of the economic recession and did you see a change in who the students were in the class during the recessions?
JWC No, I didn’t notice, wasn’t aware of, any of the problems that were associated with the economic recession in Middletown. Because students come and go and then they change and they drop and they add, you don’t really know the types of problems or issues that other students are having. It’s like sometimes you see them. Sometimes you don’t. Then sometimes you hear that they dropped or that they changed their career field. You don’t really know exactly what’s going on when you’re at a campus this size, especially when you are non-traditional. Maybe the younger students who are in the same age range, they may know more about what’s going on with the other students but I don’t think the non-traditional students are always aware of what’s going on around and how they affect the attendance or the progression of the students whether they matriculate or not.
MRR How does that affect the environment between students in the classroom?
JWC I’m not sure about that. Sometimes I think that maybe a younger student may feel like, if I don’t finish this class or pass this class, I can take it again later. I think the more non-traditional students are more likely to stick it out and realize that “This is a second time around for us. We need to get this now.” And also you might be raising a family, have maybe even more than one job; whereas a student who has not lived on their own or doesn’t have to be totally responsible for their own finances, they might have a different outlook. You know, if I don’t get it now I can get it later or I can always come back or I can always do this but I think non-traditional students don’t always feel that way.
MRR Your degree is in Sociology. How has that changed your outlook on people?
JWC My outlook on people has changed a lot through completing my sociology classes because originally I had also taken psychology classes before that time. It gave me a better understanding of, first of all, of group dynamics. It expanded my feeling on cultural diversity as in be accepting of people as human beings, not what they do or do not do, or what they believe or do not believe. It’s strictly up to them. You can separate the person from what there is about them that you don’t know, understand or like and whether you know or understand or it not, you still need to treat everybody with the same respect that you would appreciate being treated as. As we have discussed at different times, the opinion that I had of people who were in gangs years ago had dramatically changed when I understood the psychology sometimes of group members who are in a gang, that it’s a place where they got love and acceptance. For the first time they feel like somebody understands them. They feel like they’re needed, they’re really a part of something. When people are in a family they don’t feel a part for several reasons, you know. You never know what’s going on. Each family has their own dynamics, problems, issues, whatever. I have more empathy overall for people in general. Whether I sympathize with it, understand it, at least I can respect that, look for cause and effect. Well, that person is like that but you don’t know what they’ve been through. You don’t know why they are the way they are. I try to look at people, especially people with problems, in a different light altogether than I ever have—more broad minded.
MRR Is there anything else that you want to add to the record for this interview?
JWC No, I really did thoroughly enjoy my campus experience and I think I took something from each class and that’s rare, from each professor, from their teaching style and interaction. I didn’t think that I would really enjoy Zoology. I wasn’t really sure what it was but Dr. Alan Cady made it so exciting and so interesting and I am still, to this day, an avid recycler because of how he projected how we need to take care of our environment. I personally don’t feel like we’re going to run out of anything because I believe there’s somebody bigger than us in charge of the whole scheme, a supreme being. But I don’t think he cares that we recycle. I think it makes sense and to think about how is a can, a stainless steel can, how is it going to degrade until it becomes? There’s all these landfills and landfills and landfills. Why fill them up more if we don’t have to? I think recycling makes sense and just how he presented every phenomenon in the classroom. There was this colored chalk on the board and he was just really a very dynamic instructor for that type of class. Even the Botany class, it’s like being able to take a journey outside of the country to see the different types of plants and animals that live and thrive in other areas of the world, that was very exciting to me. Even geology, how rocks are actually formed and it’s so much more than rocks. How much they covered streams and rivers and all kinds of things like earthquakes and things like that. There are even so many different types of volcanos. You think of volcanos, you think of one. There’s all different types of volcanos depending on where they are. And I just really was happy to feel like I took something from each professor, each class. And I think that learning never ends. I’m always open to learning things and every now and then you get a chance to share something with somebody and I really enjoy that.
MRR Do I have your permission to discontinue this interview?
JWC Yes, you do.
MRR Thank you.
JWC I hope that I have contributed to something valuable for you.
MRR Yes, you have. Thank you very much.
JWC You’re so welcome.
Indexing terms:
History of Jazz
Sociology
Computer Lab
Cathy Bishop-Clark, Cathy
Shade, Julie
Oxford campus
Non-traditional students
Johnston Hall
Gardner-Harvey Library
Cynthia Lewiecki-Wilson, Cynthia
English 111
New York City
Native Americans
Colonists
Liberal Arts
Disability
Wheelchair
Study skills
Diversity
Inclusion
Graduation
Watkins, Linda
Counseling and Disability Services
Zoology
Cady, Alan
Grandchildren
Family
Botany
Soul Food Lunch
Black History Month
Crazy Hat Day
Geology
Interviewer
Marsha Robinson
Interviewee
Jewell W. Clemons
Location
Gardner-Harvey Library, Miami University Middletown
Collection
Citation
“Sweet MUMories Oral History Project - Jewell W. Clemons,” First to 50 - Miami University Middletown Digital Archive, accessed April 25, 2024, https://mum50.omeka.net/items/show/1065.