This collection includes oral histories, audio tapes and transcripts documenting the development of Western Washington University.  Most of the interviews were commissioned as part of the University's Centennial Celebration.  The interviews were conducted with former faculty, staff, and students whose connections to Western date from roughly 1920 to 2000.  They deal with campus history, focusing particularly on the administrations of Dr. William Haggard, Dr. James Jarrett, Dr. Harvey Bunke, Dr. Jerry Flora and Dr. Paul Olscamp.  The collection also includes several departmental histories, including Departments of Education, Geography, Humanities and Political Science.  Several interviews focus on the development of  Fairhaven College, Huxley College and the College of Ethnic studies as well as the formation of the College of Fine and Performing Arts.

The oral histories reflect the evolution of Western from its genesis as a normal school to a liberal arts college to a multi-disciplined  regional  university.  Through the interviews,  researchers can gain a sense of that transition, as well as the complexities of the inter-relationships between administration, faculty and students.