Program Recordings
Many of the Society's past programs are now available as audio podcast and video. They feature senior Stanford administrators and faculty and staff members, including John Hennessy, Don Kennedy, David Kennedy, Estelle Freedman, Al Camarillo, Gordon Chang, and Denni Woodward; and address important topics including Stanford’s relationship with the Silicon Valley, the history of the School of Medicine, Stanford athletics, Stanford peace movement, student life, and the history of women at Stanford. Program recordings will be uploaded continuously as they become available.
January 30, 2020 | Audio
Speaker: Gavin Jones, Rehmus Family Professor in the Humanities, Stanford University
John Steinbeck attended Stanford University, off and on, from the Fall of 1919 to the Spring of 1925, when he left without completing his degree. According to an article in Stanford magazine, the relationship between Stanford and Steinbeck is “puzzling, mutually unappreciative, even debilitating.” In his talk, Professor Gavin Jones argues that nothing could be farther from the truth. It was at Stanford that Steinbeck honed his craft in creative writing classes, learned to fuse the arts and sciences in...
John Steinbeck attended Stanford University, off and on, from the Fall of 1919 to the Spring of 1925, when he left without completing his degree. According to an article in Stanford magazine, the relationship between Stanford and Steinbeck is “puzzling, mutually unappreciative, even debilitating.” In his talk, Professor Gavin Jones argues that nothing could be farther from the truth. It was at Stanford that Steinbeck honed his craft in creative writing classes, learned to fuse the arts and sciences in...
November 18, 2019 | Video
David M. Kennedy, Donald J. McLachlan Professor of History, Emeritus, Stanford University
The 150th anniversary of the driving of the fabled Golden Spike at Promontory, Utah marks an opportune moment to reflect on the history of the great western region. Professor David Kennedy, founding Director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West, will recollect the saga of the railroad and reflect on the development of the American West over the last century and half.
The building of the Transcontinental Railroad in the late 1860s was a transformational event in the history of the United States....
The 150th anniversary of the driving of the fabled Golden Spike at Promontory, Utah marks an opportune moment to reflect on the history of the great western region. Professor David Kennedy, founding Director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West, will recollect the saga of the railroad and reflect on the development of the American West over the last century and half.
The building of the Transcontinental Railroad in the late 1860s was a transformational event in the history of the United States....
October 30, 2019 | Video
Ray Purpur, Deputy Director of Athletics, Stanford University
In this program, Ray Purpur will take us through the important history of Stanford athletics after the Great World War.
Stanford University dropped football amidst the national football crisis of 1905 and the game did not return to the Farm until 1919, following World War I and the flu outbreak of 1918. Much had changed about football since then.
The first student body team to compete after the war was varsity rugby, followed by other sports including basketball, baseball, rowing, and track and field. Although women’s sports were...
In this program, Ray Purpur will take us through the important history of Stanford athletics after the Great World War.
Stanford University dropped football amidst the national football crisis of 1905 and the game did not return to the Farm until 1919, following World War I and the flu outbreak of 1918. Much had changed about football since then.
The first student body team to compete after the war was varsity rugby, followed by other sports including basketball, baseball, rowing, and track and field. Although women’s sports were...
September 26, 2019 | Audio
Christopher Wasney, ’80, Founder, Cody Anderson Wasney Architects, Inc. and Lecturer, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University
Mike Ryan, Director of Operations, Frost Amphitheater
Since it opened in 1937, Frost Amphitheater has played a key role not just in Stanford student life but also in the greater performing arts community of the Bay Area, from theater productions and graduation ceremonies to symphony and rock concerts. Frost has hosted such diverse talent as the San Francisco Symphony, the Boston Pops, and the Grateful Dead (who played there 14 times in the 1980s)....
Mike Ryan, Director of Operations, Frost Amphitheater
Since it opened in 1937, Frost Amphitheater has played a key role not just in Stanford student life but also in the greater performing arts community of the Bay Area, from theater productions and graduation ceremonies to symphony and rock concerts. Frost has hosted such diverse talent as the San Francisco Symphony, the Boston Pops, and the Grateful Dead (who played there 14 times in the 1980s)....
May 7, 2019 | Audio
Raymond Paul Giroux, Distinguished Member, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
Seeking opportunity, adventurous Americans began migrating to the west coast of North America in the first half of the 19th century. With the first wagon trains of settlers leaving Independence, Missouri in 1836 they would embark on an arduous five month journey. With the discovery of gold near Sacramento, California in 1848, political pressure mounted for a safe and speedy passage to the Pacific Coast. Exploratory surveys were needed to determine a feasible route through mountainous terrain many said was...
Seeking opportunity, adventurous Americans began migrating to the west coast of North America in the first half of the 19th century. With the first wagon trains of settlers leaving Independence, Missouri in 1836 they would embark on an arduous five month journey. With the discovery of gold near Sacramento, California in 1848, political pressure mounted for a safe and speedy passage to the Pacific Coast. Exploratory surveys were needed to determine a feasible route through mountainous terrain many said was...
April 7, 2019 | Video
Steve Staiger, Palo Alto City Historian; Former Board Member, Stanford Historical Society
In 1885, Timothy Hopkins, at 26, was the youngest university trustee appointed to the newly born Leland Stanford Junior University. Over the next 50 years, he became one of the university’s most steadfast and generous supporters. His life, as a close friend of the Stanford family, as well as campus benefactor, Palo Alto founder, and Menlo Park resident, is a fascinating story of a man whose inherited wealth and position allowed him to make many contributions to the university and its neighbors. Yet,...
In 1885, Timothy Hopkins, at 26, was the youngest university trustee appointed to the newly born Leland Stanford Junior University. Over the next 50 years, he became one of the university’s most steadfast and generous supporters. His life, as a close friend of the Stanford family, as well as campus benefactor, Palo Alto founder, and Menlo Park resident, is a fascinating story of a man whose inherited wealth and position allowed him to make many contributions to the university and its neighbors. Yet,...
April 6, 2019 | Audio | Video
Richard White, Margaret Byrne Professor of American History, Stanford University
Hilton Obenzinger, Associate Director, Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project, Stanford University
James Campbell, Edgar E. Robinson Professor in United States History, Stanford University
Laura Jones, Director, Heritage Services and University Archaeologist, Stanford University
The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad connected the vast expanse of the United States with safe and convenient transport, reducing coast-to-coast travel from six months to just one week. In addition, the railroad...
Hilton Obenzinger, Associate Director, Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project, Stanford University
James Campbell, Edgar E. Robinson Professor in United States History, Stanford University
Laura Jones, Director, Heritage Services and University Archaeologist, Stanford University
The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad connected the vast expanse of the United States with safe and convenient transport, reducing coast-to-coast travel from six months to just one week. In addition, the railroad...
March 7, 2019 | Video
Estelle B. Freedman, Edgar E. Robinson Professor in U.S. History, Stanford University
At the time of its opening in 1891, Stanford University admitted both male and female students, in large part because Jane Stanford had strong views about the importance of educating women. Despite their initial inclusion as students, in subsequent generations women at Stanford experienced a range of exclusions, including a quota system that limited undergraduate enrollment and a paucity of female faculty. By the late twentieth century, students and faculty members advocated for gender equity not only in...
At the time of its opening in 1891, Stanford University admitted both male and female students, in large part because Jane Stanford had strong views about the importance of educating women. Despite their initial inclusion as students, in subsequent generations women at Stanford experienced a range of exclusions, including a quota system that limited undergraduate enrollment and a paucity of female faculty. By the late twentieth century, students and faculty members advocated for gender equity not only in...
October 11, 2018 | Video
Jeffrey Ball, Scholar-in-residence, Steyer-Taylor Center for Energy Policy and Finance, Stanford Law School; Resident Fellow, Roble Hall
James T. Campbell, Edgar E. Robinson Professor in United States History, Stanford University
Laura Jones, Director of Heritage Services and University Archaeologist, Stanford University
When it opened in 1918 as Stanford’s residence for women, Roble Hall was hailed as “one of the most modern and best equipped dormitories in the United States.” An architecturally unique structure, the Beaux-Arts building featured an ornate façade and an unusual number of...
James T. Campbell, Edgar E. Robinson Professor in United States History, Stanford University
Laura Jones, Director of Heritage Services and University Archaeologist, Stanford University
When it opened in 1918 as Stanford’s residence for women, Roble Hall was hailed as “one of the most modern and best equipped dormitories in the United States.” An architecturally unique structure, the Beaux-Arts building featured an ornate façade and an unusual number of...
May 22, 2018 | Video
Joseph Woo, MD, Norman E. Shumway Professor; Chair, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine
Sharon Hunt, MD, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Emerita, Stanford University School of Medicine
Phil Oyer, MD, PhD, Roy B. Cohn-Theodore A. Falasco Professor in Cardiothoracic Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine
Bruce Reitz, MD, Norman E. Shumway Professor, Emeritus; Former Chair, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine
In 1968, the very concept of transplanting a beating heart from one human to another seemed...
Sharon Hunt, MD, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Emerita, Stanford University School of Medicine
Phil Oyer, MD, PhD, Roy B. Cohn-Theodore A. Falasco Professor in Cardiothoracic Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine
Bruce Reitz, MD, Norman E. Shumway Professor, Emeritus; Former Chair, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine
In 1968, the very concept of transplanting a beating heart from one human to another seemed...
April 19, 2018 | Video
Gerhard Casper, President, Emeritus; Peter & Helen Bing Professor in Undergraduate Education, Emeritus; Professor of Law, Emeritus; Senior Fellow at FSI and SIEPRSusan Schofield, Academic Secretary to the University, Emerita, Stanford UniversityPeter Stansky, Frances and Charles Field Professor of History, Emeritus, Stanford UniversityEthan Ris, Assistant Professor of Higher Education Leadership, University of Nevada, Reno
The Stanford Faculty Senate had its first meeting in September, 1968. To celebrate its first fifty years, Gerhard Casper, Susan Schofield, Peter Stansky and Ethan Ris...
The Stanford Faculty Senate had its first meeting in September, 1968. To celebrate its first fifty years, Gerhard Casper, Susan Schofield, Peter Stansky and Ethan Ris...
March 13, 2018 | Video
Martin Carnoy, Vida Jacks Professor of Education, Stanford Univeristy
Rachel Lotan, MA '81, MA '83, PhD '85, Professor of Education, Emeritus, Stanford University
Daniel McFarland, Professor of Education, Stanford University
Rita Sanchez, '72, MA '73, MA '74, Professor of English, Emeritus,Mesa College
As part of its centennial celebrations, the Stanford Graduate School of Education convened a distinguished panel of faculty and alumnae to discuss the school's post-World War II ascent to eminence in research, policy and practitioner training. Martin Carnoy, Vida Jacks Professor of Education;...
Rachel Lotan, MA '81, MA '83, PhD '85, Professor of Education, Emeritus, Stanford University
Daniel McFarland, Professor of Education, Stanford University
Rita Sanchez, '72, MA '73, MA '74, Professor of English, Emeritus,Mesa College
As part of its centennial celebrations, the Stanford Graduate School of Education convened a distinguished panel of faculty and alumnae to discuss the school's post-World War II ascent to eminence in research, policy and practitioner training. Martin Carnoy, Vida Jacks Professor of Education;...
