Joan Mansour : An Oral History
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Joan MacKinnon Mansour, a former researcher in the Department of Chemical and Systems Biology and spouse of the late Tag Eldin Mansour, shares memories of the Stanford Department of Pharmacology, her research on schistosomiasis, and her family life and day-to-day activities. Additional topics include: establishing the department’s Mansour Prizes, the impact of the Loma Prieta earthquake on the Mansours’ lab and home, the Stanford Women’s Faculty Club, and music at Stanford.
- Summary
- Part 1 [00:00:00 – 00:32:14] Family background • Origins of interest in music and science • Meeting husband Tag in Ernest Bueding’s pharmacology lab at Western Reserve University • Move to New Orleans • Memories of New Orleans: racial segregation, League of Women Voters • Trips to Egypt and the Middle East • Children • Memories of trips to Syria and Kuwait • Coming to the Department of Pharmacology at Stanford in 1961[00:32:15 – 01:18:50] Research partnership with Tag and work in the lab on schistosomiasis • Women’s Faculty Club; Stanford Homeowners Association • Memories of anti-Vietnam War protests during sabbatical in Madison, Wisconsin • Impact of 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake on lab • Description and extent of schistosomiasis • Thoughts on department name change • Department retreats at Asilomar • Mansour Prizes • Avram Goldstein and Dora Goldstein • Impact of nepotism rules of women researchers • Names of other departmental chairs • Memories of Tag Mansour • Musical activities as Stanford • John Chowning •Retirement activities Part 2 [00:00:00 – 00:32:45] Playing in the Stanford symphony orchestra • Building a house at Stanford • Day-to-day life, including babysitting co-op and interaction with students • Experiments involving worms and LSD • US Navy support of the Mansours’ research • Tag as artist; Joan’s ikebana hobby • Thoughts on change of department’s name [00:32:45 – 00:58:44] Sabbaticals; consulting with medical schools in Middle East • Connections with other Egyptians in US, including Ashraf Ghorbal • Faculty Women’s Club activities • Asilomar retreats • Lab activities; Stanford collaboration with the MacArthur Foundation Consortium on the Biology of Parasitic Diseases [00:58:45 – 01:26:31] Interactions with Stanford visitors • League of Women Voters and other activities • Change over time at Stanford; earthquake damage to lab and home • Memories of department faculty
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Extent | 1 text file |
| Place | Stanford (Calif.) |
| Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
| Date created | April 8, 2021 - 2021-04-15 |
| Language | English |
| Digital origin | born digital |
Creators/Contributors
| Interviewee | Mansour, Joan MacKinnon | |
|---|---|---|
| Creator | Mansour, Joan MacKinnon | |
| Interviewer | Lee, Theresa | |
| Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
Subjects
| Subject | Mansour, Joan MacKinnon |
|---|---|
| Subject | Stanford University. School of Medicine. Division of Clinical Pharmacology |
| Subject | Stanford University. School of Medicine. Chemical and Systems Biology |
| Subject | Schistosomiasis |
| Genre | Interview |
Bibliographic information
| Biographical Profile | Joan MacKinnon Mansour was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1930. She attended Cleveland Heights High School and Oberlin College where she majored in chemistry and received her bachelor of science degree in 1952. From 1952 to 1954, she studied biochemistry and pharmacology at Western Reserve University Medical School and worked as a researcher in the lab of Ernest Bueding, where she met Tag Eldin Mansour, a postdoctoral researcher and Fulbright Fellow from Egypt. They married in 1955 and worked in New Orleans before Tag Mansour joined the faculty of the Department of Pharmacology at Stanford University School of Medicine in 1961. From 1972 to 2000, she worked as a part-time researcher in Tag Mansour’s lab in the Department of Pharmacology, focusing on the study of schistosomiasis, an infection caused by a parasitic worm. She is the co-author of seventeen journal articles on Schistosoma mansoni, the liver fluke Fasciola hepatica, and related topics and a contributor to the book Chemotherapeutic Targets in Parasites (2002). After her husband’s death in 2011, she established the Tag E. Mansour Fund in the Department of Chemical and Systems Biology to encourage students, post-doctoral fellows, and faculty to increase skills in scientific communication. The department annually awards Mansour Prizes to recognize excellent publications, talks, and poster presentations. An accomplished musician, Joan Mansour participated in many musical organizations at Stanford, including playing percussion with the Stanford Orchestra, the Wind Ensemble, the Commencement Band, and the Memorial Church Choir. She was president of the Stanford Campus Leaseholders Association for ten years and an active community volunteer and member of the Women’s Faculty Club and the League of Women Voters. She is the mother of daughters Suzanne and Jeanne and son Dean. |
|---|---|
| Audio |
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| Finding Aid | |
| Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/df948pb4426 |
| Location | SC0932 |
| Repository | Stanford University. Libraries. Department of Special Collections and University Archives |
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- The materials are open for research use and may be used freely for non-commercial purposes with an attribution. For commercial permission requests, please contact the Stanford University Archives (universityarchives@stanford.edu).
- Copyright
- Copyright © The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
Collection
Stanford Historical Society Oral History Program interviews, 1999-2022
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