Jeff Wachtel : An Oral History
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Jeff Wachtel, the Executive Director Emeritus of the Knight-Hennessy Scholars and senior assistant to Stanford University President John Hennessy from 2000 to 2016, reflects on his time at Stanford as an undergraduate, his various staff roles, and his work as a member of the university’s senior leadership team. Wachtel describes his upbringing in New York, how he came to attend Stanford, and his years as a student in the 1970s, highlighting his work as a resident assistant, his coursework in psychology and urban studies, and memorable aspects of student life. He describes returning to Stanford in the 1980s as a staff member, first in the Housing Office and then helping to establish the Continuing Studies Program. Turning to his time as John Hennessy’s assistant, Wachtel describes his role, recounts accomplishments and challenges, and provides insight into Hennessy’s leadership style. Topics of discussion include funding new initiatives and interdisciplinary research; handling protests on campus; selecting commencement speakers; and managing the President’s Office correspondence. Wachtel concludes by describing the establishment of the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program and the design of Denning House.
- Summary
- Part 1 [00:00:00 – 00:31:32] Growing up in New York City • Studying abroad in Greece as a high school student and meeting a group of Stanford students there • Parents’ love of art, architecture, and music • Studying timpani with Roland Kohloff of the New York Philharmonic • Interest in urban studies • Relationship with grandparents • Jewish upbringing • Education at Hunter Elementary and Horace Mann School • Independent study project in high school on theater • Transition from New York City to Palo Alto • Freshman seminar on the psychology of shyness with Phil Zimbardo • Urban Studies Program • Memories of open air Marguerite shuttles and temporary housing in trailers [00:31:33 – 01:01:54] Dorm life and working as a resident assistant • Student life in the 1970s: Rinca-Delts party, welcoming new students, football games, the Band, and more • Meeting future wife Gwyn during student body president elections • Attending UC Berkeley for urban planning and UC Hastings for law school • Returning to Stanford as an employee in the Housing Office • Scope of the faculty housing system at Stanford and role of Housing Office [01:01:55 – 01:29:18] Services provided by the Housing Office; ground rent • Controversy over eucalyptus trees • Dealing with conflicts • Friendship with Dan DeYoung and Marv Herrington • Controversy over the Reagan Library siting • Decision to not allow dogs at the Dish • Role of the Housing Office in faculty recruitment • Housing Office in the 1980s • Starting up the Stanford Continuing Studies Program with Professor Marsh McCall [01:29:19 – 01:49:41] Managing Stanford’s summer session • Pushback at Stanford’s involvement in continuing education • Effort to allow STAP funding to be used for Continuing Studies courses • Popular course on leadership; memories of John W. Gardner • Establishment of the Master of Liberal Arts program • Transition to the Institute for International Studies Part 2 [00:00:00 – 00:32:42] Meeting John Hennessy and interviewing for a position in the Provost’s Office • Hennessy’s transition from provost to president • Process for hiring deans, particularly at the Medical School • Planning for Bing Concert Hall • Advice from Don Kennedy • Hennessy’s approach to funding new initiatives • Memorable initiatives: student-led program to bring Iraqi college students to Stanford; Bio-X • Amount and structure of president’s discretionary funds [00:32:43 – 01:00:27] Acting as ambassador for the President’s Office • Strategies for handling protesters at the President’s Office • Issues surrounding the Westboro Baptist Church protests in Palo Alto and at Stanford • Threat assessment committee • Sit-in in Building 10 • Fossil-Free Stanford protests • Selecting commencement speakers • Memories of commencement speeches by Ken Burns, Alejandro Toledo, and Steve Jobs [01:00:28 – 01:31:28] Handling difficult correspondence coming to the President’s Office • Free speech issues on campus • Effort to build a Stanford campus in New York • NCAA recertification process • Arts initiative • Creation of a Vice Provost for Graduate Education position • Hennessy’s leadership team and style • Hennessy’s working relationship with Provost John Etchemendy [01:31:29 – 02:02:30] Working with the deans • Hennessy as president continued • Connecting with students • Role as the secretary of the Board of Trustees • Stanford’s response to the 2008-2009 financial crisis • Establishment of Cardinal Service • Knight-Hennessy program • Building plans for Denning House • Receiving the Cuthbertson Award for exceptional service to the university • Stanford’s meaning to Wachtel
Description
| Type of resource | moving image, sound recording-nonmusical, text |
|---|---|
| Extent | 2 video files; 2 audio files; 1 text file |
| Place | Stanford (Calif.) |
| Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
| Date created | December 2, 2020 - 2020-12-03 |
| Language | English |
| Digital origin | born digital |
Creators/Contributors
| Interviewee | Wachtel, Jeff | |
|---|---|---|
| Creator | Wachtel, Jeff | |
| Interviewer | Marine-Street, Natalie J. | |
| Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
Subjects
| Subject | Stanford Department of Faculty Staff Housing |
|---|---|
| Subject | Stanford Continuing Studies |
| Subject | Stanford University. Office of the President |
| Genre | Interview |
Bibliographic information
| Biographical Profile | Jeff Wachtel is the Executive Director Emeritus of the Knight-Hennessy Scholars. He served as senior assistant to Stanford University President John Hennessy from 2000 to 2016. In this role, he provided advice and counsel to President Hennessy and represented the President’s Office to individuals and organizations both within and outside the university. Wachtel holds a bachelor’s degree in urban studies and psychology from Stanford University, a master’s degree in city planning from the University of California-Berkeley, and a JD from the University of California Hastings College of Law. He is the 2017 recipient of the Kenneth M. Cuthbertson Award, which recognizes exceptional service to Stanford University. |
|---|---|
| Transcript |
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| Finding Aid | |
| Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/qc351vx9331 |
| 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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