AC_1965_Web

14 AN T I OC H CO L L E G E C L A S S O F 19 6 5 5 0 t h A N N I V E R S A R Y B O O K A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z B R E S L A U E R BRESLAUER HELEN J. Helen at Allan Gardens, Nov. 2013. THEN AND NOW 4 B.A. Sociology and Anthropology 4 M.A., Sociology, Rutgers 4 M.Phil., Sociology, Rutgers 4 Ph.D., Sociology, Rutgers FAMI LY 4 Husband, Robert Frankford 4 Three stepdaughters, Emma, Liz and Rachael 4 Five grandchildren ADDRESS 4 130 Carlton St., Apt. 1204 Toronto, Ontario M5A 4K3 Canada CONTACT 416 922-6358 hbrf@ca.inter.net A N T I O C H WA S R E A L L Y the only college I wanted to attend. I had learned about it from camp coun- selors who had been students at Antioch, and from my camp director, Danny Hotaling, who spent many years in the Co-op administration at the College. The Co-op program and Antioch Education Abroad were very bright beacons for me, and I subsequently participated enthusias- tically in both. I was a “late bloomer” at Antioch.Whereas playing bridge in the C-Shop occupied far too much of my time in the early years, I came back from the AEA experi- ence a much more serious student. I was a Sociology major, and had had the opportunity to study with Ralf Dahrendorf at the University of Tübingen. As I contemplated what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, Ev Wilson, Chair of Sociology at Antioch played a big part in the de- cision. I had assumed for many years that I would follow in my moth- er’s footsteps and become a social worker. Further exposure to the world made me think that would not suit me. I contemplated going into Industrial Psychology, and in particular working with the airline industry, which might satisfy both my interest in people and my love of travel. I needed to find a gradu- ate program that would prepare me for such a career. I went to see Ev to speak to him about these im- portant decisions.“Don’t be ridicu- lous, Helen,” he said “you are going to study Sociology and become a Sociologist!”Anyone who knew Ev also knew better than to argue with him when he spoke in that tone! And study sociology I did. I went on to Rutgers—the State University of New Jersey and received an M.A. (1967), M.Phil. (1969) and Ph.D. (1978) in sociology. In 1970, I was of- fered a position as lecturer (and sub- sequently assistant professor) in so- ciology at the University of Toronto. Amidst dire warnings from some faculty and fellow graduate students that such a move was the road to a life-time without a Ph.D., and equally dire warnings from others that to stay longer at graduate school was the road to becoming an eternal stu- dent, I decided to go.The truth, as it turned out, was somewhere in the middle. Full-time teaching, funded research projects, and service that included university-level high-pow- ered committees (e.g., Presidential Search Committee), college-level high-powered committees (e.g.,“the future of the college within the uni- versity system”), department-level high-powered committees (e.g., hiring, tenure and promotion) did not leave a lot of time to work on a Ph.D. thesis.With the promotion to Assistant Professor, the tenure clock ticked away, and came due without the finished thesis in hand. And so, I left the university, finally had the time to finish my thesis and get my Ph.D., and then had to decide whether to stay in Toronto, go else- where in Canada, return to the U.S., or go somewhere completely differ- ent. I decided I wanted to stay and fell into a position I was to hold for the next 16 years. I became the Senior Research Officer of an orga- nization that represented faculty associations and unions that repre- sented both faculty members and academic librarians in the Province of Ontario. I loved what I did. I repre- sented “labour,” (although many uni- versity professors did not find that a comfortable term with which to describe themselves) and was work- ing, if not in the university, then cer- tainly for and of the university.That position also gave me the opportu- nity, among other things, to work with committees addressing first is- sues of gender discrimination and subsequently other equity issues of ethnicity, race, disability, sexual ori- entation and more.When I left the organization, I went out on my own as a consultant, primarily to univer-