Craik, Mary

https://reflections.mndigital.org/catalog/stc:6828#/kaltura_audio

Biographical Information: Mary Craik was born in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1924. Her family was very poor, and her father received only a second grade education. However, she finished high school in 1942, and worked several part-time jobs in the area before marrying her husband in 1945, who was in the Air Force. Craik did not consider attending college until 1951, when her husband went to Korea and she had given birth to three children. Her intellectual curiosity led her to begin attending college, eventually receiving her bachelor's degree in 1960 from the University of Texas at El Paso. Craik almost immediately began attending night classes in pursuit of a master's degree (which she earned from the University of Texas at El Paso in 1963) and later a doctorate in Educational Psychology in 1968 from the University of Iowa. In 1968, she came to St. Cloud State, where she began teaching in the Psychology department. At St. Cloud State, she helped establish a Psychology of Women Course, and also assisted in creating a Women's Studies minor. After being passed over for a promotion as chairperson, she filed a lawsuit against the university in 1976 that took 9 years to settle. The lawsuit led her to take an early retirement. Craik initially lost the suit, but upon appeal, the court ruled in her favor.

Transcript Summary: Craik described her family and educational background and how that affected her ideas about women and women's rights. Craik grew up in Kentucky, depicting her family as "hillbillies," since they were very poor and not very educated. She talked about getting married and having children young, then feeling an "intellectual curiosity" that forced her to pursue further education. She also discussed her time in Cambridge, England, where her husband was stationed for three and a half years, and how it inspired her to further her education. Craik detailed her decision to pursue her master's and doctorate degrees after taking almost 8 years to earn a bachelor's degree.

Craik discussed her arrival at St. Cloud State. She spoke of her efforts to establish a Women's Studies program, particularly her course called "Psychology of Women," which was immediately very popular. She also talked about the purpose of establishing that course, as well as some of the effects that course had on students' lives.

Craik chronicled the discrimination she encountered at SCSU, not just in her own experiences, but in that of other women and men. She detailed about what she believes changed, regarding the role of women, their salaries, and eligibility for promotion, in the 15 years she spent at St. Cloud State. In addition, Craik addressed some of the positive effects of her lawsuit, including the money it brought to some women on campus.