This oral history project explores the historical, social, and cultural impact of Goucher College through the personal experiences and perceptions of its Black alumnae/i. By capturing firsthand accounts, this project examines how individual and collective memories shape the understanding of Goucher’s evolving identity and its role in broader societal contexts. The college experience is an intensely formative time that challenges students to go beyond what they have learned academically and socially. For many, it is the first time they are living in a community different from the one they were raised in. Through this project, we learn more about this period of self-discovery and the importance of the college experience through the accounts of our narrators.
This goal of examining topics of evolution in identity will also be accomplished by exploring not only the evolving alumni experiences at Goucher throughout the decades, but by narrowing in on Black alumni experiences specifically. Their perspectives are particularly valuable for the sake of this project because Black students are a crucial part of the story of Goucher’s evolving identity as an institution. At its inception, Goucher was an institution built on land that had previously housed one of the largest slave plantations in Maryland. This history is in stark contrast with the racial demographics of Goucher today, which is now made up primarily by people of color. By conducting interviews with a broad range of Black alumni of Goucher throughout the decades, we will construct a collection of accounts centered around the central theme of evolving identities as a part of the college experience, both at the individual and collective institutional level.
