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Juanita Kreps grew up in coal-mining Harlan County, Kentucky, but eventually made her way to Durham, North Carolina, where she earned a Ph.D. in economics, and Washington, D.C., where she served as Secretary of Commerce in the Carter administration. In this interview, Kreps remembers a career, as she puts it, "of proposing things before people are ready to accept them." Such things included the notion that women should seek out satisfying careers, a proposal to extend the age of eligibility for Social Security, and that day care should be provided for working women. Kreps herself, a female academic during World War II and already a professional success as women began to push for economic equality, was ahead of her time. This interview provides a brief biography of a woman who made a strong case for women's rights before the women's movement gained momentum.

Vivid memories of violent mining strikes

Black and white men and women mingle at Berea College

Being a woman kept Kreps out of WWII

Encouraging women to find satisfaction as professionals, not just as mothers

Kreps avers that she embraces the label "feminist"

Ideas before their time and national day care for working women

Slow problem-solving in government

Finding aid to the Southern Oral History Program Collection

Database of all Southern Oral History Program Collection interviews

Southern Women Trailblazers Learning Object

University administrators--North Carolina

Women economists--North Carolina

Women in politics--North Carolina