Materials are arranged in the order created during the interview process with the first file containing administrative materials created before, during and after the interview.
Accession No. PA.2000.0019: Helen Gerasimou, 2000 April
[identification of item], Helen Gerasimou Oral History, SPEC.PA.56.0043, Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center Archival Program, Ohio State University
Contains audiocassettes.
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Processed by: Devon Boerman, 2019 December; Finding aid written by: Devon Boerman, 2019 December
Helen Gerasimou served as a secretary for various United States government departments, including for the Ordinance Section of the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense, and the War Assets Administration, and for a patent attorney. In June 1954, Gerasimou started her position at the National Science Foundation (NSF) as an Executive Secretary and Office Administrator for the Division of Biology and Medicine. In 1959, Gerasimou transferred to the Office of Polar Programs, where she did administrative and personnel work for Director Tom Jones. Some of Gerasimou's duties included transcribing the experiences, reports and research from men who returned from Antarctica, handling personnel and logistic decisions for the Office of Polar Programs' first research vessel, the
The Helen Gerasimou Oral History, dated 2000-2001, contains audiocassettes, administrative information and a transcript of the interview between Gerasimou and Brian Shoemaker of the American Polar Society that took place on April 18, 2000 regarding Gerasimou's experiences as secretary and administrative assistant for the National Science Foundation, Office of Polar Programs. This interview was a part of a series of polar oral histories sponsored by American Polar Society and Ohio State University's Byrd Polar Research Center Archival Program, with funding from the National Science Foundation. Major topics of the oral history include the National Science Foundation and how Gerasimou got involved in the organization, the establishment and history of the Office of Polar Programs, the working relationships between Gerasimou and various Polar Program administrators, the supplies needed for Antarctic and Arctic travel and exploration, and policy changes in the Office of Polar Programs.