When Craig Odell Raynsford ‘77 (B.A. history) arrived at UC Irvine in the early 1970s, the campus was still finding its footing as one of the newest universities in the UC system. Our 60th anniversary alumni series continues with Raynsford, who attended UCI when Greek life was brand new, most students commuted and campus life was just beginning to take shape.
Raynsford embraced every opportunity UCI offered. He rowed crew at dawn in Newport Bay, helped establish a fraternity chapter and spent his junior year studying abroad at the University of Nairobi. He even met his wife, Kathleen Raynsford '77 (B.A. art history), while attending UCI.
After graduating, Raynsford earned his law degree from Georgetown University and spent four decades in public service with the United States Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security. His career took him across the world, but his humanities education remained the foundation for everything that followed.
What made you choose UCI for your education, given how new the university was at that time?
It was the newest campus in the University of California system which was already notable nationwide for excellence in academics, scholarship and research. It offered a variety of extracurricular activities and, perhaps most importantly, it was just a few miles away from my family home and the beach! UCI offered challenges, new horizons and an opportunity to expand my knowledge in so many areas.
When I was a child my grandfather drove me up the dirt roads on the Irvine Ranch to a point overlooking the property where UCI now stands. Gazing out at the pastures below, he remarked, “There will soon be a great university built on that land below us, one that will offer students an educational gateway to the world. You might want to consider applying to attend this university.” I have never forgotten this subtle advice. He was a wise man.
What inspired you to choose your specific major and career path?
In high school I developed an interest in law, international relations and finding a career that would allow me to help others on a global level. Basically, I was focused on the future and how I could contribute to our country and in our dealings with other countries and their respective populations.
The challenge for me was finding an occupation that supported my career interests. I also thought that understanding the past, how societies and countries developed over the centuries, would allow me to grasp where we are now and suggest options for worldwide development in the future. With that in mind I chose history as my undergraduate major followed by law school for my doctorate degree.
Forty years of public service in Washington D.C. with the United States Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security as an attorney, international negotiator, administrator, policy creator, advisor and representative allowed me to fulfill my career objectives.
What was student life and campus culture like when you attended?
UCI was a commuter student campus. Period. There were limited dorms and only a few gathering places for students other than Gateway Commons for cafeteria-style meals, the AntTrap lounge behind the Humanities Building (with billiard tables, a TV and an outdoor equipment rental shop where I was a work-study student) and the small student center with the bookstore, Kinko’s copy center and Don Vito’s Pizza restaurant. Even today several of my friends from college remark how they basically just went to class and then drove home.
My freshman year was the first for fraternities and sororities on campus. Wayzgoose, a large student fair located in what is now Aldrich Park, was held once a year (I was convinced to dress up in the Wayzgoose suit – basically a big yellow feathery bird costume – one year). There was also a small student farm on campus and produce was sold on a table in front of the library on Gateway Plaza.
What student organizations, events, programs or other extracurriculars were you involved with?
I rowed crew my freshman year. I vividly remember rowing in a shell in Newport Bay at dawn and having homeowners living on Lido Isle flip their dock lights on for us as we passed by.
I was a founding member of a nationwide fraternity at UCI. I held most officer positions (President, Secretary, Rush Chairman, Inter-Fraternity Council Representative, etc.) and traveled to Mackinac Island, Michigan, for a national fraternity convention and Seattle, Washington, for a regional workshop while a student at UCI.
In my junior year I participated in the UCI Education Abroad Program studying at the University of Nairobi in Nairobi, Kenya. In addition to studying, the three other UC students and I went on month-long safaris, attended a United Nations Conference, climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and Mt. Kenya, dove off the coast of Mombasa, traveled throughout Kenya and Tanzania and lived for a time with a Maasai Tribe in Northern Kenya where we went out hunting lions with the Maasai Warriors (they got the lion that had attacked their village earlier). On our safaris I remember our Land Rover being charged by both elephants and rhinos.
Looking back, how do you think your UCI education impacted your life and career path after graduation?
My love for history was only intensified by my studies at UCI. Throughout my career and personal life I traveled to many different countries with rich histories and sought out places I had read about in my studies.
On one of my dozens of trips to Cuba during the Cold War, I was offered the opportunity to spend a day alone in the modest home of Ernest Hemingway on a hilltop outside of Havana. It was preserved exactly as he had left it. At that time few people were allowed to visit. I sat in his chairs in the living room reading the books in his library that were inscribed by the authors or celebrities that had given them to him. I wandered into the dining room observing the animal head trophies he had gathered on a safari in Kenya, the same areas in which I had traveled. I walked into his bathroom noting his handwritten lists on the walls and back of the door where he recorded the date and his weight each day. Finally, I sat at his small desk in his bedroom where his typewriter, the one on which he had written so many memorable passages, stood. It was an eight-hour opportunity to take in so much history.
Studying art history with Professor Philip Leider at UCI enhanced the love for historical art that had already been instilled by my father and grandfather. On a professional trip to the Office of the President of Mexico I was able to gaze at the murals of Diego Rivera on the walls of the Presidential Palace. Remembering my studies only added to the privilege I felt at being able to see his works at this location.
What skills, life lessons or relationships from your UCI years proved most valuable in your adult life?
First and foremost, I met my wife Kathleen at UCI. Graduating from UCI with B.A in art history in 1977, she went on to USC law school and graduated with a J.D. in 1981. We have been married for forty-three years, have two daughters and two grandchildren.
I also have been fortunate to have stayed in contact with about twenty of my classmates from UCI. Several of these have been very close friends. We were in or attended each other’s weddings, traveled the globe together, raised our children together, celebrated each other’s successes and were there to offer support in difficult times. We mourned the passing of our parents and celebrated the birth of our grandchildren.
I have been very fortunate to have so many friends from my days at UCI.
What advice would you give current UCI students or soon-to-be alumni?
Plan and participate. Attending a great university like UCI is a privilege. It has many things to offer and is a gateway to so many opportunities in your life. Don’t wait for the opportunities to come to you, seek them out. From the time you arrive on campus investigate the academic and extracurricular opportunities available. Explore student government activities, campus clubs and organizations, sports, the arts and seriously consider participating in the Education Abroad Program. Plan ahead so that you can experience a variety of these offerings while pursuing your academic studies. In terms of academic studies, meet with a counselor to see how your classes can be arranged to permit you to meet the requirements of several degrees at the same time. Make the most of your time at UCI, the years will pass quickly.
Interested in reading more from the School of Humanities? Sign up for our monthly newsletter.