This audio interview with Allen Tate, conducted by Martica Sawin, primarily concerns the evolution of the Interior Design Department of Parsons School of Design into the Environmental Design Department. Tate discusses his recruitment by William Katavolos, how he became department chair in 1969, the personalities involved in the contentious debates surrounding the department's direction, and his eventual termination in 1981. Tate's animosity toward... faculty member Stanley Barrows (also interviewed for this project) is a reoccurring theme throughout the interview. Also covered is the merger between Parsons School of Design and the New School for Social Research in 1970. Unlike other interviews conducted for this project, alumni are not discussed, although Tate shares his assessment of former faculty members and school administrators.