Sue the Baker

·1 hr 25 min·1 clip

"I was a woman of childbearing capacity" kept Sue Baker out of a Borden vinyl chloride plant.

1. Real Stories Podcast's "Sue Baker" centers on Sue Baker, Graham, and Brian, with the show moving from season three chatter into Sue's route from upper Sandusky to Ohio State and Campbell's. 2. Sue Baker is the guest, Graham and Brian host the conversation, and Sue's mother, Carol Drew, matters because Sue says her mother chose to raise her after a foster-home placement. 3. The episode's hook is Sue's career path: chemical engineering at Ohio State, a move into food science, and jobs at Campbell's Soup and a Borden plant that changed her plans. 4. Sue says her mother was a single mom in Toledo, had her in 1964 or 1965, and brought her home after changing her mind about adoption. 5. Sue describes growing up in upper Sandusky, going to East and South schools, and starting kindergarten at St. Paul's with Betty Stein in the church basement. 6. She says Dean McCutcheon at upper Sandusky High School pushed her toward engineering because she was strong in math and problem-solving. 7. At Ohio State, Sue lived in Barrett House on North campus, studied chemical engineering, and had about $486 a quarter in tuition. 8. Sue explains that she and other women petitioned the chemical engineering chairman to take ag-engineering electives instead of plastics or petroleum courses. 9. She says a Borden factory making vinyl chloride would not let her enter because she was "a woman of childbearing capacity," and a refinery explosion helped convince her to leave sales. 10. Anyone interested in Ohio State, food science, or women in engineering.

As heard by us

A family story about food science, hard work, and Hot Pockets.

Real Stories centers Sue Baker and the family background that shaped her, from a mother who returned to school to a father on swing shift, with a home life marked by oatmeal and written instructions.

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Press play if you want food science to sound like a family ledger.

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