Dickinson Magazine Winter 2023

Snow Much Fun

Pictured from left to right, Charlisse Suarez ’25, Amanda Altamirano ’25 and Ava Nienstadt ’25 making the most of a late January snowstorm.

Photo by Meg Cravinho ’25.

HERE & THERE

kudos 2 | small-business spotlight 4 | your view 5 | in the game 9

DISTINCTIVELY DICKINSON

Impact Player 8

Meet Saul Iwowo ’26, a first-year Red Devil soccer player who’s definitely one to watch.

PAST & PRESENT

our Dickinson 26 | obituaries 46

President’s Report 12

See how Dickinson Forward is making an impact, from the Campaign for Scholarships to engagement and inclusivity initiatives to campus enhancements.

Service Under Fire 48

Travel to Ukraine with emergency nurse practitioner Fred Barton ’09 as he serves in a war zone.

President John E. Jones III ’77, P’11

Vice President of Marketing & Communications Connie McNamara

Editor Lauren Davidson

Designer Amanda DeLorenzo College Photographer Dan Loh

Contributing Writers

MaryAlice Bitts-Jackson

Matt Getty

Tony Moore

Magazine Advisory Board

Alexander Becket ’08

Catherine McDonald Davenport ’87

Jim Gerencser ’93

Gregory Lockard ’03

David O’Connell

Carlo Robustelli

Megan Shelley Dapp ’05

Adrienne Su

Alisa Valudes Whyte ’93

© Dickinson College 2023. Dickinson Magazine (USPS Permit No. 19568, ISSN 2719134) is published four times a year, in January, April, July and October, by Dickinson College, P.O. Box 1773, Carlisle, Cumberland County, PA 17013-1773. Periodicals postage paid at Carlisle, PA, and additional mailing office.

Address changes may be sent to Dickinson Magazine, Dickinson College, P.O. Box 1773, Carlisle, PA 17013-2896.

www.dickinson.edu/magazine | dsonmag@dickinson.edu | 717-245-1289

Printed by Progress Printing Plus in Lynchburg, Va.

PRODUCTION NOTE

Due to supply-chain challenges in the paper industry, we are swapping stock, so this issue might look and feel a bit different! This issue is printed using wind energy and soy-based inks on Opus paper, which is sustainably produced in the United States by Sappi.

Dickinson College is an intellectual and social community that values justice, free inquiry, diversity and equal opportunity. It is a fundamental policy of the college to respect pluralism, civility and mutual understanding within its community. The college does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, religion, age, veteran status, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation or any other protected class.

DICKINSON MAGAZINE

Winter 2023 | Volume 100 | Number 3

ON THE COVER

Daniel Vasquez ’24, an international business & management major from Massachusetts, studying for final exams in the library. Read more about Daniel on Page 11. Photo by Dan Loh.

Head to the web for more.

View a related video.

Dan Loh

Dickinson.edu/inthenews

Featured Faculty

Associate Professor of Environmental Studies

Heather Bedi co-published The Great Goan Land Grab with Goa 1556, a publisher located in India. She also authored a chapter, “A Just Energy Transition in India?” in Energy Democracies for Sustainable Futures .

Prevention magazine featured Senior Lecturer in Psychology Michele Ford in an article on selfconcept.

Assistant Professor of Psychology Azriel “Azi” Grysman co-published “Accuracy and Reconstruction in Autobiographical Memory: (Re) Consolidating Neuroscience and Sociocultural Developmental Approaches” in WIREs Cognitive Science

Professor of Psychology Marie Helweg-Larsen appeared on The Pulse on WHYY-FM, Philadelphia’s NPR member station, where she discussed the psychology of the so-called zipper merge. The Wall Street Journal included comments from Helweg-Larsen in a story about fighting seasonal depression, and she published an article on dealing with holiday stress (Danish-style) in The Conversation

Professor of Biology Dave Kushner led a national team of virologists to develop curricular guidelines for undergraduate and graduate virology courses. A synopsis of these guidelines was published in Journal of Virology in September.

PennLive/The Patriot-News published Associate Professor of Political Science Kathleen Marchetti ’s opinion piece, “I Survived a Stroke and Open-heart Surgery. I’m Confident John Fetterman Can Be a Senator.” The Pennsylvania Capital-Star published an opinion piece by Marchetti titled “I’m a Stroke Survivor: The Fetterman-Oz Debate Shows the Challenges We Face.”

Phys.org and Quick Telecast published stories quoting Associate Professor of Economics and Data Analytics Emily Marshall about a study on COVID’s impact on home-court advantage in NCAA basketball games.

Visiting Professor of International Security Studies

Jeff McCausland appeared on Global News Morning, the morning newscast on Global Television Network’s stations in Canada, to discuss the state of the war in Ukraine. He also discussed the conflict on select CBS Radio stations nationwide on The John Batchelor Show/CBS Eye on the World and on the Decisive Point Podcast. McCausland was quoted extensively in a CNN.com piece on the war in Ukraine and what causes armies to lose the will to fight.

Al Jazeera interviewed Associate Professor of Political Science Sarah Niebler for a preview story on the U.S. Senate race in Pennsylvania. Niebler also shared thoughts with PennLive/ The Patriot-News on what Donald Trump’s newly announced presidential candidacy could mean for Pennsylvania.

Associate Professor of Political Science David O’Connell appeared on WITF’s The Spark to discuss the results of the midterm elections and put President Joe Biden’s first two years in office into historical context.

The Modern Language Association of America presented its 15th Lois Roth Award for a translation of a literary work. An honorable mention will be given to Mariana Past , associate professor of Spanish and Portuguese Studies, and Benjamin Hebblethwaite, associate professor in Haitian Creole and Haitian and francophone studies at the University of Florida, for their translation of Michel-Rolph Trouillot’s Stirring the Pot of Haitian History, published by Liverpool University Press.

Associate Professor of English Siobhan Phillips published a review in Bookforum on a new biography of George Balanchine.

Professor of Music Robert Pound was invited to give a pre-performance lecture for the Harrisburg Symphony in February 2022. His mass setting A Lenton Ordynary, which premiered in March 2020 at the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, New York, and was reprised there in March 2022, has been selected by St. Mary’s organist and Choirmaster David Hurd to be performed at the cathedral on the first Sunday of Lent each year. Pound’s trio The Dance of Death was performed on March 23 as a part of the 40th-anniversary celebrations of Market Square Concerts in Harrisburg. In August 2022, Pound served as co-producer of Cleveland Orchestra trumpeter Jack Sutte’s album Sonata Palooza, Vol. III, due for release

in 2023. Pound’s epic, hourlong Sonata in Memoriam Lloyd Arriola , completed during his 2020-21 residency at the Hermitage Artist Retreat (Englewood, Fla.), received its premiere by pianist Charles Hulin IV at the Lasker Music Festival (Lasker, N.C.) on July 8 and was reprised at Dickinson on Sept. 16. His original music as recorded by the Dickinson Faculty Jazz Quintet was featured in the premiere production of the play What Passes for Comedy at the Chain Theatre in New York City, Oct. 28-Nov. 19. Pound’s chaconne and chaser for bass clarinet and marimba is scheduled for performance at the Low Clarinet Festival in Glendale, Ariz., in January.

Associate Professor of French & Francophone and Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies

Mireille Rebeiz published an opinion piece in Inside Higher Ed on pervasive ignorance about the Arab American community. Additionally, PennLive/The Patriot-News published her opinion piece “Policing Women’s Bodies: The Case of Mahsa Amini.” Two of Rebeiz’s opinion pieces, “Orientalism and the Erasure of Middle Easterners in Black Adam ” and “Historic Game on the Horizon: U.S. Faces Iran Once More,” were published by The Markaz Review. Additionally, PennLive/The Patriot-News published her opinion piece “Veterans Like Jeff Have Stories to Tell. Americans Need to Hear Them.”

Administrator Accolades

International Educator quoted Associate Provost and Executive Director of the Center for Global Study & Engagement Samantha Brandauer ’95 in its story on supporting international students who wish to study abroad.

Business Insider interviewed President John E. Jones III ’77, P’11 , for an extensive piece on judicial security, with two follow-up pieces that also heavily featured Jones’ commentary. Jones was among a nonpartisan group of former judges associated with the nonprofit Keep Our Republic calling for patience in waiting for counties to report results from Election Day. Jones was quoted extensively in City & State PA, The Pennsylvania Capital-Star, PennLive/The PatriotNews and WHP-TV CBS 21. He also discussed voting laws in a USA Today article and talked about the Supreme Court ruling on undated mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania on This Week in Pennsylvania Jones also discussed the death of Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Max Baer on WHTMTV ABC27 and WGAL-TV 8. A staff column in the Gettysburg Times lauded Jones’ inauguration and his reputation for integrity. The Shippensburg News- Chronicle and Newville Valley Times-Star also ran notices of Jones’ inauguration.

College Archivist Jim Gerencser ’93 and the Carlisle Indian School Digital Resource Center were mentioned in “Surviving Genocide: Native Boarding School Archives Reveal Defiance, Loss & Love,” a report by The74Million.org, a national reporting project focused on education. KRBDFM, the NPR member station in Ketchikan, Alaska, included information about the Carlisle Indian School Digital Resource Center in its reporting on how native students from southeast Alaska were enrolled in the school more than 100 years ago.

Assistant Farm Manager Matt Steiman and the College Farm were featured by The Cool Down in the article “Scientists Have Discovered How to Turn Cow Manure Into Electricity—Here’s Why That Matters.”

WHTM-TV ABC27 reported on the college’s decision to remove the $65 application fee in the interest of ensuring equity and greater access to the admissions process.

Kudos as of Dec. 9.

A Charles E. Kaufman Foundation Integrated Research-Education grant for a project titled “Reprogramming Acute Myeloid Leukemia Cells Toward Cell Cycle Arrest and Death” was awarded to Associate Professor of Biology Michael Roberts (PI) and Associate Professor of Mathematics and Data Analytics Jeffrey Forrester (co-investigator). The two-year, $100,000 grant will fund Dickinson student researchers during the academic year and summers from December 2022 to January 2025.

Small-Business Spotlight

Dickinson celebrates and supports alumni-owned enterprises! From the information technology and security category:

• ANALYSISPLACE (Julie Goodwill Hall ’91; Pittsburgh) Provides the Excel-to-Word document automation add-in, which automates updating of Excel-based content into Word and PowerPoint documents, and builds custom assessment tools. analysisplace.com/Document-Automation

• ELNEL CONSULTING LLC (Ellen Poris Robin ’87; Washington, D.C., Metro Area)

A leading provider of professional custom software development, specifically in the areas of AWS/cloud computing, full stack engineering and legacy systems. Also offers contract management consulting services. elnel.com

• ELYNXX SOLUTIONS (William Gindlesperger ’68; Chambersburg, Pa.) Provides cloud software for specifying, sourcing and managing direct mail, marketing, promo and print. Clients include Fortune 500 companies, small enterprises, government agencies, universities, brokers/distributors, ad agencies and printers. eLynxx.com

• PALO VERDE SECURITY (Andrea Dominguez Sevigny ’10; Las Cruces, N.M.) Information security consulting—assessments, architecture reviews, tool deployments (AV, password managers, etc.) and managed services paloverdesecurity.com

• THE FALCON CONSULTING GROUP (Thomas Raftery ’81; Linwood, N.J.) A leading provider of due diligence and investigative services, litigation support, risk assessment and security solutions worldwide. Falconconsultinggroup.com

Fall Issue Feedback

We were favorably impressed with the seemingly “new” look to Dickinson Magazine with the fall issue. It seemed to have room for great pictures and stories that more than ever popped from its pages. Thank you for keeping us connected.

RUMSEY YOUNG ’67 (speaking on behalf of his fellow class correspondents)

FALMOUTH, ME

Thank you for including in the fall issue of the magazine an image of the Activities Fair with not just one but two chessboards. I remember years during which I felt fortunate to have any opposition on the chess board in the HUB. I hope some of those players from decades past were pleased to see the visibility of chess among the more than 100 student groups. I also enjoyed the column by President Jones. When I taught an adult education course on science and religion here in Northfield in the fall, he was the only college president I had occasion to mention.

Spotted on Social Media

Home Away From Home Crossword

Congratulations to Connie Courtright Rockman ’64, whose name was randomly selected out of the correct puzzle submissions. Connie received a $25 Dickinson College Bookstore gift card. Watch for the next puzzle in the spring 2023 issue!

edited for length and clarity.

THOMAS DRUCKER , former math professor NORTHFIELD, MINN.

Snippets of stories from around campus and beyond

Dickinson.edu/news

Senior Art Exhibitions

Senior year is the time when all that Dickinson students have learned coalesces into ambitious research and creative projects. For art & art history majors, it’s an opportunity to collaborate on a big venture.

In the case of studio art majors, that means a joint exhibition of new works in the Goodyear Gallery as a sneak peek at the final thesis exhibition to come in the spring.

“This is an energetic and impressive class of seniors who have taken a deep dive into the studio this fall,” says Eleanor Conover, assistant professor of art & art history, who helps students think deeply about their processes, their work and emerging themes.

Meanwhile, senior art history majors are curating a show in The Trout Gallery, opening March 3, complete with a professional-quality catalog, under the direction of Ren Wei, assistant professor of art & art history.

Photos by Dan Loh

Winter Break Career Pathways Program

Gears Students Up for the Future

Always looking to prepare students for the future, Dickinson’s Advising, Internships & Career Center is launching a new careerexploration program: Winter Break Career Pathways. With offerings in data & tech, finance, communications and consulting, Dickinson’s new three-week career-immersion experience will bring students to the cutting edge. Each pathway will combine online programming with in-person opportunities and offer Dickinson students a chance to engage in career exploration, gain employment skills, conduct corporate simulation projects and take part in a site visit with Dickinson alums.

Dickinson Hosts ThreeDay International Climate Symposium

Denim Coffee at the Quarry

Follow @denimcoffeedickinson on Instagram for the latest news and updates.

Local company

Denim Coffee opened on campus this fall and features a full coffee and espresso menu along with smoothies, locally brewed UnDone kombucha, fresh-baked goods and breakfast sandwiches. Open to the public seven days a week, Denim has offered an exciting opportunity to reimagine The Quarry, a longtime favorite campus eatery and dining space.

In October, more than 50 climate-policy experts spoke at Science-Based Choices for Climate Action: Insights from the IPCC 6th Assessment Report, an international symposium hosted on campus. Authors of the report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), policymakers and other experts engaged with students and others about the assessment, why it matters and how it can be used to mobilize actions on climate change.

The symposium also celebrated the awarding of the 2022 Sam Rose ’58 and Julie Walters Prize at Dickinson College for Global Environmental Activism to the IPCC in recognition of its important efforts.

Learn more and watch a video about the event at dson.co/ipccmagw23.

Learn more and watch a video at dson.co/googlemag.

Impact Player

Saul Iwowo ’26 becomes one to watch, as his first season as a Red Devil is a big one

Saul Iwowo ’26 has been a Red Devil for only one semester, but he hasn’t wasted any time leaving his mark on the soccer field. The 6-foot-3 first-year student from the U.K. led the Red Devils in points and goals this season— with 16 and seven, respectively—and received All-Centennial Conference honorable mention in the wake of scoring two goals against Johns Hopkins in the first round of the NCAA Division III tournament.

For Head Coach Jorge Chapoy, Iwowo’s potential impact was immediately clear.

“From the moment that Saul set foot on campus, it was obvious he would be a huge contributor to the team on and off the field,” says Chapoy, noting the international business & management major’s work ethic and leadership skills. “He’s a very confident and talented young man, and he is also a great teammate.”

Iwowo has played the sport since around age 4. He says his London neighborhood was filled with kids playing soccer and rugby. By the time he reached the end of his high school journey, Iwowo knew he wasn’t ready to stop playing. And before long, with a little recruiting help from high school teammate Andrew Kempe ’23 —the Red Devils’ starting goalie—Iwowo knew Dickinson was the place for him to keep going. Now that he’s been on campus for a few months, Iwowo says, his time at Dickinson “couldn’t be going any better than it is,” and that he loves “how the community is so kind, close-knit and goes to many lengths to keep students happy, especially international students.”

As he looks forward to 2023, Iwowo hopes to build on the foundation the team created this season.

“I’m very happy to have had a season like I did this year, and it means a lot to me to be on this team,” Iwowo says. “Personally, though, I hope to do better than I did this year. And as a team I want to finish top three next year, maybe even push to win the Centennial Conference and make the NCAA tournament again.”

If that happens, there’s no question he’ll have played a big role.

“Everyone on the team and coaching staff loves having Saul around,” says Chapoy, “and I have no doubt that he’ll have a huge impact on the men’s soccer program and campus community in the years to come.”—Tony Moore

Photo by Dan Loh

Fall Sports Highlights

The fall athletics calendar saw the Kline Center, Biddle Field and Miller Field going at a full clip, as the Red Devils defended their home turf. Here’s a quick roundup of the season’s highlights.

1,000 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns on the gridiron for Diante Ball ’25

2nd

seed for women’s soccer in the CC tournament. They advanced to the final game after a 2-1 home overtime win against Swarthmore.

13-11

record for the volleyball team, which qualified for the Centennial Conference playoffs for the first time since 2008 (6-4 conference record)

Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Year:

Meg Tate ’23

Centennial Conference First Team: Emma Lange ’22 (volleyball), Diante Ball ’25 (football)

6th straight season in the CC championships for women’s cross country. The men’s team also had a solid season, and Alex Kane ’26 earned a spot in the NCAA Division III championship.

Cheer on your Red Devils!

Check out all the stats, scores, schedules and highlights at dickinsonathletics.com. Watch free live broadcasts online, produced by students in the Red Devil Sports Network (RDSN). Follow @DsonRedDevils on Twitter, Dickinson Red Devils on Facebook and @DickinsonAthletics on Instagram for daily updates. #DsonRedDevils

All-Regional Team: Sammy Jo Barnes ’24, Romario Cruz ’25, Matthew Dietrick ’25, Maddie Garber ’25, Alex Kane ’26, Teddy Mercer ’23 and Myra Naqvi ’25 (cross country)

DISTINCTIVELY DICKINSON / bragging rights

The Food, Agriculture & Resource Management (FARM) Lab, an initiative born of the Revolutionary Challenge, received a $150,000 grant to start Phase 2 of the planning process.

FARM Lab will create a new facility supporting research, coursework and co-curricular programs at Dickinson’s 80-acre organic farm—already a hub for research, organic farming, community outreach and civic engagement since its founding in 2007. The grant was provided in collaboration with the Metropolitan Edison Co. Endowed Sustainable Energy Fund. Read more and learn how you can contribute on Page 17.

2022 Princeton Review Rankings

• #2 among the Top 50 Green Colleges

• #12 Best School for Making an Impact

• #16 for Best Classroom Experience and Great Financial Aid

• #22 Best College Radio Station (WDCV)

Dickinson garnered several SUSTAINABILITY ACCOLADES in the fall:

• Ranked first among baccalaureate institutions on the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education’s 2022 Sustainable Campus Index

• Ranked second on the Princeton Review’s Top 50 Green Colleges list

• One of only 37 higher-education institutions across the nation to be awarded a gold Bicycle Friendly University Award this year

BOOSTING the Red Bikes PROGRAM

A cornerstone of Dickinson’s biking initiative is the Red Bikes program, which makes short-term bike shares available to students, faculty, staff and visiting family members. That initiative got a big boost this year, thanks to Bruce Rychlik ’89. His donation funded the purchase of 20 new Red Bikes. Two e-bikes and a cargo trailer are also being added to the fleet with his gift.

Dan Loh

Jay Himes

GRADUATE STORY: Olivia Lanes ’14, IBM Quantum Engineering

Major: Physics

Current position: IBM is one of the largest companies in the quantum computing space, and I manage a team of researchers who develop projects related to quantum computing adoption. We produce educational content and work on open-source research collaborations.

Dickinson experience: Both the size of the school and the dedication of the teachers allowed me to receive mentorship that gave me the confidence to pursue a Ph.D. in physics [at the University of Pittsburgh]. And the friends I met through my sorority turned out to be lifelong.

Career preparation: I have never valued a liberal-arts approach to education more in my life than I do today. Even though my background is in STEM, I became successful in my career because of the broad knowledge and diverse skills I acquired, like learning how to write and communicate effectively, and how to listen and discuss with an open mind.

Find more graduate stories at dson.co/aiamag.

STUDENT SNAPSHOT: Daniel Vasquez ’24

Major: International Business & Management

Clubs and organizations: Liberty Cap Society (tour guides), varsity swimming and Student Investment Group

Dickinson experience: As a transfer student, I was worried about fitting in with members of my class. My team made my transition seamless and welcomed me with open arms. My teammates have helped me in the water and the weight room by encouraging me to go beyond my limits and making swimming fun. They have helped me become a better student by motivating me to tackle Dickinson’s rigorous curriculum and uphold the team’s College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association Scholar All-America status.

Internship opportunities: I’m an intern with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foreign Agriculture Service. I worked with the USDA’s climate-change team over the summer and I’m now working in a virtual, part-time role. I’ve developed qualitative skills, learned about the importance of climate change, and learned about the USDA’s relentless pursuit against food insecurity in America.

DICKINSON orward

I hope you can feel the energy and the momentum growing across all corners of this campus. Think about what your Dickinson experience will be this year. How will you be enriched by this great college, and how will you leave your imprint on it?

We are moving Dickinson forward, and it will take all of us to create a bold and innovative future.

Ihope you can feel the energy and the momentum growing across all corners of this campus. Keeping you informed is one of my top priorities, because we can’t continue to move Dickinson forward without you. I ask you to stay involved, share your thoughts with me and to support us with both your time and treasure. Think about what your Dickinson experience will be this year. How will you be enriched by this great college, and how will you leave your imprint on it?

So far, working together, we have accomplished much . We continue to raise funds for our Campaign for Scholarships , the inaugural Dickinson Forward initiative that seeks to provide a scholarship for every student with a demonstrated need for one. We want to make sure that a lack of resources will never prevent a qualified student from attending Dickinson. And that’s just one of our successful fundraising efforts. You’ll also see in the pages that follow how your gifts to the Dickinson Fund have contributed to all areas of the college.

Thus far this year, we’ve also launched several initiatives to enhance the Dickinson experience. We’ve broken ground on the new John M. Paz ’78 Alumni & Family Center, which will greatly benefit our alumni as well as our students and their families. We’ve brought our distinctive College Farm to campus with the opening of Farm Works , which sells products from the farm and serves salads and soups made from farm-fresh ingredients. The store, at the corner of High and West streets, also serves the Carlisle community.

In addition, we’ve partnered with a local business, Denim Coffee , which has opened a coffee shop in the Quarry. The location provides a modern and vibrant meeting space for faculty, staff and students.

We’ve hired an experienced chief diversity officer who will work with our community to make sure that all Dickinsonians are seen and respected and feel a sense of belonging.

And we’ve jumped headfirst into a new initiative that is particularly important to me. Our Dialogues Across Differences project will take a multifaceted approach to teaching and promoting the ability to talk about even the most challenging issues—the ones in which difference in perspective can lead to polarization and inflammatory “road rage” rhetoric. Make no mistake. This is not about surfacelevel politeness. It’s about creating a campus culture in which students learn to listen fully to each other’s points of view, ask each other curious questions and think critically about each other’s perspectives while reflecting on their own. This kind of learning is much needed in society today, and I think Dickinson is uniquely positioned to facilitate this.

All of these efforts are part of Dickinson Forward, and I hope this progress makes you as proud of Dickinson as I am to lead it. I also hope it keeps you looking for more, and that you ask yourself what more you can do to contribute to our progress. I love this job and feel privileged to lead our alma mater.

We are moving Dickinson forward, and it will take all of us to create a bold and innovative future.

Sincerely,

JOHN E. JONES III ’77, P’11 President

Dan Loh

I hope this progress makes you as proud of Dickinson as I am to lead it.

63%

JOIN IN! To make a life-changing gift supporting scholarships and financial aid, visit dickinson.edu/ gift. If you’re interested in creating an endowed scholarship, contact donorrelations@dickinson.edu.

Changing Lives THROUGH SCHOLARSHIPS

As of Jan. 17, 2023, 3,796 donors have given $47 million to the Campaign for Scholarships , bringing the college 63% toward fully funding our commitment to providing a scholarship for every student who needs one. The campaign, which will ensure that Dickinson can meet the full demonstrated financial need of every admitted student, has generated 78 permanently endowed scholarship funds and is currently helping to make Dickinson possible for over 1,800 students.

Sarah Pearl ’26 , a student leader from Laurel, Maryland, is a member of the first cohort of the Reynolds Leadership Scholar Program. Established through a generous gift from George and Jennifer Ward Reynolds ’77, the program brings high-achieving Maryland students to Dickinson through a four-year, $40,000-per-year scholarship.

Alvaro Munoz ’24 (educational studies), an ACE Peer Mentor, MANdatory co-leader, student advisor and residential advisor. He has conducted research on education obstacles for lowincome students in Los Angeles and worked at a nonprofit that provides enrichment programming to economically challenged students as he prepares for a career in education.

I visited Dickinson over the summer, and I really wanted to go here. This scholarship makes that possible. It’s a really big opportunity for me, being the first woman in my family to go to college.

It’s also a confidence boost—it tells me that I’m right for the college, and the college is right for me.

I’m grateful for the awards and scholarships I have gotten from Dickinson, since they have allowed me to access so many incredible opportunities.

Dick Forrester, acknowledging the importance of the support and guidance from donors and members of the Data Analytics Advisory Committee like Scott Beaumont ’75 , Rob Borden ’91 , Gretchen Brigden ’89 , Michael Capone ’88 , Tom ’78 and Judianne Hare P’22, P’25 , and Dave ’74 and Sue Stebbins Souerwine ’75 , who have helped Dickinson establish and enhance its distinctive liberal-arts approach to data analytics

92% OF STUDENTS COMPLETE AN INTERNSHIP, EXTERNSHIP, RESEARCH, SERVICE-LEARNING OR FIELD EXPERIENCE COURSE.

Delivering Excellence IN ACADEMICS

Dickinson continues to push the boundaries on a useful liberal-arts education, remaining committed to the core values of the humanities, sciences, social sciences and the arts, while also equipping students to thrive in an ever-changing world.

Data Analytics & Quantitative Reasoning

In the last fiscal year, the college took major steps to advance its quantitative instruction and resources for students. After approving a data analytics major last year, Dickinson created the Department of Data Analytics with nine faculty members to support it. Seeking to enhance data literacy across the curriculum, Dickinson also united its Quantitative Reasoning Center with a new Spatial Literacy Center and the multilingual writing center

“GIS and spatial literacy cut across the academic divisions on campus and can help students who double major or have minors/certificate programs integrate them. In terms of integrating into the Learning Commons, each center assists students with a form of thinking, and geospatial or mapping techniques can be used to think about an issue and critically evaluate it.”

Gordon Cromley, the director of the Spatial Literacy Center

“I love how the data analytics major at Dickinson embraces an interdisciplinary identity. Baking three courses from another department into the requirements for the major pushes students out of our comfort zones a little bit, but I think it allows for much deeper, more focused inquiry.”

Ben Warren ’25 , who interned at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, where he helped put together geographic data for research on the impact of racial housing restrictions on demographics and housing statistics in Philadelphia from 1900 to the present day.

To learn how you can impact and support the data analytics program at Dickinson, email donorrelations@dickinson.edu.

The recent gifts toward this initiative have enabled us to bring data analytics to Dickinson faster than we could have hoped. None of this would have been possible without the generous gifts to the college.

— Professor of Mathematics

Mellon Foundation Grants

Dickinson was awarded two substantial new grants from the Mellon Foundation.

The first grant, worth $800,000 and awarded to Provost & Dean of the College

Neil Weissman and Assistant Professor of American Studies Darren Lone Fight , is for a three-year initiative in Native American studies centering on the complicated history and enduring legacy of Indian boarding schools in the U.S. This project will position Dickinson to initiate and contribute to a robust national conversation on the Indigenous boarding-school experience, strengthen a vital new and understudied component in our undergraduate program and position Dickinson at the forefront of humanistic study of the present and future of North American Indigeneity.

The second grant, worth $350,000 and awarded to Associate Professor of English Claire Seiler and Associate Professor of Russian Alyssa DeBlasio , is for a three-year project to create a literary disability studies program across literature and languages departments. This project will create a lasting network for literary study and for the humanistic study of disability at and beyond Dickinson. The project includes support for faculty scholarship, the development of shared expertise and public humanities work; curricular innovation and pedagogical development; and community engagement in central Pennsylvania and with the U.S. Army War College.

FARM Lab

The Food, Agriculture & Resource Management (FARM) Lab initiative , which will create a new facility supporting research, coursework and co-curricular programs at Dickinson’s College Farm, advanced in several important ways this summer and fall. Dickinson established a FARM Lab Advisory Committee to move the project forward, and the team selected an architectural firm for the project, Re:Vision Architecture, a “deep green” architecture and sustainability consulting practice based in Philadelphia.

The initiative, which was generated by Dickinson’s Revolutionary Challenge co-innovation effort in 2019, also earned a $150,000 Metropolitan Edison Co. Endowed Sustainable Energy Fund/ Penelec Green Building Grant . This grant, combined with donor support, is enabling the college to begin design development on the project.

To learn how you can impact and support the FARM Lab project, email donorrelations@ dickinson.edu.

Search for New Provost Underway

STUDENT-FACULTY RATIO

In October, Neil Weissman announced his plan to retire as provost and dean of the college at the end of this academic year. Weissman has been pivotal in making Dickinson the top liberal-arts college that it is today. The longest-serving provost in Dickinson’s history, Weissman has held that post for 24 years. He also served as acting dean (1988-89) and as interim president (2016-17). Weissman will return to the faculty as professor of liberal arts.

Weissman has significantly increased support for the faculty. His efforts to modernize Dickinson curriculum led to new majors in Africana studies, neuroscience, data analytics and quantitative economics and minors including creative writing and ethics. He led the effort to develop nationally recognized pillars of excellence at Dickinson, including global education, sustainability and our interdisciplinary approach, and he is responsible for $3.1 million in successful grant proposals for the academic program. He has been influential in countless other enhancements, including planning for the Rector Science Complex, development of Dickinson’s first graduate program in managing complex disasters and the creation of the Learning Commons.

A national search is underway to fill this critical post, and a well-rounded search committee has been formed. We have engaged WittKieffer as our search firm, and we will continue to keep the campus community informed about the process.

Watch for a larger story on Weissman’s career in a future issue.

Creating DIALOGUES ACROSS DIFFERENCES

As part of a continuing effort to address existing problems in the wider world and critical issues for the future of democracy, Dickinson recently launched the Dialogues Across Differences program . Funded by a three-year grant from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations , the crossdisciplinary effort will help students and faculty learn the tools and practice facilitating reflective structured dialogues.

A postbaccalaureate fellow will provide essential support for this initiative while also developing valuable job skills. This person will coordinate the student dialogue facilitators, prepare curriculum materials under the guidance of faculty and staff, co-facilitate the immersivetraining program, compile training and facilitation resources and stay abreast of new scholarship in support of the Dialogues Across Difference initiative.

Noreen Lape , associate provost of academic affairs and director of the writing program, one of nine faculty members leading the initiative

Our multifaceted plan involves faculty, students and the community in creating culture change.

By preparing faculty to shape how hundreds of students practice dialogue and by developing student leaders who serve as role models and facilitators, we seek to establish a culture of true dialogue in action.

Thanks to your generous support, I have pursued leadership opportunities, created meaningful connections with fellow students and faculty members and, most importantly, received a quality education that has prepared me for success beyond college.

MacKenzie Brielmann ’23 (psychology and dance), the fifth member of her family to attend Dickinson. Thanks to donor support, she has developed leadership skills and confidence as a tour guide, admissions intern, RA and Dance Theatre Group member.

Please join us by making your gift at dickinson.edu/gift today—or on Dickinson’s Day of Giving, Tuesday, April 4.

Celebrating Support

So far this year, donors are directing their gifts to the Dickinson Fund in the following ways:

15% Scholarships

7% 3% 40% Area of Greatest Need

5% Student Wellness Fund

Areas Supporting Student Success

5% Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity Initiatives

GOAL:

GOAL: $5.2 million $4.1 million Dollars Raised SO FAR 79% TO GOAL

25% total Alumni Participation

11% have made a gift so far

44% TO GOAL

GOAL: 35% total Parent Participation 23% have made a gift so far

66% TO GOAL

Other

To celebrate over a half century of our Judaic studies program, the 20th anniversary of the Asbell Center and the 18th anniversary of the Sophia Ava Asbell Chair in Judaic Studies, Dickinson will host a Celebration of Jewish Life Leadership, Learning and Leadership Sunday, April 16. To learn how you can join in the celebration, look for more information from the college in the weeks ahead.

Enhancing the STUDENT EXPERIENCE

Because Dickinson is dedicated to educating the whole student, we supplemented our academic efforts this year with numerous initiatives that enhance the holistic student experience. Initiatives include new career support programs like Winter Break Career Pathways, a new three-week career-immersion experience and renovations to create a new Dickinson Park Athletics Center, which include state-of-the-art new locker rooms for several Red Devil athletics teams. The college also improved wellness and mental-health services by offering multilingual, 24-hour counseling services and online therapy.

Dickinson also took steps to improve the community and dining experience amid continuing staffing challenges. Efforts include reopening the Quarry featuring Denim Coffee , holding food truck events and an Octoberfest on campus as well as special holiday meals and opening Farm Works , which brings new meal options and fare from the College Farm to campus.

Acknowledging that these are only small steps in the dining improvements needed, the college also announced plans to refurbish the Holland Union Building (HUB), with a groundbreaking in 2024. The renovation project aims to improve the Dining Hall and overall campus community experience by establishing the HUB as a premier gathering space and “living room” for the college.

Prioritizing Inclusivity

Committed to institutionalizing inclusivity, Dickinson has drafted an Inclusivity Strategic Plan. This critical document acknowledges that in addition to embracing diversity, the college must challenge traditions and assumptions that reinforce paradigms of privilege and power that contribute to oppression.

The plan outlines steps to achieve three main goals:

• Embed inclusivity in the college culture.

• Expand and deepen learning and skill development for all members of the community.

• Cultivate a diverse campus community that is reflective of the broader world.

To learn more about how Dickinson will achieve these goals, you can read the full plan at dickinson.edu/inclusivityplan.

As a key step toward achieving these goals, this fall the college named Tony Boston, an experienced diversity officer and equity advocate, as vice president and chief diversity officer. As a member of the president’s senior leadership team, Boston immediately began working on implementing the Inclusivity Strategic Plan, creating a road map to institutionalize inclusivity at Dickinson.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity Challenge

Inspired by a gift made by President John E. Jones III ’77, P’11 , and Beth Jones P’11 supporting inclusivity initiatives on campus this fall, Dickinson’s Alumni Council came together to rally the alumni community through the Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity Challenge. Since launching in October, the challenge has received 130 gifts totaling more than $72,000. Given this outpouring of support, Dickinson will extend the challenge this spring and with a potential additional goal on Day of Giving, Tuesday, April 4.

To join them, make your gift at dickinson. edu/gift and choose “Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity Initiatives” under “Designation” on the gift form. The goal is to match the Joneses’ $50,000 gift.

“The personal commitment of President Jones and his family sent a message to me as an alumna that this work is a priority for him and the college, which means I now have to do my part to ensure it’s a success. I believe that if we come together in support of this important work, we will, through Dickinson, have a say in our country’s future.”

Danielle Goonan ’07, Alumni Council member

I was attracted to Dickinson because of the demonstrated commitment to academic rigor, selfreflection, critical inquiry and, equally important, its commitment to change. These elements are not only essential for advancing the educational mission of the college but are prerequisite for driving cultural change.

Tony Boston , Dickinson’s first chief diversity officer

The spring 2023 issue of Dickinson Magazine will include a Q&A with Boston. Photo by Dan Loh.

What will your DICKINSON EXPERIENCE be from this moment forward?

President Jones

Increasing Alumni Engagement

As an alumnus, parent, former volunteer and current leader, President Jones knows well the vital role alumni engagement plays in moving Dickinson forward. This is the reason Dickinson Forward is focused on co-innovating with alumni to build Dickinson’s future. To ensure that the college can most effectively partner with alumni on future initiatives, Jones is working with the Office of College Advancement to begin to more accurately measure and increase alumni engagement with, and service to, the college.

Over the next five years, Dickinson will commit to raising its alumni engagement percentage to 75% . That means that the college is taking steps to ensure that three out of every four alumni volunteer with Dickinson, get involved with the college, attend an event, engage with college communications or give to the college.

To help spur this increased engagement, Jones took to the road this fall through the Dickinson Forward Tour. Making stops in Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Malibu, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., he met with Dickinson alumni, families and friends to encourage them to consider their own parts in the bold Dickinson story that’s unfolding.

“If you can give your time, give your time. If you can give of your treasure, give of your treasure,” Jones told attendees, as he also shared with them his vision for the future of the college. “Help us continue to be the world-class institution that we are.”

Plans are underway for the spring leg of the tour. Learn more at dickinson.edu/forwardtour.

John M. Paz ’78 Alumni & Family Center

This September Dickinson officially broke ground on the project to transform the Historic President’s House into the John M. Paz ’78 Alumni & Family Center. The renovation project will establish a permanent, centralized facility that reimagines what a welcome center can be.

Entirely funded by donors, the new center will:

• provide a welcoming space for alumni and parents to visit campus to interact with students, faculty and college administrators

• foster deeper connections between current students and alumni

• strengthen the bonds among Dickinson’s past, present and future

• enhance the power of the Dickinson network

• make a bold statement about our lifelong commitment to Dickinson alumni and families.

Dickinson thanks the following lead donors for making this project possible: John M. Paz ’78, George Hager ’78 , Sam Rose ’58 , Bill ’71 and Elke Durden , Jim ’78 and Niecy Chambers , Doug ’80 and Terri Pauls , and the Pugs Foundation .

Look for your chance to join these donors in supporting this project through an upcoming paver campaign for the center.

All of the momentum highlighted in this report is a result of engaged Dickinsonians like you. THANK YOU FOR HELPING US MOVE DICKINSON FORWARD TOGETHER.

spaceswe l c ve

The Waidner-Spahr Library has everything students need for a successful study break.

Photo by Dan Loh.

AMMAN, JORDAN

NANTUCKET, MASSACHUSETTS

MONHEGAN ISLAND, MAINE

BOULDER, COLORADO

Use Your Powers Well

By Alumni Council President BERNADETTE MCFADDEN STOUT ’07

During my tenure as Alumni Council president, I have sought ways to help ensure “Dickinson is where you are” and provide (hopefully!) inspiring examples of the ways in which our fellow alumni give back to the college with their time, energy, knowledge, career opportunities and connections. The idea behind these columns is to echo President Jones’ call for each of us to find individually impactful ways to engage with Dickinson. What resonates most with me is Dickinson’s Change a Life—Change the World scholarship campaign. I can confidently say that scholarships changed my life. While I am a long way from endowing a scholarship of my own, I try to direct my own giving in ways that will open doors to new generations of students. During my college search, I realized that I wanted a small liberal-arts college because I desired strong academics coupled with student/faculty interaction. I visited Dickinson and was drawn to the intimate feel of the campus. But I remember being frustrated that these small private institutions were unlikely to be financially feasible for my family. When I was a freshman in 2002, the cost of tuition, room and board at Dickinson neared $35,000. With my older sister also in college, my newly widowed mother could contribute only a fraction of that amount. While I am forever grateful to her for the investment she made in my education, I would never

have arrived in Carlisle without generous financial aid. In my first year, I received $29,000 in grants and endowed scholarships provided by generations of alumni. Over the course of my four years at Dickinson, around 80% of my costs were supported by grants and scholarships. This allowed me to graduate with manageable student loans and pursue my further educational and career goals.

A few years after graduating from Dickinson, I was living in Washington, D.C., and attended services at the National Cathedral. One Sunday, the Rev. Canon Stephen Huber preached about the power of teachers, saying: “My outlook on life continues to be influenced by the gifts of teachers. Right now you might be thinking back to some teacher who had a profound influence on your life, someone for whom it’s not too much to say, ‘They made all the difference.’ Teachers have the power to liberate, to open new worlds, to enlighten, to instill values, to literally help us find our way in this often confusing world.”

Canon Huber’s words brought to mind faculty members at Dickinson who had helped shape me: Harry Pohlman, Nancy Mellerski, Doug Edlin, David Crouch, David Sarcone, Neil Weissman, Jim Hoefler, Wendy Moffat, Bill Bellinger, Noel Potter

and so many others. Even today I reflect on the power that these teachers had to change my life. The Dickinson faculty fostered my social consciousness, allowed me to better understand how communities operate and confront challenges, and define and refine my career goals. I have no idea where I would be without them.

I feel a special obligation to help the college welcome new students who, like me, would have no other chance to enroll. For me, that means giving money to scholarships. For you, it may mean mentoring a high-school student and telling them about Dickinson. Whatever it is, we have a chance to help others find their way to Dickinson; let’s use our power well.

Hours later, while lying on my cot in an unused room in the facility, I couldn’t help but contemplate the twists and turns my life had taken that landed me in a war zone tending to people I did not know in a place I had never been. As an undergraduate student at Dickinson, I had a vague sense that I wanted to work for the State Department. I was drawn to history and took courses on the Arab-Israeli conflict because it was something I knew very little about other than it conjured extremely strong feelings in those around me. One class in particular, Conflict and Conflict Resolution, taught by former Associate Provost for Academic Affairs Shalom Staub, began to foster in me empathy for people I had never met embroiled in a conflict that did not affect me.

When I left Dickinson, I still didn’t know who I wanted to be when I grew up, only that I needed to serve my community in some way. I became a professional

Service Under Fire

BY FREDERICK BARTON ’09

Lights flickered. The ground rocked. Glass from shattered windows covered the floor. Soldiers yelling orders and people screaming echoed through the night. Smoke wafted into the operating room. Hospital staff took cover wherever they could— under gurneys and surgical tables or in doorways. Meanwhile, my partner and I stood over the opened chest of our patient, unable to leave until we had stabilized him. Our security detail, a retired Italian special forces medic, instructed us to hurry up so that we would be available for the influx of wounded patients sure to come. The Russians had launched a missile strike that missed the hospital but struck an apartment building full of people across the street.

firefighter, paramedic, rescue swimmer and recovery diver and requested placement in the projects of Newport News, Va. Six years later, I returned to school to become an emergency nurse practitioner specializing in rural and austere medicine. I now spend my days traveling to remote areas of the country providing emergency care in places that cannot attract physicians.

When Ukraine was invaded in February, I felt drawn to the conflict. Here was an opportunity to render aid to those truly in need and, perhaps more important, to show Ukrainians that people across the world cared. I reached out to several organizations and was selected to join a single surgeon traveling to the front lines. It took five flights, two train rides, three cars, an ambulance and three days to reach eastern Ukraine. When I arrived, I learned that the medical staff was operating without any diagnostic devices,

had no available labs for bloodwork and no specialists. The general surgeons triaged, performed emergency care and operated. None of them had had a break or been able to visit their families in six months. As such, I found myself, a nurse practitioner specializing in emergency medicine, operating in a war zone with rockets aimed at my facility.

While my expertise and the advanced equipment I brought were certainly utilized, it was my very presence that the Ukrainians appreciated the most. When I introduced myself to my patients as an American, they were so relieved to see that people whom they had never met, who had no ties to their nation, were willing to engage globally because it was the right thing to do. This is exactly what Dickinson taught me, and I am extremely proud to have been able to put it into practice. Slava Ukraini; Glory to Ukraine.

Frederick Barton ’09 holds two master’s degrees in nursing from Columbia and Emory universities and completed a fellowship in rural emergency medicine at Virginia Tech. He is the Minnesota state representative for the American Academy of Emergency Nurse Practitioners. When not working, Fred likes to spend time mountain biking, caving, backpacking and generally trying to keep up with his Australian shepherd, Togo.

I have never valued a liberal-arts approach to education more in my life than I do today.

OLIVIA LANES ’14 , North American lead for the IBM quantum community. Read more on Page

11.

I’m where I am in life because of everything that happened to me at Dickinson. So the planetarium is an opportunity to share that with others.

PAUL KANEV ’75 , who came to campus in November for the unveiling of the new projector in the Charles M. Kanev Planetarium, made possible with his generous gift. Read more at dson.co/kanevmag.

I realized it’s much easier to focus and be dedicated when you have a passion. Dickinson helped me find that passion.

JOHN FREEDMAN ’92 , vice president of North American product operations & development at Tommy Hilfiger. Read more at https://dson.co/freedmanmag.

It is inspiring and motivating to know that someone believes in me and my desire to further my education.

REBECCA GARCIA ’24 (Latin American, Latinx & Caribbean studies and history) on her gratitude for scholarship donors.