ALUMNI NEWS

Calling All Alumni: The Murals Mosaic Art Project

BY ALL ACCOUNTS, 2020 HAS BEEN a divisive and an explosive year, certainly politically, but not just because of all the political theater. Anyone who has lived through 2020 will never forget the pandemic, the freefall of the U.S. economy, the pall of racial injustice, the White Supremacy movement, and documented racial inequities tainting the past year. Excepting the pandemic, those influences are hardly unique to Americans from most any century.

So how is the 21st century different? It marked the advent of arguably the biggest changemaker between the last century and this one—the rise of Internet use, fomenting umpteen new social media platforms as access to digital technologies increased. Events and fads flamed up, going viral on social media, in a fraction of the time it takes to make a television newscast or print a newspaper. Consider then the flaming out of Google+, Google Glass, Pokemon Go, Blackberry, hoverboards, the South Beach Diet, and very recently, the #MeToo movement—all with a seemingly volcanic rise, hastening to a short-lived heyday.

As a consequence of working on restoring the murals, artist Dave Walsh said he would be curious to find out what today’s generation of students might have created in response to this year’s tumult of events and influences. Because of the new Murals Mosaic Community Art Project shepherded by the Office of Institutional Advancement, all alumni, students, employees, friends of the College, and anyone from the community have an opportunity to do just that, from Boomers to Gen Z, to everyone in between. “We are excited to kick off the Murals Mosaic project,” said Melissa Samango, director of alumni relations and Murals Mosaic Committee Chair. “What better way to celebrate the restoration of Harcum’s murals than to showcase the talents of the community and capture the essence of what the world is like today—from politics, to pop culture, to personal journeys—to share with future generations of Harcum students.”

This companion project was conceived to premiere during the restored murals gallery show opening this fall and builds on the Harcum Centennial crowdsourced art project “Bears and Squares,” operating with comparable parameters and reach.

Harcum has invited artists and aspiring artists to design a freestanding 10” x 10” square in the same spirit as the historic murals but reflecting the present-day theme, “This Moment in Time.”

All artists should peg their squares to a present day event, trend, or issue from any arena, from politics to pop culture. All completed squares will be considered for incorporation into a contemporary mosaic to be displayed at the same time as the restored murals.

Anyone may request a square be mailed to them by filling out a form from the Harcum website. Artists must provide all other materials. And any medium may be used—oil, watercolor, charcoal, fabric, beads, yarn, mixed media. All ages welcome to participate. Squares must be returned to the Office of Institutional Advancement by May 31, 2021.

Murals Mosaic submissions by Lilian Crooks (left) and Raelynn Ferencsik.

Alumni News

What You’re Saying

CAROLINE METZGER ’18

posted in Sterling Kitchen & Bath. Hi everyone! I’m Caroline Metzger, a designer at Sterling Kitchen & Bath and also the face behind our social media. I’d like to say that my design style is a cross between rustic, modern, and industrial, but with my Interior Design degree from Harcum College and my art background, I am able to design for everyone’s personal taste. Patricia Cioccio ’92 added 2 new

photos. October 12, 2020 National Vet Tech Week! My journey into the field started in 1986 when I worked at Twinbrook Veterinary Hospital, then off to Harcum College in 89! Veterinary Technicians play SO MANY ROLES in a veterinary practice.

#bighair #celebratevettechs

HARCUM ECE ALUMNI CLUB

Jan. 15 at 2:36 PM Bryn Mawr, PA Congratulations to ECE student Macy Moye! She just received her diploma from Harcum in ECE and will be continuing her education at Chestnut Hill College. Way to go, Macy! DREW SMYTH

shared a memory. Founders’ Day October 1, 2020 I donated to help more students pursue their dreams like me.

#HarcumCollege #FoundersDay #HarcumAlumni #BearsCare #PresidentsAwardWinner

COREY MCKNIGHT posted

on Instagram. Finishing my last day in style #thorncroftequestriancenter #horse #harcumcollege #ota KEISHA RYAN ’20 posted an

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update. May 4, 2020 Good morning beautiful blessed Ppl... It’s been a long/short journey getting to this point...there’s been ups and plenty of downs and times I just simply wanted to give up...but me being the person I am, my perseverance wouldn’t allow me to.

#classof2020 #HARCUMCOLLEGE

COLLEGE MOURNS THE PASSING OF IONE A. STRAUSS: PHILANTHROPIST Ione Strauss, a longtime friend and supporter of Harcum College, died October 1, at age 87.

A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, she received the Alumni Award of Merit in 1971, and was elected to a three-year term as the first female president of the General Alumni Society in 1972, which entitled her to a seat on the Penn Board of Trustees.

She is remembered by those who knew her well as kind, intelligent, and quietly devoted to numerous charitable causes. She was preceded in death by Hilary Strauss, a Coatesville businessman and Harcum trustee for 25 years.

Daughter Louise Strauss who serves the college as a trustee, succeeding her father, is currently installed as a member of the Executive Committee as Secretary. In an interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Louise Strauss said of her mother, “Even in the last hours of her life, struggling to breathe, she thanked the nurses and everyone who came to see her, and told them how much they meant to her.”

In Memoriam

MARGARET ANN HOPKINS SCHOEW Class of 1944

ELIZABETH KATHERINE WHITE WILLS Class of 1947

MARILYN STOUGHTON LEWIS Class of 1950

JANE FOX ZERRER Class of 1951

CAROLE PATRICIA YOUNG RUDEN Class of 1957

NANCY MARILYN MCCLATCHY FALLON Class of 1969

BETTY ANN COLEMAN WILSON Class of 1970

CANDIE D. WISMER LEVANDA Class of 1973

ALYSSA KIBLER Class of 2010

EBONY MORSE Class of 2020

REMEMBERING STUDENTS RECENTLY LOST Devon Gold, a PTA major, died on Sunday, October 25, 2020, at age 27. The PTA faculty and her classmates deeply mourn her loss. A scholarship fund has been arranged in her name.

Josalissa Melendez, a Human Services major, passed away unexpectedly on Monday, October 12th, 2020, at age 26. She was a hard working student, diligent in all her endeavors, and is deeply missed by classmates and faculty.

Bear Pride

Letting Her Light Shine

2004 ALUMNA PUBLISHES GUIDE FOR ADULT DYSLEXICS

By all accounts, 2004 alumna Dr. Tracy Johnson is a remarkable person. She struggled with reading and writing from her earliest school days without understanding why. From grades 6–12, because of an undiagnosed learning disability, she was placed in special education classes and was told she would never succeed in college.

Her story hardly ends with a rocky school start. In fact, she blossomed into an adult with an exemplary level of academic attainment, earning associates, bachelors, masters, and honorary doctoral degrees. Because she is also a brave and generous person, she just published Journey of Hope: An Everyday Guide for Adults with Dyslexia (Laboo Publishing: January 2021) to help other adult dyslexics avoid the pitfalls she suffered.

A staggering 5 to 15 percent or 14.5 to 43.5 million Americans adults and children are estimated to have dyslexia. No matter the effort expended nor the level of intelligence, the acts of reading, writing, and spelling remain supreme challenges.

The author explains that while there are now resources for children with dyslexia, there’s a dearth of guidance to help dyslexic adults juggle career, life, and family and child-rearing responsibilities. Her book offers tips on how best to manage a job interview, order in a restaurant, drive, attend worship services, and be a single parent.

Her core message to others who have this same disability: “You are valuable and you have the power to view yourself in a more positive light.”

Besides being prepared with coping strategies for challenges adults face every day, Johnson also recommends being transparent about one’s dyslexia in all situations.

“She is courageously transparent,” Dr. Rahmanda Salamatu Campbell, founding director of the Reading Clinic, Inc., noted, describing Johnson’s adult journey.

Her fifth grade teacher, Dr. Jacquilen Tomas, Ali, considers Tracy a pioneer. Because of her soul-crushing experience in grade school, Thomas, Ali said, “Her self-confidence was almost gone. That she pushed through and continued to strive, that motivation was the catalyst for her book.”

“Tracy is the most determined individual I have ever met,” said Barbara A. Wilson, who devised a reading system for dyslexics that Tracy used to learn to read. Eileen McGovern served as Dean of Faculty while Tracy was enrolled at Harcum. “She is a testament to the human spirit, which can transform adversity into achievement.” Anyone attending a Harcum Commencement recently has evidenced Tracy’s power as a motivational speaker; her alumni address, given as president of the alumni association, is always a powerful sendoff for new graduates. Teachers commented on her exceptional verbal gifts and oratory skills, apparent even as a school girl.

In the end, it wasn’t enough for Tracy to distinguish herself professionally and personally—to cultivate and shine her own light—without helping those whose reading disability left them in the dark. That Journey of Hope was written out of her own lived experience is what makes this book extraordinary.

CREATE POSSIBILITIES. CHANGE LIVES.

Harcum College students are determined

to persevere in college and motivated to complete their education. They work hard, often balancing jobs and families along with undertaking their studies.

This year, of all years, may have been the most trying for all Harcum students because of the disruption resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, impacting us all in myriad ways.

Our students represent the future. You can help them succeed. You can create possibilities for them by giving to one of the many scholarships created to make college education more affordable for Harcum students.

You can change lives. Meet six Harcum College Scholarship recipients who will share their stories for the Power of Possibilities Scholarship Recognition Video, which premieres on Friday, February 26, 2021, on Harcum’s YouTube channel, beginning at 11:30 a.m., available from the homepage of the website.

To learn about contributing to an existing scholarship or establishing a new one, contact:

Brooke H. Walker, M.Ed. Vice President of Institutional Advancement 610-526-6005 | bwalker@harcum.edu

RIGHT: Candice Waters, Nursing major from Chester, PA, recipient of the Independence Blue Cross Foundation Nurses for Tomorrow Scholarship.

750 Montgomery Avenue Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 www.harcum.edu

PHILADELPHIA, PA PERMIT NO 138

PRIORITY MAIL US POSTAGE PAID

PHILADELPHIA, PA PERMIT NO 138

Save the Date June 28, 2021

PRESORTED BOUND PRINTED MATTER US POSTAGE PAID PHILADELPHIA, PA PERMIT NO 138

This event raises funds to benefit our Marlo Scholars.

Over the last 20 years, our premier scholarship fundraising event, the Kevin D. Marlo Golf & Tennis Classic, has raised nearly $600,000 and has provided significant scholarship support for 63 promising students. The need for scholarships is greater than ever, and Harcum College is committed to providing students with the resources they need to succeed. For information, email advancement@harcum.edu