Mount Holyoke Alumnae Quarterly Summer 2016

Mount Holyoke s u m m er 2016

Alumnae Quarterly

Reunion 2016

Celebrating the place where it all began I N TH I S ISSU E BEHIND THE SCENES OF CHAPIN AUDITORIUM INTRODUCING SONYA STEPHENS A NEW COMMUNITY CENTER ON CAMPUS THE LIFE AND WORK OF FIDELIA FISKE

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President’s Pen A S I S T E P I N T O the position of acting president,

Sonya Stephens outside Abbey Chapel in April

Opening a door for someone, as Madeleine Kunin, former—and first female—governor of Vermont, has pointed out in a blog post published by the Huffington Post, is more than the physical act of holding a door; it is a split-second decision to make a connection, to engage in an exchange, and to acknowledge another.

In a collaborative learning environment, this stands, of course, for so much more, and, though Kunin is at pains in her short blog to make this former act of

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One of the joys of Mount Holyoke is to see the many ways in which alumnae open doors for each other and for those around them.

— SO NYA STE PH E N S

chivalry gender neutral, here at Mount Holyoke it can be seen as a feminist act, and especially so when it carries the symbolism of creating opportunities for another perhaps hindered by prejudice or discrimination. It struck me, too, that alumnae lining the path to Mary Lyon’s grave during the laurel parade are representative of a similar passage, marking both an important connection and the very real sense, evoked

by Kunin, that, “I am not walking through this doorway alone—someone has gone before me and someone will go after me. I’m not the only one in this space. If I hold the door for you, will you hold it for someone else?”

One of the joys of Mount Holyoke is to see the many ways in which alumnae open doors for each other and for those around them, as well as for the students that follow them. So it is on campus, with Mount Holyoke doors—of historic significance and beauty, of every shape and size—being opened to us by others, and leading to new discoveries, both intellectual and personal.

My own journey to and through a women’s college was the result, first, of a high school principal showing me a door and holding it open long enough for me to see something I might seriously pursue and then easing my passage through the many seemingly closed doors to follow and, second, of faculty and peers, who continued to show me possibilities and to encourage me to seize them. Very often, it was much more than a split-second act of kindness, and they ended up accompanying me in the discoveries that ensued from their sense of an opening.

We all have much to learn from one another and much to gain from opening doors for each other, as well as for those around us.

Meredith Heuer

I am more reflective than usual about the long history of the College and symbolism of the threshold. In the early days of Mount Holyoke, when one student, arriving at the new seminary, found no steps leading up to the entrance, she walked around to the back of the building, where Mary Lyon greeted her with the words: “Come right up the stairs. You have come to help us.” And there is something still important today about that sense of collective endeavor.

Earlier this year, in a conversation with faculty about what makes Mount Holyoke distinctive, one professor recounted a story about a visitor’s surprise when someone held the door open for her. The student holding that door had responded: “This is Mount Holyoke. We open doors for each other.” There was a collective sense of recognition in this narrative about Mount Holyoke—a sense that, in both the literal and figurative senses, this is a place where mutual respect, support, encouragement, and, of course, the challenge of the new enable all members of the College to do their best work and to be their best selves.

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SU M M E R 2016

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Contents F E AT U R E S

Table of contents and cover: Deirdre Haber Malfatto; back cover: Layton Guenther by Greg Kessler; Hannah Bernhardt by Scott Streble

16 A Degree of Continuity

After three years as the College’s dean of faculty, Sonya Stephens steps into the role of acting president of Mount Holyoke

20 Bringing the Campus Together

The College’s new Community Center responds to the evolving needs of students with a design that is committed to preserving the MHC experience

26 Mount Holyoke in Persia

The life and work of Fidelia Fiske, class of 1842

On the cover ( from left) Judy Stein, Joan Lilien Rosenbaum, and Ellie Rogowski Landowne were among the fifty-two members of the class of 1956 to return to campus for their sixtieth reunion in May.

TK

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D E PA R T M E N T S

2 LYONS SHARE

Honoring infant loss, Vicky Schuck's legacy, remembering Sally Montgomery, #MHCReunion

6 UNCOMMON GROUND

Welcome to our newest alumnae, alumnaebacked film project, faculty retirements, new dean of faculty

9 Ten Minutes With Space archaeologist Beth O'Leary ’74 10 Insider’s View Chapin Auditorium 12 Go Figure Alumnae Association Travel Program 13 The Maven Bryn Oakleaf ’05 on minimizing food waste

14 The Female Gaze Performing artist Mollye Maxner FP’05; printmaker Lynn Newcomb ’60; authors Susan J. Noonan ’75, Katy Simpson Smith ’06, and Marjory Wentworth ’80

32 MoHOME MEMORIES

Meet the ruler of Lower Lake

33 On Display Honoring a friend

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34 Then and Now Computers on campus

35 CONNECTIONS

College Women’s Association of Japan, travel opportunities, student loan help

36 A Place of Our Own Campus during Reunion

39 CLASS NOTES 80 MY VOICE

Nina Marciano ’15 on “Finding My Strength and Myself”

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LETTERS

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FAC E B O O K

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LINKEDIN

Lyons Share ing the essay about infant death

by Sara Hyry Barry ’94 (“Loss and the Stories that Connect Us,” spring 2016, p. 80). This is such an important topic, and I was pleased to see the Alumnae Quarterly dedicate space to this story. I think there are many alumnae who will benefit from this article. It is very important for parents who have had a baby pass away to know they are not alone.

—Joyce Hruska Buller ’97 via email

MOST PO PU L AR POST

“We are the oldest of the Seven Sisters,” outgoing president Lynn Pasquerella, class of 1980, says. “It was [founder] Mary Lyon’s mission to disrupt the hegemonic forces. We have always been committed to access and to social justice,” she adds.

Mount Holyoke was featured in the May 2016 “Sisters” issue of Vanity Fair. Read the full article at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/ vanityfair.

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alumnae.mtholyoke.edu

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Barry’s essay is a heartfelt sharing of a loss that she will never forget—nor would she want to. I have found it is those life experiences that have defined who I am as well. For me, it was a different journey—that of a son with a rare immune disease. John survived his illness and the treatment, and yet I saw many good parents lose their children. My son’s transplant experience left me recovering over a couple of years with PTSD. I agree with Barry about the importance of sharing these experiences, as the shame and complex emotions lead many to silence.

Thank you, Sara. You lifted up my day.

—Betty Walter ’84 via email VICKY SCHUCK’S LEGACY It was wonderful to see the article on

Vicky Schuck in the spring Alumnae Quarterly (“Into the Halls of Power,” p. 20).

I took her survey course in 1963 with the unforgettable spring trip to Washington, DC, where we had time to meet and question Attorney General Bobby Kennedy and other DC “friends” of Vicky.

This course made a lasting impression on me. I was hired by Stanford University President Donald Kennedy in 1981 as his special assistant responsible for finding ways to instill public service at Stanford. I ran into Vicky at a Stanford event. She was a Stanford graduate, and for the next five years we worked closely together behind the scenes to design and launch Stanford in Washington, a residential, credit-bearing program, which some thirty years later is thriving and is considered one of the leading programs of its kind nationally.

Join the Conversation quarterly@mtholyoke.edu

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facebook.com/aamhc twitter.com/aamhc instagram.com/mhcalums alumn.ae/linkedin

Vicky also helped me to expand government internships at Stanford, which became so popular that I ended up teaching a course called Washington Politics and Players. I can remember telling the president of Stanford that we had to work hard to develop programs as good as what I had as an undergraduate under Vicky.

I kept in close contact with her in Washington when I was planning and launching AmeriCorps, and she was always encouraging me to be a strong leader.

Mount Holyoke was lucky to have her, and her influence was tremendous.

—Catherine Higgs Milton ’64 via email Ms. Schuck’s vast network extended beyond the corridors of power in Washington, DC. In 1964 I was a senior at MHC, returning after junior year abroad and an international internship. I was applying to grad school (Yale) and needed a recommendation from two professors. I knew my advisor would be supportive but needed another faculty member to write on my behalf. I was enrolled in one of Ms. Schuck’s courses but did not know her well. More important, she did not know me.

Deirdre Haber Malfatto

HONORING INFANT LOSS I write to thank you for publish-

7/6/16 10:18 AM

I was carrying my application with me, trying to figure out who could be of help. One day in the library, I ran into Ms. Schuck, who greeted me by name! I pulled out my application, explained my future plans, and asked for her help. She graciously agreed to write a recommendation. I was accepted at Yale and enrolled the following year. The chair of my department knew Ms. Schuck, a connection that undoubtedly was important in my acceptance.

I will never forget her generosity and am grateful for her wide network of contacts, which she used to help many students launch their careers.

—Annette Biscombe Ramírez de Arellano ’65 (and Yale ’67) via email REMEMBERING SALLY MONTGOMERY I was deeply saddened to see the

news in the most recent issue of the Alumnae Quarterly of the passing of Sally Montgomery (“In Memoriam,” spring 2016, p. 8). There was no more devoted advocate of Mount Holyoke than Sally. Professional economist, dean of the College, legendary teacher to hundreds (thousands?) of students—she was the embodiment of what is best about education in general and specifically education at a small college. The lessons I learned from her about the discipline of economics and the value of being an educated woman were memorable and invaluable.

I was thus deeply disturbed that the College did not notify alumnae of her November passing until April. We get so many communications from the Alumnae Association. Surely one of them could have mentioned this news about such an important member of our community.

—Margery Cohen Coen ’62 Chicago, Illinois ONGOING DISCUSSION Two letters in the spring 2016

Alumnae Quarterly (p. 3) reflected

some confusion about what it means to be pro-choice. Pro-choice doesn’t mean you think abortion is desirable.

Pro-choice just means you don’t want abortion to be illegal.

The personal decision of whether to have an abortion may be emotional and difficult. But the political decision to be pro-choice or pro-life is an entirely separate question.

Pro-choice people want individuals to make the difficult, emotional decision themselves. Pro-life people want the government to take away the choice of safe, legal abortion.

I have never heard anyone in the debate promote abortion as a favored method of birth control or as women’s only option. Those are caricatures of the pro-choice position.

—J’aime Wells ’97 via email

M OU N T H OLYOK E A LU M NA E QUA RT E R LY Summer 2016 Volume 100 Number 3 EDITORIAL AND DESIGN TEAM

Taylor Scott Senior Director of Marketing & Communications Jennifer Grow ’94 Editor Millie Rossman Creative Director Anne Pinkerton Assistant Director of Digital Communications Jess Ayer Marketing & Communications Assistant CON TR I BUTORS

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Kyley Butler ’18 Olivia Collins ’18 Alicia Doyon Maryellen Ryan Elizabeth Solet Nicole Villacres ’18 Amy Yoelin ’18 QUARTERLY COMMITTEE

Inspired by the

Beth Mulligan Dunn ’93, chair Katharine L. Ramsden ’80 Carolyn E. Roesler ’86

badassery of MHC alum Mariya Karimjee on this week’s #ThisAmericanLife ep: http://tal.fm/586 @aamhc O LIVIA L AM M E L ’ 14 @O LIVIAL AM M E L

The Mount Holyoke Alumnae Quarterly is published quarterly in the spring, summer, fall, and winter by the Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College, Inc.

Vice President Susan Brennan Grosel ’82 Treasurer and Chair, Finance Committee Tara Mia Paone ’81 Clerk Ashanta Evans-Blackwell ’95 Alumnae Trustee Carrianna Field ’97 Young Alumnae Representative Elaine C. Cheung ’09 Chair, Nominating Committee Nancy J. Drake ’73 Chair, Classes and Reunion Committee Danielle M. Germain ’93 Chair, Communications Committee Shannon Dalton Giordano ’91 Chair, Volunteer Stewardship Committee Charlotte N. Church ’70 Chair, Clubs Committee Elizabeth McInerny McHugh ’87 Directors-at-Large Katherine S. Hunter ’75 Amanda S. Leinberger ’07 Executive Director Nancy Bellows Perez ’76 ex officio without vote

was printed in the USA by Lane Press, Burlington, VT. Periodicals postage paid at South Hadley, MA, and additional mailing offices.

Ideas expressed in the Alumnae the views of Mount Holyoke College or the Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College.

The Alumnae Quarterly welcomes

Alumnae Quarterly article “Into the Halls of Power” (p. 20), we incorrectly identified Sally Sears Donner ’63 as an attorney. Donner retired in 2013 after a fifty-year career in Washington, DC, as a senior government-affairs professional.

President Marcia Brumit Kropf ’67

Summer 2016, volume 100, number 3,

Quarterly do not necessarily reflect

CORRECTION: In the spring 2016

ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

letters. Letters should run not more than 200 words in length, refer to material published in the magazine, and include the writer’s full name.

Letters may be edited for clarity and space.

The Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College, Inc. 50 College St. South Hadley, MA 01075-1486 413-538-2300 alumnae.mtholyoke.edu quarterly@mtholyoke.edu POST MAST E R

(ISSN 0027-2493; USPS 365-280) Please send form 3579 to

To update your information,

Alumnae Information Services

contact Alumnae Information

Mount Holyoke Alumnae Association

Services at ais@mtholyoke.edu

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or 413-538-2303.

South Hadley, MA 01075-1486

Mount Holyoke Alumnae Quarterly

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SUMMER 2016

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Lyons Share: Reunion Over two beautiful weekends in May, nearly 1,200 alumnae from classes ending in sixes and ones and generations that spanned nearly a century traveled back to Mount Holyoke from across the globe to reconnect with each other and the idyllic campus they still call home. Here’s a sampling of shared memories, discoveries, and selfies taken during Reunion 2016. To view additional photos and social media coverage and to watch a video, visit alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/reunion2016.

4 4 Friends since firsties. #mhc2001 #mhcreunion @LISS PS M ALL LISS POU LSON S M ALL ’01

5 Annnddd we’re here two years later! #mhcreunions #2014reunions @M U NAZ Z AK19 M U NAZ Z A F. KH AN ’ 14

6 “The signature of a truly enviable woman is the tenacity and continuity of her women friends.” —Wendy Wasserstein ’71. Many miles (and sometimes oceans) separate us. Often years can go by without a word or a visit. But we never skip a beat when we come together. #classof86 #30yearsstrong #uncommonwomen #MHCreunion #grateful

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@H ILARY R IF KIN H ILARY BASS R IF KIN ’86

The class of 1966 celebrated their fiftieth reunion. At the annual meeting the class earned awards for reunion attendance, as well as advancement awards for both highest participation and highest total giving to the College.

7 The class of 1976 is celebrating their 40th #MHCReunion! @M H CALU M S M OU NT H OLYOKE ALU M NAE

1 1 Hard at work checking in Sphinxes this afternoon #CampMHC #MHCReunion @M H C_ 2011 MH C CL ASS OF 2011

2 Laurel parade #mhc #mountholyoke #mountholyokecollege #mhcreunions #mhcreunion #10yearreunion #mhc2006

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8 “I have new granddaughters!”

—Anne Davidson Lester, 1946 president. It was a joy and an honor to spend the weekend with some amazing ladies from the class of 1946 for their 70th reunion! Holyoke alums never cease to amaze and inspire me with their intellect, passion, persistence, good humor, and kindness. #MHCReunion #graduation #mohofamily #blessed #icriedwhentheyleft

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@KELLYEAAAHNN KELLYANN MCGUIRE ’11

9 Reunion #20years #MHC

@NEWENGLANDDAUGHTER

@CE RJI

DA N I EL LE WOODING ’06

CE RJI COLVIN ’ 9 6

3 The class of 1956

brought energy and enthusiasm back to campus! #MHCReunion @M H CA LUMS

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E D ITOR 'S NOT E : Some captions have been edited for clarity and space.

MO U N T HOLYOKE A LU M N AE

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Every time I return, I’m even more grateful I had 4 amazing, life-changing years

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@MountHolyoke. #mhc91 #MHCReunion AM Y GOT WALS ’ 91 @AM YGOT WALS

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10 Sharing secrets.

#classof1961 #MHCReunion

M OU NT H OLYOKE ALU M S @AAM H C

11 Rockin’ the Red Carpet!

Congratulations seniors— I couldn’t be more proud of all that you have accomplished.

LY NN PASQU E R E LLA ’80

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@COM M IS H 1837

12 #MHCReunion #classof1971

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M OU NT H OLYOKE ALU M S @AAM H C

13 #MountHolyoke gave us

confidence and friends for life. #classof1981 #MHCReunion

M OU NT H OLYOKE ALU M S @AAM H C

14 With some super inspiring @MountHolyoke women Class of 1951 you are fabulous! #MHCReunion #UncommonWomen

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SADAF F E ABID ’ 95 @SADAF F E ABID

Mount Holyoke Alumnae Quarterly

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SUMMER 2016

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TEN MINUTES WITH

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GO FIGURE

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T H E M AV E N

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THE FEMALE GAZE

Uncommon Ground Our Newest Alumnae: A True Blue and Fearless Group ON THE CHILLY BUT SUNNY

morning of Sunday, May 15, the class of 2016 processed into a packed Gettell Amphitheater for Mount Holyoke’s 179th commencement ceremony. Each senior clutched a single iris, and many wore the blue lion class scarf they had received at the Alumnae Association’s Welcome New Alumnae Ceremony just a few days earlier.

Barbara McClearn Baumann ’77, chair of the College’s board of trustees, delivered the opening address, reminding the graduates that they were joining a group of more than 35,000 alumnae “making a difference in the world.” Outgoing President Lynn Pasquerella ’80 choked up as she told the more than six hundred graduates and certificate recipients, “Just like you, I leave Mount Holyoke for the next step of my journey.”

Conferring an honorary doctorate of fine arts upon pioneering multimedia artist Joan Edwards Jonas ’58, President Pasquerella said, “You represent what Emily Dickinson wrote: ‘The brain is wider than the sky.’”

When Jonas addressed the graduates, she recalled her unique trajectory in the art world and urged, “No matter what you do or where you go, remain open to new ideas.”

Global health leader Joia Mukherjee delivered the keynote address after she was presented with an honorary doctorate of science. She challenged the class of 2016 to embrace the legacy of the College’s founder Mary Lyon—and answer the call to social justice—just as her mortarboard blew off in the wind. She urged, “You commence today, leaving this place, this bubble, into a world that is positively waiting for your disruption.

It is a world ripe for social change. Please, be brave. Walk together. Disrupt this place with me.” The assembled family, friends, faculty, staff, and new alumnae all roared with pride.

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An honorary degree was also conferred upon US Representative Richard E. Neal, who spoke of the impact Frances Perkins, class of 1902, had on his life. Finally, speaker Areeba Kamal ’16, who was selected by her

peers to give the student address, focused her remarks on how the class had ensured that Mount Holyoke was home for all. “We belonged here, and we always will,” she said.

—BY ANNE PINKERTON

WEB EXCLUSIVE

Read the full Commencement address, watch the ceremony, and get to know our newest alumnae at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/commencement2016.

alumnae.mtholyoke.edu

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Learning in the Field

“Equity” Levels Hollywood Playing Field

Laurel parade: Deirdre Haber Malfatto; geology trip: Michelle Markley

At the early hour of 3:30 a.m. on March 10, nineteen enthusiastic students and three geology department staff—Professor Steven Dunn, Associate Professor Michelle Markley, and Lab Director Penny Taylor—headed off to Bradley International Airport on their way to Death Valley National Park. During the previous eight

Former College trustees Audrey McNiff ’80 and Barbara Moakler Byrne ’76, both investment bankers, have taken on an exciting project as funders and coproducers of Equity, a new film by screenwriter Amy Fox and director Meera Menon.

Touted in the press as the antidote to the glut of male-dominated Hollywood stories about life on Wall Street, Equity lives up to its name in delivering a financial thriller that showcases powerful female characters.

Sarah Megan Thomas, a co-star and producer, called Byrne directly, saying that she had been told that no one would support a film like this about women and asking if Byrne would consider reading the script. “Before I did, I compulsively said, ‘I will give you $100,000 and help you raise money from other women,’” Byrne recalled. “I did it because I could. I did it because she impressed me with her dedication and focus. I called several other people, and they said they were in.

It caught on like wildfire.”

After that, Byrne did read the script, which portrays a demanding, competent, and competitive senior investment banker, who is female. Byrne also shared her own experience as an investment WEB EXCLUSIVE

Watch the trailer for the film at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/equity.

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banker, giving feedback and opening her office to the cast, director, and producer so that they could see what the environment was really like. “I spent time with Anna Gunn [who stars in the film],” Byrne said. “She instinctively understood where the screenwriter was off when portraying this woman. They had the investment banker being rude to her assistant. She said that just wouldn’t happen. Any woman who has risen to that level has to have someone who has her back.”

And, Byrne continued, “Although the main woman in the movie is cutthroat, my experience in this business is that most women are very supportive.”

Equity is perhaps the first female-driven film about Wall Street since the 1988 comedy Working Girl and certainly the first ever written, directed, and financed by women.

After being shown at Sundance Film Festival in January, Equity was sold to Sony Pictures Classics, who will release it July 29 in Los Angeles and New York City. Broad distribution is scheduled for September. Byrne also has a cameo role in a scene where the firm is pricing an IPO. (Look for the woman wearing a blue suit.)

“The most fun part about being involved was being able to reach out to a network of senior women who are supporting these young women and their stories,” Byrne said.

“There is a sisterhood in that.”

—BY ANNE PINKERTON

Jennifer Fergesen ’16 takes notes on Pliocene volcanic rocks that feature petroglyphs.

CO M M O N R EA D :

Between the World and Me Mount Holyoke has selected Between the World and Me

by Ta-Nehisi Coates as the 2016 Common Read. To learn more about the book and planned College programming throughout the year, visit alumnae. mtholyoke.edu/ commonread.

weeks, the undergraduates—all students of geology—had prepared for the trip by researching geological features exclusive to the park, including Ubehebe Crater and the mysterious skating rocks in Racetrack Playa.

The group spent nine days in the field, studying features and samples, anxious to see the intricate and complex geology of the area. There were mini-lectures by professors and time spent taking field notes and recording observations in preparation for a final project. A highlight of the trip was the abundance of desert flowers—a onceper-decade “super bloom,” the result of El Niño.

At every stop, students eagerly took photos of t he rare flowers.

This year’s trip to Death Valley is the fourth time in the last decade the geology department has offered students the opportunity for learning outside of the classroom during spring break.

Markley, who has accompanied the group on several occasions, says, “It is a genuine treat for our students to study geology in the desert of Death Valley. There we see all the rocks in the region where debris flows, where earthquakes and volcanoes are actively shaping the landscape. The Connecticut River Valley hasn’t had active geology like that for about 200 million years.”

View more photos from the trip at alumnae. mtholyoke.edu/deathvalley.

— BY A M Y YO E L I N ’ 1 8

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Faculty Retirements

on post-Cold War American foreign policy affectionately referred to as the “Vinnie and Joe Show.”

Anthony Lake, former Five College professor of international relations and now executive director of UNICEF, recalled, “Vinnie taught me how to teach. He was not only my mentor, he was my hero.

And he was my friend.” And graduating senior Courtney Brunson ’16 presented Ferraro with the student-choice “Love Your Lyon” award for best storyteller on campus.

After thanking those in attendance for their contributions to his career, Ferraro said, “I am very sad to leave the company of my colleagues and the exhilaration of the classroom. It is time, however, to move on and to let the curriculum be invigorated by new faculty. Change is a necessary constant for the health of both individuals and institutions.”

Also retiring with emeritus status in 2016 are professors of politics Penny Gill and Joan T. Cocks; professors of English John Lemly and Robert B. Shaw; professor of philosophy Thomas E. Wartenberg; professor of sociology and anthropology Debbora Battaglia; professor of economics Jens Christiansen; professor of German studies Gabriele Wittig Davis; professor of biological sciences Jeffrey A. Knight; and professor of music Gary Steigerwalt.

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Queer Alum Conference Marks Milestone On March 26, in celebration of the student organization OUTreach—formerly True

College Announces New Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty In May, Jon Western was named the College’s next vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty, succeeding Sonya Stephens, who in January was named to a three-year term as the College’s acting president.

Both took office in July.

Western is a professor of international relations and noted public policy scholar. Most recently he served as Carol Hoffmann Collins ’63 Professor of International Studies at Mount Holyoke, Five College Professor of International Relations, and director of the Five College International Relations Program.

To read more about Western’s appointment and the work he will undertake, visit alumnae. mtholyoke.edu/western.

Colors—and the thirtieth anniversary of the alumnae group Lyon’s Pride, more than one hundred students and alumnae gathered on campus for the 2016 Queer Alum Conference.

TOP: Emerita professor of politics Jean Grossholtz (seated) and Lyon’s Pride President Donna Albino ’83 (standing) at a panel discussion BOTTOM: Margo Burns ’79 (left) and Mary Warren Bartlett ’87 reconnected at the conference

Ferraro and Western: MHC Office of Communications; conference photos courtesy of Mary Warren Bartlett

This year the College bade farewell to a dozen faculty members, including Vincent “Vinnie” Ferraro, who retired as the Ruth Lawson Professor of Politics. Ferraro worked at the College for forty years, teaching countless classes and advising thousands of students. He founded the international relations department, setting the groundwork for establishing the nation’s first undergraduate major in international relations.

During a celebration on April 11 in Gamble Auditorium, Ferraro’s work was remembered by a large group of students, colleagues, mentors, and friends. Former Dean of Faculty Joseph Ellis reminisced about coteaching a class with Ferraro

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ten minutes with

SPACE ARCHA EO LO GI ST

Moon Studies D R . B E T H O ’ L E A R Y ’ 7 4 holds a unique title: space archaeologist. It’s a designation she earned

as a result of teaching classes in her specialty, cultural resource management. These studies often lead to National Register nominations of archaeological and historic sites. She is currently professor emerita in the Department of Anthropology at New Mexico State University. A recognized expert, O’Leary has spent thirty-nine years in the fields of archaeology and cultural anthropology. Most of her work has taken place in New Mexico, west Texas, and Canada's Yukon territory. But for the last fifteen years, her focus has been farther afield: the moon.

On defining space archaeology: Archaeology is essentially an investigation of the relationship between human behavior and material culture. In our past we have created culture—sites and artifacts that are our heritage. Space archaeology and heritage is the study of material culture that is clearly the result of human behavior: objects that are found in the exo-atmosphere or outer space and the facilities on Earth that made that exploration possible. I focus on the

archaeological assemblage: the artifacts, features, footprints, robotics, and trails on the moon.

On how her work in space got started: While teaching my graduate seminar in 2000 in the application of historic preservation law, a student asked if United States preservation laws apply on the moon. I didn’t know.

With a grant from the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium we began to research this

“The moon is the cultural heritage of all humanity, and its sites should be preserved.

question. We learned there is in excess of 106 metric tons of cultural material on the lunar surface, and so we limited our scope to the most iconic site—Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing.

On studying the mission and its artifacts: The Apollo 11 mission had a planned landing site, but Neil Armstrong landed in an area he felt was safer. He and Buzz Aldrin collected more than forty pounds of lunar rocks and regolith. Because they had only one chance to lift off, they jettisoned non-critical artifacts, creating an archaeological site. We looked at documentation, especially the Apollo Lunar Surface Journal, and created an archaeological site map aided by the images taken at the time of the event, as well as digital images retrieved in 2009 by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter that show the foot trails and some of the larger objects. There are few natural forces on the moon to erode the site, and its remoteness has helped preserve it from subsequent human impacts.

On what came next: Initially we proposed to NASA that the Apollo 11 site be designated a National Historic Landmark but were told that it would be perceived by the world as a claim of sovereignty, not allowable under the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. But in a giant leap for preservation, in 2011 I was part of the NASA team that wrote and published guidelines for all future expeditions to help protect the scientific and historical values of the US sites on the moon.

WEB EXCLUSIVE

Elise Taylor

View photos from the Apollo 11 mission at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/apollo11.

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Chapin Auditorium at 100 In 1899 students and alumnae came up with the idea for a shared building, one that would be a headquarters for student organizations and a home for visiting alumnae.

After years of planning and fundraising by students, faculty, and alumnae, the new building—Student Alumnae Hall—was dedicated in June 1916. In 1945 the College renamed the building Mary E. Woolley Hall, after Mount Holyoke’s eleventh president.

Within Mary Woolley Hall resides Chapin Auditorium. With seating for 1,126 people and a proscenium stage twenty-six feet deep and twenty-nine feet wide, Chapin is the largest indoor performance facility at Mount Holyoke.

Like the exterior of the building, the auditorium is decked out with Gothic details. Two sets of heavy wooden double doors outfitted with sturdy brass S-shaped handles open into the space from three floors. The hardwood-floored arena level is adorned with dark wood rectangular insets and ornate metal heating grates in the walls. An arch decorated with a quatrefoil design frames the apron of the stage, from which two sets of steps descend to the floor. Tall windows, outfitted with heavy flowered curtains, run the length of two sides of the room on both the first and second floors. The bright white ceiling, arching gently overhead, features enormous extruding quatrefoils that resemble giant four-petal blossoms.

A

Sturdy wooden columns support the balcony, which wraps around the room like a horseshoe and holds several rows of wooden chairs with red velveteen seat cushions.

The control booth is situated squarely in the back of this tier where sound and lighting are managed during performances. Perched above it is a smaller top tier of seating with a side stairwell leading to the second level.

D

Backstage is also made up of three floors. On the first, a closet reveals lighting instruments and scrims. Two small matching dressing rooms contain the basics: a sink, countertop, chairs, and mirror encircled with lights. Cables, chairs, rugs, music stands, ironing boards, and a baby grand piano are stored in the wings, where five rows of heavy black curtains are draped.

A spiral staircase is discretely situated in a back corner, leading up to the lighting gallery, where the lamps are hung. The fly system is balanced with fifty-pound sandbags suspended by thick black ropes draped over pulleys. A skinny metal stair leads to the rafters high above the stage. Three more dressing rooms of varying sizes are tucked away stage right on the second floor. And at the top of a long staircase on the third floor, four large closets hold racks of colorful costumes from as early as the 1800s, literally keeping the building’s history on hand.

WEB EXCLUSIVE

View more photos of Chapin Auditorium at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/chapin.

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Deirdre Haber Malfatto

On its hundredth birthday, Chapin looks almost exactly the way it did when it was first built—beautiful, distinctive, and ageless. — B Y A N N E P I N K E R T O N

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a place ofview our own insider’s

B

Seating in Chapin Auditorium spans three tiers (A); a closet backstage houses dozens of stage lighting instruments (B); heavy sandbags provide the counterweights to a theatrical rigging system that also includes pulleys and ropes (C); one of several dressing rooms (D); a detail from some of the hundreds of costumes that span more than a century in a closet on the top floor (E); tape from the soundboard in the control booth preserves track details from previous performances (F); and rows of lighting as seen from the stage (G).

C

E

F

G

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go figure

Alumnae Association Travel Program For the past forty-three years, the Alumnae Association travel program has brought together sister alumnae to travel the world and continue their lifelong journey of learning. Learn more at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/travel.

194

Number of trips that have taken place in the program’s history

Percentage of trips to European countries

36

70 Approximate number of countries that alumnae have traveled to through the program

1908

Earliest class year of alumnae who participated in the program

1973

Year the travel program was established

$319

The total cost of an eight-day trip to Cancun in 1976

Number of miles between South Hadley and New Zealand, the farthest country alumnae have traveled to through the program

9,054

3,820 Approximate number of alumnae and their guests who have participated in the travel program

WEB EXCLUSIVE

View a slideshow from a recent trip to Provence and Normandy at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/france.

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the maven

THE FOOD WAST E MAV E N

Minimizing Wasted Food B R Y N O A K L E A F ’ 0 5 is a waste prevention and diversion environmental analyst with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation and vice president of the board for the Northeast Recycling Council. Since serving as a speaker at the first Zero Food Waste Forum in 2014, Oakleaf has been driven not only to divert unwanted food from landfills but to capture and redirect edible food.

The interconnected aspects of climate change, food access, and wasted resource prevention are issues that she works daily to overcome. Oakleaf has fostered relationships with community partners that specialize in capturing surplus edible food and redistributing it to those in need (i.e., food AR E YO U A rescue). In just under a year there has been a near 100 percent increase MAVE N? Pitch us your in food rescued as a result of the new partnerships Oakleaf has area of expertise built and Vermont’s Universal Recycling law. at quarterly@ mtholyoke.edu.

How much food do you waste? A day?

A week? A month? We all waste food.

An estimated 25 percent of the food Americans purchase goes uneaten.

That means food—and money—being thrown away, and landfills filling up with unnecessary waste. But minimizing wasted food, money, and resources is something each of us can do by making small changes to daily habits.

Those behavior changes will have a collective impact on improving our food system.

Assess Current Waste Take a close look at the food you are already wasting. For one week, place all of your discarded food into a liquid-tight container. Write down each item, estimated amount discarded, and estimated purchase price. If you’re interested in tracking wasted food over time, you may want to start a spreadsheet and relate it back to your household budget.

Consider Other Costs How much do you spend a month on trash collection or drop off? An estimated 50 percent of what households throw away could be composted or recycled. Properly separating out those materials may save you money as

well. As members of the Mount Holyoke community it’s not just our wallets that motivates us. It’s the impact on the global community and our environment. Food decomposing in a landfill produces methane, a greenhouse gas (GHG) that is twenty times more heat trapping than carbon dioxide. The United States Environmental Protection Agency states that landfills are among the top three sources of anthropogenic methane produced in the nation. When we prevent wasted food and divert food scraps from the landfill we save more than our pennies; we are mitigating GHG production and improving the food system.

Take Back Control Make a commitment to make change— and encourage others to do the same.

Make a grocery list that reflects meal planning—including leftovers—for the week. Store food in transparent containers and note the date it was prepared to serve as a reminder to eat it soon. Be inventive with your recipes to use unneeded components from

one meal in the creation of another.

Remember that freezing is a good option, too. Set up a compost system for the unavoidable food scraps, like vegetable peels and rinds. Small changes yield measurable results. You’ll succeed in wasting less and spending less, and you’ll feel more in control of your own impact on the environment.

—BY B RY N OA K L E A F ’ 0 5

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the female gaze

P E RFO R MI NG A RTS

Theatre of Movement Mollye Maxner’s FP’05 creative work is so multifaceted you can’t slap any one label on what she does. She wears the hats of director, dramatist, choreographer, playwright, and artistic director, developing and presenting original theatre and movement works.

Maxner is also a teacher, working as a part-time visiting faculty member at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA), where she formerly trained in ballet and contemporary dance and in the directing program of the drama department.

Maxner first fell in love with movement when she was eight years old and grew up studying ballet and contemporary dance.

In the early 1990s she and her husband, Kelly, founded a theatre company, traveling and performing in the United States, Taiwan, the Republic of Georgia, Vienna, and Turkey, where they returned yearly for extended visits over more than a decade as they choreographed numerous dance pieces for companies in Istanbul and Ankara.

Once at Mount Holyoke AR E YO U AN ARTI ST? as a Frances Email your Perkins student, submission Maxner added to quarterly@ playwriting and mtholyoke.edu. dramaturgy to her repertoire.

“My honors thesis project was my first creative work to involve written/spoken text,” she said.

“We had the privilege of performing that piece, Reading by Lightning, in New York City at Joyce SoHo a year later. One of the things I learned from that project was that I needed more training in text and in directing performers to handle dialogue.”

It was then that she enrolled at UNCSA. Since then Maxner has directed many plays by others, and she has also written and produced several of her own, most recently Occupied Territories, co-written with Nancy Bannon and first performed

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at Theater Alliance in Washington, DC, in June 2015.

Maxner refers to the piece as the culmination of much of her work over the last two decades. Inspired by her own life and the concept of an “all-male Trojan Woman,” Occupied Territories tells the story of an adult daughter uncovering the truth of her father’s past in the Vietnam War as she packs up his basement after his death.

Occupied Territories was nominated for six Helen Hayes Awards and in May received the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Choreography. The play is scheduled for an off-Broadway run in November 2017.

“I am deeply honored and humbled,” Maxner said. “I believe deeply in the heart of the piece and the bravery of my family to open up this story to people.” And she is seeing her work open up the stories of others,

The original cast performs Occupied Territories at Theater Alliance in Washington, DC, June 2015.

Though the play is technically fictional, Maxner said, “The roots of it are based in my family. My older sister was born while my dad was in Vietnam. My mom taped the birth and sent it to him. He would sit out on the bunker wall and listen to the sounds of my sister’s first cries while he watched the nightly bombings in the distance.”

too. A day after a Vietnam veteran came to the performance in DC with his adult daughter, she says, “He sent us an email . . . thanking us and saying that on the drive home he opened up to her about things he had never told her, never told anyone, in these forty-five years since his deployment.”

—BY ANNE PINKERTON

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BOOKS

Free Men Katy Simpson Smith HARPER

In 1788 three men converge in the southern woods of what is now Alabama. In the few days they spend together the trio commits a shocking murder that soon has the forces of law bearing down upon them. Sent to pick up their trail, a probing French tracker named Le Clerc must decide which has the greater claim: swift justice, or his own curiosity about how three men could commit such a crime.

KATY SIMPSON SMITH ’06 was born and raised in Jackson,

Mississippi. She received a PhD in history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MFA from the Bennington Writing Seminars.

She is the author of two previous books and lives in New Orleans, Louisiana.

When Someone You Know Has Depression: Words to Say and Things to Do Susan J. Noonan, MD, MPH JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY PRESS

Family members and close friends are often the first to recognize the subtle

Occupied Territories: C. Stanley Photography

changes and symptoms of depression and are also the ones who can provide daily support, often at great personal cost. Noonan describes effective communication strategies to use during episodes of depression and offers essential advice for finding appropriate professional help. Featuring tables and worksheets that convey information in an accessible way, this companion volume to WEB EXCLUSIVE

See more recent alumnae books at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/ summer2016books.

the patient-oriented Managing Your Depression is a valuable tool for those navigating the depression of someone close to them.

SUSAN J. NOONAN ’75 is a part-time certified peer specialist at McLean Hospital and consultant to CliGnosis Inc. She is the author of two books and a contributing writer for Psychology Today. She holds graduate degrees from Tufts University School of Medicine and the Harvard University School of Public Health.

We Are Charleston: Tragedy and Triumph at Mother Emanuel Marjory Wentworth, et al.

THOMAS NELSON

Written by South Carolina-based writers Herb Frazier, Dr. Bernard Edward Powers, and Marjory Wentworth ’80, We Are Charleston is based on extensive interviews with family and friends of “The Emanuel Nine,” the church members who lost their lives on June 17, 2015, when a young man opened fire on a prayer meeting at the Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the oldest A.M.E. church in the Deep South.

MARJORY HEATH WENTWORTH ’80 is a five-time Pushcart Prize-

nominated poet and the Poet Laureate of South Carolina. Her books of poetry include Noticing Eden, Despite Gravity, and The Endless Repetition of an Ordinary Miracle, and she is the author of the prizewinning children’s story Shackles. Her work is included in the South Carolina Poetry Archives at Furman University.

A print from Newcomb's Iliad project: The Sacrificial Bull. 2015. Lithograph, 21 in x 28 in.

P R IN T M A K IN G

Capturing the Printed Black From her home studio in Worcester, Vermont, Lynn Newcomb ’60 works as a sculptor and printmaker. Her work has been featured in numerous exhibitions and juried shows, most recently at the newly opened White River Gallery in South Royalton, Vermont, in a show titled The Power of Black Ink: Two Decades of Printmaking.

Newcomb’s interest in printmaking began at Mount Holyoke, when she studied History of Print with Professor Henry Rox, a prolific sculptor best known for his whimsical sculptures made of fruits and vegetables. Newcomb also took a woodcutting course at Smith College with renowned American artist and sculptor Leonard Baskin, an experience that, she says, “initiated all my further work in printmaking.”

“There is no black like the printed black,” Newcomb remembers Baskin saying, and his words continue to inform her work, whether she is working on etching, lithography, or sculpting.

Newcomb is currently concentrating on a body of prints and sculptures referencing Homer’s The Iliad. Prints from this project were featured in a recent exhibition at Two Rivers Printmaking Studio in White River Junction, Vermont.

For more information on Newcomb, visit lynnnewcombvt.com.

— B Y J E S S AY E R

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A DEGREE OF

Photographs by Meredith Heuer

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After three years as the College’s dean of faculty, Sonya Stephens steps into the role of acting president of Mount Holyoke Interview by Jennifer Grow ’94

Just before Sonya Stephens received the torch—literally and figuratively—from outgoing president Lynn Pasquerella ’80 in a student-organized “Olympic” ceremony in the spring, the Alumnae Quarterly sat down with the College’s next leader to talk with her about her transition from vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty to the work that she plans to focus on during her appointed three-year term as the College’s acting president.

As the College’s chief academic officer since joining the administration in 2013, Stephens, a scholar of nineteenth-century French literature and culture, has led colleagues’ efforts to re-imagine the Mount Holyoke curriculum, reduce class sizes, develop innovative learning spaces, enhance faculty research support and compensation, and recruit the faculty of the future. She is also leading the College’s reaccreditation, a lengthy and complex self-evaluation process required every ten years.

On the day we met, Stephens was preparing to distribute The Plan for Mount Holyoke 2021—a project the board of trustees charged her with in January as a part of the transition. Excitedly, she started to talk about the work before we had even settled into her office in Mary Lyon Hall, just one floor below the president’s office, which she moved to in July.

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way to get to know the College than to talk with alumnae.

Every story shared tells a little bit about the institution and what it means to each alumna.

AQ: Can you talk more specifically about what this means for students?

SS: There’s a lot in the Plan for students! First and foremost, the Plan envisages a college experience that is shaped by the diversity of our student body, which is a real distinction. The Plan articulates a commitment

Stephens shared a moment with Karla Villalta ’16 (left) and Eugénie Elie ’16 before Strawberries and Champagne in April.

to take on the challenges of difference and to embrace them, with students collaborating in learning, discovery, engagement, and change, and leading to eliminate discrimination of all kinds in our own community and beyond. The Plan also talks about enhancing campus social traditions and creating new opportunities for

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social and intellectual engagement and cohort-building.

There’s more: new programs, new experiences in a system we are describing as the “liberal arts +,” integrated advising, enhanced residential life, new ways of learning, a focus on the local/global, and programmed and impromptu social opportunities.

AQ: In September the College anticipates celebrating a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Community Center. Can you talk a little bit about the significance of this project to the vibrancy of the campus community and how it relates to the infrastructure needs outlined in the strategic plan?

SS: The Community Center is a new social and creative hub for the campus. During the planning process we kept coming back to the importance of “copresence” in a residential learning environment. It sounds obvious, because that’s what makes Mount Holyoke memorable for generations of alumnae. Students, faculty, and staff represent a community of individuals committed to thinking together, working together, and eating and talking together in ways that are truly transformative for us all, and especially for our graduates. Learning has evolved. The campus has evolved. And the students have evolved. Collective intellectual endeavor and social interaction are becoming harder than ever in an age when we are glued to our electronic devices, network with friends through social media, and access information remotely and continuously.

We have a unique opportunity in this moment to create an engaging forum that will connect the Mount Holyoke community in intellectual and social exchange through curricular and cocurricular infrastructure that increases copresence, as well as through networks powered by social media. The Community Center will be the “third place.” We have homes and offices, and then we gather to be in a social environment to meet, talk, and to seek perspective that enhances our creativity.

Oh yes, and did I mention the pub?

[Read more about the Community Center on p. 20.]

AQ: Let’s switch our focus to alumnae. Within just a few weeks of arriving at Mount Holyoke, you flew to Warsaw, Poland, to participate in the Alumnae Association’s European Symposium. Can you talk a bit about the experience of meeting alumnae out in the world?

SS: It was a privilege to meet alumnae so early on in my time at the College, and those of you who stayed up late with me in conversation know who you are! It’s been a pleasure to continue those conversations on campus and around the world. There is no better way to get to know the College than to talk with alumnae.

Every story shared tells a little bit about the institution and what it means to each alumna. The class histories that are presented at the Alumnae Association meetings

Meredith Heuer

There is no better

ALUMNAE QUARTE RLY: So tell us what the strategic plan means for Mount Holyoke.

Sonya Stephens: The Plan for Mount Holyoke 2021 is built around three questions and develops goals from these questions. What does it mean to be a women’s college in the twenty-first century? What is distinctive about the liberal education that Mount Holyoke offers?

And how do we build a sense of belonging and togetherness on campus and in the larger Mount Holyoke community to keep us connected in meaningful ways?

The Plan takes a close look at all that we do through the kind of institutional self-study and critical reflection required by the reaccreditation process, as well as by our own goals of self-improvement and effectiveness, and our standards of excellence. It includes a vision to enhance campus infrastructure and teaching in ways that privilege and encourage the kinds of high-contact learning and intellectual exchange that are the hallmark of the Mount Holyoke experience, as well as for new programs and forms of learning that connect the liberal arts to research or pre-professional opportunities. The Plan also articulates the ways in which Mount Holyoke will further develop distinctive global educational experiences, leverage the exceptional resources of the campus for applied learning and environmental awareness, and prepare students for inclusive leadership in a range of post-graduation pursuits.

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during reunion weekends similarly represent a connective fabric of memories and experiences that lend texture to the life of the College and celebrate membership of it, set against a changing political backdrop of evolving social expectations and opportunities. At the same time, my conversations with alumnae are also always about the present—what is happening at Mount Holyoke, the work of exceptional faculty, new curricular opportunities—and very much about the ways in which alumnae can help, connecting current students to their professional networks, contributing their experience and expertise, and serving as role models and mentors for new generations.

AQ: In May 2015 you were named an honorary member of the class of 1955 when the class was on campus celebrating its sixtieth reunion. And in April of this year you were honored again by the class during a ceremony at the home of Class President Joan Winkel Ripley ’55. Can you talk about what that meant to you?

SS: The class of ’55 just keeps surprising me! I was drawn into their lives the very first evening I met them, again through the sharing of their stories—of a Mount Holyoke with smoking rooms, overnight TOP: Stephens and Janice Abert ’82 connected at the Alumnae European Symposium in Warsaw in 2013.

Stephens and Abert: John Kuchle; celebration: courtesy class of 1955; ring: Meredith Heuer

BOTTOM: Stephens was celebrated by the class of 1955 in April.

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absence approvals, and restrictions on sunbathing, chewing gum, and knitting. Over time, those stories and encounters have turned to friendship and developed in me a sense of belonging that I see as characteristic of an MHC class. In April they enacted a May Queen ritual for me and other honorary members of the class, with songs, memorabilia, and memories of their now sixty-five years of association with each other and the College. I learned from their Supplementary Handbook of Social Regulations that the Stimson Room was to be used only for “recreational reading”; that no typewriters or bottles of ink were allowed in living rooms; that sun lamps were forbidden; and that the only male guests allowed in their rooms (without special permission) were their fathers—and then only after church on a Sunday, and no later than 6:00 p.m.!

It has been both a lot of fun and extraordinarily moving to be welcomed as a member of the class of ’55—and you will see me wearing a class ring, a cherished gift from Nancy Nutting Lane ’55, as a symbol of our friendship and a talisman.

AQ: What about students? What do you want them to know about you and the work that you intend to pursue?

SS: I’ve always loved my work with students, from the time I was an assistant professor, living in a residence hall at Royal Holloway, University of London, to my work focused on undergraduate education at Indiana University. I am excited to work more closely with Mount Holyoke students and to think with them about what we can do together over the next three years, especially in relation to the priorities of the strategic plan. I’ve already started talking with student leaders about the ways in which we can work together. One of the things I’d like to do is to implement a student think tank that complements the Student Government Association and engages students in longer-term projects that will continue to make Mount Holyoke great for students. I envision a group of maybe six to eight students who will focus on one topic each year. They’ll research and present findings and make recommendations to the administration in order to institute lasting change on campus. I’m also thinking about the role I can play in helping to cement students’ bond to the campus community, sustaining traditions, and maybe creating some new ones. Watch this space!

AQ: Is there anything else you would like the Mount Holyoke community to know about you as we go forward into the next few years?

SS: It seems that I already have a reputation for laughing! That must be because there is always something to enjoy about the work we are engaged in and the relationships we build in that work together.

I’m serious about that . . .

WEB EXCLUSIVE

For updates on the Office of the President visit alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/president.

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Bringing the Campus Together The College’s new Community Center responds to the evolving needs of students with a design that is committed to preserving the MHC experience

By Taylor Scott Additional reporting by Sonia Scherr and Jennifer Grow ’94

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n a late morning in early spring the Mount Holyoke campus is quiet. Bells from the Mary Lyon clock tower mark a quarter to twelve. Tiny pops of color peek through the trees as a few stray students and professors stroll across Skinner Green. At 12:15 p.m. the campus suddenly comes to life as morning classes adjourn. Students stream out of academic buildings or emerge sleepily from residence halls. All make their way toward one of the six dining areas across campus.

If you were to climb to the top of the clock you might notice a distinct traffic pattern emerge below. While a scattering of students may veer toward the Rockies and a couple of small groups may enter Prospect, most make their way toward Blanchard Campus Center.

Inside it is buzzing—overflowing even—with students who mill about drinking coffee from Uncommon Grounds, get in (very long) lines to grab lunch, or set up camp with friends at a table in the Great Room.

Because of its central location, later hours, and take-out options, Blanchard is increasingly students’ destination for eating and socializing. Since 1950—when the building was converted from a gymnasium to offices and the College post office—Blanchard has served as a gathering space for students.

Subsequent renovations added areas for socializing and the bookstore (1988) and, in response to demand for more dining options on campus, Blanchard Café (2003). Today more than one-third of the space in Blanchard is dedicated to dining services, where, according to College data, nearly half of all lunches and dinners on campus are served outside residence hall dining hours.

And when it comes to hanging out, says, Amy Yoelin ’18, a geology and English double major, “the main floor of Blanch is really the only place to gather. But it’s very small. People pull up chairs and combine tables.”

The shortage of gathering space on campus has been a growing concern for many students, who are in need of space for a variety of purposes. “There’s a new demand from student organizations,” says Topaz Mukulu ’18, an economics major from Nairobi, Kenya, who also serves as cochair of the student-advising group C.A.U.S.E.—Creating Awareness and Unity for Social Equality.

The College currently has 120 recognized student-led organizations, and approximately one thousand students—or nearly half the student body—are active in at least one organization. But only about a quarter of the organizations have dedicated offices or space in Blanchard.

For the past several years, the College has been grappling with how to preserve and strengthen the sense of community that is vital to the way students experience Mount Holyoke.

“The paths between buildings are many and the connecting spaces too few,” says Acting President of Mount Holyoke Sonya Stephens.

“This means that students aren’t having those repeated, unavoidable encounters that build social bonds and community.”

As Stephens sees it, the “adventure of a Mount Holyoke education” is built upon a foundation of shared moments and activities—an essential component of not only the residential college experience but of an education steeped in the liberal arts.

Ensuring that these moments occur often is of utmost importance when fostering a vibrant campus community and a rigorous, well-rounded educational experience.

Last year Linda Giannasi O’Connell ’69 served on a working group of students, alumnae, faculty, administrators, and consultants that was tasked with examining community around current student dining behaviors and making recommendations around future campus dining models. As a student in the 1960s, O’Connell ate all meals

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People, Place, and Programming Lower Level Dining Addition

Tranquility dining room

Small dining room Skinner dining room

Grab-and-Go The place to get a meal—fresh, fast, and delicious—while on the run to class, to practice, or to a meeting.

Club dining room

Oak dining room

Great Room The Great Room in Blanchard will give students a large, comfortable gathering space for a variety of events, such as dance parties, concerts, performances, and movies.

Recreation Space Coffeehouse/Pub A combined coffee house/pub will offer a social space to meet and have coffee or, for those of age, an alcoholic beverage. A stage and technical equipment will support karaoke, a capella groups, poetry slams, and open mic and trivia nights.

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Adjacent to the central fireplace, this campus game room will offer a relaxed space to play and hang out, complete with game tables and inviting seating.

Dining Benefits n n n n

extended food service hours to accommodate students’ busy schedules a ddress dietary restrictions and preferences in a single facility enhance commitment to sustainability and the environment offer six reconfigurable dining rooms for groups to come together

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A Green Building The building will reduce the College’s carbon footprint and meet LEED Silver standards, in part through: n a solar thermal system for heating water n a dehydrator unit to convert compostable food waste into a fertilizer-like material n a rain garden to reduce storm water runoff

Middle Level Consolidated Student Services Spaces

Unity Center and Student Gallery This dedicated meeting and work space is for mid-to large-sized groups to have discussions and programs related to culture, identity, and diversity. Linked to the existing student gallery, this space will increase and make visible the expression of the Unity Center’s endeavors.

Beacon dining room

m

Student Life Hub This integrated, cocurricular advising hub will provide a full spectrum of services and programs for engagement.

Lobby Lounge This signature meeting place will welcome Mount Holyoke’s vibrant community of students, faculty, staff, and visitors.

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WEB EXCLUSIVE

View a video, interactive renderings, and an FAQ at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/communitycenter.

Upper Level Repurposed Student Organizations Area

Student Programs Student program offices and staff, as well as more than 120 student-led organizations, will be based on this upper floor. Renovations will support openconcept meeting rooms, training areas, more spaces for organizations, and practical resources.

in her residence halls. “I was an English major,” she says, “but I knew about chemical bonds and about the poems of Ovid because I sat at a [dinner] table with chemistry and Latin majors.” O’Connell says these encounters during meals exposed her to new ideas and people from diverse backgrounds.

Today student experience around meals is different than it was even just a dozen years ago, when the College’s dining plan changed to offer meals in five residence halls and Blanchard, streamlining resources and evolving to meet student demands. Each current dining hall has a different, limited menu, and students tend to decide where to dine based on what they want to eat and where their friends are eating, or—as in the case of choosing Blanchard midday—on convenience, missing out on opportunities to interact with a broader spectrum of campus.

Bobbie Green ’19 and her friends communicate via text prior to most meals. “We have a group chat on WhatsApp,” she says. “There are thirteen of us. Someone decides where they’ll be, and we meet there.”

Creating Opportunities In February the Board of Trustees unanimously approved the expansion of Blanchard to create a unified campus center, envisioning a space where students, faculty, staff, and alumnae can join together to dine, socialize, and organize. The new building will create a hub for dining and student life services, boost visibility for student organizations, and establish a unity space dedicated to cultural understanding and civic engagement, all in a space fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The $50 million project—half of which will be funded through philanthropic gifts, primarily through alumnae—includes an addition and renovations to all three levels of Blanchard, including a pub and coffeehouse, concert venue, student club headquarters, and themed dining rooms with views of Lower Lake and Skinner Green.

Construction began after Reunion and is set to be completed by the spring of 2018.

“I’m really excited about having a large, modernized building on campus that matches with the changing times,” says Mukulu. “And people are excited by the renovations because there is more space designated to student groups, and there is more common space for meetings and collaboration than we have on campus now.”

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Students across campus have been talking about the Community Center—“Super Blanch,” as they’ve named it—a building that looks to the future and literally will serve the students of the future. While renovations of Blanchard will be an integral part of the overall new Community Center, the plan also calls for a 34,000-square-foot dining addition, yet to be named. Green, who will be a senior when the center is scheduled to open, is thrilled to have a year in the new space. “It’s more than a dining hall,” she says. “It’s a bigger space, extended hours, a central location for us to come together.”

The vision for the facility calls for a series of both private and open-area dining spaces that will seat a total of about one thousand people.

Each space will have a different character, such as a warm and cozy “living room” with a fireplace or a glassy, open area overlooking Lower Lake.

The dining center will allow for all types of interactions between students. For example, to encourage students to mingle, tables may be labeled or set aside for anyone interested in joining a discussion on a designated topic, such as an environmental issue, an upcoming campus event, or a favorite television show, says Cerri Banks, dean of the college and vice president for student affairs.

“You can sit among strangers, and when you leave you’ll no longer be strangers, and I think that kind of opportunity will build community and greatly enhance the dining experience.”

Connecting at the Table The expansion of Blanchard also means the remaining residence hall dining rooms will close, ending a chapter of College history much beloved by alumnae. Recent graduate Casey Accardi ’15, who served on the Community Center working group during her senior year and is a current member of the College’s Board of Trustees, understands the alumnae connection to residential dining, but she says that the way students are forming community today is not as central to dining as it historically has been. “The community experience around dining today is inherently different,” Accardi says. “Most dorms don’t contain dining halls, and everyone has the freedom to eat wherever they want with whomever they want each night. That said, I still made some of my closest friends over meals, and I’m confident the Community Center will continue to facilitate that experience.”

When O’Connell joined the working group she was skeptical about establishing one location for dining on campus. But after hearing students, faculty, and staff discuss their current experiences and challenges she came to believe in the project. She says alumnae must both cherish tradition and be open to change if they want Mount Holyoke to remain competitive and strong. “The question is, how do we honor and continue the tradition of breaking bread together as a way of forming and supporting community under modern conditions and particularly to suit the habits of prospective students?” she asks.

Investing in one central dining hall rather than updating the existing independently operating residential dining halls is also the most fiscally sound approach. Over the years the five residence hall dining areas that are still in operation have aged and are in need of updating and investment. Building the Community Center will actually reduce the overall dining hall budget and offer operational savings by consolidating and reducing the amount of equipment running on campus.

During a weekend on campus last fall, Liz Worman Bauer ’59 spent time reviewing the plans for the center in Blanchard, where they were posted for the community to review. “The Community Center with Dining project is a next and welcome step in the evolution of gathering and dining options on campus,” she says, adding that her student experience was “formal dining in the dorm with a personal linen napkin.

“I read hundreds of comments and suggestions posted by community members.

Comments ranged from suggestions for use of the space to concerns about accessibility and special diets, to concerns over loss of traditions,” she says. “Common to all were desires for community and choice. The enlarged and enhanced center will provide spaces for face-to-face interactions between community members whose lives are otherwise connected virtually 24/7. I look forward to enjoying the use of the new facilities at my sixtieth reunion, if not sooner.”

Evolving for the Future The Community Center is an integral part of Mount Holyoke’s new five-year strategic plan, presented to the Board of Trustees in May. The plan is bold, aiming to develop campus infrastructure in order to support the highcontact learning central to the Mount Holyoke experience.

“The Community Center is critical to this vision,” says Stephens. “We are a community of individuals committed to thinking together and working together. And we have a unique opportunity to connect our engagement in community-building to a building that engages our community.”

An anonymous alumna donor has already committed $5 million to the project and will match an additional $10 million in gifts for individual commitments that exceed $250,000. She says she is inspired by the College’s commitment to enhance an already strong tradition of community on campus and to remain competitive among other colleges nationally.

By investing in a space that facilitates intellectual and creative exchange, the College lays the groundwork for the success of its strategic plan, which focuses heavily on embracing new initiatives to support Mount Holyoke’s commitment to a robust liberal arts core, shaping and sustaining a global community, and differentiating the College from its competitors as distinct and extraordinary. At a time when the educational marketplace has grown increasingly competitive, the project will also demonstrate the College’s commitment to its facilities and help Mount Holyoke compete for prospective students.

While not all students love the new plan, younger students like Green and many of her classmates already are familiar with the model of a campus Community Center. “My friends at other colleges love the big gathering spaces they have,” she says. “We are excited that MHC is changing to meet the needs of students.”

Board of Trustees Chair Barbara McClearn Baumann ’77 agrees. “The Board’s enthusiastic and unanimous support for this project is a reflection of our commitment to finding innovative ways to respond to the needs of our current and future students, faculty, staff, and alumnae while at the same time honoring our beloved traditions,” she says. “This sustainable and accessible center will quickly become the heartbeat of this extraordinary institution.”

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O N D I S P L AY

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T H E N A N D N OW

MoHome Memories All Hail Jorge Meet the ruler of Lower Lake

CUR R EN T STUDEN TS have a lot to say about Jorge, the resident goose of Lower Lake. Whether grazing with his posse of mallard ducks on Skinner Green or begging for bagels at the Prospect dining hall, Jorge is a celebrity around campus. He’s often featured on students’ Instagram feeds, and he even has his own Facebook page and Twitter account, @honkhonkjorge.

You can also find Jorge’s image touted by LITS (Library, Information, and Technology Services), which has adopted him as its mascot. Jorge has been featured on buttons, tote bags, and even a cardboard cutout that travels around campus and is featured on LITS social media.

Of course, no symbol of Mount Holyoke could be without some mystery. Jorge’s origins are a topic of great debate, and without any real paper trail they’re likely to stay that way.

LITS claims that Jorge was first sighted on campus in 1993, which begs the question: How can a goose live that long?

Student conspiracy theories claim that former President Lynn Pasquerella ’80 was responsible for replacing Jorge every few years; others point the finger to Facilities Management, although they deny having any role in keeping Jorge around. Some students and recent alumnae say they remember Jorge being pure white, and that the grey goose we know and love today is a replacement.

One myth has been busted, however: Our current Jorge, at least, is not male. Although Jorge roams wild, she is actually a breed of domestic fowl known as a Pilgrim Goose. The males of this breed are white, the females grey. Current students and alumnae alike are unfazed by this; Jessica Hopkins ’88 asks, “What’s wrong with a female Jorge? Seems like she’s an Uncommon Goose.” — O L I V I A C O L L I N S ’ 1 8

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WEB EXCLUSIVE

Watch a video of Jorge in action at alumnae. mtholyoke.edu/jorge.

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on display

SCUL PTUR E

Forever Dancing Honoring a friend

I N M AY 2015, during their fiftieth

Deirdre Haber Malfatto (2)

reunion weekend, about sixty members and friends of the class of 1965 gathered in Abbey Hall living room to dedicate a sculpture to classmate Denise Thompson Smith ’65, who passed away in 2010.

A close-knit group of classmates, who call themselves the “Porter People” and have kept in touch through informal newsletters since their senior year at Mount Holyoke, worked together to identify a fitting tribute to the first of their own to die.

Together they purchased a steel sculpture by longtime Mount Holyoke art professor Leonard DeLonga, who began at the College when the friends were students and with whom many formed close friendships. The piece was sold to the group by DeLonga’s widow, Sandy, from her personal collection and shows a group of dancers holding another above their heads.

“We see it as her friends lifting her up to heaven,” says Di Howland McIntyre ’65, one of the Porter People.

The sculpture is now on permanent display in the lobby of Kendall Sports and Dance Complex. “Denise was student president of the MHC Dance Club, and she never saw the new dance studios,” says McIntyre, “but it’s very fitting that she will always have a place there now.”

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Dancing Figures, 1976, Steel, 14 in x 103/4 in x 41/2 in.

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then and now

Computers on Campus

1985

n Few students had their own computers. To work at a computer, students had to go to the “computer terminals.” These were placed throughout the library and in academic buildings. n During exam periods computer terminals were open twenty-four hours per day. n Textbooks were still a large part of the academic experience and were carried by most students. n All notes were taken with the standard pen-topaper method. n Most computer rooms in dorms were equipped with dot-matrix printers. n The ResNet project—which gave students access to email, the Internet, and cable TV in their dorm rooms—was launched until 1997.

N OW

2016

n Most students own personal computers, and many have a laptop or tablet at the ready. n Computers are used for everything from taking notes in class to researching a course assignment to streaming television shows and movies during study breaks. n Instead of having to print out assigned readings for classes, at the click of a button a document can appear on the screen, where notes can be taken within the margins of the text. n Students have the option of trading their heavy textbooks for e-books. n Students (and faculty and staff) may borrow computers and other technology items through LITS for up to three hours. n Residence halls and many academic buildings are equipped with computer rooms, and laser printers are stationed in buildings across campus.

— B Y A M Y YO E L I N ’ 1 8

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1985: MHC Archives and Special Collections; 2016: Meredith Heuer

THE N

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C L A S S A N D C L U B I N FO J U S T K E YS T R O K E S AWAY

Class and club contacts are available online at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/classes or alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/clubs.

Connections

Woodcut: courtesy of College Women's Association of Japan

United by the Mount Holyoke Spirit This summer the College Women’s Association of Japan (CWAJ) will host the print show Kanreki: A 60-Year Journey, marking the sixtieth anniversary of the CWAJ Exhibition of Contemporary Japanese Prints.

The origins of CWAJ—a volunteer, nonprofit organization based in Tokyo—can be traced back to 1949 when alumnae clubs from Mount Holyoke College and Wellesley College joined together. The group initially provided travel grants to Japanese students who had received scholarships to attend American universities but lacked the funds for transportation overseas.

Recognizing the importance of higher education and its benefits in contributing to the future success of postwar Japan, the president of the Mount Holyoke Club of Japan led efforts to gain approval to launch the travel grant program. By fall of 1949 enough funds were raised to help nine Japanese students travel to the United States to pursue their education. Within a year the organization expanded to include all US college students in Tokyo.

In the mid-1950s, during a time of increased demand for Japanese students studying abroad, the organization expanded its fundraising efforts beyond charity balls, bazaars, and donation campaigns, debuting a print show inspired by the late author and expert of Japanese prints Oliver Statler and his publication Modern Japanese Prints: An Art Reborn. The show was a success, building the foundation for future fundraising and helping to establish the organization as an important presence in the Japanese art community.

Over the past sixty years, the CWAJ print show has become an internationally recognized and highly acclaimed exhibition. Says current CWAJ member and former president Keiko Uchida Yoshimura ’73, “CWAJ and its print show is a

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SALT: Student Loan Help

Mount Holyoke College has teamed up with the nonprofit organization SALT to help current students and recent Mount Holyoke alumnae manage their money and student loans. All services, including membership fees, are free of charge.

To learn more visit alumnae. mtholyoke.edu/salt.

Travel Abroad with Sister Alumnae We invite you to join one or more of the Alumnae Association’s travel opportunities this year. Visit alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/travel.

Okamoto Ryusei, White Fox (Moonlight), 1985.

Woodcut/mica, 60 cm x 32 cm.

wonderful example of the Mount Holyoke legacy that took root in Japan. In a war-devastated country women from two enemy countries became united by friendship, love, and the Mount Holyoke spirit, standing up for the younger generation and their education.”

The exhibition runs through September 14, 2016, at Highfield Hall and Gardens in Falmouth, Massachusetts. To learn more about CWAJ and the show, visit cwaj.org. — B Y J E S S AY E R

China and Tibet October 9–22, 2016

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I was tentative about coming back for Reunion. We’ve all changed so much, and I feared it could never be the same. The moment I stepped on campus I knew I was back home. It takes a truly special place full of incredible women to have that impact.

—A S H L E Y T R AG E R C H AU V I N ’ 0 6 ( P I C T U R E D FA R R I G H T )

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Deirdre Haber Malfatto

a place of our own

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Congratulations Reunion 2016 Awardees

ALUMNAE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Awarded to an alumna for outstanding achievements and service to society that exemplify the ideals of a liberal arts education, through salaried or volunteer fields of endeavor.

JANET BOND ARTERTON ’66

SARITA GUPTA ’96

BARBARA BEERS BURKHOLDER ’56

HOLLY METCALF ’81

MARY P. DUFFY-GUERRERO ’66

BARBARA B. STALLINGS ’66

TAMI GOUVEIA ’96

CANDIDA PEROTTI WOLFF ’86

ALUMNAE MEDAL OF HONOR Awarded to an alumna at her twentieth reunion or beyond for long-term eminent service and significant leadership in promoting the effectiveness of multiple areas of the Alumnae Association and/or College.

ELIZABETH CANNON GUMP ’56

SANDRA A. MALLALIEU ’91

JULIANNE TRABUCCHI PUCKETT ’91

ELIZABETH TOPHAM KENNAN AWARD Awarded to an alumna for outstanding achievement in and contributions to the field of education, honoring the service of former president Elizabeth Topham Kennan ’60 to the College and to higher education in general.

PENELOPE LAURANS FITZGERALD ’66

ALUMNAE LOYALTY AWARD Awarded to an alumna who has demonstrated consistent effort and active involvement in one area of service over an extended period of time. Volunteer effort may be on behalf of a class, club, affinity group, the Association, or the College.

LYDIA WRIGHT BEAUMONT ’46

SHERRERD WELLES URNER ’61

PHOEBE ZABLOW McBEE ’71

ANNE DAVIDSON LESTER ’46

GRACIA CHIN BARRY ’66

CAROL CRAMER MILLS ’71

JANET CROZIER O’ROURKE ’56

LAEL STEVENS CARTER ’66

SUSAN LAREDO THOMPSON ’71

ELIZABETH HOTTEL BARRETT ’61

VIRGINIA K. ROSS ’66

SARAH (SALLY) MICHALEC ’76

SUSAN WHEATLEY CARR ’61

JANE POLLARD MAYO ’71

LYNETTE P. RIZZO ’96

YOUNG ALUMNA VOLUNTEER LEADERSHIP AWARD Awarded to a young alumna who has demonstrated strong leadership, consistent effort over time, and active involvement in one or more areas of service. Volunteer effort may be on behalf of a class, club, affinity group, the Association, or the College.

MICHELLE DILANIAN ’06

MELISSA ANDERSON RUSSELL ’01

MEREDITH S. NELSON ’11

BRIDGET E. MAHONEY ’06

WEB EXCLUSIVE

Read more about the award winners at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/awards2016.

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my voice

ESSAY

On Finding My Strength and Myself THE HYP E-FU E LE D M US I C blasted through the

HAVE AN O PI N I O N TO S HAR E?

Pitch your topic at quarterly@ mtholyoke.edu.

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theatre in Boston as I adjusted the straps on my bikini. I reached down and fixed my heels (praying I wouldn’t trip), took a deep breath, and walked out toward the judges, who would literally be judging me for my body—an event that seems to contradict what it means to be a Mount Holyoke woman. But as I walked off the stage after my first bodybuilding I quickly competition, I fell to my knees, shaking with tears. For the first time since learned that I had been raped, I felt like my body was mine again. there is no Nine months prior, I arrived at Mount Holyoke for my senior year. self-help book Gettell Amphitheater was decked out in yellow, and my classmates for healing were hugging each other wildly, chatting about convocation, senior after a rape. ball, graduation. “I cannot believe we are going to graduate this year!”

I heard more than once.

“ ”

But I held another kind of disbelief in my head.

Back in Creighton Hall I looked in the mirror, and I didn’t recognize myself. During my junior year I had studied in Israel—an experience that sounded like a dream adventure. But my most vivid experience was the men on the beach who sexually assaulted me in public. After being touched by those men—attributing their unsolicited attention to the fact that bad people do bad things—all I wanted when I arrived in Washington, DC, for an internship at the US State Department, was for someone to want me. It was easy to trust the young man—a friend of a friend—who knew I did not want to have sex with him, who got on top of me and raped me while I turned my head away and cried.

I spent the remainder of the summer going to my internship, returning to my rental apartment, and crawling into bed. On weekends I woke up, ate whatever was in my fridge, and returned to bed, pulling the covers over my head. In September, fifty pounds heavier, I arrived back at school, ashamed. Not only did I blame myself for what at the time I refused to call rape, I didn’t fit in my clothes, and I didn’t feel like I was the owner of my body.

One morning in October, I saw a picture of myself on Facebook. My tears turned into anger. I was tired of being a victim; in that moment I made the conscious choice to be a survivor. I headed to the gym, the one place that I had always known would help me to feel better. I had always been an athlete, but my commitment to exercise had disappeared. Lifting heavy weights again soon made me feel powerful and strong. I came to realize that I did not have a choice about what had happened to me. But I did have a choice about how I could begin to heal.

What started as a way to regain control over my body became a part of my daily routine, and my obsession.

Every moment I wasn’t thinking about school, I was thinking about bodybuilding. I took to the weight room twice a day. I thought if I threw myself into a goal so extreme, I could heal myself without having to deal with the fact that I had been violated.

And I was successful on one front.

Bodybuilding helped me reclaim physical ownership of my body. I competed in two shows before realizing that as successful as I’d been, bodybuilding had only been a temporary Band-Aid over the pain and suffering I still felt.

Now, feeling like myself again physically, I have put aside the sparkly bikini. I am so grateful to have discovered bodybuilding, as it gave me the strength— physically and mentally—to go on. But I no longer proclaim ‘bodybuilding saved my life.’ That’s my job now.

Alex Nabaum

By NINA M AR CIANO ’15

6/29/16 11:04 AM

B e c au s e of Y o u , the brightest minds are opened and empowered. When you invest in Mount Holyoke, you help to shape our world’s future. x

Thank you.

The Mount Holyoke Fund

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50 College Street, South Hadley, MA 01075

alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/directory Hannah Bernhardt ’04 and Layton Guenther ’09.

Farmers.

Connected at a national young farmers conference in upstate New York. They stay in touch on social media and have cheered each other on as Hannah starts a livestock farm in Minnesota and Layton heads into Quail Hill Farm’s twenty-seventh season as a vegetable CSA in Amagansett, New York.

Discover what the power of the network can do for you.

Update your information and start connecting.

Layton Guenther ’09

Hannah Bernhardt ’04 Read more about this Mount Holyoke connection at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu/findyourpeople.

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