Mills Quarterly summer 2006 by Mills Quarterly

Mills Quarterly Summer 2006 Alumnae Magazine

Susan Spiller / Biology

Mills Faculty

Maggi Payne / Music

Transforming Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lives

Juliana Spahr / Creative Writing Hung Liu / Studio Arts

Holly Kernan / Social Sciences

Did you have a favorite professor at Mills? Faculty are the key to Millsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; success. Through a gift to support faculty, you can keep the tradition alive and thriving. MILLS COLLEGE ANNUAL FUND

BRUCE COOK

COURTESY OF SUSANNAH HESCHEL

CONSUELA KANAGA

Mills Quarterly

CONTENTS SUMMER 2006 10

Greater than the Sum of His Gifts: Mills Benefactor Albert Bender by Janice Braun, Curator, Special Collections, F.W. Olin Library

Albert Bender’s generosity benefited artists, photographers, fine presses, and Mills College. Janice Braun explores his legacy.

Mills Students Embrace International Politics

by Ebony Lubarsky, ’05

The National Model United Nations and Model Arab League conferences offer unique opportunities for students to learn leadership skills.

Daughters of the Dream

by Moya Stone, MFA ’03

Daughters of great civil rights leaders bring their dreams and visions to Mills.

Commencement 2006 Degree Day was warm and joyful. Senator Barbara Boxer received an honorary degree and gave the keynote speech.

D E PA R T M E N T S 4

Inside Mills

Mills Matters

Profiles

Passages

ABOUT THE COVER: A page from a 15th-century Book of Hours, the gift of Albert Bender. The exquisite illuminated prayer book was made in Bruges (now located in Belgium). See article about Albert Bender on page 10. Cover photo by Peg Skorpinski.

Mills Quarterly Volume XCV Number 1 (USPS 349-900) Summer 2006 Alumnae Director Sheryl J. Bize-Boutté, ’73 Editor David M. Brin, MA ’75 <dbrin@mills.edu> (510) 430-3312 Design and Art Direction Benjamin Piekut, MA ’01 Associate Editor Pat Soberanis Contributing Writers Moya Stone, MFA ’03 Jo Kaufman Quarterly Advisory Board Jennifer Neira Heystek, ’04, Marian Hirsch, ’75 Jane Cudlip King, ’42, Jane Redmond Mueller, ’68 Cathy Chew Smith, ’84, Ramona Lisa Smith, ’01, MBA ’02 Sharon K. Tatai, ’80 Lynette Williams Williamson, ’72, MA ’74 Class Notes Writers Alice London Bishop, ’58, Julia Bourland Chambers, ’93 Laura Compton, ’93, Barbara Bennion Friedlich, ’49 Sally Mayock Hartley, ’48, Marian Hirsch, ’75 Cathy Chew Smith, ’84 Special Thanks to Caroline Glesmann, David M. Hedden Erinn Noel House, Jane Cudlip King, ’42 Board of Governors President Thomasina S. Woida, ’80 Vice Presidents Anita Aragon Bowers, ’63 Diana Birtwistle Odermatt, ’60 Treasurer Beverley Johnson Zellick, ’49, MA ’50 Executive Director Sheryl J. Bize-Boutté, ’73 Alumnae Trustees Sara Ellen McClure, ’81 Susan Brown Penrod, ’71, Sharon K. Tatai, ’80 Governors Lila Abdul-Rahim, ’80, Michelle Balovich, ’03 Micheline A. Beam, ’72, Lynda Campfield, ’00, MA ’02 Cecille Caterson, MA ’90, Harriet Fong Chan, ’98 Vivian Fumiko Chin ’89, Beverly Curwen, ’71 Suzette Lalime Davidson, ’94, Cynthia Guevara, ’04 Kathleen Miller Janes, ’69, Linda Jaquez-Fissori, ’92 Krishen Laetsch, MA ’01, Nangee Warner Morrison, ’63 Michele Murphy, ’88, Ramona Lisa Smith, ’01, MBA ’02 Karlin Sorenson, ’92, Lynette Williams Williamson, ’72, MA ’74 Regional Governors Joyce Menter Wallace, ’50, Eastern Great Lakes Nancy Sanger Pallesen, ’64, Middle Atlantic Albertina Padilla, ’78, Middle California Adrienne Bronstein Becker, ’86, Middle California Judith Smrha, ’87, Midwest Linda Cohen Turner, ’68, North Central Carolyn Chapman Booth, ’63, Northeast Brandy Tuzon Boyd, ’91, Northern California Gayle Rothrock, ’68, Northwest Louise Hurlbut, ’75, Rocky Mountains Colleen Almeida Smith, ’92, South Central Ann Cavanaugh, ’65, Southeast Julia Almazan, ’92, Southern California Elaine Chew, ’68, Southwest The Mills Quarterly (USPS 349-900) is published quarterly in April, July, October, and January by the Alumnae Association of Mills College, Reinhardt Alumnae House, 5000 MacArthur Boulevard, Oakland, CA 94613. Periodicals postage paid at Oakland, CA and at additional mailing office(s). Postmaster: Send address changes to the Mills Quarterly, Alumnae Association of Mills College, P.O. Box 9998, Oakland, CA 94613-0998. Statement of Purpose The purpose of the Mills Quarterly is to report the activities of the Alumnae Association and its branches; to reflect the quality, dignity, and academic achievement of the College family; to communicate the exuberance and vitality of student life; and to demonstrate the worldwide-ranging interests, occupations, and achievements of alumnae.

On This Issue Thanks to a generous gift from Don and Bette Krause Spagel, ’63, we were able to add four pages and a color section to this issue of the Quarterly. It’s a treat to be able to bring you some additional color in the magazine, and I hope the photo essay showing Commencement 2006 will give you an idea of what it was like at Mills on this very exciting day. Senator Barbara Boxer’s keynote speech was by turns humorous and somber, reminding graduates of the hard work ahead of them. Inspiring speeches were not limited to commencement this year. As Moya Stone writes in her article on Daughters of the Dream, Yolanda King and Susannah Heschel, daughters of famous leaders in the struggle for civil rights, brought their blend of inspiration and activism to Mills with a presentation that heartened and motivated their audience. I was fascinated to learn that Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King had been at Mills in 1958. Please let me know if you remember details of this visit, now nearly 50 years ago. Mills’ history is always of interest to me, which is one reason I enjoyed Janice Braun’s article on Albert Bender so much. Bender could have lived extravagantly, but chose instead to buy and donate rare books and art to Mills and other institutions. You’ll find much more in this issue, which I hope you’ll enjoy!

REUNION 2006 September 14–17

Don’t Miss This Year’s Reunion! Highlights include: C A Special Day for the Class of 1956 and Golden Girls C Convocation C State of the College C President’s Garden Reception C Class Gatherings C Concert of Music by Milhaud and others C Movie Night C Literary Salon C Dramatic Presentation of Oral Histories C Dinners, Lunches, Breakfasts C And a Post-Reunion Tour of Napa Valley from September 17 to 19 For more information, call (510) 430-2110 or visit <www.mills.edu/alumnae/activities/reunion.php>.

Letters to the Editor

As I near my 50th Reunion in 2007, once again I rejoice in sending my gift to the Mills College Annual Fund in honor of my valiant Professor Emeritus of American History, Reynold M. Wik, who is 96, and my amazing and resilient Professor Emerita of French Drama and Poetry, Madeleine Milhaud, who is 104! What vivid recollections I have of those early days at Mills in 1953, finding myself in those small classroom settings greatly challenged and exhilarated by these esteemed professors who were to become my lifelong mentors and treasured friends. To this day, Rey Wik and Madeleine Milhaud continue to touch

my life in wondrous ways, and what finer gift of a Mills education could there be! I commend you for an outstanding Spring 2006 issue with splendid profiles of Diane Chin, ’85, director of the Public Interest Program at Stanford Law School, Yiyun Li, professor of creative writing, bringing her immense gifts to Mills, and Cynthia Scheinberg, Mills professor of English literature, with her tribute to the rich diversity of Jewish women scholars in many fields of endeavor. After reading about the groundbreaking for the new Natural Sciences Building, I reveled in the account by Daphne Muse of the

sights, scents, and sounds of all the wild things that are thriving on the Mills campus, an ecological haven. —Kit Farrow Jorrens, ’57 I especially enjoyed the little piece about the Nathanial Gray Hall of Science (Spring 2006 Mills Quarterly, page 9). My “roomie” and I had our audio-visual aids class there and were fascinated by the oldness of it. It loomed so big and foreboding, but was friendly and so interesting once we got inside! —Alice London Bishop, ’58

Eileen Gibbs, ’36, Leaves Multimillion-dollar Bequest by April Hopkins, MFA ’03, Director of Planned Gifts

Eileen Godfrey Mitchell Gibbs, ’36, left her entire estate to Mills College when she died in 2004. Worth $7.5 million, Mrs. Gibbs’ bequest was the largest ever received by the College. According to her wishes, the Board of Trustees has established the Eileen Mitchell Gibbs Endowment Fund with the assets. Eileen Gibbs relished her experience at Mills, even though she left Mills after her second year. Currently, a portion of the income from the Gibbs Endowment funds faculty salaries and technology enhancements and upgrades. It will provide for ongoing maintenance of the new state-of-the-art Natural Sciences Building once construction is completed. Mrs. Gibbs’ grandnephew, Norm Nicholls, said she “had a great fondness for Mills College, and was so proud that it existed.” She grew up in the small town of Pike, California, where her family made up half the town’s population of eight people. She lived in the Sierra Nevada foothills most of her life and was an accomplished gardener and outdoorswoman, who was just as happy hunting and fishing as she was arranging flowers.

President Janet L. Holmgren said of Mrs. Gibbs, “She exemplified the ideals of a true Mills woman, who makes her mark in the world with a strong voice and generous heart. I admire Eileen Gibbs loved the outdoors. the tenacity of her adventurous spirit and am pleased that we will be able to honor a life lived with such enthusiasm.” Mrs. Gibbs survived two husbands and had no children but was close to two nephews and their families. A part of her bequest to Mills provides income for life to the surviving nephew through a $1.5 million charitable remainder Unitrust. The Mills experience continues for a lifetime, inspiring many alumnae to create a lasting legacy for tomorrow’s students. For information about including Mills College in your estate plans, please contact April Hopkins, director of planned giving, toll free at (877) 746-4557, or email <aprilh@mills.edu>.

Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

inside mills The Barbara Lee Distinguished Chair in Women’s Leadership: Mills College Honors Congresswoman Barbara Lee, ’73

U BRUCE COOK

U.S. Congresswoman Barbara Lee at the inaugural dinner for the Barbara Lee Distinguished Chair in Women’s Leadership on April 21, 2006.

.S. Congresswoman Barbara Lee, ’73, was honored at Mills College on April 21 with a dinner inaugurating a new endowed chair in her name. The Barbara Lee Distinguished Chair in Women’s Leadership will fund visiting professors at Mills and promote the advancement of women in all sectors of society. The chair will be held by a renowned expert in her field, a woman of national standing who is also a recognized scholar. Her presence at Mills will foster exemplary teaching, international attention, and visionary leadership by example. The chair is funded by Susan Penick, ’71, and the Albert Penick Fund, in combination with other donors, as well as by an anonymous bequest. As an outspoken advocate for international human rights, world peace, and the effort to combat HIV/AIDS, Congresswoman Lee exemplifies the Mills ideal of empowering women to make the world a safer, more equitable, and compassionate place.

Building on Success: The Institute for Civic Leadership and the Center for Civic Engagement and Women’s Leadership

t the Institute for Civic Leadership at Mills, students in their junior or senior year are offered an exciting opportunity to examine the intellectual foundations of civic life and democracy while developing knowledge of the skills and strategies needed for civic leadership. The course of study combines discipline-based analysis of civic leadership and social policy with an internship in which students work on meaningful projects linked to public policy and social change. The semesterlong program in civic leadership runs each fall semester and is open to women at Mills and at colleges around the country. Founded in 2001, this innovative program teaches students to analyze critically social and political issues associated with their internships and

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

to examine the ways academic knowledge can inform the design of desirable public policies. Housing the country’s premier program in civic leadership, Mills is planning to expand this initiative to reach more students and impact more local organizations. The Center for Civic Engagement and Women’s Leadership (CCEWL) is a new program developed to create a community service partnership and an educational support partnership that will serve neighborhood schools and organizations in need. The Center will increase internship placements of Mills students by 40 percent within three years, and it will bring every academic department on campus into the service learning process. For example, MBA students will help local small businesses with their business plans, and eco-

nomics majors will be trained by faculty to teach financial management skills to low-income community residents. Participants will also place a major emphasis on tutoring in local public schools. The Institute for Civic Leadership as well as many other College programs, including the Women’s Leadership Institute and the Public Policy Program, will work closely with CCEWL to support its mission. Women’s leadership is a key element of Mills’ strategic plan, which continues to be integrated into the general education curriculum. The $2 million in funding for the new Barbara Lee Distinguished Chair in Women’s Leadership is an example of the College’s ongoing commitment to this goal.

PREEMINENCE IN THE ARTS

Music Building Renovation Planned

s an architectural icon on the Mills campus, the Music Building symbolizes the rich artistic history of the College. Designed in 1928 by prominent architect Walter H. Ratcliff Jr., it is a historic treasure that requires preservation as it is modernized for use in the 21st century. The building is an exquisite example of Spanish colonial Revival architecture, and the main Concert Hall is well known for its elaborate frescoes by Ray Boynton—the first frescoes to be attempted on a public building west of the Mississippi. In addition to housing the Mills music

Martin Luther King Jr., Igor Stravinsky, Aldous Huxley, and Margaret Mead.

PHILIP CHANNING

Time for Change The Music Building has supported Mills’ world-renowned music department as well other major campus activities with distinction, yet it has received no major restoration since it was opened in 1928. The College is planning an $18 million renovation to preserve this extraordinary landmark. In summer 2001, during the first phase of renovation, for seismic safety the roof of the Concert Hall was replaced and tied to the building. Sound intrusion was corrected by removing the skylight in the Concert Hall. In addition, the theater’s fire system was replaced, a catwalk was created in the attic, and modifications were made to performance equipment.

The Mills College Music Building, designed by prominent architect Walter H. Ratcliff Jr. and built in 1928, is receiving much needed renovation.

department, the building also serves as the largest auditorium on campus. The list of artists and luminaries that have performed and lectured from the stage of the Concert Hall includes some of the most influential people of the 20th century, such as John F. Kennedy,

In the Works The next phase of construction, slated for January 2007, will focus on restoring the Concert Hall to its former glory, while simultaneously making the Music Building compliant with codes of the Americans with Disabilities Act. A major portion of the funding for this project has come from a

generous gift of $4 million from Jeannik Méquet Littlefield, MA ’42. In addition, the 50th Reunion classes of 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, and 1955 have made significant donations. Caren Harvey Prothro, ’63, and her daughter, Nita Prothro Clark, ’91, have also given generously to this project. Two sets of elevators will be installed and the restrooms will be brought up to code for the proper ratio of theater seats to restroom access. The renovation will include the restoration of seating, flooring, and decorative elements in the Concert Hall. Currently the stage of the Concert Hall is too small to present major orchestral works; it must be deepened to allow for at least an 80-piece ensemble. In addition, a state-of-the-art sound system will be installed to enhance the acoustics of the room. All of these plans strengthen the essential fabric of the Music Building and the Concert Hall, while preserving their distinctive aesthetic qualities. “The Concert Hall represents the adventurous spirit of the music department and the College,” says Professor of Music David Bernstein. “It’s a very special, magical place that we must care for.” The Music Building is a landmark that symbolizes, as well as houses, some of the College’s superb programs in the arts. Securing leadership gifts from friends who understand the importance of developing the musical and cultural life of the Bay Area is crucial to our ability to successfully complete this project. The College is continuing its efforts to raise funds for this beloved building.

Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

inside mills Art Museum Expansion Update

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

have resulted in 140 students competing for only 12 places in the MFA program in studio arts this academic year. Currently student admission into the studio arts program is limited by the lack of studio space. The museum expansion will provide ten new studio spaces to allow increased enrollment, up to a projected 22 students. The new wing will be located ten feet from the existing building with a picturesque walkway connecting the two spaces. Included in the plans for this new wing are seven galleries, two exhibition spaces for new media, four faculty offices, and an amphitheater garden. The museum expansion ensures a premier facility for the study and exhibition of art for the Bay Area and beyond. Mills College commissioned potential designs for the new wing from the dynamic architectural firm Office dA. Their projects include the new library at the Rhode Island School of Design

and the Interfaith Spiritual Center at Northeastern University in Boston. Architects Mónica Ponce de León and Nader Tehrani, who are both on the faculty of the Harvard Graduate School of Design, are two of the most soughtafter designers in the world and travel extensively to oversee their projects around the globe. An innovative space, which will be located between the new wing and the existing building, will be used to display new art media and sculpture and will offer an area for quiet reflection. Additionally, an amphitheater will allow for the exhibition of still and moving pictures. The resulting complex will more than double the exhibition, studio, and office space from roughly 6,000 square feet to more than 12,500 square feet. The cost for the new wing is $5 million. To date, $680,000 has been secured, and the College continues to raise funds for the Art Museum expansion.

The proposed expansion of the Art Museum by the renowned architectural firm Office dA will add an amphitheater (depicted in the rendering below) as well as galleries, studios, and offices.

OFFICE dA

ast year the College initiated exciting plans for an expansion of the Art Museum building. With the approval of the Board of Trustees, the College has moved forward this year in raising funds and discussing design details for a new wing to be added to the existing Art Museum building. By reconfiguring and renovating the museum galleries, expanding the museum hours into the evening, and creating a performance series, museum attendance has increased from 3,500 visitors per year in 2002 to more than 10,000 visitors in 2004. These advances have reinstituted the museum building as an artistic and intellectual hub for the College. To boost this current trend, the Art Museum building must keep pace. Fine arts have been a core area of study since Mills was founded in 1852, yet the Art Museum building has not grown since its construction in 1925. The permanent collection has increased from 400 works to 7,000, and although Mills students have access to the art collection through their classes, most of the museum’s permanent collection cannot be displayed because of its sheer size. A primary mission of the Art Museum has always been to share its resources as widely as possible, and more recently the museum has become an essential element of the art department curriculum. Beyond the one large room for exhibition, however, the remaining rooms are small and lack proper lighting. In addition, appropriate venues for exciting new media and intermedia arts must be created. The art department’s reputation and recent innovations in the curriculum

PREEMINENCE IN THE ARTS

Artists-in-Residence Program: Experienced Artists Enrich Departments

ntegral to the College’s strength in the arts is the celebrated Artists-inResidence Program, where working artists are hired to teach classes in art, dance, and music. “The Artists-inResidence Program is a way of exposing students to the many diverse ways artists think and approach their work,” says Professor of Dance June Watanabe. One very successful example of an artist-in-residence is modern dance instructor Molissa Fenley. Fenley graduated from Mills with a BA in dance in 1975. After starting her own dance company in New York, she returned to Mills in 1999 as artist-in-residence, funded by donor and trustee Joan

Lewis Danforth, ’53. “The Artists-inResidence Program is tremendous for students,” says Fenley. “It’s important for them to have mentors who are performing and who can show them diverse possibilities for their work.” Professor Watanabe points out that creative work is influenced by many aspects of life, including personal discovery and exploration. “Reading textbooks and seeing media representations cannot capture the nuances, details, and thoughts behind most creations,” says Professor Watanabe. In addition to artistic exploration, working artists also guide students on the practicalities of becoming successful artists. “The

students gain a lot from working with artists,” says Fenley. “We can teach them the realities of working out in the world, not just the art but the business side of creating as well.” Dance student Kelly Dalrymple, ’07, feels she has greatly benefited from Fenley’s years of experience. “She has a history and wealth of knowledge in dance that is extremely valuable to this department,” says Dalrymple. Mills is currently seeking funds to expand the Artists-in-Residence Program. For more information, please contact Ramon Torrecilha, executive vice president for institutional advancement, at (510) 430-2101.

Oscar-Nominated Actress Gloria Stuart Gifts the Mills College Book Arts Program

BRUCE COOK

ou may know her as Old Rose from the mega-hit movie Titanic, but you may not realize that Gloria Stuart is a world-renowned book artist as well. Ms. Stuart visited the Mills campus in April to help the College celebrate this important art form. Stuart started as a Hollywood ingénue in such films as The Old Dark House, Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, and The Invisible Man. In 1984, at the age of 74, she turned her interest in book arts and typography into a career as a printer and bookmaker. Her press, Imprenta Glorias, is ceasing operation, and as a result Ms. Stuart has established a bequest leaving a large collection of metal foundry type—some of it especially rare—along with her press and other items from her studio to the Mills College book arts program.

Professor of Book Arts Kathleen Walkup, Mills College President Janet L. Holmgren, and actress Gloria Stuart at the reception celebrating Ms. Stuart’s gift to the Mills College book arts program on April 9, 2006.

Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

MILLS MATTERS

Retiring Faculty When she first came to Mills as an instructor, dance professor Kathleen McClintock, MFA ’85, expected to stay for one year at most, the time specified in her contract. She stayed 27 years, as professor and, for a time, as department chair. “I found that I loved Oakland and loved working with my colleagues in the dance department,” Ms. McClintock says. “I learned so much from them and so much about the role that Mills has played in the development of rigorous and thorough curricula for dance in higher education. As I am sure many alums will attest, they had an outstanding education in dance as an art form.” With professional interests in repertory, performance techniques, world dance, and movement and performance style analysis, Ms. McClintock has collaborated with Lou Harrison, Willie Winant, Steed Cowart, and others during her career. Now living on the MendocinoSonoma border, Ms. McClintock is looking forward to “some serious farming.”

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

Kathleen McClintock

GARY SINICK

June Watanabe

work is a constant, bracing example of this principle.” Dance professor June Watanabe retires after 24 years of teaching at Mills. A choreographer as well as a dancer, Ms. Watanabe studied at UCLA and was one of the few choreographers in the 1980s to integrate video into her works. She is also known for blending Noh—a classical Japanese art form combining dance, drama, music, and poetry—with contemporary dance. Ms. Watanabe is the artistic director of her own dance company, June Watanabe In Company. In the early 1980s, she was inspired and driven to create dance works exploring her childhood memories of the Japanese American internment during World War II. She created seven pieces from different perspectives in looking at the incarceration. The works were emotionally and psychologically based as well as being abstract and political. Ms. Watanabe has been honored with numerous awards for her work, including the Isadora Duncan Dance Award for Individual Performance. She has received fellowships from the National Endowment of the Arts and the California and Marin arts councils, and she was profiled in 1991 on the PBS television show “The Creative Mind.” Ms. Watanabe says, “The most important aspect of retirement is just to be able ‘to be.’” —Moya Stone, MFA ’03 MARTY SOHL

Since 1991 Alvin Curran has been the Milhaud Professor of Composition. He has composed more than 100 works that feature taped and sampled natural sounds, piano, synthesizers, computers, violin, percussion, shofar, ship horns, accordion, and chorus. He is well known for his solo performances, experimental radio works, and site-specific sound installations. Born in 1938, Mr. Curran studied with

Elliott Carter and Mel Powell at the Yale School of Music and has collaborated with many important contemporary composers and performers, including Frederic Rzewski, Pauline Oliveros, the Abel-Steinberg-Winant Trio, and the Kronos Quartet. Among his numerous prizes and awards are commissions from the National Endowment for the Arts and a recent award from the Guggenheim Foundation. Mr. Curran’s students include composer Ben Piekut, MA ’01, who is now a PhD candidate in musicology at Columbia University. “His pedagogy was about creating limitless possibility,” Ben writes. “Nothing was ever ruled out, but we were expected to extend whichever path we chose with conviction. His own

Representative Barbara Lee Chooses Mills for Her Archives Congresswoman Barbara Lee, ’73, has designated Mills College as the repository for her congressional papers. The collection will reside in the Special Collections Department of the F.W. Olin Library and will be available for use by members of the Mills community and the public. Included in the archive will be legislative files and records, speeches, committee work, press releases and opeds, press clippings, official correspondence, papers regarding Lee’s leadership in the House and her committee work, constituent updates and newsletters, photographs, and the like. These materials will provide a valuable and unique resource for our students and faculty in curricular and research projects and will, no doubt, be a source of scholarship for generations to come. —Renée I. Jadushlever, Vice President for Information Resources

Palo Alto Branch Charms with Cottage Tour The Palo Alto Area Mills College Club’s annual “Charming Cottages of Palo Alto” tour raises a significant amount of money for the AAMC and for scholar-

Jenny Torkildson, ’06, received the 2006 Pearl M Award at the annual Alumnae Pearl M Dinner on April 6. The award is in recognition of contributions to the AAMC. Jenny’s Pearl M was donated by Sally Schrepferman Reeds, ’55.

As the Quarterly went to press, roofing, sheet-rocking, and painting were all taking place at the Courtyard Townhouses on Prospect Hill. Interior finishes and colors were being selected and furniture purchased. The entire area is receiving an upgrade with new lighting, pathways, parking, electricity, road repair, and other peripheral work.

DAVID M. BRIN, MA ’75

NEWS OF THE COLLEGE AND THE AAMC

ships at Mills. The 15th tour, held on March 31 and April 1, 2006, featured five distinctive homes, and more than 100 alumnae volunteers from throughout San Mateo and Santa Clara counties staffed the event. The annual house tour serves as excellent outreach both to alumnae and to the general community. This year the branch decided to establish an endowed scholarship at Mills; recipients will be undergraduate students from San Mateo or Santa Clara counties. Funding will come from the house tour and from a variety of other sources.

Womanist: A Mills College Women of Color Journal. The current issue of poetry, art, photography, and creative writing has elicited an invitation to tea with the writer Alice Walker and an opportunity to read at Moe’s Books in Berkeley. Among The Womanist’s many works are a poem for Hurricane Katrina’s victims, photographs by Diana Guerrero, MFA ’06, and a story evoking the ball-andchained passengers on slave ships. To obtain a copy, write to <womanist@ mills.edu> or Editorial Staff, The Womanist, Department of Ethnic Studies, Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Boulevard, Oakland, CA 94613.

Lifetime Members At its last meeting of the 2005–06 academic year, the Board of Governors of the Alumnae Association of Mills College honored three of its outgoing members with the new honorific title of lifetime member. In recognition of their dedication, hard work, commitment, and outstanding service to the Association, Leone La Duke Evans, MA ’45, Jane Cudlip King, ’42, and Leah Hardcastle Mac Neil, MA ’51, were feted and honored at the May 10, 2006, meeting.

The Womanist In June student editors and contributors celebrated the ninth edition of The

Art Exhibit at the Gordon House Curated by Nancy Gilbert Lindburg, ’56, an exhibit of two- and threedimensional artwork by Mills alumnae will be shown at the Gordon House in Silverton, Oregon, from September 10 through October 29, 2006. The Gordon House was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for Conrad and Evelyn Sammons Gordon, ’30. (See the Spring 2003 Mills Quarterly, page 26.) For more information, call (503) 874-6066, email <gordonhouse1957@verizon. net>, or visit www.oregongarden.org>. Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Greater

Mills benefactor Albert Bender dedicated his life to supporting literature and the arts. by Janice Braun, Curator, Special Collections, F. W. Olin Library, and Director, Mills College Center for the Book

ALBERT M. BENDER CORRESPONDENCE, F.W. OLIN LIBRARY

than the Sum of His Gifts

Portrait of Albert Bender by Consuela Kanaga

n 1941 a slim volume appeared with the somewhat unwieldy but descriptive title A.M.B.: Some Aspects of His Life and Times Begun in a Playful Mood for His Entertainment on His 75th Birthday and Now Completed for His Sorrowing Friends as a Token of Remembrance and Affection. Albert Maurice Bender’s friend and fellow bibliophile Oscar Lewis begins this fine-press limited edition (printed by the esteemed and prolific Grabhorn Press) with the following: He is listed in Who’s Who as Bender, Albert Maurice, and that work goes on to devote several inches of type to what purports to be the story of his life and deeds. He was born in Dublin in 1866. He came to San Francisco when he was sixteen and got a job as errand boy in an insurance office. He has been a “gen. ins. agent” since 1890. He has three or four honorary degrees and some foreign decorations. He is a trustee of some organizations and a director of some others. He holds honorary membership in a highly varied group of institutions, ranging all the way from the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland to the Class of 1926 of Mills College. Now this of course is mostly non-

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

sense. Who’s Who is a substantial work of reference, but it lacks imagination. In the first place, you can’t compress AMB into a few hundred words, or a few thousand, and when you begin stating facts about him you only confuse the issue. Oddly enough, a full-length biography of Albert Bender (1866–1941) has yet to appear. There are several pamphlets and booklets such as the above that appeared both during his lifetime and posthumously, most of them beautifully printed by the fine presses he supported, including Mills College’s Eucalyptus Press. He was a very successful insurance broker, and his success enabled him to assist individuals and institutions to a high degree. Albert Bender was indeed a trustee and close friend of Mills College, particularly of its library and art gallery. He helped finance the construction of the Art Gallery (now the Art Museum) designed by Walter Ratcliff Jr. in 1925. He donated artwork and energetically solicited additional funds and gifts. That same year, he wrote to Aurelia Henry Reinhardt (Mills College president from 1916 to 1943) about his efforts to develop the Art Gallery. “The donations to the Art Gallery continue to fill me with a buoyant hope. It is no easy job,

this effort to create an Art Gallery out of nothing; for that’s what I am trying to do.” Ultimately, the College acknowledged his munificence by bestowing not one but two honorary degrees, a master of arts in 1925 and a doctor of literature in 1934. He was by no means an invisible benefactor but rather a frequent visitor to campus and well known to the students. The 1925 Mills College yearbook, Myrtaceae, begins with the fond dedication, “To Albert M. Bender, friend of art and of youth, who with zeal unremitting and selfless generosity year by year enriches the student life at Mills College.” In 1932, a group of students formed a club focused on book collecting. The Bibliophile Society was undoubtedly inspired by Mr. Bender’s collecting and charitable activities, which were manifested in the development of the library’s collections. In 1920, with an offering of six volumes, Mr. Bender began giving rare books and literary manuscripts to the Mills College Library, including a Jack London manuscript, The Message (published as The Red One), dated 1916; The Tale of Beowulf (1895), produced by William Morris’ Kelmscott Press and inscribed by Morris to Edward BurneJones; and a first edition of Little Dorrit (1857) by Charles Dickens,

bound by the Guild of Women Binders, with a letter written in Dickens’ hand. Frequent gifts continued throughout the 1920s (he gave a group of 2,000 books in 1924), and the 1930s, until his death in 1941. During these years his gifts included a 15th-century Book of Hours, a page of which is shown on the cover of this magazine, a leaf from a Gutenberg Bible (c. 1455), the first book printed from movable metal type in the West, and the Kelmscott Press masterpiece The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer (1896). Mr. Bender willed a second copy of the Chaucer to Stanford University. From the 1920s until just a few weeks before his death on March 4, 1941, Mr. Bender was in almost constant communication with President Reinhardt. In an undated letter to her, he writes, “I have been figuring on a visit to the College for the last few

weeks. My desk is loaded with gifts for the little collection, and I am anxious to put them in their permanent home.” One can only imagine the exertion experienced by President Reinhardt in finding new and different ways of thanking Mr. Bender for his frequent and superb gifts, which were also deemed of sufficient importance that they were reported in the local newspapers. Even during the Great Depression, Mr. Bender’s donations kept coming. Upon his death, he left the College his personal library of over 2,400 volumes. An inventory of his residence describes several hundred fine-press books (John Henry Nash, Ashendene, Grabhorn, etc.), fine bindings, and standard sets. This summary also mentions miscellaneous reference and other volumes on his bedside table and a “pile on floor.” When reviewing this document, one gets the impression

of an apartment stuffed and overflowing with printed matter. It is not as well known that Mr. Bender also contributed funds for other aspects of College operations such as insurance coverage. In 1935, he was acknowledged for a $500 check toward a water main on campus for fire protection. He also served as a member of the Board of Trustees for almost two decades (1924–1941) and was on many committees. In one letter dated March 19, 1934, President Reinhardt thanks him not only for several volumes for the library and artwork (a Chinese bowl, a Chinese embroidery, and a portrait of William Morris), but also for financial support for the summer sessions in music, French, and art. On September 29, 1929, the Albert M. Bender Room officially opened on the ground floor of the recently expanded Carnegie Library with an

Albert Bender (second from left, in front) with Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo (third and fourth from right). Virginia Adams (Mrs. Ansel Adams) is at the far right. We believe the photo was taken by Ansel Adams in the early 1930s.

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MILLS COLLEGE ARCHIVES, F.W. OLIN LIBRARY JOHN BLACK AND ASSOCIATES, 1947, COURTESY OF MILLS COLLEGE ARCHIVES, F.W. OLIN LIBRARY

exhibition of “books, rare bindings, printing, manuscripts, broadsides, and autograph letters.” What is now known as the Bender Room was originally the general reading and reference room of the Margaret Carnegie Library and was dedicated to Special Collections only after another addition to the building in 1954. Currently Mr. Bender’s books and manuscripts reside in the F.W. Olin Library in the Elinor Raas Heller Rare Book Room, which is named for another great benefactor. There are now two Albert M. Bender collections in the Special Collections Department of the library. The Albert M. Bender Collection consists of almost 5,000 books based on Mr. Bender’s gifts during his lifetime and in his bequest. There are also many more volumes of rare books from Mr. Bender that are located in the Early Printed Books Collection and the Fine Press Collection. The other legacy is the Albert M. Bender Correspondence, a treasure-trove of letters and other material from friends and associates including Mary Austin, Ina Coolbrith, Una Jeffers, Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, William Butler Yeats, Georgia O’Keeffe, Kenneth Patchen, and John Steinbeck, to name a few. The research value of this archive is incalculable. In addition to books and manuscripts, Mr. Bender also left an endowment for the purchase of additional materials that has been paramount in developing the collection to its current level of excellence. The collections are used by classes, individuals, and researchers in book arts, English, history, art, dance, and music. They are particularly useful to the Mills College Book Arts Program’s classes in typography, bookbinding, history of the book, and related topics. Not only is Albert Bender’s name attached to the majestic Bender Room in the Julia Morgan–designed Carnegie Hall, there are Bender Rooms at other institutions as well, including Stanford

Top: The Bender Room in 1981 Left: Cindy Taves, ’48 (left), and Sue Brund Lamon, ’47, with the Kelmscott Chaucer

University, suggesting this man’s extraordinary largesse. In addition to Mills and Stanford, Mr. Bender gave books and artwork to the California School of Fine Arts (now the San Francisco Art Institute), the University of California, the Palace of the Legion of Honor, the de Young Museum, the San Francisco Museum of Art (now the Museum of Modern Art), the San Francisco Public Library, the California Historical Society, and the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin, where there is an Augusta Bender Memorial Room of Far Eastern Art, dedicated in 1933 to his mother. The Anne Bremer Memorial Library at the San Francisco Art Institute was established by Mr. Bender and is named for his adored cousin (1868–1923), a respected and critically acclaimed landscape painter. Mr. Bender also served on many boards and committees. In a 1941 tribute to Mr. Bender, Monroe Deutsch, the vice president and provost of the University of California, commented, “But institutions to him were only of worth for what they did for human beings—and as made up of human beings.” One remarkable aspect of Mr. Bender’s myriad pursuits is that they were often linked in significant ways. Shortly after his death, President Reinhardt invited Alfred Sutro, then president of the Book Club of California (and a prominent San Francisco attorney), to give a talk at Mills about Mr. Bender. Mr. Sutro gave a synopsis of the founding of the Book Club of California in 1912 by himself, Mr. Bender, and a few others; this talk was published by Mills College’s Eucalyptus Press. The Book Club of California is still active with more than 1,000 members (up from the original 58), and one major activity of the club even today is a robust publication program which produces books, annual keepsakes, and the Quarterly News-Letter on a variety of literary and bibliophilic topics, with special interest in California and Western Americana. The book catalog lists over 200 titles. The publications are designed and printed by California fine printers, including the Eucalyptus Press.

In this way, the club has sustained those artisans whose works populate the shelves of the F.W. Olin Library and countless other libraries. This article’s focus on Albert Bender should not preclude the mention of the F.W. Olin Library’s other donors and collections. Many of these are well described in Librarian Emerita Flora Elizabeth Reynolds’ article in California Librarian (October 1977; reprinted in the Book Club of California’s Quarterly News-Letter, Winter 1979). These important donations include the Aurelia Henry Reinhardt Papers; the Darius Milhaud Collection; and the Jane Bourne Parton Collection on Dance, which has several rare illustrated books on the subject. Elinor Raas Heller donated a collection of fine-press limited editions and livres d’artistes, including Ovid’s Les Metamorphoses in a one-of-a-kind binding with original etchings by Picasso. A copy of the First Folio of Shakespeare (1623), considered one of the most important books in the English language, was given in 1977 in memory of Mills professor Elias Olan James by his daughter Mary Louise O’Brien and her husband, James E. O’Brien. Another important contribution is a collection of rare editions of books by Dante from Aurelia Henry Reinhardt. A photographic portrait by Mr. Bender’s dear friend Ansel Adams hangs in the Special Collections Department of the library. The portrait is remarkable in that it shows so plainly the man described by one person after another as extraordinarily benevolent and good natured. He was also photographed by Edward Weston and Consuela Kanaga, and sculpted by Beniamino Benvenuto Bufano and Jacques Schnier. His friend Oscar Lewis commented in To Remember Albert M. Bender: Notes for a Biography, “Albert’s photographs—of which there are many—all fail to capture that uniquely buoyant quality in him, the reason being that of necessity they show his face in repose, which it virtually never was. A motion picture camera would have done better.”

The Albert M. Bender Correspondence contains a letter (November 3, 1932) from Portia Bell Hume, MD, a prominent Berkeley psychiatrist, thanking him for an array of presents. She includes an enchanting sketch of her “metaphorical tree of gratitude” whose roots represent her love; the trunk, her thanks for his friendship; and the branches, his various gifts: wine, flowers, silver brooch, Chinese brocade, silk scarf, and so on. The shining sun above the tree incorporates Mr. Bender’s name in its rays. This effusiveness is typical in letter after letter acknowledging monetary support; arrangements being made for the commission, purchase, and shipment of artwork; and a thousand other kindnesses. Many of the letters are heartfelt responses to his contributions to struggling writers, artists, printers, musicians, and others involved in creative work and the fine arts. He was truly a patron of the arts in the fullest sense. Albert Maurice Bender was greater than the sum of his gifts, and although his name may not be as familiar to students as it once was, his spirit endures at Mills College. Janice Braun has been at Mills College since 1995. Her fields of interest include the history of printing and publishing, book arts and fine printing, book illustration, history of art, and literature. She has a BA in English literature from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a master’s degree in library and information studies from the University of California, Berkeley. Editor’s note: A biography of Albert Bender is in the works. Ann Harlow, an independent art historian who worked at the Mills College Art Museum in the 1980s, is writing a book about Mr. Bender and his beloved cousin, the artist Anne Bremer. She would like to hear from anyone who has memories or memorabilia regarding Mr. Bender or knowledge of Anne Bremer paintings in private collections. Contact her at <annharlow@pacbell.net> or (510) 559-3616. Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Mills Students Embrace International Politics Dozens gain leadership skills through the National Model United Nations and the Model Arab League conferences. by Ebony Lubarsky, ’05

e students appreciate the invaluable experiences of self-discovery and leadership that are the hallmarks of a 21st-century Mills College education. As faculty encourage us to reach beyond societal norms and break through the glass ceiling, we Mills women embody the school motto: una destinatio, viae diversae. The truth of this statement, “one destination, many paths,” was exemplified by our activities in spring 2005, as we participated in the National Model United Nations Conference in New York and hosted the Model Arab League Conference on the Mills campus. The National Model United Nations Conference The website of the National Model United Nations (NMUN) states its goal of “promoting peace through education” and declares, “We annually educate more than 3,200 students (50 percent from outside the United States) about the United Nations and contemporary international issues facing our world.” Student delegates are chosen by their educational institutions; each delegation represents one of the 191 member states of the United Nations at the conference. In January 2005, Professor of Government Fred Lawson selected six Mills students—Kelly Beitman, ’06, Mikhail Haramati, ’06, Alma Nava, ’08, Alexandra Sirowy, ’06, Megan Wheelehan, ’06, and myself—to participate in the NMUN Conference, which convened from March 22 to 26, 2005, in New York. Formed in 1923 as a simulation of the League of Nations, NMUN adopted its present form in 1946, following the establishment of the United Nations. NMUN is the largest and one of the most prestigious of several collegiate model United Nations programs around the world, and competition for participating in NMUN is fierce. Candidates from Mills were asked to submit a report analyzing the political and social health of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, a small, mountainous country in Central Asia that has endured significant economic and social hardship since the dissolution of the Soviet trading bloc in 1991. According to Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia, Kyrgyzstan remained “reasonably stable throughout most of the 1990s,” and “the country’s young democracy showed relative promise under the leadership of for-

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mer President Askar Akayev, but moved towards autocracy and authoritarianism.” Of the more than 30 analyses submitted, only six qualified to represent Mills College as delegates of Kyrgyzstan. After our appointments as NMUN delegates, each of us selected a United Nations committee of interest to us. For the next three months, we feverishly researched the NMUN-prescribed agenda topics, met regularly, and versed ourselves in both the historic and contemporary perils affecting Kyrgyzstan. We represented Kyrgyzstan at

Above: Mills College hosted the Model Arab League Conference in spring 2005 and 2006. Right: Students filled the General Assembly at the United Nations in New York for the National Model United Nations in spring 2005.

these six UN organizations: UN General Assembly Plenary, General Assembly Sixth Committee, Economic and Social Council, World Summit on the Information Society, World Health Organization, and the Intergovernmental Organization Inter-Parliamentary Union. Accordingly, our agenda topics ranged from international efforts regarding cloning, to debt of developing countries, to resource allocation for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. While our peers were enjoying a much-needed hiatus from classes, the six NMUN delegates headed to New York during spring break last year. The College generous-

ly provided travel expenses and lodging. We arrived at the hotel in New York to find the lobby filled with international students bustling with excitement and anticipation. They were just some of the 3,263 student delegates and 224 faculty members—from 226 colleges and universities on five continents—who had come for the conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York. The theme for the 2005 conference was simple yet profound: “There is no way to peace. Peace is the way.” The import of this theme was consciously applied as delegates

engaged in intense, sometimes confrontational, exchanges with fellow diplomats. The theme of peace reverberated in our thoughts and provided a format for negotiation. In his letter to the 2005 NMUN delegation, Kofi Annan, secretary general of the United Nations, wrote: “If 2003 was a year of deep vision, and 2004 was a time of sober reflection, 2005 must be a year of bold action. More than ever, we need to bridge differences in the international commu-

nity and engage in a constructive debate about the future.” Delegates from Iraq joined the conference for the first time in NMUN history. Four students from the University of Hilla, approximately 50 miles south of Baghdad, participated in the simulation, answered questions through a translator, and discussed the importance of living in an interdependent world, in which all cultures are equally respected and understood. Opening-day ceremonies took place in the United Nations General Assembly Hall, with all 3,263 delegates present. Committee sessions began soon after, and delegates attended sessions of their chosen agencies and related organizations of the United Nations. A resolution authored by Kyrgyz delegates representing the World Health Organization exceeded the requisite number of signatories and passed with unanimous consent. Day three of the conference was especially memorable for the Mills delegation. On this historic day, March 24, 2005, a coup d’état occurred in Kyrgyzstan when 4,000 protestors charged the capitol building in Bishkek, forcing then-president Akayev into exile. This unexpected event forced Mills delegates to remain in character as Kyrgyz citizens, ready to answer a barrage of questions and inquiries about the fallen dictator. The NMUN conference is undoubtedly the best practicum for students developing skills in international relations and studying the intricate aspects of multilateral diplomacy. In the words of Michael Eaton, executive director of the National Collegiate Conference Association, sponsor of the NMUN: “Our lasting impact on partici-

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“The NMUN conference is undoubtedly the best practicum for students developing skills in international relations and studying the intricate aspects of multilateral diplomacy.”

pants is the preparation they receive to become better global citizens and the next generation of international leaders. With more than 3,200 student delegates, NMUN is truly an international forum for tomorrow’s leaders.” Learning about Arab Countries Following the unforgettable NMUN conference, in late spring 2005, Mills College hosted the Model Arab League (MAL) Conference for the first time in nearly 15 years. The MAL mission is “to educate Americans about Arab countries, the Middle East, and the Islamic world through leadership development, people-to-people programs, lectures, publications, and grassroots outreach.” Since its inception in 1983, more than 25,000 students and advisers have participated in the simulation. The MAL forum offers an unparalleled opportunity to develop practical leadership and public speaking skills. A total of 130 students from ten colleges and universities, from Northern California to Colorado, attended the 2005 conference. Professor Lawson and Dr. Laurence Michalak, d i r e c t o r, We s t C o a s t Committee on U.S.–Arab Relations, were the faculty coordinators of the conference. Mills received rave reviews for the College’s hospitality and beautiful campus. Along with the other MAL executive board members, I had a remarkable time organizing the event; serving as assistant secretary general of the MAL conference was a distinct honor. Over the span of a weekend, April 8 through 10, 2005, students representing the 22 Arab League member states served as delegates, working to achieve consensus on contemporary issues affecting diplomats in the international

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political arena. The MAL conference commenced with a talk by Abderahman Salaheldin, consul general of Egypt. Inspired by the distinguished guest’s profundity and his understanding of multilateralism in the Arab world, student delegates were anxious to prove their abilities in international diplomacy. The conference agenda included topics critical to the Middle East, such as preventing the exhaustion or salination of aquifers in the Arab world; encouraging and strengthening an Arab-American lobby in the United States aimed at balancing America’s policy on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict; and creating a common Arab policy toward the presence of non-member state troops in the Middle East. The 12-member Mills delegation worked in groups of two representing Oman and Saudi Arabia. We collaborated with many Top: Ebony Lubarsky, '05, and Professor of Government Fred Lawson. Left: Delegates to the Model Arab League Conference from UC Berkeley.

outstanding faculty and staff from esteemed colleges and universities from around the world. When each conference concluded, we in the Mills delegation emerged with a sense of pride for participating in these once-in-a-lifetime experiences, and—for the MAL forum—for having hosted a successful and unprecedented event. After each conference, we came away knowing that the leadership and negotiating skills we had acquired would be useful in any of our chosen professions. Ebony Lubarsky, ’05, majored in international relations and minored in history while at Mills. Now working for a global law firm in Menlo Park, she plans to attend the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London beginning in the fall of 2006.

Daughters of the Dream by Moya Stone, MFA, ’03 On February 20, 1958, Mills College welcomed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King, to our campus. Recently, echoes of these illustrious voices were heard again at Mills on the very same stage. More than 500 Mills students, staff, faculty, and alumnae gathered in the Concert Hall on April 10, 2006, to hear Daughters of the Dream: A Conversation with Yolanda King and Susannah Heschel, planned and organized by Renée

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Jadushlever, vice president for information resources.

Susannah Heschel

Yolanda King

A lot has happened since 1958 and a lot has not. As

Pennsylvania, and a PhD in systematic theology from Boston University. He married Coretta Scott in 1953 and became the pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. A believer in nonviolent activism, Dr. King led civil rights protests and soon became a leader in the movement, inspiring hundreds of thousands of Americans with his call for social justice and equality. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 at age 35, the youngest recipient up to that time. In 1968 Dr. King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was to lead a local union march. His widow and four children have since taken up the cause, each in her or his own way. (Coretta Scott King died in January 2006.)

President Janet L. Holmgren pointed out in her introduction to the evening, “Martin Luther King articulated a dream for our society . . . but the work is not yet done.” Just as their fathers joined forces in 1965 to create the dream, Yolanda King, the eldest daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Susannah Heschel, daughter of Rabbi Abraham Heschel, have joined together in rekindling the dream. Sharing their experiences and devotion to social reform, King and Heschel have designed a unique presentation of personal stories, social commentary, and inspirational vision. The Fathers Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men. —Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Born in 1929, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. He received a bachelor of divinity degree from Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester,

For many of us, the march from Selma to Montgomery was both protest and prayer. . . . Even without words, our march was worship.” —Rabbi Abraham Heschel Rabbi Abraham Heschel was an early supporter of Dr. King, and the two often collaborated in organizing the Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

civil rights movement. The youngest of six children, Rabbi Abraham Heschel was born in 1907 in Warsaw, Poland, to a long line of distinguished rabbis. He received his doctorate from the University of Berlin and later escaped the Nazis by coming to America. He taught briefly at Hebrew Union College, the main seminary of Reform Judaism, in Cincinnati. Feeling uncomfortable with the seminary’s lack of traditional observance of Jewish law, in 1946 Rabbi Heschel found a better fit at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, the main seminary of Conservative Judaism, in New York, where he taught courses in Jewish ethics and mysticism until his death in 1972. Dr. King and Rabbi Heschel met at the National Conference on Religion and Race in Chicago, in 1963, where Rabbi Heschel’s prominent role inspired many clergy to join the civil rights movement. The two leaders instantly bonded, primarily over the Bible, which served as the inspiration for both men in the fight against racial

injustice. Susannah Heschel said that for Dr. King and her father, “The Bible was alive . . . they made us participate in the Bible.” In March 1965, as the leaders of the civil rights movement were planning a third march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, Rabbi Heschel received a telegram from Dr. King at his New York home, asking him to join the protest. He left the next night, and his participation in that march ensured his place as a civil rights icon, symbolizing the common goal of American blacks and Jews for justice and equality. The Daughters Yolanda King and Susannah Heschel knew each other as children, when they were affectionately called Yokie and Susie, but by college age they had lost touch. It was then that Yolanda King’s mother suggested they reconnect over their common background. Years later they have created Daughters of the Dream.

COURTESY OF MILLS COLLEGE ARCHIVES, F.W. OLIN LIBRARY. WILLIS STUDIOS, OAKLAND

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The program opened with footage of civil rights marches, Dr. King’s speeches, and interviews with Rabbi Heschel. A slender man with wispy white hair and a long white beard, Rabbi Heschel spoke of civil rights and racism with a Yiddish accent. “The idea of judging a person by black, brown, or white—it is an eye disease,” he said. We must get up off our apathy. —Yolanda King An accomplished actor and presenter, King brought a theatrical quality to the Daughters of the Dream presentation. With new-age jazz music playing softly in the background, King opened with a declaration: “Today is the day we rise. . . . Today without delay, for we have much work to be done.” With the passion and conviction of her parents, King spoke about facing current issues. “You can choose to be open, patient, understanding, compassionate. It’s a matter of choice.”

Above: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rabbi Abraham Heschel (with beard) marching in Selma, Alabama in March 1965.

COURTESY OF SUSANNAH HESCHEL

Opposite: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King at Mills on February 20, 1958. If you can identify others in the photo, please notify the Quarterly editor.

Throughout her presentation, King would leave the podium to recite a poem or recount an incident—in character. Restyling her hair into pigtails, she transformed herself into Shian Web, an eight-year-old girl who participated in civil rights marches of the 1960s. Raising the pitch of her voice to that of a child, King, as Shian, told the story of Bloody Sunday in 1965, when marchers were beaten back by state troopers in Selma. Audio recordings of screams, sirens, and shouts blasted around the audience as “Shian” recounted her fear and confusion—and later her pride over passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. King has a BA in theater and African American studies from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, and an MFA in theater from New York University. She has performed and lectured in 49 states as well as in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Combining her artistic talents with her commitment to social change, King seeks to encourage diversity and personal growth. “We must

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The New Dream When the Kings visited Mills in 1958, the country was entering an era of monumental change and discord; the 1960s would bring the civil rights and antiwar movements to full flower. Today we are again facing challenges. Through the legacy of their fathers, the daughters are inspiring their audiences to create a new dream. When an audience member asked how we can move ourselves and others to take responsibility, Yolanda King said that we need to understand the spirit within. “Hold up a light, and that will allow you to operate from a place of power,” she said. “You will find the power within.” Susannah Heschel suggested that the Bible is being appropriated by some who are acting as if they own it, and we need to take it back. “Look what’s being done in the name of religion,” she said. “I fell in love with the Bible because of Dr. King. [Now] I hear God’s voice saying, ‘Rescue me.’” Finally, King offered the Three Love Keys: a healthy love of self, love of others, and love of God. “These keys can unlock any door,” she said. The evening ended with members of the Mills Black Women’s Collective presenting to Yolanda King a condolence book for the loss of her mother, Coretta Scott King, signed by hundreds of members of the Mills community.

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It’s not enough to remember, but to go out and do. —Susannah Heschel Susannah Heschel spoke passionately about the state of America today. “The country is growing very cruel,” she said. “It needs our voices.” With her own deep, commanding voice, Heschel spoke about her father and Dr. King and their connection to the Bible. “The words of the Bible are living with us today, and it gives us voice.” She related the civil rights marches to the biblical Exodus and quoted her father: “When slaves get together, that’s the beginning of getting out of slavery.” Susannah Heschel is the Eli Black Associate Professor of Jewish Studies at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. She has a PhD in religious studies from the University of Pennsylvania. Her focus of interest is Jewish feminism, and she has written numerous books and articles on the subject. An only child, Heschel was always questioning the role of women in Jewish traditions and asking, “If Jewish religion is so important, why can’t I participate?”

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take the inspiration of the past,” she said, “and use it to fuel us to tackle the challenges of today.”

Top: Renée Jadushlever, vice president for information resources, looks on as President Janet L. Holmgren greets Yolanda King at the Daughters of the Dream reception held in the Art Museum on April 10, 2006. Above: Student members of the Mills Black Women’s Collective join hands with Professor Susannah Heschel inside the Music Building at the Daughters of the Dream presentation.

Moya Stone, MFA, ’03, is a freelance writer who has worked for The Contra Costa Times, The Orinda News, Daily Candy, and Glamour magazine. She can be contacted at <moyas@mills.edu>.

Leone La Duke Evans, MA ’45, arrived at Mills College in 1943 as a Music Fellow to study with Darius Milhaud.

She never left. FAVORITE PROFESSOR: Margaret Prall, professor of music literature FAMILY: A son, daughter and two grandchildren CAREER: Teaching staff, Mills College Music Department, 1947–64 Private piano instructor, 1945 to today LEADERSHIP: President, AAMC Board of Governors 1965–69 Member, AAMC Board of Governors 1956–69 and 2000–06 Alumna Trustee, Mills College Board of Trustees 2003–06 BETH JOHNSON, ’84

Why

has she stayed so involved with Mills?

“To continue being inspired, nurtured and challenged by the Mills academic environment. Today’s students and faculty are just as bright and accomplished as when I was a student.” Leone wanted to do more for Mills. She wanted to make a gift that would have a significant impact on the College while preserving her assets, during her lifetime. The gift she chose to establish was a Charitable Gift Annuity. Through this kind of a planned gift, you could receive these benefits: • Income for Life — at a competitive payment rate; • Tax Deduction Savings — a large part of your gift is a charitable deduction; • Tax-Free Income — a percentage of your annuity income is tax-free; • Investment in Future Generations — the assets remaining at the end pass on to the College and help to educate future generations of Mills students.

Leone says, “It is such a wonderful way to provide for Mills. I am able to continue my standard of living today and make a much larger gift to the College than I could have otherwise. It’s worked out so well, I may make another gift.”

To learn more, please contact: April Hopkins, Director of Planned Giving, Mills College 1-877-PG-MILLS (Toll Free) or aprilh@mills.edu

Planned Giving

ALL PHOTOGRAPHS BY BRUCE COOK

Commencement 2006

1 The long winter rains cleared just in time for Mills’ 118th Commencement on May 13, 2006. Parents, faculty, and friends cheered on the newest crop of alumnae and alumni. Some 217 women received bachelor’s degrees, 194 women and men earned master’s degrees, eight received doctoral degrees, and 73 earned credentials and certificates. President Janet L. Holmgren bestowed an honorary doctor of laws degree on the commencement speaker, U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, for her “exceptional advocacy on behalf of families, children, consumers, the environment, and her state of California.” Congresswoman Barbara Lee, ’73, was a surprise guest at commencement. She stated, “I am a proud Mills woman. It’s always good to be here at my alma mater.” Barbara Lee then introduced Senator Boxer, who cautioned the new graduates not to lose sight of the difficult issues before us today, such as the stalemate in Iraq, the attacks on abortion rights, and the devastation of global warming. “It is so important that each and every generation understands our history and commits to defending the progress we have made,” she said.

Senior speaker Patricia Contreras Flores nearly overshadowed Senator Boxer—not an easy thing to do—with her spirited and passionate address. A daughter of working-class Mexican immigrants, Ms. Flores spoke of the borders we put around ourselves, and how they limit us. On her first visit to Mills, for example, she thought she would never be able to get into such a “big, fancy school.” After her second visit, she gave it a try—and was accepted. Ms. Flores flourished at Mills, majoring in ethnic studies; among the many things she did at Mills, she served as editor of The Womanist and joined the Mills delegation to the 2006 World Social Forum. About her time at Mills, she says, “I learned how to stop creating borders around myself.”

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“ You will not shine as brightly as I know you can until America regains her luster.” —Senator Barbara Boxer 4

1. Michelle Blackford, ’06, shelters herself from the sun. 2. Congresswoman Barbara Lee, ’73, (left), and Senator Barbara Boxer, who received an honorary degree.

3. Senior speaker Patricia Contreras Flores, ’06. 4. Jane Cudlip King, ’42 (left), AAMC President Thomasina Woida, ’80, and AAMC Executive Director Sheryl J. Bize-Boutté, ’73, lead alumnae in the academic procession.

5. Friends and classmates Sara Laufer, ’06 (left), Rosalie McGie, ’06, and Virginia Murphy, ’06. Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

1 3

5 1. Mills College Trustees Barbara Ahmajan Wolfe, ’65 (left), Jill Fabricant, ’71, Muffy McKinstry Thorne, ’48, and Alexandra Orgel Moses, ’64

2. Alisha Nguyen,’06 3. Ingrid Hunt, MBA ’06 4. Rosario Chacón, ’06 5. Miya Sneed, ’06

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

Bent Twigs 8 9 1 4 5

BRUCE COOK

1. Meilan Carter, ’06 (center), with her aunt, Toni McElroy, ’83, MA ’05, and her cousin, Myila Granberry, ’05 2. Julie Rubenstein, ’06, with her aunt, Ann Rubenstein Zerin, ’64, and her grandmother, Florence Fox Rubenstein, ’38 3. Alleyne Long, ’06 (right), with her “adopted aunt,” Olivia Johnston, ’71 4. Heather McClure, ’06 (lef) , and her sister, Meghan McClure, ’03 5. Julie Page Ales, ’81, and her niece, Megan Wheelehan, ’06 6. Joyce Kelly McKay, ’43, and her granddaughter, Katherine Skye Paisley, ’06

6 7

7. Stephanie C. Yanogacio, ’05, MBA ’06, and her sister, Kimberly C. Yanogacio, ’06 8. Caryn Malhi, ’98, and her sister, Amy Qualls,’06

10. Deborah Soffar Paras, ’75, with her daughter, Crystal Paras, ’06 11. Crystal Corbett, ’06, with her mother, Joan Bogre-Corbett, ’81. Crystal is wearing the gown that four generations of women in her family have worn at graduation ceremonies.

BRUCE COOK

9. Sara McClure, ’81 (right), and her stepdaughter, Ayla Steadman, ’06

Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Profiles

THE CANVA S IS HER V O IC E: K AT H E R I N E H U FA N , ’ 5 7 by Jo Kaufman

had just been accepted at the Brussels World In addition to being a celebrated artist Fair—and weaving with Ilse Schulz. They whose work has been exhibited around the were both such wonderful teachers.” globe, Katherine Hu Fan, ’57, has also Asked whether she experienced any worked as an occupational therapist. Of her culture shock upon her arrival in the United diverse careers, Katherine says, “Life is States, she says simply that she found about constantly seeking a balance.” Americans to be “more excitable” than the Born in Shanghai at a time when the Chinese. “I remember my roommate droppolitical climate was such that her parents ping something and having a little meltdown. feared for her safety, Katherine and her two In that way, I guess I was more accepting.” siblings were privately tutored. “There were Following her graduation from Mills, many kidnappings, and then there was the Katherine attended Stanford University, Japanese occupation,” she says. Shortly after where she received an MA in art in 1960. It World War II, the family relocated to Hong was while attending graduate school that she Kong, where Katherine attended high school. and George Fan, her husband of two years— It was during a visit from a paternal uncle, and also a student at Stanford—started a who had settled in Oakland, that the trajectory of Katherine’s life changed. “He “THE WORDS THAT CAME OUT OF told me to apply to Mills.” ME WERE THE WORDS I WAS Then, as now, NOT ABLE TO SPEAK.” Mills had a lot going for it, not family. When George accepted a job with the least of which is its serenity and the IBM in New York, Katherine embraced the small, intimate nature of the classes. “My idea of moving. As for being uprooted again, uncle thought I’d get more attention. Plus, she felt ready for the change. “There’s a time I’d be close to him,” she laughs, admitting for everything,” she says. “You just have to that the idea of sending their daughter to an go with the flow.” But as a young mother of all women’s college was a bonus for her two daughters, “flow” meant putting the parents, as was the Bay Area’s thriving needs of her family before her own. It also Chinese community. Katherine entered Mills meant spending years dividing her time in 1953 with the intention of majoring in between what she calls her “healing work,” art. Despite her mother’s insistence that she as an occupational therapist, and her paintreceive a general education, a determined ing. “It really wasn’t until my children were Katherine nevertheless managed to enroll in older that I felt I had a little room,” she says. several art and craft classes. “I studied Juggling family and her professional life, ceramics with Anthony Prieto—his work

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

Katherine painted at night, and, until she had a studio of her own, she painted in the garage. “The canvas was my voice. The words that came out of me were the words I was not able to speak,” she says. One of her first breaks came when the director of New York’s Museum of Modern Art singled out her work during a blind competition. Since then, her paintings, collages, and panels have been exhibited in countless solo and group shows, along with being housed in the permanent collection of the Shanghai Museum. Using brightly colored acrylics and striking imagery, the paintings are a reflection of Katherine’s keen observations and sensibilities. By creating a subtext through language, in both English and Chinese, she offers a running social commentary on the world around her. “There are very deep issues,” she says. (See the back cover of this magazine for an example of her work.) The work is bold; it can be funny and at times irreverent, and it is infused with the concerns of ordinary citizens. For the past three years, though, her focus once again has turned to her healing work—but she isn’t about to give up painting anytime soon. Of her many accomplishments, Katherine remains modest. “I think I’ve led a very charmed life,” she says. “Things have come my way when the time was right.” Jo Kaufman worked as a professional calligrapher and graphic designer for ten years before turning to her first love, writing. With her background in design, interviewing Katherine Hu Fan was a special treat. She can be reached at <jokaufman@aol.com>.

Profiles

PROMOTING WOMEN IN BUSINESS: KAREN CAPLAN, ’77 by Ramona Lisa Smith, ’01, MBA ’02 Although Karen Caplan, ’77, began working with produce at the age of ten, for years she had no intention of working for her mother, let alone at her mother’s produce company. But at age 20 her life changed, and in the next ten years Karen went from summer jobs to chief executive officer (CEO) of her mother’s exotic fruit and vegetable business, Frieda’s Inc., the nation’s leading marketer and distributor of specialty produce. Karen was attending UC Davis when she discovered Mills on a visit to campus to see a friend. On the spot, she decided to come to Mills. And while she was at Mills, Karen decided that working at Frieda’s could be more than just a summer job—it could be a career, and, in fact, it was exactly the career she wanted. She decided to return to UC Davis to major in agricultural economics and business management, which was more in alignment with her newly chosen career path than her Mills major, administrative and legal practices. Karen has thrived at Frieda’s Inc. At age 30, she was promoted to CEO and president. “My parents were not surprised to see me in the CEO and president position, or ‘being boss,’ ” says Karen. “According to them, I was bossing people around at age two!” But Karen did not simply inherit the throne; she started from the ground up in the business, literally sweeping the basement floors. Her mother has always been a nurturer, Karen says, and was always there to coach her and mentor her, but Frieda has done Karen no special favors. When Frieda was running the company, Karen was treated like everyone else. Karen still remembers the time when she was two and a half hours late for work; her mother reminded Karen that if she could not make it to work on time, she would have to fire her. Karen was never late again. (She added later that her starting time back then was 2:00 a.m., and that Frieda, at 82, still still comes to work every day.) Karen exercised her innate ability to lead and make big decisions early in life, and she has honed these qualities at Frieda’s, expanding it from a Los Angeles–based produce market that served the local region to an international company. Karen believes her decisions to add more salespeople and a marketing department led to Frieda’s growth. Frieda’s currently employs 90 people in a friendly and family oriented culture. Although her tenure at Mills (1974–75) was brief, Karen believes in women’s colleges and advocates for women through her leadership roles. Karen says the produce industry, like most others, is a male-dominated arena. Frieda’s is the first and only wholesale produce company in the country to be founded, owned, and operated by a woman. In its early years, women flocked to the company because they knew Frieda’s reputation for hiring women; the sales team was nearly all women. Karen plans to keep up the tradition. “I’ve always had it in my heart to carve out a path for other women,” says Karen. In addition to serving as a member of the board of directors of the Los Angeles branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Karen was the first woman to chair the board of the United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Association in its 100-year history. “There has been so much pioneering work done in the past for women by both women and men, I have to keep it going,” she says. Asked what she has to say to Mills women, Karen replies, “Keep your passion alive, and be fearless!” Ramona Lisa Smith, ’01, MBA ’02, is a member of the Board of Governors of the AAMC and serves on the advisory board of the Mills Quarterly. Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

PASSAGES Gifts in Honor of Megan Brian, ’06, daughter of Jane Kiskaddon, by Jane Kiskaddon Amanda Brody, ’06, daughter of Anne Brody, by Anne Brody Stephanie Brown, ’06, daughter of Richard and Donna Brown, by Richard and Donna Brown Judith “Judy” Euphrat Castaillac, ’70, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Daneen Cline, ’06, daughter of Diane and Dennis Norrby, by Diane and Dennis Norrby Christine Daniel, ’86, and Cecily Peterson, ’88, to celebrate their commitment, by Rebecca Gebhart, ’81 Mr. Michael Genesereth, Palo Alto Area Mills College Club House Tour Homeowner, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Sara Hollander, ’06, Congratulations from Mom and Dad, by Wynne Waugaman and Leo Strom Emily Holmes, ’06, daughter of Linda Votaw, by Linda Votaw Barbara Hunter, ’57, for her work in producing yet another memorable Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Charming Cottages House Tour, by Susan Candland Graham, ’63, and an anonymous donor Teresa Kangas-Olsen, ’84, by the Oakland-Berkeley Branch, Mills College Alumnae Association Mrs. Ruth Kasle, Palo Alto Area Mills College Club House Tour Homeowner, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club David Keeports, by Richard Grossart

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

Alexis “Lexi” Knudsen, Multiple Subject Credential ’05, daughter of Alice Knudsen, MA ’05, by Alice Knudsen, MA ’05 Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth and Marilyn Lavezzo, Palo Alto Area Mills College Club House Tour Homeowners, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club

Merritt Linden, ’06, daughter of Lindsey and Craig Linden, by Lindsey and Craig Linden Emily Little, ’06, daughter of Mary Sweet, by Mary Sweet Mary Jane Loda, by Richard Grossart Virginia Loo, by Richard Grossart Paige Luneau, ’06, daughter of Lynn and Thomas Luneau, by Lynn and Thomas Luneau

Maya Menezes, ’06, daughter of Karen and Sylvan Menezes, by Karen and Sylvan Menezes Emma Miller, ’06, daughter of Deborah Lindsay, by Deborah Lindsay Dean Morier, by Jennifer Torkildson, ’06 Annie Moyer, daughter of Susan Jones Moyer, ’87, by Susan Jones Moyer, ’87

Tanya Neiman, ’70, 1949–2006 On May 3, 2006, Grace Cathedral in San Francisco received more than 200 mourners, and the flags at City Hall were flown at half-mast: two rarities to honor the passing of an exceptional individual. Mills alumna Tanya Neiman, ’70, a prominent and respected San Francisco attorney, died February 27 after a lengthy battle with ovarian cancer. Known for her commitment to serving low-income communities, Ms. Neiman graduated from Hastings College of Law in 1974. After short stints first as an instructor at UC Berkeley’s School of Law (Boalt Hall), and then at the State Public Defender’s Office, she became director of the Volunteer Legal Services Program (VLSP), where she stayed for nearly 25 years. VLSP recruits lawyers to provide free services for lowincome San Franciscans. Under Ms. Neiman’s guidance, the program grew from two employees to 32, with approximately 1,500 volunteer lawyers and paralegals serving 7,500 clients a year. She devoted her career to improving access to justice for underrepresented people and had a knack for inspiring others to follow her lead. Ms. Neiman was unique not only in aspirations but also in style; sporting tailored suits and bow ties, she was easily recognizable. She once said in an interview, “I know living your own style is something that’s not always encouraged, but my parents always told me to be myself, and I’ve been very grateful for that.” Mills alumna and College trustee Patricia Pineda, ’74, met Ms. Neiman in her first year at Boalt Hall. “Tanya was my writing instructor and a wonderful mentor to me,” says Ms. Pineda. “I learned a lot from her, and I was very sad to hear of her passing.” In addition to her work with VLSP, Ms. Neiman developed other aid programs, including the Cooperative Restraining Order Clinic for Battered Women, the Immigration Legalization Project, and the AIDS Legal Assistance Project. Over the years, she has been recognized for her work with awards such as the American Bar Association’s Harrison Tweed Award and the Distinguished Citizen Award from the Harvard Club of San Francisco. —Moya Stone, MFA ’03

Passages Connie “Jade Snow” Wong Ong, ’42, 1922–2006 “Our precious time on earth is brief. Even though your everyday hours must often be consumed in details of routine . . . your restless minds will move you constantly toward your larger visions.” —Jade Snow Wong, 1976, upon receiving an honorary doctorate from Mills College

IRENE POON

Pursuing larger visions, achieving greater goals, and trailblazing innovative paths were a way of life for Jade Snow Wong. Not one to conform to the numerous limiting expectations of someone of her race, gender, and economic standing, Jade Snow Wong made knocking down barriers appear effortless. She paved the way for her generation and countless generations to follow by her example of disciplined and balanced living. Jade Snow Wong, also known as Connie Wong Ong, ’42, passed away on March 16, 2006, in San Francisco. Connie graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Mills in 1942 and was the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Mills in 1976. Her close friend and Mills classmate, Katherine Zelinsky Westheimer, ’42, recalls, “Everything Connie did was with great grace and nobility. It is hard to lose great people.” Jade Snow Wong’s acclaimed book, Fifth Chinese Daughter, published in 1950, chronicles her early life growing up in San Francisco in a traditional Chinese family. It also documents her time and experiences at Mills College and her pursuit of a college education without financial support from her parents. Jade Snow first attended junior college and then transferred to Mills at the urging of none other than Dr. Aurelia Henry Reinhardt. Her second memoir, No Chinese Stranger, published in 1975, revisits childhood memories as well as her experiences as an adult. Fifth Chinese Daughter has been translated into many languages and has remained in print since its initial publication. It was during her time at Mills that Connie reluctantly took an art class entitled Tools and Materials and fell in love with ceramic arts. Although she intended to practice social work in San Francisco’s Chinese community, opportunity married passion, and Connie began to forge a career as a ceramic artist. As a struggling potter working in the storefront of a Grant Avenue merchant, she met another artist, Woodrow Ong. They were married in 1950; their wedding was the first ever to be held at Reinhardt Alumnae House. Together they continued their artistic pursuits, started a family, opened a travel agency, and traveled extensively in Asia, exchanging cultural, artistic, and educational ideals. A skillful and gifted ceramist, Jade Snow Wong’s pottery and enamelware have been showcased throughout the country and around the world. In 1947 her enamel work was featured in 100 Objects of Fine Design, an exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In 1952 she had a one-woman show at the Chicago Art Institute. The International Ceramic Museum in Faenza, Italy, the Detroit Institute of the Arts, the New Orleans Museum of Art, and the Oakland Museum of California are just a few of the museums that house her work in their permanent collections. As she matured, her recognition in the art world grew. In 2002, a retrospective exhibit at the Chinese Historical Society of America Museum and Learning Center celebrated more than 50 years of craftsmanship. As accomplished, educated, well-traveled, and experienced as she was, Connie always prioritized her role as a wife and mother. As she accepted her honorary doctorate in 1976, she stated unapologetically during her address to Mills graduates, “My marriage, my two sons and two daughters, have first priority over my career.” She stressed that educated women should seek balance and revel in all rights, privileges, and opportunities afforded to them. Connie’s contributions to Mills include active roles in the design and implementation of key buildings on campus. In 1945, at the age of 24, she was given the task of getting the new alumnae headquarters built. She secured donations, hired an architect, and purchased furniture for the completed building. Today Reinhardt Alumnae House still serves as the timeless and classic center of all Mills alumnae activities. Connie was also key in the construction of the Life Science Building. Connie “Jade Snow” Wong Ong’s many contributions to the Chinese community, San Francisco commerce, the literary and art worlds, and Mills College will never be forgotten. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Woodrow “Woody” Ong, and is survived by her sons, Mark and Lance, daughters, Tyi Ong Mar, ’79, and Ellora Ong Chan, ’81, and four grandchildren. —Erinn Noel House

Rachel Moyer, daughter of Susan Jones Moyer, ’87, by Susan Jones Moyer, ’87 Melissa Murray, ’06, daughter of Christine and Ronald Murray, by Christine and Ronald Murray Maria Peinado, ’99, for her May wedding, by Sara Stewart, ’99 Ms. Candace Pelissero, ’68 and Mr. Brian Larsen, Palo Alto Area Mills College Club House Tour Homeowners, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Dr. Paul Richards of Mills College, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Julie “Jewels” Rubenstein, ’06, daughter of Lisa and Laurence Rubenstein, by Lisa and Laurence Rubenstein Cristine “Cris” Russell, ’71, by Michelle Balovich, ’03 Ms. Susan Skaer, Palo Alto Area Mills College Club House Tour Homeowner, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Miya Sneed, ’06, daughter of Vida and Stephen Sneed, by Vida and Stephen Sneed Kathleen “Kat” Stavis, ’06, daughter of Martha and Paul Stavis, by Martha and Paul Stavis Ayla Steadman, ’06, daughter of David Steadman, by Sara McClure, ’81, and David Steadman, and Lee Redman Barbara Steinbauer, mother of Sanda Steinbauer, ’96, by Sanda Steinbauer, ’96 Sharon Tatai, ’80, by the Mills College Club of New York Christina and Joseph Torkildson, my parents, by Jennifer Torkildson, ’06 Jorie Bolton Townsley, ’69, by Melody Fujimori, ’69 Alison Uscilka, ’06, daughter of Jennifer Elwell and John Uscilka, by Jennifer Elwell and John Uscilka John Vollmer, by Richard Grossart Sarah Wallis, ’06, daughter of Cathy and Richard Wallis, by Cathy and Richard Wallis Summer 2006 M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Passages Jennifer Ward, ’97, by Kimberlee Garfinkle, ’95 Heather “Shanell” Woodard, ’06, daughter of Sabina and Zane Woodard, by Sabina and Zane Woodard Laurie Zimet, by Jennifer Torkildson, ’06 Laura Zink, ’06, daughter of Nancy and Edward Zink, by Nancy and Edward Zink

Gifts in Memory of Mary “Mitzi” Woodward Ackerman, ’46, by Isabella Wilder Artman, ’46 Abigail “Gail” Hunter Allen, ’51, by Martha Cushman Skelly, ’51 John Artman, by Isabella Wilder Artman, ’46 Phyllis Cole Bader, ’35, by two anonymous donors, Carol R. Baker, Helen R. Curtis, Sharon Pinger Dowsett, ’65, Barbara Evans, ’63, Sally H. Evans, Mrs. Bruce Flowers, Molly Fairbank Grassi, ’59, Margaret “Peggy” Kiely Harris, ’64, Julie Neikirk Headley, ’63, Janet Louvau Holt, ’51, Lee Ann Tegart Labby, ’75, Esther Rosenblatt Landa, ’33, Mary Parker Lawrence, ’57, Nancy Locke, ’81, Elizabeth Wilcox Lyshaug, ’51, Barbara Besson Martin, ’42, The Portland Mills Alumnae Branch, Lorinda Bader Reichert, ’67, Elise “Liz” Feldman Rosenfeld, ’47, Laurie Gearin Senders, ’67, Janet Parks Swanson, ’80, Mary Ausplund Tooze, ’44, Barbara Christy Wagner, ’59, Susan Hutchens Wisdom, ’64, and Connie Young Yu, ’63 Laura Balas, MA ’92, by Helen and Arne Hovdesven Barbara “Babs” Ganteaume Bankart, ’36, by Anne and Roger Howell and Harriet H. Spagnoli Julianne Reed Biggane, ’41, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Russ Boehm, by Diane Smith Janusch, ’55 Barbara Seal Borden, ’49, by Pauline Royal Langsley, ’49 Robert Challinor, Rector of St. Andrew’s Church ’56–69 and

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY Summer 2006

Canterbury Club Advisor, Mills College, by Ellen Locke Crumb, ’59, and Carolyn King Terry, ’64 Mildred Canfield Chapin, ’38, wife of F. Stuart Chapin, Jr., by F. Stuart Chapin, Jr. Ruth Pruyn Clark, ’56, sister of Alison Pruyn Schneider, ’59, by Alison Pruyn Schneider, ’59 Suzanne Smith Cluett, ’64, by Marilyn Wilson Newland, ’48 Sara Glasgow Cogan, ’60, by Lauretta Rosen Rice, ’60 H. Peter Converse, husband of Sheila Powers Converse, ’57, cousin-in-law of Katherine “Kay” Powers Obering, ’56, Alice Powers Pullman, ’70, and son-in-law of Margaret Dollar Powers, ’33, by the Mills College Club of New York Anne Crow, mother-in-law of Elizabeth Parker, ’85, by the Chicago Area Branch, Mills College Alumnae Association, and Elizabeth Parker, ’85 Josephine “Jo” Holzman Demuth, ’31, by the Mills College Club of New York Jean Ginder Dew, ’56, by Judith “Judy” Ireland, ’56 Carol Meyer Doyle, MFA ’81, by Joe and Marieanne Cullen and Lewis Keller Susan Drum, ’50, by Barbara King Jackson, ’50 Elizabeth “Becky” Becker Epperson, ’49, by Pauline Royal Langsley, ’49 Lillian Fabricant, by Jill Fabricant, ’71 Shirley Ferguson, by Richard “Dick” and Diane Smith Janusch, ’55 Rheta Dattner Goldberg, ’61, by Maryann Patterson Susan Gregory, mother of Elizabeth Parker, ’85, by Chicago Area Branch, Mills College Alumnae Association, and Elizabeth Parker, ’85 Marilyn Heilfron, ’46, by Joan Gross McCusker, ’46 Carla Eddy Hinrichsen, ’41, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 David Holmes, son of Mary Eleanor King Holmes, ’43, by Mary Eleanor King Holmes, ’43

Virginia Holmgren, mother of President Janet L. Holmgren, by the Chicago Area Branch, Mills College Alumnae Association, Leone La Duke Evans, MA ’45, and Elizabeth Parker, ’85 Barbara Schubach Jacobs, ’42, by Esther Rosenblatt Landa, ’33, and Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Anastasia Kakavetsi-Karabela, MA ’74, by Amy Moebius De Brahe, ’77 Paulina Kernberg, by Jerome Oremland Charlene Driver Lamb, ’41, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 James “Jim” Lewis, husband of Mary Garner Lewis, ’56, by the Mills College Club of New York Joyce Leyland, ’47, by Mary Osborn Adele Bucklin Luker, ’34, by Frances Dofflemyer Stillwell, ’39 Barbara Mccutcheon Martin, ’48, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Elizabeth Beardsley Michkils, ’41, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Phyllis “Phyl” Kneass Molinari, ’42, by Cherie Goecken Black, ’41 Constance “Jade Snow” Wong Ong, ’42, by Frances Colby Allee, ’40, Judith “Judy” Ireland, ’56, Ruth M. Kamena, Leah Hardcastle Mac Neil, MA ’51, Wendy Ng, ‘79, Leslie Stein Selcow, ‘63, Katherine Stewart, N. Wahl, and Betty Chu Wo, ’46 Evelyn Oremland, by Nancy Boas Melissa Pinho, by Colleen Almeida Smith, ’92 Dr. Elizabeth Pope, Emerita Professor of English, by Frances Colby Allee, ’40 Betty Conlan Prochnow, ’47, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Audrey Coker Robinson, ’52, by Antoinette Gibson Bone, ’52, and Leone La Duke Evans, MA ’45 Nathan Rubin, by Mary Christiansen Angela Schmick Ruttle, ’41, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Mary Deans Salvatori, ’35, by Joan Gross McCusker, ’46 Lela Worthington Shewry, ’54, by Aletha Waite Silcox, ’54

Martha Malmo Smersh, ’46, by Joan Gross McCusker, ’46 Consuelo “Consie” Ashe Smith, ’44, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Carol McClintock Sperry, ’42, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Meta “Kay” Anderson Stanley, ’35, in loving memory from her long legacy of Mills women, hoping that more will follow, by Yoko Tashiro Olsgaard, ’77 Marjorie Moody Webber, ’41, by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Carolyn Everett Wellington, ’55, by Diane Smith Janusch, ’55, Barbara Newman Kines, ’55, and Barbara Cheatham Gieseke, ’55

Class Notes do not appear in the online edition of Mills Quarterly. Alumnae are invited to share their news with classmates in the Mills College alumnae community. To submit notes for publication in the next available Quarterly, send your update to classnotes@mills. edu.

Class Notes do not appear in the online edition of the Mills Quarterly. Alumnae are invited to share their news with classmates in the Mills College Alumnae Community, alumnae.mills.edu. To submit notes for publication in the next available Quarterly, send your update to classnotes@mills.edu.

Nominate Your Choice for Alumna Trustee Today Now is the time for you, the alumnae and alumni of Mills College, to nominate the next candidates for Alumna Trustee.

Who are they? n The three Alumnae Trustees serve on both the Board of Trustees of Mills College and the Board of Governors of the Alumnae Association, and n convey the majority view of the Board of Governors to the Board of Trustees, and n serve as a liaison between the two Boards. One Alumna Trustee is elected each year. What are the expectations of the Alumnae Trustees? Each year the Alumnae Trustees are expected to attend n three two-day meetings of the College’s Board of Trustees (plus possible additional committee meetings) and n six evening meetings of the AAMC’s Board of Governors, as well as a day-long retreat and the annual meeting. The Alumnae Trustees serve a three-year term and may run for a second term. How are the Alumnae Trustees nominated? n Nomination of candidates, or self-nominations, are mailed, faxed, or emailed to the AAMC Nominating Committee before September 1, 2006. n In October 2006, candidates who choose to be considered complete and return to the Nominating Committee a questionnaire that details their qualifications and position statements. What background and experience are desired? The Nominating Committee is looking for individuals who have demonstrated n participation in alumnae activites such as branch or regional leadership or service as a class secretary or agent, or

n participation in college activities such as the Alumnae Admission Representative Program, and n fundraising/financial support of the AAMC or the College. In order to ensure that there is at least one Alumna Trustee who lives outside the Bay Area, the AAMC Board of Governors has restricted nominations every third year to alumnae who live outside the Middle California region. This year nominations are restricted. How are the Alumnae Trustees elected? n Up to three final nominees, selected by the Nominating Committee, will be featured in the Winter 2007 Quarterly. n All alumnae and alumni are eligible to vote by mail-in ballots provided in the Quarterly, and one Alumna Trustee is elected from the nominees. (The newly elected Trustee begins her term on July 1, 2007.) For more detailed information ... n Ask the AAMC to send you the complete Alumna Trustee information packet. Questions? Contact Beverly Johnson Zellick, '49, MA '50, chair, Nominating Committee, at <bzellick@aol.com>. Or call Reinhardt Alumnae House at (510) 430-2110. Current Alumnae Trustees Are: n Susan Brown Penrod, ‘71, n Sara Ellen McClure, ’81, and

N O M I N AT I N G F O R M NAME OF NOMINEE

CLASS YEAR

ADDRESS OF NOMINEE

TELEPHONE OF NOMINEE

YOUR NAME

CLASS YEAR

You may mail this form to the Alumnae Association of Mills College, PO Box 9998, Oakland, CA 94613, fax a copy to the AAMC at (510) 430-1401, or email the information to <bzellick@aol.com>.

Summer 2006

AAMC-Sponsored Trips Guatemala March 13–23, 2007 Explore Guatemala’s pre-Columbian, Spanish Colonial, and modern cultures. Visit Antigua, Atitlan, Chichicastenango, Tikal, Guatemala City, and more. $2,895 plus air Libya April 23–May 8, 2007 Following an overnight stay in London, sail from Gibraltar for North Africa to explore archeological sites that rival Athens, Rome, and Ephesus. An optional extension to Malta is available. $5,670 plus air The Danube to the Black Sea May 18–29, 2007 Sail on a 129-passenger river boat through Germany, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia-Montenegro, Bulgaria, and Romania. $3,995 plus air

The Italian Riviera June 16–24, 2007 This trip features ancient fishing villages, silky sand beaches, classic architecture, art, and cuisine. We will reside in the seaside town of Seato Levante. All meals, excursions, and educational opportunities are included. From $2,395 The Ukraine August 3–16, 2007 Cruising the Dneiper River from Kiev to Odessa, pass through the crossroads of Europe and Asia and explore a fascinating blend of diverse influences rich in history, monuments, and museums. $1,595 plus air Village Life in the Alps July 6–14, 2007 Discover the village of Igls in the heart of the Tyrolean Alps, and visit the imperial city of Innsbruck, Mozart’s birthplace of Salzburg, and Bolzano, Italy, home of the mummy Oetzi the Iceman. $2,395 plus air For more information about AAMC trips, please call (510) 430-2110, or email <lkrane@mills.edu>.

Ascent by Katherine Hu Fan, â&#x20AC;&#x2122;57. For a profile of the artist, see page 28.

Mills Quarterly Alumnae Association of Mills College Reinhardt Alumnae House Mills College PO Box 9998 Oakland, CA 94613-0998 (510) 430-2110 aamc@mills.edu www.mills.edu

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