Mills Quarterly summer 2011 by Mills Quarterly

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Mills Quarterly Summer 2011 Alumnae Magazine

Courage & daring The 20-year legacy of President Janet L. Holmgren

M I L L S

C O L L E G E

A N N U A L

F U N D

Create

resources for students by giving to the Mills College Annual Fund. Software licenses for • Video production: $7,992 • Audio editing: $5,995 • Interactive audio and video programming: $10,485 • Design and image editing: $12,000

Small electronic components: $200

Video camera and tripod: $3,000

Soldering iron:

$50

Guidance from staff dedicated to helping Mills students nurture their creative visions:

invaluable

onors to the Mills College Annual Fund support scholarships and campus resources, including the Prieto Multimedia Lab. Here, students in the College’s Intermedia Arts Program create interactive installations, robots, multimedia performances, and other art that integrates computer technology with traditional media. Each year, Mills invests in programs that cultivate students’ academic and creative work.

Give Mills students the tools they need for creative success. Give to the Mills College Annual Fund by calling 510.430.2366 or visiting www.mills.edu/giving.

Mills Quarterly

contents Summer 2011 6

Evolution of a revolution by Nadia Mostafa Saleh ’59

When civil protest deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in February, the world watched in amazement. A Mills alumna and Cairo resident shares her perspective of those riveting events and thoughts on the future of her country.

8 Milestones of a Mills woman We look back at two decades of remarkable achievements in academics, campus construction, and educational leadership, all spearheaded by the vision of President Holmgren.

12 Remarks on 20 years as President of Mills College by Janet L. Holmgren The President reflects on the changes in the country and in higher education since she took office at Mills and affirms the continuing importance of women’s education. Plus: a special thanks to donors to the Holmgren Presidential Scholarship.

30 Sound off! In a follow-up to this feature in the last issue, more alumnae answer the question: Who has been your most influential professor?

Departments 2

Letters to the editor

Mills Matters

Bookshelf

Class Notes with Notes from Near and Far: Alumnae Activities Report and a feature on Date Palms band members Marielle Jakobsons, MFA ’06, and Gregg Kowalsky, MFA ’06

In Memoriam

Special insert: 20 years, 20 donors 2009–10 Annual Report of Giving With much gratitude, Mills publishes this honor roll of donors who made gifts to the College between July 1, 2009, and June 30, 2010.

On the cover: President Janet L. Holmgren stands proudly in the atrium of the building for the Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business. Photo by Erin Lubin.

Letters to the Editor Volume XCIX Number 4 (USPS 349-900)

Thank you for that wonderful front

Summer 2011

cover! So many wonderful girls—women,

President Janet L. Holmgren

I know—and so natural, real, and as you

Vice President for Institutional Advancement Cynthia Brandt Stover

for me, but I do hope that more and more

Senior Director of Communications Dawn Cunningham ’85

the world. I’m a cello teacher with some

Managing Editor Linda Schmidt

ace all of their APs, and are brilliant in

Design and Art Direction Nancy Siller Wilson

young women to please step forward and

Contributing Writers Rose Lopez ’14 Nadia Mostafa Saleh ’59 Pamela Wilson

hard to pursue higher education, do post-

I see great promise in many of our

women to pursue math and science. In

Editorial Assistance Allison Marin ’12

women present and future. I hope my

my twenties, I worked as a secretary in a

encouragement will help. —Michael Knapp, MA ’89 Emeryville, California

small hospital. The accountant got paid

The Mills Quarterly (USPS 349-900) is published quarterly by Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94613. Periodicals postage paid at Oakland, California, and at additional mailing office(s). Postmaster: Send address changes to the Office of Institutional Advancement, Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94613. Copyright © 2011, Mills College Address correspondence to the Mills Quarterly, Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94613. Letters to the editor may be edited for clarity or length. Email: quarterly@mills.edu Phone: 510.430.3312 Printed on recycled paper containing 10 percent post-consumer waste.

say, joyful. This subject was not so joyful women will enter math, science, and engineering for the good of our country and high school girls who have 4.8 averages, math and science. I am urging these lead the charge towards females working doctoral work, teach others, and lead science teams toward greater excellence.

Porsche. I went back to Mills and got a degree derful career. I’m retired now and drive a

Have a comment or opinion? Write to us at Mills Quarterly, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94613 or quarterly@mills.edu. Letters may be edited for clarity or length.

red Dodge Challenger! —Linda Peterson ’81 Concord, California

At Mills, for Alumnae Alumnae Relations Alumnae.mills.edu 510.430.2123 Alumnae-relations@mills.edu

Alumnae Admission Representatives Joan Jaffe, Associate Dean of Admission 510.430.2135 ..........................Joanj@mills.edu

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

three times my salary and drove a yellow

in computer science. I was off into a won-

Career Services 510.430.2130

I am pleased to see Mills encouraging

Giving to Mills www.mills.edu/giving 510.430.2366........................... mcaf@mills.edu Alumnae Association of Mills College (AAMC) 510.430.2110 . ..........................aamc@mills.edu Linda Jaquez-Fissori ’92, President ...................................... 510.430.3374 Bill White, Accountant.................. 510.430.3373 To contact the AAMC, please write to: AAMC, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., MB #86, Oakland, CA 94613-1301

Mills Matters Mills partners with Oakland to offer internships Exciting new summer internship opportunities have arrived for Mills students thanks to a partnership between Mills College and the City of Oakland. Investing in Oakland: A Mills College Summer Internship Program, established by President Janet L. Holmgren, allows student interns to participate in community efforts directly related to the economic and human development of Oakland. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan has targeted several priority areas for the internship projects which include education, neighborhood safety, economic development, sustainability, and mentoring. The internships, administered by Mills faculty and staff, entail close collaboration with city departments or community-based organizations working on city initiatives. “In creating these collaborative internships, Mills College is able to demonstrate its strong commitment to the Oakland community in a substantially focused way,” says President Holmgren. “Students will be immersed in projects which will provide opportunities for a significant learning experience, while at the same time producing measurable benefits for Oakland’s residents.” Approximately two dozen Mills undergraduate and graduate students are participating in five internship programs. These programs will establish a career advisory network for Oakland’s former foster youth; perform research to improve local bicycle, pedestrian, and transit options; conduct ethnographic research resulting in a “cultural map” to inform a public planning project in Chinatown; design an entrepreneurship course to support two existing economic development organizations; and work through local organizations to mentor Oakland youth. All internships provide students with a stipend as well as professional experience.

New degree prepares educational leaders for complex challenges In the face of record budget cuts to public schools across California and throughout the nation, mounting accountability to improve the quality of education, and the emergence of private charter schools, educational leaders are increasingly confronted by complex challenges that require not only educational expertise but fundamental business skills as well. In response to these escalating challenges, Mills College will debut a new joint MBA/MA degree in educational leadership this fall, incorporating an even balance of both business management and educational leadership courses from the Mills College School of Education and the Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business. “In the future, effective leadership in education will demand more than the basic knowledge of managing budgets and people,” said Katherine Schultz,

Building a strong reputation

dean of the School of Education.

The building housing the Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business at Mills College

and management skills that address

continues to reap architectural honors. In May, Architectural Record named the building

the ethical and moral dimensions of

as one of nine winners of the Good Design Is Good Business awards, an international

school leadership.”

competition which recognizes projects using innovative architectural strategies to help

“It will require enhanced leadership

“The ideal skill set for an educational

businesses achieve specific goals. Each project was evaluated on the basis of its

leader is one that combines knowledge,

“business case”—a series of quantitative and qualitative measurements of building

experience, and skills in education and

performance, including employee productivity, construction costs, reduced overhead,

business,” added Deborah Merrill-Sands,

and branding. The building was designed by the firm Bohlin Cywinski Jackson.

dean of the Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business. For more information about this program, see the Mills College School of Education website, mills.edu/education, or the Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business website, mills.edu/mba.

summer 2011

Faculty honors, awards, and publications Mills faculty members, well known for their outstanding teaching, continue to contribute groundbreaking work and reap professional honors in their fields of study. Professor of Studio Art Hung Liu received the Award for Lifetime

Fred Frith, Sonya Delwaide, Christie Chung, Mark Henderson

Achievement in Printmaking from SGC International, an organization that

Sonya Delwaide, associate professor

Professor Christie Chung and four

advances the field of original prints,

of dance, received the Isadora Duncan

Mills psychology students and alumnae

drawings, books, and handmade paper.

Award for Outstanding Achievement

published the paper “Emotional Memory

The award recognizes an individual who

in Restaging/Revival/Reconstruction in

in Women: Why a Negativity Bias?” in

has made an outstanding contribution to

2010 for her work “Lettre à Jos” from Je

the Journal of Psychology and Behavioral

the professional development of print-

Me Souviens.

Sciences.

making as a fine art.

Professor of Music Fred Frith’s newest

Associate Professor of Computer

CD, Clearing Customs, which combines

Science Ellen Spertus co-authored the

tus, was selected to receive the Arts

conventional jazz instruments with

book App Inventor: Creating Your Own

and Letters Award from the American

Asian instruments and electronics,

Android Apps and received approval for a

Academy of Arts and Letters, which

features Mills alumnae/i Fei Wu, MA ’04,

patent on which she is a co-inventor.

provides a prize of $7,500 to encourage

Anantha Krishnan, MFA ’08, and Patrice

Ron Nagle, professor of art emeri-

creative work in the arts.

Scanlon, MFA ’03.

Assistant Professor of Public Policy Mark Henderson received an Overseas Young Chinese Forum–Ford Foundation Teaching Fellowship to lecture at

Your classmates are waiting for you. What are you waiting for? Register now.

Lanzhou University in western China. The article “Public Interest Ethnography: Women’s Prisons and Health Care in California,” by Professor of Anthropology Rachael Stryker, has been accepted for inclusion in the 14th edition of the textbook Conformity and Conflict: Readings in Cultural

Go to alumnae.mills.edu Click on first time login Search for your name Enter your information

Anthropology. Two mystery novels for young readers by Associate Professor of English Kathryn Reiss have just been published by American Girl: A Bundle of Trouble and The Silver Guitar. Mills staff members Shrim Bathey and Deborah Long, along with seven other Mills Educational Leadership students, co-authored the paper “Isn’t That What Those Kids Need?: Urban Schools and

Mills College Alumnae Community alumnae.mills.edu

the Master Narrative of the Tough Urban Principal,” which was selected as co-winner of the 2010 Gordon Allport Intergroup Relations Prize, awarded by the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues.

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

Jak ub Mosur

Some of the student athletes honored at the Athletic Awards Ceremony (left); violinist Jennifer Curtis ‘01, center, displays her award (below).

New grant and gifts fund research, scholarships, and more Ongoing research by Professor Joe Kahne in Mills’ School of Education received a big boost from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, which awarded a grant of $4.5 million to support his coordination of and participation in a new interdisciplinary network of scholars. The network, called Youth and Participatory Politics (YPP), works to understand the ways youth participation in online networks is shaping and reshaping youth civic and political engagement in the public sphere. The grant funds YPP’s work through June 2013. See the spring 2010 Quarterly for more about Kahne’s research. Mills College also gratefully acknowledges the following recent gifts, pledges, and bequest of $50,000 or more, which were received between October 1, 2010, and February 28, 2011. Thomas White created the endowed Leslie Scalapino Fellowship in Poetry to remember his late wife, Mills’ first distinguished visiting poet in the English Department. The fellowship will go to MFA students in Mills’ poetry program.

Alumna and student athletes honored Mills athletes take their sports seriously. But many students—and one alumna— who pursue their academic interests and professional goals with the same intensity that they work towards the winning goal or finish line were recognized by the department of Athletics, Physical Education, and Recreation at the Athletic Awards Ceremony on April 14. Jennifer Curtis ’01, who played soccer in all of her four years at Mills and is now a well-known violinist, received the Alumnae Athletic Achievement award. In lieu of an acceptance speech, she played her original piece, “Cave Paintings.” “Jennifer is the essence of a ‘Mills woman,’ showing us that Mills student athletes are more than their sports,” said President Janet L. Holmgren, who presented the award. Also honored that evening were 38 student athletes who had a grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or higher; the team with the highest cumulative GPA, tennis, had a combined total of 3.57. Desirae Tongco ’12, a swim team member and representative for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee who holds down three jobs during the school year, received the Janet Holmgren Student-Athlete Service Award. Senior Cheryl Sundheim earned the Eugene Trefethen Award, which recognizes the graduating scholar-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA.

—Rose Lopez ’14

Neva Kesselring ’78 and Gerald Rico established the endowed Patrick are honorably discharged military veter-

The Summer Sessions 1933–1952: Visiting Artists at Mills College Art Museum

ans or dependents of these veterans.

On view June 15–August 28

Memorial Scholarship for students who

Anna May Leong Duncan ’43, P ’73, established the Anna May Duncan Endowed Scholarship Fund.

Museum Hours

Kathi Burke, chair of the Mills College

Tuesday–Sunday: 11:00 am to 4:00 pm

Board of Trustees, and her husband, Ralph Davis, made a significant gift to the Mills College Annual Fund. Jacklyn

Wednesday: 11:00 am to 7:30 pm

Davidson Burchill ’44 and her husband,

Monday closed

Philip, also made a generous gift to sup-

Admission is free

port the annual fund.

www.mills.edu/museum 510.430.2164

Shirley Lowy ’43 left an unrestricted bequest to the College. See page 16 for a list of donors to the Holmgren Presidential Scholarship Fund.

CH XI, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, 1939

summer 2011

Evolution of a revolution Nadia Mostafa Saleh ’59 tells of her experience in Egypt April 2011, Cairo—People are getting back to work and traffic is impossible, as usual. All this is on the surface—look deeper, and you’ll see that the events in Egypt present a study of political revolution, be it a success or a failure. The beginning My own experience is that on January 25, young people organized protests against widespread police brutality. But as their requests for change were neglected, the demonstrations and demands increased. Eventually, the police were pulled away and the army deployed to the streets. Unrest grew stronger and looters began to attack shops, hotels, and residences. We watched a large mall across the river from us get burned down. On television, they showed young men with stolen television sets, computers, clothing, and shoes, as well as other young people who caught them and brought them to the authorities. Citizens took it upon themselves to protect their homes, streets, and neighborhoods. The next day they met with each other and started dividing responsibilities. This happened all over Egypt and, for a few days, our country was protected by its young men. Meanwhile, crowds converged in Tahrir Square—now known as Liberation Square. Demands began to be heard for President 6

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

Hosni Mubarak, who had ruled the country since 1981, to step down from office. Local television news kept saying that things were under control and aired regular programs in spite of the fact that tens of thousands were assembling. Throughout Egypt, the authorities cut off the Internet and mobile phones, which were essential tools in organizing the protests. We learned that the atmosphere of the Square was peaceful and orderly. It is remarkable how these young people organized bathrooms, sleeping areas, food, drink, prayers, and protection from opposing forces. We heard of old women bringing meals and of nearby stores contributing food and blankets. Christians protected Moslems when they had their Friday prayers and the Moslems did the same for the Christians when they wanted to pray on Sunday. Pictures of protest: Egyptian children sit above the crowd in Tahrir Square (above); in Alexandria, a young man’s graffiti reads, “Take part in elections” (opposite). Photos by Joel Carillet/istock.com

The military refused to use force against the demonstrators and

I must say that Mrs. Mubarak was a real force in helping

the atmosphere turned festive, with music and entertainment

women and children’s causes, but she too is accused of abusing

at night. Mothers wanting to protect their daughters went with

her position. I would hate for the good that she was responsible

them to the Square only to like the spirit there and decide to stay.

for to be lost. Previously outlawed fundamentalist religious groups, who

Fathers went in search and joined their families. When pro-Mubarak groups went to disturb the demonstrators,

the authorities fear are one step away from al-Qaida, have been

it turned into a nasty, violent rampage. I am sure they were hired

allowed to express their ideas. They are all over the media and

thugs, very different than the mostly educated young people who

scaring a lot of us. Hopefully women will protest if the religious

were leading these demonstrations. From that time on, it was

fundamentalists attempt to remove some of the benefits that

everyone’s wish that Mubarak leave office. By February 12, Mubarak had to give in and leave. The Square began to return to normal. My granddaughter’s 16th birthday was spent on Liberation Square cleaning up with the protestors who decided to leave no debris. (I only hope that seeing these young people pick things up will provide an example to others. Feeling responsible for one’s

women have achieved.

They knew how the rest of the

There are still demonstrations—

world lived, and this

for jobs and higher pay or for

knowledge spurred

testors have occupied the rail track

their call for democracy and

freedom.

housing. In one particular case, probetween Cairo and Aswan, putting the government in a quandary: if they send troops, it looks like a brutal crackdown; if they leave the

behavior, the environment, and the cleanli-

protestors alone, there is no trans-

ness of the city is not a given here.)

portation and no work. Either way,

The organization of this revolution is of

the protestors’ behavior is a result

great interest. It had no real leaders but

of the confidence they received

several savvy people who used Facebook,

in the revolution. They now know

Twitter, and other technological means to

they can make a difference.

organize their protests. The young people on the streets were educated and many

The future?

spoke foreign languages. They knew how

We all want our constitution to be

the rest of the world lived, and this knowl-

changed. We want the period of the presidency to be limited. We want

edge spurred their call for democracy and freedom. These youngsters on the streets made us very proud.

The present

the army to protect the country, not rule it. We want higher allocations for health, education, services, research, infrastructure, and other areas benefiting the common man. We want a

In the past weeks, investigations have uncovered a Pandora’s

fair government where all citizens have the same rights and

box of corruption that seems to have no end. Every day we hear

opportunities. We want the freedoms that are in your US Bill of

more about fiscal gluttony and the misuses of power; every day

Rights (except for the gun part). We do not want security forces

there is more scandal and disturbance. Ordinary people are flab-

checking our telephones and mail or a police state arresting

bergasted by the news. I sometimes feel like the poor woman

people at dawn.

who sat next to the guillotine in the French Revolution and kept

Often it is said that others have captured the revolution from

on knitting and was entertained by the rolling of the heads. It’s

those original young protestors. The fundamentalist religious

an awful feeling.

groups have stepped in and their efforts are in the papers every

Government ministers, heads of corporations, parliamentar-

day. Where are the revolutionaries? They have immortalized their

ians, and many others are in jail. The Mubarak family and their

revolution in countless songs, videos, jokes, and writings, but it is

cronies are under arrest. As we get closer to a court appearance

feared that their messages will be lost among the millions of issues

by Mubarak himself, he gets sicker. He fears the court and it

coming up. We hope they don’t get lost. They are wonderful.

damages his health. After all, he is 82. The vast allegations of corruption and greed have wiped away any good memories of Mubarak. This is a very poor country, with millions living in poverty. Young men can’t find jobs and so can’t get homes or get married. Health is a big issue; many people I know have died of cancer, hepatitis C, or kidney failure. Education is lousy, there is no research and very little development. Many foreign companies have taken over local businesses. All the while, the government elite were making millions at the expense of the country. That is why there is so much anger at Mubarak and his cronies.

About the author: Nadia Mostafa Saleh ’59, a lifelong resident of Cairo, Egypt, enrolled at Mills on the recommendation of a family friend. She majored in child development and completed a secondary degree in anthropology. After returning to Egypt, Nadia began working in the family business, Nimos Engineering and Agricultural Development Company, and became chairperson in the mid-1970s. Nimos is one of very few female-run businesses in Egypt. summer 2011

Milestones

of a Mills woman

hroughout the course of President Holmgren’s tenure, her vision and guidance have developed leading academic programs, fostered a culture of diversity, and—quite literally— built state-of-the-art facilities to advance women’s education at Mills College well into the 21st century. As Holmgren steps down from office, we highlight some of the many remarkable achievements on campus since she began her leadership of the Mills community 20 years ago.

1991 Janet L. Holmgren McKay is inaugurated as the 12th president of Mills College.

1992 Students occupy the President’s office— one of several protests demanding greater diversity among students, faculty, and staff. As a result, Mills expands offerings in the Ethnic Studies Program and pledges to increase the number of people of color on the faculty and in other leadership positions.

1993 Last Strike class graduates.

1994 Holmgren welcomes attendees to the Women in Science Summit, which releases a national report to advance women’s leadership in scientific disciplines. New Prospect Hill Apartments provide additional independent residential options for students. Mills Hall reopens after $10 million in renovations and repairs following its near-destruction in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Under Holmgren’s leadership, the Mills endowment passes the $100 million mark.

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

1995 President Holmgren represents Mills College at the United Nations/ NGO Forum and Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. The Intermedia Arts Program is launched. Mills’ “graduate initiative” places new emphasis on enhancing graduate programs and increasing the number of graduate students.

1996 Mills College launches its first website.

1997 Aron Art Center expands to include room for permanent studios for painting and sculpting. Mills receives a major James Irvine Foundation grant to support multicultural curriculum transformation.

1998 Trefethen Aquatic Center opens.

1999 Suzanne M. Adams Plaza is established where the swimming pool used to be, creating community space outside the Tea Shop. Mills’ first doctoral degree, an EdD in educational leadership, is accredited.

2000 New $8 million Education Complex opens. Holmgren chairs governance taskforce of the California state legislature’s joint committee to develop a master plan for higher education.

2001 Mills launches the Institute for Civic Leadership, a twosemester program that combines coursework with an internship linked to public policy and social change. The curriculum expands to offer a 4+1 BA/MBA program, environmental studies major, and public policy program. Holmgren becomes chair of the board of the American Council on Education.

Holmgren is honored with the Donna Shavlik Award, presented by the American Council on Education’s Office of Women in Higher Education, for “sustained and continuing commitment to women’s advancement in higher education.” Mills introduces wireless Internet access on campus; the F.W. Olin Library makes its catalogue available online and provides access to e-books.

summer 2011

2002 Mills celebrates its sesquicentennial as the oldest women’s college west of the Rockies. Holmgren is named president of the board of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

2003 The Campanil celebrates 100 years of standing tall and gets a new garden.

2004 Mills completes its Sesquicentennial Campaign, raising more than $130 million (nearly one-third over the goal). The Vera M. Long Building for the Social Sciences is remodeled and reopened as a new home for anthropology, history, and other departments.

2005 The College introduces a bachelor of science in five majors—biology, biopsychology, chemistry, environmental science, and biochemistry and molecular biology—as well as an innovative two-year Pre-Nursing Program in cooperation with Samuel Merritt University, leading to the bachelor of science in nursing. Mills is named one of Princeton Review’s “Best Colleges” for the first time.

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

2006 Mills establishes the Graduate School of Business to house the MBA Program and the School of Education to integrate baccalaureate and doctoral programs in this discipline. Mills’ endowment passes the $200 million mark. The Danforth, Stephenson, and Springs Houses are dedicated. Named for College Trustees and known collectively as the Courtyard Townhouses, these further expand on-campus housing for non-traditional-aged students.

2007 Two new 4+1 master’s programs are launched, in public policy and in infant mental health. The Betty Irene Moore Natural Sciences Building opens and earns a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum certification. President Holmgren signs a national Climate Commitment, which promises the creation of an action plan to achieve climate neutrality. Holmgren receives the Council for Advancement and Support of Education CEO Leadership award.

2008 Mills announces the MFA in book art and creative writing, the first degree of its kind in the nation.

2009 Following an extensive renovation and restoration of the historic Music Building, a six-concert festival of contemporary music in the newly named Jeannik Méquet Littlefield Concert Hall celebrates the reopening. A strikingly modern new building opens for the Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business, providing classrooms and gathering space for the campus, earning a gold LEED rating, and garnering multiple architectural awards.

2010: 20 years after the Strike Two decades after the College reaffirmed its commitment to women’s education, campus undergraduate enrollment has increased from 777 to 926 students and graduate enrollment has more than doubled. The number of students of color has risen to 39 percent of the undergraduate student body; nearly a third of incoming students are the first in their families to attend college. Since 1990, the proportion of faculty of color has increased from 5 to 25 percent. Annual giving to the College stands at an impressive $18.2 million.

2011 The Janet L. Holmgren Presidential Scholarship is endowed. The President is awarded an honorary doctor of humane letters; Toyon Meadow is rededicated as the Janet L. Holmgren Meadow.

summer 2011

Remar√s on

20 Years as President of Mills College

By Janet L. Holmgren

n celebration of President Janet L. Holmgren’s 20 years of leadership,

an exuberant crowd of supporters came together on February 9 at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA). The gala evening provided an opportunity to share pride in how far the campus has come under Holmgren’s steady hand— from the College’s recommitment to women’s education to its current place as a national leader in advancing women in the arts, sciences, and other fields— and to reflect on how Mills College is positioned to move forward into the future. On these pages, we present a transcript of President Holmgren’s address that night.

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

All photos © 2 011, Dre w Altizer

am deeply grateful and very humbled by this outpour-

ing of appreciation. It is, in fact, in my mind, a celebration

of the wonder that is Mills College. In my inauguration speech in

President Holmgren addresses the audience gathered in her honor (opposite); Celebration chairs and Trustees Merrill Purdy Kasper ’83, Maryellen Cattani Herringer, and Nan Gefen (above left); Janet L. Holmgren with her daughter Elizabeth Jobst, sister Beth Holmgren, and daughter Ellen McKay (above right).

October 1991, I quoted the great American poet Walt Whitman, who wrote Leaves of Grass about the time of Mills’ founding in the mid-1800s. Whitman proclaims, “I celebrate myself, and what I assume you shall assume, for every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.” So tonight we celebrate Mills and every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you. This evening is possible particularly because of the tireless efforts of the organizing committee, chaired by Trustees Merrill Kasper ’83, Maryellen Herringer, and Nan Gefen, and colleagues

2 1

n our celebration tonight , we are embracing the last

20 years of Mills under my leadership as president. As I

cast my mind back to that time 20 years ago when I began, I am amazed at the courage and daring of the search committee that selected me. I was new to the West Coast, new to the role of

Ramon Torrecilha and Cynthia Brandt Stover, who acted on the

president, and I was a single mother with two young daughters.

very generous and supportive impulses of the Mills College

I was vice provost of Princeton University, the highest ranking

Board of Trustees and the honorary committee for this event,

administrative woman at Princeton at the time, and on the fac-

our current and past board chairs. I thank also the special invest-

ulty teaching a class in American women writers. I had no plans

ment of time and energy from those who have spoken and par-

to become a president nor to leave Princeton, and I surprised

ticipated in the program tonight.

myself by accepting the nominations extended to me to become

I also want to acknowledge the beauty and splendor of the

a candidate. I think the search committee probably surprised

space that we occupy tonight and the generosity of the museum

themselves too; as the chair of the search committee noted

in sharing this space with those of us from the other side of the

when she first saw me: “We thought you would be bigger—you

Bay. A few years ago, in the fall of 2007, the other MOMA—the

have a big resume and write a big letter!” I am a bit bigger now

one on the other side of the continent—held a memorial service

20 years later, but no taller.

for the great artist Elizabeth Murray ’64, who had died earlier

A year earlier, Mills had experienced a shock that very few

that year, and the director asked choreographer Trisha Brown ’58

institutions successfully sustain. The board had decided, for a

to perform at that service. Trisha had already retired from danc-

variety of reasons having to do with sustainability, that Mills

ing and was hesitant, but the MOMA director said to her that in

should alter its core mission of educating only women at the

his estimation the entire landscape of 20th century postmodern-

undergraduate level and become a coeducational institution. As

ism had been transformed and opened to women as the result

a result of a student/alumnae/faculty strike that endured for 16

of the work of three artists—choreographer and dancer Trisha

days and deep and intense negotiations, the board reversed its

Brown and painters Elizabeth Murray and Jennifer Bartlett ’63.

decision and recommitted to keeping Mills for women in perpe-

All three of these extraordinary artists are Mills women. I like

tuity again. There are many explanations for the motivation and

that story especially for this celebratory moment tonight—we at

ferocity of that strike, but to me, then and now, the message is

Mills salute the SFMOMA, we take pride in bridging space and

very clear: women matter—the education of women with women

time, and we claim the place of Mills creativity and the power of

and by women, in an environment that puts women at the core

that creativity to shape the culture that we live in.

of learning and creativity, matters.

summer 2011

Twenty years ago, the question for Mills was one of survival. We were swimming against the current of the previous 30 years in higher education that had at its core the supreme optimism of Americans (perhaps of the whole human spirit) that if you simply put people together—if you simply open doors, make access possible, declare an end to discrimination—something called “equality” will happen. So Mills had to fight to remain “different”—to keep

focusing on what we knew best how to do. And after that battle, when I arrived as president, everyone was catching a breath and saying that the battle had been won to affirm our mission, now we just needed to stay on track. What we discovered, of course, is that we had to clarify that track, we had to invest in it, we had to expand the breadth and depth of what we were about against the backdrop of a complex world changing at a breakneck pace. Just one small example: as I have reviewed my archives spanning 20 years, the first 10 are on paper, the second decade is largely electronic. This speech has been rattling round in my head; I have driven many people crazy with the research and the ideas, I have made notes and pulled facts and

2 1

information together, but those notes and that research were on an

iPad and the speech itself was “entered,” not written.

wenty years ago , Mills had to heal wounds but we also had to

reexamine who we were and wanted to be. What does it mean

to be for all women? As I said in my inaugural speech, the strong, proud Mills woman of the 21st century is African American, Asian

American, Latina, Middle Eastern, Native American; she is differently abled; she is gay, straight, transgendered, young, tall, old, short; she is first generation, she is a transfer student; she will be a teacher, a dancer, a lawyer, a doctor, a scholar, a homemaker, a community builder, a mom, a daughter, a sister, and a friend. She is

a Christian, a Jew, a Muslim, a Buddhist, and an atheist. What does it mean to evolve from a liberal arts college to a master’s-level university? What does it mean to be an urban college with a responsibility for preparing the next generation of teachers, scientists, artists, political leaders, community leaders, environmentalists, and the list goes on? How do you build coeducational master’s-level and doctoral programs on the best in the liberal arts and the best in women’s education? For the Mills “woman” is also

6 1. Trustee Margaret Wilkerson and Carlos Baltodano 2. Irene Panagopoulus ’85 with son Phillipos Tsangrides

a man and always has been—men on the faculty, in the graduate programs, on the board, and as supporters and friends. What kind of faculty, facilities, technology, and policies do we need to accomplish these goals? How do we articulate those values and that knowledge so that our graduates will be prepared to

3. Professor of Studio Art Hung Liu, Stuart Bowyer, and Professor Emerita of Education Jane Bowyer

compete in a fluid world of work and life? How do we explain to

4. Alexandra Orgel Moses ’64, Jamienne Studley, and Trustee Muffy McKinstry Thorne ’48

of students at almost all educational institutions and at all levels

5. Bonnie Reuter Leaver ’58, Douglas Hunter, and Alumna Trustee Julia Almanzan ’92

at Mills to educate women will give them an extraordinary value

6. Trustee John McDonnell Jr. and Lois De Domenico 14

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

new populations of students that while women are the majority of education, the special experience, skill, and care that we take added? It is a model and an inspiration. In the past 20 years, as the State of California pulled back on affirmative action in public higher education (remember Prop. 209)

and on support for the public higher educational enterprise, Mills charged full speed ahead. As the country experienced unprecedented prosperity, came under attack, and went to war, Mills students, faculty, and alumnae invested in peace and justice and social responsibility. As the economy experienced a roller coaster of ups and downs and the gap between rich and poor widened, Mills donors invested steadily in the future, expanding more than threefold the financial aid that we offer our 1,600 full-time students at the undergraduate and graduate level to an astonishing $20 million a year just from our own sources, tripling our endowment, doubling our investment in faculty, and

doubling our available classroom and research space, investing over $100 million in new beautiful, environmentally responsible buildings, and in renovating and modernizing revered landmarks. Moreover, we are blessed with donors and friends who

2 1

are enthusiastic about allowing their names and reputations to be tied to Mills in new and inspiring ways.

t is often said that the most famous women writers

come at the beginning of our bibliographies—under A for

“anonymous.” It is also true that women who give of their time and resources often prefer not to be fussed over or acknowledged too grandly. One of our greatest friends and donors to Mills, Suzanne Adams ’48, helped to break that pattern for us and launch us into the 21st century with her desire to make a gift in order to name the Suzanne Adams Plaza at the College—I miss you tonight, Suzanne. So tonight Mills is breaking that mold once again—pioneering institution that we are—we are boasting about our work, taking pride in our accomplishments, and say-

ing “thank you” to one another. We are also looking to the future and the great challenges and exciting possibilities ahead. I personally look forward to returning to the faculty where I began my career almost 40 years ago and catching up on all that I have missed, and I look forward to turning over the leadership reins of the College to my successor, Alecia DeCoudreaux. It is a blessing to be able to end my tenure on a positive note and I am grateful to all of the colleagues and supporters I have worked with, sometimes fought with—we’re a feisty bunch at Mills—worried with, and rejoiced with. There are three women here tonight, however, who deserve my special thanks and appreciation. I would not have come to Mills had my younger sister, Beth Holmgren, not already established herself as a faculty member at UC San Diego—showing me the way to California— and had I not been able to count on her wisdom, strength, and support for all these years. Sadly for me, she is now chair of her department at Duke University, but she graciously flew across the country and left her class in the hands of others to be here tonight. My daughters, Elizabeth Jane Jobst and Ellen Katherine McKay, are my wisest counselors, my strongest supporters, my toughest critics, and the loves of my life. I ask that you—Beth, Liz, and Elle—join me here to share this moment. Thank you all for the generosity of spirit and sense of com-

10 7. Todd Jaquez-Fissori, AAMC President Linda Jaquez-Fissori ’92, Hisham Joudi, and Maha Al-Shibib Joudi ’90 8. Trustee Barbara Sandoval Terrazas ’73; Pat Pineda ’74, mistress of ceremonies for the evening and former Trustee; and Alfredo Terrazas 9. President Holmgren with Warren Hellman, chair of the Board of Trustees from 1985 to 1992 10. Eugene Metz; Kathi Burke, chair of the Board of Trustees; and Mary Metz, Mills president from 1981 to 1990

munity with Mills that brought you here tonight. summer 2011

2 1 2 1

Mills College offers its deepest thanks and gratitude to donors to the Janet L. Holmgren Presidential Scholarship Fund. This scholarship will advance goals championed by the President throughout her tenure: expanding access to Mills for outstanding students of all backgrounds, empowering women to realize their leadership potential, and ensuring financial stability for students and the College. As of April 15, the following donors had provided an endowment of $2.3 million for the scholarship, which will be awarded each year to as many as five entering first-year, transfer, and graduate students selected for academic merit and promise as leaders. The first Holmgren Scholars will be announced in fall 2011.

Anonymous (5) Katherine and Glenn Allen III, P ’04 Julia M. Almanzan ’92* Ginger and James Andrasick* Isabelle Hagopian Arabian ’45 Darice Balabanis, MBA ’08 The Barrett Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Hugh P. Barton (Sheila Grieve ’54) Angela and Fred Blackwell Bronnie Tuchman Blaugrund ’64 Dr.+ and Mrs. Darl E. Bowers (Anita Aragon ’63), P ’84 Cynthia Brandt Stover and Beth Stover William R. and Wendyce Hull Brody ’68* Sally Matthews Buchanan ’64 Dr. and Mrs. Philip Burchill (Jacklyn Davidson ’44) Kathleen Burke* and Ralph Davis Carolyn Otis Catanzaro and Victor Catanzaro June and Budd Cheit* Mr.* and Mrs. Gordon H. Chong, P ’93 Catherine Foresman Coates ’65 Kay and George Coleman Tonya Coney ’08 Barbara Crane ’49 and John Miller Joan L. Danforth ’53* Nancy May de L’Arbre ’46 Lauriann Zemann Delay* John and Susan Diekman Sterling Loftin Dorman ’47 Mr. and Mrs. George Drayton III (Phyllis Rawlins ’58) Mr. and Mrs. Stephen S. Dunham Ellen and Thomas Ehrlich* Elaine ’47 and Donald Ehrman, P ’69, P ’79 Beth Feldhammer Eiselman ’63 Ruth E. Fassinger and Sandra C. Greer Cheri Foster Feiner ’67 Ms. Jocelyn P. Ferguson Lyn Flanigan ’65* Mayhill and James Fowler* Morton and Amy Rothschild Friedkin ’68 Nan Fink Gefen* and Jonathan Omer-Man Daisy Gonzales ’07* Jeff and Janie Green (Janie Bewley ’93) Lucile Pedler Griffiths ’46, MA ’47, P ’75 Jennifer Marx Gruenberg ’64 and Bud Gruenberg

Thomas Hannen Mr. and Mrs. Stephen E. Hansen (Susan Crain ’78) Margaret C. Hauben Tamra C. Hege, MA ’97 Sabrina* and Marco Hellman Kathryn Madge Henkens (Kathryn Mayall ’80) Frank and Maryellen Herringer* Beth Holmgren Dr. Carmen Irizarry The Honorable Harriet W. Isom ’58 Linda Jaquez-Fissori ’92* Renée and Elia Jadushlever Elizabeth and John Jobst Anne Kaiser ’73 and Robert Taylor Van and Merrill Purdy Kasper ’83* Carolyn Clothier Killefer ’45 Kathryn Hall and Thomas Knutsen Pauline Royal Langsley ’49, P ’78, P ’83 Victory and Richard Lareau (Victory Heramb ’64) Elfie Hanson Larkin, ME ’61 Maribelle* and Stephen Leavitt Therese Leone Ms. Leah Levy Joi D. Lewis Lorry I. Lokey, P ’85* Katharine Lyall Mrs. James T. Mabie (Margot Jones ’66) Neil and Leah Hardcastle Mac Neil, MA ’51, P ’75 Lucy Cowdin Maisel ’38 Dale Marshall Amy Schanno McCarthy ’58 John McDonnell Jr.* Ellen McKay Dr. L. Bruce Meyer Betty and Gordon Moore Alexandra Orgel Moses ’64* Fraser and Helen Drake Muirhead ’58*, P ’88, P ’93 Miss Jane Newhall ’36* Jamie Nickel and Nancy White Pauline Oliverosw Ms. Irene Panagopoulos ’85 and Mr. Stephen Tsangrides Elizabeth Parker ’85 and Keith S. Crow Cynthia Lou Parker ’96 Rabbi Stephen S. Pearce

* 2010 –11 Trustee + Deceased

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

Marianne H. Peterson Pat Pineda ’74 and Eric Klein, P ’09 Mrs. David E. Porter (Kathleen Hall ’49), P ’74 Caren Prothro ’63, Cullum and Nita Prothro Clark ’91*, and the Perkins-Prothro Foundation Kavita Ramdas Mary-Lee Lipscomb Reade ’41 Alexandra Widmann Rinde ’08* and Craig Rinde Mrs. Harvey Rogers (Nancy Bernheim ’47)+ Gayle Rothrock ’68* Cristine Russell ’71* and Ben Heineman Jr. Katie Sanborn ’83 and Barbara Wright Katherine Schapiro* June Holden Schneider ’43 Marianne B. Sheldon Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Smegal Jr. (Susan Stanton ’60) Ann Eddy Smith ’59, P ’82 Karlin Sorenson ’92 Clare H. Springs ’66* Vivian Stephenson* and Margarita Gandia Ann Stone Myra Strober* and Jay Jackman Alice Eto Sumida ’36 The Bernard M. and Caryl H. Susman Foundation (Caryl Hollender ’52) Eleanor Swent Roselyne Chroman Swig, P ’80* Mr. and Mrs. Alfredo Terrazas (Barbara Sandoval ’73, MPH*) Harold and Evelyn McKinstry Thorne ’48* Ramon S. Torrecilha, PhD Linda Cohen Turner ’68* Fawn Leffler Valentine ’71 Toni Renee Vierra ’98 Ellen and Glenn Voyles* Susan S. Wang Margaret* and Stanley Wilkerson Clare Winterton The Family of Robert and Betty Chu Wo ’46 Thomas and Barbara A. Wolfe ’65* Ann Sulzberger Wolff ’42 Mark and Judy Yudof Beverly Johnson Zellick ’49, MA ’50 Mr. and Mrs. John U. Zussman (Patti Peters ’74)

Bookshelf Images of the actual objects appear throughout the book, lend-

13, rue Thérèse By Elena Mauli Shapiro, MFA ’06 Reagan Arthur Books/Little Brown and Company, 2011

ing an air of authenticity to the story, but Shapiro introduces a good deal of ambiguity as she deftly skips from the present day to various points in the past and rapidly shifts the narrative voice. Trevor suffers from a fevered illness as he explores the items and much of the novel consists of his missives describing the objects to an unidentified colleague, creating multiple layers of interpretation and uncertainty. “Trevor loses his mind a bit so that I didn’t have to,” says Shapiro. “The entire thing may or may not be happening completely inside his head. It can never be known who is what, exactly. That’s what happens when anybody tells a story about anything. Reader, it is as you wish.”

As a child growing up in Paris, Elena Mauli Shapiro acquired a

The technique lends a dreamy, almost intoxicated quality to the

box of items—photos, postcards, a pair of gloves—left unclaimed

prose, but it is Louise’s passionate nature that truly drives the novel.

after an elderly neighbor, Louise Brunet, passed away. “My

Each page pulses with unabashed sensuality. At turns torrid, tragic,

relationship with the box was very gentle and tactile,” says

and sometimes a tad over the top, even Louise’s most mundane acts

Shapiro. “I would handle the artifacts and imagine what it would

hum with hedonism. She puts laundry away “within the softly sliding

be like to be her. I used to slip her old lace church gloves onto

drawers of her husband’s dresser, within the smoothly hinged doors

my own hands just to feel them there and have my hands where

of her armoire,” and when she meets with the object of her adulter-

her hands had been.”

ous desire, “she wants to leap on him and tear the clothes from him,

“I did imagine several lives for her over time, several personali-

get this over with—or perhaps kill him instead? In a fit of fury, she

ties,” she continues, but Shapiro never felt the need to research

might pick up a loose cobblestone and dash his brains all over the

Louise’s true story. “Part of the interest of the objects was their

ground.”

very muteness—the essential incompleteness of what we all leave behind. It was the gaps that drew me in.” Given that rich history, it’s no great surprise, perhaps, that her first novel centers around the mystery those objects represent.

All this fervor creates a page-turner of a book. “Hot diggity dog!” wrote Simon Schama in The Financial Times, though some critics have complained that the tale reflects more male fantasy than the liberation of a proto-feminist.

In 13, rue Thérèse, Trevor Stratton is an American scholar who

“It saddens me a bit when Louise is reduced to strictly a male fan-

discovers a cache of artifacts in his Paris office. But is Trevor a

tasy, as if women are not capable of being powerfully sexual,” Shapiro

historian or a fantasist as he weaves the fabric of Louise’s life:

retorts. “This is a repressive myth we need to get rid of. Horny women

her young lover killed too soon in World War I, her vaguely omi-

actually exist and have existed since before feminism.”

nous father, her good yet dull husband, and her brazen affair

Either way, Shapiro’s prose makes for a brisk, entertaining read.

with the married man who lives in the flat below?

—Linda Schmidt

Also published: two books on health and wellness

Toward an Emancipatory Psychoanalysis:

Institutional Elder Abuse:

Brandchaft’s Intersubjective Vision

The Solution: Care Advocate Program

By Bernard Brandchaft, Shelley Doctors, and Dorienne Sorter ’54

By Rita Stuckey, MA ’01, EdD ’05

This book presents clinical case histories while portraying the

In this concise, well-documented book, Stuckey describes her

intellectual development of Bernard Brandchaft, who developed

direct observations of patient neglect in elder care facilities, as

the concept of “pathological accommodation”—a mechanism

well as cases of physical, sexual, financial, and emotional abuse.

in which a person sacrifices their own perceptions and adopts

She goes on to outline a Care Advocate Program—an educational

those required by another in order to maintain a needed tie.

curriculum that provides a holistic approach to preventing elder

Brandchaft further argues that not only individuals are subject

abuse in long-term care settings and supporting families who care

to this trap, but indeed that the entire field of psychoanalysis

for their elderly loved ones. This book is a valuable tool for both the

has been stunted by accommodation to authority. Commentary

layman and professional.

from Doctors and Sorter creates a compelling dialogue about how and why to break the bonds that shackle us. summer 2011

Partners in planning for you and for Mills Are you planning for the future? Does your plan include Mills College? Are you wondering how a bequest, a charitable annuity, or trust can benefit you and the College? The planned giving specialists at Mills College— April Hopkins, MFA ’03, and Nancy Fowler ’69 —are here to answer your questions.

April has served the

Nancy brings 20 years of

Mills community for 20

experience in estate planning

years. She explains, “What

law and trust administration

drew me to planned

to the planned giving team.

giving is the potential for

She says, “I love the intellec-

alumnae—even those of

tual excitement of figuring

modest means—to make a

out how to make a planned

significant impact on the

gift work for an alumna

College. Nancy and I freely

and for Mills. April and I

share our knowledge and

will ensure your gift benefits

enjoy being of service to

the College and honors

other alumnae.”

your wishes.”

April and Nancy can help you:

• Identify your philanthropic goals and help you accomplish them through planned giving • Understand the complexity of planned gifts by crafting personalized models that assist you in choosing the right option for you and your loved ones

• Decide whether or not a planned gift is the best choice for you by offering information and providing education at no cost to you

If you are interested in learning more about planned giving, you can reach April and Nancy at 877.PGMILLS (toll-free), or send an email to planagift@mills.edu.

Notes from near and far On January 20, more than 25 recent graduates enjoyed happy hour at Gordon Biersch in San Francisco.

Ten alumnae from the Oakland–Berkeley Branch, Alumnae Association of Mills College, gathered on February 27 for a guided tour of the Victorian Cohen-Bray House, an Oakland landmark listed in the National Register of Historic Places. President Janet L. Holmgren was the guest of honor at a reception attended by over 50 alumnae from the Los Angeles Mills College Alumnae and Orange County Mills College Alumnae groups. The event was hosted by Pamela Mayers Schoenberg, MFA ’94, at her gallery, dnj Gallery in Santa Monica, on March 6. Sixteen alumnae attended a tour of San Francisco’s Asian Art Museum led by Art History Professor Mary-Ann Milford-Lutzker. The March 12 event was sponsored by the Educational Outreach Committee of the Alumnae Association of Mills College and the Mills College Office of Alumnae Relations. On March 24, the Mills College Office of Alumnae Relations hosted 25 recent graduates at a happy hour celebrating Women’s History Month. Saxophonist Sonja Jason ’83 and pianist Tammy Hall ’83 performed with their jazz trio. Also on March 24, the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club hosted a happy hour for recent graduates at MacArthur Park Restaurant in Palo Alto. The 15 alumnae who attended had a chance to catch up with each other and to meet Tonia Blackwell, associate dean of the Division of Student Life at Mills.

4 1 –Los Angeles: Laurel Burden ’68, President Janet L. Holmgren, Bonnie Reuter Leaver ’58, Susy Fineman ’68 2–Los Angeles: Julia Almanzan ’92 and Laurie Barton ’83

3–Nurse Luncheon: Barbara Hasler Dries, MA ’99, EdD ’02, and Rita Stuckey, MA ’01, EdD ’05

A lumnae ac t ivi t ies r epo r t

On April 1 and 2, nearly 600 attendees participated in the 20th annual Charming Cottages of Palo Alto house tour hosted by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club. The Office of Alumnae Relations and the AAMC’s Educational Outreach Committee held the first Nurse Networking Luncheon on April 2. Over 30 students, faculty, alumnae, and nursing professionals were in attendance. The event honored Barbara Hasler Dries, MA ’99, EdD ’02, for her contribution to the Mills College Nursing Program. San Diego alumnae and families gathered at the San Diego Crew Classic on April 3 to cheer on the Mills College crew team. The lunch drew over 70 attendees. On April 8, over 35 alumnae, families, and friends gathered in Hong Kong for a special event with President Holmgren at The China Club. The event was hosted by Mei Kwong ’70. On April 9, the Oakland–Berkeley Branch held an artist tour at the studio of Gary Bukovnik in San Francisco with 10 attendees. The Alumnae of Color Committee of the AAMC and the Office of Alumnae Relations hosted over 70 attendees at the annual Phenomenal Women of Color event on April 13. The event honored the achievements of seniors of color and featured a special presentation honoring President Holmgren. On April 20, the AAMC Board of Governors honored 150 graduating seniors at the annual Pearl M Dinner. Kelsey Lindquist ’10 presented senior Dalia Cuenca with a donated Pearl M pin. The pin had belonged to Judy Winestine Wolf ’41, who passed away in 1986.

5 4–San Diego: Victory Heramb Lareau ’64, Betty MacMahon Wied ’55, Kay Hall Porter ’49, Wendy Hull Brody ’68 5–San Diego: Vera Judge ’84 and Carrie Davis, head rowing coach

6 6–Hong Kong: Mei Kwong ’70, Norman Chan, President Holmgren, Wendy Song Lee ’82, Kenney Yang King ’77, Carol Chinn Chiu ’63, Caroline Hu ’77 summer 2011

In Memoriam Notices of death received before March 25, 2011 To submit listings, please contact alumnae-relations@mills.edu or 510.430.2123

Alumnae Edith Byers Roberts ’30, November 17, 2010, in San Diego. Edith was 101. Gladys Buell Harrold ’31, February 24, in Chico, California. An exceptional musician, she composed original pieces, performed solo and with symphonic orchestras, and taught privately as well as at Pomona College and the University of Tennessee. She is survived by a son and six grandchildren. Lois Mariani Mongan ’34, December 17, 2010, in San Francisco. She graduated with a history degree and was a generous donor to the College. Evelyn “Sunny” Hood Ritchie ’37, May 14, 2010, in Murphys, California. Survivors include granddaughter Karyn Broyles Tillett ’93 and sister-inlaw Sally Miller Baumwell ’66. Priscilla-Joy “P.J.” Everts ’40, January 1, in Alhambra, California. She served as social secretary to US Vice President Richard Nixon, was a Red Cross volunteer on the front lines of World War II, and held a variety of executive positions including assistant to Mills College President Lynn T. White Jr. and coordinator of civic affairs for Northrop Corporation. Jean Clark Williams ’40, January 5, in Barre Town, Vermont. She served as a WAC during World War II and later in life became a committed Quaker and political advocate. She also established land trusts in both Vermont and Massachusetts. Survivors include her five children. Eleanor Schalck Keil, ME ’41, January 26, in Ithaca, New York. She was involved in many charitable community groups and loved extended sailing trips. She is survived by three children and four grandchildren. Antoinette Buttita Souza ’41, June 29, 2009, in Santa Clara, California. Dorothy Warenskjold ’43, December 27, 2010, in Lenexa, Kansas. A well-known opera singer, she performed on several television programs, including the James Melton Show, and sang with the San Francisco Opera and other companies across the country. She later taught at UCLA. Marion McKinstry Letsch ’44, March 10, in Encino, California. She played violin for several radio and television shows, and was a member of the symphony orchestra at 20th Century Fox for several years. Survivors include her cousin Tina Hagen Regehr ’91. Mary Turner Ryniker ’44, January 15, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas. After teaching high school English, she spent most of her teaching career at the San Antonio School for the Deaf. Survivors include two sons. Virginia Overjorde Cadeaux ’45, February 22, in Lincoln City, Oregon. A longtime resident of Alameda, California, she taught music for over 60 years, was a founder of the East Bay Organ Club, and was a member of the Black Sheep Spinning and Weaving Guild. She is survived by a daughter, a stepdaughter, and three granddaughters.

Wilma Lanzafame Cardinalli ’51, December 19, 2010, in Citrus Heights, California. She worked in real estate for many years and started a children’s clothing store called Walnuts before retiring in 1991. Survivors include two daughters and her sister, Camilla Lanzafame Magnoli ’50. Annette Swann Krueger ’54, November 4, 2010, in Alameda, California. A dedicated teacher in Alameda schools for over 35 years, she is survived by her husband, Herbert. Elizabeth Dirmeyer Rice, ME ’55, August 25, 2010, in Folsom, California. Luanne Edquist Gilbert ’56, MA ’58, September 5, in Berkeley, California. She had a long career as a librarian, was an expert gardener, and supported several organizations promoting the environment and social good. She is survived by three children, four grandchildren, cousin Barbara Newman Kines ’55, and her partner, Eleanor Crary. Edna Beldon Green ’57, February 18, in Seaside, Oregon. She taught kindergarten and college-level child development, was involved in amateur theater, and was an avid reader. She is survived by her husband, Bob; three sons; and seven grandchildren. Richard Deming, MA ’58, January 7, in Longview, Washington. Beverly Beers McCall ’58, February 22. A resident of Seattle and Mazama, Washington, she was a professor of psychology at the University of Washington, specializing in child development. She was inducted into the USA Master’s Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1996 as a champion race-walker and was also a talented musician. She is survived by her husband, Mac; two daughters; and two stepdaughters. Linda Moll Weisser ’61, January 26, in Olympia, Washington. Survivors include her husband Lawrence; three children; and her cousins Cynthia Taves ’48 and Lynda Taves Ogren ’54. Joyce Shank ’68, January 26, in San Luis Obispo, California. A resident of Cambria, she began her career as a radio reporter in the 1970s and went on to work as a reporter for KGO-TV in San Francisco and KABC-TV in New York. Survivors include her son, Noah. Rebecca Davidson Karlson ’69, December 23, 2010, while visiting family in Minneapolis. A resident of Palo Alto, California, she was a ballet enthusiast, world traveler, school volunteer, and member of Stanford Memorial Church. She is survived by her husband, Doug, and two children. Razia Khursheed Inamdar ’70, November 26, 2010, in Fremont, California. She had a career in teaching for more than 20 years and was a board member of SEMAH, an organization combating domestic violence. Survivors include her sister Nasira Khursheed Sharieff ’69. Lucy McCoy ’81, December 3, 2010, in Berkeley, California. She made a successful 30-year career in computer programming with InnoSys and enjoyed dance, gardening, and the arts. She is survived by her husband Lawrence Riley; a daughter; and a large extended family.

Mary Hopkins Sellers ’45, March 25, in Columbia, Missouri. She taught cultural anthropology at the University of Missouri, the University of Nevada-Reno, and North Hampton Community College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. She is survived by many extended family members.

Gertrude Zell Wardwell ’82, March 5, in Pueblo, Colorado. She had careers as a kindergarten teacher and real estate broker. After retiring to a 71-acre ranch, she wrote a newspaper column about the wildlife and animals there. She is survived by two children and five grandchildren.

Beverly Daggs McNeil ’48, February 10, in Santa Margarita, California. She has careers as an elementary school teacher and later as a community volunteer. Survivors include her husband, Robert; two children; and two grandchildren.

Young Ran Hong ’86, August 15, 2010, in Piedmont, California. Survivors include her husband, Soon-Kyung.

Jean Carruthers Wilson ’49, January 31, in San Anselmo, California. 28

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

Barbara Ludwig ’87, December 15, 2010, in Novato, California. She worked as a clinical coordinator in Novato at Community Homes and Services. Survivors include her sister.

Gifts in Memory of Received December 1, 2010–February 28, 2011 Leila Abu-Saba, MFA ’07, by Judith Behar

Janet Hamburg, MA ’76, by Lauren Musicant Simpson MA ’76 Rebecca “Beccy” Davidson Karlson ’69 by Christiane Angelo Kropp ’69, Laurie Leinonen ’69 Charles Larsen by Darlene Holbrook ’64

Glenn Allen Jr. by Katherine Allen

Sylvia Jaureguy Love ’47 by William Love

Laura Balas, MA ’94, by Helen Delone

Janet Chong Mark by Diane Mark ’72

Eleanor and Raymond Berendsen, P ’65, by Barbara Berendsen Capron ’65

Margery “Footie” Foote Meyer ’45 by Belvedere Scientific Fund

Marilyn Frye Bettendorf, P ’75, by Marilyn Ennis Barrett ’75

Marcia Miller ’63 by Mary Root Campbell ’63

Darl Bowers by Barbara Goldblatt Becker ’63, Anita Aragon Bowers ’63, Kathleen Burke, Patricia Finn Burkhard ’63, Beverly Curwen ’71, Julia Prentiss Diez ’63, Sally Hartley ’48, Margarethe Kulke, Judy Miller Logsdon ’63, Leah Hardcastle Mac Neil, MA ’51, Yuri Chiamori Mok ’60, Sharon Graham Niederhaus ’63, Patricia Yoshida Orr ’63, Gayle Rothrock ’68, Leslie Stein Selcow ’63, Karlin Sorenson ’92, Donald and Bette Krause Spagel ’63, Karen Cardon Swearingen ’63, Evelyn McKinstry Thorne ’48, Margaret Stern Thornton ’65, Amy Vollmer, Emily Yarnall ’63, Connie Young Yu ’63

Isabel Schemel Mulcahy ’44 by Thomas Mulcahy

Linda Nelson Branson ’77 by James Branson Ann “Betsey” Northman Brighton ’63 by Marion Lamson Thomas ’63 Mary Arch Bye ’61 by Linda Rooney Markstein ’61 Alan Clark, P ’73, by Betsy Clark Miller ’73 Evelyn “Peg” Deane ’41 by Mary Hart Clark ’42, Margaret Deane

Robbyn Panitch ’79 by Betsey Shack Goodwin ’76 Lois Phillips, P ’81, by Kate Phillips ’81 Linda Popofsky by Katherine Kiffmeyer Mendoza ’86 Edith Byers Roberts ’30 by Colin and Elizabeth MacMahon Wied ’55 Eleanor Marshall Schaefer ’29 by Nicole Bartow Margaret “Peg” Hudelson Scherer ’49 by Joy Brorsen, Yvonne Steele Byron ’50, Willard Classen Jr., Patricia Connett, Earline Dal Porto, Kathleen and Jack Devlin, Betty Edwards, Lou and Sandy Gibbs, Margaret Hansen, Sandra Hjorth, Robert Hudelson, Janet Larson, Robert and Ann Lee, Barbara Maggetti, Patricia Miller, Yuri Chiamori Mok ’60, Ron and Joanne Richards, Thomas Sloane, Carolyn Symes, Janet Towler, and Margaret Clarke Umbreit ’49

Sybil “Syb” Johnson Dray ’41 by Lester Dray, P ’72

Anne Sherrill by Willa Berliner Anderson ’65

Harold Dudley by La Quita Joy Dillingham Dudley ’53

Suzanne Brogunier Smith ’65 by Ann Bailey ’65

Marie Everett ’63 by Marion Lamson Thomas ’63

Charlene Brandt Taylor ’66 by Bronnie Tuchman Blaugrund ’64, Linda Cohen Turner ’68

Priscilla-Joy Everts ’40 by Loie Gaunt, Rosemary Hill, Betty Mott Jessica Feller ’09 by Evanthia Spanos

Melody Clarke Teppola ’64 by Darlene Holbrook ’64

Mr. and Mrs. Frank Fong by Gaylor Chinn and Momi Chang ’74

Yoshimatsu “Charlie the Gardener” and Ume Teraoka by Yoko Tashiro Olsgaard ’77, P ’04

Timothy Francis by Jamey Coopman Francis ’60 Rosetta Freeman by Susan Hennigh ’72 Allyson Aragon Fremouw by Anita Aragon Bowers ’63 Barbara “Bobby” Coleman Frey ’68 by Patricia Abelov Demoff ’68 Sarah Grace by Nancy Buttenheim ’74 Denyse Gross ’72 by Kenneth Morrison Liu Zong Guang by Roselyne Chroman Swig, P ’80

James Wanzer by Sue Ann Coopman Peterson ’55 Dorothy Warenskjold ’43 by Katherine Zelinsky Westheimer ’42 Ruth Sherrill Webb ’48 by Mimi Webb Miller ’71, Melissa Webb Hogan, Robin Webb Street, Sherri Webb Burns Betty Taves Whitman ’46 by Betty Rowen McCord ’46 Susannah MacRae Whitty, MA ’60, by Jaci Williams Pappas ’60

Edith Gutierrez by Pauline Oliveros

Reynold Wik by Irene Knight and Darlene Holbrook ’64

Princess Haideh Farmanfarmajan Hakimi by Nancy Boas, Jerome Oremland, John Pierce

Benjamin Young Jr., husband of Mildred Zitlau Young ’46, by Sally Hartley ’48

p=parent; For information about making a tribute gift, contact 510.430.2097 or donors@mills.edu.

Jill Ramsay ’98, December 31, 2010, in San Francisco. She worked at City College in San Francisco testing for learning disabilities and serving as an accommodation facilitator. Survivors include her partner, Gayle Atwell.

Theodore Eliopoulos (also known professionally as Ted Sorel), husband of Jacqueline Coslow Eliopoulos ’62, December 5, in Englewood, New Jersey.

Spouses and Family

Norman Stone, husband of Edith Sheldon Stone ’43, January 26, in Minneapolis.

Sherri Asche, mother of Emily Asche ’07, April 6, 2010, in Danville, California. Richard Chappelle, husband of Virginia Dobbins Chappelle ’53, February 27, in Seattle, Washington.

Carter Larsen, husband of Carita Martin Larsen ’52, February 28, 2010, in San Francisco.

Robert Takagi, husband of Valentina Oumansky-Takagi ’49, November 9, 2010, in Sherman Oaks, California. Benjamin Young, husband of Mildred Zitlau Young ’46, January 14, in Tiburon, California. summer 2011

Sound off! Last issue’s Sound off! generated more responses than we could include on a page. Here we present more alumnae recollections of the inspiring, motivating, and thought-provoking teachers at Mills.

Who was your most influential professor?

Elisabeth Siekhaus

I will never forget Professor of Psychology

encouraging me to pursue my passions

and went on to receive an MA in journal-

Robert Edgren saying, “If you want to be

or advising me in some capacity—keeping

ism from Stanford University. I may not

happy in your life, find the thing you’re

in touch during my fellowship in Ghana,

be a diplomat writing for Foreign Affairs

most passionate about and make that

coaching me as a guest curator at the

these days, but as a working journalist in

your career.” That was movies for me;

Smithsonian, consoling me when things

an emerging international field, I am a lot

but I didn’t want to act, or make films.

went awry. She remains a dear friend,

more than I was before working with Fred.

When I learned of a graduate program in

mentor, and confidant.

film studies at USC, I saw a chance to put

—Amanda Glasser ’06

—Arabella Grayson, MA ’96

Dr. Edgren’s advice into action. I applied

When I visited Berkeley as a pre-vet stu-

and was accepted… and have had an

Robert Anderson’s courses in anthropol-

dent, I saw a 500-seat auditorium with

immensely enjoyable and satisfying career

ogy help open my mind to various views

TVs so you could see your professor and

as a freelance film critic and film researcher

and cultures of the world. Much of what I

toured campus with 25 other people. At

at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and

learned from Dr. Anderson helped me as

Mills, John Harris personally toured the

Sciences. I have never stopped being grate-

a public school teacher and as a minister.

life sciences building with me, discussed

ful for his lecture that day!

I will forever be indebted for the oppor-

the pre-med program, allowed me to sit

tunity afforded me to study as one of his

in on his biology class (commenting on

students.

how large it was—30 people!), and two

—Janet Lorenz ’75 I was working full time and completing

—Ann Brooks Hilliard ’72

my master’s degree when I took one of

days later sent me a list of Mills classes I needed to qualify for the veterinary

Elisabeth Siekhaus’ literature classes.

Edna Mitchell allowed me (as an under-

school at UC Davis. And all this was

Even when I was exhausted I’d find

grad) to enroll in a graduate seminar that

before I arrived! He only got better from

myself engrossed in Elliot, Goethe, or von

took us into a women’s prison to speak

there: his wonderful skills and introduc-

Kleist, whose works came alive under her

with incarcerated mothers. Dr. Mitchell

tion to the science of ecology changed

tutelage. I’d literally stay up all night pre-

demonstrated that sometimes the most

my view of the world forever.

paring for that evening class. I loved the

logical thing to do is bend the rules, and

stimulating discussions and her uncanny,

in so doing allowed me to see the criti-

insightful feedback. Elisabeth was always

cal intersection between education and

Professor Alfred Neumeyer had the most

social action.

lasting impact on me. The final exam in —Betsy Lancefield Lane ’85

—Anne Reed ’94

his course on Renaissance art included identifications of paintings we’d seen, as

Fred Lawson inspired me to excel in sub-

well as 10 slides we’d never seen. I got

jects that previously had terrified me.

an A on the first part of the exam, but

Before coming to Mills, you couldn’t pay

flunked the last part. Dr. Neumeyer was

me to talk political science—and a learn-

baffled, but I realized I was probably not

ing disability scared me off of journal-

cut out to be an art curator. However,

ism. Thanks to Fred’s kind and persistent

he did manage to turn me into an avid

mentoring, I made Pi Sigma Alpha (the

museum visitor and art purchaser, two of

national political science honor society)

the great pleasures of my life. —Sheila Knipscheer Johnson ’58

Bob Anderson 30

M i l l s Q u a r t e r ly

Want to be part of the next “Sound off”? Sign up for the @mills email newsletter—just send your email address to alumnae-relations@mills.edu along with your full name, any previous name, and class year. Write “@mills” in the subject line of your message. We’ll also post the next “Sound off” question on Mills’ Facebook page.

Alumnae tr avel 2012

Tahiti and French Polynesia February 23–March 4, 2012 Your nine-night tropical adventure includes seven nights aboard the five-star MS Paul Gauguin, providing an unmatched small-ship experience and shore excursions amid the islands, atolls, and motus of Tahiti, Raiatea, Taha’a, Bora Bora, and Moorea. Throughout the cruise, an onboard naturalist will present talks about the islands’ environment, history, and cultural heritage. Begin and end at the deluxe InterContinental Resort in enchanting Papeete, Tahiti, including an exclusive visit to the Paul Gauguin Museum. As an option, you may choose to extend your stay with three nights in a deluxe seaside resort on Moorea or Bora Bora. From $4995, including airfare from Los Angeles (limited availability) and many complimentary features aboard ship

Cruising the Black Sea: A bridge of two continents Istanbul • Romania • Bulgaria • Ukraine September 9–17, 2012 Join us for seven nights aboard the six-star MV Silver Wind, featuring gourmet dining, complimentary fitness classes, and a variety of attractively priced optional shore excursions. Visit Nessebur, colonized by the ancient Greeks in the sixth century BC and now a UNESCO World Heritage site; Livadia Palace, site of the famous 1945 Yalta Conference; the 16th-century Khan’s Palace in Bakhchysaray on the Crimean Peninsula; Odessa’s stately Opera House and the Potemkin Steps; and the architectural treasures of Constanta, Romania. Choose to join the Istanbul three-night pre-cruise option or the Cappadocia and Istanbul four-night post-cruise option. From $4695, including airfare from 22 major gateways (limited availability) and many complimentary features aboard ship

Other 2012 destinations: • Waterways and Canals of Holland and Belgium • Discovery Retreats Colorado • Paris and The Villages and Vineyards of France • Italy’s Magnificent Lake District • Peru, featuring Machu Picchu • Sketches of Spain



See the AAMC travel website at aamc.mills.edu for dates, prices, and full itineraries as they become available. For reservations or additional information, call the Alumnae Association of Mills College at 510.430.2110 or email aamc@mills.edu.

• Discover Switzerland

summer 2011

Mills Quarterly Mills College 5000 MacArthur Blvd. Oakland, CA 94613-1301 510.430.3312 quarterly@mills.edu www.mills.edu Address service requested Periodicals postage paid at Oakland, CA, and at additional mailing office(s)

Come for Inauguration ... September 23 Celebrate the inauguration of Alecia A. DeCoudreaux, the 13th president of Mills College The festivities begin the evening of Thursday, September 22, with a fine arts open house and reception. The Inauguration and Convocation ceremonies on Friday morning will be followed by a community lunch and an academic panel discussion. For more information, see www.mills.edu/inauguration

...Stay for Reunion September 22–25 Honoring the 50th Reunion of the Class of 1961 and alumnae from class years ending in 1 and 6 All alumnae and their guests are invited to meet old friends and make new ones, reconnect with faculty and familiar spaces, and experience all that the vibrant Mills community has to offer. Reunion highlights include: • Darius Milhaud Concert • After-hours party at Reinhardt Alumnae House • Classroom visits • Class Luncheon and Alumnae Awards ceremony • Class photos and dinners • 20th anniversary of the Alumnae Association of Mills College’s Alumnae of Color Committee • And much, much more! See the latest information at alumnae.mills.edu/reunion or contact 510.430.2123 or alumnae-relations@mills.edu Registration information will be available online and in a printed brochure in early August