A Message from the President of Mills College By Elizabeth L. Hillman
It’s been a tumultuous fall across the country, yet a relatively quiet one at Mills College. The now-accelerating global pandemic and economic crisis—alongside
mounting
pressure
to realize, at long last, an inclusive and antiracist community—has been the backdrop for an election season more contentious and difficult to predict than any the United States has experienced in some time. Yet the virtual Mills community has thrived, as has a small student, staff, and faculty population on campus.
President Hillman (bottom row, far right) at the Jill Barrett Symposium, held this year on Zoom
Academic, civic, and strategic conversations about the College’s future have shifted to the many platforms that now
science graduates into their careers with
connect us across space and time. One
both the very best of academic prepara-
such platform was created in October
tion and a network of support.
2020 by Christie’s, the auction house
This fall, Mills launched a COVID-19
that set a new world record price for any
dashboard to share information online,
work of literature with the sale of Mills
especially for the small community
College’s First Folio of Shakespeare’s plays,
that has continued to work and live on
one of the most important collections of
campus. The College has also provided
literature in the world. When Brooklyn
housing to about 180 students, and
book dealer and antiquarian Stephan
even welcomed Starr King School for
Loewentheil’s
bid
the Ministry, the graduate theological
ended a six-minute competition among
school and seminary formerly located
three telephone bidders, Mills realized a
in Berkeley, to its new home in the Vera
nearly
$10-million
Long Building. So far, the campus man-
much needed—if bittersweet—boost to its finances. Mills had held the Folio, first
Mills College’s own virtual events
dates for masking and social distancing
published in 1623, since 1977, when
have also been setting records, attract-
and the shift to mostly remote instruc-
alumna and trustee Mary Louise O’Brien
ing more participants and reaching a
tion and work have proved successful
’34—together with her husband James—
broader audience than the in-person
in limiting the spread of infection on
quietly gave the Folio to Mills to honor
versions that preceded the pandemic.
campus. This is also thanks to the sup-
her father, Professor Elian Olas James, a
Last year, the Jill Barrett Symposium
port and resilience of our frontline staff,
Shakespeare scholar and beloved English
in Biology took place in the beautifully
to whom Mills recently paid modest and
professor who inspired students at Mills
renovated Lisser Hall, but this fall, the
much-deserved bonuses for their heroic
College for 35 years. Mills College was
symposium was moved onto Zoom and
work early in the crisis, when we under-
fortunate to hold the Folio for these past
drew a crowd of some 150 attendees. It
stood far less about the coronavirus than
decades; it was treasured by the students,
showcased not only a new logo (above),
we do now. Yet COVID-19 has affected
faculty, staff, and scholars who studied
but also the research of 11 student schol-
all of us, and the Mills community in
and preserved it. At a time when cash flow
ars who, with support from Mills’ extraor-
Oakland and across the world continues
and budget deficits are bedeviling the
dinary biology professors, adapted their
to shudder under its weight. I look for-
most creative and resilient institutions
research plans to flourish even during a
ward to learning more from our virtual
of higher education, both the O’Briens’
pandemic that slowed field and laboratory
community in the months ahead as we
gift and those who cherished the Folio at
studies across the world. I’m grateful to
continue to fight the virus and embrace
Mills have sustained the College through
Associate Professor of Biology Jenn Smith
the possibilities of learning, planning,
a critical time.
for leading the College’s efforts to send its
and growing online. WINTER 2021
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