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/V/ary  Baldwin  CoUeg? 

(    Q.-'-x  MAGAZINE 


Vol.  2'0    No.  2    Spring  2007 

J 


I 


> 


34 


Teaching  Teachers 

Only  1 0  other  colleges/universities  in 
Virginia  —  all  but  one  of  them  much 
larger  than  MBC  —  train  more  teachers 
than  Mary  Baldwin  College. 


FEATURES 


16 


Global  Web  of  Connection 

We  are  not  just  talking  about  global  connec- 
tions at  Mary  Baldwin,  we  are  creating  them. 


20 


Connecting  With  India 

Diary  of  our  first  recruiting  trip  in  the  second 
most  populous  country  in  the  world  (and  the 
most  populous  democracy  on  earth). 


30 


Scholarships:  Personalizing 
Education, Transforming  Lives 

Donors  offer  gifts  that  change  student's  lives, 
not  least  because  they  often  meet  and  get  to 
know  one  another.  Students  take  to  heart  the 
stories  behind  donor  gifts. 


48 


Celebrations 

Three  signature  programs  celebrated  milestones 
this  academic  year.  Quest  and  the  African 
American  and  Multicultural  Office  mark  10 
years;  Adult  Degree  Program  is  30  years  suc- 
cessful! 

DEPARTMENTS 

5    MBCNews 
26    MBCArts:  Fine  Arts 

Firearms  &  Firestone:  Inaugural  Lecture 

28    MBCArts;  Theatre 

An  American  Theatre  First 
56    Alumnae/i  Gift  Shop 

59  Alumnae/i  President's  Q/A 

60  Fieporting  on  Reunion  2007 


COVER 

Our  students  and  alumnae/i  are  educators.  The  cover 
is  Designer  Gretchen  Newman's  meaningful  collage 
illustrating  our  success  in  teaching  teachers  at  Mary 
Baldwin  College  and  beyond. 


T 


icSBfejJiibt' 


iftg^iiBiiiaBU 


Weekend  2007 
went  to  new  heights  in  a  balloon  on 
Cannon  Hill,  seeing  the  cannpus  and 
Shenandoah  Valley  in  all  its  early-spring 
glory  from  above. 


ary  Baldwin  College 


MAGAZINE 


Vol.20  No.  2 
Spring  2007 


Editor 
Carol  Larson  clarson@mbc.edu 

Assistant  Editor 
Dawn  Medley  dmedley@mbc.edu 

Art  Director 
Gretchen  Newman  gnewma7t@mbc.edu 

We  welcome  your  suggestions  and  ideas: 
clarson@mbc.edu.  The  Mary  Baldwin  College 
Magazine  is  published  two  times  a  year  by  the 

Office  of  Communication,  Marketing,  and 

Public  Affairs,  Mary  Baldwin  College,  Staunton, 

VA  24401.  ©2007  All  rights  reserved. 

Mary  Baldwin  College  does  not  discriminate  on  the  basis  of 
sex  (except  that  men  are  admitted  only  as  ADP  and  graduate 
students),  race,  national  origin,  color,  age,  disability,  or 
s  educational  programs,  admissions, 
r  other  activities,  and  employment  practices. 
Inquiries  may  be  directed  to  the  Vice  President  for  Business 
and  Finance,  P.O.  Box  1500,  Mary  Baldwin  College, 
Staimton,  VA  24402;  phone:  540-887-7175. 


BtbViN 

COLLEGE 

Mary  Baldwin  College 

BOARD  OF  TRUSTEES 

2006-2007 


Louise  McNamee  '70,  chair 

Charlotte  Jackson  Berry  '52,  vice  chair 

Sue  Whitlock  '67,  secretary 

Charles  Baskervill 

Sally  Armstrong  Bingley  '60 

Susan  Warfield  Caples  '60 

H.  C.  Stuart  Cochran 

Tracey  Cones  '82 

Nancy  Payne  Dahl  '56 

JOHNiE  Davis 

Margaret  Wren  de  St.  Aubin  '81 

Kelly  Huffman  Ellis  '80 

Richard  Gilliam 

Cynthia  Luck  Haw  '79 

Bertie  Deming  Heiner 

Molly  Fetterman  Held  '76 

James  Lott 

Margaret  McDermid  '95 

Sue  McLaughlin 

Betsy  Mason  '69 

Jane  Miller  '76 

"Wellford  Sanders  Jr. 

Hunt  Shuford  Jr. 

Samuel  R.  Spencer  Jr. 

Susan  Stover  '85 

Michael  Terry 

Kellie  Warner  '90 

Aremita  Watson 

Donald  Wilkinson  III 

John  Woodfin 


Words  from  Our  President 
Dr.  Pamela  Fox 


It  is  not  easy  to  surprise  me.  But  on 
January  24,  with  the  help  of  my  won- 
derful executive  assistant  Lynn  Tuggle 
Gilliland  '80,  the  Class  of  2007  did  just 
that.  I  had  been  scheduled  to  speak  to  the 
President's  Society  (the  group  of  students 
who  assist  with  admissions  functions,  espe- 
cially hosting  prospective  students  when 
they  visit  our  campus).  When  I  arrived  in 
the  foyer  of  the  Administration  Building,  a 
group  of  about  50  seniors  shouted  "sur- 
prise" and  held  up  a  big  sign  wishing  me  a 
happy  birthday!  Then,  my  father,  mother, 
and  husband  entered  from  the  side  parlor 
and  my  father  presented  me  with  a  Mary 
Baldwin  class  ring  in  my  own  version  of  the 
Junior  Dad's  ceremony.  I  am  so  honored  to 
be  considered  a  member  of  the  Class  of 
2007  and  to  have  witnessed  these  incredible 
women  growing  year  by  year. 

This,  the  end  of  my  fourth  year  as 
president,  is  an  important  time  to  reflect. 
In  some  respects,  it  seems  like  only  yes- 
terday that  you  welcomed  me  so  warmly. 
Yet  much  has  been  accomplished  already. 
We  are  indeed  composing  our  future. 
One  important  movement  of  our  opus  is 
completed. 

With  the  input  of  the  Mary  Baldwin 
community,  we  created  a  visionary  10-year 
strategic  plan  and  a  long-term  campus  mas- 
ter plan.  The  plans  are  alive  and  guide  our 
work.  However,  we  have  not  only  planned, 
we  have  acted  and  achieved.  We  have 
implemented  the  Mary  Baldwin  College 
Advantage  for  women  in  the  Residential 
College,  representing  a  four-year  sequence 
of  experiences  drawing  from  the  best  prac- 
tices in  higher  education.  We  lovingly 
restored  the  beauty  of  our  historic  campus. 
We  reinvigorated  traditions,  including 
Apple  Day,  and  instituted  new  traditions, 
such  as  the  candle-lighting  ceremony  fol- 
lowing Convocation  during  first-year  orien- 
tation. We  affirmed  our  commitment  to 


personalized  education  for  women  —  one 
woman  at  a  time,  and  focused  on  the  whole 
woman  in  mind,  body,  and  spirit.  In  a  year 
with  heightened  public  attention  to  the 
diminishing  number  of  women's  colleges, 
we  received  the  highest  number  of  applica- 
tions in  the  history  of  the  college. 

Over  the  past  four  years,  we  also  cele- 
brated milestones:  the  20th  anniversary  of 
the  Program  for  the  Exceptionally  Gifted, 
and  the  10th  of  Virginia  Women's  Institute 
for  Leadership,  Quest,  and  the  Office  of 
African  American  and  Multicultural 
Affairs.  This  summer  the  Adult  Degree 
Program  will  mark  its  30th  anniversary.  In 
2004  Dame  Judi  Dench  hooded  the  first 
Master  of  Fine  Arts  graduates  in  our 
newest  program,  Shakespeare  and 
Renaissance  Literature  in  Performance.  The 
Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching  program 
exceeded  its  10-year  25  percent  growth 
goal  in  a  single  year.  These  milestones 
remind  us  that  as  a  courageous  college,  we 
have  remained  steadfastly  connected  to  our 
mission  while  creating  and  seizing  opportu- 
nities. We  must  continue  to  be  entrepre- 
neurial. We  cannot  stand  still.  As  I  prom- 
ised in  my  inaugural  address,  innovative 
tradition  must  guide  us  as  it  did  my 
esteemed  predecessors. 

So  we  will  continue  to  enhance  the 
Mary  Baldwin  College  Advantage,  through 
our  emphasis  on  learning  for  civic  engage- 
ment in  a  global  context,  and  through  a 
new  comprehensive  approach  to  women's 
wellness  and  athletics.  We  will  continue  to 
recruit  and  retain  talented  women  of  prom- 
ise and  to  converge  on  academic  excellence. 
We  will  advance  projects  in  the  campus 
master  plan.  And,  we  will  discover  and 
implement  new  opportunities  to  extend  our 
historic  mission  to  new  constituencies. 

Thank  you  for  everything  you  do  for 
Mary  Baldwin  College.  I  am  honored  to 
serve  as  your  president.  ▲ 


Spring  2007 


Commencement  2007 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


TWO  PRESIDENTS, 


ONE  CIASS 


By  Carol  Larson 


Dr.  Pamela  Fox  assumed  the 

presidency  of  Mary  Baldwin  College  in 
July  2003,  one  month  before  the  Class  of 
2007  arrived  on  campus.  Students,  faculty, 
alumnae/i,  and  staff  would  soon  come  to 
understand  that  Fox  graced  MBC  like  a 
finely  matched,  beautifully  strung  pearl 
necklace  —  the  must-have  accessory  for 
Baldwin  women. 

Alison  Kaufmann  '07  arrived  on  cam- 
pus —  one  of  295  new  residential  students 
—  in  August  2003  for  orientation  weekend, 
a  memory  that  is  still  vivid  for  her.  "New 
people,  new  school,  new  life,  and  there  was 
excitement,  a  few  tears  ...  and  a  family  pic- 
nic on  the  hill  in  front  of  Grafton  Library. 
Dr.  Fox  spoke  and  her  passion  and  vision 
transcended  the  hill.  Wouldn't  it  be  neat  if  I 
got  to  meet  her,  I  thought." 

Kaufmann,  a  president-in-the-making, 
could  not  have  imagined  her  next  four 
years.  She  wasted  no  time  getting  involved, 
becoming  a  senator  for  her  freshmen  resi- 
dence hall,  Spencer  IL  Simultaneously,  Fox 
was  engaging  every  constituency  of  the 
MBC  community  in  a  collaborative  process 
to  envision  a  new  future  for  the  college,  one 
that  would  become  Composing  Our  Future, 
a  1 0-year  strategy.  Kaufmann  was  especially 
interested  in  that  process  and  was  one  of 
many  students  who  offered  thoughts  and 
ideas  in  discussions  about  the  plan.  She  was 
also  selected  to  be  on  the  task  force  created 
to  reinvigorate  a  major  tradition,  Apple 
Day,  ultimately  resulting  in  bringing  back 
community  service  and  a  visit  to  a  nearby 
orchard  to  the  annual  event. 

Fox  and  Kaufmann,  each  in  different 
orbits,  facing  challenges,  overcoming  obsta- 
cles, and  changing  Mary  Baldwin,  each  in 
her  own  way,  intersected  more  frequently  as 
the  years  passed.  Kaufmann,  a  marketing 
communication  major,  was  chair  of  the 
Student  Government  Association  (SGA) 
constitutional  revisions  committee  as  a 
sophomote  and  parliamentarian  in  her  jun- 
ior year.  Fox's  strategic  plan  was  completed 
and  approved,  and  she  guided  the  college 
through  the  steps  of  that  plan,  including 
development  of  an  ambitious  campus  master 
plan.  As  Mary  Baldwin  began  the  process  of 


reaffirming  its  accreditation  from  the 
Southern  Association  for  Colleges  and 
Schools,  the  president  led  the  campus 
through  the  creation  of  a  required  Quality 
Enhancement  Plan  that  has  become  a  project 
with  meaning  and  value  on  its  own  merit: 
Learning  for  Civic  Engagement  in  a  Global 
Context. 

It  wasn't  just  Kaufmann  who  noted 
early  on  that  Fox  and  the  Class  of  2007 
arrived  together  and  were  moving  through 
four  dynamic  years  side  by  side.  Other  mem- 
bers of  the  Class  of  2007  also  realized  it,  and 
came  to  know  Fox  and  her  husband,  Dan 
Layman,  as  neighbors  and  friends. 

"My  first  impression  of  Dr.  Fox  was  that 
she  was  very  poised.  As  freshmen  and  mem- 
bers of  STARS  [Student  AJumnae/i  Relations 
Society],  we  met  at  her  home  and  we  thought 
she  was  awesome;  a  great  role  model,"  said 
Erin  Baker  '07,  senior  class  president. 

Cami  Roa  '07,  vice  president  of  the 
class,  recalls  —  as  many  students  on  cam- 
pus do  —  seeing  Fox  and  Layman  walking 
around  campus,  attending  events,  and  being 
part  of  hfe  at  Mary  Baldwin  College.  "It's 
been  exciting  to  be  here  with  all  her  new 
ideas.  Dr.  Fox  has  helped  us  make  changes 
in  so  many  ways.  I  never  thought  I  would 
have  such  access  to  the  president  of  my  col- 
lege, and  all  our  interactions  have  been 
warm  and  personable." 

As  a  junior,  Kaufmann  became  a  stu- 
dent assistant  in  the  Office  of  the  President, 
a  job  she  would  relish  and  continue  through- 
out her  senior  year  ...  the  year  she  also 
became  president  of  SGA.  "My  two  years  of 
observing  Dr.  Fox  taught  me  something  new 
each  day.  My  job  as  a  student  assistant  in 
her  office  and  my  role  as  SGA  president  have 
dove-tailed  in  remarkable  ways.  Attending 
meals  with  visiting  speakers,  like  former 
Prime  Minister  of  Pakistan  Benazir  Bhutto, 
and  hosting  luncheons  for  students  at  the 
president's  home  are  just  two  examples  of 
using  what  I've  learned  in  real-life  situa- 
tions," Kaufmann  said.  "Dr.  Fox  makes 
clear  that  every  person  who  comes  to  her 
office  is  valued.  She  is  a  diplomat  who 
always  reminds  us  to  remember  who  we  are 
representing  in  all  our  activities.  We  are 


members  of  the  Mary  Baldwin  fam- 
ily and  proud." 

In  2006,  the  Class  of  2007  had 
an  "aha"  moment:  "We  should 
have  given  Dr.  Fox  a  class  ring  at 
our  Junior  Dads  and  Family 
Weekend  last  year!"  Kaufmann, 
Baker,  and  other  members  of  the 
class  began  planning  a  super-secret 
surprise  for  Dr.  Fox  that  would 
take  several  months.  Layman 
helped  with  ring  size,  the  black 
onyx  class  ring  was  ordered,  and 
then  the  hardest  part  of  planning 
began:  how  to  get  on  Fox's  overly 
busy  calendar  without  her  knowing 
what  it  was  for  —  and  in  time  for 
her  birthday.  She  returned  from  a 
day  of  meetings  in  Richmond,  Virginia,  to 
what  she  believed  was  a  critically  important 
meeting  of  the  student  President's  Society. 

Dr.  Fox  arrived  for  the  "meeting"  and 
was  greeted  by  members  of  the  Class  of 
2007,  her  parents,  and  her  husband. 
Attendees  yelled  "surprise"  and  began  to 
sing  "Happy  Birthday"  to  her.  Recreating 
that  special  and  memorable  moment  from 
Junior  Dads  Ball,  her  father,  Bill  Fox,  pre- 
sented his  daughter  with  her  MBC  ring.  She 
was  now  officially,  and  forever,  a  member  of 
the  Class  of  2007.  There  was  a  champagne 
toast  and  not  a  few  tears. 

Kaufmann  is  heading  for  a  career  in 
marketing,  corporate  planning,  or  advertis- 
ing, or  she  may  attend  graduate  school  to 
earn  an  MBA.  She  will  miss  pizza  in  the 
President's  Office  on  those  too-busy-for- 
lunch  days,  the  Holiday  Open  House  at  the 
president's  home,  Layman's  pumpkin  carving 
with  students  on  the  front  lawn  of  the  presi- 
dent's home,  and  so  much  more. 

Kaufmann  counts  the  achievements  of 
student  government  this  year  as  a  measure  of 
her  Executive  Committee's  commitment  and 
dedication:  Opening  Convocation  ("especial- 
ly memorable");  the  record  freshmen  turnout 
for  elections;  a  new  costume  for  the  college 
mascot,  Gladys,  the  squirrel;  SGA  work- 
shops for  students  interested  in  leadership 
roles  ("100  ways  to  get  a  green  shirt");  and 
increased  visibility  of  all  the  members  of 


(Above)  Seniors  make  an  event  of  carving  pumpkins  at 
the  president's  home  with  Dr.  Fox  and  her  husband, 
Dan  Layman. 

(Below)  Show  us  the  blmg!  At  a  surpnse  birthday  party 
for  Dr.  Fox,  seniors  made  her  an  official  member  of 
the  Class  of  2007  with  the  presentation  of  her  class 
ring,  presented  by  her  father  in  a  mini-version  of  the 
Junior  Dads  and  Family  Ball 

(Left)  Student  Government  Association  2006-07 
President  Alison  Kaufmann  and  Mary  Baldwin  College 
President  Pamela  Fox 


student  government  through  monthly  articles 
in  the  college  newspaper.  The  Cupola,  and 
the  student  newspaper.  Campus  Comments. 

Two  presidents.  One,  the  president  of  a 
women's  college.  The  other,  president  of  the 
undergraduate  student  body.  Two  women, 
who  separately  "made  a  decision  to  travel 
from  Ohio  to  an  all-women's  college  in 
Staunton,  Virginia"  as  Layman  put  it  in  a 
toast  at  the  surprise  parry,  spending  the  same 
four  years  at  Mary  Baldwin  College. 

"Upon  reflection,  Dr.  Fox  and  the  Class 
of  2007  came  to  Mary  Baldwin  College  as 
individuals  and  bonded  with  one  another  as 
we  grew  to  love  our  institution.  We  owe  a 
lot  to  our  incredible  leader.  Thank  you,  Dr. 
Fox,  for  all  you  have  done  for  our  school 
and  for  us.  We  look  forward  to  celebrating 
each  of  our  Reunions  with  you,"  said 
Kaufmann,  now  on  to  a  bright  future. 

At  Commencement  2007,  as  she  had 
four  years  earlier,  Dr.  Fox  spoke  again  to  the 
Class  of  2007  on  the  hill  in  front  of  Grafton 
Library.  Ever)'  class  matters  to  Fox,  but  the 
Class  of  2007  will  always  be  her  "first" 
graduating  class.  ▲ 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


MBCNews 


Advantage: 

Women's 

Colleges 


Many  of  us  have  heard  the  inspiring 
statistics  of  the  "women's  college 
effect":  Graduates  of  women's  colleges 
constitute  more  than  20  percent  of 
women  in  the  United  States  Congress 
and  make  up  30  percent  of  a  Business 
Week  list  of  rising  women  stars  in  cor- 
porate America.  Thirty-three  percent 
of  the  women  on  Fortune  1000  boards 
and  36  percent  of  the  highest-paid 
women  officers  of  those  companies 
were  graduates  of  women's  colleges. 
The  list  goes  on. 

What  these  figures  tell  us  —  and  a 
2006  study  by  Indiana  University 
Center  for  Postsecondary  Research 
reinforces  —  is  that  women's  colleges 
continue  to  serve  a  vital  role  in  socie- 
ty. That  role  is  no  longer  one  of  pro- 
viding access  to  higher  education  — 
thousands  of  colleges  and  universities 
nationwide  now  offer  coed  enroll- 
ment, a  dramatic  change  from  the 
environment  at  the  turn  of  the  20th 
century.  It  is,  however,  just  as  crucial: 
They  offer  choice.  The  Indiana 
University  study,  which  analyzed  data 
from  co-ed  and  women-only  institu- 
tions from  the  National  Survey  of 
Student  Engagement  (NSSE),  argues, 
it's  a  better  choice. 

"True  to  their  word,  these  col- 
leges appear  to  have  created  a  climate 
where  women  are  encouraged  to  real- 
ize their  potential  and  become 


involved  in  various  facets  of  campus 
life,  inside  and  outside  the  class- 
room," concludes  the  study.  "Our 
findings  ...  plainly  indicate  that  sin- 
gle-sex colleges  are  a  vital  postsec- 
ondary option  for  women.  In  many 
respects  they  are  models  of  effective 
educational  practice,  institutions  that 
have  much  to  teach  other  types  of 
colleges  and  universities  that  aspire  to 
providing  a  challenging  yet  support- 
ive educational  environment  for  all 
their  students." 

Hundreds  of  colleges  and  univer- 
sities have  benefited  from  the  data 
NSSE  (pronounced  "nessie")  has  col- 
lected since  it  started  six  years  ago. 
NSSE  was  administered  for  the  first 
time  at  Mary  Baldwin  in  spring 
semester  to  collect  data  that  will 
help  inform  decisions  about  the 
MBC  experience.  The  results  of  the 
study  —  which  was  administered  to 
randomly  selected  freshmen  and  sen- 


iors in  the  Residential  College  for 
Women  and  Adult  Degree  Program 
—  will  guide  program  improvement 
and  help  the  college  understand  stu- 
dents' priorities  and  how  they  are 
addressed  by  MBC. 

NSSE  results,  which  Mary 
Baldwin  should  receive  this  summer, 
will  provide  an  estimate  of  how  stu- 
dents spend  their  time  and  what  they 
gain  from  attending  this  college.  We 
will  find  out  how  much  they  study, 
how  well  we  challenge  them,  and 
how  they  learn  from  connections 
with  other  students.  They  will  tell  us 
about  the  value  of  experiences  such 
as  internships,  group  projects,  aca- 
demic advising,  electronic  media, 
class  presentations,  and  writing  and 
speaking  across  the  curriculum.  The 
survey  also  addresses  community 
service,  attendance  at  cultural  events, 
work,  family  responsibilities,  finan- 
cial aid,  safety,  parking,  and  a  variety 


A  STREET  NAMED  CAMPBELL: 

An  Arlington,  Virginia  roadway  will  soon  bear  the 
name  Campbell  Avenue  in  memory  of  Elizabeth 
Pfohl  Campbell,  influential  former  dean  of  Mary 
Baldwin  College  1929-36,  and  her  husband, 
Edmund  Campbell,  former  member  of  the  MBC 
Board  of  Trustees.  Both  made  significant  contri- 
butions in  the  Arlington  area. 


MBC:  COLLEGE  OF  DISTINCTION 

Mary  Baldwin  College  will  be  one  of  just  300 
institutions  nationwide  included  in  the  inaugural 
Colleges  of  Distinction  guidebook  —  set  to  be 
published  in  2007  —  for  which  colleges  were  cho- 
sen for  a  high  level  of  student  engagement  in  the 
educational  process,  exemplary  teaching,  vibrant 
learning  communities,  and  successful  outcomes. 


Spring  2007 


of  other  factors  that  affect  students' 
satisfaction  with  Mary  Baldwin  and 
the  Hkehhood  that  they  will  finish  their 
education  here. 

MBC  has  joined  the  consortium  of 
women's  colleges  utilizing  this  survey 
and  will  derive  additional  benefits 
from  a  peer  group  comparison.  The 
data  will  help  MBC  describe  the  col- 
lege to  prospective  students  articulat- 
ing what  students  value  most  about 
their  MBC  education. 

The  2006  report  is  available  at 
nsse.iub.edu/NSSE_2006_ 
Annual_Report/index.cfm.  The  full 
text  of  the  Indiana  University  study 
can  be  downloaded  at  imvw.women- 
scoHeges.  org/pdfs/nssestudyZ  004.pdf.  ▲ 

Photo  above:  Mary  Baldwin  College  graduating 
seniors  celebrate  in  procession  to  Page  Terrace  for 
Commencement.  Researchers  at  Indiana  University 
recently  concluded  that  single-sex  colleges  are  a 
"vital  postsecondary  option  for  women"  that  can 
often  be  seen  as  "models  of  effective  educational 
practice"  for  co-ed  institutions  to  emulate. 


First  Woman  and  Alumna  Leads 
MBC  Institutional  Advancement 

Mary  Baldwin  College  recently  selected  its  first  woman  and  first 
alumna  (in  living  memory,  at  least)  to  lead  the  college  through  an 
ambitious  period  of  fundraising  as  head  of  the  Office  of 
Institutional  Advancement.  On  March  1,  2007  Susan  Thompson 
Timmons  '64  began  her  tenure  as  vice  president  for  Institutional 
Advancement  —  the  department  responsible  for  coordinating 
fundraising  efforts,  keeping  records  of  and  maintaining  contact  with 
alumnae/i  and  friends  of  the  college,  and  selected  lecture  and  event  planning. 

Timmons  has  work  experience  and  long-standing  involvement  with  MBC  to 
fit  the  college's  needs.  Her  intimate  knowledge  of  how  the  college  operates  and 
her  myriad  connections  with  alumnae/i  will  allow  her  to  establish  herself  nation- 
ally with  alumnae/i  and  donors  as  a  dynamic  and  inspiring  presence,  said 
President  Pamela  Fox. 

Timmons'  relationship  with  her  alma  mater  is  built  on  dedicated  service  to 
alumnae/i  and  students.  She  led  the  active  alumnae  chapter  in  Richmond  and  later 
served  as  7\Jumnae/i  Association  president  from  1980  to  1982.  Timmons  also  served 
10  years  on  the  MBC  Board  of  Trustees,  during  which  time  she  worked  on  the 
Institutional  Advancement  committee,  among  others.  She  continued  her  connection 
with  the  college  through  teaching  courses  in  marketing,  women  and  management, 
and  business  and  society  in  MBC's  Adult  Degree  Program,  and  visited  campus  as  the 
Smyth  Business  Lecturer  in  2005. 

"As  an  alumna,  I  understand,  value,  and  cherish  what  the  college  can  do  to 
change  and  enhance  a  student's  life,"  Timmons  said.  "I  will  go  to  funding  sources 
with  that  core  value  in  my  heart.  I  understand  the  need  to  sustain  the  institution  on 
an  intellectual  and  an  emotional  level." 

Timmons  made  headlines  as  founder  and  first  president  of  LEADVIRGINIA, 
a  nonprofit  organization  she  conceived  in  2004  that  connects  senior-level  execu- 
tives from  public  and  private  entities  across  the  state  to  hone  their  skills  and  help 
increase  the  Commonwealth's  capacity  to  address  quality-of-life  issues.  Timmons 
structured  the  organization  for  success,  and  from  the  beginning  obtained  the  fund- 
ing necessary  to  run  the  organization,  engaged  a  host  of  volunteers  to  make  it 
work  well,  and  provided  vision  to  keep  it  on  track. 

"Susan  Timmons  is  a  quiet  leader  who  doesn't  attract  a  lot  of  attention  to  her- 
self, but  redirects  the  attention  to  the  organization,"  said  G.S.  "Sandy"  Fitz-Hugh, 
LEAD  VIRGINIA  chair.  "She  had  a  vision  for  LEAD  VIRGINIA  and  carried  it 
through  in  her  self-directed,  engaging  style." 

Timmons'  career  highlights  in  higher  education  include  a  tenure  as  director 
of  Prime  Time  and  adult  programs  and  adjunct  professor  of  economics  at 
Randolph-Macon  Woman's  College,  and  a  variety  of  roles  at  Averett  University, 
including  assistant  dean,  director  of  graduate  and  professional  studies,  and  assis- 
tant professor.  She  is  also  vice  president  of  Timmons  Management  Group  and 
previously  worked  in  marketing  for  the  Far  East  division  (Korea)  of  Max  Factor 
and  Company.  ▲ 


BUSCH  BRINGS  ALCOHOL  AWARENESS: 

Alcohol  Awareness  training  was  provided  for  MBC 
resident  advisors  complements  of  John  D.  Eiland 
Company,  a  local  wholesaler  for  Anheuser-Busch. 
RAs,  in  turn,  sponsored  Alcohol  Awareness  Week 
on  campus  in  March. 


DECISIVE  DEBATING: 

The  student  Ethics  Debate  Team 
placed  second  in  the  Virginia 
Foundation  for  Independent 
Colleges  Ethics  Bowl,  presenting 
arguments  based  on  case  stud- 
ies on  ethics  in  medicine. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine  7 


MBCNews 


SOMETHING  GOING  ON  ON  CAMPUS: 

Student-athlete  Karen  Potter  '08  was  featured 
in  the  April  edition  of  NCAA  On  Campus,  a 
program  aired  on  ESPN  Classic  and  ESPNU  that 
highlights  exceptional  college  athletes  fronn 
around  the  country.  Wiley  MBC  mascot,  Gladys 
the  squirrel,  also  made  an  appearance  on  the 
same  show's  "Mascot  Mania"  segment. 
'www.ncaa.org/bbp/broadcasting/oncampus 


Army  Aviation  Ha 

There  is  something  inspiring  about  being 
in  the  presence  of  Brigadier  General  N. 
Michael  "Mike"  Bissell.  He  does  not 
have  an  imposing  stance  or  a  gruff, 
booming  voice  for  intimidation,  yet  the 
cadets  he  guides  as  commandant  of 
Virginia  Women's  Institute  for 
Leadership  recognize  his  influence  and 
acknowledge  it  with  genuine  respect.  His 
colleagues  recognize  it.  The  Mary 
Baldwin  College  community  recognizes 
it.  And  recently  recognition  reached  him 
from  the  elite  Army  Aviation  Hall  of 
Fame  at  Fort  Rucker,  Alabama,  into 
which  he  was  inducted  during  a  ceremo- 
ny in  May  2007. 

"Such  a  small  percentage  of  people 
are  selected  for  this  honor,  I  am  just 
beside  myself,"  Bissell  said.  Opened  in 
1974,  only  about  110  people,  not 
including  Bissell  and  other  recent 
inductees,  are  currently  memorialized  in 
the  Hall. 

One  doesn't  make  it  to  the  Hall  of 
Fame  without  an  impressive  military 
career,  a  commitment  to  service  in  the 
civilian  sector,  and  many  stories  to  tell. 
Bissell  is  no  exception,  although  he  is 
unlikely  to  flaunt  his  military  accolades. 

A  graduate  of  Virginia  Military 
Institute  and  University  of  Missouri,  he 
served  two  tours  as  a  combat  helicop- 
ter pilot  in  Vietnam.  While  in  Vietnam, 
he  was  nominated  for  the 
Congressional  Medal  of  Honor  for  res- 
cuing a  severely  wounded  American 
advisor  in  a  landing  zone  under  heavy 
fire.  On  Bissell's  second  of  three  rescue 
attempts,  machine  gun  fire  crippled  the 
helicopter,  killed  his  gunner,  and 
wounded  him  in  the  neck.  He  was  ulti- 
mately successful,  and  received  the 


THE  CALL  FOR  CAPSTONES: 

Forty-two  seniors  were  nominated  (by 
professors)  to  participate  in  the  second 
annual  Capstone  Festival,  held  May  10, 
for  their  top-notch  research  and  projects. 


Fame  Welcomes  MBC's  General      Accreditation  Team 


Distinguished  Service  Cross.  He  also 
earned  the  Bronze  Star,  the  Purple 
Heart,  and  the  Air  Medal.  Bissell  was 
selected  by  the  Chief  of  Staff  of  the 
U.S.  Army  to  be  the  Senior  Army 
Fellow  at  Harvard  in  1985.  He  is  also 
a  graduate  of  the  U.S.  Army  Command 
and  General  Staff  College  and  the  U.S. 
Army  War  College. 

Bissell's  final  assignment  with  the 
U.S.  Army  was  as  executive  officer  for 
the  Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Army.  After 
retiring,  he  became  program  manager  for 
the  U.S.  Army's  new  stealth  helicopter 
(Commanche)  for  the  Boeing  and 
Sikorsky  Team.  When  they  won  the  con- 
tract with  the  Army  in  1990,  he  returned 
to  VMI  as  commandant  of  cadets. 

In  August  1999,  after  four  years  as 
part-time  commandant  for  VWIL,  he 
left  VMI  to  become  VWIUs  first  full- 
time  commandant  of  cadets.  After  all 
he  has  accomplished  and  witnessed, 
Bissell  said  helping  lead  VWIL  is  quite 
possibly  his  most  rewarding  post.  His 
focus  recently  has  been  on  targeted 
recruiting  at  military  preparatory  pro- 
grams around  the  country,  such  as  a 
recent  trip  to  Chicago. 

"It  is  not  only  relaxing  and  enjoy- 
able, but  it  is  just  absolutely  heartwarm- 
ing to  personally  see  the  results,"  he 
said.  "Every  year,  I  see  students  reach 
out  for  the  world  and  find  out  what  they 
can  do.  I  often  wish  I  had  had  someone 
with  experience  to  talk  to  during  that 
stage  in  my  own  life." 

Even  with  such  a  resume,  Bissell  did 
not  believe  a  place  in  the  Army  Aviation 
Hall  of  Fame  would  come  his  way.  A 
colleague  from  years  ago  surprised  him 
with  the  nomination.  ▲ 


Brigadier  General 

N.  Michael  Bissell: 

Other  Honors  and  Awards 

Commander,  17th  Aviation  Group 

Commander,  Joint  Republic  of  Korea 

Army  and  the  U.S.  Army  Combined 

Aviation  Force  Director 

U.S.  Army  Flight  Training 
Deputy  chief  and  acting  chief  of  staff, 
101st  Airborne  Division  (Air  Assault) 

Executive  officer  to  the 

director  of  operations.  Joint  Chiefs 

of  Staff  at  the  Pentagon 

Special  assistant  to  superintendent 

(responsible  for  assimilation  of  women 

into  the  corps  and  support  of  VWIL),  VMI 

Distinguished  Service  Medal 

Defense  Superior  Service  Medal 

Legion  of  Merit 


Checks  QEP  Progress 

A  visiting  team  from  the  Southern  Association  of 
Colleges  and  Schools  (SACS)  was  on  campus  and  at 
regional  centers  in  Roanoke  and  Charlottesville 
March  5-8  to  ensure  that  Mary  Baldwin  is  in  com- 
pliance with  the  organization's  requirements  for 
reaffirmation  of  accreditation.  A  significant  part  of 
its  meeting  was  to  assess  the  college's  new  Quality 
Enhancement  Plan  (QEP). 

The  QEP  is  a  necessary  element  in  gaining 
reaffirmation  and,  more  importantly,  is  a  college- 
wide  initiative  that  draws  on  MBC's  core  values 
and  historic  strengths  to  enhance  the  Mary 
Baldwin  education.  Titled  Learning  for  Civic 
Engagement  in  a  Global  Context,  the  QEP  aims  at 
preparing  students  for  purposeful  participation  in 
their  local  community  and  their  nation,  as  global 
citizens.  (The  plan  can  be  read  or  downloaded 
at  iuiuiv.mbc.edu/strategic_plan/index.asp; 
look  for  the  link  under  "2006-2007.") 

The  written  plan  is  hefty  and  detailed,  but 
the  essential  elements  of  the  plan  can  be  laid  out 
relatively  simply.  The  college  will  use  three  main 
strategies  to  achieve  the  outcomes  it  believes  are 
important: 

▲  Civic  engagement  in  all  disciplines  and 
majors:  Each  discipline  that  grants  a  major  will 
identify  specific  civic  engagement  components. 
One  option  is  to  offer  a  noncredit  civic  engage- 
ment learning  contract;  or,  internships  or  senior 
capstone  projects  could  have  significant  civic 
engagement  elements.  Faculty  will  also  have  the 
option  of  revising  existing  courses  or  developing 
new  courses. 

▲  Annual  college  wide  theme:  Next  year  the  col- 
lege will  pilot  the  use  of  a  yearly  theme  to  better 
establish  the  link  between  the  local  and  the  glob- 
al perspectives  on  public  life.  The  theme  for 
2007-08  —  Voices  —  will  be  addressed  college 
wide  in  academic  and  extracurricular  courses.  In 
future  years,  the  faculty's  Educational  Policy 
Committee  will  propose  the  annual  theme. 

▲  A  Center  for  Civic  and  Global  Engagement: 
Beginning  in  fall  2007,  the  Center  will  be  in 
Wenger  Hall  at  the  center  of  campus  and  will 
facilitate  civic  engagement  in  a  global  context. 
Professional  staff  will  promote  and  support  the 
functions  of  community  service  and  study 
abroad,  and  assist  in  recruitment  and  support  of 
international  students  (see  p.  18). 


SOLUTIONS  COULD  STEM 
FROM  FATTISSUE: 

Roy  Ogle,  professor  of  medicine  at 
University  of  Virginia,  explained  how  he 
uses  new  techniques  of  tissue  engineering 
to  harvest  stem  cells,  such  as  from  adult  fat 
tissue,  at  the  recent  Mary  E.  Humphreys 
Biology  Lecture. 


SQUIRREL  POWER: 

Gladys  added  to  her  proverbial  15  minutes 

one  of  several  tailed  team  talismans  included  in  Mascot 

Madness  on  Animal  Planet  April  1.  Hosts  Jeff  Corwin 

and  Lee  Corso  counted  down  the  nation's  top  animal 

mascots  as  part  of  the  networl<'s  tribute  to  the  NCAA 

men's  basketball  tournament,  animal.discovery.com/con- 

vergence/mascot_madness/mascot_madness 


MBCNews 


Legacies  Enhance  Richness  of  Student  Body 


Smiling  legacies  (I  to  r):  Laura Teevan  '08,  and 
twins,  Allyson  '01  and  Melanie  '01  Teevan. 


A  recent  article  in  the  Chronicle  of  Higher 
Education,  a  national  education-focused 
newspaper,  explored  the  recruitment  of  lega- 
cies —  prospective  students  who  are  daugh- 
ters, granddaughters,  nieces  and,  sometimes, 
siblings  —  of  alumnae/i.  At  some  colleges 
and  universities,  students  receive  preferential 
treatment  in  the  admissions  process  based  on 
their  legacy  status,  a  practice  that  is  sparking 
both  opposition  and  agreement  as  diversity 
in  recruiting  garners  increasing  attention. 


"At  many  small  private  institutions,  par- 
ticularly women's  and  religious  colleges, 
admissions  officers  say  that  legacy  students 
are  crucial  to  their  institutions'  livelihood, 
and  that  recruiting  them  does  not  compro- 
mise efforts  to  create  a  diverse  class,"  notes 
Chronicle  reporter  Elizabeth  Farrell. 

Mary  Baldwin  does  not  give  admission 
priority  to  legacies,  but  it  does  recruit  them 
aggressively.  The  admissions  office  sends 
letters  to  alumnae/i  daughters  when  they 
are  two  years  away  from  high  school  grad- 
uation. They  are  featured  in  a  welcome  to 
Mary  Baldwin  on  visit  days,  and  the 
Admissions  Office  is  looking  for  additional 
ways  to  encourage  these  students  to  visit 
Mary  Baldwin  and  learn  more  about  the 
Staunton  community. 

Representatives  from  other  colleges 
and  universities  also  noted  in  the  article 
that  legacy  students  are  important  because 
they  send  a  positive  message  to  faculty, 
staff,  students,  trustees  and  other  friends  of 
the  college  that  alumnae/i  believe  a  college 
is  worthy  of  a  close  family  member's  atten- 
tion. In  general,  legacies  are  also  more  like- 
ly to  embrace  the  traditions  and  history  of 


an  institution  to  help  carry  on  its  legacy. 
The  Chronicle  concludes.  Both  statements 
generally  hold  true  for  Mary  Baldwin  as 
well,  said  Lisa  Branson  '99,  MBC's  execu- 
tive director  for  admissions  and  financial 
aid. 

Legacy  students  comprise  seven  to  10 
percent  of  enrolled  students  at  MBC  in  an 
average  entering  class.  Similar  to  the  case 
at  other  schools,  legacies  are  more  likely  to 
attend  MBC  when  accepted:  Between  40 
and  60  percent  of  legacies  who  apply  fol- 
low through  to  enrollment,  compared  with 
20  to  30  percent  of  applicants  in  the  gener- 
al pool.  However,  legacy  applications  at 
MBC  have  dropped  slightly  since  2003, 
and  the  percentage  of  legacy  applicants 
who  followed  through  to  enrollment  has 
decreased  from  60  percent  in  2002  to  41 
percent  currently.  It  takes  everyone  associ- 
ated with  Mary  Baldwin  College  to  recruit 
the  next  incoming  class;  these  statistics 
demonstrate  that  alumnae/i  play  a  critical 
role  in  that  process,  said  Branson.   ▲ 

Submit  a  referral  for  a  prospective  student 
online:  iinvw.mbc.edu/forrns_pitb/alnmJrefer_frm 


Indian  Fulbright  Scholar  Offers  Art,  Women's  Studies  Lessons 


Cultural  historian 
^  (III  Dr.  Geeti  Sen  has 
■lB*%*' -       lectured  at 

University  of 

>  Chicago,  University 
Q    of  California  at 
^    Berkeley,  and 
^    Columbia 

>  University,  and 
p  spoken  to  audi- 
I    ences  in  England, 

India,  Canada,  and 
Spain.  She  held  a  residency  at  Mills  College 
and  completed  fellowships  for  the  Asian 
Cultural  Council  and  Smithsonian 
Institute,  among  many  other  projects.  She 
has  taught  Indian  art  and  architecture  at 
six  major  institutions  in  Mumbai  and 
Delhi,  India.  In  March,  Mary  Baldwin 
College  was  the  site  for  Sen's  first  turn  as  a 
Fulbright  Visiting  Specialist. 


Sen,  who  stayed  on  campus  for  three 
weeks,  was  the  second  scholar  to  visit  MBC 
through  the  Fulbright  program  this  aca- 
demic year.  Lebanese  graduate  student 
Sahar  Saba  resided  at  MBC  from 
September  to  May,  instructing  Arabic  and 
teaching  students,  faculty,  and  staff  about 
her  country  and  culture.  Sen,  an  art  critic 
and  former  chief  editor  at  the  India 
International  Center,  presented  two  week- 
long  workshops,  gave  a  number  of  commu- 
nity talks,  and  guest  lectured  in  courses  in 
art,  anthropology,  and  other  fields. 

Sen  earned  her  bachelor's  degree  in  art 
history  at  Bryn  Mawr  College  in 
Pennsylvania  and  her  master's  in  history  of 
Indian  art  at  University  of  Chicago  before 
returning  to  her  birthplace  of  Kolcaira 
(Calcutta),  India,  to  earn  her  doctorate.  She 
is  the  author  of  several  books,  esSays,  and 
papers  that  span  topics  from  contemporary 


art  in  India,  to  politics,  to  an  interview 
with  acclaimed  Indian  filmmaker  Shyam 
Benegal.  Sen's  most  recent  book.  Feminine 
Fables:  Imaging  the  Indian  Woman  in 
Painting,  Photography,  and  Cinema,  speaks 
to  the  role  of  women  and  how  they  are 
projected  in  film. 

"My  interest  in  Muslim  history  and 
culture  goes  back  to  1966  when  I  received 
a  scholarship  to  study  at  the  University  of 
Chicago,"  Sen  said.  "I  studied  Islamic 


Mughal  |a  medieval  Islamic  empire  that  at 
one  time  ruled  most  of  the  Indian  subconti- 
nent] manuscript  of  the  Ramayana  [a 
Hindu  holy  scripture]  in  the  Freer  Gallery 
of  Art,  Washington  DC.  My  doctoral  thesis 
on  Paintings  from  the  Akbar  Nama  affirms 


reveal  the  rich  composite  culture  of  the 
Mughal  court  in  16th-century  India."  ,' 


Spring  2007 


Dozens  of  Daddy's  Long 
Legs  Come  to  College 

Each  Daddy's  Long  Legs  doll  has  a  story.  There  is  Buttons,  a  limited  edition  pro- 
duced only  in  1996,  who  sports  a  clown  costume  with  buttons  on  the  hat,  vest,  and 
bow  tie.  Ruth  is  a  delicate,  finely  dressed  young  woman,  and  the  story  goes  that  she 
teaches  all  the  children  in  the  doll  collection.  Doc  Moses  and  Nurse  Garnett  appear 
in  the  traditional  clothing  of  an  early  20th-century  medical  team.  These  finely  crafted 
posable  African-American  dolls  are  just  a  few  of  nearly  40  donated  to  the  college  by 
Bruce  Joffe,  associate  professor  of  communication. 

Joffe  thought  of  his  Daddy's  Long  Legs  collection  when  he  heard  about  the 
Black  Baby  Doll  drive  held  annually  before  Christmas  by  the  college's  Ida  B.  Wells 
Society  and  the  Office  of  African  American  and  Multicultural  Affairs.  After  a  conver- 
sation with  Andrea  Cornett-Scott,  Ida  B.  Wells  advisor  and  associate  vice  president 
for  student  affairs,  Joffe 
decided  that  the  dolls 
would  be  a  more  appro- 
priate gift  to  the  college 
rather  than  to  the  toy 
drive.  "They  represent 
moments  in  African- 
American  history  and 
lives.  Their  facial  fea- 
tures are  just  exquisite," 
Cornett-Scott  said. 

Joffe  started  collect- 
ing the  unique  dolls  in 
1992  and  amassed  hun- 
dreds of  pieces  that 
filled  several  display 
cases.  When  he  moved 
to  Staunton  from 
California  to  begin  his 
position  at  MBC  last 
fall,  he  had  downsized 
just  about  everything, 
including  his  Daddy's 

Long  Legs  collection.  He  started  by  giving  selected  dolls  to  friends  and  family  mem- 
bers as  meaningful  gifts.  After  his  donation  to  Mary  Baldwin  College  —  which 
includes  many  special  edition,  members  only,  and  limited  edition  figures  valued  at 
$250  to  $500  each  —  a  few  dozen  are  all  that  remain  in  Joffe 's  personal  collection. 

Named  for  their  posable  limbs  made  of  cloth  that  are  attached  to  a  plastic  or 
resin  body.  Daddy's  Long  Legs  Dolls  had  been  created  by  Karen  Germany  since 
1985.  She  recognized  a  void  of  African-American  collectibles  in  the  gift  industry.  The 
dolls  have  been  out  of  production  since  2003,  steadily  driving  up  their  value.  Many 
of  those  donated  by  Joffe  were  signed  by  Germany  when  he  met  her  at  a  show.  They 
are  awaiting  a  permanent  display  location  at  Mary  Baldwin. 

"I  realized  that  MBC  could  create  a  wonderful  home  and  a  legacy  for  the  dolls," 
Joffe  said.  "Instead  of  being  in  boxes  at  my  house,  they  can  be  displayed  where  many 
people  can  view  and  enjoy  them. "A 


Have  you  met  Buttons,  Ruth,  Doc  Moses  or  one  of  dozens  of  other 
Daddy's  Long  Legs  Dolls  donated  to  Mary  Baldwin  by  Bruce  Joffe, 
associate  professor  of  communication?  Important  to  doll  collectors, 
they  are  more  valuable  now  because  they  are  also  out  of  production. 


Student  News 


Russell  Scholar  Combines 
Languages,  Political  Interest 

It  might  sound  like  a  foreign  vacation,  but  a  whirl- 
wind 10-day,  six-city  trip  through  the  Basque  region 
of  Spain  and  France  during  Winter  Break  provided 
key  research  for  MBC  Russell  Scholar  Jessie 
Labadie  '07.  A  French  and  Spanish  double  major 
who  is  fluent  in  both  languages,  Labadie  is  using 
the  college's  coveted  Margaret!  Kable  Russell 
Award  —  just  one  is  granted  each  year  to  support 
an  exemplary  student  research  project  —  to  study 
the  disparate  political  agendas  of  Basque  citizens  in 
those  countries. 

"It  has  been  gratifying  for  me  to  tie  together 
my  two  language  majors  and  underlying  interest  in 
political  movements  into  one  interesting  project," 
Labadie  said. 

The  Basque  region  includes  approximately 
12,800  square  miles  along  the  Pyrenees  mountain 
range  and  The  Bay  of  Biscay.  An  estimated  three 
million  people  inhabit  the  area,  with  about  92  per- 
cent of  those  citizens  on  the  Spanish  side.  The 
region  has  its  own  recognized  language,  customs, 
and  cuisine.  Spanish  Basques  have  fought  for  —  and 
in  some  cases  won  —  increasing  autonomy  from  the 
Spanish  government  and  people,  Labadie  explained. 
Their  French  Basque  counterparts,  however,  have  a 
more  laid-back  approach  to  their  individualism  and 
have  not  sought  to  break  away  from  their  home 
country.  During  stops  in  Bilbao,  Guernica,  and  San 
Sebastian  in  the  Spanish  Basque  region  and  Biarritz, 
St.-Jean-de-Luz,  and  Bayonne  in  France,  Labadie 
talked  to  citizens  about  their  cultural  identity. 

Labadie  also  spoke  with  a  few  government  offi- 
cials during  her  tour.  Although  her  findings  generally 
supported  her  hypothesis  that  Spanish  Basques  are 
more  concerned  about  losing  the  remnants  of  their 
heritage  and  therefore  more  willing  to  engage  in  con- 
flict than  French  Basques,  she  admitted  that  the  proj- 
ect took  on  a  life  of  its  own  as  a  result  of  the  trip. 

"I  realized  that  the  concept  is  more  complicat- 
ed than  I  originally  thought,"  she  said.  "There  is  not 
a  scenario  where  one  group  of  people  feel  one  way 
and  the  other  group  feels  distinctly  different.  There 
was  much  nuance  in  their  responses." 

Labadie's  project  continued  during  the  spring 
semester  with  extensive  reading,  through  which 
she  planned  to  investigate  the  implications  of 
Basque  separatist  movements  in  the  face  of 
European  Union  homogenization. 

"Much  of  my  language  studies  have  been  liter- 
ary- and  theory-based;  this  is  good  application  in  the 
real  world,"  she  said. 

continued  on  p.  13 


PRESIDENTIAL  PRECEDENT: 

More  than  150  students  from 
eight  Shenandoah  Valley  high 
schools  converged  at  Mary 
Baldwin  in  March  to  ponder  the 
fate  of  civil  liberties  in  war  time  as 
part  of  a  program  sponsored  by 
the  nearby  Woodrow  Wilson 
Presidential  Library. 


INVESTING  IN  INGLUSIVENESS: 

Paula  Rothenberg,  renowned  writer 
and  lecturer  on  issues  surrounding 
globalizing  college  curriculum  and 
inequality,  equity,  and  privilege,  will  be 
MBC's  2007-08  Doenges  Visiting 
Artist/Scholar.  Rothenberg's  works  are 
frequently  used  in  college  and  universi- 
ty courses  on  diversity. 


AN  ANGEL  AMONG  US: 

In  December,  students  chose 
Carey  Usher,  associate  professor 
of  sociology,  as  the  college's  angel 
for  best  embodying  love,  charity, 
kindness,  and  a  giving  spirit.  Usher 
gave  birth  to  her  first  child,  a  son, 
less  than  a  month  later. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine  " 


MBCNews 


•\ 


faculty/staff  acorns 


Fox  Appointed  to  Virginia  P-16  Education  Council 

President  Pamela  Fox  was  appointed  by  Governor  Tim  Kaine  to 
Virginia's  P-16  Education  Council,  which  identifies  opportunities  to 
better  coordinate  the  state's  education  reform  efforts  from  pre- 
school through  graduate  school.  Fox  joins  the  state  secretary  of 
education,  Virginia  senators,  the  president  of  the  Board  of 
Education,  and  several  other  college  and  university  leaders  on  the 
committee,  which  is  also  responsible  for  developing  ways  to 
improve  transitions  among  levels  of  education,  promoting  student 
success,  and  encouraging  students  to  continue  their  education. 


Faculty  Development  Series 


Just  because  you  teach  does  not 
mean  you  stop  learning!  Most  col- 
leges and  universities  welcome 
opportunities  on  and  off  campus  for 
continuing  faculty  development.  In 
2006-07  some  of  the  offerings 
included,  among  others: 

The  Global  War  on  Terrorism  after 
Five  Years:  American  Viewpoints 
from  the  Middle  East 

Israel's  Approach  to  Countering 
Terrorism  presented  by  Professor 
Gordon  Bowen,  who  has  studied 
terrorism  for  more  than  20  years 
and  was  in  Israel  and  the  West 
Bank  in  summer  2006  as  an  aca- 
demic fellow  of  the  Foundation  for 
the  Defense  of  Democracies. 

Countering  Terrorism:  Issues  at 
Home  and  Abroad  presented  by 
U.S.  Army  Colonel  (retired)  Peter 
Menk,  national  security  specialist 
who  works  in  Washington  DC 
headquarters  of  the  Environmental 
Protection  Agency.  He  is  an  expert 
on  homeland  security  and  law. 


Wittgenstein:  A  Faculty 
Discussion 

A  series  of  discussions,  from 
September  to  December  2006, 
about  Ludwig  Wittgenstein,  some- 
times described  as  the  most  origi- 
nal and  brilliant  philosopher  of  the 
20th  century.  Discussions  coordi- 
nated by  Professor  Jim  Gilman. 

Asian  Affairs 

The  Problems  Chinese  Face  in  the 
Wake  of  Their  Economic  Miracle 
presented  by  Professor  Daniel 
Metraux,  whose  visits  to  China  and 
areas  in  Asia  have  been  supported 
by  a  Fulbright  grant.  He  examined 
the  problems  associated  with 
today's  economic  grov^rth,  including 
gross  pollution,  declining  resources 
such  as  water,  major  disparities  in 
income,  and  waves  of  migrant 
workers. 

Cambodia  Since  the  Khmer  Rouge 
presented  by  Professor  Metraux, 
following  his  2006  tour  including 
Phnom  Penh  and  Angkor  Wat. 


Ann  Field  Alexander  '67,  professor  of  history,  was  reap- 
pointed to  a  second  term  on  the  State  Review  Board  of  the 
Virginia  Department  of  Historic  Resources. 

Bruce  Dorries,  assistant  professor  of  communication,  pre- 
sented 2006  alumna  Harriet  Blackwell's  study  "Where  Did 
She  Go:  Media  Coverage  of  Missing  Black  Women,"  at  the 
American  Studies  Association  of  Texas  meeting. 

Christina  Daniel,  circulation  and  student  staff  coordinator  at 
Grafton  Library,  was  awarded  the  2006  Regional  Award  of 
Excellence  for  Volunteer  Leadership  for  Outstanding  Support 
of  the  Mission  of  the  American  Cancer  Society  by  the  South 
Atlantic  Division  of  the  American  Cancer  Society. 

Carrie  Douglass,  professor  of  anthropology  was  awarded 
the  Most  Notable  Recent  Edited  Collection  Book  Prize  for 
2006  by  the  Council  on  Anthropology  and  Reproduction  for 
her  book  Barren  States:  The  Population  Implosion  in  Europe.  * 

Jim  Gilman,  professor  of  religion  and  philosophy,  published 
Faith,  Reason,  and  Compassion:  A  Philosophy  of  Christian 
Faith,  a  book  that  establishes  emotions  as  crucial  to  shaping 
solutions  to  philosophical  problems.* 

Carole  Grove,  director  of  the  Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching  pro- 
gram, was  appointed  to  the  Advisory  Board  for  Teacher 
Education  and  Licensure.  This  is  a  three-year  state  appoint- 
ment, and  she  is  one  of  two  higher  education  representa- 
tives on  the  19-member  board. 

An  editorial  by  Sara  IMair  James  '69,  professor  of  art,  was 
published  in  the  Richmond  Times-Dispatch  in  response  to 
Randolph-Macon  Woman's  College's  (Lynchburg)  decision  to 
go  co-ed.  It  was  titled  "Women  Should  Donate  More  to  Their 
Schools." 

Allan  Moye,  assistant  professor  of  communication,  received 
his  second  Virginia  Governor's  Award  for  Screenplay  at  the 
Virginia  Film  Festival  in  October  for  his  original  screenplay. 
Signs  Following. 

Melissa  Sumner,  adjunct  instructor  of  music,  was  awarded 
the  Presidential  Citation  for  Outstanding  Educator  by  the 
Governor's  School  for  Humanities  and  Visual  and  Performing 
Arts,  University  of  Richmond. 

*  Both  Douglass  and  Gilman's  books  are  available  online  at 
amazon.com 


Team  CoMPA  (Office  of  Communication,  Marketing,  &  Public  Affairs)  earned  two  awards  from  the  Council 
for  Advancement  of  and  Support  of  Education  (CASE)  District  III.  Jenny  Howard,  associate  director  of  CoMPA, 
Gretchen  Newman,  director  of  design,  and  Adam  Smith,  associate  director  of  Web  communications,  were 
awarded  for  excellence  for  the  flash  solicitation  "lmagine"(see  online:  www.mbc.edu/giving/imagine).  Newman 
and  Smith  also  won  a  special  merit  award  for  homepage  design  and  implementation  for  Mary  Baldwin's  new 
Admissions  homepage:  admissions.mbc.edu. 


Spring  2007 


Interim  Dean  Continues  with  Full 
Support  from  MBC  Connmunity 


Dr.  Edward  Scott,  associate  professor  of  phi- 
losophy, took  on  the  challenging  role  of 
interim  dean  of  the  college  and  vice  presi- 
dent of  academic  affairs  in  May  2006,  and 
not  surprisingly,  for  those  in  the  greater 
Mary  Baldwin  College  and  Staunton  com- 
munity, he  has  done  it  well.  In  a  move  to 
provide  stable  leadership  during  a  critical 
phase  of  implementing  our  strategic  plan, 
Dr.  Pamela  Fox,  president  of  the  college, 
asked  Scott  to  continue  in  the  interim  role 
for  two  more  years. 

"Dr.  Edward  Scott  has  provided  gentle 
and  wise  leadership  this  year  and  we  are 
very  appreciative  of  his  willingness  to  take 
up  this  important  work,"  said  Fox. 

Scott's  accomplishments  during  his  first 
year  in  the  interim  role  were  substantive, 
collaborative,  and  significant.  Scott  has  been 
instrumental  in  shepherding  the  new  Quality 
Enhancement  Plan  through  an  affirming 
review  by  the  reaccreditation  team  from 
Southern  Association  of  Colleges  and 
Universities.  He  was  part  of  a  comprehen- 
sive examination  and  revision  of  the  Honors 
Program,  helped  in  completing  a  project 
begun  by  the  previous  dean  of  the  college 
to  make  measurable  improvements  in  facul- 
ty salaries,  and  was  instrumental  in  the 


selection  of  next  year's  Doenges  Visiting 
Artist/Scholar,  Paula  Rothenberg  (noted 
author  and  lecturer,  and  currently  senior  fel- 
low at  The  Murphy  Institute  at  City 
University  of  New  York).  His  support  and 
encouragement  for  the  faculty  development 
series,  which  was  well  received,  helped 
increase  attendance  (see  p.  12).  His  teach- 
ing schedule  was  simplified  when  he 
became  interim  dean,  but  he  insisted  on 
teaching  African  American  Thought  in  spring 
semester  to  a  diverse  range  of  students, 
who  are  in  the  Residential  College  for 
Women  and  Adult  Degree  Program.  In  his 
mind,  the  larger  accomplishments  of  the 
year  also  include  an  open  door  policy  in  the 
Office  of  the  Dean  and  holding  fast  to  his 
sense  of  humor,  Scott  said. 

"I  accepted  a  two-year  term  as  interim 
dean  in  support  of  President  Fox  and  our  fac- 
ulty which,  in  my  view,  are  well  served  by 
someone  that  both  faculty  and  administra- 
tion can  enthusiastically  and  unequivocally 
endorse,"  he  said. 

The  college  community  welcomed  his 
leadership  as  well  as  the  decision  to  extend 
his  time  as  dean  of  the  college.  MBC  will 
likely  launch  a  nationwide  search  for  the  posi- 
tion in  the  2008-09  academic  year. 


Student  News 

Seniors  Participate  in 
Year-Long  Leadership  Project 

Tina  Brown  and  Tiffany  Jackson,  members  of  the 
2007  graduating  class,  were  among  51  college  stu- 
dents from  20  states  selected  to  participate  this 
year  in  the  Kellogg  Collegiate  Women  of  Color 
Leadership  Institute  sponsored  by  the  Foundation 
for  Independent  Higher  Education.  The  year-long  pro- 
gram prepared  them  for  future  leadership  roles  as 
women  of  color  by  pairing  them  with  a  mentor  and 
undertaking  a  leadership  program  in  the  community. 

"The  most  important  qualities  a  leader  can 
have  are  to  lead  by  example  and  to  encourage  and 
be  of  service  to  those  around  them.  Being  humble 
is  also  key,"  said  Brown,  an  independent  major  in 
psychology  and  social  work  who  served  in  many 
leadership  roles  on  campus.  During  her  senior  year, 
she  led  Anointed  Voices  of  Praise  gospel  choir  as 
president,  served  as  vice  president  of  Black 
Student  Alliance,  worked  as  an  orientation  leader 
for  new  minority  students,  and  is  a  member  of 
Omicron  Delta  Kappa,  among  other  activities. 

Brown  said  the  students'  experience  at  a  rigor- 
ous leadership  development  program  in  Baltimore 
during  summer  2006  was  enlightening.  "The  most 
amazing  part  of  the  conference  was  to  be  in  the 
presence  of  women  who  have  been  where  we  are 
and  have  accomplished  great  things,"  she  said. 

Brown's  community  project  involved  working 
at  Booker!  Washington  Community  Center's  after 
school  program  in  Staunton,  and  a  mentorship  with 
its  director,  Cheyenne  Cody.  She  created  a  mentor- 
ship  program  between  MBC  students  in  Anointed 
Voices  of  Praise  and  children  at  the  Center.  She 
also  worked  to  provide  educational  events  on  the 
weekends,  and  has  been  involved  with  the  Boys 
and  Girls  Club  within  the  Center. 

Jackson,  an  English  major  with  a  double  minor 
in  education  and  African-American  studies,  said 
meeting  her  national  mentor.  Marguerite 
Kondracke,  CEO  of  America's  Promise,  was  a  per- 
sonal highlight  of  the  national  conference. 

Jackson's  service  project  responded  to  a  need 
she  saw  for  African-American  cultural,  literary,  and 
historical  enrichment  in  the  community.  She  creat- 
ed a  weekend  enrichment  and  mentorship  program 
for  young  girls  in  Staunton,  which  she  called  Black 
Pearls.  "I  want  them  to  develop  cultural  awareness, 
self-esteem,  physical  and  spiritual  wellness,  and 
learn  the  importance  of  academic  success  and  sis- 
terhood," she  said. 


KNOW? 

THE  NEWS 
ANYTIME!! 


You  can  see  our  top  stories  listed  on  the  IVIBC  Web  site  liomepage  anytime^ 
—  they  change  weekly.  Visit  www.mbc.edu 

For  more  information  about  the  stories  and  digest  news  items  in  this 
issue,  you  can  get  to  the  News  Archives  from  the  MBCNews  homepage 
or  go  directly  to  archives  at:  www.mbc.edu/news/arcliives. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


MBCNews 


A  Twist  on  'What  Women  Want' 
From  Commencement  Speaker 
and  Scholar  Carole  Levin 


The  students  who  took  theit  places  on  MBC's  Page  Terrace  May  20, 

2007  had  dreamed  for  a  long  rime  about  their 

graduation  day.  Commencement  speaker 

Carole  Levin,  the  scholar  who  addressed 

them,  has  spent  much  time  pondering  dreams, 

too.  As  professor  of  history  at  University  of 

Nebraska,  Levin  is  intrigued  by  the  meaning 

and  use  of  dreams  in  16th-  and  17th-century 

England,  and  the  topic  is  the  focus  of  her 

recent  research  as  a  year-long  fellow  at  the 

prestigious  Folger  Shakespeare  Library  in 

Washington  DC. 

Books  she  has  authored,  such  as  The  Reign  of  Elizabeth  I  and 
The  Heart  and  Stomach  of  a  King:  Elizabeth  I  and  the  Politics  of 
Sex  and  Power,  and  articles  "The  Taming  of  the  Queen:  Foxe's 
Katherine  and  Shakespeare's  Kate,"  among  others,  reveal  her  broad- 
er interest  in  advancing  feminist  thought.  Levin  earned  her  under- 
graduate degree  at  Southern  Illinois  University,  and  her  master's 
degree  and  PhD  in  history  from  Tufts  University.  Her  specializations 
in  late  Medieval  and  Early  Modern  England  and  Europe  and  in 
women's  history  led  her  to  be  named  in  2002  Willa  Gather 
Professor  of  History  at  University  of  Nebraska,  where  she  has 
worked  since  1998. 

In  lieu  of  focusing  on  her  research,  Levin's  speech  at  Mary 
Baldwin  brought  forward  a  medieval  twist  on  a  question  for  the 
ages,  one  of  particular  interest  to  a  women's  college  audience: 
"What  does  a  woman  really  want?"  Chronicling  King  Arthur's 
quest  for  the  answer  that  would  save  him  from  death  at  the  hands 
of  a  knight  with  magical  powers.  Levin  illustrated  a  parable  valu- 
able through  the  centuries.  "What  a  woman  most  wants  is  autono- 
my, the  right  to  make  decisions  about  her  life  and  the  ability  to 
carry  them  out,"  she  said. 

Levin  has  an  unmistakable  passion  for  teaching  and  the  bridges 
teaching  creates  with  her  scholarship.  "Questions  that  students  have 
asked  have  opened  up  new  avenues  for  class  lectures  and  discussions; 
they  have  also  led  to  research  and  public  talks,"  she  said.  "My  spe- 
cialization in  women's  studies  specific  to  the  Medieval  and  Early 
Modern  periods  has  sparked  an  enduring  interest  for  students  and 
faculty  from  a  variety  of  disciplines." 

Levin,  also  an  avid  Shakespeare  theorist,  has  published  numer- 
ous articles  on  that  topic  and  counts  the  editing  of  several  books  in 
her  career  credits.  Her  expertise  has  garnered  interviews  on 
National  Public  Radio  and  two  televised  segments  on  CNN.   Levin 
has  been  a  visiting  scholar  at  Middle  Tennessee  State  University,  a 
fellow  at  the  Newberry  Library,  and  a  distinguished  professor  at 
University  of  North  Carolina  in  Asheville.  She  also  did  work  at 
University  of  Virginia  as  part  of  a  National  Endowment  for  the 
Humanities  summer  fellowship. 

To  close.  Levin  quoted  suffragist  Susan  B.  Anthony:  "'Failure  is 
impossible,'  Anthony  said.  For  all  of  you,  my  congratulations  on  your 
graduation,  and  remember,  failure  is  impossible."  ▲ 


Sorrowful  News: 
Virginia  Tech's  Nightmare 

On  April  16,  2007,  the  world  of  the  Mary  Baldwin  College 
community  revolved  around  final  exams  and  preparations  for 
Commencement  and  May  Term  classes.  Then  came  the  news 
about  multiple  fatalities  as  a  result  of  a  shooting  rampage  at 
Virginia  Tech,  just  110  miles  from  Mary  Baldwin. 

As  members  of  the  Mary  Baldwin  family  accounted  for 
family  and  other  loved  ones  —  a  nephew  who  couldn't  be 
reached  for  hours  but  was  unharmed,  a 
friend  among  the  victims,  a  daughter 
recovering  from  bullet  wounds  — 
MBC  President  Pamela  Fox  comforted 
our  community  with  campus-wide 
messages.  "At  times  like  this  it  is 
important  for  us  to  come  together  as  a 
community.  We  mourn  with  them, 
together  in  spirit  if  separated  by  geog- 
raphy and  time,"  she  wrote  on  the  day 
of  the  shootings. 

The  day  after  the  tragedy,  we 
gathered  at  North  Court  for  a  moment  of  silence,  a  prayer,  and 
the  always-poignant  playing  of  Taps.  Edward  Scott,  interim 
dean  of  the  college  and  vice  president  for  academic  affairs 
offered  hopeful  words  in  prayer:  "Let  us  be  as  women  commis- 
sioned to  tell  the  news  that  death  so  bold  yesterday,  cruel,  mad 
and  absurd  must  give  way  before  the  sway  of  faith  ..." 

A  few  days  later,  Governor  Kaine  declared  a  statewide  day 
of  mourning  and  the  MBC  community  gathered  at  the  flag  on 
top  of  Gannon  Hill  to  hear  the  peal  of  bells  in  Staunton  while 
we  remembered  the  victims  and  their  families,  ending  with  a 
prayer  from  the  Reverend  Andrea  Cornett-Scott,  associate  vice 
president  of  student  affairs.  It  was  also  a  day  proclaimed 
Orange  and  Maroon  Effect  Day  in  honor  of  Virginia  Tech,  also 
known  as  the  Hokie  Nation,  and  many  of  those  gathered  wore 
the  colors  in  a  compassionate  statement  of  solidarity.  ▲ 

For  more  about  this  story,  please  go  online  to: 
www.mbc.edu/neivs/r_detail.asp?id=1953 


Spring  2007 


PEG  in 
N 'awl  ins 


Students  in  the  Program  for  tlie 
Exceptionally  Gifted  traveled  to 
Louisiana  during  Spnng  Break  to 
aid  in  ongoing  cleanup  and 
rebuilding  in  an  area  hit  by 
Hurricane  Katrina  They  helped 
with  bonne  construction  for  the 
St  Bernard  Project  a  relief  organ 
ization  It  was  all  alligators  and 
crawfish  and  dry  wall,  oh  my! 
(Above)  Elizabeth  Vukelich  '10 
carefully  —  very  carefully  — 
feeds  an  alligator.  (Top  right 
photo.  I  to  r)  Ajantha 
Ramachandran,  Vukelich,  both 
Class  of  2010,  and  Stacy  Alieva 
'09,  theatrically  dry  walling. 
Ramachandran's  father,  a  county 
commissioner  in  St.  Charles 
Parish,  organized  a  crawfish  boil 
for  students  and  arranged  for  a 
place  to  sleep  in  a  church  during 
the  visit. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine  15 


AfffJ-^^^, 


>^-?>- 


^ 


Top:  Benazir  Bhutto 
Bottom:  Sanjana  Das 


Top:  Claudia  Bernardi 
Bottom:  Sahar  Saba 


Voices  from  Around  the  Globe 

Consider  the  speakers  and  visitors  at  MBC  during  2006-07:  At  ttie  outset  of 
fall  semester  Benazir  Bhutto,  former  Prime  Minister  of  Pakistan,  passion- 
ately encouraged  her  audience  at  the  Smyth  Leadership  Lecture  —  and 
young  women,  in  particular  —  to  promote  democracy  where  it  is  not  pres- 
ent and  work  to  keep  it  strong  where  it  does  exist  or  deal  with  the  conse- 
quences, such  as  terronsm.  ▲  Only  a  few  weeks  later,  children's  rights 
activist  and  India  native  Sanjana  Das  discussed  issues  and  concerns  in  the 
trafficking  of  children  and  women  in  Asia  in  several  settings  with  students, 
faculty,  staff,  and  the  greater  community  ▲  Venkatesh  Raghavendra,  social 
entrepreneur  and  director  of  global  partnerships  for  Asia  at  the  Ashoka 
Institute,  arrived  at  MBC  on  the  heels  of  Das,  and,  in  addition  to  other  appear- 
ances, gave  presentations  for  the  college's  Community  Service  Speakers 
Series.  ▲  Soon  after,  the  MBC  community  welcomed  Srinivas  Krishnan  — 
Global  Rhythms  musician,  professor  at  University  of  Miami,  and  goodwill 
ambassador  for  his  native  India  —  to  campus  for  a  public  concert,  cultural  din- 
ners, and  lively  impromptu  conversations. 


Transformative  Teachers  from  Abroad 

In  many  cases,  we  didn't  even  need  to  board  a  plane  to  experience  interna- 
tional flavor.  Following  her  powerful  visit  to  campus  in  September,  Doenges 
Visiting  Artist/Scholar  Claudia  Bernardi  brought  back  her  vision  for  human 
rights  for  a  May  Term  course  in  which  she  guided  students  in  creating  a 
mural  in  Staunton,  which  was  documented  by  another  May  Term  class  in 
Film  Studies.  Bernardi,  a  native  of  Argentina,  was  a  member  of  a  forensics 
team  called  in  1992  to  excavate  mass  burial  sites,  the  result  of  a  massacre 
of  the  village  of  El  Mozote  in  El  Salvador.  She  has  made  it  her  life's  work  to 
promote  nonviolence  and  end  human  suffering  through  her  art,  her  art 
school  in  El  Salvador,  and  other  projects  ▲  Fulbnght  Visiting  Scholar  Sahar 
Saba  of  Lebanon  taught  in  MBC's  Arabic  courses  and  was  a  student  her- 
self in  our  unique  Shakespeare  literature  and  performance  program.  Saba 
lived  on  campus  in  the  Program  for  the  Exceptionally  Gifted  Center,  which 
provided  countless  opportunities  for  casual  interaction  and  an  international 
night  in  the  dorm  that  featured  food  and  facts  about  her  native  country  A  In 
March  the  college  was  honored  by  a  three-week  stay  by  Dr.  Geeti  Sen,  a 
Fulbright  Visiting  Specialist.  Sen  is  a  cultural  historian,  critic  and  writer,  who 
has  been  chief  editor  at  India  International  Center  in  New  Delhi. 


Top:  Venkatesh 

Raghavendra 

Bottom:  Srinivas  Krishnan 


Spring  2007 


We're  not  just  talking  about  global  connections  at  Mary  Baldwin  College  -  we  are  creating  them.  The  Quality 
Enhancement  Plan  helped  the  entire  college  community  focus  on  its  strengths  and  direction  for  the  future,  and  the  topic. 
Learning  for  Civic  Engagement  in  a  Global  Context,  embodies  where  MBC  has  been  and  where  it  is  headed  in  relation  to 
global  connections,  in  just  the  first  year  of  planning,  we  heard  on  campus  a  chorus  of  accents  and  voices  from  around 
the  world,  we  embarked  on  international  recruiting  trips,  professors  and  students  continued  to  look  within  and 
beyond  US  borders  for  study  and  service  opportunities.  Here  is  a  sampling  of  those  efforts  in  2006-07: 


ImSSm 


Jessie  Labadie  '07 


Students  Explore  Overseas 


Winter  Break,  Spring  Break,  and  May  Term  are  perfect  times  for  study  abroad,  global 
exploration,  and  civic  engagement.  Jessie  Labadie  '07,  this  year's  Margaret!  Kable 
Russell  Scholar,  Interviewed  French  and  Spanish  Basques  during  a  winter  trip  to  the 
region  as  part  of  her  research  on  differing  political  motivations  (see  p.  11).  ▲ 
Professors  Andreas  Anastasiou  and  Jacl<  Kibler  led  multicultural  psychology  and 
international  communication  May  Term  courses  in  Cyprus  in  which  students  were 
introduced  to  multicultural  perspectives  of  some  of  the  major  areas  of  psychology, 
including  research,  assessment,  biological  psychology,  social  psychology,  child  devel- 
opment, and  personality.  A  Professors  Daniel  Metraux  and  Dan  Stuhlsatz  combined 
forces  to  take  students  to  Canada  to  study  Asian  acculturation  into  North  American 
society,  white  American  and  Canadian  reaction  past  and  present,  and  acculturation  of 
Native  Americans  in  British  Columbia.  ▲  Several  students  in  the  Adult  Degree 
Program  joined  other  MBC  classes  for  study  abroad  during  the  year. 


Summer  Palace,  Bei)ing 


Globetrotting  Professors 

MBC  faculty  ventured  overseas  for  academic  purposes  in  2006-07.  Daniel 
Metraux,  professor  of  Asian  studies,  earned  a  Fulbhght  award  that  will  help 
Mary  Baldwin  College  expand  its  Asian  studies  curriculum  and  course  offer- 
ings to  include  more  study  of  China.  Metraux  traveled  to  several  cities  in 
China,  and,  as  a  result  of  the  trips,  wrote  a  book.  Contemporary  China:  A 
Bnef  Overview,  and  articles  that  appear  in  online  publications.  Metraux  also 
received  the  2006-07  Karl  F.  and  Patricia  H.  Menk  Award  for  Faculty  Support 
and  Development,  which  he  employed  during  his  sabbatical  in  fall  2006  to 
visit  Japan.  He  was  commissioned  to  write  about  the  significance  of  former 
President  Ulysses  S.  Grant's  trip  to  Japan  in  1879,  and  about  Japanese  reli- 
gion for  the  magazine  Education  About  Asia.  Metraux  also  spent  time  in  Thailand,  Cambodia,  Burma,  and 
Laos,  including  visits  to  Phnom  Penh  and  several  Khmer  Rouge  "killing  fields."  ▲  Vladimir  Garfcov,  associate 
professor  of  chemistry  earned  a  Fulbright  award  to  continue  work  on  a  chemistry  textbook,  for  use  by  MBC 
students  and  at  other  institutions,  that  blends  the  American  liberal  arts  approach  to  education  and  the  more 
traditional  and  rigorous  model  used  in  Bulgaria.  A  Use  Keiter-Brotzman,  associate  professor  of  music,  per- 
formed two  piano  concerts  at  the  International  Roussel  Festival  in  France.  A  Sarah  Kennedy,  associate  pro- 
fessor of  English,  gave  a  poetry  reading  at  the  annual  Welsh  Studies  Conference  at  University  of  Wales.  A 
Gordon  Bowen,  professor  of  political  science,  met  with  counter-terrorism  experts  during  a  three-week  trip  to 
Israel  sponsored  by  the  Foundation  for  the  Defense  of  Democracies.  He  invited  several  of  the  people  with 
whom  he  made  connections  to  MBC  for  guest  lectures. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


Connection 


A  Place  to  Call 
Our  Global  Home: 


The  Samuel  R,  Jr.  &  Ava  Spencer  Center 


A  man  who  positioned  Mary  Baldwin  as  a  "college  within  a  community,"  inspired  the  construction 
of  several  major  campus  buildings,  and  nurtured  study  abroad  programs  and  exchanges  in  Spain, 
France,  England,  and  India.  A  woman  who  pursued  advanced  degrees,  delighted  in  international  trav- 
el, and  raised  an  ambitious  family.  An  innovative  campus  center  that  will  advance  and  serve  as  a  major 
resource  for  community  service  learning  and  international  opportunities.  The  Samuel  R.  Jr.  &  Ava 
Spencer  Center  for  Civic  and  Global  Engagement  at  MBC.  Long  envisioned,  soon  a  reality. 

Named  in  the  Spencers'  honor  by  unanimous  vote  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  the  Center  —  to  be 

located  on  a  renovated  ground  floor  of  the  existing  Consuelo  Slaughter  Wenger  Hall  —  is  scheduled  to 

open  in  fall  2007.  Its  creation  will  bring  to  life  MBC's  Quality  Enhancement  Plan,  Learning  for  Civic 

Engagement  in  a  Global  Context,  and  its  location  begins  to  realize  the  vision  detailed  in  the  Campus 

Master  Plan  of  a  central  area  for  student  life. 

Louise  McNamee  '70,  Board  of  Trustees  chair,  said  the  association  of  the  college's  latest 
venture  in  global  civic  engagement  and  the  Spencers  is  a  perfect  fit.  "More  than  any  specific  pro- 
gram or  accomplishment,  their  impact  here  has  always  been  their  outlook  as  educated  people 
i  who  realize  that  the  life  of  the  mind  includes  stepping  outside  academia  to  explore  the  world." 

Designed  around  a  central  circular  theme,  the  Spencer  Center  will  promote  and 
facilitate  study  abroad  as  a  central  location  for  information  for  students  and  faculty. 
Staff  at  Spencer  Center  will  encourage  civic  engagement  by  continuing  positive 
relationships  between  community  agencies  and  the  college,  expanding  service 
projects,  and  coordinating  speakers  and  activities  to  promote  civic  and 
global  engagement.  They  will  also  assist  in  recruitment  and  on-cam- 
pus  support  of  international  students.  ▲ 


Spring  2007 


:^-^=='=^'-"a~v 'a  ~Tp  ENCERCENTER 
SAMUEL  AND  AVA    SFtJNj-^  ^^^ 


The  new  Spencer  Center  is  designed  in  a  concentric  circle  pattern.  "We  hope  it  will  be  a  source  of 
infornnation  and  inspiration  for  all  who  enter,"  said  President  Fox.  Decorative  elements  may  include 
flags  and  artifacts  from  around  the  world  and  photo  testimonials  from  MBC  students.  Top;  Reception 
area.  Above:  Hallway  entrance  to  the  Center.  Left;  Another  view  of  the  reception  area. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


Connecting  with  India: 

Diary  ofMBC's  First  Recruiting  Trip  in  the 
Second  Most  Populous  Country  in  the  World 


Mary  Baldwin  College  intensified 
its  international  recruitment  efforts  this  aca- 
demic year  with  two  recruiting  trips  to  Asia 
—  to  India  and  to  South  Korea.  The  recruit- 
ing plan  for  the  Residential  College  for 
Women  calls  for  increased  numbers  of  inter- 
national students,  who  currently  make  up 
only  two  percent  of  our  students. 
International  perspectives  are  a  significant 
component  of  the  Mary  Baldwin  College 
Advantage,  MBC's  roadmap  for  the  best  in 
21st-century  education. 

Why  focus  on  India  for  a  new  recruiting 
effort?  First,  there  is  a  building  synergy 
between  MBC  and  South  Asia.  In  the  past 
year,  MBC  has  hosted  many  visitors  from 
there,  including  musician  Srinivas  Krishnan, 
former  prime  minister  of  Pakistan  Benazir 
Bhutto,  social  entrepreneur  Venkatesh 
Raghavendra,  Presbyterian  Church  peace 
advocate  Sanjana  Das,  Fulbright  scholar 
Geeti  Sen,  and  several  others. 

Second,  more  and  more  Indians  are 
seeking  educational  opportunities  in  the 
United  States.  Multinational  companies 
operating  in  Asia  seek  educated  employees 
with  multicultural  perspectives  bridging  east 


and  west.  India's  economy  is  one  of  the 
largest  and  fastest  growing  in  the  world. 
The  burgeoning  middle  class  increasingly 
has  the  capacity  to  send  sons  and  daughters 
abroad  for  higher  education.  India's  nation- 
al universities  are  prestigious,  but  offer  few 
openings  in  comparison  to  the  vast  number 
of  academically  qualified  students. 

As  a  college  for  women  located  in  a 
safe  and  small,  but  vibrant,  town  not  far 
from  the  U.S.  capital,  Mary  Baldwin  is  a 
particularly  good  fit  for  young  women 
from  India.  Many  South  Asian  families 
consider  sending  sons  away  to  college,  but 
fewer  are  as  comfortable  sending  their 
daughters  halfway  around  the  world. 
Sonali  Birla  '94,  who  came  to  Mary 
Baldwin  from  Kolcata,  comments,  "An  all- 
women's  college  was  appealing  to  me  and 
my  family.  Since  I  was  going  to  a  college 
so  far  away  from  my  home  in  India,  it  was 
also  important  to  me  to  be  in  a  small  col- 
lege with  a  family  atmosphere.  MBC  was 
truly  a  home  away  from  home.  I  felt  safe, 
welcome,  and  part  of  the  community." 

In  February  2007,  Crista  Cabe,  associ- 
ate vice  president  for  communication. 


Cabe  in  front  of  a  traditionally  painted 
doorway  at  tfie  College  of  Arts  in  Chennai. 

Photo  below:  A  view  of  India's  Kerala  countryside 


marketing,  and  public  affairs,  represented 
Mary  Baldwin  on  a  recruiting  tour  to  India 
organized  by  the  nonprofit  Indus 
Foundation.  She  was  one  of  seven  represen- 
tatives of  U.S.  and  Canadian  colleges  and 
universities  who  visited  schools  and  con- 
ducted recruiting  seminars  in  nine  cities. 
Not  all  the  activities  were  productive  in 
terms  of  recruiting  students,  but  overall  the 
trip  was  successful.  It  is  clear  that  MBC  is  a 
good  fit  for  young  women  from  India,  and 
now  we  better  understand  how  to  shape  a 
successful  recruiting  program  there.  And  a 
number  of  qualified  and  interested  prospec- 
tive students  now  know  about  Mary 
Baldwin. 

What  follows  are  excerpts  from  a  diary 
Cabe  kept  while  traveling  in  India. 


'p'^Mg20iy^ 


3  February,  Saturday: 

Shenandoah  Valley 
My  long  journey  begins  in  Virginia's 
Shenandoah  Valley  with  a  flight  to 
Washington  DC  at  7:30  a.m.  Flights  to 
Amsterdam  in  the  Netherlands,  and  thence 
to  New  Delhi,  India  see  me  safely  on  land 
at  11:30  p.m.,  February  4.  The  air  is  thick 
and  acrid,  making  it  hard  to  breathe  as  I 
follow  the  driver  to  the  car  that  will  take 
me  to  my  hotel. 

5  Febmaty,  Monday:  Delhi 

Met  with  Mr.  Anumolu,  organizer  and  leader 
of  the  recruiting  tour;  then  met  Dr.  Saxena  of 
Lucknow,  founder  of  a  college  of  engineering 
and  technology.  He  also  has  an  environmen- 
tal research  lab  where  he  has  worked  on  sig- 
nificant projects  concerning  drinking  water 
and  finding  nickel  contamination  in  Indian 
chocolates,  which  resulted  in  changed  prac- 
tices in  chocolate  manufacturing  in  India.  I 
see  a  possibility  for  MBC  students  to  work 
with  him  on  service  learning  projects. 

6  Februaty,  Tuesday: 
Delhi  to  Ahmedabad 

Visited  Sri  Venkateswara  College  in  Delhi 
then  headed  to  the  airport  for  a  flight  to 
Ahmedabad,  capital  of  Gujarat.  Here  we 
were  welcomed  by  a  fragrant  carpet  of  rose 
petals,  and  each  of  us  is  handed  a  bouquet  of 
roses  and  daisies.  In  South  Asian  fashion  the 
bouquets  are  not  meant  for  water  but  are 
arranged  flat  on  paper  with  a  clear  cover  sta- 
pled on.  Our  hotel  is  quite  comfortable  and 


overlooks  the  Sabarmati  River.  Across  the 
street  is  an  ancient  wall,  part  of  the  fortifica- 
tions that  once  guarded  this  city. 

7  Februaty,  Wednesday:  Gujarat 
Through  the  Gujarat  countryside  to  the 
town  of  Kadi  to  visit  the  campus  of  the 
Sarva  Vidyalaya  group  of  colleges.  The 
economy  of  this  western  Indian  state  is  driv- 
en by  agriculture,  I  am  told,  and  many  fami- 
lies have  translated  wealth  from  farming  and 
trading  into  a  U.S.  education  for  sons  and 
daughters.  Camels,  tractors,  elephants,  and 
even  hand  trucks  are  on  the  roads  hauling 
loads.  The  impression  is  of  dust,  color, 
human  activity.  It's  hot  and  dry,  but  the  col- 
lege campus  offers  a  quiet  green  oasis.  We 
were  received  as  honored  guests  with  tea 
and  an  audience  with  the  80-year-old  fire- 
cracker of  a  director.  We  [the  six  college  rep- 
resentatives on  the  tour]  jointly  presented  a 
seminar  to  a  packed  room.  After  more  tea 
(chai  masala!  magnificent!),  we  spoke  with 
individual  students.  Some  secondary-level 
students  came  and  a  few  were  interested  in 
MBC  {especially  one  young  woman  whose 
brother  did  most  of  the  talking). 

Later,  back  in  Ahmedabad,  we  had 
pre-set  interviews  arranged  by  a  local 
organization.  I  spoke  with  a  couple  of 
good  prospects  for  our  Health  Care 
Administration  program.  One  of  them 
applied  on  the  spot.  She  is  an  impressive 
young  woman  who  would  do  well  at 
MBC.  Also  one  nice  young  man  who  is 
interested  in  our  Masters  of  Arts  in 
Teaching  program. 


Today  we  learned  that  a  shutdown 
strike  (bandh)  has  been  called  for  Bangalore 
on  the  date  we  are  scheduled  to  be  there. 
Our  travel  plans  will  need  to  be  adjusted. 

8  February,  Thursday: 
To  Mumbai 

Before  heading  to  the  airport,  we  visit 
Gandhi's  ashram,  now  essentially  a  muse- 
um open  to  the  public.  It  is  quiet  and 
serene  and  overlooks  the  river.  Gandhi 
began  his  famous  march  to  the  ocean  to 
make  salt  here  in  Ahmedabad. 

Midday  we  flew  to  Mumbai,  home  to 
the  Bollywood  film  industry  and  about  13 
million  people;  traffic  from  airport  is  the 
worst  yet.  Passed  through  the  stone  mar- 
ket district,  with  shop  after  shop  full  of 
big  sheets  of  marble  and  granite.  Lots  of 
three-wheelers  [auto  rickshaws]  in  streets. 
Our  hotel  is  on  Juhu  Beach.  The  breeze 
off  the  water  kept  temperature  comfort- 
able, bugs  minimal,  air  fresher  than 
inland,  and  noise  lower. 

9  Februaiy,  Fnday:  Mumbai 

We  visited  the  Haji  Ali  Mosque  —  set  out 
in  the  sea  and  accessed  on  foot  by  a  long 
causeway.  Looks  great  from  a  distance, 
but  the  low  tide  exposes  trash  everywhere 
on  the  flats.  Up  close,  it  is  clear  the 
mosque  is  crumbling.  We  went  on  to  a 
contemporary  art  exhibit  as  well  as  a 
museum  where  we  saw  ancient  Hindu 
carvings,  miniature  paintings,  metal  and 
tile  work,  and  the  like.  Our  first  real  busi- 
ness of  the  day  was  a  visit  to  the  HR 


College  of  Commerce  and  Economics.  The 
people  and  programs  are  impressive,  but 
there  are  no  prospective  students  for  MBC 
here.  They  do  have  a  program  offered  to 
educational  groups  (teachers  and  students) 
called  Discover  India,  which  may  have 
potential  as  a  May  Term  offering  at  MBC. 

10  Febfnaty,  Saturday:  Kochi 
Arrived  Kochi,  on  the  southern  coast,  where 
the  air  is  thick  with  humidity  and  heat, 
rather  than  smoke  from  innumerable  cook- 
ing fires  and  vehicle  exhaust.  Everything 
looks  lush  and  green.  We  boarded  vans 
which  took  us  up,  up,  up  winding  roads 
without  guardrails,  past  banana,  coconut, 
other  palms,  betel  nut  and  other  crops,  and 
rubber  trees  with  taps  and  buckets  to  catch 
the  sap.  Arrived  at  publicly  owned 
Athirappilly  Falls  —  big,  wide  river,  expan- 
sive rocks,  impressive  falls.  We  took  short 
hike  up  and  down  hills  through  deciduous 
and  bamboo  forest.  Saw  monkeys  as  well  as 
some  lovely  birds  that  made  me  glad  I 
brought  binoculars:  Scarlet  Minivet,  Black- 
Naped  Oriole,  and  Greater  Racket-Tailed 
Drongo,  among  others. 

1 1  February,  Sunday:  Kochi 

On  this  Sunday  morning,  we  were  driven 
to  the  hotel  where  we  would  hold  our  sem- 
inar and  interviews.  As  we  neared  the  city 
center  we  saw  hundreds  of  people  outside  a 
large  building.  Alex  [Ephram,  representing 
Monroe  College  on  this  recruiting  trip], 
ever  the  joker,  said:  "Look!  They  are  all 
waiting  for  us!"  We  laughed  until  we  saw  a 
banner  reading: 

USA  AND  CANADA 

Education  Fair  2007 

First  Time  in  Kerala 
The  crowd  ivas  for  us.  The  room  held  300 
chairs.  All  filled.  Another  300  or  so  people 
crowded  the  back  and  sides  of  the  room. 
After  our  presentations,  we  had  small  group 
and  individual  conversations.  I  have  contact 
information  for  more  than  30  prospective 
students.  A  good  day. 

12  Febniaiy,  Monday:  Bangalore 
Last  night  our  flight  was  delayed  so  we 
didn't  get  to  our  Bangalore  hotel  until  nearly 
midnight.  I  slept  in  knowing  that  our  sched- 
uled recruiting  seminar  had  been  cancelled 
due  to  the  bandh  we  heard  about  several 
days  ago.  Streets  seemed  quiet  and  peaceful. 
Just  a  few  vehicles.  I  enjoyed  a  telephone 
conversation  with  Mr.  Bagri,  father  of  MBC 
alumna  Sonali  Birla  '94,  who  called  from 
Kolcata  to  arrange  for  delivery  of  some 
scarves  that  I  have  agreed  to  bring  back  for 
the  Alumnae/i  Gift  Shop.  We  ate  a  late  lunch 


"They  really  were  waiting  for  us,"  said  Cabe  at  a  recruiting  stop  in  Kochi  with  300  seated  and  another  300  standing.  While 
most  attendees  were  young  men,  Cabe  met  with  30  young  women  interested  in  hearing  about  Mary  Baldwin  College. 


at  the  hotel  in  a  guest  room  so  the  hotel 
wouldn't  be  stoned  by  demonstrators  for 
opening  their  restaurant  during  the  bandh.  I 
spoke  with  Sathish  Patakota  (a  business 
executive,  as  well  as  musician  who  played  in 
President  Fox's  presidential  inauguration 
concert).  He  promised  to  deliver  our  infor- 
mation materials  to  his  son's  school,  to 
another  international  school,  and  to  some 
families  with  daughters  who  might  be  inter- 
ested in  attending  MBC. 

That  evening  [the  bandh  was  over  at  6 
p.m.].  Dr.  Pratima  Krishnan  and  her  daugh- 
ter Krittika  (14  years  old)  took  me  to  the 
Bangalore  Club  —  a  grand  building  and 
grounds  dating  from  the  British  Raj.  We  sit 
outside  for  a  while  before  dinner,  as  the 
weather  is  pleasant  —  cooler  and  drier  here 
on  the  Mysore  Plateau,  at  an  elevation  of 
over  3,000  feet.  Dr.  Krishnan  says  most  fam- 
ilies she  knows  devote  the  largest  part  of 
their  budgets  to  education  of  their  children. 
She  is  convinced  that  college  education  in 
the  United  States  is  vital  for  her  children, 
and  maybe  even  boarding  school  before  that 
(or  our  Program  for  the  Exceptionally 
Gifted).  She's  read  research  about  single-sex 
education  and  remains  struck  by  it  —  as  a 
woman  in  business  in  India,  she  sees  that 
women  need  all  the  prep  they  can  get  to 
truly  succeed. 

13  Februaiy,  Tuesday: 
Bangalore  to  Kanyakumari 
Back  to  tropical  heat  and  humidity  when  we 
landed  in  Trivandrum!  (Many  cities  in 
India  are  no  longer  using  the  Anglicized 
versions  of  their  names  used  by  the  British 
—  Kolcata  rather  than  Calcutta,  Mumbai 
rather  than  Bombay,  Chennai  rather  than 
Madras.  But  the  official  Indian  name  of 


this  city  —  Thiruvananthapuram  —  does- 
n't roll  off  our  American  tongues  so  easi- 
ly.) As  in  so  many  other  places,  our  local 
liaisons  presented  us  with  garlands  of  fra- 
grant flowers. 

Our  van  ride  to  Kanyakumari  took 
three  hours.  We  see  many  women  wearing 
elaborate  decorations  of  white  jasmine  in 
their  hair  —  even  schoolgirls  walking 
down  the  streets  in  their  uniforms.  More 
churches  here,  which  makes  sense  given 
the  higher  proportion  of  Christians  in  the 
population.  Houses  have  red  tile  roofs. 
Finally  the  view  from  the  road,  which  has 
taken  us  through  town  after  town  that  all 
seem  to  run  together,  opens  up  to  show 
the  countryside  of  Kerala,  which  is  lush 
green  fields,  banana  trees,  palms  on  a  flat 
green  plain  with  rocky  mountains  rising 
straight  up  in  the  distance.  I  see  egrets, 
kingfishers,  drongos,  ibis,  the  occasional 
bee-eater  —  abundant  birds  and  wildlife. 

We  reach  Kanyakumari  (southern- 
most point  of  Indian  subcontinent)  and 
are  greeted  ceremonially  at  the  hotel:  a 
burning  oil  lamp  on  a  tray  was  held  by  a 
beautiful  young  woman  in  a  green  sari; 
another  draped  a  garland  made  of  sea 
shells  over  our  shoulders.  And  then  we 
received  arathic,  the  greeting/blessing 
marked  with  a  dab  of  wet  manjal  pigment 
(an  ochre  color)  followed  by  dry  kungu- 
man  (crimson)  between  the  eyebrows.  In 
the  late  afternoon  we  visited  an  old  fort 
constructed  by  the  Portuguese.  From  there 
we  could  see  a  vast  wind  farm  to  the 
northeast,  beautiful  green  paddies  and 
mountains  to  the  north,  and  the  ocean  to 
the  south.  That  evening  we  eat  prawn  and 
vegetable  pakoras  with  spicy  tomato  sauce 
and  peppery  vinegar. 


Spring  2007 


14  February,  Wednesday: 
To  Tininelveli 

Valentine's  Day.  Two-hour  van  ride  to 
Tirunelveli  in  the  state  of  Tamil  Nadu, 
through  beautiful  country,  shows  that  the 
wind  farm  we  saw  yesterday  stretches  for  20 
km  or  more  along  the  coast.  At  Francis 
Xavier  Engineering  College  the  assembly 
begins  with  an  opening  prayer:  a  Christian 
hymn  sung  by  a  group  of  girls  accompanied 
by  boom  box.  Each  recruiter  gives  her/his 
spiel.  No  high  schoolers  or  students  from 
other  colleges  here.  My  one  good  interview 
is  with  a  woman  named  Indra  who  inquires 
on  behalf  of  her  daughter.  We  discover  that 
the  EX  director  is  a  boyhood  friend  of 
Alex's,  who  is  originally  from  Chennai. 
Instead  of  a  quick  lunch  at  the  school,  we 
are  invited  to  the  director's  house  for  a  veri- 
table feast. 

15  February,  Thursday: 
Kanyakumari  to  Trivandrum 
to  Chennai 

In  Chennai,  went  straight  from  the  airport 
to  St.  John's  International  School.  We  pre- 
sented our  information  to  assembled  stu- 
dents —  boys  on  one  side  of  the  room,  girls 
on  the  other.  I  spoke  with  all  the  girls  as  a 
group,  then  with  a  smaller  and  more  inter- 
ested contingent.  The  girls  were  from  India, 
Sri  Lanka,  and  the  Middle  East,  and  most 
were  in  standards  [grades]  9-11.  One  asked 
how  often  our  students  were  allowed  to 
leave  campus.  When  I  explained  the  level  of 
freedom  given  to  students  in  the  United 
States  and  at  MBC,  they  were  amazed. 

16  February,  Friday:  Chennai 

Spent  the  day  with  Srini  [Srinivas  Krishnan], 
a  great  fan  of  President  Fox  and  MBC.  We 
visited  two  high  schools  and  left  packets  of 
Mary  Baldwin  materials.  Srini  takes  me  to 
see  the  College  of  the  Arts,  where  students 
learn  traditional  music,  dance,  and  other 
performance  arts.  The  campus  is  green  and 
lovely  and  serene.  There's  a  huge  banyan 
tree  under  which  meditation  is  held  each 
morning.  Lunch  with  Srini  and  his  wife 
Pratima  at  their  home  hits  the  spot;  curd 
(yogurt),  a  staple  in  South  India,  mixed  into 
rice  with  the  curries,  vegetables,  and  pickle. 
Three  of  Srini's  students  spent  the  evening 
with  me.  Prashant,  a  young  man,  had  lots 
of  practical  questions  about  life  in  America, 
from  racism  to  climate  to  how  gas  stations 
work.  They  took  me  to  the  beach  for  a 
walk;  many  citizens  of  Chennai  are  out 
walking  and  visiting  here  on  this  Friday 
night.  We  stopped  at  a  small  stand  right  on 
the  sand  for  deep-fried  veggie  snacks. 


cooked  as  we  watched.  The  two  young 
women,  Sunaina  and  Vibha,  are  impressed 
that  I  eat  spicy  hot  foods  without  flinching. 
On  the  way  out,  they  show  me  how  far  the 
2004  tsunami  pushed  inland,  and  where 
buildings  were  destroyed. 

1 7  Februaty,  Saturday:  Hyderabad 
Like  Bangalore,  Hyderabad  is  at  a  higher 
elevation,  and  the  weather  is  quite  com- 
fortable. Today's  public  seminar  attracted 
mostly  students  who  want  graduate  pro- 
grams we  do  not  offer,  so  I  took  the  oppor- 
tunity to  talk  with  local  agents  about  the 
benefits  of  a  women's  college  and  why  it 
would  appeal  to  Indian  families. 

1 8  February,  Sunday: 
Hyderabad  to  Vijayatvada 

We  have  not  been  approached  much  by 
beggars  on  this  trip,  although  there  have 
certainly  been  a  few  —  a  little  girl  doing 
cartwheels  for  Mark  in  Kanyakumari,  some 
young  mothers  with  babies  on  the  beach  in 
Mumbai  —  but  here  in  Vijayawada  they 
latch  on  to  us  as  we  walk  through  a  market 


district.  The  evening  recruiting  session  pro- 
duces only  one  prospective  student  for 
MBC.  But  there  was  also  a  press  conference 
that  attracted  reporters  from  the  major 
newspapers.  I  hope  there  will  be  coverage  of 


19  February,  Monday 

A  promised  visit  to  an  international  high 
school  does  not  materialize,  so  I  hire  a  car 
to  take  me  to  the  Kanaka  Durga  Temple, 
where  I  am  welcomed  graciously.  The  tem- 
ple is  built  into  the  side  of  a  mountain  over- 
looking the  river  Krishna.  Here  I  receive 
many  blessings  —  the  by-now-familiar 
ochre  and  vermillion  forehead  blessing, 
flower  petals  and  rice  grains  on  my  head, 
and  a  small  gift  of  food  from  each  priest. 
For  my  part,  I  ceremonially  give  50  (and 
once,  when  I  ran  out  of  smaller  bills,  100) 
rupees  to  each  priest  ($1  =  42.3  Rupees). 
And  then  it  was  time  for  the  long  journey 
home:  fly  to  Hyderabad,  then  to  Delhi. 
After  midnight,  board  the  flight  to 
Amsterdam,  and  then  on  to  Dulles.  The  last 
flight  takes  me  to  the  Shenandoah  Valley 
Airport.  I  am  home.  A 


A  chance  meeting  with  a  group  of  school  girls  gave  Cabe  a  chance  to  mingle  and  share  ( 
St.  John's  International  School  and  the  College  of  the  Arts  in  Chennai.  India. 


II.  She  also  visited 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


MBCArts::FineArts 


Firearms 
^Firestone: 

INAUGU  RAL    LECTU  RE 


Margaret  Evangeline 


By  Dawn  Medley 

Mary  Baldwin  College  was 
honored  to  present  an 
exhibition  by  artist  Susan 
Paul  Firestone  '68  featuring  paint- 
ings, sculptures,  and  her  trademark 
neon  light  creations  in  February 
2006.  Only  a  few  months  later,  a 
donation  was  made  in  Firestone's 
honor  by  Ray  Graham  III,  to  fund 
an  annual  visiting  artist.  The  art 
department  selected  Margaret 
Evangeline,  a  female  artist  with  cut- 
ting-edge style  that  echoes 
Firestone's  refreshing  experimenta- 
tion, as  the  first  Susan  Paul  Firestone 
Lecturer  in  Contemporary  Art. 
Evangeline's  visit  in  November  2006 
was  highlighted  by  a  public  lecture, 
"Prodigal  Daughter,"  and  several 
classroom  sessions  with  students. 

THE  VISITING  ARTIST: 
EVANGELINE 

"My  grandfather  taught  me  how  to 
shoot  on  his  farm  in  Ville  Plat, 
Louisiana.  Much  later  when  I  found 
myself  in  New  Mexico 
with  all  the  open  space 
—  in  contrast  with  my 
New  York  Studio  —  I 
thought  it  was  the  per- 
fect place  to  try  some- 
thing new,"  said 
Margaret  Evangeline. 
Her  current  projects  are 
explosive.  Literally.  She 
transforms  gunshots 
(and  nail  holes,  punc- 
tures made  by  stiletto 
heels,  and  other  perforations) 
through  sheets  of  metal  into  pieces 
that  provoke  conversation. 


In  her  words:  "There  has  been  a  pro- 
gression to  my  art,  in  my  mind,  and 
through  each  step  I  understand  more 
about  why  I  am  doing  what  I  do.  I 
started  with  figurative  work,  portraits 
in  pencil  and  the  like,  in  graduate 
school.  I  moved  toward  abstraction, 
then  back  to  figures  and  still  lifes  from 
namre  and  my  garden.  Gradually,  I 
became  enamored  with  space  and 
emptiness  —  or  what  we  perceive  to 
be  emptiness  —  around  tilings.  At  the 
time  I  was  reading  a  lot  about  Zen 
practices  and  Native  American  ideas, 
which  supported  the  concepts  I  was 
exploring  in  my  art. 

After  September  1 1,  2001, 1  went 
with  a  group  of  New  York  artists  to  a 
retreat  at  Santa  Fe  Arts  Institute  to 
internalize  and  express  everything  that 
had  happened  in  the  city  we  cher- 
ished. That's  when  I  started  to  work 
with  firearms.  I  didn't  look  at  it  as 
an  expression  of  violence,  but  as  a 
way  to  create  distortion  and  find 
beauty  and  meaning  in  an  explosion. 
I'd  been  working  in  metal  in  my  stu- 
dio [in  Chelsea  in  New  York  City]  and 
it  seemed  like  a  natural  step.  It  really 
wasn't  until  the  day  after  I  did  the 
shooting  when  I  realized  I  had  been 
through  something.  I  was  on  the  other 
side  of  a  moment  in  life.  Later,  after 
Hurricane  Katrina,  it  translated  into 
pacing  in  stilettos  on  a  metal  sheet  to 
s)'mbolize  frustration. 

I  don't  have  a  political  agenda, 
but  when  you're  shooting  things  and 
creating  art  from  it,  it's  difficult  to 
avoid  political  implications.  Anti-gun 
groups  in  New  York  City  have 
opposed  my  work  and  my  shows 
because  they  view  it  as  a  pro-gun 


statement.  To  other  people,  it  appears 
to  be  a  statement  against  the  use  of 
guns,  but  that's  not  my  point,  either. 
The  best  reaction  I  heard  was  from  a 
70-year-old  woman  who  had  a  piece 
installed  in  her  gorgeous  New  York 
townhouse.  It  was  hung  over  hand- 
painted  Chinese  wallpaper  that  could 
be  seen  through  the  piece.  'Every  time 
I  look  at  it,  it  makes  me  feel  strong,' 
she  told  me." 

THE  DONOR: 
GRAHAM 

Ray  Graham  III  of  New  Mexico  gen- 
erously supports  arts  events,  collec- 
tions, and  publications  around  the 
country,  including  several  in  Virginia. 
"Gifts  from  alumnae  and  friends  of 
the  college  are  essential  to  progres- 
sive and  substantial  programming  at 
Mary  Baldwin,"  said  Paul  Ryan, 
MBC  professor  of  art.  "Programs 
like  the  Firestone  lecture  not  only 
benefit  students  and  the  greater  col- 
lege and  city  communities,  but  they 
also  raise  the  academic  and  cultural 
profile  of  MBC." 

In  his  words:  "I  met  Paul  Ryan  and 
began  my  association  with  the  arts  at 
Mary  Baldwin  College  about  a  decade 
ago,  when  I  visited  campus  for  a  lecture 
given  by  Leon  Golub,  a  modem  painter 
known  for  his  images  of  public  figures. 
Susan  Firestone  is  a  longtime  friend 
who  has  often  mentioned  how  influen- 
tial her  professors  and  experience  at 
Mary  Baldwin  were  to  her  later  work. 
When  she  gave  her  recent  show  in 
2006  at  the  college,  I  had  the  won- 
derful opportunity  to  meet  President 


Spring  2007 


-?M!Msmis:^mi^m38^s:z 


Louisiana-born  artist 
Margaret  Evangeline  pro- 
duced a  series  of  worlds,  like 
the  one  pictured  here  {at  left 
and  as  background  on  these 
two  pages),  using  gunshots 
to  pierce  steel  and  aluminum 
and  then  coloring  the  metal 
with  various  techniques. 


Pamela  Fox  and  hear  about  her 
strong  commitment  to  the  arts.  I  also 
talked  again  with  Professor  Ryan 
about  the  absence  of  funding  to  sus- 
tain a  visiting  lecturer  in  art,  and  all 
the  pieces  felt  like  they  clicked. 

"My  hope  is  that  my  donation 
for  the  Susan  Paul  Firestone  Visiting 
Artist  in  Contemporary  Art  at  MBC 
will  honor  Susan's  positive  experi- 
ence at  the  college  and  encourage 
others  to  support  and  fund  arts  at 
the  college."  And  so  it  has  ... 

Evelyn  "Kate"  Mills  Lrby  '93 
and  her  husband,  Charles,  have  now 
provided  support  to  sustain  the  lec- 
ture series  for  two  additional  years, 
lrby  was  an  art  major  while  at  MBC 
and  works  as  an  exhibiting  artist  tn 
Jackson,  Mississippi. 

THE  NAMESAKE: 
FIRESTONE 

"Honestly,  I  think  art  and  psycholo- 
gy were  always  subconsciously  con- 
nected for  me,"  said  Firestone,  who 
holds  a  bachelor's  degree  in  psychol- 


ogy from  MBC,  a  master  of  fine  arts 
in  painting  from  American 
University,  and  a  masters  in  art  ther- 
apy from  New  York  University. 

In  her  words:  "While  I  was  working 
on  my  thesis  at  NYU  on  post-trau- 
matic stress  disorder,  a  concrete  syn- 
thesis emerged  in  the  face  of  pro- 
found tragedy.  I  was  doing  an  intern- 
ship with  girls  at  risk,  and  another  at 
Metropolitan  Fiospital,  when  the 
attacks  on  the  World  Trade  Center 
shook  the  world.  Stunned  —  and  a 
witness  to  the  events  —  I  completed 
my  work  and  graduated,  but  felt 
compelled  to  offer  my  skills  and 
knowledge  to  the  city  in  its  crisis. 
In  2002, 1  volunteered  at  St. 
Vincent's  Hospital,  helping  high 
school  students  at  Ground  Zero  try 
to  process  the  events  using  art  thera- 
py. I  was  involved  in  several  pro- 
grams connected  with  recovery 
efforts,  including  FEMA's  Project 
Liberty  and  Mayor  Bloomberg's  art 
therapy  initiative  for  widows  and 
families.  I  am  working  on  two  grants 


through  the  Red  Cross  School 
Recovery  Program  to  benefit  children 
in  schools  around  Groimd 
Zero.  It  is  intensely 
rewarding.  I  would  not 
have  imagined  that  my 
training  in  psychology  and 
my  passion  for  art  would 
be  combined  in  such  a  dra- 
matic way  and  under  these 
circumstances. 

Art  therapy  works 
with  traumatic  experiences 
where  they  are  encoded  in 
the  brain  on  the  right  side 
—  the  image  side.  Images 
and  trauma  may  not  be  accessible  by 
words.  Verbal  therapy  may  be  help- 
ful, but  words  come  from  the  left 
side  of  the  brain,  which  deals  with 
the  literal,  analytical,  and  numerical, 
not  the  emotional.  Because  art  is 
process-oriented,  it  can  reach  the 
areas  of  trauma.  It  is  therapeutic, 
and  has  always  been  used  by  civiliza- 
tions to  record,  document,  and  pre- 
serve beliefs,  fears,  values,  and  hopes 
for  the  future."  A 


Susan  Paul  Firestone 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


MBCArts::Theatre 


An  American  Theatre  First 

Lajolie  Parfumeuse  Becomes 
The  Pretty  Perfume  Maker 

By  Carol  Larson 


■*      production  of  The  Pretty 
'    Perfimie  Maker  at  Mary 

Baldwin  College  presented 

early  in  spring  semester  was  likely  the 


opei-etta  Lj  Jolie  Pcirfiinieiise  in 
English  in  the  United  States.  Written 
in  just  seven  weeks  in  1873  by  libret- 
tists Hector  Cremieux  and  Ernest 
Blum,  and  set  to  music  by  Jacques 
Offenbach,  the  original  French  version 
toured  briefly  in  America  in  1879. 
How  did  it  come  to  be  translated  into 
English  now?  At  Marv  Baldwin 
College? 

A  year  before  the  operetta's 
debut  at  MBC,  Virginia  Royster 
Francisco  '64,  professor  of  theatre, 
attended  a  concert  by  Waynesboro's 
Schola  Cantorum,  which  included  a 
performance  oiThe  Neighbors 
Chorus  from  La  Jolie  Parfumeuse.  She 
was  delighted  by  the  music  and  then 
curious  about  the  operetta  it  sprang 
from.  Mary  Baldwin  College  Theatre 
presents  at  least  one  musical  each  \-car 
(in  an  especially  ambitious,  small  coi- 


tions), and  Francisco  knew  si" 


jreat  sina,ers  withm 


one  of  Offenbach's  90-plus  operettas 
during  Francisco's  36  years  as  a  facul 
ty  member,  nor  during  her  years  as  a 
student  here. 


Louis  Dolive,  a  member  of  Schola 
Cantorum:  What  was  the  full  operetta 
like?  Where  was  the  English  transla- 


month's  research  brought  Dolive  to 
the  preliminary  conclusion  there  was 
no  English  translation.  If  she  wanted 
to  do  La  jolie  Parfumeuse,  it  would 
need  to  be  in  French  ...  or  it  would 
have  to  be  translated.  Confinement 
due  to  illness  during  summer  and  fall 
was  unwelcome,  but  it  did  offer 
Francisco  time  to  work  on  an  English 
translation  of  the  play  and  the  225- 


Ibng  tradition  of  niusic  theatre  sch.c 
arship,  but  had  not  presented  even 


would  need  help  if  she  was  going  to 
be  ready  to  stage  the  operetta  in  aca- 
demic year  2006-07. 

Francisco  enlisted  Leslie  Rueff  '04, 
who  had  been  music  director  of  four 
of  the  college's  recent  productions,  to 
assist  with  translation  and  settings  of 
the  songs.  Dolive,  a  well-known 
restorer  of  antique  keyboards  and  co- 
cdiroi'of  two  \()lumes  of  troubadour 
and  rrcunere  songs,  made  the  final 
musical  arrangements.  The  team 
was  completed,  bv  retired  associate 


conductor  of  the  Metropolitan  Opera, 
Susan  Webb,  who  volunteered  a  literal 
translation  of  the  first  two  acts  of  the 
operetta.  Francisco  translated  the 
third  act  and  most  of  the  songs,  aided 
by  Rueff  and  Dolive,  and  made  the 
final  stage  edition.  The  biggest  chal- 
lenge of  the  translation  work?  The 
songs,  since  the  word  rhythms  of 
English  had  to  work  in  music  written 
for  French.  Typically,  said  Francisco,  it 
took  her  one  long  day  to  complete  the 
translation  and  preliminary  setting  of 
one  of  the  briefer  songs.  Then  Dolive 
spent  another  day  or  two  refining  the 
work  and  arranging  parts. 

Francisco  directed  the  Mary 
Baldwin  College  production  of  The 
Pretty  Perfume  Maker  and  Rueff  was 
music  director.  One  of  the  great 
appeals  of  the  play  foi-  the  translation 
team  was  that  the  cast  requires  six 
strong  female  leads  (a  good  thing  for  a 
residential  women's  college). 
Offenbach  even  wrote  the  leading 
male  role  for  a  woman  —  not  uncom- 
mon in  his  time. 

True  to  the  musical  format  he 
made  an  art  form,  Offenbach  created 
this  operetta  around  charming  chaos 
and  confusion  set  in  Paris  (envision  an 


Photo,  above:  The  grooh 


Spring  2007 


f' 


double-crossing  godfather,  a  gullible  hus- 
band, and  two  other  pairs  of  lovers. 

Premieriiig  February  9,  2007,  the 
English  translation  was  deemed  a  success 
by  those  qualified  to  review  theatre  per- 
formance, by  audiences  made  up  of  citi- 
zens in  the  area  and  by  members  of  the 
college  community.  "Audiences  were  very 
warm  and  responsive  with  laughter  and 
applause,"  said  Francisco. 

The  future  of  the  first-ever  transla- 
tion has  begun  with  the  team  of  transla- 
tors back  at  work  completing  the  transla- 
tion of  parts  they  cut  during  rehearsals 
for  the  Mary  Baldwin  production  and 
polishing  other  sections  based  on  their 
notes  once  they  had  seen  the  operetta 


copyright  the  finished  translation  and 
make  it  available  to  other  theatres  and 
music  organizations. 

All  told,  this  project  took  more  than  a 
year  to  realize.  "From  my  perspective,  it  is 
very  exciting  for  a  scholar  to  do  scholarly 
work,  and  this  work  resulted  in  the  rebirth 
of  a  neglected  gem,"  Francisco  said.  ▲ 


For  information  about  using  the  English 
version  of  La  Jolie  Parfitmeuse,  contact: 
Virginia  Francisco,  professor  of  theatre, 
Mary  Baldwin  College,  Staunton,  VA 
2440 1  iifrancis@mhc.edii 


Tianslation  team  (/  to ;):  Les 
Not  pictured:  Susan  Webb. 


V 


cSL^ 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


SCHOLARSHIPS 

Personalizing  Education,  Transforming  Lives 

By  Dawn  Medley 

Charles  and  Mickey  Shuford  and  David  and  Mary  Carter  did  it  to  memorialize  the  daughters  who  learned  life  lessons 
at  Mary  Baldwin  College  but  were  gone  before  they  could  realize  the  full  potential  of  that  education.  Gail  McMichael 
Drew  '65  did  it  because  she  understands  the  power  of  a  college's  endowment.  Patricia  Hines  Phoenix  '77  wanted  to 
encourage  interest  in  a  new  major  close  to  her  heart. 

Their  paths  were  different,  but  their  goals  —  and  those  of  others  who  contribute  to  student  scholarships  at  MBC 
—  are  the  same:  to  shape  the  student  experience  in  a  meaningful  way  and  support  the  college.  Setting  up  or  contribut- 
ing to  a  student  scholarship  is  one  of  the  most  tangible,  and  personal  ways  to  assure  the  college's  financial  health. 
Handshakes  and  smiles  are  shared  over  lunch  meetings  between  donors  and  students.  Handwritten  letters  of  thanks 
arrive  in  the  mail.  An  investment  is  made  not  only  in  MBC,  but  in  an  individual  who  acquires  knowledge,  develops 
personality,  accepts  challenges,  and  then  faces  the  world. 

Detailed  here  are  a  few  stories  of  those  who  have  made  student  scholarship  a  priority  in  their  generosity  to 
Mary  Baldwin  College  and  some  of  the  students  they  have  touched. 

Shuford  Scholarship 
Honors  a 
Beloved  Daughter 

"The  best  way  I  can  say  it  is  that  Mary 
Baldwin  College  was  a  turning  point  in 
Mary's  life,"  said  Mickey  Shuford 
about  the  daughter  she  and  her  hus- 
band, Charles,  lost  suddenly  in  1989. 
"After  she  entered  college,  we  quickly 
sensed  growing  maturity  in  her  letters 
and  conversations." 

Mary  Kathleen  Shuford  '83  rel- 
ished every  moment  of  her  life  and  time 
at  MBC  —  she  was  particularly  fond  of 
the  social  aspects,  where  she  developed 
a  sense  of  community,  her  parents  said. 
When  her  lively  existence  was  cut  short 
by  a  plane  crash  in  Peru  just  a  few 
years  after  graduation,  her  family 
found  some  reprieve  from  their  grief  by 
establishing  an  endowed  scholarship 
fund  in  her  name  at  MBC,  the  college 
they  credit  with  opening  the  world  for 
Mary.  "She  took  advantage  of  just 
about  every  study  abroad  opportunity 
while  she  was  there  ...  Austria, 
England,  and  Doshisha  Women's 
College  in  Japan,"  Mickey  Shuford 
explained.  Dozens  and  dozens  of 
friends  and  extended  family  members 
contributed  to  the  memorial  fund  at  its 
outset  —  and  many  continue  their  sup- 
port. It  is  a  crucial  way  to  keep  Mary's 
memory  alive  at  the  college. 


Mary  K,  Shuford  Memorial  Scholarship  recipients  Laura  Dean  '09  and  Emily  Hunt  '08  (in  the  middle), 
pose  v\/ith  benefactors  Charles  and  Mickey  Shuford,  who  delight  in  meeting  the  recipients  of  the 
endowed  scholarship  named  in  memory  of  their  daughter. 


Each  spring  for  nearly  17  years, 
the  Shufords  have  visited  campus  to 
meet  the  scholarship  recipients,  who 
are  chosen  annually.  "It  is  gratifying 
when  we  meet  these  young  women  and 
hear  their  enthusiasm  for  the  Mary 
Baldwin  experience,"  Mickey  Shuford 
said.  They  set  up  a  few  criteria  for  the 
award,  such  as  preference  for  students 
from  North  Carolina  with  high  aca- 
demic standing,  but  they  remain  flexi- 
ble to  ensure  that  the  college  can  allo- 
cate the  funds  to  students  with  finan- 
cial need  as  well.  Those  recipients  are 
the  Shufords'  continuing  link  to  news 
and  events  at  MBC.  They  are  a  lifeline 
that  evokes,  although  it  cannot  replace, 
the  experience  Mary  enjoyed  so  much. 

Emily  Hunt,  a  junior  in  the 


Program  for  the  Exceptionally  Gifted 
and  one  of  two  2006-07  awardees,  said 
the  Shufords'  personal  touch  gave  the 
gift  a  face,  a  personality.  "It's  one  thing 
to  know  that  somebody  donated  money 
to  the  college  and  it  benefits  you,  but 
it's  another  thing  entirely  to  meet  them 
and  have  them  listen  to  your  story  and 
journey  at  Mary  Baldwin.  It  demon- 
strates how  invested  they  are  in  your 
education  and  life,"  said  Hunt,  who 
also  received  the  award  in  2005-06.  She 
added  that  she  is  honored  to  be  the  link 
to  a  former  student,  and  that  receiving 
a  scholarship  as  a  student  could  influ- 
ence her  to  give  back  to  the  college  in  a 
similar  way. 

The  Shufords  have  sought  other 
ways  to  keep  up-to-date  with  the  college 


Spring  2007 


and  preserve  Mary's  memory.  Charles 
Shuford  served  two  terms  on  the  Board  of 
Trustees  and  their  son,  Hunt  Shuford,  is  a 
current  trustee.  Mary  Shuford's  parents 
have  also  set  up  a  planned  giving  fund  to 
benefit  the  college.  In  1989,  Charles  and 
Mickey  Shuford  accepted  the  Emily 
Wirsing  Kelly  Award  posthumously  for 
their  daughter's  service  and  leadership  — 
including  her  work  with  the  MBC 
Alumnae/i  Association  chapters  in  Atlanta 
and  New  York  City  —  another  testament 
to  her  legacy  at  MBC. 

"Mary  Baldwin  awakened  Mary 
to  the  world,  and  to  her  own  poten- 
tial," Mickey  Shuford  said.  "We're 
delighted  when  we  see  that  her  schol- 
arship helps  that  light  come  on  for 
other  students,  too." 

Drew's  Gift  to  Encourage 
Others  to  Give 

Gail  McMichael  Drew  '65  has  yet  to  meet 
the  recipient  of  her  recently  established 
endowed  scholarship.  Actually,  the  award 
hasn't  even  been  given  yet  —  it  will  first 
be  awarded  beginning  in  the  2007-08 
academic  year,  after  the  endowed  amount 
has  matured  for  a  full  year. 

Drew  is  straightforward  about  her 
motivation  for  setting  up  an  endowed 
fund,  which  she  did  quickly  —  reaching 
the  minimum  fund  level  in  just  one  year. 
"Student  aid  was  my  first  concern,  but  I 
also  understand  how  important  the 
endowment  is  for  a  college's  recognition 
and  standing.  Hopefully,  this  kind  of 
support  encourages  others  to  give." 

"The  total  size  of  a  college's 
endowment  and  the  endowment  per 
student  is  information  often  cited  in 
industry  publications,  comparisons 
with  peer  colleges  and  universities,  and 
other  reports  about  the  financial  health 
of  an  institution.  A  healthy  endowment 
is  similar  to  a  healthy  personal  savings 
account,"  said  Angus  McQueen,  associ- 
ate vice  president  for  institutional 
advancement.  "Mrs.  Drew  and  donors 
like  her  demonstrate  to  others  that  they 
are  confident  the  college  will  continue 


to  invest  and  use  their  gifts  wisely  in 
the  future." 

Drew,  a  doting  grandmother  in 
Durham,  North  Carolina,  tapped  per- 
sonal funds  as  well  as  donations  from 
the  McMichael  Family  Foundation  to 
get  the  scholarship  rolling.  "I  wanted 
to  set  up  a  scholarship  at  Mary 
Baldwin  for  some  time.  With  the  family 
foundation  up  and  running,  the  time 
was  right,"  she  said.  Drew  set  up  the 
scholarship  with  few  restrictions  to  be 
sure  the  college  could  utilize  the  funds 
for  students  with  financial  need.  She  is 
looking  forward  to  meeting  the  first 
recipients  soon. 

"Our  whole  family  feels  strongly 
about  education,"  she  said. 

Carters  Cherish  Meeting 
Student  Recipients 

David  and  Mary  Carter  start  with  a  bit 
of  soul-searching  when  they  meet 
recipients  of  the  Susan  E.  Carter 
Memorial  Scholarship,  awarded  annu- 
ally since  2001-02  in  memory  of  their 
daughter,  who  lost  her  life  while  she 
was  a  senior  at  MBC.  "Susan  was 
immersed  in  the  Mary  Baldwin  experi- 
ence. She  enjoyed  the  college,  the  stu- 
dents, and  the  curriculum,  and  she 
spent  a  fair  amount  of  time  assisting 
younger  students,"  said  David  Carter. 
"We  look  for  that  enthusiasm  and  men- 
torship  among  students  who  receive  our 
scholarship,  too." 

Susan,  an  English  major,  was  head- 
ed home  from  work  during  a  break 
from  school  when  she  was  involved  in  a 
fatal  motor  vehicle  accident.  Her  class- 
mates wore  buttons  in  her  memory  on 
what  would  have  been  Susan's  gradua- 
tion day  in  2001,  and  her  diploma  was 
ceremoniously  presented  to  her  parents. 
The  Carter  scholarship  was  established 
shortly  after  her  death  and  is  awarded 
to  English  majors  —  selected  by  a  facul- 
ty committee  —  who  demonstrate  a 
commitment  to  give  back  to  the  college 
and  to  the  student  body  as  mentors  and 
leaders,  as  Susan  did. 


Denise  Kinsinger  '09  is  determined  to  uphold  the  legacy  of  serv- 
ice and  scholarship  as  a  recipient  of  the  Susan  E.  Carter  Memorial 
Scholarship,  established  by  Carter's  parents  in  her  memory. 
Below:  Written  on  paper  imprinted  vs/ith  leaves,  Kinsinger's  thank- 
you  note  to  the  Carters. 

4^^^     Mr.  ^J.    lAr-i-   CJle.^ 

jji  tAjas  SO-  nice- 
ffV  uoiA.! 


%e.  ski 


Tvn    rX{f>^^f—  oy 


t^^c^xjfKf-^r: 


r-<^ 


"    tare.,  ^^    Cm^'^  ^a-^&aforz,.     LrJ^ 


■v*^*^'   c^CCc 


^)2f^    "Per- ^o^r-  "^-^-,^^5^.  '—^^^^^^ 


Endowed  scholarships  help  MBC 
attract  and  retain  top-notch  students 
by  helping  them  feel  confident  about 
their  financial  situation. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine  29 


ft*^  M^^  ^^2'^,  ^  ^. 


?6!3'irS 


Patricia  Hines  Phoenix  77  (second  from  left)  and  family  give  a 
scfiolarship  for  graphic  design  students. 


Currently,  only 
about  10  percent 
of  the  financial  aid 
awarded  to  MBC 
students  is  from 
scholarship  funds. 
Thus,  the  college 
must  use  funds 
from  other  areas 
of  the  budget  to 
continue  to  provide 
much-needed 
financial  aid  and 
scholarships 
based  on 
academic  merit. 


Spring  2007 


The  recipients  do  not  disappoint.  The 
Carters  most  look  forward  to  meeting  recipients 
as  their  fund  grants  academic  life  anew.  The 
couple  has  yet  to  meet  one  recent  awardee, 
sophomore  Denise  Kinsinger,  but  they  were 
intrigued  by  her  interests  and  affiliations.  As 
managing  editor  of  Campus  Comments  student 
newspaper,  volunteer  for  Big  Brothers/Big 
Sisters,  and  part-time  driver  for  an  elderly 
woman  in  the  area,  she  embodies  the  quahties 
the  Carters  remember  in  their  daughter. 
Kinsinger  received  the  scholarship  in  her  fresh- 
man and  sophomore  years  at  MBC,  and  she  is 
determined  to  uphold  Susan's  legacy  of  service 
and  scholarship. 

"I  was  touched  that  someone  took  the  time 
to  set  up  a  living  memorial  such  as  this,  and  it 
immediately  encouraged  me  to  do  well  so  their 
investment  would  be  worthwhile,"  said 
Kinsinger,  who  also  sings  in  the  MBC  Choir  and 
Madrigals  and  serves  as  a  writing  tutor  at  the 
college.  "Knowing  that  I  was  nominated  for  the 
award  by  English  professors  was  a  tremendous 
encouragement  to  me  as  a  writer,  reassuring  me 
that  I  wasn't  in  the  wrong  field.  It  is  certainly 
one  of  many  reasons  why  I  am  a  student  here." 

The  Carter's  scholarship  is  not  endowed 
(although  it  is  funded  at  an  endowed  level).  The 
family  —  rather  than  the  college  —  manages  the 
fund  and  is  responsible  for  drawing  interest 
from  it  to  make  annual  awards.  The  Carters  set 
up  a  long-term  giving  schedule  that  ensures 
scholarships  for  several  years. 

"It  is  an  opportunity  for  us  to  give  back 
what  was  so  liberally  given  to  Susan  while  she 
was  a  student  at  MBC  —  a  quality  education," 
David  Carter  said. 


Art  Scholarship  Carries  on 
Alumna's  Creative  Interest 

Patricia  Hines  Phoenix  '77  is  a  clear  about  her 
motivation  for  establishing  a  scholarship  for  a 


Mary  Baldwin  College  art  major  in  2002. 

"My  husband,  Stuart,  set  up  an  engineering 
scholarship  at  his  alma  mater  and  I  wanted  to  do 
the  same  to  support  the  program  near  and  dear 
to  me  at  Mary  Baldwin,"  admits  Phoenix,  a 
Raleigh,  North  Carolina  resident. 

Phoenix  was  a  studio  art  major  with  her 
heart  set  on  graphic  design  during  her  tenure  at 
MBC.  Some  years  later,  when  she  learned  of  the 
existence  of  a  relatively  new  major  in  graphic 
design  at  the  college,  she  jumped  at  the  chance 
to  create  a  named  scholarship  for  graphic 
design  students.  Two  students  were  awarded 
the  Patricia  Hines  Phoenix  Art  Scholarship  for 
the  first  time  in  2003-04,  and  senior  Erin  Baker 
received  the  award  for  the  2005-06  academic 
year.  Phoenix  delights  in  meeting  recipients, 
usually  during  their  senior  project  presentations 
in  the  spring,  when  their  work  is  on  display  in 
Hunt  Gallery. 

Phoenix  started  her  career  as  a  junior  art 
director  and  "creative  secretary,"  as  she  refers 
to  it,  at  a  prominent  New  York  City  advertising 
agency,  but  quickly  moved  into  a  field  more 
suited  to  her  talents.  She  worked  as  a  commer- 
cial illustrators'  representative,  selling  and  pro- 
moting art  for  about  40  clients  —  including 
some  who  worked  for  Disney  —  for  many 
years.  Moving  back  to  North  Carolina, 
Phoenix  started  her  own  artist's  representative 
company  and  then  began  an  advertising  agency. 

A  student  under  one  of  the  college's 
lengendary  art  professors,  Ulysses  Desportes, 
Phoenix  is  slowly  moving  back  into  "getting 
dirty,"  working  with  charcoal  and  pastels. 

"It  was  a  great  education,"  she  said.  "Mary 
Baldwin  is  a  place  where  you  can  make  your  future 
what  you  want  it  to  be."  ▲ 

If  you  would  like  to  know  more  about  establish- 
ing a  scholarship,  please  contact  the  Mary 
Baldwin  College  Office  of  Institutional 
Advancement:  540-887-7011,  800-622-4255 
(toll  free),  or  at  giving@mbc.edu 


'Maribalduinas'  Return  the  Favor 


Scholarships  allow 
the  college  to  use 
the  Annual  Fund 
and  tuition  to  more 
fully  fund  areas 
beyond  student 
instructional  costs, 
such  as  faculty 
salaries,  deferred 
maintenance, 
utilities,  and 
much  more. 


An  endowed 
scholarship  fund 
generates  interest, 
which  is  used  to 
fund  an  annual 
award(s).  Therefore, 
the  fund  will 
continue  to  provide 
money  for 
scholarships  even 
if  it  is  not  added 
to  or  if  the  donor 
passes  away. 


One  year  of  study  in  Spain  in 
1 964  changed  the  lives  of 
Ludmila  Bratina  Burns  '66, 
Katharine  Fife  Romero  '66, 
Judith  Gisriel  Andress  '66,  Marie 
Gossman  Wilson  '66,  Peggy 
Mitchell  Goetzee  '66,  Betty 
Swope  '65,  Suzanne  Vance 
Borodofsky  '66,  and  Beejee 
Smith  Juhnke.  The  bonds  they 
created  then  have  kept  many  of 
them  connected  with  one  anoth- 
er and  their  teachers,  especially 
Dorothy  Mulberry,  professor 
emerita  of  Spanish  at  MBC,  and, 
a  charismatic  professor  in  Spain 
—  and  to  Mary  Baldwin 
College.  Beejee  Smith  Juhnke 
recently  reflected  on  that  Spattish 
journey  more  than  40  years  ago, 
when  Marias  passed  away  not 
long  ago.  It  all  started  . . . 

. . .  when  we  stepped  off  the 
U.S.S.  Constitution  in 
September  of  1964  at  Algeciras, 
Spain.  It  was  total  culture  shock 
for  the  group  of  young  women 
embarking  on  MBC's  Junior 
Year  Abroad.  We  were  excited 
and,  looking  back  on  it  now,  we 
were  brave!   We  couldn't  have 
known  the  effect  a  year  might 
have  on  our  lives. 

Mary  Baldwin's  program 
in  Spain  was  outstanding. 
Classes  were  in  Spanish,  taught 
by  native  professors  who  were 
among  the  cream  of  the  intellec- 
tual crop  at  a  time  when  dicta- 
tor Francisco  Franco  ruled. 
Living  with  Spanish  families,  we 
learned  about  contemporary 
culture  and  everyday  life.  Since 
our  group  was  small,  it  enabled 
us  —  and  our  professors  —  to 
get  to  know  each  other  well. 
The  program  of  study,  led  by 
MBC  professors  Dorothy 
Mulberry  and  Barbara  Ely,  was 
tough,  comprehensive,  and  full 
of  adventures.  Outside  class,  we 
traveled  with  our  professors  on 
study  excursions.  We  had  fun 
stroUing  Madrid's  streets  and 
sharing  countless  meals  with 
professors,  sometimes  in  their 
homes.  We  loved  getting  to 
know  their  children,  who 


taught  us  songs  and  jovially 
corrected  our  Spanish  —  includ 
ing  some  embarrassing  gaffes. 
The  professors  seemed  to  enjoy 
spending  time  with  the  ^marib- 
alduinas'" (their  invented  name 
for  us). 

Julian  Marias,  our 
esteemed  professor  who 
died  two  years  ago  at 
age  91,  was  a  philoso- 
pher, sociologist,  essay- 
ist, and  lecturer.  He 
wrote  nearly  60  books 
on  many  subjects  that 
have  been  translated  into 
countless  languages.  Because  he 
sided  with  Republicans  during 
the  Spanish  Civil  War,  he 
became  persona  non  grata  dur- 
ing Franco's  dictatorship  and, 
at  one  point,  was  banned  from 
teaching  in  Spanish  universi- 
ties. So  he  went  abroad  and 
taught  at  Harvard,  Yale,  and 
several  campuses  of  University 
of  California,  among  others. 
Later  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Royal  Academy  of  Fine  Arts  in 
Spain,  Hispanic  Society  of 
America,  and  Council  of 
Scholars  of  the  Library  of 
Congress.  King  Juan  Carlos 
appointed  him  Royal  Senator 
and  he  was  also  the  first 
Castilian-speaking  person  to  be 
named  to  the  International 
Pontific  Council  of  Culture  by 
Pope  John  Paul  II. 

Marias  said  in  one  of  his 
memoirs:  "The  American  girls 
who  studied  in  Spain  ...  were 
profoundly  marked  by  it,  with 
what  I  called  the  Spanish  graft. 
They  were  changed,  their  hori- 
zons had  expanded,  they  now 
saw  things  differently." 

He  became  an  enduring 
friend,  inviting  many  of  us  into 
his  inner  circle  and  introducing 
us  to  his  world  of  Spanish 
intellectuals  and  notables.  He 
was  a  consummate  correspon- 
dent, whose  frequent  letters 
were  full  of  personal  and  polit- 
ical news. 

Though  study  abroad  was 
fairly  uncommon  in  the  1960s, 
most  universities  today  recog- 


nize Its  importance  in  prepar- 
ing students  for  the  wider 
world.  To  honor  our  beloved 
Professor  Mulberry  and  that 
year  in  Spain,  some  of  us  came 
together  again  to  establish  the 
Dorothy  Mulberry 
Travel  Scholarship  at 
Mary  Baldwin  College 
to  help  students  inter- 
ested in  the  Spanish  lan- 
guage and  culture  who 
wish  to  study  abroad. 
For  those  of  us  who 
took  part  in  the  Junior 
Year  in  Madrid,  it 
opened  our  eyes  and  helped 
"graft"  (as  Marias  wrote)  a  lit- 
tle bit  of  Spain  into  our  lives 
forever. 

Anastasia  "Stacy"  Alieva, 
rising  junior,  was  awarded  the 
first  Mulberry  Scholarship  in 
March  2007.  She  is  double- 
majoring  in  Spanish  and  Studio 
Art  and  plans  to  use  her  award 
for  study  abroad  in  Spain  during 
spring  semester  2008.  She  will 
take  courses  in  Spanish  litera- 
ture and  culture,  studio  art,  and 
art  history. 

Editor's  Note:  We  are  told 
that  among  other  accomplish- 
ments, these  alumnae  put  their 
learning,  experience,  and 
Spanish  language  skills  to  useful 
service  in  their  lives  and  careers: 

•  Ludmila  Bratina  Burns  '66 
worked  as  an  administrator 
in  West  Virginia,  primarily 
serving  migrant  workers 
from  Central  America  and 
Mexico. 

•  Katharine  Fife  Romero  '66 
married  a  Spaniard  and 
lives  in  Madrid  with  him 
and  their  three  children. 

•  Betty  Swope  '65  chose  a 
lifelong  career  in  the 
Foreign  Service  and  her 
assignments  have  taken  her 
to  work  and  live  in  Lisbon, 
Madrid,  Mexico  City, 
Belgrade,  Paris,  and  Cairo, 
among  other  places.  She 
was  also  U.S.  Consul 
General  in  Guadalajara. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine  31 


32  Spring  2007 


"Without  pretensions  to  wide  scholarship,  but  with  the  capacity  to  recognize 
its  value,  in  her  [Mary  Julia  Baldwin]  selection  of  her  teachers  she  looked  to 
the  establishment  of  the  highest  standards  in  the  School;  and  the  diploma  of 
the  graduate  became  thenceforth  the  conclusive  testimonial  of  a  thorough 
cultural  and  scholarly  proficiency." 


•  From  Miss  Baldwin:  A  Brief  Memoir,  1925  by  Armistead  C.  Gordon 


By  Dr.  Pamela  Murray  professor  of  education  and  Dawn  Medley,  assistant  director  publications  and  media  relations 


In  name  alone,  Mary  Baldwin  College's 
long  history  of  educating  teachers  may 
not  be  obvious.  We  are  not,  after  all, 
Columbia  University  Teachers  College  or 
Stanford  University  School  of  Education. 
The  connection  lies  just  below  the  surface 
of  our  moniker:  The  college  bears  the 
name  not  of  a  city  or  state  or  religious 
affiliation,  but  rather  that  of  a  teacher  — 
one  of  its  most  influential  teachers  — 
Mary  Julia  Baldwin. 

Today,  the  teacher  education  program 
at  Mary  Baldwin  College  plays  a  critical 
role  in  combating  what  the  National 
Education  Association  (NEA)  describes  as  a 
nationwide  teacher  shortage  that  "has 
reached  crisis  proportions  in  some  areas," 
according  to  that  organization's  Web  site. 
Only  11  colleges  and  universities  in 
Virginia  have  produced  more  teachers  in 
recent  years  than  MBC,  and  all  but  one  of 
those  are  large  public  institutions. 

Mary  Julia  Baldwin,  principal  of  the 
school  from  1863  to  1897,  strengthened 
the  institution's  commitment  to  teaching 
teachers  —  a  subject  for  which  it  was 
already  highly  regarded  when  she  attended 
as  a  student  of  the  seminary's  very  first 
class  in  1842.  For  165  years,  the  college 
has  not  wavered  in  its  dedication  to  a  liber- 
al education  that  produces  well-rounded, 
highly  skilled  professionals  in  many  fields. 
Education  continues  to  rank  among  the 
most  popular  subjects  at  MBC,  with  an 
average  of  20  to  25  percent  of  undergradu- 
ates in  the  Residential  College  for  Women 
(RCW)  and  Adult  Degree  Program  (ADP) 
choosing  it  as  their  academic  minor. 

Students  at  Mary  Baldwin  College  in 
2007  may  pursue  a  career  in  education  via 
one  of  four  avenues,  providing  opportuni- 
ties for  people  to  enter  the  teaching  profes- 
sion at  many  life  stages.  One  can  become 
licensed  as  a  teacher  as  an  undergraduate 
in  the  Residential  College  for  Women  or 
through  the  coed  Adult  Degree  Program  in 
Staunton  or  any  of  MBC's  regional  centers 
(Charlottesville,  Richmond,  Roanoke, 
South  Boston,  and  Weyers  Cave).  Men  and 
women  who  have  completed  a  bachelor's 
degree  —  and  may  have  had  previous 


careers  —  may  earn  licensure  through  the 
Post  Baccalaureate  Teacher  Licensure 
(PBTL)  program.  The  Master  of  Arts  in 
Teaching  (MAT)  program,  open  to  men 
and  women,  offers  teachers  the  next  level 
of  instruction.  All  MBC  programs  prepare 
future  teachers  for  an  inquiry-based 
approach  to  teaching,  developing  units  and 
lesson  plans  that  begin  with  a  general 
theme  to  act  as  a  learning  trigger,  and  are 
then  driven  by  questions  that  engage  stu- 
dents in  the  research  process.  The  method 
encourages  students  to  develop  critical 
thinking  skills  as  part  of  interactive  learn- 
ing, rather  than  lecture-style  delivery. 

"There  are  so  many  more  options  now 
for  women  who  earn  an  advanced  degree 
than  there  were  when  I  completed  mine. 
The  options  were  pretty  much  nursing, 
teaching,  or  secretarial,"  said  Carole 
Grove,  director  of  MAT.  "The  fact  that  we 
still  have  many  young  women  who  pursue 
teaching  —  when  the  doors  are  wide  open 
to  all  professions  —  is  heartwarming. 
Teaching  is  a  calling." 

All  MBC  teacher  preparation  pro- 
grams require  a  broad  background  in  the 
liberal  arts.  Like  all  colleges  and  universities 
in  the  Commonwealth,  Mary  Baldwin 
College  does  not  offer  a  major  in  education 
as  the  result  of  a  decision  by  the  Virginia 
Department  of  Education  and  Virginia 
General  Assembly  that  students  would  be 
better  prepared  by  a  major  in  a  content  sub- 
ject. Unlike  some  other  colleges  and  univer- 
sities in  the  state,  MBC's  teacher  education 
program  did  not  require  a  major  overhaul 
when  the  Department  of  Education  set  that 
guideline  in  the  1980s,  because  the  college 
has  never  offered  an  undergraduate  major 
in  education.  The  decision  was  consistent 
with  MBC's  mission  to  prepare  teachers 
well  in  content  areas  through  the  liberal  arts 
as  well  as  pedagogy  (the  strategies,  tech- 
niques, and  approaches  that  teachers 
employ  to  assist  learning). 

The  education  faculty  at  MBC  seek  to 
"prepare  our  graduates  to  bring  to  their 
teaching  careers  a  sense  of  context,  a  spir- 
it of  experimentalism,  a  framework  for 
making  and  defending  ethical  judgments. 


essential  language  skills,  and  a  courageous 
habit  of  inquiry,"  according  to  the  Teacher 
Education  Accreditation  Council  (TEAC) 
Inquiry  Brief  drafted  recently  by  MBC  fac- 
ulty and  staff. 

According  to  the  National  Education 
Association  (NEA),  a  historic  turnover  is 
taking  place  in  the  teaching  profession. 
While  student  enrollments  are  rapidly  ris- 
ing, more  than  one  million  veteran  teachers 
are  nearing  retirement,  leading  experts  to 
predict  that  the  nation  will  need  more  than 
two  million  new  teachers  in  the  next 
decade.  Special  education,  mathematics, 
and  elementary  education  are  a  few  areas 
at  the  top  of  the  NEA's  list  of  critical 
teacher  shortages  in  2007-08. 

Mary  Baldwin  is  poised  to  help.  Since 
1992,  the  MAT  program  has  produced  398 
teachers  with  advanced  degrees,  and  352 
students  —  including  many  career-switchers 
— have  earned  their  license  via  PBTL  at 
MBC  since  1997.  In  2005-06  alone,  the 
college  graduated  more  than  150  potential 
teachers  (57  undergraduate  teaching 
minors,  43  in  MAT,  and  more  than  50 
hcensure  completers  in  PBTL).  Special  edu- 
cation endorsement  became  available 
through  the  master's  program  in  2003-04, 
and  23  MBC  students  have  since  completed 
certification  in  that  specialty.  More  than  65 
percent  of  MBC  teacher  education  gradu- 
ates focus  on  elementary  education,  where 
Virginia  is  experiencing  a  shortage  that  is 
believed  to  be  due  to  rigorous  Standards  of 
Learning  testing  in  fifth  grade,  said  Grove. 
In  addition,  while  the  state  struggles  to  find 
minority  teachers,  nearly  30  percent  of  the 
teacher  education  students  in  MBC's 
Residential  College  for  Women  are  African 
American  or  Hispanic. 

Mary  Baldwin  recently  initiated  the 
next  chapter  in  the  evolution  of  its  mission 
of  quality  teacher  education.  All  four  pro- 
grams in  teacher  preparation  are  being  eval- 
uated by  TEAC  as  the  college  seeks  accredi- 
tation from  the  national  experts  for  the  first 
time.  Much  like  the  accreditation  the  col- 
lege is  currently  working  to  reaffirm  from 
the  Southern  Association  of  Colleges  and 

continued  on  page  34 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


Teaching  Teachers  at  MBC 


Schools,  the  teacher  education  department 
apphed  for  national  recognition  from 
TEAC  as  the  accrediting  body  in  its 
field.  An  affirmative  nod  from  TEAC 
would  give  MBC's  teacher  training  the 
same  seal  of  approval  as  programs  at 
other  prestigious  colleges  and  universi- 
ties that  are  accredited  by  TEAC,  such  as 
University  of  Virginia,  Johns  Hopkins 
University,  and  Rutgers  University. 

"Teacher  education  programs  have 
a  significant  impact  on  nearly  all 
majors  on  campus.  Preparing  good 
teachers  is  the  responsibility  of  all  of 
us,  and  the  evidence  suggests  that, 
while  there  are  perpetually  areas  for 
improvement,  collectively  we  are  doing 
a  good  job,"  said  Grove. 

Meghan  Ward  '04 

Residential  College  for  Women 

Meghan  Ward  cannot  remember 
(with  the  exception  of  a  short-lived  ambi- 
tion to  be  a  park  ranger)  ever  wanting  to 
be  anything  other  than  a  teacher.  She 
grew  up  near  Pittsburgh  and  visited 
Staunton  as  a  child  on  family  vacations 
to  Shenandoah  National  Park.  When  the 
time  came  to  choose  a  college,  she  want- 
ed a  place  where  she  could  play  field 
hockey  and  pursue  her  dream  of  becom- 
ing a  teacher.  Mary  Baldwin  was  the 
perfect  choice  for  her. 

Students  such  as  Ward  are  part  of  a 
150-year-old  legacy  of  teaching  under- 
graduate teachers  at  MBC  nurtured  by 
Mary  Julia  Baldwin  herself  during  her 
principalship  from  1863  tol897.  By 
1912,  a  student  at  Mary  Baldwin 
Seminary  could  pursue  a  course  of  study 
to  earn  a  teacher's  certificate  from  the 
State  Board 
of 

Education, 
according  to 
Mary 

Watters'  his- 
torical 

account.  The 
History  of 
Mary 
Baldwin 

Meghan  Ward  '04  College.  An 

education  department  was  established  in 
1924,  offering  two  classes.  In  1929,  the 
Virginia  Board  of  Education  ruled  that 
the  minimum  qualification  for  a  high 


Eric  Jones,  associate  professor  of  biology,  has  been  teaching  at  Mary  Baldwin  College  since  1986.  Dr.  Jones 
received  a  bachelor  of  science  from  Bucknell  University  and  earned  both  master's  and  doctorate  degrees 
from  Pennsylvania  State  University. 


school  teacher  was  a  baccalaureate 
degree  from  a  standard  college,  leading 
Mary  Baldwin  to  drop  its  seminary,  or 
two-year  program,  in  favor  of  its  four- 
year  college  status.  Supervised  teaching 
(what  we  now  refer  to  as  student  teach- 
ing) and  courses  in  methods  of  teaching 
were  introduced  shortly  thereafter. 

"It  was  a  wonderful  experience  to 
have  that  uninterrupted  time  working  in 
a  classroom  during  my  three-week 
practicum  during  May  Term,"  Ward 
said.  Her  pursuit  of  word  study  with 
Patricia  Westhafer,  professor  of  educa- 
tion, helped  her  establish  immediate 


credibility  with  the  reading  specialist  at 
St.  Thomas  More  Cathedral  School  in 
Arlington,  Virginia,  where  she  now 
teaches.  St.  Thomas  More  has  been  the 
recipient  of  a  Blue  Ribbon  Award  from 
the  United  States  Department  of 
Education.  She  also  speaks  of  the  value 
of  her  methods  class  with  Professor  of 
Education  Jim  McCrory. 

Now  in  her  third  year  of  teaching 
fifth  grade.  Ward  hopes  to  soon  begin 
work  on  her  master's  degree,  and  is  con- 
sidering a  program  that  focuses  on 
teaching  in  Catholic  schools. 

continued  on  page  36 


Spring  2007 


"I  like  a  teacher 
who  gives  you 
something  to  take 
home  to  think 
about  besides 
homework." 

—  Lily  Tomlin  as 
"Edith  Ann" 


1  'A 


Remarkable 

Baldwin-Trainee 

Teachers 

Our  readers  responded  to  our  query  by  the 
dozens.  We  asked:  Have  you  been  a 
teacher?  Can  you  tell  us  about  some  teach- 
ing milestones,  achievements  you  count  as 
special,  tuming  points  and/or  memorable 
moments?  We  are  all  rewarded  by  these 
responses,  a  few  of  many  we  received. 
Thank  you  to  all  who  responded  —  your 
work  inspires  us. 

Marianna  Jamison  Leach  '47  taught  school  for  30 
years  in  Loudoun  County,  Virginia  and  sponsored 
award-winning  student  publications  and  weekly 
.radio  shows.  She  initiated  a  Scottish  exchange  pro- 
:between  Loudoun  County  High  School  and 
ferdi  School,  which  ran  for  20  years.  Even  after 
retiring  in  1988,  she  tutored  homebound  students 
with  severe  diseases  ▲  Alice  Ball  Watts  '52  says 
"hole"  from  Cole  High  School  in  Fort  Sam  Houston, 
■"■^  '"here  she  teaches  Spanish  and  founded  the 
.R.  Jimenez  Chapter  of  the  Sociadad  Honoraria 
..Inica  (Spanish  Honor  Society).  She  has  spon- 
id  students  with  award-winning  entries  in  the 
UTSA  Spanish  Poetry  Recitation  ▲  Amanda Tyner 
Ironmonger  '01  has  taught  middle  school  for  six 
years  and  was  nominated  for  Disney's  Teacher  of  the 
Year  and  Who's  Who  of  American  Teachers  (twice 
already)  ▲  Nancy  Kirchner  Eliason  '50  has  taught 
more  than  50  years  from  kindergarten  to  college 
and  developed  policy  and  projects  for  two  national 
organizations,  American  Association  of  Community 
Colleges  and  National  Governors'  Association. 
Retired,  she  was  elected  to  the  school  board  in  her 
district  and  founded  Learning  in  Retirement  ▲ 
Charon  Wood  Mines  '95  taught  grades  one  through 
eight  in  four  school  districts  in  the  Washington 
metro  area.  At  age  29,  she  became  principal  at  a 

-  Catholic  school  for  four  years.  She  is  now  coordinat- 
ing a  family  literacy  program  for  low  income  immi- 

-  grant  families  and  will  soon  earn  a  second  master's 
fee  (her  first,  a  master's  in  teaching)  in  educa- 

'ladministration  ▲  Allison  Sprouse,  currently  in 
tin  Teaching  program  at  MBC.  was  named 
eYear  at  Stuarts  Draft  High  School  in 

She  thinks  "my  classes  at  MBC 


Teaching  Teachers  at  MBC 


Lisa  Bowman 


Lisa  Bowman  '98 

Adult  Degree  Program 

When  Lisa  Bowman  taught  at  Burnt 
Chimney  Elementary  School,  her  knack 
for  innovation  was  unmistakable.  She 
teamed  with  the  Blue  Ridge  Water  and 
Soil  Conservation  District  to  create  a 
pond  and 
stream  on 
school  proper- 
ty to  study 
aquatic  plant 
and  animal 
life.  As  a 
fourth-grade 
reading  and 
writing 
teacher,  she 
mcorporated 
small  touches  in  the  classroom  such  as 
reading  aloud  every  day.  Bowman  was 
Franklin  County's  Teacher  of  the  Year  in 
2001  and  served  as  a  mentor  for  new 
teachers  at  the  school. 

Bowman  was  just  about  the  only  per- 
son at  Burnt  Chimney  who  was  surprised 
when  she  received  the  Milken  Family 
Foundation  National  Educator  Award  in 
2004,  referred  to  as  the  "Oscar  of  teach- 
ing" by  Teacher  Magazine.  The  Milken 
program  was  established  to  provide  pub- 
lic recognition  and  financial  rewards  for 
educational  professionals  who  demon- 
strate talent,  educational  accomplish- 
ments beyond  the  classroom,  strong 
potential  for  leadership,  and  an  engaging 
and  inspiring  presence  that  motivates  stu- 
dents, colleagues,  and  the  community. 

"Many  times,  she  does  things  with 
the  whole  school  in  mind,  not  just  her 
particular  lesson  on  one  given  day,"  said 
Burnt  Chimney  Principal  James  Mullens, 
echoing  the  comments  of  her  colleagues. 

"I  wish  every  educator  could  get 
something  like  this  [the  Milken  award]," 
said  Bowman.  "It  elevates  the  profession. 
It  brings  respect  and  awareness  to  what 
we  do  as  teachers." 

Going  to  college  right  after  high 
school  was  not  an  option  for  Bowman. 
She  married,  started  a  family,  and  began 
to  work  as  an  instructional  assistant,  but 
retained  a  dream  inspired  by  her  own  ele- 
mentary school  teachers  —  to  become  a 
teacher  herself.  She  talked  with  several 
colleges  who  told  her  that  completing 
her  degree  and  teaching  license  were 


Teaching  partners  Sandy  Powell  (top)  and  Mindy  Garber  work  together  in  a  masters  course  on  integrat- 
ed language  arts.  They  also  work  together  at  Hugh  K.  Cassell  Elementary  School  in  Augusta  County, 
where  Garber  is  principal,  as  well  as  an  adjunct  professor  in  the  Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching  program, 
and  Powell  is  a  teacher  of  27  years. 


impossible  at  that  stage  of  her  life.  Then 
she  found  the  MBC  Adult  Degree  Program 
(ADP),  where  flexible  scheduling  and  a 
generous  transfer  policy  made  it  possible. 
In  1998,  after  taking  classes  at  Virginia 
Western  Community  College  and  MBC, 
she  became  the  first  in  her  family  to  earn 
her  undergraduate  degree.  She  completed 
two  years  of  coursework  in  about  one  year 
at  Mary  Baldwin  and  graduated  cum  laude. 
In  2003,  she  earned  a  master's  degree  in 
education  from  University  of  Virginia. 
MBC's  Adult  Degree  Program  was 


guided  by  founding  director  Dudley  Luck, 
who  was  a  member  of  the  undergraduate 
teaching  faculty.  ADP  has  exploded  from  a 
humble  beginning  of  eight  students  in  1977 
to  an  enrollment  of  nearly  1,200  students 
during  this  —  its  30th  —  year.  The  pro- 
gram's first  regional  center,  in  Richmond, 
opened  in  1983,  and  there  are  now  five 
regional  centers  that  serve  most  areas  of 
Virginia  —  including  one  in  Roanoke, 
where  Bowman  attended  most  of  her  class- 
es. Adult  students  are  also  able  to  take 

continued  on  page  38 


Spnng  2007 


pmarkable 
pIdwin-Trainec 

lachers 

\ 

I  big  part  of  my  success  in  the  classroom "- 
ion  Wooldridge  '68  has  spent  more  than  3i. 
B  training  the  trainers  about  elders  for  organiza- 
i  including  National  Society  of  Teachers  of 
iily  Medicine,  Gerontology  Society  of  America, 
3rican  Society  on  Aging,  AARR  National 
pciation  of  Social  Workers,  Southeast  Area 
iicies  on  Aging,  National  Alzheimer's 
Iciation,  and  many  more.  She  is  now  starting 
Second  career  in  studies  for  theological  teaching 
iatheran  Theological  Southern  Seminary  ▲ 
i|beth  Edwards  Woodward  '59  has  taught  in 
Ito  Rico,  Germany,  and  Virginia.  After  retirement, 
laught  at  Northern  Virginia  Community  College 
^continues  to  substitute  in  area  schools  ▲  Julia 
piston  Belton  '49  is  thankful  for  a  career  as  a 
iial  education  teacher  in  Brevard  County,  FL 
i/e  she  was  recognized  as  Special  Education 
Sher  of  the  Year  in  1977  A  Annie  Hailinan 
j^detti  '97,  a  graduate  of  the  MBC  Adult  Degree 
|ram,  taught  for  15  years  in  Henrico  County, 
feia.  She  moved,  and  after  just  five  years  at 
fell  Donahoe  Elementary  School,  was  chosen 
^her  of  the  Year  2005-06  ▲  Nell  Rogers  Carvell 
ipas  taught  pre-K  through  college  students. 
|p  at  Southern  Methodist  University,  she  started 
|:ing  with  Head  Start  in  Dallas  and  created 
ming  Enrichment  Activities  Program  (LEAP)  to 
less  the  fact  that  her  Head  Start  students 
|ed  in  the  lowest  percentile  for  language  devel- 
lent.The  principles  of  LEAP  have  been  used  by 
Ibis  in  Alabama,  California,  Louisiana,  and  other 
ps,  and  the  program  was  endorsed  by  First  Lady 
fa  Bush  as  part  of  her  education  platform.  It  is 
mated  that  2.000  teachers  have  been  trained  in 
|P  and  more  than  40,000  children  have  benefited 
3  the  program  ▲  Camala  Beam  Kite  '96  has 
jht  eighth  grade  social  studies  in  Rockingham 
[nty  VA  for  11  years  and  has  been  selected  for 
d's  Who  Among  American  Teachers,  Phi  Delta 
Delta  Kappa  Gamma  membership.  She 
ri  the  board  of  the  Virginia  Middle 

'■ n  and  is  also  a  mentor  specialist 

srs  for  the  county.  She  has 

ind  also  co-sponsors  an 
!  and  leads  studytiips  to 


Teaching  Teachers  at  MBC 


many  courses  off-site  through  online  tutori- 
als, an  example  of  the  flexibility  Bowman 
mentioned.  A  large  percentage  of  ADP 
students  are  young  men  and  women  who 
balance  career,  family,  and  a  part-time 
education. 

Bowman  now  shuttles  between  sever- 
al schools  in  Franklin  County,  Virginia, 
where  she  provides  enrichment  for  gifted 
students,  mentors  teachers,  and  helps 
them  incorporate  technology  in  the  class- 
room. "These  three  areas  fit  together 
extremely  well,  and  provide  me  with  the 
opportunity  to  help  both  students  and 
teachers  grow  and  learn,"  she  said.  She 
continues,  as  a  Milken  fellow,  to  work 
with  Teachers  of  Promise  in  Virginia,  and 
serves  on  the  state's  Advisory  Board  for 
Teacher  Education  and  Licensure,  as  does 
Carole  Grove,  MAT  director. 

James  Savage 

Post  Baccalaureate  Teacher 
Licensure,  Completed  2006 

James  Savage  left  his  career  as  a 
copy  editor  and  crossword  puzzle  writer 
for  a  profession  he  believed  would  be 
both  more 
spiritually 
rewarding 
and  reliable. 
Savage  had 
majored  in 
mathematics 
at  Cornell 
University, 
and  he  felt 
he  was  in  a 
position  to 
help  address  the  shortage  of  math  and 
science  teachers  in  Virginia.  He  had  expe- 
rience teaching  General  Education 
Development  (GED)  classes  in  the  U.S. 
Army  after  the  Gulf  War,  and  trusted 
that  he  was  prepared  to  handle  the  chal- 
lenges of  a  high  school  classroom. 

The  PBTL  program  has  been  invit- 
ing career-switchers  such  as  Savage  to 
MBC  since  1992.  An  offshoot  of  the 
Adult  Degree  Program,  PBTL  offers  stu- 
dents who  have  already  earned  a  bache- 
lor's degree  the  chance  to  become  certi- 
fied to  teach.  Employed  primarily  by 
adults  looking  to  change  careers  to 
teach,  PBTL  —  like  MAT  —  may  also  be 
used  by  those  who  completed  an  under- 
graduate minor  in  education  but  have 


James  Savage 


not  yet  pursued  licensure.  MBC  regional 
centers  and  the  main  campus  in  Staunton 
offers  courses  for  PBTL. 

Savage  chose  the  Mary  Baldwin 
College  program  because  he  felt  that 
other  programs  he  considered  were  com- 
plicated and  con- 
fusing. He  said 
his  MBC  advisor. 
Tiffany  Barber, 


assistant  profes- 
sor of  education 
in  the 

Charlottesville 
center,  under- 
stood the  cur- 
riculum and 
course  require- 
ments. In  addi- 
tion to  the  pro- 
gram's clarity 
and  the  schedul- 
ing flexibility  of 

online  classes,  he  could  supplement  Mary 
Baldwin  courses  with  some  at  Piedmont 
Virginia  Community  College.  Savage 
noted  Mary  Baldwin's  personalized 
approach,  specifically  the  help  he  received 
from  Joyce  Diepold,  regional  operations 
coordinator  in  the  Charlottesville  center, 
and  the  ease  of  contacting  the  business 
and  financial  aid  offices  in  Staunton. 

Like  Lisa  Bowman,  a  1998  graduate 
of  the  ADP  program.  Savage  was  hired 
directly  from  his  student  teaching  place- 
ment. He  teaches  mathematics  at 
Fluvanna  High  School,  and  said  his  first 
year  is  going  well.  Although  he  has  con- 
cerns about  the  singularity  of  Virginia's 
Standards  of  Learning  (SOLs)  as  an 
assessment  tool,  he  finds  that  he  is  suc- 
cessful in  teaching  his  students  both  con- 
tent and  the  test-taking  skills  that  they 
need  to  do  well  on  the  standardized  tests. 
Like  so  many  teachers  trained  at  Mary 
Baldwin,  Savage  does  more  than  the  mini- 
mum. He  also  tutors  students,  helps  with 
SAT  preparation,  and  coaches  at 
Fluvanna  High. 

Chloe  Ruff  '04 

Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching 

"Mrs.  Meanie."  "Wife  of  Satan." 
Only  fellow  middle  school  teachers  are 
likely  to  believe  that  these  names  refer  to 
sweet-faced  Chloe  Ruff  '04,  who 
responds  to  the  offensive  epithets  with 


MBC's  Teachers 

■  55  percent  of  full-time  faculty  are  tenured 

■  83  percent  hold  a  doctorate  In  their  fields 

■  97  percent  hold  the  terminal  degree 
(considered  the  highest  degree 
obtainable  in  her/his  area  of  expertise) 

■  Full-time  professors:  77 

■  37  male  (49%),  39  female  (51  %) 

■  Equal  number  of  tenured  professors  of 
each  gender  (nationally,  only  39  percent 
of  tenured  faculty  is  female) 


calm  good  humor  and  continues  to  guide 
her  special  education  students  toward 
constructive,  appropriate  behavior.  Ruff's 
father  is  a  science  teacher  who  uses  such 
creative  approaches  as  beauty  contests 
for  algae.  Inspired  by  him  —  and  by  the 
inquiry-based 
approach  of  the 
MBC  Master  of 
Arts  in  Teaching 


program  —  she 
finds  her  own 
inspired  ways  to 
teach. 

Two  of  Ruff's 
favorites  have 
been  a  trial  based 
on  The  Ransom 
of  Red  Chief  and 
a  pirate  unit  relat- 
ed to  Treasure 
Island.  "Students 
became  really 
involved  in  these  projects,"  she  said.  For 
one  student  who  had  spent  some  time  in 
the  real  court  system,  the  opportunity  to 
act  as  the  judge  in  the  mock  trial  was  a 
healing  experience,  and  one  that  she  per- 
formed with  enthusiasm,  Ruff  explained. 

Ruff's  path  to  completing  her  master 
of  teaching  was  unique;  she  attended 
classes  at  each  of  the  four  MBC  regional 
centers  that  support  the  MAT  program. 
She  particularly  enjoyed  attending 
Blackfriars  Playhouse  performances  after 
her  Staunton  classes,  and  the  flexibility 
that  allowed  her  to  take  classes  as  she 
needed  them.  An  undergraduate  English 
major  at  University  of  Georgia,  Ruff 
found  Associate  Professor  of  English  Bob 
Grotjohn's  Inquiry  in  the  Humanities 
course  valuable,  and  has  "road-tested" 
what  she  learned  about  using  children's 
literature  as  a  vehicle  for  interdiscipli- 
nary learning. 

"I  loved  being  able  to  take  courses  in 
the  order  and  the  location  that  I  chose," 
she  said. 

Fifteen  years  ago,  MAT  became  the 
college's  first  graduate  program,  extend- 
ing its  teacher  education  resources  to 
advanced  educators.  The  program  is 
designed  for  both  students  who  have  just 
earned  an  undergraduate  degree  and 
those  who  have  been  teaching  in  a  class- 
room, museum,  nature  center,  or  other 

continued  on  page  40 


Spring  2007 


licole  Oechslin, 
ssociate  profes- 
or  of  education  in 
ie  Adult  Degree 
rogram,  came  to 
'lary  Baldwin  in 
005,  having 
arned  a  bachelor 
f  arts  from 
lewcomb  College 
nd  a  master's 
nd  doctorate 
cm  University  of 
irginia. 


^markable 
B  dwin^ained 
bachers 

s 

and  and  Scotland  ▲  Jane  Starke  Sims  '68  has 

N  teacher,  school  administrator,  doctoral  stu- 
^  and  college  instructor.  Now  retired,  she  is  an 
l/olunteer  for  Voices  for  Children,  a  national 
|lization  serving  abused  and  neglected  children 
pncesWentzTaber  '62  remembers  that  in 
I,  at  the  age  of  22  and  armed  with  a  history 
fee  but  no  education  courses,  she  took  on  the 
ling  of  "three  experimental  subjects"  with  no 
liDoks:  economics,  psychology,  and  sociology  at 
m  school  in  Georgia.  A  resounding  success,  she 
fchosen  as  Teacher  of  the  Year  in  Muscogee 
iity  A  Janaan  Hashim  '89  set  up  a  high  school 
jalism  lab  modeled  on  MBC's  communications 
tote,  and  in  three  years  her  students  received 
Ijational  awards;  grand  prize  for  Student  Online 
iaiism, (student  received  a  $5,000  scholarship 
a  paid  internship  at  U.S.  News  &  World  Report); 
|er  desktop  publishing  class  earned  Best 
look  from  Lifetouch  Publishing,  one  of  the 
sfi's  largest  yearbook  publishers.  Her  students 
Igone  on  to  prestigious  journalism  schools,  a 
spoint  for  Hashim  A  JohnTrippel  '92  ADP  is  a 
iiing  assistant  at  Post  High  School  in 
ibttesville  VA  where  he  has  helped  special 
Is  students  create  artwork,  some  of  which  is 
lyed  annually  in  the  VSA  Art  Show  held  at  the 
jvPerforming  Arts  Center  A  Anne  Driscoll  '68  is 
|as  excited  as  ever"  about  teaching  French  after 
|ars  and  counts  as  a  highlight  two  student 
ranges  between  Monacan  High  School  and 
Lycee  Clemenceau  in  Montpellier,  France.  She  is 
also  pleased  to  become  a  teaching  partner  in  Mary 
Baldwin's  Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching  program  and 
supervise  student  teachers  A  Janet  White 

ipbell  '66  reached  into  space  as  research  pro- 
pr  and  director  for  the  Center  for  Coastal  Ocean 
i.rvation  and  Analysis  Ocean  Process  Analysis 
Iratory  when  she  created  the  Gala  Crossroads 
|ct  to  teach  teachers  how  to  use  satellite 
gey  .in  classrooms  in  1990.  Since  then,  144 

e  brought  remote  sensing  to  more  than 
snts  in  94  schools  in  Maine  and  New 
shire  {www.bigelow.org/~gaia/)  A  Anne 
!ch  '01  has  been  teaching  third  grade  in 
a  Beach  VA  schools  for  six  years  and  was  cho- 
==Hinq  Teacher  of  the  Year  at  her  school  in 


Teaching  Teachers  at  MBC 


venues  for  many  years  and  wish  to  fur- 
ther their  education.  Certified  teaching 
partners  in  every  MAT  course  blend  theo- 
ry and  practice.  Local  licensed  teachers 
who  work  in  area  school  classrooms  part- 
ner with  an  MBC  faculty  member  to 
plan,  instruct,  and  assess  all  MAT  cours- 
es in  the  initial  licensure  track,  and  are  a 
fully  acknowledged  part  of  the  faculty  in 
the  program.  Carole  Grove,  director  of 
MAT,  believes  that  this  facet  of  MAT  is 
unique  nationwide  and  that  graduates 
benefit  immensely  from  having  two  pro- 
fessional instructors. 

Ruff  was  hired  by  the  Roanoke 
County,  Virginia  school  system  —  even 


before  she  finished  her 
degree.  She  wrote  her 
final  reflective  thesis  on 
children  who  are  classified 
as  both  gifted  and  learn- 
ing disabled. 

Shortly  before  her 
graduation  (and  three 
weeks  before  the  birth  of 
her  first  son).  Ruff  was 
honored  to  become  a  par- 
ticipant in  the  Teachers  of 
Promise  program.  Teachers  of  Promise 
guides  outstanding  teacher  candidates 
from  preparatory  programs  to  profes- 
sional employment  —  hopefully  in 


Virginia.  It  is  sponsored  by 
the  State  Department  of 
Education  in  collaboration 
with  the  Virginia  Milken 
Educator  Network  and  a 
host  college  licensure  pro- 
gram.  She  was  also  named 
the  MBC  Commonwealth 
Scholar  as  part  of  the 
Virginia  Teaching  Loan 
Scholarship  program  to 
acknowledge  her  excellence 
as  a  graduate  student.  Now  expecting 
another  son.  Ruff  and  her  family  will 
move  and  build  a  house  while  she  search- 
es for  a  doctoral  program.  A 


Mary  Julia  Baldwin,  Teacher 


By  Armistead  C.  Gordon 


"Miss  Mary  Julia  Baldwin  was 
the  daughter  of  Dr.  William  D. 
Baldwin  of  Staunton,  and 
Margaret  L.  Sowers,  his  wife. 
She  was  left  an  orphan  at  the 
age  of  16  years  and  grew  up 
under  the  care  of  her 
maternal  grandpar- 
ents, who  were 
people  of  piety  and 
religious  life.  They 
early  developed  her 
natural  qualities  of 
benevolence  and  self- 
sacrifice;  and  her  heart  went 
out  to  the  many  poorer  chil- 
dren of  the  town,  whom  she 
saw  growing  up,  in  the 
absence  of  public  schools, 
without  the  opportunities  of 
even  the  most  meager  instruc- 
tion. She  first  attracted  atten- 
tion as  a  teacher  in  the  Sunday 
School.  Possessing  a  small 
competence  derived  from  her 
father's  estate,  she  rented  a 
modest  school  room,  and 
enlisting  the  sympathy  and  aid 
of  several  other  young  ladies, 
she  opened  a  charity  school, 


which  she  conducted  with 
whole-souled  devotion  and 
success  for  several  years.  Her 
heart  was  in  the  work,  and 
even  as  a  young  woman  she 
had  formed  the  purpose  of 
making  teaching  her 
profession,  not 
merely  as  a  means 
of  support,  but 
because  of  the 
good  she  felt  she 
could  do  and  the 
useful  career  which  it 
offered.  Upon  the  death  in 
1862  of  her  grandmother,  with 
whom  she  lived,  she  rented 
suitable  premises  and  began 
the  conduct  of  a  private 
school. 

It  was  while  engaged  in 
this  occupation  which  prom- 
ised a  modest  success,  and 
with  no  thought  or  aspiration 
of  a  more  ambitious  or  distin- 
guished career,  that  she  was 
offered  the  vacant  principle- 
ship  of  the  [Augusta  Female] 
Seminary  [later  Mary  Baldwin 
Seminary  and  then  College]." 


From  Miss  Baldwin:  A  Brief  Memoir,  1925 


Lowell  Lemons,  now  associate  professor  of  education,  was  Superintendent  of 
Waynesboro  Public  Schools  before  returning  to  classroom  teaching  in  2006  at 
IVlary  Baldwin  College.  He  received  a  bachelor  of  science  from  Virginia  Tech, 
earned  a  master's  in  education  from  University  of  Virginia  and  a  doctor  of  educa- 
tion from  Vanderbilt  University. 


Spring  2007 


jmarkable 

pIdwin-Trained 

lachers 

p.  She  is  also  developing  a  reading  strategy 
jisl  PGSS,  which  she  and  a  colleague  plan  to  pub- 
1^  Judy  Bauerle  '84    has  taught  exercise  and 
|e  but  especially  enjoyed  teaching  Read  to  Me 
Irisk  kids  and  incarcerated  parents  through  her 
'   lalth  educator  for  the  University  of 
hiatry  department.  A  treasured  teaching 
her  v\/as  nnade  in  Kathmandu,  Nepal, 
Jjght  children  ages  6-12  at  two  orphan- 
gjv;  appreciate  reading  non-school  books  and 
io  "make"  books  during  her  seven-month  stay 
jen  Holtman  '71,  inspired  by  her  MBC  profes- 
sjohn  Mehner  and  Bonnie  Hohn,  has  been 
jing  biology  since  1971,  the  last  18  years  at 
|ia  Western  Community  College.  Her  most 
?able  teaching  assignment  is  a  biology  class 
does  study  abroad  in  places  like  Belize,  Costa 
^Ecuador,  Galapagos  Islands,  and  more,  where 
|nts  "visit"  blue  morpho  butterflies,  scarlet 
^-■-  Kciwler  monkeys,  angelfish,  and  sea 

in  endangered  ecosystems.  She  also 

fe-'  ■  ■  "  ■  ■ 

'  ■    national  Education  Committee  of 

ation  of  Biology  Teachers  and 

:,of  Virginia  Community  Colleges. 

Wed  a  teaching  excellence  award 

^„ .,  _, Te  Outstanding  Faculty  Award 

Virginia  Community  College  Association  A 

r  Jo  Shilling  Shannon  '53  helped  establish  a 

[te  nonprofit  school  for  children  with  learning 

lilities  in  1973  and  was  awarded  Mother  of  the 

:'in  Education  in  Roanoke  VA  in  1977  She  retired 

1,88  but  continues  to  volunteer  as  a  tutor  for  chil- 

j  with  learning  disabilities  ▲  Amanda  IVIcCray 

ffound  her  way  to  teaching  after  having  been  an 

t  probation  and  parole  officer,  and  "loves  making 

live  changes"  for  second  graders  the  past  four 

g  at  Stuarts  Draft  Elementary  School  in  Virginia 

line  Hudson  '54  attended  Mary  Baldwin  for 

lyears  and  in  1985,  at  age  51,  she  completed 

s 

Segree  at  ODU.  She  became  an  elementary 

|pl  librarian,  and  in  her  first  year,  was  chosen  as 

;her  of  the  Year  by  the  PTA,  and  in  her  second 

^;' the  faculty  awarded  her  Teacher  of  the  Year  ▲ 

ri  Anderson  Hill  '67  helped  start  a  private 

bl  for  children  with  learning  problems,  which 

fa  new  idea  in  1972.  She  worked  with  a  psychi- 

feducational  organization  to  develop  individualized 


Teaching  Teachers  at  MBC 


Professors  Jim  McCrory  (left).  Jim  Harrington  (right),  and  Patty  Westliafei  (far  nglnt,  with  students)  were  all  instrumental  in  developing  the  education  department  at 
MBC.  All  full  professors  of  education,  they  exemplify  the  teaching-first  commitment  made  by  all  the  college  faculty  McCrory  has  a  BA.  MEd,  and  EdD  from  University 
of  Virginia.  Harrington  received  a  BA,  MA  and  MS  from  Jacksonsville  State  University  and  PhD  from  University  of  Alabama.  Westhafer  holds  a  BS  from  James  Madison 
University,  and  MEd  and  EdD  from  University  of  Virginia. 


Mary     Downing 


Visionary.  Powerful.  Compassionate. 
Hardworking.  Devoted.  Words  that 
describe  Dr.  Mary  Downing  Irving,  profes- 
sor emerita  of  education  at  MBC.  She  died 
November  15,  2006  after  a  long  struggle 
with  Alzheimer's  Disease. 

Irving  was  bom  in  1921  in  Surry 
County,  Virginia.  She  attended  Longwood 
College  where  she  met 
her  first  husband,  William 
Emmett  Downing.  Soon 
after  their  marriage  and 
her  college  graduation,  he 
left  to  serve  in  World  War 
II,  and  she  discovered  she 
was  pregnant  with  their 
only  child,  Mary  Ellen.  Sadly,  Downing 
was  killed  in  the  North  Atlantic  in  1945. 

Irving  studied  at  Columbia  University 
Teachers  College  in  New  York  City  while 
raising  her  daughter.  In  1954  she  was 
among  the  first  women  to  earn  a  doctorate 
in  education  from  University  of  Virginia. 
Her  early  career  included  teaching  sev- 
enth grade  in  Waynesboro,  Virginia,  and 
traveling  as  an  educational  consultant 
for  Ginn  and  Company  Publishers 


By  Morgan  Alberts  Smith  '99,  great  grand  neice 

throughout  the  United  States  and  Canada. 

Irving  joined  the  faculty  at  Mary 
Baldwin  College  in  1966  as  associate  pro- 
fessor of  education  and  psychology  and 
was  instrumental  in  helping  hire  accom- 
plished education  professors  to  build  the 
department.  She  also  helped  launch  the 
post  baccalaureate  teacher  licensure  pro- 
gram before  retiring  in  1991. 

"Mary  Irving  was  a  real  force  for 
teacher  education  on  the  Mary  Baldwin 
faculty.  She  had  a  politician's  skill  and 
worked  hard  with  the  state  department  of 
education  to  move  that  bureaucracy  and 
get  it  to  make  decisions  which  would  be 
helpful  to  students  not  only  at  Mary 
Baldwin  but  for  those  throughout  the 
state.  The  college's  teacher  education  pro- 
gram owes  much  to  her  vision,  tenacity, 
and  hard  work,"  said  Jim  Lott,  dean 
emeritus  and  member  of  the  MBC  Board 
of  Trustees. 

Dudley  Luck,  associate  professor  of 
education  emerita,  remembers  that  Irving, 
whom  she  considered  a  mentor,  "always 
had  a  genuine  concern  for  her  students.  She 
would  do  anything  in  the  world  for  them." 


Irving  was  highly  visible  at  the  state 
level  as  a  member  of  the  Virginia  Board 
of  Education  and  the  Virginia 
Department  of  Education.  She  was 
active  in  the  Virginia  Association  of 
Colleges  and  Universities,  the  organiza- 
tion that  serves  as  the  voice  of  the  38 
institutions  in  the  state  that  offer  teacher 
education.  She  also  worked  closely  with 
Virginia  Council  for  Independent 
Colleges  on  issues  that  affected  teacher 
education  programs. 

When  she  lost  her  second  husband, 
Donald  Irving,  in  a  car  accident  in  1979, 
Irving  established  a  fund  in  his  name  at 
Mary  Baldwin  to  help  pay  for  food  for 
student  teachers  who  worked  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  during  the  college's  spring 
break.  The  fund  has  since  been  combined 
with  the  Mary  Irving  Fund  for  Teacher 
Education  established  by  Cynthia  Luck 
Haw  '79,  a  current  trustee. 

Irving  enjoyed  bringing  students  and 
faculty  to  The  Hill,  her  home  in  Verona. 
"You  felt  special  when  you  sat  at  her 
table,"  said  Patty  Westhafer,  professor  of 
education.  ▲ 


Spring  2007 


pmarkable 

aldwin^ained 

Bachers 


administrator,  was 


:0f  tine  state  meetings 
EPs.  "It  was  a  time  of 


EPs.  "It  was  a  time  of  great  change  in  public 
pation  and  the  start  of  my  career  with  learning 
|led  children"  ▲  When  she  attended  MBC,  she 
i'planning  to  be  a  teacher,  and  Amy  Mitchell 
i^ard  '00  went  on  to  get  a  master's  in  teaching 
is  in  her  third  year  as  an  educator  in  middle 
)ol  in  Nelson  County  VA.  At  the  end  of  her  first 
i  she  was  awarded  the  2005  Smyth  Foundation 
|d  for  outstanding  performance  and  service  to 
|nts.  As  a  teacher  who  goes  above  and  beyond 
Gail,  she  was  recognized  for  daily  after-school 
ring  of  students  with  disabilities  and  providing 
I  and  academic  supplies  to  students  in  need  ▲ 
'garet  King  Stanley  '52  began  teaching  in  ele- 
itary  school,  moved  on  to  substitute  for  middle 
Jligh  schools,  and  then,  because  she  was  preg- 
iand  not  "allowed  in  a  classroom;'  she  taught 
edial  reading.  From  there  she  taught  classics 
English  literature  at  Trinity  University  Though 
:bnly  taught  one  year  at  Taylor  Elementary 
|dI  in  Virginia,  she  was  chosen  "outstanding 
iber"  ▲  Mary  Cloud  Hollingshead  '61  taught  in 
bIkVA  before  moving  north.  She  became  a 
[e  at  Independence  Hall  in  Philadelphia,  and  later 
sloped  fourth  grade  living  history  program  at 
;ly  Farmstead  in  New  Jersey,  as  well  as  one  for 
jhfield  Plantation  ▲  Donna  Merritt  '95  worked 
fi  American  International  school  in  Shanghai.  She 
inized  and  hosted  an  early  childhood  conference 
U  schools  and  some  Chinese  schools  for  more 
I  60  teachers  ▲  Alexandra  Larue  Davis  '97 
j'hes  fourth  grade  in  an  Albemarle  County  VA 
6ol  and  won  the  outstanding  mathematics  ele- 
itary  teacher  of  the  year  award  and  in  2006 
^Ived  a  Programs  That  Work  award  from  Virginia 
h  and  Science  Coalition  A  Sherry  Yost  '92 
|ies  art  to  high  school  students.  After  9/11,  she 
led-  student  sculptors  depicting  their  views  of 
Iragedy,  and  those  works  are  now  on  permanent 
lay  in  President  Bush's  library.  Photos  of  the" 
jitures  were  also  displayed  at  the  Pentagon  and  - 
art  Senate  Office  Building  in  Washington  DC  ▲  " 


Teaching  Teachers  at  MBC 


Teaching  Teachers  Doesn't  End  with  College  Degree 


In  its  first  year,  teachers  explored  the 
Revolutionary  War  and  women's  rights, 
which  included  a  discussion  with  the 
chief  historian  at  Colonial  National 
Historical  Park  at  Yorktown,  Virginia. 
Year  two:  Participants  covered  Civil 
Rights  activity  between  1954  and  1973 
in  America,  complete  with  guest  speakers 
who  lived  through  school  system 
upheaval  in  Prince  Edward  County, 
Virginia.  During  the  third,  and  final,  year 
they  delved  into  Reconstruction  and  the 
lives  of  three  influential  Virginians  — 
Thomas  Jefferson,  James  Madison,  and 
James  Monroe. 

Since  2004,  the  Institute  for 
Decisive  Events  in  American  History 
has  welcomed  area  grade  school  teach- 
ers from  two  cities  and  two  counties  to 
MBC  and  to  off-site  locations  to  equip 
them  with  primary  source  testimony 
and  documents  to  help  them  teach  their 
students  history  by  seeing,  breathing, 
and  feeling  it.  The  partnership  between 
Mary  Baldwin  and  local  schools  is  one 
example  of  the  college's  commitment  to 
ongoing  teacher  instruction  in  the  com- 
munity. The  Institute  was  part  of  the 
nationwide  Teaching  American  History 
program,  a  $99  million  federal  grant 
that  included  175  school  districts.  Ken 
Keller,  MBC  professor  of  history, 
believes  the  workshops  generated 
"enthusiastic  and  convincing  American 
history  teachers."  The  Institute  was  cre- 
ated by  Keller  and  local  public  school 
officials  with  the  aid  of  a  $700,000  U.S. 
Department  of  Education  grant  award- 
ed in  fall  2003. 

"We  will  never  teach  Civil  Rights  the 
same  way  after  this.  I  realize  now  that  it 
was  not  only  Rosa  Parks  and  Marrin 
Luther  King  Jr.  I  have  other  names,  names 
of  people  I  talked  to  in  this  room  and  that 
live  around  here,  more  names  than  I 
know  what  to  do  with,"  said  Bill  Terry,  a 


rijh  Wilson  ^^^^^^: 

Jjjj^l 

A  participating  area  teacher  as  a  student  in  the  Institute  for  Decisive  Events  in  American  History  places  his 
block  on  a  quilt  that  depicts  the  salient  points  of  a  summer  session  on  the  American  Civil  Rights  Movement. 


participant  in  the  Civil  Rights  workshop. 

Fellow  participant  James  Struzinsky 
echoed  Terry's  realization:  "To  hear  the 
stories  directly  from  [people  involved  in 
Civil  Rights  activity]  ...  If  I  could  give 
my  students  that  kind  of  exposure,  I  can 
only  imagine  what  they  would  think." 

"In  teaching  history, 
you  have  to  remember  that 
you  are  telling  a  story  and 
the  more  interesting  and  real 
you  can  make  that  story,  the 
better  your  students  will 
understand  it,"  said  Kevin 
Clark,  who  took  part  in  the 
Revolutionary  War  sessions. 

The  Institute,  led  by 
Keller  and  Amy  Tillerson, 
director  of  the  institute  and 
assistant  professor  of  history 
at  MBC,  used  two-week 
summer  workshops  and 
three  shorter  sessions  during  each  aca- 
demic year  to  cover  an  array  of  topics. 


Amy  Tillerson 


Teachers  who  attended  one  summer  ses- 
sion and  two  short  courses  earned  three 
hours  of  graduate  credit,  a  $500  stipend, 
and  textbooks.  Additionally,  teachers 
created  a  complete  lesson  plan  during  the 
summer,  and,  at  the  end  of  the  session, 
all  participants  received  each  other's 

plans  —  a  total  of  about  40 
—  to  use  in  their  classrooms. 

Although  the  three- 
year  grant  that  supported 
the  Institute  drew  to  a  close 
this  spring,  Keller  said  there 
is  lasting  impact  in  area 
schools  and  at  Mary 
Baldwin.  One  of  the  biggest 
benefits  is  the  addition  of 
Tillerson  to  the  full-time  fac- 
ulty at  the  college.  Some  of 
the  primary  sources,  texts, 
and  audiovisual  materials 
used  by  participants  have 
also  been  added  to  Grafton  Library's 
resources,  he  said.  ▲ 


"In  teaching  history,  you  have  to  remember  that  you  are  telling  a 
story  and  the  more  interesting  and  real  you  can  make  that  story, 
the  better  your  students  will  understand  it." 


Kevin  Clark 


Spring  2007 


.>' 


%      who  inspire  us  the  n^ 


am  today  without  rny  fourth 
i^ade  teacher,  Mrs;  Duncan. 
She  so  believed  in  me,  and  fo| 
the  first  tiihef  made  me 
^e  the  ideafof  learning, 
ri-learned  to  love  learning 
because  of  Mrs.  Du' 

—  Oprgh 


tors  demonstrate 
Jmmitment  each  day. 
We  salute  our  faculty  in  photographs 
[.throughout  "Teaching Teachers"  and  in 
ithe  listing  below. 


MBC  Faculty  2006-07          j 

(Full  time) 

Ann  Field  Alexander  '67 

Lowell  Lemons 

Robert  Allen 

Kathy  McCleaf 

^rata^  Anastasiou 

James  McCrory 

^^^nkney 

Anne  McGovern 

Hhib 

Catherine  McPherson  '78 

i^^^B^^_ 

Daniel  Metraux 

^^^^■^K 

Steven  Mosher 

^^^^^^^L^ 

Patricia  Murphy 

^^^^^^^H 

H.  Pamela  Murray 

^^^^^^^H 

^^^sley  Novack 

^^^1 

^^^H|  Oechslin 

^^P 

Molsie  Petty                                 ■ 

^^^^^^Hta 

^-    Jane  Pietrowski 

^^^^^^^H 

K  Richard  Plant 

^^^^^^^H 

B'-  Lallon  Pond 

^^^^^^^1 

P'   Gauri  Rai 

Carrie' Doligla^ss 

Adrian  Riskin                                  ; 

Daniel  Dowdy 

Paul  Ryan 

Irving  Driscoll  Jr 

Irene  Sarnelle 

Janet  Ewing 

,  Jim  Sconyers 

Virginia  Francisco  '64 

Edward  Scott 

fea^e.  Freeman 

Frank  Southerington 

^^^pGarkov 

Theresa  Southerington  '72 

^K|^- 

Sharon  Spalding 

^^HH, 

Daniel  Stuhlsatz 

^^^H^K 

AmyTillerson 

^^^^^n^ 

Katherine  Turner 

James  Harrington 

Carey  Usher 

Maria  Hobson 

Laura  van  Assendelft 

^Hjg^ir  James  '69 

Martha  Walker 

^K|^ 

John  Wells 

^^^^^^^pman 

Patricia  Westhafer 

^^^^^H^^,^ 

RoaerWilborn 

celebrations 


They  siaried  as  seedlings.  Small.  Unique.  Tentative. 
With  time  and  nurturing,  they  established  roots,  shot 
out  new  branches,  and  displayed  leaves  and  flowers 
in  showy  color.  And,  after  a  decade  or  more  —  just 
like  a  growing  tree  —  three  programs  have  enriched 
the  landscape  of  Mary  Baldwin  College  so  completely 
that  it  is  difficult  to  remember  what  it  looked  like 
before  they  were  planted.  Reunion  Weekend  2007 
provided  the  perfect  opportunity  to  revel  in  the  10th 
anniversaries  of  Quest  and  the  Office  of  African 
American  and  Multicultural  Affairs.  Adult  Degree 
Program  students,  faculty,  and  alumnae/i  will 
celebrate  30  years  in  early  summer  —  the  first  such 
program  of  its  kind  in  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia. 


Spring  2007 


IliBTOBfSHllk^liitglLtiffJbiiMWifMi^ 


By  the  Reverend  Patricia  Hunt,  college  chaplain 


Quest  is  a  unique  program  at  Mary 
Baldwin  College  open  to  any  student 
in  the  Residential  College  for  Womeii 
or  the  Adult  Degree  Program.  It  has 
academic  and  community  service 
components.  Questers  take  the  course 
Faith,  Life,  and  Service  and  choose 
three  electives  from  an  extensive  list 
of  philosophy  and  religion  courses. 
Students  in  Quest  must  also  perform 
at  least  100  hours  of  community 
service  while  in  college  or  during 
breaks.  Each  student  also  has  a  men- 
tor and  attends  at  least  one  meeting  a 
month  with  all  the  students  in  Quest, 
who  typically  meet  at  the  historic 
home  of  its  founding  director,  the 
Reverend  Hunt,  college  chaplain. 
Teaching,  Questing,  and  writing. 
Hunt's  columns  are  published  weekly 
in  The  News  Virginian,  Waynesboro, 
Virginia.  In  the  style  of  her  column, 
she  lurites  here  about  her  experience 
with  Quest. 

I  am  the  world's  oldest  living  Quest 
student.  The  program  is  10  years 
old,  and  I  have  been  the  director  for 
the  entire  decade.  With  that  kind  of 
continuous  learning,  one  might 
think  a  spiritual  pinnacle  had  been 
reached  or  some  universal  truth  had 
been  revealed;  but  no,  the  journey 
continues  ... 

Quest  is  about  figuring  out  how 
to  live  a  life,  the  particular  life  you 
happen  to  be  living  right  now.  You 
can  have  moments  of  Solomon-level 
wisdom  at  age  five  or  85.  You  can 
also  have  moments  of  profound  stu- 
pidity and  foolishness  at  any  age.  You 
can  even  have  both  on  the  same  day. 

In  Quest  we  try  to  mine  our 
intellectual  resources  and  the  spiritual 
resources  we  each  draw  from  the  rich 
traditions  we  have  inherited  and  are 
endeavoring  to  live  by.  We  examine 
our  faith  and  our  doubt.  We  try  to 
figure  out  how  to  make  ourselves 
useful;  we  are  about  service. 

Being  the  oldest  living  Quest 
student  means  I  have  had  more 
opportunity  to  learn  than  anyone 
else.  I  wish  I  could  say  I  have  it  all 
together  and  have  become  incredibly 
wise  and  mature,  but  that  would  not 
be  true.  I  still  struggle  to  make  good 
decisions  and  be  kind  and  loving.  I 
am  still  just  a  Quest  student.  But  10 
years  have  gone  by.  What  have  I 


learned?  How  am  I  different  for  hav- 
ing been  a  Qiiester? 


is  that  I  have  seen  life  through  the 
eyes  of  so  many  people  whose  reli- 
gious and  political  views,  and  ages, 
ethnicity,  and  experience  are  different 
from  my  own.  When  people  who 
worship  like  I  do,  vote  like  I  do,  and 
shop  like  I  do,  make  negative  com- 
ments about  "those  other  people,"  I 
cringe  because  I  ^7^01^'  those  other 
people.  1  know  conservative  Catholics 
and  liberal  Catholics.  I  know 
Pentecostals.  I  know  Protestants  on 
every  side  of  every  issue.  I  have  a 
Muslim  friend  and  Jewish  friends.  I 
know  heavy  duty  skeptics  and  people 
who  believe  they  talk  to  Jesus  and  he 
listens.  I  know  lesbian  Christians  and 
Cliristians  who  think  being  gay  is  an 
abomination.  It  has  been  enlighten- 
ing and  humbling. 

From  Ubah  Ansari  Pathan  '99  I 
learned  what  it  is  like  to  try  to  wed 
the  Muslim-Indian  custom  of 
arranged  marriage  into  an  American 
life.  I  learned  what  a  truly  sacred 
understanding  of  life  looks  like 
through  Brandy  Tricia  Caleb's  '03 
stories  about  growing  up  in  Guyana 
where  children  were  blessed  with 
scented  water  poured  on  their  heads. 
Children  were  blessed;  life  was 
blessed.  Kerry  Blekfeld  '02  intro- 
duced us  to  an  American  Indian  who 
had  come  into  her  family  with  a 
whole  cultural  world  that  enriched 
their  lives.  Samantha  Adato  '08  is 
studying  her  own  faith  tradition 
under  Rabbi  Joe  Blair  this  semester, 
and  I  have  the  high  privilege  of  learn- 
ing alongside  her.  Taniika  Jones  '04 
helped  me  see  the  humor  in  the 
human  condition.  Ruth  Graham  '00 
helped  me  understand  the  world  pf 
evangelicals,  a  cultural  world  I 
thought  I  knew,  but  found  there  was 
much  more  still  to  understand. 

Quest  has  allowed  me  to  be  a 
part  of  a  group  whose  members  do 
something  that  other  people  just  talk 
about.  They  care  about  each  other 
and  are  supportive  of  one  another, 
while  allowing  each  member  to  find 
her  own  way  of  believing,  living,  and 
serving.  Wildly  different  ways  of 
being  human  are  represented  in 
Quest,  but  people  can  accept  each 
other  even  when  they  do  not  share 


each  other's  beliefs  or  choices.  I  pick 
up  the  paper  and  there  is  conflict  and 
vitriol,  and  then  I  have  the  Questers 
over  for  pizza,  and  I  enter  this  little 
sanctuary  of  peace  and  good  will. 
The  peace  seems  more  normal  to  me 
than  the  conflict. 

I  remember  one  student  who 
came  into  Quest  guarded  and  reluc- 
tant. She  had  been  hurt  in  the  past. 
She  knew  what  it  was  to  be  rejected 
and  ridiculed  because  she  was  differ- 
ent. She  found  it  hard  to  believe  that 
somewhere  there  was  a  group  of  peo- 
ple who  could  accept  her  for  who  she 
was.  During  the  first  meeting  of  the 
year  we  went  around  the  room  telling 
the  others  a  litrie  bit  about  ourselves. 
She  chose  a  chair  in  the  corner  and 
seemed  to  shrink  back  into  a  wall. 
Finally  it  was  her  turn.  She  told  her 
story.  She  never  smiled.  She  finished. 
She  waited.  The  very  first  student  to 
make  a  comment  simply  said, 
"You're  fine.  You  are  who  God  made 
you."  The  tension  and  fear 
drained  from  her  face.  She  was 
one  of  us  now.  There  was  noth- 
ing to  fear  within  this  group.  , 

Every  time  I  get  together 
with  Questers,  I  am  in  sc'»'»'=''' 
die  School  of  Life.  I  am 
especially  apt  student,  b 
learning.  It  has  been  an; 
to  be  here.  .  ,i 

Visit:  www.mbc.edu/qtfi 


iliJii^iiinKwimtii*^ 


"Quest  is  about  c 

and  respecting  each  different 

answer  that  everyone  in  the 

group  finds.  All  too  often, 

we  are  not  encouraged  to 

take  true  ownership  of  our 

religious  faith.  Like  no  other 

group  that  I  have  been  a  part 

of,  Quest  is  helping  find 

answers  for  me." 


— •  Emily  Alexander  Douglas  '98 


THFTR  COLLEGE 


Does  the  Quest  experience  continue  to  have  an  impact  on  student's 
lives  after  they  graduate  from  Mary  Baldwin  College?  At  this  10- 
year  milestone  of  the  unique  program,  its  founding  director  and 
college  chaplain.  The  Reverend  Pat  Hunt,  wanted  to  know.  She 
asked  Kristen  Earner  '90,  now  assistant  chaplain,  to  contact  some 
Quest  alumnae  to  talk  about  what  the  program  meant  to  them  and 
what,  if  anything,  it  means  to  them  now. 

Quest  helped  me  discover  who  I  am  as  a  person.  There  was  diversity  in 
the  Quest  program:  Christians,  Jews,  Wiccans,  and  more.  We  learned 
about  different  faiths  and  religions.  1  discovered  I  couldn't  appreciate 
ivhat  I  believed  until  I  knew  what  else  was  out  there.  Spiritual  journeys 
are  about  finding  out  about  yourself.  The  journey  is  about  becoming  a  •  '. 
better  person.  Universalist  Unitarian  is  where  I  usually  attend  church 
now,  though  I  frequently  visit  other  churches  as  well. 

—  Liz  Hackett  'ft 

Quest  was  wonderful.  After  I  graduated  from  Mary  Baldwin,  I  attend-' 
ed  University  of  the  South  and  earned  a  master's  in  theology,  and  '■ 
went  on  to  Oxford.  There  I  served  on  the  chaplain's  committee  and  i 
vocations  discussion  group  which  included  exploration  of  faith,  life, 
and  service  —  just  as  we  had  done  in  Quest.  I  was  in  England  again 
with  a  Canadian  University  Abroad  program  and  helped  mediate  disl 
cussion  groups.  From  Quest,  I  learned  how  to  represent  myself  with^ 
out  alienating  others  and  how  to  handle  disagreements  about  diverse^ 
belief  systems  and  faiths.  I  am  now  working  in  the  field  of  diabetes  « 
Almeda,  California.  i 

—  Melissa  Ford  '99" 

Quest  opened  my  eyes.  I  had  had  only  a  narrow  view  of  my  own  reli- 
gion. Quest  goes  hand-in-hand  with  university  learning  by  expanding 
our  way  of  thinking.  Quest  was  the  start  of  ?ny  spiritual  journey.  I 
am  still  in  touch  with  friends  from  Quest.  We  talk  about  our  journeys 
and  spiritual  issues  that  come  up.  I  wish  we  had  a  Quest  for  alum- 
naeli.  My  world  used  to  be  "black  and  white. "  Now  1  see  grays.  J  see 
the  beauty  in  other  religions,  rather  than  trappings.  I  relish  the  differ- 
ences, as  well  as  the  similarities.  I  worked  for  more  than  five  years  at 
US  Airways  and  am  now  at  Virginia  Commonwealth  University 
working  on  my  MBA. 

—  Ubah  Ansari  Pathan  '99 


When  I  went  to  Mary  Baldwin,  I  was  really  homesick.  I  got  involved  m 
Quest  and  that  helped.  We  did  something  every  week.  I  stay  in  touch  I 
with  a  few  girls.  We  were  a  diverse  group  so  I  learned  about  other      J 
faiths,  which  was  helpful  in  developing  my  own  faith.  I  was  raised  a   r 
Baptist.  As  1  learned  about  other  faiths,  I  became  more  open-minded  i 
about  what  other  people  thought.  My  family  was  very  supportive  of  ^ 
my  participation  in  Quest.  For  the  Jyast  four  years,  I  have  been  chap- 
lain of  the  Volunteer  Fire  Department  in  Williamsburg,  Virginia.  It  is 
interfaith,  and  because  of  Quest,  it's  a  terrific  position  for  me.  I  have     ''[ 
been  a  volunteer  firefighter  since  2000,  and  jiow  it  is  my  career. 

—  Kerry  Blekfeld  '02 

/  was  in  Quest  when  it  was  brand  new,  just  a  figment  of  Reverend 
Hunt's  imagination.  We  invited  students  interested  in  exploring  their 
uiun  faith  journeys  within  a  diverse  group.  I  had  been  co-leading  non- 
dcuominational  chapel  services  on  Sunday  nights.  My  Dad  is  a  Baptist 
minister  and  1  could  always  ask  him  questions.  At  MBC,  I  was  away 
from  my  home  for  the  first  time.  This  meant  I  had  the  opportunity  to 
claim  my  faith  as  my  own  —  and  that  tested  me.  Quest  provided  a 
great  backdrop  for  that  investigation  of  faith.  My  husband  Kris  and  I 
dre  in  Mashville.  I  work  in  the  development  office  at  Vanderbilt 
University,  and  we  are  members  of  a  non-denominational  church  and 
expfctiiii^  oi/r  first  child. 

—  Emily  Alexander  Douglas  '98 


QUEST 


A  Celebration  of  Quest  During  Reunion  Weekend  2007 


For    10    YEARS,  groups  of  students  at  Mary  Baldwin 
College  have  been  pondering  a  question  other  than:  "What  do 
you  want  to  do?"  They  are  business  majors  and  art  majors. 
They  plan  careers  in  fields  from  investment  banking  to  ministry. 
Most  are  from  Christian  backgrounds,  but  some  practice  other 
religions,  or  come  from  non-religious  families. 
They  are  all  Questers.  ..,-„-„--,--„.,—„. 

"In  Quest,  we  try  to  strip  away  the  pres- 
sure that  comes  from  trying  to  decide  what  a 
student  wants  to  do  with  her  life,  asking  them 
instead:  'Who  do  you  want  to  be}"'  said  Rev. 
Patricia  Hunt,  MBC  chaplain. 

Members  of  Quest  share  a  desire  to 
learn  about  each  other's  life  experience  and 
to  integrate  one's  spiritual  nature  into  daily 
thoughts,  deeds,  and  actions.  They  meet  reg- 
ularly at  Hunt's  house  to  explore  spirituality 
and  faith  in  practice.  Questers  are  all  part  of 
MBC's  Interfaith  Village;  not  a  physical 
place,  but  rather  a  group  of  people  united  in 
their  pursuit  of  spiritual  growth,  academic  integrity,  and  com- 
munity service. 

As  the  innovative  program  celebrated  its  first  decade  this 
year,  several  alumnae/i  returned  for  the  annual  Carpenter  Society 
induction  ceremony,  held  during  Reunion  Weekend.  Recent 
alumna  Holly  Moskowitz  '03  watched  as  new  members  were 
inducted,  the  result  of  having  completed  the  academic,  spiritual, 
and  service  requirements  of  Quest,  as  she  had  done.  Moskowitz, 


2007  QUEST  INDUCTEES 

So  Young  Ahn  '08 

Mahala  Burn  '07 

Santana  Chnstian  '08 

Kaity  McEwen  '07 

Canni  Roa  '07 

Dea  Turner  '07 


one  of  the  few  Jewish  students  during  her  time  at  MBC,  said  she 
always  knew  she  would  "find  work  that  was  based  on  the  prin- 
cipals of  faith,"  and  that  Quest  offered  her  an  academic  way  of 
exploring  other  religions.  She  now  works  with  Thanksgiving 
Coffee  Company,  an  interfaith  organization  based  in  Uganda 

that  promotes  peace  and  economic  develop- 
— rrr=^*:tt;--ss:s-:\^_   ment  among  coffee  farmers.  "Quest  continues 
P   to  be  important  for  students  who  are  confi- 
P  dent  in  their  faith  as  well  as  those  who  do  not 
P  necessarily  have  strong  beliefs." 
i\  The  ceremony  featured  keynote 

speaker  Howard  Zehr,  co-director  and  pro- 
fessor in  the  Center  for  Justice  and  Peace  at 
Eastern  Mennonite  University,  who  shared 
his  journey  into  the  study  and  practice  of 
victim  and  offender  reconciliation.  Zehr, 
hailed  by  many  as  a  guru  in  his  field,  said 
|t  he  was  an  outsider  during  his  college  years, 
"  as  one  of  the  few  white  students  and  the 
first  white  graduate  of  Morehouse 
University.  That  experience,  and,  later,  teaching  at  Talladega 
College,  a  historically  black  southern  college,  solidified  his 
interest  in  restorative  justice.  During  the  Oklahoma  City 
bombing  trial  of  Timothy  McVeigh  (1997),  Zehr  was 
appointed  by  the  federal  court  to  assist  the  defense  in  work- 
ing with  victims,  yet  an  ongoing  initiative.  More  recently,  he 
has  tapped  into  his  interest  in  photojournalism  in  his  pub- 
lished books  about  restorative  justice.  ▲ 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


:*>-s»'>i- 


ADP  Students  and 
Alumnae/i  Represent 


^k 


AT  FIRST  THERE  WERE  EIGHT 
They  were  all  women.  They  were  trend- 
setters; bold  and  committed  to  educat- 
ing themselves  no  matter  their  age  or 
life  situation.  Thirty  years  later,  annual 
enrollment  in  Mary  Baldwin  College's 
Adult  Degree  Program  (ADP)  is  more 
than  1,000  and  includes  gender,  racial, 
ethnic,  and  geographic  diversity. 

ADP  will  celebrate  its  first  30  years 
by  honoring  its  "pearls,"  (the  traditional  gift 
for  a  30th  wedding  anniversary),  repre- 
sented by  the  people  who  emerge  from 
the  program  with  new  knowledge  and 
gifts. The  program's  students,  alumnae/i, 
faculty,  and  staff  are  invited  to  celebrate 
the  milestone  in  a  showcase  of  music,  art, 
writing,  creativity,  and  professional 
achievements  by  ADP  students  and  gradu- 
ates on  the  Staunton  campus  from  2  to  5 
p.m.  June  24,  said  Cathy  Ferris 
McPherson  '78,  associate  professor  of 
business  administration  and  director  of  the 
ADP  regional  center  in  Richmond.  Light 
refreshments  and  cake  will  be  served. 

"The  path  adult  learners  follow  as 
college  students  is  much  like  that  of  a 
pearl  —  a  rough  grain  of  sand,  trans- 
formed slowly  over  time  into  something  of 
great  value,"  McPherson  said. 

The  profiles  here  are  but  a  minute 
sampling  of  the  radiant  stories  of  adult 
graduates  at  MBC.  Debra  "Faith"  Skiles 
'04,  Joseph  Haranzo  '05,  and  Patrick 
Harper  '06  exemplify  the  potential  in 
every  adult  student  which,  for  three 
decades,  Mary  Baldwin  has  welcomed 
and  molded.  These  stories,  written  by 
Dawn  Medley,  have  been  published  in 
the  annual  "Continuum"  section  of  The 
Roanoke  Times. 


K. 


Skiles  '04  Had  'Faith'  in 
Adult  Degree  Program 

When  Debra  Faith  Skiles  —  known  to  most  people  by 
her  descriptive  middle  name  —  left  Central  Alabama 
Community  College  after  just  one  quarter  to  care  for 
her  newborn  twin  boys,  she  was  already  thinking  about 
how  she  would  finish  her  college  education.  Almost  20 
years  later,  Skiles'  sons  led  her  back  to  the  classroom. 

While  researching  their  own  options  for  college, 
twins  Josh  and  Jeff  became  con- 
vinced that  it  was  time  for  their 
mother  —  by  then,  in  her  late  thirties 
—  to  go  back  to  school,  too.  For  their 
own  education  they  chose  Amherst 
College  in  Massachusetts.  For  their 
mother,  Mary  Baldwin  College  — 
with  a  nearby  regional  center  in 
Roanoke,  Virginia  —  was  the  ideal 
solution. 

"I  told  them,  'If  you  can  find  a  reputable  school 
where  I  can  take  most  of  the  courses  from  home,  I'll 
do  it,'"  Skiles  said,  explaining  that  she  didn't  want  a 
'mail-order'  diploma.  "To  tell  the  truth,  I  didn't  really 
think  they  could  do  it.  The  Adult  Degree  Program  at 
Mary  Baldwin  ended  what  had  been  a  20-year  struggle 
for  me  to  find  a  way  to  get  my  degree." 

Skiles  graduated  cum  laude  with  distinction  in  her 
major  in  2004,  but  she  wasn't  willing  to  stop  there.  She 
applied  for  a  master's  program  in  history  at  Virginia 
Tech,  where  she  hoped  to  continue  the  research  on 
southern  Presbyterian  women  missionaries  that  she 
started  as  her  senior  project  at  Mary  Baldwin.  Her  ulti- 
mate goal  is  to  earn  a  PhD  and  teach  at  the  college 
level  —  with  the  full  realization  that  she  will  just  be 
starting  her  professorial  career  at  an  age  when  many 
are  contemplating  retirement. 

Haranzo  Survived  Car  Wreck 
to  Earn  MBC  Degree 

"I  am  a  27-year-old  male  who  was  involved  in  an  auto- 
mobile accident  on  July  11,  1992.  After  two  years  of  ther- 
apy, I  am  now  in  the  process  of  getting  my  life  back  in 
order,"  wrote  Joseph  Haranzo. 

The  opening  lines  of  his  decade-old  application 
essay  for  Mary  Baldwin  College's  Adult  Degree  Program 


50  Spring  2007 


candidly  summarize  his  years  of  struggle  to  speak, 
to  write  his  own  name,  to  walk,  and  to  work  up 
the  courage  to  even  think  about  finishing  his  col- 
lege degree  after  sustaining  a  traumatic  brain 
injury  as  the  result  of  the  accident. 

Haranzo  began  his  intensive  re-education  in 
fall  1993  at  Virginia  Western  Community  College. 
He  was  nesting  completion  of  his  associates 
degree  in  computer  information  systems  when  he 
decided  to  pursue  his  bachelor's  degree  at  Mary 
Baldwin  College.  The  college's  Roanoke  center 
was  convenient,  and  Haranzo  was  optimistic  that 
MBC  would  accept  most  of  the  college  credits  he 
had  already  earned.  Mary  Baldwin  was  also  will- 
ing to  give  him  "life  experience"  credit  —  several 
hours  of  course  credit  for  his  work  in  computer 
sales  and  service. 

"Do  you  know  what  I  received  as  graduation 
gifts?  I  got  books  —  the  exact  opposite  of  what  I 
would  have  wanted  15  years  ago,"  Haranzo  said. 
He  started  reading  one  of  them  shortly  after 
Commencement.  Haranzo  connected  with  the 
book  because  it  is  a  study  of  why  people  in  post- 
Industrial  Revolution  society  need  to  slow  down, 
take  time,  and  relish  things. 

Haranzo  sped  —  physically  and  mentally  — 
through  the  first  part  of  his  life.  Now  every  step, 
every  conversation,  every  paper  he  writes  and 
book  he  reads  is  an  accomplishment  worth  cele- 
brating. In  2002,  Haranzo  wrote  his  own  book,  A 
Short  Book  on  Meditation  for  Everyone  . . .  and 
Brain  Injury  Survivors.  He  was  not  in  a  hurry  to 
finish  college;  he  wanted  to  let  the  process 
evolve. 

In  May  2005—  just  shy 
of  a  decade  after  he  typed 
those  paragraphs  explaining 
why  he  should  be  admitted  — 
Haranzo  received  his  bache- 
lor's degree  from  Mary 
Baldwin  in  the  demanding 
field  of  computer  science  and 
business  administration.  And  he  earned  academic 
distinction  for  his  75-page  senior  thesis  and  proj- 
ect detailing  management  and  financial  strategies 
at  Apple  Computer. 

"My  parents  were  beaming  (at 
Commencement!  and  that  made  my  day," 


Haranzo  said. 

Haranzo  continues  to  serve  the  public  as  a 
volunteer  at  Friday  Night  Friends,  a  church  pro- 
gram in  his  area  that  provides  an  evening  off 
duty  for  caregivers  of  people  with  disabilities.  He 
is  also  president  of  the  newly  resurrected  ARC 
of  the  Roanoke  Valley. 

MBC  Career-Switcher 
Program  Helps  Harper 
Bridge  Banking,  Teaching 

It  was  not  that  Patrick  Harper  didn't  like  his  work 
as  a  banker.  He  put  on  his  business  suit  each 
day  with  a  sense  of  purpose.  He  greeted  cus- 
tomers enthusiastically  —  as  a  teller,  a  cus- 
tomer service  representative  and,  later,  a  branch 
manager.  He  was  satisfied  at  the  end  of  the  day, 
hopeful  that  he  had  helped  people  make  impor- 
tant financial  decisions  that  would  afford  them  a 
better  future.  Still,  something  didn't  feel  right. 

"I  certainly  wasn't  miserable,"  Harper  said 
in  reference  to  his  banking  days,  "but  I  had  the 
feeling  that  I  was  not  using  my  spiritual  gifts  to 
my  fullest  advantage." 

A  year-and-a-half  before  earning  his  teach- 
ing certification  in  fall  2006,  Harper  stopped  in 
at  the  Roanoke  Higher  Education  Center  and 
discovered  Mary  Baldwin  College's  program  for 
people  who  have  already  earned  undergraduate 
degrees  and  want  to  become  teachers.  Post 
Baccalaureate  Teacher  Licensure.  "From  the 
moment  I  expressed  interest  in  the  program, 
advisors  assured  me  that  it  was  possible, 
although  they  knew  I  would  need  to  continue 
working  and  my  transcript  from  college  was  not 
as  good  as  it  could  have  been,"  said  Harper, 
who  graduated  from  Bridgewater  College  in  the 
late  1990s. 

"The  only  thing  I  wish  I  had  done  different- 
ly was  to  start  my  career  change  with  Mary 
Baldwin  sooner,"  said  Harper,  after  a  day  of 
working  with  third-graders.  "I  am  completely 
worn  out  at  the  end  of  the  day  —  after  teaching, 
observing,  after-school  meetings,  lesson  plan- 
ning, and  grading  —  but  it  is  so  much  fun  and 
so  gratifying."   ▲ 


The  Making  of  a 
Successful  Adult 
Degree  Program 


1977 


1978 
1979 


1983 


1984 


1985 


1992 


1993 


MBC  launches  the  Adult  Degree 
Program  (ADP)  with  a  class  of 
eight  women. 

ADP  graduates  its  first  student 
ADP  opens  its  program  to  men. 
Enrollment  grows  to  150  stu- 
dents, 90  percent  women 
First  regional  center  opens  in 
Richmond,  Virginia 
Second  regional  center  opens  in 
Roanoke,  Virginia 
Third  regional  center  opens  in 
Charlottesville  in  partnership  with 
Piedmont  Virginia  Community 
College 

Add  Post  Baccalaureate  Teacher 
Licensure  program  to  regional 
center  and  Staunton  campus 
offerings 

Fourth  regional  center  opens  in 
Weyers  Cave,  Virginia  in  partner- 
ship with  Blue  Ridge 
Community  College  •  Full-time 
ADP  faculty  increase  from  four 
to  14;  student  numbers  increase 
from  150  to  1,100 

1994  to  2002 

Online  courses  and  online  regis- 
tration become  an  option  • 
Students  are  no  longer  predomi- 
nantly women  returning  to 
school  mid-life;  most  are  young 
men  and  women  balancing 
career,  family  and  part-time  edu- 
cation •  ADP  alumnae/i  are  now 
represented  on  MBC's  Advisory 
Board  of  Visitors,  Alumnae/i 
Association  Board,  and  Board  of 
Trustees 

Mary  Baldwin's  Adult  Degree 

Program  celebrates  20  years 

Lyn  McDermid  '05  is  first  ADP 

alumna  to  be  Commencement 

speaker 

2003  to  2006 

Fifth  regional  office  opens  in 
South  Boston,  Virginia  • 
Richmond  regional  office 
expands  to  include  a  satellite 
office  at  Rappahannock 
Community  College  •  Sign 
Articulation  Agreement  with  all 
23  Virginia  community  colleges 
offering  those  students  accept- 
ance of  general  credits  and  guar- 
anteed admission  to  MBC  (via 
Residential  College  for  Women 
or  ADP)  •  Enrollment  increases 
19.8  percent  since  July  1,  2003 
ADP  celebrates  30  years  with 
a  special  event  to  be  held 
June  24,  2007 


1997 


2000 


2007 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


of  Witnesses 


Top:  Women  on  the  Wall  of  Honor  including  (I  to  r) 
Johnice  Hill  '06,  Kamala  Payne  '05.  Andrea 
Cornett-Scott.  associate  vice  president  of  student 
affairs,  Camel!  Cherry  '03,  Cierra  Alston  '05, 
Amanda  Davis  Holloway  '02,  and  Jawanda  Smith 
Jenkins  '03  pose  in  front  of  the  Wall.  Bottom:  Gini 
Ridge  (center),  food  service  director  at  MBC 
1994-2007  and  Wall  of  Honor  honoree,  receives 
flowers. 


In  a  celebration  as  unique  as  the  people 
and  programs  it  honored,  hundreds  of 
alumnae/i,  students,  current  and  former 
faculty  and  staff  members,  friends,  and 
family  members  gathered  in  the  historic 
upper  back  gallery  of  the  Administration 
Building  during  Reunion  Weekend  2007 
for  the  10th  anniversary  of  the  Office  of 
African  American  and  Multicultural 
Affairs  (AAMA). 

Intricately  patterned 
African  cloth  covered  the 
panels  of  a  Wall  of  Honor 
—  a  project  to  recognize 
individuals  and  groups  who 
have  made  significant  con- 
tributions to  the  culture  of 
diversity  at  Mary  Baldwin 
College,  providing  a  color- 
ful backdrop  for  tearful 
reunions  and  heartfelt 
words  of  appreciation. 

Classmates  Saidah 
Hart  '02  and  Allison  Irby  '02  were 
pleased  to  see  their  former  Spanish  pro- 
fessor, Ivy  Arbulu,  as  an  honoree  on  the 
wall.  Hart,  who  now  works  as  a 
Spanish  teacher  herself,  said  Arbulu 
never  allowed  them  to  settle  for 
"good  enough." 

"It's  a  wonderful  recognition  of 
what  the  honorees  meant  to  us  and 
a  way  to  highlight  the  college's 
diverse  student  body  and  diverse 
interests,"  Irby  said. 


Ranyne  Herbert 


Alumnae  Shirley  File  Bobbins  and 
Prior  Meade  Cooper,  Class  of  1962,  nod- 
ded to  each  other  while  listening  to 
President  Pamela  Fox,  Associate  Vice 
President  for  Student  Affairs  Andrea 
Cornett-Scott  (the  program's  original  and 
current  leader),  and  interim  Dean  of  the 
College  Edward  Scott  talk  about  AAMA 
and  its  increasing  programs  and  activi- 
ties. "I  read  the  Newsweek 
article  [Nov.  6,  2006]  that 
included  Mary  Baldwin's 
diversity  efforts  and  wanted 
to  learn  more,"  Robbins  said. 
"It  is  enlightening  to  hear 
about  the  increasing  number 
of  students  of  color  in  leader- 
ship positions." 

Another  guest  of 
honor  was  eighth  president 
of  the  college,  Cynthia  H. 
Tyson,  who  gave  a  moving 
response  after  the  Wall  was 
revealed.  "I'm  very  grateful  and  proud  to 
be  one  of  the  people  who  were  a  part 
of  this  era  at  Mary  Baldwin.  Andrea 
ICornett-Scott)  is  determined,  resource- 
ful, creative,  and  energetic,  and  the  col- 
lege owes  much  to  her.  The  honor 
belongs  to  the  young  women  who  con- 
tinue to  carry  out  her  vision,"  Tyson  said. 

For  a  complete  list  of  honorees, 
visit  The  Cupola  archives  site  at 
www.mbc.edu/news/cupola  and  click  on 
the  December  2006  issue.  ▲ 


Sphng  2007 


From  Mary  Baldwin  to  the  Ladies  on  the  Wall 

By  Dara  Moore  '02 

When  my  pen  met  paper  I  found  questions  in  lieu  of  responses  about  my  reaction  to 
thie  Wall  of  Honor  Was  "she"  —  Mary  Baldwin  College  —  proud  of  us?  I  wondered 
most  if  she  understood  our  struggle.  The  spirit  of  Mary  Baldwin's  campus  —  the 
hills,  hallways,  and  classrooms  —  told  me  there  was  much  she  had  to  say  to  those 
women  on  the  Wall.  She  assured  that  we  brought  purpose  to  Mary  Baldwin  College 
by  way  of  being  strong  and  determined  women  of  color,  and  as  much  as  we  claimed 
her  campus,  she  not  only  claimed  and  supported  us,  she  transformed  to  become 
what  we  needed.  My  poem  is  what  I  believe  Mary  Baldwin  College's  response 
would  be  to  my  questions  and  those  many  of  us  have  asked.  It  is  a  gentle  reminder 
that  we  are  all  an  essential  part  of  the  college's  fabric. 


Dara  Moore  '02 


I  [Mary  Baldwiri  College]  was  bewildered 

Those  first  days  my  gaze 

Rested  upon  your  striking  face 

I  was  uneasy  and  terrified 

unaware  of  your  authority 

Naive  on  the  subject  of  your  design 

I  nervously  awaited  the  day 

you  would  defiantly  declare 

"THIS  IS  all  mine!" 

As  you  pushed  through 

climbed  over 

stepped  around 

occasionally  fell  down 

I  was  pleased. 

You  collected  yourself 

With  such  poise  and  ease 

Even  your  mistakes  were  refined 

And  I  could  see  very  soon 

You  were  preparing  to  sing 

"THIS  is  all  mine!" 

Your  tears  tugged  at  the 

Corners  of  my  heart 

You  weren't  meant  to  blend 

You  were  created  to  stand  apart 

You  were  dressed  in  color 

A  delightful  creation 

danced  all  across  my  surface 

with  your  precise  purpose 

And  all  I  could  think  was, 

"It's  about  time!" 

I  became  proud 

As  with  attitude  you  announced, 

"THIS  is  all  mine!" 

I  love  the  portion  of  my  song 

'To  these  hills  where  Beauty  dwells' 

Yet  what  you  have  added 

caused  my  splendor  to  swell 

As  you  flexed 

I  flexed 

As  you  increased 

I  increased 


And  when  you  became  Black  Woman 

With  your  texture  and  your  story 

You  were  heavy 

My  soil  expanded  and  deepened  beneath 

you 
You  demanded 

I  must  be  enough  to  keep  you  standing. 
I  must  be  enough  to  keep  you 
I  must  be  enough 
And  when  we  were  weary  together  those 

times 
All  I  could  hear  was 
Your  persistence, 
"THIS  is  all  mine!" 

You  are  the  spiritual 

That  delivered  me  to  transformation 

You  are  dream 

You  are  solution 

You  are  masterpiece 

You  are  revolution 

A  lyric 

which  fused  my  past  with  legacy 

imprinted  across  my  breasts 

Your  poems 

Your  songs 

Your  names 

Your  memory 

Your  protests 

Because  of  you 

I  am  louder 

Rhythmic,  vibrant 

Blessed. 

Because  of  you 

I  am  now 

And  tomorrow 

And  I  am  more 

But  best  of  all 

I  am  always 

And  thankfully  YOURS... 


Tribute  Inspired 
by  the  12-Bar  Blues 


By  Dr.  Pamela  Fox 

I  believe  I  can  soar,  Umoja 

I  believe  I  can  soar  because  we  are  and 

I  ann  complete,  Umoja 
We  ennbrace  our  shared  experiences 

and  our  differences,  Ujima. 

In  words,  dance,  chorus,  and  song 
In  living,  learning,  leading,  achieving, 
I  believe  in  A  Great  Cloud  of  Witnesses 
Celebrating  inclusive  creativity, 
Kuumba. 

An  office,  a  locus,  a  focus 

Of  sisterhood,  cultural  celebrations,  and 

clubs 
I  believe  in  self-determination, 

Kujichagulia. 


A  legacy  of  commitment 


of  color 
We  have  faith  in  you,  Imani. 

I  believe  I  can  soar,  Umoja. 

I  believe  I  can  soar  because  we  are  and 

I  am  complete,  Umoja. 
We  embrace  our  legacy  and  future, 

Sankofa. 


Kujichagulia  (self-determination);  Ujima  (community 
responsibility);  *.'(jumfaa  (creativity);  /man/ (faith). 
Sankofa.  a  mythical  bird  tliat  flies  forward  while 
looking  back  with  an  egg  In  its  mouth  signifies  the 
past,  present,  and  future. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  IVlagazine 


great  gift 
ideas! 


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Sizes  small  to  XX-large $45 

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Sizes  small  to  XX-large $40 

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MBC  Flip  Flops  —  our  hottest  new  item. 
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saying  MBC 
Shoe  sizes   $20 

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for  your  MBC  flip  flops,  a  good  book,  and  bottle 
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Yellow  with  green  MBC  embroidered  logo   .  .  $20 


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Clear  plastic  with  MBC  logo 

8  ounces $12 

GLADYS  THE  SQUIRREL 

Lovable  plush  squirrel  holding  acorn  that  rotates 
6-inch   $8 

RETROSPECT  THE  TYSON  YEARS 

Just  published  —  Retrospect:  The  Tyson  Years 
1985-2003  written  by  Patricia  Menk, 
professor  emerita  of  history  at  MBC $18 


54  Spring  2007 


Order  Toll  Free  800-763-7359  Order  By  Fax  540  885  9503 


Order  Toll  Free  800  763  7359  Order  By  Fax  540-885-9503 

Shop  Online  www.mbc.edu/alumnae/giftshop 


^ 


MBC  PLATE 

MBC  decorative  plates 

depicting  our  historic 

Administration  Building, 

made  in  England. 

Old  English  Staffordshire 

ware,  blue/white 

$50 

MBC  SCARF 

You're  stylin'  now  —  when 
you  wear  this  beautiful 
hand-painted  scarf.  Pale  yel- 
low with  blue,  green,  gold 
$25 

MBC  FLAG 

Show  your  school  spirit 
even  when  you're  at  home 
with  this  handsome 
flag.Vfe/tow  with  green 
MBC  logo,  28"  x  42 
$25 

MBC  WINE  GLASSES 

Toast  any  special  occasion 
using  these  wine  glasses 
with  the  MBC  logo  etched 
on  each  glass. 
One  glass  $6 
Set  of  two  S10 

WINE  GLASS 
CHARMS 

Set  of  six  Mary  Baldwin- 
specific  charms  to  identify 
your  wine  glass,  includes  an 
Apple  Day  charm.  Ham  and 
Jam,  Gladys  the  Fighting 
Squirrel,  MBC  logo,  MEC 
seal.  Administration  Building. 
Made  of  hard  white  plastic 
with  color  art  and  two  sparkly 
beads  on  each  charm. 
Goldtone  or  silvertone 
set  of  six  $15 


I  GIFT  SHOP 


order  form 


Allow  2^  weeks  for  shipping  on  charnns;  6-8  weeks  shipping  on  chairs  and  rockers. 
All  prices  are  subject  to  change. 

Alumnae/i  and  Parent  Relations  •   Mary  Baldwin  College  •  Staunton,  VA  24401 


sio 
ITEM#                  DESCRIPTION                    GTY         SIZE          COLOR           ISl^^!"         PRICE          TOTAL 

Designs  on^ 

CLASS  YEAR 

ADPD   MA 

SUBTOTA. 

TD   PFfiD 

(VA.  RESIDENTS-  5%  SALES TAXi 

SHIPPING  FOR  RDCKERSISIOOI  &  CHAIRS  'SbOl 

SHIPPING  1S5  on  aaws  under  SlOO,  SIO  on  orcers.  o.e'  SICO' 

DAYTIME  PH 

ONE:   1              1 

TOTAL  OF  ORDER 

$ 

GIFT  CARD  MESSAGE:. 


METHOD  OF  PAYMENT 

□  CHECK/MONEY  ORDER  □  MASTERCARD 

•  CHECK  PAYABLE  TO  MARY  BALDWIN  COLLEGE 

ACCOUNT  NUMBER 


□  VISA 


Shop  Online  www.mbc.edu/alumnae/giftshop 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


MBCAIumnae/i 


C     ADULT     &     GR 


TODAY'S  THE  DAY  TO 
REINVENT  YOURSELF. 

Complete  your  degree,  despite  your  hectic  schedule,  in  a  program  that  rec- 
ognizes that  you  are  a  disciplined,  self-motivated  adult  ready  to  accomplish 
your  personal  and  professional  goals.  Mary  Baldwin  College  is  just  the  place. 

1      Get  personal  guidance  from  an  on-site  academic  advisor. 
i      Attend  full  or  part-time  with  flexible  learning  options,  including  evening, 
weekend,  independent  study,  online,  and  now  daytime  groups. 
Adult  undergraduate,  graduate,  and  certificate  programs. 
J      Bachelor  of  Arts,  Bachelor  of  Science,  and  Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching 

degrees. 
■      Undergraduate  and  post-baccalaureate  teacher  education/licensure. 


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Subscribe  today! 

A  new  issue,  full  of  MBC 

news  and  events,  is  available 

on  campus  each  month  September-May. 

Now  you  can  have  home  delivery! 


Subscribe  to 
The  Cupola  for  2007-08. 

For  more  information 

and  to  subscribe  contact 

cupola@mbc.edu  or 

540-887-7009 


SEPT-MAY 
JUSTUS 


Offto  a  Great  Start  Last  Fall! 

Here  Are  Your  Course 
Offerings  for  Fall  2007 

Actors,  Costumes,  Lights,  Action 
American  Art  at  VM  FA 
Health  Matters 
Investing  for  the  Future 
Southern  Women  Writers 
■=   Spanish  for  Everyday  Life 
Yearn  for  Yoga 

Classes  are  held  at  Mary  Baldwin  College's 
regional  campus  in  Richmond,  Virginia. They 
are  non-credit  classes  and  enrollment  is  limit- 
ed (open  to  MBC  alumnae/i  and  the  public). 


To  sign  up  or 

receive  information  about 

The  Ham  &  Jam  Club 

contact  Kerry  Mills  at 
804-282-9162  or  kmills@nnbc.edu 


Spring  2007 


Alumnae/i  Board  President 

Kellie  Warner '90 

in  Conversation  with  the  Editor 


Reunion  Weekend  2007  was  in  IVIarch.  What  did 
the  event  mean  to  you? 

One  of  the  highlights  of  serving  as  president  of  the 
Mary  Baldwin  College  Alumnae/i  Association  is 
meeting  graduates  who  span  generations.  Perhaps 
the  most  opportune  time  to  see  so  many  alumnae/i 
at  one  time  is  during  Reunion  Weekend. 

Meeting  these  diverse  individuals  is  like  sit- 
ting through  a  course  in  modern  U.S.  history.  It 
was  priceless  hearing  about  the  experiences  of 
graduates  from  many  eras  including  World  War  II, 
the  civil  and  equal  rights  movements,  the  Vietnam 
War,  Watergate,  and  the  Iraq  war. 

It  is  an  honor  to  have  met  these  women.  I 
invite  alumnae/i  from  all  classes  to  join  us  on 
campus  next  spring  2008  to  connect  with  friends 
and  classmates  and  meet  fellow  alumnae/i  who 
preceded  and  followed  their  own  graduation  year. 

Class  Leadership  now  plays  a  significant  role 
in  Reunion  Weekend.  For  the  first  time,  class 
meetings  and  elections  were  held  during 
Reunion  2007.  Tell  us  more. 

Class  Leadership  is  designed  to  promote  greater 
involvement  and  engagement  of  alumnae/i  within 
their  classes,  not  only  with  respect  to  Reunion 
Weekends,  but  in  the  years  between  reunions.  Each 
class  elects  a  president,  vice  president,  secretary,  and 
class  agents.  Those  leadership  teams  focus  on  plan- 
ning activities  for  Reunion  Weekends,  as  well  as  rais- 
ing money  for  the  Annual  Fund.  They  also  work  to 
keep  their  classes  better  connected  via  class  news  in 
this  magazine,  planning  alumnae/i  events  in  their 
respective  cities,  and  the  like.  The  first  collection  of 
class  columns  appears  in  this  issue  of  The  Mary 
Baldwin  College  Magazine  for  those  classes  with 


An  historic  first!  Class  meetings  and  elections  during 
Reunion  (Class  of  1992  pictured  here) 


secretaries  already  in  place.  We  are  working  to  ensure 
that  every  graduating  class  has  officers.  If  you  are 
interested  in  participating  in  Class  Leadership,  please 
contact  the  Alumnae/i  Office  at  800-763-7359. 

I  know  you  feel  strongly  about  alumnae/i  sup- 
port for  their  alma  mater.  Will  you  speak  more 
about  that? 

As  a  member  of  the  Alumnae/i  Board  and  the  Mary 
Baldwin  College  Board  of  Trustees,  I  have  gained  a 
tremendous  insight  into  what  it  takes  to  run  the 
college.  Like  any  successful  business,  family,  or 
nonprofit  organization,  it  takes  a  collective  body  of 
dedicated  individuals  and  teams.  The  administra- 
tion, faculty,  and  staff  prove  this  every  day. 

As  alumnae/i,  I  think  it  is  our  responsibility  to 
support  the  college  in  any  way  we  can.  We  were  all 
changed  by  our  experience  at  Mary  Baldwin 
College.  I  know  alumnae/i  share  my  hope  that  all 
students  who  have,  and  will,  walk  through  the  col- 
lege's doors  are  afforded  the  same  opportunity  for 
transformation.  In  addition  to  Class  Leadership, 
alumnae/i  support  can  be  offered  through  admis- 
sions fairs,  attending  Reunion  Weekends  and  other 
alumnae/i  events,  and  with  our  dollars.  The  finan- 
cial security  of  the  college,  through  the  endowment 
and  the  Annual  Fund,  is  critical  and  cannot  be 
underestimated.  We  must  increase  our  Annual  Fund 
next  year  and  in  the  years  to  follow.  Bertie  Deming 
Smith's  '46  most  generous  recent  gift  is  meant  to 
challenge  each  of  us  to  step  up  our  annual  gifts  to 
our  alma  mater. 

I  recently  met  an  alumna  who  carries  a  Mary 
Baldwin  College  VISA.  Can  you  tell  us  about 
the  card? 

Our  college  has  teamed  up  with  MBNA  (now 
Bank  of  America)  to  issue  a  Mary  Baldwin 
College  branded  VISA.  This  arrangement  is 
known  as  an  affinity  program  and  is  often  associ- 
ated with  nonprofit  organizations,  colleges  and 
universities,  and  fraternal  societies.  The  affinity 
sponsor  (i.e.,  Mary  Baldwin  College)  receives  a 
small  percentage  of  the  revenue  generated  when 
one  uses  the  affinity  card.  So,  it  is  a  very  tangible 
way  for  alumnae/i  and  friends  of  the  college  to 
support  the  institution.  If  you  are  interested  in 
applying  for  a  Mary  Baldwin  College  VISA,  call 
866-867-6339  and  select  Option  2. 


ALUMNAE/I  ASSOCIATION 
BOARD  OF  DIRECTORS  200&-O7 


Kellie  Warner  '90,  president 
Dorian  Akerman  Stiefel  '92,  vice  president 
Susan  Powell  Leister  '68,  secretary 
Susan  Lynch  Roberts  '81,  treasurer 

Pamela  Leigh  Anderson  '84 
Karen  Potter  '08,  STARS  cliair 
Marylouise  Bowman  '89 
Nancy  Clark  Brand  '94 
Susan  Jennings  Denson  '62 
Donia  Stevens  Eley  '02 
AnnTrusler  Faith  '69. 

continuing  education  chair 
Virginia  Royster  Francisco  '64, 

faculty  representative 
Helen  Radcliffe  Gregory  '74 

marl<eting/sales  chair 
Jessie  Carr  Haden  '54 
Heline  Cortez  Harrison  '48 
Charon  Wood  Hines  '95 
Alice  Blair  Hockenbury  '86 
Chnstina  Holstrom  '80 
Jennifer  Brillhart  Kibler '91, 

executive  director,  ex-officio 
Kelly  Kennaly  '93 
Nancy  Cohen  Locher  '50 
Nina  Reid  Mack  '72 
Becky  Cannaday  Merchant  '63 
Kelley  Rexroad  '79 
Carolyn  Gilmer  Shaw  '60 
Debra  Wolfe  Shea  '77 
Elizabeth  Jennings  Shupe  '70 
Ethel  M.  Smeak  '53 
A.  JaneTownes  '69,  nominating  chair 
BIythe  Slinkard  Wells  '00 
Valerie  Wenger  '81 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


Reunion  2007 


4iiEE]^ 


58  Spring  2007 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine  59 


Reunion  2007 


50  Years  Later . . .  Miller  '57 
Returns  for  Reunion  2007 


By  Dawn  Medley 

"Mary  Baldwin  was  good  to  me 
and  good  for  me,"  said  Nancy 
Rhoads  Miller  '57,  at  Mary 
Baldwin  College  for  Reunion 
2007  —  her  first  visit  since  grad- 
uating 50  years  ago.  "I  came 
here  when  I  was  very  open  to 
learning  and  experiencing  new 
things,  and  the  college  nurtured 
my  curiosity." 

Miller's  long  absence  from 
the  campus'  green  hills  and  dis- 
tinctive buildings  was  not  for 
lack  of  interest.  The  rhythm  of 
life  kept  her  busy.  Work.  Raising 


"Miller's  eyes,  virtually  unchanged 

since  her  senior  yearbook  photo, 

brightened  upon  seeing  classmates  ..." 


a  family.  Travel.  Everyday  things. 
This  year,  she  made  returning  to 
MBC  a  priority,  along  with  a 
handful  of  her  classmates  — 
there  were  only  about  25  in  her 
graduating  class  —  to  celebrate 
a  reflective  50th  reunion.  The 
weekend  included  induction  of 
her  class  into  the  elite  Grafton 
Society,  joining  other  alumnae 
who  graduated  50  or  more 
years  ago. 

Miller  was  married  to  her 
college  sweetheart  just  a  week 
after  her  graduation.  Her  hus- 
band, an  alumnus  of  Washington 
and  Lee  University,  is  also  the 
grandson  of  Flora  McElwee 
Miller,  for  whom  MBC's  Miller 
Chapel  is  named.  An  English 
major  and  president  of  the 
YWCA  at  MBC,  Miller  and  her 
husband  continued  their  studies 


at  Edinburgh  University  Divinity 
School  in  Scotland.  Over  the 
years,  his  position  as  a 
Presbyterian  minister  took  the 
family,  which  grew  to  include 
four  children,  to  several  loca- 
tions in  the  southeastern  United 
States.  Miller  worked  as  a 
church  educator  and  found  her 
calling  when  they  moved  to 
headquarters  for  the 
Presbyterian  Church  (U.S.A.)  in 
Louisville,  Kentucky.  Working 
with  the  church's  worldwide 
ministries,  Miller  led  groups  to 
countries  around  the  world, 
including  several  trips  to  Africa, 
to  support  mission  work  there. 
"Those  were  unforgettable 
experiences,"  she  said. 

"This  is  a  special  time,"  she 
said  while  preparing  for  her  trip 
from  Lake  Lure,  North  Carolina 
(near  Asheville)  to  Staunton.  "I 
have  so  much  catching  up  to  do 
with  the  campus,  classmates,  and 
students  after  such  a  long  time." 

Miller  had  a  practical  mis- 
sion for  her  trip  to  Staunton,  too: 
securing  a  new  diploma.  After 
many  years,  she  had 
searched  for  her  Mary 
Baldwin  diploma  to  set 
about  framing  it,  only 
to  discover  that  the 
family  dog  had  chewed 
it.  "I  knew  then  that  it 
must  really  have  been 
printed  on  sheepskin," 
she  chuckled.  Within 
hours  of  arriving  on 
campus  for  Reunion 
2007  and  a  special  day  set  aside 
for  the  Class  of  1957,  her  new 


From  her  yearbool 
Nancy  Rhoads  '57 


help  of  the  Office  of  the  Dean  of 
the  College. 

Miller's  eyes,  virtually 
unchanged  since  her  senior  year- 
book photo,  brightened  upon 
seeing  classmates  Shannon 
Greene  Mitchell,  Barbara  Bullock 
Williams,  Julianne  Rand 
Brawner,  and  Nancy  Switzer 
Sowers  at  lunch  at  the  MBC 
President's  House.  Each  of  these 
"daughters  of  Mary  Baldwin" 
(to  quote  former  MBC  professor 
Dr.  Thomas  Grafton)  returned 
for  Reunion  2007  with  a  differ- 
ent story  of  connection  to  the 
college.  Over  lunch,  Mitchell 
shared  how  being  a  member  of 
Parents  Council  when  her  daugh- 
ter, Lindsay  [Scarinsbrick  '86], 
was  a  student,  and  involvement 
with  the  Alumnae/i  Association 
Board  of  Directors  kept  her  in 
touch.  Classmate  Williams  added 
that  her  former  service  on  the 
Alumnae/i  Board  and  current 
membership  on  the  college's 
Advisory  Board  of  Visitors  have 
allowed  her  to  "pay  back"  the 
college  for  her  first-rate  educa- 
tion. Sowers  and 
Browner  were  fast 
friends  as  students  and 
have  remained  close, 
although  Browner  sees 
the  campus  less  fre- 
quently than  Sowers, 
who  lives  in  nearby 
Harrisonburg  and 
drives  through  at  least 
annually  to  see  its  evo- 
lution. 
At  the  Grafton  Society 
luncheon,  the  1957  contingent 


diploma  was  on  its  way  with  the       was  joined  by  Felicia  "Nan" 


Spring  2007 


Report  on 
Reunion  Giving 


Dr.  Pamela  Fox  presents  Nancy  Rhoads  Miller  '57  her  yellow-nbboned  medallion  during  her  induction  into  The  Grafton  Society. 
For  the  first  time  during  Reunion,  The  Grafton  Society  was  treated  to  special  members-only  events  on  Thursday. 


Candler  Freed,  Kathryn  "Bryant" 
Pope  Pilcher,  and  Sara  Burwell 
Robinson.  The  Class  of  1957  was 
welcomed  as  the  "babies"  of  the 
group,  which  included  all  alumnae 
from  as  far  back  as  1926.  With 
Grafton  Society  medallions  on 
thick  yellow  ribbons  proudly 
around  their  necks,  classmates 
remembered  moments  and 
planned  the  rest  of  their  weekend, 
just  happy  to  be  together  again.  "I 
can't  imagine  where  the  time  has 
gone,"  said  Pilcher.  "I  hardly  feel 
like  Pm  50  years  old,  much  less 
celebrating  the  50th  anniversary  of 
my  graduation."  Freed  offered  one 
of  the  Class  of  1957's  emblematic 
stories,  of  how  she  finally  met  Dr. 
[Thomas]  Grafton's  nephew  after 
much  prodding,  how  he  became 
her  husband,  and  how  they 
shared  decades  together  until  his 
recent  passing. 

Miller  and  many  of  her 
classmates  took  full  advantage  of 


the  first-ever  special  series  of 
events  designed  just  for  her  class, 
as  the  newest  Grafton  inductees, 
at  the  start  of  Reunion  2007.  She 
celebrated  the  diversity  of  the 
current  student  population 
reflected  by  students  in  a  per- 
formance of  the  Concert  Choir, 
Madrigals,  Baldwin  Charm,  and 
Anointed  Voices  of  Praise.  She 
saw  the  1957  flick  Witness  for 
the  Prosecution  at  the  Dixie 
Theater  in  Staunton  and  talked 
with  student  leaders  over  tea  in 
late  afternoon. 

Her  weekend  continued 
with  events  for  all  Reunion 
2007  attendees.  She  watched 
the  Virginia  Women's  Institute 
for  Leadership  in  parade  forma- 
tion, went  "back  to  class," 
attended  the  gala  Reunion  din- 
ner, heard  Dr.  Fox  speak  about 
women's  colleges  in  the  21st 
century,  and  took  in  a  play  at 
the  Blackfriars  Playhouse.  A 


class  meeting  to  elect  officers  as 
part  of  the  Class  Leadership 
program  and  a  special  class  din- 
ner rounded  out  her  weekend. 

Before  departing  for  her 
5'/;-hour  drive  back  to  Lake 
Lure,  Miller  reflected:  "It  was 
all  very  nostalgic.  The  campus 
and  its  buildings  have  changed, 
but  then  they  haven't.  I  walked 
through  the  upper  back  gallery 
in  Administration  Building,  and 
I  could  just  see  myself  taking  a 
date  there  as  a  student.  I  sang 
again  at  Mary  Baldwin  —  in 
Miller  Chapel  for  Sunday  serv- 
ice —  and  recalled  many  hours 
in  Chapel  Choir  under  the 
instruction  of  the  unforgettable 
Gordon  Page  [see  page  75].  I 
thought  of  many  of  these  things 
before  arriving,  and  they  have 
been  given  their  place  again." 

We  have  a  feeling  she'll  be 
back  ...  before  another  50 
years  pass.  ▲ 


As  of  Reunion  Weekend, 
awards  were  based  on  giving 
and  participation  to  date. 

Highest  Class 
Participation  Award 
Reunion  2007 

Class  of  1967 

Highest  Class  Gift  Award 
Reunion  2007 

Class  of  1967 

As  of  April  12.  2007 


$7,972.90 

45%  participation 


$14,120 

40%  participation 


$60,138 

50%  participation 


$23,481 

50%  participation 


$27,685 

23%  participation 


$9,136.55 

21  %  participation 


$6,810 

20%  participation 


$9,915 

26%  participation 


20%  participation 


$3,101.28 

15%  participation 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


REUNTOXT    7007' 

Moments  in  Memory 
of  Classmates 

Scarves  with  2002  graduate  Sarah  K.  Small's 

signature.  A  tree  adorned  with  memories  for 
Melanie  Madison  Vent  '92.  Two  Reunion  class- 
es spent  part  of  their  time  together  on  campus 
remembering  the  hves  of  beloved  classmates. 


Feathers  represent  kinship  and  are  often  used  dur- 
ing battle.  The  chevron,  a  French  word  meaning 
"rafter,"  signifies  protection.  Plants  evoke  life,  growth, 
and  survival.  These  symbols  and  others  adorned  the  scarves  reuniting 
members  of  the  Class  of  1992  in  memory  of  their  classmate  who  recent- 
ly lost  a  courageous  struggle  with  cancer,  Melanie  Madison  Vent. 
Designed  by  Ford  Motor  Company,  the  scarves  are  part  of  the  Warrior 
Gear  collection  that  inspires  people  to  continue  the  fight  against  breast 
cancer.  In  a  touching  ceremony,  the  class  dedicated  a  new  Yoshino 
Cherry  tree  planted  near  Rose  Terrace  —  where  Vent  could  have  looked 
out  on  it  from  her  former  room  —  and  decorated  it  with  small  tags  that 


Alumnae/i  Achievement  Awards  fr.r£;:ri, 


Back,  I  to  r: 

Maya  Bryn  Honeycutt  '08, 

Sarah  MayTyndall  '09, 

Peyton  Wooldridge  '68 

Front,  I  to  r; 

Flossie  Wimberly  Hellinger  '52, 

Sallie  Chellis  Schisler  '67 

Martha  Butler  Matthews  '62, 

Margaret  McLaughlin  Grove  '52 


For  information  about  the 

2008  Alumnae  Achievemem 

Awards  nominations  contact 

Tina  Kincaid  at  tkincaid@inbc.edu 


CAREER  ACHIEVEMENT  AWARD 

Martha  Butler  Matthews  '62  of  Charlotte,  North 
Carolina  was  recognized  for  the  entrepreneurial 
spirit  and  talent  that  led  her  to  become  a  self- 
employed  fiber  artist.  Matthews  attended  the  Art 
Students  League  in  New  York  City,  and  has  been 
"drawing"  with  needle  and  thread  for  decades. 
Her  realistic  and  figurative  tapestries  have  been  in 
invitational  and  juried  exhibitions  in  the  United 
States,  Canada,  and  Kenya  and  have  appeared  in 
Fiberarts,  American  Craft,  and  Shuttle,  Spindle, 
and  D/epot  magazines  and  in  several  books  on 
fiber  art.  Matthews'  work  is  on  display  in  numer- 
ous private  and  corporate  collections  such  as  IBM 
Corporation,  Steelcase  Inc.,  Hospital  Corporation 
of  America,  Wachovia  Bank  &  Trust  Co.,  and  the 
Mint  Museum  of  Craft  and  Design.  She  has  long 
been  active  in  the  visual  arts  community  in 
North  Carolina  and  serves  as  that  state's 


representative  to  the  southeast  region  of  the 
American  Craft  Council,  and  is  an  exhibiting  mem- 
ber and  past  board  and  executive  committee  mem- 
ber of  Piedmont  Craftsmen.  In  addition  to  her  pro- 
fessional career,  Matthews  was  involved  in  many 
civic  activities  related  to  the  arts,  and  she  has 
worked  with  many  initiatives — including  some  to 
benefit  overseas  missions — through  Covenant 
Presbyterian  Church  during  the  past  two  decades. 

EMILY  WIRSING  KELLY  AWARDS 

Artist  and  former  Alumnae/i  Association  Board  of 
Directors  President  Emily  WIrsing  Kelly  '63  exem- 
plified the  Mary  Baldwin  spirit  of  leadership  and 
thoughtful  creativity  Kelly  passed  away  in  1985, 
and  her  husband  established  a  student  scholarship 
in  her  memory  through  the  Kelly  Foundation. 
Kelly's  classmates  also  set  up  an  alumnae/i  leader- 
ship award  in  her  name  soon  after  her  death. 

Emily  Wirsing  Kelly  Leadership  Award 

Margaret  McLaughlin  Grove  '52  of 

Charlottesville,  Virginia  was  recognized  for  many 
years  of  service  to  her  community  and  to  the  col- 
lege. Grove's  work  with  MBC  began  immediately 
after  her  graduation,  when  she  was  named  the  inau- 
gural alumnae  "field  representative,"  a  post  she  held 
for  two  years.  In  that  role,  she  was  responsible  for 
building  stronger  contacts  with  alumnae,  assisting 
with  the  creation  of  alumnae  chapters,  and  recruit- 
ing new  students.  Grove  later  served  two  terms  on 
the  Alumnae/i  Association  Board  of  Directors  and 
worked  as  academic  secretary  at  St.  Anne's-Belfield 
School  in  Charlottesville.  Grove  also  established  a 
longstanding  relationship  with  Westminster 
Presbyterian  Church  in  that  city  and  currently  serves 


Spring  2007 


hold  memories  of  their  classmate  and  a  permanent  plaque. 

Vent,  a  dancer  and  musician  who  worked  as  a  choreographer 
and  instructor,  was  remembered  for  her  vibrancy  and  love  of  the  arts: 
"Cancer  could  not  and  did  not  win;  I  believe  it  only  made  it  possible 
for  her  to  become  the  dancer  she  was  intended  to  be  —  one  who 
dances  forever  around  the  throne  of  God,"  said  classmate  and  close 
friend  Susan  O'Donnell  Black.  "This  tree  symbolizes  many  things, 
among  them  life,  healing,  and  peace." 

C  The  Class  of  2002  tragically  lost  Sarah  K.  Small,  first  lieutenant  in 
the  United  States  Air  Force,  even  before  its  first  Mary  Baldwin 
Reunion.  Small,  a  former  VWIL  cadet,  died  while  serving  her  country 
in  Egypt  in  2005,  so  classmates  have  created  a  legacy  in  her  name.  At 
a  ceremony  in  her  honor,  many  members  of  her  class  donned  the 
unique  scarf  with  Small's  signature  that  is  being  sold  to  raise  money 
for  a  scholarship  fund  that  will  be  established  in  her  memory. 

"We  all  knew  there  would  be  a  void  without  her  here,  but  it  is 
good  for  the  rest  of  us  to  be  together  again,"  said  Meredith 
Townsend  Carrington,  vice  president  of  2002  Reunion  leadership  and 
a  friend  of  Sarah's.  Carrington  has  been  coordinating  the  scarf  proj- 


ect, which  had  received  more 
than  100  orders  and  raised  more 
than  $1,000  by  Reunion  2007. 

Miller  Chapel  glowed  with 
candlelight  and  was  decorated  in 
pink  and  white  for  the  simple  ^|    i 

ceremony,  which  included  a 
slideshow  of  Small  smiling  in 
dozens  of  photos  and  words 
from  the  class'  leaders. 

"There  is  just  something  in 
us,  as  humans,  that  cannot  comprehend  that  people  can  be  gone,  just 
like  that,"  said  the  Reverend  Patricia  Hunt,  college  chaplain. 

Small's  best  friend  and  classmate  in  the  Virginia  Women's 
Institute  for  Leadership  at  Mary  Baldwin,  Lisa  Bliss  '02,  found 
strength  in  her  friends  outside  the  chapel  after  the  service.  "Sarah  was 
everything  to  everyone.  She  was  the  comedian  when  you  needed  a 
joke  and  the  kick-starter  when  you  needed  motivation,"  Bliss  said. 
If  you  would  like  to  help  support  the  scholarship  in  Small's  name,  e-mail 
mhc2002reiimon@hotmail.com  or  call  804-437-1992. 


jM 


as  a  pastoral  deacon.  She  continues  to  be  active  in 
the  Charlottesville  Garden  Club,  the  local  Junior 
League,  the  Blue  Ridge  Family  Alliance  chapter  of 
the  National  Alliance  for  the  Mentally  III  —  which  she 
helped  found  and  serves  as  a  board  member,  and 
the  Westminster  Organ  Concert  Series,  among  other 
activities.  In  response  to  the  college's  request  for 
classmate  memories  for  her  50th  Reunion  in  2002, 
Grove  wrote  "I  am  forever  indebted  to  the  outstand- 
ing faculty  who  instilled  a  life-long  love  of  learning.  I 
loved  Jessica  Gilliam's  Sunday  night  vespers  (the 
hymn  sign  was  truly  humorous)  and  all  the  traditions 
—  Apple  Day  Founders  Day,  May  Day,  Christmas 
parties,  chapel,  sled  riding  on  dining  room  trays,  and, 
of  course,  graduation." 

Emily  Wirsing  Kelly  Scholarship 

Maya  Bryn  Honeycutt  '08  of  Charlottesville, 
Virginia,  a  ma|or  in  studio  art  with  a  focus  on  pho- 
tography and  printmaking,  was  awarded  for  her 
dedication  to  create  art  that  challenges  people  to 
think.  Honeycutt,  a  member  of  the  national  honor 
society  for  freshmen.  Alpha  Lambda  Delta,  is  also 
interested  in  conservation  and  philosophy  and  her 
hobbies  include  creating  ongami  and  writing. 

VIRGINIA  L  LESTER  SCHOLARSHIP 

Sarah  MayTyndall  '09  of  Lancaster,  California 
earned  this  scholarship  for  academic  excellence  and 
leadership  as  a  Mary  Baldwin  College  student. 
Tyndall  is  a  member  of  the  college's  Student 
Alumnae/i  Relations  Society  the  student  newspa- 
per Campus  Comments,  Colleges  Against  Cancer, 
and  serves  as  a  student  senator  in  addition  to  other 
activities.  The  award  is  named  for  the  college's  sev- 
enth president. 


SERVICE  TO  CHURCH  AWARD 

Elizabeth  Peyton  Wooldridge  '68  of  Columbia, 
South  Carolina,  for  her  commitment  to  study  at 
Lutheran  Theological  Southern  Seminary  for  her 
master's  in  religion,  which  she  hopes  to  finish  in 
2008.  She  is  a  candidate  for  the  Holy  Orders  as  a 
permanent  deacon  in  the  Episcopal  Church.  Early 
on,  Wooldridge  developed  an  interest  in  and 
respect  for  people  from  other  countries  and 
denominations  through  involvement  in  Presbyterian 
World  Missions,  and  she  later  became  active  in 
First  Presbyterian  Church  while  at  MBC.  She 
served  with  the  American  Red  Cross  in  Vietnam 
and  has  traveled  worldwide.  Wooldridge  was  con- 
firmed as  an  Episcopalian  in  1980  and  has  long 
been  an  active  member  of  St.  Martin  in  the  Fields 
Episcopal  Church  in  Columbia.  She  has  also  spent 
more  than  30  years  training  people  about  elder  care 
and  for  many  of  those  years  has  volunteered  at 
South  Carolina  Episcopal  Retirement  Community. 

SERVICE  TO  COMMUNITY  AWARD 

Sally  Chellls  Schlsler  '67  of  Portsmouth,  Ohio  was 

recognized  for  numerous  positions  in  community 
service,  including  her  current  post  as  donor  servic- 
es chair  of  ner  local  community  foundation,  of 
which  she  has  been  a  member  for  12  years.  The 
organization  has  become  the  20th  largest  charitable 
foundation  in  Ohio  and  held  a  successful  inpatient 
Hospice  House  campaign  under  Schisler's  leadership. 
Schisler  studied  at  St.  Anne's  in  Oxford  after  gradua- 
tion from  MBC,  and  in  her  early  career  worked  for  the 
U.S.  Department  of  Labor,  served  the  White  House 
Conference  on  Food,  Nutrition,  and  Health,  and 
worked  as  a  press  aide  for  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior.  She  later  worked  for  21  years  for  a  Catholic 


hospital  in  Portsmouth,  Ohio,  primahly  as  director  of 
community  relations.  She  has  been  an  active  lay- 
woman  in  the  Episcopal  church,  co-chairing  a  diocesan 
convention  and  chairing  the  Proctor  Camp  and 
Conference  Center  Board  for  the  diocese.  Schisler 
was  recently  ordained  as  a  deacon  and  is  pursuing  a 
priesthood.  She  also  works  part-time  as  development 
director  for  a  non-profit  drug  and  alcohol  treatment 
center 

EMILY  SMITH  MEDALLION 

Florence  "Flossie"  WImberly  Hellinger  '52  of 

Orlando,  Florida  was  honored  for  her  lifelong  com- 
mitment to  education,  social  work,  and  church  serv- 
ice. Hellinger  earned  her  master  of  education  in 
guidance  and  counseling  from  University  of  Central 
Florida  in  1979,  and  worked  as  a  first  grade  teacher 
and  social  worker  early  in  her  professional  life.  She 
worked  for  several  years  and  held  leadership  posi- 
tions with  the  ADDitions  volunteer  program  in  her 
local  school  system,  and  was  later  involved  in 
Christian  Service  Center.  Hellinger's  service  also 
has  a  global  reach:  As  a  member  of  First 
Presbyterian  Church  in  Orlando,  she  was  involved  in 
a  decade-long  project  to  help  with  resettlement  of  a 
Cambodian  refugee  family  through  Church  World 
Service.  Later,  as  a  member  of  Winter  Park 
Presbyterian  Church,  she  traveled  on  mission  trips 
to  Peru,  Guatemala,  Nicaragua,  and  is  planning  to 
go  to  Brazil  this  summer.  Hellinger's  international 
volunteerism  also  extended  to  the  Democratic 
Republic  of  Congo  when  she  participated  in  a  proj- 
ect with  Good  Shepherd  Hospital  in  conjunction 
with  the  Presbyterian  Church  U.S.A.  "Mary  Baldwin 
gave  me  the  confidence  and  courage  to  serve  my 
community  and  church,"  Hellinger  said. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


ClassColumns 


The  Grafton  Society  and  Classes  of  1958,  1963,  1968,  1973,  1978,  1983,  1988,  1993,  1998,  2003 


REUNION 
2008 


THESE  HILLS 

^"^BEAUTYdwells 


SAVE  THE  DATE 
April  3-6,  2008 


1943    IdrJIIilUIM.!:! 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15 
FRANCES  KNIGHT  Nollet  of  Orlando 
FL:  "It  IS  busy  and  exciting  here.  MAR- 
GARET McMURRAY  Hottel  '43,  my 
MBC  roommate,  and  I  hope  to  attend  our 
65th  reunion  in  2008! " 


1949 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
JANE  SEBRELL  Irby  of  Chevy  Chase 
MD  travels  and  plays  bridge  with  an 
MBC  alumna. 


1950 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
3lumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
HARRIET  BANGLE  Bamhatdt  of 

Charlotte  NC:  "We  are  going  to  Kuwait, 
United  Arab  Emirates,  Qatar,  and 
Bahrain." 


.952 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
ALICE  BALL  Watts  of  LewisvilieTX  and 
husband  George  will  celebrate  their  50th 
anniversar/.They  had  3  family  gradua- 
tions this  spring  and  their  eldest  grand- 
son was  accepted  to  graduate  school. 

1959 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
GEORGE  FOSTER  Mathews  of  Mary 
Esther  FL  attended  cooking  school  in 
Tuscany  Italy.  She  has  5  grandchildren 
ages  6-23.  Her  eldest  grandchild  graduat- 
ed from  law  school. 


1961 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  b^  My  15. 
BARBARA  WOODHAM  Sims  of 

Augusta  GA  is  serving  on  the  County 
Board  of  Commissioners  and  heading  up 
the  Georgia  House  of  Representatives. 
She  serves  on  the  Greater  Augusta  Arts 
Council  and  on  the  Board  of 
Commissioners  of  the  Airport  Authority  • 
PATRICIA  LIEBERT  Riddick  of  Yorktown 
VA  spent  Thanksgiving  in  NM  with  3 
grandchildren  and  New  Year's  in  FL  with 
the  other  6!  She  is  teaching  mah  jongg 
and  volunteering  at  Virginia  Living 
Museum. 

1962 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by 
July  15  with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Kent  Seabun/  Rowe 
ksrowe@hoxmail.  com 
UNDA  DOLLY  Hammack  of  Fairfax  VA 
and  husband  Paul  enjoyed  traveling  with 
MBC  students,  faculty,  alumnae  and 
friends  on  Spring  Break  tours  to  Bulgaria 
and  Greece  in  2005  and  Egypt  in  2006, 
and  a  May  Term  trip  to  Turkey  and  several 
Greek  Islands  this  year  Linda  says  stu- 
dents always  add  to  the  liveliness  of  con- 
versations •  KIT  KAVANAGH  of 
Midlothian  VA  enjoyed  a  guided  tour  of 
Santa  Fe  NM  led  by  classmate  HARRI- 
ETT HOPE  Howard  of  Tucson  AZ  and 
husband  Jim  last  summer  Kit  also  attend- 
ed a  watercolor  painting  workshop  at 
Springmaid  Beach  S.C.  Best  of  all,  she 
says,  was  Class  Leadership  Weekend  at 
MBC  with  classmates  LINDA  DOLLY 
Hammack,  KENT  SEABURY  Rowe,  and 
SUSAN  JENNINGS  Denson  •  RUTH 
DREWRY  Smith  of  Southport  NC  and 
husband  Jimbo  spent  a  month  relaxing  in 
St.  Croix  •  SUSAN  JENNINGS  Denson 
of  Danville  PA  and  Steve  toured  Tuscany 
on  bikes  —  a  testament  to  their  youth 
and  fitness  •  TONI  HARRISON  Jamison, 


ANN  LEE  ALEXANDER  Cook,  and 
KENT  SEABURY  Rowe  spent  a  week- 
end together  at  Inn  at  Gristmill  Square  in 
Warm  Spnngs  VA  «  FRANCES  WENTZ 
Taber  and  Bo  moved  back  to  Staunton 
and  are  new  grandparents  to  Robert 
McAuliffe.  born  to  daughter  Elizabeth  and 
her  husband  Patrick  •  EUGENIA  "WOO" 
McCUENThomason  of  Greenville  SC 
and  husband  Bill  visited  Portugal,  the 
French  coast  and  London.  They  have  5 
grandchildren. 

1963   IsUIISIMSBiM 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Minta  McDiarmid  Nixon 
cnixonT7@comcast.net 
LANE  WRIGHT  Cochrane  of  Salem  VA 
visited  daughter  Julia  and  family  in  CA, 
spent  time  in  FL,  did  some  sightseeing  in 
Yellowstone  National  Park,  and  had 
Christmas  in  VA  with  family  and  5  grand- 
children •  KEENE  ROADMAN  Martin  of 
San  Antonio  TX  is  building  a  home.  She 
spent  Christmas  in  the  Berkshires  with 
her  Boston  and  Manhattan  families  and 
reports  that  grandchild  #5  is  due  any 
moment  •  EMILY  DETHLOFF  Ryan  of 
Houston  TX  has  a  grandchild,  who  will 
soon  be  2  years  old  •  JENNY  STOTT 
Ward  of  Montoursville  PA  stays  busy 
with  her  dogs  and  related  business  and 
hopes  to  be  at  Reunion  in  2008  •  MINTA 
McDIARMID  Nixon  of  Augusta  GA  and 
husband  Cobbs  went  to  Italy  in  the 
spring  and  Costa  Rica  last  summer  with 
their  3  children,  spouses,  and  5  grandchil- 
dren •  PAGE  PUTNAM  Miller  wrote  a 
book  about  the  South  Carolina  island 
where  she  and  her  husband  retired  in 
2000,  Fripp  Island:  A  History,  which  is 
now  in  its  second  printing. 


1  Q.- 
1  .y  ^/  ^_' 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
BERYL-ANN  JOHNSON  of  Winthrop  ME 
met  fellow  alumna  DR.  JOANN  BROWN 
Morton  '63  of  Columbia  SC  through  a 
mutual  friend  and  was  delighted  to  dis- 
cover their  MBC  connection. 


1967 


Contact  one  of  your  class  secretaries  by 
July  15  with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Peggy  Maddex  Barnes 
Pegbarnes  18@yahoo.com 
Ki  Shinnick  Caldwell 
kimartin@mindspring.com 
LUCIA  HARRISON  Jaycocks  of  Mount 
Pleasant  SC  is  in  real  estate  after  many 
years  as  a  stay-at-home  mom.  One  daugh- 
ter lives  in  NC  and  the  other  resides  in  MN 
•  JEAN  WATT  Redmiles  of  Laurel  MD  is 
the  grandmother  of  4,  and  recently  visited 
Alaska  with  her  husband. 

1968ESIBE1 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Jane  Sims 

janesims@comcast.net 
Mary  Lynn  Sopher 
msmarylynn@aol.  com 
SUSAN  RAINEY  GAMBLE  Dankel  of 
Wilmington  NC  has  experienced  many 
life  changes:  "My  husband Thad  died  in 
November  2005  following  a  kidney  trans- 
plant. I  stepped  down  as  general  manag- 
er of  WHQR  public  radio  and  began  a 
one-year  residency  in  clinical  pastoral 
education  at  New  Hanover  Regional 
Medical  Center  •  ANN  MARSHALL 
JACOBS  Bruce  is  executive  director  of 
United  Fund  of  Talbot  County.  She  and 
husband  Fred  reside  in  a  golf  course 
community  in  Easton  MD,  and  enjoy  vis- 
its with  3  children  and  4  grandchildren  • 
E.  PEYTON  WOOLDRIDGE  of  Forest 


Spring  2007 


FLORENCE  JONES  Rutherford  '75,  LAUREL  "LOLLY"  CATCHING  Anderson  '71, 
and  MOLLIE  REHMET  Cannady  '64  celebrate  Lolly's  book  at  a  book  signing  in 
Houston  TX,  How  My  Magic  Refrigerator  Sent  Me  to  Pans  Free:  7  Rules  to  Make 
Dreams  Come  True  was  published  in  November  2006  and  is  available  at  barnesandno- 
ble.com  and  amazon.com. 


Enioying  a  Craig  Morgan  country  concert  are  KAT  BRONSON  '04,  LINDSEY  LUCAS 
'04,  2006-07  SGA  President  ALISON  KAUFMANN  '07,  and  ALISON  FREI  '07 


Hills  SC  is  enrolled  at  Lutheran 
Theological  Southern  Seminary  for  a 
master's  in  religion  and  hopes  to  fin- 
ish in  2008.  She  is  a  candidate  for 
the  Holy  Orders  as  a  permanent 
deacon  in  the  Episcopal  Church.  She 
celebrated  her  birthday  by  sponsor- 
ing a  catered,  come-as-you-are  chari- 
ty drop-in  and  art  sale  for  Harvest 
Hope  Food  Bank  of  the  Midlands.  "I 
had  a  grand  reunion  last  June  with 
classmate  SUSAN  RAINEY  GAM- 
BLE Dankle 

1  y  /'  1 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15, 
LAUREL  "LOLLY"  CATCHING 
Anderson  of  Oklahoma  City  OK 
published  the  book  How  My  Magic 
Refrigerator  Sent  Me  to  Paris  Free: 
7  Rules  to  Make  Dreams  Come 
True,  available  through  barnesandno- 
ble.com  and  amazon.com  •  SUSAN 
RICHARDSON  Hauser  of  Winston- 
Salem  NC  got  together  with  class- 
mates LINDA  BLAKE  Gayle  of 
Virginia  Beach  VA  and  CONNIE 
JONES  of  North  Franklin  CT 

1972 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July 
15  with  news  for  your  class  column; 
Mary  Jim  Moore  Quillen 
mjguillen@gmail.  com 
JEAN  DITTMAR  Hubertus  of 
SeguinTX  has  settled  into  a  farm 
with  100  acres  of  rolling  hay.  chick- 
ens, and  cattle:  "It's  so  peaceful 
here;  close  enough  to  a  small  town 
for  necessities  and  far  enough  in  the 
country  to  see  stars  at  night  and  lis- 
ten to  sounds  of  silence."   Husband 
Charlie  plans  to  retire  next  year  • 
KAREN  AUSTIN  of  Los  Angeles  CA 
is  thrilled  that  daughter  Olivia  was 
accepted  at  Eugene  Lang  College  of 


The  New  School  m  NYC,  Karen  is 
teaching  an  acting  class,  but  acting 
still  pays  the  rent.  She  was  on 
Crossing  Jordan  this  year  and  a  few 
sitcoms  including  Rodney  (as  a  reoc- 
curring  character),  and  did  some 
commercials. 


1973  ■sUIJilMSiMJ 

Send  your  class  notes  to; 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
DEIRDRE  DOUGHERTY  Grogan  of 

Manetta  GA  and  husband  Mark  are 
empty-nesters  with  daughter  Alyson 
at  Mercer  University. 

1976 

Send  your  class  notes  to; 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
Deborah  "LEE"  COLEMAN 
Gutshall  of  Roanoke  VA;  Eldest  son 
Coleman  is  working  at  Exemplum  as 
chief  financial  officer.  Son  Price  is  a 
junior  at  Hampden-Sydney  College. 


Send  your  class  notes  to; 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
CLAUDIA  LaVERGNE  Woody  of 

Helsinki,  Finland  is  vice  president 
and  managing  director  for  the  Nokia 
Account  at  IBM.  She  travels  exten- 
sively (82  visas  on  her  current  pass- 
port) and  has  visited  Germany. 
China,  and  Austria  in  the  past  few 
months. 

1979 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15, 
LISA  JANE  ROWLEY  of  Richmond 
VA  has  retired  from  private  practice 
and  was  appointed  an  administrative 
law  judge  for  the  state  Employment 
Commission.  She  formerly  served 


as  an  assistant  attorney  general  for 
the  state  'The  bright  lights  of 
Hollywood  shone  on  SARAH 
"SALLY"  WAY  Speaker  of 
Birmingham  AL  when  she  and  hus- 
band Cary  had  a  four-hour  dinner 
with  Borat.  only  to  see  themselves 
in  the  movie,  "We  had  never  heard 
of  Borat  or  Ali  G,  but  our  movie 
appearance  made  our  sons  minor 
celebnties  at  their  schools:  North 
Carolina  School  of  the  Arts  and 
University  of  Georgia,  Isn't  it  too  bad 
that  our  15  minutes  of  fame  hap- 
pened in  an  R-rated  movie?"  • 
GAYLA  McClelland  Lemmon  of 
Reynoldsburg  OH  is  a  personal  train- 
er. She  has  2  grandchildren  and 
another  one  on  the  way. 


1981 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
NANCY  HOPKINS  Parsons  of 

Middleburg,  VA  is  president/CEO  of 
The  National  Sporting  Library  a 
research  library  and  art  museum 
dedicated  to  field  sports  such  as 
horse  sports,  shooting,  and  fly  fish- 
ing. She  invites  interested  MBC 
students  to  contact  her  about  intern- 
ships. 


1982 


Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July 
15  with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Cyndi  Phillips  Fletcher 
CFIetcher@mkrealtors.  com 
SARA  BEARSS  of  Richmond  VA  is 
senior  editor  of  Dictionary  of 
Virginia  Biography,  published  by  the 
Library  of  Virginia,  Volume  3  was 
published  last  summer  and  she 
worked  with  several  MBC  profes- 
sors who  contributed  biographies, 
including  Ann  Field  Alexander  and 
Ken  Keller.  Ulysses  Desportes  and 


LESLEY  LOVETT  '03  KYLENE  CRAIG  Thompson 
'02,  and  "GRACIE"  SHORT  '03  ring  in  the  holidays 
at  an  MBC-sponsored  gathenng  at  The  Jefferson 
Hotel  in  Richmond  VA  last  December. 


Enjoying  an  autumn  mini-reumon  in  Wilmington  NC  are 
(I  to  r)  ALESANDRA  PRICE  Dombroski  '02,  DIONNA 
MclNTYRE  Kieman  '02  and  LUCIA  "YOGI"ALMEN- 
DRAS  '02 


BERYL-ANN  JOHNSON  '66  and  DR.  JOANN  BROWN 
Morton  '63  en|oy  a  visit  in  Winthrop  ME  last  summer. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


SUSAN  COVINGTON  Rothenberg  '00  married  Andy  in  June  2006  The  waterfront  cere- 
mony and  reception  was  attended  by  MBC  friends,  including  (front  row,  I  to  r)  CHERRY 
AYCOCK  '00,  STACEY  BARROW  Hill  '00,  LESLIE  PEPE  Jarden  '00,  CHRISTINA 
SADLER  Boykin  '00,  MARGARET  MAHANEYWalker  '00;  and  (back  row)  EMILY  STEW- 
ART '00,  MICHELE  RICHARD  Bustamante  '75,  SARAH  HELEN  SHEA  03,  SUSIE 
McGINLEY  Eaton  '75,  mother  of  the  bride  CAROLINE  STOWE  Covington  '75,  the  bride, 
HEATHER  RODDENBERRY  Heard  00,  MARGARET  BROUGHTON  Norfleet  '99,  MADE- 
LYN  MANSFIELD  '01,  and  AMANDA  CUTLER  Rodriguez  '00 


'JL<S. 


CHRISTA  DUNCAN  '00  to  Dr.  Kaivon  Arfaa,  January  14,  2006 

LYNNETTE  DAUGHTRY  '02  to  Kelby  Barrett,  November  4,  2006 

KATHERINE  "KACEY"  CULLEN  '03  to  Patrick  Gore,  August  21,  2006 

JAWANDA  SMITH  '03  to  Adrian  Jenkins,  June  3,  2006 

KIMBERLY  BALDWIN  '05  to  Paul  Boulden  Jr.,  October  7,  2006 

MEGAN  KADILAK  'OS  to  Preston  Chambers,  May  13,  2006 

CARA  ROSE  MAGOLDA  '06  to  Matthew  Tucker,  September  23,  2006 


LYNNETTE  DAUGHTRY  Ban-ett  '02  married  Kelby  in  November  2006    Pictured  are 
(top  row,  I  to  r)  KAMALA  PAYNE  '05,  NIANI  VINES  '02,  KRYSTAL  RUTLEDGE  '04, 
MBC  Associate  Vice  President  for  Student  Affairs  Andrea  Cornett-Scott,  JENNIFER 
OLIVER  '03,  LINDA  CORTEZ  '03  KIMBERLY  MOREHEAD  01   RANYNE  HER- 
BERT '00;  (center  row)  STEPHANIE  McCOY  '04,  AMANDA  DAVIS  Holloway  '02 
and  MAT  05,  the  bnde;  LUCIA  "YOGI"  ALMENDRAS  '02,  SHEYMA  BOWTISTA 
'02;  (bottom  row)  JAWANDA  SMITH  Jenkins  '03,  CASEY  BRENT  '02,  Naima  Scott, 
CHI-CHI"  CHIEMELU  Tyler  '02 


EMILY  TREADWAY  Greer  '04  married  David  in  June  2006.  They 
live  in  Oak  Ridge  TN    Celebrating  the  happy  day  were  MBC  alum- 
na NIANI  VINES  '02,  FAITH  SCOTT  '04.  the  bride.  OLIVIA  DAVIS 
04.  and  KRYSTAL  RUTLEDGE  04 


JAWANDA  SMITH  Jenkins  '03  and 

Adrian  wed  in  June  2006,  The  wed- 
ding party  and  guests  included  (I  to  r): 
KAMALA  PAYNE  Scott  '05  (praise 
ri,.ih.  ..M   \^   i,-.M:,rd  LYNNETTE 
DAUGHTRY  Barrett  '02,  Rev.  Andrea 
Cornett-Scott  (associate  vice  presi- 
dent of  Student  Affairs  and  matron  of 
honor),  the  bride,  bridesmaid  LINDA 
CORTEZ  '03.  NIANI  VINES  '02.  and 
Amanda  Brunson 


KIMBERLY  BALDWIN  Boulden  '05  wed  Paul  MBC 
friends  on  hand  to  celebrate  (I  to  r):  bndesmaid  LEA 
THOMPSON  '04,  ELISABETH  ERICKSON  01.  the 
bnde.  Amanda  Erickson.  and  maid  of  honor  KRISTEN 
CARDILLO  '05 


DELAINE  PERRY  Kaplan  '02  wed  Alex  in  October  2005 
MBC  attendants  (I  to  r)  MELANIE  TEEVAN  McConnell  '01. 
ELIZABETH  WRIGHT  Heijman  '02.  and  (bottom  r)  ALLYSON 
TEEVAN  '01. 


Wedding  bells  rang  for  KATHRYN  TATTERSON  '92 
and  Sterling  in  October  2004.  Squirrels  in  attendance 
(I  to  r)  LIZ  BENDER  Morgan  '91  the  bride.  PEARL 
ALBINO  '93  .  MARY  REBEKAH  COX  Hadfield  '92. 
and  KATE  SHUNNEY '91 


Spring  2007 


SARA  "SALLY"  NAIR  James  '69  wrote 
the  biography  of  Horace  Talmage  Day  for 
the  next  volume.  Bearss  presented  a 
paper,  "The  Dictionary  of  Virginia 
Biography:  Rewriting  Virginia  History 
One  Life  at  aTinne"  for  the  first  Virginia 
Forum. 


98^ 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
RENEE  OLAIMDER  of  Norfolk  VA  was 
appointed  director  of  Old  Dominion 
University's  Virginia  Beach  Higher 
Education  Center,  where  she  has  served 
as  interim  director  since  July  2005.  She 
has  been  teaching  English  there  for  18 
years,  and  has  taken  a  group  of  students 
to  Guadalajara  and  Puerto  Vallarta  for  the 
past  few  summers.  Her  poem.  The 
Apparatus  of  the  Dark,  appeared  in 
Hawaii  Pacific  Review  in  the  fall/winter 
2005  issue. 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc  edu  by  July  15. 
SHIRLEY  ANN  ROGERS  Didier  of 

FarmersvilleTX  is  accounts  payable 
supervisor  at  Ryan  &  Company.  She  is 
restoring  a  home  built  in  the  1890s. 


1986 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
HALEY  JOHNSON  Bmst  of  Austin  TX  is 
executive  director  of  Talley  Management 
Group.  She  and  husband  Dan  welcomed 
daughter  Scarlett  in  August  2006. 


Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
MacKay  Morns  Boyer 
sandypawscottage@earthlink.  net 
MELISSA  BAILEY  Hogston  of 
Charlottesville  VA  works  for  an  education- 
al travel  company,  WorldStrides,  which 
plans  history  and  science  trips  for  middle 
and  high  school  students  across  the 
country  •  CARRIE  ANDERSON 
Eisenberg  of  Charlottesville  VA  just  relo- 
cated for  husband  Jay's  job  in  civil  serv- 


ice. She  is  a  stay-at-home  mom  to  Lydia 
(8),  Ben  (6),  and  Lucy  (2),  and  does  free- 
lance grant-writing  •  MACKAY  MORRIS 
BOYER  of  Richmond  VA  has  a  law  prac- 
tice which  assists  mentally  incapacitated 
adults.  She  and  husband  Enc  spend  free 
time  renovating  an  old  summer  cottage 
on  the  Chesapeake  Bay  MacKay  enjoys 
get-togethers  with  MBC  friends 

KERRY"  SVOBODA  ,  BARBARA 
GRANT  Crosby,  JULIE  RIMMER 
APPLEWHITE.  AMY  BRIDGE,  STACY 
STERNHEIMER  Smith  and  PAM 
DAVIES  She  also  sees  ELIZABETH 
PALEN  and  BECKY  WYATT  McGraw  • 
KERRI  COSTIGAN  Beckert,  husband 
Chris,  now  a  Lt.  Col.,  and  daughters 
Katharine  (15)  and  Emma  Jane  (11)  are 
stationed  at  Fort  Riley  KS.  Kern  is  a  rein- 
tegration counselor  for  soldiers  returning 
from  Iraq  and  Afghanistan  •  JULIE  RIM- 
MER Applewhite  of  Richmond  VA  is 
working  at  Genworth  Financial  Group  as 
an  operations  leader  She  and  husband 
Dan  have  2  children:  Thomas  (7)  and 
Talley  (3)  •  MAUDE  "JEANINE" 
HOLMES  Thomas  of  Arlington  TX  is  a 
physician  in  internal  medicine,  who  oper- 
ates Preventive  Care  Medical  Clinic  with 
husband  Derrick.  They  are  parents  of  2 
sons  (9  and  21  mos)  •  KAREN  COLAW 
Linkous  of  Richmond  VA  is  active  in 
church  and  completed  a  major  honne  ren- 
ovation   She  stays  in  touch  with  CAROL 
ELLIOTT  Forsythe  and  works  with 
JULIE  RIMMER  Applewhite  at 
Genworth  •  ELIZABETH  PALEN  of 
Richmond  VA  works  with  the  Virginia 
State  Legislature  as  council  for  the 
Virginia  Housing  Commission  and  Joint 
Commission  of  Administrative  Rules.  She 
IS  renovating  her  home  and  gets  togeth- 
er with  MARGARET  STEPHENSON 
Simpson,  BECKY  WYATT  McGraw  , 
KERRY  SVOBODA,  and  AMY  DAWSON 
Zoller,  among  other  Richmond  Squirrels 
•  KELLY  TALIAFERRO  Beiry  of 
Shreveport  LA  and  husband  Thomas  plan 
to  move  back  to  Virginia  next  year. 


1989 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
DIANE  BOWMAN  Davis  of  Monterey  VA 
IS  an  elementary  teacher  She  and  her 
husband,  a  Baptist  pastor,  are  parents  of 


daughter  Lauren  (3)  •  JACQUELINE 
FITZGERALD  Sheffer  of  Staunton  VA  has 
sad  news  about  the  unexpected  death  of 
her  husband  in  November  She  is  the 
mother  of  a  son  (13)  and  daughter  (8). 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
DANA  BOTH  of  Charlotte  NC  is  pursuing 
freelance  photography  and  volunteers  for 
Make-a-Wish  Foundation  and  Habitat  for 
Humanity  She  is  public  relations  chair  for 
the  Charlotte-Mecklenberg  Republican 
Party. 

1991 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbcedu  by  July  15. 
SARAH    COLLIER"  ANDRESS  Smith 

of  MurfreesboroTN  and  husband  Fant 
welcomed  daughter  Helen  in  August 
2006.  Siblings  Sally  (5)  and  Fant  (4)  are 
thnlled  by  the  new  addition  •  NANCY 
FITZPATRICK  Burits  of  VA  is  a  stay-at- 
home  mom  to  Shelby  (8)  and  Joshua  (3). 

1992 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Heather  Jackson 
heatherliackson@comcast.net 
SARAH  "PAIGE"  PEMBERTON  Heath 
of  Beaverdam  VA  and  husband  Richard 
have  sons  Parker  (5)  and  Jackson  (3). 
She  has  been  teaching  kindergarten  15 
years  at  the  same  school.  She  gets 
together  with  classmates  JULIA 
SHUGART  Crist,  ALICE  WASHING- 
TON, JULIE  BIRMINGHAM.  HEATHER 
JACKSON,  and  AIMEE  RAY  Dearsley 
•  JESSICA  BOOTH  Bergstol  of  Seoul, 
Korea  and  family  have  been  atYongsan 
Army  Garrison  for  the  past  year.  She, 
husband  Chris  (in  the  Air  Force),  and 
children  Henry  (6)  and  Ella  Grace  (2)  will 
be  in  Asia  until  July  2007  •  MARY 
NELL  STARLING  Yarborough  of 
Yorktown  VA  home  schools  her  children 
after  working  as  an  elementary  school 
art  teacher 


QC 


./     -; 


lasHEi 


Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 

with  news  for  your  class  column: 

Kelly  Kennaly 

kellyk  10 1  @gmail.  com 

VIRGINIA  BRITTON  Ross  (ADP)  of 

Roanoke  VA  earned  an  MA  from  Johns 

Hopkins  LIniversity  in  May  2006  • 

BELYNDA  PHILLIPS  Randolph  of 

Alameda  CA  is  training  to  become  a 

doula.  Husband  Kirk  is  a  CPO  in  the 

USCG. 

1994 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
3lumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
JENNIFER  EAVEY  Oprison  of 

Lovettsville  VA  and  husband  Matt  have 
twins  Charlie  and  JP  (7)  and  daughter 
Emma  (4).  He  is  an  attorney  with 
Skadden  Arps  in  Washington  DC  and 
joined  the  White  House  Counsel  last 
December  as  associate  counsel  and  advi- 
sor to  President  Bush  •  JULIE  LODGE 
Ustruck  of  KatyTX  is  busy  with  3  chil- 
dren and  a  home  business,  www.earth- 
ybabes.com,  selling  products  that  sup- 
port natural  family  living  •  GERRI  WHIT- 
TAKER  Timmons  of  Owensboro  KY  is 
working  as  an  outpatient  therapist  with 
children. 


1995 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
The  pitter-patter  of  little  feet  arrived  at  the 
homes  of  several  classmates!  CHERYL 
SERFOZO  Hindelang  of  Midlothian  VA 
and  husband  David  announced  the  birth 
of  daughter  Riley  in  October  2006.  "She 
weighed  6  lbs  15  oz  with  a  head  of  black 
hair  •  LAURA  CROSS  Owens  of 
Mableton  GA  and  husband  Brian  wel- 
comed 7  lb,  7  oz  Charles  in  July  2006. 
"He  has  red  hair  like  my  husband,"  Laura 
shares  •  LUCIA  MORGAN  Saperstein 
of  Jacksonville  FL  and  husband  Adam 
introduced  their  adopted  daughter 
Camille  from  Taipei,  Taiwan  in  Febnjary 
2006:  "The  best  Valentine's  Day  gift 
ever,"  says  Lucia,  also  mother  of  Noah  (3) 
•  NOSHUA  WATSON  is  working  on  a 
PhD  in  management  strategy  at  INSEAD 
in  Fontainebleau,  France. 


Did 

wJHE  PENSION  PROTECTION  ACT  OF  2006 

■DH&iar^  7OV2  or  older,  you  may  use  IRA  accounts  to  make  gifts 
^^Hp  your  lifetime  without  undesirable  tax  effects.  The  maximum 
^HKit  you  can  give  from  your  IRA  is  $100,000  and  your  spouse 
^H^piiso  give  that  amount,  on  or  before  December  31 ,  2007. 

^^^^Iicourage  you  to  take  this  opportunity  to  make  an  extraordi- . 
^^^^pift  to  Mary  Baldwin  College. 

HR^Kd  you  have  any  questions  about  IRA  deductions  or  planned 
?Tgi^  please  call  1-800-622-4255. 

you 
know 

« 

Want  to  reminisce 
but  can't  find  your 
Bluestocking? 


ALL  YEARBOOKS 
ARE«5 


Contact 

bluestocking@mbc.edu 

or  540-887-7180 

for  more  information 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


1996 


What's  it  like... 

to  swim  around  the  island  of  iVlanhattan? 

If  someone  had  told  the  college-age  Beth  Ryder  Watson  '84  — 

who  wasn't  even  in  a  pool  regularly  at  the  time  —  that  she  would 
one  day  swim  around  the  island  of  Manhattan,  she  probably 
would  have  laughed.  "I  had  been  a  competitive  swimmer  growing 
up  and  through  high  school,  and  I  think  I  had  just  had  enough, 
burned  out  by  the  time  I  got  to  college,"  she  said. 

In  1998,  a  friend  convinced  Watson  to  enter  a  triathlon:  bik- 
ing, running,  and  a  half-mile  swim.  To  train,  she  started  by  log- 
ging pool  time,  then  took  the  plunge  into  open  water  —  the  type 
she  would  be  in  for  the  race  —  at  a  lake  in  Northern  Virginia, 
where  she  resides.  "From  that  moment,  I  was  hooked  again," 
said  Watson,  a  Web  content  manager  for  MarketlO.  Watson 
placed  in  the  top  five  in  her  age  category  in  that  triathlon,  and 
gradually  started  increasing  the  swimming  component  of  her 
competitions.  Within  a  few  years,  she  competed  in  several 
Olympic-distance  triathlons  (including  about  a  one-mile  swim),  a 
7.5-mile  swim  across  the  Potomac  River,  and  a  scenic  10-mile 
swim  in  the  warm  waters  of  St.  CroLx. 

Time  for  a  real  challenge:  a  marathon  swim  circling  the 
island  of  Manhattan.  The  event  covered  a  distance  of  28.5  miles 
and  took  Watson  just  under  nine  hours  —  she  swam  without  a 
wet  suit,  even  though  wearing  one  typically  increases  a  swimmer's 
speed  —  but  the  training  was  virtually  endless  and  intense.  "A 
swim  like  that  is  99  percent  mental  toughness,  but  you  build  that 
up  by  swimming  —  a  lot,"  she  said.  "I  received  invaluable  advice 
from  other  open-water  marathon  swimmers  to  set  small  goals 
along  the  way." 

It  was  raining  and  the  water  was  cold  and  choppy  on  race 
day  in  Manhattan  in  June  2006,  but  there  was  no  way  Watson 
was  going  home.  She  jumped  in  with  the  rest  of  the  field  at 
Banery  Park,  and  swam,  accompanied  by  a  kayaker  who  gave  her 
food  and  encouragement,  up  the  East  River  under  the  Brooklyn 
Bridge,  past  Roosevelt  Island  through  the  Harlem  River  and  back 
down  the  Hudson  River,  crossing  under  the  George  Washington 
Bridge,  and  others.  "Very  few  people  get  to  see  Manhattan  the 
way  I  did,"  Watson  said  in  a  clear  understatement. 

Watson's  next  nautical  goal  is  a  23-mile  solo  swim  from 
Catalina  Island  to  Point  Vincente  on  the  Los  Angeles  coast,  which 
poses  new  challenges:  salt  water,  colder  water,  ocean  tides,  and  a 
night  start  to  avoid  boat  traffic  in  the  channel.  "I'm  looking  for- 
ward to  the  ocean  swim,  and  there's  a  lot  of  preparation  ahead  of 
me  to  get  there,"  she  said.  ▲ 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumn3e@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
PEGGY  JO  RUSNAK  of  Houston  TX  is  a 
principal  consultant  for  Kerdock 
Consulting. 


1997 


Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Jenna  Snnith 
mbcYaY3@yahoo.  com 
Hey,  Squirrels,  we've  been  a  busy  bunch. 
FRANCESCA  RUSK-Wallace  of 
Dumfries  VA  is  wori<ing  on  a  master's  in 
special  education  at  University'  of  Mary 
Washington.  She  and  husband  Sean 
welcomed  firstborn  Zoe  in  January  (check 
out  pictures  of  Zoe  at  rusk- 
wallace.  spaces,  live,  com/  •  WILHEMINA 
GRADY  Harback  of  Bnstow  VA  is  a  data 
validation  manager  for  IIM  Laboratop/ 
Qualit/  Consultants  and  saw  her  MBC 
roommate  ANGELA  WINKLER  Pairow 
shortly  after  she  and  husband  Dave  had 
first  child  Alannah.  Wilhemina  finished  a 
master's  at  George  Mason  University  in 
May  2005  •  LAUREN  WARDER  Gvillo  of 
Duluth  GA  and  husband  Jeff  welcomed 
first  child  Claire  in  December  2006  •  LIZ 
TROMBLEY  Saunders  of  Atlanta  GA 
went  back  to  work  full-time  in  a  law  firm 
after  five  years  at  home  caring  for  3  sons, 
including  identical  twins  •  KATE  WOOD- 
SON DuMont  of  Fredericksburg  VA 
enoys  life  with  husband  Matt  and  Sam  (3) 
and  Luke  (2)  •  Wedding  bells  rang  for 
CLARA  ALICETHOMPSON  Wilson  of 
Huntington  WV  when  she  wed  Todd  on 
the  beach  at  Hilton  Head  SC.  NEISHA 
ELLIS  Brown  was  a  bridesmaid  and 
many  alums  were  on  hand  •  REBECCA 
FIFIELD  of  Manhattan  NY  is  collections 
manager  at  Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art 
•  HONOR  JOHNSON  McCain  of 
Morgantown  WV  is  a  published  poet  and 
freelance  writer  for  literar/  journals  and 
magazines.  Honor's  career  path  has 
taken  her  from  amazon.com  to  law  firms, 
community  theatre,  and  freelance  writ- 
ing. She  and  husband  Bryson  have  son 
Barrett  •  ANGELA  WINKLER  Pan-ow  of 
Wilmington  NC,  husband  Jason,  and 
Bradley  (5)  and  Jack  (2)  are  well  and  she 
is  a  4th  grade  teacher  •  ANGELA  HALL 
of  Raleigh  NC  earned  an  MBA,  gave  birth 
to  Sydney  (7),  Gner  (5),  and  identical 
twins  Harrison  and  Grant  (2),  and  works 
as  senior  consultant  with  Zencos 
Consulting  LLC. 


ate  school,  working  towards  her  LCSW 
degree  •  TARAH  GUINN  is  an  abstractor 
with  Tri-City  Land  and  Legal.  She  lives  in 
GrayTN  with  attorney  husband  Aaron  • 
TENEA  WATSON  of  San  Mateo  CA  is 
launching  a  magazine  with  a  Web  site 
that  addresses  career  questions  of  young 
professional  women:  www.moxy- 
magazine.com  •  JANE  RAPIER  Spence 
of  Alexandria  VA  and  husband  Jason  wel- 
comed son  Campbell  in  October  2006. 
She  works  at  MBC  as  a  major  gifts  officer. 


1998  I^^^S^^ 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
LATESHA  HOOKER  Adkins  of  Aberdeen 
NC  is  a  clinical  social  work  supervisor  for 
North  Carolina  Department  of  Juvenile 
Justice  and  Delinquency  Prevention.  Last 
August  she,  husband  Nick,  and  children 
Braden  (6)  and  Britney  (4),  relocated  to 
the  sand  hills  of  NC.  Latesha  is  in  gradu- 


1999 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
MARLA  SCHIFFER  of  Collingswood  NJ 
hopes  to  begin  working  in  a  new  career 
soon.  •  LISA  BLACK  of  Newport  News 
VA  works  in  the  Alumni  Relations  Office 
at  Virginia  Wesleyan  University  •  CHAN- 
DA  HOFFMAN  Poole  of  Edinburg  VA, 
husband  Jason,  Emily  (3),  and  Nathan  (2) 
welcomed  Hannah  in  July  2006  •  EMILY 
WATSON  Bertsch  of  Colorado  Springs 
CO  graduated  from  nursing  school  in 
May  2006  and  is  licensed  as  a  registered 
nurse.  She  and  husband  Matt  welcomed 
Jon  in  July  2006.  Matt  is  stationed  at 
Peterson  Air  Force  Base. 

2000 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
MERISSA  FIDDYMENT  Mule  of 
Chesterfield  County  VA  became  a  den- 
tist and  a  bride  since  we  last  heard 
from  her.  She  earned  a  DDS  from  VCU 
School  of  Dentistry  in  May  2005  and  is 
practicing  general  dentistry  in 
Richmond,  Merissa  wed  Michael  Mule  • 
KERRI  DEAL  Burton  of  Chester  VA 
welcomed  second  child  Hannah  in  July 
2006*  SUSAN  COVINGTON 
Rothenberg  of  Richmond  VA  married 
Getty  Rothenberg  in  June  2006. 
Bridesmaids  included  CHRISTINA 
SADLER  Boykin,  STACEY  BARROW 
Hill.  LESLIE  PEPE  Jarden,  matron  of 
honor  HEATHER  RODDENBERRY 
Heard,  and  MARGARET  BROUGHTON 
Norfleet  Mother  of  the  bnde  is  CARO- 
LINE STOWE  Covington  They  honey- 
mooned in  Capetown,  South  Africa,  and 
the  Seychelles  Islands  •  ANDREA 
SLAUGHTER  Betton  of  Suffolk  VA  and 
husband  Ryan  welcomed  first  child  Ian 
in  September  2005.  She  is  juggling  the 
roles  of  stay-at-home  mom  and  gradu- 
ate student  at  Old  Dominion  University 
•  CHRISTA  DUNCAN  Arfaa  married 
Kaivon  Arfaa  MD  in  January  2006.  She 
is  stationed  in  Rota,  Spain  serving  as  a 
labor/delivery  nurse,  while  Kaivon  is  sta- 
tioned in  Okinawa  as  an  OB/GYN.They 
hope  to  be  stationed  together  soon! 

2001 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Amberleigh  Covell  Powell 
chnsandal2001@Yahoo.com 


Spring  2007 


Brooks  Legier  llgenfntz,  son  of  CYNTHIA  "HAVEN" 
LECLER  llgenfritz  '98  and  husband  Carter,  was  born  in 
January  2007 


;    \ 

r 

) 

/ 

\^ 

Zee  Claire  Wallace,  daughter  of  "CESCA"  RUSK-Wallace 

'97  and  husband  Sean,  was  born  in  January  2007   In  this 
photo,  Zoe  enjoys  an  outing  to  her  father's  office.  "We 
think  she's  going  to  be  an  engineer,  just  like  hinn!"  her 
mother  reports. 


Little  Charles  Benjamin  Owens,  son  of  LAURA 
CROSS  Owens  '05  and  husband  Brian,  was  bori 


''W*^:'% 


Harold  Stone  is  the  son  of  JANET  CAROL 
BOYKIN  Stone  '95  and  husband  Jay  of 
Richmond  VA. 


HALEY  JOHNSON  Brast  "86  and  Dan:  a  daughter,  Scarlett  Elizabeth,  August  6,  2006 

SARAH  "COLLIER"  ANDRESS  Smith  '91  and  Fant:  a  daughter,  Helen  Andress,  August  8,  2006 

CHERYL  SERFOZO  Hindelang  '95  and  David:  a  daughter,  Riley  Elizabeth,  October  2,  2006 

LEE  CARREN  WARD  Mather  '95  and  Jim:  a  daughter,  Celia  Comfort,  July  11,  2006 

LAURA  CROSS  Owens  '95  and  Brian:  a  son,  Charles  "Charlie"  Benjamin,  July  12,  2006 

LUCIA  MORGAN  Saperstein  '95  and  Adam:  a  daughter,  Camille  Estelle,  adopted  February  14,  2006 

LAUREN  WARDER  Gvillo  '97  and  Jeff:  a  daughter,  Claire  Matheson,  December  23,  2006 

FRANCESCA  RUSK- WALLACE  '97  and  Sean:  a  daughter,  Zoe  Claire,  January  25,  2007 

CiTSTTHIA  "HAVEN"  LECLER  llgenfritz  '98  and  Carter:  a  son.  Brooks  Legier,  January  11,  2007 

JANE  RAPIER  Spence  '98  and  Jason,  a  son:  Campbell  Rapier,  October  31,  2006 

EMILY  WATSON  Bertsch  '99  and  Matt:  a  son,  Jon  "Jack"  Matthew,  July  13,  2006 

CHANDA  HOFFMAN  Poole  '99  and  Jason:  a  daughter,  Hannah  Aleese,  July  24,  2006 

ANDREA  SLAUGHTER  Betton  '00  and  Ryan:  a  son,  Ian  Alexander,  September  2005 

KERRI  DEAL  Burton  '00  and  Todd:  a  daughter,  Hannah  Grace,  July  7,  2006 

AMBERLEIGH  COVELL  Powell  '01  and  Chris:  a  daughter,  Abigail  Maye,  July  24,  2006 

MOLLY  MAHONEY  Griffin  '02  and  Phillip:  a  son.  Cole  Ryan,  June  8,  2006 

AMANDA  DAVIS  Holloway  '02  and  Jamal:  a  daughter,  Ava  Corinne,  May  22,  2006 

DARA  POWERS  '02  and  Jeremy:  a  son,  Jackson  Waite,  August  30,  2006 

LINDA  GLANAKOS  Corradino  '03  and  Mark:  a  son,  Nathaniel  James,  July  19,  2006 

CHAUNCY  QUINTER  Watts  '03  and  Nicolas:  a  daughter.  Carter  Hadley,  August  29,  2006 


Congratulations  to  AMBERLEIGH  COV- 
ELL Powell  of  Richmond  VA  and  husband 
Chris,  who  welcomed  second  child 
Abigail  in  July  2006.  "Her  brother  Joseph 
(4)  adores  her."  She  is  working  for  HCA, 
Inc  and  Chris  has  a  new  job  at  University 
of  Richmond. 

2002 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Anna  Henley 

mbc2002reunion@hotmail.com 
Greetings,  scarlet  and  gold  Squirrels! 
LUCIA  "YOGI"  ALMENDRAS  of 
Washington  DC:  "I  work  for  the  National 
Geographic  Society  producing  printed  col- 


lateral for  the  book  division.  My  job  as  a 
student  assistant  in  MBC's 
Communications,  Marketing,  &  Public 
Affairs  helped  me  in  this  field  —  thank 
you,  Gretchen  Newman.  DIONNA 
MclNTYRE  Kieman  and  I  visited  ALE- 
SANDRA  PRICE  DombroskI  and  her 
husband  in  Wilmington."  •  USA  BLISS 
graduated  from  Marymount  University 
with  a  master's  in  elementary  education 
in  December  and  is  teaching  5th  grade, 
tutors  after  school,  and  works  for 
Anthropologie  •  KRISTA  HONIG  Boggs 
of  Cary  NC  is  employed  with  Carolina 
Vascular  •  PAMELA  SMITH-Taylor 
returned  to  her  hometown,  Dallas  TX,  and 
works  in  the  legal  field.  She  graduated 
from  Kaplan  University  with  a  degree  in 


legal  studies  and  is  a  high  school  teaching 
assistant,  and  raising  daughter  Dajah  (6)  • 
A'LEIGH  COLLINS  Spensleri  of 
Richmond  VA  is  teaching  3rd  grade  at  an 
alternative  school,  having  graduated  from 
MBC's  Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching  in  May 
2006  •  AMANDA  DAVIS  Holloway 
received  a  MAT  from  MBC  and  gave  birth 
to  her  first  child  Ava  the  next  day!  She 
wed  hubby  Jamal  in  August  on  the  sands 
of  Jamaica,  and  is  teaching  autistic  high 
schoolers  in  Richmond  'Wedding  bells 
rang  for  LYNNETTE  DAUGHTRY  Barrett 
of  Tampa  PL  in  November,  when  she  tied 
the  knot  with  Kelby.  "It  was  a  black  tie 
event  attended  by  many  MBC  alumnae." 
•  TIFFANY  SCHUMACK  of  Rockledge  FL 
is  director  of  Christian  education  for  a 


church  •  DARA  PARKER  and  husband 
Jeremy  welcomed  second  son  Jackson 
in  August  2006  •  WINDSOR  HALL 
Johnson  of  Manassas  VA  stays  at  home 
with  William  and  Lucas.  She  visited  MBC 
friends  EMILY  DIXON  Giradler  and 
MOLLY  MAHONEY  in  Richmond  •  JEN- 
NIFER WEST  of  Hampton  VA  represents 
the  business  and  marketing  sides  in 
development  of  Web  sites  for  a  compa- 
ny called  FEI  •  CAMBRIA  WATSON  of 
Los  Angeles  CA  is  a  freelance  associate 
producer  and  was  production  coordinator 
for  a  feature  film  •  STACY  SMALLWOOD 
Ttuslow  is  the  mother  of  twins,  Brooke 
and  Alston  'The  Class  of  2002  is  online: 
www.myspace.  com/mbc2002reunion. 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


What's  it  like... 

to  navigate  a  military  fighter  plane? 


Dressing  in  an  olive  green  flight  suit,  oxygen  mask,  harness,  and  g- 
suit.  CUmbing  into  the  navigator's  seat  of  a  T-6A  Texan  aircraft. 
Memorizing  dozens  of  emergency  procedures  for  each  type  of  jet. 
PulUng  four  to  six  ^s  (gravitational  force)  during  a  dive  or  ascent. 
All  part  of  the  routine  for  Jennifer  Kukia  '04  at  Naval  Flight 
Officer  school. 

"I  won't  say  that  Marine  Corps  training  isn't  hard,  but  it's  not 
impossible.  If  it  was,  there  wouldn't  be  anyone  in  the  Corps,"  said 
Kukla,  who  claimed  an  office  in  the  Virginia  Women's  Institute  for 
Leadership  (VWIL)  Building  at  Mary  Baldwin  College  for  a  few  weeks 
before  her  advanced  training  began  in  March  at  Naval  Air  Station 
Whidbey  Island,  Washington.  Kukla  served  as  First  Captain  of  the 
VWIL  Corps  of  Cadets  while  she  was  a  student. 

Kukla  started  basic  training  in  the  Marines  at  Quantico  in 
November  2004.  She  didn't  know  she  was  interested  in  a  career  in  avia- 
tion until  after  she  passed  a  daunting  flight  entrance  exam  (which  she 
didn't  have  to  take,  but  did  just  to  challenge  herself)  and  was  offered  an 
aviation  contract.  She  went  on  to  complete  the  Introduaor)'  Flight 
Screening  program.  Aviation  Preflight  Indortrination,  and  Primary 
Naval  Flight  Officers  course  to  earn  her  wings  near  the  end  of  2006. 

Kukla  admits  that  although  she  logged  plenty  of  time  in  flight  sim- 
ulators before  jumping  into  "an  actual  flying  machine,"  when  she 
walked  to  the  plane  for  the  first  airborne  training  session,  it  was  surreal. 
"I  did  feel  like  I  was  in  that  scene  in  Top  Gun,"  she  smiled.  "I  looked  at 
my  instructor  and  he  looked  at  me  and,  although  my  mind  kind  of 
went  blank  for  a  moment,  I  knew  I  was  ready  for  the  flight.  When  I  sat 
in  the  T-6A,  I  thought,  'I'm  sitting  in  a  rocket.'" 

Kukla  —  whose  call  sign  is  Fuse  —  trained  on  the  T-6A  Texan  II 
and  T-2  Buckeye,  which  are  specifically  used  for  that  purpose.  Out  of 
flight  school,  she  has  been  assigned  to  fly  the  EA-6B  Prowler,  aircraft 
which  serve  as  the  Navy's  main  line  of  airborne  electronic  attack  via 
scrambling  and  jamming  radar  and  radio  frequencies.  She  will  do  that 
training  at  Whidbey  Island. 

"You  not  only  have  to  know  what  your  responsibilities  are  during 
flight,  but  also  everything  about  your  jet,  inside  and  out,  in  case  some- 
thing happens,"  Kukla  said. 

As  a  navigator,  Kukla  is  the  mission  commander  and  accountable 
for  successful  execution  of  a  mission;  the  pilot's  chief  responsibility  is 
aircraft  safety,  she  said.  She  usually  sits  behind  the  pilot  and  monitors 
all  aaivity  outside  the  plane  from  the  wings  backward,  even  while 
pulling  the  crushing  force  of  up  to  six  gs. 

Here's  to  an  MBC  alumna  who  will  work  to  keep  the  skies  and 
seas  friendly.  ▲ 


2003 IBE!^ 

Contact  your  class  secretary  by  July  15 
with  news  for  your  class  column: 
Elizabeth  Hill 
hilleg@gmail.  com 
Greetings  classmates!  CRISSY 
JURACH  is  working  for  Sage 
Software  in  Herndon  VA,  and  was 
promoted  to  senior  marketing  spe- 
cialist. She's  volunteering  at  Fairfax 
INOVA  Hospital  in  pediatrics,  is  in 
Junior  League  of  Northern  Virginia, 
and  is  helping  plan  our  class  reunion 
•  LIL  LIN  AUNG  is  working  with 
International  Youth  Foundation  man- 
aging two  educational  projects  in  the 
Philippines  and  Indonesia  • 
KATHERINE  "KACEY"  CULLEN 
Gore  married  Patrick  (U.S.  Army)  in 
August  2006.  They  are  stationed  in 
South  Korea  •  ANNE  MEACHAM  is 
a  production  stage  manager  at 
Lexington  Children's  Theatre  in 
Lexington  KY  •  ASHLEY  HOLLOW- 
ELL  Hunsberger  and  husband  Scott 
moved  to  Raleigh  NC.  She  is  working 
for  Blackboard  Inc.  as  a  test  designer 
for  learning  software  •  BRANDI 
SAMUELS  of  Richmond  VA  sells 
acoustical  products.  She  is  marketing 
her  patented  invention  and  hopes  to 
sell  it  commercially  this  year  • 
LINDA  GIANAKOS  Corradino  of 
Keswick  VA  and  husband  Mark  wel- 
comed Nathaniel  in  July  2006.   She 
teaches  music  •  BRANDI  CLARK 
bought  a  house  in  South  Boston  VA, 
where  she  teaches  6th  grade.  She 
completed  a  master's  in  December 
2006  •  JAWANDA  SMITH  Jenkins 
married  husband  Adrian  in  June  2006 
with  Dr.  Edward  Scott,  MBC's  inter- 
im dean  of  the  college  officiating. 
The  wedding  party  included 
KAMALA  PAYNE  '05  LYNETTE 
DAUGHTRY  '02.  Reverend  Andrea 
Cornen-Scon,  LINDA  CORTEZ  '03, 
and  NIANI  VINES  '02,  and  AMAN- 
DA BRUNSON.  •  CHAUNCY  QUIIM- 
TER  Watts  and  husband  Nicholas 
announced  the  birth  of  first  child 
Carter  in  August  2006. 


2004 


Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
WHITNEY  FROSTICK  of  Dublin  OH 
is  an  account  manager  at  One 
Source  Advisors,  Inc  •  ERIN 
BALLEW  O'Reilly  lives  with  hus- 
band Egan  in  Ladenburg,  Germany 
and  she  is  a  management  assistant 
for  the  U.S.  Army  •  KIMBERLY 
KERN  of  Woodbndge  VA  graduated 
from  George  Washington  University 
with  a  master's  in  public  policy  and 
works  for  the  Office  of  the 
Comptroller  of  the  Currency, 
Department  of  the  Treasury. 


2005 

Send  your  class  notes  to:  alum- 
nae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
KAMALA  PAYNE  of  Richmond  VA 
was  promoted  as  a  scientist  at  Wyeth 
Pharmaceutical  Research  and 
Development.  She  and  MBC  class- 
mate GEORGIA  LEITNER  placed 
second  as  a  doubles  team  in  the 
championship  round  of  the 
Southeastern  Tennis  Open  •  VICTO- 
RIA "VICKY"  TENBROECK  of 
Gresham  OR  is  working  for  the 
American  Cancer  Society  and  is  in 
charge  of  four  Relay  for  Life  events  • 
TIERRA  CHANEL  JOHNSON  of 
Baltimore  MD  is  an  enrollment  advi- 
sor atWalden  University  • 
STEPHANIE  HATLEM  of  Stafford  VA 
trained  to  run  her  first  marathon,  the 
National  AIDS  Marathon  in  January 
2007  "I  have  completed  over  300 
miles  and  raised  more  than  $3,000 
to  benefit  those  living  with 
HIV/AIDS     •  ROBIN  CRIMBLEY  of 
Petersburg  VA  published  a  book  of 
fiction  in  June  2006.  Three  Sisters: 
The  Beginning  is  a  Christian  story 
geared  toward  middle-  and  high 
school-age  students  •  Wedding  bells 
rang  for  MEGAN  KADILAK 
Chambers  of  Lake  Gaston  NC  and 
husband  Preston  in  May  2006. 

2006 

Send  your  class  notes  to: 
alumnae@mbc.edu  by  July  15. 
KENDALL  BRISTOW  works  for 
Meals  on  Wheels  in  Suffolk  VA  and 
hopes  to  attend  law  school  next  year. 
"Non  pro  tempore  sed  Aeterniate! "  • 
CARA  ROSE  MAGOLDA Tucker  mar- 
ried Matthew  at  the  Fishburn 
Mansion  in  Roanoke  VA  and  moved 
to  Denver  CO.  She  is  working  as  a 
policy  coordinator  at  ICAT  in  Boulder 
•  NZINGA  SALCEDO-Hutchison  of 
Daytona  Beach  FL  is  a  911  dispatcher, 
answering  phones  in  English,  French, 
and  Spanish.  "I'll  be  training  to  be  an 
emergency  medical  technician  so  I 
can  ride  on  the  ambulance  and  give 
directions  to  other  EMTs  over  the 
phone.  Maybe  after  all  these  certifica- 
tions, I  can  transfer  to  a  similar  line  of 
work  in  Washington  DC." 


Spring  2007 


What's  it  like... 

to  be  on  HGTV  (Home  and  Garden  Television)? 


What  would  you  do  if  producers  at  HGTV 
(Home  and  Garden  Television)  e-mailed  you  to 
be  on  one  of  their  programs?  Would  you  won- 
der if  they  had  the  right  person?  Just  say  yes? 
Second-guess  your  decision?  Pat  Forbes  '67,  a 
native  of  Silver  Spring,  Maryland,  who  has  lived 
for  several  years  in  Albuquerque,  did  all  of  that 
—  and  ended  up  thoroughly  enjoying  the  expe- 
rience of  being  featured  on  the  network's  coast- 
to-coast  contemporary  craft  show,  That's 
Clever! 

"I  decided  —  midstream  —  that  I  didn't 
want  to  do  it,"  said  Forbes,  an  MBC  art  major 
who  returned  to  painting  in  the  early  1990s 
after  a  career  on  the  fringes  of  the  art  world  and 
raising  her  daughter.  "Then  they  called  back 
with  details  and  I  couldn't  say  no." 

It  wasn't  the  first  time  Forbes'  art  was  fea- 
tured in  the  media  —  she  beams  in  a  picture 
that  accompanies  an  article  in  a  1967  issue  of 
the  Richmond  Times-Dispatch  about  her  senior 
art  exhibit  at  Mary  Baldwin  College,  and  she 
has  talked  with  members  of  media  for  other 
publications.  With  this  show,  though,  she  was 
about  to  go  national. 

Forbes  likes  to  change  her  art  focus  fre- 
quently, and  lately  she  has  been  cultivating 
what  she  terms  Uppity  Art.  "It's  not  meant  to 
be  snooty.  Actually,  the  name  is  a  play  on  the 
way  that  some  people  regard  art  as  inaccessi- 
ble," said  Forbes,  who  studied  art  in  Paris 
while  at  MBC.  "I  chose  Uppity  Art  because 
it's  sculpture,  and  I  like  to  say  'It's  art  that 
stands  up  for  itself.'"  At  her  Uppity  Art  Web 
site,  www.UppityArt.com,  one  will  find  boldly 
painted  columns,  trees,  planters,  and  other 
unique  items. 


The  HGTV  production  featured  Forbes 
creating  a  pre-Uppity  Art  piece,  an  asymmetri- 
cal textured  mirror  frame  made  with  wood, 
molding  compound,  and  acrylic  paints.  Filming 
for  the  show,  which  aired  last  October,  began  at 
8:30  a.m.  and  ended  at  3  p.m.  on  a  chilly 
January  day.  The  final  run  time  of  her  segment 
on  the  half-hour  program  was  about  7'/:  min- 
utes. "It  was  a  project  I  thought  would  be 
doable  for  people  who  are  moderately  crafty, 
something  that  I  thought  I  could  show  how  to 
do  pretty  simply,"  Forbes  said.  Preparation 
included  having  a  mirror  ready  for  each  stage  of 
the  creation  —  which  worked  out  to  about  six 
total.  "I  kept  making  frames  over  and  over  ...  I 
didn't  make  those  frames  for  quite  a  while  after 
that,"  she  said. 

Forbes  said  the  shoot  went  mostly  the  way 
she  expected  it  to,  although  "they  did  ask  me  to 
do  a  few  things  I  thought  would  be  goofy,  like 
throw  paper  up  into  the  air,  and  comb  my  hair 
with  the  tool  I  use  to  create  texture.  But  those 
shots  worked  into  the  segment  well  in  the  end." 
A  text  and  photograph  version  of  the  program 
can  be  seen  online:  From  www.UppityArt.com, 
click  on  the  That's  Clever!  link. 

The  show  did  not  catapult  Forbes  to 
celebrity  status  —  she  did  not  expect  nor  crave 
it  —  but  visits  to  her  Web  site  did  spike  dra- 
matically the  day  it  aired.  "Lately  I've  been 
running  into  friends  and  acquaintances  who 
tell  me  they  saw  the  show,  and  that's  fun,"  she 
said.  It  might  not  get  her  a  show  at  the 
Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art,  but  being  on 
HGTV  builds  her  credibility  with  the  public 
and  in  the  art  world  —  and  it  was  one-of-a- 
kind,  she  said.  ▲ 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


J' 


What's  it  like... 

to  search  for  and  find  Winnie  the  Pooh  and  Jane  Austen  in  England? 


It's  not  the  lure  of  warm  weather  or 
scenic  settings  that  determine  travel 
destinations  for  Cheryl  Diane 
Dinwiddle  Andre  '67,  although  she 
frequently  finds  both  along  the  way. 
Literary  works  guide  many  of 
Andre's  vacation  plans.  The  recently 
retired  library  media  specialist  has 
driven,  walked,  cHmbed,  and  pho- 
tographed English  towns  and  coun- 
tryside to  discover  a  bit  of  inspira- 
tion here,  and  a  characteristic  there, 
about  authors  such  as  Sir  Arthur 
Conan  Doyle,  A.A.  Milne,  Jane 
Austen,  Virginia  "Wolfe,  and 
Rudyard  Kipling. 

"Everywhere  you  turn  is  magi- 
cal," Andre  said  about  her  literary 
trips  in  search  of  details  about 
authors'  lives.  "They  speak  to  me, 
and  when  I'm  in  the  place  where 
they  created  their  work,  I  can 
almost  see  them  at  their  desks,  and 
understand  the  origins  of  their  ideas 
and  details." 

Andre,  a  psychology  major  at 
MBC,  said  she  has  been  "a  lifelong 
incorrigible  reader.  I  always  read 
under  the  covers  with  a  flashlight, 
and  had  a  book  rucked  into  my 
textbooks  in  class."  She  returned  to 
James  Madison  University  to  earn 
library  and  media  teaching  certifica- 
tion and,  soon  after,  earned  a  second 
master's  degree  and  sixth-year  certi- 
fication from  Fairfield  University  in 
Connecticut.  She  regards  her 


transatlantic  journeys  as  a  "natural 
extension  of  what  I  taught  for  25 
years.  Facts  about  an  author  stimu- 
late my  interest  in  a  book,  explain  a 
point  of  view,  and  give  texture  to 
understanding  their  choices." 

Andre's  first  literary  tour  was 
an  Elderhostel  course  on  Dickens  in 
London  about  a  decade  ago.  She 
jumped  into  the  hunt  again  in 
1999,  making  several  trips  to 
Ireland,  England,  and  Scotland 
with  a  group  of  storytellers  from 
Southern  Connecticut  University. 
It's  easy  to  be  swept  up  in  Andre's 
genuine  excitement  as  she  chroni- 
cles moments  from  her  trips:  "We 
trod  in  Christopher  Robin's  foot- 
prints, from  playing  Pooh-Sticks 
on  Milne's  bridge  to  exploring  the 
Hundred  Acre  Wood.  We  picnicked 
at  Kipling's  gorgeous  home,  which 
he  improved  and  expanded  with 
the  prize  money  from  his  1907 
Nobel  Prize  for  Literature  ...  fol- 
lowed Shakespeare  at  Stratford- 
on-Avon,  sought  Lewis  Carroll 
and  J.K.  Rowling  ...  had  dinner  at 
The  Eagle  and  The  Child,  where 
C.S.  Lewis  and  J.R.R.  Tolkien  and 
the  other  Inklings  met  on  Tuesdays 
for  many  years." 

What  are  some  of  the  discov- 
eries she  treasures  most?  Tracing 
Jane  Austen's  life  all  over  Bath,  and 
finding  the  tiny  Steventon  church 
where  her  father  and  brother 


preached  near  the  site  of  her  birth- 
place. Exploring  Austen's  Chawton 
home  where  most  of  her  writing 
was  completed,  and  finding,  down 
a  side  lane,  the  estate  of  another  of 
Austen's  brothers,  now  a  center  for 
women's  studies  located  right  next 
to  the  churchyard  where  her  moth- 
er and  sister  are  buried.  Tracking 
down  Daphne  du  Maurier's  real 
Frenchman's  Creek  down  hidden 
paths  and  across  private  property. 
Exploring  Beatrix  Potter's  exquisite 
Hill  Top  Farm  in  the  Lake  district, 
which  provided  the  details  for  so 
many  of  her  children's  books. 

Andre  has  also  been  fortu- 
nate, she  said,  to  travel  to  many 
countries  aside  from  her  literary 
trips.  She  visited  China  in  1976  — 
six  months  before  it  was  officially 
recognized  by  the  United  States  — 
and  has  been  to  Sri  Lanka,  Burma, 
Nepal,  India,  Scandinavia,  and 
Greece,  among  others.  She  is  head- 
ing back  this  August  to  explore 
Bronte  and  James  Herriot  territo- 
ry. Looking  over  the  English 
moors  at  a  sight  that  one  of  her 
favorite  authors  might  have  seen 
will  always  be  an  exhilarating 
experience,  she  said.  "My  love  of 
history  and  travel  started  when  I 
was  16.  Every  time  I  go  back,  I 
discover  more  of  the  history  and 
stories  that  are  part  of  my  her- 
itage," she  said.  ▲ 


Spring  2007 


Fulfilling 
Our  Vision 

PERSONAL 
TRANSFORMATION 

"There  are  so  many 
opportunities  laid  out  in 

front  of  me.  I  really 

feel  like  Mary  Baldwin  is 

special,  because  they  care. 

They  want  you 

to  take  those  chances." 


—   Erin  Baker  '07, 

OR,  September  2006 


CAMPUS 
RENEWAL 

"...learning  in  an 

environment  that  was 

focused  on  women  and 

the  strengths  of  women  gave 

all  of  us  the  tools  we 

needed  for  a  lifetime." 

—    Lucy  Morris  Gay  %3, 

SEnTEMBER   2006 

ACADEMIC 
EXCELLENCE 

"The  gateway  to 

personal  transformation 

is  academic  excellence. 

At  Mary  Baldwin  College, 

academic  excellence 

is  collective. . . 
[It]  is  also  inclusive." 

—  Pamela  Fox, 

NINTH  PRESIDENT  OE  MaRY  BALDWIN  COLLEGE 

State  of  the  College  Address 

Opening  Convocation  eor  Faculty  and  Staff, 

August  2.3,  2006 


T^^ 


MARY  BALDWIN  COLLEGE 


HlMlllillll 


•ff  Our  Visiori 


Pursue  new  and  renovated  facilities 

Complete  wireless  coverage  of  the  entire  campus 

Enhance  the  Honors  Program  through  additional  merit 

scholarship  funding 

Seek  national  teaching  accreditation  through  the  Teacher 

Education  Accreditation  Council  (TEAC) 

Complete  Southern  Association 

of  Colleges  and  Schools  (SACS)  reaffirmation 


Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 


(3>^L-/-C--iZ..-/>A^ 


KATHERINE  "KATE"  RAWLINGS  Poindexter 

MARION  SIBBET  Geoghegan 

MARGARET  GRABILL  Jones 

JULIA  GOOCH  Richmond 

MARGARETT  "PEGGY"  KABLE  RUSSELL  Davis 

JEAN  CLARK  Wright 

JAME  STEVENS  Brown 

ROBERTA  HUME  VANCE  Homer 

JESSIE  ROUDABUSH  Price 

E.  CORINNE  TOMES  Sadler 

MARGARET  "CALDY"  FORESTER  CALDWELL  Herndon 

JEAN  YOUNG  MOORE  Hupman 

MILDRED  JAMESON  Lapsley 

IDA  MAE  KELLOUGH  Robb 

FREDERICA  "FREDDY"  YOUNG 

VIRGINIA  ALDRICH  Fogle 

BARBARA  BROWNE  Martindale 

MARY  "TOMMIE"  ELLEN  THOMAS  Moorhead 

MARY  BETH  POLLOCK 

VIRGINIA  ANN  BUEHRER  Rupp 

KATHERINE  DUNLAP  Stackhouse 

FANITA  CHAMBERS  Russell 

MARY  JEAN  MCGUIRE  Waldrop 

ADA  LOUISE  BUTLER  Arthur 

ELIZABETH  "BETTY"  CLINE  Fleischer 

NORMA  LOU  EWERS  Garrison 

BETTIE  SUE  TRIMBLE  Mabray 

MARY  LAWSON  Hodges 

LAURA  DOSSETT  Smith 

MARY  LAURA  WAGNER  Knott 

MARGARET  BAUGH  Carroll 

GEORGIANA  "GEORGIE"  GRACE  STICKLEY  Meginley 

ELLEN  STICKELL  Bare 

VIRGINIA  "BOO"  DILLON  Gorman 

BEATTIE  ANNE  JONES  Davis 

PATRICIA  ROBINSON  Morgan 

FAYE  SMITH  Peck 

PATRICLA  "TRISH"  W.  HOPE  Wilson 

IRENE  WITHERSPOON  Couch 

CAMILLE  HEAD  Corte 

STEWART  FAIR  Barbour 

ALICE  JEAN  EICHOLD 

NANCY  "NANCY  MAC"  ARMISTEAD  McMurray 

MARGARET  "PEGGY"  SUSAN  FOGLE 

JACQUELINE  "JACKIE"  HILL  Turner 

ELOISE  HALSTED  HENDERSHOT  Lennox 

MARY  SUE  MATTOX  Smith 

STACI  ERICKA  SHUCK 

NICHOLE  LEE  ARRIAGA 

KENT  CAA4PBELL  McClanahan 


'28 

April  22,  2006 

'30 

August  5,  2006 

'33 

September  4,  2006 

'34 

December  8,  2006 

'35 

November  28,  2006 

'35 

September  16,  2006 

•36 

August  8,  2006 

'37 

August  1,  2006 

'38 

December  16,  2006 

'38 

January  29,  2007 

•39 

August  10,  2006 

•39 

September  25,  2006 

'39 

November  5,  2006 

'39 

November  2,  2004 

'39 

October  16,  2006 

'40 

October  IS,  2006 

'40 

January  23,  2007 

'41 

February  1,  2007 

•41 

January  15,  2004 

•41 

June  16,  2005 

•41 

December  16,  2006 

•42 

December  14,  2006 

•42 

October  28,  2006 

'43 

June  20,  2000 

'44 

February  16,  2007 

'44 

October  2,  2006 

'44 

January  31,2007 

'47 

December  20,  2006 

'47 

June  22,  2006 

'48 

January  7,  2005 

'51 

August  12,  2006 

'54 

July  15,  2006 

'55 

December  12,  2006 

'57 

November  26,  2006 

'58 

August  29,  2006 

'58 

December  13,2006 

'58 

January  4,  2007 

'59 

January  6,  2007 

'60 

April  9,  2006 

'63 

January  16,  2007 

'64 

August  7,  2006 

'69 

August  23,  2006 

'69 

August  25,  2006 

'70 

May  16,  2006 

'72 

January  10,2006 

'73 

October  26,  2006 

'77 

January  16,  2007 

'93 

October  30,  2006 

•97 

January  29,  2007 

'02 

July  7,  2006 

Spring  2007 


A     COMPOSED      LEGACY 


Most  remembered  for  author- 
ing the  unofficial  MBC  alma 
mater,  A  Hymn  for  Mary 
Baldwin,  and  nurturing  the  reputation 
of  the  Mary  Baldwin  College  Choir, 
Gordon  Page  was  one  of  those  treas- 
ured MBC  faculty  members  who  not 
only  educated  his  students,  but  helped 
them  realize  their  full  potential  and 
inspired  them  to  excel.  He  was  not  just 
a  teacher  —  he  was  a  friend  and  a 
member  of  the  family,  too. 

Page  passed  away  March  10  at 
age  96,  taking  with  him  his  great  spir- 
it, but  not  his  legacy  or  his  example  of 
how  to  live  an  enriched  life.  He  was 
remembered  during  an  intimate  cere- 
mony in  a  small  garden  on  campus 
named  in  honor  of  himself  and  his 
wife,  Martha  "Mopsy"  Pool  Page  '48. 
"He  truly  did  touch  so  many  lives, 
including  mine.  I  was  only  at  Mary 
Baldwin  for  a  year,  but  my  experience 
of  singing  in  the  choir  and  chapel  choir 
has  had  an  impact  on  my  life  ever 
since,"  said  Susie  Allen  Jones  Goss  '59. 
"There  is  hardly  a  Sunday  in  church 
that  I  am  not  carried  back  to  a  piece 


By  Dawn  Medley 

that  we  sang  or  something  that  Mr. 
Page  told  us  all  those  years  ago." 

The  MBC  hymn  was  drafted  at 
about  the  midpoint  of  Page's  30-year 
tenure  at  MBC,  which  began  in  1949. 
Page  led  students  in  repeat  perform- 
ances at  Washington  National 
Cathedral,  Princeton  University,  Fifth 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Church  in  New 
York  City,  and  countless  venues  in  the 
Staunton  area.  In  later  years,  he  con- 
vened an  Alumnae  Choir  that  per- 
formed during  Reunion  between  1973 
and  1994. 

Above  all,  students  foimd  it  easy 
to  be  enveloped  by  the  Pages'  genuine 
care  for  their  well-being. 

"They  were  the  kind  of  people 
you  could  say  anything  to  without 
fearing  repercussion,"  said  Ethel 
Smeak  '53,  an  alumna  who  went  on  to 
become  a  professor  of  English  at  Mary 
Baldwin  and  colleague  of  Gordon 
Page.  "Individually  and  together,  they 
were  charming  and  made  you  feel  that 
you  would  be  taken  care  of." 

Certain  alumnae  from  the  era  of 
Page's  professorship  became  very  close 


to  him  and  Mopsy,  such  as  Elizabeth 
"Liz"  Jennings  Shupe  '70.  Shupe,  who 
refers  to  the  Pages  as  "Ma  and  Pa," 
remembers  fondly  the  day  she  met 
Gordon  Page.  "I  auditioned  for  him, 
and  he  graciously  explained  what  my 
voice  was  ...  and  was  not.  Then  he 
encouraged  me  to  join  the  choir.  He 
was  such  a  gentleman  that  I  decided  to 
try  it.  It  was  the  best  decision  I  made 
while  at  MBC." 

The  closing  lines  of  A  Hymn  for 
Mary  Baldwm,  penned  nearly  40  years 
ago,  found  renewed  poignancy  at  the 
end  of  Gordon  Page's  life. 


"When  we  reach  our  last  tomorrow 

of  our  days  in  class,  on  field, 

we  will  know  how  we  must  borrow 

Mary  Baldwin,  from  thy  yield. " 


'■'  For  more  about  the  life  and  contributions  of 
Gordon  Page  and  comments  from  those  who 
cherished  him,  please  visit 
imvw.mbc.edu/news/archive.asp  to  read  "Music 
Professor's  Life,  Songs;  A  Composed  Legacy."  ▲ 


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76  Spring  2007 


What's_MeML7JLQg_Qn 


www.  mbc.  edu/studen  t/ 


Student  Life 


Visit  the  new  pages  that  current  students  check  frequently  for  today's  weather  on 
campus  and  this  week's  events,  or  link  to  the  multicultural  pages  or  career  develop- 
ment and  so  much  more. 

-))         admissions.mbc.edu  Admissions 

The  new  site  for  prospective  students  has  already  won  awards  —  and  you'll  see 
why  when  you  visit  this  page  or  recommend  it  to  some  young,  college-bound 
friends.  Try  the  traditions  quiz! 


-))       www.mbc.edu/about 


About  IVIBC 


Know  your  MBC  history?  Remember  its  traditions?  Link  to  info  about  today's  unique 
academic  program  ...  and  then  some. 


GET  CURRENT 


www.  mbc.  edu/news 


MBC  News 


Put  this  page  on  your  Favorites  List!  MBC's  news  page  changes  frequently, 
especially  during  the  academic  year. 


WWW.  mbc.  edu/inthenews 


IVIedia  Coverage  of  IVIBC 


Want  to  know  what  media  is  covering  MBC-'   Check  out  this  page  for  stones 
listed  by  date  (read  about  MBC  in  Newsweek —  see  entry  October  31,  20061. 


KEEP  IN  TOUCH 


M:- 


www.  mbc.  edu/alumnae 


Alumnae/i 


Start  here  and  link  to  Reunion  news  (past  and  future),  meet  the  STARS  and  the 
staff  at  Alumnae/i  House,  or  tap  into  Giving. 


M:-)     www.mbc.edu/parents 


Parents 


Know  your  parent  association!  Find  the  college  calendar  and  most  important  phone 
numbers.  Want  to  send  your  child  an  icare  package? 


FROMTHIS  ISSUE  OF 

Mary  Baldwin  College  Magazine 

nsse.iub.edu/NSSE_2006_Annual_Report/index.cfm 

National  Survey  of  Student  Engagement 

www.womenscolleges.org/pdfs/nssestudy2004.pdf 

Indiana  University  study  about  the  advantages  of 
women's  colleges  based  on  NSSE  data 

www.mbc.edu/strategic_plan/index 

MBC's  Quality  Enhancement  Plan;  Learning  for  Civic 
Engagement  in  a  Global  Context 

vf rands  @mbc.  edu 

E-mail  Professor  Francisco  for  information  about  using 
the  English  translation  of  La  Jolie  Parfumeuse 
{Ttie  Pretty  Perfume  Maker) 

giving@mbc.edu 

E-mail  Institutional  Advancement  if  you  would  like  more 
information  about  scholarships  or  gifts  to  the  college,  or 
call  toll  free  800-6224255  or  540-887-7011 

www.mbc.edu/quest 

Read  more  about  Quest,  Mary  Baldwin's  Interfaith  Village 

www.mbc.edu/adp 

See  who  graduated  in  January  2007  with  a  brighter 
future  as  a  degree-holder 

www.  mbc.  edu/academic/teacheriicense 

Check  out  the  numbers  and  kinds  of  licenses  available 
through  Mary  Baldwin's  post  baccalaureate  teacher  licen- 
sure program 

www.  mbc.  edu/mat 

Find  out  more  about  the  Kitty  Green  and  Hobart  Jones 
scholarship  for  students  in  the  Master  of  Arts  in  Teaching 

www.UppityArt.com 

To  view  the  art  of  Pat  Forbes  '67  or  to  see  her  HGTV  seg- 
ment, visit  the  site  and  click  on  Tliat's  Clever! 

www.mbc.  edu/forms_pub/alum/refer_frm 

Go  here  to  refer  a  prospective  student  to  MBC 


BXffiwiN 

COLLEGE 
STAUNTON.  VA  24401 


NON-PROFIT  ORG 

U.S.POSTAGE 

PAID" 

PERMIT  19 

BURLINGTON,  VT