Smith College Alumnae Class of 1999

Bike the Pike with 99ers

2008-05-26T22:09:00.004-04:00

via Dana Brown

BIKE THE MASS PIKE WITH CLASS O' 1999

We are less than a year way from our 10 year reunion and if you are like me you are probably thinking of a cool story to tell all the folks you have not seen in ten years. Well here's an opportunity to add to a chapter in your reunion book or if you are like me a great way to jump start your weight loss program before May '09.

It's the MassPike Bike Tour. Check out the website and read the details. You don't have to be a Lance Armstrong type to attend. It will be lots of fun, the tour begins in Concord, MA and ends in NORTHAMPTON, MA. If you are interested, please join Katrina Gamble and I August 14-17 for three days of fun and excitement as we bike through MA.

Please email Dana Brown. Out goal is that have a Smithie team with as many 99ers as we can get. See you on the PIKE!

2008-05-18T20:48:00.002-04:00

Happy Graduation Smith Class of 2008 and to all 99ers who are graduating this year!

Remember to save the date for next year!
Our 10th reunion is now only 1 year away.

Reunion will be graduation weekend May 15 - 17, 2009
A preview of the on campus schedule is can be found HERE.

10th Reunion Survey

2008-04-28T15:39:00.002-04:00

Hello Class of 1999!

Next May will be our 10th reunion, and we want to make it a fabulous and fun event for everyone. Please take a minute to fill out our online survey so we know what people would like to do in Northampton!

Also, we are looking for lots of volunteers (very small to big time commitments) and ideas, so please consider what you can do to help! Please forward this link to any and all 1999 class members.

10th Reunion Class Survey

Please complete the survey by Friday, May 9th.

If you have any questions or want more information contact class vp Maggie Vecchio-Smith at her email.

See you next spring!
Maggie

Weber Tierney Family profiled in NY Times

2008-03-18T19:49:00.004-04:00

Gay Couples Say Civil Unions Aren’t Enough

Eager to celebrate their partnership, Tracy and Katy Weber Tierney were among the first in line when Connecticut created civil unions three years ago as a way to formalize same-sex relationships without using the word “marriage.”

But when Tracy was giving birth to their son, Jake, five months ago, a hospital employee inquired whether she was “married, single, divorced or widowed.”

“I’m in a civil union,” she replied. When the employee checked “single,” Tracy protested. “I’m actually more married than single,” she said, leaving the employee flustered about how to proceed.

That conundrum is at the core of a case on which the Connecticut Supreme Court is expected to rule soon. It presents a new constitutional challenge to the political compromise that several states have made in recent years to grant rights to gay and lesbian couples while preserving the traditional definition of marriage as between a man and woman. At the same time, the state legislature’s joint Judiciary Committee has scheduled a public hearing in Hartford on Monday to consider amending the civil union law in light of complaints from same-sex couples that the measure had not delivered the equal rights it had promised. The committee passed a bill that would have legalized same-sex marriage, 27-15, last year, but it was never put to a full vote of the legislature.

Read the rest of the article

Wedding of Pamela Gigliotti

2008-03-05T19:57:00.000-05:00

Pamela Gigliotti was married this past August. Jennie Riley, '99, and Andrea Reece, '98, were both in attendance.

Photo left to right: Andrea Reece, Pam Gigliotti, and Jennie Riley.

A Boy for Emily Warren

2008-03-04T07:59:00.000-05:00

Emily Warren and her husband Ray welcomed their son Jonah Samuel Yang on October 29th, 2007. Jonah measured in at 8 pounds, 11 oz. and 20.25 inches.

Congrats Emily and Ray!

Mini-Reunion in Minnesota

2008-03-02T10:31:00.000-05:00

This past summer, Heather (Cricket) Sawick got together with Lisa Meier, Geneva Johnson, and Maggie Vecchio-Smith (all ’99) for a little mini-reunion in Minneapolis, MN.

Left to Right: Geneva Johnson, Lisa Meier, Cricket Sawick, Maggie Vecchio-Smith.

When Worse Than a Woman Who Voted was One Who Smoked

2008-03-01T09:22:00.000-05:00

This funny little Wall Street Journal article about attitudes towards women smokers in the early 20th century. I normally would not post, but they reference the rules around smoking at Smith in the early 1900's... plus there are some choice quotes from a NY alderman. Enjoy!

"Several women's colleges banned smoking. At Smith College, students seen smoking, even off campus, received a demerit. Three demerits meant expulsion. Bryn Mawr students were prohibited from smoking within 25 miles of the college except in private homes."

If this had been the rule when we were at school, I think half my house would have been gone in the first week.

This quote has to be the best. Who knew that simply seeing a woman smoke could cause such havoc.

In 1922, a New York alderman, Peter McGuinness, proposed a city ordinance that would prohibit women from smoking in hotels, restaurants or other public places. "Young fellows go into our restaurants to find women folks sucking cigarettes," the alderman argued. "What happens? The young fellows lose all respect for the women, and the next thing you know the young fellows, vampired by these smoking women, desert their homes, their wives and children, rob their employers and even commit murder so that they can get money to lavish on these smoking women."

Kathryn Rotondo married in June

2008-02-28T17:05:00.000-05:00

Kathryn Rotondo and Matt Loper were married this past June in bristol RI, with Smithies Marcia Rotondo '01, Laura Marshall '01, and Katha Washburn '94 in attendance. Kathryn and Matt traveled to Ireland for their honeymoon.

photo: Kathryn and husband Matt on the Hill of Tara in Ireland.

A Boy for Natalie Belanger

2008-02-26T08:26:00.000-05:00

Natalie Belanger and husband Patrick Ring welcomed their first child, Nathaniel Patrick, in November 2007.

Natalie also passed on her email address, nbelange23 at aol dot com for anyone interested in getting back in touch.

Congrats Natalie and Patrick!

Wedding of Samantha Miller Bloom

2008-02-24T09:18:00.001-05:00

Samantha Miller Bloom married Warren Bloom (Brandeis '95) on November 24, 2007 at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Stacy Connole Weymuller '99 and Nichola Groom Walker '98 were both in the bridal party

In the photo:
Top row, from left to right: Tracy Hazas '03, Christine Koronides '98, Nichola Groom Walker '98, Samantha Miller Bloom '99, Stacy Connole Weymuller '99, O'Hara Tudor '99, Christina Jimenez '98.
Bottom row kneeling, left to right: Casey Fleming '99, Meaghan Darcy '99, Jennifer McSpedon Foley '99.

Photo Credit: Greg Kessler

Smithie '89 Up for an Oscar

2008-02-23T20:04:00.004-05:00

Cynthia Wade, class of 1989, is nominated for an Oscar in the short documentary category for her film Freeheld. The film follows NJ policewoman Laurel Hester's fight to have her pension transfered to her partner while dying from cancer.

Wade says, “Our film is the story of a dying police officer who wants to give her pension to her partner. She died and never got to see the film. I spoke to her surviving partner today, and she was very emotional. Her case changed the law in parts of New Jersey and the elected official who was against it is now running for Congress, so it’s still very much in the press. Our hope is we can make a difference in the elections. We have to tell this story. Hopefully the Oscar nomination will bring more awareness to couples around the country.”

Class Notes Submissions Time

2008-02-22T21:17:00.002-05:00

Hi All

Sorry for the long radio silence. Life has been a little crazy these days, but I promise to begin posting again this week.

In the meantime please remember that class notes are due to Ingrid by Friday, Feb. 29th. Submit notes via the class email address, smithcollege99@gmail.com and include the phrase "Summer 2008 Class Notes" in the subject line of your email. Let us know if it is ok to post your photo and news to the blog as well.

Thanks all!
Tiffany

Class Notes Submissions Time

2007-11-18T09:15:00.000-05:00

Hi All!

It's that time again, so please send Ingrid your news on or before, Tuesday, Nov. 20th, to the class email address.

If anyone is interested in being a regular blog poster please let me know. My new job is really sucking away my time and I am not able to keep up my old posting schedule.

Cheers and Happy Thanksgiving All!
Tiffany

Smith College Alumnae Quarterly Class Notes Submissions Policies

General Submission Guidelines

1. The Alumnae Quarterly will not publish any references to engagements, plans for adoption, pregnancies, etc. or any contingent/future events. These notes will be deleted from submissions. Only events that have have already taken place will be published.

2. The Alumnae Quarterly will not publish classmates' personal or business contact information, including website addresses, unless such information is related to official class business. Please note, the Quarterly does not consider mini-reunions, etc. to be official class business.

Photo Submission Guidelines

1. All people in the photo must be identified by their undergraduate (and married names, if any), as well as their class year.

2. Photo submissions should include a brief photo caption.

3. Should you wish to submit photographs along with your updates, they can either be sent to the gmail address, above, or directly to the Smith College Alumnae Quarterly Associate Publications Editor, Cherly Dellecese, at cdellece@smith.edu

4. The Alumnae Quarterly prefers e-mailed photos (JPEGS, ideally at 300 dpi).

Submissions of News and Photos to Class of 1999's Blog and Flickr Website

Got ants in your pants? Can't wait until the Spring 2008 issue of the SAQ to share your news and/or photos with the Class of '99? If so, check out the Class of 1999's blog at http://smithcollege99.blogspot.com. You can also share photos online at http://www.flickr.com/photos/smithcollege99.

A Boy for Katy Weber Tierney

2007-10-26T08:35:00.000-04:00

Katy Weber Tierney '99 and her wife Tracy welcomed Jacob Brian on
9/28/07. He was a whopping 8lbs9oz and 21.5inches long and is a
champion eater. Katy and Tracy are blessed to have mothering support
and advice from Lissa and Farzanah Gangjee '97 and their daughter
Amaya (future Smth class of 2029) and showers of love from Kate
(Farneth) Hirsch '98 and Marnie (Reichelderfer) Leavitt '98.

Congratulations Katy and Tracy!!!!!!

Sylvia Plath’s Youthful Art

2007-10-03T13:37:00.000-04:00

Paintings and drawings by the poet Sylvia Plath, many never seen before, will be published in Britain this October by Oxford University Press to mark the 75th anniversary of her birth, The Guardian newspaper in England reported. The book “Eye Rhymes: Sylvia Plath’s Art of the Visual,” edited by Kathleen Connors and Sally Bayley, includes illustrated childhood letters, found in the Plath family attic in 1996, that Plath wrote when she was 7. There are also schoolbook sketches, portraits, photographs and paintings, including a self-portrait, that Plath made while an art student at Smith College. The works were all completed by the time she was 20, when she decided to concentrate on writing. Oxford plans to publish “Eye Rhymes” in the United States in January.

Guardian article: Revealed: Sylvia Plath's unseen art, discovered in the attic
The Book: Eye Rhymes: Sylvia Plath’s Art of the Visual

Wedding of Melody Niwot

2007-10-02T09:02:00.000-04:00

Melody Niwot married John Curtin in July in Madison, WI.
L to R: Olivia Kissin '99, Melody Niwot '99, Elizabeth Lentini '79, and Camille McGregor '99.

Congratulations Melody and John!!!

Happy Mountain Day!

2007-10-01T11:42:00.000-04:00

If you have a wonderful mountain day memory please leave us a note in the comments section. In anticipation of reunion, we are beginning to collect photos from while we were in school, so if you have a scanned version of a mountain day photo please email it to us so we can add it to our collection.

The alumnae association is also collecting memories at the Mountain Day Alum Blog.

'98 Hubbardite dies while serving in Iraq

2007-09-26T20:21:00.000-04:00

From the Boston Globe:
Roselle Hoffmaster, a graduate of Smith College who died while serving in the Army in Iraq, is being remembered fondly today at the Northampton institution. "You couldn't find a more caring or compassionate person. She's a giver. She's the ultimate team person who gave her all," said Carla Coffey, who coached Hoffmaster in cross country and track and field.

Hoffmaster, 32, an Army captain, died last Friday in Kirkuk of non-combat-related causes. She was the First Brigade Combat Team surgeon, the military said this weekend in a release from Fort Drum, N.Y.

Hoffmaster, a native of Cleveland, graduated from Smith with a biochemistry degree in 1998. She was commissioned into the Army Medical Corps in 2004. She was assigned to the Tenth Mountain Division in July and deployed to Iraq this month. She is survived by her husband and parents, the Army said in a statement. The Army has released no further details on the circumstances of her death. The investigation is still ongoing, said Fort Drum spokesman Benjamin Abel.

Professor Christine White-Ziegler said Hoffmaster was "a real star, just off the charts in terms of her academics." "She was just a very easygoing and approachable person. ... You could see her concern for others," she said.

"It's very sad for the whole Smith community. We're very saddened by her death," said Coffey, the coach.

Remembering Madeleine L'Engle, Smith '41

2007-09-09T03:03:00.000-04:00

Madeleine L'Engle, a well known writer of classic children's books, including the Newbery Medal-winning A Wrinkle in Time, passed away on September 6, 2007.

L'Engle believed that storytelling "... does indeed have something to do with faith. Faith that the universe has meaning, that our little human lives are not irrelevant, that what we choose or say or do matters, matters cosmically." In her 1963 Newberry acceptance speech, she mentions that "a book, too, can be a star, explosive material, capable of stirring up fresh life endlessly, a living fire to lighten the darkness, leading out into the expanding universe." This is why children's stories remain relevant to adults today.

In memory, I posted a tribute to Madeleine L'Engle in my blog here.

On her way to being a conducting superstar!

2007-09-06T20:43:00.000-04:00

The Beaumont Texas Journal has a article up about the search for a new conductor for the Symphony of Southeast Texas and our own Carolyn Kuan is at the top of the list.

Best of Wishes Carolyn!

Symphony of Southeast Texas returns to Julie Rogers for opener
Search for conductor begins with Carolyn Kuan

Conductor candidate Carolyn Kuan of Seattle, will lead the Symphony of Southeast Texas in its Sept. 15 season opener.
The Symphony of Southeast Texas is sporting a new look this year. The orchestra returns home to the beautifully restored Julie Rogers Theatre with the opening concert of the 2007- 2008 season. This season also marks the symphony's search to select a new Music Director/Conductor of the orchestra.

Audience members will have a chance throughout the season to cast their vote for the new leader of the orchestra.

The first concert of the season will be Saturday, Sept. 15, at 7:30 p.m. Carolyn Kuan, of Seattle, leads the orchestra through three late romantic period masterpieces. Borodin's Polovtsian Dances from his unfinished opera, Prince Igor, will be immediately recognizable to audience members. The main dance theme was used in the 1953 Broadway hit Kismet.

Read The Rest of the Article

Smith Kicks Coke off Campus

2007-09-05T15:53:00.000-04:00

The change concerning Coca-Cola took place at the end of last year. I have been meaning to post about it for some time as it has garnered a lot of press since then.

A Student Backlash Against Coke
Lots of college students get to know their peers through drinking. At Smith College, students got to know each other over drinking soda — or, rather, not drinking it. In May, a group on campus forced the school to end its exclusive contract with Coca-Cola.

Students in Smith's Students for Social Justice and Institutional Change had become aware of allegations that Coca-Cola was complicit in human rights violations at a bottling plant in Colombia and had contributed to environmental degradation in India. Such actions would be in violation of Smith's Vendor Code of Conduct, which demands fair business practices of its vendors, including safe working conditions and a commitment to fair wages. In statements posted on the company's website, Coke has denied the allegations and argues that boycotts of Coke products are detrimental to local economies.

Ally Einbinder, the Smith sophomore who helped lead the charge that forced the college to end its contract with the company, says that aside from the allegations themselves, she felt that the exclusivity of the contract was of concern. "There were very few beverage options on campus that weren't Coke brand," she says, noting that the only non-Coke drinks sold on campus were Stewart's soda (owned by Cadbury Schweppes, another soft drink conglomerate) and Vitamin Water, which was recently bought by Coca-Cola.

Read the Rest of the Article

Creating her first feature-length documentary

2007-09-04T17:19:00.000-04:00

Our own Julie Casper Roth is profiled in Wisconsin's The Daily Telegram about her new documentary project. Julie also won Best Experimental Film and Best of Smith College at the 2007 Five College Film Festival for her film Object Lesson.

Documentary captures story of first gay club in Superior and its owner The Daily Telegram - 08/31/2007

The Main Club is the subject of a documentary by a Superior native.

Julie Casper Roth is planning to shoot her first feature-length documentary on the history of Superior’s first openly gay club and its owner, Bob Jannsen. ... Roth wants Northlanders, and the rest of the nation, to know more about the club.

“There’s an amazing history with the Main Club, and it’s almost a hidden history,” she said. “People in town will benefit from learning about the Main and the benefit it has in the community.” ...

When she moved away from Superior for college in Massachusetts, Roth attended Smith College in Northampton, a community with a vibrant gay community, she said. Seeing that vibrancy, Roth began to wonder about the gay community back in the Twin Ports. During college, Roth started working with experimental and documentary video. Since then, her work has been screened at film festivals and she’s won awards for her work.

Many of the films Roth makes deal with identity. She’s visited the topics of motherhood, mental illness, gender and sexuality in the past. This film follows that interest because it allows her to explore how people mediate GLBT identity within the Superior area, she said.

Read the entire article.

1875 Ad for Smith College

2007-09-03T10:43:00.000-04:00

I found this bit of Smith history in the archives. The ad ran in 1875 to encourage young women to apply. I have typed out the text below the image since its a little hard to read.

Smith College for Young Women
Northampton, Mass.
This college will be opened for the reception of students on the second Thursday, 1875. The course of studies occupying four years, will be fully equivalent to that in our best New England colleges for young men.
Candidates for admission to the lowest class will be examined in Arithmetic, Geography, the construction of the English language, general outlines of History, the Latin and Greek Grammars, the Catiline of Sallust, the seven orations of Cicero, the first six books of Virgil's Aenid, three books of Xenophon's Anabasis, two books of Homer's Iliad, Algebra to Quadratic Equations, and two books of Geometry.
For circulars or information apply to the President, Rev. L. Clark Seelye, Amherst Mass.; or to the Secretary of the Trustees, J.M. Greene, Lowell, Mass.

Katrina Gamble published in Legislative Studies Quarterly

2007-08-31T15:13:00.000-04:00

Our own Katrina Gamble's findings on racial differences among legislators participating in select House committees are published in the current issue of Legislative Studies Quarterly.

Black Legislators More Active Than White Counterparts, Study Finds
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — In a behind-the-scenes analysis of the U.S. Congress, Brown University political scientist Katrina Gamble found that black representatives put more time and resources than white representatives into developing policies and advocating for legislation of interest to African Americans. Furthermore, Gamble’s findings indicate that black representatives are more actively involved on legislation of all types – not just on bills benefiting African American constituents. Her research focused on three committees in the House of Representatives from the 107th Congress, in session through 2001 and 2002. The findings are published in the current issue of Legislative Studies Quarterly.

“With Congress becoming increasingly diverse, it is crucial to study how diversity affects deliberation, discussion, and policy outcomes,” said Gamble, assistant professor of political science at Brown. “These findings demonstrate that diverse political institutions are important for providing political representation to racial minorities. As we see more and more African Americans run for state-wide and national office it is significant to know that many black politicians work as advocates for racial minorities, but are also active on a variety of issues relevant to all Americans.”

Read the rest of the Brown Press Release

Her life's a real circus

2007-08-30T09:53:00.000-04:00

The Madison Capital Times has a great story about our own Krin Haglund. Shortly after graduation Krin succumbed to the pull of the circus and is now planning to create her own troop. Congrats Krin and best wishes!

********
Her life's a real circus: Multifaceted performer with Canadian troupe is coming home
MONTREAL -- Here are the clues.

When Krin Haglund was a little girl, her dad would tip her upside-down every day. In the Madison family's archives is a snapshot of her at age 6, fixated on performers in Baraboo.

This is a woman who has long loved the circus, but it wasn't until age 21 that she decided to join one. Nothing has shattered her dream, but events have challenged it, and she continues to reinvent herself as a professional clown, comedienne, aerialist and acrobat.

Since 2002, she has performed with Cirque Eloize, a 13-year-old Canadian company that travels the world, most recently returning from the Chekhov Festival in Moscow. It was in Germany two months before that.

Haglund will lead a two-day clowning workshop next month in Madison. The Cirque Eloize cast of 12 will come to Milwaukee in November to present "Rain," a globally acclaimed theatrical and acrobatic tribute to childhood.

Read the rest of the article

Cirque Eloize in action. Krin is in many of the shots in this clip.

A boy for Penelope!

2007-08-28T09:50:00.000-04:00

Penelope Stranc-Roberts and her husband welcomed their son Ethan Franklin Roberts into their March 12, 2007.

Congrats Penelope!!!

Provincetown Gathering

2007-08-26T17:45:00.000-04:00

Karen Embraza (Zaidberg) spent a week in P-Town with a few other Smithies for a great reunion and a much-needed break from a busy season!

Back row, L-R: Martina (Rachel Vorkink's girlfriend); Carmen Wheeler (Eleanor's wife); Eleanor Cartelli '99
Middle row, L-R: Karen Embraza (Zaidberg) '99; Rachel Embraza (Karen's wife)
Front row, L-R: Rebecca Libed; Rachel Vorkink '01

Another great Smith ranking

2007-08-23T14:40:00.000-04:00

The third annual Washington Monthly College Guide came out this moth. The guides' aim is to offer an alternative to U.S. News & World Report and the like. The Washington Monthly Guide seeks to focus on what colleges are doing for the country. Their site states, "The whole point is to recognize the broader role colleges and universities play in our national life and to reward those institutions that best fulfill that role... we rank colleges based on three criteria: social mobility, research, and service."

Smith College ranking among liberal arts colleges: #2
Overall Score: 95

Social Mobility

% of students receiving Pell Grants: 28%
Predicted/actual grad rate based on % of Pell recipients and incoming SATs: 73%/86%
Difference between predicted/actual grad rates (rank): 13% (10)

Research

Federal research grant dollars in millions (rank): $1907 (11)
Rank of % of Bachelor's going onto PhD studies: #7

Service

Peace Corps Rank: 58
ROTC rank: 18
% of federal work-study funds spent on community service (rank): 15% (60)

Explanation of Scores:
Overall Score: Overall score represents the combined score of our three metrics—social mobility, research, and service—where the highest is 100 and the lowest is zero. Each individual metric is worth 33 ¹/³ total points.
Social Mobility: The first column shows the percentage of students receiving Pell Grants. The second shows the predicted rate of graduation, based on incoming SAT scores and Pell Grant percentages, versus the actual rate of graduation. The third shows the difference between the actual graduation rate and the predicted graduation rate—a measure of how well the school performs as an engine of social mobility —arrived at by subtracting the latter from the former. (The higher the number, the better; negative numbers indicate subpar performance.) Rank follows in parentheses.
Research: The first column shows the number of dollars (in millions) received from the federal government in research grants. Rank follows in parentheses. The second shows the school’s ranking in the number of bachelor’s recipients who go on to receive PhDs.
Service: The first column ranks the school by percentage of students who go on to serve in the Peace Corps. The second column ranks the school by percentage of students who serve in ROTC. The third gives the percentage of funds in federal work-study money that goes to community service (versus noncommunity service); rank follows in parentheses.

Wedding of Ernessa T. Carter

2007-08-22T12:05:00.000-04:00

Ernessa T. Carter married Christian Hibbard in Los Angeles on July 1, 2007. She was extremely happy to have Katie Cissell (Gardner), Madeline Simmons (Nemeth), Emily Farrell, Monique King-Viehland, Karen Foxman, Nina Dunphy, and (not pictured) Tamara Larsen (Williams) in attendance. Reportedly, fun was had by all.

Congrats Ernessa & Christian!!

And the Rankings are out....

2007-08-21T10:21:00.000-04:00

The new US News and World Report college rankings are up and Smith has moved up from last year to land at #17. Smith also ranked in the following categories for liberal arts colleges:

Economic Diversity Among TOP Liberal Arts Colleges: #1
Schools that Award the Most Need-Based Aid: #2
Best Values: #7
Top Liberal Arts Colleges: #17
Campus Ethnic Diversity: #23
Economic Diversity Among ALL Liberal Arts Colleges: #75
Schools whose freshmen are least (and most) likely to return: Smith is roughly in the middle at 91% returning

The Princeton Review also released the following rankings:

Dorms Like Palaces: #1
Best Career/Job Placement Services: #8

Wedding of Audrey Tang

2007-08-17T14:52:00.000-04:00

Audrey Tang married Matthew Sousa on July 7, 2007 in Seattle, WA at the Newcastle Golf Club. Smithies pictured here are: (L to R) Linda Siu '99, Debbie Tay '98, Lori Kauffman '99, Phoebe Ingraham (Bartlett) '99, Audrey Tang '99, Anna Colletti (Carey) '99, Katie Ho '99 and Julia Cassaniti '99.

Congrats Audrey and Matthew!

Not From Canada

2007-08-16T09:24:00.000-04:00

Looking for a theater option in NYC this week? Why not check out our own Ishah Janssen-Faith.

Ishah is currently in "Not From Canada" at the FringeNYC theater festival and receiving great reviews. There are only two shows left to catch Ishah and I have linked to the ticket purchase pages below by date.

not from canada
Writer/Director: Kevin Doyle
Three "unusually" white appear in a restaurant -- with no memory and no idea how they know each other. A tolerable state, if only the waiter would take their order. A satire for the literary set about having a pleasant time.
VENUE #19: CSV Cultural and Educational Center - Milagro
Fri 17 @ 9:15
Tue 21 @ 7:30

Congrats on a successful showing at FringeNYC Ishah!

Smith Ranks the Hottest

2007-08-15T19:46:00.000-04:00

Smith and Northampton rank high this week...
Newsweek came out with the its Top 25 Hottest Universities list in the most recent addition and Smith came in as the hottest women's college. Newsweek characterizes the ranking as, "Instead of a numerical ranking, our list is a quick but colorful snapshot of today's most interesting schools. We've talked to a range of experts—admissions officials, educational consultants, students, parents, and college and university leaders—in making our selections. We've been particularly influenced by the views of high-school counselors, the people most in tune with what matters to the latest wave of college applicants."

Hottest Women's College
Smith College, Northampton, Mass.
With 2,800 students, Smith is the nation's largest women's college, and the first to start an engineering program. It is part of the Five Colleges consortium with nearby Mount Holyoke, Amherst, Hampshire and UMass Amherst. The facilities, particularly the cottage-style houses where students live in groups of 13 to 80, are so attractive that visitors originally preferring a coed college often change their minds. "Smith kind of won me over," says Katie Green, who thought she would go to a school with men. "When else in your life can you get the experience of being surrounded by smart, motivated young women who really care about what they're doing?"

Also making a best of list is Northampton. Smartertravel.com has ranked Northampton as one of 5 perfect college towns.

Want to avoid the hustle and bustle of Boston college life? Look no further than Northampton, a small New England city in the Berkshire foothills surrounded by no less than five colleges. The downtown area is filled with ma-and-pa-owned boutiques, coffee houses, hip restaurants, and theaters housed in historical buildings. Home to Smith College, the nation's largest liberal arts college for women, this funky little town is well-known for its art—many galleries feature local artists' work—and for its thriving gay and lesbian counter-culture scene.

In nearby Amherst, the University of Massachusetts Amherst is the top choice for more than 25,000 undergraduate and graduate students, and hosts some major musical acts. These two colleges, plus the others in the area, provide the perfect backdrop for a formal education in the natural setting of the Berkshires.

Finding things to do outside of the classroom is a breeze, as many outdoor activities throughout the year offer a break from the books, including rafting on the Connecticut River, biking along Smith campus, hiking in the mountains, and window-shopping along Main Street. What sets this town apart from others is its energy. It may be a small town, but it's big on all things creative.

Class Notes Submissions Time

2007-08-10T19:12:00.000-04:00

It's that time again, the class notes deadline. Notes submitted now will appear in the Winter 2007 Quarterly. Please send your updates to the class email address on or before Tuesday, August 14th or post your news to the comments section here and I will make sure Ingrid "Ms. Class Secretary Fantastico" Howard gets the info. If sending email please be sure to put "Class Notes Update" in the subject line.

Also, let us know in your email or comment if it is ok to post your news to the blog or add your photo to our flickr account. Please include the names of all people in the photo, along with class year (if different) and date/event the photo is from.

Cheers and have a great weekend all!
Tiffany

Feminist Fatale

2007-08-08T12:14:00.000-04:00

The current issue of US News and World Report is doing a retrospective on major events in the year 1957. Betty Friedan ('42) is profiled because that year she began writing an article in that would later become her book The Feminine Mystique. The article was in response to a popular new book of the day, "Modern Women: The Lost Sex", which suggested American women were overeducated and not properly adjusting to their role as women. To say the least Ms. Friedan set out to prove differently.

Feminist Fatale:Betty Friedan and the book that changed women's lives
The housewife in Grandview, N.Y., was busy doing what so many women were doing in 1957: hustling three kids to school, running the Cub Scout meetings, cooking hamburgers for dinner. When Sputnik flew overhead, Betty Friedan woke up her son and carried him outside to see it tracing its way across the sky.

But Friedan, then 36, still had time to become annoyed over a popular new book, Modern Women: The Lost Sex. The authors, Freudian psychoanalysts, said that American women were over educated and not properly "adjusting to their role as women." Friedan, who had reveled in debates over politics and economics at Smith College, didn't buy it, and she set out to prove that the academic experiences of her fellow alumnae had made them better mothers. "I knew my Smith classmates were doing great things in their own communities, and having a great time, as I was, fixing up their houses, getting their kids educated," she later wrote.

The rest, as they say, is history. Friedan polled her peers about their marriages, their sex lives, their children. Two hundred women responded. The ones who were focused solely on home and family seemed depressed and frustrated. Those with other interests seemed to be enjoying their children and marriages.

Maybe it wasn't education that was making women frustrated, Friedan thought, but the limited role that women were asked to play.

Read the rest of the article

Smith Secret Societies

2007-08-05T10:28:00.001-04:00

While looking for something completely different in the Smith archives I can across an entry about two secret societies that were once active on campus. I could only find any detailed information on one of the two groups mentioned, but thought it would be interesting to pass on.

From the Archives:
"Founded at Smith College in 1890, the Ancient Order of Hibernians (A.O.H.) was a secret society devoted to "the maintenance of devilish wit and the promotion of hellish spirit in the college." The group was intended to be a spoof upon "The Hibernians," a fraternal order of Irish Roman Catholics.

"A.O.H.'s patron saint was St. Patrick, its color was green, and its emblem was the shamrock. A.O.H enjoyed an intense rivalry with fellow secret society, the Orangemen, with whom they would compete for members." Membership was limited to twelve women from each class and members were inducted in the first semester of their first year. During the swearing in ceremony new members were given secret names and made to take the oath "I swear eternal hatred to the Orange and everlastin' loyalty to the Green, so help me St. Pat."

A.O.H was on of Smith's most popular secret societies until 1948 when President Davis abolished all secret societies on campus, calling them "undemocratic." At that time the group was forced to end all official activities, but records indicate that the group continued unofficially until the mid-1960s. All documentation ends with the 1965-1966 academic year.

Ford Hall

2007-08-02T09:05:00.000-04:00

A new building will be going up at Smith very soon. Ford Hall will be the new home for engineering, chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology and computer science. It was sad to see the old mail room and bookstore gone, but this will (hopefully) replace the now long term temporary building that was attached to Bass Hall to house engineering.

Smith.edu Introduction to Ford Hall
"Capitalizing on a four-decade legacy of leadership and innovation in science education, Smith College has approved plans for a science and engineering facility that will intentionally blur the boundaries between traditional disciplines, creating an optimum environment for students and faculty to address key scientific and technological developments of our time. Both a structure and a symbol, the new home for the Picker Engineering Program, computer science, chemistry, biochemistry, and molecular biology will be a compelling, visible statement of Smith’s public identity as the women’s college with the strongest programs in science and engineering. The first building in the multi-phase complex is Ford Hall, named in honor of the lead donor to the project, the Ford Motor Company Fund. Through its Advanced Education Program, the Ford Fund supports programs that emphasize diversity in engineering and business and linking classroom learning with real-world projects and issues."

Check out all the details at Smith College: Ford Hall

Campus Guide Captures Smith Architecture

2007-08-01T08:16:00.000-04:00

Smith News Release:
The range of architectural achievements at Smith is captured in a new book, The Campus Guide: Smith College, a lustrous volume filled with colorful, glossy photographs of the Smith campus.

The guide, which is available through Amazon.com and soon at Grécourt Bookshop, is organized into five “walks” among 67 campus buildings, each illustrated and discussed architecturally and in historical college context. Walk One tours the corner of campus around College Hall, including Neilson Library, Wright and Hatfield halls, and the Brown Fine Arts Center. The walks proceed through campus, exploring the architecture of other notable buildings, such as Sage Hall, Burton Hall, the president’s house, Lyman Conservatory, Helen Hills Hills Chapel, and many others.

As noted in the book, a tour of Smith’s 100-plus buildings is like a literal review of architectural history for more than 150 years. The Campus Guide: Smith College seeks to capture the history of Smith’s aesthetic evolution in pictures and prose.

The Campus Guide: Smith College is one in a series of books that illustrate the architecture on notable American campuses, including Duke, Harvard, Princeton, Stanford and Yale universities, and Vassar College. It was published this year by Princeton Architectural Press.

Simon Aronoff profiled in MetroWeekly

2007-07-27T14:29:00.000-04:00

Our own Simon Aronoff is on the cover of the July 26th MetroWeekly for his work as the deputy director of the National Center for Transgender Equality.

Read Simon Says: Simon Aronoff just wants equality -- for everyone.

The interview with Simon is great, as is his commitment to social justice and equality.

Congratulations Simon on all your work!

Wedding of Leda Nornang

2007-07-25T09:50:00.000-04:00

Leda Nornang recently married Ryan Kampe on the beach in Rincon, Puerto Rico. She writes, "I was happy to have so many Smithies make the long trip to celebrate with us." Leda and her husband followed up the wedding with a three-month long honeymoon to Tibet, India, Central Asia, and parts of Europe. They are back home in Williamsburg Brooklyn and working in film production."

Congratulations Leda!!

Pictured (Left to Right):
Hilary Nelson 98, Heather Fontaine Merton 97J, Madhurii Barefoot 99, Leda Nornang 99, O'Hara Tudor 99, Christina Jimenez 98, Diana Jensen 99

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Highlights Carolyn Kuan

2007-07-18T15:54:00.000-04:00

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer had a great article on our own Carolyn Kuan and her post at the Seattle Symphony Orchestra last week. I have included the first few paragraphs below with a link to the full article.

If you are in the Seattle area show your support of Carolyn and check out one of the shows she is conducting. See her bio at the Seattle Symphony site.

Congrats Carolyn on all your success!

******

New Seattle Symphony associate conductor is aiming for the top
By R.M. CAMPBELL - P-I MUSIC CRITIC

It was only last year when Marin Alsop was named music director of the Baltimore Symphony that she became the first woman to lead a major American orchestra.

However, for Carolyn Kuan, women on the podium is a non-issue.

"It's not a subject I bring up," said Kuan, who recently was promoted, a year ahead of schedule, to associate conductor of the Seattle Symphony. "There are so many other things to discuss." But, she added, "I think I have been very fortunate."

Two decades ago, no major management firm represented a female conductor, top-flight orchestras rarely had women musicians and female music directors were, almost without exception, found only in regional orchestras. The pioneers were few, among them Antonia Brica, Sarah Caldwell and Eve Queler. Today, there are 30 or so scattered across the country, from nations as diverse as China and Finland, and leading the parade into more important jobs.

Kuan, whose biggest conducting assignment of her first season in Seattle comes this week, is with an orchestra that had one of the first women music directors. Mary Davenport-Enberg took the baton in 1921 and led the symphony for a couple of years.

It's no surprise that Alsop is a major role model for the 30-year-old Kuan, who not only admired her from afar but up close.
Read the Rest of the Article

Sucker for stories about older alums

2007-07-16T15:27:00.000-04:00

At Smith I worked for the Alumnae Association, which included being a student representative at a table during volunteer dinners and luncheons. Basically, chat with the old ladies while they ate and talk about life on campus now. Most students tended to gravitate towards the younger alumnae class tables, but I always sought out the oldest classes in attendance. It took only one lunch experience to find out that not only did these wonderful ladies have interesting stories and worldly insight, they were by far the most fun ladies in the room*! So when I saw this news bit come through my email I just had to post it.

Tugboat Lucy gives lessons in boating, fear

HAINES -- For the 400-mile trip down the Inside Passage from Haines to Ketchikan in a 32-foot well-used Nordic tug, my captain wore canvas Carhartt work pants, a T-shirt with "Uff'Da" printed on the front (that's Norwegian for "darn it" and "oh well"), a porkpie hat and a pair of suede sneakers.

She has two pair in case one gets wet, because she doesn't like to wear rubber boots.

"She" is 82-year-old Lucy Harrell. We are heading south to pick up her friend Pat, 78, for their summer ladies-only "ancient mariner" cruise around Prince of Wales Island.

Although she dresses like a hired handyman, Lucy has manners befitting a 1946 graduate of Smith College in Massachusetts.
Read the rest here.

Happy Monday All!
Tiffany

** one of many examples to prove this is
the class of 1933 asked if i would please buy them some whiskey. when i said i was not yet 21, they began to discus whether sending me with a note or calling pretending to be my grandmother would get me past the clerk

Summertime and some thoughts

2007-07-13T18:14:00.000-04:00

Hello Everyone!

Sorry for the silence. Jessie and I have been on an extended roadtrip visiting family. I hope summer is treating everyone well! I just wanted to post a few thoughts and I would love to get feedback either in the comments or at the class officers email.

1. 10th Reunion is now less than 2 years away and we have to start organizing and planning. I think it would be wonderful if we could have a few people be reunion leads responsible for recruiting volunteers, taking opinon polls, and encouraging people to come. Because I know we are all extemely busy, it would be great to get a handful of people who would be the contact for all 99ers from a small group of houses. My hope is that having everything broken down will make the work of contacting everyone more manageable and not overwhelm a single person. Ideally it would be great to get one reunion lead from each house, this would make the work load very small and make me die of excitment. Is this something anyone would be interested in helping with? Would this work for you?

2. Blogger has become a bit of a pain and we are looking into moving the blog to wordpress. If we move it over we will be able to offer more functionality and integrate the blog into a domain I purchased for the class. The change would not happen for a while, but I'm just trying to plan ahead. Anyone have any objections or ideas as to why the switch would be a bad idea? Of course, there will be a link from here to there so that everyone can get to the right place.

3. I have updated the classmates link section. Please let us know if your name is still missing or something is incorrect.

4. If you are in the Providence, Rhode Island area keep your eyes open for an email announcing a Smithie pub gathering hosted by the class of 1999. Not sure when it will happen, but it will be sometime in the next month.

Take care all and keep in touch with us!
Tiffany

whoops.

2007-06-18T10:15:00.001-04:00

I needed to fix something in our blog template early this morning, and I accidentally cleared our list of classmate links. My apologies to those that got removed... we're going try to recover as many links as we can today by digging through saved emails. If you don't see your site in the sidebar (or would like it added there) please add a comment to this post and I'll take care of it.

"We Meant To Say Wellesley"

2007-05-31T02:06:00.002-04:00

My dear fiance, bless his heart, happened to have a copy of GQ so I scanned the brief interview that they had for y'all to see (click the image to read it):

GQ Takes it Back... kind of

2007-05-30T20:55:00.000-04:00

So GQ is apparently taking back their Smith jab only to send it Wellesley's way. I can't wait to see if the Wellesley women respond. In the meantime I'm going to get a copy of GQ to check the interview. Sadly they don't have the story online, but I'll post anything interesting. The tidbit below is from the Smith news feed.

We meant to say Wellesley
GQ MAGAZINE, June 2007

After receiving a flurry of letters from people unhappy with the magazine's inclusion of Smith on a list of places "not to find" attractive women, the magazine published the headline "We Meant to Say Wellesley" along with an interview with letter-writer Caredwen Foley '09.

Happy Memorial Day

2007-05-27T10:52:00.000-04:00

In honor of Memorial Day I want to extend best wishes and support to our class members who are currently serving in military service or those who have family and loved ones serving. We support and wish you all health and safety in these tough times.

***

Also, in honor of memorial day I searched the college archives for a little Smith College military history. Smith was the site of a military officer training school during WWII. The first picture below was taken at Smith in 1943. Enjoy the short history from the college archives.

WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service

The United States entered WWII in 1941 and soon faced a serious shortage of manpower in the military. Congress, along with public interest and advocacy from various National organizations, forced the Department of the Navy (over considerable internal resistance) to start accepting women into their service to augment the many thousands of men already active in the war effort. On June 24, 1942, Congress passed an act to create a women's reserve as a branch of the Naval reserve; to be governed by the same rules and privileges and limited in that women could only work non-combat duty in the continental U.S. The idea was to free trained Naval men from desk jobs in order to increase the active fighting force--thus the rallying theme, "Free a man to fight." The new women's Naval Reserve units were called the WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Services) and, with its sister Coast Guard Reserve the SPARS, proceeded to immediately set up training schools at many colleges and universities across the country. Basic training sites were located in Oklahoma (Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College at Stillwater), Iowa (Iowa State Teacher's College at Cedar Falls), Wisconsin (University of Wisconsin at Madison), Indiana (University of Indiana at Bloomington), and New York state (Hunter College in New York City). Officer training sites were established in Massachusetts at Mt. Holyoke College in South Hadley, and at Smith College in Northampton.

The creation of the WAVES represented a fundamental change that was occurring in American society as the war effort increased. Women were moving from the home into the work force and gaining increasing independence. In WWI, 11,275 women served in the Navy, mainly in secretarial and office positions, but they were not recognized nor was their service publicized, and no formal program existed for their training. In 1942, for the first time women were in uniform, earning the same pay, doing the same work, following the same rules, and receiving the same respect as Navy men. The publicity surrounding the WAVES focused on their independence, intelligence and equality with their male counterparts. However, the naval officers took care to remind everyone of their gender when designing their uniforms. Pants were vetoed in favor of skirts, fitted jackets, and stack heeled shoes that served to emphasize the femininity of the recruits. Women came to the WAVES from all sections of society, bringing a wide variety of skills and experience. Originally, black women were banned from the WAVES, creating a great deal of friction at some of the training schools. The President lifted the ban in 1944 and later that year the first black female officers graduated from the Smith College training school.

By the end of the war over 83,000 women were serving in the Navy, a number significantly over the original estimate of 11,000. They filled positions such as parachute riggers, pharmacist's mates, instrument flying trainers, store keepers, radio dispatchers, clerks, mechanics, lab technicians, mail carriers, decoders, and navigators. Most of the officers were restricted to the rank of lieutenant with the notable exception of Captain Mildred McAfee (the president of Wellesley College) who was the director the WAVES. Soon after peace was declared in 1945, the WAVES and SPARS programs were dismantled and the women who had been in the Navy returned to their homes or civilian jobs.

A '99 Showing at Cannes Short Film Corner

2007-05-23T16:13:00.000-04:00

Francesca Nadel (1999) writes that after completing her Master 1 in Political Science at the Sorbonne last year, she decided to remain in Paris and return to cinema. She recently produced her first short film, Dans les règles de l'art, which was presented at the 2007 Cannes Short Film Corner.

Summary of the Film from the Cannes Short Film Corner:
Joshua Sylla, young artist in the underground parisian scene, entertains an adulterous relationship with the wife of an afluent business man. She, on the other hand, flaunts him right under the nose of her unknowning husband by organizing his art exhibit.

Maxime, able and sly accountant, attempts to convince his employer to launder stolen company money.

But, beware as not all will be winners in the end...

A few stills from the movie below:

Congrats on the success Francesca!!!

Commencement Address 2007

2007-05-21T16:02:00.000-04:00

Commencement address to the Class of 2007
by Gloria Steinem '56

Feminist leader and Smith alumna Gloria Steinem took the stage to a standing ovation from the audience at the commencement ceremony for the Class of 2007 on May 20 inside the Indoor Track and Tennis (ITT) facility.

To Carol Christ who leads Smith College (and does the most amazing introductions); to the faculty who create its purpose and the staff who give it daily life; to the honorary degree recipients in whose presence I am so very proud to be; to all the families and friends and partners and children who have sustained today's graduates -- especially those of you who have performed the miracle of guiding children through an experience you could not have -- and most of all, to you, the beloved, brave, tired and now headed-for-the-world graduates of the Class of 2007:

The first generation of Facebook and YouTube Smithies; the class to shape and survive the most changes in the way Smith lives; the second class of the Iraq War, and the most diverse class in the history of Smith College, from Adas -- who made sure that Class (economic class) Is Never Dismissed, and to all those who help Smith College look more like the world:

I thank you for including me in your historic day.

It's historic for me, too, because I was sitting where you sit today exactly fifty-one years ago.

I wasn't sure I should bring up this half-century fact. For one thing, I feel connected to you, not distant. For another, I feared you might go into as much age-shock as I did when I woke up after my seventieth birthday, and thought, “There's a 70-year-old woman in my bed! How did this happen?!”

But then I realized that fearing separation by age was probably more my generation's problem than yours. If I conjure up my own graduation day, for instance, even life after thirty seemed a hazy screen to be filled in by the needs of others – and there were not yet even Adas to show us that life and growth continue. In our age ghetto, we pretty much accepted the idea that women were more valued for giving birth to others than for giving birth to ourselves.

Read the Rest of the Speech

Yolanda King '76

2007-05-17T16:18:00.000-04:00

Sadly, Yolanda King died Tuesday at age 51. She was a graduate of the class of 1976 and was honored by Smith during our graduation ceremony in 1999.

From the Smith Press Release:
Yolanda King ’76, daughter of the Rev. Martin Luther King, died May 15 in California. An author, performer, and activist, King is being remembered for pursuing her father’s dream of racial harmony through her words and performances. Throughout her career, she appeared in numerous television shows and films, including Ghosts of Mississippi, Odessa, and King, in which she played Rosa Parks. King, who majored in theatre and Afro-American studies, had returned to Smith on numerous occasions to meet with students and talk about her father’s legacy. In 1989, she spoke to more than 1,000 students on campus about what her father tried to achieve and the problems related to race and equality that remained. In 1999, the college honored her, along with a group of other "remarkable women," for her commitment to empowering people to lead better lives.

Alumnae reflect on Yolanda King - AASC Website
Ms. King's 1989 address to students - AASC Website
Smith College Press Release - Smith.edu
A Remembrance of Yolanda King '76 by Prof. Len Berkman
Yolanda King Was More Than King's Daughter - BlackNews.com
Mourning a friend and an ally - Good as You
Public Memorial Planned for Yolanda King - Washington Post
Daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. Dies - NY Times
Yolanda King Blazes Her Own Spiritual Path - WSB-TV Atlanta

Wedding of Maxine (McKinney) Royston

2007-05-15T13:17:00.000-04:00

The wedding took place in sunny San Juan, PR in June 2006. Those in attendance pictured left to right. Laura Taylor-Kale '00, Dana Brown, Heather Watson, Katrina Gamble, DeKia Henderson, Ine Lolomari, Annisah Jarrett and the bride Maxine ( McKinney) Royston all class of 1999. Shareen Lindquist '01 next to bride in front.

We danced all night long and it was a great mini reunion. The 1999ers are looking forward to reuniting this summer over long weekends, or at the Essence Jazz Festival in July. Come one come all!

-submitted by Dana Brown

Congrats Maxine!

Upcoming Deadline for Quarterly Class Notes Submissions

2007-05-12T09:16:00.000-04:00

Hi, Class of 1999!

Please be advised that the upcoming deadline for submissions to the Class Notes section of the Alumnae Quarterly is THURSDAY, MAY 17th. That said, if you’re interested in submitting an update to be published in the FALL 2007 ISSUE, please send in your updates to smithcollege99@gmail.com on or before that date.

Also, when composing your emails, please be careful with the use of uncommon abbreviations. It would be helpful if you were to err on the side of caution and disclose the full name corresponding with less familiar abbreviations. Thanks!

Best,
Ingrid A. Howard
Secretary, Class of 1999
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A Few Important Alumnae Quarterly Submissions Guidelines
1. The Alumnae Quarterly will not publish any references to engagements, plans for adoption, pregnancies, etc. or any references to contingent/future events. These notes will be omitted from submissions. Only events that have have already taken place will be published.

2. The Alumnae Quarterly will not publish classmates’ personal or business contact information, including website addresses, unless such information is related to official class business.

Guidelines for Submitting Photographs
1. All people in the photo must be identified by their undergraduate (and married names, if any), as well as their class year.

2. Photo submissions should include a brief caption describing the photo.

3. Should you wish to submit photographs along with your updates, they can either be sent to the smithcollege99@gmail.com address, or directly to the Smith College Alumnae Quarterly Associate Publications Editor, Cherly Dellecese, at cdellece@smith.edu.

4. The Alumnae Quarterly prefers e-mailed photos (JPEGS, ideally at 300 dpi).

Beauty on the Vine Special Ticket Offer

2007-05-11T11:24:00.000-04:00

From Jessica Morris and featuring our own class treasurer, Karen "Boots" Marcovici, on the May 16th panel with Jill Ker Conway.

SEE BELOW FOR INFORMATION ON MAY 16 POST-SHOW PANEL with JILL KER CONWAY, JORDIN RUDERMAN, KAREN B MARCOVICI '99, HEATHER ALLISON, and a SPECIAL WOMEN'S COLLEGE & GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL TICKET OFFER

FROM THE PRODUCERS OF NO CHILD...
"Mr. Berkman's Beauty on the Vine provocatively imagines emulative cosmetic surgery taking hold among young women across the country." -- The New York Times

EPIC THEATRE CENTER presents OLIVIA WILDE in
BEAUTY ON THE VINE
A New Play by Zak Berkman and Directed by David Schweizer
Featuring Howard W. Overshown with Helen Coxe, Barbara Garrick, Jessica Richardson, and Victor Slezak

The Clurman Theatre @ Theatre Row
410 West 42nd Street
Regular Tickets: $40

LIMITED NUMBER OF FREE TICKETS FOR WOMEN'S COLLEGE AND GIRLS' HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS/ALUMS, FACULTY, & ADMINISTRATION FOR THE WEDNESAY, MAY 16 PERFORMANCE -- panelists include prize-winning author and Smith College's first female President, Jill Ker Conway -- please contact ZakEpic@aol.com to request details

FOR ALL PERFORMANCES:
SPECIAL WOMEN'S COLLEGE $10 OFFER
When ordering use the Code: CU10
*tickets must be purchased before May 18

Box Office: 410 West 42nd Street
By Phone: 212-279-4200
By Web: www.TicketCentral.com

Webcast of His Holiness the Dalai Lama

2007-05-10T15:05:00.000-04:00

His Holiness The Dalai Lama spoke yesterday morning at Smith and received an honorary doctor of letters degree. Only students, faculty and staff from Smith and Hampshire were giving access to the live presentation, but they aired a live webcast of the speech. To watch the speech click on the image below.

There is a link to download Quicktime at the linked to page if you need it for viewing.

Press Coverage about the Visit:
Dalai Lama eyes retirement - CNN.com
Dalai Lama gives cheery speech at Smith College - boston.com
Dalai Lama brings message of compassion - The Republican
Photos of the Dalai Lama at Smith College - masslive.com
Dalai Lama Speaks At Smith - WBUR Boston
Smith College Welcome Dalai Lama

Students Speaking out about House Community

2007-05-09T16:24:00.000-04:00

This past Monday a group of students at Smith held a demonstration on campus and presented a list of issues to the administration concerning the perceived downward slide of housing and house community at Smith. Below is the introductory paragraph to the letter they presented with a link to the full document. If anyone is interested in connecting with these students or has questions for them, please contact Amanda Belden '07, Tamar Malloy '07, or Katie Chase '07.

This is an issue that I have been paying attention to over the last few years since I was sitting on the AASC Board of Directors at the time the changes began. Sadly, it seems that many of the fears concerning house community and tradition that were expressed during those early meetings are happening. There is a lively discussions taking place on the issue at the Alum. Daily Jolt and I would love to hear your thoughts on this issue.

*****

May 7, 2007

Dear Smith Community,

Smith is housing.

We are Gold Key, we are Committee Members, we are House Presidents, Heads of New Students, SGA members, we are singers, writers, we are student workers, and we are organizers. As student leaders, as Smith seniors, and soon to be alumnae, and above all as members of our house communities, we are writing out of our love for Smith.

In the past four years, we have witnessed a transformation. We applied to many colleges that offered strong academics, a diverse community with a commitment to equality, grant funding for internships, alumnae networks and libraries. What set Smith apart was housing. We knew it would give us a community with a natural support network and a sense of home that other top colleges could not offer. Yet even while many of Smith’s other, less unique, programs are poised to receive increased funding and attention, our sense of home has fallen apart.

Rest Of The Letter

2007-05-03T14:37:00.000-04:00

YOUR BEST LIFE
A Symposium on Women's Health and Well-Being
June 21 - 24, 2007

The Alumnae Association of Smith College invites you to join Smith faculty and prominent alumnae in the medical and health professions for a comprehensive program that will focus on your most precious asset—you.

Over 3 Days you will Learn
* Strategies for living a more balanced life
* Simple—but effective—ways to exercise your body and mind
* The latest on medical issues important to women’s health

• Full Schedule
• Fee Information
• Online Registration

The event is not cheap, but they are offering scholarships up to $200. If you would like to request financial assistance, please contact Betsy Baird by e-mail.

Beauty On The Vine

2007-05-02T16:17:00.000-04:00

Inspired by a chance encounter with rocker Courtney Love, Beauty On The Vine is a modern fable about plastic surgery and the power of the human face. The show features Olivia Wilde, Helen Coxe, Barbara Garrick, Howard W. Overshown, Jessica Richardson and Victor Slezak. Tickets are $40.00 and are available through TicketCentral (212) 279-4200.

As part of the show, on MAY 16th they will be holding a panel discussion on single-sex Education immediately following the show.

Tickets can be purchase at TicketCentral

SPECIAL DISCOUNT: $28 TICKETS
Discount Code: VINE

Jessica Morris is involved in the production and writes: "I would LOVE to fill the audience with Smithies! If we get enough people to come, I might be able to get us a group rate."

UPDATE: Because of increased interest in the topic, a second panel has been added and will meet on May 19th after the matinée showing of Beauty on the Vine.

The organizers are still looking for panelists to speak about Single-Sex Education and beauty culture (either from experience as a student or as a teacher/admin/scholar. If you are interested on either May 16th or May 19th, or if you know someone who might be, please contact Jessica directly.

UPDATE: Jill Ker Conway, the first president of Smith College, has agreed to join the panel on Same-Sex Education for the Epic Theatre Center's Beyond Beauty Initiative on May 16th. The panel will take place immediately following the performance of "Beauty on the Vine".

129th commencement ceremony

2007-04-27T13:25:00.001-04:00

Hi All!

Sorry for blog silence, but its been crazy few weeks at work. I have been meaning to post details about commencement this year for a while. Commencement is May 20 at 10am. This year's graduation speaker is the wonderful Gloria Steinem, class of 1956. Ivy Day and the Alumnae Parade will be the morning of the 19th, with parade line up at 8:30am. All classes, regardless of reunion year, are welcome to walk in the parade

We haven't seen Ms. Steinem speak since she was on campus for the Sophia Smith Award celebrations in 1997, so we will be driving over to attend. If anyone else is planning to attend commencement this year and wants to meet up drop me a line at the class officers email. We would love to connect!!! For those too far away to make it to Northampton, I promise to take pictures of all the festivities.

Have a great weekend!
Tiffany

Smith's Press Release Below

Editor, journalist and political activist Gloria Steinem, a tireless promoter of equality for women around the world, will be the speaker at Smith College’s 129th commencement ceremony, at 10 a.m. Sunday, May 20, 2007.

Steinem’s lifelong career as a writer and journalist began when she graduated from Smith in 1956. Her early freelance articles include an investigative piece for Show magazine on the working conditions of Playboy bunnies. By the 1960s, Steinem had gained national attention as the outspoken leader of the women’s movement. In 1971, she co-founded Ms. magazine, which became an influential forum for feminist issues. Around that time, Steinem and several other leading feminists -- including Betty Friedan, Smith Class of 1942 -- also founded the National Women’s Political Caucus.

Steinem received an honorary degree from Smith in 1988 and was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls, N.Y., in 1993. She has twice before delivered the commencement address at Smith, in 1971 and 1995. During the latter address, Steinem noted, “Trusting our own experience...may be the single most revolutionary thing we can do.”

More details and a list of those receiving honorary degrees is located at the Smith Commencement Site and at the Reunion Resource Center.

Smith College: Home of the first Gym Suit

2007-04-12T11:47:00.000-04:00

Everyday I get a news feed with various mentions of Smith College. Sometimes it interesting and sometimes its not and sometimes its not even about our Smith College... but this little mention made me smile and put google to work.

The Senior Journal's article Books for Seniors reviewed Patricia Campbell Warner's (professor of theater at the UMass Amherst) book When the Girls Came Out to Play. The book is a history of modern women's sportswear and how sportswear broke down traditional gender roles. Apparently Smith was home to a great evolution in women's gym wear... the Gym Suit...

"the most enduring symbol of women’s athletic wear — the gym suit — was born in 1892 at Smith College when students took up the new game of basketball. Very quickly, it became apparent that skirts were too bulky and restrictive for the sport.

'From then on, comfort and common sense played an increasing role, finally overwhelming the conservatism and societal limitations that had kept women covered, compressed and in skirts,' says Warner."

The 1902 Basketball Team in the Gym Suits

Playing in the gym suits in the Alumnae Gym, now archives

Looking for some pictures for this post led me to information about Senda Berenson Abott, considered the "Mother of Women's Basketball". She was the Director of the Gymnasium and Instructor of Physical Culture at Smith and was the first person to introduce women's college basketball to Smith and the world. Shortly after joining Smith, Senda read about basketball and contacted the creator in Springfield, MA to find out more about the game. On March 21, 1893 she organized the first women's college basketball game at Smith. First years played sophomores in the Alumnae Gym, now home of the College Archives and Sophia Smith Collection.

Apparently she adapted the rules of the game to meet the "current thinking about women's physical limitations" and to make the game less "rough." Her rules were published seven years after that first game and were used for many years. She was also the editor of the first Women's Basketball Guide, a member and chair of the United States Women's Basketball Committee, and in 1985 was one of the first women elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

GQ Gets it Wrong

2007-04-02T15:03:00.000-04:00

GQ's April issues is running an article titled "Where to Find Her, 2007". Below the article title is the following, "A whole world of smart, beautiful women are out there, from the beaches of Uruguay to aisles of Whole Foods. We searched far and wide to discover the best spots on the planet to meet them."

Now, my first thought is Smith College (or really any women's college) would be a natural choice for finding "smart, beautiful" women. Oh how wrong I am...

Now, I'm not expecting greatness from GQ, but the article contains a sidebar which additionally describes where not to find her. There, so graciously lumped in with family reunion, Hooters and on vacation with the wife and kids, is Smith College.... apparently not home to the "smart. beautiful women" I remember.

Oh GQ.... I'm sorry, but you are just so so so wrong.

To say the least current Smithies, at those on the Daily Jolt (where I found out about this little tidbit), are up in arms and have started calling for a variety of protests. They put together a Facebook group called "F*ck You, GQ: Smithies are Beautiful" calling on Smithies to send photos of themselves to the editor of GQ to demonstrate their beauty. From their website:

"…while this list offends all different types of nationalities, sexualities, religions, hobbies, and age groups in addition to ALL WOMEN EVERYWHERE, I feel that it is our JOB to stand up for our college. Smith does not get enough positive publicity. This article appears in a well-known, well-read magazine. It offends our school, our intelligence, our beauty, and our beliefs. It lowers us to a worthless thing. According to GQ, we are merely a place where smart and beautiful women cannot be found…"

I personally liked this response from the Daily Jolt:

Dear GQ,
In light of your recent mention of Smith College as lacking smart beautiful women, we hereby challenge you to an academic decathlon and swimsuit contest.

Love,
Smith College

There are some entertaining threads going on over at the Regular Daily Jolt and at the Alumnae Daily Jolt.

Not Just for Shock Value: Show featuring Ishah Janssen-Faith

2007-03-27T19:05:00.000-04:00

Ishah Janssen-Faith writes to invite any one in the NYC area to see the new show she is in, Not Just for Shock Value: A Femmes-Clowns Assemblage. Press release is below for more information.

Ishah adds that there will be a talk back after the Sunday, April 22nd 3pm show. If people are interested, all the women clowns and the Director will be in attendance.

Six Figures Theatre Company is proud to present the World Premiere of Kendall Cornell’s Soon-To-Be-World Famous Women’s Clown Troupe in

NOT JUST FOR SHOCK VALUE: A FEMMES-CLOWNS ASSEMBLAGE
April 7 – 28 at the West End Theatre

(March 20, 2007) Not Just for Shock Value: A Femmes-Clowns Assemblage is an astounding, all-women clown spectacle that will receive its world premiere April 7–28 at the West End Theatre, 263 W. 86th Street. Created and directed by Kendall Cornell.

"The mystery of women clowning!” says Bill Irwin, Tony-award winning actor and clown. “Different things are funny but it's easier not to think so. Man in a dress, almost always a laugh. Woman in a tux, not as often (but sometimes!). Kendall Cornell and her clowns are waist deep in all these questions -- plumbing the mystery.” Not Just For Shock Value, with its nine women clowns, opens a distinct, new terrain in humor.

Akin to the likes of Lucille Ball and Giulietta Masina, the troupe unrolls an “assemblage”: a humorous series of visual vignettes, short sketches and madcap dance numbers. In the realm of the modern clown movement, it zig-zags between broad humor and the darkly satirical. Not Just for Shock Value is the next wave in circus: all the acts are clown, and all the clowns are women.

Kendall Cornell’s Soon-To-Be-World-Famous Women’s Clown Troupe trained with Ms. Cornell, and clowned under her direction on assorted projects, including an event commissioned by Cirque du Soleil for the NYC opening of Corteo. Kendall Cornell is a veteran clown in her own right and has toured her dynamic solo clown pieces, The Maneater, Glamourpuss, and P.S. de la Resistance in NYC and abroad. Ms. Cornell has worked extensively with David Shiner (Fool Moon, Cirque du Soleil) in directing the U.S. version of the circus-theatre spectacle, Pomp, Duck & Circumstance.

Not Just for Shock Value previews Sat Apr 7 at 7:30pm and Sun Apr 8 at 3pm. It opens Thu Apr 12 at 7:30 and continues Sat Apr 14 at 7:30, Sun Apr 15 at 3, Wed Apr 18 at 7:30, Sat Apr 21 at 4:30 and 10, Sun Apr 22 at 3, Thu Apr 26 at 7:30, and Sat Apr 28 at 3 & 7:30.

All performances are $20 (except for pay-what-you-can previews April 7 and 8) and take place at The West End Theatre, 263 West 86th Street (between Broadway and West End Avenue - 1 train to 86th Street, ½ block west). Tickets go on sale at the box office one hour before showtimes, or may be purchased in advance via Smarttix -- (212) 868-4444 or www.smarttix.com.

The Not Just for Shock Value performers include Melinda Ferraraccio, Kathie Horejsi, Emily James, Ishah Janssen-Faith, Mona Le Roy, Judi Lewis Ockler, Julie Plumettaz, Maria Smushkovich and Virginia Venk.

Six Figures Theatre Company, now in its 14th season, is dedicated to providing opportunities for women theater artists and developing quality theatrical work by women and other underrepresented artists. Six Figures’ spring 2007 season also includes Flashback, a new verbatim theatre piece by Penny Coleman, Elana Michelson, and Patricia Lee Stotter, and Ding-Dang in Space!, a postmodern country comedy cabaret.

Jessica Morris seeking participants for Epic Theatre project

2007-03-26T14:09:00.000-04:00

Jessica Ires Morris writes with a great opportunity for interested classmates. If you are interested please contact Jessica directly. Pass the info on to friends who may also fit the profile and would be interested.

Jessica writes, "The Epic Theatre Center, a professional theater company and home for teaching artists in NYC, is headed by Zak Berkman, son of longtime Smith Professor Len Berkman. I am working with Zak and his company to put together an initiative surrounding the Epic's next show.

Epic often does extensive panels, post/pre-show forums and special events in order to develop their audience and participate more fully in communities that otherwise might not come to the theater. Zak has asked me to put together a panel on single-sex education to meet and speak after one of the performances of Beauty on the Vine - his new play. Hopefully, the panel will include women from several colleges and/or high schools, as well as experts in the field and other interested parties.

We are also attempting to bring some current Smithies to the show on the same day. We will be subsidizing their tickets and hopefully engaging them in the panel discussion. The panel would most likely meet before a show sometime during the last weekend in April or the first weekend in May.

Following is a slightly more detailed description of this initiative. You can also go to www.epictheatrectr.org or to the show's MySpace page.

Thank you so much for your help!
Jessica Ires Morris"

FROM EPIC'S INITIATE DESCRIPTION:
"Our mission is to help place Epic's upcoming production of Beauty on the Vine by Zak Berkman at the center of a larger outreach and arts-education effort that brings together women of diverse backgrounds to share experiences and creatively explore how individual definitions of beauty, power, and success impact society as a whole.

From mixed-race identities to extreme plastic surgery, Beauty On The Vine is a modern fable exploring the power of the human face in Lindsay Lohan America. When a young female star of right-wing radio is brutally murdered, her husband and father investigate the reasons behind the violence. They discover a world where young women transform themselves to look like their idols and mothers lose their daughters to the illusion of popularity and power.

Our plan is to bring a minimum of 500 young women, ages 16-24, to see the play for free or for less than a movie ticket and participate in pre- show workshops, post-show forums, or special events that focus on the external and internal forces affecting how they construct their identities in our culture. These Beyond Beauty Initiative events will be an opportunity for these young women to interact with potential role models on a level playing field. They will exchange perspectives on the play, collaborate on workshop projects, and share the stage during post-show discussions with "older" women: with and without children/grandchildren, artists, architects, scholars, Wall Street brokers, bankers, political consultants, government employees, activists, marketers, and more.

Krin ran away with the circus!

2007-03-23T15:16:00.000-04:00

Krin Haglund continues her circus endeavors and is currently performing with Cirque Eloize "Rain" and on occasion is the circus MC/artistic director for the band the Dresden Dolls. Krin is on their new DVD shot in London last fall. Krin works mostly as a clown, single wheel acrobat and aerialist, but has been beginning to direct and coach lately.

"Rain" is getting great reviews. The New York Times reviewed the performance as "accomplished circus and theater. There are tricks galore, but the spectacular physicality of the performers is bent towards something more profound - a whimsical and moving journey through the topography of the human mind." The Boston Globe gave an equally glowing review and even singled out Krin as a "standout" saying that "Haglund’s character gives the show its most heartrending moment."

2007 US Dates Left for Rain
March 24 - Davis, CA -Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts
March 27 - San Luis Obispo, CA - Harman Hall
March 30 - Lancaster, CA - Lancaster Perf. Arts Center
March 31 - April 08 - Irvine, CA - Irvine Barclay Theatre
April 10 - 11 - Mesa, AZ - Mesa Arts Center
April 13 - 14 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kingsbury Hall

"Rain" will also be in Europe this summer and Krin says she would love to meet up with Smithies on the tour!

Congrats on all the success Krin!!!

Wedding of Katy Weber Tierney

2007-03-21T09:23:00.000-04:00

Katy Weber Tierney (right) married Tracy Weber Tierney on September 18th 2004. They also had a civil union on October 1, 2005 when it became legal in CT.

From L to R: Kate Hirsch (Farneth) '98, Katy Weber Tierney '99, Tracy Weber Tierney, Ally Bechtel '99, Farzanah Gangjee '97 and Lissa (Scouten) Gangjee '97.

Campus Views

2007-03-02T14:56:00.000-05:00

We drove out to Northampton a few weeks back for the day. It was beautiful on campus with all the snow and Paradise Pond was completely frozen over.

Enjoy some snowy campus photos and have a great weekend!

A frozen Paradise Pond and the athletic fields.

President Christ's house and garden from the island in the middle of the pond.

Can anyone explain why there is a No Parking Anytime street sign on the edge of the island in Paradise Pond? It does not seem like this would be an issue....

It's a girl for Lia!

2007-02-21T11:16:00.000-05:00

Lia Thomas gave birth to Lilah Clay Levesque in September 2006. Little Lilah was born 12 weeks premature, and spent 7 long weeks in the hospital, but has been thriving at home ever since.

Congratulations Lia!

Rally Day 2007!

2007-02-20T21:40:00.000-05:00

HAPPY RALLY DAY

For the first time this year Smith is hosting a Rally Day Carnival to celebrate at the Campus Center. The carnival will feature games, prizes and temporary tattoos, karaoke, beading and make-your-own picture frames, an open mic, and snacks. During the day medalists will be holding discussions.

This year's medalists include:
Sarah Chasis ’69 - environmental lawyer
Mary Ann Hoberman ’51 - children’s author
Carolyn Kaelin ’83 - physician
Amy-Jill Levine ’78 - feminist biblical scholar
Trudy Rubin ’65 - journalist.

Some more info from the Smith site:
A history of Rally Day
Rally Day traditions
About the Smith College Medal

Malian's Song

2007-02-16T12:04:00.001-05:00

Marge Bruchac (Ada '99) recently published her newest children's book, "Malian's Song", which illustrates the experience of two young Abenaki girls during Robert Roger's 1759 raid. The book was selected as an "Editor's Choice" by the New York Times Book Review. Congratulations Marge!

The Vermont Folklife Center describes the story in the following way:
In the words of a young Abenaki girl, Malian’s Song tells the true story of the deliberate English attack by British Major Robert Rogers on the St. Francis Abenaki community near Montréal in 1759. Jeanne Brink, a descendant of Malian living in Vermont, told the little-known Abenaki version of the brutal attack--which stands in direct contrast to Rogers’ surviving journal records--to the Vermont Folklife Center. The only picture book to present this key piece of North American history from the Native American perspective, Malian’s Song underscores the Abenaki people’s strength and fortitude in the face of unspeakable loss.

Diane Davison King-Shaw's Wedding

2007-02-15T10:17:00.000-05:00

In November of 2006, Diane married Joe King-Shaw and changed her name to Diane Davison King-Shaw. The ceremony was attended by Cindy Neil '94, Maura Burns '95, Amanda Austin '00, and Jai Berg '00.

Congrats Diane and Joe!

Were you a blog contributor?

2007-02-14T14:00:00.000-05:00

Blogger finally forced us to upgrade the blog to the new system and in the process we seem to have lost some of our contributors. If you are a contributor and have not upgraded your account please do so, we think this may be the problem. We hope that by upgrading you will be reactivated as a contributor. If you are still having problems please send us an email and we will add you back.

We are always looking for new people to help out with posting. If you would like to contribute to the blog, please create a google/blogger account at the Blooger homepage and then email us to let us know you have an account. We will help get you set-up from there.

Cheers all!

Congrats Lisa & Spencer!

2007-02-14T13:56:00.000-05:00

Lisa (Boone) Chastain and her husband Spencer welcomed the birth of their second son, William Edward Chastain, on February 13, 2005. Their older son, Joshua, is enjoying being a big brother!

Lisa Matter's Wedding

2007-02-13T13:13:00.000-05:00

Congrats to Lisa and Ben!!

From Left to Right: Sheila Nelson '97, Johanna Lindsay '99, Ben Pershouse '01J Lisa Matter '99, Anne Booker '99, and Simone Chess '02(?)

Congrats Yacine!

2007-02-12T20:59:00.000-05:00

Yacine Ndao writes, "I wanted to share the most amazing event of my life: my son Maximilian H. G. Fox was born on November 28, 2006 at St. George's Hospital in London. He is an amazing baby and is growing every day. He is sweet natured and very sociable!"

Congratulations Yacine!

Submit your news & check us out!

2007-02-11T12:52:00.000-05:00

Hello Class of 1999!

Just a quick update to remind everyone to submit their news to Ingrid by Wednesday, Feb. 14. Just send a quick email to the officers email. We want to hear from all of you!

News Submission Schedule
February 14 for the SUMMER issue
May 14 for the FALL issue
August 14 for the WINTER issue
November 14 for the SPRING issue

The class now has more communities set-up on the web. If you have accounts on Flickr or MySpace add your self to one of our groups.

Flickr
Our Flickr Page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/smithcollege99/
Class of '99 Group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/smithcollege99/

Email your photos to me if you would like them uploaded to the class flickr page. I would love to include everyone's wedding, new baby/child, vacation, reunion, and just everyday photos. Please either state in the subject line or the body of the message that the photo is for the flickr site and whether is can also be posted on the blog. Thanks!

MySpace
Our Group: http://groups.myspace.com/smithcollege99

Some people have had problems connecting to the group through the direct link. We are listed under alumni organization. If you still have problems locating us send me an email with your MySpace ID and I will send you an invite.

Your Blog
If you have a blog of your own and want it linked from our site send me an email and I will add you to our links list.

Hope everyone is doing well!
Tiffany

14 valentines to celebrate women

2007-02-03T02:47:00.000-05:00

14valentines is a LiveJournal community conceived to celebrate and empower women in each of the 14 days leading up to V-Day. Each day is assigned a theme along with a supporting partner (foundation or group). Folks then make a thoughtful post and/or share their own works (fiction/art/music/etc.) on their journals, cross-posted to the community - related to the topic and partner(s) of the day(s), anytime before February 14.

14 Valentines kicked off on Feb 1 and ends on Valentine's Day, also Vagina Day, Victory Against Violence Day and is in a large part inspired by Eve Ensler, her amazing Vagina Monologues, and the organization that grew out of that movement, the V-Day foundation.

The themes for each day this year are:
Day 1: Women in Academics
Day 2: Women in the Arts
Day 3: Women and Body Image
Day 4: Domestic Violence
Day 5: Economics and Wealth
Day 6: Women's Health
Day 7: Hunger
Day 8: Peace Movements
Day 9: Reproductive Rights
Day 10: Sexual Abuse
Day 11: Women in Sports
Day 12: Voting
Day 13: Women and Work
Day 14: Pick your own cause!

Lastly, this terrific soundtrack was specially compiled for each of the 14 days. Entertain, educate, empower and enjoy!

Study links negative expectations and women's performance

2007-02-02T14:49:00.000-05:00

I just rediscovered this story that came through in early January when I was out of town. Have a great weekend!

A new study by Associate Professor of Psychology Maryjane Wraga documents, for the first time, how certain regions of women's brains react to positive and negative stereotypes. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, Wraga and fellow researchers Molly Helt '05 and Emily Jacobs '04 documented brain activity in 54 women between the ages of 18 and 34 after they had read a stereotypical message about women and then performed a spatial reasoning task. The task required them to view pictures of objects and describe what the objects would look like from different, imagined perspectives.

The group exposed to a negative stereotype made 6 percent more errors than the group exposed to a neutral message, and 14 percent more errors than the group exposed to a positive stereotype. "The results demonstrate the remarkable power of culture in determining performance," said Wraga, lead author on the study, published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. For more information about the study see the study press release.

Goodbye Molly Ivins

2007-02-01T14:50:00.000-05:00

I am sure that many of you heard about the passing of Molly Ivins. She was a brilliant women who was proud and outspoken about her Smith education. At a 2002 round table during Pres. Christ's inauguration she said "...the biggest gift I got from Smith: It wasn't that Smith taught me that women can do anything. Smith taught me to simply assume women can do anything! And as I went forth to conquer the world in 1966, I didn't yet realize what a great gift that [concept] was. It took me a long time -- and I'm still grateful for it."

From President Carol Christ this morning...
I was greatly saddened to learn of the death of Molly Ivins '66, someone I've long admired. Molly was courageous, and she was funny. Those two qualities may not seem related, but, in her work, they were. Through her writing, she gave her readers the boldness to see hypocrisy and absurdity and the resilience to laugh at it. She was one of our country's great political satirists, and she was a gracious, generous lady to boot. The Smith community, and the nation, have lost one of our most insightful and authentic voices.
-- Carol T. Christ, President

Her Last Article: Stand Up Against the "Surge"
Smith College Press Release
2000 Profile on Salon.com
2003 Interview on Salon.com
Remembering Molly Ivins
NY Times Obit
Boston Globe Obit
Texas Observer

Some other great Ivins quotes which only illustrate her ability to balance humor and passion.

"The first rule of holes: when you're in one, stop digging."

"What you need is sustained outrage...there's far too much unthinking respect given to authority."

"I believe that ignorance is the root of all evil. And that no one knows the truth."

"It is possible to read the history of this country as one long struggle to extend the liberties established in our Constitution to everyone in America."

"Politics is not a picture on a wall or a television sitcom that you can decide you don't much care for."

"I believe in practicing prudence at least once every two or three years."

"I still believe in Hope - mostly because there's no such place as Fingers Crossed, Arkansas."

On Texas: "I dearly love the state of Texas, but I consider that a harmless perversion on my part, and discuss it only with consenting adults." (Fort Worth Star-Telegram column, March 1, 1992)

On Camille Paglia: "Christ! Get this woman a Valium!" (Mother Jones, 1991)

It's a boy for Sonia!

2007-01-24T12:03:00.000-05:00

Big Congratulations to Sonia and David Fried Oppenheim!

Samson Elias Fried Oppenheim was born Sunday October 15, 2006 to Sonia and David Fried Oppenheim. The family is happy & healthy and currently living in Easthampton.

Sonia also writes that her and her husband currently run the Pioneer Arts Center of Easthampton (PACE), which is a community performance space promoting community and self-expression through the arts.

Congrats to Chris Gajilan

2007-01-23T16:31:00.000-05:00

Chris Gajilan ('99) won an emmy last September at the 27th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards for "Outstanding Feature Story in a Regularly Scheduled Newscast" for her work as producer on Anderson Cooper 360. The feature story was Charity Hospital.

Congrats Chris!!!!!

Fantastic NYTimes Article about '97 Alum

2007-01-22T11:54:00.000-05:00

From the Smith Press Release: In Clarkston, Georgia, soccer coach and Smith alumna Luma Mufleh '97, spends as much time helping her players' families build new lives as coaching. Her team is made up of refugees from war-torn countries around the world -- some enduring unimaginable hardship to get to America.

Refugees Find Hostility and Hope on Soccer Field

CLARKSTON, Ga., Jan. 20 — Early last summer the mayor of this small town east of Atlanta issued a decree: no more soccer in the town park.
“There will be nothing but baseball and football down there as long as I am mayor,” Lee Swaney, a retired owner of a heating and air-conditioning business, told the local paper. “Those fields weren’t made for soccer.”

In Clarkston, soccer means something different than in most places. As many as half the residents are refugees from war-torn countries around the world. Placed by resettlement agencies in a once mostly white town, they receive 90 days of assistance from the government and then are left to fend for themselves. Soccer is their game.

But to many longtime residents, soccer is a sign of unwanted change, as unfamiliar and threatening as the hijabs worn by the Muslim women in town. It’s not football. It’s not baseball. The fields weren’t made for it. Mayor Swaney even has a name for the sort of folks who play the game: the soccer people.

Rest of the Article

Smith & Hampshire colleges prepare for visit by the Dalai Lama

2007-01-18T13:06:00.000-05:00

Smith College, Hampshire College and the Tibetan Association of Western Massachusetts will welcome the 14th Dalai Lama to the Pioneer Valley on Wednesday, May 9, 2007. This momentous visit by the leader of the Tibetan people and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize recognizes the colleges’ thriving exchange program with exiled Tibetan scholars in India. Years ago, Hampshire began the Five College Tibetan Studies in India Program, and since then the Dalai Lama has followed its growth as Smith collaborated with Hampshire to sustain the annual academic exchange.

Smith President Carol T. Christ and Hampshire President Ralph J. Hexter will host the daylong visit, during which His Holiness the Dalai Lama is expected to deliver a talk to thousands of students, faculty, staff and invited guests from the two colleges and the Tibetan community. That talk will take place at Smith’s Indoor Track and Tennis facility (ITT). Although the audience will be restricted to members of the two college communities, the event will be broadcast live on local television and accessible to anyone in the Pioneer Valley.

During the visit, His Holiness the Dalai Lama will also address an audience of invited members of the area’s strong Tibetan community.

Further information about the visit >>

Big End of Week News Post

2007-01-12T11:23:00.000-05:00

Smith Athletics Receives Jostens/NADIIIAA Community Service Award

Northampton, MA: Smith College was honored this as a recipient of this year’s Jostens/National Association of Division III Athletic Administrators (NADIIIAA) Community Service Award at a reception held during the NCAA National Convention in Orlando, Florida. Smith student-athletes were recognized for their impressive community service project performed during the 2005-06 academic year.

Rest of Story >>>

Movie patrons say sad goodbye

NORTHAMPTON - The ghosts were out in force last night for the last picture show at the Academy of Music.

Although the audience for "Casino Royale" occupied just a fraction of its 804 seats, the theater seemed haunted by the spirits of the performers who have appeared on its stage and screen and the people who have worked there over the academy's 117-year history.

The board of trustees announced this week that the academy would stop showing films after last night and remain closed for the foreseeable future.

Rest of the story >>>

I am so sad to see that the Academy of Music is closing. One of my fondest memories from Smith is stumbling down there during finals for a study break movie and being greeted by the Kids In the Hall movie. We laughed so hard we cried and totally feel in love with this unique place. Anyone else have fond Academy memories?

Smith Art Museum Exhibit: Godless Communists - Soviet Antireligious Propaganda

On view November 10, 2006 - February 11, 2007, Godless Communists: Soviet Antireligious Propaganda features graphic posters that were used to promote a harshly antireligious agenda between 1918 and 1939.

The exhibition includes 17 recently conserved posters given to Smith in 1964 by Mrs. D. Spencer Byard (Margaret Mather, class of 1933), in addition to loans from other public collections.

Recent Press on the exhibit >>>
Smith Museum Site for the exhibit

This seems like a really interesting exhibition and it is getting a lot of press. If you are in the area it may be something to check out. Also the Smith Museum is a must stop if you are in the area and have not checked out the art building since the remodel. It really is amazing and beautiful what they did and so much nicer than when we were on campus.

Does anyone know what this refers to? I got this little tidbit from my google news feed and I'm just really curious.

Get Naked. Get Married. Get on TV.

The WE channel will be airing three competition-esque shows: A swimsuit makeover show, a lingerie makeover show and a wedding dress special. Flummoxed by their inability to cast the show entirely from Smith College, the casting directors asked FBLA to lend a hand. More

New Smith College Study

2007-01-11T15:52:00.000-05:00

Don't Tell Her She Can't Succeed; Smith College Study Reveals How Stereotypical Messages Affect Women's Brains

NORTHAMPTON, Mass., Jan. 4 (AScribe Newswire) -- When told she will not succeed, a woman's brain can take on an emotional burden that inhibits her ability to succeed, according to a Smith College study that documents, for the first time, the brain regions affected by positive and negative stereotypes.

Researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to document the brain activity in 54 women between the ages of 18 and 34, after they read a stereotypical message about women and then performed a spatial reasoning task. The task required them to view pictures of objects and describe what the objects would look like from different, imagined perspectives.

The group exposed to a negative stereotype made 6 percent more errors than the group exposed to a neutral message, and 14 percent more errors than the group exposed to a positive stereotype. No difference was found in the response time across groups.

Poor performance in the negative stereotype group corresponded to increased activity in brain regions associated with increased emotional load. By contrast, the better performance of women in the positive stereotype group was associated with increased activity in visual processing areas and complex short-term memory processing areas.

"The results demonstrate the remarkable power of culture in determining performance," said Maryjane Wraga, associate professor of psychology at Smith, and lead author on the study, published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience.

Read the rest of the article

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2007-01-01T15:22:00.000-05:00

Best wishes to the class of 1999 and their family and friends for a healthy and happy new year!

There is much news to catch up and the blog should be more active in the coming months. Reunion is just over 2 years away, so expect to hear more from us soon concerning planning and fundraising.

Cheers everyone!

'Tis the Season...

2006-12-06T08:39:00.000-05:00

Greetings, 1999ers!

I am writing to extend a friendly reminder to consider a gift or pledge to our alma mater during the holidays.

Who am I? I am a Class Gift Agent for our class and am also a member of the Ginny Glover Society, which means I have donated to Smith every year since graduation. I hope you will join me in giving back to Smith this year.

Historically, our class has slacked a bit in giving back financially. We're doing better this year, but it would be nice to outshine classes that graduated after us. At the very least, consider a gift of $19.99, to honor our year of graduation. While the amount is not insignificant, participation is more important (in my opinion).

To give, click here.
(http://www.smith.edu/future/giving/online.php)

I used the online system last year - and again last week. It is convenient and easy.

If you are wondering why you should give to Smith, remember...What alums gave while we were students helped to benefit us. For more details, visit http://www.smith.edu/future/funds/facts.php

Thank you in advance for your generosity,

Hillary (Thomas) Shaw '99
hillary@smith.alumnae.net

TO THOSE WHOM I CALL UPON: If you make a donation online, please shoot me an e-mail to let me know you submitted your pledge or gift via the Internet. It will take a few weeks for me to get a report from Smith, and I won't call if I know you gave.

Today is Julia Child Day

2006-11-16T11:52:00.000-05:00

Today the Smith campus celebrates the third annual Julia Child Day! Smith is serving a sampling of Child’s in dining rooms around campus and a faculty panel is happening tonight titled “What I Learned in the Kitchen.”

Julia Child '34 donated her home in Cambridge, MA to Smith, and in 2002 proceeds from the sale of the home were used to help fund the Campus Center. Her name is etched in honor on a window of the Campus Center Café.

The best part is that Smith has published a few of Julia's recipes on their website. Everything looks so tasty and is making me really hungry!

Julia Child Day
The Recipes

"Life itself is the proper binge." - Julia Child

Conducting her destiny

2006-11-06T13:18:00.000-05:00

Another wonderful article about our own Carolyn Kuan appeard in the Seattle Times over the weekend. Congratulations Carolyn!

Conducting her destiny
Smith alumna Carolyn Kuan '99, the new assistant conductor of the Seattle Symphony, said that although she considered a career in computer science, musical conducting drew her because "it was the thing I understood the least. In the process of sharing what you learn with people, you see how music moves people and makes life more beautiful."

Read the entire article about Carolyn

'Sisters' don't want a future in coeducation

2006-11-06T11:17:00.000-05:00

This article appears in sunday's Boston Globe and was written following a meeting a week ago at Smith about the future of women's colleges.

*****
'Sisters' don't want a future in coeducation
By April Simpson, Globe Staff | November 5, 2006

They were established in the 19th century, when women had fewer opportunities than men to earn a strong liberal arts education.

Now student leaders at the colleges still known as the "Seven Sisters," even though their number has dwindled to five, are joining forces to discuss the future of women's schools. Last weekend, they gathered in Northampton and agreed that they had an obligation to maintain the traditions upon which their institutions were founded.

Read the rest of the article

Karen Zaidberg's Wedding

2006-11-05T16:38:00.000-05:00

Karen Zaidberg married her partner Rachel Emmons-Bradley in Lenox, MA this October. From left to right, are Rachel Potter '01, Caroline Fournier '02, Carmen Wheeler, Eleanor Cartelli '99, and bride Karen Zaidberg '99.

Congratulations Karen and Rachel!

Cute Squirrels and Sylvia Plath

2006-11-03T16:24:00.000-05:00

Hello Class of '99
A few things of note this week. I didn't intend to save them all up, but it has been a crazy work week.

A few weeks back we were in Northampton for the day and stopped by the Alumnae House to check out the class locker. We are currently sharing the locker with the class of 1938. The photo is of the cute little squirrel/fish that graces our locker. Sadly, the only real thing we have in our locker is the orientation photo from first year. The class of 1938 on the other hand had some amazing scrapbooks, photo albums and banners. So I issue a call to arms. Is there anyone out there interested in being a class historian? If so, EMAIL me and lets talk!

A sonnet that Sylvia Plath wrote while at Smith College, inspired by F. Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby," has been discovered and is appearing the online literary journal, Blackbird. It was not discovered at Smith, but I think it is pretty amazing that they found previsiously unknown work. If you are ever back in Northampton and have never seen the Smith rare book room's Plath collection I would high reccommend a visit.

New York Times Article
Washington Post Article

More posts to come in the next week and have a great weekend!
t-

Share Your Photos

2006-10-26T16:19:00.000-04:00

Did you know that the class has its own Flickr accout? Well we do and would love to add you as a contact. Also, let us know if there are any of your photos we can add to our page. Check it out and give the love a adding us as a contact!

Our Photos
Our Contacts

Smithie Fulbrights Everywhere

2006-10-18T16:29:00.000-04:00

This year Smith was the #1 top producing bachelor's institution for 2005 Fulbright Scholars. Smith boasts the highest number of U.S. Fulbright Scholars this year with a total 16 awards. Even better news is that the class of 1999's own Cassie Hays was among this year's scholars. Congrats Cassie and congrats to Smith!

The school listings are located here in the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Mary Poppins & Smith

2006-10-17T16:33:00.000-04:00

So I am a serious lover of random facts and I want to share today's random fact with everyone. Today I was delighted to learn that the woman who wrote the Mary Poppins books, P.L. Travers, was once, among her many other jobs, a writer in residence at Smith College. For more on the life of P.L. Travers see this interesting CNN story.

As a total aside, for other random fact junkies I would highly reccomend the magazine Mental Floss. I just discovered it and it is now one of my most favorite things.

New England Mini-Reunion

2006-10-08T10:21:00.000-04:00

You are invited to a Class of 1999 mini reunion in Providence, RI
Reconnect with old friends, meet the class officers, hear about future class plans, and tour Providence's Waterfire.

Date: Saturday, Oct. 21
Time: 5pm
Location: Class President's Home

RSVP at smithcollege99@gmail.com

Please RSVP by October 20.

Wine, cheese and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided between 5-6:30pm. Between 6:30 and 7pm we plan walk to the Providence canals for a tour of Waterfire.

Spouses and children are welcome, but please be sure to RSVP for everyone attending. Upon receipt of RSVP you will be sent event location details and directions.

If you are coming from Boston it is very easy and cheap to take the commuter rail. The train stops approx. 8 blocks from the event location. Tickets are $6 one way and the train runs until midnight. Email me if you have any questions.

I look forward to seeing many of you in October!
Tiffany
Class President

PS. We will be taking a class pict at the event to send to the Quarterly. The more people we have the better chance of it being printed! Copies will be emailed to everyone in attendance.

Ruth Simmons in Newsweek

2006-09-29T12:56:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Kathryn Rotondo for passing this on!

Newsweek Sept. 25, 2006 issue (Top Women Speak on Leadership)

RUTH SIMMONS (President, Brown University)
So often in the workplace, women assume that they have to be just like everybody else, and downplay whatever is unique about them. I think it's just the opposite. Whatever I've accomplished in my life, I've done it precisely because I have been different. I have expressed different opinions, and I have been outspoken. I don't have any regrets about what remained unsaid or unspoken. The regrets I have are about decisions that I didn't take because I thought somebody else knew better.
Read rest of the article

Bring Us Your News!

2006-09-22T08:00:00.000-04:00

Leave us a note in the comments section about what you are up to or what you have heard from your classmates. We can't wait to hear all about you!

Please note the secretary will use news left in comments section for the Quarterly article unless requested not to. Any information posted not about yourself will be verified with the subject.

Julia Child Corn Maze

2006-09-12T10:42:00.000-04:00

Julia Child is the new famous face in a Sunderland, MA corn maze. I just loved Julia on PBS and when I saw her speak at Smith. I think this may call for a my own Mountain Day pilgramage to the valley!

I found this tidbit in the story about the maze:
In "The French Chef Cookbook" she [Julia Child] described her appearance on WGBH's inaugural airing of "The French Chef" as follows: 'There is this woman tossing French Omelettes, splashing eggs about the place, brandishing big knives, panting heavily as she careened around the stove, and WGBH-TV lurched into educational television's first cooking program.'

Bon Appétit!

Congratulations Robyn!

2006-09-11T09:36:00.000-04:00

Robyn Marasco has been named a new tenure track assistant professor at Williams College in political science. She was a government and philosophy major at Smith and received her Ph.D. in political science from the UC Berkeley in 2006. At Berkeley she won the Continuing Students Fellowship in 2005. Her doctoral dissertation is titled "Critique on the Heights of Despair: Politics, Philosophy, and the Persistence of Hope."
From iBerkshire News

Don't Marry Career Women?!

2006-09-03T11:44:00.000-04:00

Did any of y'all read this? This recent Forbes article contains an amusing point and counterpoint about dual career marriages. Makes our feminist bloods boil!!!

Point: Don't Marry Career Women
By Michael Noer
How do women, careers and marriage mix? Not well, say social scientists.

Guys: a word of advice. Marry pretty women or ugly ones. Short ones or tall ones. Blondes or brunettes. Just, whatever you do, don't marry a woman with a career.

Why? Because if many social scientists are to be believed, you run a higher risk of having a rocky marriage. While everyone knows that marriage can be stressful, recent studies have found professional women are more likely to get divorced, more likely to cheat and less likely to have children. And if they do have kids, they are more likely to be unhappy about it. A recent study in Social Forces, a research journal, found that women--even those with a "feminist" outlook--are happier when their husband is the primary breadwinner.

Not a happy conclusion, especially given that many men, particularly successful men, are attracted to women with similar goals and aspirations. And why not? After all, your typical career girl is well educated, ambitious, informed and engaged. All seemingly good things, right? Sure … at least until you get married. Then, to put it bluntly, the more successful she is, the more likely she is to grow dissatisfied with you. Sound familiar?

Many factors contribute to a stable marriage, including the marital status of your spouse's parents (folks with divorced parents are significantly more likely to get divorced themselves), age at first marriage, race, religious beliefs and socio-economic status. And, of course, many working women are indeed happily and fruitfully married--it's just that they are less likely to be so than nonworking women. And that, statistically speaking, is the rub.

To be clear, we're not talking about a high school dropout minding a cash register. For our purposes, a "career girl" has a university-level (or higher) education, works more than 35 hours a week outside the home and makes more than $30,000 a year.

If a host of studies are to be believed, marrying these women is asking for trouble. If they quit their jobs and stay home with the kids, they will be unhappy ( Journal of Marriage and Family, 2003). They will be unhappy if they make more money than you do ( Social Forces, 2006). You will be unhappy if they make more money than you do ( Journal of Marriage and Family, 2001). You will be more likely to fall ill ( American Journal of Sociology). Even your house will be dirtier ( Institute for Social Research).

Why? Well, despite the fact that the link between work, women and divorce rates is complex and controversial, much of the reasoning is based on a lot of economic theory and a bit of common sense. In classic economics, a marriage is, at least in part, an exercise in labor specialization. Traditionally, men have tended to do "market" or paid work outside the home, and women have tended to do "nonmarket" or household work, including raising children. All of the work must get done by somebody, and this pairing, regardless of who is in the home and who is outside the home, accomplishes that goal. Nobel laureate Gary S. Becker argued that when the labor specialization in a marriage decreases--if, for example, both spouses have careers--the overall value of the marriage is lower for both partners because less of the total needed work is getting done, making life harder for both partners and divorce more likely. And, indeed, empirical studies have concluded just that.

In 2004, John H. Johnson examined data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation and concluded that gender has a significant influence on the relationship between work hours and increases in the probability of divorce. Women's work hours consistently increase divorce, whereas increases in men's work hours often have no statistical effect. "I also find that the incidence in divorce is far higher in couples where both spouses are working than in couples where only one spouse is employed," Johnson says. A few other studies, which have focused on employment (as opposed to working hours), have concluded that working outside the home actually increases marital stability, at least when the marriage is a happy one. But even in these studies, wives' employment does correlate positively to divorce rates, when the marriage is of "low marital quality."

The other reason a career can hurt a marriage will be obvious to anyone who has seen his or her mate run off with a co-worker: When your spouse works outside the home, chances increase that he or she will meet someone more likable than you. "The work environment provides a host of potential partners," researcher Adrian J. Blow reported in The Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, "and individuals frequently find themselves spending a great deal of time with these individuals."

There's more: According to a wide-ranging review of the published literature, highly educated people are more likely to have had extramarital sex (those with graduate degrees are 1.75 times more likely to have cheated than those with high school diplomas). Additionally, individuals who earn more than $30,000 a year are more likely to cheat.

And if the cheating leads to divorce, you're really in trouble. Divorce has been positively correlated with higher rates of alcoholism, clinical depression and suicide. Other studies have associated divorce with increased rates of cancer, stroke, and sexually transmitted disease. Plus, divorce is financially devastating. According to one recent study on "Marriage and Divorce's Impact on Wealth," published in The Journal of Sociology, divorced people see their overall net worth drop an average of 77%.

So why not just stay single? Because, academically speaking, a solid marriage has a host of benefits beyond just individual "happiness." There are broader social and health implications as well. According to a 2004 paper titled "What Do Social Scientists Know About the Benefits of Marriage?," marriage is positively associated with "better outcomes for children under most circumstances" and higher earnings for adult men, and "being married and being in a satisfying marriage are positively associated with health and negatively associated with mortality." In other words, a good marriage is associated with a higher income, a longer, healthier life and better-adjusted kids.

A word of caution, though: As with any social scientific study, it's important not to confuse correlation with causation. In other words, just because married folks are healthier than single people, it doesn't mean that marriage is causing the health gains. It could just be that healthier people are more likely to be married.