Student Spotlight

To Unstoppable FROM UNDECIDED Taylor Robinson is a first-year student at Mount Mary and is part of the first group to go through the Compass Year. She describes her experiences here.

Q WHY DID YOU CHOOSE MOUNT MARY? I came from Divine Savior Holy Angels High School, and the atmosphere of strong, educated women all accomplishing their goals inspires me to aim for higher goals. Also, Mount Mary was the only school that offered a program specifically for undecided majors. I had no idea what I wanted to do, or who I wanted to become, but I knew that college is where I wanted to be. Q WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO BE A PART OF THE COMPASS YEAR PROGRAM? The program offered me the opportunity to graduate on time without having to rush into any major. I also liked that students who were part of Compass Year started school earlier than the rest of the students. This helped us get familiar with the staff and each other and get a deeper understanding of the program.

Q HOW HAS COMPASS YEAR PROGRAMMING

HELPED YOU DECLARE YOUR MAJOR? When we took our first personality quiz I discovered I was a “Campaigner,” someone who is charming, independent, energetic and compassionate. As I explored the results, I saw careers ranging from counseling and politics to journalism and psychology. We continued to take these types of assessments and test after test, I saw a reoccurring pattern of psychology. As I did more extensive research of different job opportunities in the psychology field, and participated in presentations

Robinson

from guest speakers, I grew closer to making my decision. At the end of the semester, we were all assigned a graduate student mentor. Graduate student Katrina Williams and I connected instantly because of our similar backgrounds and beliefs. Halfway through the conversation she said, “You have the heart, determination and skills it takes to be a psychologist. I think psychology would be a great match for you.” It was then that I knew psychology was the path for me. Q WERE THERE ANY OTHER FACTORS IN YOUR CHOICE OF MAJOR? Another factor in my choice of major was my work-study job in the Marketing Department. I have learned that psychology and marketing go hand and hand. When we are brainstorming ideas for our social media posts, creating videos or various campaigns, our primary focus is our audience. A degree in psychology will give me an advantage in better understanding what makes people want to watch certain things, what makes people click on an ad, or even what color palette would result in different emotions. Q WHAT IS ONE PIECE OF ADVICE YOU’D TELL FUTURE MOUNT MARY STUDENTS WHO ARE UNDECIDED? It is okay to be undecided. I promise you, even if you do not know what you want to do now, there is plenty of time. Do not pick a major because you feel pressured to decide right after graduation. The Compass Year can help you explore different options while learning more about your values and your ideal future. It’s helped me, and I believe it can help you, too.

THEN & NOW Campus has always tapped into technology to learn languages THEN & NOW

In 1958, a new language lab was installed on the Mount Mary campus, and the process of learning a world language was transformed. Previously located beneath the theater lobby in Kostka Hall, the lab featured a control room, a 500+ tape-disc library and 21 private booths with individual audio channels. It was state-of-the-art technology at the time that enabled professors to send out six different lessons, across French, Spanish and German, simultaneously. Students could also learn by watching movies on the projector screen in the front of the lab from their glass-enclosed booths. The language lab even featured soundproof recording studios, enabling the students and professors to record their own tapes. The language lab was used for over four decades. And then in the 1990s a new technology arrived — the internet. The internet has provided unlimited access to a variety of language-learning tools, and Spanish professors Mary Ellen Kohn-Buday, Ph.D, and Jason Meyler, Ph.D, are using this new technology in creative and innovative ways. Both professors use a range of websites and videos, including TED-style talks, podcasts and films, to help their students take learning beyond the book, their classroom and most often, the country. Students have even been tasked with recording their own videos and uploading them online, where they can practice speaking Spanish and learn from one another. As the Latinx population continues to grow on Mount Mary’s campus, at least half of the students in Meyler’s and Kohn-Buday’s Spanish classes are heritage speakers. There is a mutual learning that takes place in the classroom between bilingual and second-language learners, and the Internet aids in that learning. “The bilingual students mentor non-heritage speakers while practicing how to be articulate and clear.” says Kohn-Buday. “All students learn that every individual has a different way of speaking.” Studying the dialects across the 22 Spanish-speaking countries worldwide is even easier today and is a priority in every Spanish class. Students create a variety of projects on their global research, from PowerPoint presentations to mock infomercials. In the process, bilingual students have found a deepened sense of pride in their heritage as they share with the class, where speaking their first language is encouraged and welcomed. Modern students now have unparalleled access to the past thanks to the internet. Students can study historical texts in depth online, frame by frame, such as Aztec codices, dating as far back as the early 1500s. These manuscripts were typically made from natural materials that mostly consist of images, and students recreate their own versions of these historical texts to deepen their study of the history of the Spanish language further. Looking ahead, both Kohn-Buday and Meyler expect several of their Spanish courses will be taught in a hybrid method, featuring a blend of online and in-person classes. “Technology is never-ending, and we are able to incorporate the best of what’s available to us,” Meyler says.

THE RIGHT TO VOTE: Celebrating 100 years 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th Amendment, granting women’s right to vote. As we celebrate this landmark milestone, we reflect back on the women of Mount Mary exercising their right to vote— from the early years within the School Sisters of Notre Dame to the students of today.

1920-1940

1919

January 5, 1919 PERMISSION TO BREAK THE RULES In the early years of the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the sisters were required to follow the rules of enclosure to be secluded from the outside world. Sisters were not permitted to leave the convent except to attend church or school. On January 5, 1919, Mother Mary Bruno wrote a letter to the Sisters, granting permission to break the rules of enclosure in order to vote. She wrote: “Concerning the election, we are informing you, that for going to the polls, religious are dispensed from the enclosure and may wear secular clothes, if that seems advisable.” Mother Mary Bruno also dictated that the Superior of each house “make sure that all Sisters are well informed about the procedure of voting and which ballot to hand in.”

June 4, 1919 THE RIGHT TO VOTE After 70 years of dedicated action by the suffragists and their supporters, women were finally granted the right to vote. Though its passing was a momentous cause for celebration, the amendment did not give voting rights to all women. Women of color, immigrants and lower income women were often deterred from voting by laws and social pressure.

Suffragettes hold a jubilee celebrating their victory after the passing of the 19th Amendment. Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

June 10, 1919 WISCONSIN RATIFIES 19TH AMENDMENT Wisconsin and Michigan are the first states to ratify the 19th Amendment.

November 2, 1920 THE FIRST VOTE On November 2, 1920, more than eight million American women, including the School Sisters of Notre Dame, voted for the first time. Sisters made note of the milestone event in various house chronicles. A Sister at St. Michael, Minnesota wrote: “On Poor Soul’s Day the six Sisters went to the Town Hall for the first time to cast our votes.”

Women casting their votes in New York City, c. 1920s.

1940s STAYING EDUCATED AND INFORMED Mount Mary students were actively involved in politics and world affairs. Students in the history fraternity, Phi Alpha Theta and International Relations Club worked to bring political speakers to campus to inform and educate students. Class delegates often attended local political conventions.

Governor John J. Blaine (left) shakes the hand of a Mabel Raef Putnam surrounded by other women who have come to see the governor sign the Women’s Rights Bill in front of the Wisconsin State Capitol.

Ike and Mamie—Joan Berg and Margaret Volpano—campaigning for votes in a mock on-campus motorcade.

1950-1970

1980-1990

1950s PARTICIPATING IN POLITICS ON CAMPUS “College students are no longer standing outside the realm of politics, but are advancing within, so as to prepare themselves for post-college days.” –The Times, Mount Mary’s student-run newspaper, 1952 Continuing the efforts from the previous decade, the International Relations Club was a non-partisan group on campus that served as a mediator between political parties and the students. The club provided information to students, secured rides and provided work for members and non-members who wanted to support a candidate. The club also organized speaking events with local, state and national election nominees. 1980-90s

DETERMINED TO VOTE

Concerned students continue to exercise their right, decades after women cast their votes for the first time in the United States.

Sparkman and Stevenson portrayed by Marge Whalen and Lou Naponiello during the Democratic Rally held in the gym.

1960-70s FUTURE LEADERS OF AMERICA “A frequent comment made by men is that ‘women are great wives and mothers but have no interest in civic or political matters.’ Will the husbands and relatives of the present student body be able to make similar claims? We are the future rulers and leaders of America.” –The Times, 1968 Mount Mary students actively participated in political campaigns by working for candidates on campus and at local campaign offices. Students participated in a variety of duties such as stuffing envelopes, making phone calls and general office work.

2000-today

2000s to today HONORING THE PAST, PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE In 2016, Mount Mary students helped to inspire a commitment to voting by staging “pollposals,” and formally asking one another to vote. Inspiration for the event came from #CosmosVotes campaign where celebrities asked each other to vote. Shuttles were provided to the local polling places. Their efforts were featured in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. To celebrate and commemorate the 100-year anniversary of the 19th Amendment this year, students are participating in a variety of projects and activities across campus. For example, fashion design students are studying the style of the Suffragettes to create modern looks that are inspired by their history or current women’s movements. Other activities planned for the year include an election-themed bingo game, educational presentations on voting, and guest speakers and panel events, such as the Women and Power event that was held in fall 2019.

In September 2020, Nilofer Merchant will provide the keynote for the Women’s Leadership Institute’s Voices of Leadership event on her message of “Onlyness”—that spot in the world in which only you stand, a function of your distinct history and experiences, visions and hopes. Her message will inspire us to find our purpose, mobilize a community around that purpose and make scalable change not unlike women’s suffrage, African American women’s suffrage, and the #MeToo movement.

Tickets are available at mtmary.edu/vol.

OCTOBER 2020 We will welcome Eleanor Clift, a political journalist and author of Founding Sisters and the Nineteenth Amendment, as part of the Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellows program and Women’s Leadership Institute to share her experiences and inspire students to vote in the upcoming election.