Mills Quarterly Fall 2001

Memory Boats (detail)

by Dee Hibbert-Jones, MFA ’01 The seven-foot long boat sculpture is covered in cracked, dry earth. Projected into the boat is the image of a woman, who slowly moves, as if in sleep.

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Mills Quarterly

CONTENTS FALL 2001 14

Perspectives on Accessibility at Mills Carla-Helen Toth

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The Mills Longitudinal Study: Forty Years and Still Going Ravenna Helson, PhD

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Two Tributes to Madeleine Milhaud Iola Brubeck and Katherine “Kit” Farrow Jorrens, ’57

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Nominate Your Choice for Alumna Trustee

D E PA R T M E N T S 3

Letters

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Inside Mills

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Mills Matters Calendar

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Alumnae Action

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Passages

TOP, SECOND FROM LEFT: PEG SKORPINSKI

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ABOUT THE COVER: Jannelle Taylor, ’03, left, and Eliza Riley, ’02, outside their residence hall. Cover photo by Bruce Cook. © 2001 by Bruce Cook Photography. All rights reserved.

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Mills Quarterly Volume XC Number 2 (USPS 349-900) Fall 2001 Alumnae Director Anne Gillespie Brown, ’68 Editor David M. Brin, MA ’75 dbrin@mills.edu

On this Issue

Design and Art Direction Benjamin Piekut, MA ’01 Quarterly Board Marian Hirsch, ’75 Jane Cudlip King, ’42 Sharon Kei Tatai, ’80 Ariel Eaton Thomas, ’63 Lynette Williams Williamson, ’72 Class Notes Writers Barb Barry, ’94 Laura Compton, ’93 Barbara Bennion Friedlich, ’49 Sally Mayock Hartley, ’48 Heather Hanley, ’00 Cathy Chew Smith, ’84 Special Thanks to Jane Cudlip King, ’42 Board of Governors President Karen May, ’86 Vice Presidents Judy Greenwood Jones, ’60 Jane Cudlip King, ’42 Treasurer Beverly “Bevo” Zellick, ’49 Alumnae Trustees Judy Greenwood Jones, ’60 Sara Ellen McClure, ’81 Estrellita Hudson Redus, ’65, MFA ’75 Governors Lynne Bantle, ’74, Doreen Bueno, ’97 Laura Compton, ’93, Leone Evans, MA ’45 Robyn Fisher, ’90, Lynn Eve Fortin, ’87 Linda Jaquez-Fissori, ’92, Christina Littlefield, ’74 Emily MacDonald, ’03, Leah MacNeil, MA ’51 Patricia Lee Mok, ’81, Jennifer E. Moxley, ’93 Kirsten T. Saxton, ’90, Sharon Kei Tatai, ’80 Sarah Washington-Robinson, ’72 Peggy Woodruff, ’58, Sheryl Wooldridge, ’77 Regional Governors Joyce Mentor Wallace, ’50, Eastern Great Lakes Susan Shapiro Taylor, ’63, Middle Atlantic Albertina Padilla, ’78, Middle California Adrienne Bronstein, ’86, Middle California Katie Dudley Chase, ’61, Northeast Brandy Tuzon Boyd, ’91, Northern California Joanne Regalia Repass, ’66, Northwest Louise Hurlbut, ’75, Rocky Mountains Sally Matthews Buchanan, ’64, South Central Candace Brand Kaspers, ’70, Southeast Carole Joseph Silva, ’54, Southern California Ann Markewitz, ’60, Southwest The Mills Quarterly (USPS 349-900) is published quarterly in April, July, October, and January by the Alumnae Association of Mills College, Reinhardt Alumnae House, 5000 MacArthur Boulevard, Oakland, CA 94613.

Periodicals postage paid at Oakland, CA and at additional mailing office(s). Postmaster: Send address changes to the Mills Quarterly, Alumnae Association of Mills College, P.O. Box 9998, Oakland, CA 94613-0998.

Statement of Purpose The purpose of the Mills Quarterly is to report the activities of the Alumnae Association and its branches; to reflect the quality, dignity, and academic achievement of the College family; to communicate the exuberance and vitality of student life; and to demonstrate the world-wide-ranging interests, occupations, and achievements of alumnae.

It will take months, if not years, to adjust to the forever-changed world we now live in. The horrifying events of September 11 have altered our reality to such an extent that these tragedies will surely cause our future to take directions we cannot know or foresee.

In many ways it has been gratifying to see that the country has united in its effort to fight terrorism, to mourn the victims of this tragedy, to help the families of those who perished, and to protect the American way of life. Yet I am afraid that some are too eager to sacrifice our civil liberties in the name of safety and to go to war in reaction to the acts of terrifying violence against our nation.

President Holmgren’s remarks at Convocation on September 14 echoed my own sentiments when she said, “Each of us is sad today. But I am also angry. I am angry that in a world where I have a voice and a role and responsibility, violence and hatred are being met with violence and hatred.”

It is courageous to speak up for peace at a time when so many are clamoring for war. And I am not surprised that a woman’s voice, a strong, powerful, woman’s voice is taking a stand for peace. And President Holmgren’s has not been the only strong woman’s voice. Barbara Lee, Oakland’s representative in the House, and a Mills alumna from the class of 1973, cast the sole vote in Congress against giving the President a “blank check” that would take away all rights of the Congress—and thus the American people—to be informed of proceedings regarding the war against terrorism.

Whether or not you agree with her vote, you can be proud of Barbara Lee for her independent thinking and for her courage to voice her conviction in spite of tremendous pressure to “join the crowd.” Her vote not only gained her applause from her supporters, it also resulted in hate mail and death threats.

We can be proud of Mills for educating women to think for themselves and to speak up for what they believe is right. We can be proud that President Holmgren declared Mills a Hate Free Zone on September 26. We can be expect Mills to continue training women leaders through programs such as the Women’s Leadership Institute, the new Institute for Civic Leadership, and the new public policy major and minor, which you can read about in this issue.

I firmly believe our society will change for the better as women take more leadership roles, and I hope that strong, proud voices of women will continue to speak out for peace, for equality, and for justice throughout the world.

Letters to the Editor Only an Editor?

I too have promised mentally that I would put my thoughts about your publication down on record, more so in the last year than ever before. It is the comment in Marge Thomas’ letter in the summer issue that has made me finally write. I firmly second all that she has stated except for the comment, “Only former editors can know the challenge involved of putting together the magazine with its disparate parts and the diversified expectations of its readers.”

Marge put out that wonderful Quarterly herself, but in this case, she underestimates her audience!

I appreciated the articles I read in the summer, 2001, issue, particularly “An Amazement of Women” by Muffy McKinstry Thorne and Julie Moss’ article on writing for young adults. I also want to commend you on the make-up of the magazine, the full color cover with the reverse type on the inside, the difficulty of maintaining the register so precisely when one has border lines inside the margins, the screens (I must have counted at least four, maybe five) in the two-color part, and none made too dark to read the print on top of them. The artwork is superb!

I want to wish you luck on getting the alumnae to contribute toward subscriptions. Everyone should be proud of all that you have accomplished and send donations, no matter how small.

Martha Wickland Stumpf, ’46 [The writer is the former publications manager, systemwide, for the University of California.]

Recruiting Native American Students This season reminds me that we Mills alumnae have an opportunity to assist our College in recruiting American Indian women undergraduates, as well as Native American men for graduate degrees. Mills can offer today’s First People a unique learning environment nestled in the hills of one our nation’s most active urban Indian areas.

I recommend two websites, which will immediately inform our readers of an exciting way in which we can assist today’s college and university bound American Indian students. These websites provide basic facts. American Indian Higher Education Consortium’s site is found at <www.aihec.org> and an informational site on America’s many citizens of mixed-heritage can be viewed at <www.americanmetis.org>.

Currently, I mentor high school students in expanding my website, <www.rain.org/~susanna>, which provides one gateway to Native America today. Santa Barbara High School students earn both internship and community service hours toward graduation requirements, as well as scholarship possibilities as they expand their knowledge of the richness of connectivity to today’s modern tribal development and sites, which provide accurate American Indian and American History.

The East Bay is home to many urban Indians, who have created schools and Native community organizations to meet their own specific needs and inform others.

One of the City’s Child

Development Centers, Hintil Kuu Ca (“the Children’s House” in the Nipomo language) and the American Indian Charter School are two such examples. Besides the wonderful educational opportunity Mills would provide Native American women and men, the East Bay would offer them a sense of home away from home.

Equally important, Mills’ current access to other Bay Area educational institutions can provide meaningful degree-granting programs for students. Currently, California’s only tribal college, D-Q-University in Davis, prepares a high percentage of its students for degrees from the University of California, Davis. Perhaps students from D-Q-University and from tribal colleges outside of California can be encouraged to transfer to Mills.

I’ve found school counselors and administrators supportive when approached about volunteer activities in assisting students in their visions for higher education.

We know what a special opportunity Mills College can be for young people, who benefit most in a supportive learning environment. Mills would be greatly enriched by our efforts.

Susanna Seelye Shreeve, ’56, Native American Voices Circle of Sharing (Community / Schools Partnership) Santa Barbara, California

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inside mills MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT The Mills Sesquicentennial Campaign continues to make great progress toward its $100 million goal. As of early August, the Campaign total had surpassed $61 million, in part because of very strong end-of-year Alumnae Fund giving. Thank you to everyone whose efforts and gifts contributed to this fantastic result.

The chart below shows Campaign progress, comparing results at the time we announced the Campaign (February 2000), last August, and this August. Nearly $20 million has been received in the past 18 months! Highlights of gifts received in the last year include: $1.5 million from Tom and Mandy McManus, ’77, to endow the Lee Mirmow Professorship in Psychology; $1 million from the Alumnae Association of Mills College for faculty salaries and scholarship support; $1 million from the Kirsch Foundation (thanks to Steve and Michele van Blitter Kirsch, ’83) to name the Education Building; $400,000 from the Hewlett Foundation to support revisions in the general education program; $310,000 from the Fletcher Jones Foundation to provide computers and other technology within the Education Complex; $252,449 from the estate of Evelyn V. Staton to establish a fellowship in Fine Arts; and $100,035 from the Class of 1950 to name a teaching studio in the Music Building. In addition, five donors gave a total of $1,025,000 for undergraduate scholarships. These and other gifts are already at work keeping Mills at the forefront of women’s education.

I want to share with you part of my message in the year’s first From the President newsletter.

“As we begin the academic year that will carry us into our sesquicentennial anniversary, I have found inspiration in an old Mills motto: “Una Destinatio, Viae Diversae” or “One Destination, Many Paths.” Despite its age, this motto is just as relevant to Mills today as when it was first adopted. It expresses a theme of wholeness and universal understanding derived from the exploration and joining of many separate paths. My modern version of that old motto is “One Mills.” To my mind, these two words incorporate our sense of pride in the academic excellence of all programs at Mills, our emphasis on interdisciplinarity and global understanding, and our mission to serve the changing needs of all women in society.

Mills Sesquicentennial Campaign Progress Since Announcement (in millions)

$100

$61.0 $52.0

January 2000 August 2000 August 2001 Goal

$50.5

$48.0 $41.9

$40.4 $32.6

$10.4

Endowment and Current Funds

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$13.8 $15.2 $5.0 $5.0 $5.4

Facilities

Undesignated and Deferred

Total

JENNIFER LEIGH SAUER

$26.4

S E S Q U I C E N T E N N I A L C A M PA I G N N E W S

TECHNOLOGY AT MILLS

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sing the latest technology is nothing new at Mills. In 1874, Mills Hall had its own telegraph office, and within a few years Seminary students were studying telegraphy. The telephone was in use at Mills by 1886. Fast forward to the 1950s, when mathematics professor Helen Pillans introduced computing into the Mills curriculum. By 1974, Mills had become the first women’s college with an undergraduate major in computer science. Bringing the power of technology to Mills has been a deliberate, sustained process of matching new equipment, software, and systems with the needs of students, faculty, staff, and administrators. Funding for technology is an important objective of the Mills Sesquicentennial Campaign.

Here are some examples of the most recent technology initiatives at Mills— and the recognition the College is receiving for its innovations.

In early August, the Olin Library staff announced the debut of a new webbased catalog. In addition to providing access to bibliographic records for books and periodicals, it provides access to numerous other entries from the catalog, such as digital images, video and audio clips, links to Internet sites, electronic books, and electronic reserves, among others. We can now think of the library catalog as a central repository for campus-wide research possibilities and a door that opens to infinite opportunities outside the gates of the College.

Did you notice we mentioned electronic books? Mills is a participant in Adobe eBook U, a joint project between Adobe Systems and a select group of institutions of higher education to explore the use and impact of eBooks on educational environments.

As part of the program, students and educators at participating campuses will be able to experience course materials

that will be made available as eBooks, based on the dynamic and graphically rich Adobe® Portable Document Format (PDF). Other participating institutions include MIT Sloan School of Management, Occidental College, University of Maryland University College, University of Utah Center for Advanced Medical Technologies, Tufts University, and University of Wisconsin.

On August 13, Mills received an award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy’s “Energy Star” program. Six Bay Area organizations were recognized for being early adopters in Energy Star’s campaign to reduce energy consumption by enabling energy-saving features on computer monitors. In addition to Mills, the City of Gilroy, Alameda County, the East Bay Municipal Utility District, Goodwill Industries, and the Trust for Public Land were recognized. President Janet Holmgren and Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown participated in the ceremonies.

Thanks to the Class of 1950’s fiftieth reunion gift, all buildings on campus

now have wireless capabilities. Apple recognized Mills as a success story for “wireless communication” and has featured the College on its website for the past four months. In addition, Mills has been selected by Apple to receive the Leadership in Technology Award for 2001–2002 in recognition of our pioneering implementation of Apple’s wireless solution and innovative application of technology in higher education.

This award was presented at Convocation in September, simultaneously with the launch of a new opportunity for alumnae.

Mills is pleased to introduce an alumnae purchase program that will benefit you, the College, and our students. Purchase any Apple computer through Mills College and receive an alumnae discount and free shipping! In addition to your discount, Apple will contribute to a special fund that goes directly toward technology upgrades at Mills. Your support will help keep our student computer labs state-of-the-art.

For details visit <www.mills.edu/acs>.

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inside mills SESQUICENTENNIAL CAMPAIGN EVENTS IN SEATTLE AND PORTLAND: ART FOR MILLS’ SAKE

by Carolyn Otis Catanzaro, Office of Institutional Advancement

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his past summer, the Pacific Northwest celebrated Mills’ Sesquicentennial Campaign in the company of art spanning thousands of years.

Sculpture dating from as far back as 1300 BC and works on paper as recent as the 1970s were featured at two very special events held in Seattle, Washington, and Portland, Oregon.

On June 5, 2001, 165 guests gathered at the Seattle Art Museum for a wine reception, hors d’oeuvre, and a private viewing of the exhibit “Treasures from a Lost Civilization: Ancient Chinese Art from Sichuan.” Co-Chairs Brooks and Suzanne Ragen, ’58, the Honorable Harriet W. Isom, ’58, and Joanna vonBehringer, ’51, hosted this largestever gathering of Mills alumnae and friends in Washington State.

The Seattle Art Museum provided a lively, contemporary setting. Alumnae ranging in class years from Kathryn Miller Bowden, ’35, to Heather Hanley, ’00, gathered on the sweeping grand staircase in convivial groups, laughing and chatting about shared memories and present pursuits. Gayle Rothrock, ’68, president of the Puget Sound Area Mills Alumnae Branch, observed, “Alumnae and friends living in Washington and British Columbia turned out to enjoy what Mills always has to offer: a teaching moment with great art, an opportunity to meet with friends old and new, and a chance to learn more about Mills’ successes both past and present.”

President Janet L. Holmgren brought news from campus and inspired guests with student success stories, Campaign highlights, and Mills’ vision for the future. Entertaining the audience with his wit and intelligence, Jay Xu, Foster Foundation associate curator of Chinese art, provided an overview of the exhibit as well as some history about the discovery of the amazing treasures featured in the collection. Guests then had the opportunity to peruse the stunning collection of masks, vessels, and ceremonial items created thousands of years ago by inhabitants of ancient Sichuan.

Not to be outdone by its sister city to the north, Portland responded on July 18 with the largest turnout of Mills alumnae and friends from the state of Oregon. Peggie Parker Eccles, ’42, and The Honorable Harriet W. Isom, ’58, hosted this festive event at the Portland Art Museum just days after the opening of the much-publicized Clement Greenberg Collection.

“It was quite a sensation to see such a wide spectrum of classes represented at the Mills party in Portland,” commented Geri Green Blauer, ’52. “My being there gave me the feeling of wanting more . . . so I’m really looking forward to attending the 50th reunion of my class in 2002!” In fact, Ruth Blandford, ’25, and Lisa Plantico Carlsson, ’97, were representative of the impressive span of classes in attendance.

UPCOMING SESQUICENTENNIAL CAMPAIGN CELEBRATIONS November 5, 2001 Private showing of “Van Gogh and Gauguin” exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago

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November 13, 2001 Private showing of “Cross Sections,” an exhibition of Catherine Wagner’s most recent work, at the San Jose Museum of Art

The Honorable Harriet Winsar Isom, ’58, (left) and Dr. Polly Royal Langsley, ’49, in Seattle.

The evening began in the Museum’s elegant sunken ballroom, where guests were treated to a wine and hors d’oeuvre reception catered by the locally renowned Food in Bloom. Guests were then welcomed by President Holmgren, who provided an overview of Mills, including a Campaign update and stories of student achievement. Following these inspirational remarks, guests were treated to an engaging introduction to the Greenberg collection by Bruce Guenther, curator of modern and contemporary art for the Portland Art Museum. Alumnae and friends enjoyed viewing the show, which featured abstract expressionist works from the art critic’s own collection.

More than 160 alumnae and friends responded to the invitation for the event.

Throughout the evening, many guests expressed their delight in having this opportunity to reconnect with Mills. Jan Holt, ’51, reported that the reaction from Portland alumnae to this special evening “was one of enthusiasm, inspiration, and gratitude to our alma mater.”

A GARDEN PARTY IN CHICAGO

by Anna Henderson, Office of Institutional Advancement

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here may be nothing so rare as a day in June, but September proved itself as fair for the 25 Chicago-area alumnae who joined Posy Krehbiel, ’60, for an evening garden walk at her home in Lake Forest, Illinois. Alumnae in attendance represented classes from 1936 through 1995. Mills College President Janet Holmgren spoke about academic program expansions and other College successes.

As a precursor to Mills Sesquicentennial Anniversary celebrations in the Midwest, Posy invited fellow Mills women to tour her nine-acre garden, much of which she has restored to the original, decoera vision of landscape designer Rose Standish Nichols. The grounds are divided into elegant and surprising garden rooms that give way to a sweeping lawn and bold walled gardens created by Posy in 1998.

Well-known Chicago philanthropists, Posy and her husband, John Krehbiel, open their home for cultural and philanthropic projects throughout the summer. Architecture buffs are especially interested in the Krehbiel’s home, designed in 1904 for department store magnate John T. Pirie by Benjamin Marshall, the architect who designed Chicago’s famous Drake Hotel.

Top: Vivian Schwartz Leith, ’55, (left), Posy Love Krehbiel, ’60, Sandra Tempel Noble, ’63, and Elizabeth Mueller, ’95, in Posy Krehbiel’s garden in September.

Above: Ann Sulzberger Wolff, ’42, and Caryl Hollender Susman, ’52, enjoying a September evening in Posy Krehbiel’s garden.

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MILLS MATTERS New Faculty

Leonard Chang’s first novel, The Fruit ’N Food, won the Black Heron Press Award for Social Fiction in 1996, and it is now being taught at colleges around the country. His second novel, Dispatches from the Cold, was published in 1998 and won a San Francisco Bay Guardian Goldie Award for Literature. His third novel, Over the Shoulder, was just published this spring by Ecco Press/HarperCollins and will be translated into French and Korean next year. His short stories have appeared in literary journals such as The Crescent Review, Prairie Schooner, Confluence, and Bamboo Ridge.

He studied philosophy at Dartmouth College and Harvard University and earned a BA from Harvard and an MFA from the University of California, Irvine.

Anne Marie Choup, Assistant Professor of Government While serving in the Peace Corps in Cameroon, Anne Marie Choup decided on a teaching career and also became interested in researching grassroots organizing. In May of this year she received her PhD from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Her dissertation was on grassroots organization strategies in the Dominican Republic’s capital, Santo Domingo. Dr.

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Choup was attracted to Mills by the sense of community, by the diverse and interesting student body, and by the small classes.

She likes to teach using a lot of discussion and enjoys the variety of points of view expressed by Mills students of different ages and backgrounds.

Adam R. Lucas, Assistant Professor of Mathematics Adam Lucas attended McGill University in Montreal, Canada, graduating with a BS in biochemistry. While investigating how biopolymers form knots to carry out their function in the body, he was “forced” to learn some math and found that he really liked it.

Eventually, he went on to receive his PhD in Mathematics from MIT in the field of representation theory, graduating in 1999. He then became a post-doctoral fellow at the University of California, San Francisco, where he combined his interests in math and biology, investigating how proteins fold.

Dr. Lucas looks forward to passing on his enthusiasm for math and its applications to Mills students. He was initially drawn to the energy Mills students have for learning and to the faculty’s commitment to teaching, and he believes that Mills’ small size suits his interactive teaching style. Dr. Lucas is sensitive to students who have had bad experiences with math and is committed to making math enjoyable for his students.

Steven Matheson, Assistant Professor of Video Arts Steven Matheson grew up in the Bay Area and has a BA from the University of California, Berkeley, and an MFA degree from the University of California, San Diego. He has taught at Macalester College and the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and his videos have

been seen nationally and around the world. He is one of two professors in the intermedia arts program, which works to build connections among artistic fields such as music, studio art, theater, film studies, and dance. “The program is about making art that might not fit into preexisting categories, especially art that has an emphasis on technology,” Mr. Matheson explains. His introduction to video combines video production with viewing and analysis, theory and criticism.

“The class is about conceptual skills, not about button pushing,” he says.

Emery Roe, Barbara M. White Chair of Public Policy and Director, Public Policy Program

Emery Roe has a PhD in public policy from the University of California, Berkeley, as well as graduate and undergraduate degrees from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and an MPS degree in international agriculture from Cornell University.

He heads Mills’ new program in public policy. Dr. Roe is the author of Narrative Policy Analysis: Theory and Practice, considered a classic in public policy analysis. He is also a research associate at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, where he spends six weeks every year. He and a Dutch colleague are comparing

the deregulation of the electricity industry in California and telecommunications in the Netherlands, and they have coauthored a book on improving the environment and environmental services, to be published next year by Oxford University Press.

“The past century has witnessed the increasing prominence of women in public life. For women seeking leadership roles in this century, a command of the principles and practice of public policy is essential,” he says.

Gail Wight, Assistant Professor of Electronic and Intermedia Arts Gail Wight has been teaching at Mills since 1997 and just this year was appointed to a tenuretrack position. She has an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute, and her professional interests include experiments and conceptual collaborations between fine art and science.

She has recently finished some artworks having to do with evolution, and is currently working on a project about women scientists in 18th-century Bologna. “I enjoy the experimental attitude combined with strong traditions in the Mills fine arts division and the open environment that enables and encourages students to work across disciplines,” she says. As one of two professors in the intermedia arts program, Ms. Wight teaches several courses in electronic arts. “I love watching women grow strong and proficient in their understanding of technology, and I think they bring a fresh attitude to the possible uses and benefits of technology in relation to art and society,” she says.

EMERY ROE PHOTO BY DAVID M. BRIN, MA ’75

Leonard Chang, Visiting Distinguished Writer

NEWS OF THE COLLEGE

New Students On August 22, entering students were welcomed into the Mills community. Dean of Admission Avis Hinkson presented the entering undergraduates and Director of Graduate Studies Marianne Sheldon presented the entering graduate students. Mills faculty, staff, and alumnae attended the festive event. Below are some excerpts of remarks made during the ceremony.

President Janet L. Holmgren I want to congratulate each of you who is here today as an entering student. You have worked exceedingly hard to make this moment possible, and you join a distinguished student body already a part of this Mills community, a community of shared values and aspirations. . . .

Today, each of you becomes an integral part of a community that is dedicated to justice and equity—a community where being a part of Mills means that you are a part of Oakland, of the East Bay, of California, of the nation and of the world, and that you will give back to this diverse and global community based on your education and experience.

You become an integral part of a community that is dedicated to the education and advancement of women at all levels and in all parts of our society.

Dean of Admission Avis Hinkson It gives me great pleasure to stand before you today and see the recruitment efforts of the College finally manifested in an entering class. We have visited your high schools and colleges, we have called you and written to you, we have sent you publications filled with pretty pictures.

We have forced you to take the SAT, ACT and the TOEFL, made you fill out forms, write essays, and apply for financial aid and scholarships, and you bugged your teachers for letters of recommendations. We interviewed

you and listened to your audition tapes. We have read your poetry and short stories, looked at your slides, drawings, and cartoons.

You came to visit programs on campus or at your schools. You met our staff, faculty, students, and alums. We hoped you liked us! We sent you by priority mail a thick admission packet saying “Congratulations, you are a Mills woman!” We invited you to visit again….more cookies and smiles.

And then we bit our fingernails while you slowly made the right decision to attend Mills. We eagerly waited for the mailroom to deliver your enrollment cards and deposit checks. All of that was done in anticipation of today!

I am convinced that you are prepared for the Mills experience based on all you shared in your admission applications.

Please allow me to share publicly some of those details. You all are truly an amazing group.

This class includes representatives from 25 states and five countries, 68 colleges and 99 different high schools, including North Pole High School. You speak 21 foreign languages including Cantonese, Punjabi, Creole, German, Maltese, Arabic, Dutch, and American Sign Language. You range in age from 17 to shall we say just short of the three-score mark!

Over 40 percent of you selfidentify as women of color and 43 of you are the first in your family to attend college. At least 19 of you are moms! Ten of you are Bent Twigs, including two

who are 4th generation Mills women!

You have volunteered for places and programs as diverse as the Green Party, AmeriCorp, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Camp Fire Girls, Habitat for Humanity, and Gay/Straight Alliance.

You have held exciting professional positions as director of nursing for an adolescent psychiatric treatment facility, painting contractor, kindergarten teacher, and director of an afterschool program.

You are a creative group. You include 29 thespians, 34 dancers, 48 musicians, and 39 writers, many with published works. You are scholar-athletes who have played on over 72 teams!

You certainly never neglected your academics because 22 of you are members of National Honor Societies, 60 on Honor Roll or Dean’s Lists, nine National Merit Commended Scholars or Finalists, nine Phi Theta Kappa or Alpha Gamma Sigma members, and 21 are Golden State Award winners.

You are truly phenomenal women and Mills women! To President Holmgren, Provost Steele, Dean Whitcomb, faculty, alumnae, staff, students, and friends, it is a true privilege for me to present to you, on behalf of the Admission Office, the entering undergraduate class!

Director of Graduate Studies Marianne Sheldon I would like to welcome the 246 women and men who are new graduate students this fall at Mills College. Fourteen of you are in the art department, seven in computer science, 11 in dance, 107 in education, 38 in English, 24 in music, 33 in the post-baccalaureate pre-med program, and 12 in our new MBA program.

You are joining programs leading to master of arts degrees in dance, education, English, interdisciplinary computer science, and music composition; master of fine arts degrees in art, dance, creative writing, music performance, and electronic music and recording media; master of business administration; and doctor of education in educational leadership.

From Moose Jaw, Quebec, to Bessastadahreppui, Iceland, you have arrived here from four continents and nine countries including Columbia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Norway, Singapore, and Spain. From Anchorage, Alaska, to Orlando, Florida, you represent 23 states. And from Mendicino to San Diego, many of you call California your home.

Your are truly an international and diverse group.

You are a select group, well prepared for the graduate study you are about to begin. Today, you become part of an outstanding graduate program that has a long and distinguished history— going back to 1920 when Mills College awarded its first masters degrees.

Some of you are coming to Mills with already established careers as performers, artists, writers, teachers, choreographers, and composers—while others of you are about to embark on ventures that will take your personal and professional lives in wholly new directions.

Like the new English graduate student who left corporate America and moved lock, stock, and husband across the country to California, and like the studio art student who has come to the United States for the first time— each of you will discover that graduate study at Mills is a truly transforming experience.

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MILLS MATTERS New Academic Programs tageous because women historically have had more career interruptions than have men.” In addition to coursework, students will participate in an intensive summer internship between graduation and the fifth year of the program.

“In pursuing my MBA I hope to broaden my scope of knowledge in the areas of business management and finance as well as attain the skills required to be an ethical, fair, and effective leader,” commented Kerrin Parker, ’99, one of the program’s first students.

“Attending Mills was one of the best things that could have ever happened to me,” says Tina Lee, ’01, The first class of students in the MBA program at Mills another student in the program. “I grew so much environment,” says Nancy by being in a supportive and Thornborrow, chair of Mills’ ecowoman-centered environment, nomics department and director and I trust that those positive of the new program. aspects of a Mills undergraduRoger Sparks, associate proate education will carry over to fessor of economics, who will be its graduate MBA program. teaching in the new program, Furthermore, I absolutely adore commented, “I think the proand admire the faculty and stugram dovetails nicely with the dents who are in the MBA prostrengths of our undergraduate gram this year, and I’m program in economics. For extremely grateful for the women, this quicker route to an chance to learn and grow some MBA will be particularly advanBA/MBA Degree Beginning this academic year, Mills is offering a “four plus one” BA/MBA program that enables students to complete a master’s of business administration degree in only one additional year of study following the four-year bachelor’s degree.

“This innovative program will provide the foundation for students to create powerful professional careers by completing two degrees in five years within a woman-centered liberal arts

more with them through this new endeavor.”

Public Policy Program Mills is offering a major and minor in public policy for the first time. The new undergraduate program will prepare women for careers as policy analysts, policy makers, and leaders.

“Mills aims to create the premier undergraduate public policy program for women seeking policy careers in the public, private, and non-profit sectors,” says Dr. Emery Roe, director of the program. “This is a one-ofa-kind program that will provide future leaders with the tools they need to analyze major social issues and identify solutions,” Dr. Roe adds.

The program will address three current challenges in public policy, according to Dr. Roe: the increasingly complex nature of societal problems, the trend for professionals to specialize, and the need for leaders to solve these complex problems holistically through collaboration. The new program, based on the liberal arts tradition at Mills, will take an interdisciplinary approach and look at policy issues from many different directions.

The core curriculum will consist of courses taken in the departments of government,

economics, and social science.

Seniors will be encouraged to develop internships, service learning experiences, and research projects related to their area of concentration.

Institute for Civic Leadership The first fifteen women to participate in Mills’ Institute for Civic Leadership are on campus this semester. The one-semester program seeks to advance the leadership capacities and commitments of women and to promote the civic and democratic purposes of higher education.

The curriculum offers courses in the sociology and politics of civic participation and social change and in the foundations of civic leadership. In addition, students are working as interns in places such as the office of Congresswoman Barbara Lee, ’73, the Center for Environmental Health, and the East Bay Institute for Urban Arts.

Besides students from Mills, the program has students from Mount Holyoke, Pepperdine, Occidental, Stanford, and Holy Names College. The director of the program is Associate Professor of Education Joseph Kahne, and William Hanson, JD, is the assistant director.

New On-Line Library Catalogue

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he next time you visit the College’s library you may not see any obvious changes, but behind the scenes great progress has been made. This past August, Mills College Olin Library launched its new automated system.

The new system has much to offer, including off-campus access via the Internet, links to outside resources, the ability to look at

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your patron record, and the ability to renew books on-line.

Renee Jadushlever, assistant vice president for library and technology, sees the new system as a central information source for the campus. “With this new technology the library will be an information hub for the College community,” says Jadushlever. Syllabuses, assignments, and even class reserves

material can be made available online. A student can access an article on reserve on the Internet anywhere, anytime.

As if all that isn’t enough, there’s another tantalizing possibility—visual resources. The library is working on creating a database of images such as art slides, book illustrations, photographs, and documents. Professors can use these images in their classrooms

and students can retrieve them from the Internet.

It’s an exciting time for Mills library staff, students, and faculty as they explore all the possibilities now available thanks to the fast moving pace of technology. We invite you to visit the new Mills College library catalog at, <http://Minerva.mills.edu> or <http://library.mills.edu>.

— Moya Stone, MFA ’02

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 7:00–9:00 PM Oppression, Resistance and the Women of Afghanistan with speakers Sahar Saba and Sajeda Hayat.

Sponsored by the Women’s Leadership Institute. Lucie Stern 101. (510) 430-2019 SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 4:00 PM Schubertiade, with Belle Bulwinkle, Karen Rosenak, fortepiano; Sergiu Luca, violin; Sara Ganz, soprano, and Mary Cochran, dancer/choreographer.

Concert Hall.

(510) 430-2296

Traditions: Japanese Expressions in Clay and Ink. Mills College Art Museum.

(510) 430-2164 FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 8:00 PM Au Pair and Empire: The History of Tomato Soup, with Robert Ashley and Jacqueline Humbert, singers, Tom Hamilton, live mixing and sound processing.

Concert Hall. (510) 430-2296 TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 5:30–7:00 PM Contemporary Writers Series: Novelist Renee Swindle.

Faculty Lounge. (510) 430-2236

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15, FRIDAY NOVEMBER 16, SATURDAY 17, 8:00 PM Mills Repertory Dance Company performs works by Trisha Brown, ’58, Mary Cochran, Molissa Fenley, ’75, Sara Hook, Kathleen McClintock, ’85, and Jeff Slayton.

Haas Pavilion. (510) 430-2175

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 12:15–1:15 PM Women’s Leadership Institute’s Visiting Scholars Seminars: Sustainable Agriculture for Urban Environments, Technologies, Toxics and Urban Futures with Dr. Raquel Rivera Pinderhughes. Faculty Dining Room. (510) 430-2019

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 7:00–8:30 PM Women’s Leadership Institute presents Thoraya Obaid, ’66, executive director, United Nations Population Fund.

Concert Hall. (510) 430-2019

NOVEMBER 30, DECEMBER 1, 8:00 PM Goddesses, by Dorotea Reyna. Presented by Haute Couture Productions, cosponsored by the Mills College Theater and the Women’s Studies

CALENDAR TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 5:30–7:00 PM Contemporary Writers Series: Poet, novelist, and essayist Dionne Brand. Bender Room, Carnegie Hall.

(510) 430-2236

Leyya Tawil will perform in works by Trisha Brown and Mary Cochran with the Mills Repertory Dance Company November 15, 16, and 17.

An MFA candidate in dance,

MARTY SOHL

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8– FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21 Zarina: Home is a Foreign Place and Unearthing

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 2, 4:00–6:00 PM Mills College December Graduation Reception.

Student Union. (510) 430-2110

Leyya has her own company,

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 7:30 PM Correnah Wright Lectures On Contemporary Art: Zarina Hashmi. Lucie Stern 100.

(510) 430-2117 NOVEMBER 8, 9, 10, 16, 17, 8:00 PM; NOVEMBER 18, 2:00 PM Vinegar Tom, by Caryl Churchill, directed by Gemma Whelan. Presented by the Mills College Theater.

Lisser Theater.

(510) 430-3308

Department. Lisser Theater.

(510) 430-3308

Etherealize. She is the graduate teacher assistant for the Mills Repertory Company.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 12:15–1:15 PM Women’s Leadership Institute’s Visiting Scholars Seminars: Innovative Approaches to Preventing Gender Violence. Speaker: Karen Payne. Faculty Dining Room. (510) 430-2019

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 4:00 PM Abel-Steinberg duo: David Abel, violin, Julie Steinberg, piano, performing works by Lutoslawski, Janácek, and Bartók. Concert Hall.

(510) 430-2296

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 6:00–8:00 PM AAMC Diversity Committee hosts a Kwanzaa Celebration.

Faculty Dining Room/ Lounge. (510) 430-2110 TUESDAY, JANUARY 1, 2002 Mills Sesquicentennial year begins!

Times and dates of events are subject to change. For more information on events at Mills, check the Mills College website at <www.mills.edu>.

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ALUMNAE ACTION Phonathon 2001–2002

by Cecily M. Peterson, ’88, associate director of the Annual Fund

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here can students develop leadership skills, network with amazing Mills alumnae, learn some important lessons about fundraising and philanthropy, and go home with a candy bar?

The Alumnae Association’s Student Phonathon Program, that’s where!

Currently in its fifth year, the Phonathon Program raises approximately ten percent of the Association’s overall revenue. The money raised contributes to the Association’s annual gift to the College, a gift that’s used for student scholarships and faculty salaries. Student callers, many of whom are scholarship recipients, enjoy being able to help others like themselves.

While raising money for Mills is reason enough to be a student caller, there are many other benefits as well.

Typical Mills students, our callers are outgoing, interesting, and prepared to talk about anything. Although they call with the intent of updating our alumnae about what’s going on at Mills and soliciting a gift, conversations cover a range of subjects from favorite shared professors, jobs, families, future plans, even to mutual friends in Montana. Some of our alumnae have been so impressed with the students who call that they’ve suggested continuing their connection after graduation.

If your phone rings and it’s one of our Each evening, students gather for a student callers—enjoy your conversation. meeting led by a team leader, an experiYour willingness to talk, and your gift, will enced student caller who trains and evalbe a further reminder to our students of uates other callers. Together they discuss the generosity of Mills alumnae, generosity strategies for successful calls and remind that keeps Mills an outstanding institution. themselves of the importance of their work. Callers can win goofy prizes like toys or games for nightly challenges, such as most pledges or most interesting story of the evening. And all gifts received on a credit card earn a candy bar for the caller.

So why do we have a student phonathon?

Lots of reasons: students learn about the importance of giving back, alumnae are kept Noris Bentivegna, ’01, stands Melissa Roberts, ’01, so enjoyed up to date on what’s next to the “goal thermometer.” speaking with alumnae on the The goal was met and surpassed phone that when she graduated happening at the before the spring ’01 calling she accepted a position in the College, and the season ended. Upon graduating, Office of Admission coordinatAlumnae Association Noris took what she learned in ing the Alumnae Admission raises money—money her four years with the AAMC’s Representative (AAR) program. that’s used for student phonathon and brought it to UC scholarships, possibly Berkeley as Assistant Program for future phonathon Manager of the Cal Fund telemarketing drive. students.

On August 20, a multi-legged “Chinese dragon,” paraded across Toyon Meadow accompanied by the beating of drums. Led by former AAMC President Leone LaDuke Evans, MA ’45, the dragon’s head was a photo of one of the Fu dogs that graces the entrance to the art building, and its body contained lists of donors to the Alumnae Fund. Awaiting the dragon’s arrival at the back of Mills Hall were President Janet Holmgren and other College staff. As the lists of donors began to peel away, the body of the dragon was revealed to be the staff of Reinhardt Alumnae House. The reason for the dragon’s appearance: the presentation of a $1 million gift from the AAMC to Mills College.

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ARIEL EATON THOMAS, '63

AAMC Gives College $1 Million!

N E W S O F T H E A L U M N A E A S S O C I AT I O N

Alumnae Association Annual Report

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haron Kei Tatai, ’80, concluded her third and final year as president of the Alumnae Association of Mills College at the end of fiscal year 2000–2001. At the Association’s annual meeting on May 12, 2001, Sharon reviewed the many activities intended to strengthen studentalumnae ties and connections among alumnae that were held throughout the year. Reunion 2000, in particular, was one of the most successful to date. Future initiatives of the Association will include a survey of alumnae, the development and implementation of the Strategic Plan, and changes in the number and structure of AAMC committees. Sharon outlined key issues in the upcoming year, which will include fundraising, sustaining and expanding our leadership, reaffirming our commitment to diversity, identifying alumnae needs, assisting Mills College in recruiting, creating ties with students, and reviewing the Association’s bylaws for the possible implementation of stag-

gered officer terms. In closing, Sharon expressed thanks to members of the Alumnae Association, who care passionately about Mills, about the AAMC, and about each other, and she thanked the Board of Governors, the executive committee, and Anne Gillespie Brown, ’68, executive director of the Association.

Alumna Trustee Estrellita Hudson Redus, ’65, MFA ’75, gave the Alumnae Trustee report, speaking first about the College’s mission statement and vision statement. She reported on the Sesquicentennial Campaign, on the campus master plan, on the entering graduate and undergraduate students for fall, 2001, and on new academic programs at Mills. In conclusion, Estrellita reported on the three-year Irvine Grant for Multicultural Curricular Transformation.

Treasurer Lynne Bantle, ’74, reported that the year-to-date actual revenue on May 12, 2001, 19 days before the end of the fiscal year, slightly exceeded last

A L U M N A E A S S O C I AT I O N E X P E N S E S 2 0 0 0 – 2 0 0 1 GIFT TO THE COLLEGE 53% ALUMNAE RELATIONS PROGRAMS 6% REUNION 6% ALUMNAE FUND 24% QUARTERLY 11%

year’s but fell significantly short of the budgeted amount, which included an ambitious increase projected before the market decline. (However, when the final year-end results were calculated, unaudited totals showed that revenues raised reached within 97.8 percent of the budgeted amount, allowing the AAMC to give a gift of $1 million to the College.)

In addition to overseeing the day-today financial operations of the Association, the Finance Committee also monitored the Investment Fund, which is now valued at $1.3 million, and generates about $26,000 a year in interest, earnings, and dividends. The Board of Governors had previously approved a plan to use the interest and dividends to upgrade the office’s computers, as well as to complete some special office projects. The computers have been updated, and the last of those projects is to install air conditioning in the office areas. A new project that is being reviewed is the reconfiguration of the office workplace.

The preliminary budget for the 2001– 2002 fiscal year has been approved, with only a modest increase in expenses, and in view of market conditions and the economy, only a 5.4 percent increase in Alumnae Fund giving.

Finally, Lynne reported that she was delighted that Bevo Zellick had agreed to take over as treasurer for the next three years, and that she was sure that in Bevo’s capable and experienced hands, there will be a smooth transition of leadership.

NEW ALUMNA TRUSTEE

NEW DIRECTOR OF ANNUAL GIVING

The election of Sara Ellen McClure, ’81, to a three-year term as Alumna Trustee was announced at the AAMC’s Board of Governors meeting on September 5. A music major at Mills, Sara works as a development officer for the College of Fine Arts at the University of New Mexico. Nominations in this election were limited to candidates living outside the Middle California Region.

Suzanne Tye is the new director of annual giving at the AAMC. A graduate of Pacific Lutheran University, Suzanne began her career in development at Western Kentucky University. Since moving to the Bay Area, she has raised funds for Volunteers of America and Building Futures with Women and Children. Suzanne joined the AAMC in September and recently declared, “Secondary education is my real passion.”

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Accessibility Perspectives on Accessibility at Mills

BY CARLA-HELEN TOTH

Carla-Helen Toth, right, and ASMC president Gloria Espinoza prepare for their cross-campus trek.

APRIL, 2001 Rain started falling steadily as ASMC president Gloria Espinoza , Mills Quarterly editor David Brin, and I exited through the back door of Cowell Hall, intent upon touring and surveying the physical accessibility of the Mills College campus .

B

Because Gloria wanted to find out what a typical day might be like for students who use wheelchairs, she had borrowed a manual chair from Ruth Masayko, director of Disabled Students Services, and was now enthusiastically trying to push herself up the steep hill behind Cowell. We were headed for the only accessible entrance to the concert hall, located at the back of the music building. Only two hours earlier, as we sat in the tea shop discussing her expectations for the day, Gloria had said, “I used to think that it might be fun, and so . . .

I’m going to find out the reality—the difficulty of being in a wheelchair.” Now, after initially rolling herself forward over the bumpy pavement, the wheels of her chair were wet and slick. Gloria lost momentum and rolled backward, down the hill again. She repeated the process a few times before her arm muscles—not used to maneuvering a wheelchair, much less maneuvering a wheelchair up a hill, in the rain—began to tire, and she reluctantly asked David to push her. As I rolled up the hill beside them, feeling the momentary drag as the motors on my electric wheelchair began to work harder, I was sorry, but not surprised, that Gloria’s expectations had been met so quickly.

At the top of the hill, Gloria tried simultaneously to open the heavy, wooden door of the music building, push her wheelchair up and over a 1⁄ 2-inch threshold, and enter the building. From a seated position, she didn’t have the strength, nor the leverage, to do all three things at once and again had to ask for David’s help. Even with his assistance, the raised threshold was difficult and timeconsuming to negotiate. After trying unsuccessfully

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several times to push her wheelchair straight over the threshold, David carefully tipped the wheelchair onto its back wheels and rolled Gloria through the door. Then he held the door open as I drove my wheelchair back and forth several times before gaining enough momentum to jump the threshold.

It took five minutes for all of us to get in.

We faced a long ramp that led directly into the concert hall. Eager to regain her independence, yet unfamiliar with how to steer or stop a wheelchair, Gloria suddenly pushed herself down the ramp, started veering from side to side, and then lost control as the chair went faster and faster. She tried to stop the wheelchair by grabbing the rail alongside the ramp, but she had already built up too much momentum. David had to run down to the bottom of the ramp and stop her before she reached a flight of steps, approximately ten feet away. “It was scary,” Gloria told us afterward.

“I thought I was just going to flip over.”

David opened both the large double doors of the concert hall, propping one door with his foot, and holding the other with his out-stretched hand, while we rolled under his arm and through the entrance. Inside, there was no designated seating for people in wheelchairs, nor any space by existing seats for disabled and able-bodied people to sit together. Even though we came in together, Gloria and I would have had to sit alone, at the opposite edges of the aisle, near both entrances. We rolled straight down the aisle and left through the opposite door, only to find ourselves at a dead end— surrounded on three sides by three flights of steps.

Exasperated, Gloria said, “I can’t go up, I can’t go

down. I wouldn’t be able to get to the bathroom.”

(Currently, there is no way for students who use wheelchairs to access any of the bathrooms or classrooms in the music building. During performances and other official functions, disabled students must go down to Cowell if they need to use an accessible bathroom.)

To reach our second designation—Haas Pavilion—we retraced the route back through the concert hall, out the double doors, up the ramp, over the threshold, out the back door of the music building, and down the hill. Although the music building and Haas are just across the street and only a minute’s walk from one another, because the accessible entrances are at the back of each building, the wheelchair route is far longer, less direct, and takes at least twenty minutes to negotiate in a manual chair.

David pushed Gloria’s wheelchair down the long, slippery grade and momentarily hesitated at the corner—tree roots had crumpled the pavement like paper, making it dangerous and totally inaccessible. We crossed over and passed Lucie Stern Hall, rolling in the street perhaps a hundred feet before finding a ramp up to the sidewalk. At Olin Library, we turned left, re-crossed the street, and headed toward Haas. Although the rain was heavier now, and large puddles had formed where tree roots had puckered the sidewalk, Gloria insisted on pushing herself. Unable to go straight over the bumpy pavement, she went slowly around some puddles, through others, and almost tipped forward several times after her front wheels hit tree roots or other obstacles hidden under the water.

It took us half an hour to reach the front of Haas.

Tired, wet, and frustrated, Gloria asked David to run ahead to find the accessible entrance, and then to push her there.

A long, gray, wooden ramp led up to the deserted back entrance of Haas. Earlier, Ruth Masayko had told us that although access phones had been installed at this location several times, they had repeatedly been vandalized. When the back door was left unlocked, equipment had been stolen from the gym. Now, this entrance was always locked, and anyone requiring access had to knock loudly enough to alert coaching staff in the front offices or other students in the gym. Today, Ruth had called ahead and asked Mills’ public safety department to unlock the door. After David pushed Gloria up the ramp, she rolled herself inside. Nevertheless, she wasn’t sure that she could have propelled herself up the ramp and commented apprehensively, “If the door had been locked, I don’t think anyone would have heard me banging on the door.”

We saw only one woman working in the weight room as we rolled our wheelchairs easily down the hallway that circled around the main floor and back into the basketball court. There was no way for a person in a wheelchair to access the other level nor use the bathrooms in Haas. Nevertheless, Haas had hosted a number of wheelchair basketball games.

It was almost four o’clock. Gloria, a Hispanic studies major, didn’t want to be late for the reception honoring Cristina Garcia, well-known author of Dreaming in Cuban. In two hours, we had only been able to see the Cowell Center, where Disabled Students’ Services are located, and parts of the two buildings nearest to it, the music building and Haas.

“I could see how someone [in a wheelchair] might feel frustrated or angry,” Gloria said as she left.

“Things are happening in your life—there are finals, there are midterms, there are papers, there are lectures. Then you have to go out and [take a route that takes] five times longer to get to the next class.”

Disabled Student Services at Mills Ruth Masayko, a disabilities specialist and a woman with a non-apparent disability, started Disabled Student Services (DSS) at Mills in 1992.

In the fall of 1990, after working for eight years for Disabled Services at Los Medonas Community College, she returned to Mills as a Mary Atkins woman to pursue her bachelor’s degree. After graduating from Mills, she went to St. Mary’s College and received a master’s degree in special education with dual emphases on non-apparent disabilities and disabilities and higher education.

While attending Mills in 1991, Ruth noticed many physical access problems as well as programmatic access problems. Professors weren’t providing

Unable to go straight over the bumpy pavement, she almost tipped forward several times after her front wheels hit obstacles hidden under the water. students with disabilities adequate and appropriate accommodations, for example, note-takers and readers. First hired for a work-study position, after receiving her degree Ruth was hired permanently.

She started DSS in 1992, with 38 students.

Now, DSS serves about 140 students with a range of disabilities such as learning disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorder, psychological disabilities, and visual and hearing impairments. Mobilityimpaired students use canes, crutches, wheelchairs, M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY FA L L 2 0 0 1

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and scooters. Others have chronic disabilities such as lupus, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia syndrome, carpal tunnel, and arthritis. In spite of disabilities, many of these students have excelled academically; since May, 1992, 15 DSS students have been elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Of those 15, 11 were students with learning disabilities.

Many women who come to DSS as juniors and seniors say they should have sought help much earlier. Yet, they were afraid of the social stigma that is often associated with people who have psychological or learning disabilities. “We really have more difficulty advocating for students with nonapparent disabilities than we do for students who have apparent disabilities,” Ruth says. “The attitude is, ‘If you can’t see it, it must not be real’.”

Ruth’s job not only involves familiarity with specific disabilities but also with laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which apply to all institutions of higher learning, regardless of

“It is extremely frustrating that physical access is so costly,” Ruth says. “If we had the funding, Mills would be totally accessible.”

whether they receive federal funds. “Students with disabilities don’t come into the school on an even plane with the rest. That’s what the laws are all about—creating equal access and equal opportunity.”

Before becoming eligible to receive services from DSS, a student must first disclose her disability and then provide DSS with official documentation verifying that disability. DSS keeps this information strictly confidential and shares it with other college personnel on a need-to-know basis only. Once eligibility is established, DSS issues individualized memos to a student’s instructors certifying her disability and stating the reasonable accommodations that she requires.

Because they are contingent upon each student’s disability, reasonable accommodations vary. Sometimes, the same accommodation may be appropriate for students with different disabilities.

A book on tape, for example, may be used by students with visual impairments, learning, or physical disabilities. Other accommodations, such as sign language interpretation, are disability specific.

Reasonable accommodations may include providing accessible classrooms and housing, auxiliary aids (note-takers, readers, lab or library assistants), assistive computer technology, assistive listening

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devices, material in alternative formats, and/or alternative ways of completing assignments and exams.

Although the ADA requires program accessibility as well as physical accessibility at private institutions like Mills, which serve the public, it does not earmark any federal funds to make these accommodations.

Currently, Mills has a compliance plan to make existing buildings accessible to disabled students as long as access is readily achievable and doesn’t create an undue financial burden. The greatest challenge DSS faces is finding private funding sources to make Mills physically accessible. “It is extremely frustrating that physical access is so costly,” Ruth says. “If we had the funding, Mills would be totally accessible.”

DSS has benefited from the strong tradition of women helping women at Mills. Donations from alumnae funded the DSS lab, which has two computers, reading machines, and adaptive software for students with visual impairments and learning disabilities, as well as listening amplification equipment for students who are hearing impaired.

Though much more has to be done to make Mills physically accessible, Ruth wants alumnae to know that DSS is a strong advocate for students with disabilities, and that there has been progress.

“My greatest accomplishment has been the program itself,” she says. “The women who have helped build the program are phenomenal.

They’ve helped me educate the Mills community, and they’ve never given up.”

Many comments from disabled students highlight their continuing frustration with access problems that still exist on campus. Eliza Riley, now a sophomore in theater arts who uses a manual wheelchair, says campus accessibility has “very much affected my studies.”

Unpaved roads and exposed tree roots were two of the reasons why she thought about not coming to Mills. Because performing onstage is an integral part of her major, Eliza is frustrated by the difficulties in accessing Lisser Theater. Yet, she is encouraged by her interactions with drama department students, faculty, and staff. “They have helped me figure out how to be in each performance and take the classes I need,” she says. Though Eliza is pleased that a new, accessible makeup room has been built downstairs, she nevertheless says, “There is no easy way for me and my wheelchair to get on the stage. There is no wheelchair seating in the theater.”

Cynthia Cooper, an MFA graduate student in creative writing, describes the two weeks she spent in a manual wheelchair after breaking her foot as a constant state of frustration. She couldn’t get into the bookstore, negotiate the narrow aisles, or buy books independently. Ultimately, DSS was able to provide a student to assist Cynthia.

L. Natasha Littletree, a graduate student pursu-

ing her MFA in creative writing, gets around campus in a manual wheelchair pushed by her care provider. One evening, Natasha took me on the roundabout accessible route between Mills Hall and Lucie Stern, pointing out positive and negative attributes along the way. If she has night classes, she has no trouble finding a disabled parking space behind Mills Hall. During the day, however, these spaces are usually taken. “Mills Hall, in general, is the most accessible building I have seen here,” she said as we rolled up the ramp, and through the entrance.

“The restrooms in Mills Hall are the best on campus, and the elevator always works,” she told me.

To get to Lucie Stern, we left Mills Hall and rolled back toward Adams Plaza. (The most direct route would have taken us across a new bridge that leads to a flight of stairs.) We crossed an old wooden bridge and rolled onto a bumpy, broken sidewalk that led past the parking lot, and eventually, to the back entrance of Lucie Stern. The trip took us twenty minutes. Natasha showed me a long, narrow classroom with a large, oval table.

Even empty, the room was much too small and cramped for our wheelchairs to enter. The tour aptly demonstrated why Natasha requests a change of venue whenever her classes are held in Lucie Stern Hall.

When she says, “We need more reasonably smooth and direct paths between buildings, and more reasonably approachable, navigable, findable entrances which are not locked!” Ms. Littletree voices the most prevalent and pressing concerns of many students at Mills who have physical disabilities. She also cautions people not to make assumptions: “…You have to experience, more than experience, spend half your life in a wheelchair, to know how unpaved ground feels, to know what it’s like looking for a parking space and having to push a mile to class. You need to know what it’s like being in the skin of a disabled person in a wheelchair, or on crutches, when you are staring from the bottom of thirty steps, knowing after you’ve pushed a mile you’re already fifteen minutes late for your first class.”

PROGRESS!

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ince Carla-Helen Toth’s and Gloria Espinoza’s wheel-chair tour in April, 2001, significant improvements have been made to Haas Pavilion and other buildings on campus. Over the sum-

mer, an elevator was installed at the front of Haas Pavilion, making both levels of the building accessible. Bathroom accessibility at Haas was also upgraded, in addition to other improvements to the building, including a new dance studio and expansion of the fitness room.

Orchard Meadow Hall is under renovation, and when it reopens in the fall of 2002, the residence hall will be completely accessible. Orchard Meadow’s neighbor, Warren Olney Hall, is currently completely accessible. A ramp is being constructed at the front of the Student Union, scheduled for completion in November of this year. Adams Plaza will be extended to connect with the front of the Student Union.

Every major renovation at Mills includes plans to bring the building into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and every new building is designed with accessibility in mind.

The newest buildings on campus, the three that make up the education complex, are all completely accessible.

In 1996 two new buildings were added to the art complex, the graduate studios building and the sculpture building, both of which have accessible entrances and bathrooms. The Trefethen Aquatic

Construction of the elevator for Haas Pavilion, as it looked this summer.

Center, completed in 1998, features entrance ramps and lifts into the pool for the disabled, as well as accessible showers and bathrooms.

The next big project on campus will be the renovation of the music building, an architectural masterpiece that is nonetheless fraught with accessibility problems. In 1928, when the building was constructed, a floor plan on 13 different levels that included gracious staircases was not considered a problem. Today it is. The first phase of the $18 million project was finished this summer. It involved major upgrades and

PAUL D. RICHARDS

soundproofing of the concert hall as well as seismic work. When the Environmentalist, poet, and writer Carla-Helen Toth graduated from UC Berkeley’s Conservation Resource Studies with a BS in American environmental history, philosophy and ethics. She has been published in the Berkeley Ecology Center’s Terrain, the Center for Accessible Technology’s Real Times, and Integrated Art’s Barriers: Conversations/Images/Signs.

renovation is complete, the historic building will be earthquake-safe and completely accessible.

Mills Hall, which reopened in 1994 after an extensive renovation, is now one of the most accessible buildings on campus. Among other projects undertaken in the ’90s, a stair-climber was installed in the chemistry-physics-math building, and a ramp was installed at the front of the Mills chapel. The College’s goal is to make Mills completely accessible to those with physical disabilities.

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THE MILLS LONGITUDINAL STUDY FOLLOWING THE LIVES OF MILLS WOMEN FOR FORTY YEARS AND MORE B Y R AV E N N A H E L S O N , P h D

Levinson, George Vaillant, and others did pioneering research on men’s lives. The Mills study had been quiescent from 1964–81, but now I re-envisioned it as a longitudinal study of women’s adult development.

(A longitudinal study is one that examines the development of groups or persons over time.) We asked the 140 women who had come to one of our testing sessions as college seniors to become the participants in this study. In 1980 the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) funded our proposal to do a follow up study of these women, then in their early 40s, and NIMH subsequently funded additional follow-ups when they were in their early 50s and, most recently, early 60s. In 1998–99, our most recent time of testing, we obtained materials from 110 women, most of whom spent a day with us at the Institute, now

renamed the Institute of Personality and Social Research (IPSR). It was a great pleasure to greet in person the women whose lives we had been studying, many of whom I had known only by correspondence.

Today the Mills study is one of the major longitudinal studies of lives through time. We have published 78 articles and book chapters, and our findings are discussed in textbooks on personality and adult development.

The study has been outstandingly productive for a number of reasons.

One is the fascinating period of social history over which these women’s lives have been studied. Another is the interest, articulateness, and life style diversity of the Mills women themselves. Another factor is our distinctive methods: we have combined objective inventory and demographic data with open-ended material and

Judy Rapp Smith, ’60 There were times in the past four decades when I was totally disinterested in participating, but more recently, I realized how fortunate I am to have these life benchmarks documented, and how enlightening it is to look back and have a greater understanding of how I got to be the person I am now. I think I am better able to be a wise advisor to my daughters because of it. I have a better, more realistic perspective

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on my own developmental process.

FAR LEFT: PEG SKORPINSKI

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n 1957 the Institute of Personality Assessment and Research at the University of California, Berkeley, was beginning its well-known studies of creative personality.

One part of this program was my study of “creativity, leadership, and plans for the future in modern young women.” The participants were members of the Mills Class of 1958.

Two years later I repeated the study with members of the Class of 1960.

Mills seniors were invited to large testing sessions held on campus, where questionnaires were distributed.

This was a period of history in which gender roles were strictly defined, and creativity and leadership were ascribed to men. Nevertheless, we found creative personality to be well represented in Mills women, and quite a few had at least guarded ambitions as well.

A few years later, in 1963–64, I did a follow-up study of the original participants, conducted primarily by mail.

At that time, the Institute was still focused on creativity and leadership.

My main interest was whether women’s ambitions would survive the exigencies of early marriage and childrearing. In retrospect, this was a time when many women were feeling peak vulnerability. Nobody knew that the women’s movement was about to burst forth and that gender roles would change a great deal over the next decades.

In the 1970s there was much interest in adult development. Dan

Diana Odermatt, ’60 I remember that at the beginning of the study, when we were still students at Mills, rumor had it that we were taking part in a study on creativity. Many of my friends and I were guessing who would be considered a “subject” and who would be a “control.” I was sure that I had to be in the control group because I felt so many of my friends were so much more creative.

TOP: PEG SKORPINSKI

complex questions. We have gathered a large amount of information, because lives are complex and we believe that much information is essential to the study. Our data and research agenda have attracted talented young psychologists to work with us. Finally, we have benefited from the good work of the Alumnae Association in keeping up with Mills graduates, and from the support of IPSR and NIMH. So What Do We Study?

At the abstract level, our main subject is the extent to which adult personality, especially women’s personality, is capable of change, and the factors that are associated with this change.

Freud said that women were particularly unlikely to grow after age 30, and William James said that in both men and women personality was “set like plaster” after age 30. Some leading personality psychologists continue to maintain this point of view. Our position is that personality is highly consistent over time but does change as people’s resources change and as they adapt to environmental challenges.

We have learned this from our Mills sample, who grew up in the traditional 1950s and entered an adult world that expected early marriage and many children. However, as young adults, many of these women began to challenge much that they had taken for granted. As one woman said, “As soon as we learned the step, they changed the dance.” Thus, at a more

concrete level, we study the bio-social and historical contexts that have shaped the personalities of the Mills women, and the personality characteristics that lead different woman to experience these contexts differently.

Findings About Personality Change in Most People We have shown that the Mills sample as a whole changed in personality over each period of life that we have examined, and recently we have done pioneering collaborative studies to show that much of this change is common across cohort (generational group), gender, and sample. For example, most people decline in social vivacity and increase in self control as they age. However, much personality change is not linear. Across samples, people tend to increase in dominance in middle age and then decline. One unusual feature of the Mills findings is the sharpness of this increase, but to understand why it was sharp we need to consider the contexts of personality change.

Bio-social and Historical Contexts Personality does not develop in an environmental vacuum. Our understanding of generational influences was facilitated by 700 Mills alumnae older and younger than our longitudinal sample who filled out a questionnaire from the Mills Quarterly in 1983.

Their responses showed how age at marriage, number of children, and labor force participation had changed

over six decades. We have also collaborated with other longitudinal studies, especially the study of the Radcliffe Class of 1964. In several articles we have shown similar patterns of relationship across the Mills and Radcliffe samples, even though the Radcliffe women entered the adult world with heightened feminist awareness and professional orientations.

Though 50 percent of the women in our longitudinal sample expected to have four or more children when they were college seniors, only five percent actually had four or more children; 42 percent had two children. How soon and how many of the women in our sample would participate in the labor force was one of the important factors in their subsequent personality change. The sharp increase in dominance in the Mills sample in early middle age is attributable in part to the many women who increased their level of paid work at this time, as their children grew older, inflation threatened, the divorce rate rose, and as opportunities opened up in the 1970s.

Other social or biosocial factors that we have studied include gender (for example, did wives and husbands change in ways that were the same or different?), period of life (did our sample change in different ways over young adulthood and middle age?), and cultural influences (did women who found the Women’s Movement important show distinctive patterns of personality change?).

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Judy Greenwood Jones, ’60 I’ve considered it a great privilege to be a part of this study. It has been a lot of work, but how often does someone have the opportunity to stand back and look objectively at her own life? I have actually made some changes in my life because of the study. Because of some of the questions we were asked, I realized that I wasn’t spending enough time with my closest friends and with the people that I most respected, and I changed that.

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Personality Factors That Affect Change Just as personality does not develop in an environmental vacuum, social factors do not operate in a personality vacuum. The Mills study has developed constructs and measures of several “master traits” that enable us to study how the individual selects environments and guides her own development. For example, Eva Klohnen developed a scale to measure ego-resilience, an important personality resource that enables individuals to negotiate their lives competently and adaptively under changing conditions. She used this scale to show that whether middle age is a time for closing down and drying up or a time for new challenges and enjoyment of new opportunities depends on (among other things) one’s level of ego-resilience.

Klohnen recruited the help of colleagues from the Radcliffe Longitudinal Study. Both Mills women and Radcliffe women who were high in ego-resilience at age 43 tended to have high satisfaction in work and relationships in later middle age. For Mills women there was sufficient data to show that high-scorers in ego-resilience actually increased in work and relational satisfactions over this period, whereas low-scorers stayed the same or decreased. One can imagine that life with adolescent

children was hectic at age 43, but that as children left home, resilient women took the opportunity to improve their relationships or the quality of their career investment, whereas those low in resilience were not able to make these changes.

Other studies find that egoresilience itself increases or decreases as one handles life tasks with greater or lesser success. Jennifer Pals showed that the Mills women whose identity was restricted or confused in the early years of marriage decreased in ego-resilience from ages 21 to 27.

However, some of these women made “comebacks” at later periods.

Consistency of Personality Along with attention to factors and processes involved in personality change, we study consistency of personality. For example, Mills women who have had creative careers were described quite similarly at ages 21 and 43: as interesting and arresting individuals, as having high aspirations, showing unusual thought processes, and being unconventional in outlook. What factors maintain consistency of personality? Certainly, genetic factors are important, but interpersonal processes are also involved. A recent study of 1958 and 1960 yearbook photographs shows that the warmth of a Mills senior’s smile (which can be precisely

BETH JOHNSON, ’84

In one such investigation, Paul Wink and I studied how the Mills women and their male partners differed in personality in 1963-64, when their average ages were 27 and 31, and how they differed in 1989, when their average ages were 52 and 56.

This information came from their selfdescriptions on the Adjective Check List (ACL). In young adulthood, wives described themselves as more dependent and affiliative and husbands described themselves as more competent. In mature middle age, primarily because of very large changes in women’s self-descriptions, men and women did not differ. Almost all of the women showed these changes, regardless of family or work status.

The large changes in how women described themselves suggested that generational factors may have contributed. Because a subsample of the Mills women’s parents had provided ACL self-descriptions in the early 1960s, we were able to compare mothers and fathers to their daughters and their husbands. At average ages 52 and 56, the parents still showed the gender differences that their daughters and their partners had shown in young adulthood. The mothers of Mills women were less well educated than their husbands and few of them had been in the labor force.

That was part of what it meant to be a member of an earlier generation.

measured in terms of facial muscles involved) was related to factors including the young woman’s friendliness at the time, as measured by the ACL, to how much undergraduates of today imagined they would like to spend time with her, and to her wellbeing 30 years after her picture was taken. The interpretation was that emotional expressions signal an individual’s personality to others, who respond in ways that confirm our personality dispositions.

Personality Development We have also studied various aspects of maturity, such as effectiveness, generativity (the ability to care about others and the future), wisdom, and spirituality. A recent study identifies three kinds of positive adult development, labeled as Conservers,

Seekers, and Achievers. Each of these groups had distinctive longterm patterns of emotional regulation and identity. The findings suggest that there are different ways to live a good life, each with trade-offs: Conservers are high on effectiveness but tend to shut out too much; Seekers are high on wisdom but often achieve less than they could; and Achievers are high on generativity and effectiveness but may sacrifice relational closeness in the interests of achieving their goals.

Present Activities and Future Plans The age-61 follow-up is leading to interesting findings. One, for example, is that relational satisfaction has increased significantly since age 43.

Professor Oliver John has been a co-director of the Mills study for the

last several years, and he will become director next spring. We expect to have an age-70 follow-up of our wonderful Mills group. We anticipate learning about aspects of aging from this phase of the longitudinal study.

As these women enter their 70s, new opportunities may combine in unexpected ways with the hazards and losses of the later years of life.

An honorary member of the Mills Class of 1960, Ravenna Helson earned a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley and taught at Smith College. She is currently research psychologist at the Institute of Personality and Social Research and has received many awards for her work both before and after the Mills study came to prominence.

Ann Markewitz, ’60 Participating in the study is hard work. Imagine receiving a large packet of materials in the mail about every 10 years with a deadline for completing and returning them. Inside you find the California Psychological Inventory, a Myers-Briggs, or other similar inventories.

(That’s the easy work.)

Then there are pages of questions requiring you to explore virtually every aspect of your life—values, relationships, choices, career-family issues, sexuality, health, money, and much, much more. To answer you must reach back into your life over the last decade or over many decades. Completing the task takes days.

The study is rather like having a “therapist” one visits every 10 years or so. It provides an opportunity to examine your life RIGHT: RAY MANLEY PORTRAITS

experiences and develop new perspectives and insights. I know that participation has deepened my self-awareness and my understanding of family and friends. I developed a much greater appreciation of my mother after describing the 40-year evolution of our relationship.

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Two Tributes to Madeleine Milhaud An Ode to Our Madeleine — Exultant at 100! by Katherine “Kit” Farrow Jorrens, ’57

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s a former student of Madeleine Milhaud’s modern French drama and poetry course in 1954–1955, I rejoice in offering this personal vignette to honor our remarkable and resilient Grande Dame of the Arts. Today, Madeleine at 100 still reigns in her quartier on the Boulevard de Clichy in Paris where in the early 1920s she and her husband, the foremost French composer, Darius Milhaud, began their luminous collaboration of over 50 years! Following the outbreak of World War II, the Milhauds came to the United States and began their extraordinary teaching at Mills College. Legions of undergraduate and graduate students in the language and music departments reaped the enormous benefits of their presence on the Mills campus.

Imagine my anticipation, when as a sophomore majoring in French, I entered Madeleine’s classroom for the first time in September, 1954, to explore the wonders and mysteries of 19th and 20th century French drama and poetry. There she was, our petite, captivating Madame Milhaud, exuding her immense energy and warmth. From the start, she encouraged her fledgling students to take wing and to prepare and savor aloud selections assigned for class. A superb actress, Madeleine offered us the boundless gifts of her own readings, which filled the ear with the sublime music of the spoken word. The haunting opening quatrain of Charles Baudelaire’s sonnet, “Recueillement” from Les Fleurs du Mal will forever resonate in my memory . . .

Sois sage, ô ma Douleur, et tiens-toi plus tranquille.

Tu réclamais le Soir; il descent; le voici: Une atmosphère obscure enveloppe la ville, Aux uns portant la paix, aux autres le souci.

We fledgling students took wing and journeyed with Madeleine into the world of the symbolist poets Paul Verlaine, Arthur Rimbaud, and Stéphane Mallarmé, surrealist Guillaume Apollinaire, and classicist Paul Valéry.

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Later she was to introduce us to the riveting, transcendent world of the modern French theater through works of Paul Claudel, Jean Cocteau, Jean Giraudoux, Jean Anouilh, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Albert Camus.

Madeleine often invited our group of devoted students to her home in Faculty Village for sunlit afternoon sessions on the patio while Darius Milhaud, mostly confined to his wheelchair because of a crippling onset of arthritis, and his music students wrote and performed inside.

This exhilarating accompaniment to our own readings of the day transported us altogether into another dimension and realm of the senses.

In 1917, Milhaud had become an attaché to the French Legation in Brazil under Paul Claudel, the French Ambassador, a poet and dramatist whose verses Milhaud had previously set to music. It was the convergence and interweaving of these two worlds of literature and music with Darius and Madeleine Milhaud that emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually were to have such a profound impact on my later life when I became a French and ESL instructor and a life-long choral singer.

In the fall of 1954, Darius and Madeleine Milhaud urged me to hear the Dave Brubeck Quartet at the Black Hawk Club in San Francisco. This was an extra-

ordinary discovery, for Dave had been Darius Milhaud’s student of composition and jazz following World War II, and was on the threshold of his own brilliant career in music, thanks to his teacher and mentor at Mills. Since that moment nearly 50 years ago, Dave, now 80, and I have shared a deep bonding of the spirit.

As a member of the Concord Chorus and the Harvard Unitarian Church Choir here in New England, I have had the immense joy of singing several of Dave’s glorious choral works!

In the spring of my sophomore year at Mills, Madeleine suggested that I apply to the outstanding Sweet Briar Junior Year in France Program where sublime adventures and challenges awaited me. I spent six weeks in the city of Tours before being placed with my French family in the heart of Paris. To my great delight, the Milhauds were also in Paris, since they returned every other year from Mills to teach at the Paris Conservatory.

This magical timing was to bring us back together for memorable evenings at concerts, at the Comédie Française, at the Théâtre Nationale Populaire, or at the Milhauds’ apartment on the Boulevard de Clichy, where so many pilgrimages were made. This magical pattern was repeated when upon graduation from Mills in June, 1957, I was awarded the Aurelia Henry Reinhardt Faculty Purse for overseas graduate study and returned to join my French family and the Milhauds once again.

I met my German husband, Peter Jorrens, in 1958, in southern France.

Peter and I used our common language, French, to celebrate and rejoice in each other. This love of language has continued to play such a vital role in my personal and professional life.

Dave Brubeck and his lyricist wife, Iola, joined our magnificent Madeleine in Paris just after her 100th birthday on March 22nd. Since our early days at Mills College, we are forever blessed to have had this valiant lady touch our lives so deeply.

For the past 20 years Katherine “Kit” Farrow Jorrens, ’57, has taught French and ESL to an extended family of students from around the world at Language School International in Acton, MA.

A Visit with Madeleine Milhaud, April 19, 2001 by Iola Brubeck

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fficially, I was never a student of Madeleine Milhaud at Mills, and to my everlasting shame I cannot converse with her in her native language.

Nevertheless, I have been studying Madeleine Milhaud since I first met her in 1946. I made the decision, then, that she was a lady I should aspire to emulate. I saw in her petite, still youthful body such beauty, vitality, brilliance, and passion that I probably should have felt quite intimidated by her. I was rightfully humbled, but never intimidated by this powerful personality, because it was so bountifully leavened with wit, common sense, and compassion. Over the subsequent years my original impression of Madame Milhaud deepened. I observed the loving relationship in her marriage to Darius, so unselfishly providing inspiration and creature comfort throughout his life. Today and every day she continues to zealously champion his music.

Our first child, born in 1947, was named Darius, and for good reason. The Milhauds were simply the greatest influence on our lives in those post-war years, when Dave and I were graduate students at Mills. Had the child been a girl, no doubt she would have been a Madeleine.

Shortly after her 100th birthday this spring, Dave and I wrote to Madeleine that we were coming to Paris and called her from Brussels a few days before our arrival to arrange a visit. Her schedule, she said, was still in flux, and would we call again when we arrived, which, of course, we did. Since Dave had a concert at the Olympia Theatre the following day, I suggested that we go out to dinner that evening.

“Oh, so sorry. I already have a dinner engagement that night.”

“How about tomorrow for lunch?” we asked.

“Oh, my dears! I see that I have a luncheon engagement. Can you come in the morning around eleven?”

“Of course.”

“You know the code number. Just come up the stairs.”

Like school children fearful of displeasing the teacher, we nervously watched the minutes as our taxi threaded through crowded Paris streets to the dis-

trict of Pigalle, where Madame Milhaud resides. Walking through the doors that have welcomed the greatest painters, composers, dancers, actors, poets, and authors of the 20th century, one senses the history and conversations that have taken place inside these walls.

Diminutive, but not frail, she embraced each of us, stretching up as far as her small frame could reach, while we bent as low as our long arthritic backs could bend. We settled in our chairs, she seated below a portrait of her husband painted by their artist son, Daniel, and we talked about the current happenings in the world. We exchanged news of mutual friends, former students, and family, our conversation repeatedly interrupted by the telephone. In response to each call, Madeleine sprang from her chair. On one such trip across the hardwood floors she remarked, “You know, I pay someone to call so it appears that I am important.”

At one point in our conversation she reached for her address book at a desk nearby and began riffling through the pages rapidly. “I want to show you. I have here in my book a photo of you and all your family.” A quick search did not produce the picture, and she put down the book with a sigh. She displayed an open page with blank spaces, pieces of white tape pasted over old names and addresses. The expression on her face was a strange mixture of sadness and amusement. “When you are my age,” she said, “going through an old address book is like visiting a cemetery.”

I thought to myself, “That must be the one regret of such a fruitful long life—that so few, who have been challenged, inspired, and enlightened by her, remain to share the memories of Mills and 10 Boulevard de Clichy.” But, no.

That was a transient and errant thought.

Madeleine Milhaud at 100 years of age is living as we all should, in this day, this hour, in this moment. I am still learning from this magnificent woman.

Iola Brubeck was a graduate student at Mills in 1947. Dave Brubeck, who was granted an honorary doctorate by Mills in 1982, was a student of Darius Milhaud at Mills in 1946 and 1947.

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PASSAGES Gifts in Honor of AAMC Staff

by Joan Thompson Armstrong, ’51, and Adrienne White Suzanne Adams, ’48,

by Paul and Joan Thompson Armstrong, ’51, Toni Renee Vierra, ’98, and Betsy Taves Whitman, ’46 Nancy Avakian-Thompson, ’72,

by Elizabeth Avakian Warner, ’76 Phyllis Cole Bader, ’35, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Gail Blackmarr, ’79, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Ruth Blandford, ’25, by Phyllis Cole Bader, ’35 Barcelona May Boyd by Bill and Brandy Tuzon Boyd, ’91 Anne Gillespie Brown, ’68,

by Paula Merrix Sporck, ’46 Dave Brubeck, ’46,

by Jennifer Turney, ’86 Charming Cottages tour volunteers by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Class of 1991

by Juniper Neill, ’91 Katherine Crum,

by Suzanne Adams, ’48 Barbara Evans, ’63, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Elizabeth Frederick, ’61,

by Ann Gordon Bigler, ’61 David Garfinkel

by Judith Goldman Garfinkel, ’51 Tom Garfinkel

by Judith Goldman Garfinkel, ’51 Constance Gilbert, ’61,

by Ann Gordon Bigler, ’61 Dr. Bertram Gordon by Peggy Weber, ’65, and Bob Whitlock Kathryn Hall

by Peggy Weber, ’65 Marian Hirsch, ’79, by the Palo Alto Area Mills College Club Joanne Iskiwitch

by Judith Goldman Garfinkel, ’51 Harriet Isom, ’58,

by Peggy Weber, ’65 Beth Johnson, ’84,

by Michele Murphy, ’89, Paula Merrix Sporck, ’46, and Ariel Eaton Thomas, ’63 Shirley Hooten Kelly, ’63,

by Seiko Kawasaki Tamura, ’62 Jane Cudlip King, ’42, by the Palo Alto Area Mills

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College Club Karen May, ’86,

by Paula Merrix Sporck, ’46 Peter Michell

by Peggy Weber, ’65 MOHR

by Ann Gordon Bigler, ’61 Wendy Ng, ’79,

by Patricia Yoshida Orr, ’63 Thoraya Obaid, ’66, by Gwendolyn Jackson Foster, ’67 Sally Millett Rau, ’51,

by Edith Mori Young, ’51 Aviance Rhome, ’98,

by Breonna Cole, ’00 Donna Riback, ’61,

by Ann Gordon Bigler, ’61 Jane Rule, ’52,

by Edith Mori Young, ’51 Cristine Russell, ’71,

by Peggy Weber, ’65 Norris Murphy Sartin, ’45,

by Helen Haigh Mills, MA ’46 Kristin Schnepp, ’91,

by Ruth Stroup, ’91 Evelyn Sharp, ’33,

by Bertram Gordon Clare Springs, ’66, by Peggy Weber, ’65, and Bob Whitlock Sue Bengston Steele, ’42,

by Jane Cudlip King, ’42 Sharon Tatai, ’80,

by Carolyn Nissen Rathbun, ’68, and Paula Merrix Sporck, ’46 Jeanne Thomas, ’51,

by Betty Hoffmayr Reeds, ’51 Shirley Weishaar

by Mary Schmidt, ’91 Reynold Wik

by Katherine Farrow Jorrens, ’57

Gifts in Memory of Betty Mathew Adams, ’52,

by June Bilisoly, ’52, and Barbara Smith Brown, ’52 Nancy Grove Ahrens by Georgian Simmonds Bahlke, ’51 Zella Travers Arnold, ’35,

by Harriett Covey Francis and Eleanor Avakian

by Elizabeth Avakian Warner, ’76 Marillyn Harris Baker, ’47,

by Robert Baker Virginia Boardman Baker, ’31,

by Jane Boardman Mowry, ’54 Kathryn Uhl Ball, ’32,

by Madeleine Ebbesen Davis, ’46 Noah Baum

by Willa Klug Baum, MA ’50 Patricia Widdifield Bethel, ’67, by Gwendolyn Jackson Foster, ’67 Alice Vidoroni Bevan, ’45, by Isabelle Hagopian Arabian, ’45 Gustav Breuer by Alice Putnam Erskine, ’31, MA ’35 Byron Brown

by Lynne Boyer, ’71, MFA ’76 Nancy Wise Brownlee, ’51,

by Nancy Kenealy Soper, ’51 Georgine Porter Caldecott, ’39,

by Pauline Trabucco, ’39 Mary Lou Stueck Cunningham, ’51, by Pamela Moore Bondelie, ’51, and Eileen Forsythe Jenkel, ’51 John Curtiss

by Camilla Austin Andrews, ’43 Derwent S. Davies by Derwent Craven Bowen, ’65 Evelyn Deane, ’41,

by Robina Royer ’80, June Holden Schneider, ’43, and Katharine Mulky Warne, ’45 Anne Ritter Farr, ’30,

by Susan Farr Armstrong, ’62 Jeanne Beaumont Featherstonehaugh, ’41,

by Phyllis Carman Marling, ’41 Joy Waltke Fisher, ’55,

by Diane Smith Janusch, ’55 Beverly Mater Folger, ’56,

by Judith Ireland, ’56 James Fossen

by Jane Fossen, ’91 Doris and Howard “Jim” Frederick

by Ann Gordon Bigler, ’61 Dr. Barbara Garcia by Janis Goldbaum Hernandez, ’67, and Sharon Heaton Kinney, ’56 William and Helen Gaw

by Jane Farrell Gaw, ’52

Thalia Gouma-Peterson, ’54, MA ’57 Thalia Gouma-Peterson, ’54, MA ’57, died on June 20, 2001. She was born in Athens, Greece, and came to the United States in 1952 as a Fulbright scholar. She received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Mills in art history and earned a doctorate in Byzantine studies from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She was Professor of Art for 32 years at the College of Wooster. As director of the College of Wooster Art Museum in the 1980s, she gained national attention by showcasing works of contemporary women artists such as Faith Ringgold, Audrey Flack, and Hung Liu. Her writings concentrated on her interests in contemporary women artists and on Byzantine art and history. Her last book, Anna Komnene and Her Times, a collection of essays about a 12th-century Byzantine princess and author, was published last year by Garland Press. Miriam Schapiro: Shaping the Fragments of Art and Life, a book about a contemporary artist, was also published recently.

Dr. Gouma-Peterson is survived by her husband, Professor Carl Peterson, two sons, her mother, three grandchildren, and a brother.

by Mary Hart Clark, ’42 Madeline Clark Devine, ’39,

by Pauline Trabucco, ’39 Grace Searing Dhaemers, ’62,

by Susan Farr Armstrong, ’62 Carroll Donner, ’51,

by Page Swift, ’51 Jane Dornacker

by Shannon Batson, ’81 Joan Strauss Douglas, ’46, by Madeleine Ebbesen Davis, ’46 Patricia Nixon Dutra, ’48, by Roy and Mary Crawford Anderson, ’48 Caroline Plumb Easton, ’56,

by Susan Long, ’56 Acacia Wing Ebbesen, ’46, by Madeleine Ebbesen Davis, ’46 Alfred Evans

Pearl Gilbreath by Pamela Rorie Mary Compton Goni, ’22,

by Marilyn Carlson Baldwin, ’55 Felecia Anhalt Graham, ’49,

by Carol Blundell Miller, ’49 Adolphus Graupner

by Camilla Austin Andrews, ’43 Dolores Grosskettler

by Steve, Anthony and Molly Bishop Romero, ’86 Bette Smith Guithues, ’35,

by Virginia Gertmenian Smallcomb, ’32 Donna Stockbridge Haire, ’55,

by Diane Smith Janusch, ’55 Allison Hall

by Doris Mott Hall, ’51 Richard Hamilton by Belinda

Passages McConnell Hamilton, ’56 Ross Hancock

by Lou Hale Smitheram, ’50 William Hancock, Jr.

by Anita Unikel, ’72 Jeannie Samis Hansen, ’45, by Isabelle Hagopian Arabian, ’45 Veronica Hernandez

by Arlene Quiogue, ’91 Donald Heth

by Borgee Ng Chinn, ’41 Beth Hitchcock

by Leone La Duke Evans, MA ’45 Mary Rogers Hogg, ’56,

by Lucille Radovich Cannata, ’56 William Hollomon

by Beverly Allen Hollomon, ’36 Byron Holt

by Janet Louvau Holt, ’51 Phyllis Vincent Howard, ’51,

by Diane Dragstedt Andrus, ’51 Edwin Jenkins by Georgianna Criswell Heitman, ’60, and Bethilda Olson Vieira, ’59 Connie Dorn Johannes, ’46,

by Carol Castner Staiger, ’46 Adrienne Kamin

by Steve, Anthony, and Molly Bishop Romero, ’86 Dr. Baki Kasapligil by Terrilyn Rosenberg Cutchen, ’81 Mary McHarness Kasper

by Robina Royer, ’80 Cleo Keller

by Kristen Schnepp, ’91 Hugh Kennedy

by Nancy Butts Whittemore, ’48 Anne Kish, ’49, MA ’51,

by Katharine Mulky Warne, ’45 Billie Libbey

by Peggy Weber, ’65 Sandra Cowan Long, ’61, by Judith Lamont Parent-Smith, ’61 Vera Skaggs Long, ’35,

by Ruth Gillard, ’36 Henry and LaVerne Mahnke

by Darlene Mahnke SimpsonBrown, ’52 Elizabeth Mandell, ’52, by Susan Rubenstein Schapiro, ’52 Maryann Mangold, ’61,

by Dorotha Myers Bradley, ’61 Grace Randall Manning

by Barbara Manning Graham, ’61 Marsha Martin-King, ’72, by Mary MacWilliams Hunter, ’72 Doug Mayock

by Lou Hale Smitheram, ’50 Billie June McCaskill, ’51,

by Caroline Krogness Little, ’51 John McClain

by Steve, Anthony, and Molly Bishop Romero, ’86 Annie Livingston McKinstry, ’18,

by Ann McKinstry Micou, ’52

Dr. Georgiana Melvin

by Martha Wickland Stumpf, ’46 Nancy Richter Monson, ’56,

by Ardeth Sievers Riedel, ’56 Ralph Newman

by Carol Blundell Miller, ’49 Cicely Boggs Nicoli

by Phyllis Cole Bader, ’35 Jennifer Nissen

by Carolyn Nissen Rathbun, ’68 The original gang at Ethel Moore, 1952-53,

by Janet Hope Morton, ’56 Constance Carter Orton, ’56,

by Sandra Sollom Kretchmer, ’56 Frank Pannorfi

by Marion Ross, ’44 Benjamin Peng

by Pei-Hsi Chen Peng, ’51, MA ’53 Jean MacKenzie Pool, ME ’43,

by Frances Korbel Ferguson, ’44 Antonio Prieto by Sara Shuttleworth Anderson, ’56 Vin Prothro

by Ruth Sherrill Webb, ’48 Rosemary Brusso Purser, ’57,

by Kay Miller Browne, ’53 Leah Wright Reichman, ’36,

by Eleanor Stein Rusnak, ’36 Aurelia Henry Reinhardt

by Ida Shimanouchi, ’38 John Remington

by Camilla Austin Andrews, ’43 Virginia Foisie Rusk, ’36,

by Ida Shimanouchi, ’38 Ramona Schmidt Schwartz, ’48,

by Nancy Butts Whittemore, ’48 Robert Schroeder

by Pamela Rorie Jane Griffith Sebastian, ’42,

by Lesley Griffith Sproul, ’47 Nancy Palm Seebass, ’58,

by Elizabeth Hawks Nord, ’58 Dorene Burton Settle, ’45, by Madeleine Ebbesen Davis, ’46 Anne Sherrill

by Kathleen Davis, ’87 Rosemary DeCamp Shidler, ’32,

by Jean Logan Henderson, ’34 Patricia Gaw Shields

by Mary Louise Smith Riley, ’51 John Smith

by Camilla Austin Andrews, ’43, and Dorothy Jane McVeigh Raney, ’45 Elizabeth Hull Spaght, ’31,

by Elizabeth Bryant Miles, ’34 Harry (Tim) Stoker

by Carol Blundell Miller, ’49 Susan Pratt Svendsgaard, ’51,

by Anne Claflin Allen, ’51, Joan Thompson Armstrong, ’51, Georgian Simmonds Bahlke, ’51, Patricia Maxfield Dols, ’51, and Vylma Zotti Weeks, ’51

Carol Van Auker Tocher, MA ’51,

by Robert Cowell, Barbara Oliver, and Marion Rinehart Suzanne Trujillo

by Karen Soots Pare, ’91 Aldeen Couch Van Velzen, ’62,

by Willet Van Velzen Sophia Vlamis, ’49,

by Yvonne Steele Byron, ’50, and Lou Hale Smitheram, ’50 Franklin and Imogene Walker by Katherine Farrow Jorrens, ’57 Frances Knight Webb

by Janice Webb Akin, ’51 Helen Wik

by Leone La Duke Evans, MA ’45, and Katherine Farrow Jorrens, ’57 Maggie Williams, former director of public relations at Mills College, by Marion Ross, ’44 Jean Wirth, ’54, MA ’57,

by Susan Long, ’56

Betty Smith Guithues BETTY SMITH GUITHUES died in June of 2001. A native of Salt Lake City, she spent two years at Mills before graduating from Whittier College with a major in drama. She also held a degree from the Pasadena Playhouse of Dramatic Arts. She joined the Air Force Special Services in Germany shortly after World War II, where she administered recreation activities for occupation troops. For 34 years, Mrs. Guithues was the President of the Mills College Club of Pasadena.

She is survived by her daughter, Gayle.

Jean MacKenzie Pool, ME ’43 Jean MacKenzie Pool, ME ’43, was born in British Columbia and completed high school in Oakland. She earned a bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley, a master’s degree from Mills, and a doctorate in psychology from the University of Chicago. Her special interests included the impact of group membership on individual behavior and creativity. She was assistant professor of health, physical education, and recreation at Mills from 1942–1946. In 1956, after her marriage, she moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she remained for the rest of her life. She continued her career as research director of the Radcliffe Institute for Independent Study, where she collected data and developed theories on what made women artists and entrepreneurs successful in re-entering the working world after having taken time off to rear families. Her longitudinal study of Radcliffe’s class of 1950, together with Dr. Ravenna Helson’s longitudinal study of the Mills classes of 1958 and 1960 provide a comparison of eastern and western college populations.

Dr. Pool is survived by her son, Adam de Sola Pool, two stepsons, her grandson, and numerous cousins and in-laws.

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY FA L L 2 0 0 1

25

Nominate Your Choice for Alumna Trustee Today Now is the time for you, the alumnae of Mills College, to nominate the next candidates for Alumna Trustee.

Who are they?

The three Alumnae Trustees serve on both the Board of Trustees of Mills College and the Board of Governors of the Alumnae Association, and convey the majority view of the Board of Governors to the Board of Trustees and serve as a liaison between the two Boards.

One Alumna Trustee is elected each year.

What are the expectations of the Alumnae Trustees?

Each year the Alumnae Trustees are expected to attend three two-day meetings of the College’s Board of Trustees (plus possible additional committee meetings) and six evening meetings of the AAMC’s Board of Governors, as well as a day-long Retreat and the Annual Meeting.

The Alumnae Trustees serve a three-year term and may run for a second term.

participation in college activities such as the Alumnae Admission Representative program, and fundraising/financial support of the AAMC or the College.

In order to be assured that there is at least one Alumna Trustee who lives outside the Bay Area, the AAMC Board of Governors has restricted nominations every third year to alumnae who live outside the Middle California region. This year nominations are unrestricted.

How are the Alumnae Trustees elected?

Three final nominees, selected by the Nominating Committee, are featured in the Spring 2002 Quarterly.

All alumnae are eligible to vote by mail-in ballots provided in the Quarterly, and one Alumna Trustee is elected from the three nominees. (The newly elected Trustee begins her term on June 1, 2002.)

How are the Alumnae Trustees Nominated?

Nomination of candidates, or self-nominations, are mailed, faxed, or emailed to the AAMC Nominating Committee before November 30, 2001.

In January 2002, candidates who choose to be considered complete and return to the Nominating Committee a questionnaire that details their qualifications and position statements.

For more detailed information...

Ask the AAMC to send you the complete Alumna Trustee information packet.

What background and experience are desired?

The Nominating Committee is looking for individuals who have demonstrated participation in alumnae activites such as branch or regional leadership or service as a class secretary or agent, or

Current Alumnae Trustees Are: Estrellita Hudson Redus, ’65, MFA ’75, Judy Greenwood Jones, ’60, and Sara Ellen McClure, ’81.

Questions?

Contact Anne Gillespie Brown at Reinhardt House at (510) 430-2112, or email her at <annegb@mills.edu>.

N O M I N AT I N G F O R M NAME OF NOMINEE

CLASS YEAR

ADDRESS OF NOMINEE

TELEPHONE OF NOMINEE

YOUR NAME

CLASS YEAR

You may use the envelope at the center of this magazine to return your nomination form.

Or you may fax a copy to the AAMC at (510) 430-1401 or email it to <annegb@mills.edu>.

Our Premier Tour for Young Alumnae 17 days/4 countries sponsored by

Mills College Alumnae Association May 15-31, 2002

$1946

+ airfare*

From fastpaced London to the glamour of Paris; from the ancient Roman ruins to the majesty of the Greek Isles, Europe’s most famous cities and fabulous beaches provide the setting for a journey that celebrates and educates.

For more information contact the AAMC at 510.430.2110 or at aamc@mills.edu. *Approximate Round-trip Airfare from San Francisco: $800 + taxes.

Alumnae Association Trips in 2002 Moroccan Discovery — from the Imperial Cities to the Sahara February 21–March 8, 2002 $3,345 including air.

Trans-Canada Rail Odyssey (Vancouver, Jasper, Lake Louise, Banff) June 18–29, 2002 $3,749 (land price).

Alumni College in Chianti, Italy (Marcialla, Pisa, Siena, and Florence) April 14–22, 2002 All-inclusive (air, meals, lodgings and excursions) $2,495.

Paris: A Family Learning Adventure July 6–14, 2002 Adult: $3,645; Child: $2,795.

Art and Architecture in the Southern Heartland (Memphis, Nashville, Ashville and Raleigh) April 15–26, 2002 $2,995 plus air.

Europe’s Favorite Cities (London, Paris, Rome, Athens) May 15–31, 2002 Designed for young and active alumnae. $1,946 plus air.

Sailing the Great Lakes from Toronto to Chicago August 16–24, 2002 $3,995.

Alumni College in Provence September 23–30, 2002 $2,495, including airfare, food, lodging, seminars, and excursions.

Cuba, the Island and its People Early November, 2002 Ten days, $3,995 plus air.

W?

Who were some of your favorite teachers at Mills?

One way to say thank you and help keep great teachers at Mills is to make an annual gift to the Alumnae Association. Gifts to the Alumnae Association go to support faculty salaries and help maintain excellence at Mills.

Mills Quarterly Alumnae Association of Mills College Reinhardt Alumnae House Mills College PO Box 9998 Oakland, CA 94613-0998 510 430-2110 aamc@mills.edu www.mills.edu

PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT OAKLAND, CA AND AT ADDITIONAL MAILING OFFICE(S)

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Printed on recycled paper with soy-based inks.

PHILIP CHANNING

Were they people who changed the way you see the world and your place in it? Great teachers shape the lives of students long after graduation.