Mills Quarterly, Fall 2019

P R O V O S T C H I N Y E R E O PA R A H  S A W ’ S 3 0 T H A N N I V E R S A RY  C R A F T I N G G U I TA R S

Mills Quarterly Fall 2019

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When you give to Mills, you give a boost to future leaders—like the eight students who traveled to the annual National Model United Nations conference in New York City to demonstrate diplomacy, negotiation, and decision making.

Representing the island nation of Cabo Verde and led by Associate Professor of Political Science Martha Johnson, the team practiced collaboration and compromise with other passionate students from around the world; honed their skills in research, public speaking, and problem solving; and addressed important issues like peacekeeping, human rights, economic development, and the environment.

Hands-on learning opportunities like these prepare students for global citizenship and the chance to make a better world. Your gifts to Mills could sponsor the airline tickets, the registration fees, or the faculty salaries that make that world a reality.

Make it possible. Make it Mills.

Please make a gift to the Mills College Annual Fund by calling 510.430.2366, visiting alumnae.mills.edu/give, or returning the enclosed envelope.

8 Mills Quarterly

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CONTENTS

FALL 2019

8 A voice for the silenced by Dawn Cunningham ’85 Chinyere Oparah brings her background in social justice to the fore in her role as the College’s provost.

14 Building Community, Building Leaders: 30 Years of SAW

by Sarah J. Stevenson, MFA ’04 The beloved summer bridge program for first-year students marks a big milestone and looks to expand.

28 Strumming Her Way by Jessica Langlois, MFA ’10 Master luthier Monica Esparza ’99 learned how to craft traditional Spanish guitars at the source.

Departments 2

Letters to the Editor

3

President’s Message

4

Mills Matters

18 AAMC News 20 Class Notes 25 In Memoriam On the cover: Mills Provost and Dean of the Faculty Chinyere Oparah is strategically shaping the makeup of the College’s faculty through a lens of inclusive excellence. Read more about Oparah and her unique path to the provost’s office on page 8. Photo by Alli Novak.

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Letter to the Editor

Volume CIX, Number 1 (USPS 349-900) Fall 2019 President Elizabeth L. Hillman Vice President for Institutional Advancement Jeff Jackanicz

I want to tell you how much I enjoyed

Salaices Dinella ’81, such as Annette

the summer 2019 issue of the Quarterly.

Chan-Norris ’65, Bea Jordan Crumbine

I loved the article by Jude Joffe-Block

’66, and Margot Jones Mabie ‘66.

about the 102-year-old alum, Eleanor

I am an art major from the Class of

Stauffer Neely ’38. What an interesting

1971. My dad recommended Mills to

interview! She is an inspiration, aging

me because he went to Amherst College

with zest and determination. The whole

in the 1940s, so he had heard of Mills’

article on the history of dance at Mills

strong reputation in the arts. He encour-

was just as worthwhile, photos included.

aged me to apply. I went to Mills in 1963,

It was also fun to read about alums

sight unseen, from my home on Long

I know from the Mills College Club

Island. It did not disappoint.

of New York being honored by Maria

–Holly Meeker Rom ’71, New York

Senior Director of the Annual Fund and Alumnae Relations Nikole Hilgeman Adams Managing Editor Allison Rost Design and Art Direction Nancy Siller Wilson Editorial Assistant Lila Goehring ’21 Contributing Writers Dawn Cunningham ’85 Jessica Langlois, MFA ’10 Sarah J. Stevenson, MFA ’04 Moya Stone, MFA ’03 Sara Wintz ’07 The Mills Quarterly (USPS 349-900) is published quarterly by Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94613. Periodicals postage paid at Oakland, California, and at additional mailing office(s). Postmaster: Send address changes to the Office of Institutional Advancement, Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94613.

Fourth Annual Auction of the Mills College Artists’ Network The yearly celebration of alumnae creatives and fundraiser for the Mills College Artists’ Network Endowed Scholarship kicks off at Reunion!

Copyright © 2019, Mills College Address correspondence to Mills Quarterly, Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94613.

Email: quarterly@mills.edu Phone: 510.430.3312 Printed on recycled paper containing 10 percent post-consumer waste.

(Please use outline)

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M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Among the artists featured is Danica Collins Nungaray ’09, who created You Look Ridiculous II out of merino wool and slipcast ceramic.

Visit www.tinyurl.com/ MCAN-2019 to place your bids on more than 40 works, and bidding is open from October 1–31! If you’re an artist interested in joining the network, contact auction organizer Sissy Cutchen ’81 at sissycutchen@yahoo.com.

A Message from the President of Mills College

By Elizabeth L. Hillman “And off she went to change the world”

own, and whose insight

reads a bold message painted by the

and energy can accelerate

Class of 2019 on the senior wall in

student learning. Just this

Rothwell Center. One of the reasons so

last week, I heard from

many Mills graduates set out to change

the

the world is the confidence they gain

Simon ’17—elected to the

through close relationships with faculty

BART Board of Directors,

and staff, a feature of life at Mills that

appointed to the California

many cherish not only during their days

State University Board of

on campus, but throughout their lives

Trustees, and president of

and careers.

the Akonadi Foundation—

inimitable

Lateefah

This Mills tradition of mentorship and

about how much inspira-

student engagement is memorialized in

tion she drew from the

the plaque on the bridge near Reinhardt

high standards and dedica-

Alumnae House that celebrates the

tion of her faculty mentors

legacy and words of long-serving Dean

at Mills.

Hettie Belle Ege: “Remember who you

No faculty is static, of

are and what you represent.” When

course,

graduates return for Reunion weekend

entrusted

this fall, classmates will again share

ing the learning of Mills

memories of favorite classes, professors,

students are not the same

librarians, and staff members who made

people who used to do that

all the difference in their education and

work. Yet the quality of

experience at Mills.

relationships our faculty

That tradition is still going strong

and

the

with

people support-

are crafting, and the com-

today. Students participating in this year’s

mitment they bring to their teaching and

with sterling international reputations.

Summer Academic Workshop (in the

research, bears a close resemblance to

This year they include Barbara Lee Chair

program’s 30th year) and the Hellman

past generations of teacher-scholars on

in Women’s Leadership Margo Okazawa-

Summer

Fellows

campus. Our ranked faculty are nearly

Rey, Melody and Mark Teppola Visiting

Program are listening to, asking questions

three-quarters women and about 40 per-

Professor of Dance Robert Moses, Chan-

of, and connecting with the faculty and

cent people of color. Academic excellence,

Norris Visiting Professor of Biology

staff leaders of Mills’ summer bridge pro-

teaching ability, and a demonstrated

Katherine R. Lipari, and Darius Milhaud

grams, which support students through

investment in practices that advance

Chair in Music Zeena Parkins.

smooth and successful transitions from

gender and racial equity are key factors

A great faculty is always a work in

high school to college. Summer research

considered by Mills’ hard-working search

progress, and it’s no different at Mills.

in science through our Jill Barrett Biology

committees when they review candidates

Five new tenured and tenure-track fac-

Research Program also provides precious

to join their departments.

ulty members, including Wendi Williams,

Science

and

Math

time for students to work closely with

Our adjunct faculty are similarly com-

the enterprising new dean of the School

faculty, giving them a chance to ponder

mitted to student success, and constitute

of Education, are joining the Mills fac-

future career choices with gifted advisors

a central part of Mills’ precious intellec-

ulty this year. Their fields range from

as well as experiment, test, chart, analyze,

tual resources. Adjunct faculty members,

biochemistry to educational leadership,

and prepare new research findings.

who are drawn from the rich cultural and

sociology to special education. They,

During the academic year, small

intellectual spaces of Oakland and the

like their storied predecessors, will find

and intensive classes and the one-of-a-

San Francisco Bay Area, enjoy the sup-

Mills students ready to challenge ideas

kind faculty-mentored projects of our

port of programs created by our provost

and question assumptions, and they will

M POWER

program,

and dean of faculty’s office and broaden

help those students gain the academic

allow students to identify instructors

the range of our curriculum. Our distin-

momentum they need to succeed in earn-

whose interests intersect with their

guished visiting faculty arrive at Mills

ing degrees—and changing the world.

undergraduate

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Mills Matters Wide range of scholars join the Mills faculty Mills students are now benefiting from an impressive array of academics and professionals who, as of this fall, have joined the campus community. They include: • Dana Wright, associate professor of educational leadership in the

Distinguished Visiting Professors

School of Education. Wright taught courses on curriculum, social

• Katherine Lipari as the Chan-Norris distinguished visiting

justice, and activism in her previous role as associate professor and

professor in biology. She specializes in developmental biology

chair of the Education Department at Connecticut College. Among

and most recently taught advanced physiology and experimen-

other works, she authored a 2015 monograph titled Active Learning:

tal design at San Francisco State University. Her PhD in molecu-

Social Justice Education and Participatory Action Research. Her EdD

lar and cell biology is from UC Berkeley, where she mentored

in education is from Harvard University.

undergraduate researchers at The Binder Lab. • Robert Moses as the Melody and Mark Teppola distin-

Adjunct Faculty Positions

guished visiting professor in dance. The internationally known

• Shirin Bakhshay, assistant adjunct professor in sociology.

dancer and choreographer has created works for such institu-

Bakhshay, who already holds a JD from Yale Law School, just com-

tions as the San Francisco Opera, Alvin Ailey American Dance

pleted her PhD in social psychology at UC Santa Cruz. Her research

Theater, and the Olympic Arts Festival. His artistry pays trib-

examines the criminal justice system and ways to combat existing

ute to African American culture, including the author James

attitudes about mass incarceration. While at UCSC, she developed

Baldwin, and other explorations of identity and experience. He

her own course on gender, sexuality, and constitutional law.

previously spent 21 years on the faculty at Stanford University.

• Jonathan Iris-Wilbanks, MA ’14, assistant professor of practice and head of the Child Life Program in the School of Education.

Tenure-Track Positions

After graduating with his MA from Mills, Iris-Wilbanks received

• Mario Hernandez, assistant professor of sociology. He just

a master’s degree in counseling psychology from The Wright

completed his PhD at the New School for Social Research in New

Institute in Berkeley. He has worked with children and their

York and previously worked as a visiting assistant instructor for

families in the pediatric intensive care and imaging units at

sociology courses at Wesleyan University. His research focuses

UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital and Lucile Packard Children’s

on gentrification through the lens of critical race studies.

Hospital Stanford.

• Cliff Lee, associate professor of teacher education in the

• Maria Catrina Diesto Jaime, assistant adjunct professor in

School of Education. He comes to Mills from St. Mary’s College

public health and health equity. Jaime recently spent time as a

and is a National Board Certified teacher who helped establish

postdoctoral scholar at UC Davis conducting research on the

Oakland Unified School District’s Life Academy. His research

attitudes young men have toward topics surrounding pregnancy

examines the ways students who live in urban areas express

and childbirth, which was the subject of her dissertation at the

themselves differently outside of school and within ethnic

University of Pittsburgh. She has also published 20 peer-reviewed

studies classrooms. Lee earned his PhD at UCLA.

articles in scientific journals.

• Ana Mostafavi, assistant professor of biochemistry. Despite

• Pamela Price, assistant adjunct professor in computer science.

having just received her PhD at Princeton, she has already pub-

Price turned to academia after 15 years of working in Silicon

lished eight articles on her research in molecular biology. She

Valley. Since then, she has taught computer science at the College

was the Francis Boyer Fellow in Life Sciences at Princeton and

of San Mateo, Ohlone College, and DeVry University, as well as

taught biology and chemistry for three years with the Prison

to young women in the Girls Who Code Summer Immersion

Teaching Initiative.

Program. She holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering

• Jaci Urbani, associate professor of early childhood education

from Rice University and a master’s of science in the same from

and head of the Early Childhood Special Education Program

Stanford.

in the School of Education. Her special education PhD came

• Colin Schatz, assistant adjunct professor in computer science.

from a joint degree program between Cal and San Francisco

Schatz comes to Mills from Las Positas College, where he had served

State University. Until recently, Urbani was the director of the

as an instructor of computer science since 2008. He also works with

special education program at Dominican University, and she

community organizations like Girls Who Code and Girl Develop It.

has developed a number of courses for teaching students how

His advanced degrees—a master’s in computer science and a PhD in

to work with children with hearing difficulties.

curriculum and teacher education—both come from Stanford.

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M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Two trustees join Mills board On July 1, two members of the Mills

African American business owners—

tration professional, Wood has more

community joined the Board of Trustees

as well as the cofounder of the annual

than 20 years of experience in federal

for three-year terms. (A recent graduate

COCAP conference. Konda is an enthu-

legislative advocacy and process, pub-

trustee will join the board on September

siast for social change through a num-

lic policy development, and program

26.) They are:

ber of mediums, including film (she has

operations. She works as assistant

• Konda Mason, who is the cofounder

been nominated for an Academy Award),

chief grants administrator for the Los

and CEO of Impact Hub Oakland, a

yoga/meditation, and eco-tourism. She

Angeles Housing and Community

coworking space that aims to boost

holds a degree in speech communica-

Investment Department, overseeing a

a diverse range of entrepreneurs and

tion and rhetoric from UC Berkeley.

multimillion-dollar portfolio of capi-

activists as they pilot programs to ben-

• Debi Wood ’75, who has been elected

tal development loans to nonprofit

efit their communities. She is also the

by Mills alumnae to serve as alumna

organizations providing public ser-

strategic director for Runway Project

trustee. An accomplished senior gov-

vices to low- and moderate-income

Oakland—which offers microloans to

ernment affairs and program adminis-

clients.

“Given the vital need for critical inquiry, I consider it a privilege to join the many artists, intellectuals, and activists Mills has cultivated in the past and continues to nurture into the future.” –Mario Hernandez

Top row: Cliff Lee, Jaci Urbani, Ana Mostafavi, Jonathan Iris-Wilbanks , MFA ’14; Bottom row: Dana Wright, Robert Moses, Mario Hernandez, Shirin Bakhshay.

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5

Various programs receive enthusiastic support Mills College gratefully acknowledges the following donors

supports first-generation college students at Mills through a

for gifts, grants, and pledges of $50,000 or more received from

four-week session of workshops and learning opportunities

January 1 to June 30, 2019.

before classes begin. Read more about SAW on page 14.

• The estate of Rosalie Torres-Rioseco ’45 for two gener-

• The Barrett Family Foundation for its continuing support

ous gifts: one to the Rosalie M. Torres-Rioseco Endowed

of the Jill Barrett Biology Research Program. The program

Faculty Fund and one to the Rosalie M. Torres-Rioseco

offers undergraduate students the rare opportunity to conduct

Endowed Scholarship Fund. The faculty fund will supple-

research under faculty tutelage. Participants receive hands-on

ment existing resources for salaries and research grants, and

experience in designing laboratory experiments and analyz-

the scholarship fund will support Mills students with academic

ing data. The program encourages more women and under-

merit and financial need.

represented groups to pursue careers in the biological sciences.

• The Dirk and Charlene Kabcenell Foundation and the Stuart

• The estate of Monika Kehoe for boosting the Monika Kehoe

Foundation for their support of the Mills Teacher Scholars

Endowed Undergraduate Scholarship, which supports

Program, which prepares Bay Area teachers to examine the

LGBTQ+ students with demonstrated financial need.

learning process through self-directed collaborative inquiry.

• Candace Pelissero ’68 and husband Brian Larsen for donating to the Summer Academic Workshop (SAW), which

Calendar Mills College Art Museum In Plain Sight ■ Through December 8 In Plain Sight brings together artists whose work points to the invisible systems and unknowable mysteries that shape and define our lives. The exhibition features the work of Kathryn Andrews, castaneda/reiman, Dario Robleto, and Weston Teruya.

The museum is open 11:00 am–4:00 pm Tuesday through Sunday and until 7:30 pm Wednesday. Admission is free. Visit mcam.mills.edu for more information.

Artist Lectures October 2 ■ Dario Robleto Dario Robleto’s works are inspired by collaborations with experts from a variety of scientific disciplines, exploring topics such as the human heart, outer space, and the deep sea. His most recent solo exhibition was at the McNay Museum in San Antonio, and he has been featured on Radiolab and in the New York Times. 7:00 pm, Danforth Lecture Hall.

November 13 ■ Jennifer González Jennifer González is a professor in the history of art and visual culture at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her essays about digital bodies and critical race studies have appeared in anthologies such as The Cyborg 6

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

• Alex Moses for providing funds to Barrett Scholars Summer Housing, which will enable students to live on campus while participating in summer research opportunities.

Handbook, Race in Cyberspace, Visible Worlds and Only Skin Deep: Changing Visions of the American Self. 7:00 pm, Lisser Hall Theater.

Mills Music Now Concerts September 29 ■ Gamelan Sekar Jaya A celebration of Balinese music and dance.

4:00 pm-6:00 pm, Greek Theater.

All events start at 8:00 pm in the Littlefield Concert Hall (unless otherwise noted). $15 general, $10 to alumnae, seniors, and non-Mills students. See musicnow.mills.edu for updated listings.

Her debut documentary film, 900 WOMEN, premiered at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival. She is a professor at the University of San Francisco. 5:30 p.m., Lisser Hall.

Performances October 20 ■ We Have Ourselves Dancer and choreographer Latanya d. Tigner, the College’s 2019 performing artist-inresidence, collaborates with the Bay Area’s longest running African American dance company, Dimensions Dance Theater, and Erik K. Raymond Lee. 4:00 pm, Lisser Hall Theater.

Contemporary Writers Series October 4 ■ Patricia Smith in Conversation w/ Ajuan Mance A master of poetic forms, Patricia Smith’s writing fearlessly engages with America’s continuous war on black bodies. She is the award-winning author of eight criticallyacclaimed books of poetry. Her most recent release was Incendiary Art, winner of the 2018 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, NAACP Image Award, and Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and a finalist for the Pulitzer. 7:30 pm, Lisser Hall.

October 15 ■ Laleh Khadivi Laleh Khadivi, MFA ’06, was born in Esfahan, Iran. She is the author of three novels that form an interconnected trilogy about nationalism, belonging, and migration.

Equity Forum Over the course of several months this fall, the Committee on Equity, Inclusion & Social Justice will host its second Equity Forum. Speakers and workshop facilitators will engage attendees through a series of events on the theme of Voicing Justice. Students, faculty, staff, and alumnae/i are welcome to participate and learn more about how to sustain and grow their social justice practices.

The forum kicks off on October 1 and runs through November 13. For more information, email diversity@mills.edu.

Campus kudos A selection of recent achievements by faculty, staff, and students Assistant Professor of Art History Meryl

in a Q&A with The New York Times

Bailey was quoted in the San Francisco

Style Magazine, which was published

Chronicle in a July 8 article about the

on May 5.

controversy surrounding a set of murals

Provost Chinyere Oparah served as a

at George Washington High School in

panelist in Congresswoman Barbara Lee

San Francisco.

’73’s town hall on race, which was held

Frederick A. Rice Professor of English

in conjunction with Representative Mark

Diane Cady will soon publish a new

DeSaulnier in Oakland on Saturday, April

book titled The Gender of Money in

27. Her appearance as a panelist at the

Middle English Literature: Value and

Association of American Colleges and

Economy in Late Medieval England.

Universities’ annual meeting was covered in detail by the magazine Education

Palgrave MacMillan will release the title on October 26.

Dive, and along with Trustee Sabrina

Diane Cady

Kwist, EdD ’17, she has also been chosen

Professor of Dance Molissa Fenley and her New York-based company performed

Forum on the Public University and the

as a 2019–2020 fellow with the National

on June 15 as part of the Inter|National

Social Good on “Captain Marvel and

Equity Project.

Series at the Seattle International Dance

21st-Century Women’s Colleges.”

Adjunct Professor of English Shanthi

a

Keelia Murphy, MBA ’20, who also

Sekaran participated in a Q&A with

piece for the dancer Peiling Kao as part

works as the manager of the Lorry I.

The Mercury News about her book Lucky

of Kao’s One Body, Five Dances, Six

Lokey School of Business and Public

Boy and her experience growing up as

Perspectives performances on May 24–25

Policy, has received a 2019 Lela John

the child of immigrants. Read more on

in San Francisco.

Make a Difference Grant from the

Sekaran on page 13.

Festival.

She

also

choreographed

of

Professor of Practice Victor Talmadge

was one of four high-achieving women

San Francisco. The funds will help

played a supporting role in California

profiled in the Diablo Magazine article

Murphy continue her work with finan-

Shakespeare Theater’s summer produc-

“Women Opening Minds,” which was

cially empowering local communities.

tion of The Good Person of Szechwan,

Mills President Elizabeth L. Hillman

organization

Financial

Women

published in the May 2019 issue. She

Ceramicist and Professor Emeritus

also spoke at the May 23 UC Davis

of Studio Art Ron Nagle participated

which ran at Bruns Amphitheater in Orinda through July 28.

Cal partnership opens up new engineering program The newly strengthened collaboration between Mills and UC

Geology, and Plant Ecology. The ensuing civil engineering

Berkeley is bearing new fruit this fall, as a new 3+2 engineer-

curriculum at Cal for the final two years aims to ensure

ing program enrolls its first students. Participants will have

that graduates can take both degrees and immediately join

the opportunity to graduate with two bachelor’s degrees—a BA

organizations and companies focused on sustainability.

in environmental science from Mills and a BS in engineering from Cal—in five years.

The enhanced agreement between the two schools dates back to fall 2017, and since then, has enabled students at both institu-

“UC Berkeley is committed to building a pipeline of diverse

tions to take classes and access resources on the two campuses.

students into engineering and the partnership with Mills

Cal students have taken advantage of extra space in residence

strengthens [its] ability to do that,” says Margaret Hunter, asso-

halls to alleviate the housing crunch in Berkeley and smaller

ciate provost for recruitment and student success. “UC Berkeley

class sizes in undergraduate biology courses.

is one of the few elite universities that serves a high proportion

“We think students will benefit greatly from the small classes

of first-generation college students, so we also know that our

and close relationships with faculty at Mills while being able to

students will be well served in [the] program.”

complete one of the highest ranked civil engineering degrees in

Students will spend the first three years of the program at Mills in courses such as Climate Change, Environmental

the country,” says Elisabeth Wade, associate provost for curriculum development, who oversaw the program’s creation.

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ALLI NOVAK

A VOICE for the SILENCED A lifetime of commitment to inclusive excellence has prepared Chinyere Oparah to lead the renewal and development of the Mills faculty

By Dawn Cunningham ’85

8

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

T

HE RENEWAL OF A COLLEGE FACULTY tends to hap-

contributes to faculty diversity. “Adjunct positions are important

pen gradually: beloved, experienced professors retire

to liberal arts colleges. They allow us to bring in artists, active

and new professors inject fresh scholarship and teaching

professionals, and emerging scholars as teachers,” Oparah says.

approaches. At Mills, that process has recently accelerated, as

“We’ve hired outstanding people in these positions in the last

six long-time faculty departed in May and 10 retired the previ-

three years, including 15 full-time adjunct faculty.” (Read more

ous year. Other faculty departures in 2017 took place as part of

about members of the adjunct faculty on page 12.)

the College’s Financial Stabilization Plan, which restructured several academic programs.

Oparah’s effectiveness as provost and dean of the faculty reflects the broad scope of her own teaching experience. She

In addition to bittersweet farewells, these departures bring a

has taught at all levels of the academic ladder, from adjunct to

need to strategically shape the Mills faculty. This responsibility

full professor. She has employed a range of pedagogical tech-

belongs to the College’s provost and dean of faculty, Chinyere

niques in her classes, including assigning students to create

Oparah.

electronic portfolios of their academic work. She has partici-

“Since I became provost in January 2017, we’ve hired 24

pated in curriculum design, from a revision of the undergradu-

new full-time faculty, and I’ve interviewed every one of them,”

ate core curriculum to development of the new public health

Oparah says. “Today we have a vibrant, diverse, accomplished

and health equity major. And she has produced an influential

faculty with lots of new perspectives.” Oparah herself brings

body of scholarship on black women’s organizations, black

unique strengths to the challenge of renewing the faculty,

maternal health, and the prison–industrial complex.

including more than two decades of teaching ethnic studies

But just as important is her connection with students. “My

at Mills, a profound sense of connection with Mills students,

childhood gives me a deep sense of empathy for Mills students,”

and a commitment to continuing to build an institution that

she says. “Our lives often bear the scars of racism and inequal-

practices “inclusive excellence.”

ity, but we’ve also gained an enormous amount of resiliency

Accessing excellence As Oparah sees it, faculty members play a key role in creating

and strength. You use it to make something better than what you experienced growing up.”

inclusive excellence through their pedagogical styles and the

From Edinburgh to the East Bay

environment they create in the classroom. “Do students feel

Oparah was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, to a single white

a sense of belonging? Do they see themselves reflected in the

mother who did not have the social or financial means to raise

faculty and the curriculum? How do we make them feel excited

a biracial child. Her father, she later learned, was Nigerian. She

about applying their education to what they want to do in the

took the name Chinyere Oparah almost a decade ago to honor

world? Our faculty are constantly asking these questions,” she

her Igbo roots.

says.

After a spell in foster homes as an infant, Oparah—then

Oparah supports faculty in developing “a range of pedagogies so

known as Julia—was adopted by Mary and George Sudbury, a

that students with different learning styles can find success.” For

white couple. Mary, a math teacher and engineer, offered Julia

example, a task force led by Ajuan Mance, dean of digital learn-

a strong female role model; George was a civil servant. Their

ing, worked on developing courses that use hybrid learning—a

home, however, could not shield their daughter from the expe-

mix of virtual and classroom learning. In the School of Education,

rience of English racism. The town where they lived became

faculty partnered with instructional designers to create an online

a flashpoint in the 1970s for demonstrations by the country’s

MA in educational leadership, which launched last year. In STEM

far-right National Front, which advocated for repatriating black

programs, professors have been exploring how to help students

people to their supposed countries of origin.

with varying levels of preparation succeed in “gateway” classes.

Despite this hostile atmosphere, Oparah succeeded academi-

Another way Mills achieves inclusive excellence is by hir-

cally at her state-funded, comprehensive school. She took a

ing faculty who can engage students of all backgrounds. Those

path usually closed to students at schools like hers: she passed

different learning styles come with a broader range of student

the exams to enter Cambridge University. There, she studied

backgrounds, and Mills complements all of them by hiring

Spanish and German literature and philosophy because, as she

diverse instructors. As the diversity of the student body has

says, “I wanted to travel, to experience something beyond the

increased—60 percent of undergraduates today are people of

environment I was raised in. Language seemed like the best way

color—so has that of the faculty. Professors of color make up 39

to get there.”

percent of full-time faculty at Mills, an increase of six percent-

She also got involved in political activism, first with the

age points in the last three years and double the percentage

South African anti-apartheid movement and later with the

of faculty of color across the nation. Three-quarters of faculty

Cambridge Black Women’s Support Group. After completing

identify as women, the highest ratio on record for the College.

her bachelor’s degree, she became coordinator of a small non-

The mix of tenured/tenure-track and adjunct professors also

profit, the Osaba Women’s Centre, which worked with African FA L L 2 0 1 9

9

Caribbean women escaping poverty and gender violence. Soon,

In 1997, she joined the Ethnic Studies Program at Mills as an

she recalls, “I realized the daily work I was doing to help people

assistant professor. “The close student-faculty interaction I saw

in crisis did not address the root causes of injustice.” To under-

in the classrooms at Mills was like the education I had experi-

stand these causes, she returned to school for a master’s degree

enced at Cambridge,” she says. “I wanted to be involved in that

in race and ethnic studies while working full time.

kind of transformative education.”

In her classes, she discovered that many scholars believed

She was also won over by the support provided by the

black women didn’t get involved in political advocacy. “But

Alumnae of Color Committee of the Alumnae Association of

I knew all kinds of black women who were incredibly active

Mills College (AAMC): “Being an immigrant far from home, I

advocates,” Oparah says. “I wanted to debunk the assumption

appreciated the way people like Estrellita [Hudson Redus ’65]

that black women in Britain were too downtrodden or busy to

and Peggy [Woodruff ’58] were so lovely and welcoming. They

be politically involved.” She earned a PhD in sociology from

made Mills feel like a family.”

Warwick University with a dissertation on the topic. In 1998, it

In addition, she says, “I was impressed by the journeys of

was published as a book, Other Kinds of Dreams: Black Women’s

Mills students and their eagerness to learn more and make an

Organizations and the Politics of Transformation—and featured a

impact on the world.” Her students, meanwhile, appreciated her

forward by the renowned activist and academic Angela Y. Davis.

compassion and willingness to mentor them. “Professor Oparah

Before the book was published, Oparah moved to the United

understood how my experience as an undocumented immi-

States, where she hoped to work in nonprofit administration.

grant and as a first-generation college student influenced my

But she found better opportunities as an adjunct professor,

participation in class,” says Isabel Cortes ’12, MPP ’13. “She gave

beginning at UC Berkeley (where she met Davis) and later at

me a sense of belonging.” Cortes, who worked for the California

UC Santa Cruz. “Once I got bit by the teaching bug, I realized

State Senate after graduation and just started law school at

there was no looking back,” she says.

UC Berkeley, has continued to turn to Oparah for support and letters of recommendation. “Chinyere Oparah wasn’t just a professor to me.

She was a mentor and an ally. She still

Birthing Justice (2015, Routledge) and Global Lockdown (2005, Routledge) are two of the publications which Oparah has edited—in both cases, under iterations of her birth name. Below: Rep. Lauren Underwood speaks at the April launch of the Black Maternal Health Caucus in Washington, D.C., flanked by Rep. Barbara Lee ’73 (in peach) and Rep. Alma Adams (in blue). Oparah’s research on black maternal mortality provided support to Congressional actions on the cause.

is. Because of professors like her, Mills was absolutely the best investment I’ve made in myself.”

Community-driven research At Mills, Oparah opened several new areas of research. Davis invited her to participate in Critical Resistance, a 1998 conference that examined what it coined the “prison–industrial complex.”

Critical Resistance grew into an international prison abolition movement, which

OFFICE OF REP. L AUREN UNDERWOOD

Oparah helped to build by conducting research with incarcerated women of color in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. She published dozens of works on the subject, including a seminal 2005 volume, Global Lockdown: Race, Gender, and the Prison–Industrial Complex. “Winchester, where I grew up, was a prison town—it had a women’s prison on the site of the old gallows—so this work was particularly meaningful to me,” Oparah says.

Her most recent scholarship focuses on birth justice and black maternal health. In 2010, while pregnant with her daughter, Oparah had a frightening, near-death experience. “A reaction to a 10

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

“In the past, the fear was that if you open up the doors of academia to people who were previously excluded, or if you open the canon to include diverse texts, that you were lowering standards. That has been firmly debunked.” –Chinyere Oparah

fertility drug I had taken led to a buildup of fluid in my abdo-

fluidity in prisons to classrooms at Mills.

men…. When the pressure on my lungs began to make me gasp

“It was clear that Mills could be the trailblazer in creating

for breath, I was rushed to the hospital. I began a 10-day fight

the model for inclusion of transgender students in women’s

for my daughter’s life and for my own,” she wrote in Birthing

colleges,” she says. “We needed to be on the right side of his-

Justice: Black Women, Pregnancy, and Childbirth, a book pub-

tory.” Oparah worked with a committee to research and write

lished in 2015. Oparah recovered, and her daughter’s birth

the report that became the basis not only for the admission

was attended by a midwife and a doula and witnessed by close

policy, but also for others that ensure an inclusive and affirm-

friends. “With their support, pushing out my baby girl was a

ing environment for gender nonbinary and transgender stu-

powerful, sacred, and healing experience,” she wrote.

dents. These policies, in turn, set a precedent that other leading

Oparah had known that the risk of maternal mortality for

women’s colleges soon followed.

black women was three to four times higher than for white

In 2015, the College’s academic leadership went through a period

women, but she sought to understand the issues through the

of significant disruption, with a succession of short-term provosts

stories of mothers themselves. She cofounded the collective

and the announcement of President Alecia DeCoudreaux’s res-

Black Women Birthing Justice (BWBJ) and led its community-

ignation. “Mills needed an associate provost who had longevity

driven project to document black women’s experiences of

here and an understanding of our core values and culture,” she

pregnancy and childbirth. In 2018, BWBJ produced a research

says. “I answered the call out of my sense of love for Mills, the

report with policy recommendations, titled Battling Over Birth:

understanding that we were facing tough challenges, and the

Black Women and the Maternal Health Crisis.

desire to build a sustainable future for the College.”

Through BWBJ and its national partner, Black Mamas Matter

In January 2017, six months after the arrival of President

Alliance, Oparah’s work has helped inform a national conversa-

Elizabeth L. Hillman, Oparah became provost and dean of the

tion on black maternal health. The offices of Senator Kamala

faculty of Mills College. Since then, the provost’s team has not

Harris of California and Representative Alma Adams of North

only led the process of faculty renewal and development, but

Carolina reached out to Oparah for support of their legisla-

has helped usher in new external partnerships. These include

tion designating a Black Maternal Health Week. Earlier this

one with the Peralta Community College District that creates

year, Adams and Representative Lauren Underwood of Illinois

pipelines for students to transfer to Mills and a strengthened

launched the Black Maternal Health Caucus in the House of

agreement with UC Berkeley that gives Mills students access

Representatives. “Our work has helped provide the rationale for

to global internships, summer study-abroad programs, and a

these political actions,” Oparah says.

dual engineering degree. They have also overseen the launch of innovative programs like M POWER, the new signature

An agent of institutional change

undergraduate experience, and partnered with the Division

Despite her intense engagement in scholarship and activism,

of Student Life to offer short-term study-away programs that

Oparah contributed to the College’s administration, serving fre-

enable students to affordably learn in distant environments,

quently as the Ethnic Studies Program head and participating

such as the US–Mexico border or tropical coral reefs.

in campus-wide committees. She played a key role in develop-

With each new step, Oparah keeps her focus on the goal of

ing the College’s groundbreaking transgender admission policy

inclusive excellence. “The idea of creating a voice for those

in 2014. Her interest in transgender inclusion evolved from her

who have been silenced has continued to be one of the driving

scholarship on the prison–industrial complex, which led her to

forces for my career,” she says. “I’m proud that at Mills, faculty

challenge assumptions about the gender identity of occupants

work alongside students to dismantle the barriers that prevent

of women’s prisons. She began to apply questions about gender

them from achieving their dreams.” ◆ FA L L 2 0 1 9

11

Ashley Adams Ashley Adams started teaching relatively early in life, leading Sunday school classes as a teenager.

While attending the University of Kansas for a BA in human development and family life, she worked with a program sponsored by the Children’s Defense Fund called Freedom School, where she taught reading skills to inner-city youth. “This program was a life-changing experience for me,” she says, “and really set me on the path for wanting to teach long-term.” After receiving her master’s degree in public affairs (Park University, Missouri) and a PhD in public policy (Walden University, Minnesota), she did just that, first spending 11 years at Bay Area community colleges before joining the public policy department in fall 2018.

What inspires Adams to teach is a strong desire to help people, and she says she knows firsthand that education can positively affect someone’s life. She also recognizes that it’s a two-way street: “I learn so much from my students every day and they keep me young in spirit.”

Adams moved to the Bay Area more than 11 years ago when she was in between jobs and eager to experience something different from her native Kansas. She heard about Mills College shortly thereafter and first fell in love with the campus while on a tour one day with her

younger cousin: “I felt the spirit of the place.” Then, after doing a little research, she learned about the College’s uniqueness. “I appreciated the empowerment of women and projection of social justice oriented leadership and scholarship . . . I wanted to be a part of that,” she says.

Now a full-time adjunct professor, Adams appreciates having flexibility and her own office, as well as working with wonderful colleagues. Although her adjunct status doesn’t necessarily offer job security, Adams sees that as an opportunity. She enjoys participating in activities outside the classroom, including on the Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice Committee. She’s also collaborating with colleagues to start a Black Faculty and Staff Association.

In addition to teaching, Adams is currently doing research that compares federal and state preservation practices, specifically between Nicodemus National Historic Site in Kansas and the Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park in Earlimart, California. Both towns were established by African Americans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This research is important to her personally as a descendant of former enslaved people who settled in Nicodemus, but also as an educator who believes that history connects us to the present. “These stories are motivating and informative for perspective and growth in dealing with current conditions and in understanding the black experience in America,” she says. –Moya Stone, MFA ’03

At universities and colleges across the country,

Sandra Banks Sandra Banks began teaching at Mills 35 years ago with one steadfast mission: “I was interested in encouraging women to do well in science.” Banks’ own experiences in higher education inform all of the decisions she makes as adjunct professor of chemistry and, since 2018, director of the College’s Post-Bac Pre-Medical Program.

At Western Washington University, Banks was one of five women in a physics class with 100 men. (“All five women made it through the term, although only 30 of the men did!” she says.) At UCLA, she was one of two women in a class of 30 students pursuing master’s degrees in organic chemistry. She has a special interest in building diversity in the sciences, noting, “It’s a waste if we’re missing a chunk of the population. By promoting diversity, we hear from people who may notice things we wouldn’t notice otherwise. Not only women, but people from different countries, people from different life backgrounds.”

Banks taught at Diablo Valley Community College before coming to Mills in 1984. Her non-linear path in academia means that she has a unique ability to teach a wide selection of the curriculum. She was pursuing a second MS in chemical engineering at UCLA when she started teaching a class on the programming language Fortran and, realizing how much she enjoyed it, abruptly left school to begin her career as an educator.

Her expertise spans technology, math, and chemistry—not to mention curriculum development. Mills uses several lab manuals authored by Banks in organic chemistry classes and summer science programs, and she has been involved in pioneering teaching methods at the College, including “flipped” classrooms and an iPad initiative.

12

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

adjunct faculty have come to play a more significant role in educating students over the past few years. At most institutions, such faculty members are employed on a temporary basis and barely paid living wages. In contrast, the provost’s team at Mills, through a new Adjunct Faculty Inclusion Initiative, aims to ensure that adjunct faculty are treated with respect and provided the best possible wages and conditions of employment. The College is supported in these efforts by a 2016 collective bargaining agreement with the Service Employees International Union.

Renegotiated by Provost and Dean of the Faculty Chinyere Oparah this summer, the contract now also gives adjuncts representation on the Faculty Executive Committee.

But what do adjunct professors offer to students in the classroom? For starters, Mills views adjunct faculty members as a way to bring in expertise from a variety of instructors in a variety of fields, some of whom use the flexibility of their adjunct status to continue pursuing their crafts off-campus.

Here are the stories of four such professors.

The nature of adjunct labor has changed dramatcally since she first started at Mills. “Over the years, my position has grown, as the department has needed people to fill in for sabbatical and leave. I’ve taught a wider swath of the curriculum,” she notes. “Not having a tenure track job never really bothered me. My department is really good to me.

They don’t view me as a lesser member of the department. I go to department meetings, I’m in on discussions. It’s worked well for me, but it wouldn’t work for everyone.” There are more adjunct professors on campus and “not just serving as leave replacements,” Banks asserts.

“We are integral, we lecture, we advise. That’s not just Mills; that’s been a huge shift within higher education during my career.” –Sara Wintz ’07

Sarah Miller Sarah Miller joined the Department of Art & Visual Culture as assistant adjunct professor of art history last year, taking on many of the courses once taught by Moira Roth. Miller is a scholar of modern and American art, photography in particular. Her career began as an undergraduate at the University of Michigan, where she majored in art and ideas in the humanities, before going on to Tufts for a master’s degree in art history and graduate certificate in museum studies.

It was a history of photography class taught by Louis Kaplan at Tufts that sparked her interest in the theories and histories of the medium.

Miller’s subsequent University of Chicago dissertation, “Inventing ‘Documentary’ in American Photography, 1930-1945,” led her to an essential figure in the development of modern American photography: Berenice Abbott. A 1938 manuscript on “Changing New York” that Abbott produced with her partner, the prominent art critic Elizabeth McCausland, was rewritten by its publisher for mass consumption at the 1939 New York World’s Fair. Miller has been recovering that original text and guiding it to re-publication today. “Doing historical research isn’t just about recounting facts, it’s about making choices about how to interpret them. There’s a much larger story to tell,” she says. “It wasn’t just a question of censorship, or disrespect for a female

photographer-writer team, but a revealing contest over the very nature and function of documentary photography—a concept that was still new, and meant different things to different people.”

In part, Miller’s art historical investigations inform her curricula.

“It’s definitely something I’ve talked about with students. They are looking for examples of politically-engaged women artists, wondering what that looked like in an earlier time period,” she says. “Excavating histories of women who have been overlooked or under appreciated becomes really vivid—and more complicated than they expect—when I talk about the politics and methods of doing history.” She also stresses that historical research requires theories and procedures for formulating how ideas got created and circulated and, in some instances, how they disappeared. “The students might not see themselves or their own work as paralleling [Berenice], but they’re interested in her as a subject.

I use her as a way to talk about the politics of doing art historical research,” she says.

Miller teaches four undergraduate art history classes and one theory class for studio MFA students per year. “Contemporary art is research driven. Students need to learn how to develop strategies for researching their interests and how to translate them into visual language or performance language,” she says. A substantial portion of her position also entails curriculum development, which is a role that Miller enjoys inhabiting. It’s one in which she has the freedom to spark diverse conversations about an increasingly globalized art scene in the classroom, providing up-to-date information that students are ready and eager to learn. –Sara Wintz ’07

Shanthi Sekaran Shanthi Sekaran is likely a familiar name to many literature enthusiasts. Her latest novel, Lucky Boy, was voted Best Book of 2017 by outlets such as National Public Radio, Library Journal, and the San Francisco Chronicle. In the story of an immigrant mother from Mexico living in Berkeley and separated from her young son, Sekaran dives into the topic of immigration, motherhood, and separation. “I often write about immigration in one way or another,” she says. “I’m intrigued by how immigration can take a character beyond the standard narrative.”

Lucky Boy is her second novel, giving her valuable experience to share with her students. She arrived at Mills as a member of the English Department in 2018, and as a full-time adjunct professor, Sekaran is teaching both graduate and undergraduate writing and literature classes. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Johns Hopkins, an MA in South Asian studies from UC Berkeley, and a PhD in English literature and creative writing from the University of Newcastle in the UK. Sekaran has been teaching for more nine years and came to Mills fresh off of stints at St. Mary’s College and California College of the Arts. She says she was interested in Mills because she likes the idea of a women’s college. “I think that just brings a different quality to the classroom experience,” she says.

After hearing good things about the College from writer friends, she was excited to join the Mills community. Now, going into her second academic year, she says she’s impressed with the quality of writing her students produce and their commitment. “I love seeing the optimism in my students,” she shares. “They’re very passionate, challenging . . . they have strong opinions.”

One thing she makes sure to bring to the classroom is her own perspective as a published writer. Sekaran shares her knowledge with her students by including a question-andanswer session in her workshop classes. When she was a student, her writing program didn’t discuss publishing: “I had to learn a lot of things the hard way.” What Sekaran stresses to her students is that rejection is a part of the publishing experience and that a thick skin and perseverance are essentials. She says that teaching creative writing has made her a better writer herself—it has forced her to think about the craft and how it’s done. Working with students and seeing firsthand what they’re writing about also helps her stay connected to the world and on top of trends.

After years of teaching part-time at other colleges, Sekaran appreciates finally having a “decent salary” and an office.

However, she realizes that some institutions can take advantage of faculty with adjunct status. “There’s a lot of work to be done on that,” she says. Still, Sekaran is happy. “My particular experience at Mills has been really positive . . . this is a good place to be.”

–Moya Stone, MFA ’03

FA L L 2 0 1 9

13

Building Community, Building Leaders:

30 30Years of SAW Words by Sarah J. Stevenson, MFA ’04; Photos by Allison Rost

WHEN DAISY GONZALES ’07 TOURED MILLS as an incoming

“The main goal is to give students a real taste of what col-

first-year student in the Summer Academic Workshop (SAW),

lege-level work would feel like at its most stressful,” says Ajuan

she looked up at the list of campus leaders in the Student

Mance, professor of English and ethnic studies and dean of

Union, turned to a classmate, and said, “That’s going to be me.”

digital learning. She has taught SAW modules for 20 years.

And she was right—she went on to become a peer advisor, then

The program, which is free to enrollees, is a collaboration

a SAW program coordinator, and, within a few years, Gonzales

with the Division of Student Life, helping SAW students famil-

was president of the ASMC.

iarize themselves with the campus; understand the resources

And now? She’s deputy chancellor for the California Community Colleges, the largest system of higher education in the country.

available to them, such as the tutoring center and counseling services; and clarify their own needs and goals.

“We talk about [a number of] things: imposter syndrome,

Not many new students display such a high level of deter-

how to create your own community in a place that might be

mination and focus, but SAWblings or SAW sisters—as alum-

really different from where you came from, self-care, and how

nae often call one another—aren’t typical first-years. For the

to manage a college schedule. How do you deal with time

last 30 years, they have enrolled in SAW the summer before

and planning? What are assignments like in college?” says

their first semester on the basis of academic and leadership

Associate Professor of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

promise. The vast majority are women of color. All of them are

Priya Kandaswamy, who co-directs SAW with Associate Dean

first-generation college students. And many show that same

of Students Lea Robinson. In short, the program fills in the type

drive to succeed.

of knowledge that students with parents who went to college generally possess.

I

MAGINE ARRIVING ON CAMPUS not just a stranger to

SAW attendees reside on campus throughout the four-week

Mills but to the logistics of higher education: navigating

summer program, but it isn’t all work and no play. There are

classes and managing a rigorous schedule without some

community-building activities during off hours, such as tours

of the key support systems and resources other students may

of Oakland, baseball games to cheer on the A’s, and other social

take for granted. But add in SAW—one of several bridge pro-

events. Peer advisors, who are often former SAW students, also

grams at Mills that gives incoming students the opportunity

live in the dorms for the duration of the program and serve as

to adapt to campus before classes begin—and you have a recipe

“pod leaders” to smaller groups of mentees.

not only for success, but for excellence.

By the time their first semester starts, SAW students have

SAW students start their time at Mills with an intensive

already earned four credits and are well-equipped with the

four-week academic program consisting of three or four mini-

tools they need to succeed on campus—not to mention a cohort

courses, or modules, covering subjects such as computer sci-

of SAWblings to provide support and community. The cohort

ence; sociology; English; mathematics; and Race, Gender, and

continues to meet as a group once a week throughout its first

Power, a class focusing on social justice. Classroom instruction

year at Mills, as well as on an occasional basis after that.

takes an intersectional approach, exposing students to new

“It’s an academically challenging summer program, but we

subjects as well as developing their skills in writing and other

come at it from the perspective that ‘We know you can do these

foundational areas.

things and we want to make sure that you feel supported so

14

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Top: SAW alum “pod leaders” award certificates to incoming first-year students at the end of SAW 2019. Bottom left: This year’s participants attended a brunch held by the Alumnae of Color Committee and heard all about life at Mills. Bottom right: One of those alumnae was Trustee Sabrina Kwist, EdD ’17, who is also a former co-director of SAW.

that you’re also able to do the very best work you’re capable of doing,’” Kandaswamy says.

And thrive they do: SAW alumnae frequently credit the program for their success at Mills. “Without that program, I prob-

Professor Emeritus of Sociology Bruce Williams, a mainstay

ably would not have finished college,” says Gloria Rodriguez

of the program in the early 2000s, puts it this way: “One of the

Banuelos ’93, currently a high school science teacher and STEM

hardest things you’re going to do in your life is moving from

researcher. “I was a hard worker and a good student, but I just

not knowing how to be a college student at all to being a suc-

didn’t have a lot of experience outside my immediate culture

cessful student.” But, he says, SAW students need someone in

and the city where I was born and raised.”

close proximity to maintain high expectations and believe in them to stay motivated and thrive.

Daisy Gonzales agrees. “I grew up in foster care, and had I not survived the Summer Academic Workshop and had incredible FA L L 2 0 1 9

15

mentors like Bruce Williams, I don’t think I would have been

“They were my proxy for a family,” says Gloria Banuelos, “for

prepared to be at Mills College my first year at all,” she says.

that middle-class family that’s supporting their student to go

That advance preparation can be critical not only in terms

through college.”

of practicalities, but also with respect to finding one’s place in

In addition, Bartlett says, “There was such a representation of

the campus community. “[As] a first-generation person, to be

folks of color and women of color—leaders of color—on campus.”

in college already has hurdles that are recognized across the

She and others mention the invaluable advice and mentoring

board without regard to what your nationality is, or your eth-

provided by Mance and Williams in particular—both of whom

nicity,” says Jalila Bell ’98, an attorney in Brooklyn, New York.

loom large in the memories of many program alumnae.

But, she adds, “Being at a predominantly white institution is

Williams was in a unique position to mentor SAW students as

culture shock. It was very, very difficult to build and maintain

a first-generation college student himself. When he took over

friendships in that environment.”

the SAW program in 2000, it had been operating for 11 years

SAW gives participating students the time and space to start

but was suffering from poor academic outcomes and insuf-

building a community of their own. “When we came in, I feel

ficient funding—not to mention a lack of clarity of purpose,

like most of our cohort identified as women of color and, [since we were one of] the bigger cohorts, that was what made it comforting,” says Lauren Bartlett ’12, who works at the Downtown Women’s Center in Los Angeles.

Taigi Smith ’94, currently a producer for ABC News in New York, agrees: “The best part of the program was the friendships I made with friends that have lasted a lifetime.”

Kandaswamy refers to it as a “SAW family,” and she’s far from the only one who couches the program in familial terms.

Thanks to a generous gift of $150,000 over the next three years, SAW will begin its 31st session next summer with two cohorts with a total of 30 incoming students, as well as an additional resident assistant and program assistant. “Not only has SAW’s rigorous curriculum been shown to equalize the initial college experience, but it provides a vital ongoing support network for participants,” says Candice Pelissero ’68, who is making the donation along with her husband, Brian Larsen. “As scholarship providers to first-generation students, we enthusiastically support its expansion!” The $150,000 gift aims to establish the broader program, though additional funding will need to be secured to continue with the expansion beyond the three-year timespan.

Students in this year’s cohort (above) enjoy the English module taught

by Professor Ajuan Mance (below).

16

M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

something noted by early graduates of the program. “I remem-

Indeed, the program has had a pro-

ber thinking and feeling that I’d been brought into a remedial

foundly positive effect on the Mills

program of sorts with no warning,” says Taigi Smith.

community over the years, particu-

30

years of SAW

Former President Janet Holmgren tasked Williams with res-

larly on the retention of women of

urrecting the program, and he redesigned it to include a much

color and first-generation students.

more robust academic component as well as a year-round sup-

And because of SAW’s role in groom-

port system. Rather than focusing on remediation, he modeled

ing would-be student leaders, SAW

the new incarnation of SAW after an honors program to increase

students have also been vital in shap-

the number of African American students in STEM fields at

ing the character of campus activi-

Xavier University. As a sociologist, he also stressed the impor-

ties—including the program itself.

tance of social responsibility and respect for others: “How is it

During her time as a peer advisor and

going to benefit the world if you become a top-notch student

program coordinator for SAW, Daisy Gonzales helped revamp

[yet] you have no orientation to becoming a citizen of your com-

the slate of activities to include a community project, such as

munity of the world, or trying to make the world a better place?”

volunteer work with a local convalescent home.

According to Carolina Salazar ’06, district director for

“For many of them, it was the first time they had ever volun-

California Assemblymember Bill Quirk, Williams inculcated in

teered,” she says. “For us, as a strategy, it was a part of helping

his SAW students the essential truth that what they had to say

them understand that this is their new community—this is what it

was valuable and that they should behave accordingly.

meant to be a leader that is embedded in their community—and it

“I remember the first day of class. We had all been very shy… nobody had sat in the front row, and he gave us this amazing

went hand in hand with the work that Bruce Williams was teaching in the sociology course.”

and powerful lecture about how people have fought so hard

Current SAW faculty members, including Priya Kandaswamy,

in this country to make sure that people of color are no longer

are well aware of how the student body has changed over the

in the back of the bus, and that we have the opportunity to be

past 30 years, and how this has necessarily influenced the educational philosophy of SAW. “It’s a strengths-

“I remember the first day of class. We had all been very shy… nobody had sat in the front row, and he [Bruce Williams] gave us this amazing and powerful lecture about how people have fought so hard in this country to make sure that people of color are no longer in the back of the bus, and that we have the opportunity to be in the front row.”

–Carolina Salazar ’06

based approach,” she says. “A lot of times, people focus on what first-generation college students might lack, but we emphasize the tremendous contributions that these students make to our campus community.”

The wide range of life experiences that SAW students bring with them is an invaluable addition to a classroom discussion, provoking discussions such as how what’s being taught is relevant to the communities they come from, or how it can be taught differently so it can affect more people.

in the front row,” she says. “It’s a powerful message. It’s being

“I think that makes for a richer classroom conversation, a

present, being heard, having a voice, understanding that you’re

richer engagement with the material, because—for them—it

a leader, that you have power in your voice.”

helps them connect their learning to their own life, and for the

Salazar still considers Williams to be one of her ongoing

whole class, we’re all broadening our experiences by engaging

mentors—and his advice still holds true: “To this day, when I go

with the way this material resonates differently with people

to presentations or something for work, I’m always in the front

from different groups,” Kandaswamy says.

row, to the point where my staff teases me about it.”

It’s these lasting effects of SAW that are the most striking— SAW graduates cite the program as one of the key factors in their ongoing success as leaders and activists, not just during their tenure on campus, but long after graduation.

T

HE SUMMER ACADEMIC WORKSHOP is still going strong in its 30th year, with a recent grant helping solidify plans for two cohorts next year. This is wel-

“Mills builds leaders,” Jalila Bell says. “I certainly see that,

come news since SAW alumnae have high hopes for the pro-

and I see us going in all these different directions and being

gram’s future—many of them emphasizing how much it was a

really courageous about the paths that we take in our lives.”

formative experience for them as first-generation college stu-

Mance agrees. “We’re very proud of how the students have

dents and women of color.

really internalized this notion that they are leaders—academi-

“It really impacted so many people’s lives, including my

cally and in terms of student life,” she says. “Make no mistake:

own,” says Lauren Bartlett, “and I hope that it can continue to

these students will transform Mills.”

be available for students to come and in the future.” ◆ FA L L 2 0 1 9

17

AAMC NEWS & NOTES A Message from the AAMC President The start of fall semester at Mills is always magical. I enjoyed

growth and development in Mills students and other alumnae.

meeting new students during orientation week in late August,

Through MillsConnect, we can play a role in helping students

especially at Taco Tuesday, the AAMC’s student

bridge the gap between college and career, and

welcome event at Reinhardt Alumnae House. Our

in helping other graduates achieve their career

Alumnae of Color Committee began connecting with

goals. I encourage you once again to sign up

new students even before orientation week; on August

for MillsConnect at connect.mills.edu and dive

10, its members hosted a brunch for the first-genera-

into the adventure and joy of mentoring.

tion college students who participated in the Summer

In closing, I would like to thank Susan

Academic Workshop, which prepares them to make the

Thomas ’80 for completing two terms on the

transition into their first year of college. At events like

Board of Governors (BOG)—six years in all!

these, alumnae can share their memories and experi-

She served as treasurer during her first three

ences with new students and help them feel that they

years and interim treasurer at the end of her

belong in this community.

tenure; she also participated on several AAMC

The AAMC is working to connect with both new

committees. Her contributions to the board

and continuing students in many ways, particularly

were invaluable, and she will be greatly missed!

through MillsConnect, our online mentoring and net-

I hope you, too, will consider participating

working platform that celebrates its first anniversary

as a volunteer with the AAMC, whether as a mentor, on the board, or as alumna trustee.

this fall.

Mentors have enriched my life by guiding me through my edu-

Nominations for alumna trustee are being accepted now (see

cational and career choices and providing me valuable insights

facing page). Keep an eye out for a call for nominations of BOG

into adapting to changing work environments. Many students

members in a future Quarterly issue.

I have met over the years have also found value in network-

Warmly,

ing with alumnae in the field they hope to enter. MillsConnect

Viji Nakka-Cammauf, MA ’82

seeks to build a community of mentors dedicated to fostering

President, Alumnae Association of Mills College

Your Financial Journey Workshop WORKSHOP SESSIONS • Live the Life You Want—Set Goals & Save • Your Financial Journey Saturday, October 6, 2019 8:30 am–1:00 pm Lokey School of Business Gathering Hall, Mills College Continental breakfast provided Women have made strides in key areas in recent years— from earning more college degrees and holding higherpaying jobs to starting our own businesses and living longer.

With this in mind, please join the AAMC for a free half-day

Presented by Susan Mazzetti, vice president and senior financial advisor at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Mazzetti serves as a client relationship manager focused on developing strategies and advice for individuals, their families, and their businesses by understanding their financial objectives. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch, she worked as a CPA providing risk management assurance and advisory services to global financial institutions.

workshop, exclusively for Mills alumnae, where we will talk

Investing Basics

about the economic power and influence that women have

Presented by Melissa Yue, assistant vice president and

gained, how you can prioritize the things that matter most to

wealth management advisor at Merrill Lynch

you, and how to plan for your financial goals throughout your unique journey.

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M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Yue helps clients get financially organized and feel empowered to pursue their most important financial goals

GIFT IDEAS FROM THE

AAMC

Nominate the next alumna trustee Make your voice heard on the Mills College Board of Trustees and the AAMC Board of Governors. Nominate yourself or another willing Mills graduate as a candidate for the position of alumna trustee for the three-year term beginning July 1, 2020. Alumnae trustees serve on the boards of the College and the AAMC; they are expected to participate on committees on both boards. For more information on the responsibilities of the position and how to apply or nominate someone, look under the Leadership section of the AAMC website at aamc.mills .edu. Nominations are due January 5, 2020, to AAMC Nominating Committee Chair Cherlene Sprague Wright ’92 at aamc@mills.edu or AAMC, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., MB #86, Oakland, CA 94613.

T-shirts. Show off your Mills pride with one of the AAMC’s new T-shirt designs. Made from 100-percent cotton and featuring our new logos, these shirts are a fresh addition to our merchandise offerings. They are $20 each plus $5 for shipping and handling.

by creating forecasts and custom investment strategies for retirement sustainability, education savings, and other objectives.

Estate & Incapacity Planning Presented by Sarah Nix, attorney and certified specialist in estate planning, probate, and trust law Nix is the managing shareholder at Gagen McCoy and has been practicing with the firm since 2005.

For more information, including a schedule of the day’s events, please contact AAMC communications coordinator Kate Beckwith, MFA ’13, at karobinson@ mills.edu.

Eucalyptus scented candles. Do you ever feel homesick for the familiar smell of eucalyptus trees? Bring back Mills memories with a lovely eucalyptus-scented candle.

Handmade just for the AAMC by Los Angeles artisan Timothy Jay Candles, they feature our new logo and will burn for 40 hours. Each candle is $45 plus $5 for shipping and handling.

Pearl M pendants & pins. One of our most popular items, the famous Pearl M, is back in both pendant and pin form.

A modern version of an antique Pearl M, these are custom crafted for the AAMC from 24-karat gold and real pearls.

Quantities are limited, and each pendant is $360, pins $350; with $5 for shipping and handling.

Holiday ornaments. Choose from five ornaments, each depicting a Mills icon: a eucalyptus grove, Mills Hall, the Music Building, the Art Building, and El Campanil.

Made from solid brass and finished in 24-karat gold, these limited-edition ornaments are presented in gift boxes and include ribbons for hanging. Ornaments are $30 each plus $5 for shipping and handling.

You can peruse our merchandise offerings in the Merchandise section of aamc.mills.edu. To order, please email aamc@mills .edu or call 510.430.2110.

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Class Notes do not appear in the online edition of Mills Quarterly.

Alumnae are invited to share their news with classmates in the Mills College alumnae community.

To submit notes for publication in the next available Quarterly, send your update to classnotes@mills. edu.

Class Notes do not appear in the online edition of the Mills Quarterly.

Alumnae are invited to share their news with classmates in the Mills College Alumnae Community, alumnae.mills.edu. To submit notes for publication in the next available Quarterly, send your update to classnotes@mills.edu.

In Memoriam Notices of deaths received before July 3, 2019 To submit listings, please contact alumnae-relations@mills.edu or 510.430.2123

Alumnae Rosemary Reichmuth Laughlin ’44, April 24, in Carson City, Nevada. Her family’s cabin at Fallen Leaf Lake was a home away from home, and it was where she practiced some of her many hobbies—enjoying nature, boating, swimming, and being a handywoman. Rosemary also loved animals and raised many of them, including peacocks and horses. She is survived by three children and three grandchildren.

Naidene Nelson Stengel ’45, January 3, in Pacific Grove, California. An educator for many years, she enjoyed making a difference in students’ lives and later served as the principal at Spreckels Elementary School outside of Salinas. Naidene was also a skilled piano player.

Marinell Pinnell Busath ’45, April 29, 2016, in Sacramento. She is survived by four daughters and seven grandchildren.

Catherine Gressino Bessolo ’46, February 13, in Glendale, California.

Barbara Moffett Long ’46, March 23, in Fairway, Kansas. She graduated from the University of Kansas with a degree in journalism and, after her wedding, she was second-in-command at her late husband’s two companies. The couple maintained the family ranch in Archer City, Texas, where she was a member of the Texas Cattle Women. She is survived by niece Georgeanne Orr Harris ’75, four children, and six grandchildren.

Marcia Peterson McManus ’46, April 25, in San Jose. Marcia found her calling in tutoring children who had fallen behind, later going into teaching and starting her own school in Santa Clara: Carden El Encanto Day School. In 1956, she was named The Woman of the Year by the San Jose Jaycees. She is survived by two children and four grandchildren.

Carmel Burastero Triska ’47, March 23, in Menlo Park, California. She graduated from Mills with a degree in English and a teaching credential, using both throughout her life—more recently to teach English to immigrants and to mentor challenged youth. Carmel and her Czech husband traveled extensively around the world. She is survived by two children and four grandchildren.

Barbara McClung Matarrese ’47, March 18, 2018, in Los Angeles. She is survived by two children.

Anne Nicholson Turchi ’47, April 10, in Lucerne, Switzerland. One of the first students to graduate from the occupational therapy program, Anne took a Fulbright scholarship to Italy, where she opened the first occupational therapy department in Italy. She also interviewed prospective Mills students after she relocated to Switzerland. She is survived by two children.

Marilyn “Macduff” McClure Clifford ’48, March 1, in Santa Ana, California. A natural artist and a lover of watercolor, Marilyn studied painting under Roger Armstrong and Dong Kingman, later opening her own gallery in Laguna Beach and illustrating a children’s book written by daughter Carolyn. She is survived by three children and four grandchildren.

Yvonne “Vicki” Peterson Noack ’48, April 18, in Sacramento, California.

After Mills, Vicki moved to Greece to help World War II orphans at Children’s Home Society. Back in the United States, she worked at a career agency to help women advance in their careers, and then as a real-estate agent. She is survived by four children and six grandchildren.

Lucy Cowdin Maisel ’38 Lucy Cowdin graduated from high school in Springfield, Illinois, at the age of 16. She then came to Mills thanks to a Mills College Trustee Scholarship, which completely covered her tuition and room and board during her first year. Her path after Mills took her to the University of Paris on an exchange fellowship, and, upon returning to the United States at the start of World War II, she met her husband, Sherman J. Maisel. They were both among the first group of interns at the National Institute for Public Affairs, which was intended to draw recent college graduates into careers in government service.

She moved back to the Bay Area in 1948 when Sherman joined the faculty at UC-Berkeley. Save for a seven-year period when he was a member of the Federal Reserve in Washington, DC, she lived the rest of her life in close proximity to Mills. In addition to other organizations, she was active on the AAMC’s Board of Governors.

She was also an original member of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus.

Grateful for the opportunities that had opened up for her as a result of her scholarship to Mills, she established the Lucy Cowdin Maisel Scholarship in 1989. In establishing a named scholarship, Lucy was inspired by the criteria for her own: to award “unusual success in the development of character, personality, and qualities of leadership, as well as scholastic achievement.” In the 30 years since the scholarship was established, it has benefited a total of 24 students, with still more to come in the future.

She is survived by two children and two grandchildren.

S Joan Strait Applegate, MA ’49, May 3, in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.

Making music was at the core of Joan’s life. She taught piano lessons when her children were young, then joined the faculty at Shippensburg University, where she specialized in music history (especially women composers and folk music) and established a noontime concert series.

She is survived by four children and nine grandchildren.

Sally Briscoe Terman ’50, June 13, in Belmont, California. She is survived by three children and two grandchildren.

Cornelia Cheney Friedman ’50, June 24, in Fort Worth, Texas. After Mills, she graduated from the University of Texas, where she met her husband, Bayard. Her husband was mayor of Fort Worth, but she led in her own ways—among them, as founding member of the nonprofit Streams and Valleys and capital campaign chair for the Food Bank of Fort Worth.

Cornelia also had an “obsession” with bridge. She is survived by four children and seven grandchildren.

Margaret Jackson Frizell ’50, May 1, in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Born in China, Margaret studied at the Sorbonne after Mills, eventually teaching French on Vancouver Island. It was there she met her husband, Charles. She was a homemaker who also wrote radio plays for the CBC, learned to create iconographs, and collected everything from cookbooks to plant seeds to newspaper clippings. She is survived by three sons.

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Camilla Lanzafame Magnoli ’50, April 12, in Pleasanton, California. She married her high school sweetheart, Edward Magnoli, one year after graduating with her degree in psychology. After his retirement, they moved to Monte Rio to enjoy life on the Russian River, including golfing, swimming, and gardening. She is survived by two children and four grandchildren.

Barbara McCall Bryant ’50, May 9, in Aliso Viejo, California. After Mills, she finished her bachelor’s degree at UCLA and earned an MA in school psychology from Loyola Marymount University. Barbara was an active member of the Los Angeles Mills Club. She is survived by two children.

Suzanne Warner Pollard ’50, November 16, 2018, in Woodland, California. She is survived by a son.

Joan Marriott Brooks ’51, June 5, in Vancouver, Washington. Joan used her outgoing personality in politics, campaigning and working on Oregon gubernatorial and secretary of state campaigns. In her 70s, she tried out for the Sun City Dance Company in her retirement home of Las Vegas and was accepted, fulfilling her dream of dancing onstage. She is survived by two children and five grandchildren.

Pamela “Pam” Moore Bondelie ’51, November 13, 2018, in Los Gatos, California.

Lillian “Lee” Steele Benzinger ’51, September 23, 2015, in Point Reyes Station, California. She is survived by sister Yvonne Steele Byron ’50.

Anna Erben Dyer-Bennet ’52, January 27, 2018, in Davis, California.

Mary “Betsy” Carter Cammack ’53, June 15, 2018, in Sierra City, California. Betsy was a shoe designer and fashion editor, starting her own shoe magazine (Footprints West) after seeing a lack of related coverage on the West Coast. After retirement, she greatly enjoyed quilting

and mastering new recipes. She is survived by her husband, Phil; two children; and two grandchildren.

Geraldine Bollinger Raupe ’56, April 25, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

After graduating from the University of Oklahoma, she met her husband on a blind date and became a homemaker and volunteer, as well as a champion bridge player for more than 50 years. She is survived by two children and eight grandchildren.

Marilyn Grimes Hill ’56, March 14, in Portland, Oregon. To Marilyn, life was an adventure. She traveled near and far, including to Turkey, New Zealand, and the South Pacific. She was also a silver life master in the American Contract Bridge League. She is survived by her husband, Don; two children, including Linda Hill ’83; and two grandchildren.

Janet Jackson Wilson ’56, February 7, 2018, in Kilmarnock, Virginia.

Ruth Ann Rumiano ’57, May 14, in Devon, Pennsylvania. Ruth worked for many years in human resources, beginning her career with American Electronic Laboratories. She enjoyed traveling around the United States and writing music. She is survived by a sister and Rosalie Hart, her best friend of 59 years.

Martha Bliss Safford, MA ’57, January 31, in Rockport, Massachusetts.

Martha loved art, establishing the art department at Newton Junior College and several art programs in elementary schools. She met her husband, Nick, at the Bartlett Singles Ski Club in New Hampshire, and the pair enjoyed racing dinghies as well. She is survived by her husband, two children, and six grandchildren.

Martha Hendrick Rusnak ’59, March 18, in Cary, North Carolina. Martha was an education professor, having earned her MA and EdD from Northern Illinois University. She is survived by two children.

Gifts in Memory of Received March 1, 2019 – May 31, 2019

Joan Bulley Keever ’52 by Mills College Club of New York

Florence Aragon, P ’63 by Michelle Balovich ’03, MBA ’18

Sally Miller Kell ’57 by her sister, Kay Miller Browne ’53, P ’83

Laura Balas, MA ’92 by Helen Hovdesven

Jennifer “Jenny” Makofsky ’91 by Lisa Kosiewicz Doran ’91

Timanna Bennett ’02 by Marcia Randall ’02

Sherry May, P ’86 by Melora Gardner Scharf ’85

Barbara McCall Bryant ’50 by Bobo Lee ’75, Carole Joseph Silva ’54

Maggie Richardson, P ’72 by her daughter, Brenda Richardson Jemal ’72

Terry Foskett Camacho ’61 by Ann Gordon Bigler ’61 Findley Randolph Cotton, MA ’58 by Nancy Gomes Jerry and Lois Davis, P ’82 by their daughter, Vanessa Davis Mullally ’82 Peggy Faletti, P ’81 by Michelle Balovich ’03, MBA ’18 Steven Givant by Yi Zhou ’93 Shirley Schweers Goers ’45 by James Baker, Ann Larson, Loann Maas, Kathryn Weed

Marion Ross ’44 by Anne Hopper Bevilacqua ’77, MA ’87; Lucile Pedler Griffiths ’46, MA ’47, P ’75; Martha Sellers ’86 Ariel Eaton Thomas ’63, P ’92 by Gwendolyn “Gwen” Jackson Foster ’67; April Ninomaya Hopkins, MFA ’03; Judith “Judy” Greenwood Jones ’60, P ’92; Bette Krause Spagel ’63, P ’79; Marion Lamson Thomas ’63; Judith “Judy” Salzer Warner ’63 Carmel Burastero Triska ’47 by Barbara Moller Lyons ’47 Anne “Nicky” Nicholson Turchi ’47 by her son, Mario Turchi

Toshiko Hasegawa by her granddaughter, Stefanie Yoshizuka ’13

Julia Voorhies ’66 by Mary Tucker Solomon ’65

Marilyn Grimes Hill ’56, P ’83 and Donald Hill, P ’83 by their daughter, Linda Hill ’83

Cecilia Ashley Wells ’65 by Joan Gutman Falender ’65, MA ’66; Fred Falender

P=parent. For information about making a tribute gift, contact 510.430.2097 or donors@mills.edu.

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M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Cynthia Archer Resare ’61, June 29, in Inverness, Florida. As the daughter of a naval officer, she grew up speaking English, Greek, French, and some Swedish and German. After working as a social worker, she attended law school at American University, practicing law in the DC area and teaching history at the college level in Rhode Island and Florida. She is survived by sister Mercedes Larson Richards ’59, three sons, two stepsons, and 11 grandchildren.

Danna Pierce ’92, January 14, 2016, in San Leandro, California. After Mills, she opened her own gardening business. She is survived by her spouse, Carla Rogers.

Leona Berglund Schwab ’63, March 1, in Fresno, California. She is survived by her husband, Lawrence, and a son.

Sherla Collins, mother of Patricia Collins Gabbe ’64 and Barbara Collins Ferenstein ’64, May 14, in Bend, Oregon.

Sarah “Sally” Clingerman Pierce ’63, March 1, in Denton, Texas. As an art history major, Sally developed her love for photography at Mills, later earning an MFA in photography from the University of Texas at San Antonio. She also worked at the Dayton Art Institute and the McNay Art Institute before devoting herself to her craft full time. She is survived by two children and three grandchildren.

Jerry Davis, father of Vanessa Davis Mullally ’82, July 23, 2017, in Napa, California.

Wendy Trosper DeRoux ’63, April 12, in Seattle. After earning her degree in craft art, she obtained a teaching certificate from the University of Washington and taught art before starting her family.

Wendy was a member of the Northwest Designer’s Craftsmen, American Craft Council, and Seattle Tennis Club. She is survived by three children and seven grandchildren.

Emily Gerstbacher ’65, March 1, in Sun City, California. After Mills, she studied library science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and worked in the public library system in Southern California.

After retirement, she relished playing the cello, swimming, and volunteering. She is survived by two brothers.

Tex Van Hoefen Harrison ’65, June 21, in Fort Davis, Texas. At various points, she owned Complements to the Chef, a kitchen store in Asheville, North Carolina, and served as the executive director of the food pantry in Fort Davis. Through it all, she was a volunteer, as an advocate with the American Cancer Society and on various community boards. She is survived by her husband, Thomas; and a son.

Rachel Andrews, MA ’07, November 11, 2016, in Algona, Washington.

Spouses and Family

Lois Davis, mother of Vanessa Davis Mullally ’82, June 26, 2017, in Napa, California.

Robert W. Denton, husband of Elizabeth Denton ’42, October 28, 2017, in Bishop, California.

Mrigendramani Dixit, father of Michiko Dixit ’84 and Mamata “Joy” Dixit Fowler ’87, December 1, 2018, in Manila, Philippines.

Peggy Faletti, mother of Rina Faletti ’81, November 9, 2018, in Napa, California.

Joan Gordon, mother of Karen Gordon ’14, September 12, 2018, in Albany, California.

Toshiko Hasegawa, grandmother of Stefanie Yoshizuka ’13, December 18, 2018, in Sacramento, California.

Donald Hill, husband of Marilyn Jane Hill ’56, March 28, in Portland, Oregon.

Wayne Lyons, husband of Kay Kewley ’65, March 18, in Piedmont, California.

Peter Magowan, father of Adjunct Professor of English Kim Magowan, January 27, in San Francisco.

Cecilia “Ceci” Ashley Wells ’65, April 8, in Castle Rock, Colorado. She taught in West Hartford, Connecticut, before moving back to the Denver area with her husband, Pete, to whom she was introduced by her good friend and his sister, Wendy. She worked as a teacher and administrative assistant in public schools there until she retired in 2013. She is survived by Pete, two children, and four grandchildren.

Hugh McLellan, husband of Alice Whisenand McLellan ’49, May 10, 2018, in Falls Church, Virginia.

Frances Balcomb ’66, December 14, 2018, in Bakersfield, California.

Pericles Panagopoulos, father of Irene Panagapoulus ’85, February 6, in Athens, Greece.

Lynn Elliott ’69, March 26, in Diamond Bar, California.

Nancy Avakian-Thompson ’72, May 16, in Springfield, Oregon. She is survived by her husband, Eric; and a sister, Elizabeth Avakian Warner ’76.

Robynne Rose ’86, MA ’93, April 6, in Sacramento. Robynne was a high-school English teacher, receiving training from the Freedom Writers Foundation and being named the ABC10 “Teacher of the Month” before she retired in 2013. Breast cancer consumed Robynne’s later years, but she never let it define her. She is survived by her husband, two children, and her parents.

Cynthia “Luli” Schrepferman, MA ’86, June 17, in Boulder, Colorado.

Her passion for working with underprivileged students as the education and special needs director of Wild Plum Center in Boulder was paramount. Luli also loved going on hikes with and cooking for her family. She is survived by her partner, Robert Dixon; three children; four stepchildren; and three siblings.

Barbara Aaron Nusbaum; mother of Elizabeth Nusbaum Majchrzak ’75, ASCI ’08, EDD ’15; January 11; in Los Angeles.

Alfred Osborne, father of Sheila Osborne ’68, in Tarzana, California.

Ralph L. Phillips, husband of Alice Hall Phillips ’58 and father of Shelby Phillips Stone ’80, August 2018, in Washington, DC. Maggie Sue Richardson, mother of Brenda Jemal ’72, January 15, 2018, in Seaside, California.

G. Thomas Sallee, husband of Joan Selke Sallee, MA ’64; June 15; in Davis, California.

Friends Sherry Forde, February 5, in Windsor, California.

Joseph W. Knowland, member of the Mills Board of Trustees from 1969–1980, March 14, in Walnut Creek, California.

Betty Jane Menke, January 10, in Banning, California.

Alfred Regan, February 21, in Walnut Creek, California.

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Strumming Her Way Words JESSICA LANGLOIS, MFA ’10, Photos COURTNEY PAIGE RAY

M

onica Esparza ’99 is accustomed to being the only

ukulele-building at her space in San Clemente. Each guitar

woman in the room.

takes about three months to build, and an Esparza guitar sells

In 2004, she landed a coveted spot in a workshop led by José

for $8,000 to $10,000.

Romanillos, the master of traditional Spanish guitar-making.

She builds her instruments with European flamed maple,

After she traveled to the Renaissance town of Sigüenza, about

Spanish cedar, and European spruce, and she crafts intricate

80 miles northeast of Madrid, she took her place at her work-

rosettes using dozens of paper-thin pieces of exotic wood. “A

bench among 19 men.

lot of modern builders are trying to use artificial materials to

Esparza had also been the only girl in her middle-school

give it a bigger boom,” Esparza explains. But those materials

shop class, which is where she began her journey as a skilled

make the sound tinny and bright, and the guitar loses its dis-

woodworker. When she took her first guitar-making class at an

tinct tonality—that warm, deeply resonant “Spanish sound.”

Orange County community college in 2000 (after graduating from Mills with a degree in Hispanic studies), she was not only the lone woman, but also the only person making a classical flamenco guitar with hand tools.

“In the classical guitar world, we want the guitar to speak for itself. Each note has a flavor,” Esparza says.

Most Spanish guitar makers don’t play the instrument, but Esparza knows that playing makes her a better luthier. She took

In Sigüenza several years later, Esparza worked around the

classical guitar lessons while she was at Mills in her early 30s,

clock for three weeks, determined to absorb everything she

though she got a feel for the sound in her late 20s by singing

could. At the end of the workshop, only four out of 20 instru-

in a flamenco choir. These days, she squeezes in guitar lessons

ments were ready to be strung. Esparza’s was one of them.

while juggling this gig with her family’s beverage manufactur-

“I had the men hanging out at my bench the last week, trying

ing and distribution company.

to ask me questions because they were so far behind,” Esparza

“I will try to work on a little Bach piece just to keep listening

recalls. “I didn’t know how well I had performed until my mae-

to my guitar,” she says. “If you play, you understand that half a

stro sat with me and started strumming my guitar.”

millimeter in the string length makes a difference.”

Over the next 12 years, Romanillos invited Esparza back eight

Esparza recalls her maestro saying that he had yet to make

more times. Each year, she’s been the only woman at the bench.

a good guitar after 50 years of building instruments. To her,

Esparza has since built more than 50 guitars. She showcases

that’s the sign of a great luthier: “It’s still a challenge to put my

her instruments around the world, judges woodworking com-

label in my instrument,” Esparza says. “I know how much those

petitions, and teaches classes in traditional guitar-making and

instruments teach me. Every guitar teaches me something.”

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M I L L S Q U A R T E R LY

Alum earns permanent place in Mills archives

The late Beate Sirota Gordon ’43 has a new place of honor at her alma mater: the F.W. Olin Library.

Gordon, who died in 2012, played an impressive part in post-World War II negotiations between the United States and Japan. She was an interpreter and researcher for General MacArthur’s staff starting in December 1945 and, as the only woman present for much of the proceedings, she participated in the creation of the new Japanese constitution—including authoring the section detailing women’s rights. A 2004 Japanese documentary titled The Gift from Beate detailed the work she did pushing forward that country after the war.

The Mills library has acquired the Englishand European-language papers from her estate (her archives in Japanese are housed in the National Women’s Education Center in Ranzan, near Tokyo) that give a firsthand account of the historic events she experienced, as well as her extensive involvement in the performing arts. Selections from her collection were on display through August 15, and the entire archive is now available for research purposes. For more information, visit tinyurl.com/beate-gordon.

ALUMNAE TRAVEL

Tanzanian Safari June 29–July 10, 2020

Explore the beautiful and biodiverse landscape of Tarangire National Park’s many habitats—grassy plains, swamplands, acacia woodlands, and huge baobab trees.

More than 550 species of birds make their home there, from the vivid, yellow-collared lovebird—which can fit in your hand—to the martial eagle, Africa’s largest bird of prey.

Tarangire also boasts the continent’s highest concentration of elephant herds.

Look forward to delightful viewing experiences as they frolic in the mud, strip bark off acacia trees, and tend to their babies.

Tarangire is named for the meandering river that bisects the length of the park. Its life-sustaining water draws continual herds of animals, even during the dry season, when they root nearby in search of underground streams. You can see giraffes, wildebeests, gazelles, warthogs, and many other animals congregate along its banks.

The journey through Tarangire is just one of many activities on our Tanzanian safari, which also brings you to the Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti National Park, and Oldupai Gorge.

For more information, including a full itinerary for this and other trips, please visit the AAMC travel website at alumnae.mills.edu/travel.

Mills Quarterly Mills College 5000 MacArthur Blvd.

Oakland, CA 94613-1301 510.430.3312 quarterly@mills.edu www.mills.edu