Celebrating 25 Years of Women at VMI

By Mary Price, Development Writer

More than 214 alumnae came to post Sept. 8–10 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of women matriculating to VMI. The events began with a reception for early arrivals. The events included panel discussions, a networking lunch with cadets in Crozet, and a celebratory dinner in the Hall of Valor.—Photos by Micalyn Miller, VMI Alumni Agencies.

With solidarity and pride in their accomplishments, more than 214 alumnae and their families returned to Lexington Sept. 8–10 to celebrate a milestone in Institute history: 25 years since the first women matriculated to VMI in August 1997. In the quarter century that has passed since that historic moment, the Institute has marked several “firsts” by VMI women, most recently with Kasey Meredith ’22 becoming VMI’s first female regimental commander.

The 25th anniversary celebration of women at VMI was organized by the VMI Alumni Agencies to celebrate the myriad accomplishments of alumnae and offer them a chance to network both with each other and current female cadets.

Events began Thursday, Sept. 8, with an early arrivals reception held that evening in the Pogue Auditorium in the George C. Marshall Research Library. The next morning, the event kicked off with a welcome session in Gillis Theater in Marshall Hall, where David Prasnicki, Alumni Agencies chief operating officer, introduced Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins ’85, superintendent.

During his remarks, Wins noted, “You did not give up, and you have made a profound impact on the Institute.” He then mentioned the accomplishments of several alumnae, among them U.S. Army Col. Angelica Martinez ’02, chief of strategic plans for the U.S. Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority; U.S. Navy Cmdr. Bree Adams Gutterman ’04, proprietor of a property management business and a member of the VMI Foundation Board of Trustees; and Lezshell “Shelly” Pauling ’06, a mental performance coach now working with U.S. Special Operations Command soldiers.

The women in barracks today “are building on the foundation you set,” Wins told his audience. “VMI is, by every measure, a better place with women in the Corps.”

Next up was a panel called Generations of Women at VMI, featuring 10 alumnae from a wide spectrum of classes. Their time was spent discussing how VMI had forged and formed them, what advice they had for current female cadets, and how VMI can learn from the integration of women into the Corps of Cadets.

Many shared that VMI had prepared them for uncertainty and change; more than one expressed the sentiment, “When you get out of VMI, you are going to be a rat.” The transition from higher education to the workplace was easier for them than for others, they stated, because they’d already learned that being in new and uncomfortable situations is often necessary for growth.

Following the Generations of Women at VMI panel, another panel focused on entrepreneurship among VMI women. Five alumnae, including a chef, a fashion designer, and an attorney, among others, discussed their journeys to self-employment, and they did not hold back in sharing the highs and lows of being their own bosses.

“I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed. I just had to work really hard,” said Lara Tyler Chambers ’03, a land developer and vice chair of the VMI Board of Visitors.

Elise Woodworth ’07, who runs an executive coaching business, Woodworth Enterprises LLC, said that VMI prepared her for entrepreneurship by giving her lots of chances to test her skills in a variety of areas. “At VMI, there are so many opportunities to experience diverse things,” said Woodworth. In terms of choosing a path to self-employment, “Look at what your passion is and what brings you happiness,” she stated.

Woodworth told her listeners that she recently finished writing a book, Business Before Battle, and balanced that responsibility with homeschooling her five children. “Don’t ever give up,” she advised.

Following a networking lunch in Crozet Hall, two more panel sessions followed, one focused on women in STEM and the other on careers in the military and as first responders.

That evening, alumnae, alumni, and current cadets came together for a celebratory dinner, held in the Hall of Valor in Marshall Hall. An Alumni Agencies-produced video highlighted the painstaking preparations for the first women’s arrival in 1997, as well as the extensive nationwide news coverage of their first days on post.

The evening’s speaker, Virginia National Guard Maj. Gen. Marti J. Bissell, deputy commanding general, discussed her four-decadelong relationship with VMI and how she’d seen the Institute evolve over time.

With warmth and humor, Bissell described how she’d grown up with little exposure to the military and then became a member of the VMI family. Her first visits to VMI were in the 1980s with her husband, Col. Gary Bissell ’89, VMI deputy chief of staff and operations, and at the same time, she was getting to know her fatherin-law, retired U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Norman M. “Mike” Bissell ’61. The elder Bissell, now deceased, served as VMI’s first non-active-duty commandant of cadets from 1990–94.

Eventually, Bissell came to work for the Institute herself, serving in a variety of teaching and administrative positions. From her front-row seat, Bissell saw the Institute change as society was changing.

“VMI does change, is constantly changing, and will continue to change,” she declared. Examples of change prior to the integration of women included the introduction of indoor plumbing and a switch from sacks stuffed with hay to mattresses, she observed, among many others.

On Saturday, alumnae were guests of honor at the morning’s parade, and in the afternoon, rain did not dampen the spirits of the women and their families as they were honored at halftime of VMI’s football opener against Bucknell University, a matchup that ended with a 24-14 Keydet victory.

Editor’s Note: Scan the QR code or visit vmialumni.org/25years to see more articles and videos relating to the 25th Anniversary Celebration of Women at VMI, as well as a slideshow from the weekend.

Alumnae from early classes at the celebratory dinner, along with Carole Green (second from right, in red) and Kevin Trujillo ’98 (far right). Green was instrumental in proving women could succeed physically at VMI. Trujillo was the 1st Class president the first year women attended VMI.

By Mary Price, Development Writer

Cadet Scout Ripley ’23, a lacrosse team captain from Annapolis, Maryland, is the 2022–23 recipient of the Three-Legged Stool Award. Pictured are Maj. Gen. Cedric Wins ’85, superintendent; Ripley; Bland Massie ’77, Keydet Club president; and Jim Miller, director of intercollegiate athletics, at the Keydet Club Scholarship Banquet Oct. 23, 2022.—Photos by Micalyn Miller, VMI Alumni Agencies.

Held in the Hall of Valor in Marshall Hall Sunday, Oct. 23, the Keydet Club Scholarship Banquet was an occasion for cadet-athletes to meet and thank the donors who make their educations possible and for donors to meet and get to know the cadets they are supporting. This year, approximately 120 donors and their guests joined 250 cadet-athletes for a luncheon; the presentation of the Three-Legged Stool Award; and remarks by Greg Cavallaro ’84, senior major gift officer, whose 38 years of employment with VMI include nearly two decades as Keydet Club chief operating officer.

Welcoming the large crowd was Andrew Deal ’12, Keydet Club chief operating officer. Thanks to the generosity of alumni and other members of the VMI family, he noted, the Keydet Club is providing almost $7 million in scholarship support to more than 300 cadet-athletes this year.

Next, Jim Miller, VMI intercollegiate athletic director, recognized the many coaches and assistant coaches in attendance and offered some words specifically for the cadet-athletes in attendance. He noted that he and Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins ’85, superintendent, are working on a new strategic plan for VMI’s future direction in athletics, and because of this, there’s a focus on outcomes for cadet-athletes.

“We want you to be better prepared for life because you were a VMI cadet-athlete,” said Miller.

After lunch, Deal introduced the candidates

for this year’s Three-Legged Stool Award, which has been awarded annually since 2001 by the Keydet Club to the cadet-athlete who best embodies excellence in academics, athletics, and military. Receiving the award for the 2022–23 academic year was Cadet Scout Ripley ’23, a lacrosse team captain from Annapolis, Maryland.

At the end of the 2021–22 season, Ripley was ranked ninth in the Southern Conference in goals per game and second in the league in shots per game. Academically, he’s a member of the Institute Honors program with a double major in history and English. After VMI, he plans to commission into the Marine Corps.

As he accepted the award, Ripley noted that VMI has offered him a wealth of opportunities. “It’s exposed me to so many things I wouldn’t have gotten at other schools,” he stated. “There’s so many opportunities to lead academically, on the hill, and in sports.”

Praising Ripley’s commitment to both academics and athletics was James Purpura, VMI head lacrosse coach. “Scout’s had academic stars every semester, and he always pulls his team around him,” the coach said.

“As cadet-athletes, we all stand on the shoulders of giants,” Ripley declared. “All of our accomplishments are thanks to the donors and people who allow them to happen.”

In his remarks, Cavallaro shared his reminisces of VMI, the Keydet Club, and the scholarship banquet over the years, with an emphasis on how his decision to matriculate at the Institute changed his life.

“I chose VMI because of the reputation of the VMI alumni body, the network, the relationships that are forged through the brother rat spirit, and the fact that VMI was the road less traveled,” Cavallaro stated.

Cavallaro also shared something that isn’t in his official biography: He graduated last in the Class of 1984. “One of my roommates was First Jackson Hope, and I was just hoping to graduate!” Cavallaro remarked, to laughter from the audience.

Despite his academic struggles, Cavallaro chose to stay at VMI—largely because of the relationships he’d formed with brother rats, professors, coaches, and other members of the VMI family. Clark King, who was coaching boxing when Cavallaro was a cadet, played an outsize role in supporting Cavallaro, as did Col. William “Buck” Buchanan ’50B, who was Cavallaro’s boss when he was hired to work in the VMI Office of Admissions in June 1984.

Through the help, friendship, and support of these men and many others, Cavallaro was able to build a successful career—and he told the cadet-athletes in the audience that if they stayed the course at VMI, the same could happen for them.

“You are part of a special fraternity of brother rats,” Cavallaro stated. “Your brother rats will be there for you through thick and thin ... Life is made up of a series of Rat Lines that you will have to endure and overcome.”

But on the hardest days, it’s easy to lose perspective. Cavallaro told his listeners about a time early in his cadetship when he called home to complain about how poorly things were going, and his mother replied calmly that she and Cavallaro’s father could come to pick him up the next day. Faced with a clear choice—to leave the Institute or to stay—Cavallaro chose to stay.

With this story as background, Cavallaro urged the cadets in the audience to remember their “Why I VMI”—their reasons for choosing the Institute. He shared lines from Robert Frost’s well-known poem, “The Road Not Taken”: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by ... And that has made all the difference.”

After Cavallaro finished speaking, Bland Massie ’77, Keydet Club president, surprised Cavallaro and his wife, Marlene, by presenting Cavallaro with the Three-Legged Stool Award in recognition for his nearly four decades of service and commitment to VMI athletics. It was only the fourth time in the award’s 22-year history that it had been presented to an alumnus. Previous alumni recipients have been Gil Minor ’63; Giles Miller, Class of 1924; and Elmon Gray ’46.