Agnes Scott Alumnae Magazine [2002-2003]

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Agnes Srott

V^ Alumnae Magazine

Winter 2002

agazine

GUEST COLUMN

"Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I might remember. Involve me and I will understand."

Chinese proverb

W

here's the excitement tor the sciences?"
Arthur Lidsky, nationally known academic
program and facilities planning expert,
posed this question to Agnes Scott science
chairs and me. We were well into the sci-
ence planning process and this was an obvious and fair question.
After recovering from the surprise timing of the ques
tion, phrases about excitement over new programs
and facilities began tumbling out. We saw Art's
point. We must be able communicate to many
audiences the genuine excitement that we
students, faculty, staff, alumnae and admin-
istrators feel about plans to transform
the way science is perceived, taught,
learned and practiced at Agnes Scott
College

As weeks and months on the project
timeline have ticked away, the vision has
come together, it has received validation and
support, and excitement has popped out all
over. This is an incredibly thrilling time to be
engaged with science and undergraduate education,
especially in a liberal arts college where a mixture o
ideas and perspectives points us toward the development of the
big picture and a set of values.

More wise words from Art became our marching orders
"Programs drive buildings." He reminded us that we would design
and construct a building after we had clearly stated what we
wanted to do in that building for at least a decade or so, a pretty
tall order given the pace ol change in science and technology

After an open, inclusive planning process, the departments
of biology, chemistry, physics and astronomy, and psychology
are now implementing new programs that will be rounded out in
new facilities. These programs are focused on thorough ground-
ing in basic theories and methods, interdisciplinary connections,
diverse pedagogic approaches, research at many levels, develop-
ment ol intellectual and technical skills and the development of a
dynamic learning community with connections to a wider world
of people and ideas beyond our campus. We will continue to
work with ideas and methods often associated with particular
lields of knowledge, but we will work also at interfaces and over-
laps where most of the exciting new ideas are emerging. Each
department has a solid modern program of courses and activities,

and each contributes to interdisciplinary programs, including
biochemistry and molecular biology, environmental science, and
in the future, neuroscience.

The places supporting these programs include faculty and
student research laboratories, diverse types of teaching laborato-
ries, student collaborative learning centers, and modern, technol-
ogy-rich classrooms. Since laboratory experiences are
pre-eminent in the development of critical thinking
skills and new knowledge, much space is devoted
to labs and lab support facilities. The four
departments offer many kinds of laboratory
experiences, including collaborative or indi-
vidual research that may be conducted
over varying periods of time

The material results of long hours of
planning now appear in the course cata-
log, and they rise from the clay where the
tennis courts once echoed the sounds of a
popular sport. We see the concrete and steel
bones of a new building, and we anticipate the
programmatic impact of new spaces properly
designed, equipped and furnished for education and
research for non-majors, majors, interdisciplinary teams,
and staff and faculty members.

We are able to think in near-future terms about the opera-
tion of a science center for women with diverse programs for
Agnes Scott and the larger community. The sciences at Agnes
Scott have a strong presence in the curriculum and among the
facilities devoted to excellence in the education of women for
careers and citizenship in the 21st century.

Excitement abounds It is rooted in new programs and work
places that will enable students and faculty to enhance their
engagement with ideas and questions about systems that range
from subatomic particles to molecules, cells, organisms, ecosys-
tems, brains and minds, and the far-flung universe. It is rooted in
people who are curious about the way the natural world works
and who seek a knowledge base and skills to prepare for a life of
effective engagement with the complex world of the future

Sx^U^ <?. (cL~^l^ -

CONTENTS

Agnes Scott College Alumnae Magazine
Winter 2002, Volume 78, Number i

8

Women in Science:
A Critical Moment

Even with significant gains, most women sciaitists haven't
received affirmation jor their contributions to the field.
However, the winds of change are being felt.
By Celeste Pennington

A Balkan Bridge

Sotto Voce tour cultivates common bonds.
Story and photos by Chris Tiegreen

The Civics Lesson
of A Lifetime

Florida's 2000 presidential election not only pro-
vided a "hands-on" civics lesson, it also divided the
country into two camps analyzing the ethics,
behavior and appearance of an Agnes Scott alumna.
By Jennifer Bryon Owen

Women in Science:
All the Makings

The attributes that define a liberal arts college for women
are the ingredients needed to he a successful scientist.
By Lisa Ashmore

DEPARTMENTS

4

On Campus
25

Lifestyle
28

Letters
31

Giving Alumna

Cover Story: Sotto Voce ended its
concert tour with a brief stopover
in the scenic Czech Republic.

PHOTO BY CHRIS TIEGREEN

Director of Communications:

Mary Ackerly
Editor: Jennifer Bryon Owen
Designer: Everett Hullum
Intern: Kristin K.allaher'04

Copyright 2002, Agnes Scott College.
Published for alumnae and friends twice
a year by the Office of Commnications,
Agnes Scott College, Rebekah Annex,
141 E. College Avenue, Atlanta/
Decatur, CA 30030.
Postmaster: Send address changes to
Office of Development, Agnes Scott
College, 141 E College Ave,, Atlanta/
Decatur, CA 30030 404 471-6472. The
content of the magazine reflects the
opinions of the writers and not the
viewpoint of the College, its trustees or
administration

e-mail: publicationCff'agnesscott.edu
Web site: wv/v/.agnesscott.edu

Agnes Scon Alumnae Magazine is recipi-
ent of the Award of Excellence for
Alumni Magazines in the CASE District
III Advancement Awards Program 2001.

ON CAMPUS

Following dreams, reaching for the stars, memorializing an alumna's life

ASTRONAUT
URGES:
"REACH FOR
THE STARS"

Despite her past desire to
not become "a historic
figure or a symbol of progress
for women," the first U.S.
female astronaut to orbit the
Earth finds herself using her
fame to ensure that todays
girls have opportunities to
excel in science.

Sally Ride chose the
Agnes Scott campus as one of

two places the other, San
Diego for her national
launch of the Sally Ride
Science Club last November
Upper elementary and middle
school girls of all cultural and
economic backgrounds were
introduced to Ride's club,
which encourages their inter-
ests in science, math and
technology. The club is the
first national one of its kind
Ride also appeared on cam-
pus in October to speak at
the Atlanta Cirls Summit. She
believes that the opportuni-

ties in science are now open
for females and family mem-
bers need to support them.

"Girls deserve the same
encouragement, the same
motivation, the same oppor-
tunities that the boys their
age that are interested in
these subjects have," says
Ride

In l l )78, Ride was one of
35 applicants selected from
more than 8,000 to become
part of NASA's space pro-
gram, only six of those 35
were women At age 27, she

was a Ph.D. candidate look-
ing for postdoctoral work in
astrophysics when she came
across NASAs ad for astro-
nauts in the newspaper of
Stanford University, where
she received a bachelor of
arts in English and a bache-
lor's, master's and doctorate in
physics all done after she
had dropped out of college
for awhile to pursue a profes-
sional tennis career.

Earning a degree in
English was not premeditat-
ed, savs Ride, who had

V .NlsSCOT! C i i| I U.I . ll',i .,:

ON CAMPUS

declared a physics major her
freshman year. "By the begin-
ning of my junior year, I had
taken so many math and sci-
ence classes that 1 needed a
break from them. I started
taking English classes,
enjoyed them and ended up
with enough units to declare
a major. It was a little bit of
an after thought, but it was
one that kept me sane during
college."

English courses are good
for scientists, she says,
because every scientist needs
to be able to communicate
his or her work and the im-
portance and excitement of
the work to the public. "You
can't do that if you don't have
some appreciation for how to
communicate verbally and in
writing. A lot of those skills
are often overlooked."

In 1983, Ride, a member
of the Challenger crew,
became the first American
woman in space. She also
took her next and final flight
on the Challenger in 1984.
Her more than 343 hours of
space flight time would have
increased if the Challenger
had not exploded in 1986.

On the status of women in
science, "I'm happy to say
that most of the firsts have
been taken care of," says
Ride. "There's been a woman
who's commanded a space
shuttle flight. But there
haven't been yet two women
to command a space shuttle

flight. I think the effort is
now in getting those numbers
up so that it's no longer news
when a woman commands
a space shuttle it's just
another space shuttle flight
with another qualified
commander."

Kristin Kallaher 'oj

ALUMNA'S

DEATH

INSPIRES

RESEARCH,

PREVENTION

In June 1997, Beth
Griffin '97 began work as
a research assistant at Yerkes
Primate Research Center at
Emory University in Atlanta.

That fall, while studying
hormonal influences in rhe-
sus macaques, Griffin con-
tracted a rare Herpes B virus
after coming into contact
with an infected monkey's
body fluids. Though trans-
mission of the virus to
humans is unusual only
about 50 cases are known in
humans about half of those
who are infected die from it.

Griffin died in December
1997.

Her death, widely publi-
cized in the media, has pro-
moted re-evaluation of safety
standards at many animal
research centers.

Griffin, of Kingsport,
Tenn., was a biology major
and psychology minor at

Agnes Scott, graduating with
honors. While an undergrad-
uate, she was a National
Science Foundation Under-
graduate Research Fellow and
a volunteer research assistant
at Yerkes Primate Center.
She also served as a volunteer
researcher at White River
National Wildlife Refuge and
an extern at Zoo Atlanta.
She planned to do graduate
study in biological sciences.
Griffin's studies at Agnes
Scott included co-authorship
of several scientific publica-

tions, including papers on
maternal cradling in rhesus
macaques and sexual dimor-
phism in grasshoppers (under
Karen Thompson, professor
of biology). She studied
marine biology in Honduras
and visited Accra, Ghana, on
College research trips.

Among her extra-curricu-
lar activities at the College
were Studio Dance Theatre,
the Agnes Scott Outdoors

Beth Griffin from her Silhouette
photos while a senior at A3C.

FIRST GRIFFIN INTERN NAMED

Andrea Maxfield '02, a biochemistry major from Fayetteville,
Ga., was named the first internship recipi-
ent by the Elizabeth R. Griffin Research
Foundation at Awards Convocation last spring.
She is doing laboratory work this year with
Julia Hilliard, professor of molecular/virology
and immunology at Georgia State University.
She has worked also with a health care social
worker in Texas to coordinate a national sup-
port group for survivors of Herpes B virus.

Maxfield says she has seen many facets of
laboratory work, from research to administration, during her
work. Her internship continues through the end of the 2001-02
academic year.

"I was really overwhelmed, really flattered," says Maxfield on
her internship. "I'm enjoying it and learning so much." She plans
a career in the pharmaceutical industry and feels that the intern-
ship fits closely with her interests and professional plans.

"We are thrilled with Andrea's qualities and contributions,"
says Jim Welch, executive director of the foundation. "She is a
magnificent ambassador for Agnes Scott."

Griffin recipient
Andrea Maxfield

ON CAMPUS

ON CAMPUS

Club, Habitat tor Humanity
and Circle K International.

When Griffin died, the
College established a fund as
friends and family sent in
gifts. The College plans to
erect a memorial sculpture-
near the new science building
after it is opened in 2003.

In 1999, Griffin's parents,
Dr. William and Rev. Caryl
Griffin, and other family
members established the
Elizabeth R. Griffin Research
Foundation. The foundation
strongly emphasizes safety
measures to minimize the
risks associated with animal
research. It funds research on
health risks associated with
zoonotic diseases those that
can be transmitted from ani-
mals to humans and seeks
to provide information on
prevention and treatment and
a support network for sur-
vivors of the Herpes B virus.

Among its many projects is
an annual internship for an
Agnes Scott student.

"Agnes Scott was a very
important part of Beth's life,"
says Jim Welch, executive
director of the foundation.
"The educational opportuni-
ties Beth enjoyed through the
College were incomparable
and brought great joy and
challenges to her."

Chris TJegreen

Gifts to the Beth Griffin Memorial
Fund may be sent to the College's
Office of Development. For more
information about the Elizabeth R.
Griffin Research Foundation Inc., go
to www.ergriffinresearch.org.

FIRST HUBERT

SCHOLAR

PURSUES

LIFELONG

INTEREST

By Sharon Rose Kelly '03

Tli is past summer, I in-
terned at the Health
Economics and HIV/AIDS
Research Division (HEARD)
at the University of Natal in
Durban, South Africa. This
opportunity came to me
because of Agnes Scott's new
Hubert Scholars Program for
Internships in Public Service,
which funds an internship
anywhere in the world (in-
cluding Decatur!), as well as
the oversight of the work by
an Agnes Scott professor.

I learned about Hubert
Scholars my sophomore year
and, within months of receiv-
ing the internship, I was on
my way to fulfilling my goal
of going to South Africa to
assist in the country's struggle
to combat the HIV/AIDS
epidemic.

Since the age of 13, I have
volunteered with various
HIV/AIDS service organiza-
tions. I now recognize what
drove my desire to help peo-
ple with this disease: it
encompasses almost every
aspect of humanity.

HIV/AIDS deals with
health, sexuality, economics,
world relations and morality.
It's no wonder that the dis-

Agnes Scott student
Sharon Kelly '03 spent
her summer researching
HIV/AIDS in sub-Sharan
Africa, where 28.1 mil-
lion of the world's
estimated 40 million
HIV-positive people live.

ease is m >\\ ci >mm. >nl\ main-
streamed into international
development programs. The
commonality between HIV/
AIDS and universal human
issues has made me want to
study the disease and to visit
sub-Saharan Africa, where
the majority of the world's
HIV/AIDS infected people
live.

While in high school, I
met a South African/Zimbab-
wean pathologist who was
doing research on the rate of
HIV infection in South Afri-
can antenatal clinics. These
annual tests are used to iden-
tify- the incidence and preva-
lence rate of HIV and AIDS
in most sub-Saharan African
countries. From this patholo-
gist, I learned the history of

the disease and how it
grew into an epidemic.
Also, he left me with a moti-
vation to study the situation
further.

My internship assignment
was helping HEARD re-
searcher Lucinda Franklin
inform a South African non-
governmental organization
(NGO) Health Systems
Trust of the most up-to-date
research on the costs of
AIDS care in South Africa.
We also identified the gaps
in the body of knowledge
regarding the cost of care of
people living with AIDS.

This baseline survey of
the literature enables all
stakeholders such as gov-
ernments, NGO's and flin-
ders to establish priorities

ACNES SCOTT COLLEGE HW 200:

in their efforts against AIDS.

My everyday activities
mainly consisted of reading
and sorting through research
papers. I catalogued them
according to the type of
research, and sometimes I
wrote abstracts.

On Wednesday mornings,
I volunteered for McCord
Hospital's HIV clinic, Sini-
kithemha, which means "we
give hope" in Zulu. There, I
typed documents for the clin-
ic workers.

Because Zulu is the moth-
er tongue for most people
working at the clinic, and
because most documents had
to be typed in my mother
tongue, English, it made

sense that I should help in
this respect.

I enjoyed the encourage-
ment sessions at Sinikithem-
ba before beginning work
each day. All workers and
even clients gathered in the
main reception room and
sang hymns. Afterward, a
social worker gave a sermon
and we prayed. This time was
special to me, as it helped me
believe in the value of spiri-
tually ministering to people
who are sick as well as physi-
cally ministering to them.

Aside from my weekly
trips to Sinikithemba, a
favorite activity in conjunc-
tion with HEARD was at-
tending the two-week train-
ing conference on the eco-
nomics of HIV/AIDS that
HEARD sponsors every year
for representatives from Afri-
can and international NGOs.

I attended classes on HIV
surveillance and data, demo-
graphy and HIV/AIDS, social
analysis, causes and conse-
quences of the epidemic legal
issues and mainstreaming. It
was encouraging to hear the
progress being made all over
Africa to help people with
HIV/AIDS. An additional
benefit was learning and talk-
ing with top researchers on
different aspects of HIV and
AIDS.

Worldwide, I could not
have gotten a better intern-
ship and am grateful to every-
one who made it possible,
especially the Hubert family.
My appreciation also goes to
Cathy Scott, my adviser,
whose political science course
"Apartheid: Politics in the
New South Africa" made the
experience all the richer. In
class, we read books and dis-

ON CAMPUS

cussed South Africa's history,
people and political parties.

At an American Indepen-
dence Day celebration spon-
sored by the American Con-
sulate in Durban, I met Min-
ister of Home Affairs Buthe-
lezi, who is also the leader of
South Africa's Inkatha Free-
dom Party. This meeting was
particularly exciting to me
because I had given an oral
report on him in Dr. Scott's
class. Finally, my apprecia-
tion and thanks goes to Jim
Abbot, Jennifer Lund and
Clementine Hakizimana for
helping me organize details
of the trip and providing
great advice.

I'll never forget my experi-
ence in South Africa and
am continually thankful to
Agnes Scott and the Hubert
Charitable Trust for making
this experience possible.

THE HUBERT SCHOLARS INTERNSHIPS

In 1999, Agnes Scott College was awarded a
$300,000 grant from the Hubert Charitable
Trust to create and endow the Hubert Scholars
Program for Internships in Public Service.

These internships are intended to address
human needs such as hunger, medical attention
and spiritual fulfillment and help students gain
valuable experience in public service.

One Hubert Scholar was selected the first
year, two will be selected this year and three
next year.

Sharon Rose Kelly '03 is the first recipient. An
international affairs major, Kelly is a member of
the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and
has been on the Dean's List. She has taken
courses in political science, Africana studies,
economics, biology and French, and she took

additional courses at Georgia Tech in the eco-
nomics of development and international negoti-
ations.

She came to Agnes Scott from Brunswick,
Ga., where she volunteered at the Coastal Area
Support Team, an organization that assists fami-
lies faced with HIV/AIDS. While working with
CAST, she founded a teen education program
called STOP the Ignorance, the mission of which
is to change young perceptions regarding HIV
and STDs (sexually transmitted diseases). It has
been such a success than an education coordi-
nator has been added to its staff and the pro-
gram expanded.

This year, Kelly is studying French and eco-
nomics at the Universite de Fribourg in
Switzerland.

ON CAMPUS

A CRITICAL MOMENT

Even with significant
gains made through
the years, most
women scientists
haven't received
affirmation for
their contributions
to the field. However,
the winds of change
are being felt.

By Celeste Pennington

Picture this late 1800s physics class. In the
foreground stands the mustached university
lecturer. Facing him, on the left, are 25 or
so serious, young male students in dark
suits. Separated from them by an aisle are
nearly a dozen young women in hats. Drawn from
the University of Michigan's Bentley Historical
Society, it's a snapshot in time.

Already women in state universities and in a
growing number of women's colleges were pursu-
ing education in physics, botany, chemistry, astrono-
my. Yet upon graduation in the 1800s, most young
women earning the same degrees as the men would
not find themselves so entitled to move into the
same jobs and scientific circles.

By the turn of the century, when those women
scientists found jobs to be "sex typed," they began to
establish separate science studies and labor markets
(such as home economics). A breakthrough did
occur during World War II when thousands of
women proved themselves as men left scientific jobs
in higher education, industry and government. Yet as

Jane Alsobrook Miller '48 can attest, that window of
opportunity was temporary. As men returned home
to resume their science careers and education,
7.8 million took advantage of C.I. Bill provisions to
attend top U.S. colleges and universities.

With a master's degree in chemistry and strong
research experience from Tulane University, Miller
ventured into that flooded CI. market, seeking
work in St. Louis where her husband had a law
practice. When she found no openings for women
chemists in industry or higher education, she
worked in the Washington University Medical
School department of pharmacology and later
orthopedics before being hired in 1965 as faculty
for the newly established University of Missouri in
St. Louis. Her dissertation was on the history of
chemistry, and she taught general chemistry for
non-majors, quantitative analysis and the history of
science. She was published and had served as chair
of the history of chemistry division of the American
Chemical Society.

Even so, like other women in science fields at
that time, she found unequal opportunities for pay
and advancement, and eventually filed and won

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the first EEOC case for women in academics.

"I have always been kind of a feisty person. I got
tired of receiving few raises because I was married
and had a husband to care for me," says Miller.

While there exist inspiring examples of top U.S.
women scientists working shoulder to shoulder with
top men scientists in industry, medicine and higher
education, historically, there have been separate
expectations, work and recognition. Evidence of that
divide is starkly clear in post-war America as women
stepped into the spotlight as Nobel Laureates:

Biochemist Gerty Cori, teaching and doing
research at Washington University Medical School,
St. Louis, was not promoted to full professor until

1 947 the year she received the Nobel Prize in
Medicine.

Medical physicist Rosalyn Yalow served as a
temporary assistant professor at Hunter College
before moving to the staff of the Bronx Veteran's
Administration Hospital where she and Saul Berson
did their research to earn the Nobel Prize in Medi-
cine in 1960.

In 1963, when theoretical physicist Maria Goep-
pert-Mayer won the first of two Nobel prizes, the
headline in her hometown San Diecjo Evening Tribune,
announced it: "S.D. Mother Wins Nobel Physics
Prize." The media seemed fascinated by her feminini-
ty and how she was dressed to receive the award. Yet
Mayer was the first woman in U.S. history and the

second in history (after Marie Curie) to win the
Nobel in physics.

In 1983, geneticist Barbara McClintock won the
Nobel Prize in Medicine for discovery of mobile
genes in chromosomes of plants. More than 40 years
earlier, she had moved to Carnegie Institution's Cold
Spring Harbor Laboratory to do research after the
University of Missouri faculty denied her tenure.

These and other examples carefully documented
by Margaret W Rossiter in her book Women Scientists in
America show women "caught between two almost
mutually exclusive stereotypes: as scientists they were
atypical women,- as women they were unusual scien-
tists." Coming to grips with such exceptions long
proved a problem to American society.

For scientists like Agnes Scott's Miller, the upshot
of publicly held stereotypes about women in science
turned into a personal, professional loss as she found
no opportunity to pursue her passion bio-chemical
research. "I really enjoyed teaching. To see students
succeed has been good." But, she admits, in a perfect
world, "I would have gotten my Ph.D. from Washing-
ton University and worked in a bio-chemical field
where 1 did my research. I would have been hired an
assistant professor at a much better salary. I would
have gone on, I think, and done some very credible
research, probably in organic or in biochemistry."

Nearly half a century after Miller graduated from

PHOTOS BY CHRIS TIEGREEN

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-WOMEN IMSC IINC-i: A CRITIC Al MOMENT

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Agnes Scott, Elizabeth Cherry Stokes '95 was pick-
ing up her dual degree in engineering (three years at
Agnes Scott, two years at Georgia Tech). After inter-
views and competitive offers from Texas Instru-
ments and Pratt & Whitney, she chose Ericsson Inc.,
a Swedish-based corporation that produces cell
phones and related technology.

Even though Stokes specialized in digital signal
processing, the radio frequency manager requested
that she be hired as a component engineer, so she
could train and be transferred to an area of her pref-
erence, Ericsson's analog-based design group. As a
component engineer, she was the only woman in the
department Each time she has switched departments
over the years, she has been one of two women in a
group of five to eight men.

While Stokes found an inclusive, "family atmos-
phere" at Ericsson's US offices, occasionally she did
experience "blatant discrimination" working in their
factories in Japan, everything from male employees
"not responding to women engineers'
e-mails" to "showing signs of being disgruntled when
a woman walked beside instead of behind the man."

As Stokes reflects on her career choice and her
education, she realizes that she thrived at Agnes
Scott with its smaller classes, and opportunities to

FIFTY-FIFTY BY 2020

Fifty-fifty by 2020. The National Science Founda-
tion has set that goal for the percentage of
men-to-women in science and engineering fields
in the next two decades. To achieve that, Shirley
M. Malcom, a former member of the President's
Committee of Advisors in Science and Technology,
recommends, "Develop a more scientifically liter-
ate society, overall." She also suggests:

Enable women and girls to participate fully in
science and engineering by making available a
greater variety of resources from career aware-
ness to planning.

Dispel stereotypes. Increase public under-
standing of the role that women already play in
science and engineering.

Communicate to women and girls the impor-
tance of being scientifically literate citizens, moth-
ers and students.

Reinforce the value of mentoring and being
mentored at all levels of education and career.

Hold institutions accountable for discrimina-
tion based on gender.

Strengthen connections among organizations
that have a stake in the participation of women in
the sciences, such as the corporate and academic
worlds, scientific associations and between higher
education and K-12.

interact one-on-one with professors and master her
course work.

"As one of a handful of women in the Georgia
Tech engineering department, the professors treated
me as well as any other student," believes Stokes.
"But there, classes are large, and education is high
pressure. It's focused on performance. As a student,
that was frustrating for me," she admits.

"Engineering is a game that's been designed by
men and played by their rules. Not everyone prefers
to play that way."

In fact, women who work in engineering earn
the highest median salary for women in the scientif-
ic and engineering work force. However, the
National Science Foundation reports that women
are still "far less likely than men to earn bachelor's
degrees in computer science, engineering, physical
sciences or mathematics."

At the same time, gaps in educational levels
between men and women in science in the early
'70s have essentially disappeared. Since the mid-90s,
women are as likely as men to attend college imme-
diately following high school graduation, and to
earn a bachelor's degree. Today, roughly half of
bachelor's degrees in science are earned by women.
Of those women in science and engineering occu-
pations, about 30 percent report a master's as their
highest degree (compared to 27 percent of the
men) Thirteen percent of these women report a
doctorate as their highest degree the same propor-
tion as for men

According to the National Council for
Research on Women (NCRW), females constitute
45 percent of the workforce in the United States, but
hold just 12 percent of science and engineering jobs
in business and industry. In 1996, women earned 53
percent of undergraduate degrees in biology and 46
percent of degrees in math and statistics, but just 19
percent of physics degrees and 1 8 percent of engi-
neering degrees While the percentage of women
science faculty is rising, less than 10 percent of full
professors in the sciences today are women, despite
the fact that women have been earning more than
one-quarter of the Ph.D.s in science for 30 years.

10

A/"Mnc cr-rvrr mi 1 i:(~c . w......

Balancing the Equation-. Where are Women and Girls in
Science, Engineering and Technology?, the NCRW report
advancing these statistics, says that women and girls
made significant progress in the sciences over the last

two decades, particularly in medicine and the biologi-
cal sciences. But women's gains have stalled and in
some cases eroded in engineering and computer sci-
ences. The study notes myriad reasons to advance
women in the sciences, including the economic
imperative to increase the technological and scientific
literacy of America's workforce. At a time when U.S.
industry cannot fill the openings for technically
advanced jobs, notes the study, women are grossly
underutilized. Equally important, s'lys the report, are
the perspectives women bring to the sciences deci-
sions on allocating research dollars, targeting drug
testing protocols and developing technology to bene-
fit communities.

The report also calls for a national commitment
to remove the persistent barriers and glass ceilings
facing women and girls in the sciences.

"This is a critical moment for the nation," said
NCRW Executive Director Linda Basch.

Al a time when
U.S. industry
cannot fill the open-
ings for technically
advanced jobs,
women are grossly
underutilized.

"FORTUNE FAVORS THE PREPARED MIND"

These words of Louis Pasteur drove the research
and provided meaning for the teaching of Mary
Stuart MacDougall, Agnes Scott faculty member
and chair of the biology department from 1919 to
1952. "The Life of Science" written by John F.
Pilger, professor of biology, and Christine Cozzens,
associate professor of English appeared in the fall

.1994 Agnes Scott Alumnae Magazine. The

following profile is adapted from that article:

Mary Stuart MacDougall brought a
comprehensive scientific imagi-
nation, intellectual rigor and a
sense of the thrill of discovery to her
research and her teaching at Agnes Scott.
With two doctorates, a Guggenheim Fel-
lowship, 14 published papers, significant
contributions to malaria research and a
major textbook to her credit, she also
defended the value of science at a time
when the humanities dominated the liber-
al arts curriculum.

Agnes Scott was determined to pre-
pare students for the best graduate and
professional programs in the country, and
MacDougall's commitment to research
suited this vision.

For MacDougall, the study of science
underlay all great intellectual achievement.
"Science has so enlarged the mental hori-
zon," she wrote, "that the imagination may
take a bolder flight."

MacDougall was the first to induce

sustained mutations in protozoan cultures
(1929) using ultraviolet (UV) radiation.
Today, we know the power of UV
light in sunburn indices, SPF
numbers on sunscreens and
precautions to reduce the
risk of cancer.

In 1931, she won
one of the first Gug-
genheim Fellowships
in science awarded to
women which took
MacDougall to the Kaiser
Wilbetm Institut fur Biologic in
Berlin. In 1936, MacDougall
earned a Science Docteur at the LIniver-
site'de Montpelier and became one of the few
women of that era to hold two doctoral
degrees.

Agnes Scott students remembered
"Miss Mac" as much more than an accom-
plished researcher. In the labs of Lowry
Hall or the sunny porch of her home ...
MacDougall loved to tell stories of the sci-
entists she had known. "She made it sound
like it might be fun to be a biologist," says
Betty Fountain Edwards Gray '35.

She collected rare editions of fairy
tales, and, recalls Margaret Bland Sewell
'20, "while urging students' increasing
interest in amoebae ... took time to read
my poems and to encourage me in contin-
uing to write."

MacDougall met Dr. Robert Hegner
at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and
taught with him in the medical zoology
course at Johns Hopkins Univer-
sity. This association led to
the co-authorship of their
textbook, Biology: The
Scimce of Life.

In 1943, The Atlanta
Journal honored her with
its Woman of the Year
in Education award.
Miss Mac created a last-
ing memento of this honor
by rooting the sprigs
entwined in her celebratory
corsage. Descendants of those plants still
thrive in the gardens of her friends and
near the main entrance to Campbell Hall.

For years, MacDougall planned the
new science building that Agnes Scott
wanted to build when peace came. In the
late 1940s, when that project was finally
under way, she would haunt the building
site, notebook in hand. "Campbell Hall
was her dream," recalled Professor Emerita
Jo Bridgman '27. "She put a lot of pressure
on the architects to get things the way she
thought they should be."

The dedication of the new building
with the latest in laboratory facilities final-
ly took place in 1 95 1 , just one year before
Miss Mac retired.

1 1

WOMEN IN SCIENCE: A CRITICAL MOMENT

Z-

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ALL THE MAKINGS

The very attributes that define a liberal arts college for women
are the ingredients needed to be a successful scientist.

By Lisa Ashmore

For voung women intrigued by science, there
is convincing evidence that a women's col-
lege education can make a crucial difference
in whether they earn a degree in the field,
especially in physics. Add the particular
benefits offered by a liberal arts college and the odds
get even better that these women will obtain
advanced degrees and fare better professionally. The
environment at Agnes Scott is different from that of
a research university, says Amy Lovell '90, assistant
professor of astronomy. Lovell herself is something
of a rarity as only 8 percent of college physics pro-
fessors are women, according to the most recent
study available ( 1998). Lovell believes that some-
where in secondary education, boys climb into the
driver's seat in the lab, leaving girls to watch.

"In high schools and other coed environments, a
few of the more assertive (usually male) students get
to carry out the experiments and work with the
equipment while the women take notes," says Lovell.
In a liberal arts setting, class size is smaller, and
students can't hide,- they're required to participate.
Studies by the National Council for Research on
Women show that girls are more successful in math
and science programs that incorporate a cooperative,
hands-on approach than in programs that stress
competition and individual learning. Women's col-
leges are known to build confidence in their stu-
dents, a trait needed by women entering science pro-
fessions

Lovell knows first hand the iourney a liberal arts

ASC students Yaun Mei '04, exchange
student Hanna Makela and Regina
Yaskey '03 conduct an experi-
ment in science class.

graduate takes when she decides to pursue a gradu-
ate degree. Knowing how to think conceptually is a
plus, especially when your subject is the universe.

"It is easier to take a student with the big pic-
ture and help her fill in the details than it is to take
a student who can plug numbers into formulas and
help her get the big picture," she explains. Also,
class size matters in a discipline where it's important
to do independent research and develop critical
thinking.

"A classroom shared with 300 of your closest
friends and a single often aloof lecturer is a fun-
damentally different learning environment from one
with a few handfuls of students and their professor
who knows them personally," she says.

On a recent visit to Agnes Scott, Jadwiga
Sebrechts, president of the Women's College
Coalition, noted that in countries such as England
and New Zealand where single-sex secondary edu-
cation is common, the results are striking: girls in
those schools score highest on standardized tests,
followed by boys in same-sex environments. Cirls in
co-ed environments scored last.

And while women's colleges comprise only 2
percent of higher education's physics undergraduate
programs, they produce 5 percent of females who
obtain their bachelor's degree in physics.

Throughout the 20th century, the United
States has produced excellent women scientists,
many of them graduates of women's colleges. But
most Americans are hard-pressed to name them
Madame Curie is about the only name most can
recall. Born during the U.S. Civil War, Marie Curie
lived and worked in France and won the Nobel
Prize a century ago, for some reason, the woman
who explored the therapeutic properties of radium
is lodged in our collective memory.

But what about America's own Florence Sabin^
Encouraged by her anatomy professor, she
graduated early from Smith College and Johns
Hopkins Medical School, where she became the
rst female full professor in 1917. A researcher
in embryology and the lymphatic system, she
was also the first woman elected to the
National Academy of Science.

Then there's Rachel Carson another
women's college graduate (Chatham) who

changed a nation's environmental policy through
dogged research and elegant writing in Silent Spring.
We all remember her, but for some reason we prefer
to think of her as more an activist than a scientist.

And a more recent Nobel Prize-winning woman
many probably have never heard of is Gertrude Elion,
who received the award in 1988 after 40 years of
work in the field of pharmacology (after she had offi-
cially retired). She helped oversee the development
of azidothymidine (AZT), the first drug used in the
treatment of AIDS, which extended and saved numer-
ous lives.

Perhaps it's the lack of press that women scien-
tists receive that contributes to the continued lack of
women in the physical sciences although more than
half of the bachelor's degrees in the country go to
women, the attrition level of women in science, espe-
cially physics, drops with each progression up the
academic ladder. While in 1997 nearly half of high-
school physics students were girls, a study the next
year found that only 1 9 percent of bachelor's degrees
and 13 percent of Ph.D.s in physics were earned by
women.

What may be more difficult is capturing girls
in the crucial period from fourth to eighth
grade, where for many, interest in science
withers. Rita Colwell, director of the National
Science Foundation, calls this time when it is
"uncool" for girls to be interested in science "death
valley."

Chia-Jen Siao, a biotechnology Ph.D. student,
posted these comments on a Web site that examines
women's roles and challenges in the field. "At my ele-
mentary school, it was frowned upon for girls to know
'too much' in class, but boys were encouraged to
shout out any wrong answer. The biggest problem, I
think, is not the dropouts along the line, it's the girls
that never make it into the queue."

Lovell says the other obstacle is a general view of
science as something removed from the world the rest
of us inhabit. "Underlying our culture, is the thought
that one is supposed to eagerly pursue the arts, lan-
guage, literature and social science, because those
make you a more complete and interesting person.
However, being interested in mathematics or science
makes you less approachable, maybe even scary," she
says.

Lovell herself is a good example of how the right
environment can affect life choices. Originally a
music major, she changed her mind, graduating in
1990 from Agnes Scott with a physics/astronomy
degree. She earned her doctorate from the University
of Massachusetts, Amherst and then joined the Agnes
Scott faculty in 2000. She says her liberal arts back-
ground worked for and against her.

"My first two years of grad school were very
challenging, as they were for all my classmates from
liberal arts colleges," Lovell says. "However, one thing
we often say about a liberal arts education is that we
don't just teach students facts, we help them develop
an approach to learning new things. That ability to

Amy Lovell '90 (left), assis-
tant professor of astronomy,
explains the marvels of
Bradley Observatory's Beck
telescope to alumnae
Eleanor Peterson '99
(center) and Marin Melo '96.

"Underlying our
culture is the
thought that one is
supposed to eagerly
pursue the arts,
language, literature
and social science,
because those make
you a more com-
plete person ... being
interested in mathe-
matics or science
makes you less
approachable,
maybe even scary."

WOMEN IN SCIENCE: ALL THE MAKINGS

Cassandra Schiller '02 and Maggie Schwab '02 conduct a
chemistry experiment to prepare for last year's Spring Annual
Research Conference (SPARC) in which faculty and students
collaborate on projects designed to develop skills in research,
problem solving, independent study and critical thinking.

learn and to teach myself new things is what helped
me to conquer the piles of physics problems that
required some little-known advanced calculus tech-
nique or to survive the courses taught by instruc-
tors whose hearts were far away from the classroom."

Barbara Stitt-Allen '92 says that beyond the
concrete scientific principles she learned at Agnes
Scott, she also earned with her an assurance that she
would not have otherwise.

"I think the most valuable thing I walked away
with was more self-confidence in myself I learned
how to be a leader and interact with people," she

says. But the college's emphasis on study abroad and
working experience made a difference in her career.
She's now a geographic information systems special-
ist with the Georgia Department of Natural
Resources.

She was part of the first "Global Connections"
program that visited Hong Kong for three weeks.
While there she interviewed soldiers, shopkeepers
and college students for a research project on the
impact of Tiannemen Square. And while an intern-
ship at a local public school confirmed her interest
in environmental studies, "I also learned I didn't
want to be a teacher," she says, laughing.

That sort of broad experience contributed to
the crossover skills necessary to translate sci-
ence into policy, while weighing the effects
upon the public.

And not to be discounted in a male-dominated
field, there is a large and supportive network of
Agnes Scott graduates who, according to Stitt-
Allen, help each other. She tried to repay the favor
by working as a sophomore mentor Less formally,
she gets calls from students at the crossroads, trying
to determine which field to choose.

"I think my degree really did help me get my
job," she says. "There were three reasons: one, I
could write, two, 1 was an Agnes Scott grad, and
three, I did have some environmental research expe-
rience through my internships.

"And although I never thought it would at the
time, my organic chemistry really came in handy."

A VISION FULFILLED, A FUTURE PROMISED

Almost since the College's beginning, the sci-
ences have been an integral part of an Agnes
Scott education. The first faculty member with a
Ph.D. taught science. Throughout her history, Agnes
Scott students have taken more advanced science
and math courses than women in coed institutions.
Today more than one third of the students come

to the College intending to major in the sciences. In
the past 10 years, more than 30 percent of the Col-
lege's graduates have majored in biology, physics,
astronomy, chemistry, biochemistry or astrophyics.
The College's new science building, to be opened in
early 2003, will provide state-of-the-art equipment
and facilities for future science majors.

14

I I ll'l ( c II I K.I Winlerjixu

A BALKAN
BRIDGE

Sotto Voce tour cultivates common bond

Of all the tumultuous regions on the planet,
few can rival the Balkan peninsula for
intractable conflict in recent years. The post-
Eastern-bloc fragmentation of Balkan Europe has left
Bosnia, Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia and a host of sur-
rounding pockets of intermingling ethnic groups in
constant tension.

Romania, on the northern end of the peninsula, is
recovering still from the stifling rule of Nicolae
Ceaucescu's 35-year communist dictatorship. Bul-
garia, while at peace with its neighbors, is un-
comfortably close to their unrest. Both struggle
economically.

Into this volatile region stepped
Sotto Voce, Agnes Scott's choral ensem-
ble, on a summer concert tour designed
to promote mutual understanding,
peace and development. The 1 3-
. member group spent a week in
Bulgaria and then three days in

t Romania.

Sotto Voce is an academically
credited class. Students prepared for
this tour by learning music in
Romanian and Bulgarian, by study-
ing the languages and cultures and
by reading literature about and
from these countries.

i

ii u it t n

Projects promoting peace and development in
Romania and Bulgaria abound, sponsored by
global, political and economic institutions and
by individual governments and corporations. But
what sort of project can the private nonprofit sector
undertake to stimulate growth and development?

The answer is cultural exchange, according to
Patrick Sciarratta, executive director of Friendship
Ambassadors, a nonprofit organization begun in 1973
on the belief that cultural tourism is the starting point
for sustainable development. While conventional
tourism may bring into a country a more substantial
amount of hard currency, it has a tendency to water
down cultural distinctiveness. It has homogenizing
or even Americanizing tendencies, Sciarratta says.
He and Friendship Ambassadors stress a fairly simple
concept; cultural exchange can prompt development
without compromising distinctiveness.

Soldi Kocc's tour was part of Bulgaria's Festival of
Light, a choral event bringing many of Bulgaria's
best choirs and several groups from abroad
together in joint performances. In this first year of
the festival, roughly a dozen Bulgarian groups and
individual performers were joined by Sotto Voce and
the Oregon State University Chamber Choir. The
festival is expected to grow, with choirs from Turkey,
Macedonia, Hungary and the Czech Republic plan-
ning to participate in the future.

"A tour like this commits the Bulgarian cultural
leaders and their related tour operators to create a
festival that may be repeated year after year," says
Sciarratta. 'This creates sustainable development. It
also protects and preserves what's traditional in
Bulgaria its fine choral groups."

Bulgaria is, in fact, known for a unique choral
tradition with particular emphasis on women's choirs
(most widely known in the West through If Mysterc lies
Voi-x Bulgares, a well-marketed recording of music typ-
ical of a centuries-old vocal tradition).

"I think it's especially significant that we took a
women's chamber choir there," says Lyn Schenbeck,
Sorto Voce's director. "I don't know of another country
that is particularly known
for its women's choirs."

Schenbeck points out
that the arts are much
more integral to European
life than to American life.
"Even the poorest children
often get music lessons,"
she says. The group was
told that most Bulgarians
are members of a choir
Sciarratta tested this
premise on a bus driver
who responded that he
sang in three choirs.

Top right: Surrounded by
ASC alumnae and compan-
ions, Sotto Voce performs in
Romania standing on
Roman ruins around which a
luxury hotel has been built.

Bottom (1-r): ASC students
receive roses after a con-
cert; explore the Black Sea
at Varna; tour the ancient
Sveta Nedelya Cathedral,
restored after being bombed
in 1924 by the Communists;
greet young admirers; and
hurry to a performance.

16

\< .M SSI l in l ( II I IX, I H',,,1,, ;,h,:

17

A BALKAN BRIDGE

Sotto Voce arrived in Sofia on June 4 and immedi-
ately took a two-hour bus ride to Plovdiv, wide-
ly considered the cultural capital of Bulgaria.
On the bus trip through Sofia and the surrounding
countryside, group members were reminded of their
surroundings. "Over those mountains to the west is
Serbia, where you have heard of much fighting," the
guide announced. A little while later came a similar
statement: "The rebellion in Macedonia is about 70
kilometers to the south "

But Bulgaria has no conflict at the moment, and
the group forgot the volatility of the region after a
warm welcome in Plovdiv. It was opening week for
the Festival of Light, which would continue after
Sotto Voce's departure through most of the month.

The festival had been jointly organized by
Bulgaria's ministry of culture and Friendship Ambas-
sadors,- it was FAs first foray into the country. Sotto
Vb had received an invitation after Sciarratta sent a
tape of one of its performances to the Bulgarian gov-
ernment. The government invited the group to par-
ticipate, offering an unusual incentive by partially
subsidizing the tour.

Sotto Voce followed the festival back through
Sofia, then to Veliko Tarnovo, a medieval city in the
heart of the country and Bulgaria's capital in the 13th
and 1 4th centuries. From there, the Bulgarian part of
the tour ended in Varna, a resort city on the Black
Sea coast that was a prime tourist destination during
the Cold War for citizens of the communist bloc.

The Romanian part of the tour took the group
up the Black Sea coast to Eforie Nord and then
inland to Bucharest. After a stopover day in Prague,
Czech Republic, the group returned to the United
States. In all, Sotto Voce performed nine times in 1 1
days, including a studio CD recording.

But the purpose of the trip was not just to per-
form,- it was to promote peace and develop-
ment. Did it succeed? Schenbeck pres-
ents a case for peace and mutual
understanding:

"I had a chance to interact
with several con-
ductors at the

Bulgarian festival," she says. "We didn't know each
other's languages but we were able to discuss the
music. We both saw the same notes on the same
page. We are going to exchange music. Next year
our choir is going to sing in Bulgarian and Romanian
and their choirs will sing in English."

Another case: one of the guides for the
Bulgarian tour was Maria, a recent high school grad-
uate from an isolated community in the mountains
northeast of Sofia. Fluent in several languages and
able to assist with Friendship Ambassadors projects
frequently, Maria hopes to attend college in the
United States, perhaps even Agnes Scott. In fact,
she spent this past Thanksgiving as a guest in the
Schenbeck home and visited the campus. Her par-
ents are both highly educated, but their support of
her education overseas is less than firm finances
and distance are both issues. But Sotto Voce mem-
bers were drawn to her, both for her linguistic
helpfulness and the intrigue of her situation.
They brought home a greater understanding
of the issues many Eastern Europeans face,
as well as a reinforced awareness that stu-
dents with great potential can be found in
any corner of the world.

The stories abound: a meeting with
high school students and a mayor in a
small Romanian town hall,- a joint per-
, formance of "Amazing Grace" with sever-

M al Bulgarian choirs who had learned the
i, song in English just for that occasion,-

and the musical interaction that exposed
Sotto Voce to a choral style that utilizes
sounds not heard in American composi-
tions while exposing Bulgarian groups to
American genres other than pop/rock.
Indeed, the peace and understand-
ing aspects of the tour were a huge sue-

/v>

^

A Romanian cowboy demonstrates
horsemanship at an Arabian horse
farm. Tour participants were allowed
to ride some of the horses and
also learned that the country's
economy is so bad that providing
food for the horses is difficult.

Sotto Voce sings in the Cultural Palace
in Sofia, Bulgaria, one of the many and
varied venues at which they performed.

I

TOUR

PARTICIPANTS

Sotto Voce:

Lyn Schenbeck, conductor

and director of choral

and orchestral activities

at Agnes Scott
Lauren Sullins '01, Griffin,

Ga.
Julia Stover '03, Bakersfield,

Calif.
Leanna Stromberg '03,

Erwin, Tenn.
Elizabeth Casey

Parsons '00, Duluth, Ga.
Laura Livingston '00,

Houston, Texas
Sofia Becerra-Licha '04,

San Juan, Puerto Rico
Barbara Washington '01,

Lithonia, Ga.
Ginny Bain '04, Baton

Rouge, La.
Jill Carson '04, Winston-
Salem, N.C.
Catherine Odom

Hooper '00, Lilburn, Ga.
Nicole Van

Fleet-Kennedy '01,

Lafayette, La.
Julie DuVall'oo, Atlanta, Ga.
Jessica Tatum Ferguson '02,

Atlanta, Ga.

Companions:
Deborah Beach '00,

Lithonia, Ga.
Lucia Sizemore '65; director,

Irene K.Woodruff

Scholars program
Ted Mathews, professor of

music
Lawrence Schenbeck,

accompanist for Sotto

l/oce trip and associate

professor of music,

Spelman College
Charlotte Crossland '52 and

husband, Bill
Linda Hubert '62, professor

of English, and husband,

Dick.
Elizabeth Henry '49,

Atlanta, Ga., and grand-

daugther Julia Rooks
Rhonda Edwards '96
Cynthia Lamb, mother of

Mary Beth Quinley '92

cess. The economic benefits will perhaps be visible
over time as the Festival of Light continues and cul-
tural tourism becomes more commonplace. This trip,
in fact, may have laid groundwork toward that trend,
it was likely not Agnes Scott's last musical venture
into that part of Europe, and Bulgarian and
Romanian choirs have expressed interest in visiting
Agnes Scott if it becomes financially feasible.

In the meantime, relationships were formed that
will continue in cyberspace and will be reflected in
music on both sides of the Atlantic. Inhabitants of
two regions of the world are a little better under-
stood by each other.

Friendship Ambassadors and the Bulgarian and
Romanian ministries of culture are convinced that
these are the things that preserve peace. So now are
more than a dozen women from Agnes Scott.

MUSIC FOR ALUMNAE

Unlike most academic tours of Agnes Scott stu-
dents, Sotto Voce's trip to Eastern Europe was
notable for its accompanying entourage made up
of alumnae and relatives.

It is a feature that Agnes Scott's Office of
Alumnae Relations hopes to continue. In fact,
plans are under way with upcoming trips to China
and Ireland.

Alumnae were invited to join Sotto Voce and
enjoy not only the group's concerts but also the
history and culture of the host countries. Nine
companions including spouses, an alumna's
mother and an alumna's daughter and grand-
daughter, in addition to alumnae themselves
accepted the invitation and joined the trip.

While companions participated in most of the
same activities as students, they also saw addi-
tional sights that Sotto Voce's schedule prohibit-
ed. It gave alumnae another opportunity to fulfill
the "lifelong learning" tradition of Agnes Scott
graduates. Schenbeck emphasizes how support-
ive the companions were of Sotto Voce. "They
attended every concert."

For more information about alumnae travel programs,
contact the Office of Alumnae Relations, 404 471-6323.

20

ACNES SCOTT COLLEGE Wmlrr jooi

A BALKAN BRIDGE

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22

THE CIVICS LESSON
OF A LIFETIME

Florida's 2000 presidential election not only provided a "hands-on" civics lesson, it also divided the country
into two camps analyzing the ethics, behavior and appearance oj an Agnes Scott alumna.

By Jennifer Bryon Owen

There will never be a hanging, dangling
or impregnated chad in the state of
Florida again," says the woman whose
name is forever linked to this tiny piece
of paper. Agnes Scott alumna
Katherine Harris '79 found herself in the national
spotlight during the 2000 presidential election
count in Florida, where her position as secretary of
state made her the person to certify that state's
results. The rest, as they say, is history.

This past summer, Harris presented an election
reform bill to the Florida legislature, virtually every
aspect of which she says passed. Foremost in that
bill was the creation of a standardized ballot by
2002 and the leasing of precinct-based optical scan-
ners. Her two-phased approach also called for a
system that automatically updates registration infor-
mation and prevents multiple voting fraud.

"We're no longer the national concern,- we're the
national model," says Harris. Nor has the state
"rested on our laurels. We're pushing for even more
reform. We're pushing for those people who can't
see as well, read as well, understand as well any-
one with disabilities to make sure they have
access to the polls and are able to vote in secret. It's
been a very exciting time for elections."

During the summer, she averaged 35 speeches a
week, many of which advocated election reform,
and she testified before Congress on the subject.

"They praised our efforts. I said we don't need to
federalize this system it doesn't need to be a
national bureaucracy. Each state has the mechanics
in place to administer. We simply need a one-time
funding appropriation," says Harris, noting that
elected officials generally are not inclined from a
political standpoint to pass election reform.

"There just isn't the political will, but the experi-
ence in Florida created so much momentum."

Harris will test Florida's election reform for her-
self when she runs for the U.S. Congress in 2002.
At the time of this interview she had just filed the
papers, but had not made a formal announcement,
seeking the 1 3th District seat.

Calling the idea of having a campaign platform

at this stage of the game "so presumptuous," this
Democrat who turned Republican in 1986 plans to
return to Sarasota and listen to the people. "Then,
Cod willing, I get to represent them, go to Wash-
ington, DC, and take their voice."

This from a person who received 750,000 e-
mails and thousands of letters and cards during her
five weeks in the spotlight. "Everyone was calling
and saying they were praying for me. You just can't
have that many people praying for you and not
experience something very powerful and peaceful,
and that held me very steady."

The only thing she wishes she had done differ-
ently during the election controversy was to appear
on television more.

"I was only on four times. Everyone thinks I must
have been on hundreds of times. My attorneys were
concerned that it would be prudent to limit my
comments, since we had 43 lawsuits standing," says
Harris. "Had I come out more, and people had seen
me as who I really am, maybe that would have
given a different message. But I only came out when
it was absolutely vital that the entire nation was on
the same page. I wasn't going to come out and
defend every myth they created. That wasn't my
job. My job was to be chief elections officer and
follow the law regardless of the outcome."

She notes that Florida law requires the secretary
of state to certify a winner of the state's 25 electoral
votes according to a schedule, and she says certifi-
cation is only a procedural milepost, a mere formali-
ty with no force of law in a contested election.

"Contrary to media reports, my certification of a
winner didn't cut off recounts," Harris explains.
"Even the Supreme Court, when it ordered a state-
wide recount on Dec. 8, said that certifications did
not curtail an person's right to pursue a manual
recount. [Al] Gore couldn't legally begin his contest
until I certified the election, and if his campaign
had only allowed my certification of the election
according to the statutory schedule, he would have
had his opportunity to have his statewide recount.
That's something the media just never really
clarified."

"We're no longer
the national con-
cern, we're the
national model.
We're pushing for
even more reform ...
anyone with dis-
abilities to make
sure they have
access to the polls
and are able to vote
in secret. It's been
a very exciting
time for elections."

23

THE CIVICS LESSON OF A LIFETIME

When a state "sena-
tor thought a Reuben
was a sandwich
the museum has an
extraordinary
collection oj Reubens
art I tried to find
someone to run
against that senator.
I couldn't find
anyone, so J did. "

While the pundits can have all the rhetoric they
wish, says Harris, they can't give one example of
her failing to follow the letter of the law. 'They
say I tilted it toward George Bush, and that simply
isn't true. Just after the election, we petitioned the
Supreme Court to bring all the cases to Tallahassee
as is our right to do, and as secretary of state we
asked for that venue. And we asked for a uniform
standard Had the Supreme Court complied, we
wouldn't have had all these problems,- not at all
But the Supreme Court did not choose to act in
that manner, so we had issues that ensued ."

The law was her safe harbor, says Harris. Per-
sonal attacks didn't bother her she even learned
to joke about it but she believes they came
because her credibility could not be attacked

They didn't go after the fact that 1 was educat-
ed, that my master's was at Harvard [with a spe-
cialization in international trade and negotiations],
that my undergraduate was at Agnes Scott. They
didn't say that I had served in the Senate and I was
chairman of Commerce and Economic Opportuni-
ties and vice-chairman of Banking and Insurance,
of Government Reforms. They didn't go after the
fact that I'd passed a hundred bills They went
after my appearance. And, you know, that goes
with the territory."

Elections are one of seven divisions in Harris
territory. In addition to this and her first
responsibility, which is to serve equally with
the governor on the Cabinet, she overseas historic
preservation, libraries, international affairs, licensing
and corporations. While she believes election reform
has been the most stellar achievement and she cares
very much about each division, she says a lot of
work has gone into the international division.

"Many statues have been changed, and a memo-
randum of the governor has transferred all of the
indirect economic development programs, along
with their funding, to the Department of State,"
says Harris. "When 1 was elected, we had so many
more responsibilities in the international arena,
and this is really focused on cultural, humanitarian,
economic and diplomatic tools "

Harris, a history major at Agnes Scott with
almost enough credits for an art major as well, led
historic preservation in Florida to be funded at the
highest of any state and funding for cultural affairs
to third in the nation

"We've focused not only on the intrinsic value
of historic preservation or the arts, but in terms of
arts and education, because children who have arts
incorporated into their education make higher on
SAT scores. Also, children at risk who have these
experiences learn to think differently."

Her administration created grants to lower
Floridas 25 percent illiteracy rate, has created a

virtual library program and another program to
encourage expecting parents to read.

Agnes Scott figures prominently in Harris'
life. Her mother, Harriet Griffin Harris,
graduated in 1956, and her daughter attend-
ed last year. For Harris, it was at Agnes Scott that
she realized she didn't have to compromise her fem-
ininity to realize her potential. "Agnes Scott gave
me the confidence that 1 could do anything I
desired. That was an extraordinary development for
me, mainly because I didn't have to allow society's
stereotypes to limit my horizons. Those kinds of
circumstances, the kinds of philosophies that I had
in terms of making tough decisions, helped when 1
faced the recount.

"At Agnes Scott, 1 had a chance to come to
terms with my femininity, and I love being a
woman," she continues "I can be feminine and be
accomplished and work very hard at the same
time. 1 don't find those incongruent ."

It was also her Agnes Scott experience that led
her in an unlikely way into politics. While a
student, she did an internship in Washington.

"I hated politics. I was really disillusioned. I
was very naive when I went there and came home
wanting to stay naive. But my passion had been
really in, not only social issues, but also the arts,
historic preservation and education."

This passion landed her a governor-appointed
position on the board of the John and Mable
Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Harris'
hometown. "When a senator cut funding and
almost destroyed the museum and then the next
senator thought a Reuben was a sandwich the
museum has an extraordinary collection of
Reubens 1 tried to find someone to run against
that senator. 1 couldn't find anyone, so I did."

Believing public service is a noble calling, a
wonderful opportunity and probably the greatest
learning experience of a lifetime, Harris encour-
ages today's Agnes Scott student to pursue a
career in which she can make a difference. Harris
cautions anyone wanting to enter public service to
practice it before asking people to elect her to an
office and to be sure she's up to the task.

"Don't be afraid to take the lowest rung on the
ladder," advises Harris. "Be willing to do anything
to get the job done. I take out my trash,- I sweep
the floors. It doesn't matter. Just be available."

Such an approach has garnered Harris numer-
ous honors for her work. Among these are the
Florida Arts Advocacy Award, the Florida Eco-
nomic Development Legislator of the Year Award,
the Florida United Business Association Out-
standing Legislator Award, the Milton N. Fisher
Award for International Trade Advocacy, and the
Sarasota Humanitarian of the Year Award.

1A

sr-\]r-<i crnrr rrw i rrt u/.

LIFESTYLE

Two alumnae find personal and career fulfillment in scientific endeavors.

BECAUSE WE
ALL KNOW
SOMEONE

Ruth Feicht '86

In 1999 alone, almost
40,000 patients chose
brachytherapy as treatment
for their cancer. An Agnes
Scott alumna was instrumen-
tal in providing this option
for them.

Ruth Feicht '86, one of
four founders, serves as presi-
dent of International Brachy-
therapy Inc., the American
branch of IBt founded in
1996, which is a subsidiary of
Belgium based IBt s.a.

"We started IBt because we
wanted to provide better
brachytherapy tools for doc-
tors to use to treat cancer,
and my colleagues had some
ideas for innovative brachy-
therapy devices," says Feicht.

The word "brachytherapy,"
derived from the Greek
words brachys (short range)
and therapeia (treatment),
refers to a medical treatment
that involves the positioning
of rice-sized radioactive
sources near or inside cancer-
ous tissue. IBt manufactures
cancer-fighting products
called "seeds," cylindrical tita-
nium implants that use local-
ized radiation to target can-
cerous tumors in favor of

radiating the whole body.

IBt's purpose is to provide
cancer patients with effective
treatment while preserving
the patient's quality of life by
developing, manufacturing
and marketing a comprehen-
sive line of radiotherapeutic
implants for use in brachy-
therapy. The seeds, which are
cleared to treat solid mass
tumors, have aided in the
treatment of prostate cancer,
cancer of the tongue and
some types of skin lesions.
IBt's goal is to increase the use
of brachytherapy in the fight
against cancer. Its aggressive
vision of the future of brachy-
therapy includes the hope
that one day seeds will be
used to treat more types of
cancer, including cancer of
the head, neck and breast,
and that the seeds may even
be used in treating keloid
scars.

FEICHTS EXPLANATION
for leaving her position with
a telecommunications com-
pany to be a part of this is
simple: "Everybody knows
somebody who has had
to fight cancer."

Her responsibilities
in this
battle 4^^M

include a multitude of tasks.
"My job ranges from signing
legally binding documents to
taking out the trash. Osten-
sibly, I split my time between
marketing and sales and
administrative tasks. I just
returned from a big medical
physics conference out in Salt
Lake City. So, I've been con-
tacting customers and trying
to catch up on paperwork
since I got back. I also man-
age the relationship between
our company and our U.S.
distribution partners."

The choice of
Belgium as
operating
grounds
reflects the
adage "loca-

tion, location, location."

"Four Americans founded
the company, and we figured
that the European market
would be big. However, we
would never be able to crack
that market unless we were
headquartered in Europe. We
chose to locate in the south-
ern part of Belgium in an area
called the Region Wallon,
which is an Eastern Union
economic development zone.
We were given grants and
very favorable research and

development loans by
the EU and the
Region Wallon,"
says Feicht.

One of the
company's
products, Inter-
Source"", is a
tiny, hollow,

-A \% _* -'* '*

25

LIFESTYLE

LIFESTYLE

hermetically sealed radiother-
apeutic implant. Benefits of
this breakthrough treatment
include a short half-life,
which allows initial high
activity to attack aggressive
cancerous cells, and a non-
toxic isotope that reduces
patient risk. InterSource""
seeds can be implanted using
standard implant instruments
and needles and have been
available in the United States
for a couple of years. Another
product, InterSource 12 ', is
similar to InterSource"", but
utilizes iodine as opposed to
the palladium used in Inter-
Source"".

The company's latest
product, InterStrand , in-
volves fixing InterSource'
seeds along a biodegradable
string visualize a tiny ver-
sion of swimming pool rope
lanes in order to ensure uni-
formity and further sparing of
healthy tissue.

As a student at Agnes
Scott, Feicht discovered the
importance of human rela-
tions and a liberal arts
education.

Before being exposed to a
multitude of opportunities at
the College, Feicht aspired to
be a lawyer. "I started out an
English major, then became
and English/psych major
However, when I thought
about what 1 really like about
English analyzing things,
interpreting what I read and
writing up a synthesized

analysis I figured I'd do
more of that kind of stuff in
psych Plus, I really liked the
psych department. Dr. Car-
den and Dr Drucker were
fantastic teachers. They
expected a lot from you, and
if you put in the time, they'd
help you reach your full
potential or certainly
stretch you to the max."

TEACHERS SUCH AS
these are the reason Feicht
contributes time and re-
sources to the College

"Agnes Scott's given me a
whole lot I owe something
and always will."

She prefers to contribute
financially in honor of some-
one, rather than writing out a
check and letting the money
enter the fund anonymously.
She and six others created the
Ayse llgaz Carden Award to
honor psychology professor
Carden. When her former
professor learned of the
award, remembers Feicht,
"she looked at me and said,
This is one of the best days
of my life.' "

After graduation, Feicht
served as a research assistant
for Carden. One of the other
founders of IBt is John
Carden, her former profes-
sor's husband

Feicht believes Agnes
Scott is "all about the people."
She offers advice to alumnae
who may be wary of changes
made at the College since

their attendance. "One thing
that hasn't changed is that
the students are still good
people trying to find their
way in the world. They're the
same kids we were when we
were there they're just in a
different society."

Victoria F. Stopp '01

To learn more about IBt, go to
http://www.ibt4seeds.com.

GENETIC
COUNSELING

IN A NEW
LANGUAGE

Carrie Mastromarino
Haunstetter '96

Imagine the thrill of work-
ing in groundbreaking
research. Imagine the chal-
lenge of doing it in a lan-
guage you don't speak. That's
the experience of Carrie
Mastromarino Haunstetter
'96 who works as a genetic
counselor for cancer patients
and their families in Heidel-
berg, Germany

The University of Heidel-
berg serves as one of six cen-
ters in Germany with funding
from the German Cancer Aid
organization to study heredi-
tary colorectal cancer, and
Haunstetter finds herself cre-
atively applying her training
in genetic counseling in a
non-traditional way to con-
duct cancer research there.
"Instead of working as a

genetic counselor with
human genetics, I am a
genetic counselor within a
department of surgery," she
says.

"My main responsibilities
are to recruit appropriate
patients from our surgical
wards into this study, main-
tain a large database with all
the documentation of the
study participants and to help
counsel patients and family
members about cancer pre-
vention recommendations
and follow-up care during our
weekly outpatient clinic."

The aim of her current
study is to gather familial,
clinical and genetic data that
will advance scientists' under-
standing of hereditary colon
cancer. In recruiting patients,
Haunstetter looks at the can-
didates' medical charts before
their surgery and talks briefly
with them about their family
history of cancer. "If they
meet the proper criteria," she
says, "then we schedule them
an appointment in our outpa-
tient clinic. I also get in-
formed consent from them to
perform molecular analysis
on a part of their rumor,
which is a screening test for
this hereditary form of colon
cancer."

After completing a combi-
nation major of biology and
psychology at Agnes Scott,
she earned her master's in
science from The Johns
Hopkins School of Public

26

ar.MFS srnTT rni 1 Fr.F w.**

LIFESTYLE

Health in May 2000 for her
training in genetic counsel-
ing. A close friend actually
enlightened Haunstetter
about the field, encouraging
her to pursue her interests in
working closely with people
and counseling, and also to
fulfill her desire to remain on
the cutting edge of science.

Genetic counseling "was
completely new to me,"
recalls Haunstetter, "but
seemed like a perfect mar-
riage of my main interests."

While attending a meeting
in Boston on the legal and
social issues regarding genet-
ics, she met a German cardi-
ologist working as a research
fellow in Boston. "We ended
up falling in love," says
Haunstetter. They were mar-
ried in April 2000. Shortly
thereafter, Haunstetter moved
to join her husband in the
"wonderfully romantic town"
of Heidelberg, where they
live on a hillside overlooking
the Neckar River Haunstet-
ter's husband is a senior fel-
low in the cardiology depart-
ment at The University of
Heidelberg.

Haunstetter's prospects of
finding a genetic counseling
position in her new home
seemed grim because in most
European countries genetic
counseling is frowned upon
unless practiced by a licensed
physician. However, she
enlisted the aid of one of her
graduate school adviser's pro-

fessional contacts, a woman
who is a surgeon and former-
ly was at the University of
Heidelberg.

"I asked her about the cli-
mate of genetic counseling
for a person with my kind of
background, and she immedi-
ately hooked me up with her
former colleagues, saying that
they could use someone with
my training. 1 thought I was
dreaming," says Haunstetter.
"I arranged to have a series of
interviews at Heidelberg.
They were intimidating meet-
ings, but I was offered a job
to begin work after only a
few interviews."

Haunstetter remarks that

her current colleagues are
more progressive than many
others in the field and they
recognize the value of a mas-
ter's level genetic counselor.
'The language barrier is
particularly challenging,"
exclaims Haunstetter, who
had received only two
months of language in-
struction when she began her
position. "1 have learned
enough German to communi-
cate effectively with col-
leagues and patients. How-
ever, my days are still filled
with little challenges related
to simply speaking, such as
being mid-sentence and real-
izing I lack a few vocabulary

words to finish what I set out
to say, or trying to speak with
an older patient in the hospi-
tal speaking a particular
German dialect." She delights
in her little "victories" when
she communicates things that
a few months ago she could
not have done.

Haunstetter wants to
become more involved in the
ethical and social issues
regarding the expansive field
of genetics, including testing
and research. She believes
that society must decide how
best to use the tools pro-
duced by genetic technolo-
gies. On this note, she is
excited to know that Agnes
Scott will be incorporating
instruction in bioethics into
future curriculum.

Agnes Scott gave Haun-
stetter the motivation and
perseverance to do the
important work she is doing
today. "Agnes Scott provides
a stimulating and nurturing
environment so students have
numerous opportunities to do
a lot on their own with the
expertise and close guidance
of the faculty," says Haun-
stetter.

"In the end, I left Agnes
Scott with the self-confi-
dence that 'I can' take on
something big and develop it
well, applied to whatever sit-
uation, whether professional
or personal."

Victoria E Stopp 'oi and
Kristin Kallaher 04

17

LETTERS

Robert Frost continues to revive alumnae memories; another view oj the Apocalypse.

LITERARY
MAGAZINE

I want to say how much 1
look forward to receiving the
alumnae magazine.

Although it does contain
news of the school and the
alumnae, it is really a literary
magazine, heautitully written
and interesting, a reminder of
the quality of the Agnes
Scott education. Usually 1
read every article. Thank you
to all who put it together!

Margaret Moses '64

Please let me congratulate
you for the extremely high
quality of the AGNES SCOTT

Alumnae Magazine. I hope

you are submitting it to vari-
ous national competitions; it
is "top drawer." 1 think the
article on Dierdre ["A New
Day for Nigeria," Fall 2001] is
especially good.

Delia McMillan 75

IMPRESSIVE
MEMORIES

I enjoyed Margaret Pepper-
dene's article on Robert Frost
at Agnes Scott.

Some of us, perhaps the
literary club, were invited to
the Alumnae House to meet
with him (before or after the
lecture evening).

How lucky we were to

have Edna St. Vincent Mil-
lay, Carl Sandburg, Thornton
Wilder and others. The econ-
omist, Stuart Chase, lectured
in '36 or '37 and memorably
said, "We will be at war in
five years." I have impressive
memories of them all.

Brooks Spivey Creedy '37

FROST
RECALLED

I've just finished reading
cover to cover the new issue
of the alum magazine, and
can't resist trying to express
my profound appreciation for
the marvelous work that put
this together. Pve always
been proud of and grateful tor
my Agnes Scott heritage, and
yet it only enlarges with the
years, as I watch the College
grow and deepen, ripen!

This whole issue is of such
fine quality, but of course it is
the Robert Frost stories that
light up my imagination and
memories, and motivate this
message. As a member of the
Class of 1950, and an English
major under Miss Laney's
tutelage, my memories of the
Frost visits are warm and
deep. I was privileged to be
asked to squire him around,
take him to student lunches
and he available to Miss
Laney for "gofer" errands
related to his visits.

I was deeply moved by
Miss Pepperdene's article, for
it brought back so much of
the richness of those years, of
hearing Frost read his poems
I never read them that I
don't hear the cadence of his
voice echoing in my head
these many years later. One
never forgets that voice!
Like Linda Hubert, I was
young and "green," totally
awed by the presence of such
a giant, and certainly unable
to take full advantage of being
with him. I struggled to make
conversation at first, but sooiv
found, as did others, that one
only needed to listen! But
there is no question his visits
ne i me of the high peaks c 'I
my years there.

Dr. Alston was my mentor
and dear friend, and the pic-
ture of him seated in Caines
Chapel, while Frost speaks,
also brings the flood of
warmth of his teaching, his
personal concern for us stu-
dents and the quality of his
life and outlook that forever
formed who I am. (He and 1
corresponded, visited and
telephoned over many years
after graduation, as his gra-
cious friendship continued to
influence my life.)

I would like so much to
thank Miss Pepperdene tor
her marvelous article, which
so much catches the flavor of

Frost. (She was right about
Miss Laney not many
would dare address her in any
personal or presumptuous
way! But what a dear friend
and mentor she was, and is a
standout among my memo-
ries of beloved professors. )

So, thank you again for
the fine issue and your ins]
ing interpretation of theB
vision and quality education
afforded at ASC. It continues
to he a star-gem in die crown
i it liberal arts colleges, and I
am once more, as always,
proud to claim it as niv alma
mater.

Rev. Ann Williamson
Young, '50

It was wonderful to see the
Leo Cheme bust of Robert
Frost on the pages of the
Spring/Summer 2001 issue of

the Alumnae Magazine.

Also the two superlative arti-
cles on Robert Frost and the
ASC connection so wonder-
fully depicted, described and
celebrated!

And now there is even a
wonderful life-size statue of
the young Robert Frost resid-
ing in the newly landscaped
Alumnae Garden. What a
wonderful and appropriate
way to show to all the pre-
vailing and abiding presence
of Frost! I wish 1 could have
been there for the spectacular

28

V .\l s SCOTT COLLEGE li'mitr jom

event. I know a stunning
time was had by all! !

I'm grateful that Robert
Frost has found a nice niche
in the President's House at
Agnes Scott.

That really was an out-
standing job you all did not
only on Robert Frost, but also
the other coverage as well
Updike and all.

Keep up the good
(GREAT) work!!

Vaughn Earl

Hartsell
Editor's Note: The bust of
Robert Frost by Leo Cheme
was given to Agnes Scott by the
estate of George W. Kinnard
and in honor of Hartsell's
daughter, Paige Hartsell-
Dupont '92.

The Spring/Summer issue of
the magazine is interesting to
read and lovely to the eye.
Since I graduated with the
class of 1940, I feel a special
connection to the years
between then and 1962,

when Robert Frost was an
integral feature of the many
pleasures and treasures of
Agnes Scott.

Congratulations on the
outstanding
magazine
and on this
particular
issue. The
story about
Elena
Kutuzova Venuti
reinforces the glow of
warmth I feel about Agnes
Scott in my day and now as
it broadens its perspectives.
Elizabeth Alderman
Vinson '40

My Spring/Summer 2001
issue anived in today's mail,
and I have just enjoyed
pemsing its pages. In particu-
lar, I relished the features
concerning Robert Frost,
whose campus visits I well
remember.

Congratulations on a fine
issue.

Ann Alvis Shibut '56
Editor's Note: Some of you
wrote questioning the dates on a
few of the Frost photos in the
magazine. You may be entirely
correct some dates may be
wrong. The photos could have
been mislabeled or we may have
made an error in copying them.
Your messages have been for-
warded to the McCain Library
archivist so she can compare
them with the photos. Thank
you for helping us .

ONE OF THE
BEST RECALLED

I had lunch today with Dot
Joyner '4 1 She wanted me to
tell you that she thought the
latest ASC magazine was just
great and one of the best she
remembered.

Betty Derrick '68

LOVE THE
MAGAZINE

Virginia Dunaway '56,
Memphis campaign chair,
and Virginia Kletter '53,
Memphis campaign volun-
teer, LOVE the new ASC
magazine!

Betsy Bilbro '97

A DIFFERENT
REVELATION

As an alumna of ASC, I was
astounded to read the review
of Professor Tina Pippin's
book, Apocalyptic Bodies,
which appeared in the Fall
2000 issue of the ASC
Alumnae Magazine. Has
ASC taken a giant leap for-
ward into the post-Christian
era? Our founders would be
greatly saddened to see such a
turn away from the values
they gave their lives to estab-
lish.

Those of us who have
spent this past year studying
John's apocalypse have come
to the conclusion that Reve-
lation answers the longing

LETTERS

and prayer of those martyred
souls, bringing hope and
comfort to saints not only in
the first century suffering
severe persecution under
Roman emperors, but to
saints under persecution in
all times, even today! We
ourselves have been comfort-
ed by these words of the
Apocalypse, as some of us
came to the study with great
fears of the impending terrors
and fears that our loving
heavenly Father may some-
how have compromised His
goodness in this final revela-
tion.

What we discovered
instead is that Revelation is a
perfect ending to God's
redemptive plan and a love
letter to His church!

This love letter proclaims
the good news and blessed
assurance that in the fullness
of time He will avenge not
only man's wickedness
against God, but also man's
inhumanity to man! It is
man, not God, who grows
more and more dangerous in
the passing earthly millen-
nia!

God hates the very things
men claim to hate, but prac-
tice. Only He can and, ap-
parently, wants to make all
things new. It is by His grace
alone, for it is surely unde-
served, and men have proven
themselves over many mil-
lennia not only unable, but
even unwilling to bring good

29

LETTERS

things about.

Is it really okay to tocus
only on the horrors of God's
judgements on earth, to dis-
miss the truths that it is
through those judgements
that He will destroy the tirst
things that have caused such
anguish .mi. mg men, thai n is
through these re-creative
actions He will bring about
joy and peace among men?
God's judgements and re-cre-

ation go hand in hand. To sep-
arate them in an analysis of
any part of the Bible violates
cardinal principles of proper
Biblical exegesis, producing
not good interpretation, but
prejudice instead. The Bible
says God is love and God is
just and God is one.

Sally S. Howard '60
EDITOR'S NOTE: Because of the
length of the above letter, only a
portion could be reprinted here.

CONTRIBUTORS

the Agnes Scon Alumnae Magazine

Lisa Ashmore is manager of

news services for Agnes Scott

and director of creative services

College.

at Agnes Scott.

Sandra Bowden is professor of

Celeste Pennington, former edi-

biology and "shepherd" of the

tor of the Agnes Scon Alumnae

College's new science building.

Magazine, manages several publi-

Kristin Kallaher '04, Office of

cations.

Communications intern, is an

Chris Tiegreen, former editor of

English and psychology major

Main Events, is editor of indeed

from Memphis, Tenn.

at Walk Thru the Bible.

Sharon Rose Kelly '03 is an inter-

Victoria F. Stopp '01 was the

national affairs major from

Office of Communications intern

Brunswick, Ga.

before graduating with a major

Jennifer Bryon Owen is editor of

in English lit/creative writing and
a minor in religious studies.

PASSPORT

to Possibilities

$&.

hv

1003,

i^ss

Discover exciting new horizons and stimulating
fresh perspectives. Come back where your journey
began: Agnes Scott College

Alumnae Weekend 2002 can be your passport
to a world of renewed friendships, challenging
conversations and provocative ideas.

For more information: 800 868-8602,
ext. 6323, or 404 471-6323
www.agnesscott.edu/alu/events

Look for your brochure with registration information in the mail soon.

Alumnae W&sJs&ftfl

30

s( < ITT ( dl I F.CE WW iooi

GIVING ALUMNA

Good teachers create a cycle of making things happen.

Kim Davis '00 knows about giving back. As a recent col-
lege graduate, she draws daily from what she received at
Agnes Scott to educate to her first graders at Oglethorpe
Elementary, a school primarily serving a low-income population.

Now in her second year of teaching, Davis' career began
through an appointment with Teach for America. Her decision to
join them came down to the organization's motto: "One day, all
children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an
excellent education."

"I really believe that," says Davis. "Teach for America pushes
to put good teachers in places where people don't want to
teach they make things happen."

Davis, who was a religious studies major, uses her Agnes
Scott education and her memories of
Professor Tina Pippin's classes. "Tina
Pippin allowed me to be me she put
no limits or restraints on imagination,
creativity or thought processes. She
was real and up front, and I felt that
if she could do that, it was okay for
me to do the same. She allowed me
to feel safe in an academic environ-
ment, and I try to provide that for
my students."

The most difficult aspect of
teaching for Davis is having to be
multi-faceted. "I'm not only a
teacher, but a parent, friend,
counselor, social worker."
However, the rewards outweigh
the struggles. "I can see change
and transformation happen
I can see light bulbs going on
in their heads."

Frequently she is invited
to visit her students' homes, and
the visits often are sobering as
well as rewarding. "I've learned so
much going to their homes. It's
awesome. But you see why they

sleep in class eight people in a two-bedroom apartment. When
they know I care, learning is so much easier."

Davis extended her two-year Teach for America contract by
another year, thereby reaping the benefit of continuing to teach
and of getting a master's of elementary education from Georgia
State in order to become a certified teacher. The university works
with Teach for America to ensure continuing education for inter-
ested teachers. Her long-term goal includes more education. "In
five years, I see myself in grad school for a master of theology. I
want to teach again soon but I want to be a professor."

As the ASC Class Fund Chair for the Class of 2000, Davis
supports education by donating and by encouraging others to
donate to Agnes Scott. "It's important to give
back because the foundation was already set
for us. We need to continue the legacy of

ASC and provide opportunities for
i women in order to ensure that it really is
'the world for women,'" says Davis.
^^^ Her recent support for the College

J^Ksf' - includes fulfilling a senior year personal

^UP pledge, participating in the Young

Alumnae Phonathon and leading a charge
for donations to the Annual Fund. "I see
donations as helping change occur. My
ittle bit of money helping
fund a scholarship or
bringing in a new profes-
sor makes that change
happen. Also, it
doesn't matter
how much
you give. It's
important for
students to
see a young
alumna, some-
one they know,
caring about
them."
Victoria F. Stopp '01

31

GIVING ALUMNA

Agnes Scott College

THE WORLD FOR WOMEN

141 East College Avenue
Atlanta/Decatur, GA 30030-3797

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Nonprofit
Organization
US Postage

PAID

Decatur, CA 30030
Permit No 469

Decatur GA 30030-2743

I"II>IIiiiIIiiiIIiIIiiiIiII I uIiI ii |..||.|| iii || i |

KOArSMIiMfT

A Balkan Bridge: ( )J all the tumultuous hotspots on
the planet, few can rival the Balkan peninsula for intractable con-
flict in recent years. Into this volatile region stepped Sotto Voce,
Agnes Scott's choral ensemble, on a summer concert tour designed 1
to promote miifiiiil understanding, peace and development.
The i i-member ttwttp spent a week in Bulgaria and then three days
in Romania To learn more about the impact of their tour and its
implications for ASC.'s future, sec the story beginning on pai)e 15

Spring/Summer 2002

s Scott

lumnae Magazine

Alumnae Hikers
Venture into
'One of the World's
Wild Places'

GUEST COLUMN

Our liberal arts education provides us with the resources jor meeting the challenges and
opportunities facing women who are fully engaged with life.

Our years at Agnes Scott did not teach
us the answers. They taught us how to
think. Agnes Scott didn't simply allow us
to lead but fostered the self-assurance
that allows us to seize opportunities,
recognize possibilities and to be students for life. All of us, 1
believe, can thank our liberal learning tradition for preparing
us to invent and reinvent ourselves throughout our lives

Three years ago. by choice. I left the corpo-
rate world where I had made my career. It was
a scary decision because I knew that at age
53, I could never go back I left because it
had become harder and harder to find
meaning in my work. I loved my
profession marketing and still do,
but something was missing. At the
pace I was going, 1 knew that Id never
figure out what it was unless I took
time to listen to my longings.

For the first time in 20 years, I
wasn't going to work every day I was "on
sabbatical,'' an enviable but foreign lifestyle
tor those of us not in academia. And thanks to
that opportunity for soul-searching, 12 months
to the day after my sabbatical began, I started the next
phase of my lite by becoming director of alumnae relations
at Agnes Scott.

In his book Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes,
William Bridges affirms what we know. The need to weather
change happens more than once in our lives, and taking a
time out is an important part of the process. For me, the
time I spent in what Bridges describes as a "neutral zone,"
allowed me to acknowledge what was missing friendships
with women, being in an environment where people affirm
and support each other, and to affirm what I enjoy, every
facet of the marketing profession. When the letter came from
Lewis Thayne, vice president tor institutional advancement

describing the Colleges search for a director, I knew that
this was the place where all those seemingly unrelated pieces
could come together and where I would find meaning in
my work

As I have met you at local alumnae gatherings and
campus events, I have encountered so many whose stories
witness to the value of liberal learning as preparation for a
full and meaningful life You have had experiences similar to
mine in which you took stock of where you were
and where you wanted to be. If the two places
did not line up, you did whatever was
necessary to make them. Whether it was
to return to school for another degree
or to embark on a totally different
career, you have done it, and you had
resources gained at Agnes Scott to
help you.

Others of you intentionally set
new goals for yourselves and find excit-
ing mind and sometimes body
stretching ways to challenge yourselves.
You enhance your lives bv giving to others
You continually create lives for yourselves by
undertaking new experiences. And these things
are done at any age, and sometimes frequently,
throughout your lives.

Our liberal arts experience has the power to deepen our
humanity and to invest us with the capacity to imagine fully.
It gives us the knowledge and insights to make connections
where they haven't been made before, in the world and in
our lives as women.

With this foundation undergirding us, what rich lives
lie in front of us!

Marilyn Hammond ns

CONTENTS

Agnes Scott College Alumnae Magazine
Spring /Summer 2002, Volume 78, Number 2

Climb to the Top, and
Kiss the Carabiner

Agnes Scott alumnae from the 60s hike in the
breathtakingly beautiful area of Patagonia.

10

Mapping the Unknown

By Leisa Hammert-Goad

An alumna looks at recent terrorism through

personal experiences of almost 60 years ago.

12

An Antidote to
Self-Absorption

By Dawn Sloan Downes 92

Faculty volunteers pass along the values

found in helping others.

14

Eudora Welty, 1909-2001

By Linda Hubert 62

Agnes Scott remembers a special friend.

18

The Sons of Agnes
Scott College

By Jennifer Bryon Owen
Through the years, many mat have been
shaped by mothers who attended college in
this place.

DEPARTMENTS

2

On Campus

24
Lifestyle

28

Letters

.. .. -_.-- z . . .-_ . ;; .,- -; :;-;" .-

DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

Man - Ackerly

EDITOR

Jennifer Bryon Owen

DESIGNER

Winnie Hulme

INTERN

Kristin Kallaher 04

Copyright 2002. Agnes Scott College.
Published for alumnae and friends twice
a year by the Office of Commnications
-Agnes Scon College Rebekah A- n
141 E. College Ave Decatur GA 30030.

Postmaster: Send address changes to
Office of Development Agnes Scott
College 141 E College Are., Decatur
GA 30030 404 47 #72
The content of the magazine reflects
the opinions of the writers and not the
viewpoint of the College its trustees
or administration-
E-mail: publication<s agnesscort.edu
Veb site: www.agnesscott.edu

Acnes Scott Alumnae Macaz -
recipient of the Award of Excellence for
.Alumni Magazines in the CASE District III
Advancement Awards Program 2001 .

ON CAMPUS

Creating beauty from disaster, calling students to action and unraveling the 1938 beer
jacket mystery

Alex Pajak '04 composes an award-winning musical representation of September 11.

SEPTEMBER 1 1
INSPIRES

WINNING
COMPOSITION

Alexandra Pajak 04
is always working on
something whether it's
biology lab projects or
composing music and it's
paying off.

The biology/music dou-
ble major from Watkinsville,
Ca., succeeded in writing a

special piece, Day of Darkness ,
a musical representation of
September 1 1. Pajak's piano-
flute duet is one of six win-
ners out of 24 entries in the
Student Composers Contest
for Original Chamber Works
in the Gulf Coast Festival of
New Music at the University
of South Alabama

I liked the idea of trying
to combine an American
instrument and something
that is similar to a Middle

Eastern instrument, " Pajak
says adding the flute is
similar to reed instruments
used in the region. She wrote
the piece in three months
after doing extensive
research with her Agnes
Scott College composition
teacher Martha Bishop on
Middle Eastern instruments,
song forms, scales and
rhythms.

Pajak, the 2002 recipient
of the Elizabeth R Griffin

Foundation Internship,
described the piece as being
tension-filled at the begin-
ning, climaxing into a
chaotic middle section and
concluding with a similar
level of tension but with
thoughtful, hopeful notes.

Alex did an excellent job
of blending the two styles of
music, says Bishop, artist
affiliate in cello and compo-
sition who taught the non-
credit class. 'Alex utilized all

ACNES SCOTTCOLLEU

ON CAMPUS

the material and suggestions
at her disposal very well and
wrote a piece that 1 was very
pleased with."

The competition prize
includes having the piece
premiered by professional
musicians and a recording
of the performance. Although
Pajak and Bishop were
unable to attend, Pajak has
asked the musicians to
critique her piece.

An accomplished pianist,
Pajak was encouraged to
attend Agnes Scott by her
piano teacher, Joey
Hokayem. Hokayem, who
wrote Fanfare for the Spirit of
Athens for the 1996
Olympics, was impressed
with the College's connec-
tions to entertainment and
how it teaches students to
apply classical Western
music to "real life."

"Most of all his perpetual
encouragement and motiva-
tion convinced me that music
was something 1 truly love,"
Pajak says. "Because of Joey,
I am studying music at Agnes
Scott and will always be
involved in music. My success
in this competition is largely
due to his influence."

Although Pajak enjoys all
her classes, the composition
class is a favorite. "It's a really
creative class. It has taught
me discipline. Mrs. Bishop
has turned composing into
a craft instead of a cosmic
art form."

In addition to Day of
Darkness, Pajak has written
1 2 songs for the Ocean
Society's Marine Education
Program, which is in more
than 20,000 U.S. schools.
While simple, the songs
about whales, sharks, fish
and sea turtles are perfect for
what they are designed for,
Bishop says.

"Most, or probably all,
composers go through a
maturation process, and that
is what Alex is doing,"
Bishop says. "Most are just
not so lucky to have their
early efforts picked up for
publication by a national
organization."

"I'm happy if I have one
really good piece some-
thing I feel comfortable
with a semester, maybe
two a semester," Pajak says.

With her Elizabeth R.
Griffin Foundation Intern-
ship, Pajak will study at
Georgia State University
with Julia K. Hilliard, profes-
sor of biology. Pajak will
research zoonotic diseases,
diseases that humans can get
from animals, and learn about
safe ways to do such research.

Pajak sees a career in
disease research, but if she
could make a living through
music, she definitely would
do it. "Otherwise, music
would just be a hobby, but
a really important hobby."

Wendy Cromwell

ROCKING THE
VOTE

At the invitation of MTV
and Rock the Vote,
Katie McGee '02 spent two
days in Washington, D.C.,
in late February tackling civil
liberties, homeland security
and economic stimulus with
the heads of the American
Civil Liberties Union,
National Association for the
Advancement of Colored
People, Heritage Fund and
Cato Institute. But, she
missed her chance to appear
on MTV

Because of her work with
MTV's Rock the Vote cam-
paign, McGee had been
asked to appear as a student
activist on Secretary of State
Colin Powells internation-
ally televised Global Forum
program on MTV, but was
bumped at the last minute.
Still, with other students,
she met with Sens. Joseph
Lieberman, John Edwards
and Jesse Helms, among
others.

"DC. was so awesome
... to be able to engage with
other student activists,"
she says.

Katie McGee '02 rocks the vote all the way to D.C.

ON CAMPUS

ON CAMPUS

While there she also taped
a 1 5-minute public service
announcement, due to air this
year, lor the new 7UP Speak
Up campaign in which youth
are encouraged to enter a
confessional booth touring
the country and speak out on
what concerns them. McGee
spoke about hate crimes in
the South, especially against
Arabs and Muslims since
September 1 I

Last year I 5 community
street teams registered voters
and collected signatures
nationwide for the Rock the
Vote campaign and
McGee led one ol the most
successful. "The bulk of the
signatures," she says, "were
gathered during the Pride
Festival last summer and at
other festivals and concerts."
With the Atlanta group col-
lecting 6,300 signatures out
of a total 23,000, she suspects
her group acquired more than
even New York City.

The campaign also
emphasized petitioning for
federal hate crimes legislation
one of McGee's main
issues. If she decides to study
criminal law, she particularly
wants to study new tech-
niques being used to try hate
crimes.

McGee, who was presi-
dent of Student Senate this
year, plans to attend Loyola
School of Law. She will con-
tinue working on Rock the
Vote, especially trying to

make absentee ballots more
accessible to college students.
Atlanta actually has the
second largest college-age
voting population in the
country (Boston is first),
McGee says, but one of the
lowest voter turnouts for
18 to 25 year olds.

Professor Cathy Scott,
McGee's academic adviser,
says she has been an excel-
lent student. "She has been
such a positive presence on
campus, through her work in
Senate especially Her off-
campus work with Rock the
Vote demonstrates her keen
interest in motivating young
people to take an interest in
politics," Scott says. "She
has an open mind and makes
a genuine effort to listen to
different points of view. She
is perfectly willing to have
her own ideas challenged
and is not afraid to voice
her own opinions."

Kristin Kalldher 04

BEER JACKET
GRADUATES
AGAIN

The Agnes Scott beer
jacket was a mystery in
1942, and it remains a mys-
tery in 2002. Jeanne Lee Butt
'42 can't remember who gave
her and the other 1938 first-
years beer jackets.

When Butt attended her
50-year reunion, she was the

When Allison Butt '02 left the campus, so did a College mystery.

information about why this

only one who returned with
her white, denim jacket full
of colorfully embroidered
signatures from classmates,
professors and staff which
she thought had been the
point of receiving the beer
jackets Actually, she was the
only alumna who even knew
what a beer jacket was.

Her granddaughter Allison
Butt '02, who was given the
jacket when she enrolled at
Agnes Scott, graduated this
spring exactly 60 years
after her grandmother. As the
jacket leaves the College
again, there is still no new

particular item appeared on
this particular campus, and
apparently for one year only.

Beer jackets seem to
have begun with Princeton
University's class of 1912.
After noticing that beer loam
spotted their clothes, stu-
dents began wearing denim
beer suits while they quaffed
beer at the old Nassau Inn.
mainly to avoid cleaning
bills However, wearing a
beer suit was a privilege
awarded only to seniors and,
with the class of 1918, seniors
began putting distinctive

\< ,NI s S( 1 1 IT COLLEGE Sjmnj/Snmitin iom

ON CAMPUS

designs on the backs of their
jackets.

Although beer jackets did
pertain to drinking, Butt '42
maintains that their purpose
at Agnes Scott had nothing
to do with consuming alco-
hol. "My grandmother told
me that everybody was given
a plain, canvas jacket," Butt
says, "and told that it was
supposed to be a fun thing
where they get all their
friends from the College to
sign it and put whatever else
they chose on it. Then they
could embroider it, as a
summer activity." Her grand-
mother finished embroidering
the jacket in the summer
of 1939.

Butt's fellow classmates
at the '92 reunion were
appalled at the very idea of
such an article of clothing
being distributed through
Agnes Scott, a campus
known nationwide for its
teetotal stance. Yet none
could deny the blatant
presence of their own signa-
tures on the jacket. The sig-
natures of President McCain,
William Dieckmann and
Carrie Scandrett are also
on the jacket, along with
pictures of Georgia Tech
football players, the trolley
that ran alongside the
College and a mock ticket
that says "You are campused
for..." Since she is from
Florida, Butt lettered that on
the back, while Agnes Scott

is sewn on the collar. She
says she knew it must be
called a beer jacket because
of its buttons, which have
beer kegs and mugs on them.

Apparently the class of
1942 was the only one ever
to receive jackets. The 1938
Silhouette mentions the trend
just once in a recap of
April "Beer jackets just
spread all over the place
who started it?" Even students
of the late '30s were puzzled.

Of her grandmother's
jacket, Butt says, "It's like the
coat of many colors. I usually
wear it to the Legacy Teas
at President Bullock's house,
just because it's kind of fun
for everybody to see some-
thing that relates to their
legacy too."

Although the jacket is in
good condition, it is showing
the passage of time. Butt says
that even though she is afraid
it will get damaged, she still
wears the jacket around
campus occasionally. "My
grandmother told me, '1
know this is really delicate,
but I want you to wear it.
It's meant to be worn, it's not
meant to be hidden away.'"

Today's classmates think
the jacket is great. During
a recent "wearing," Butt
encountered a friend who
had never seen it. "The first
thing she noticed about the
jacket was the 'Please, don't
walk on the grass' sign," she
laughs, "and my friends were
like, "Was the College that
way all the way back then
too?' So they think it's fun.
Everybody can relate to it
it's their College."

Butt's grandmother wanted
very much for her to come to
Agnes Scott. "She's always
said that Agnes Scott would
not have been right for her
daughter, but it would be for
me. So she's really happy
that I came here." An art
major, Butt actually was pre-
veterinary and has been
accepted to the University
of Georgia College of
Veterinary Medicine. She
worked at Church Street
Animal Hospital in Decatur
for more than a year as a
technician/ assistant. Butt is
participating in the ASC
Global Connections trip to
Greece this summer, another
gift from her
g grandmother.

Although she

Left: Allison
wji Butt '02 with her
grandmother,
Jeanne Lee
Butt '42
Right: Details
from the beer
jacket

thought about giving it to the
school, Butt plans to keep her
grandmother's jacket. "Giving
it to the College is some-
thing I originally considered
when I first came to school,"
she says, "but I'm kind of
attached to it now. It's part
of my grandmother's past
and I love all of that all of
her stories and everything
she went through here."

Kristin KaWaher '04

ON CAMPUS

Three years ago, a group of Agnes Scott alumnae from the 60s

walked a stone road the Inca Trail to the ancient city oj Machu Picchu in Peru.

This year some oj these hikers joined others, some alums and some not, to tackle yet another trail,

this one in the breathtakingly beautiful area oj Patagonia in southern Chile.

Ice climber: Kathy
Reynolds Doherty '67
Hiking group, left to right:
BJ Brown Freeman '66,
Martha Thompson '66,
Nancy Phillipi, Willie
Crawford, Judy Chandler
and JC Williams '68.

\CNES SCOTT COLLECE'

DE OOS PER50NAS

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By Linda Kay Hudson
McGowan '65, Judy
Ahrano '66, Alice
Davidson '66, BJ Brown
Freeman '66, Martha
Thompson '66, Candy
Gerwe Cox '67, Kathy
Reynolds Doherty '67,
Katherine Mitchell '68,
JC Williams '68

Photography courtesy
of Kathy Reynolds
Doherty '67

THE SCENE

i TT" e ore in Chile, the bottom of the
#1 m work), where much is reversed jor
1 / 1 1 / us: We are summering in January,
/ 1/ tot are strong on our legs yet three

of us will celebrate birthdays past
the half-century mark while on this trek, we did not
dream this in the 1 960s, but the seed jor such adventure,
perhaps, was planted then.

Bj

In 1988, I was tired or being an indoor type and
decided to hike. Naturally I wanted companions,
and it seemed good to include past friends and
weave them into the present. What better place
to gather interesting and entertaining friends than
from college days? Perhaps it was from memoriz-
ing lines like Tennyson's "I am a part of all that I
have met." Or maybe it was being surrounded as
I was growing up by my grandmother's thought-
fully pieced quilts. Regardless, threading together
my friends past and present has always been
important to me.

Alice

For me, the experience of our Chile trip was not
about doing physically challenging things since
I've always enjoyed that. Rather, it was about
spending time with a peer group I respect and
feel at home with despite the fact that more than
half of the hikers were new acquaintances,- not
people we had known at Agnes Scott. As we get
older we get fewer opportunities, if any, to do sig-
nificant things with peers. We are pulled to family
responsibilities and do many things alone Later
in life, its also harder to make new friends ot the
same closeness because we're usually not sharing
experiences of any duration.

Linda Kay

At Agnes Scott, we were encouraged to become
the "whole woman. " In Chile, I see we have all
aspired to climb higher and become stronger, not
just intellectually, socially and spiritually as we
were traditionally encouraged to do in the 1960s
but also physicallv.

THE SCENE

A wooded trail winds ever more steeply. Predicted wind
and rain do not arrive and the day is sunny as climbers
emerge jrom the shaded woods onto a grassy plateau
painted in brown, yellow and pale great. Behind us we
survey another plain: the white and blue of Glacier
Grey jar below, a southernmost tip of the Patagom vt
Ice Cap.

Katherine

There is deep joy in being physically active for
long periods of time. 1 ran for 20 years and never
had a runners high." Six to 10 hours a day on
the trail gives an exhilaration I do not experience
in any other form of exercise.

Martha

Hiking in a place of unspeakable panoramic
beauty, majesty and environmental variety
something that I did not anticipate which added
to the adventure. Hiking through this terrain
as opposed to driving or flying heightened
and prolonged the enjoyment of the geography.

B)

It would be hard for anything to compete with
the scenic wonder of Patagonia But the friend-
ships forged and sealed along the trail come
awfully close. And the bonds that were formed
at Agnes Scott some 35 years ago just grow
stronger and stronger.

THE SCENE

The wall rises perhaps 40 feet, totally white, made of
ice. The two carabiners are planted deep in the ice up
top and the rope hangs down to the base. Equipment
consists of two ice axes and crampons 1 2 short knives
that strap to your boots. Marco says this, "Climb to the
top, and kiss the carabiner. " And so, you do.

Judy

Chile 2002: I face a challenge surrounded by
supportive comrades at a time in our lives when
it is easy to begin to feel "old. But the result of
participation 1 find is renewed energy and
confidence to accept without hesitation chal-
lenges both physical and mental and even
to generate for myself new challenges.

Kathy

Somehow my body has a sense memory of
this I have never climbed, so was I a climber in
another life? I mentally rehearse a technique I
know that I know. As I set out, yes, it feels as 1
thought it would. A vague fear of heights gives
way to understanding of this one ice wall. I kiss
the carabiner and then celebrate with friends
standing tar below.

THE SCENE

We're surrounded by sight, smell and sound all of
our lives. Yet, walking our cities, working at our desks,
cleaning our refrigerators we seem to dull our senses.
The marketers of aromatherapy know this. We realize
as we hike among flowering bushes, undulating ice and
sliding rock that our senses aren't dull, they've just
been asleep.

s

VGNESSI < Ti COLLEGE*

Candy

We laughed expansively when the sprays of
glacial water smacked us as we crossed Lago Grey
in rubber rafts. The blasts of wind whipped our
hair and penetrated the fabric of our clothing to
the flesh. The warmth of the sun tempered the
cold of the wind. The subtleties of the earth's
fragrances prevailed. Scents of the civilized world
do not exist here. The blues and greens and shades
between were intense, often opaque, sometimes
shimmering. It impressed upon memory and soul
the transcending beauty of this earth that is our
shared haven.

JC

What do I like about these hikes? So much, but
most of all being pushed into the present. I am
there with my breath as we ascend, feeling the
strain of the first hour of hiking and the ease and
rhythm of the next five. I pass from the deep cool
shade, up rocky ascents to a spectacular vision of
an avalanche and its full roar. My companions
and I bypass introductions and connect where we
are, not where we have been or will be. While
surrounded by unsurpassed beauty, we meet the
physical challenges, celebrate our triumphs and
delight in, care for and laugh about the incredible
women we have become.

THE SCENE

Hiking in the remote Chilean national park is also a
human experience. The mountains are imposing and
majestic, the avalanches a drum roll to yet another wild
beauty. But also there is the Chilean rodeo rider who
wants Martha's red bandana as a trophy, the glacier
guides who lasso an iceberg and haul it out of the lake
jor a birthday table centerpiece; the gardener who stands
solemn among the rows of spinach for his portrait to
be made.

Martha

One regret of this trip is that because 1 do not
speak Spanish, my understanding of this Chilean
culture and interaction with its people is not as
rich and rewarding as it could be. I am now
determined to learn Spanish!

Katherine

Along the trail, I take delight in being helpful:
taking a water bottle from a pocket that is
inaccessible, sharing duct tape to dress a blister
and taking pictures with a friend's camera so that
she might appear in her own photos. The thrill
of seeing in those around me aspects of life that
could be developed more fully in me. 1 am sur-
rounded by musicians, bird-watchers, athletes
and creative social geniuses. I observe people
who had taken tenderness and gentleness to new

heights, others who are abandoned in their spon-
taneity, and still others who were more generous
than I thought possible.

Judy

This experience is made even more special by the
discovery of previously unknown and more finely
jeweled facets of longtime friends. Within the
context of these friendships, 1 seem to be turning a
kaleidoscope and seeing a bright new array of colors.

THE SCENE

Patagonia is one of the world's wild places. Windswept
and devoid of wires, asphalt and vehicles. Is this how it
felt to walk on the planet ten thousand years ago? We
revel in this freedom.

Candy

We set out early one morning freshly showered,
dressed in our high tech fabrics and hiking boots
and with clean hair attractively framing our faces,
glowing with health, exuberance and a restrained
touch of make-up. The journey from our civilized
selves to something much more primitive began
even before we set forth on rafts across a glacial
lake. The sudden cold brought the first of count-
less clothing changes. Down came the daypacks,
off and into the pack went some items, out came
fleece and rain/wind gear. We reversed this process
many times. Hair was the first to go, iced with
sheets of glacier water splashing over the rafts.
Makeup was soon smeared and what was the point?

Linda Kay

How many 50-something women take on climbing
the Inca Trail or trekking in Patagonia as a first-time
trail endeavor? As women, we can and do extend
ourselves to encounter new experiences and meet
new challenges.

Katherine

Two aspects of our trip are inexpressible: the
exquisite beauty of God's creation and the impact
of music. Glorious scene is followed by majestic
scene lakes, glaciers, plains, sky, mountains,
boulders, sunshine, wind, avalanches and wild
flowers. They satisfy our hunger for what is
authentic, for what matters most. And music. Well,
it's just the language we use to attempt to express
the inexpressible. We don't understand our bond,
but we express it when we sing those songs we
sang more than 35 years ago in "The Hub" at
Agnes Scott. Mr*

"At Agnes Scott, we
were encouraged to
become the 'whole
woman.' In Chile, I
see we have all aspired
to climb higher and
become stronger, not
just intellectually,
socially and spiritu-
ally as we were
traditionally encour-
aged to do in the
i960s but also
physically."
Linda Kay Hudson
McGowan '65

CLIMB TO THE TOP AND KISS THE CARABINER

T

>M8M*

N

An alumna looks at recent terrorism through personal experiences oj almost 60 years ago.

By Leisa Hammett-Goad

September 1 1 emotionally stirred most
Americans, but for Flora Campbell
McLain '43, the terrorist attack also tilled
long-held memories of her role in World
War II.

After graduation, the math and physics major
intended to spend a summer relaxing in her native
Spring Hill, Tenn But an interview during her last
semester landed her a job mapping Europe and
eventually Hiroshima, Japan, where the United
States dropped its first atomic bomb.

McLain was one of three female college
graduates hired by the Tennessee Valley Authority
(TVA) and the U.S. Geological Survey. Working
in Chattanooga, Tenn., the women were assigned
the first step in the multifaceted process of creat-
ing maps used in the war.

The three were taught to pencil contours,
elevations, roads and other land features, using
still and projected aerial photos as guides. Their
work was sent to drafting and then other depart-
ments for ink lines, markings for color and
printing.

The work, says McLain, was fascinating
but shrouded in an air of mysterious importance.
"It was top secret," she remembers, adding that a
pass was required to enter and exit the building.
"We didn't know why, but we were told not to talk
about what we were doing,- and we didn't talk out-
side of the office, either. We did a job and did it as
thoroughly as we could. All we knew was that we
were helping with the 'European Theater."'

Once they finished mapping Europe, McLain
and her colleagues began the challenging task of
mapping China. Then orders came: a rush job.
Ten-day turnaround. They were given aerial pho-
tos of Hiroshima. They met the deadline. Sent the
maps. And then, heard the news. America had
bombed Japan.

"We were in a state of shock," she recalls.
Then, new photos were flown in to their office.
The next assignment: re-map Japan. This time,
post atom bomb. "It was chilling . . . There was
nothing but water and a large island. The bomb
just wiped it clean. You'd see rivers, then dismally
barren, flat land."

Now 80, McLain realizes she had mixed
feelings about the bombing then and still
does. "It was very complicated to really
know what would have happened if America had
not bombed Hiroshima," she explains. During the
war, she found some solace in hearing President
Truman proclaim how war efforts saved American

and Chinese lives. Today, the realization of lives
saved remains with her, but she questions "what it
did to people."

"We need to know more about the dangers of
weapons and the terrible devastation they cause,"
she says passionately. "People generally cannot
conceive of the terror of war."

And just as she felt conflicted about World
War II, McLain feels likewise about the current
conflict in Afghanistan. She sees the pros and cons
of U.S. strategies and believes that America's tactics
in Central Asia are necessary. Yet her hesitant
support of the war conflicts with her belief system
as a staunch Democrat.

Slightly worried, she ponders the future of
her grandchildren. She knows that "fighting war
has always been gruesome," but also understands
that now countries possess even greater capabili-
ties for destruction. Despite the current U.S.
military conflict, she believes her grandchildren's
generation still does not know the hardship of war
that her generation knew. McLain says her college
classmates "got swept up in the war." Many students
had family members serving overseas and some of
them were killed.

Given the understanding of war then and now,
McLain stresses awareness and education for current
and future generations. She advocates actively and
heartily for ASC's Global Awareness program.
"Young people need to hear the voices, to be aware
of the poverty and suffering of other worlds, to
share their taken-for-granted wealth so that others
can exist and live."

When World War II ended, McLain and
her colleagues spent several months
mapping for TVA before she returned
to her parents' home after Labor Day. Late that
October, she married her college sweetheart,
Warren C. McLain Jr., a Georgia Institute of
Technology graduate who had just returned from
military service in the South Pacific. The two
settled in Kingsport, Tenn., where she says she
"immensely" enjoyed the task of rearing two boys
and two girls and now boasts seven grandchildren.
McLain says she never intended to make a career
of her post-college work.

Much reading, much soul searching and
nearly 60 years of living have elapsed between
World War II and the conflict in Afghanistan.
Given her life experiences, McLain says her empa-
thy for humanity has become "more vivid, more
honest. War is always a two-sided story. Human
beings in every country suffer." Mr

Flora Campbell in 1943

"Young people need to
hear the voices, to be
aware oj the poverty
and suffering oj other
worlds, to share their
taken -jor-g ranted
wealth so that others
can exist and live. "

1 1

MAPPING THE UNKNOWN

"Volunteer work makes
me more conscious oj
other people and gets
me out of myself . As
a chemistry professor,
it helps me remember
there is a world outside
the lab. "

Ruth Riter, "favorite aunt"
at My House

Agues Scott alumnae have a reputation for volunteering, for giving of themselves in myriad ways.
A look at just some of the faculty volunteers suggests that it is they who pass along the values
found in helping others.
By Dawn Sloan Downes '92

A little girl living at My House can
sleep only when held. As a result, she
sleeps shallowly and wakes up if her
caregiver tries to put her down.
"Once, when I had to put her
down, I passed her to another volunteer and she
woke up," says Ruth Riter, assistant professor of
chemistry at Agnes Scott "When she looked up
into the other woman's face, she just came alive
and began to smile and coo. To see that happen
was just amazing."

My House, located in midtown Atlanta,
provides a home-like environment for medically
fragile infants who have no home after leaving
the hospital where they are born. This unique
organization relies on volunteers like Riter and
lenny Lucas, ASC assistant professor of psychol-
ogy who introduced her colleague to My House,
to manage everyday chores such as bathing

babies or simply playing with them Research
has shown the children at My House develop at
a rate considerably faster than do their peers
who remain in the hospital.

For Riter, that knowledge is a balm to the
pain of seeing a child begin life handicapped by
the lack of a parent and a loving home. This self-
described "favorite aunt" loves her interactions
with the children and spends about three hours,
one evening each week, working at the shelter.
Whether playing with toddlers or simply hold-
ing a baby until it falls asleep, Riter sees the clear
impact she and other volunteers make on the
lives of these children.

But she quickly acknowledges the impact
on her lite. "Volunteer work makes me more con-
scious of other people and gets me out of myself.
As a chemistry professor, it helps me remember
there is a world outside the lab."

12

\( ,MSS( I I IT I (II I II, I S>m,/ Summrr :,m:

She adds, "People get more out of giving than
receiving ... it helps them focus on something out-
side themselves. Every time one of these babies
smiles at you, it's especially rewarding."

Riter was drawn to Agnes Scott by student
and faculty attitudes toward community outreach.
"At larger universities there are different priorities.
The perception is that if you have time to volun-
teer, you're not spending enough time on academic
pursuits. At Agnes Scott, we encourage students to
become whole people. Students and faculty here
daily do things to help others."

While the College has distinguished
itself for producing students who
accept responsibility for the commu-
nity beyond College Avenue, the faculty provide a
model. Ideals stressed in the course of academic
debate find expression in the volunteer projects
faculty take on during personal time

English Professor Linda Hubert '62, who serves
on DeKalb County's Board of Ethics, agrees with
Riter. "Volunteering works against self-absorption."
Active in a variety of volunteer activities since
her student days, Hubert feels that Agnes Scott
inculcates a sense of obligation. "As an undergrad,
I enjoyed being in a place where you learned
about life on a different dimension. Assisting those
with different life experiences is extremely impor-
tant to what we have to learn as humans."

Hubert was nominated for the original ethics
panel when it was formed by referendum in 1990.
Much of her time initially was spent helping lay
the groundwork for educating officials on appro-
priate behavior as defined by community standards
and the county's code of ethics. In the 12 years
since its formation, the DeKalb Board of Ethics
has served as a model throughout Georgia as other
counties formed oversight bodies.

Considered highly principled by those who
know her, Hubert enjoys the philosophical chal-
lenges and feels she brings the voice of the people
to a legal setting. "Ethics has more to do with
honor, integrity and right action than law," she
says. "Agnes Scott emphasizes honor. I want to be
part of a place that functions admirably ... that my
county is struggling to act in an upright fashion
and that 1 have a role in that pleases me."

For Beth Hackett, head of Agnes Scott's
Women's Studies program, volunteer work
serves as an extension of her classroom work.
As a member of the Transforming Communities
Umbrella Group of the Women's Resource Center
to End Domestic Violence, Hackett works as part
of a team dedicated to ending tolerance of domes-
tic violence. The group facilitates grassroots efforts
in changing perceptions about domestic violence.

The Women's Resource Center provides on-
going volunteer training and tailored training for
organizations that want to better understand the
causes and ways in which domestic violence is
expressed. "My volunteer work helps me keep it
real," says Hackett. "1 teach about domestic vio-
lence. This gives practical application to the ideals
1 teach in class."

She points out that "the individuals who make
up Agnes Scott do a lot to help others." Yet, she
would like to see the College go further in "build-
ing a bridge outside itself" by promoting a concept
of volunteerism formed out of a social justice
model rather than charity. While she doesn't con-
sider herself an example for her students or peers,
Hackett adds, "I do hope that if you see someone
you know doing something, it becomes easier to
imagine yourself doing it."

The example set by Professor of Dance
Marylin Darling inspired Michelle Goss '00
to launch an independent study project in
1999 that explored the connection between art
and spirit. The project, which involved four teen-
age girls from a local shelter, culminated in a
dance performance.

Darling believes exposure to the arts can revi-
talize women and children who have been abused,
stimulating imaginations and giving hope. In fact,
she put this belief into action when she founded
Abused Women and Children in 1992. The organ-
ization works with local arts groups such as The
Fox Theatre and the Atlanta Ballet to enable shel-
ter residents to attend performances that otherwise
would be unavailable.

Last summer, Abused Women and Children
sent four local teens to Camp Broadway, a week
long program held at the Fox to teach children
about different theatre careers. One student had
just been released from juvenile detention.
Perceived as violent by his counselor, the young
man's probation officer attended with him his first
day. By the end of the week, the same young man
had a starring role in the climactic performance.

"After the show, he looked for me so he could
thank me for giving him a chance and changing
his life. I have seen the difference a little beauty
and art can make in a life," Darling says.

Like Hackett, Darling does not see herself as
an example, but has been pleased to see that her
work has affected students. She is confident about
the impact Agnes Scott can make beyond its bor-
ders. "The ability to transition to a better life
depends on who touches your life. Life is a short
journey. Anything you do to enhance the lives of
others is part of that journey. Agnes Scott women
learn that. They have the opportunity to bring their
values into the workplace and change society." IC

"My volunteer work
helps me keep it real. I
teach about domestic
violence. This gives
practical application
to the ideals 1 teach
in class."

Beth Hackett, member
of the Transforming
Communities Umbrella
Group of the Women's
Resource Center to End
Domestic Violence

13

AN ANTIDOTE TO SELF ABSORPTION

AGNES SCOTT REMEMBERS A SPECIAL FRIEND

EUDORA WELTY

1909-2001

By Linda Hubert '62

14

SCOTT tOLU : (.tS>f,j Surr Jan

Surprised to see her all alone in a vast
common room of the New York Hilton,
I approached cautiously the familiar
figure, hunched a bit awkwardly upon
the edge of a garish red velvet banquette.
Her stillness and apparent reserve seemed in curi-
ous contrast to the demeanors of the self-important
men and task-driven women who milled around
without registering apparent awareness of the
Southern icon in their midst.

1 suspect that Eudora Welty was content to
be left alone to observe and ponder the visible
idiosyncrasies of people gathered for the Modern
Language Association meeting in December 1977.
She had been invited to entertain and inspire the
thousands of college and university teachers at
this conference,- she would be applauded and
acclaimed as one of the foremost contributors to
American letters of our time. I was certain that
her isolation was temporary and probably not
unwelcome. Nonetheless, it seemed odd and
somehow an affront to her importance as a writer.
I re-introduced myself, hoping she might not
mind the interruption and might even be glad
for a brief word with a sister Southerner.

In the spring Eudora Welty had been to our
campus, reading to the crammed auditorium of
Agnes Scott students and Welty aficionados that
inevitably gathered for these events in Atlanta.
She had no particular reason to remember me:
I had been one among many at the dinner the
English department had arranged to celebrate her
visit, and one among hundreds at her reading. I'd
savored a few opportunities for brief conversations
during the days of her campus visit to confirm
that her favorite work of her own (at the time,
anyway) was The Golden Apples, the collection of
interconnected short stories that I consider perfect
genius, and to delight in her kind and generous
focus as we shared the sort of small talk that she
could make sound extraordinary in her fiction.

In graciousness, if not truth, she said that of
course she recognized me, though I had startled
her by being out of place. She reminded me how
pleasant she had found her recent visit to our
campus. The students were lovely and bright, the
hospitality of the College unmatched. She was
"ever so grateful to Jane" for inviting her back. She
asked me to return greetings. When I looked back
as I left her, she was still sitting alone, serene with
the unassuming dignity that was such a distin-
guishable trait of her bearing. She seemed a
beacon of sanity in a mad scene.

Some 25 years later, we at Agnes Scott College
have good reason to be among the multitude
of friends who mourn her death on July 23,
2001. Over the years, we felt her presence, not

only as one of the foremost American writers of
our time, but also as a very special person whom
we loved for her mild understated wit and modest
ways and honored for the extraordinary gifts of
the imagination that she shared with us. Her visits
to the College from 1966 to 1985 were highlights
of those three decades, and for those visits we
have three other remarkable women to thank.

It was they three Agnes Scott English
department personalities who forged the affec-
tionate relationship between the College and Miss
Welty from which so many of us benefited. "Jane"
is, of course, Professor Emerita of English Margaret
Pepperdene, whose growing personal friendship
with the writer promoted our Agnes Scott connec-
tion over the course of many years and visits.
Margret Trotter, professor of English at the
College from 1944 until her death in 1977 and
director of Agnes Scott's first Writers' Festival in
1972, proposed Eudora Welty 's first campus visit.
Eleanor Hutchens '40, who was a member of the
English department from 1961- 1967 and director
of alumnae affairs from 1947-1954, had moved
when her friendship with Miss Welty developed.
But Eleanor's influence was a significant factor in
our institutional friendship.

The Agnes Scott Profile records that in the
fall of 1965, Professor Margret Trotter,
modestly published as a fiction writer her-
self, first had an opportunity to hear Eudora Welty,
whose work she had been reading with consider-
able interest. She reportedly reviewed "with great
approval" remarks on writing that Eudora Welty
made at Professor Trotter's alma mater, Wellesley
College. Margret also commended to the Lecture
Committee a televised tribute to William Faulkner
that Miss Welty delivered the previous May at the
Southern Literary Festival, held annually in
Faulkner and Welty's home state of Mississippi.
She proved successful in persuading Agnes Scott's
Lecture Committee's chair, Professor Mary Boney,
to invite Miss Welty to campus.

Margret probably also suggested the topic
of the convocation address on "Faulkner and Local
Color" that Miss Welty gave prior to her evening
reading at the College. A third presentation, a
discussion on creative writing, followed the next
day, prefiguring in some ways the format that
would be followed by our Writers' Festival when
it was formally launched a few years later. The
College worked a willing Eudora Welty harder, it
seems, than on subsequent visits. During the
1970s and 80s when her reputation soared and she
visited colleges less and less, we were too grateful
for her presence to impose heavy obligations,
though doubtless she would have obliged almost
any request.

Over the years,
we felt her presence,
not only as one of the
foremost American
writers of our time,
but also as a very
special person whom
we loved for her mild
understated wit and
modest ways and
honored for the
extraordinary gifts of
the imagination that
she shared with us.

15

ACNES SCOTT REMEMBERS A SPECIAL FRIEND

Author Eudora Welty
with Linda Hubert '62 at
Agnes Scott in 1978.

But if the visit was demanding, our cordiality
was likewise exceptional. Eager students enjoyed
Miss Welty's company at breakfast and for lunch.
Jane Pepperdene hosted Miss Welty with a few
special guests for dinner. From another dinner
party, Professor Emeritus Jack Nelson remembers
a spirited conversation concerning her fascination
with names, particularly place names. Her
favorite of the moment, she allowed, was "Rising
Fawn," the name of a tiny town off Interstate 59
on the Alabama border with Georgia.

In the spring of 1966, Welty had begun an
intensified schedule of readings on college
campuses, partly as a way to cope with a series
of personal losses. By the time of her first visit to
Agnes Scott, she was an accomplished writer of
novels, prize-winning short stories, and essays.
But she was not yet the
iterary icon that she
would become just a
few years later,- in fact,
only in recent years
had the earnings
from her writing
been sufficient to
sustain her. So
although from the
perspective of
2001 Margret
Trotter's initial
endorsement of
Miss Welty
seems quaintly under-
stated, her insistence that the Lecture
Association extend that first invitation proved her
perceptiveness and engendered countless
future blessings.

Margret Trotter died in March 1977, and the
Fifth Annual Agnes Scott Writers' Festival, held a
month later, was dedicated to her. Fortuitously,
Eudora Welty was the headliner that year.

Miss Welty's visit that April and those that
followed became legendary, reminiscent of
Robert Frost's visits. An estimated 2,000 individu-
als were turned away in disappointment at that
1977 reading, just as huge crowds had been denied
seats in Gaines for Frost year after year. There
was a difference in campus response, however.
Although the brief days of Frost's visits were like
a sumptuous meal that might have proved too
rich as a steady diet for those accustomed to the
plain fare of Evans, I doubt that visits from
Eudora Welty, had we been lucky enough to have
her stay for more than a few days, could ever
bring surfeit.

The morning of her 1977 reading, she had
shared an early breakfast with Eleanor Hutchens,

whom she had gotten to know on a crossing to
Italy from New York some months before. Both
unenthusiastic about air travel, they had chosen
the sea route. By the time their ship docked on
the way over, they had made a routine of meet-
ing in the ships lounge for drinks, good conver-
sation was hard to find at their assigned tables.
Both Eleanor and Wendy Williams '66, Eleanor's
good friend and companion for the voyage, were
pleased when Eudora asked them to share her
table on the return trip to New York. Thus began
a treasured friendship.

Eleanor, a supporter of the Agnes Scott
Writer's Festival from its outset indeed she
donated the endowment for its prizes traveled
to the College for Eudora Welty's appearance in
1977. She had a room adjacent to Eudora's in the
Alumnae House. The two, both early risers, con-
spired in the hall the night before to meet below
in the kitchen the next morning, where Eleanor
was sure they could scrounge a cup of coffee.
Eleanor tells me that both women, whom I have
ever revered for their dignity as well as their
intellectual gifts, emerged simultaneously from
their rooms at 6:30 a.m., barefoot and in night-
wear. The two, slipping down the stairs like
unauthorized children on Christmas morning,
found a lovely breakfast awaiting them com-
plete with fruit and flowers. The author of this
early morning beneficence did not identify her-
self nor did they learn how their desires had
become sufficiently public to result in this feast.
Eleanor claims she "never was any prouder of
Agnes Scott."

Lunchtime found Eudora Welty perched
on a chair in front of Evans Hall as she might
have been on her own porch in Jackson.
Mesmerized young women dotted the lawn all
about her, nibbling at fried chicken from their
box lunches, but devouring Miss Welty's every
word. They and hundreds of others would award
Eudora Welty a standing ovation that evening
at the reading one of many to come.

F

or lovers of stories there is nothing quite
like the experience of hearing Eudora

Welty's rhythmic Mississippi voice bring to
life the characters in 'The Petrified Man," "Why I
Live at the P.O.," or "A Worn Path" whichever
is your favorite. She inhabited her characters,
and they her, from the inside out.

We also treasured the personal reflections
and incisive critical judgments that she dispensed
as she responded dutifully to questions at both
the readings and the several interviews that she
allowed to be conducted in the course of subse-
quent visits. She returned in the fall of 1978
when her new novel, The Optimist's Daughter, was

16

kGNES SCOTT COLLEGE' Spray -.y-iwr m>2

chosen as the orientation book for new students.
And again in 1980 in response to President Perry's
request that she represent the college in a jointly-
sponsored symposium with Spelman and the
Atlanta Historical Society entitled "Southern
Women: from Myth to Modern Times."

From our campus in November 1980, she
held an extended conversation with members of
the Atlanta media, at the start remonstrating with
them for the prodigious picture taking that
imposed on her efforts to construct thoughtful
comments. The complaint no sooner uttered, she
apologized profusely for her "rudeness" but
there was no doubt who was in charge. From
McCain Library that same visit she taped "By-line,"
a popular program that broadcast interviews with
well-known writers. Her manner with host Gene
Gabriel Moore, as they discussed her work and
the home life that had helped shape her life as a
writer was gracious and patient,- her responses
were forthright and intelligent.

When Professor Pepperdene retired in
1985, Eudora Welty came to do her
honor. "Eudora Euphoria" broke out on
campus, the students said. We were conscious that
with Jane's departure and the dwindling travel
schedule of Miss Welty, it would likely be her last
trip to the campus.

It was perhaps Eudora Welty's most remark-
able reading ever her voice juking the jazz of
Powerhouse's dialect and moving through the
measured cadences of the indomitable Phoenix
Jackson in a way no listener would ever forget.
Those of us lucky enough to have seats that the
standing-room-only crowd wedged tightly at the
back of Gaines could only envy, leapt to our feet
when she entered the hall with Jane. We arose
again when the Department of English Chair
Patricia Pinka finished a stellar introduction that
first paid well-deserved tribute to Jane and then
marshaled Eudora Welty's prodigious accomplish-
ments. We were up on our feet again at the end
of the reading, stomping and clapping in ardent
approval.

Pepperdene and Welty had hit it off from
the time Jane picked Eudora up at the train station
on her first visit in 1966. And they would stay
friends long after Jane's retirement. Jane would be
selected to present the Grand Master Award for
Welty's "lifelong accomplishments in literature"
at the Sixth Annual Writers' Conference held at
Birmingham-Southern the following year. And
the year after that, she would participate with
pre-eminent Welty scholars in Mississippi State
University's symposium on "Eudora Welty: The
Writer and her Work." She would entice Miss
Welty to visit Atlanta's Paideia School for its

20th anniversary in 1990 for Jane would still be
teaching after retirement from the college and still
arranging exceptional enrichment for her students.

Agnes Scott didn't enjoy Eudora Welty again
in person. She did come one more time
or rather she was invoked by Reynolds
Price at the International Southern Writers Festival
that was held on the Agnes Scott campus as part
of the Cultural Olympiad in 1996. Miss Welty was
unable to travel but Mr. Price, himself a several-
time participant in our Agnes Scott Writer's
Festival, read a letter that he had written in tribute
several years before. The letter described an
uncomfortable auto trip they took together from
his home in Durham to hers in Jackson. When the
exhausted pair was ready to stop for the night,
they found that in town after town accommoda-
tions were unavailable for a host of outrageous
and coincidental reasons. Downplaying his own
forbearance, Price conveys Eudora Welty's
indomitable spirit and uncomplaining good humor.
Although she suffered a back-splintering night in
the bedroom of the double-wide that provided
backup accommodations for the seedy motel of
their last resort, her droll
wit prevailed to amuse
him the next morning.

It was a letter that
made you laugh and
cry. Reynolds Price sent
that same remarkably
evocative letter to be
read at Welty's
funeral.

Eudora Welty
had remarkable
friends and an
astonishing number
of them. Her
memorial service
was packed to the rafters
with 80 some odd writers and dignitaries
among the many hundreds of faithful friends and
readers who came to pay tribute to the first lady
of Southern letters. Quite a few colleges and
universities among them her own alma maters,
Mississippi State College for Women (now
Mississippi University for Women), the University
of Wisconsin, Columbia University have claim
to connection and a right to reckon her loss in
personal terms.

But, Eudora Welty permitted us at Agnes
Scott to feel a special kinship with her over the
long years and many visits that she graced us with
her presence. We were, are, and will be as an
institution and as individuals exceedingly
grateful for that gift of friendship. Mr

Eudora Welty with student
Ginny Lee '79 during the
author's 1978 visit.

17

AGNES SCOTT REMEMBERS A SPECIAL FRIEND

IS

COTT COLLEGE i i n irjooa

OF AGNES SCOTT COLLEGE

By Jennifer Bryon Owen

A son of Agnes Irvine Scott

established a college for women and named it for his mother.

As he was influenced hy his mother, through the years,

numerous sons of Agnes Scott College, likewise, have been affected

by mothers who attended college in this place.

19

"She was just a won-
derful unending source
of much needed advice.
We were very close. "

Tom Wolfe

Tom Wolfe

Son of the late Helen Hughes Wolfe '17

Journalist and author of more than a dozen fiction
and nonfiction books, including The Electric Kool-
AidAcid Test, A Man in Full, The Bonfire of the
Vanities and The Right Stuff

Uncertain just why his mother, Helen
Hughes Wolfe '17, traveled from Amelia
County, Va., to Decatur, Ca., to attend
college, Tom Wolfe finds the circumstances
surrounding it compelling.

"My grandmother had the task of raising four
daughters and two sons, and she managed to send
all but one to college. She put a tremendous
emphasis on education," says Wolfe.

However, Wolfe's mother had not been able
to attend school before college, at least not much
She was home schooled, for the most part, because
she lived 1 miles or so from the nearest school
in a day before automobiles.

"Sending a child as far away as Decatur was
quite an undertaking that was only possible with
the encouragement of my mother's aunt, a really
fascinating person named Ella Agnew," says
Wolfe. "She was in what was known then as home
demonstration, the education of rural women.
She was the originator of Tomato Clubs, which
became 4-H Clubs."

Agnew was the first home demonstration
agent in the United States and the first woman to
serve on the field staff of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture In 1910, she started the Girls Tomato
Clubs to teach girls better methods of canning.
She was active in the suffrage movement.

"She was particularly fond of my mother and
felt she had a lot of potential," says Wolfe. "She
inspired Mother to go to college. I'm sure it was a
very big thing in the family to arrange for this
[going to Agnes Scott] to be done."

Agnes Scott was selected, he theorizes,
because of the College's reputation. "It must
have been famous. There weren't that many
places for women, and Agnes Scott, 1 imagine,
was probably very famous, especially in the
South. It's a long way from Virginia."

He notes this choice was courageous for a
young woman in 1915.

Being a "courageous woman" seems an apt
description of Helen Hughes. At Agnes Scott,
she was a member of the Pythagorean Club.
"That would indicate an interest in science. 1
know she had an interest in science because she
entered medical school in Richmond She thought
she wasn't going to be able to have children, so
she decided to become a doctor. She had, inciden-
tally, the full backing of my father "

Helen Hughes '17 (back row, fourth from right) with
members of the Virginia Club in the 1915 Silhouette.

She approached the Medical College of
Virginia about enrolling, and the administration
agreed that if she completed the sciences she
needed Wolfe believes they were chiefly
chemistry and biology she could become
a student.

"That may be a tribute to Agnes Scott
because I'm sure she didn't have any college
education after Agnes Scott," says Wolfe. She
had attended the College for two years, which
\\"( iltc heliex es was the plan

She did take the required courses and went
to the College of Physicians and Surgeons in
New York for a brief period. "Then, as life goes,
she found out she was pregnant, as it turned out,
with me, so she dropped out of that," says Wolfe,
who was born in 1930. He believes her ambition
to be a doctor came from Ella Agnew, the kind of
woman, he says, who could inspire you to reach
beyond the ordinary.

"I'm guessing, but that [Ella] was the spur
that made her have the confidence to go ahead
and do that [apply to medical school]," says
Wolfe. "Since Agnes Scott is the only formal
higher education Mother had, I believe we can
give a gold star to Agnes Scott."

After his mother left Agnes Scott and before
she married his father, she did what was called
war work in Arcadia, Fla., and probably other
places, according to Wolfe. "That was unusual
for an unmarried young woman to be off on her
own like that."

His mother influenced his life in so manv
ways that Wolfe says he isn't capable of
enumerating them.

"My mother helped me so much in my
early years. She always kept close tabs on what
1 was doing. She and my father gave me a sense
of discipline as far as school was concerned and
really stressed its importance. She was just a
wonderful unending source of much needed
advice. We were very close."

While his mother was not an artist, she was
interested in art and encouraged Wolfe's artistic

20

U.NESSIOTI COLlll.l V 1 ,iS.r,;i:

bent. "She sent me to a WPA art school that met
once a week on Saturday and cost 25 cents a
week. So, she did constantly encourage me to pur-
sue art, but also writing."

Wolfe's father, an agronomist, was editor of
The Southern Planter. "1 knew from an early age that 1
was going to be an artist or a writer. I considered
my father to be a writer since he was editing a
magazine, but he was actually a scientist. 1 ended
up doing a lot of artwork. For four years, 1 used to
do a feature for Harper's. I've had a couple of shows,
but of course the writing became the main thing."

Wolfe's current project is a novel on contem-
porary college life. He is following his standard
research method by visiting a half dozen cam-
puses, talking with students and attending frater-
nity parties. His presence and recognition of
who he is goes largely unnoticed.

"] like to research the milieu first and then
hope the characters walk in, which is pretty much
the way it happened there [in Atlanta, setting for
A Man in Full]," says Wolfe, who believes a stint as
a reporter is the best training for a creative writer.

"When you start, log some years on a newspa-
per and get familiar with reporting, which is not
a skill,- there's no technique. It's an attitude. 'You've
got information. 1 want it. 1 deserve it.' That's the
attitude."

The material is the crucial thing, according
to Wolfe. "It's very hard for young writers at
least it was for me to realize that literary writing
is about 65 percent material and 35 percent talent."

If his mother did not like his writing, she never
told him so. In A Man in Full, Wolfe refers to
Agnes Scott College twice, probably, he says,
because of his mother

His mother refused, however, to return to
the College for what Wolfe thinks was her 70th
reunion. When questioned about it, she told him,
"It will just be me staring at a lot of old women
who don't know me either."

"Mother was a marvelous landscaper, and
everywhere we lived she did rather complicated
landscapes," says Wolfe. "Whether any of that was
picked up at Agnes Scott, I have no idea. She was
very well read, and I dare say that was a result of
Agnes Scott."

His mother reading to him when he was a
child made a significant impact on Wolfe. "She
read a book that I would make her read every
night over and over. I think it probably had a
tremendous influence on my fascination with liter-
ature," says Wolfe. "It was called Honey Bear and
was a rhyming narrative poem by a woman named
Dixie Willson, and the pictures were by Maginel
Wright Barney. I never knew it at the time, of
course, but Dixie Willson was the sister of

Meredith Willson who wrote The Musk Man,
and Maginel was Frank Lloyd Wright's sister."

The story is about a baby who is carried away
by a bear, explains Wolfe. When the search party
finds them, the baby and the bear are having a tea
party and eating honey in a hollow tree. Wolfe
believes it must have been the driving rhythm of
the poetry and the images that made the book
grab his imagination. And he hasn't forgotten it.

"Every book I've ever written, I've always
tucked in some words from Honey Bear, but not so
you would even notice what it was," says Wolfe.
"One of the lines in Honey Bear is, A thousand little
places where the sun peaked through.' I used that
several times in The Right Stuff."

John W. Thatcher

Son of the late Mary Nancy West Thatcher '15

Retired, banana exporting and distributing business

John W Thatcher is in his 70s, lives in Florida
and is retired from his banana exporting and
distributing business. He remembers vividly as
a youngster going to the airport to see his mother
off to attend Agnes Scott Board of Trustees meet-
ings when she was a member.

"She didn't like to fly," says Thatcher, "but was
willing to do it because she was so interested in
attending the Board meetings. She came back and
talked about the trustee meetings with us. She
really did treasure her time on the Board."

Thatcher Chapel, which was located in the
old campus center, was named for his mother, and
he says she was very much interested in the
College carrying on its commitment to the church
and to Christian values

"I grew up thinking Agnes Scott must be
heaven on earth," says Thatcher. "It was pretty well
pounded into me that this was a pretty nice place.
She loved chemistry, and they let her come back
the year after she graduated and teach chemistry.

"I remember her referring to how much she
felt her experience at Agnes Scott had made a big
impact on her," he continues, "and she had an
impact on me!"

Boisfeuillet Jones Jr.

Son of Anne Register Jones '46

Publisher and CEO, The Washington Post

My awareness of Agnes Scott College goes
back as far as my awareness of anything,"
says Boisfeuillet "Bo" Jones Jr. "Both of
my parents went to wonderful colleges, and I spent
time at both. I had a very grand feeling about col-
leges and the role of liberal arts colleges."

"I grew up thinking
Agnes Scott must be
heaven on earth."
John W. Thatcher

Mary Nancy West
Thatcher '15

21

THE SONS OF AGNES SCOTT COLLEGE

Anne Register Jones '46
with son Bo Jr.

"Did Agnes Scott make
everyone be a member
of the Clean Plate
Club? Where did thai
come from?"
Bo Jones Jr.

Betty Robinson Hillard '46
and son Fred Boykin

Because of his parents' participation at Agnes
Scott and Emory, continuing participation in his
own school Harvard after graduation was
almost second nature. "I get a lot of satisfaction
from the effort," says Jones,

Jones cites the relationships he developed
by growing up around people who had gone to
Agnes Scott and the impression he received from
hearing these people speak so well of the College.
Understanding the rigors of an education in a
place where women are special and are expected
to have careers also made him an admirer of
women's colleges.

When he attended college, the attention
was on men's sports, but Jones believes that
having a parent who went to a women's college
where students could participate in sports raised
his consciousness of what women can do.

"Growing up, I heard stories around the house
about my mom at Agnes Scott, but discretion will
keep me from revealing them," says Jones, noting
kids love to hear anything that might indicate
their parents got into some kind of trouble when
they were younger. "Of course, those stories
would be so mild by today's standards."

He would like to know one thing. "Did
Agnes Scott make everyone be a member of the
Clean Plate Club? Where did that come from?"

Fred Boykin

Son of Betty Robinson Hillard '46

President, Bicycle South Inc.

Fred Boykin's mom has always liked
Agnes Scott and has always told sto-
ries about it. "She was from a small
town in northeast Louisiana, Bastrop, and
it was a major deal for her to come over to
Agnes Scott," says Boykin. "She was active
in her high school, outgoing, involved in
a lot of class activities. She considered herself a
good student, but when she got to Agnes Scott,
it was like night and day. It was kind of like I
think it still is today with students the level of
the competition was a lot more intense because
the quality of the student is different.

"She always told us the story of how she
hated it, cried, called my grandfather wanting to
go home. He told her if she would stay until
Christmas and she still didn't like it, she could
come home then," he continues. "Of course, by
that time, she had gotten involved in school and
was really happv She never looked back."

Boykin says his mother believes in the role
of women's colleges as a quality environment
where women can excel. "It takes hard work and
perseverance. You're not going to get it just

because of who you are or where you came from.
That strengthens your character," says Boykin
"She got a good education, and she's very loyal
to the school."

This perseverance, hard work and study are
qualities Boykin believes his mother passed on to
him. "Also, she was a big believer in community
involvement, and I believe Agnes Scott reinforced
those qualities I'm pretty active in my community
and that is certainly a reflection on my parents,"
says Boykin who is a Decatur city commissioner,
a Rotary Club member and is active in his church

Phil Noble Jr.

Son of Betty Scott Noble '44

Founder and CEO, PoliticsOnline

As a direct descendent of Agnes Irvine
Scott, Phil Noble says there was probably
never a time he wasn't aware of the
College and the role his family played in it

"They always took great pains to point it out
from the very beginning," says Noble. "As a kid I
used to run around and play over there. When
my sister [Betty Scott Noble '71 ] was there, I

used to hang around looking
for a date. Occasionally I got
a few, but nothing lasting."
He also admits that at
one time he toyed with the
idea of applying to Agnes
Scott because he thought it
would be an interesting exer-
cise and he didn't think any-
one else would do it.

"When Mary Bullock
asked me if I would be inter-
ested in being on the Board, the first question I
asked her was When was the last time Agnes
Scott thought about becoming coed?' She
replied that it had been awhile and that someone
needs to continually ask that question," says
Noble, a member of the ASC Board of Trustees.

"Steel magnolias" is the phrase Noble uses to
characterize the women of Agnes Scott There's
a lot of Southern cultural, social heritage that the
school has and that is, by and large, positive and
beneficial in this day and age. There is a strain in
Agnes Scott women that is extremely confident
and independent, bold and assertive, and I think
that is more rare in the traditional South than it
was. That is the great strength of the school
combining traditional values, but also a lot of the
nontraditional values such as the emphasis on
globalization and diversity."

He notes his ancestors who founded the
College were acting outside the norm for their

Phil Noble Jr.

22

U.MSM OTTO >l IK, I -V| , . jom

day. "It was a nontraditional thing to do to start
a school for women." And those values of respect
for tradition and the ambition for difference were
transmitted to him, particularly by his mother. "It's
the old saying, 'The hand that rocks the cradle
rules the world.'"

While his mother was attending Agnes Scott,
Noble's father was enrolled at nearby Columbia
Theological Seminary, and he recalls family sto-
ries about the dating between the two institutions,
both of which have remained important through-
out his parents' lives.

"Those individuals, institutions and that
geography are all intertwined in such a way that
they have a lot of meaning for me in the concepts
of learning, values and the relationship to church
and also to the global church," says Noble.

Mark Weston

Son of Marybell Weston Lobdell '48

Writer whose latest book, Giants of Japan: The
Lives of Japan's Greatest Men and Women is set for
paperback release in July

Mark Weston's mother majored in English
and all her children became writers,
which he attributes largely to her Agnes
Scott education. "Obviously, her love of language
and literature definitely affected all of us," says
Weston, noting that having the mother he has
made him a latecomer to the feminist movement
"Agnes Scott was a Southern school, and she
was Southern very well mannered. At the same
time, she was a career woman. I had a little trouble
with the feminist move-
ment, personally, because
I never saw graciousness
and femininity in conflict
with having a high-
powered career. She grad-
uated in 1948, worked for
Mademoiselle and The New
York Times Magazine, and
took a few years off to
rear children before
returning to work as an
editor at House and Garden.

"The proper use of
English was important
to her," says Weston. "It's
been a great thing to have
a mother who corrects your grammar."

Then, there was the Frost influence. "There
was always this picture in my house of Robert
Frost and a group of young women, one of whom
was my mother," says Weston. "That was just a
part of our house when I was growing up."

"It's been a great
thing to have a
mother who corrects
your grammar."
Mark Weston

Milner Carter

Son of Virginia Carter '40

Founder and CEO, Stardata Technologies

My mother has had more influence on me
than anyone in the world," says Milner
Carter. "She influenced me in every way
to remember to be a gentleman, to treat people
fairly, to use proper manners."

She also taught him to swim and to play bas-
ketball. She had qualified for the Olympic trials in
swimming, but they were cancelled in 1940 and
1 944 because of World War II

She taught him to persevere.
He and his three siblings learned
that if they wanted something,
they could make it happen. He
says his mother has always had a
great attitude and never com-
plained or whined, even in difficult
circumstances.

"When I was two years old,
she was left to rear four children
single-handedly," says Carter.
"Rather than complain, she just
went to work."

That work for his mother led to her forming
a company with seven managers and 85 employees
in 1977. Today, at age 82, she travels all over the
world supervising the work of more than 10,000
licensed financial services representatives.

"She has been the greatest example," says
Carter. "Take a look at her accomplishments and
what a great person she is, and you just know
you're not living up to that."

She also taught her son how to sell. "When
I was 1 5, she was in a marketing business that sold
household soap products, and she taught me how
to go door-to-door and make sales calls," says
Carter. "Then it was easy to learn to make cold
telephone calls. I got trained in her financial
services business."

His mother taught leadership by example.
He says she made As in chemistry and was captain
of the ASC basketball team. She was a lieutenant
with the Navy during World War II and wrote
checks for millions of dollars for war equipment.

Carter gives his mother the credit for her
success. "If you asked her, she would credit Agnes
Scott and her parents. My mother loves Agnes
Scott to death and has always tried to influence all
females she knows to go there and some have.
She feels she got a great education.

"She would credit Agnes Scott with teaching
her to persevere, to compete and to compete fairly,
and to be a lady first and foremost in any circum-
stance." And, he says, she does it all with character
and class. Hr

Virginia Carter '40 and
son Milner Carter

"My mother has had
more influence on me
than anyone in the
world. She influenced
me in every way
to remember to be a
gentleman, to treat
people fairly, to use
proper manners."
Milner Carter

23

THE SONS OF ACNES SCOTT COLLECE

LIFESTYLE

Managing a symphony orchestra's artistic needs, advocating a clean environment and
enhancing the lives oj children

FROM

BUDGETS TO
OPENING
NIGHTS

When Daphne Bart
'89 was named man-
ager of artistic planning lor
the Ottawa, Canada National
Arts Centre Orchestra last
September, she was taking
the next step in fulfilling her
dream. From the age of 13,
she wanted to be involved
with orchestral music
Parental guidance, determi-
nation and a strong Agnes
Scott foundation set her on
course.

Now in its 32nd season,
the National Arts Centre
Orchestra tours internation-
ally, records acclaimed
compact discs and produces
educational and cultural com-
munity projects. Burt works
with guest conductors, solo
artists and booking agents.
She also develops program-
ming and repertoire and
oversees daily research In
this demanding position she
draws on her experience and
her Agnes Scott education.

Burt credits her parents,
especially her father, tor her
musical interests. She grew
up loving behind-the-scenes
work. She helped in the
lighting booth during her

Daphne Burt '89, center stage at Ottawa's National Centre Orchestra.

dad's theatre productions,
and she made friends with
professional musicians at the
Tifton, Ga , conferences he
organized A theatre profes-
sor and an amateur pianist,
Si mnv Bui 1 ciK i niraged his
daughter to play bassoon in
seventh grade. She eventu-
ally played in the Atlanta
Symphony Youth Orchestra,
and her Tifton school band
marched in Macy's Thanks-
giving Day Parade.

The New York City trip
was a turning point for Burt.
"I saw Zubin Mehta conduct-
ing at Avery Fisher Hall. I
remember thinking, 'I want
to be part of this.'" Five years
later, Burt found herself
sitting in the Averv Fisher

conductor's box as Franz
Welser-Moest's guest.
Welser-Moest currently is
The Cleveland Orchestra's
music director.

During three summers of
music camps, Burt honed her
skills,- but waited until 12th
grade to consider colleges.
Though Agnes Scott was the
first and only school she
visited, Burt knew immedi-
ately she wanted to apply,
"It looked like a wonderful
place."

Burt's enjoyment of music
made it a natural major, but
her lessons exceeded musical
realms. "My Agnes Scott
years were incredibly forma-
tive. I learned to think on my
own and find answers to

questions." A work-study
library job developed her
research skills. "It was a valu-
able experience because I
currently deal with tremen-
dous data bases and super-
vise the orchestra's librarian."
She also acted in Blacktriars
while at ASC.

During her senior year,
Burt interned for the Atlanta
Symphony Orchestra. A
series of small jobs gave her
an overview of how a large
orchestra operates and she
absorbed everything hap-
pening around her. "You
learn a lot in the right envi-
ronment," she says.

With varied work experi-
ences and a solid education,
Burt was prepared when the
Albany, Ga., symphony
hired her as general man-
ager. More business-oriented
than creative, the position
helped focus her career
goals. When the St Louis
Symphi m\ < )n hesti a
offered her an assistant artis-
tic administrative position,
the decision was easy. After
St. Louis, Burt was with the
Milwaukee Symphony for
six years. She worked with
numerous musicians, includ-
ing Doc Severnson. "He
taught me that pops concerts
were a legitimate art form."

In Milwaukee, she helped

24

At ,N1 S St 1 ITI C( ILLl-C'.l Sf-r,,,., Si,mi .'mi:

LIFESTYLE

develop an overall vision
for programming. Robert
Wilkins, orchestra vice presi-
dent and general manager,
says Burt's contributions
went beyond musical knowl-
edge. "Daphne gave of her
soul. Her delightful person-
ality made a stunning differ-
ence in working with the
musicians. It was a real loss
when she left."

The Milwaukee experi-
ence prepared Burt for the
Canadian National Arts
Centre opportunity. Her
work encompasses many
aspects, from the nitty-gritty
of budgets, contract writing
and dealing with unions to
the sparkle of opening night.
Balancing never-ending
projects and deadlines are
her biggest challenges, but
rewards are equally great.
When her onstage collabora-
tions are successful, she's
pleased. When her music
director, the internationally
renowned Pinchas Zucker-
man, trusts her to solve a
problem, she is deeply
gratified.

Working with such
distinguished company can
be a heady experience, but
Burt also credits her long-
lasting Agnes Scott friend-
ships for keeping her
grounded, no matter how
high she soars or how far
she travels. "I'll always have
those relationships."

Nancy Morelana

A REAL
HOMETOWN
HERO

Allison Adams '89 grew
up playing in the world
of lush forest, wild mountain
flowers and mighty rivers of
Rabun County, Ga. Though
she now lives in the bustling
city of Decatur, Ga., her love
of the outdoors remains a
constant source of inspira-
tion. "My brother and 1 were
raised in the woods, practi-
cally. As a family, we camped,
hiked and especially fly-
fished. My parents taught
me to appreciate the value
of preserving, protecting and
enhancing natural resources
both urban and rural
for the benefit of our health,
economy, recreation, envi-
ronment and future genera-
tions."

Today Adams is a well-
respected advocate for envi-
ronmental stewardship, and
in recognition of her work,
she recently was named one
of Decatur's Hometown
Heroes.

"We recognize volunteers
who have gone the extra
mile to make our community
a better place," says Linda
Harris of the Decatur
Downtown Development
Authority. "It's incredible
what all Allison has done.
She has gone far beyond the
call of duty and made it her
personal mission to improve

the quality of life here in
Decatur.''

Adams professes it was a
need for fresh air as well as a
love of the outdoors that
spurred her to help organize
Citizens for a Livable
DeKalb, a group dedicated to
improving DeKalb County's
quality of life. "I've always
been physically active, a real
outdoors person. I never
really worried about air qual-
ity or increased particulate

environmentally friendly
transportation like biking,
walking or MARTA."

Practicing what she
preaches, Adams often bikes
the few miles from her
Winnona Park home to her
office at Emory University
where she earned her mas-
ter's degree and is editor of
the Academic Exchange. When
she doesn't bike, she takes
the Clifton Corridor Shuttle,
an underused bus service

Allison Adams '89 is a Hometown Hero.

matter. Then one night
about four or five years ago,
I couldn't breathe and ended
up in the emergency room. I
had developed asthma. I was
compelled to become more
actively involved with envi-
ronmental air quality issues.

"Our goal is to educate
people, teach them how to
let go of their cars and use

that her group promotes.
Gardening is another
of Adams' outdoor passions
that she uses to promote
environmental stewardship.
She serves on the directing
board of the Oakhurst
Community Garden, a group
that has preserved several
fertile acres along a Decatur
stream bank. Here they

05

LIFESTYLE

LIFESTYLE

maintain gardens to educate
school children and provide
them with hands-on garden-
ing experience. "It's great-
they get to play in the dirt!''
Adams says enthusiastically.
Adams describes herself
as "not a city person" hut she
feels right at home in her
Winnona Park residence In
fact, her grandparents lived
there for many years. Her
father grew up there, and she-
gardens among her grand-
mother's roses and hyacinths.
She recalls passing by Agnes
Scott on the way to visit her
grandparents. "I always

thought it was so beautiful.
When I was 15, I visited the
campus and fell in love. I
knew that was where I
wanted to go. It felt right "

Adams, an English major,
contends it was a great deci-
sion. She treasures the
friendships she made at the
College and is inspired by
her friends. "They're doctors,
lawyers, artists, all successes
in their fields. An impressive
bunch of people."

An environmental cru-
sader by day, Adams becomes
a serenader by night as part-
ner in the singing duo

"Bittersweet.'' Adams
describes their music as
"acoustic music featuring
smooth vocal harmonies and
a variety of instrumentation."
They perform regularly at
local coffeehouses, and
recently opened for the
nationally acclaimed singer-
songwriter Kate Campbell.

This summer back in
Rabun County, the laurel will
bloom along the creek banks,
in coves, and on hilltops,
transforming the North
Georgia landscape. Allison
Adams will be singing, pedal-
ing her bike to work, distrib-

uting bus schedules, helping
kids harvest fresh vegetables
caisading tor environmen-
tal stewardship, transforming
her world.

Loraynt Bryan Weizaiecker

OVERCOMING
A BUMPY START

Agnes Scott College's
expectation of excel-
lence enabled Ann S. Alperin
'58 to overcome a bumpy
start as Young Audiences
executive director 18 years
ago. This same expectation

Allison Adams '89, does her part in protecting the environment when she bicycles through ASC campus to her job at Emory University.

26

U.M SS( (ITI ( (II III, I <(. I SummrrMci:

LIFESTYLE

resulted in Alperin becoming
one of 10 "Women of
Distinction" for the Georgia/
Tennessee chapter of the
Crohn's & Colitis Foundation
of America for 2002.

"It didn't occur to me that
1 could fail," says Alperin,
who has served on the ASC
Board of Trustees since 1 996
and took over Young
Audiences with no formal
training after the first execu-
tive director left. "I would
figure it out. 1 had to."

The new chapter was
just beginning when Alperin,
who retired last year, took
the helm. "There was lots to
accomplish and nothing
to do but plunge ahead," she
says. She boxed up the for-
mer director's photos and
plants and moved behind the
desk. "It's not a way I recom-
mend taking on an organiza-
tion. It worked for us, but
there are probably different
ways a.nd styles that make
folks more comfortable."

Young Audiences' mission
is to enrich the lives and
education of young people
by providing them with edu-
cational arts programming
conducted by professional
artists. "I call it sneaky educa-
tion ensuring that young
people are so delightfully
engaged that they never
know they're learning," says
Alperin, who describes her-
self as a great audience but
not an artist.

The Woman of Distinction Awards celebration included (front row, left
to right) Irma Starr, award winner; Ann Alperin '58, award winner; Julia
Bernath, award winner; Marcia Greenburg, CCFA executive director;
(back row, (eft to right) Keith Reisman, Board of Trustees president;
Suruba Wechsler, speaker; Leslie Abrahams, co-chair: Janis Zagoria,
award winner and Sherri Wildstein, co-chair.

The Crohn's & Colitis
Foundation award honors
women who have demon-
strated a commitment to
enhancing the lives of chil-
dren regardless of whether
the women have a connec-
tion with the foundation.
Alperin does have a connec-
tion, however. Her daughter,
Moose, was diagnosed with
Crohn's disease, chronic
inflammation of the digestive
tract, as a teenager.

"All the nominees are
worthy," says Karen Ritten-
baum, Crohn's & Colitis
Foundation development
coordinator. "The work
they've done has just been
remarkable. Young Audiences
just speaks for itself."

"I believe the emphasis

on learning to think, commu-
nicate and come up with
solutions are the basic under-
pinnings of everything,"
Alperin says of her Agnes
Scott education. "I can't
imagine a better preparation."

An English major who
graduated Phi Beta Kappa,
Alperin has used her liberal
arts education to help artists
write study guides for teach-
ers and to co-write a book,
The Family Connection, a
Guidebook for Family Decision-
Making. She also has written
an anti-drug activity book
for children.

"You do whatever comes
through the door. You have
10 balls in the air, and you
have to somehow field them
all," she says of running a

nonprofit organization.

In 1988, the Atlanta
group received the National
Chapter Achievement
Award, which was the first
time it was given to a young
chapter. It serves about 1 .5
million children a year.

Alperin says Young
Audiences of Atlanta bene-
fited from being younger
than other chapters. "We
developed a broad definition
of the arts that other chap-
ters have struggled with. It
was wonderful and freeing
for us and allowed us to
grow and become such an
effective avenue of education
for kids appropriate but
different."

The real value of awards
is highlighting Young
Audiences' work, says
Alperin, who was also named
one of Atlanta magazine's
"Women Making a Mark" in
2001 . "We get so busy doing
the work, we often forget to
tell the story. Then some-
thing like this (Crohn's)
award comes along high-
lighting my work, and I get
to take that light and shine it
back on Young Audiences."

Alperin married her
husband, Herb Alperin, a
pediatrician, during her
sophomore year. They have
two sons and daughters-in-
law, a daughter and two
grandchildren.

Wendy Cromwell

27

LIFESTYLE

LETTERS

To the Editor:

I was flabbergasted and
horrified to learn that the
only thing that katherine
Harris regrets about the
2000 election debacle in
Florida is that she did not get
enough television exposure.

(Acnes Scott Alumnae
Magazine, Winter 2002)

Tens of thousands of
registered voters in her state,
mostly minorities, were
turned away from the polls
for bogus reasons, denied
their right to vote.

Tens of thousands more
in West Palm Beach, Broward
and Dade did not have their
votes counted and were con-
fused by ballots approved by
Ms. Harris' office The wide-
spread confusion and terrible
mismanagement of the
election in Florida left the
election of the president of
the United States in doubt
and will forever cast a ques-
tion over the authenticity of
the results There were near
riots. Other countries, includ-
ing Cuba, offered to send in
election observers to assist
Florida in counting its ballots

One can only assume that
other elections in Florida
under Ms. Harris' watch,
which did not gather so much
international attention, were
equally poorly managed

As the secretary of the
state of Florida Ms Harris
is the elected official respon-
sible for the administering
of elections. She took an
oath of office to uphold the
Constitution of the United
States and the Constitution
of Florida It was her duty to
protect and assure for the
citizens of Florida the most
important civil right of all:
the right to vote and to have
their vote counted She failed.

Ms Harris' only regret
is that she didn't get enough
face time on TV: "I was only
on four times . . Had I come
out more, and people had
seen me as I really am,
maybe that would have given
a different message." Maybe
people would have gotten a
different message had Ms.
Harris been more concerned
with the performance of her
very important duties and
less concerned with her
image.

Colleen O'Neill '84

To the Editor:
In your recent article on
her, Katherine Harris focuses
on what has happened in
her state since the 2000
Presidential election, on a
so-called "civics lesson." But
that doesn't hold any interest
unless one happens to live in
Florida. The spotlight
remains on the election
itself, which denied many
citizens their vote and put
an unelected person in the
White House (with the aid
of a Supreme Court that
stepped in and spoke where
Florida voters should have
been allowed to. )

Perhaps you could am
an equally flattering article
on an alumna who worked
on the other side of that
election. Ms. Harris got off
light in your account, and
continues her mantra from
the election that she was
only following the law,
although she was Bush's co-
campaign manager in the
state, had been a Bush dele-
gate to the Republican con-
vention, and made decisions
that always aided Bush,
never Core.

Betsy Sterman '53

Washington, D.C

To the Editor:

Who wouldn't enjoy the
Alumnae Magazine! I feel
fortunate to receive it. I'm
sure I speak tor all us oldies
('46) when I say how much
I enjoyed the Sotto Voce choral
ensemble last November

CONTRIBUTORS

Wendy Cromwell is senior
editor/writer in the College's
Office of Communications. She
has worked for The Atlanta
Journal-Constitution,
Albuquerque Journal, The
Augusta Chronicle, The Albany
Herald and The Jonesboro
Sun.

Dawn Sloan Downes '92 is a

freelance writer who lives in
Tucker, Ga., with her husband,
Scott, their dog, Cooper, and a
cat named Mao.

Leisa Hammett-Goad is a

mother, freelance writer and
disability advocate in
Nashville, Tenn.

Marilyn Hammond '68 is
director of alumnae relations
at Agnes Scott.

Hikers: Linda Kay Hudson
McGowan '65, works for
CDC Foundation in Atlanta;
Judy Ahrano '66, is a pediatri-
cian in Salt Lake City; Alice
Davidson '66, lives in Houston;
BJ Brown Freeman '66,
lives in Phoenix; Martha
Thompson '66, lives in
Washington and is volunteer
co-chair for Bold Aspirations:
The Campaign for Agnes Scott
College for the D.C. area;
Candy Gerwe Cox '67, lives
in Atlanta; Kathy Reynolds
Doherty '67, works for a public
relations firm in Washington,
D.C; Katherine Mitchell '68,
works for a public relations

when they sang for the
luncheon I attended. Such
fresh young voices. My how
the world has changed. We
did not know most of those
countries were or ever
would be.

Jeanne Shepherd '46

I

na\r

firm in Washington, D.C;
Williams '68, is an attorney
with the federal government in
Washington, D.C.

Linda L. Hubert '62 is profes-
sor of English and director of
the College's Master of Arts in
Teaching Secondary English
program. She wrote "That Last
Frost of '62" in the spring 2001
issue of the magazine.

Kristin Kallaher '04, Office of
Communications intern, is an
English and psychology major
from Memphis, Tenn. She is
the College's 2002 recipient
of the Sara Wilson "Sally"
Glendinning Journalism Award

Nancy Moreland, a freelance
writer, has written for numer-
ous publications including
House Beautiful and The
Chicago Tribune and is a
frequent contributor to Agnes
Scott Alumnae Magazine.
She is managing editor of
Cherokee Living and North
Fulton Living magazines.

Jennifer Bryon Owen is

director of creative services at
Agnes Scott College and editor
of the Agnes Scott Alumnae
Magazine.

Lorayne Bryan Weizenecker

is a freelance writer, master
gardener and author of Waxing
and Waning, a novel set in the
North Georgia mountains.

28

V SIN SCOTT COLLEGE Sfn^/Summ, r JOOJ

GIVING ALUMNA

The Bo-Mobile is one more expression oj this alumna's lifetime of giving to the College.

Anne Register Jones '46 seems hesitant to acknowledge
her role as one of Agnes Scott's most active and con-
sistent donors. Her humble smile and the mischievous
sparkle in her eyes suggest she may, at any moment, decide
she prefers to become anonymous.

However, having served on the steering committees for
the Science Hall, Centennial and Bold Aspirations campaigns,
Jones has made a statement. Those fund-raising experiences
taught her that when one person gives, it inspires others to do
the same. To that end, she says, "I decided to own up to
the fact that I give because 1 feel so passionate abou
the mission of Agnes Scott, and I hope something
in my experience might encourage others."

Jones made her first gift to Agnes Scott
shortly after graduation. While she doesn't recall th
exact amount or occasion, she does remember the sense of joy
and purpose she found in giving back to an institution that
transformed her.

"I was a real country girl when I came to Agnes Scott,"
Jones says. "1 grew up in Fitzgerald, Ga. From the time I was a
little girl, if people asked me where I wanted to go to college,
I told them Agnes Scott because it had the best academic
reputation. And it still does."

Jones cites the highly respected faculty, rigorous academic
training and inspiring campus
as just a few of Agnes Scott's
most outstanding benefits.
She believes Agnes Scott
empowers women, arming
them with the self-confidence
to face any challenge.

Jones is driven to ensure
that the advantages of a
single-sex education remain
available to all young
women. "For most, attending
a private college wouldn't be
feasible without financial
assistance. Fortunately, for
now, Agnes Scott can offset
the cost by offering financial
aid and scholarships to
students. But this won't
remain possible without the
support of alumnae, many of
whom benefited from those

Anne Register Jones '46 prepares for a spin in the Bo-Mobile.

same financial aid packages and scholarships when they were
students," she says.

Growing thoughtful she adds, "Some alumnae believe
their tuition was their gift to the College. Most don't realize
that tuition pays less than 50 percent of the cost of an Agnes
Scott education. Income from the endowment makes up
the difference."

A goal of Bold Aspirations: The Campaign for Agnes
Scott College is to increase alumnae participation in giving
to the College. Jones remains hopeful that many will

hange their attitudes. She feels strongly about the
extraordinary results that occur when women
combine their gifts for an important cause.

"You give to what you believe in," she says,
to what you care about. 1 hope our alumnae will
stop and consider what Agnes Scott meant to them when they
were students, what it has meant in their lives since, and what
it can mean to others."

Her own college experience prompted a small gift 56
years ago, and it turned philanthropy into a way of life for
Jones. Her gifts to Agnes Scott include regular contributions
to the Annual Fund, a substantial donation to Bold Aspirations:
The Campaign for Agnes Scott College, including the College
in her will; her time and leadership skills,- and most recently,

a new golf cart.
W MfUP^j Dubbed the "Bo-Mobile"

llll in memory of her late hus-
band, Boisfeuillet Jones, the
golf cart will be used to trans-
port guests around campus.
"1 was lucky enough to marry
a man who shared my passion
for Agnes Scott and for educa-
tion. He believed as I do
education changes everything.
My education from Agnes
Scott certainly transformed
my life."

While Jones hopes her
acts will inspire others, she
herself often turns to these
words by an Episcopal bishop,
"You really only possess what
you dare to give away, other-
wise it possesses you."

Daum Slocin Doumes 92

Agnes Scott College

THE WORLD FOR WOMEN

II I Hast ( ollcfjc Avenue

Decatur, CA 30030-3797

www agnesscott.edu

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Nonprofit
Organization
US Postage

PAID

Decatur, GA 30030
Permit No, 469

The Power of

one professor who challenged you, one course which inspired you,
ONE student who opened your mind, one gift yours will help us continue
the legacy of excellence

S

o

Agnes Scott

o

2

Your one gift to the Annual Fund can make
a difference, especially right now before
the end of our fiscal year on )une 30.

To make your donation, use the envelope
in this issue of the Alumnae Magazine and
return it with your check or credit card
information. You may also contribute
online, through our secure Web site at
h ftps: //web. agnessco tt. edu/dev/gift. html.
For more information, call 800 868-8602,
ext. 5343.

Every c) if t to the Annual Fund

is also a gift to Hold Aspirations:

The ( 'ampaicjn for Aijncs Scott College.

I 1

I

Fall 2002

ft

f

'The most satisfying
board experience I've had'
Joseph R. Gladden jr.
Chair, Board ofTrus
Agnes Scott Colli
1992-2002

A

*wa arA &w*

A college's trustees bold valuable keys to doors that open the way for their president's successful tenure.

hortly aher being named President of Agnes Scott
College, I asked Tom Kessinger, a friend and then-
president of Haverford College, what advice he could
give me. He responded with seven recommendations,
and they all began with T. T for trustees Gather any
group of college or university presidents together, and who will
they talk about (if they don't talk about faculty!)? T for trustees.
One colleague confided that when she first arrived trustees
had keys to the president's house. She took a deep breath,
changed the locks and is still president

Trustees are the unsung heroes, and sometimes villains,
of the American academy. For private colleges like
Agnes Scott their importance derives from their
ultimate fiduciary responsibility, "ownership
of the institution, and the fact that they are
an independent and self-perpetuating
governing body

Most boards delegate institutional lead-
ership to the president and curricular
respi msibilit\ t< i the ta< ult\ but retain fisc al
as well as overall policy control. In this com-
plex system of shared governance, the ultimate
power of boards of trustees appears shadowy
and is not well understood.

This issue of the magazine focuses on the role of
the College's trustees during the "Gladden era." Joseph R
Gladden Jr. served as chair of the Board of Taistees from 1992 to
2002, leading Agnes Scott through a period of leadership transi-
tion and extraordinary institutional change. Under his leadership
Agnes Scott has been blessed by a remarkable group of trustees,
women and men, whose institutional stewardship and deep edu-
cational commitment have propelled this liberal arts college to a
new level of excellence.

As President of the College I am selected by, appointed by
and report to the Agnes Scott trustees. It was clear to me from
the outset that the trustees were looking for a new vision of
institutional excellence and, most importantly, that they were
willing to commit whatever personal time and institutional
resources were needed to achieve this goal. No one personified
this more than Joe Gladden

In reflecting on Joe's leadership, I am reminded of his modest,
consensus-building style, not the table-thumping demeanor or
overweening condescension that I might once have associated
with a globe-trotting senior vice president of The Coca-Cola Co.

Board meetings were extraordinarily collegia!, often light-
hearted, even as our trustees grappled with serious issues facing
Agnes Scott Joe rarely tipped his hand, but almost always pulled
together a broadly shared consensus, not an easy task with some
25 to 30 very different personalities.

From my perspective, the most critical decisions made by the
Board of Trustees during the past seven years were made in 1997.
At the spring meeting, the Board approved an ambitious long-
term plan, "Strategic Directions for Agnes Scott College, " and a
Campus Master Plan, authorizing the financing required to
implement that plan. Endorsing these bold initiatives, with
a relatively green president and an enrollment that >

o

was just beginning to turn around, involved 1

i

considerable risk. But the Board resolution was

crisp and firm: "The Board of Trustees of

Agnes Scott College is committed to

excellence in all dimensions of the mission

of the College in order to prepare women

for life and leadership in a global society."

Although all trustees supported these
initiatives, it was the chair who provided the
determination that we could, and must, do it
all and do it all now.

Joe has been my mentor and friend, standing
behind me or sometimes pushing me forward, always
available, but never meddling. He leaves me a stronger and
more confident college president. Without fully realizing it, he
has also mentored his colleagues, the trustees, individually and as
a corporate governing body. The work of the Board takes place
through a committee system, and Joe made many efforts to make
sure that the committee system worked. Committee chairs have
taken on considerable leadership, knowing as I have that we will
have Joe's full endorsement and support. During his tenure as
chair, the Agnes Scott Board of Trustees has matured into a well-
functioning, multi-faceted governance body. It is well positioned
for a smooth transition to a new era. Joe Gladden will continue
as chair of the Steering Committee of Bold Aspirations: The
Campaign for Agnes Scott College, and Harriet King makes her
debut as the second alumna chair ol the Board of Trustees.

-A liny Brown Bullock '66

CONTENTS

AGNES SCOTT ALUMNAE MAGAZINE I FALL 2002 I VOLUME 79 I NUMBER 1

FEATURES

Finding the Right Room

Mary Hood encourages students in developing
patience and the long march for writing and jot life.

8

18

'Hotel Brat' Only the Beginning Founder's Day Every Day

This alumna makes unity the cornerstone
of her tenure as the first female president of the
Daytona/Halifax Chamber of Commerce.

10

Leadership: The Women's
College Way

_^_^^_

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^m ^^^fl

k . 1^/ ' fl

-<& 1

Vk. J^t ^mim

12

Much Ado in a College
That 'Runs Itself

Joe Gladden reflects on his notably busy
and productive iO years as chair of the
College's Board of Trustees.

In his 2002 Founder's Day speech, Joe Gladden
proposes that the role of founder is one we all play.

22

The Irrepressible
Harriet King

Agnes Scott's new Board chair is uniquely prepared
to lead a college that produces women who can
revolutionize the world.

24

Charting the College's Course

With vital work that is often behind the scenes,
ASC Board committees guide the College through
their careful management of key areas.

28

Up for Discussion

Thorough discussion of the issues forms the center
of the Faculty Executive Committee's work.

29

High Up in High Finance

Virginia Carter '40 shows no evidence of slowing
down the pace sfce has set.

DEPARTMENTS

On Campus

32

Lifestyle

34

Letters

36

Excerpts

DIRECTOR OF
COMMUNICATIONS

Mary Ackerly

EDITOR

Jennifer Bryon Owen

DESIGNER

Winnie Hulme

INTERN

Kristin Kallaher'04

COMMUNICATIONS ADVISORY
COMMITTEE

Sara Vagliano '63, chair
Mary Ackerly
Lara Webb Carngan '94
Christine S Cozzens
Barbara Byrd Gaines '77
Marilyn Hammond '68
Elizabeth Little '66
Susan Coltrane Lowance '55
Jennifer Bryon Owen
Lewis Thayne

Copyright 2002, Agnes Scott College
Published for alumnae and friends
twice a year by the Office of
Communications, Agnes Scott
College, Rebekah Annex, 141 E
College Ave., Decatur, GA 30030

Postmaster: Send address changes to

Office of Development, Agnes Scott

College, 141 E College Ave., Decatur.

CA 30030, 404 471-6472

The content of the magazine reflects

the opinions of the writers and not the

viewpoint of the College, its trustees

or administration.

E-mail: publicationtg'agnesscott edu

Web site: www agnesscott.edu

Agnes Scott Alumnae Mao

is recipient of the Award of Excellence

for Alumni Magazines in the CASE
District III Advancement Awards
Program 2001.

COVER PHOTO BY GARY MEEK

ON CAMPUS

Opportunities to develop as leaders an important component of a 21st century education
abound for Agnes Scott students.

IMPROVING ON
NATURE

The first thing [ did when I got to
Agnes Scott was run for vice presi-
dent of the class of 2005, " says LaTisha
Cotto 05 After being elected and serving
tor a Year, she was elected president

Cotto says that being a leader comes
naturally "Leadership is a combination of
delegation, communication patience and
time management. You basically have to
have a well-rounded package to be a
leader, and if you're missing in any one of
those areas, it shows, says Cotto. "You
can be the most organized, the most on-
top, but if you don't have patience and

,

_

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w'

11 HUsm

M ^tze*-

w t~^l

LaTisha Cotto '05

empathy tor those you're working with,
people aren t going to respect you.
They're going to fear you. Leadership is
the struggle to attain perfect amounts of
these qualities.

Last winter, she participated in the
Emerging Leaders Program, which helped
her recognize her strengths and weak-
nesses as a leader. I'm a Type 1 leader,"
she said, "which is basically the aggres-
sive, go-getter perfectionist. For me it's
always been a challenge just to sit back
and allow the people that I'm leading to
play a role in the task at hand

Cotto has lots of opportunities to
become the leader she wants to be. In
addition to running the first-years' FYI
program through Orientation Council,
her position as president of the class of
2005 puts her in charge of organizing the
class' participation in Black Cat week and
Sophomore Family Weekend. Cotto also
volunteers at the Decatur Cooperative
Ministry and is a Big Sister of Atlanta.

Cotto, from Waco Texas, is a

Goizueta Scholar considering a double

major in economics business and Spanish.

Kristin Kallaber oj

LEARNING TO LEAD

Leadership is standing firm when you
should and conceding when another
idea is better or another strategy is right
Meredith Baum 02 says. "Leadership is
compassion, understanding and intelli-
gence combined with the best effort you
can give without ever giving up on your
goal.'

During her Agnes Scott years, Baum
not only developed her personal defini-
tion of a good leader, she became one,

serving her senior year as president of
Social Council and co-captain of the soc-
cer team. Baum exemplifies the Colleges
goal of creating a bridge between Agnes
Scott as a learning community and the
wider world of women in leadership roles
beyond the College.

This year Baum and other seniors
participated in the first Presidential
Leadership Forum one of five leadership
programs the College offers through the
dean of students office. A goal of the
forum is to provide seniors with a means
for discussion about what happens after
Agnes Scott.

The Presidential Leadership Forum
was great because it provided different
atmospheres to discuss leadership. Baum
says. "We went from the conference
rooms in Alston to the top of the
SunTrust building and finally to President
Bullocks living room

"Our [Social Council] budget cuts
were pretty severe, and it resulted in a lot
of strain," she notes. "Attending the forum
allowed me to see that I was in the same
situation as other leaders, and it helped to
be able to talk to them and share our
experiences."

Developing programs
Catherine McCraw associate dean of stu-
dents has added the forum and two other
leadership programs since coming to
Agnes Scott in 1999. The other two pro-
grams the Emerging Leaders Program
and the LeaderShape Institute develop

2 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

Challenging What Is, Loikina
J -"'Vh.ataoulu , /' L

LeaderShape: (back row, left to right) Hameeda Bello '04, Lauren McCain '05, Ucha Ndukwe '04,
Ivan Kolera '05, Natalie Recard '05, Natasha Price, staff, Michell Spinnato '04, (second row) Alicia
Hardy '04, Nina Tioleca '04, Kelly Lindquist '05, Jeanette Long '05, and (front row) Pam Boyd, staff.

the leadership skills of first years, sopho-
mores and juniors. Shuronda Smith, assis-
tant dean of students, offers a two-day
Leadership Retreat and Leadership
Saturday. These five programs form the
umbrella of the Agnes Scott College
Edge, the College's effort to "develop
leaders, thinkers, visionaries and problem
solvers who can effectively empower
both self and others in creating a stronger
society and better world."

"My goal is to give as many students as
possible opportunities for self-exploration
in terms of piecing together their per-
sonal interests, personalities, styles and
leadership strengths with the opportuni-
ties out there," McGraw says.

Students' self-exploration begins as
first years, 20 of whom are reaping the
benefits of the first Emerging Leaders
Program last winter. Each participant
holds a student leadership position for her
sophomore year. LaTisha Cotto '05, a par-
ticipant, was elected president of the class
of 2005 after completing the program.

"The Emerging Leaders Program was
not what 1 expected, because when you
think of going on a retreat, you think of it
as being monotonous and boring and it
wasn't at all," Cotto says. "We did activi-

ties that focused on communicating with
each other . . The program allowed you
to shine, but at the same time taught you
how to let others shine also." The pro-
gram's goal is to prepare first years for
leadership roles in and out of the campus
community through activities that help
students come to know themselves and
their leadership styles.

LeaderShape Institute
Sophomores and juniors can participate
in the LeaderShape Institute, an opportu-
nity made possible by a three-year
grant from the AT&T Foundation to all
women's colleges in Georgia. In May,
10 students attended the LeaderShape
Institute for a week.

"The description given made it sound
like a boot camp, but that was not the
case," Nina Tioleco '05 says. "Some days
were long, but they were worth it." While
at the ethics-based institute, students cre-
ated a LeaderShape Project to undertake
in their organization during the next year.

"The LeaderShape Program is radically
different from any other leadership pro-
gram I have ever encountered," Alicia
Hardy '04 says. "We didn't sit around talk-
ing about how we could be leaders, we

acted it out. We learned to have a healthy
disregard for the impossible."

"A big part of becoming a leader is
experiential education," McGraw says.
"You learn so much from doing. It's not
just what you do in the classroom, but
what you do outside the classroom. 1 don't
see leadership as being just elected posi-
tions. There are all kinds of leadership
opportunities that happen out there, like
starting a club or doing an internship."

Shorter programs

Student Activities sponsors two shorter,
less intensive options for leadership
development. Each year before registra-
tion, about 1 10 elected officials from the
Student Government Association, Senate,
Honor Court, Judicial Board, Inter-
Organizational Council, Residence Life,
Orientation Council and Allocating
Committee are invited to attend the
Leadership Retreat.

"We start with dinner on campus, and
President Bullock speaks to the students
about leadership," Smith says. The group
leaves the next morning for a resort,
where this year Rosemary Levy Zumwalt,
dean of the college, spoke to students
about the intellectual climate at Agnes
Scott. Students alternate between listen-
ing to speakers, discussing campus leader-
ship as well as having fun.

Smith revamped Leadership Saturday,
a tradition at Agnes Scott, to conclude
leadership week the week of student
elections for the next year. "It's really a time
when 1 hope that new and old leaders will
get together and reflect." All students are
invited to this on-campus retreat.

If students seek leadership opportuni-
ties outside the programs offered within
the Agnes Scott College Edge, the Office
of the Dean of Students provides funds
for selected students to attend other lead-
ership conferences and programs.

Kristin Kallaber 0-f

on campus 3

ON CAMPUS

LEADING THROUGH
LISTENING

My mam goal as president of the
Student Government Association
is to focus on everyone getting along,"
says Jodi Dixon 03, who serves as a liai-
son between students and administration.
"Basically, 1 attend to any problems the
students of Agnes Scott may face."

Jodi Dixon '03

Dixon has served on Student Senate
since her first year and has been a
member of Tower Council and Winship's
dorm representative. As SCA president,
Dixon oversees the SCA Executive Board,
which consists of the SGA treasurer and
secretary, the presidents of Senate,
Judicial Board and Honor Court, the
Inter-Organization Chair and the minor-
ity adviser.

"1 hope to truly open the lines of
communication between the students and
the administration, between students and
faculty, between students and staff and,
most importantly, between the students
themselves," she says.

Dixon wants SCA to provide tangible
changes tor students during this term,
such as improving the Agnes Scott
Intranet and its accessibility to students
and student organizations. She would like
for each organization to have a section

for its constitution, pictures and officers,
as well as have a section focusing on the
SGA Executive Board

"This year's Executive Board just wants
to be accessible to students," she says.
"It a student has a problem ... I want her
to feel comfortable discussing it with me
so that I can show her the right avenues
to take. As a leader, I think the most
important thing is listening."

Dixon, a psychology major from
Douglasville, Ca., participated this spring
in Washington Semester as a public law
intern for a government relations
lobbying firm. Kristin Kallaher '04

CLASS OF 2002 SAILS
OVER THE TOP

The 2002 Senior Gift Campaign
boasted a 43 percent participation
rate, exceeding the goal of 40 percent
needed to receive matching gifts from
trustees Joie Delafield '58 and Frannie
Graves '63, co-chairs of Bold Aspirations:
The Campaign for Agnes Scott College.
Delafield and Graves matched the seniors'
original total of $2,002.02 by donating
$1,001 each, bringing the total to
$4,004.02. Also, even without the match-
ing funds, this 2002 gift set a record for

Senior Gift Campaigns.

Ellen Crozier '02 and Qiana Dreher '02
were co-chairs of the Senior Gift
Campaign committee, which consisted of
about a dozen seniors.

"The group provided a focal point for
the senior class," says committee member
Jana Lott '02. "We provided familiar faces
to discuss giving to the College, not just a
flier in a mailbox or a poster on the wall.
The group was made up of women other
students knew and respected, so the
Campaign became more personal, and
subsequently meaningful."

Eighty-five seniors donated gifts to the
Campaign, which contributes directly to
the College's Annual Fund

"This campaign was really successful,"
says Laura Pitts, annual gifts officer. 'The
Annual Fund is like the checking account
tor the College. It goes where the
College needs things today, like to help
supplement financial aid, student scholar-
ships and library acquisitions. 1 think
when seniors get the message through
Senior Gift campaigners that their gifts to
the Annual Fund have an immediate
impact on the College. Even though it
may only be a five, 10 or 20 dollar gift, it
makes them feel like they can actually
make a difference." Kristin Kallaher cm

"!!

Q S

Senior Gift Campaign Volunteers: (front row, left to right) Tiffini Bell, Curry Hitchens, Ellen Crozier,
Annea Clair, (back row, left to right) Jana Lott, Trianna Oglivie, Katherine Price, Qiana Dreher,
Rebecca Baum, and Kirsten Ohlson.

4 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

FINDING

kginmng with a signal discovery made early in lije,

Mary Hood uses her knowledge and experiences to encourage

students in developing patience and the long march

for writing andjor lije.

By Jennifer Bryon Owen

FINDING THE RIGHT ROOM

"What I needed to
know was that by
discipline and
getting out of bed
every morning, you
can help something
good happen in
the world."

Mary Hood, writer-in-residence at
Agnes Scott this fall, recalls the
discovery she made in a Georgia
Tech physics class where she was
pursuing a master's in chemistry.
It was while answering a test question: 'If it is rain-
ing and a man goes to his car, will he get wetter
ainning or walking?'

"I was in this room with 1 50 people who cared
desperately," says Hood. "It was slide rule times,
and you could just hear them whizzing.

"1 thought They don't even know what color
the car is. They don't know why he's walking
or running, or if it's raining like mad, why would
he walk? Ah, why would a man walk slowly in
the rain?'"

Feeling as if she had been in a dream, Hood
realized she had not put anything on the paper.

"1 thought 'I'm in the wrong room. That's all.
There's nothing wrong here. I'm just in the wrong
room,'" says Hood. "It was like the mercy of Cod
that I finally realized that. I was interested in sce-
nario and not science. And that was the day I
started [writing]."

She laughs as she recounts telling her parents
her decision and asking if she could live with them
until she got established. "I told them this may take
a little time I was thinking six months or so. It
was 12 years before anything got published ."

Hood is the author of a novel, Familiar Heat,
and two collections of short fiction, How Far She
Went and And Venus is Blue. She is the recipient of the
Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction, the
Townsend Prize, the Southern Review/ Louisiana
State University Short Fiction Award and the
Whiting Award.

Those 1 2 years that she wrote, sent her fiction
to editors and saw it come back taught Hood her
definition of success. "It's what I needed because
I was competitive, I was whiny and I was a depres-
sive. 1 was a mess," explains Hood. "What I needed
to know was that by discipline and getting out of
bed every morning, you can help something good
happen in the world. Nothing matters early
publication, late publication those are not
success things to me."

Such a philosophy, Hood admits, doesn't sit
well with some students "who are eager to get on
with it." But, these are things students need to learn
about life, even if they don't want to be writers.

"If they understand those things, they won't
get off track if they succeed or if they fail forward
for 12 years like I did," says Hood. "When you fall,
unless you just fall straight down to China, you are
going to fall at least a body's length forward. If you
get up smart, you'll be that much farther along. For
me, forward failure is progress. It may not be suc-
cess, but it's part of it. 1 want them to learn these
things about life and writing. It's patience and

the long march."

There may be a day she doesn't write at all,
Hood explains. "There may be many days. There
may be days 1 write and then I throw it all away.
Those are all tremendous days as a writer."

Hood doesn't prepare a detailed syllabus prior
to beginning her classes as a writer-in-residence, a
position she has held at The University of
Mississippi, The University of Georgia, Berry,
Reinhardt and Centre colleges as well as Stone
Mountain High School. At Agnes Scott, she is
teaching two classes of creative writing.

"Then, I'm supposed to listen. I already care,"
says Hood. "I make that first class sort of loose until
I get to know who they are. Somehow, I know
from that what it is we are going to do. Every class
I've taught in all the places I've done this, each class
had a theme, its own coming together kind of
theme, and the students didn't know that the other
students in the class were on the same track."

She jump starts her classes by reading books
or passages, which leads to discussion and writing
exercises, designed to get students to delve into
their memories and experiences with myriad and
unusual questions. 'They're not ever going to be on
the surface, ever. They are honest and they go into
these exercises with all their skill and all their
senses, and when they come back out, they have
brought something new to light. It is so thrilling,
and they do it every time."

Students think they are just playing, says
Hood, but when they get through, they've
had weeks of the discipline. "That's why I
make them keep everything in a book. They won't
remember [the progression of their creativity].
Creativity is like that, but they will always have
proof of what they can do."

Hood used to say no when asked if a person
can be taught to write. "And I think that might be
true I think you can learn writing, and of course,
we learn by writing. I'm still learning. What I do is
find ways for people to learn. I hope I don't know a
recipe Do this and this, then crank it up and it
comes out. Creative is nothing anybody can do but
the one who creates, so if you can lead someone to
do that or inspire them in some way ... I'm also
hoping to build confidence.''

She notes that some writers want to assume
the lifestyle of a writer before having written
instead of the other way around. "Being a writer is
a kind of lifestyle, and it has its own bohemia," says
Hood. "I like the lifestyle myself, but having writ-
ten is the real clue that you are a writer."

Hood also tells students that it isn't necessary
to be decadent, as perpetuated by some. "But if you
want to last, to run the long race, you have to take
care of the machine. Basically, a writer's lifestyle is
about applying yourself to your seat."

6 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

Hood, a native Georgian with a Northern
father and Southern mother, is dubbed a "Southern
writer." In defining the term, she notes her friends
from upstate New York, who are more Southern
than many of her Southern born friends.

"What they are is country," says Hood, "and
I don't mean bumpkins. They are sophisticated
people, but they began in places that were rural.
Rural life leads to community and community
events and stories, plus they each came from large
families so they have a lot of stories. I think it's
that the actual time that has been spent in
knowing each other's story. That is a Southern
thing, but it is probably in danger. We're all just in
a hurry, and we don't hang together enough to
listen anymore."

She notes that even writers in other countries
have a Southern feeling about their stories.
"Now that we have access to so many won-
derful translations of the Nobel winners, we see all
around the world that Southerness, even if we don't
have the same causes. Steel Magnolias is not going to
happen in China, but something like that could
and Amy Tan told us."

Although a recipient of the Flannery O'Connor
Award, Hood sees her approach to her characters
as very different from her fellow Georgian's. She
thinks O'Connor didn't love her characters.

"I've come to accept the fact that she had
many things making her judgmental. She was the
church militant,- 1 feel like 1 am the church
triumphant," says Hood. "We are in the same war,
we're working for the same major general, you
might say, but we're certainly on different fields.
She didn't have a lot of time ... She was very
directed, and she had to be. 1 used to think she
would very much disapprove of me.

"I just come from a different place in my
creating and a different place in my believing and a
different place in my punishment. But, 1 honor her
ability. She's brilliant. I honor the sincerity of her
work, which was prophetic."

No one has ever compared her, says Hood, to
another Georgia writer, Erskine Caldwell, but she
sees her characters as just two or three generations
down from the same people he wrote about. "The
best he wrote was as good as Greek tragedy and
horribly funny the same way that Flannery was
horribly funny. I don't get my laughs the same way,
but I think the characters would."

Hood's works in progress include a novel by
the working title of The Other Side of the River, which
is about the 1994 flood in south Georgia. Told
from the perspective of a black woman, the book
also has Hispanic characters Hood holds a
degree in Spanish from Georgia State University.
Another work is about a blind faith healer.

"That will let me be more open about my

faith," says Hood. "I used to think that bearing
witness meant you had to testify. I think it can help
whatever it is that God is [to] endure what he
knows because we don't blink. I blinked a long
time remember all those baseball books? I
avoided it a long time. I didn't help him at all. 1 had
my own troubles and hurts, and that was enough.
But, then I got over it."

During her childhood, Hood read only books
about baseball because no one died in them. In one
that she had read, the heroine was murdered by
Indians, and it adversely affected Hood. "I didn't
read anything that was true or anything deathly,
and now I just won't leave it alone. . . . Death still
astonishes me."

The novel, Mila 18, helped break the drought.
"It was about the Warsaw ghetto, the Jewish
uprising," explains Hood. "I realized whatever we're
doing looks pretty trivial if we are avoiding knowl-
edge. It's ok to avoid death, but don't try to avoid
knowledge. That unblinking came when I realized
that. I fought back. Years passed, and 1 was in a
class action suit against God with all this. I thought
it's going to break his heart pretty soon now. I was
a foot stomper when I was little. It's not fair. I
would write it down, but that's not being a writer."

While teaching at Agnes Scott, Hood is
working on a collection of short stories
now called Survival, Evasion, and Escape, a
title picked up from a U.S. Army training manual.
She finds that she works well while teaching
because the students' discipline helps her.

She envisions this collection being interna-
tional rather than Southern. The first story, "The
Shammes" is about a Holocaust survivor living in a
personal care home in Cleveland and trying to
keep Kosher, even though he cannot communicate
through language with those caring for him. The
shammes is the candle from which all others in the
Hanukkah menorah are lit, explains Hood, and he
is the candle.

"How did he keep his faith and why," questions
Hood with tears coming to her eyes "Being alone
in Cleveland is harder than being with all the
hundreds and thousands in the death camp. To die
like this without even the synagogue knowing
he's there.

"That story will seem to have absolutely noth-
ing to do with the next one and the next one and
the next one," says Hood. "But by the time I'm
through, it will have been a light around the world."

Even though her characters and stories
frequently move her to tears, Hood declares being
a writer was her destiny. "I think from childhood,
I knew something like this was going to be the
way that I would find my easiest and most lovely
way to live. Not maybe to earn a living, but to just
be myself." Hr

During her child-
hood, Hood read
only books about
baseball because no
one died in them.

FUNDING THE RIGHT ROOM 7

'Hotel Brat'

only the beginning

-

of Commerce.

By Leisa Hammett-Goad

The corporate and nonprofit boards on
which Blaine Staed Lansbeny - 1 - -
number about 20. That must mean
Lansberry jokes that she is on some-
ones hit list. But rising to those roles
comes naturally to this vice president of sales and
marketing for Bahama House hotel in Daytona
Beach Fla. and president of her family s hotel real
estate and investment business.

The first woman appointed president of the
Daytona Halifax Chamber of Commerce
Lansberry s skills developed in what she describes
in childhood growing up in her family's hotel
business going to the pool meeting people
making toast all before child labor lav- -
jests. But being a hotel brat gave Lansberry an
insiders view of even.- aspect of the business
grooming her to become a leader.

Returning to the family business after Agnes
Scott however was not Lansberrys career aim
ke younger sister Leslie Bush who earned a
hotel administration degree and worked in the
industry up North. After majoring in economics
Lansberry job searched in Atlanta turned down
entry level banking positions and returned to the
Sunshine State to further her formal education
Following a year-plus at Florida State University
studying accounting and insurance, she returned to
the tamilv business bv default.

In spite of her hotel experience and family sta-
tus Lansbeny began a notch above entry level. She
earned her way up concentrating on sales eventu-
ally attaining the ownership management level

Lansberry oversees the sales and marketing
department which includes in-house advertising,
other creative services and reservations. Working
with sister Leslie who had returned home they set
a goal to be progressive in management giving
incentive bonuses conducting in-house inspec-
tions and computerizing systems

While at one time the Staed family owned
1 1 hotels within a 15-mile radius of the
Daytona Halifax area they averaged
owning six hotels during the four ensuing decades.
Three years ago a buyout resulted in a dramatic
downsizing of their business. The family sold all but
one hotel the 95-unit oceanfront Bahama House

VThile her early careers travel schedule often
prohibited forming relationships Lansberry met
Brian Lansberry a former all-American college
swimmer and they married in 1987. Also from a
family of business owners Brian worked his way up
in the Staed business and is now the hotels general
manager. The couple has two children. Brantley 6
and Kelsey 9.

Sister Leslie retired from the hotel business
to be a full-time mom. Lansbeny credits Leslie for
being her eyes and ears at their children s schools
enabling her own demanding career

Productivity and scheduling are a must in
order for Lansberry to fulfill the many opportuni-
ties afforded her one of which was being invited to
become the first female member of the prestigious
Checkered Flag Committee. Composed of about
100 influential business leaders the committee vol-
unteers as additional management during races at
the Daytona 500. A typical days tasks for commit-
tee members at the famous race the worlds
largest outdoor sporting event or other speedway
races include ushering dignitaries or ordinary fans
to their seats helping others locate their cars or
transporting people with disabilities in a golf can

The latter duty meant that Lansberry
received a crash course in dnving a can It
was taken for granted that since most
Checkered Flag Committee members played golf
Lansberry would know how to drive a can.
But shed never played the spon. She laughs recall-
ing that on the moming of the busy Daytona 500
she learned and later maneuvered a can amid a sea
of humanity

Last minute golf lessons about 10 crammed
in one week were a necessity in order for
Lansberry to play in a Chamber tournament. Her
game was bolstered because her partners were a
former pro and a former college golfer. They

8 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

I

Blaine Staed Lansberry '82 relaxes beside the family business

placed among the top five winning teams. It was
Lansberry's first and last time to play.

Almost a decade ago, Lansberry was asked to
join the Daytona/Halifax area Chamber of
Commerce because of her tourism industry
experience and expertise. Her term as chamber
president two years ago was a turning point for the
area's seven distinct regions, each led by its own
chamber. Her self-mandated tall order for her pres-
idency was to unite Volusia County's very distinct
regions into a unified regional voice for economic
development. The two largest areas, including her
own chamber's, were sometimes perceived as dom-
ineering, parochial and self-protecting. The year
consisted of numerous meetings with each chamber,
focusing on what was best for the entire region.

t took a lot of effort,
a lot of meetings,
networking and
s mediating with neigh-
boring areas, but it
g resulted in a positive
; outcome economic
I development that

I enhanced the quality
I of life for all areas,"
i says Lansberry.

Lansberry raised
I the most money in the
organizations history
for a chamber banquet.
With 1,200 attendees
it was also the largest
ever held. The speaker,
retired Army General
Norman Schwartzkopf,
shared tenets by which
he conducts his life.
One belief impressed
Lansberry: "Do the
right thing."

"We take that say-
ing for granted, but it's
hard to do the right
thing in economic
development. It is hard
to develop here, con-
sidering environmental
rules, protecting sea
turtles, coastal con-
struction rules," says
Lansberry. "A competi-
tive industry's concerns
may not be the same as
quality of life issues."
Its remembering
the quality of life she
enjoyed growing up and
wants for her children and all of her community
that undergirds Lansberry's civic commitment.

"Community service is essential to business.
You need to be plugged in on local, state and even
federal levels to understand the many facets of
doing business," says Lansberry, adding that giving
back makes her a good leader. "1 grew up seeing my
parents give back to the community no matter
how hard they were working. I want to do what I
can do to help my community."

She believes women bring certain talents to
leadership roles. "Women are good at bringing
people together. I'm also a pretty good listener. I'm
good at listening and not talking, which helps me
in a lot of ways. Being a woman and having skills
that are unique but not exclusive to women
has probably helped me in leadership roles." Mt

"Community
service is essential
to business. You
need to be plugged
in on local, state
and even federal
levels to understand
the many facets of
doing business. "

'HOTEL BRAT' ONLY THE BEGINNING 9

LEADERSHIP

The Women's College Way

By (adwiga Sebrechts
Women's College Coalition President

-takers. They

......

of good citizt

The statistics speak eloquently of
womens colleges in educating leaders.
But these are only the most conspicu-
ous examples of the effectiveness of
the leadership development at
womens colleges and of its benefits to society.
-ricers are advocates for themselves and others.
They are risk-takers. They exhibit the traits of good
: : zens. .Agnes Scon and its sisters continue to cul-
tivate eaders in a multitude of ways. The methods
are broad and specific mission-based and curricu-
lum-driven dramatic and subtle. Womens colleges
teach leadership first through their missions whose
authenticity students internalize and reflect.

\\ omens colleges unapologetically prioritize
the development of womens talents and skills.
They do so deliberately through the teaching and
learning dynamic And womens colleges offer
ample opportunities for practicing leadership.

The women-centered environment advances
the teaching of leadership but nothing gives more
vitality and priority to the ethos than the explicit
identification of a colleges mission as the training
for leadership. This setting of expectation fts
self-expectations of the students. Values that are
incorporated in the lived mission of the institution
are clear. One need only consult the values state-
ment in the Agnes Scott Catalog to see that
Tiens colleges educate students in service in
. imship and in local and global community

Womens colleges increasingly a reflection of
the changes in society and of the growing diversity
of women attending college have responded vig-
orously to this evolution and to the needs of their
diverse populations. Womens colleges are where
service learning was pioneered decades ago because
of the perceived need to establish a curricular

connection between the classroom with the lived
experience of the extra-campus comrat"

There is rich evidence that a women-centered
environment fosters students intellectual develop-
ment enhances their sense of self-efficacy keeps
student aspirations and self-esteem high and builds
leadership skills. Using a national database com-
prising hundreds of thousands of students over a
period of some 20 years researchers found that
students at womens colleges are more likely to
graduate more predictably exhibit a concern for
social change grow in their acquisition of leader-
ship skills and continue with their education
after graduation.

rir Mikyong Minsun Kim a professor
from the University of Missouri released a new
series of studies that found womens colleges are
exceptionally effective in cultivating the desire to
influence society among their students and she
attributes this mainly to the socially active and
altruistically oriented student climate at these
colleges. Womens colleges seem to provide
distinctive positive educational environments and
a more liberal faculty climate says Kim
research findings based on national data suggest
that womens colleges are better than coeduca-
tional institutions in promoting womens intellec-
tual and societal self-confidence academic ability
and cultural awaren.--

Womens colleges are teaching-intensive
institutions, with the teaching and learning
dynamic catalyzed by reciprocity mentoring and
high expectations. There is an abundance of role-
models and mentors beginning with board
members and the president of the college whose
examples of leadership cannot be overestimated in
their student impact

10 i;-sES =:;-- --..;::;

Leadership development is conveyed through:
programs of study (a leadership curriculum > ;
through the development of research projects in
leadership and in women's leadership (the science
of leading),- through the development of internships
(practicum of leading); through the organizing of
conferences and special seminars on the subject
'collaborative leadership),- and through the publi-
cation of journals and newsletters (establishment of
leadership networks).

Leadership and developing a sense of expert-
ise are also dependent upon the opportunity
to practice both. As Elizabeth Whitt, an
expert on campus climates and student leadership
development explains, leadership is learned within
a climate that supports such learning and offers
encouragement to assimilate the lessons. Since all
student leadership positions are filled by women at
a women's college, more women have the experi-
ence of leading, without facing the option of defer-
ring to males. If an organization on campus is to be
established and operate effectively, a woman has to
do it. Dependence on women students to provide
leadership, if any student leadership is to be had,
stimulates faculty and staff to encourage women to
take on these roles. If a student does not experi-
ence leadership in college, she is less likely to seek
it out after college, when the risks are greater.

Finally, leadership development has a profound
impact on the campus, as faculty become more

involved and collaborative (since most leadership
programs are multidisciplinary); as the practice of
leadership development reinforces the underlying
mission from which it derived in the first place.
Leadership development becomes a crossroads,
a meeting place for various generations, college
constituencies, communities and sectors, to meet
and collaborate.

Leadership development at women's colleges
produces exceptional citizens for society and cre-
ates a forum for the coming together of a new and
revitalized college communin Mr

Jamie Bell '02
exemplifies student
leadership at Agnes
Scott.

WOMEN LEADERS

Of 60 women members of Congress, 20 percent
attended women's colleges.

Twenty percent of the 1999 Fortune list of the
50 Most Powerful Women in American Business
attended women's colleges.

Ninety percent of women's college presidents are
women and 55 percent of the faculty are women.

In a 1997 magazine survey, 20 percent of the
100 most powerful women in Washington, D.C.
attended women's colleges.

Graduates of women's colleges are more than
twice as likely as graduates of coeducational
colleges to receive doctorate degrees, and to
enter medical school and receive doctorates in
the natural sciences.

< Sixty percent of recent alumnae have careers in
industry, business and government.

1 Of Business Week's list of the 50 women who
are rising stars in corporate America, 30 percent
received their baccalaureate degree from a
women's college. Since women's college gradu-
ates account for less than 4 percent of college-
educated women, they are over-represented
six to one.

1 One of every seven cabinet members in state
government attended a women's college.

Twenty percent of women identified by Black
Enterprise Magazine as the 20 most powerful
African-American women in corporate America
graduated from women's colleges.

Nine out of 10 women's college alumnae have
participated in at least one civic or professional
organization since college.

Fourteen percent of Good Housekeeping's
"100 Outstanding Women Graduates," are
women's college graduates.

Source: Women's College Coalition

LEADERSHIP: THE WOMEN'S COLLEGE WAY 11

MUCHAD

With a history oj governance as his legacy,

Joe Gladden reflects on his notably busy and productive iO years

as chair oj the College's Board oj Trustees.

By Christine S. Cozzens

"To work right, a
board has got to be
collaborative, a
chair should guide,
not run, a board."

Facing page:
President Mary Brown
Bullock '66 and guest
speaker (ohnnetta B. Cole
walk with Joe Gladden to
the 2002 commencement
ceremonies, his last as
chair of the Board of
Trustees.

JT oe Gladdens philosophy of guiding a board
of trustees is simple. "The best way to get
| people engaged," he says, "is to give them
' something to do and a feeling and a recog-
' nition that they are in fact doing it." When
Gladden became chair of the Agnes Scott
Board in 1992, there was "plenty to do, so many
facets of the College needed attention."

Enrollment was low, relations between the
faculty and administration were strained and the
college atmosphere was marked by frustration and
palpable tension.

"You'd walk on campus," says Gladden of his
first years on the Board, "and it would be the rare
thing when somebody would meet you eye-to-eye."
Gladdens 10-year term as chair was a time
ol transformation for Agnes Scott. With a large
first-year class entering this fall, enrollment is at
'MO, a far cry from the low point of 499 in 1987.
New and renovated buildings, innovative programs,
additional faculty positions and more open rela-
tionships among the various campus constituencies
are just some of the changes that contributed to
making the College a happier, more intellectually
vibrant place than it was in the early 90s.

The situation is different when he comes to
campus now. "It's exciting," says Gladden. "The
enthusiasm, spirit and oomph are everywhere."
Gladden plays down his role in these changes.

"To work right," he says, "a board has got to be col-
laborative,- a chair should guide, not run, a board."
Assessing Gladdens leadership from her perspec-
tive as a longtime trustee, Sara Vagliano '63
describes his legacy as "a history of governance."
"We learned governance under Joe," says Vagliano,
"what a board does and how to do it."

With much corporate and trustee experience
to his credit including service on the boards of
directors of Wesley Woods and Emory Healthcare,
The Atlanta Ballet, and Coca-Cola Enterprises and
chairing the boards of two public companies in
Canada and Australia, Gladden was well suited to
the job

Gladden views his years at Agnes Scott as "the
most satisfying board experience I've had," largely
because there turned out to be so much tor the
Board to do. In 1992 when outgoing chair Betty
Cameron '43 and President Ruth Schmidt
approached Gladden about being chair, he was
"honored" but concerned about the amount of
work. Cameron and Schmidt assured him that "the
College ran itself," and he agreed to take the job.
Then in spring 1993, a disputed tenure case exac-
erbated problems on campus. In May, the faculty
voted no confidence in the President, an action that
called on the Board to take up what Gladden sees as
its ultimate duty, that of "making sure that the
leadership of the College is healthy and functional."

12 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

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A Board that in Gladdens opinion had been "too
separated" from the day-to-day life of the College
suddenly faced an enormous responsibility.

What seemed that summer to be a painful
crisis, Gladden now views as a defining moment,
"a series of events that gave the College the oppor-
tunity to say . . . let's look at who we are and what
our capabilities are and what our focus ought to

Gladden congratulates Jamie Bell '02 during May commencement ceremonies.

"Joe did a masterful
job of moving busi-
ness to committees
and getting the
committees to trans-
act the business so
lhat their decisions
were accepted. "

be.' It was a unique opportunity to revitalize an
institution that was very important to the commu-
nity, to itself and to women's education."

Under Gladdens direction, a small Board com-
mittee met throughout that summer with the
Faculty Executive Committee for a series of "diffi-
cult but enormously fruitful" sessions that created
for the Board "a learning process in terms of under-
standing the institution much better than the Board
had had an opportunity to do. It was also a learn-
ing process in the sense that it's a very unusual
situation when a board is so clearly faced with a
responsibility that can't be shifted."

When a faculty is at such major odds with
a president, Gladden believes a board
must act. "It was something of a learning
process to actually face that and recognize that it
had to be it had to be."

"There's a fine balance, in an institution like a
college, between a board that's engaged and one
that is meddling," Gladden says. "And you've got to
be very, very careful as a trustee, or ultimately as a
board, to make sure that you're clear on what the
board is supposed to be doing and, conversely,
what the board is not supposed to be doing."

Today Gladden views the no-confidence vote
and its aftermath as a moment of opportunity for
the Board as well as for the College In 1984 the
trustees had instituted a system of term limits that
was just beginning to take effect in 1992, setting in
motion a "built-in evolution" that would "open up
the possibility of getting some new thoughts on
the Board," according to Gladden. "So both the
composition of the Board and the Board's focus
changed a lot during that time."

He soon made revitalizing the Board's commit-
tee system a priority so that "every single com-
mittee became engaged in what they were doing."

"Joe did a masterful job of moving business to
committees and getting the committees to transact
the business so that their decisions were accepted,
says Harriet King '64, who has served many Board
terms and succeeds him as chair.

Gladden believes that in an institution like
Agnes Scott, each governing body the
faculty, the students, the administration
and the board of trustees has an important but
separate role to play,- the institution works best
when each fulfills its unique responsibilities yet
works together toward common goals. As deter-
mined by the Board, "the changes . . . that had to
be made" at the College in 1993-94 included
addressing the enrollment problem, reviewing the
administration as well as reviewing the curriculum,
which the Board felt had grown unchecked in a
well-meaning but futile effort over time to reverse
declining enrollment.

But in Gladdens opinion, the no-confidence
vote had given some on the faculty the view that
"we [the faculty] won and now we're in control."
Trustees were concerned by what they saw as a fac-
ulty potentially overstepping its charge and by the
tension among the faculty, administration and
Board. "One of our objectives was to say 'Look,
we're all in this together and we're all going to sink
or swim together. One way or another, we've got
to get on the same page.'

"In an academic institution, the name of
the game is academics," says Gladden. From the
Board's perspective, a reassessment of the academic
program was essential to turning the College
around and to presenting new leadership with a
clear academic identity for the College. In the
wake of President Schmidt announcing in fall
1993 that she would resign at the end of that aca-
demic year, the Board moved to require that the
faculty carry out a review of the curriculum.
Harriet King sees the curriculum review as the
"key achievement" of that era. "Knowing that
the faculty was willing to do their part gave the
Board the confidence to go forward with the pres-
idential search and later to 'bet the farm' on the
building program."

It) AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

The Board's next steps were to find an interim
president and develop a process for finding
a new president. Gladden is clear about the
Board's desire to have an interim president "who
would not be a candidate for the long-term job"
presiding while a thorough and thoughtful search
for a new president was conducted. The interim
president would need to carry out what the Board
felt would be "painful . . difficult . . . and unpopu-
lar" changes, thus allowing the new president to
begin on a more positive note. He and the Board
chose Sally Mahoney for the job because of her
administrative experience at Stanford during a time
of turmoil. Gladden was pleased with her guidance

during the transitional year, adding that "[Dean of
the College] Sarah Blanshei had a huge role in all
of that, too, and I think was an enormously impor-
tant although probably largely unsung heroine of
that transition, because she was the constant."

For Gladden, the presidential search process
was far more important to the College's future than
any other effort of these early years. "Recognizing
that it was going to be a somewhat unwieldy
process," the Board decided "to use an out-sized
search committee consisting of representatives
from every major college constituency . . . because
of numbers and diversity of views." Gladden wanted
the community to be behind the new president and

Sally Gladden 65 praises the work and leadership her husband has contributed
to her alma mater as a Board member and chair.

s

ally Gladden '65 speaks with pride as she talks
about her husband's tenure as chair of the Agnes
Scott College Board of Trustees.

"He was interested enough in the place where I
studied to put so much time and energy
into it," says Gladden of her husband,
Joseph R. Gladden Jr. "His belief in
women's education has continued to
evolve over his tenure of 10 years.

"He has always seen the potential
of the College," she continues. "He
helped see the College through
rough times. He is part of the history
of the change of direction of the
College."

Without a doubt, Gladden called her husband's
efforts to get Mary Brown Bullock '66 to return as presi-
dent in 1995 one of the best things that happened during
his tenure. "She, Joe and the Board have made an incredi-
ble team."

Another major change that impresses Gladden is the
renovated Evans Hall and changes in the serving area. "I
am amazed at the choices. In 1965 if you had two choices,
it was an amazing thing. I never cease to be surprised
when I go in there."

The couple met on a blind date during her first year.
"Most don't work out, but some do," she says, adding her
husband's ties to the College run deep. His grandfather,
Woolford B. Baker, taught biology during the 1920s.

His mother, Frances Gladden, attended, and his
aunt Betty Baker Prior graduated in 1943.

The Gladdens' $1 million gift to Bold
Aspirations: The Campaign for Agnes
Scott College will be used to fund the
science building atrium, which will
be named after Baker.

"We were showing his mother the
atrium area of the new science build-
ing recently. She looked out one of the
windows and pointed to a tree and said,
'I remember that magnolia tree. Joe played
under that tree as a child,' " says Gladden, adding
that her mother-in-law worked as a medical illustrator.
"I guess his roots were planted early at Agnes Scott."

Although her husband's work with the Board was "clearly
his territory," Gladden has made her own contributions to
the College by most recently serving on the art committee,
which has been evaluating the current collection to deter-
mine what is important to keep and what to de-accession.
"I've learned a lot of things from the art faculty. It's been
fun and interesting for me." - wendy cromwell

MUCH ADO IN A COLLEGE THAT RUNS ITSELF

When Gladden retired, he was given "The Agnes," a remote-controlled yacht.

To be a good Board
member, a candidate
should have qualities
oj "perspective,
interest, support,
curiosity and know-
ing where to stop."

to set the agenda for the College's future: "The real
point of the whole exercise was ... to use that
committee as a forum to decide who we were and
where we were going. Unless you can get the com-
munity itself to not just buy in, but come up with
those directions and those values and those basics,
in my view they're not going to be successful."

Professor Emeritus of History Mike Brown,
who served on the search committee, felt the
process worked just that way. "Being a member of
that committee was the best Agnes Scott experi-
ence 1 ever had," he says. "All of the different con-
stituencies were pulling together, and everyone's
opinions were listened to with equal respect."

During the search, Gladden found the
campus discussions to be central to deter-
mining the College's future directions and
to "selling" the Agnes Scott job to the candidate
who quickly emerged as the front-runner in his
mind, Mary Brown Bullock '66. As she contemplated
the Agnes Scott presidency, Bullock expressed con-
cern about enrollment, questioning the wisdom of
trying to maintain "an intellectually viable commu-
nity with [only] 500 students."

Because a consensus about the need for growth
had been established on campus in the early stages
of the search process, Cladden was able to reassure
Bullock on that point. "When [the Board] ultimately
came to the decision that Mary was our choice,"
Cladden says, "it put us in position to be very clear
about two things. One is the College itself has
decided that this is where it wants to be and this is
what its capabilities are, and [two] the Board has
tully endorsed that. If we had not been able to say

that, I don't think Mary would have come.'
Bullock's questions about the College's future only
confirmed his sense that "she was the right choice."
Gladden saw the Agnes Scott presidency at
the time as "one of the best opportunities in the
country. Because you look at Stanford, or Yale or
Emory even: a new president comes in and starts
turning on the wheel, and several years later the
bow begins to turn. Whereas when you take a
school the size of Agnes Scott, if you can get the
people together and decide where they want to go,
almost all you have to say is 'Ok, let's do it, and the
bow is immediately turned."

Raising enrollment, reassessing the curricu-
lum, marketing the College and renovating
the campus were priorities that emerged
from the search process and in consultation with
the new president. Only when he was certain that
the first two were being addressed was Gladden
willing to give full support to a marketing plan and
to a building program that would require major
new sources of funding. "I was sort of the brakes on
[both] for a while," he says, "until the Board had
confidence that where the College was trying to go
was realistic and progress could be seen." He
sought faculty and administrative participation in
denning programs and goals that would shape the
building program. "From the ground up, from the
planning up, you design the building to fit the pro-
gram that it's supposed to house,- then you'll have a
physical plant that fits what you're trying to do."

By the time Phase One of the building plan
was approved in 1997, says Gladden, the Board
had gained "a huge amount of confidence" in the
institution and more confidence in itself as a board,

a state of mind he characterizes as "we can do it,
they can do it, we all can do it." "A relationship of
mutual trust and confidence" with President
Bullock contributed to this transformation

The ambitious plans for building a new campus
center and a parking deck, renovating Evans Hall,
renovating and expanding McCain Library, reno-
vating Bradley Observatory and adding Delafield
Planetarium, landscaping much of the campus, and

16 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

building a new science building would be costly.
"On the financial side," Gladden recalls, "the ques-
tion was, do you go out and raise the money and
then build the buildings, or do you build the build-
ings while you're raising the money. And [the
Board] decided if we're going to do it, we're going
to go ahead and build. ... If we're going to make
this place what it ought to be, then let's do it.
There's no point dragging this out." Five years later,
Phase One is nearing completion, with the last
major project, the science building, opening for
classes in January 2003.

Being a part of exciting plans such as trans-
forming the curriculum or the campus and
watching them come to fruition revitalized
the Agnes Scott Board, Gladden thinks, making the
Board more responsive to the College and the job
of trustee far more attractive. To be a good Board
member, Gladden says a candidate should have
qualities of "perspective, interest, support, curiosity
and knowing where to stop."

Knowing where to stop is especially important,
he says. "Most people assume that every organiza-
tion is a pyramid, and the board sits on top of the
pyramid and therefore must know and have a hand
in everything that goes on. . . . It's not true."
Knowing when to let the administration, the
faculty, or even the student body exercise their
judgment, use their professional wisdom, do their
jobs board members and boards as a whole
must be able to exercise such restraint in order
to successfully guide an organization.

Gladden gives the example of a tenure case
that is contested, a case in which the faculty and
administration disagree about the recommenda-
tion. "The board has to be very, very careful in that
situation," he says, " because the board is dealing
with a professional judgment . . . [the board]
doesn't have the background and can't get the
background to second-guess the faculty or the
dean or the president. The board should make sure
the process was fair and complete and should resist
the temptation to substitute its own judgment. The
board cannot deal with faculty issues unless the
internal institutional processes have somehow not
reached a resolution."

Gladden also believes in making sure that
the people in place in an institution have
their views heard on issues they are most
qualified to address. In his job at The Coca-Cola
Co., he often did business with the company's
offices throughout the world. "If we had a problem
in Beijing, for example, there was no way in the
world that I was ever going to know enough to
substitute my judgment for that of the people in
Beijing. One of the biggest problems in my job was
to keep people who were between me and Beijing

from making the judgment. . . . The same principle
applies in dealing with a not-for-profit context."

Gladden retired from Coke in 2001 just as he
also was approaching the end of his term on the
Agnes Scott Board of Trustees. He had considered
retiring from the Board earlier to encourage new
leadership, but the challenges and excitement of
the building program and the recently launched
comprehensive campaign [Bold Aspirations: The
Campaign for Agnes Scott College] kept him in
place. He believes that boards benefit from
changes in leadership: "It's not just a question of
new ideas. I think change is necessary to keep the
blood flowing institutionally."

Wary of appearing to "set the agenda" for
the new Board chair, Gladden outlined
in general terms what he sees as the
Board's and the institu-
tion's major challenges
in the coming years.
"Tight budgets," he
says. "Everybody has
seen it coming, and it's
not a surprise. The dis-
comfort is a given. The
question is, how do
you get through that
with no damage to the
foundations."

But the greatest
challenge facing the
College is, in Gladdens
view, even more com-
plex than the situation
he faced in 1993. "The
College ought to be
very, very proud of
where it is," he says. "But it's only where it ought to
be. The question is, where do you go from here.

"I am really excited about the possibilities that
Agnes Scott has now because it is close to being a
unique institution, and I think that the need for
high quality liberal arts education for women is
greater now than it has ever been." He would like
to see the College set the trend for other colleges
and universities, to "do things in women's educa-
tion that can be exported." Reaching out to the
world beyond the campus is Agnes Scott's future,
Gladden thinks. "The College has done a lot, but I
think it's got a lot to do in terms of getting reiden-
tified with the community locally, nationally and
internationally. Much progress has been made on
that front, but nobody ought to think that it's a job
accomplished.

"Agnes Scott has an opportunity to become a
real beacon," says Gladden. And what he will miss
most, he says, will be "the fun of seeing it happen"
from a front row seat. mC

Retiring Chair Joe
Gladden and new Chair
Harriet King '64 share a
light moment.

"I think the need
for high Quality
liberal arts educa-
tion for women is
greater now than
it has ever been."

MUCH ADO IN A COLLEGE THAT 'RUNS ITSELF' 1J

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founder's day

every day

In his Feb. 20, 2002, Founder's Day speech, Joseph R. Gladden Jr., then chair
oj the Agnes Scott Board oj Trustees, proposes that the founding oj an institution oj
excellence is a process, not an event, and that the role of founder is one we all play.

Onawarmeveninginjuly July 17,
1 889 a small group of local lead-
ers gathered in the pastor's study of
the Decatur Presbyterian Church
"to [as they said] advise as to the
need and feasibility of establishing in Decatur a
school for young ladies and girls, to be of high
order and under Presbyterian control and influ-
ence." Within slightly more than two months, on
Sept. 24, 1 889, the school opened with 63 students
and four teachers. The organizing group was
assembled by the Rev. Frank Henry Gaines, pastor
of the church, and included nine prominent men of
the town. The descendents of several organizers
have maintained active relations with the College
throughout its history and down to the present.

Today, we gather to honor our founders,
and as will become apparent later to honor
and challenge ourselves.

From a programmatic standpoint, the school
our founders labored to establish bore little relation
to the College we know today. It was an elementary
school for girls the "Decatur Female Seminary."
The organizers' accomplishments within a short
time were prodigious: they raised funds, secured a
building, recruited students, hired faculty and a
principal and refined their objectives. Early on, Dr.
Gaines, the first chair of the Board, articulated
what has been called the "Agnes Scott Ideal." That
ideal established the fundamental values of the
institution and has guided the College through the
years on a consistent basis. Dr. Gaines stated them
this way:

A liberal curriculum fully abreast of the best
institutions of this country

The Bible as a textbook

Thoroughly qualified and consecrated teachers

A high standard of scholarship

All the influences of the College conducive to the
formation and development of Christian character

The glory of God, the chief end of all. 2

Some of these words may seem a bit strange as
we hear them 1 1 3 years later, and some would
doubtless provoke substantial controversy if put
into the College's materials today. But I submit that
as the College has developed and evolved over
those years the basic values represented by those
words remain viable as the core of the institution.
Even as the College works today to restate its
mission in terms appropriate to the contemporary
environment, it is guided by the same principles
that guided the founders.

The first early development having a lasting
impact was the conversion of the school
from a stock "company" to an institution
independent of its "stockholders." In 1897, all of
the stock still outstanding was repurchased, and
the school was put under the control of a self-
perpetuating board of trustees. 5 Recall that the
original objective of the organizers included the
notion that it be "under Presbyterian control and
influence." This corporate "reorganization" refined
that concept. While all trustees were required to be
members of the Presbyterian church today, only
half the new structure assured that while
Presbyterian influence would still be felt, the
school was to be independent of the church and
not in any manner be subject to its ecclesiastical
control. 4 The second event of enduring note is the
creation of Agnes Scott College, which occurred
on May 12, 1906. The school was begun as an
elementary and secondary academy, but aspired to
collegiate status. This was accomplished during a
period of more than 10 years with the gradual
elimination of lower grades combined with the
addition of upper grades. 5 The College and the
secondary school, now known as the Academy,
coexisted for several years with an increasing strain
on resources until May 1913 when the Academy
was discontinued and the College became a stand-
alone institution."

Even as the College
works today to
restate its mission in
terms appropriate to
the contemporary
environment, it is
guided by the same
principles that
guided the founders.

founder's day every day 19

From the very
first meeting oj the
original organizers
and continuing to
this day, a principal
hallmark oj Agnes
Scott College has
been academic
excellence.

A third event significant in the College's
history causes us to be together on this par-
ticular day. Col. George Washington Scott
died on Oct. 3, 1903. Wrong date you ask?
Actually, Founders' Day is celebrated on today's
date in honor of Col. Scott's birth, not his death.
1 mention this event partly because it prompts us to
be here, but also to illustrate another point: George
Washington Scott is undoubtedly one of the major
figures in the history of the College. He was an
original founder. He was the financial savior of the
early school on multiple occasions. He served as
the first chair of the reconstituted Board of Trustees
(serving until his death), and he was profoundly
committed to the creation of an institution of last-
ing value and values. But there were many, many
others who could rightly be considered founders.
To name two others: Dr. Gaines, who summoned
the original organizers, and served first as Board
chair, then as President from 1896 to 1923,- Miss
Nannette Hopkins who at age 29 was hired as
principal of the newly founded school in 1 889 and
served for the first 49 years of its existence. As Dr.
Walter E. McNair says in his history, Lest We Forget,
"There would have been no Agnes Scott without
Col. Scott, Dr. Gaines and Miss Hopkins." 7 And
there were hundreds of others as ably chronicled in
Professor McNair's excellent history. In a real
sense, we gather to honor all who have had a part
in establishing, nurturing and building what we
know today.

By now you are perhaps asking yourself, "Is he
going to go over everything that has happened in
the last 1 1 3 years?" Well, no, but before moving on
I want to make one further comment. From the
very first meeting of the original organizers and
continuing to this day, a principal hallmark of
Agnes Scott College has been academic excel-
lence. It was noted in 1913, seven years after
becoming a college, that Agnes Scott was the only
college in the South approved by the U. S. Bureau
of Education." High standards of excellence were
sought from the beginning by the founders, but it
was also clear to them "that any college is very
largely what its faculty makes it."' 1 Thus over the
ensuing years, it has remained clear that what we
know as Agnes Scott College is largely the result of
the quality and qualities of its academic faculty.
They should also be included in the founders we
honor today.

Through the decades which followed the
founding, Agnes Scott has changed with
the times, but always remained grounded in
the objectives of its beginning. For a liberal arts
institution, changing with the times means incor-
porating new learning into its curriculum, inter-
preting its values in new ways to address the needs
of its students of the time, adapting its approach to

learning, expanding its horizons as new horizons
become visible and encouraging its students to
develop a love of learning, both for its own sake
and for the sake of service to the community. In the
case of Agnes Scott, those changes with the times
have also been driven by the changing role of
women in society which has, of course, been
dramatic during the past two generations.

Agnes Scott has also faced the special chal-
lenges of remaining a small, selective, liberal arts
college in a post-World War II world of the large
research university. Adding to these challenges has
been its adherence to the original objective of
being a school of "high order" for women

In more recent history, the College has been
forced to deal with declining enrollment, dilution
of its focus with a consequent strain on resources,
outdated facilities, a sometimes contentious envi-
ronment on the campus, the demoralizing effects
of a lack of precision in defining its contemporary
role and a general loss of energy and enthusiasm

Matters came to a head within the last
decade The entire Agnes Scott commu-
nity came face to face with the basic
question whether it could continue on its path of
treading water, at best, or continued erosion, at
worst. Following an intense period of active reflec-
tion, involving all elements of the College, both on
campus and off, it was the collective conclusion
that for the College to prosper it must redefine its
mission and objectives. Did redefinition mean
departure from the founding values? Did it require
a radical change in direction? Or did it simply
mean reexamining who we were, where we came
from and how to interpret and apply the original
thoughts to the needs of the day? The decision was
the latter.

At that point, many things about the College
began to change. The curriculum was reviewed top
to bottom,- every element of the College commu-
nity, from faculty to administration to support staff,
carefully reexamined what it was doing, why it was
doing it, and whether what it was doing advanced
the needs of the school. As those of you who have
been here throughout well know, it involved tear-
ing up most of the campus at one time or
another sometimes several times. It also involved
that perennial favorite of academic institutions
throughout the world fund raising!

Through the dedicated efforts, and unbeliev-
able energy and time of all, the transformation has
occurred. We are where we ought to be. We are
where our founders would expect us to be

What next? That brings me to the point of my
comments this morning. If you will think back to
the beginning, I hope you will realize that the
events I related from the early history of the
College illustrate that our founding was and con-

20 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

tinues to be an on-going process. For those of you
who have been involved in the work of the College
over the past several years, you will know first-
hand what founding is all about.

Founding is never the work of a single person,
but involves the entire organization and every
individual who is a part of it.

Founding requires a clear and understandable
set of objectives, well stated and supported by
the group.

Founding is a process, not an event.

Founding demands the marshaling of resources,
human, financial and physical.

Founding, certainly in our case, must be based
on a set of basic values recognized and accept-
able to the community at large.

Founding is careful thought and plain hard
work.

Founding is the cumulative effect of the acts of
many, acts large and small, all directed to a
common objective.

With a view to the long history of this dis-
tinguished and important College, we
now find ourselves at a special point. As
I said, "We are where we ought to be," but that
speaks only to today. Where should we be five
years from now? Ten years? Fifty years? How
should we get there? What must we do now to
make it happen? In many respects, the questions
defy a clear answer. But in some respects, we have
a vivid map: we will be what we have become over
our history a selective liberal arts college of
"high order" for women. What that meant in 1 889,
or in 1945, or in 1980 differs from what it means
today, and what it means today differs from what it
will mean in the future. So long as the touchstone
of the founders is recognized and honored,
though, Agnes Scott will continue to fulfill its high
mission with distinction.

With some hesitation, since I will soon be
leaving my current position, let me suggest some
possible directions. We are what we are and should
be very proud of that. But we must constantly look
around us at what is going on in our geographical
community, our world community, academics, the
economy, politics, the arts and humanities. We
look around, not merely to keep abreast of devel-
opments, but to recalibrate constantly our College
to evolve its mission consistent with contemporary
needs and consistent with our inherited values.

We are small, with all the benefits that go
with it. And we exist among a wealth of
larger institutions educational, com-
mercial, artistic, scientific, creative and humanitar-
ian. We must develop ways to capitalize further on
that circumstance. While we should remain small,
we can take advantage of the assets that surround

us to expand our megaphone and enhance our edu-
cational program. The possibilities are limitless in
our particular environment, but require the precise
efforts of administration, faculty and students to
examine the possibilities with care, developing the
promising and discarding the foolhardy or waste-
ful. I have in mind:

Joint teaching

Borrowing from our surrounding resources to
enhance the educational experience of our
students

Continued joint research with our brother and
sister institutions

Expansion of our internship programs
public, private, commercial, educational,
artistic and humanitarian to place students
in as many real-life situations as possible
during their four or five years with us

Using our increasingly unique status as a
college of "high order" for women as a
laboratory for quality liberal arts education for
women

Sharing our learning on this subject with other
institutions

Creatively exploring new technology to
expand our reach in both our educational
mission and our community responsibilities.
While we are small, and should remain so, our

capabilities can give us a presence much greater
than our numbers alone would indicate.

It is clear to me that founding of an institution
is an ongoing, daily process. We are, on any given
day, the product of all that has gone before. While
it is true that certain points in the life of an institu-
tion, most commonly occasioned by a crisis of one
sort or another, prompt the institution to reexam-
ine itself carefully on an organized basis, it is also
true that the daily actions of everyone who is a part
of an institution form a lasting part of what that
institution will be in the future. Every act today by
each one of us will in some way add to or detract
from what Agnes Scott will be tomorrow. There
are no neutral acts and there are no acts of insignif-
icant consequence. In that sense every person in
this hall, and many outside who love this College,
are and will be, founders of the Agnes Scott
College of the future.

Let me end with prophetic words from T S.
Elliott's "Four Quartets:"

"We shall not cease from exploration,

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place jor the first time. " Mc

Every act today by
each one of us will
in some way add to
or detract from
what Agnes Scott
will be tomorrow.

1 Walter Edward McNair, List Wc
Forget (Atlanta: Tucker-Castleberry
Printing Inc., 1983) 3.

'McNair 11.

'McNair 22.

'McNair 23.

'McNair 29-30.
McNair 43-44.
"McNair 37.
'McNair 45.
"McNair 45.

FOUNDER S DAY EVERY DAY 21

Hffifflfrafic

As one known
for pushing the
envelope, Agnes
Scott's new Board
chair is uniquely
prepared to lead a
college that pro-
duces women who
can revolutionize
the world.

By Allison O. Adams '89

Her irreverence, her crusading spirit
and her profound sense of justice
meant trouble for Harriet King '64
when she was a student at Agnes
Scott.
"Most of my first year was spent trying to
figure out how to cut Saturday morning classes
without having it count as a cut we had a manda-
tory attendance policy and how to evade the var-
ious social rules that were the domain of Ms.
Scandrett and the dean of students office," says
King. "Everything from rolling pajama legs up
under raincoats while going to the dining hall
where proper dress was required to parsing stated
rules on exactly where one could light up a ciga-
rette and qualify as being off-campus resulted in
my spending more hours with Ms. Scandrett than
she probably desired."

But the qualities that could have raised the ire of
faculty and deans when King was a student are the
very characteristics that have made her a persuasive
and respected member of the Agnes Scott Board of
Trustees for 24 years In July, she became chair.

"Harriet speaks up," says Betty Cameron '43,
who led Agnes Scott's Board 1989 to 1992, the first
woman to do so. "She states frankly what she
thinks is right, and she is very fair."

King, who was 33 when she became a trustee
in 1976, grins when she recounts how she
joined the Board. "After hearing that Agnes
Scott had denied tenure to a Jewish faculty mem-
ber, I tracked down Alex Gaines [then chair of
Agnes Scott's Board and a partner in her husband's
law firm] at a cocktail party and gave him a speech
about how terrible that was, how I would never
give a dollar to Agnes Scott," she says. "Then about
a year later, Alex called me up and asked me to be
on the Board."

King accepted, and she served until 1993
before stepping down, only to re-join the board
two years later. She brings to the Board the insight,
wisdom and experience gained from decades as an
attorney, a law professor and now as senior vice
provost for academic affairs at Emory University.

For many years, she has held faithfully to her
beliel in higher education. "Education requires a

confrontation with difference," she says. "In 1960,
that was a radical view. In 2002, it's very mainstream.

"When you go to college, you expect to be
exposed to things you were never exposed to
before to people who don't come from your
same experience."

A deep passion for the Civil Rights Movement
as a teenager in Columbia, S. C, helped inspire
King's ideals for higher education and justice.
"My heroes were Ralph McCill, Martin Luther
King, Charles Weltner, Bobby Kennedy and
Morris Abram."

King adds, however, that she and the Agnes
Scott of the early 1960s sometimes were an uneasy
fit. "I absolutely loathed it. It was like going to
a convent. We couldn't date without a chaperone.
If you left campus, you had to sign out and, if
you were going into the city, wear white gloves
and heels.

"My first English professor had us read an
essay about religion, and we were supposed to
write an essay in response. So the thesis of my
paper was that religion was co-terminus with the
domain of ignorance. She gave the paper back to
me and said, 'Your composition and grammar are
excellent, but the content is unacceptable.' I
thought, I've made a serious mistake.'"

But King stuck with it, earned a degree in eco-
nomics, and became the only member of her
class to go immediately to law school. She
attributes this decision in part to encouragement
from her Agnes Scott professors, many of whom
she remains in touch with today. "John Tumbhn
[professor of sociology and anthropology] and Bev
Schaeffer [professor of economics] said, 'You can
do anything you want, and don't let anybody tell
you that you can't,' while people from other areas
of my life were saying, 'If you go to law school, you
won't get married"

At Vanderbilt law school, she soared academ-
ically above her mostly male classmates. The rea-
son I did well is that at Agnes Scott, you learn to
think, and you learn to write."

But there was something else more ineffable. "1
am hard to repress," she says. "It's hard for me not
to express my opinion. Agnes Scott encouraged

22 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

that and the self-confidence to go with it, so that
when I got with all those guys in law school, I was
still hard to repress."

King worked in private practice for two years
and served as deputy director of Milwaukee Legal
Services. She earned a master of laws degree from
Harvard hefore arriving at Emory as an assistant
professor in 1974. She became the only woman
faculty member at Emory during that time to begin
her career there, earn tenure, remain married to the
same spouse and have children.

As a woman in a male-dominated profession,
King has squared off with sexism. Her beliefs about
gender bias, however, are subtler than her views on
racial bias. "For a long time, my sense was that
women weren't discriminated against, we just didn't
try. You can't be admitted to the bar if you don't go
to law school. You can't go to law school if you
don't apply As I was growing up, women could go
to law school, but black people couldn't That just
drove me crazy."

Several years into her professional life, how-
ever, King began to see a genuine double standard.
If she left work at 6
o'clock to pick up her
child from day care,
she wasn't considered
serious about her job. If
a male colleague did
the same thing, he was
a wonderful father. "I
had my second child
by C-section on a
Monday of spring
break, and I was teach-
ing the following
Monday," she says. "I
didn't miss a day of
class. The same year,
two male professors had
children, and they each
missed a week of class."

At Emory, how-
ever, King has
done much to
improve the atmos-
phere for women not
only by beating the
men at their own
games, but also by
changing the rules. As senior vice provost, she
played a key role in formulating a family leave
policy that allows Emory faculty members with
new children or other extenuating personal
circumstances to take time off without derailing
their careers.

King's direct style, her deftness with practical
challenges and her still-compelling ideals have

Harriet King '64

earned her wide respect. "She gives people a lot of
freedom in their own jobs," says Susan Frost '70,
Emory's vice president for strategic development.
"She likes to have a clear objective and to bring peo-
ple together around that objective. And she applies
her training as a lawyer to everything she does."

Frost adds that King's ability to build consen-
sus and her understanding of issues in higher edu-
cation will be assets in her work as chair of the
Board of Trustees. "Governance systems are her
specialty," Frost says. "I think she will affirm the dif-
ferent role of the trustees from the President, and
she will end up strengthening the internal leader-
ship of the College."

King's vision for Agnes Scott blends practical
necessity and intellectual excitement. One
major goal is to find financial resources to
support the international program more heavily
and to have a larger, more intellectually diverse
faculty. "Students would be lined up, wanting to
go here. People wanting to be on the Board would
be lined up. The Mellon Foundation and the

Carnegie Foundation
would know who we
are. I think those are
some of the ways we
would know we've
arrived.

"But to me, the
biggest test would be
with our students the
quality of the Ph.D.
programs and profes-
sional schools they're
entering. If you have a
diverse, intellectually
involved faculty and a
group of students who
are excited about what
they're doing, they go
on to do good work."

King does not

wax sentimental about

Agnes Scott College.

Her loyalty is rooted

in her commitment to

the liberal arts. As

Susan Frost observes,

"Harriet does not look

for civic opportunities

to fill up her list. Her choice to contribute her

energy and talent to Agnes Scott is her way of

saying it's very important to her."

Indeed, King says, "Our graduates go out and
prove that they can do the work, and they do it
well. I do not think Agnes Scott can revolutionize
the world all by itself. But I do think Agnes Scott
women can." Ut

HARRIET KING '64:
FACT FILE

Hometown

Columbia, S.C.

Education

B.A. in economics, Agnes
Scott College, 1964; J.D.,
Vanderbilt University,
1967; L.L.M., Harvard
University, 1973

Career

1967-69, associate,
Foley and Lardner,
Milwaukee, Wisconsin

1969-71, deputy
director, Legal Services,
Milwaukee

1971-74, teaching
fellow, Harvard Law
School

1974-76, assistant
professor of law, Emory
University

1976- present, associate
professor of law, Emory

1992-1998, vice
provost, Academic
Affairs, Emory

1998- present, senior
vice provost, Academic
Affairs, Emory

Family

Husband Michael
Wasserman is a partner
with the law firm of Holt,
Ney, Zatcoff, and
Wasserman. Daughter
jill is an attorney and
daughter Rebecca is
attending law school.

THE IRREPRESSIBLE HARRIET KING 23

Charting

the College's Course

With vital work that is often behind the scenes,

ASC Board committees guide the College through their

careful management of key areas.

While Gladden
focused on the
overall picture,
vice chairs, Anne
Register Jones '46
and Frances B.
Graves 63, kept
the Board on track
through their
careful attention to
Board operations
and their roles as
chair of the commit-
tee on trustees.

While President Mary Brown
Bullock '66 and her administra-
tion operate Agnes Scott
College on a day-to-day basis,
the Board of Trustees, working
with Bullock, sets the tone and determines direction.
As the College's governing body, the Board
relies on its chair, vice chair and a strong commit-
tee system to oversee specific areas.

Under former Chair Joseph R. Gladden Jr.,
trustees helped redefine the direction of the
College, recruited Bullock and oversaw the rework-
ing of the curriculum and a major building pro-
gram. While Gladden focused on the overall picture,
vice chairs, Anne Register Jones '46 and Frances B.
Graves '63, kept the Board on track through their
careful attention to Board operations and then
roles as chair of the committee on trustees.

The Board chair appoints committee chairs
and members for one-year terms. Committees typ-
ically have three or more trustees, as well as stu-
dent and faculty associate members.

"One of the most important responsibilities of
each Board committee is to pay close attention to
the work of the other committees, as we are all
equally charged with maintaining the good health
of the College," says Sara Vagliano '63, academic
affairs committee chair. "So we encourage non-
committee members to attend committee meet-
ings, and many do, and from time to time we hold
joint meetings with another committee."

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Harriet Al. Kint) '64, chair
Christopher M. Little, oicechah

The executive committee, comprising the
Board chair, vice chair and committee
chairs, serves as a sounding board for the
President and her administration. Its central
purpose is to strengthen the Board's performance

through overseeing insti-
tutional planning and
setting trustee agendas.
It is vested with the
authority or "power"
held by the Board itself
and may take action
between meetings or
when the full Board is
not available.

Harriet M. King '64

ACADEMIC AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

Sara Vagliano 63, chair

The academic affairs committee defines,
oversees and modifies policies that fulfill
Agnes Scott's academic mission teaching
and learning.

"We have both followed and nurtured the
academic development of the College through the
hiring and granting of tenure to faculty and
through careful attention to the way our building
program would support the academic program,
Vagliano says.

"We also might
|| point to the quality of

I z

|i persons who wish to join
our faculty, the alacrity
with which offers are
accepted and the enthu-
siasm with which they
join our community as
evidence of the fact that
Agnes Scott is a good
place to work," she con-
tinues. "Since faculty are

the core of the academic program, we take this as a

good sign."

Goals include "thinking very creatively about

what we can do that will allow the program to

Sara Vagliano '63

24 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

flourish and be attractive to students," says King,
Board chair. "It's a matter of keeping uppermost in
the minds of trustees what our 'core business' is and
how to advance it."

The committee seeks to ensure programs
are consistent with the College's mission through
clearly stated academic priorities that are appropri-
ately funded. It also ensures there is an appropriate
relationship between enrollment policies and prac-
tices and academic standards and requirements.

"We have encouraged and supported the
faculty's initiatives to define the content and
manner of delivery of the curriculum the 2/3
teaching load and the 4/4 student course load, as
well as things like the introduction of the first-year
seminar," Vagliano says. "These curricular changes
support one of the basic obligations of the acad-
emy the obligation to keep up in one's field.''

The 2/3 teaching load gives faculty members
more time for research and course preparation.
Students now take four four credit-hour courses a
semester instead of five three-hour courses, enabling
them to do more in-depth academic work.

BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS COMMITTEE

Jean H. Toal 65, chair

Responsibility for Agnes Scott's land, build-
ings and equipment is placed with the build-
ings and grounds committee, which examines
the adequacy of insurance, reviews energy effi-
ciency and handicapped accessibility and conducts
audits to determine the condition of buildings and
recommend needed repairs, including whether
buildings should be "renewed or replaced."

Under the leadership of former trustee Jim
Philips, this committee created a long-term master
plan. Then with King,
who completed her
term as chair in June,
the plan was used to
implement a $120 mil-
lion building program
that began in 1998.

For each project,
the committee oversaw
recommendations for
selection of architects
and construction com-
panies and monitored expenditures King says the
committee emphasized the role of women in these
companies. "If we don't ask that our contractors
treat women fairly and make that a condition of
selection, who will," she asks. "It seems important
that we use our spending power to favor those con-
tractors where women are valued."

Implementation began with obtaining zoning
from the city of Decatur to allow for the master

Jean H. Toal '65

plan and its components. The neighborhood
opposed the College's building plans for west of
McDonough Street. Since those projects have
been completed, "things have been quiet, and I do
hear occasional comments about the beauty of the
restorations and the [parking] deck not being so
bad," King says.

Ultimately, the master plan was approved by
the city, and the College proceeded with renovat-
ing Evans Hall, McCain Library and Bradley
Observatory. Delafield Planetarium, the parking
facility and Alston Campus Center were built. The
tennis courts were moved to the corner of
McDonough and East Dougherty streets to make
way for the science building, opening in January.

The campus expansion included three
Victorian houses on East College Avenue, which
were bought, restored and turned into theme
houses,- the adjoining property, former site of a gas
station, which is now green space,- and the Avery

Glenn Apartments on East College. With Jean Toal
'65 as chair, the remaining item is the Julia
Thompson Smith Chapel for which architects have
been selected.

"In retrospect, 1 cannot identify anything
about the process that I would change including
the micromanagement by the Board and others at
the Evans stage of things," says King, adding Bill
Gailey, vice president for business and finance, and
Carter & Associates, capital improvements program
manager, did an amazing job ensuring construction
was minimally disruptive to campus life. "1 think
that [board micromanagement] was a necessary
part of learning about building and its complexity,
as well as gaining a comfort level with those who
were charged with the actual work."

Additions and
enhancements to
facilities such as the
renovation of these
Victorian homes turned
theme houses visibly
testify to growth in all
areas of the College.

CHARTING THE COLLEGE S COURSE 25

Board of Trustees (front row, I. to r.) Lea Ann Hudson '76, director of the Office of the President and secretary of the Board; Christopher M. Little;
Harriet M. King '64; Mary Brown Bullock '66, ex officio; Joseph R. Gladden Jr.; JoAnn S. Delafield '58; Clair M. Muller '67; Ann Alperin '58; (second row)
Sally A. Skardon '70; Rebecca B. Jones '63; Linda G. Teasley '61; Louise H. Reaves '54; Jesse J. Spikes; Dorothy Q. Reeves '49; Anne Jones Fears '79;
(third row) James P. Hendrix Jr. ; E. Jenner Wood III; Clark E. Candler; Susan G. Smathers '75; J- William Goodhew III; Mildred 0. Petty '61; (fourth row)
Sara E. Vagliano '63; lla L. Burdette '81; J. Wallace Daniel; and Phil Noble Jr.

DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

Christopher M. Little, chair

FINANCE AND INVESTMENT COMMITTEE

J William Gootihew, chair

For the first time in more than a decade, alum-
nae participation in the Annual Fund reached
45 percent in 2001-2002. "I think this is a
cause for celebration," says Christopher M. Little,
chair This forms a major building block for
getting Annual Fund giving to where it should be."
The Board development committee provides
oversight and counsel for fund raising and other
advancement programs. Little says the committee,
15 along with development
I staff, has focused on spe-
cific giving goals and
critical programs. "We
have devoted each meet-

Christopher M. Little

ing to a program, such as
the Annual Fund "

With the aid ol
longtime former chair
Wallace Daniel, the
committee assisted in
launching a $60 million
comprehensive campaign, Bold Aspirations: The
Campaign for Agnes Scott College, in February
200 1 . The Campaign had raised $53.5 million as of
Sept. 30.

Committee members work with development
staff to ensure prompt response to donors, Little-
says, adding there is crossover support with the
Campaign steering committee through shared
members

A principal effort ol the committee is to
increase trustee giving notes Little "We must
make sure there is 100 percent trustee giving mic\
we ve been successful."

Monitoring the College's investment port-
folio is a major function of this commit-
tee. In June 2000, the endowment, a
large portion of which is in Coca-Cola stock, was
valued at $408 million By the end of June 2001, it
was $347 million This year as of June 30, the
endowment was $335 million.

"We rely on the expertise of the professional
managers we engage," says Clark Candler, former
committee chair. "They are supposed to be the best
and brightest when it comes to managing risks, and
we constantly monitor their performance for us in
order to make sure we are achieving the desired
results. In a nutshell, managing the risk is largely
1; accomplished by diver-
: sitication."

During the past
year, the Board engaged
the services of LGC
Associates to assist in
overseeing the man-
agers' performance, and
their recommendations
include a commission
recapture program that
has allowed the College
to use its resources more effectively

"Generally speaking, our accomplishments can
be described as: keeping up with our investments,
monitoring them, continuing analysis of our man-
agers' performances and trying to think out of the
box' in order to foresee emerging trends so we
don't get too stuck in the status quo that is no
longer appropriate tor us," Candler says.

J. William Goodhew

26 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

The committee ensures a viable long-term
financial plan is in place. It determines funding
methods for capital expenditures. To help fund the
building program, the committee engineered a $70
million bond issue, the largest ever for the College.

Under the leadership of Bill Goodhew, the
committee also reviews the administration's
recommendations for the annual budget and
tuition and fees and makes recommendations to
the full Board. About 64 percent of the annual
budget revenue comes from the endowment. The
rest comes primarily from the Annual Fund, tuition
and student fees. The committee is working to
revise the endowment spending policy and diver-
sify the portfolio. It reports regularly to the Board
on investments and their values.

AUDIT COMMITTEE

E. Joiner Wood III, chair

Ensuring that the College's financial position is
accurately represented and is in compliance
with higher education regulations and federal
and state tax laws is the responsibility of this com-
mittee. It makes certain
the Board can carry out
financial and fiduciary
responsibilities and is
in compliance with the
trustee Conflict of
Interest Policy.

This is done by
making sure statements
accurately reflect Agnes
Scott's financial status.
The committee members
recommend an independent auditing firm and
determine the scope of the annual external review.
The committee provides auditors with a direct link
to the Board for discussing audit findings, as well as
reviewing the management letter.

COMMITTEE ON TRUSTEES

Ann S. Alperin '58, chair

V:

Ann S. Alperin '58

ital to the Board's
long-term effec-
tiveness, the
committee on trustees
accepts nominations and
researches prospective
members. The commit-
tee also evaluates the
performance of trustees,
particularly those eligi-
ble for re-election. The
Board's composition, in

(esse |. Spikes

terms of influence, diversity, expertise and talents,
is reviewed by this committee in order to set stan-
dards and maintain the desired Board profile.

Providing orientation and support for new
trustees through a mentoring program is also the
responsibility of this committee.

STUDENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

Jesse J. Spikes, chair

This committee ensures that College policies,
financial resources and professional staff
keep pace with the changing needs of the
student body through support of a comprehensive
student affairs program.
Under the leadership of
longtime chair Clair
McLeod Muller '67, it
focused on the well
being of students by
ensuring the Board con-
siders their concerns,
viewpoints and needs.

The student affairs
committee reviews poli-
cies affecting student life
to assure they remain relevant and useful. It
assesses basic student services and keeps abreast of
the work of the Student Government Association.

COLLEGE COMMITTEE ON FAITH AND LEARNING

Kathy B. Ashe '68, trustee co-chair

This committee is the only College commit-
tee co-chaired by a trustee with trustee
members appointed by the Board chair.
Through the work of this committee, trustees want
to ensure continued
dialogue on issues of
faith and learning on the
Agnes Scott campus.
The committee enriches
the intellectual life of the
College by assisting in
selection of speakers for
the- annual James Ross
McCain Faith and
Learning Lecture. Cheryl
Kirk-Duggan will be the
speaker for the 2003 Faith and Learning Lecture,
which will be held February 11. Past lecturers
include Diana Eck, Walter Brueggeman and John
Polkinghorne. This committee also sponsors
additional speakers, symposia, dinners and other
events for campus discussions, and members served
as advisers in development of a new statement of
the College's mission Mr

Kathy B. Ashe '68

Trustees want to
ensure continued
dialogue on issues oj
jaith and learning
on the Agnes Scott
campus.

CHARTING THE COLLEGE S COURSE 2J

Upjor

DISCUSSION

Thorough discussion oj the issues forms the center oj the
Faculty Executive Committee's work.

By Jennifer Bryon Owen

It's almost like a Quaker meeting, says Rosemary Levy
Zumwalt, vice president for academic affairs and dean of
the College, about the way the Faculty Executive
Committee (FEC) functions. 'There is so much discussion
that when the vote is taken, we know where we stand."
By virtue of her position as vice president for academic
affairs and dean of the College, Zumwalt serves with five
tenured faculty members on this committee, which basically
oversees the concerns and operations of the faculty The FEC
chair is invited to attend Board of
Trustees meetings as an observer.

"The process is as important as
the end result," continues Zumwalt
"Discussion of the issues is what's so
crucial. Having a full discussion by
the FEC is so important when the
chair takes things to the full faculty
as John Pilger did last year."

Pilger, professor of biology, was
FEC chair for the 2001-02 academic
year. Those serving with him were
Dudley Sanders, associate professor and chair of theatre and
dance, Cail Cabisius, associate professor of classical languages
and literatures, Dennis McCann, Wallace M. Alston Professor
nl Bible and Religion and i ileum mg chau Barbara Blatchley
associate professor and chair of psychology.

"John started with a list of concerns from the faculty and
the committee and the committee prioritized them," explains
Zumwalt. "He was good at this and at keeping us on task."

A look through the previous year's minutes, where the
topics reappear frequently, confirms Zumwalt's belief
about discussion. Among last year's items were:

The governance document tor the department of education
dratted to meet requirements of the accrediting agency for
the College's education program

The campus environmental statement

A living wage presentation and discussion

The intellectual climate on campus

The efficient and equitable use of faculty work time

The upcoming Southern Association of Colleges and

Rosemary Levy Zumwalt

Schools (SACS) review and the FEC's role in it

Faculty concerns about plagiarism

The outsourcing of the bookstore and challenges meeting
deadlines for book orders

FYI (For Your Information) program evaluation.

"So many discussions run through the whole year," says
Zumwalt "There's discussion until consensus is built and a deci-
sion is reached. It's a collegial thing. The FEC is a clearinghouse.
It helps inform, consult and takes to the faculty issues of impor-
tance to the whole College community."

Linda Hubert '62, professor of English, was a committee
member for six years and chair for three. "The first year I was on
the committee, I thought it was more talk than action, but 1
found out it actually did plenty. During his time on the
committee Ed Sheehey [former vice president and dean of the
college] enhanced the role of the committee."

Hubert notes that she served on the FEC during a watershed
period during which the College dealt with curriculum,
enrollment and buildings. "I spent many interesting summer
hours serving as the FEC liaison to the committee that selected
the architectural firms to design the new additions and
buildings."

She says governance of the faculty is the main thing. "For
example, we spent a lot of time working on procedures for
reappointment, promotion and tenure, but not the actual RPT,"
says Hubert "Usually there are so many short term problems that
you struggle to deal with the long term educational issues."

The Faculty Executive Committee is valuable, says Hubert,
as a way to get a reading on faculty response before
involving the whole faculty. It can also facilitate involve-
ment on certain issues.

"I think it's a great committee to serve on," says Hubert. "I
enjoyed it, and it's a good way to know what's going on at the
heart of the College."

Zumwalt, who is beginning her second academic year at
Agnes Scott, concurs with Hubert's assessment of the FEC
"Working with the FEC this year allowed me to get to know
faculty well because we meet weekly. I was impressed from the
beginning with the FEC's dedication to paying attention to the
major needs of the College." Mr

28 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

IGH Fl

High Up in

Having climbed to the top in the competitive, male-dominated financial services
businesses, Virginia Carter 40 shows no evidence oj slowing down.

By Lisa Ashmore

HIGH UP IN HIGH FINANCE 29

She was a single
mother with a
mutual funds license
and jour children,
armed with a gene
pool and academic
training seeking the
right outlet.

When Virginia Carter 40 greets
visitors at her Primerica office,
it's hard to miss the jeweled
signet that puts a World Series
ring to shame. Squared with
diamonds around a central ruby, the ring has been
to the jeweler's often to inset new gems, which rep-
resent her rise within Primerica Financial Services.

As its highest-paid female executive, Carter is
the only one, in a company that includes 100,000
representatives, who makes more than $1 million
annually. At age 82, the senior national sales direc-
tor shows no immediate signs of quitting. She was
in Spain within the past vear, overseeing the com-
pany's push into a new market (including a smart
European deal with partner Citibank) and did the
same in London as Primerica prepares to expand
into the United Kingdom.

Carter, president of ASC's class of 1940,
doesn't present herself as a standard bearer for the
women's movement, but her success in high-level
finance, unquestionably a boys' club, speaks for her.
Visitors walking into the sprawling Duluth, Ca.,
Primerica complex pass her executive totem wall
photographs with politicians and the influential.
There's Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford, Oliver North,
Tommy Lasorda and Zell Miller. But perhaps the
most telling image on her wall is an oil portrait
hung in the center a group of seven men in
business suits, plus Carter. They represent the orig-
inal founder/president of A. L. Williams and the
regional vice-presidents that started a revolution in
how America viewed life insurance. Their cry to
middle-class America, which the big insurers
ignored, was "buy term and invest the difference."

"We were hated roundly by all the life insur-
ance companies, and they tried to put us out of
business," Carter says. But seven years after starting
the company in 1977, they sold more personal life
policies than any other insurer in the United
States. "And ever since we've been in the top five,"
says Carter. "It wasn't just a sudden rocket that
fizzled and burned out."

Art Williams, the now retired company
founder, effusively praises Carter personally and
professionally But it's clear he didn't base his deci-
sion to include her into that tight original circle
to make a statement about women's rights. In fact,
as a former coach, Williams' analogy couldn't be
more male.

I tried to build the company like you build a
football team," he says. "Everybody competes the
same and there are certain requirements you have
to meet. Ginny competed from day one just like
everybody else." Another member of that team was
Yankee pitcher and Cy Young Award winner Bob
"Bullet" Turley.

"She could have done anything," says
\\ illiams. She would have made a fabulous politi-

cian or been an incredible leader in any Held.''

Carter had been in the insurance offices of
Waddell & Reed for about a year when Williams
walked in. She was a single mother with a mutual
Kinds Ik ense and foui children armed with a gene
pool and academic training seeking the right out-
let. Even casually, she becomes evangelical about
America's irresponsibility with personal finances.

"Our typical client is late 20s to middle 40s,
and we find that the average young couple, amaz-
ingly to me, has $18,000 to $40,000 in credit card
debt," she points out. "They have no idea how
they're going to pay it off and some of them
couldn't care less! The number of bankruptcies that
occur in this country when you hear 1,200,000,-
we cant think in terms of a million but bring
that down to 147 an hour, which is about how
main bankruptcies are occurring daj in and da}
out in this country." Now that Primerica includes
financial planning, the goal of showing clients how
to manage finances by killing off high-percentage
debt faster is nearly as important as its initial drive
to convert the country to term life.

Carter tells her story in a deep drawl that
reveals she is another rarity, a third-gener-
ation Atlantan. Her father and grandfather
were entrepreneurs in real estate and insurance,
and both were wiped out in the crash of '29. But
both righted themselves, relocated and created
new businesses During the Depression, Carter's
paternal grandparents lived with her family.

" [My grandfather] was wiped out at age 65,
started a new business at 65, and died when he was
84 and left an estate to his four boys," says Carter.
"He was that kind of a person." It appears that
while the Milner family was religious, they valued
accomplishment and ambition over preaching
about it

"It wasn't a matter of a lot of words, but just by
their actions and the way we lived. They thought
you can do anything you really want to do if you
make up your mind you want to do it and are
willing to do whatever it takes."

The most crucial ingredient in Carter's drive
may have been being born into a family of three
brothers with whom she was intensively competi-
tive. Her sister came along about 10 years after
Carter, but by that time Carter was already tearing
after her older siblings.

"1 think maybe, in my youngest years, I felt
like I want to be able to do everything they get to
do,' " she says. " And it would make me so mad that
I couldn't do it because I was a girl. 'No, you can't
go there, no you can't do so-and-so . . . Little girls
don't do that.' "

Many girls didn't get a college degree in 1940,
and Carter hadn't been finished long when Pearl
Harbor was attacked. Through a number of coinci-

30 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

dences, she enlisted a year to the day afterward and
served three years in Cleveland, New York and St.
Simons Island. She says that given the tenor of the
period, it seemed unthinkable to not go.

"Every single male I knew was in uniform . . .
All three of my brothers were in the infantry. I just
felt like there wasn't any more reason for [her
brothers] to be there than there was for me to," she
says. "When I was growing up, I'd always wanted to
be a boy and wanted go to the Naval Academy. So
when the WAVES came along, 1 was in the sixth
officer class, midshipman school."

As an assistant disbursing officer, she paid for
all planes and ships built in the third naval
district, signing checks for $125 to $250
million a month. In her final stop at St. Simons, she
got a little more personal reward. As paymaster, she
wrote paychecks for all servicemen. "I was very
popular, four times a month," she says, "twice for
officers and twice for enlisted."

The war ended, and her marriage began. About
10 years later, Carter found herself with sole
responsibility for four young children With a
chemistry major and math minor, she even
interviewed with Philip Morris to help them
discover alternative uses for tobacco. Because their
offer didn't meet the schedule of her infant son, nor
was the compensation satisfactory, she turned them
down and pursued a series of jobs in sales, along
the way obtaining a license to sell mutual funds.

"I was almost always an independent contrac-
tor," Carter says. "Only two or three times that I
ever tried to work for a corporation I would get
awful disgusted because of the glass ceiling. I'd get
just so far, and they'd tell me what a great job I was
doing and say, 'Well, Virginia, you're making as
much money as any woman in the company'
which had nothing to do with the fact that
I had taken over a job a man had been doing and
they were all telling me I was doing it better than
he ever had." At age 53, Carter says she had the
unhappy parallel of being $53,000 in debt. Having
been born to a degree of privilege she could have
relied on family, but found it rankled.

"I had three brothers, all self-made million-
aires, and my mother and father were still living.
But I didn't feel like it was their responsibility," she
says. "This was me. I had got myself into it, and I'd
get myself out."

She went to Waddell & Reed. "I was so broke
at the time, and so desperate and so hard up In
this business, there's a lot of rejection," says Carter.
While that may account for the high turnover and
burnout in sales and finance, she says flatly, "I
couldn't afford it. [Rejection] didn't matter."

Is there a level playing field now for women in
business? "Not in the corporate world, there isn't.
In our world there is," Carter answers. Finance is

still hard on women, and she estimates 20 percent
of Primerica's workforce is female, with about 150
women who earn more than $ 150,000 annually.

"It's a tough business and it's not for
everybody," she says. "And most people who come
in don't make it. We're not even ashamed of those
figures, because that's true in almost any sales field."

Having reached Carter's level of success
does have certain perks. "You never have
to make a decision based on money,"
Carter says. "And with the blessings I have received
here, I can give a lot of money to worthy causes
and institutions like Agnes Scott."

Lewis Thayne, vice president for institutional
advancement, concurs that Carter has a history of
participation in the life of her alma mater. Her
latest contribution was a $500,000 Bold Aspirations
pledge to "jump start" the Career Development
Center.

"Typically, Virginia did not choose half
measures," says Thayne. "On a visit to campus near
the beginning of the College's Bold Aspirations
Campaign, Virginia spoke with Mary Brown Bullock
'businesswoman to businesswoman.' They agreed
we needed to do more in providing opportunities
for students to be introduced to the world of work
and earning money. Her gift designation made
sense. Self-reliance and individualism mean a great
deal to her."

"There are an awful lot of causes I feel strongly
about," Carter says. "I give as much time as 1 can,
and sometimes I feel guilty for not having enough
time to give. But because of the blessings I have
received, I can give a lot of money."

Carter has served on the governing boards of
the Presbyterian church and lists other faith-based
organizations such as Covenant House, Campus
Crusade for Christ and The Haggai Institute
among those she has supported.

"And Chuck Colson's Prison Fellowship
Ministries is one of the greatest causes I've seen
come along," she says.

Carter still spends a third of her time traveling,
mostly domestically, to her 12,000 to 16,000
employees who earn for her in 40 states. "I have a
lot of people out there seeing people on a daily
basis, trying to do the right thing for me," she says.
She doesn't retire because she still enjoys the job
and can't imagine not coming to work.

"I don't know what day of the week it is and
don't care," she says. "You know most people live
for Friday. It is the day of the week. And then by
Saturday they're getting in a bad humor, 'cause
Monday's coming. I don't even know, and don't
care, except for Sunday. I do try to observe
Sunday," she says "Today I was sure it was
Wednesday about half the day."

It was Tuesday. Mt

Self-reliance and
individualism mean
a great deal to her.

HIGH UP IN HIGH FINANCE 31

STILL A MYSTERY

The Alumnae Magazine is always a
delight to read, but this Spring/
Summer issue really made me nostalgic
with the little article on beer jackets grad-
uating again

For years I have thought about mine,
and wondered where it could possibly
have disappeared. Such loving work went
into it 1 My Ireshman year at Boyd cottage
was one of acute homesickness for my
years as an army brat, and on that jacket 1
had put every military insignia I could fit
in with a great deal of the United States
in the center of the back

My roommate, Libby Ruprecht, and I
took countless pictures of each other with
our little Brownie box cameras, and in my
album there is one Libby took of me in
my beer jacket with my back to the cam-
era in the Alumnae Garden, that I iust
wish were not so faded.

My jacket was not embroidered, as the
detail was too minute, and 1 have no rec-
ollection of how it came to me. I iust
assume all of us must
have bought them
at the book store
maybe?

The photo-
graph is marked
"My beer jacket,
Spring of 1938."
Thanks for the
memory.
Betty Alien
Wkite-Hanmick it

I loved the Beer laeket" article in the
Summer 02 Alumnae Magazine for
several reasons. President Mary Brown
Bullock brought the "mystery beer jacket"
in our 60th class reunion wine and i heese
party and asked if any of us knew who it

had belonged to back in 1939-40?
Although there were several names
embroidered on it, of those present no
one remembered. Beer jackets were no
mystery to me, however, because most of
the Decatur Girls High School "girls" had
one in 1 936- 38 and took ours away to
college, at least I did, and it was quite a
conversation piece at Wesleyan College
Macon where I attended for the freshman
year before transferring to Agnes Scott.
Since our reunion, we learned that Allison
Butt '02 is the granddaughter of Jeanne
Lee Butt '42 and the roommate for two
years of Ellen Crozier 02, the grand-
daughter of one of my best friends.
Allison's jacket is in much better condi-
tion than mine, which is falling in shreds
after 65 years, but oh, what memories!
Jane Stillwell Espy 42

THE FIRST SON

Last week I received my Spring/
Summer 2002 issue of the Agnes Scott
Alumnae Magazine and read with interest
your article, The Sons of Agnes Scott
College.

Although I enjoyed learning of the
connection some very notable people had
with Agnes Scott College as a result of
their mothers' attending the college, I was
very disappointed that at least an intro-
ductory paragraph wasn't devoted
explaining how the son of Agnes Irvine
Scott implemented the establishment of
the College, or that his name wasn't even
mentioned. It would also have been nice
if some photographs of Agnes Irvine
Scott and her son had been included in
the article. The Scott family was instru-
mental in the development of DeKalb
County, not only with the establishment
of Agnes Scott College, but also the

building and operating of Scottdale Mills
for many years, among many other
endeavors. The people who still live in
those small houses that are a part of what
was once the Scottdale Mill village have
many good things to say about the Scott
family. I had the privilege of living next
door to John 1. Scott as I was growing up.
And my father worked at the mill as
Quality Control Manager for 1 1 years.

I hope that if an article is printed in
the future about the influence that Agnes
Scott College has had in the lives of peo-
ple, that more attention will be given to
this aspect of the college's beginnings.

Petjgy Bumette 94

THE CAT, TOO

My cat, Eudora Welty, and 1 very
much enjoyed Linda Huberts
article on the original Eudora Welty in
the Spring/Summer edition. It reminded
us (well, me) of an experience I had with
Miss Welty in St. Louis about 20 years ago.
Hearing that, on the occasion of
receiving a literary award from St. Louis
University, she would be reading and
signing books that evening, 1 dashed to
the bookstore and bought the only edi-
tion they had a paperback copy of the
Golden Apples. I went to the reading, which
was very crowded, and heard Miss Welty
read "Why I Live at the P.O." Afterwards,
when I had managed to get to the front of
the line for signing, I handed her my
paperback and said, "1 heard you read
'Why I Live at the P.O.' many years ago
when I was a student at Agnes Scott."
Much to the consternation of those in line
behind me, she stopped signing, smiled at
me, and said, "I just love Agnes Scott."

Thank you for providing the back-
ground on that first visit in 1966 and for

34 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

informing me about her subsequent visits.
Clearly, the love was mutual.

Anne Roberts Divine '6 7

MORE ON
KATHERINE

The article by Katherine Harris in the
Winter Edition of the Alumnae
Magazine should never have been
published. The attempt to rewrite history
is an embarrassment to me and to most of
the Agnes Scott alumnae I know.

The article was a blatant attempt
to "whitewash" the disgraceful conduct
of Katherine Harris, the Florida secretary
of state.

The entire world was aware step by
step of the events in Florida during the
Presidential election. It was a travesty on
the election process.

At present, even the claims of "great
civic reforms" have not been met. As
reported by the Knight Ridder Press
Association, the Civil Rights Commission
has given the so called reforms the grade
of "F." Katherine Harris has refused to
meet with this commission.

Agnes Scott College should be
completely free of partisan politics.

Bertha Merrill Holt 'is

Thank you for the interview with
Katherine Harris '79 which appeared
in the Winter 2002 Agnes Scott Alumnae
Magazine. It was appropriate that the
magazine featured a graduate who played
a pivotal role at a crucial juncture in
national history. Ms. Harris' perceptions
were interesting and thought provoking.
As a history major too, 1 know it will
probably take the long view of future
scholars in the field to get beyond the
partisan view of the election and Ms.
Harris' role and place it in proper per-
spective. I enjoyed reading this article
and the rest of the magazine too.
Betty Derrick 68

LET'S HEAR IT FOR
SCOTTIES

Take this as an open letter to Scotties
about Scotties. I have recently
returned from a trip to China, sponsored
and organized by Agnes Scott College for
alumnae. This letter is not about China.
It's an amazing place and people and
where the future lies. I'm not the same for
having gone, and it will be a long time
before 1 can speak intelligently about
those experiences.

I write, instead, about travel with a
group of mostly ASC graduates. A total of
twenty-three made the trip. Among them
were members of the classes of '47, '48,
'62, '65, '66, '68, '74, '77, '83, '86, and '95,
their husbands, mothers, fathers, daugh-
ters, and friends. Here are some observa-
tion about graduates as fully developed
women: They all want to learn and won't
be deterred by weather, pollution, con-
fused tour guides, aches and pains, or
sleep deprivation. The graduates, even
after the eighth temple, question, take
pictures, make notes, compare percep-
tions, check facts, and ask for more. They
are independent. Two from the decade of
the '40s did permit assistance on and off
the bus on occasion, but never expected
or demanded it. The graduates look after
others, but do not hover. They had the
right shoes, sensible but stylish. They
made records photographs, journals,
letters. They allowed each other space,
and insisted on their own. Their hus-
bands, mothers, fathers, daughters, and
friends are equally interesting, diverse,
observant, and questioning, and are,
perhaps, better ambassadors for ASC than
the graduates, because they talk about the
place and the women who attend, while
the graduates just are.

The graduates laugh at themselves
with ease and at each other with gentle-
ness. They are leaders, but will follow if it
makes sense. They are proud of their alma

mater and of their country, but are not
blind to their weaknesses. They are com-
plete bright, accomplished, loved, and
loving. They don't quit, whine, or fret.
They want to have lun, and do. They
each have interesting stories, and will tell
them if asked, but won't force them on
others. I was feeling incredibly smug as a
result of this trip to a very foreign world
until I read recently of my colleagues
from the 60s climbing, hand-over-hand,
the icy face of a mountain. We are a tough
and spunky lot!

Ann Glendinnincj 68

CONTRIBUTORS

Allison 0. Adams '89 is a writer and editor at
Emory University, where she earned her
master's degree in English.

Lisa Ashmore, former manager of news services
for Agnes Scott College, is a free-lance writer
who also edits Designlntelligence, a monthly
for architects, designers and engineers.

Mary Brown Bullock '66 is President of Agnes
Scott College.

Christine S. Cozzens is associate professor of
English and director of the Center for Writing
and Speaking at Agnes Scott.

Wendy Cromwell is senior writer/editor at
Agnes Scott and editor of Main Events.

Dawn Sloan Downes '92 is a free-lance writer
who lives in Tucker, Ga., with her husband,
Scott, their dog, Cooper, and a cat named Mao.

Leisa Hammett-Goad is a mother, free-lance
writer and disability advocate living in
Nashville, Tenn.

Kristin Kallaher '04, Office of Communications
intern, is an English and psychology major from
Memphis, Tenn. She is the College's 2002
recipient of the Sara Wilson "Sally" Glendinning
Journalism Award.

Jennifer Bryon Owen is director of creative
services at Agnes Scott College and editor of
the Agnes Scott Alumnae Magazine.

Tina Pippin is associate professor of religious
studies at Agnes Scott and author of The
Biblical End of the World in Text and Images
(Routledge, 1999) and Death and Desire: The
Rhetoric of Gender in the Apocalypse of John
(Westminster John Knox Press, 1992).

Jadwega Sebrechts is president of the
Women's College Coalition, an association
representing the 70 women's colleges in the
United States and Canada.

Lorayne Bryan Weizenecker is a free-lance
writer, master gardener and author of Waxing
and Waning, a novel set in the North Georgia
mountains.

letters 35

WOMEN AND
THE CIVIL RIGHTS
MOVEMENT

Deep in Our Hearts

Nmc While Women in the Freedom

Movement

The University of Georgia Press,

Athens C ,.i 2IKI0

The Nine Women

Constance Curry '55 (contributor and
editor i loan C Browning, Dorothy
Dawson Burlage, Penny Patch, Theresa
Del Pozzo, SueThrasher, Elaine DeLott
Baker, Emmie Schrader Adams, Casey
I la\ den

The 1960s Civil Rights Movement
led the way toward racial equality.
Leaders such as Martin Luther
King Jr. and Fannie Lou Hamer are well
known. Only recently have the fuller sto-
ries of others, especially women, been
told. In Deep in Our Hearts nine white
women share backgrounds, experiences
and the profound effect their involvement
in working for racial equality had on their
lives. These women transgressed bound-
aries and laws governing a segregated
society, many commonalities exist.

At various points their lives inter-
sected in organizations such as the
National Student Association's (NSA)
Southern Project, Student Nonviolent
Coordinating Committee (SNCC),
Albany Freedom Riders and Southern
Student Organizing Committee (SSOC).
The college experience, where their
racial equality awareness began, was
extremely inlluential for most

( ( instance ( urry '55 was a freshman
at Agnes Scott when her awareness ol the
largei national agenda on race relations
was raised, and her involvement in the
NSA led to being elected chair ol the
National Student Association's Great
Southern Region

Meetings provided the support com-
munity and were often the crucial turning
points in the growing consciousness.
These women moved through a griel
process in terms of their own complicity

in the structures of oppression and their
white privilege They moved through
ignorance, guilt, shame, fear to an active
commitment tor civil and human rights.
Once they were conscienticized there
was no turning back.

Through interracial experiences, the
commitment of these women formed.
Common experiences involved and
evolved over many issues such as, lunch
counter sit-ins, voter registration and
grassroots and anti-Vietnam war organiz-
ing. They were willing to commit civil
disobedience to change society. Each
woman put her life on the line and had
to deal with the dangers of this inter-
racial work, with fear and burn out and
had to learn to live on the margins of
Southern society.

These nine began to see the intersec-
tions between racism, classism (poverty)
and sexism. Most of these
women became involved
in the feminist movement,
seeking to change the sta-
tus of women as they chal-
lenged the status of
African-Americans and
the poor.

Deep in Our Hearts
raises the importance of
remembering the past and
what this memory means
for the present struggle for
human rights and social
transformation. Thrasher
gives us a wake-up call
noting that in the 21st
century ". . . we seem farther and farther
away from resolving the issues of racism
that have plagued our country's history."

This book is not |ust a series of
events but remains a reality as these
women continue working for justice.
They recall a nonviolent challenge for
these violent times, where the Other
includes race, class, ethnicity, national
origin, religion, age, ability and sexuality.
They offer lessons for living in this 21st
century world, and I wanted to hear more
from each about her involvement in cur-
rent issues. This highly readable book is
an important addition to this historical
period and to the necessity for continuing
kings dream

Tina Pippin

CONSTANCE CURRY IN DEEP IN
OUR HEARTS

believe Agnes
Scott was the
only white
Southern member
in the region
[National Student
Association's Great
Southern Region] for some time," says
Curry in the book. "Undaunted by the
challenge, I was thrilled to be chair of
the region and remember clearly
laboring into the night in the base-
ment of 'Main,'. . . My 'office,' provided
by the dean's office at my insistence,
was a janitor's closet, lit by a bulb that
hung on a cord from the ceiling, and it
held two cardboard file
boxes, a small table and
a chair."

After organizing a
regional meeting Curry
realized segregation's
impact. The group was
meeting at the Luckie
Street YMCA in down-
town Atlanta, the only
place, she says, that
would run the risk of
giving a room for an
integrated meeting.
"When noon came,
the black delegates walked down the
steps of the Y and headed toward
Auburn Avenue to the black restau-
rants. The rest of us walked down the
steps and headed in the other direc-
tion," recalls Curry. "I realized then
that segregation took away my per-
sonal freedom as surely as if I were
bound by invisible chains."

Editor's Note: Constance Curry '55 and
Elizabeth Wilson, former mayor of Decatur,
ivill speak on "The Civil Rights Movement in
Atlanta" during the College's Martin Luther
King Jr. Convocation in Presser Hall,
January 2-1, 2003.

36 AGNES SCOTT FALL 2002

GIVING ALUMNA

Two for the price of one produces unlimited results

When planning their vacations, Barbara Dudley '86,
and husband, Lee, head to their local library,
surround themselves with books and research their
latest destination.

"Our love of travel was sparked, in part, by Professor
[Michael] Brown. Now we turn each trip into a research project,
spending hours studying and
learning about each place we visit,"
says Barbara.

Lee, who encouraged Barbara
to enroll at Agnes Scott in 1 984 as
a Return-to-College student [now
Woodruff Scholar], got to know
Brown and several of Barbara's
other professors while she was a
student. He loved reading her
notes and the texts she read for her
classes. Today he jokes, "We paid
for one education and got two!"

Lee admits to being impressed
by the people at Agnes Scott. "I
was surprised when I got to know
some of the faculty and students.
They exhibit such an extraordi-
nary quality in their passion for
learning. I knew Agnes Scott was a
unique place," he says.

Of course, Barbara's father whose aunt was married to
President James R. McCain (1923-1951) had been telling
Barbara for many years how special Agnes Scott was. Despite her
family's encouragement, Barbara began her undergraduate career
at a school closer to their home, attending first Mt. Vernon
College in Washington, D.C., and then the University of
Louisville. After moving to Atlanta and engaging in a successful

Barbara Dudley '86 and husband, Lee, peruse travel resources.

career as a trainer for a local bank, Barbara decided to finish her
degree at Agnes Scott.

"Agnes Scott truly whetted my appetite for knowledge. The
faculty teach you to think and analyze rather than simply giving
you the answers. The experience expanded me intellectually and
fueled my desire to continue learning once 1 was out of school,"

she says.

This passion for education and
a lifelong sense of connection to
Agnes Scott led Barbara to con-
sider ways she and Lee could help
other women have the same expe-
rience. Just as she was planning to
bring the issue up to her husband,
he came to her with the sugges-
tion they include the College in
their wills, which contain bequests
to fund a scholarship. Thus, the
intent for the Boyce and Helen
Martin Scholarship was born.

"Barbara's father and I were
especially close. He was so
enthusiastic about Agnes Scott
that creating a scholarship fund in
his and her mother's names seemed
like a nice remembrance," says
Lee. When fully funded, this unrestricted scholarship will
support up to four students.

"The small size of Agnes Scott makes it seem like a part of
your family and getting involved becomes easier. Gifts to the
College feel far more personal than gifts to other larger organi-
zations," says Barbara. "For that reason alone, alumnae should
consider including Agnes Scott as part of their planned giving."

Dawn Sloan Downes '92

The Power of One

ONE GIFT YOURS UNDERGIRDS AGNES SCOTT'S
LEGACY OF EXCELLENCE.

Your gift to the Annual Fund makes a difference for more
than 900 current students and for untold numbers to come.

Send your donation today. Just place your check or credit card
information inside the envelope in this magazine. You may also
contribute online through our secure Web site at https://web.
agnesscott.edu/dev/gift.html. For more information, call
800 868-8602, ext. 6472.

Every gift to the Annual Fund is also a gift to Bold Aspirations:
The Campaign for Agnes Scott College.

Agnes Scott College

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JOIN OUR CIRCLE

Frances Winship Walters Society

T

hrough her gifts to the College, Frances Winship Walters helped to ensure the continuance of
Agnes Scott's liberal arts tradition. You can join a circle of friends with similar commitments by
including Agnes Scott College in your will or planned giving.

Planned gifts are an excellent way to support Bold Aspirations: The Campaign for Agnes Scott
College. All charitable gift annuities, most charitable remainder trusts, and documented bequest intentions
from donors who will reach age 70 by June 30, 2004, count as gifts to the campaign.

for more information, contact Chip Wallace, director of planned giving, at 800 868-8602 or
cwallace@agnesscott.edu.

C.J# "

S8^"

WfF r

1

Leading Science

AGNES SCOTT CELEBRATES
SCIENCE AS A LIBERAL ART

^w

^H

ft * *

SIGNATURE

Think . . . Live . . . Engage

gnes Scott educates women to
think deeply, live honorably
and engage the intellectual
and social challenges of their
times.
At the end of the seems-like-forever
process that brought the College to this
new and elegant formulation of its mission,
I, as a participant, am struck by how per-
fectly fresh the statement is, and yet how
deeply familiar. Agnes Scott today is cer-
tainly a long way from what I knew when I
came in I960: A younger schoolmate of
mine is now the President, the Board chair
is a friend and classmate, students come
from countries and cultures we then knew
only from a distance and there is an eager-
ness for connection to the larger commu-
nities around the College that opens it to a
range of social and intellectual experiences
we could barely imagine.

Yet I feel the principles in the restate-
ment of the College's mission are precisely
those that were at work in my time, before
my time and after it that they truly
express the purpose of the College since
its founding. My generation wrestled with
the immense questions of civil rights,
responsibility for our reproductive lives as
The Pill became a reality, and more. Every
generation since has had its challenges
and has sought ways through and after its
years at Agnes Scott to address them seri-
ously and honorably

I am pleased to chair the College's
newly-created Communications Advisory
Committee. Our mandate from President
Mary Brown Bullock '66 is to ensure all
College publications fully and honestly
reflect our commitment to the mission of
the < i illegi and i >ui u illingness to recog
nize, address and honor the many ways
our alumnae, students, teachers and
administrators express their understanding
of that mission in then lives and work.

Our group is composed ol alumnae of
recent to somewhat less recent vintage,

College officers, faculty members, senior
members of the communications staff
and, through us, you, our readers. We have
begun by considering what we now
publish: Mitih Events, the Antics Scott Alumnae
Magazine, the President's Report, the Bold
Aspirations newsletter and a variety of
stunning brochures.

We are asking ourselves a set of first
questions. Do these publications give you
a real sense of Agnes Scott todays What's
serious, what's funny, what's happening,
what's not happening? What issues are
contentious and how are they addressed?
Who is doing what, where and also why?
Who are our students, our faculty? Are
you inspired to rethink your connection to
the College in some way: Correspond with
a student about her travel or research

Agnes Scott College

educates women to think

deeply, live honorably

and engage the

intellectual and social

challenges of their times.

plans, find out how psycho-biology is
taught (and, perhaps, what it actually is),
tell us what you think about a faculty pub-
lication, an alumnae gathering, a meeting
with the President? If you say yes to any
of these questions, stay with us.

We seek ways to bring our readers
the stakeholders in Agnes Scott's future-
closer to the thoughtful energy and
intelligence expressed in every College
initiative as we strive to become the pre-
mier women's liberal arts college in the
United States.

One symbol of our new intent is the
magazine's name change to Agnes Scott The
Magazine. This name indicates that all
aspects of the College's mission are

brought to you through these pages.

Each issue continues our practice of
featuring one theme. The place of science
in a liberal arts curriculum and the place of
our new science building in the physical,
psychological and intellectual landscape of
the College is this issue's focus. Future
issues will feature art, women's studies, reli-
gion, ethics, diversity and teaching.

We plan to look beyond print commu-
nications and build on the newly created
alumnae on-line network toward opportu-
nities for discussion groups, postings of
comments, questions and other means of
engagement with one another and with
the College. An alumnae body numbering
nearly 10,000 means many strong, inter-
esting and committed lives are being led in
all parts of the world by Agnes Scott
women. We want to stay connected to
those stories and to share them.

A classmate involved in cross-cultural
work recently remarked to me, "Of course,
you don't ever really understand people
until you've eaten their food, shared their
rituals and danced to their music." The
growing diversity of our alumnae body
and of the entire College community
extends to each of us an invitation to an
increasingly rich table of experiences,
points of view and feelings. We believe
every dish has savor that adds to our
mutual and shared enrichment, and we
want to be sure our publications reflect
that conviction. Because we believe doing
so is what "engaging the intellectual and
social challenges of our time" most deeply
enjoins us to do.

Please write ore-mail us Letters are
moving to the front of the magazine!

0-

-Sara Ector Vagliano '63

Agne$ h g Qj;i

SPRING/SUMMER 2003 I VOLUME 79 I NUMBER 2

Agnes Scott College educates women to think
deeply, live honorably and engage in the
intellectual and social challenges of their times.

DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

Mary Ackerly

EDITOR

Jennifer Bryon Owen

DESIGNER

Winnie Hulme

COMMUNICATIONS INTERN

Kristin Kallaher '04

COMMUNICATIONS ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Sara Ector Vagliano '63, chair

Mary Ackerly

Lara Webb Carrigan '94

Christine S. Cozzens

Marilyn Johnson Hammond '68

Elizabeth Anderson Little '66

Susan Coltrane Lowance '55

Sally Taylor Manning '82

Jennifer Bryon Owen

Lewis Thayne

We encourage you to share views and opinions.
Please send them to: Editor, Agnes Scott The
Magazine, Agnes Scott College, Rebekah Annex,
141 E. College Ave., Decatur, GA 30030 or e-mail to:
pubtication@agnesscott.edu.

2003 Agnes Scott College. Published for alumnae and friends twice a
year by the Office of Communications, Agnes Scott College, Rebekah
Annex, 141 E. College Ave., Decatur, GA 30030.

The content of the magazine reflects the opinions of the writers and
not the viewpoint of the College, its trustees or administration.

Change of address: Send address changes by mail to Office of
Development, Agnes Scott College, 141 East College Ave , Decatur,
GA 30030, by telephone, call 404 471-6472 or by e-mail to
dcvelopment@aclnKscott.ctlu

E-mail: publication@agnesscott.edu
Web site: wwwagnesscott.edu

Agnes Scott Alumnae Magazine is recipient of:

Award of Excellence for Alumni Magazines, CASE District III

Advancement Awards, 2001
Best of Category, Fall 2002 issue, Printing Industry

Association of Georgia
Award of Excellence, Spring 2002 issue, Printing Industry

Association of Georgia

Cover image Imtek Imagineering, Inc/CORBIS

FEATURES

10 Seeing Clearly
with Fuzzy Logic

There's nothing Jazzy about this alumna's
flight to the top of one of the country's
premier aerospace firms, by lisa ashmore

12 Cheers?

Alcohol abuse a leader in the substance
abuse category on college campuses
is anything but a cheery topic for college
administrators, by dolly purvis '89

16 An Ingredient for
Deliverance or Disaster?

An Agnes Scott professors looks at the
pros and cons of genetically modified food
now appearing on grocery shelves.

BY TIMOTHY S. FINCO

20 H 2 Oandthe
Writing Life

Clues to this writer's life suiface in an
unlikely symbol, by Jennifer bryon owen

22 Builder of Singapore's
Biotech Future

High-risk bets on promising ideas dictate
a fast-paced lifestyle for this scientist.

BY MELANIE S. BEST '79

24 Leading Science

The new Science Center positions
Agnes Scott to pursue ambitious goals
in science as well as continue educating
leaders in the field, by kate ravin

32 Why Not

Agnes Scott's DNA?

Discover how modern science provides
a unique link to the College's histoiy.

BY HARRY WISTRAND

DEPARTMENTS

2 Letters

3 On Campus
6 World View
35 Lifestyle

READER'S VOICE

With //'is issue of Agnes Scott The Magazine,
the letters column is being opened /or readers to
express themselves about any aspect of the College
as well as commenting on the magazine itsclj. We
welcome your thoughts'

Thank You, Constance

Dear Editor:

When 1 first read the article, 1 began a
letter of appreciation lor Constance. Then
other events took over, and now 1 want to
make amends. Thank you, Constance, for
your review of your participation in inter-
racial activities in the 1950s. Hats Off! to
you The fact that Agnes Scott College
gave official recognition to those kinds of
experiences in the 1950s reminded me of
the entirely different situation we faced in
the 1936-1940 period when 1 was a student
there at Agnes Scott.

Beginning in 1937, when it was stdl
illegal in Georgia to participate in inter-
racial meetings, a small group of students
from Georgia Tech, Emory and Agnes
Scott began meeting with students at
Atlanta University under sponsorship of
the YWCA, YMCAs and/or Christian
associations on those campuses. We met
on Sunday afternoons about once a
month, primarily to become acquainted
with each other and to discuss ways in
which we could help work toward a better
society that was more just and inclusive,
one that more nearly reflected the teach-
ings of Christ. The first meetings took
place at the Auburn Avenue YMCA and
then moved to Gammon Theological
Seminary. There was, of course, no official
sponsorship by Agnes Scott, Emory or
Georgia Tech. To make a long story short,
the culmination of my participation with
the group was a day-long meeting at
Payne College (an all-black college) in
1939, which I attended with the group
from Emory, mostly theology students. I
think I was the only Agnes Scott student
there. (No special virtue on my part:
Others wanted to go and would have
gone. My being a day student made it
easier for me to go without causing any
problem on campus. )

I am indebted to Agnes Scott, its faculty
and the College's policy of dedication to
C hristian teachings and to the spirit of

concern for justice and equal opportunity
that reinforced values held by my family.
Those concerns guided my years of volun-
teer and professional work, including work
to keep Georgia's schools open after
integration and to achieve compliance
in Atlanta with the Federal Public
Accommodations Law of the Johnson
Administration.

Again, thanks Constance Curry for
your significant contributions to the cause
of equal opportunity. You were operating
above board and out in the open and on
the cutting edge and with courage. That
you had the knowledge of and official sup-
port from Agnes Scott was in itself a mark
of progress in the policies of the 1950s
over those of the 1940s, progress from
which the college has never retreated.

Elizabeth "Betty" A. Vinson 'jo

A Beacon of Probity

Dear Editor:

1 think we will be proud of our first
Congresswoman. In her years as a Florida
legislator, Katherine Harris distinguished
herself in her support of education and the
arts as well as international trade.

As for the election whirlwind of 2000
in Florida, it seemed to me that she was a
beacon of probity. Even though I had
voted for Gore, and even before I learned
that she was an Agnes Scott graduate, I
admired her poise and her steady adher-
ence to the law as she carried out the duty
for which she had been elected. The ques-
tions I had about her prior responsibility
for the voting mess were fully answered in
her subsequent interviews on television
and in her firmly courteous appearance
before the very uncivil chairman of the
Civil Rights Commission.

The howling gales of Congress will be
mere zephyrs to a freshman member who
withstood that media-crazed hurricane
in Florida.

Eleanor Newman Hutchens 40

Ideologically Skewed

Dear Madame President:
Whether your own political philosophy is
to the right or to the left, as an outstanding
educator of the 2 1st century, you should be
in favor of at least a balanced point of view.

I greatly fear that AGNES SCOTT
COLLEGE must lately be among the
"leftist" thinkers. Otherwise, why would
you be featuring a woman such as Angela
Davis as a role model for our daughters?
There are so many attractive, brilliant and
successful women in our society who truly
outshine Ms. Davis in all categories of
admirable traits. Why do you choose such
an unsavory character? Isn't it bad enough
that this infamous woman is poisoning
youthful minds in Southern California?

Please direct your attention to the
enclosed magazine articles that have
recently upset me a great deal I have
discussed these matters with many of our
alumnae, and we are all broken-hearted to
find that our alma mater has become so
ideologically skewed. Our daughters are
being fed anti-American and un-Christian
thoughts in a critical time for our nation
and the world.

Please permit me to remind you and
AGNES SCOTT COLLEGE Board of
Trustees concerning the stated "Mission
and Purpose of Agnes Scott College" as
quoted from a statement adopted by that
Board 13 May 1988 and amended 29
October 1993.

"The founders of the College envi-
sioned an institution dedicated to excel-
lence in higher education and committed
to the Christian faith

Throughout its history, Agnes Scott
college has sought to maintain the ideals
of its founders: 'a high standard of
scholarship.'

* and "the formation and development
of Christian character."

* Agnes Scott College affirms its rela-
tionship to the Judeo-Christian tradition.

" The values of this tradition are central
to the life of the College.

" The Christian faith continues to shape
the mission and purpose of the College.''

These words indeed ring hollow in
view of the recent College policies dis-
cussed in my opening statements. Please
re-examine the College "Mission and
Purpose" with a mind to return to the
stated Mission and Purpose of the College
Founders as you continue in educating
our daughters.

Barbara Young Reiland 50

2 AGNES SCOTT SPRI NG/SUMMER 2003

ON CAMPUS

Understanding bats, worms, grasshoppers and dye provides insights for scientists;
science and math expertise allows students and College to shine.

BATGIRL LANDS
ATASC

With a yawn and a smack of his lips,
Belfry settles himself upside-down
on the collar of Elizabeth Hartman '06,
looking like a fuzzy brown brooch. His
palm-sized body vibrates as he snoozes.

"He's purring," Hartman explains. "Bats
purr when they're content, just like cats."

And Hartman should know she has
been rescuing bats since she was 14. She is
one of 10 wildlife rehabilitators licensed
by the Georgia Department of Natural
Resources to handle rabies-prone species
(which required that she receive a series of
rabies pre-exposure shots and take a test
on protocols for managing rabid animals).
And she is one of only seven rehabilitators
in the state specializing in bats.

Although Hartman, a 19-year-old first-
year from Lilburn, Ga., is taking a break
from her wildlife work while in school, she
typically cares for 20 to 25 animals per
year mainly bats, but also opossums,
squirrels and rabbits. All but three of the
22 bats she cared for last year survived.

As a toddler, Hartman began helping
her mother rehabilitate bats through a
program at Zoo Atlanta. Several years
after her mother gave up the volunteer
work to return to a full-time job, Hartman
took over.

"1 love the challenge," she says. "And
bats are so misunderstood. When 1 tell
people 1 take care of bats, they usually say,
'That's disgusting.' But when I show them
Belfry and they see how cute and soft he
is, all of a sudden they get a new idea in
their minds."

In fact, Hartman frequently takes Belfry
and other creatures who, like Belfry, have
been certified by the DNR as educational
animals to elementary schools. "The kids
love it," she says. "I tell them how bats see
and use echolocation [a high-pitched sig-
nal that helps them sense their surround-

ings], show how their wings are like hands
and explain what they should do if they
find a wild animal that's sick."

Hartman has contributed to scientific
understanding of bats. Last year she wrote
a paper on how she diagnosed and treated
a skin problem Belfry suffered. "Nobody
could figure it out," she recalls. "Finally, by

Elizabeth Hartman '06 and Belfry

trial and error with different vitamins, I
discovered it was a fatty acid deficiency."
Excerpts of Hartman's paper will be
included in a forthcoming volume on bat
husbandry by her Zoo Atlanta mentor, Sue
Barnard.

Hartman receives animals located any-
where from five minutes to several hours
away through a referral network. They
often come to her as infants or as sick or
injured adults anything from pneumonia
to a torn wing membrane. During the
summer, the height of bat season, she

sticks close to home for round-the-clock
feedings and care. Hartman has never
gotten sick from handling an animal.

Because bat pups usually imprint on
their human caregivers and are difficult to
train to hunt for themselves, they tend to
remain permanently in zoos, where they
can live as long as 20 years. Many rehabil-
itated adults, however, are returned to the
wild. If an adult can sustain flight for 10
minutes, Hartman will release it. "I let
them fly around the house and time it," she
says, adding that she posts signs to remind
her family to keep the doors shut.

When Hartman rescued Belfry, a big
brown bat (the most common type in the
Southeast) in June 200 1 , he was 2 days old
and required feedings of milk every two
hours. He was about an inch and a half
long and hairless, and his eyes were closed.
"He had fallen from the attic to the garage
of a woman's house near here," she says.
"He actually had a twin. Most big browns
only have one baby, and usually if they
have two they drop one." Because Belfry
was so young and had imprinted on
Hartman, she received special permission
from the DNR to keep him as a pet.

This year, Hartman is pursuing a
special license through the U.S.
Department of Agriculture that will allow
her to bypass DNR paperwork in order to
keep other unreleasable animals perma-
nently captive. Without either the license
or paperwork, those animals must be
euthanized. Although she continues to
build her qualifications as a rehabilitator,
Hartman, an English major and environ-
mental studies minor, plans to keep the
work an avocation.

"I'd like to be a book editor and work at
home and take care of wildlife on the side,"
she says. "That's my dream job."

Allison Adams '89

Allison Adams '89 is a writer and editor at Emory
University, where she earned her master's degree in English.

on campus 3

RESEARCH
FLOURISHES IN
NEW FACILITY

Amid moving and settling into the
Science Center, professors and stu-
dents continue to build upon the College's
strong tradition of research.

"We did wonderful science in Campbell
Hall, in spite of its limitations, including
no air conditioning for many years," says
Harry Wistrand, professor of biology,
during the center's dedication Feb. 7. "The
tradition will continue, but we now have a
facility and instrumentation that allow
faculty and students to have no limitations
other than our minds."

For its size, Agnes Scott is equipped
with unusually active science departments.
The College holds three National Science

microscope/atomic force microscope.

"We're small not as big as major
research institutions so we can offer
students a chance to get into labs," says
Barbara Blatchley, associate professor of
psychology and department chair. "At
larger schools, labs are dedicated to grad-
uate students.

"Our students get a leg up because we
are small and can emphasize hands-on
research," Blatchley says.

A bio-psychologist, Blatchley is study-
ing how changes in the environment affect
behavior as she investigates the biology of
depression.

Her research class is making a video
including funny and dry clips to see how
humor and laughter affect stress responses.

The more stressed a person becomes,
the more distressed his or her immune sys-

For the project, Zheng is helping clone
certain sections of DNA into vectors so
Finco can determine what triggers a gene
to go to work.

"We are cloning certain regions that we
think contain promoter sequences that
activate genes in T-cells," Zheng says. "We
have several candidates for the promoter
region from searching sequences on the
Internet. We have successfully cloned
three of these sequences."

Fernandez-Colarz is working on split-
ting transformed T-cells and monitoring
their growth rates. "We can grow these
cells and use this chemical agent to emu-
late what happens in a living person when
this cell encounters an antigen."

Both students and Finco say the new
center and equipment support their work
better.

Karen Thompson's biology class prepares to dissect sharks. The College's size and the numerous labs in the new Science Center allow students to gain
valuable hands-on lab experience.

Foundation grants astronomy, physics
and biology all emphasizing undergrad-
uate research.

Professors and students search for how
a gene is turned on and solution absorp-
tion rates. They examine the neurobiology

tern becomes, she says. 'This is why you see
so many sick students around mid-terms ."
Blatchley wants to see if laughter truly
is the best medicine. Does it make a person
feel better: 1 She is interested in alternative
treatments for depression to drugs, which

of grasshoppers. They explore the devel- change a person's biochemistry.

opment of the brain and the evolution of
marine organisms.

These are but a few of the projects
under wav in dedicated laboratory space
and psychology observation suites with
new equipment and instalments, including
a laser scanning confocal microscope, a
nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer
and a STM/AFM scanning tunneling

"A placebo can change your brain
Nothing but expectation can change your
brain," she says.

In the biology department, Tim Finco,
assistant professor, and two students,
Carina Fernandez-Colarz 03 and Cindy
Zheng '04, are looking at how genes are
turned on and off, "which directly impacts
health and diseases."

"It is more efficient," Zheng says. The
machines can finish a cycle in two or three
hours, which gives us more time to move
on to the next step '

"We are incorporating technology right
from the beginning," Fernandez-Colarz
says. "It is a huge advantage. The quality
and integrity of science education got bet-
ter. We now have a bigger tool box."

"The new building is phenomenal,"
Finco says. "We have more space to do our
research better facilities and better
equipment I would not have been able to
continue my research in Campbell. The
new building is integral to our research."

Karen Thompson, associate professor

4 AGNES SCOTT SPR I NG/SUMME R 2003

"Understanding how the use of these developmental toolkit genes

varies in different organisms, especially those with unique body plans,

will provide important insight into the origin of animal diversity."

of biology, is studying how neural circuits
are organized to produce behaviors in
grasshoppers. She is specifically looking at
rhythmic behavior found only in females.

"What does this mean? Is it a pre-
existing behavior?" asked Thompson, who
has two students, Sharayne Mark '04 and
Julia Downs '03, helping her.

Central nervous systems of all animals
house underlying neural circuits, which
organize rhythmic behaviors such as
breathing or locomotion, Thompson says.

"We are looking at the morphology of
neurons involved in rhythmic behavior in
grasshoppers," she says of the female

rhythmic behavior. "Insects have similar
starting points. Something happened to
modify, to produce different behaviors."

In broad terms, John Pilger, professor
of biology, is studying genes that control
embryonic development. By doing so he
hopes to better understand the mecha-
nisms that have led to the evolution of
animal diversity. His subjects are two
understudied marine organisms, peanut
worms and spoon worms, which have
intriguing body plans.

"One of the most exciting recent dis-
coveries is the recognition that the same
genes are used to build the bodies of
worms, flies, humans and probably all ani-
mals," Pilger says of developmental biology.

"Understanding how the use of these

developmental toolkit genes varies in dif-
ferent organisms, especially those with
unique body plans, will provide important
insight into the origin of animal diversity,"
Pilger says.

On another scale, Pilger is trying to
determine organisms to which the spoon
and peanut worms are most closely related
"We have some general ideas about their
relationships, but the existing data are
somewhat ambiguous."

By discovering, cloning and testing for
the functional roles of the developmental
genes, the "tools" used to build animal's
body plans, Pilger hopes to provide pow-
erful new information to better understand
the evolution of these worms and other
animals.

In chemistry, Rebecca Poole '04 is
working with Ruth Riter, assistant profes-
sor, to determine the ability of a dye to
probe the motion of the interface between
oil and water. Although basic research,
applications include improving solar
power conversion to electricity.

This research measures the absorbance
of the dye in reverse micelle solutions. If
you have recently taken a bath or washed
your clothes, you have used micelles (or
colloidal ions composed of an oriented
arrangement of molecules) .

"For example when you wash clothes,
the detergent forms micelles," says Poole,
explaining how micelles help oil dissolve
in water. "The detergent goes to the oil
stain, surrounds it and helps dissolve it
where it is happy. This lifts the stain out
when you rinse it."

Working with Riter introduced Poole
to the lab atmosphere. "Lab work is 90 per-
cent making mistakes and 10 percent fix-
ing them," says Poole, who presented a
poster with Riter at the national American
Chemical Society meeting in New Orleans
this spring.

"Dr. Riter is an amazing woman," she
says. "She is so excited about science. I was
not very research-oriented, but she was
more than willing to let me go in there
[into the lab] and help me. She is great
about fostering a research environment."

Wendy Cromwell
Wendy Cromwell, senior writer/editor in the Office of
Communications, is ifce editor of Main Events.

STUDENTS
STRIKE GOLD

Catherine T "Katie" Jordan '05 and
Audrey L Powers '04 have earned
Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships for the
2003-2004 academic year.

"Winning a Goldwater in itself is an
exceptional achievement, but to be the
only Atlanta college or university with two
Goldwater recipients in the same year is
outstanding," says President Mary Brown
Bullock '66. "Audrey's achievements in
mathematics and Katie's accomplishments
in biology represent the kind of outstand-
ing academic performance for which
Agnes Scott College is known."

Jordan and Powers are two of 300
sophomore and junior undergraduates
awarded Goldwater Scholarships and were
selected on academic merit from a field of
1 ,093 mathematics, science and engineer-
ing students nominated by the faculties of
colleges and universities nationwide.

The scholarships cover the cost of
tuition, fees, books and room and board up
to a maximum of $7,500 per year. As a
sophomore, Jordan receives a scholarship
for her final two years and Powers' scholar-
ship applies to her last undergraduate year.

Powers was nominated by mathematics
professors Myrtle Lewin and Larry Riddle.
She intends to pursue a doctorate in pure
mathematics at Georgia Institute of
Technology, Emory University or another
Atlanta-area university.

"I would like to hold a university posi-
tion teaching and researching mathemat-
ics," says Powers, of Holdrege, Neb.

Biology professor Harry Wistrand
nominated Jordan. She wants to pursue
M.D. and Ph D degrees and hopes to con-
duct medical research.

"1 hope to be able to research the
molecular nature of pediatric illnesses,
direct a research lab and mentor under-
graduate students," says Jordan, of Cedar
Falls, Iowa.

The Goldwater Foundation is a feder-
ally endowed agency. The Scholarship
Program honoring U.S. Sen. Barry M.
Goldwater was designed to foster and
encourage outstanding students to pursue
careers in the fields of mathematics, the
natural sciences and engineering. In its 1 5-
year history, the foundation has awarded
3,962 scholarships.

Lee Dancy
Lee Dancy is manager of the College's news services.

on campus 5

ecoming a

Her journey to Northern Ireland
leads an Agnes Scott student
across invisible barriers within
and without.

Essay and photos by Kristin Kallaher '04

When I set foot in Derry's Catholic Bogside neighborhood in
Northern Ireland on Jan. 12, my mind immediately envi-
sioned what happened there decades before Had 1 been
standing a few blocks down that same street on Jan. 30,
1972, a date later known worldwide as Bloody Sunday, my
life would have been in danger. I would have been asphyxiated by the explosion of
CS gas grenades,- my eyes would have been confronted with gutted, firebombed
and graffitied stores and bars,- my ears would have been ringing from gunfire,- and
my body would have been prepared to dodge water cannons and rubber bullets
Hred bv British soldiers.

On that day, the Bogside joined the
ranks of Prague and Paris, of Birmingham
and Selma, as Irish Nationalists took to
the streets in mass civil disobedience.
Violence, bubbling up in Northern Ireland
for decades, boiled over, lust a few hun-
dred feet away from where I stood, 13
unarmed Catholics, who had begun the
day in a peaceful civil rights march protest-
ing internment of fellow Catholics, were
killed by British soldiers.

I was not so naive as to expect bombed-
out buildings or gunfire routine sights

and sounds during the period in Northern
Ireland known as "The Troubles" to
assail me, though. It was day 1 5 of a 20-day
trip around Ireland with 20 of my class-
mates and two professors. Those of us on
the Global Connections: Literary Ireland
tour had crossed the "invisible border"
from the Republic of Ireland into Northern
Ireland The number of British troops in
the region has been reduced from as many
as 46,000 at the height of The Troubles to
6,500 today, allowing the border to be
considerably less conspicuous than it once

6 AGNES SCOTT SPR I NG/SUMM E R 2003

was, thus becoming "invisible."

While standing in front of the powerful
white wall in Bogside that proclaimed in
black, "You are now entering Free
Derry," a once-bold assertion by
Catholic Nationalists who formed a
pseudo-state in 1972 to repudiate British
authority 1 saw a girl in her school
uniform walking down the street. She and
1 had a lot in common. For nine years, I
wore a black and red plaid pleated skirt
and a white oxford button-down
shirt to my private
Catholic school in
Memphis, Tenn. 1
went to Mass at least
twice a week, had reli-
gion class every day
and had nuns and
priests as schoolteach-
ers. But that was before I
went to Northern Ireland.
1 learned the truth on my
visit to Derry: Although
she and I may share certain
similarities, I was far from
being like her.

When I was growing up,
I didn't know what it
was like to have my religion or the place
where I lived be a political statement. In
Derry and Belfast, many people live in
neighborhoods where street curbs and
streetlamps are politicized. In Catholic
neighborhoods, curbs and lamps are
painted green, white and orange, and in
Protestant neighborhoods they are painted
red, white and blue. Even the pictures in
their homes either of the Sacred Heart
of Jesus or the Queen become political
contrasts.

As we rode into the city of Derry, or
Londonderry, as it is known by many of its

Although many people perceive

Northern Ireland to be dangerous,

the truth is acts of violence occur

on a stunningly low level.

British inhabitants, we passed a piece of
sculpture called "Hands Across the
Divide." Two nondescript young men
stand apart, their hands reaching out to
each other but not quite touching. The
sculpture was one of the first things we
saw, but it remains one of the things I most
remember. While symbolic of how far

Protestants and Catholics have come, the
sculpture reveals the gap that still exists.

Understanding the conflict in Northern
Ireland is not easy. The differing factions
generally can be broken down into
Protestants, usually Unionists who support
the presence of British authority, and
Catholics, usually Nationalists who sup-
port the removal of British authority.
But the realitv is much

resulted in Protestant Unionists gaining a
majority in the local council. Today, the
numbers are closer to 50-50, but
Protestants still have a slight majority,
which means the British will continue to
rule Northern Ireland.

Derry, a center of violence during The
Troubles, is now devoted to peace and rec-
onciliation. The office of the mayor
rotates each year between a Protestant
and a Catholic, so power sharing is
more equitable despite the ultimately
British authority in Northern Ireland.

Although many people perceive
Northern Ireland to be danger-
ous, the truth is acts of violence
occur on a stunningly low level.
The media, operating under the
theory that bad news is news, has
contributed to a biased image of
a violent Northern Ireland in
recent years. To put things in
perspective, Dublin had 63

CHKIS ^EC 02ZEN5

more complicated,
because crossover
occurs. Such things
as a Protestant
Nationalist and a
Catholic Unionist
do exist.

In Derry for
instance, a city
founded in 546
A.D. by the
Catholic St. Columcille
many of the Protestants have lived there
almost as long as many of the Catholics.
Beginning about 1600, Protestant planters
from the city of London developed the fer-
tile land in the Foyle Valley, where
Derry which comes from the old Irish
"daire" meaning "oakgrove" is located. In
the 17th century, the English planters
erected massive stone walls around their
settlement, which became symbolic of
Protestant domination. The Catholics
responded by building churches and
neighborhoods (like the Bogside much
later) just outside the walls. In 1921, when
the partition of Ireland divided the country
into the Republic and Northern Ireland,
Derry became located four miles within
the Northern border. Gerrymandering

murders last year,-
Derry (population about 120,000) had
three,- and Atlanta had 1 19 in the first 10
months. The whole country of Northern
Ireland had 19 murders. Violence is con-
fined to a small number of extremists from
both sides: Republicans, who are extreme
Nationalists, and Loyalists, who are
extreme Unionists. The majority of people
in Northern Ireland Protestants and
Catholics, Unionists and Nationalists
want to live peacefully, an experience that
was aided greatly by President Clinton's
1995 visit and subsequent peace talks.

However, the story of our Derry tour
guide, Ronan McNamara, illustrates just
how volatile things were in Northern

PIONEER TOURIST 7

Ireland until the mid-1990s. Originally
from the city of Galway in the Republic of
Ireland, McNamara decided to attend
university in Deny about 12 years ago,
causing his father not to speak to him for a
year because he thought he'd never see his
son again.

Because of Northern Ireland's violent
reputation, tourism has come to the
country slowly. Deny has been almost
completely rebuilt in the last 15 years.
Belfast, which we also visited, had only
one or two hotels before 1995, when the
ceasefires were enacted and the economy
began to turn around.

"Only one out of every 1 tourists who
visit the island that is home to Northern
Ireland and the Republic of Ireland visits
Northern Ireland," McNamara told us. "So
you are all, in a sense, pioneer tourists."

N

ot ready to get back on the bus, I
stood among Derry's famous Bogside

wall murals, many depicting scenes of
Deny Catholics' struggle for civil rights. I
had been changed by visiting Deny, espe-
cially Bogside. My Catholic upbringing
and my grandfather's instilling me with the
story of my great-great-great-grandfather,
Michael Kallaher, who traveled to America
during the Potato Famine, caused me to
side mentally with the Catholics, even
though 1 no longer practice Catholicism.
But seeing people there their homes,
their churches and their businesses I
understood that for so many Protestants,
Northern Ireland is as much their home as
it is for Catholics. I also realized groups
such as the Irish Republican Army and
Sinn Fein, the army's political wing,
shoulder as much responsibility in the con-
flict as the British Army and the Police
Service of Northern Ireland, which is 90
percent Protestant.

We visited many beautiful and impres-
sive places among them the Waterford

Crystal factory, Blarney Castle, Yeat's Lake
Isle of Innisfree, the Cliffs of Moher,
Kilmainham Caol and the Giant's
Causeway throughout our 20 days on
the Emerald Isle. Although awed by all of
those sites, I was truly captivated by Deny
in Northern Ireland. The one place I really
did all those things you're supposed to do
when you travel broaden your horizons
and "see" the world was probably the
place in Ireland least likely to grace the
pages of glossy coffee table books. Out
of all the wonderful things 1 saw and
experienced, this was the story I wanted to
tell. I might have become a world traveler
in journeying to the island of Ireland, but
in crossing the "invisible border" into
Northern Ireland, I became a "pioneer
tourist."

Kristin Kallaher OJ, O/JiCf o/CommMHiCrthoMS intern, is
an English major. She is the Colleges 2002 recipient oj the
Sara Wilson "Sally" Gltniinnintj Journalism Award.

Only one out of every 10

tourists who visit the island

that is home to Northern

Ireland and the Republic of

Ireland visits Northern Ireland.

8 AGNES SCOTT SPRI NG/SU MUE R 2003

OPINION

Searching for Security

In this opinion piece, an alumna calls jor this country to use its power wisely.

by Alice Evans '61

When Nelson Mandela
was elected president
in the first all-race
election held in South
Africa, he and other
members of the African National Congress
had the awesome responsibility of shaping
a new democratic, nonracial, nonsexist
government. In combating the evil of
apartheid, Mandela reminded his col-
leagues to use their new power wisely and
"not become what we hate."

Since the Cold War, the United States
has emerged as the most powerful nation
in the world and can affect economic,
social and cultural patterns worldwide.
This role offers great opportunities, but the
role also presents Americans with an enor-
mous challenge to use our power wisely.

Following 9/1 1, my e-mail was filled
with words of sympathy and mutual
anguish from around the world. Less than
two years later, it is painful to hear the
increasing level of suspicion, hostility and
fear these same friends now have for the
United States.

In' recent polls taken in Great Britain
and the Middle East, the most feared
nation in the world is the United States.
Overseas friends and allies see us denounc-
ing accepted international protocols,
becoming isolated from historic European
and Asian allies, seeking to buy allegiance
from governments criticized for massive
human rights violations and withdrawing
promised funds for international health
programs that could save thousands of
women and children.

Much of our rationale for relying on
force appears to be based on fear of terror-
ist attacks similar to those of 9/11.
However, in our search for security, we risk
becoming what we hate. In what is per-
ceived by much of the world as an anti-
Muslim crusade, epitomized by war on
Afghanistan and Iraq, we offer justification
for Islamic militants to recruit hundreds if

not thousands more terrorists. We become
less, rather than more, secure.

Fear is leading a nation built on princi-
ples of democracy and freedom to adopt
laws that drastically curtail civil rights.
Noncitizens can be arrested and detained
based only on suspicion. Law enforcement
and intelligence agencies have broad
access to personal medical and financial
records with little if any judicial oversight.
The FBI may conduct surveillance of public

meetings, including religious services, with-
out evidence a crime has been committed.

Fear has led a nation purporting to
value peace to disregard pleas of allies and
disavow internationally accepted treaties
of nuclear disarmament while investing
billions of dollars in new nuclear weapons
and an unproven defense system.

A nation valuing democratic dialogue
has virtually abandoned diplomacy and
relies on military power.

Rather than responding in fear, our
nation has the status and capacity to lead
the world in making it a safer place for all
nations. 1 urge colleagues and friends of
Agnes Scott to consider:

Imploring our leaders to work
toward global peace by abdicating our role
as the world's largest arms supplier and by
calling for elimination of all weapons of
mass destruction,

Challenging openly the climate of
fear that leads Americans to acquiesce to
drastic limitations on civil liberties, stereo-
type all Muslims as terrorists and humiliate
foreign nationals with legal visas by finger-
printing them,

Urging our government to use its
wealth and power to form a global collab-
oration to ensure the stability of all
nations. Nobel laureate Oscar Arias
reminds us that if the wealthiest countries
redirected only 5 percent of what they
invest in arms to the needs of the poor, in
10 years we could guarantee basic health,
education, sufficient food and clean water
for every nation.

The world is interconnected and inter-
dependent, and only stability and peace in
the world will bring security to the United
States. 1 pray our nation will have the
humility to listen to friends and allies with
"ears that hear," we will have the courage
to be motivated less by fear and more by
a vision of human dignity and develop-
ment and we will have the wisdom to turn
away from the path toward becoming
what we hate.

Alice Frazer Evans 'fif ami husband, Robert, have worked
Jor justice m South Africa since 1972 when they were first
invited by Archbishop Desmond Tutu A senior fellow at
the Centre jor Conflict Resolution at the University of Cape
Town and a director of Plowshares Institute, Evans spends
more than 50 percent oj each year working in Indonesia,
China and several African countries. Alice, Robert and
Plowshares Institute were nominated for the 2002 Nobel
Peace Prize by two South African parliament members for
their reconciliation efforts after apartheid ended.

SEARCHING FOR SECURITY 9

There's nothing fuzzy
about this alumna's
flight to the top oj one
oj the country's premier
aerospace firms.

by Lisa Ashmore

SEEING CLEARLY

with fuzzy logic

Math is a presence Mary Pensworth Reagor '67
examines in her dreams. She finds it a mystery and
a veil, with beauty in its underlying structure.
She first perceived beauty in proofs while a
graduate student at the University of Texas in
Austin. "After you memorize about a hundred of them, you start
to see familiar patterns." Reagor began recognizing the "finger-
prints" of earlier mathematicians woven into proofs done years
later by others. Clever, elegant and useful techniques are often
reused later and, like a secret signature, signal contributions of
those earlier mathematicians.

Reagor is exactly the mathematician and scientist her doctor-
ate from Texas Christian University and 21 years at Lockheed
Martin say she is: One of her fuzzy logic applications for the aero-
space giant appears to hold multi-layered potential for solving
problems as diverse as understanding breast cancer patterns to
helping fighter pilots avoid crashes, especially under fire or stress.
The military calls the latter "ground-collision avoidance."

Early in her career, however, Reagor took a three-year leave of
absence from the industry to raise her two daughters that turned
into a 1 5-year hiatus. For eight years, she taught math and com-
puter science at Weatherford College, and she and her husband,
a graduate of Georgia Institute of Technology, continue to tutor
high school and college students.

But when General Dynamics, now Lockheed Martin, rolled
out the F-16 fighter aircraft in the 70s, Reagor was there. And
when the Fort Worth plant underwent a drastic decline (her com-
pany cut its workforce from about 24,000 to 6,000) she taught
herself a computer simulation language in order to do her own
coding. Her first programming job was a simulation filling seven
large boxes of punched cards, the only way to input information
into the computers.

R

eagor's Ph.D. extended concepts of a branch of mathematics
called topology, a study of shapes, using a generalization

technique called fuzzy logic. Fuzzy logic, contrary to what the
name seems to imply, is quite exact and attaches a precise mathe-
matical meaning to the many shades of gray between the black
and white of traditional "true or false" logic. It enables words like
"faster" and "almost", for example, to be exactly understood by
a computer.

Reagor's patented discovery is derived from concepts related
to fuzzy logic. Her invention is a computer software technique
that creates a nonlinear model for a large set of data with multiple
influences. Her software rapidly creates a model to which a person
can present values of the influences that were not in the original
set and receive a reasonable value for a response. The technique
builds a model whether the user knows how to model the data or
not. A version of the technique is commercially available as
DATASCAPE and can be found on the Web.

Reagor invented a process to analyze and
mathematically model systems that is revolutionary
in its ability to compress information. Her accomplish-
ments in the application of this technology have
been recognized by her peers, her company and
F-16 customers as a major technology breakthrough.

"The resulting code is small, and it executes very quickly," she
says, making it perfect for an aircraft flight system. On-board
computers must evaluate many different parameters many times
per second, while minimizing memory and processor resources.
Reagor's software model can take sensor values of pitch, yaw, roll,
altitude and speed of an aircraft with low ground visibility or a dis-
tracted pilot and can calculate whether the plane is maneuvering
dangerously low. This frees the pilot to concentrate on maneu-
vers, while the model monitors flight parameters and remains
ready to sound a warning to "pull up" in time to prevent a crash

10 AGNES SCOTT SPRING/SUMMER 2003

Reagor's invention has virtually unlimited military and commercial potential applications.

Invented with Lockheed Martin research grant funds, Reagor
describes this innovation as a once-in-a-lifetime discovery, truly
an "aha!" moment in her research.

However, getting to this "aha" moment wasn't always easy for
Reagor, the girl who got called on a lot during high school in Oak
Ridge, Tenn.

"When you're a smart, shy girl who's right a lot in high school,
that typically means you're putting down a lot of guys," says
Reagor. "That was a socially difficult position."

A women's college eliminated that unease, and small classes
(especially in mathematics in the '60s) meant she was not only
allowed to be right, she was expected to be. When she moved to
the University of Texas at Austin to pursue her master's, she
landed in classes of 50 where she was often the only woman.

"There were times when I felt really inadequate that I was
way under-prepared," she says. But her study skills and the habit
of being ready for a small class where she couldn't hide served
Reagor well.

Reagor claims her weakness in spelling confidence and a bit of
chauvinism dissuaded her from her dream of being a physician, as
were her two uncles one of whom told her "Women don't make
good doctors."

After taking a biology genus and species tests, she soon dis-
covered her biology professor at Agnes Scott was a stickler for
spelling. Realizing that in a small department she'd often face this
predicament, she switched her major to mathematics.

Unforeseen to Reagor at the time, that switch would put her in
the middle of world events. Lockheed Martin is a major U.S.
defense contractor. While Reagor cannot discuss the details, her
work is a lesson in how abstract mathematics can influence the
practical world of defending the nation and enhancing military
effectiveness.

"It's only impossible until it's not," is a phrase Reagor likes, and
she posts quotes around her desk to inspire her. As she reads them

off, many center on the idea of conquering the impossible.

Reagor's contribution to Lockheed is not unnoticed. Last year,
she was the only woman among 23 Lockhead Martin Aeronautics
Company employees in all three company locations chosen for
two-year appointments as technical fellows in a new program
instituted to preserve and to pass on the brain trust of its senior
scientists. "Within 10 years, all of us pretty much will have
reached retirement," says Reagor, who was cited for her expertise
in mathematical algorithms.

The program is designed to ensure that the enterprise main-
tains a pre-eminent position in aerospace technology through
focused utilization of its top technical talent. It is also a way of
recognizing the value of the technical career path.

In 1 997 she received a Stellar Performance Award for Technical
Excellence from Lockheed Martin Aeronautics, a company
currently of about 20,000 in a corporation of 125,000. Later that
year she received the corporation's NOVA Award for Technical
Excellence, the highest recognition for individual or team
achievements. With selection standards very high, 50 NOVA
awards are granted each year to individuals and teams from across
the corporation. Chosen for her innovations in the development
of software applications, Reagor's award was in the technical
excellence category for internationally recognized innovation in
the development of fuzzy logic software applications.

"There are a lot of smart people out here the intellectual
challenge is very great," says Reagor. "There is constant competi-
tion, and it's an environment where you're intellectually stressed
and challenged."

And on a night when an answer has eluded her during a
day full of presentations, shuttling between labs and trying to
beat the Fort Worth traffic a dream will present it. And that
is beautiful.

Lisa Ashmore is a freelance writer who also edits Designlntelligence, a monthly for
architects, designers and engineers.

SEEING CLEARLY WITH FUZZY LOGIC 11

Cheers?

Alcohol abuse a leader in the substance abuse category on college campuses-
is anything but a cheery topic for college administrators.

by Dolly Purvis '89

In A Beautiful Mind, Princeton University graduate student
lohn Nash finds inspiration for his Nobel Prize-winning
equation at a bar. Animal House made the toga party an almost
ubiquitous college experience, and St. Elmo's Fire depicted the
local bar as the center of the world for a tightly knit group of
classmates. Even the nerds in the Revenge of the Nerds series engaged
in nightly binge drinking.

Movies portraying alcohol consumption as the norm for col-
lege students resemble real life in many ways.

Each year, says the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and
Alcoholism, some 1,400 college students in the U.S. die from
alcohol-related incidents. This analysis, conducted by NIAAAs
Task Force on College Drinking, also attributed 600,000 assaults
by another student, 500,000 injuries, 400,000 episodes of unpro-

12 AGNES SCOTT SPRING/SUMMER 2003

tected sex, 150,000 health problems, 1 10,000 arrests and 70,000
sexual assaults to alcohol use.

In addition, about 25 percent of college students report aca-
demic consequences, 1 I percent report they have damaged prop-
erty and 5 percent are involved with police or campus security as
a result of their drinking, according to the task force

Findings of the Harvard School of Public Health College
Alcohol Study revealed 6 percent of college students meet crite-
ria for a diagnosis of alcohol dependence also referred to as
alcoholism and 3 1 percent meet the clinical criteria for alcohol
abuse.

Although Agnes Scott College ranks in The Princeton Review's top
20 of "Got Milk" as opposed to beer and doesn't fit criteria for
colleges most likely to have problems, alcohol issues are present.

The College has six to seven cases of alcohol policy violations
per year, and, in the last 10 years, has had two reported cases of
alcohol poisoning, says Cue Hudson, vice president for student
life and community relations and dean of students. "Agnes Scott
doesn't have a problem, but we remain vigilant."

One student's experience began one balmy fall evening more
than a decade ago, after the Black Cat bonfire her first year.
Walking back to the dorm, she saw a senior, one of the ones who
had instructed the first-year class about the Honor Code. Much
to the first-year's surprise, she was asked to join a party going to a
bar a bar that did not admit anyone under age.

"We had been drilled about the Honor Code for weeks, and
underage drinking anywhere could land you in front of Honor
Court," recalls the alumna. "We were told that just being around
an underage person who had alcohol could be a problem, because
if you didn't turn her in, it could be just a bad on you.

"I immediately knew I was stuck," she recounts. "If I said 'yes'
and was caught drinking, I knew there could be severe conse-
quences. If I didn't go, would I be a nerd? I mean, here was this
really smart senior with a lot of friends asking a lowly [first-year
student] to join the elite at a bar."

The first-year acquiesced and that night learned the words to
"Beer, Beer for Old Agnes Scott." She rarely touches the stuff now.
"Too many self-inflicted head wounds," she adds.

The prevalence of so-called binge drinking on college cam-
puses has come into focus since the term received its popular
definition more than a decade ago.

In 1992, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded a study
by Henry Wechsler, director of the Harvard School of Public
Health College Alcohol Study and the person who coined "binge
drinking." Weschler's research is considered the seminal work in
defining the parameters of drinking and alcohol abuse on college
campuses in the United States. His latest research has been pub-
lished in Dying to Drink: Confronting Binge Drinking on College Campuses
(Rodale Books, 2002).

Defining "binge drinking" as males consuming more than five
drinks in any one sitting in the previous two weeks and females
consuming more than four, Weschler polled 200 students at each
of 140 colleges and universities. Forty percent of the students
questioned had participated in binge drinking during the previous
month.

Weschler says the per capita consumption by college students
has remained fairly constant since he began his study, but he adds
the number of binge drinkers and abstainers has increased while
the number of moderate drinkers has decreased.

Jacket copy on his book states, "Dr. Wechsler warns that drink-
ing on campus is taking a bigger toll than most of us realize. And
it's not just the students themselves who pay: One estimate puts
the cost of underage drinking at around $53 billion a year, includ-
ing $18 billion associated with traffic crashes that threaten the
general public about 57 percent of frequent binge drinkers and
40 percent of occasional binge drinkers admit getting behind the
wheel after drinking."

Weschler found college students who drink the most include
males, whites, members of fraternities and sororities, athletes and
some first-year students. NIAAA says colleges with prominent
athletic teams and schools in the Northeast are places where alco-
hol abuse tends to be more prevalent.

Living arrangements also can be a determining factor when

looking at likely places where students binge drink. Students
living on campus tend to drink the most, while students living off
campus drink more moderately. Students who live with their par-
ents or guardians drink the least, NIAAA says. It also recommends
parents and guardians remain involved with their college students'
lives after orientation week. Phone calls to dorm rooms and ques-
tions about how things are going both academically and socially
prove most effective, NIAAA adds.

The College defines intoxicated on campus as "unable to
assume normal responsibilities and/or evidencing vulgar or bois-
terous behavior that is disruptive to the campus community."
Agnes Scott's alcohol policy, which follows city of Decatur and
DeKalb County laws, is detailed in the Student Handbook and is
presented in brief on the College's Web site. Alcohol is restricted
to campus-wide social functions held in designated areas as coor-
dinated, evaluated and approved by the dean of students and to
designated areas of the residence halls.

Hudson is blunt when she addresses the realities of trying to
curb binge drinking or enforce the legal age. "Sometimes," she
says, "I feel college campuses are one of the only places where the
legal drinking age is actually enforced."

While she is encouraged by the increase of Agnes Scott stu-
dents who choose to abstain, she remains puzzled by the extent
to which students participate in games that involve drinking.

Each year, Agnes Scott students

belonging to campus organizations intending to

serve alcohol at events must attend an alcohol

awareness workshop. Students see the real world when

a local prosecutor outlines the penalties for drinking

and driving and for serving underage people.

"The idea of the games is that Michael Jordan makes a basket,-
everybody drinks," Hudson says. Games such as quarters, where
participants attempt to flip a quarter into a shot (two-ounce) glass,
are known quantities, but drinking games can conform to just
about any topic, she notes.

It is not simple enforcement, however, that Hudson believes is
the most effective way of encouraging students to drink responsi-
bly. She relies on education.

Each year, Agnes Scott students belonging to campus organi-
zations intending to serve alcohol at events must attend an alco-
hol awareness workshop. Students see the real world when a local
prosecutor outlines the penalties for drinking and driving and for
serving underage people. One former DeKalb County district
attorney informed students that a violation of the alcohol laws in
the county surrounding Decatur would equal quick but fair pun-
ishment, including a likely stint in jail for driving under the influ-
ence. Hudson says the legal implications of abusing the privilege
of serving alcohol at campus functions hit home hard.

That sort of straight talk is what Hudson and her staff employ
when educating students about alcohol abuse. Among other tech-
niques used are peer programming and counseling as well as
showing cars smashed into barely recognizable forms by alcohol-
related crashes.

Hudson's favorite tool is "The Drunk Goggles." Purchased for
about $ 1 50, the goggles' lenses help sober wearers see the world
through drunken eyes and feel how the body reacts. Students who

cheers? 13

watch, says Hudson, get a concrete idea of how they look as they
reel around the room under the influence of four or five drinks.

Yet, Hudson says, no gimmicky novelty or dread edicts from
the dean of students can replace the parental words. The time to
discuss alcohol abuse, she says, is before packing the car to leave
for the first year in college.

Pediatrician Susan Trawick '77 agrees a family setting is
the best place to instruct college students on the hazards of
alcohol abuse

"[Traditional-aged] students who are entering college are still
developing habits that can lead to problems later in life," Trawick
says. "If they know they can get away with it when they are
young, they will continue drinking, especially to excess."

Those problems include chronic liver damage and scarring,
laundice and ascites fluid collection in the abdomen coupled
with esophageal varices, an enlarged blood vessel at the base of
the esophagus. This condition is "miserable," Trawick says.
"People get swollen and they can't breathe. It's a slow death."

Alcohol use may be more harmful to an adolescent than to an
adult. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
cites monkey and rat studies that suggest alcohol has a greater
impact and longer lasting effect on adolescent memory than
on adult memory. According to NIAAA, which is affiliated with
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, consideration
must be given also to a 2000 human study that found cognitive
impairments in adolescent alcohol abusers weeks after thev
began abstaining.

While long-term medical and social effects are simple to

explain, college binge drinking is not so simple, Trawick says.

She notes Creek parties, a setting in which there is the highest
probability of binge drinking, are part of the college experience.
It's also where students tend to lose their inhibitions after con-
suming large quantities of, typically, draft beer.

"Being drunk makes people seem funny and reflects what we
see on television," Trawick continues. "Being drunk makes people
do things they wouldn't normally do."

That's why family support is so important to informing new
college students about the facts of alcohol abuse, says Trawick.
"Children need to have an everyday conversation about what
happens when alcohol is introduced into situations."

Alcohol is probably the number one substance-abuse problem
on college campuses, says Hudson, noting it has special implica-
tions for women and can lead to lifelong problems.

"Being part of a first-rate college means that we educate inside
and outside the classrooms," says Hudson. "We make sure they
have the knowledge about alcohol abuse."

Dolly Purvis is managing editor o\ "The Paper. " it newsmagazine in Atlanta, Ga. Winner
oj the Georgia Press Association's Joe Parham Trophy jor humorous column writing, she
has followed community news in metro Atlanta more than a decade.

TO LEARN MORE

www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov

www.centurycouncil.org

www.hsph.harvard.edu/cas

ALCOHOL AND WOMEN

Alcohol affects women differently from the way it does men.
Women can expect substantially more alcohol-caused
impairment than men at equivalent levels of consumption.
www.brad21.org/akohoi_and_women.htmi

Since, on average, women are smaller than men, equivalent
doses of alcohol produce higher levels of concentration in
women's bodies, www.brad21.org/aicohoi_and_women.htmi

The average female carries more body fat than the average male,
and body fat contains little water. Consequently, most women
have less body water to dilute the alcohol.
w1v1v.brod21.0rg/o/co/10/_and_1vomen.wm/

Alcohol dehydrogenase is a metabolizing enzyme that helps the
body get alcohol out of its system. Women have less of this
enzyme than men. www.brad21.org/aicohoi_and_women.htmi

Fluctuating hormone levels in women mean the intoxicating
effects of alcohol set in faster when estrogen levels are higher,
premenstrually. www.brad21.org/aicohoi_and_women.htmi

Studies repeatedly find that alcoholic women, having internalized
society's contempt, suffer even worse anxiety, guilt and
depression than alcoholic men, and they have lower self-esteem.

The Chronicle of Higher Education. May 31, 2002

Teenage girls who drink more than five times a month are almost
six times more likely to attempt suicide than those who never

drink. The Chronicle of Higher Education, May 33. 2002

Female alcoholics have death rates 50 to 100 percent higher
than those of male alcoholics. A greater percentage of female
alcoholics die from suicides, alcohol-related accidents,
circulatory disorders and cirrhosis of the liver. National institute on

Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism No. w PH 290 October 1990

Women develop alcoholic liver disease after a comparatively
shorter period of heavy drinking and at a lower level of daily
drinking than do men. Proportionately more alcoholic women die

from cirrhosis than do alcoholic men. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse
and Alcoholism No. 10 PH 290 October 1990

Drinking may increase the risk for breast cancer, but more
research is needed to explore the relationship. National institute on

Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism No. 10 PH 290 October 1990

Menstrual disorders (painful menstruation, heavy flow, premen-
strual discomfort and irregular or absent cycles), which can affect
fertility, have been associated with chronic heavy drinking.
Continued drinking may lead to early menopause. National institute

on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism No. 10 PH 290 October 1990

14 AGNES SCOTT SPRING/SUMMER 2003

OPINION

Step Lightly Through Our Environment

by Phil Gibson

Enter any national park or ecolog-
ically protected area, and you
will see signs reminding visitors
to "Take only photographs, and
leave only footprints." Although
a simple phrase, it serves as an important
reminder that everything we do impacts
the environment. While useful for influ-
encing behavior in parks, this motto is
equally important for our lives outside
these protected areas.

Redefining Progress,
an organization that
works to help people
understand how our
actions impact our envi-
ronment, has developed
an on-line Ecological
Footprint Quiz that esti-
mates the amount of
space you need to sup-
port your lifestyle. This
quiz not only asks about
the size of your house
and the number of peo-
ple living there, but also
accounts for the land and
resources needed to raise
the food you eat, to sup-
port your travel and to provide the goods
and services you enjoy. Most citizens of
the United States and other industrialized
nations require an average of 24 acres per
person in a world in which there is only
4.5 acres per person if the land is divided
equally. This becomes an even more sober-
ing reality when we consider that although
industrialized nations account for only 20
percent of world population, they utilize
about 80 percent of its resources.

Other groups have brought patterns of
resource consumption to the public eye,
but in not quite so enjoyable ways as the
footprint quiz. The Detroit Project
recently aired a series of sharply satirical,
yet hauntingly accurate, "public service

announcement"-type television ads that
suggest driving an SUV supports terror-
ism. These ads sparked harsh criticism
from SUV drivers and the auto industry.
The auto industry claims the ads are unfair
because the industry provides a product
the market wants. SUV drivers claim they
are being unfairly targeted because they
pay for the gasoline and should be allowed
to drive what they want without harass-

ment. The Detroit Project counters these
criticisms by accurately pointing out the
auto industry could do much better in
developing and providing products that
more efficiently use limited fossil fuel.
SUV drivers do pay the costs of their fuel
consumption up front, but other costs
associated with excessive fuel consumption
range from SUVs' high pollution output to
the development of environmental and
political policies shared by everyone.
Equating driving an SUV with supporting
terrorism is tenuous at best, but does illus-
trate that personal decisions regarding
resource consumption impact everyone.

We must consider the size of our eco-
logical footprint. By making ecologically

responsible changes in how we use natural
resources, we can reduce its size and main-
tain a healthy planet and provide ample
resources for everyone. We've all heard
recycling is one thing we can do. But
recycling is only part of the picture.
Additionally, we need to focus on the
other "R's" of conservation.

Reduce our consumption of resources
as much as possible. This can be as sim-
ple as turning off a light
when you leave a room,
not driving a distance
that can be walked eas-
ily or not printing a
document that can be
stored electronically.

Reuse. When we
use resources, some
form of waste inevitably
is generated. We should
promote creative enter-
prises that work to
develop new ways in
which the waste gener-
ated can be rendered
useful.

Rethink how we do
things. The best way to
do this is to learn more about the world in
which we live and the ecological role we
each play on this planet.

By doing these things, we can tread a
little more lightly and not leave too big of
a footprint behind.

Phil Gibson, a member of the Agnes Scott faculty since
{995, is associate professor of biology and chair and
program director of environmental studies. He received his
doctorate from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

TO LEARN MORE

Redefining Progress:
www.redefiningprogress.org

The Detroit Project:
www.detroitproject.com

STEP LIGHTLY THROUGH OUR ENVIRONMENT 15

by TimothyS. Finco

With a visit to the
grocery not what it used
to he, this Agnes Scott
professor looks at the
pros and cons oj
genetically modified
food now appearing on
grocery shelves.

An ingredient for

deliverance

or disas

We are in a biotechnological revolution. This upheaval began in the
late 1970s and early 1980s when scientists stumbled upon various
techniques allowing them to manipulate DNA in ways that had
been previously unimaginable Since this time, researchers have
been eagerly pursuing various ways in which this newfound
technology can be used, including the creation of what are generally referred to as genetically
modified plants.

To create a CM plant, a piece of DNA (a gene) from one organism is transferred into the
genetic material, or DNA, of the plant. To say the least, the creation and subsequent
commercialization of CM plants has caused quite a stir

16 AGNES SCOTT SPRI NG/SUMMER 2003

AN INGREDIENT FOR DELIVERANCE OR DISASTER? XJ

Who's eating GM plant products?

I'll make a wager with you try to go a whole week without
consuming a genetically engineered plant product In all like-
lihood I will win the bet. You see, when a whopping 60 per-
cent or more of processed foods ranging from salad dressing to
breakfast cereal to soft drinks contain GM plant products, it is
virtually impossible to avoid their consumption. And that per-
centage is likely to increase if current trends continue. For exam-
ple, the amount of land worldwide upon which CM crops are
grown has increased more than 30-fold in the past six years, from
4.2 million acres inl996 to an incredible 130 million acres in
2001. These numbers are particularly relevant in the United
States, which presently accounts for 96 percent of the total area
devoted to growing genetically modified plants.

What CM plants are responsible for these millions upon mil-
lions of acres? Four crops account for almost all of the commer-
cially grown CM plants soybean (62 percent), corn (19
percent), cotton ( 1 3 percent) and canola (5 percent). However,
other GM crops are being cultivated, including papaya, squash,
potatoes, cottonseed and tobacco, and this list most certainly will
grow as new GM plants are created, tested and eventually brought
to market

What traits are being added to plants?

The impetus for transferring new genes into plants is to
endow them with certain desired traits, and to date almost
all GM plants grown for commercial purposes have been
genetically modified with a gene providing resistance to certain
pests and/or a gene conferring resistance to certain weed-killing
chemicals (herbicides). The pest-resistance gene (Bt gene) is
derived from a soil bacterium called Bacillus thurinijiensis. This gene

prevalent, others are in various stages of development. For exam-
ple, rice plants have been genetically engineered to produce pro-
vitamin A. This rice, called "golden rice" because of its deep
yellow color, has been developed in hopes of alleviating vitamin
A deficiency, a condition that results in 500,000 cases of blindness
and approximately 250,000 deaths worldwide each year. Attempts
are being made to genetically engineer canola and soybean to
produce oils with improved nutritional and health properties. (No
more clogged arteries!) Tomato plants have been genetically engi-
neered to grow in salty soils,- these and other similarly modified
plants may open up more than 25 percent of the world's irrigated
land that has become too salty to grow crops. Finally, Vector
Tobacco Co. in Durham, N.C., will soon begin selling cigarettes
containing genetically engineered, nicotine-free tobacco.

What are the potential risks of GM plants?

As these examples illustrate, the possible applications of
genetic modification of plants are limitless. However, as
with the introduction of any new technology, these possi-
bilities come with certain risks. For genetically engineered plants,
these risks generally can be divided into two broad categories:
their effect on the environment and their impact on human
health.

One environmental concern is that plants that have been
genetically modified for pest resistance may kill insects not harm-
ful to the crop. In 1999, a study was published in Nature that
demonstrated under laboratory conditions that pollen from Bt-
containing corn could kill monarch butterfly larvae. Although a
number of subsequent field studies refuted these claims, others
have supported its primary conclusions. So it is conceivable that
GM plants may endanger certain types of nontarget insects. In

Are we implementing a technology that holds enormous potential or are we playing with fire?
Do we know what impact genetically modified plants will have on the environment and on our health?

Do the pluses outweigh the potential minuses?

encodes a protein that is broken down in the guts of insects to
produce a toxin that kills the insect. Thus, insects eating plants
such as cotton, corn or soybeans that have been genetically
modified with this gene will die before they can do significant
damage to the plant. Because these Bt-containing plants are 'resist-
ant' to many pests, farmers should be able to reduce the applica-
tion of pesticides.

The second gene that has been introduced into plants confers
resistance to certain herbicides. Weed control is a major challenge
for farmers. Many herbicides used on crops target only a few
types of weeds, can only be used on certain crops at specific
growth stages and can accumulate to harmful levels in the soil.
Many farmers would prefer to use other herbicides, such as
Roundup, which will destroy all types of weeds, can be applied at
any time and degrade rapidly in the soil. Unfortunately, Roundup
is also toxic to crop plants To circumvent this latter problem,
crops have been genetically modified with a gene that confers
resistance to herbicides such as Roundup. Thus, a farmer can use
a single herbicide to control weeds more effectively without being
concerned about detrimental effects on the crop.

Although these two types ol genetic modification are the most

this context, it is important to realize that assessing the environ-
mental impact of a plant, whether genetically modified or not, is
not an easy task. For example, the effects of Bt-corn on the
monarch butterfly is going to vary depending on the variety of
corn grown, the region where it is grown, weather conditions and
so on. Also, such studies do not come cheap it has been esti-
mated that to answer the Bt-corn/monarch question will cost $2
million to $3 million, and this is just one insect and type of GM
plant.

A second environmental concern is gene flow from GM plants
to weeds. The transfer of genes from a CM plant to a weed may
instill traits in weeds that we don't want them to have, such as
resistance to herbicides. The emergence of such herbicide-resist-
ant weeds could become a major problem for farmers. However,
in order for a gene to be transferred, the weed must be a close rel-
ative of the GM plant. In the United States, no wild relatives exist
for most of the CM plants cultivated thus, gene transfer is not
a major concern. This is not the case in other areas of the world.
For example, native varieties of corn exist in Mexico and soybeans
in China.

A third concern related to gene transfer is the escape of CM

18 AGNES SCOTT SPRING/SUMMER 2003

plants into the wild or nearby crops. This appears to be what hap-
pened with StarLink corn, a genetically modified type of corn that
was approved for animal but not human consumption. Shortly
after its introduction, numerous food products on grocery shelves
were found to contain StarLink corn. Although a majority of this
corn accidentally entered the human food supply at grain eleva-
tors, it also appears that some farmers inadvertently grew this CM
plant when their corn crops were pollinated by StarLink corn
grown in nearby fields.

In terms of human health, the major concern is that the intro-
duction of new genes into plants will have unforeseen effects, such
as the production of allergens or toxins, or a change in the nutri-
tional composition of the plant. One of the problems that scien-
tists face when they genetically modify plants is that they have no
control over where the gene inserts into the genetic material of
the plant. It is therefore conceivable that when the gene inserts
into the plant's DNA, it changes the function of the genetic mate-
rial in an undesirable and unanticipated manner. Thus, plants that

When a whopping 60 percent or more of processed

foods ranging from salad dressingto breakfast

cereal to soft drinks contain GM plant products, it is

virtually impossible to avoid their consumption.

did not produce allergens or toxins may start to do so, or the
nutritional value of a plant may be substantially different.

To date, there have been no confirmed reports of adverse
effects from the consumption of GM plant products. In addition,
both the USDA and FDA require all GM plants be extensively
evaluated for changes in nutritional value or production of aller-
gens before such plants are approved for human consumption.
Indeed, the reason StarLink corn was not approved for human
consumption was because of indirect evidence suggesting it could
elicit an allergic reaction. Nonetheless, as more and more plants
are genetically modified and the types of genetic modification
become more sophisticated, possible unforeseen effects of human
health will continue to be an issue.

Where do we go from here?

As we contemplate the pros and cons of GM plants, it is
important to keep a rational perspective. Humans have
been altering the genetic makeup of plants for thousands
of years through selective breeding practices, creating plants with
combinations of genes that would never have arisen in nature.
Also, plant breeders have been exposing plants to mutagenic
chemicals and UV irradiation for decades in hopes of introducing
mutations that confer some desired trait. The genetic modification
of plants could thus be viewed as an extension of these practices,
but with one significant difference it allows genes from any
source to be incorporated into plants. So far, this difference does
not seem to have created an undesired outcome, but whether this
will be true for future GM plants is unknown. A second point to
keep in mind when evaluating the possible impact of GM plants
is that consumption of any food is a potentially dangerous occu-
pation health risks are everywhere in our food supply, from
deadly allergens in peanuts to hamburgers tainted with patho-
genic bacteria.

With these considerations in mind, one can ask: Are we imple-
menting a technology that holds enormous potential or are we
playing with fire? Do we know what impact genetically modified
plants will have on the environment and on our health? Do the
pluses outweigh the potential minuses? These are tough questions
with no easy answers. Some believe we do not have a sufficient
understanding of the potential impact of GM plants and thus
should not proceed until further information is available. Others
feel the genetic modification of plants is not significantly differ-
ent from previous practices and that their safety has been suffi-
ciently demonstrated.

If nothing else, we must recognize that the application of
biotechnology to create plants with novel traits is in its infancy.
Its potential impact on our lives and those of others is going to
intensify with time, and because of this, it is imperative that we
become and remain informed about various issues surrounding
this topic. By doing so, we will be able to make educated decisions
concerning how this technology impacts each of our lives as well
as society as a whole.

Tim Finco, an assistant projessor of biology at Agnes Scott since 1999, receivei his
doctorate from the University oj North Carolina at Chapel Hill

TO L

EARN MORE

Dinner at the New Gene Cafe' by
Bill Lambrecht

DINNER

A T * T H E

NEW

www.usda.gov

HOW OSMETIC CHOIHEERIND II CHAHOINO WH' WE 1*1

www.colostate.edu/programs/

GENE

lifesciencesATransgenicCrops/

CA E

BILL Lllll! cY\I

AN INGREDIENT FOR DELIVERANCE OR DISASTER? 19

When Julia Alvarez's husband heads to their farm
without her, she gives him a list. He's accus-
tomed to finding H 2 on it. The water goes
into a bowl on her writing desk
Alta Gracia is a 260-acre coffee farm in a
poor, mountainous region of the Dominican Republic, Alvarez's
native country. This past winter, she canceled a trip in order to join
other poets in a reading protesting the proposed war with Iraq.

Such actions reveal much about this writer-in-residence at
Vermont's Middlebury College. Also a poet, essayist and fiction
writer, she was the keynote speaker at Agnes Scott's annual
Writers' Festival this spring.

"One of my favorite venues is to read where there are students
and young people," says Alvarez. "Usually there's an openness and
a look at literature to answer some of the basic questions we are all

teacher," says Alvarez. "I see this kind of real energy in young peo-
ple. They are thinking about very, very important things. It is
heartening to see this groundswell of generosity and intense com-
passion. Part of it, I think, is that young people are raised with
CNN and a lot of communication, and they early on realize what
a complicated world they live in."

Alvarez garners writing material by paying close attention to
the world in which she finds herself. Today, she finds hope but she
also finds troubling developments.

"I'm heartsick with what is happening in terms of the way the
world is going right now, in this new millennium where we're
grown-up human beings that we haven't found a way to resolve
our differences that doesn't cost a lot of innocent lives and a lot of
heartaches."

A '60s peace child, Alvarez is troubled because dreams of

H 2 and the Writing Life

Clues to this writer's life
surface in an unlikely symbol

by Jennifer Bryon Owen

asking. When you see that hunger out there and you can feel that
something you say or write is nurturing that, maybe inspiring
somebody to write her own work, it's just a very special kind of
feeling It's what we write for and imagine what happens in the
best of circumstances for readers, but our hope is that it happens
with an audience."

Much of Alvarez's writing stems from her struggle to find her
place in the United States after her family was forced to flee the
Dominican Republic when she was 10. Her writing focuses on the
human condition, trying to find similarities between cultures.
"When I came to this country you know the old model of immi-
gration you came, you cut your ties with the past, and you
became an American and that was that," says Alvarez. 'That might
have worked when communication was more difficult and mobil-
ity unheard of, but it's not a realistic model for people as mobile as
we are. I had the feeling 1 had to choose,- that there was something
inferior about my background, culture and traditions."

She proposes a new model for diverse people living together
based on curiosity, a form of being respectful and interested. "And
giving to the other culture as much credibility and importance as
your own is so important."

Alvarez and her husband purchased Alta Gracia as a way to
give back. The coffee is grown without chemicals and provides
work for some of the 60 to 80 villagers. A new building and a
library built by volunteers revitalized the village's practically non-
functioning school. Last year, the teacher was a volunteer just
graduated from Middlebury College, and this year's volunteer is
from Dartmouth College.

"We've got people left and right asking if they can be the next

leaving the world a better place haven't materialized, but she con-
tinues her efforts. Alvarez was one of 1 1 poets in the February
"Poets Against the War" reading in Manchester, Vt., to protest
U.S. military action in Iraq. The event was organized after a group
of poets were un-invited to a White House reading, organized by
first lady Laura Bush, because some poets planned to protest mil-
itary involvement with Iraq.

The poetry reading was not Alvarez's first statement about the
current world situation She was one of 15 writers commissioned
by the U.S. State Department after September 1 1 to contribute to
an essay anthology about the American experience, which was to
be distributed abroad. However, she distanced herself from the
project when asked to travel promoting the work

"We [the writers] spoke in a complicated and challenging way
about what it meant to be an American and its problems and con-

Alvarez proposes a new model for diverse

people living together based on curiosity,

a form of being respectful and interested.

"Giving to the other culture as much credibility

and importance as your own is so important."

tradictions," she explains. "1 felt that after 9/1 1 we could take an
evolutionary step as a planet to really start to resolve our problems
in different ways. We were shaken, and sometimes, there are
moments when things can really happen. Unfortunately, I haven't

20 AGNES SCOTT SPRING/SUMMER 2003

seen it happen at all. But this anthology seemed to me a kind of
move in that direction, a dialog being started. But, in fact, what
ultimately started to happen, it became a cultural propaganda arm
for the administration. Given what was going on and the ways in
which this administration was moving, I didn't feel that 1 could be
out there promoting, being an American cultural ambassador for
a nation that 1 didn't feel in sync at all with the way it was going."
Citing poet W.H. Auden's statement, "poetry makes nothing
happen," Alvarez says poets ask themselves, especially in times
like these, what can they do? "The way we do things is through
whatever our calling or our talent. Poetry makes just the slightest
shift maybe in the way we see the world. It changes our percep-
tions. We are a different person when we come out of a book from
what we were when we started reading it. It is those kinds of trans-
formations in the way in which we are moved through the world,

Books by Julia Alvarez

Before We Were Free

The Secret Footprints

Las Huellas Secretas

How Tfa Lola Came to Visit Stay

In the Name of Salome

Something to Declare: Essays

In the Time of Butterflies

En El Tiempo De Las Mariposas

How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents

Homecoming

Homecoming: New and Collected Poems

The Other Side

iYo!

which I think can finally build up to something important and sig-
nificant. The ways literature changes us are so subtle, so small and
seemingly insignificant, but make all the difference in the world."

She says Americans have learned from Gandhi and Martin
Luther King Jr. about the power of nonaggressive, peaceful resist-
ance that involves witnessing to what one believes. "It's the
bedrock of a country like the United States this kind of free-
dom of expression and this kind of participation. It's so important
to keep this thriving, alive in a country that always challenges
itself to its own bottom line. I think it is an empowering thing to
bear witness to what you think is important."

Alvarez mentions a letter from Hopi elders to the tribal youth
during a hard time. "The last line is so amazing: 'You must become
the ones you have been waiting for.' We are the ones. It's in our
hands, really."

The hardest question she has ever been asked is "Does writing
really matter?" She contends it does.

"That is a question you are constantly asking yourself. There
are bleak days when I'm not as able to say as brightly as 1 say
today, become the one you've been waiting for. If you give up try-
ing to become the one you've been waiting for, then what hope is
there? If you can't, through your vocation and talent, make a dif-
ference, what else are you going to do? That is your vocation
to intersect with the larger world."

And that bowl of water on her writing desk? "If I need really
extra help, I get some water from down there [Alta Gracia]," she
explains. "1 don't know what it does, but it works."
Jennifer Bryon Owen is Agues Scott's director of creative services and editor of Agnes
Scott The Magazine.

Awards and Honors

Benjamin T. Marshall Poetry Prize, Connecticut College,

1968 and 1969
Middlebury College Creative Writing Prize, 1971
Academy of American Poetry prize, 1974
Syracuse University creative writing fellowship, 1974-75
Kenan grant from Phillips Andover Academy, 1980
La Reina Press poetry award, 1982
Vermont Arts Council exhibition grant, 1984-85
Robert Frost Poetry Fellow, Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, 1986,

and Fiction Fellow, 1987
Third Woman Press Award, first prize in narrative, 1986
General Electric Foundation award for Younger Writers, 1986
National Endowment for the Arts grant, 1987-88
Ingram Merrill Foundation grant, 1990
Josephine Miles Award from pen Oakland, 1991
How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents selected as a notable

book from the American Library Association, 1992
New York Times Notable Book for In the Time of Butterflies
Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude, Middlebury College, 1971
Master of Fine Arts, Syracuse University, 1975

From Alvarez

During her reading at the College, Alvarez shared these ideas:

For her sister's birthday, Alvarez gave her a book to read each
month of the upcomingyear.

Each year, Alvarez selects one author and reads all of that
person's works.

H,0 AND THE WRITING LIFE 21

High-risk bets on
promising ideas dictate
ajast-paced lifestyle
for this scientist.
by Melanie S. Best '79

Builder of Singapore's

Biotech Future

For Lily Chan '75, her 1 4-hour days often start at 6 a.m. in her Singapore gym. From
there, she may head to a breakfast meeting, then join a conference call with New
York or California by 8 a.m., when it's early evening in the states. Later, when
Europe awakens, she'll be on the phone to colleagues there. Her days, like her life
story, span the globe.
One of the biotech industry's leading venture capitalists and the person charged with
building a biotech sector from scratch in Singapore an island nation at the tip of the Malay
Peninsula Chan roams the world seeking technologies and scientists to invest in, negotiat-
ing multinational partnerships and chairing board meetings of her proteges.

She welcomes the travel. "Singapore is not a very big place," says Chan in an early morn-
ing/late night phone conversation that, typically for her, crosses 1 3 time zones. "When I'm
not on the road, I feel disconnected from the rest of the world."

22 AGNES SCOTT SPRING/SUMMER 2003

What a transformation from the girl in 1972 who made her
first plane trip Malaysia to Atlanta to start college at
Agnes Scott to general manager of Singapore's Biomedical
Sciences Investments Pte. Ltd. A division of the country's
Economic Development Board, Biomedical Sciences acts as a ven-
ture capital fund, nurturing start-ups at home and abroad that
research and develop drugs and medical therapies. It's an industry
that runs on cross-border flows of financial and human resources.

Chan's career started in the research lab. After completing her
bachelors in biology with honor in 1975 followed by a Ph.D. in
microbiology and immunology from the University of Illinois at
Chicago, she held various immunology-related research and
development positions in Singapore.

One of those, at Cenelabs Diagnostics, resulted in two patents
for retrovirus testing products, one to diagnose dengue virus, the
other for HIV. The latter, used mainly in Europe, has been con-
sidered the "gold standard" for confirming HIV infection. A third
patent, for diagnostic antigens in tuberculosis, is pending.

A late-night phone call in 1992 changed her direction. Chan
recalls the moment: Genelabs' chairman called to say, "Tomorrow,
your current boss will step down, you will take over, and you will
be general manager." After several years in that post, she became
deputy director of the National University of Singapore's
Biomedical Processing Center, and in 1998 the Economic
Development Board tapped her to lead its new biotech endeavor.

Treating her life as unlimited possibility seems a matrilineal
inheritance. Chan is the first born of two schoolteachers. She
calls her mother, Lai Lean Tee, who rose to the post of vice prin-
cipal, "a woman ahead of her time."

Lai Lean Tee is the daughter of another remarkable woman,
Ng Mooi, who, abandoned by her husband, had to raise three
young girls alone. She took in laundry from British servicemen
and local "well-to-do's" and saved enough to send her daughters
off to school, 100 miles away "something quite unheard of in
the 1930s and '40s for Chinese girls in Malaysia," says Chan.

Chan and three siblings grew up in Penang, speaking
Mandarin at home and British English in school. When time for
college arrived, Chan, the first in her family to do so, fearlessly
looked to the United States. "The reputation of the U.S. was not
good" in Southeast Asia in the early 1970s, she notes. "Going
there was a no-no for good Chinese girls."

It was also a luxury, impossible for her family without financial
aid. Of the many American colleges she applied to, Agnes Scott
offered the most generous scholarship. "I have a lot to thank
Agnes Scott for," Chan says.

At a gathering of Malaysian students in Chicago during
Christmas holidays her first year, Chan met Choy-Heng. They
later married and had a son, Michael, now a freshman at his
father's alma mater, University of Chicago. Choy-Heng, a theo-
retical physicist, is a professor and dean of the Faculty of Science
at the National University of Singapore.

Gaining a competitive edge is the mandate of Chan's current
position and reflects the mission of her adopted country, often
dubbed "Singapore Inc." A former state of Malaysia that broke
away in 1965, Singapore has staked its survival on becoming a
global leader in knowledge-based industries. While it entered the
race well after the United States and Europe, Singapore has com-
peted aggressively to become a biotech powerhouse and is one of

Asia's leaders in the field.

Chan and her team are charged with making high-risk bets on
promising ideas. They seek out fledgling projects, package the
best into companies in which Biomedical Sciences gets an equity
stake and significant management control and shepherd the ven-
tures toward hoped-for profitability.

"Taking ideas and concepts, pulling a business model around
the technology and ... a company is founded! That's the easy
part," says Chan. Much harder is what follows financing, work-
ing with founders, installing the right management, nurturing.
Chan, ever modest, attributes her knack for this work to a strong
science background and years of experience managing and grow-
ing companies. Colleagues cite her enthusiasm, shrewdness, ana-
lytical mind and ability to retain vast quantities of information.

One of her successes is S*Bio, a drug-discovery business
forged from a collaboration with California-based Chiron.
Chan had to cajole Chiron executives into selling their technol-

"She's one of the best venture
capitalists around fair and astute."

ogy and Singaporean officials into providing the funds. She's
repeated that success multiple times.

Robert Klupacs, CEO of another of Chan's creations, ES Cell
International Pte. Ltd., admires her unstintingly. "She's one of the
best venture capitalists around fair and astute. She likes to take
her time to think, look at all angles, which makes everybody feel
they've been part of the decision. A very small pool of people in
Singapore have her skills."

Establishing ES Cell (ESI), a human embryonic stem (hES) cell
company, is Chan's most satisfying achievement to date. The aim
of ESI, which owns five hES cell lines registered with the U.S.
National Institutes of Health, is to be able to grow large volumes
of insulin-producing islet cells to treat diabetes.

ESl's gestation began several years ago when her company
handed Chan $20 million and said, "Make something out of it in
Singapore." She studied some 50 projects around the world and
found an hES collaboration between Israel and Australia that
needed funding to continue. Klupacs, from the Australian half of
the venture, recalls, "I was hawking technology, and Lily was on
the other side," with the money.

Not only ESI's founder, Chan is also co-chair and works
closely with Klupacs to define ESI's strategic focus, for which he
expresses gratitude. "Because Lily can open doors," he says, "as
long as she's with us, ESI will get a leg up compared to our com-
petition. In this market, that's extremely important."

Looking to the future, Chan says the biotech sector's biggest
challenge will be shortening the time from discovering a drug to
commercializing it, which now takes five to seven years and costs
$400 million on average. "How can you fast-track this, yet avoid
the pitfalls when you take a drug through the clinical stage? We
still don't have a very good handle on the right way to do it."

Chan pauses when asked how she spends her free time. She
doesn't need much time off, since work gives so much pleasure. "I've
enjoyed all I've done so far and I'm looking forward to the next
job. When you're having fun, is it considered an achievement?"
Melanie S. Best is a freelance journalist specializing international business and culture. She
lives in Hoboken, N.J.

BUILDER OF SINGAPORE'S BIOTECH FUTURE 23

Ground Floor

Herbarium

Biology Faculty Offices

Biology Faculty/Student

Research Labs
Ecology & Environmental

Biology Lab
Student Project Lab
Neuroscience Lab Suite
Teasley Lecture Hall
Greenhouse
Nuclear Magnetic

Resonance Lab
Microscopy Suite
Psychology Faculty/Student

Research Labs
Glassware Wash/

Sterilization Facility
Chemical Stockroom

Leading Science

It's In Our Genes

by Kate Ravin

First Floor

Physics Faculty Offices
Physics Workshop
Psychology Computer Labs
Physics Faculty

Research Lab
Adjoining Seminar Rooms
Quantum Physics Lab
Electronics Lab
Introductory Physics Lab
Classrooms

Scientific Computing Lab
Psychology Research Suites
Psychology Department

Suite
Science Center for Women
Woolford B. Baker Atrium

'

-

2ll

KIERAN REYNOLDS

Enter the $36.5 million Science Center at Agnes Scott, and you'll
encounter a three-story representation of the DNA double helix, perhaps
the most significant discovery in the last half-century. The rendering of
DNA swirling above the center's Woolford B. Baker Atrium holds special
meaning for our institution because it was traced from Agnes Irvine Scott,
for whom our College was named, through her great-great-great grand-
daughter Lisa Harvey Lepovetsky '73. Since Agnes Scott women tend to
take more advanced science and math courses than their coed counterparts,
since more than half of our 19 full-time professors in the sciences are
women and since our alumnae include renowned scientific practitioners,
we'd say leadership in science is embedded in the College's genetic code.

LEADING SCIENCE 25

Second Floor

Biology Faculty Offices

Biology Faculty/Student

Research Labs
Genetics & Molecular

Biology Lab
Cell Biochemistry &

Microbiology Lab
Cell Biology/Developmental

Biology Lab
Animal Biology Lab
Animal Physiology/

Neurobiology Lab
Biology Student Project Lab
Flexible Shared Classrooms
Biology Student Support

Suite
Biology Department Office
Biology Lab Preparations
Biology Instalment Rooms
Clean Room/Tissue Culture
Warm/Cold Rooms

Third Floor

Chemistry Computer Lab
Chemistry Faculty Offices
Chemistry Faculty /Student

Research Lab
Laser Spectroscopy Lab
Introductory Chemistry Lab
Physical and Analytical

Chemistry Lab
Organic Chemistry Lab
Inorganic Chemistry Lab
Biochemistry Lab
Chemistry Instrumentation

Lab
Classrooms
Chemistry Student Support

Suite
Chemistry Department

Office
Chemistry Balance Room

The structure of DNA had yet to be solved when Campbell Hall, the
College's former science building, opened in 1951. In the ensuing
decades, the scope of science has broadened dramatically while student
interest at Agnes Scott has burgeoned. Today, more than 30 percent of
students who have declared majors have opted for the sciences, and our
Science Center, which houses the departments of biology, chemistry,
physics and psychology, provides the instrumentation and support for
a research-rich science program.

KIERAN REYNOLDS

26

Upcoming initiatives include our

Science Center for Women and Sally Ride

Science Camp for Girls. We also plan to host

events such as the South's first

Project Kaleidoscope Undergraduate

Research Conference.

At least 10 different faculty and student-
faculty research projects are running on
topics ranging from the biology of depression
to the effect of race on attitudes toward
contraception and abortion.

LEADING SCIENCE 27

$4 million in state-of-the-art
instrumentation, including:

X-ray spectrometer,
which allows quantum
mechanics experiments
of many sorts using X-
rays as the probe

Nuclear magnetic
resonance apparatus for
investigation of the
phenomenon of NMR
the basis of MR1 medical
imaging machines

Scanning tunneling
microscope and atomic
force microscope, used
to study topography,
conductivity, reactivity
and hardness of surfaces
or of molecules attached
to surfaces at the atomic
and molecular level

Walk-in cold and warm
rooms and environmental
plant growth chambers,
which provide controlled
conditions for
experimentation

Confocal laser fluorescent
microscope for three-
dimensional digital cell
imaging,- scanning
electron microscope
and transmission electron
microscope for ultrafine
resolution of cells and
organisms

Eight computer-
controlled Skinner
boxes used to examine
learning in animals

Eye-tracking system that
monitors and maps eye
position in relation to
computer imaging

28

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LEADING SCIENCE 29

The Building in Brief
Departments of Biology,
Chemistry, Psychology
and Physics (the astronomy
part of the astronomy and
physics department is
housed in the newly
renovated and expanded
Bradley Observatory and
Delafield Planetarium)

1 15,000+ square feet
with "racetrack" floor plan,
placing shared resources in
the center of the building's
wings, with labs and class-
rooms around the perimeter

Botanical Medallions
These fantasy botanical
motifs, "Botanic Explosion,"
embedded in each exterior
end of the Science Center,
are not intended to be
scientifically accurate, but to
represent the energetic spirit
of inquiry within its walls.
Around the building exterior
are smaller diamond shaped
panels, "Floral Gems." Cast in
resin to resemble terra cotta,
the decoration was inspired
by motifs on Sever Hall
( 1 878) at Harvard, designed
by H. H. Richardson, the
famous American architect
whose firm developed into
Shepley Bulfinch Richardson
and Abbott, architects of
Agnes Scott's Science Center.

30

Part of Agnes Scott's unbroken line of female achievement in the sciences
is Mary Stuart MacDougall. This demanding professor and co
Biology: The Science oj Lije a textbook adopted by more than
I institutions proclaimed in 1936, "Science

, .5 has so enlarged the mental horizon that the
* i yl imagination may take a bolder flight." In r-
' new Science Center, her intellectual heirs at
V College can let their imaginations soar.

Kate Ravin is a freelance writer who specializes

education.

m

MUSIC IN YOUR BLOOD

Think you don't have music in your blood? Think again. Alexandra Pajak '04 has
turned Agnes Scott's DNA into a symphony. In November, the College's
Community Orchestra performed Pajak's Symphony No. i, Translations: The DNA oj
Agnes Scott, a work based on 300 of Agnes Scott's unique nucleotide bases.

"I had never heard of DNA music," Pajak says. "It was Dr. [Harry] Wistrand's idea
to create a piece of music based on Agnes Scott's DNA. I looked on the Internet and
found that there are about 10 to 20 DNA composers out there."

Pajak communicated with some of them to learn more about DNA music. "Some
composers use only computer software, where there's no artistic element involved,"
she says. But Pajak incorporated her creative elements along Scott's DNA sequence,
which was produced at Emory University and then given to Pajak by Wistrand, pro-
fessor of biology, in a Microsoft Word document.

The first movement is based on Irish and American traditional music and has an
"arch" structure, which represents Scott's roots, her relationship with her suitor and
their separation when she immigrated to the United States.

Pajak says the second movement utilizes compositional techniques employed by
other DNA composers for assigning rhythms and pitches to Scott's DNA sequence
(for example, GCTACT would be pitched G-C-E-A-C-E.) The third movement is
more creative, centered entirely on chords derived from the first four bases of part
of her sequence: G-major, A-major, E-major and C-major.

"It's really kind of mysterious sounding," Pajak says. "I felt like I was looking at
someone's ghost when I wrote it. I tried to keep Agnes Scott in mind as much as
possible when I was writing it."

Kristin Kallaher '04
Kristin Kallaher o-f is an intern in the Office of Communications ami recipient of the College's 2002 Sara Wilson
"Sally" Glendinnmtj Journalism Award.

Center for Molecular Medicine at Emory
University, and explained the project. He
is a distinguished scientist who has been at
the forefront of mitochondrial DNA
research for many years, and his lab is
acknowledged as one of the finest in the
world (Wallace moved from Emory to the
University of California-Irvine in summer
2002). He was enthusiastic, agreed to do
the DNA preparation and sequencing and
put us in touch with Seyed Hosseini,
director of the DNA Sequencing and
Cenotyping Laboratory at the Center. The
vials arrived on May 14 and Hosseini
began the sequencing project.

We can state with virtual

certainty that the DNA sequence

we obtained 203 years after

her birth is identical to that of

Agnes Irvine Scott.

Because we know the mutation rate is
2-2.9 percent per million years in this
type of DNA, we can state with virtual cer-
tainty that the DNA sequence we
obtained 203 years after her birth is
identical to that of Agnes Irvine Scott.
When the sequence was reported to us,
Hosseini said that of the 16,572 units
(informational molecules) that make up
the sequence of Scott's DNA, this DNA
has a unique change never seen before.
Thus, Scott's direct female descendants
and their living sons may carry a unique
piece of DNA. Hosseini also identified the
migration group derived from seven
females whose mitochondrial DNA repre-
sent the founding DNA of Europe to
which Scott belonged. This particular
sequence originated in Western Europe
between 39,000 and 5 1 ,000 years ago.

April 25, 2003, was the 50th anniver-
sary of publication of the DNA molecule's
structure. Having Agnes Scott's DNA
detailed on the wall of the Science Center's
Woolford B. Baker Atrium certainly con-
nects current science with the College's
history in previously unimagined ways.
Hany Wistrand, professor of biology, has heat teaching ,il
the College since 197-1. He holds a Ph.D. from Anzoiiii
State University.

Alex Pajak '04, a biology and music major, has received recognition for her outstanding work
in both fields.

TO LEARN MORE

The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes

TO HEAR THE DNA MUSIC

www.ajnesscoit.eaulacadtmicslp_m*sic.asp

34 AGNES SCOTT SPRI NG/SU MME R 2003

LIFESTYLE

Resourceful alumnae confront challenges of health care in different ways.

BEGIN WITH
A TEASPOON

Community mobilization to improve
life in the village is as important to
HIV/AIDS prevention as people under-
standing the choices that will keep them
infection free," says Louise Robinson
Singleton '55. As training director for the
Institute of Cultural Affairs, an international
organization poised to lead the campaign
against HIV/AIDS in Africa, she knows.
"You can't just march in and tell these

motivated to make healthy choices."

For the 1CA, a nonprofit facilitator of
social innovation and community building,
Singleton developed the HIV prevention
curriculum that will be used in villages in
eight other African countries. "It's based on
imaginal education, a method intended to
change behavior by changing an individ-
ual's image of who they are and what's
important." This ideology is presented to
villagers by their own village health teams.
Singleton, a mother of three and
grandmother of four, feels several paths

Louise Robinson Singleton '55 meets with John Kufuor (center), president of Ghana, and others
when she was there last July conducting an HIV/AIDS prevention project.

people what to do or not do," explains
Singleton. "We work with the community
to form a community plan not to address
HIV, but to ask the larger question: What
do you want for the youth in your commu-
nity in the next five years?"

A recent report on an ICA pilot pro-
gram Singleton helped launch in the
Ghana village of Golokwati indicated that
villagers had cleaned up the town square,
planted flowers, organized youth soccer
matches and planned village meetings with
elders. When Singleton read the report at
her home in Denver, Colo., she was
thrilled to the point of tears. "It is when
people feel they have a future that they are

she followed led her to her current role at
ICA. She's always been intrigued by rural
life and has served rural areas in various
roles throughout her career. She's commit-
ted to volunteerism (ICA participants pay
their own expenses). And in 1989 she
earned her master's degree in public health
from the University of Colorado. "It's a
great complement to the thorough liberal
arts training I received at Agnes Scott."

On an ICA visit to Africa last year,
Singleton met with Ghana's minister of
health and President John Kufuor. "I have
found the people of Africa to be warm,
welcoming and generally delightful," says
Singleton. She is planning visits to Zambia

and Kenya later this year as ICA continues
implementing its HIV/AIDS prevention
program.

Unfortunately the people of Africa are
facing what many consider to be the
greatest public health care problem in the
world. Singleton contends it isn't just a
public health problem. "It's a social and
political problem as well. HIV/AIDS is
devastating to people 15 to 49 years old,
when they're usually most productive.
This devastation contributes to wide-
spread poverty and destabilization."

Singleton says recent findings indicate
that 28.5 million people in sub-Saharan
Africa have AIDS, 6,000 Africans die from
it each day, and there are 10,000 new cases
every day.

"I sometimes feel like we're using a tea-
spoon to empty the ocean, but you have
to start somewhere where you can make a
difference," she says.

Lorayne Bryan Weizenecker

TO LEARN MORE Singleton welcomes
your e-mails at Singltn@aol.com.

"NO" TO FLYING A BUS

Eleanor McCain 77, K4.D., narrowed
her career choices to doctor, veterinar-
ian and fighter pilot. She might have spent
the last 20 years flying F- 1 6s had the Navy
been more progressive. In some ways it
might have been easier.

"I had an outstanding education, a
pilot's license and perfect eyesight," says
McCain. "The recruiters were real excited
when I met with them. But it was right
before policy changed allowing women in
combat, and they wanted me to fly a
bus a large slow transport plane. They
wouldn't let me fly the fighter jets, so I
opted for medical school at the University
of Florida instead."

While practicing medicine is not as
perilous as soaring over enemy territory,
N/lcCain, a biology major, finds being a

LIFESTYLE 35

Eleanor McCain '77

doctor incredibly challenging "1 struggle
with balance maintaining my sanity,
physical fitness, family and career. I find it
dillictilt to be female and a full-time pro-
fessional. It's not reasonable to give up a
family for a career, or a career you're com-
mitted to for a family. You can't have it all,
but I'm unwilling to give up either one."
McCain adds that she's fortunate to have a
supportive husband, John Jinks, and a

nanny that's been with her for 15 years
helping care for their two daughters

Though making a profit should not be
as formidable as aerial combat, it is becom-
ing increasingly difficult, according to
McCain. "I have to balance medical care
with current reimbursement rates. It's get-
ting worse Medicare fees are lower now
than in 1984 when I started With low
reimbursement rates and high malpractice
insurance, many doctors are approaching
the break-even point. Doctors are often
misperceived as being greedy. But the vast
majority are plugging along doing the best
that they can."

McCain recently started a consulting
business to supplement income at her Fort
Walton Beach, Fla., solo practice. "I lecture
physicians about current pay systems and
reimbursement rates and how they impact
our profession." McCain says that she
earns more lecturing to physicians than
she earns caring for patients. "The irony is
overwhelming," she adds.

One way McCain deals with stress is
to nurture her creativity. She produces
award-winning, museum-quality quilts. "I
come from a long line of quilters. I like the
making of objects, the domestic arts 1
think that in a way quilting relates to
women's issues."

As she faces challenges, McCain has
learned that persistence is the key. "You can
be brilliant, but incapable of succeeding
without persistence. With persistence, you
can take down a mountain with a thimble."

And so McCain endeavors to excel as a
physician despite the growing challenges.
"I'm not sure how much longer I can afford
to care for patients. But practicing medi-
cine remains an honorable profession with
true value and true integrity. And it's inter-
esting. Medicine is biology, and biology is
fascinating "

Lorayne Bryan Weizenecker
Lorayne Bryan Weizenecker is a jreelance writer, master
gardener ana author of Waxing and Waning, a novel
set in the North Georgia mountains,

One Gift Yours Makes It Possible

They've always had bold aspirations.

Your gift to the Annual Fund makes it possible for Agnes Scott students
to realize their dreams.

Please make your Annual Fund gift before the fiscal year ends June 30.
Just use the envelope in this magazine or contribute online through our
secure Web site: www.agnesscott.edu/give

Every gift to the Annual Fund is also a gift to Bold Aspirations:
The Campaign for Agnes Scott College.

36 AGNES SCOTT SPR I NG/SUMMER 2003

ALUMNA TESTIMONIAL

The Lasting Thrill oj Scientific Discovery

Learning through research was an
important personal experience
for me. Although many of the
science classes I endured as a
schoolchild were unbelievably
dull, 1 always enjoyed reading about
science and naming things I observed in
nature. My experience at Agnes Scott
was completely different. Science classes
emphasized analytical methods, hypothe-
sis testing and building small lines of evi-
dence to gain insight into the workings of
nature. As we conducted experiments, it
occurred to me that I was not merely
acquiring useful information, but learning
a process for acquiring new knowledge.

The power and excitement of that real-
ization lingers with me to this day. By
participating in research, 1 acquired some-
thing far deeper than a list of facts: I knew
why these facts were true and how to build
them into new hypotheses to investigate.
There is no greater thrill than that sense of
"eureka" that comes when you have taken
a question, developed hypotheses, con-
ducted experiments and, at last, made a
discovery that is your own. It is a thrill that
reaches down into your core and gives you
the confidence and poise to tackle ever
larger and more difficult questions.

There is no greater

thrill than that sense of

"eureka" that comes when

you have taken a question,

developed hypotheses,

conducted experiments and,

at last, made a discovery

that is your own.

With the Science Center and its many
intelligently designed spaces for research,
Agnes Scott provides an intimate learning
environment where extensive interaction
between faculty and students and among

Diana Lipscomb '76 collecting samples in Bodega Harbor, Calif.

students themselves can occur. Important
as this building is, however, it is the faculty
who teach, motivate and inspire the stu-
dents. The College has been blessed with
wonderful faculty. The investment in the
Science Center, and by implication its
commitment to scientific research, will
greatly help the College continue attract-
ing the best. Generally, the best faculty are
engaged enthusiastically in their own
research. The satisfaction and self-renewal
gained when faculty pursue their research
goals result in inspired classes for the stu-
dents, prestige for the College and real joy
for the faculty themselves.

At Agnes Scott and the other best
liberal arts colleges, science is a creative
process through which students experience
the curiosity associated with asking mean-
ingful intellectual questions, the excitement
of discovery and the intellectual satisfac-

tion from relating theory to observations.
On a per-person basis, small liberal arts
colleges such as Agnes Scott produce
almost twice as many students who go on
to earn a Ph.D. in science as do other
schools. This College's commitment to
science education, exemplified in faculty
and facilities, is the major reason.

Diana Lipscomb '76
Diana Lipscomb '76 received her bachelor oj arts degree in
biolot)y from Agnes Scott College and her doctorate in
zoology, with a specialty in evolution and systematics,
from the University of Maryland, College Park. A
professor in the Department of Biological Sciences and
director of the Robert Weintraub Program in Systematics
and Evolution at George Washington University in
Washington, D.C., she is on leave until August to serve as
program director assembling the Tree of Life at the National
Science Foundation. The overall goal of this project is to
assemble a framework phylogeny or Tree of Life for all i . 7
million described species on Earth.

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Global Connections-, literary Ireland travelers meet Oscar Wilde. To read one person's journey, see page 0.