President Creighton during the laurel parade
Photo: Paul Schnaittacher
The Quarterly invited alumnae to submit questions for
President Joanne V. Creighton to answer. You sent many, and she chose which to
answer here. Others will feed into a farewell article planned for the end of
Creighton’s presidency next spring.
Q. I was a student on the committee of faculty, staff and students you formed in
1996 to develop the Plan for 2003. We spent a lot of time working on the
college mission that year. Knowing what you know now, how would that mission
statement be different? Elizabeth O'Donoghue '97
A. I’m proud that we were able to boil down the College’s mission into
a single sentence: it warms my heart as an English professor! The key elements in
that sentence—academic excellence, diverse residential community of women,
liberal arts, and purposeful engagement in the world—are still the touchstones
of Mount Holyoke today. I wouldn’t change a word.
Q. What is the biggest challenge facing the College today and what’s
being done about it? Melinda A. Mann ’79
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Reunion 2009
The synergy of Reunion 2009 is evident in every embrace, outburst of applause, photographic pose, and colorful textile evident on campus during two weekends in May. More than 1,600 alumnae returned to reignite old friendships, gather in Chapin for the annual meeting of the classes, finger East Asian saris during a “back to class” session, and celebrate a sisterhood that shows no sign of fading.
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New AA President to Stress Good Work, Strong Values of Alums
Cynthia L. Reed ’80 has been nominated to serve a three-year term
as the Alumnae Association’s next president.
Cynthia L. Reed ’80 has a very clear understanding of the importance of women’s education. “The single most important factor in improving healthcare for women, children, and communities is to provide education for girls and women. The higher the level of education, the better the health and living standards,” she says.
Reed, a management and technology consultant for healthcare providers and medical-device companies, has been nominated as president of the Alumnae Association for a three-year term beginning July 1. Helping to spread the word about an MHC education by engaging and celebrating the good work and strong values of alumnae is tops on her to-do list.
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By Hannah Clay Wareham '09
In October of 1942, a group of eight songstresses debuted their skills at Junior Show. As the accompaniment to a student dance number called “My Pajama Ballet,” the singers were off stage, hidden from the audience. By the time their performance was over, however, the crowd had made it clear by demanding encore after encore that the women had created something spectacular.
To this day, Mount Holyoke’s V-8s is the longest-running female a cappella group in the nation, a well-known fact among Mount Holyoke students. Their legacy extends far beyond campus, however, as the original V8s found fame in New York City by entertaining World War II servicemen at one of the most popular clubs of the 1940s.
The original group can be credited with a turning of the tides on the Mount Holyoke campus. A 1944 article in the Mount Holyoke News described the original performance of the V-8s as “the only evidence, so far as we know, of a former [Junior] Show success continuing as a new college tradition.” In a 2002 letter to the current V-8s, founder Abigail Halsey Van Allen ’44 wrote, “[the group] was conceived as an opportunity to have fun!”
While opposition the original V-8s faced was very slight, it did exist. “Often the music director of the Glee Club and choirs of the time … looked in on us, but did not seem too happy with what we were doing,” Joan Morris McNally ’44 remembered of rehearsals. The selection of modern songs for performance created some waves within the music community, but the V-8s had found something that stuck.
The origin of the group’s name is about as telling of the times as the hairstyles and dresses the women boast in faded photographs. The “V” stood for “Victory,” Winston Churchill’s rallying call of the World War II era. The 8, of course, stands for the eight original members. “Churchill’s raised index and middle fingers of his right hand forming a V for Victory was very pervasive,” Van Allen wrote. “Victory became the spirit of the times.”
The fame of the V-8s began to spread off-campus soon after their debut in Wilbur, Mount Holyoke's then-student center. They performed at the Westover air force base, parties held for textile-mill workers, and meetings of the Junior League. The V8s were also the first amateur group invited to perform at the Stage Door Canteen in New York City, the most famous entertainment venue for servicemen and the subject of a feature-length Hollywood film (Stage Door Canteen) that debuted the year before the V-8s made their appearance.
The women were largely unimpressed by the Canteen at first glance, according to a scrapbook put together about the original V-8s. Described as reminiscent of someone’s basement, it was not at all what they had been expecting, considering the Canteen’s publicity and fame. The noisy, smoky room in which they performed was so small that some of the servicemen in the audience were actually sitting on the stage with them. The V-8s delivered a rousing performance of popular songs like “The Farmer and the Maiden” and “The Hawaiian War Chant.” Despite the lack of a microphone for half of the performance, Van Allen described the concert as “the zenith and swan song of our original group.”
While a recording was created by the original V-8s, none of the copies exist today. All that is left are a few boxes of yellowed letters and song lists in the college Archives, the memories of the original V-8s, and, of course, the women today who bear the group’s name and legacy. While today’s V-8s have expanded to a group of fifteen, they still feature 1940s classics by Etta James and the Andrews Sisters in their repertoire, reminiscent of the women who have come before them.
Above: the original V-8s performing at the Stage Door Canteen in New York City.
The V-8s pictured are (left to right) GG Graff, Caroline Lacey, Abbey Halsey, June Hart, Joan Morris, Joan McMahon, and Connie Rheaume.
NOTE: The MHC Archives and Special Collections is searching for an original copy of this photo, which was published in the Feb. 11, 1944, Mount Holyoke News. If you have one, please contact the archives staff (archives@mtholyoke.edu).
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Jane E. Zachary Named New Alumnae Association Executive Director
Jane E. Zachary, director of alumni relations at Chatham University in Pittsburgh, began work in January as the new executive director of the 
Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College. She replaces W. Rochelle Calhoun ’83, who left last summer to take the job of dean of student affairs at Skidmore College.
Zachary, who holds a law degree from the University of Pittsburgh and served as a court administrator in the Pennsylvania judiciary for more than fifteen years before making a move to alumnae relations, is a graduate of Chatham, which was established as a women’s college in 1869.
“I am firmly committed to the education and advancement of women globally, and to the development of leadership skills in women,” Zachary said. Her enthusiastic support of women’s education, the liberal arts, and fostering women’s connections for the purpose of lifelong learning and personal achievement makes Zachary an excellent fit, said Mary Graham Davis ’65, president of the Alumnae Association.
“Her background in the legal profession and court administration, combined with her experience expanding alumnae relations activities at Chatham University, will serve our association well.
Jane will oversee our association as we undertake our own global expansion, increase our use of technology to reach our alumnae, and participate more fully in the lives of MHC graduates through significant interest groups, continuing education efforts, and career-focused activities,” Davis said.
Zachary began work first as a law clerk at the trial and appellate court levels and later as executive administrator of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. She also served as director of the family division of the trial court in Allegheny County.
A generalist with diverse interests, Zachary said she decided to leave the field of law to work in a more “positive, consensus-building environment.” During her tenure at Chatham, she instituted numerous programs to engage alumnae and students and to honor the traditions that define a women’s-college experience.
“Jane brings the combination of high energy, intellect, and interpersonal skills that will engage both our alumnae around the world and our colleagues on campus in our mission of connecting alumnae to Mount Holyoke and to each other,” Davis added.—M.H.B.
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Moushumi Khan ’93 (left) was awarded the Alumnae Association's 2008 Mary Woolley Fellowship and received $7,500 to begin research for a book examining the issues facing New York Muslim immigrants after the attacks of 9/11.
Khan, who ran her own general law practice serving working-class immigrants in Queens, New York, after 9/11, found herself acting as a bridge between government agencies who needed help from the Muslim community and Muslims fearful for their rights.
“My [Muslim] clients told me of FBI monitoring in their neighborhoods … at the same time, some government agencies were trying to reach out to the Muslim population … to elicit their help in fighting terrorism and to reassure them of their rights. I found myself serving as an intermediary between them,” Khan wrote in her fellowship application.
A legal and social analysis of the Muslim American immigrant community, informed by her experience as one of the few attorneys who directly represented them post 9/11 and worked with government agencies and think tanks, will fill a void in the literature, she says.
Khan, a recent graduate in public administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, begins research for her book this fall.—M.H.B.
Need help organizing your career? Director of Alumnae Career Services Cori Ashworth is here to lend a hand! The services she offers and the issues she can help you address include career and life transitions, self-assessment, identifying new areas of work, job-search strategies, coaching on interviewing and networking, and editing tips for résumés, letters to prospective employers, bios, and personal statements.
Office hours are Tuesday–Thursday, 2–4 p.m., and Tuesday and Wednesday, 7–9 p.m. (Evening appointments are by phone.) To make an appointment, call 413-538-2080. Many questions can be addressed by e-mail, as well. Don’t forget to check out the career resources available on the Alumnae Association Web site (alumnae.mtholyoke.edu) under “Programs and Services.”
In today’s competitive market for top-notch students, faculty, and donors, colleges are eager to bring to their boards trustees who demonstrate leadership, strategic communications skills, and personal integrity. Ellen Hyde Pace ’81 (left) is primed and ready for the challenge.
Nominated this summer as alumnae trustee of Mount Holyoke by the Nomination of Alumnae Trustees/Awards Committee of the Alumnae Association, Pace is expected to be elected to the five-year term during the association’s annual meeting in May 2009.
A resident of New York City, Pace is currently managing director of the marketing communications powerhouse Young & Rubicam. She previously worked at J. Walter Thompson and DMB&B, and has for the past twenty-five years helped to deliver and manage integrated marketing strategies for global clients such as Colgate Palmolive, Procter & Gamble, and Kentucky Fried Chicken.
Successfully managing diverse teams to help build the businesses of leading global corporations has been a highlight of Pace’s career. “Ellen knows when to lead, when to listen, but most important, how to motivate a team of leaders to agree to decisions and action,” said one colleague.
Her multifaceted volunteer work for the college and the Alumnae Association has shown her focus and talent, said another reference. A Communications Ad Hoc Committee member of the association since 2005, Pace helped to formulate the association’s ten-year strategic plan and has served as a lead gift chair for her class, class Cornerstone chair, and head class agent. She received a Medal of Honor in 2006.
Married since 1999 to Anthony Pace and mother of twins Liz and Leo, Pace worked in Australia for several years early in her career as an advertising account manager for DMB&B. Her experience in long-range planning, recognizing trends, and helping a particular product evolve while retaining its proven values are all relevant to a trustee’s role, she noted in her personal statement.
“Mount Holyoke is positioned now and in the future to leverage its unique profile as an educator of women in the world. The college’s truly global student body and commitment to empowering women to act make a compelling story,” Pace added.—M.H.B.
As the association bylaws state: Names of additional candidates may be submitted to the Committee on the Nomination of Alumnae Trustees/Awards provided that the nominations shall be by written petition, signed by at least 100 voting members, no more than 30 percent of whom shall be from the same class or from the same club area, and such written petition is received by the executive director by January 15 of the year of the election. Nominations by petition shall include the written consent of the nominee to serve if elected.
Seventeen alumnae and their guests grabbed their irons and woods and headed to The Orchards golf course in early June for MHC’s first Golf Academy.
The four-day workshop featured intensive golf instruction with four pros, including Jim Stickels, head pro at The Orchards, and Bob Bontempo, former coach of the college’s varsity golf team.
Joan Latchis Amory ’68 learned to play golf at The Orchards. Returning this summer, she recalled a less-than-welcome encounter with poison ivy in the rough near the 13th hole some forty years ago. “I picked up my ball, rubbed my eyes, and had poison ivy in my eyes for final exams.”
Designed in 1922 by legendary Scottish golf course architect Donald J. Ross, The Orchards is an 18-hole, par-71 course that was the site of the 2004 U.S. Women’s Open.
Academy participants said they are hoping for a repeat of the outing next year. In the meantime, all MHC alumnae have guest privileges, provided tee times are available. Three days’ advance booking is required.—M.H.B.
Catch up with the MHC golf team news here.
The faces change every year. The mood remains the same—celebratory. To see many more photos from the two reunion weekends, see our
photo galleries.
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Some of the titles are irresistible, such as “The Milky Way Is a Cow Path: Science in the Poetry of Robert Frost.” Apparently, America’s premiere poet of the bucolic scene considered the principles of thermodynamics as well as the road not taken. Or how about, “No Prior Experience Necessary: Bungee Jumping Into Direct Sales.” Who knew that selling lip butter in other people’s living rooms could be fun and earn you $100,000?
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Reunion I medalists (left to right) W. Rochelle Calhoun ’83, Leslie J. Gianelli ’83, Margaret E. Broadbent ’38, Sandra Klamkin Schocket ’58, Carolyn Bump Marsh ’58
Seven alumnae, including the outgoing executive director of the Alumnae Association, were awarded medals of honor during Reunion. Each alumna was lauded for her ongoing service and commitment to MHC.
Margaret E. Broadbent ’38 has helped maintain the strong bonds among members of her class for seventy years. Her many volunteer roles include class president and vice president, sixtieth-reunion chair, class agent, and reunion gift caller. She also served on the Alumnae Development Committee and the Nominating Committee of the association. She has been an active member of the Cape Cod Club, organizing class reunions and events for more than twenty years.
W. Rochelle Calhoun ’83 began her long career at the college in 1986 as assistant dean of students, and then went on to make her mark as ombudsperson, director of diversity and inclusion, and associate dean of the college/dean of students. Five years ago, she became executive director of the Alumnae Association and has worked to respond to the needs and wants of alumnae with judiciousness and empathy. Always willing to go the extra mile to strengthen and honor the growing membership of the association, Calhoun moves on to Skidmore College as dean of student affairs.
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Achievement Awards were presented to two alumnae at Reunion for “achievement and service to society that exemplifies the values and virtues set forth by the college.”
Faith Wilson LaVelle ’43 (left, in yellow hat), a Phi Beta Kappa member and Mary Lyon Scholar, went on to earn a PhD in biological sciences from Johns Hopkins University and subsequently won the distinguished Mary E. Woolley Fellowship, the Harriet Allyn Fellowship, and the Alumnae Association Medal of Honor.
A frequent speaker for the American Association of University Women and a member of Who’s Who of American Women, her research in the development of the nervous system is highly
regarded. She conducted breakthrough scientific research in the study of mammalian nervous systems and earned numerous significant grants from the U.S. Public Health Service. In addition, she was a professor of anatomy at Loyola University in Chicago.
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“Teaching, Learning, Leading: A Mount Holyoke College Summit on Education” for K–12 and college educators will be held on the MHC campus this fall. Sponsored by the Alumnae Association, the Department of Psychology and Education, and the Harriet and Paul Weissman Center for Leadership and the Liberal Arts, it promises to be an intellectually enriching weekend.
Workshops and panels on current issues in education will include “Curricular Reform: Who Owns the Curriculum,” “Diversity and Equality: Global and Local Communities,” “Networking: Teaching and Learning from Each Other,” and “Critical Self- Reflection: Professional Possibilities and Responsibilities.”
The weekend also will feature distinguished guest speakers; networking opportunities with alumnae, students, and MHC faculty; and a special evening performance.
For additional details and registration information, click here or phone 413-538-2300.
Talk to almost anyone and the first thing mentioned about W. Rochelle Calhoun ’83, who resigned this summer after five years as Alumnae Association executive director, is her brilliant storytelling abilities. Whether you caught her in the hallway, around campus, or in an otherwise dreary meeting, Calhoun could be counted on to interject levity wherever it was justly deserved. Which was pretty much anywhere.
“She uses her theatrical background and her sense of personalities to convey a very vivid picture of the subject matter at hand,” says Alumnae Association President Mary Graham Davis ’65. “At a board meeting we had in New York at my house this year, she had us in stitches, describing different events in her life and her travels. It creates an immediate sense of comradeship and lightens the atmosphere of a meeting. It allows people to have a personal relationship with her, which then you can use to do business.”
For Calhoun, the business at hand from her appointment in 2003 until her departure for Skidmore College in July was inclusivity and member service. “Goal number one was to become a global organization,” says Calhoun, who now serves the Saratoga Springs, New York, college as dean of student affairs. “And really being committed to the old cliché, ‘ask alums what they want and give it to them.’”
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