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Trisha Tanner ’00 named executive director of the Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College

The Board of Directors of the Alumnae Association has named Trisha Tanner ’00 as the next executive director of the Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College. Tanner, who currently serves as the vice president of development and interim director of communications at Central European University (CEU) in Vienna, Austria, will start as the executive director on September 1. The board offered Tanner the position after an extensive international search led by the executive search firm Isaacson, Miller and a hiring committee with the involvement from several active volunteers from across the globe, as well as key stakeholders from the College and the Alumnae Association.

“The moment I stepped through the College gates as a prospective student, I was struck by the power of the uncommon minds who came before me,” said  Tanner, reflecting on what brings her to serve as an ambassador and advocate for MHC alums. “The Mount Holyoke bond has shaped my life ever since — with alums across generations supporting each other in countless ways. Today, we are doing so in troubling times, as we face conflict, the climate crisis, and the rollback of rights and freedoms around the world. Our dynamic global community is a powerful counterpoint to such challenges, so I am especially honored to be selected to serve and engage all of you now.”

Before joining CEU, Tanner was director of private sector initiatives at the International Crisis Group, a Brussels-based NGO dedicated to the prevention and resolution of deadly conflict. Prior to this, she spent a decade in the arts as a fundraiser, communications specialist and educator, including work in external relations and development at Artpace, a global artist residency program. In all of Tanner’s professional roles, she brings a deep understanding of how to connect and engage diverse constituents. She has worked to create and support contemporary, mission-aligned programs while empowering key stakeholders and volunteers to advance the critical work of their organizations. We are excited for the opportunity for her to bring this expertise to the Alumnae Association. 

Tanner, who graduated from Mount Holyoke with a major in critical social thought and a minor in studio art, has a long history of involvement with the Alumnae Association. She has volunteered in various capacities for more than 20 years, including serving as her class president, a member of the Clubs Committee and co-president of the Mount Holyoke Club of San Antonio. Her dedication was honored in 2015 when she received the Young Alum Volunteer Leadership Award in recognition of her “organizational strengths, initiative, enthusiasm and energy” and for offering diverse activities “designed to appeal to the different aspects of our community.”

“Trisha is a strong strategic thinker and a believer in the power of digital engagement to expand reach and affinity. We are excited to have her leadership as we continue the important strategic planning work started this year,” said Alumnae Association President Ellen Hyde Pace ’81. Tanner and her family will be relocating to the Pioneer Valley in September.

2021 Reading Challenge

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Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Resources

This Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Reading List has been developed to assist alums in gaining understanding and appreciation of DEI issues in our society, to spark conversations and dialogue, and to help us address our challenges and opportunities to improve our community.

The books listed here are recommended for general, non-specialist audiences. The authors are diverse as a group, and efforts have been made to provide different voices and perspectives on any single issue.

Content warning: Racial slurs, sex, and difficult content

On our bookshelf

  • Racial Equity Glossary for Terms to Better Understand Building Solidarity – PDF
  • Overcoming Bias: Building Authentic Relationships across Differences by Tiffany Jana
  • Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? And Other Conversations About Race by Beverly Daniel Tatum
  • Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Brittney Cooper
  • The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander 
  • Race, Class, & Gender: An Anthology 8th Edition by Margaret L. Andersen
  • I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness Hardcover by Austin Channing Brown 
  • I Am Not Your Negro Paperback by James Baldwin
  • Between the World and Me Hardcover by Ta-Nehisi Coates
  • Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 30th Anniversary by Paulo Freire
  • We Are Everywhere: Protest, Power, and Pride in the History of Queer Liberation by Leighton Brown and Matthew Riemer
  • Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More by Janet Mock
  • Planning and Lgbtq Communities: The Need for Inclusive Queer Spaces 1st Edition by Petra L. Doan
  • El Deafo by Cece Bell
  • So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
  • 35 Dumb Things Well-Intended People Say: Surprising Things We Say That Widen the Diversity Gap by Maura Cullen
  • The Person You Mean to Be: How Good People Fight Bias by Dolly Chugh
  • Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around: Forty Years of Movement Building with Barbara Smith ’69 by Alethia Jones (Editor), Virginia Eubanks  (Editor), Barbara Smith ’69 (With)

Let us know what you are reading! Email us if you’d like us to consider a book for this list. 

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