Williams Women
On the 40th anniversary of coeducation at Williams, we celebrate alumnae across the decades who’ve made a difference on campus and in the world. When Williams opened its doors to women in the late 1960s and early 1970s, news reports speculated about what would happen. Would women be a “civilizing influence,” as the Washington Post stated?…
Udderly Eph
Cows decorated in a rainbow of colors— sporting mortarboards, cigars and even a bathing suit—adorned the campus in late May, part of a herd of 95 designed by different members of the Williams community. Called Ephs on Parade and sponsored by the Committee on Undergraduate Life, “the goal was for the entire campus to be talking about…
Cuba in Context
With relations between the U.S. and Cuba poised for sweeping change, Williams professors with ties to the Caribbean nation take stock—and share their thoughts on what may lie ahead. In April, music professor Ileana Perez Velazquez was watching news coverage of a New York delegation’s visit to Cuba when something unexpected happened. She received several…
Greener Than Green
With its traditional, white clapboard siding offset by sleek, black solar panels, its rooflines pitched to maximize rainwater collection, and its newly planted gardens promising food for people, wildlife, birds and insects, it’s impossible to miss the Class of 1966 Environmental Center. That’s the point. “It’s a statement, both about Williams and its commitment…
Professor’s App Reaches for the Stars
The objective: Sink a putt and then hurtle through an unexplored universe, avoiding asteroids and interacting with aliens until you reach the next planet, and hole, on a galactic golf course. Along the way, you’re learning about space travel and astronomy. This is Project Rocket Golfing, computer science professor Morgan McGuire’s latest video game. Over…
Philosophical Implications of Modern Physics
“Some of the discoveries made by physicists over the last century seem to show that our common-sense views are deeply at odds with our most sophisticated and best confirmed scientific theories.”So begins the description for Philosophical Implications of Modern Physics, a new course taught this past spring by philosophy professor Keith McPartland and physics professor…
Unearthing the Future
Two ancient reliefs in the permanent collection of the Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) may be among the few surviving relics of a palace reportedly destroyed by the Islamic State. The reliefs are carved into panels of gypsum that are each about 85 by 40 by 3 inches and weigh 1,500 pounds. The panels and…
Finding Home in Vietnam
Inspired by a spring break trip with her history class, Rachel Nguyen ’16 is spending the summer in Vietnam, working on a documentary film about identity, displacement and community. Funded by a Russell H. Bostert Memorial Fellowship research grant, the history major will spend two months in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon),…
Waste in Postwar Japan
A new book project by history professor Eiko Maruko Siniawer ’97 is delving into how perceptions of waste in post-World War II Japan have shaped—and been shaped by—understandings of affluence and concepts of a good and meaningful life. With a fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), Siniawer will spend the next year conducting research…
Modeling Mutualism
Two Williams students are spending the summer deep in Hopkins Forest, collecting samples from roughly 200 goldenrod plants as part of a three-year project to understand inter-species dependencies called “mutualisms.” The project, funded with a $244,117 National Science Foundation grant, is being led by biology professor Manuel Morales and chemistry professor Enrique Peacock-Lopez. Their goal…
Educating for Happiness
Twelve years ago, Susan Engel was talking with a group of teachers who were criticizing the standardized testing model that’s now a major focus in American education. “I kept asking, ‘What do you want the kids to learn?’” she says. “The word ‘curiosity’ kept coming up.” And so began years of research that resulted in…
Leight Receives $1.3M Dept. of Labor Grant
Economics professor Jessica Leight has received a $1.3 million Department of Labor grant to study whether life-skills training and mentoring by older female role models in Rajasthan, India, can influence girls’ participation in education and the workforce. Leight will travel to India throughout the four-year grant period, and her research will be shared with policymakers and…
From Farm to Dining Hall
It’s 6 p.m. on a sunny day near the end of the spring semester. Just as High Lawn Farm Manager Roberto Laurens is ending his shift, Yvette Belleau (above), a prep and service attendant at Williams’ Paresky Center, is beginning hers. Belleau is getting ready to make gelato for the Lee Snack Bar- and the…
Follow the Money
Dean of the Faculty Denise Buell details what Williams spends per student each year-and exactly how we spend it-in the video “College: What It’s Worth, What We Value.” While the concept of Mark Hopkins and the log “may sound simple,” she says, “it’s definitely not cheap.”
Smith-Evans ’99 New VP for Institutional Diversity & Equity
Leticia Smith-Evans ’99 joined the campus community July 1 as vice president for institutional diversity and equity, succeeding Mike Reed ’75, who’s now a VP at Dickinson College. In this role, she’ll lead efforts to develop programs and policies strengthening Williams’ commitment to equity and inclusion. She’ll also support the college’s work to diversify its…
Williams Wins 18th Director’s Cup
Williams won the Learfield Sports Director’s Cup in June—its 18th in the cup’s 20-year history. The award is presented by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) to the best all-around sports program based on team performance. After trailing in fall competition, a strong spring season put Williams ahead of Johns Hopkins University…
Alumni to Be Honored for Distinguished Achievement
Five alumni will receive Bicentennial Medals for “distinguished achievement in any field of endeavor” during Convocation Sept. 19. This year’s recipients are: Mike Curtin ’86, CEO of D.C. Central Kitchen, whose groundbreaking programs train formerly homeless and incarcerated adults for culinary careers and provide millions of healthy meals to at-risk populations; Jonathan Fielding ’64, whose academic research…
Bon Voyage, Class of ’15!
On June 7, Williams held its 226th Commencement, celebrating the Class of 2015. During the ceremony, President Adam Falk gave honorary degrees to Nobel Prize-winning chemist Mario J. Molina, Xerox Chairman and CEO Ursula M. Burns, two-term former Massachusetts Gov. Deval L. Patrick and writer Gish Jen. Burns then gave the Commencement Address, telling the…
Williams Welcomes New Board Members
The college welcomed Timothy A. Barrows ’79, Jeffrey S. Harleston ’82 and Valerie A. DiFebo ’84 to its Board of Trustees on July 1. They are joined by Gregory H. Woods ’91, who stepped down after a brief term as alumni trustee in 2012, after he was appointed general counsel at the U.S. Department of Energy….
In Memoriam
“He was a large presence in our lives….It’s hard to imagine Williams without Jimmy, and his name… and his memory…will be there forever.” —President Adam Falk in a post on the Wall Street Journal‘s MoneyBeat blog about the June 17 passing of James B. Lee ’75, a current Williams trustee, at the age of 62….
Leight Receives $1.3M Dept. of Labor Grant
Economics professor Jessica Leight has received a $1.3 million Department of Labor grant to study whether life-skills training and mentoring by older female role models in Rajasthan, India, can influence girls’ participation in education and the workforce. Leight will travel to India throughout the four-year grant period, and her research will be shared with policymakers and…
So Much, So Interesting
I always read the Williams magazine when it arrives in my mailbox. This time (spring 2015) I still have not finished it all. So much. So interesting. So big a change in content. Wow. Congratulations! —Peter Hoyt ’66, St. Louis, Mo.
The Italian Job
I was fascinated by “The Italian Job” (spring 2015), which recounts the collaboration between Professor E.J. Johnson ’59 and his student Grace McEniry ’12 in arriving at a stunning Renaissance architectural discovery. I was fascinated—but not completely surprised. E.J.’s first year as a professor at Williams was my senior year, and although we had the…
Hot Zone
Thank you so much for your article “Dispatch from the Hot Zone” (spring 2015). It is wonderful to see the commitment of so many Ephs in battling the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, and they deserve our deepest thanks. It should also be noted, however, that waterborne illnesses throughout Africa (and Asia and Latin America)…
Standing Strong
Thank you for “Standing Strong” (spring 2015). Given the demands of the “hook-up culture” (high expectations, low commitment), I believe the following two preventive measures will enrich the community-driven approach to ending sexual assault. First, two years before Meg Bossong ’05 arrived at Williams as a freshman, I was profoundly moved by the First Days…
Shadow and Light
Cuban-born artist Emilio Sanchez is known for his bright, sunny prints—welcoming pieces that also have an air of mystery. Searing sunshine highlights architectural details of homes, buildings and landmarks and plays against darkened doors and windows, keeping the secrets inside those structures safe, leaving the viewer to wonder. The Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA)…
Place and Consciousness
I’ve always put a very strong value on place—and connection to place—and on how our surroundings can subtly shape consciousness and belief. So looking at colleges as a passionate environmental advocate, one of my main criteria was the relationship between the campus and the natural world. I was totally turned off by Amherst for the…
Thank You, Class of ’60
Four years later, I still reflect often on the depth and impact of my experiences as a Class of 1960 Scholar for the art department in 2010-11. The program provided a critical space for focused and meaningful student leadership, and I am extremely grateful to the Class of 1960 for generously providing the funding that…