Paula Robinson, class of 1999

Paula Robinson in Harambee House

Abstract In this interview, Paula Robinson, Brown University class of 1999, reflects on her time on campus in honor of her 25th reunion. Robinson begins by sharing that she was born and raised in Jamaica until she was 11 years old at which time she and her family moved to New York City. She talks […]

Sara Caitlin Potter, class of 1998

Abstract In this interview, Sara Caitlin Potter, Brown University class of 1998, discusses her experience as an animal lover and volunteer at the Pawtucket (Rhode Island) Animal Shelter and Handsome Dan’s Rescue during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Potter begins by talking about her work as the Coordinator of the Talent Development Program at the University […]

Karina Wang, class of 2021

Abstract In this interview, Karina Wang, Brown University class of 2021, discusses the COVID-19 global pandemic, her participation in a protest for racial justice following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minnesota police, and the University’s decision to transition multiple varsity athletic teams to club teams. Wang begins by explaining why she […]

Sebastián Castro Niculescu, class of 2020

Abstract In this interview, then Brown and RISD Dual-Degree student Sebastián Castro Niculescu discusses her experience growing up in and around Queens, New York, her childhood education, admittance to Brown-RISD, and social life around the turn of the Trump Administration. The child of an Ecuadorian immigrant and Romanian refugee, Niculescu begins by detailing how she […]

Rowan Potter, class of 2019

Abstract In this interview, Rowan Potter, Brown University class of 2019, discusses their undergraduate experiences navigating student leadership, gender identity, mental health, and disability justice on campus. Potter begins by describing the public school they attended in Ridgewood, New Jersey, their parents’ educational backgrounds, and their 12-year experience developing leadership skills with their mother through […]

Ryan Segur, class of 2017

Abstract In this interview, Ryan Segur, class of 2017, highlights their experience as an undergraduate and graduate non binary trans femme member of the Brown University community. Segur begins by sharing some personal background including a brief explanation of how they identify. They describe their early life as a child of two members of the […]

Justice Gaines, class of 2016

Abstract In this interview, Justice Gaines, Brown University class of 2016, discusses her undergraduate career at Brown and highlights her activism on campus. Gaines begins by sharing some background on her high school experiences participating in theatre of the oppressed and JROTC in New Jersey. She explains choosing to attend Brown on the recommendation of […]

Sara Matthiesen, class of 2015

Abstract In this interview, Sara Matthiesen, Brown University class of 2015, discusses her experiences as a professor and social justice activist in Washington, DC, during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Matthiesen begins by recalling that she first learned about COVID-19 from an international student who regularly attended her office hours. She explains that she was concerned […]

Beatrice McGeoch, class of 1997

Abstract In this interview, Beatrice McGeoch, Brown University class of 1997, shares her thoughts on education, work, and housing, in the times of COVID-19. McGeoch begins by recalling when COVID-19 became a serious factor in her work and life. She explains her work as the Director of Adult Education and Literacy Services at the Community […]

Kathy Le, class of 1997

Abstract In this interview, Kathy Le, Brown University class of 1997, shares stories about her family’s emigration from Vietnam to the United States, and also details memories of her time at Brown. Le begins by talking about her parents’ educational and professional experiences and the ways in which the war in Vietnam impacted their lives. […]

Yoruba Richen, class of 1994

Abstract In this interview, Yoruba Richen, documentary filmmaker and Brown University class of 1994, discusses her time at Brown University and describes the trajectory of her career. Richen begins by describing her childhood in Harlem and her early education at The Town School in New York’s Upper East Side. She details her experiences with the […]

Bernadette Aulestia, class of 1994

Abstract In these two interviews, Bernadette Aulestia, Brown University class of 1994, discusses her time at Brown, her career path, and her family’s experience with the COVID-19 global pandemic. In part one, Aulestia begins by describing her childhood living in various places throughout Asia and Latin America. She explains that her father, who worked in […]

Nicole Kathleen Harrison, class of 1992

Abstract In this interview, captured during Brown University’s 2018 All-Class Black Alumni Reunion, Nicole “Nikki Strong” Harrison, class of 1992, details her activism within theatre and dance programs on campus. Harrison begins by sharing her childhood in Spanish Harlem and her education at the Chapin School in New York City. She discusses how she learned […]

Galia Siegel, class of 1989

Abstract In Part 1 of her interview, Galia Siegel speaks about her work with Project Birth – an advocacy, service, and educational program for pregnant and parenting teens in South Providence, and founding its corollary, Peer Sister, which matched women in Project Birth with women at Brown who would tutor them. In Part 2, Siegel […]

Hannelore Banks Rodriguez, class of 1987

Abstract In this interview, Hannelore Banks Rodriguez details her path to and through a career in higher education. She begins by sharing some of her parent’s backgrounds including their immigration from the Philippines to Fargo, North Dakota, her father’s pursuit of a Ph.D., and her mother’s desire for a medical technician degree. She also explains […]

Javette D. Pinkney, class of 1980

Abstract In this interview, Javette D. Pinkney begins by explaining the academic initiative and activist spirit that brought her to Brown. She fondly remembers a “feeling of community,” and campus dating, in spite of instances of racism. She describes her involvement in a number of campus activities and social groups and recalls spearheading the College […]

Rita Duarte Marinho, class of 1979

Abstract In this interview, Rita Duarte Marinho discusses her experiences pursuing a doctoral degree in political science at Brown University from 1975 to 1979. Marinho begins by sharing some personal background. She describes growing up in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and being raised primarily by women. She sets herself in the context of the Second World […]

Kim A. Taylor, class of 1977

Abstract This interview with Kim A.Taylor, class of 1977, was captured during the 2018 Black Alumni Reunion. Taylor begins with her childhood and upbringing within a musical/artist community of Harlem, and how that led to her decision to attend Brown University. This segment of the interview includes an interesting recollection of meeting Dr. Martin Luther […]

Yvonne Ruiz, class of 1977

Abstract In this interview conducted during the 2018 all-class Black Alumni Reunion, Yvonne Ruiz, Brown University class of 1977, discusses her time on campus as well as her subsequent legal career. Ruiz begins by sharing some family background including her parent’s relocation to the United States from Puerto Rico in the 1950s and her childhood […]

Ferelene Bailey, class of 1974

Abstract Ferelene “Nan” Bailey begins by discussing her childhood, the benefits of living overseas during her childhood, her experience applying to Brown University, and her expectations of her experience. She spends a significant amount of time discussing the various and bountiful activist groups she participated in, and more broadly, social turmoil during the seventies surrounding […]

Karen E. McLaurin, class of 1973 (interview 2 of 2)

Abstract Karen E. McLaurin was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts, moved to Rockland, Massachusetts, and attended the public school system until the eighth grade when she entered Notre Dame Academy. As a young woman, McLaurin embraced volunteerism, participating in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, Congress of Racial Equality CORE,, and the Black Panther Party of Boston. […]

Lillian Lim, class of 1973

Abstract This interview captures the oral history of Lillian Y. Lim, Brown University class of 1973 and the first Filipina American Judge in the United States. Lim begins by talking about her parents’ early lives in the Philippines and shares how they met during World War II. She explains that her two older brothers were […]

Lucile K. Wawzonek, class of 1972

Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Lucile K. Wawzonek discusses changing attitudes towards formal gender divisions on campus during the Pembroke-Brown merger. She begins by reflecting on the regulations at Brown in the late 1960s, including the male caller system and curfews. She speaks on the housing lottery and the advent of coed dorms, […]

Miriam “Mimi” Dale Pichey, class of 1972

Abstract Miriam Dale Pichey’s interview is an energetic insight into the politics of student life at Brown University in the late 1960s and early 1970s. She describes both the campus atmosphere of gendered social rules and struggling for equal representation after the Pembroke-Brown merger, the founding of Women of Brown United, and the broader political […]

Marlene Gerber Fried, class of 1972

Abstract In this interview, Marlene Gerber Fried, Brown University class of 1972, discusses teaching and reproductive justice activism during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Fried begins by remembering when she first learned about COVID-19. She recalls concerns around travel in early March 2020 as she flew home from visiting her grandchildren, but not being overly concerned. […]

Susan E. Graber, class of 1971

Abstract Susan E. Graber begins Part 1 her interview by sharing some family background information such as her mother’s college education and the expectation that her children would also attend college. She explains why she chose to attend Pembroke College and recalls some difficulties she faced as a woman pursuing science. Graber remembers her ambivalence […]

Ido Jamar, class of 1969

Abstract In this interview, Ido Jamar (formerly Judith Fitzhugh), class of 1969, details her involvement as the face and voice of the 1968 Student Walkout – a civil rights protest against Brown University’s lack of commitment to students of color. Jamar begins first by discussing her family background and childhood growing up in Virginia, just […]

Susan Cowell, class of 1969

Abstract In this interview, Susan Cowell explains her reasons for choosing to attend Pembroke College, her expectations for campus culture, her roommate’s struggles with class differences, and the social life of Pembroke. She also discusses her own her peers’ efforts to protest the Girls School culture, including stealing the chimes, and a march to the […]

Constance Worthington, class of 1968

Abstract In this interview, Constance Worthington begins by talking about her family’s involvement in Brown University, and her eventual decision to transfer to Pembroke College. She then discusses her challenging time at Brown being a student, single mother, and a widow, and what it was like raising a son later diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. Worthington […]

Susan A. Semonoff, class of 1968

Abstract In this interview, Susan A. Semonoff begins by talking about her family, her choice to attend Pembroke College, and the challenge of the academics once she arrived. She discusses her various classes and the tumultuous atmosphere at Brown/Pembroke in the sixties (The Vietnam War, the changing attitude towards women, and what inspired her to […]

Charlotte Nell Cook, class of 1964

Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Charlotte Nell Cook discusses her upbringing, her decision to attend Pembroke College with the help of scholarship aid, and her general academic experience during her college years. She then recalls an anecdote about dating, describes the dynamics between male and female students, and touches on the near-total lack […]

Hilary Berger Ross, class of 1963

Abstract Hilary Berger Ross begins Part 1 of her 1988 interview by discussing her search for community at Pembroke College, and speaks about her experience as a city girl – a female day student who attended Pembroke but did not live on campus. She remembers Pembroke rules and studying women in Shakespeare. She explains that […]

Joyce Loretta Richardson, class of 1963

Abstract Joyce Loretta Richardson begins her interview by discussing the experiences and people that led her to apply to and attend Pembroke College. She cites experiences such as going to boarding school, having a high achieving family, rejection from Radcliffe, and her fear of swimming. She contrasts her experience at boarding school with her arrival […]

Katharine Curtis Pierce, class of 1962

Abstract On the occasion of her 50th Reunion, Katharine Curtis Pierce looks back on the highlights of her time at Pembroke College. She begins by explaining her expectations for Pembroke and the “finishing school for Episcopal girls” that she found in its stead. Pierce talks about dorm life, her dissatisfaction with that atmosphere, her time […]

Rosemary Pierrel, class of 1953 Ph.D.

Abstract In this interview, Dr. Rosemary Pierrel Sorrentino describes her leadership as Dean of Pembroke from 1961 through 1972. Dr. Sorrentino, or Dean Pierrel as she was known to Pembrokers, reviews the rapidly changing societal norms, her perceptions of the demands upon Pembroke and upon her role as Dean, and the failure of leadership that […]

Arlene Elizabeth Gorton, class of 1952 (interview 1 of 2)

Abstract This interview summarizes the career of Arlene Gorton with Pembroke College and Brown University’s Athletics Departments. Gorton graduated from Pembroke College in the class of 1952, and then served as Pembroke College Director of Physical Education and Athletics, 1961–1971, and finally as the Brown University Assistant Athletic Director from 1971–1998. Gorton begins by explaining […]

Charlotte Lowney, class of 1957

Abstract In this interview, Charlotte Lowney, looking back on a 40-year career with Pembroke College and Brown University, details her upward trajectory through the ranks of the institution’s administration, beginning with her position as the secretary to Brown President Henry Merrit Wriston. In 1962, she became the director of career placement at Brown, during both […]

Mary Jane Mikuriya, class of 1956

Abstract Speaking 61 years after graduating from Pembroke College, Mary Jane Mikuriya, class of 1956, shares an exceptionally rich account of her experience as an American student and woman of Japanese and Austro-Hungarian descent in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. Mikuriya spends the first half hour of her interview describing her parents’ backgrounds and her […]

Marjorie Alice Jones, class of 1954

Abstract Marjorie Alice Jones speaks as a member of the silent generation and considers the busy, active life she’s lead despite the fact that nobody expected anything from the women of her generation. She begins Part 1 of her interview by discussing her family background and reasons for attending Pembroke College. She describes her experience […]

Feven Teklu, Staff

Abstract In this interview, Feven Teklu, Senior Leadership Giving Officer in the Office of Advancement at Brown University, discusses her experiences as a woman of color and mother during the COVID-19 global pandemic and in the wake of the death of George Floyd. Teklu begins by sharing her personal background and talking about her childhood […]

Christina Smith, Staff

Abstract In this interview, Christina Smith, Associate Director for Undergraduate STEM Development at the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning at Brown University, shares her experiences as a scholar and member of Navajo Nation during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Smith begins by explaining that she first started hearing about COVID-19 during a trip to Oregon […]

Jennifer Currier, Staff

Abstract In this interview, Jennifer Currier, former Publications and Programs Coordinator for the Portuguese and Brazilian Studies Department at Brown University, discusses her experiences leading up to and participating in one of the Black Lives Matter protests in Providence, Rhode Island, following the murder of George Floyd. Currier begins by explaining her role at Brown, […]

Gail Cohee, Staff

Abstract In this two-part interview, Gail Cohee, former Associate Dean of Students and Director of the Sarah Doyle Center for Women and Gender, discusses her life in academia, women’s center work, changing circumstances at Brown during the late 2010s, and retirement during the COVID-19 pandemic. She begins with an overview of her teaching in English […]

Lydia Curliss, Staff

Abstract In this interview, Lydia Curliss, Physical Sciences, and Native American and Indigenous Studies, Librarian at Brown University and member of Nipmuc Nation of Massachusetts, shares her thoughts on the COVID-19 global pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the fight for Indigenous rights. Curliss begins explaining that nobody realized they would be social distancing […]

Louise Lamphere, Faculty

Abstract An assistant professor of Anthropology and the only woman in her department when she was hired in 1968, Louise Lamphere was denied tenure in 1974. The Anthropology Department claimed that her scholarship was theoretically weak. Lamphere claimed she was the victim of sex discrimination and argued that the small number of women on the […]

Rachel Cassidy, Faculty

Abstract In this interview, Rachel Cassidy, Associate Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences at Brown University, discusses her experiences leading up to and participating in one of the Black Lives Matter protests in Providence, Rhode Island, following the murder of George Floyd. Cassidy begins by recalling when she first heard George Floyd’s name and learned […]

Socialist Feminist Caucus at the 40th Anniversary of Sojourner House, class of 1970s

Abstract This interview with Brown University alumnae Tracy E. Fitzpatrick (1976), Catherine J. Lewis (1976), Linda M. Kramer (1977), and Christina Crosby (Ph.D., 1982), chronicles their experiences in the Socialist Feminist Caucus and the founding of Sojourner House, a domestic violence agency based in Providence, at its 40th anniversary celebration. The interviewees begin by sharing […]

Lynn Nottage, class of 1986, and Ruby Aiyo Gerber, class of 2020

Abstract In this interview, Lynn Nottage, Pulitzer-prize winning playwright and Brown University class of 1986, and her daughter, Ruby Aiyo Gerber, Brown University class of 2020, discuss their experiences at Brown, living through the COVID-19 global pandemic, and processing the death of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. Nottage and Gerber both begin by explaining why […]

Amy Cohen, class of 1992, Lisa Stern Kaplowitz, class of 1995, and Jennifer Hsu Todd, class of 1995

Abstract In 1991, Brown University announced that four varsity sports, including women’s volleyball and gymnastics, would have their funding cut forcing them to become varsity club sports. In 1992, after repeated attempts to rectify an alleged budget issue, thirteen female student athletes brought suit against the University stating that the University was in violation of […]

Women of Brown United, classes of 1972-1973

Abstract In this interview recorded on the eve of the Supreme Court’s overturn of Roe v. Wade, eight Brown University alumnae discuss the factors that led them to found the women’s liberation student group, Women of Brown United (WBU) in 1970. They detail campus life and group activism in the midst of the sexual revolution, […]

Alice Mary Clark, class of 1946

Abstract Alice Mary Clark begins her interview by briefly describing her childhood on Charlesfield Street in Providence, Rhode Island. There is some trouble with the recording and Clark picks up with an anecdote of a post-graduation opportunity in the speech department with Sock and Buskin director, Janice Vanderwater. She explains her love of speech and […]

Justine Tyrrell, class of 1943

Abstract In Part 1, speaking fifty five years after her graduation, Justine Tyrrell begins her interview by noting that she is one of seventeen family members to graduate from Brown University. She states that she always knew she would attend Pembroke College and recalls asking Dean Margaret Shove Morriss for a scholarship. She briefly discusses […]

Katherine Virginia Faulkner, class of 1936

Abstract In this interview, speaking nearly fifty years after graduation from Pembroke College, Katherine Virginia Faulkner begins Part 1 of her interview by describing the intellectual difficulty she encountered in her transition from public schools in Henderson, North Carolina. She explains choosing to attend Pembroke for the different culture it fostered compared to that in […]

Bella Skolnick, class of 1933

Abstract Bella Skolnik’s interview provides a passionate story of activism in health, education, and welfare. She begins by reflecting on her thoughtful and supportive family and her childhood and moves on to tell vivid stories of her freshman year at Pembroke College, including her college friendships, house mother, dating, dormitories, “gracious living,” and seeing the […]

Margery Chittenden Leonard, class of 1929

Abstract Margery Chittenden Leonard’s 1982 interview reflects her tireless passion for the Equal Rights Amendment. While she discusses her classes at Brown and her dormitories, the majority of her oral history is dedicated to discussing the fierce discrimination women faced because of their gender, and the necessity of the Equal Rights Amendment as the only […]

Martha Alice Ingham Dickie, class of 1926 (interview 1 of 2)

Abstract Martha Alice Ingham Dickie begins her 1985 interview discussing both her religious and academic backgrounds, elaborating on her interests in social work and international politics. These religious and intellectual values converged in 1939, when Czechoslovakia was being threatened by the Nazis and the Unitarian Churches there had been occupied. As part of the American […]

25th Reunion, class of 1986

Abstract This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1986 highlights the undergraduate experiences of Lisa M. Caputo, Linda M. Sanches, Marcy A. Sandler, Judith Anne Williams, Pamela B. Weiler, Janet L. Kroll, and Christa M. Champion, during their 25th reunion in May 2011. First, the group discusses their reasons for attending Brown […]

25th Reunion, class of 1987

Abstract This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1987 encapsulates the undergraduate experiences of Carol M. Snow, Kim S. Reuben, Mary Lou Jepsen, Valerie T. Tutson, Trinita E. Brown, Baishali Rinku Sen, Stephanie L. Grace, Rebecca M. Zeigler, and Pamela D. Gerrol, at their 25th reunion. The interviewees begin by briefly sharing […]

Martha Gardner, class of 1988

Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Martha Gardner discusses the women’s march and speakout held in the spring of 1985. She describes fraternity activities and campus conditions that prompted female students to plan a day of events that addressed sexual violence, gender discrimination, and homophobia at Brown. In Part 2, Gardner focuses on the […]

25th Reunion, class of 1988

Abstract This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1988 summarizes the undergraduate experiences of Christine Arbor, Claire Cavanah, Martha Gardner, Kasia Welin, and Diana Wells, at their 25th reunion. This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1988 summarizes the undergraduate experiences of Christine Arbor, Claire Cavanah, Martha Gardner, Kasia […]

25th Reunion, class of 1993

Abstract This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1993 documents the undergraduate experiences of Kenya F. Crumel, Holly Gordon, April Parker Hersh, Kathleen Lenihan, Anne Sudduth, and Sarah Vidal, at their 25th reunion. The interviewees begin by sharing brief personal backgrounds, primarily with reference to geographical, parental, and academic factors that led […]

25th Reunion, class of 1998

Abstract In this interview, Theresa Atta Ifogah, Willow Darsie, Sandy Kent Carielli, Mary Swerczek Sparacello, and Meredith TenHoor, members of the Brown University class of 1998, share their memories of their time on campus in honor of their 25th reunion. The interviewees begin by explaining what drew them to Brown. TenHoor mentions the Brown/RISD dual […]

Ingrid Ellen Winther, class of 1964

Abstract In this interview, Ingrid Ellen Winther begins by discussing her childhood and early education. She reflects on her memories of the first day at Pembroke College, her active social life, and her academics, pausing to note the lack of female role models at Pembroke. She felt that women were being educated to be good […]

Phyllis A. Kollmer, class of 1966

Abstract In this interview, Phyllis A. Kollmer discusses the general course requirements for obtaining a degree from Pembroke College in Brown University as well as some of her favorite courses, including Ancient History, Classical History, and Economics. She mentions her musical contributions to the Chattertocks and the social dynamics of coeducational courses. Additionally, Kollmer details […]

Carol Rita Dannenberg, class of 1966

Abstract In this interview, Carol R. Dannenberg begins by explaining her decision to attend Pembroke College. She discusses dating life, and student/professor relationships, as well as her involvement with student government, tension over curfews, the lack of role models on campus, and being involved in the Peace Corps during summer break. Dannenberg also discusses her […]

50th Reunion, class of 1973

Abstract In this interview, Martha Banks, Joan Betesh, Nancy Clarke, Jane Desmond, Lynda Durfee, Phyllis Fineman Schlesinger, Lillian Lim, Patricia McMillen, Nina Peskoe Peyser, Marian Weber, and Lucy Winner, members of the Brown University class of 1973, share their memories of their time on campus in honor of their 50th reunion. The first half hour […]

50th Reunion, class of 1969

yearbook cover photo

Abstract This interview with members of the Pembroke College class of 1969 documents the undergraduate experiences of Kathryn H. Au, Rita Ann Chao, Maria Garcia, Kathryn Troyer, and Lucy Jane Wollaeger, at their 50th reunion. Interviewees begin by introducing themselves, mentioning where they come from geographically, their parents’ educational backgrounds, and what attracted them to […]

Anna Peña Hass, class of 1917

class image Hass

Abstract In the first part of the interview, Anna Peña Hass discusses early life on her family’s farm and the decision to attend Pembroke despite wanting to get married and become a nurse. Hass describes the courses she took in her two years at Pembroke and some of the formative people she met during that […]