Abstract In this interview, Jaclyn Mason, Sarah Pierson, and Ninian Stein, members of the Brown University class of 1999, share memories of their time on campus in honor of their 25th reunion. The interviewees begin by sharing why they decided to attend Brown. Geography and the open curriculum were two of their biggest reasons. They […]
Professors
Ann Martha Chmielewski, class of 1959
Abstract The daughter of Alice O’Connor Chmielewski ’28, Ann begins her own interview by relating childhood memories of accompanying her mother to Pembroke College reunions. She then describes her social and academic life as as a student herself, a “city girl” who later lived on campus. Among the specific experiences she recalls: spending time at […]
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 […]
Anita L. Schell, class of 1979
Abstract In this interview, Anita L. Schell begins by discussing her family and the support she had from her parents to attend college. She then talks about her initial attraction to Brown University and her fond memories of the choir, which she participated in for all four years, and her group trip to India. Schell […]
Deborah J. Greenberg, class of 1979
Abstract Deborah J. Greenberg begins her interview by sharing some family background information including her childhood in Chicago, her mother’s position as a therapist, and the world travels that were funded by her father’s position as a professor at the University of Illinois. Greenberg describes her first impressions of the Brown University campus and living […]
Maggie M. Wenig, class of 1978 (interview 2 of 2)
Abstract In her second interview, conducted in 2013, Maggie M. Wenig begins by discussing her admission to Brown University, where she was involved with the Brown University Women’s Minyan. She discusses the rigor of the Religious Studies Department, the strength of its professors and their mentorship, specifically Professor Jacob Neusner, and her subsequent inspiration to […]
Margot Landman, class of 1978
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Margot Landman discusses her family background and their influence in her choice of college and major. She goes on to describe her nerve-wracking first day at Brown and her best and worst memories as an undergraduate. She shares memories of the Chinese and Asian history departments at Brown, […]
Rita A. Campbell, class of 1975
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Rita A. Campbell discusses her upbringing, how she decided to attend Brown University, and the racial dynamics she experienced as a Black student in overwhelmingly White educational environments. She then speaks about negative perceptions of interracial dating and about her academic pursuits at Brown. In Part 2, she […]
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 1 of 2)
Abstract In her first interview conducted in 1994, Karen E. McLaurin begins by discussing her decision to attend Brown University, and her determination to succeed. She talks about a summer program she attended that was specifically for students who were deemed less likely to succeed at Brown. McLaurin also recalls minority students at Brown, their […]
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, […]
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 […]
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 […]
Meryl Smith, class of 1966
Abstract In this interview, Meryl Smith remembers life as an Orthodox Jewish Pembroker. She recounts how, even before she attended Pembroke, her mother would welcome to dinner any Pembroke or Brown students who were trying to keep kosher. She fondly remembers the friendships formed around playing bridge and smoking cigarettes, and participating in Question Club, […]
Dorothy Ann Haus, class of 1964
Abstract Dorothy Ann Haus begins this interview by talking about her life before Pembroke College, growing up as a “Pollyanna” in Brattleboro, Vermont. Haus discusses many different aspects of life as a Pembroker including the rules and regulations, the gym requirement, dorm life, dating, freshman orientation, formal dinners and demitasse, and playing varsity sports. Haus […]
Carolyn Ann Converse, class of 1964
Abstract This interview was donated by Carolyn Converse, class of 1964. Converse asked her Strathclyde University colleague, Kathleen Kane, to interview her for this project. Converse begins by sharing some personal background including information on her hometown of Wilton, Connecticut, her family’s educational history, and her father’s early death. She goes on to explain 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 […]
Cynthia Lee Jenner, class of 1961
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Cynthia Lee Jenner begins by describing her family background. She talks about the contemporary stigma against a middle class wife with a career and the effect of this on her mother and herself. From this context, she attended an all-girls boarding school and Pembroke College, both of which […]
Ann Martha Chmielewski, class of 1959
Abstract The daughter of Alice Elizabeth O’Connor ’28, Chmielewski begins her interview by relating childhood memories of accompanying her mother to Pembroke College reunions. She then describes her social and academic life as as a student herself, a city girl – a female day student who attended Pembroke but did not live on campus, who […]
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 […]
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 […]
Rita R. Schorr, class of 1953
Abstract Rita R. Schorr begins this interview by recounting her childhood in Poland, the outbreak of World War II, and her and her family’s placement in Auschwitz. She explains the trauma of this experience, as well as her determination to survive. Schorr transitions to discuss her education in Munich after she was liberated, and her […]
Alison Palmer, class of 1953
Abstract In part 1 of this interview, Alison Palmer discusses her childhood, her decision to attend Pembroke College, and the Pembroke experience. In part 2 she discusses hazing at Pembroke, her summers while at college, working in New York City, her original interest in the State Department, and her time in Ghana. In part 3, […]
Janice Vanderwater, Faculty
Abstract In this interview, Janice Vanderwater discusses her college education at Barnard College and her path to becoming the first female faculty member of the English department at Brown University, then the director of dramatics. She worked at Brown from 1940 until 1966 and she details how the campus, and her position as a faculty […]
Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, Faculty
Abstract In this interview, Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, Associate Professor of Sociology at Brown University, discusses her experiences as a professor and academic navigating the COVID-19 pandemic. Gonzalez Van Cleve begins by recalling her earliest memories of learning about COVID-19 and anticipating its impact on the Spring 2020 semester. She talks about assigning more readings […]
Elizabeth Branch Jackson, class of 1945
Abstract Elizabeth “Betty” Branch Jackson is one of Pembroke’s early students of color. During her time on campus, she was the only Black student for over two years, but this did not stop her from being extremely active during her time there and in the years following. Jackson worked for the American Friends Service and […]
Elizabeth Hortense Leduc, class of 1948
Abstract In this interview, Elizabeth Hortense Leduc recounts her educational background from undergraduate studies in biology at the University of Vermont, to obtaining her master’s degree from Wellesley College, getting her Ph.D. at Brown University, and completing a fellowship at Brown through the National Institute of Health. She frequently mentions the assistance she received during […]
Constance Andrews, class of 1948
Abstract Constance Andrews begins her interview by describing her father’s Harvard Law education and her mother’s boarding school education. She explains that her father and brother both graduated from Brown University, and that her mother would keep her and her brother out of school to watch commencement in May. She remarks that it was assumed […]
Jane E. Walsh, class of 1947
Abstract Jane E. Walsh begins Part 1 of her interview by summarizing her background including her mother’s career as Director of Standards and Planning for the Department of Employment Security in Rhode Island, and her father’s real estate business. She explains that she always knew she would go to college and Pembroke College’s close geographic […]
Elsie B. Anderson, class of 1947
Abstract In this interview, Elsie B. Anderson discusses her parents’ Swedish origins, their sixth grade-level educations, and their paths to learning English. She goes on to recall having three career options – nurse, teacher, or secretary – and choosing to become a nurse. Being only seventeen when she graduated high school, Anderson explains why she […]
Judith Vivienne Korey, class of 1946
Abstract Judith Vivienne Korey begins Part 1 of her interview by describing her family background, her and her father’s negative attitude toward her mother’s advertising job, and Providence during her early years. She goes on to explain her reasons for deciding to attend Pembroke College and the career aspirations she went in with. Korey remembers […]
Gloria E. Del Papa, class of 1946
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Gloria E. Del Papa begins by describing her relationship to her father, an immigrant cement business owner, her role as a “typical Italian daughter,” and how her father insisted she go to Pembroke College. When discussing her life at Pembroke, she speaks about her academic record, the discovery […]
Hilda Antoinette Calabro, class of 1945
Abstract In this interview, Hilda Antoinette Calabro begins by sharing some family background and explaining her reasons for attending Pembroke College. She recalls being supported by her family and having the freedom to choose what she wanted to do with her college education. She describes the difficult of being a city girl – a female […]
Dorothy Myrtle Kay, class of 1945
Abstract In this interview, Dorothy Myrtle Kay begins Part 1 by describing how she started her first job at her parents’ business while she was an undergraduate student at Simmons College in Boston, Massachusetts. She then recalls transferring to Pembroke College and the difficulty of working and taking courses in the new trimester program that […]
Enid Wilson, class of 1943
Abstract In this interview, Enid Wilson begins by describing her family background, her father’s professorships at Massachusetts School of Technology and Harvard University, and her childhood in Brookline, Massachusetts. She explains why she chose to attend Pembroke College and shares pieces of her interview process with Dean Margaret Shove Morriss. She recalls the buildings that […]
Elizabeth Susan Weatherhead, class of 1942
Abstract Elizabeth Susan Weatherhead begins her interview with a brief family background, noting that her father attended a boy’s school in Barbados while her mother attended a girl’s school in Canada. She explains that having grown up in Barrington, Rhode Island, she was familiar with Pembroke College and was given the same opportunities as her […]
Teresa Elizabeth Gagnon, class of 1939 (interview 2 of 2)
Abstract In this interview conducted in 2012, Teresa Elizabeth Gagnon ’39, discusses her auspicious start at Pembroke College at the age of fifteen. She remembers being interviewed by Dean of Admissions Eva Mooar and being denied Spanish classes by Dean Margaret Shove Morriss because they were full of men. She also recalls the character of […]
Margaret Mary Porter, class of 1939
Abstract Margaret “Peg” Mary Porter begins Part 1 of her 1988 interview discussing her family background and her motivation for both going to college and choosing Pembroke College. She reflects on what is was like to attend college during the Depression years, Franklin Delano Roosevelt becoming President of the United States, and the beginnings of […]
Clara Elizabeth Goodale, class of 1939
Abstract Clara Elizabeth Goodale ‘39 is the niece of Nettie Goodale Murdock who was a member of Pembroke College’s first class in 1895. This interview captures the memories Murdock shared with her niece of her time at Pembroke. In Part 1, Goodale explains that she and her sister, Barbara ’37, lived with Murdock while they […]
Harva Zelda Fisher, class of 1936
Abstract In this interview, Harva Zelda Fisher explains her reasons for attending Pembroke College, particularly citing geographic proximity to her home and small student population. She recalls Dean Margaret Shove Morriss, Physical Education Director Bessie Rudd, and Professor George Downing, but says one of her favorite professors was Israel Kapstein. She gives a brief educational […]
Esther Amelia Dick, class of 1934
Abstract Esther Amelia Dick begins this interview by speaking of her childhood in Reading, PA and struggling with Meniere’s Syndrome. She recalls her reasons for attending Pembroke College and discusses campus rules, requirements, clothing standards, alcohol and smoking restrictions, and access to the Brown campus. She gives her opinions of several professors and talks about […]
Katherine May Hazard, class of 1933
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Katherine May Hazard begins by discussing daily life at Pembroke College. For her, this meant commuting to campus and becoming used to the regimented life at Pembroke. She explains some of the requirements, what it was like to date mathematicians, and her involvement on campus. Outside of class, […]
Katherine Perkins, class of 1932
Abstract In this interview, Katherine Perkins talks about her family and her upbringing in East Providence and how she came to attend Pembroke College. She discusses her travel as a day student to campus, the courses she took, extracurricular activities, the one Black woman in her class, and the Great Depression. Perkins describes her first […]
Rose Beatrice Miller, class of 1931
Abstract In this interview, Rose Beatrice Miller discusses the reasons she attended Pembroke College, her graduate studies, and career in bacteriology. She recalls Deans Margaret Shove Morriss and Eva Mooar, and biology professor Magel Wilder, her sole female professor at Pembroke. Mikker also shared memories of sex and dating, attending Pembroke as a “city girl,” […]
Jeannette Dora Black, class of 1930
Abstract In this interview, Jeannette Dora Black discusses her family, her education at Providence’s Classical High School, and her reasons for attending Pembroke College. She remembers her requirements and classes at Pembroke, her feelings about coeducation, the Pembroke administration, and Dean Margaret Shove Morriss. Black recalls working at the John Hay Library and the effects […]
Rose Roberta Traurig, class of 1928
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Rose Roberta Traurig describes her family, from Waterbury, Connecticut, and the high value they placed on education. At Pembroke College, Rose’s first dorm was Angell House, and she talks about entertaining guests there on weekends. She mentions that while she and her family never distinguished between Jews and […]
Grace Amelia McAuslan, class of 1928
Abstract In this interview, Grace Amelia McAuslan begins by explaining why she decided to attend Pembroke College and what her first impressions were. She notes some of the courses she took as a sociology concentrator and momentarily remembers participating in the Pembroke orchestra. She shares brief memories of Dean Margaret Shove Morriss and Dean Anne […]
Doris Madeline Hopkins, class of 1928
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Doris Madeline Hopkins begins by discussing her early education and family life in Rhode Island. She talks about the expectations for “nice girls” at Pembroke College in the 1920s, about the curriculum, and the classes she took. She talks about 1920s fashion, dancing and bootleg liquor, including clubs […]
Alice Elizabeth O’Connor, class of 1928
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, Alice Elizabeth O’Connor begins by discussing her life growing up in East Providence and assuming guardianship of her brothers and sisters after the early deaths of her parents. She also talks about changing careers to become a social worker, the state of public welfare services, and her work […]
Caroline Flanders, class of 1926
Abstract In this interview, Caroline Flanders recalls telling her parents that “every girl should go to college.” Flanders reflects on her arrival at Pembroke College, taking many sociology classes on Brown’s campus, and working as a babysitter to help pay tuition. She reflects on the newfound freedom and the individualistic attitude of the “Roaring Twenties.” […]
Helen Anderson Hoff, class of 1923
Abstract Helen Anderson Hoff begins her interview by discussing her childhood education in New Jersey and her family background. She explains that a high school superintendent convinced her to apply to Pembroke, making her the first person in her town to attend college. She discusses her experiences in various academic departments and her extracurricular involvement, […]
25th Reunion, class of 1983
Abstract This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1983 showcases the undergraduate experiences of Judith Lynn Wells, Carmen Maria Garcia, Gwenn Ellen Masterman, Kay Lynne Levinson, Norah Gaughan, and Joan Marie Heminway, at their 25th reunion. The interview begins with an introduction from each participant including her name, major, current occupation, and […]
25th Reunion, class of 1984
Abstract This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1984 captures the experiences of Jean Eastman, Kristen Duckett, Amy Hayes Davidsen, Marcia May Brown, Patti Schallman, Maria Denise Mileno, Surrenthia Renee Parker, Barbara Reid Norris, Karla Elrod, Pamela Arya, and Joy Brownstein, at their 25th reunion. The interview begins with an introduction from […]
50th Reunion, class of 1954
Abstract This interview captures the undergraduate experiences of Pearl Schwartz, Margery Gould Sharp, Diane Joslyn Lake, Joan Wright Bliss, Barbara Reuben Levin, Marilyn Jane Carlson, Patricia Crabtree, Jettabee Edman, Diana Coates Gill, Kay Elizabeth Hellstrom, and Felice Sara Rinder, members of the Pembroke College class of 1954, at their 50th Reunion. The alumnae begin their […]
Diane Eileen Scola, class of 1959
Abstract Diane Eileen Scola’s oral history is an example of autonomy and feminist conviction despite gender discrimination. She begins her interview discussing her Italian-American family background, applying to college, academics at Pembroke, and commuting to school. In Part 2, Scola focuses on gender expectations in academia and the professional world, and the lack of women […]
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 […]
50th Reunion, class of 1964
Abstract This interview with members of the Pembroke College class of 1964 highlights the undergraduate experiences of Linda Sue Mason, Ann Newhouse Welsh, Susan Frances Sinykin, Susan Margaret Bloch, Berit Christina Spant, Susan Rosenfeld, Ingrid Ellen Winther, Mara Gailitis, and Rhoda Pearlman Nagin, at their 50th reunion. The interviewees begin by introducing themselves, stating their […]
Kristie E. Miller, class of 1966
Abstract Kristie E. Miller, an award-winning biographer, begins her interview discussing the controversy surrounding her decision to attend college. Her mother, a supporter of Joseph McCarthy, always discouraged her academic interest and wanted her to go to a politically conservative school, while her father wanted her to go to a prestigious university. In Part 1, […]
50th Reunion, class of 1967
Abstract This interview with members of the Pembroke College class of 1967 documents the undergraduate experiences of Carol Lemlein, Susan Haas, Brenda Hubbard, Karen Wolk, Sharon Drager, and Judith Minno, at their 50th reunion. The interviewees begin by introducing themselves, explaining what drew them to Pembroke, and sharing some of what their lives entailed after […]
50th Reunion, class of 1972
Abstract This interview with members of the Brown University class of 1972 documents the undergraduate experiences of Joan McDonald DeFinis, Karen Leggett Abouraya, Sarah Lloyd Wolf, Lucy Meadows, Linda Papermaster, Eileen Rudden, and Ann Seelye, as they look back in honor of their 50th reunion. The interviewees begin by introducing themselves and sharing information such […]
Edna Ruth MacDonald, class of 1919 and Ruth Dorothea Peterson, class of 1919
Abstract In a joint interview, classmates Edna Ruth MacDonald and Ruth Dorothea Peterson speak on the academic atmosphere at Pembroke College and the heavy constraints placed on women’s conduct and careers in the early 1900s. They begin by discussing their decisions to attend Pembroke, describing the expectation of college education their families had for them. […]
Lillian Dorothy Beals, class of 1918 and Rose Presel, class of 1918
Abstract In this dual interview, classmates Rose Presel and Lillian Dorothy Beals speak extensively about their classes at Pembroke, and the different professors they had. They discuss social life at the college especially the four dances held each year and the Pembroke traditions of Sophomore Masque, May Day, and Ivy Day. In part one, they […]
Ruth Elizabeth Cooke, class of 1914
Abstract In Part 1, Ruth Elizabeth Cooke speaks about being the youngest of six children, her close relationship with her oldest brother, gathering garnets at Diamond Hill with her father, her love of nature and her natural ability to interpret color. After graduating from Classical High School in 1910, she attended Pembroke where she studied […]
Sarah Elizabeth Minchin, class of 1913
Abstract In this interview, Sarah Elizabeth Minchin discusses the proliferation of theatre at Brown and in the greater Providence community. She tells us of the Talma Theatre, The Players Theatre, Henry Ames Barker, and elocution among other theatre-related endeavors. Part 1 Part 2 Transcript Interviewed by Harold H. Easton Suggested Chicago style citation: Minchin, Sarah […]
Rowena Albro Sherman, class of 1914 and Alita Dorothy Bosworth, class of 1914
Abstract In Part 1 of this interview, classmates Alita Dorothy Bosworth and Rowena Albro Sherman discuss how they came to attend Brown University; restrictions and expectations of behavior; and traditions of the Women’s College, including school songs, class colors, sophomore masque and the class mascot. They then discuss fraternities and their abolition by Dean King; […]
Gladys Paine, class of 1913
Abstract Gladys Paine begins her interview by describing her family and how she came to Brown in 1909, the first member to attend college. She considers herself lucky to have lived in the mansion on Benefit Street, where she met Sarah Doyle and made lifelong friends. Describing her classes and professors, Paine remembers public speaking […]