March 2013

Dear Classmates,

There is much news from Skidmore and I want to share!  We should all be proud that the Class of 2016 is the most diverse class in the College’s history.  The students represent 33 states, the District of Columbia, and 34 countries and nearly 42% of this class received Skidmore financial aid. In Newsweek’s 2012 “Happiest Schools” rankings, Skidmore was #9. It also reflected that 88% of Skidmore students would choose the same school again (I would) and a 95% full-time student retention rate.

More news: Skidmore has been named to the President’s Higher education Community Service Honor Roll due to the civic engagement and public service efforts of faculty and students and Backstage recently named the Skidmore Dance Department one of the top five dance programs in the country.   In September Skidmore recognized 97 students-athletes as members of the Thoroughbred Society for academic achievement, including 20 students with a 4.0 GPA.

For co-curricular activities, the College now has 80 campus clubs and organizations sponsored by the Student Government Association. From singing to debating to kayaking, Skidmore students learn leadership skills and pursue a range of interests.   Sound different than the SGA activities of the ‘70s? Other activities included the twentieth anniversary of Beatlemore Skidmania and the celebration of the fifty anniversary of the Beatles debut on record.  Ahhh, it seems like Yesterday.

On the financial front, Skidmore received incredible support last year.  More than 10,000 alumni, parents, and friends made gifts to Skidmore totaling $21 million during the 2011-2012 fiscal year.  More than $1,000 donors, including some of you, joined the Friends of the Presidents Society in 2011-2012, contributing over 90% of Skidmore’s total dollars raised. On May 1, 2012, through a coordinated social media campaign, more than 1,000 alumni, again including some of you, made gifts to Skidmore which secured $100,000 in challenge funds for the Annual Fund.  This was the largest number of donors who have given in a single day in the College’s history.

As part of Skidmore’s ongoing effort to provide greater support to recent graduates and alumni in their career development and transitions, the Career Development Center welcomes Jenna Hartwell as the new Associate Director of Alumni Career Development. In this role, Jenna provides individual career counseling to Skidmore graduates and works with alumni to create networking connections for current students and alums. She also coordinates regional, off-campus career development events for alumni. Prior to working at Skidmore, Jenna served as the Coordinator for Student and Alumni Career Services at Wheelock College, where she successfully increased the office’s visibility and services for their alumni population. Originally from Amherst, MA, Jenna received her B.S. in Social Science (History Focus) at Cazenovia College and her M.Ed. in Counselor Education (College Counseling) at North Carolina State University. Alumni interested in working with Jenna may contact her by calling the Career Development Center at (518) 580-5790.

That’s the news for now. If you have not heard from volunteer classmate regarding Skidmore’s annual campaign, you will this spring. I ask that you join me in supporting Skidmore so that more students can benefit from incredible academic, social and personal opportunities.

In the Spirit of ’76,

Merilee

Merilee Mapes Perkins, Class President

Class Officers

Class President & Reunion Chair
Merilee Mapes Perkins

Nursing Chair
Mary Pat Roggenberg
 
Class Historian
Barbara A. Reinhalter

Class Fund Chairs
Carol Goldberg
Terry Thomas Fulmer

Class FOP Chair
Christine Wright Hanley

Co-Secretaries
Ingeborg Hegemann Clark
Nancy Reeves Reardon

Class Agent and Reunion Volunteers
Bonnie Ashton-Brooks
Eileen Crowley Sullivan
Katherine Durham Brechner
Beverley Estabrook Mastrianni
Susan A. Flanagan
Jerald N. Katz
Elizabeth M. Lowe
Gwenn Milewski Neville
Carlie Quasnosky Centrella
Denise Reed