How nine co-chairs from six different decades came together to lead Vassar’s historic campaign.

When Vassar officially unveiled the Fearlessly Consequential campaign in 2022, the effort arrived fully formed to those who were seated in front of Main Building to celebrate its launch.

For the nine co-chairs standing behind it, however, the moment represented years of preparation and a deeply personal decision first made in 2019: Help lead the College through its largest campaign to date.

Campaign co-chairs are not unique within higher education or to Vassar. They typically play highly visible roles in fundraising campaigns, attending events and collaborating with the College’s Advancement team on strategy and support, and are, therefore, chosen with great care. While the co-chairs bring varied backgrounds and expertise, they share an extraordinary commitment to the campaign’s mission.

The College’s Board of Trustees invited Jason Blum ’91, already a dedicated supporter of financial aid and Vassar’s need-blind policy; Leslie Jackson Chihuly ’83, a philanthropist interested in bolstering health and wellness; Brian Farkas ’10, a champion of the College who was then a member of the Alumnae/i Association of Vassar College (AAVC) board; Carol Ostrow ’77, P’09,’15, an ardent alum who is unafraid of fundraising; and Cynthia Patton ’83, who was driven by a desire to contribute to something meaningful and lasting.

They also turned to accomplished volunteer fundraisers like Katrine “Cage” Ames ’69 and Katherine “Gig” Babson Jr. ’69, who led a highly successful 50th Reunion campaign in which 99 percent of their class made a gift to the College and 115 classmates were—and continue to be, in some cases—volunteers.

Rounding out the group were steadfast supporters Stephanie Hyacinth ’84, an advancement professional herself, and Elias Kim ’16—who joined in 2021—bringing the perspective of younger generations of alums to the campaign.

>>Continue reading the story in the Vassar magazine.

Photo: Esteemed campaign co-chairs, from left: Elias Kim ’16; Carol Ostrow ’77, P’09, P’15; Cynthia M. Patton ’83; Leslie Jackson Chihuly ’83; Katrine “Cage” Ames ’69; Katherine “Gig” Babson, Jr. ’69; Brian Farkas ’10; and Stephanie Hyacinth ’84. Not pictured: Jason Blum ’91. Photo by Karl Rabe.

Construction of a multi-purpose turf field, along with expanded bleachers, parking, and other amenities, began this month thanks to a $5 million lead gift.

Vassar College today announced plans to build a state-of-the-art lacrosse center, supported by a $5 million lead gift from alumna Pamela Mars Wright ’82, with a contributing gift from her niece, Stephanie Schuetz ’04. Continuing a multigenerational legacy of support, the project represents a significant investment in athletics and will enhance resources for student-athletes and the broader campus community. The facility will be home to men’s and women’s Varsity Lacrosse and will be accessible for club, intramural, and recreational play as well.

The two grass fields at Prentiss Sports Complex that have been identified for redevelopment are currently primarily used by Vassar’s lacrosse and soccer teams. As part of the project, one field will remain grass and the other will be converted into a multi-purpose turf field, together forming the Virginia C. Mars Lacrosse Center. The turf field will be named “The Ginnie,” while the grass field will continue to honor Betty Richey, one of Vassar’s longest-tenured coaches and sports figures.

“The Virginia C. Mars Lacrosse Center is another transformative step in strengthening Vassar Athletics,” Vassar President Elizabeth H. Bradley said. “Named for a beloved alumna and steadfast volunteer, the facility honors a lifetime of dedication to the College, a legacy now carried forward by Ginnie’s daughter and granddaughter. It is very exciting for all Brewers—Varsity athletes as well as recreational sports participants.”

Planned improvements include increasing the capacity of the bleachers to 300 spectators; a new scoreboard, press box, sound system, and field lighting; and the addition of a storage shed. Parking will also be expanded to include more than 70 additional spaces to better serve teams and visitors.

“The field turf will provide an improved surface for lacrosse, and greater scheduling flexibility for us and all of the teams,” Judy Finerghty, head coach of the women’s lacrosse team, said. “We are grateful for the generosity and support from the donors, as well as for all the careful planning being done to create an ideal venue.”

Men’s Lacrosse Head Coach John McCreery added that the new facility will “be a major asset in recruiting and is a huge step forward for the lacrosse programs at Vassar.”

While the fields will primarily serve the Brewers’ lacrosse and soccer teams, Director of Athletics and Physical Education Michelle Walsh emphasized that they will also be used for recreational, club, and intramural sports, as well as other varsity programs requiring an alternative to natural grass in inclement weather.

The center will be named in honor of Virginia “Ginnie” Cretella Mars ’51, P’82, GP’04, ’07, Wright’s mother, and a devoted supporter of the College. Mars studied art and drama at Vassar, sang in the choir, and began her teaching career after graduation. She later founded the Virginia Cretella Mars Foundation in 1994.

Mars remained deeply engaged with the College until her death in September 2024, serving in numerous leadership and volunteer roles and receiving the 2005 Alumnae/i Association of Vassar College (AAVC) Outstanding Service to Vassar Award. Over nearly five decades, she contributed $4 million to the Vassar Fund and supported major initiatives, including the fitness center, scholarships, scientific facilities, and the Richard L. Cretella Tennis Center, named for her brother.

“I think my mother would be very happy to know that we are supporting something that will benefit so many students,” Wright said. “Vassar helped shape the woman she became, and it has always been an important part of her life. To honor her in this way, while continuing her legacy of giving, is incredibly special to me.”

“We are profoundly grateful to the Mars family, who were instrumental in the funding of the Richard L. Cretella Tennis Center and are now leading the way on another key project to support the student-athlete experience here at Vassar,” said Michelle Walsh, the College’s Director of Athletics and Physical Education.

Following approval from the Town of Poughkeepsie, construction at the Prentiss Sports Complex is scheduled to begin this month. The lacrosse center is expected to be completed in time for the spring 2027 season.

To learn more about the Brewers lacrosse programs, other teams, intramural sports, and recreational opportunities, visit vassarathletics.com.

Photo: Aerial view showing the orientation of new sports fields and a parking lot, outlined and superimposed over the existing layout.

The building symbolizes “light” and “hope” to students and graduates alike.

Members of the Vassar community gathered on the campus on March 28 to celebrate the dedication of The Dede Thompson Bartlett Center for Admission and Career Education. Many of those who spoke described the structure as more than simply a magnificent, state-of-the-art building. They said it was a symbol of Vassar’s commitment to its students—from the time they apply for admission to helping them land their first jobs after graduation and continuing to support them on their career paths for the rest of their lives.

Speaking to an audience of more than 100 that included many of her Vassar classmates, Bartlett ’65 said she was thrilled that the students have nicknamed the building “The Dede.” She described her inspiration for the building: “I wanted to give Vassar students a full career education experience with counseling and mentoring and support that my classmates in 1965 and many other Vassar grads never had.”

She recalled the day the building’s architect, Maryann Thompson P’17, asked about her vision for the building. Bartlett pointed to the large windows that grace the structure. She said she told Thompson, “‘I want light.’ Light symbolizes hope and inspiration. Ultimately, this building isn’t just about admission and career education. It’s about creating a fulfilling life.”

Bartlett praised Stacy Bingham, Associate Dean of the College for Career Education, and her staff for the excellent work they had been doing for many years in dark, cramped dorm rooms in Main.

Bartlett lauded the many donors who contributed to the construction and programming in the new building, including her 1965 classmates and Christopher Dixon, who made a substantial donation in memory of his late wife, Barbara Saslaw Dixon ’69. He spoke at the event about her legacy and the importance of career education.

Dixon’s gift will provide funds for on- and off-campus programs, internship opportunities, professional development, networking, and career advisement, as well as bolstering staffing to support students as they embark on their career journeys. He said he hoped his gift would help students craft their own post-Vassar lives. “Each of us has a unique talent,” Dixon said. “The goal is to recognize what you’re good at and find a career path that fits.”

The celebration at The Dede Thompson Bartlett Center included a ceremony with Bartlett cutting the ribbon, amid rousing applause. The festivities continued with a luncheon at Alumnae House, where Board of Trustees Chair Sharon Chang ’84, Dean of Admission and Student Financial Services Sonya Smith, Bingham, and Vassar student Ashley Brea ’26 all spoke about Bartlett’s longtime commitment to helping Vassar students.

Chang recalled an evening in 2023 when Bartlett spoke to the Board of Trustees about her vision. “Dede, you didn’t simply inspire us, you galvanized us,” she said. “You spoke with such clarity, energy, conviction, and unmistakable force, reminding us of this fundamental truth—that a liberal arts education must do more than expand minds, it must open doors . . . And that to do this well, we needed a dedicated, integrated space—a hub where these aspirations could take root and flourish. You encouraged us to partner with you philanthropically, leading us by example and setting in motion the very reality we celebrate today.”

Smith said she and her staff have seen a marked increase in visitors lately. “Yesterday alone, more than 100 people signed up for our afternoon information session. And what was so wonderful is that the new Bartlett Center easily accommodated this volume . . . [It] is a beacon, all the while reflecting a tradition of empowerment and change-making for good—that’s the soul of Vassar, right? We are a place ripe with opportunity and where dreams can take flight. Students come in through Admission and then leave with not just a strong academic foundation but also with a community of supporters who believe in them, who uplift them … Yes, people like you who love Vassar and are extending your legacy through them.”

Bingham recalled the day in 2020 when she and Bartlett first discussed her vision for the new building. She said Bartlett had asked her, “What are your greatest needs?”

“That simple, powerful question paved the way for a truly transformational moment,” she said. “It solidified an opportunity to invest in two critically important areas for the College: admission and career education . . . This building is a collective achievement, a tapestry of many hands and hearts, and so I extend my thanks to every individual who supported this project at any level.

“By co-locating Admission and Career Education, we are creating a ‘full circle’ experience for our students,” Bingham continued. “We are sending a clear message, from the very first day a prospective student walks into Admission, that Vassar is already thinking about life beyond these gates.”

Brea, a first-generation college student, said she felt somewhat overwhelmed when she arrived at Vassar. “If you had asked me what I wanted to do with a computer science degree, I would have said, ‘I have absolutely no clue.’” The following summer, Brea accepted an unpaid internship at Netflix, thanks to another career education project Bartlett launched more than a decade earlier—the Thompson Bartlett Fellowships for Science, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Economics, which enables students to pursue transformative opportunities for summer internships. Participating in that internship led her to land a software internship at FICO. “I walked in uncertain, but I walked out with a sense of direction that I could do this, and a full-time offer to return to FICO after graduation. Dede’s investment was transformative in ways I could not have anticipated. The fellowship did not just fund a summer. It funded the version of me standing in front of you today.”

Brea called the Bartlett Center “a grand, open, welcoming space that says ‘Your future matters. You are worth investing in.’”

Bartlett, who was involved in every step of the planning for the new building, spoke with members of the Vassar Communications staff before the dedication. A wide smile rarely left her face as she spoke about what the celebration would mean to her and her husband, Jim.

Bartlett recalled that when she served as a Visiting Fellow with the Council of Independent Colleges, on 30 college campuses across the country, she saw very few colleges with robust career education programs. She credited President Elizabeth Bradley with highlighting the importance of career education at Vassar. “Under Betsy’s leadership, career education has become first and foremost on our campus, symbolized by this beautiful building. It fulfills a dream I’ve had for decades.”

Bartlett said she was particularly proud of the fact that the building was “inspired by a woman, designed by a woman, and funded by women and the men who care about them. It will benefit all Vassar students for many years to come.”

View a gallery of images from the dedication.

Photos Stockton Photo, Inc.

The Winton Evans Bridge for Laboratory Sciences on the Vassar campus was renamed on October 18, 2025.

In a twist that feels uniquely Vassar, the building, home to the sciences, was dedicated, in part, to a history major who went on to become a jazz musician. Rowland Winton Evans ’75 chose the Bridge for the way it connects the center of campus to Skinner Hall, the music building.

The naming honors Evans, his mother Katherine “Kay” Winton Evans ’46, P’75, and his grandfather David J. Winton P’46, GP’75, GGP’05, ’10, and their extraordinary generosity to the College. Attendees to the ceremony included Rowland, his family’s estate advisor Sonny Miller, members of the AAVC Board and Board of Trustees, members of the Class of 1975, and Advancement staff.

In June, Evans committed a $28 million gift supporting the Music Department, campus maintenance, faculty scholarship and research, and a scholarship in his mother’s name. Timed with his 50th Reunion, the gift reflects both a personal milestone and a lasting investment in Vassar’s future.

President Elizabeth H. Bradley reflected on the long history behind the gift, acknowledging Evans’s bond with his late mother and the impact their generosity will have on Vassar students. She thanked him for supporting future generations of students “who have a passion for music that echoes your own.”

Although Evans majored in history during his time at Vassar, his true passion was jazz, a program the College did not offer at the time. Still, he found ways to weave music into his academic work, centering his senior thesis on the history of jazz.

Miller spoke about how that kind of multidisciplinary approach remains a hallmark of a Vassar education. The College, he said, has long encouraged students to “bring their whole selves” to their studies and “engage in all of those subjects that mean so much to them.” Evans, he added, went on to build a “storied career in jazz music.”

Evans is endowing two funds outright: the Rowland W. Evans ’75 Student Lesson Fund, which subsidizes student music lessons, and the Rowland W. Evans ’75 Concert Fund, which supports annual concert programming. The remainder of his gift, designated through his estate, will create additional funds for building maintenance and faculty research, and contribute $10.5 million to the Katherine Winton Evans ’46 Scholarship Fund, which his mother established and later expanded with her own estate gift.

Evans’s cousin, Mark Winton Anderson, expressed pride in the family’s support of Vassar. “This is a remarkably fine and valuable use of family resources,” he said. “I’m just so pleased that he and his mother and his mother’s legacy have done this and have been so generous and caring.”

Justin Patch, Chair of the Music Department, spoke about the passion that students share with Evans. “Most students who come into [Skinner Hall] are not majoring in music,” he noted. “They’re doing this because they love it and they, like us, see music as an integral part of their education.” He added that the gift will make lessons more accessible, giving students from all disciplines the chance to “work with world-class instructors” and broaden their educational experience through music.

That sense of connection to music, to place, and to Vassar’s enduring spirit also resonated deeply with alums in attendance.

“Skinner Hall was really important to a lot of us who weren’t music majors,” said Anne Green ’93, member of the Board of Trustees and AAVC Board. “The first time I stepped into the Bridge Building, and you could see Skinner fully, I was almost in tears. The fact that they’ve aligned the gift with that, and recognizing that bridge to the music building, is really important.”

Kat Mills Polys ’93, P’29, an AAVC Board member, reflected on the multigenerational nature of Vassar legacies. “It’s just a beautiful thing to hear those stories and feel like it’s a real foundational part of the soil here, and the buildings, and the people, and the experience that people have shared throughout their family,” she said.

After the ceremony, attendees were ushered inside for lunch and a special concert: Evans himself on the piano, accompanied by members of the Vassar Jazz Ensemble.

Before introducing Evans, Class President Pat Neely ’75 reminisced about running out of Josselyn Hall to make the long trek to Skinner Hall and hearing “a solitary piano player” in the hall’s living room. “And this was Rowland Evans.

“Isaac Stern is quoted as saying, ‘What made Carnegie Hall so special was the spirit of Tchaikovsky, Horowitz, Toscanini, and countless others in these walls,’” Neely said. “What makes the Winton Evans Bridge for Laboratory Sciences so special now is that Rowland and his family legacy will forever be embedded within the walls of the building, both in name and in musical spirit.”

Photos Stockton Photo, Inc.

The 2024–25 Vassar Athletics year was one for the history books. At the end of the spring season, the Athletics program ranked 46th out of more than 425 institutions in the Division III Learfield Director’s Cup, placing the Brewers in the top 11 percent nationally. This was the first year Vassar ranked in the top 50.

“Our student-athletes accomplished this while also staying true to what it means to be a Vassar student,” said Vassar Director of Athletics and Physical Education Michelle Walsh.

The Brewers’ student-athletes posted a 3.63 cumulative GPA and received the Hudson Valley Community Service Award from the Special Olympics New York for their volunteer efforts in the local community.

The department also launched the Vassar Athletics Hall of Fame, inducting eight former student-athletes, three teams, one coach, and former Vassar President Frances Fergusson, under whose leadership Vassar’s athletic programs experienced significant growth, expanding to include 25 varsity teams and varsity clubs.

Fergusson was instrumental in developing an athletics master plan that led to significant improvements in staffing, funding, and facilities. Today, 35 years after Fergusson’s efforts, Vassar is reaffirming its commitment to athletics at a moment when its student-athletes are excelling like never before.

A New Era For Vassar Athletics Facilities

Through the generosity of alums, parents, and friends as part of the Fearlessly Consequential campaign, Vassar has begun revitalizing key athletic spaces, enhancing the experience of today’s student-athletes, and elevating the College’s tennis, rugby, and squash programs.

The Brewers recently celebrated the grand opening of the Richard L. Cretella Tennis Center, marking the beginning of a new chapter for the men’s and women’s tennis teams in fall 2023. This state-of-the-art, eight-court tennis complex was made possible by gifts from alums and Vassar parents.

Built on the former site of Ballentine Field, the center features “post-tension” concrete courts designed for long-term durability, upgraded spectator seating, team equipment storage, and a scoreboard. Student-athletes also have convenient access to their locker rooms, indoor courts, and sports medicine facilities. Since its opening, the facility has already contributed to success: In 2024–25, the women’s team clinched their first conference championship since 2010.

While the tennis program is already seeing the impact of recent upgrades, investments in rugby facilities aim to build on an already impressive record. On the pitch, the women’s rugby team was undefeated in their 2024–25 season, a triumphant redemption after a narrow loss in the national championship game the previous year.

“Credit is due to the whole squad, as each player pushed hard to improve, and all were supportive of each other,” Rugby Coach Tony Brown said. “From a coaching perspective, we felt the team still had a lot more to offer. We focused a lot more on our team defense, and when it mattered, the players gave 100 percent.”

The men’s team also had a stellar season, finishing with a 9–1 record. When both teams return in fall 2025, they’ll be playing and practicing on two brand-new grass fields. The improvements were made possible by a gift from Ann R. White P’25 and Philip H. White P’25, whose child, Danny White ’25, was a rugby player. The upgrades include resurfacing and resodding of the game and practice fields, new irrigation, goal posts, a scoreboard, and a hydration station.

The Whites were introduced to rugby when Danny joined the team as a sophomore. After witnessing Brown’s personal investment in his players, particularly following an injury Danny sustained during the national semifinals, they became increasingly engaged with the program. After meeting the team and learning more about its impact, they were inspired to help realize Brown’s vision for improved playing fields.

“He is the coach we all wanted when we played sports as a kid—a coach that demands excellence and self-sacrifice, fosters a team ethos of selflessness, engages on a human level with each player, and teaches with humor and passion,” Philip White said. “His passion was irresistible, and we left [that meeting] with a clear picture of his vision and our promise to help make his dream a reality.”

The upgraded championship-level fields—the new game field honoring Brown and the new practice field honoring alum and longtime program supporter Charles “Bear” Williams ’80—are expected to enhance safety, attract recruits, and create opportunities for Vassar to host competitions, reducing travel and strengthening the rugby program’s visibility. “Rugby has been played at Vassar for 50 years now, and I’m sure alums are beaming with pride seeing how it has flourished,” Brown said.

Squash is also entering an exciting new phase. When the men’s and women’s teams return in fall 2025, they’ll be welcomed by new courts and a new head coach. Funded by an anonymous donor, the six existing squash courts in Kenyon Hall are being replaced. The donor also endowed support for the head coaching position and to support program needs, including recruitment, travel, uniforms, and equipment. One of the two new endowments is the first endowed position in the history of the Athletics Department to be named in honor of Betty Richey, an inaugural inductee into the Vassar Athletics Hall of Fame and the first head coach of the squash, tennis, and field hockey teams. She helped shape the growth of collegiate squash both regionally and nationally.

“Heading into my senior year, I feel incredibly fortunate to be part of this exciting transition—new courts, a new coach, and a renewed sense of momentum that’s clearly carrying us forward,” men’s squash player Kyle Benson ’26 said.

Benson added that he and his teammates “expect to climb significantly in the college rankings in the coming years” and that the upgraded facilities will help strengthen their recruitment and competitiveness.

“There’s a sense of pride and accomplishment in seeing student-athletes and coaches recognized with a facility that reflects their competitive spirit and to make the most of their athletic experience at the College,” Walsh said. “They’re really excited.”

With Vassar Athletics more competitive than ever—and the need to recruit and retain top-tier student-athletes—continued investment in student-athletes and facilities remains a priority.

Building on a Strong Foundation

Each October, the Athletics Department hosts the Brewers Fund Day of Giving. This 24-hour fundraiser brings together alums, families, and friends to support Vassar’s 29 intercollegiate teams and clubs and enhance the student-athlete experience. The funds raised help cover team travel, equipment, student-athlete development programming, and support the athletic trainers and strength and conditioning personnel.

“These are crucial things that help us to get better as well,” Walsh said. “We could not improve without the annual support.”

As teams rise to new levels of competition, the need for improved facilities continues. Walker Field House, for example, requires critical upgrades; some teams are currently unable to host competitions due to changing regulations and standards and the infrastructure’s deterioration. Additional turf at the Prentiss Athletic Complex would also improve practice and gameplay for many outdoor teams.

“We’re so incredibly appreciative of support in whatever form it takes, whether it funds an upgraded facility or it’s outreach from an alum to a current student to tell them how proud they are of what’s happening,” Walsh said. “All of that truly makes a difference.”

Looking ahead, Walsh is optimistic that the teams will continue to grow and compete at higher-levels while staying true to what it means to be a Vassar student-athlete.

“My emphasis will continue to be on providing an outstanding experience for our student-athletes, one that contributes in a meaningful way to their overall education at the College.”

As Vassar Athletics celebrates many recent accomplishments, it also reaffirms a legacy that began with the College’s founding. Matthew Vassar places physical education at the heart of his vision for a complete education, and that ideal continues today. With over 20 percent of students participating in Vassar’s 25 varsity programs and four varsity club teams, athletics remains a vital part of campus life. Continued investment in student-athletes and facilities has the potential to elevate competition and strengthen the well-being of the College as a whole.

Elana Pukel ’28 shares how being a student-athlete at Vassar enriches her liberal arts education and how the connections with her coaches, teammates, and professors motivate her to achieve excellence in competition and her Science, Technology, and Society classes.

To learn more about Vassar Athletics, please visit vassarathletics.com. To see how our donors are making an impact, visit go.vassar.edu/athletics-impact-report-2025.

Photos by Stockton Photo Inc.

Barbara Dixon ’69, née Saslaw, had two great careers in her life. The first was on Wall Street, where she broke barriers during an era when few women were making it in the financial sector. Later, she became a passionate advocate for landscape preservation and sustainable agriculture. Her professional journey—from commodities trading to leadership in national environmental organizations—reflects a lifelong dedication to learning, adapting, and going to the source.

Her husband, Christopher Dixon, recalled a friend’s observation after Barbara’s death, underscoring how powerful a presence she was, defying expectations with quiet authority and demanding respect the moment she appeared. “You have to remember that in those days (the 1970s), when a man walked into your office, he looked at your chest before he looked at your face,” the friend told him. “But when Barbara would walk into a room, everybody would take a step back.”

Now, through a transformative gift from Christopher to Vassar’s Center for Career Education (CCE) programming and The Dede Thompson Bartlett Center for Admission and Career Education, Barbara’s legacy of empowerment and strategic thinking will continue to inspire future generations of students and alums seeking to chart their own extraordinary paths. The gift will provide funds for on- and off-campus programs, internship opportunities, professional development, networking, career advisement, and will bolster staffing to support students as they embark on their career journeys. And all of these services will be housed in the innovative new Center for Admission and Career Education, which has also benefited from the Dixon gift.

This investment in future generations of Vassar students draws inspiration from Barbara herself, whose career was marked by visionary leadership and a fearless drive to pursue her dreams.

Charting a Course in Finance

A member of Vassar’s last all-female graduating class, Barbara studied history and had an early interest in urban planning. After a brief stint working alongside a city planner, she joined Hayden, Stone & Co.—what would become Shearson Lehman Brothers—as an assistant to Richard Donchian, the father of trend following, a precursor to the computer trading of today. She was one of the first women in the managed futures business. She quickly proved to be a formidable force in futures trading, managing several commodity funds. In 2005, she was elected to the Future Industry Hall of Fame. She met Christopher on a blind date in the early 1970s, just as he was starting his own career as a filmmaker.

“I can’t emphasize enough how important that group of women in that last all-female class is,” Christopher said. “We had all grown up through the 50s, and there was this whole notion that if you got a really good education, you could do anything you wanted to do … And if you went to a prestigious university or college, the doors were wide open to you, and folks took that seriously. [The Class of 1969] worked hard.”

Barbara did, indeed. She rose through the ranks, shattering the glass ceiling to become a renowned trader and honored member of the FIA Futures Industry Hall of Fame. She became a senior manager in the commodity division and one of two women executive vice presidents at Shearson American Express, where, among other responsibilities, she participated in college recruiting efforts. Shearson acquired Lehman Brothers in 1984, and she continued in senior roles until she left Lehman in 1992. Still, she felt the pull back to her earlier interests in the natural world and green spaces.

A Shift Toward Stewardship

Barbara ultimately left Wall Street to pursue her passion. She became Vice Chairman of New Yorkers for Parks, a non-profit dedicated to the creation, protection, and care of New York City’s green spaces. She later joined The Cultural Landscape Foundation, a national nonprofit focused on educating people about landscape and fostering meaningful engagement with the world around them. She also served as one of the directors of WellMet Philanthropy (a woman-led philanthropic collective committed to research-driven grantmaking and supporting emerging nonprofit organizations in New York City).

“Once Barbara left Wall Street, she focused on the whole notion of sustainability, of open space, of the landscape that surrounds us, education, the impact of climate change,” Christopher said, “and that’s part of her legacy as much as she was successful on Wall Street.”

Christopher’s own career evolved from filmmaking to securities analysis, culminating with his role as Managing Director and Global Coordinator of Entertainment and New Media Research at UBS. He also taught finance for 14 years at NYU’s Stern Graduate School of Business.

Together, the Dixons helped found Stone Acres Farm in Stonington, CT, in 2016 and helped launch the Yellow Farmhouse Education Center in 2017. Situated on the farm, the center’s mission is to “use culinary and farm-based education to connect people to each other and to where their food comes from so that we can cultivate a shared commitment to supporting a local, sustainable food system accessible and affordable to all.”

Barbara remained committed to these natural organizations until her sudden passing in September 2023. Christopher remains Chair of Stone Acres Farms.

“Barbara grew up in Poughkeepsie and went to Vassar, which was an integral part of her life. She would tell you her success was primarily because she felt that Vassar taught her about primary sources,” Christopher said. “To be able to find and dig and get an answer that could easily be supported–that led her to a logic that she was able to use in her later career.”

Back to Vassar

Wanting to honor her where her legacy began, Christopher reached out to President Elizabeth Bradley to ask how he might support the college in her name. She mentioned the soon-to-be-constructed Bartlett Center.

“Barbara would have found great joy in witnessing the realization of this building, and I thank Dede Thompson Bartlett for her vision,” he said. “To ensure that the [Center for Career Education, or CCE] programming flourishes for many years to come, our gift, along with others, will support the administrative needs—the meat and potatoes of CCE.”

Christopher found the opportunity serendipitous. Not only would his gift help students as they embark on their career journeys, but the architect behind The Bartlett Center is Maryann Thompson Architects, who also built the Dixons’ home.

“Career education is really important,” Christopher said. “There are the tactical and technical pieces—How do you write a resume? How do you tell the story about yourself? How do you define that process? Finding a career is finding something that you want to do, combined with your particular skill sets and personal capabilities, and, at the same time, understanding the technical aspects of how to go about getting a job. It’s a very important part of development.”

Vassar’s CCE is adopting a Life Design model, empowering students to shape their career paths through intentional exploration and planning. With support from the Dixon gift, the CCE will expand programs that offer real-world experience through internships; student organizations such as the Vassar Business Club and the Healthcare Industry Club; and hands-on learning. Personalized advising, workshops, and mock interviews will further equip students and alums to reach their career goals.

“Building on the success of signature programs like Sophomore Career Connections, an expanded Life Design model and four-year plan will prompt students to see connections between their curricular and extracurricular pursuits, and to practice articulating the meaning and value of their liberal arts education,” Stacy Bingham, Associate Dean of the College for Career Education and Interim Director of Fellowships, said. “In short, we are giving students the tools to navigate a lifetime of career decisions and changes.”

When asked what Barbara would have thought of the gift, Christopher chuckled. He described Barbara as straightforward and humble, someone who likely would have questioned the decision at first. But once she saw the tangible impact it had on students and alums, she’d be ecstatic.

Barbara’s Legacy

With this gift, Christopher aims to ensure that students and graduates not only launch successful careers but also live fulfilling lives. His support goes beyond the bricks and mortar to bolster the programming and administration that make transformative career education possible. The Atrium and Career Studio within The Bartlett Center will be named for Barbara.

“I found it important that she be honored at Vassar, and at the same time, to be able to give back some of what Vassar had created and informed in this extraordinary woman,” Christopher said.

As of this reporting, construction on The Bartlett Center is well underway and is expected to be completed in November 2025. The new building at the corner of Raymond and Collegeview Avenues will house both the CCE and the Office of Admission. Learn more about The Bartlett Center.

Vassar has always taken pride in fostering a strong sense of community—both on and off campus. Two programs that have greatly strengthened the College’s relationship with its surrounding area are the Office for Community-Engaged Learning (OCEL) and Vassar Education Collaboration (VEC).

These programs provide students with opportunities to extend their learning beyond the classroom and meaningfully engage with Pougkeepsie, Dutchess County, and the greater Hudson Valley. Whether tutoring local schoolchildren or working with a nonprofit organization, Vassar students can apply their classroom knowledge to real-world contexts that benefit others.

Connecting Students with Nonprofits

“Community-engaged learning within a liberal arts setting is—and should be—a vehicle in which individuals explore their own identities, discover their passions, explore what justice means to them, and ultimately understand their place in this world,” Elizabeth Cannon, Director of OCEL, said. “My hope as an educator and practitioner in the field is that students graduate with self-awareness, critical analyst skills of the root causes of social injustices, and the knowledge, tools, and agency to create a more just world.”

OCEL originated as the Field Work program in 1949, emphasizing civic and community engagement, and evolved from the 1990s to 2017 by integrating various disciplinary theories and practical experiences. In 2017, it was officially renamed OCEL, enhancing the collaboration between Vassar and local organizations.

Today, the program still fosters those partnerships, working with organizations focused on a variety of issue areas ranging from food insecurity to housing justice to legal access. In the 2023–2024 academic year, 195 Community-Engaged Learning students worked with over 85 local and community-based organizations.

Six core programs make up OCEL: the mentorship- and reflection-based Civic Engagement (aka, Vassar Votes), the Community Fellows summer program, Community-Based Research, Community Service Work-Study, and Community-Engaged Curriculum.

The Community-Engaged Curriculum initiative, funded by the Mellon Foundation Community-Engaged Intensives in the Humanities (CEIH) grant, allows a re-imagination of how curricular initiatives can support high-impact learning experiences, by giving faculty the ability to develop a new course or re-invent an existing one that addresses an issue identified by the community.

CEIH-funded courses such as “Physiology in the Community,” taught by Professor of Biology Kate Susman in Spring of 2024, are another way Vassar students are bridging the gap between academic learning and real-world applications. Students in the class were split into four groups, and each group volunteered with a local organization that addressed human physiology.

Sasha Zweig ’25 worked with Evergreen Minds, a nonprofit that provides those living with dementia and their caregivers opportunities for stimulating experiences in nature and the expressive arts. “I had learned about some aspects of dementia in my neuroscience classes but I wanted to have more hands-on interaction with people,” she said. “This experience was incredibly powerful and empowering. I learned things I wouldn’t have been able to learn just in a traditional lab setting. I learned about teamwork, listening, empathy, and the power of engaging with folks often forgotten. I was able to really connect the dots between my classes.”

Habitat for Humanity of Dutchess County, Poughkeepsie Farm Project, Dutchess County Pride Center, Exodus Transitional Community, and The Art Effect are a few of the organizations with which OCEL has partnered.

“I chose to do CEL because I knew I wanted to do more work with the local community but had no idea how to get involved,” Nicole Ezell ’25 said. “While liberal arts education has been good for studying theory, CEL has helped me apply it in real life. As a political science major, I can see how the politics I study impact the communities I work in.”

Community Partnerships

Similarly, the Vassar Education Collaboration (VEC) has been an integral part of Vassar and the surrounding community since 2003, when Vassar students began working in Poughkeepsie City schools.

“VEC is a bridge between Vassar and Poughkeepsie,” VEC Executive Director John Bradley said. “Our programs provide Vassar students with the real-world opportunity to experience the public education system in the City of Poughkeepsie and to develop relationships with schoolchildren and teachers.”

VEC comprises three programs, each offering unique experiences for both Vassar students and local schoolchildren: Vassar After-School Team (VAST), Vassar English Language Learners Program (VELLOP), and Exploring College (EC).

VELLOP sends student volunteers into local districts to help schoolchildren learning to speak English. The VAST program pairs students with middle schoolers for after-school homework help, mentorship, and other activities.

“VAST gave me a love for the community,” Jake Lefort ’27 said. “My student never really had homework, and she was coming to VAST for good food—besides her cafeteria food—and for the community. These are kids who have beautiful ideas. It’s inspired me to do more work in the community, to try and get to the root of some other problems facing Poughkeepsie.”

What begins as a two-week summer residential program, Exploring College is an introduction to college-level material, Vassar itself, and the college application process, and acts as a team-building initiative. During the academic year, the program mentors meet with students three times a week to support the college application process.

Kayla Hawkins ’27 was a student in the Exploring College program before attending Vassar. Now, as a mentor in the program, she’s helped students navigate the college experience, something she’s deeply grateful that her mentors did for her.

“Programs like EC provide a space of community for these students that they don’t commonly have access to,” Hawkins said. “Working in EC helped me navigate a new space like Vassar without being divorced from my connection to my hometown.”

Real-World Collaboration

Both OCEL and VEC continue to enrich the lives of Vassar students and the broader community.

Naja Jackson ’18 was in the Exploring College program as a high schooler and became a mentor while at Vassar. “This program opens students’ eyes to the college experience, yes, but it also gives parents a chance to see how life will be when or if their student moves away for college,” Jackson said. “Many people focus on the academics, but college is learning how to balance academia with mental health.”

Now a Poughkeepsie High School English teacher, Jackson hosts a couple of VEC students in her own classroom.

“It helps tremendously with giving students individualized attention, which they often lack in this environment,” Jackson said. “Having a VEC student allows our students the social-emotional learning and check-in they desperately need, and it helps students feel seen, listened to, and loved.”

Through these important programs, Vassar students are sharing their skills and discovering more about themselves all while exploring and helping the area that surrounds the College.

“Our student’s expertise at research has assisted Habitat Dutchess in expanding our deliverables for our Advancing Black Ownership Initiative,” Jennifer Radicone, COO of Habitat for Humanity of Dutchess County, said. “He increased our capacity by assisting in data research on national, county, and local municipal levels. We greatly enjoy participating in OCEL and have a returning student and a new one this semester!”

Learn how you can support OCEL and VEC by contacting Gregg McCarty via email at gmccarty@vassar.edu or by phone at (845) 437-5409.

Wielding an oversized pair of scissors, President Elizabeth H. Bradley officially opened The Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts on October 26 before a crowd of more than 160 members of the Vassar and wider community. And while the ribbon-cutting ceremony lasted only a few minutes, Bradley alluded to the nearly 10 years of planning and negotiating that had preceded it. “It has been a long time in coming,” she said, “and we have learned so much along the way.”

See highlights from the ribbon-cutting ceremony and hear what our speakers had to say about the impact of The Vassar Institute.

Located on Raymond Avenue adjacent to the campus and just down the hill from Alumnae House, the state-of-the-art building contains guest rooms in the boutique hotel, The Heartwood at Vassar; and a restaurant, The Salt Line at Vassar; in addition to meeting rooms in the Institute, which will accommodate gatherings designed to spark dialogue on a wide variety of topics in the coming months and years. The weekend celebration was marked by three such discussions, one on October 25 on the role of a liberal arts approach to addressing global challenges and two others—one that explored the future of work and another on the role of architecture in promoting sustainable communities—that followed the October 26 ribbon-cutting. The discussions were videotaped and appear below.

President Bradley said she expected the Institute to serve as a place that will celebrate the College’s liberal arts approach to learning “beyond its campus and undergraduate students to engage broader audiences in conferences, workshops, and events—all in the service of learning, finding new connections and building an inclusive community.”

Speaking at the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Board of Trustees Chair Sharon Chang ’84 P’19 noted that she had been involved in the planning of the Institute almost since she first joined the board in 2017. When she arrived on campus earlier this week in anticipation of the event, she was overcome with emotion. “I’m thrilled by the bold, innovative thinking that went into this project, and together we navigated some uphill battles to get it completed,” Chang said. “When I saw the signs pointing to the building, I teared up—and I’m tearing up now. This is groundbreaking. This is Vassar.”

The inaugural Faculty Director of the Institute, Robert K. Brigham, Professor of History and International Relations on the Shirley Ecker Boskey Chair, said he and his staff are anxious to get to work. “You have given us this shiny new thing, and now we are going to make it fly,” Brigham said. “This is a place where we dream big, where we do things to solve problems and change lives.”

The architect for the project, Frederick Fisher of Frederick Fisher and Partners, based in Los Angeles, called the opening of the building a day every architect looks forward to. “I have been involved in this project for seven years,” Fisher said. “It has been guided by the intelligence and imagination of President Bradley and her team, and you can’t do good work without a good client. Architecture is a team sport, and I had a talented team working with me that made this project what it is.”

On Friday evening, Wesley Dixon, Deputy to the President of Vassar and The Vassar Institute’s program director, interviewed Jim Kim, former advisor at the World Health Organization and former President of the World Bank. He is currently Chancellor of the University of Global Health Equity, an innovative medical school in Rwanda, which partners with Vassar in global liberal arts education.

Kim was instrumental in organizing efforts by the World Health Organization to address the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa at the start of the century. He said his background as an anthropologist who took a liberal arts approach to problem-solving had helped him and others at WHO develop a plan to treat HIV patients in Africa.

“We’d learned enough of the specifics to be able to go out and say, ‘Look what you’re saying, that it’s impossible, you don’t know that because nobody’s ever tried,’” he said. “We tried it at a small scale in Haiti and then we went right to the moral argument. We said, ‘On content, you’re wrong. We think it is possible. But from a moral perspective, if we let 25 million people living in Africa with HIV die, we’ll forever be remembered as a generation that turned our backs on 25 million people.’”

Watch the keynote conversation “A Life in the Liberal Arts,” which aired as an episode of the Conversations @ the Salt Line podcast.

Kim said he wholeheartedly supported Vassar’s decision to create the Institute. He said he liked “the fact that you would do this, that you would build an institute defending, celebrating, preserving liberal arts as a fundamental idea. The liberal arts are under threat; there’s less of a sense of the importance of what a liberal arts education does in terms of content, pedagogy, and culture.

“The most difficult problems of the day require being able to think across multiple dimensions, multiple disciplines,” Kim continued. “I just had this long conversation with the head of a group that’s trying to rethink artificial intelligence, and it’s an incredibly illustrious group. They told me that they reached out to me because they want to think about the broader social implications of what they’re doing. The fact that you guys here are embracing the liberal arts gives me hope.”

The panel on the future of work was moderated by New York Times Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Steve Lohr P’17. Lohr was joined by Maria Flynn, President and CEO of the national nonprofit Jobs for the Future, and Aneesh Raman, Chief Economic Opportunity Officer at LinkedIn. Flynn and Raman recently co-authored an op-ed in The New York Times that focused on the need for a liberal arts approach to successfully navigating a rapidly changing job market. Raman predicted that by the year 2030, more than 70 percent of all jobs will change dramatically or cease to exist. “Robots will perform the physical labor, and artificial intelligence will replace many intellectual jobs,” he said, “but we’re missing a critical piece. Our social abilities are not covered, so there will be an emerging and growing value on people skills, managing people instead of managing work. All of that change will be anchored on skills that the liberal arts teach.”

Watch the keynote conversation “Liberal Arts and the Future of Work.”

The final panel of the day, “Architecting a Sustainable, Community-Oriented Future,” was moderated by Professor of Art Yvonne Elet. Elet was joined by the Institute’s architect, Fred Fisher; Vassar alum Karen Van Lengen ’73, a practicing architect and architecture professor at the University of Virginia; and Caroline Alsup, an architect who is serving as Headquarters Project Manager at Scenic Hudson, a local nonprofit organization that promotes sustainable growth in the Hudson Valley. All of the panelists agreed that The Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts can play a role in fostering dialogue that promotes best practices in building and urban planning.

View the panel “Architecting a Sustainable, Community-Oriented Future.”

Saturday afternoon, attendees engaged in a dynamic exploration of upcoming Signature Programs. The students, faculty, and community residents who will host them stood ready at tables sprinkled throughout the Institute to provide previews of future forums. One of the presenters, Molly Shanley, Professor Emerita of Political Science, will co-host a two-day conference that will explore ways of promoting partnerships to increase graduation rates in Poughkeepsie area schools. Shanley will be joined by Associate Professor of Political Science Taneisha Means, Professor of Education Erin McCloskey, and Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Statistics Andy Borum.

Shanley said she is grateful to have the opportunity to launch the project at the Institute on January 24 and 25, 2025. “We plan to promote collaboration among all of our local colleges and to work with area nonprofit organizations, school officials, parents, and others in the community to learn more about what they need to succeed,” Shanley said. “Once we gather this information, we hope to be able to secure a major grant to put these ideas into practice. Our conference at the Institute will be the first step in this process.”

Outside of the Institute, students protested to urge the administration to divest from military investments. After the Friday evening panel, President Bradley asked audience members how many had ever participated in a protest. A majority of the hands went up. Engaged Pluralism is an ethos at Vassar, she assured those in attendance, and it includes the right to make one’s voice heard, even in the face of differences.

The Institute is expected to be a place where thought leaders, academics, and students alike can exchange ideas and discuss the most pressing issues the world faces today. Photographer Andrea Baldeck ’72, who attended The Vassar Institute launch event, said she supported all of its creators’ goals.

“This place represents a whole new dimension for Vassar,” she said. “It embodies the values we all hold but takes it to a whole new level of community engagement. How marvelous to be able to open your brain to engage with like-minded people as well as people you may disagree with, to have meaningful dialogue on meaningful topics.”

Baldeck is one of several alums whose artwork is on display throughout the building. “I was so pleased to be asked to provide some of my work to this project,” Baldeck added. “I hope some of the photographs provide some serenity to guests here, and you always hope your ideas will spark others to take those ideas elsewhere.”

View a gallery of photos from the launch of The Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts.

For 40 years, Vassar has been hosting a liberal arts “boot camp” for community college students interested in pursuing a four-year degree. Students who enroll in Vassar’s five-week Exploring Transfer program take two courses, each team-taught by a Vassar faculty member and a community college faculty member, designed to prepare them for the academic challenges they will face. They also attend seminars and workshops designed to acclimate them to life on a four-year college campus.

According to a recent study conducted by the College, Exploring Transfer (ET) has been spectacularly effective. While only about 17 percent of all community college students ever attain a four-year degree, more than 70 percent of those enrolled in Exploring Transfer have done so.

Armed with these findings, President Elizabeth Bradley and a team of faculty and administrators launched a campaign called Exploring Transfer Together to encourage other liberal arts colleges to consider creating ET-like programs of their own. That effort paid its first dividends this summer when administrators at Bryn Mawr College and Haverford College, both located in suburban Philadelphia, announced plans to host a joint program in the spring of 2025. The five-day session for 15 community college students will be held on both campuses and will be co-administered by Cheryl Horsey, Chief Enrollment Officer at Bryn Mawr, and Raquel Esteves-Joyce, Assistant Vice President for Student Diversity, Equity, and Access, at Haverford.

Wendy Maragh Taylor, Associate Dean of the College for Student Growth and Engagement and a leader of the Exploring Transfer Together team, said she was gratified with the news from the two liberal arts colleges. “I’m thrilled that Bryn Mawr and Haverford are moving forward on the ET pilot,” Maragh Taylor said. “Cheryl and Raquel have been incredible champions for this on their respective campuses, and they’ve brought together a team of people who are also committed and excited about the work.”

Dean Maragh Taylor said they were able to progress on the new project during a full-day focused retreat with Bryn Mawr and Haverford administrators on the Haverford campus in June, building on the groundwork already laid over the last couple years. “Our retreat at Haverford with the team was inspiring—coaching and guiding them as they grappled with challenges and focused on opportunities,” she said. “After the various Exploring Transfer Together convenings on campus and virtual meetings with four-year institutions and community college partners over the last two years, I’m glad to offer our support as colleagues take action to support community college students in their community.”

Both Horsey and Esteves-Joyce said their respective colleges had policies in place to encourage applications from community college students. “Part of our mission is to be accessible to under-represented student populations on our campus, so we were keen to look at (creating) a program like Exploring Transfer,” Horsey said. She added she was “sold” on such an initiative after attending an event on the Vassar campus last November where Vassar administrators explained the benefits of the program to representatives of about a dozen liberal arts colleges.

Esteves-Joyce said her discussions with Horsey and Dean Maragh Taylor had convinced her that Haverford and Bryn Mawr should consider launching an ET-like program. “Wendy and others on her team have truly offered us incredible support, taking the time to travel here. They shared blueprints of their program, not just the glossy parts but also the challenges they face, so we are able to create something that works for Bryn Mawr and Haverford.”

Horsey and Esteves-Joyce said the pilot program had the wholehearted support of their respective college presidents—Bryn Mawr President Kimberly Wright Cassidy and Haverford President Wendy E. Raymond.. Esteves-Joyce added that Thelathia “Nikki” Young, Haverford’s Vice President for Institutional Equity and Access, had secured funding “enabling us to move forward with this great work. I couldn’t have done this without her.”

Vassar’s support included funds from a grant the College received from the ECMC Foundation to promote the Exploring Transfer Together initiative. Charlotte Gullick, Interim Director of Exploring Transfer and ECMC Program Manager of Exploring Transfer Together, said she was excited to learn about the new ET-like program. “It’s great to see our work move to the next step in the commitment that has been made by these two schools and the community colleges who will work with them,” Gullick said.

Marianne Begemann, Dean of Strategic Planning and Academic Resources, who co-taught one of the courses at Vassar’s first ET session in 1986, said she had long appreciated the value of the program. “Eighty percent of community college students say they want to graduate from a four-year college but fewer than 20 percent actually do,” Begemann said. “As a nonprofit institution, Vassar should play an active role in contributing to the social good; and the College has been dedicated to doing so through this program.”

Vassar’s partnership with an innovative medical school in East Africa took another step forward this summer when five Vassar students traveled to Rwanda to collaborate on a course in public health with students at the University of Global Health Equity (UGHE).

President Elizabeth H. Bradley and several members of Vassar’s faculty and administration have made multiple trips to UGHE since the partnership was launched in 2019, but this summer marked the first time students from the two institutions had a chance to learn in person together. And the Vassar students who took part in this experiment pronounced it a resounding success.

“This trip perfectly encapsulated how Vassar is a breeding ground for opportunity to discover your passions, hone your skills, and explore the unknown,” said Ambica Kale ’26, a political science and economics major from Mumbai, India. “The five of us were lucky enough to have this opportunity, and I can say with utmost certainty that my world has been expanded, my mind has been opened, and my heart is fuller.”

Kale and her four Vassar companions collaborated with about 50 UGHE first-year students on a course that examined the role water plays in sanitation, health, ecology, safety, traditional and religious beliefs, and everyday life in Rwanda and elsewhere in Africa. The Vassar students prepared for the trip by taking a five-week course during the Spring Semester on the Poughkeepsie campus about water-related issues on the African continent co-taught by Vassar Professor Thomas Parker and Dr. Denis Regnier, Head of Humanities and Social Sciences at UGHE.

Parker, Associate Professor and Chair of French and Francophone Studies, also teaches courses in Environmental Studies. He said the course he co-taught with Regnier had prepared the five Vassar students for projects they would be undertaking with UGHE students. “The course linked study in the humanities with issues related to water,” he said. During their trip, the students studied Rwanda’s innovative water infrastructure initiatives and visited Water Access Rwanda—a provider of potable water—a sugar cane plantation, an eco-park in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, a tea plantation, and a coffee washing station. They also met with the founders of Rwandan Young Water Professionals, an organization that promotes interest in water-related issues among young people.

“We also visited Lake Kivu, one of Rwanda’s major water resources, and talked to fishermen, who integrate singing in Amashi, a traditional language, and cultural mythologies surrounding water in their nightly fishing rituals,” Parker added.

Regnier called the presence of Vassar students on the UGHE campus a “highlight of the semester’s start” for the new class of medical students. “Their active participation in the African History and Political Economy course, alongside the presence of Vassar College faculty, has enriched the learning experience by offering diverse perspectives and fostering a vibrant academic environment,” he said. “The Vassar College students collaborated with UGHE students on group presentations about water in Africa, further deepening their understanding of historical and political contexts while strengthening the ties between the two institutions.”

The interaction between UGHE and Vassar students wasn’t confined to the classroom. Croix Horsley ’26, a religion and education double major from Cinnaminson, NJ, played a leading role in creating a Vassar-UGHE Student Club designed to foster ongoing relationships among students at both institutions. The club has been endorsed and funded by the Vassar Student Association. “President Bradley approached me and asked if I could help initiate such a club,” Horsley said, “so we talked with some UGHE administrators to explore what might make the most sense. We were thinking about organizing game nights or movie nights, and our first joint meeting this summer was on mental health—how students at Vassar are supported when we face various challenges.”

Talia Yustein ’26, an environmental studies major from Montclair, NJ, said she too enjoyed the social aspect of the collaboration. “It was great to get to know the UGHE students and see their passion for public health,” Yustein said. “When we broke down into smaller groups, there was a lot of bonding, and I absolutely want to continue my relationships. Some of the students I met I already consider friends. I’d love to go back sometime for more interaction with them, and I’m grateful to have had the experience.”

President Bradley, who taught a course titled Scientific Reasoning while accompanying the students and some administrators to UGHE this summer, said all the feedback she received from students at both institutions had been positive. “All of them just loved working together in groups,” she said.

Bradley said a principal goal of the collaboration—instilling the liberal arts in the UGHE curriculum—is apparently gaining traction throughout Rwanda’s education community. “I met the Minister of Education (Gaspard Twagirayezu),” the President said, “and he told me, ‘We need the liberal arts approach in our secondary schools, too.’”

The President added she had witnessed tangible evidence that a curriculum that includes the liberal arts is producing better health care professionals. “I spoke to some of the older students at the hospital, and they told me, ‘I treat my patients differently.’ It has opened their minds.”

Photos by 64 Waves for UGHE