Articles

If you’ve heard of the old May Day festivities, it’s probably because Hooprolling and, later, Stepsinging, took place as part of the celebrations. But over the decades, May Day fell away, along with one of its quirkier traditions: scrubbing campus statues and steps.

In January, Peggy McIntosh, a senior research scientist at the Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW) and its former associate director, received an exciting call from Jean Kilbourne ’64. “Welcome to the National Women’s Hall of Fame,” Kilbourne told McIntosh, notifying her that she would be inducted in September.

Tekla Carlén ’24, a medieval and renaissance studies and French major, spent her junior year in France through the College’s Wellesley-in-Aix program. “I chose this program because I wanted a language immersion program and to be able to take classes at a French university alongside French students,” she says.

After a national search, Wellesley selected Crystal Daugherty to join the College as vice president for development. “As a senior officer of the College, Crystal will be a strategic partner and contributor to developing and achieving institutional priorities,” said President Paula Johnson.

Perhaps Nina McKee ’16 was fated to be involved with the Madeleine Korbel Albright Institute for Global Affairs. “Madeleine Albright was always this figure in my life because I was a young redhead who liked negotiating and wanted to be a diplomat,” says McKee, who became the Albright Institute’s program director in December 2022.

Sophomore economics major Tenzin Yangchen ’25 is exploring career options. “Investment banking caught my eye,” she says, but there was a lot the first-gen student didn’t know.

Newhouse Visiting Professor of Creative Writing Lauren Holmes ’07 teaches Writing for Television. The course dissects TV pilots and web series. “I’m looking for the clearest examples of character building, story building, and the story engine,” she says.

Mingwei Song, professor of Chinese, was a child in China when he discovered a stash of books in the factory where his mother worked. He recalls reading fairy tales and, before long, works by Dickens, Hugo, Balzac, and others. Perhaps his early readings provided a key to the future.

Launching the Class of 2022.5 In December 2022, 62 students celebrated their final semester at Wellesley at a festive gathering in the Alumnae Hall Ballroom. Melissa Jo Zambrana ’15, assistant director of alumnae engagement, welcomed...