Cover Lovers
We were thrilled with the outburst of enthusiasm on social media for our fall cover story featuring Jasmine Guillory ’97. Below are just a few of the many comments that appeared on the Wellesley magazine Facebook post that featured it:
Yayyyy, it’s finally public!!!!
Dorothy Jones-Davis ’98, WCAA board member, who saw a sneak preview of the cover
Love this picture! One of the kindest people I met at Wellesley!
Alicia Meza Hilligas ’98
Love times infinity!!!
Jen Parmelee Witt ’98
Jasmine Guillory! This makes me so happy. Everybody, Jasmine is my Wellesley big sister!
Justine Firnhaber-Baker ’98
LOVE!!
Claire Ayoub ’11
A Hopeful Poet
I enjoyed reading “So You Want to Write a Book” by Catherine O’Neill Grace in the fall 2023 Wellesley magazine. It was very informative and interesting to learn more about Wellesley alums in the publishing industry. My own professional work experience has contributed to my poetry manuscript (a creative outlet along with working full-time) mostly about challenges in the workplace as a woman of color. To date, my poetry manuscript is unpublished. Working to find a publishing home for it and continue to network with the Wellesley community.
Candice Waldo ’00, Columbia, S.C.
Font Thoughts
The lives of Wellesley alumnae are getting longer, but the print in the Wellesley alumnae magazine is getting smaller! Not a good fit, unless the College is heavily invested in magnifying glasses!
Doris Schaffer O’Brien ’54, Las Vegas
From the editor: The font for our body copy did change with the fall issue, but it is the same size as the old font. However, I am sympathetic—I find proofing class notes much more challenging than I did when I started working at the magazine 18 years ago!
I like the idea of including more media formats in the list of alums who have published recently.
I applaud the past 10 to 15 years of changes that make the magazine more inclusive, engaging, and diverse.
Sadly, the current changes feel alienating. The red and green class color blocks in the class notes section evoke an elementary school bulletin board. Text is difficult to read on the solid color background.
The former magazine font unified the magazine. All alums are connected through this magazine. Changing fonts among sections feels like an unneeded gimmick to keep attention. The magazine feels less distinctive, less representative of what makes Wellesley special and beautiful. It feels like a generic corporate communication piece. The changes may be less apparent to digital format readers and impact paper version readers more.
Laura Moser ’85, Carmichael, Calif.
All Students Should Feel Safe
I signed a letter to Wellesley College in November, asking that they do more to protect and support Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim students and their allies. My hope for 2024 is that Wellesley will make the changes to be a college where all students feel safe.
Ninan Pollack ’20, Jersey City, N.J.
A Life-Changing Professor
We—Judy Jaffe Silber ’57 and Judy Salter Ellenzweig ’57—met in September of 1953 in Severance Hall as freshmen on our very first day at Wellesley. David Ferry, who died last month at 99 (see “In Memoriam”), was a strong part of our now 70-year bond. We both took his introduction to poetry class. It was life-changing for us. We took every class he taught, captivated by his insight and charm. Later, we treasured meeting him at reunions, including our 60th where he told us that reading, writing, and translating poetry were what gave meaning to his life. And now, gratefully, we would like to say that he gave meaning and enduring joy to our lives—by opening the door to the beauty and great pleasure of language and literature. As he explained in that freshman class long ago when we read Wordsworth: The daffodils will die, but the memories and the poem will live forever.
Judy Jaffe Silber ’57, Washington, D.C.
Judy Salter Ellenzweig ’57, Belmont, Mass.
