the college magazine spring 2010

CollegeThe S p r i n g 2 0 1 0

S t . J o h n ’ s C o l l e g e • A n n a p o l i s • S a n t a F e

Virginia WoolfAnd the Novel at St. John’s

The Collegeis published three times a year by St. John’s College, Annapolis, MD,

and Santa Fe, NM

Known office of publication:Communications Office

St. John’s CollegeBox 2800

Annapolis, MD 21404-2800

Periodicals postage paid at Annapolis, MD

postmaster: Send addresschanges to The College

Magazine, CommunicationsOffice, St. John’s College, Box 2800, Annapolis, MD

21404-2800.

Rosemary Harty (AGI09), editor410-972-4511

[email protected]

Patricia DempseyManaging EditorJennifer BehrensArt Director

The College welcomes letters onissues of interest to readers.

Letters can be sent via e-mail tothe editor or mailed to the

address above.

Annapolis410-626-2539

Santa Fe505-984-6104

Contributors

Anna Perleberg (SF02)Keileigh Rhodes (A13)Deborah SpiegelmanBabak Zarin (A11)

Magazine design by Claude Skelton Design

O n V i r g i n i a W o o l f

The first time I came across her, I really disliked Virginia Woolf. I was a reluc-tant member of a seminar on Woolf in my senior year at a large university. (Aclass on Shakespeare’s tragedies was full. Everything else was full.) Thegraduate student who led the course was dismayed by those of us whocouldn’t summon compassion for Mrs. Dalloway, thought Mrs. Ramsay was aloser, and were hopelessly baffled by The Waves.

Ten years later, I was ready to read Woolf, starting with “A Society,” a biting satire ofmen and women and books. In the story, as a group of women are having tea one day, Pollbegins reading to them from a collection of books from the London Library. Declaringeach book to be awful, the women decide they left far too much to men while they werebusy raising children:

So we made ourselves into a society for asking questions. One of us was to visit aman-of-war; another was to hide herself in a scholar’s study; another was toattend a meeting of business men; while all were to read books, look at pictures,go to concerts, keep our eyes open in the streets, and ask questions perpetually.We were very young. You can judge of our simplicity when I tell you that beforeparting that night we agreed that the objects of life were to produce good peopleand good books. Our questions were to be directed to finding out how far theseobjects were now attained by men. We vowed solemnly that we would not bear asingle child until we were satisfied.

By the time they conclude their investigations, at least one of the women regrets beingtaught to read at all.It’s an interesting story from a woman who educated herself by reading books. The boys

in her family were sent to school, but Virginia and her sister, Vanessa, were educated athome. She roamed her father’s library, reading and translating Homer and Sophocles.Surrounded by books, she determined at a young age to be a writer. “She scarcely neededformal education,” wrote Nigel Nicolson in Virginia Woolf. “She was her own guidethrough history and literature. She was learning all through her life.”This issue of The College explores the place of the novel at St. John’s. It’s hard to

imagine not reading Dostoevsky or Jane Austen in seminar, but it’s interesting to imaginewhat novels could occupy that special place on the seminar list in the future. (CormacMcCarthy? Toni Morrison?) Moby-Dick lives in preceptorials, where authors such asBorges, E.M. Forster, and García Márquez turn up. We polled alumni to ask what booksthey enjoyed reading the most and what they’d like to see added to the reading list. And wetalked to a few tutors and alumni in academe about what they think makes a novel trulygreat. Susan Stickney made me think of Woolf when she talked about seeing novels in awhole new light when we read them again after many years, discovering something new inthem (or in ourselves). Woolf turns up in language tutorial, where students in some classes read A Room of

One’s Own. Mrs. Dalloway is sometimes read in precept and tutorial as well. Santa Feseniors complete their St. John’s career with two seminars on To the Lighthouse. I’d love toknow what they think of the book if they re-read it 10 years from now.Also in this issue, we look at an entirely modern phenomenon, Facebook, and how John-

nies feel about social media. We look back over the last five decades of St. John’s with twolong-serving tutors who are still very much a part of life at the college and we profile fouralumni who are bringing the ideals of St. John’s into special projects in their professionaland volunteer work. —RH

{ C o n t e n t s }

CollegeThe S p r i n g 2 0 1 0V o l u m e 3 5 , I s s u e 2

Th e M a g a z i n e f o r A l umn i o f S t . J o h n ’ s C o l l e g e A n n a p o l i s • S a n ta F e

p a g e 12What Makesa Novel Great?Tolstoy and Austen, Dostoevsky andTwain–with few exceptions, the seminarreading list hasn’t changed much when itcomes to novels. Should it? Alumni andtutors consider the possibilities.

p a g e 18Friendship and FacebookWhat would Aristotle say about socialmedia? Alumni find both perils andpleasures in the world of Web 2.0.

p a g e 22Sam and CurtisTwo long-serving tutors look back oversix decades of St. John’s College, fromBarr and Buchanan and Jasha Klein tothe state of the college today.

p a g e 26CroquetIt all began in Freshman chorus: thestory behind a new St. John’s anthem.

p a g e 44Special Report: AlumniRelations There’s a bold new effort underway tostrengthen the ties between St. John’sand its alumni.

d e p a r t m e n t s

2 from the bell towers• New admissions initiatives• How did you hear about St. John’s? • President as paper adviser• A global view in Santa Fe• A new dean in Annapolis• Reflections on being dean• ARIEL and Hodson interns • Kindles on campus• News and announcements• Letters

28 bibliofile• A new book by Jon Hunner (SF74)

explores J. Robert Oppenheimer’s impacton the West; Jehanne Dubrow (A97) paystribute to the Odyssey in a new book ofpoetry that explores life as a military wife.

30 alumniP R O F I L E S

30 From pre-K to MIT, four alumni bringclassical education to schools andcommunities.

35 Pediatrician Mat Strickland (SF96) findspurpose in the heart of the NavajoNation.

38 Philosophy Professor Steve Werlin (A85)takes on microfinance in Haiti as thecountry rebuilds.

40 Reformed hoarder Leah Fisch (SF98)gives order to chaos.

41 obituaries

48 st. john’s forever

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o n t h e c o v e r

Virginia WoolfIllustration by David Johnson

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{ T h e C o l l e g e • St. John’s College • Spring 2010 }

{ F r o m t h e B e l l T o w e r s }

On a cool morning in earlyApril, Gabe Luzier (A10)led two sets of mothers andtheir teenagers on a tour ofthe Annapolis campus. Heanswered questions aboutmathematics, what thedorm rooms were like, andof course, what St. John’sgraduates do. Luzier, aseasoned tour guide forAdmissions, took all thequestions in stride, but hereally lit up when one of theparents asked what broughthim to St. John’s. “All of the material I was

getting from collegeslooked the same to me,”said Luzier, who is fromBrandywine, Md. “When Iread the booklet from St. John’s, I knew it wasexactly what I was lookingfor. I applied to JohnsHopkins as a safety school,but my heart was already atSt. John’s.” To recruit students, the college has always counted on the “light-

bulb” factor: a student learns about St. John’s and is drawn to thecollege’s academic program immediately. No other college will do.To make sure St. John’s is reaching the high school students whoare awaiting that flash of insight, the college has tapped one of thenation’s top admissions consulting firms, is revising admissionsmaterial, and has begun incorporating new media and video intoelectronic communication with prospective students.In 2008 the college hired George Dehne and Associates to

evaluate recruitment efforts on both campuses and identify ways toincrease the college’s applicant pool. The firm’s recommendationsled to a new college-wide model for student recruitment. John Christensen, admissions director in Annapolis, explains

that the college shifted to a “prospect management” approach.“Fundamentally, prospect management is an effort to identify andcultivate early in their high school careers those prospectivestudents most likely to apply, be accepted, and ultimately enroll inSt. John’s,” he says. The college employs a point system based onthe contact prospective students have with the college, and staffcultivate those students through personalized communications.Under the new model, counselors are assigned geographic

territories (usually states) selected by a market analysis of theCollege Board’s Enrollment Planning Service. St. John’s tracksapplications to the college over the last 10 years and then sendscounselors to the most fertile ground. The counselors group theprospective students in their states into three tiers by points and

focus most of their commu-nication and travel activitieson top-tier prospects.Admissions staff on the

two campuses work closelytogether in this effort. Eachcounselor in Annapolis hasa partner in Santa Fe. Eachshares information aboutstudents they’ve contactedwho may be interested in theother’s campus. Together,staff plan receptions, travel,and conduct on-the-roadinterviews. Making everything easer is a newcollegewide database thatgrants easy access to information about indi-vidual prospectives andensures that staff aren’tduplicating efforts.Finally, the college will

start reaching out to highschool students in theirsophomore year and willkeep up the stream ofcommunications to willing

students through the fall of their senior year. Prospectives will begetting viewbooks and other brochures, but they’ll also be gettinglinks to videos about academic and student life at the college.For the last 10 years, St. John’s has been using a suite of award-

winning publications with an understated style that stood outdramatically among the glossy color pamphlets that floodedstudent mailboxes. The college will continue to integrate itsfavorite tagline, “The Following Teachers Will Return to St. John’sNext Year,” into its publications and electronic media, but it willintroduce new print publications including a new four-color viewbook. There will be a multimedia virtual tour of the college on the web and increased use of e-communications.The college isn’t moving away from a serious presentation of the

academic program; it’s simply placing it in the context of the wholecollege experience, says Larry Clendenin, Santa Fe’s admissionsdirector. “We have always managed to distinguish the college fromother institutions through our presentation of the Program, but wehave never managed to capture fully what it is like to study and livein the communities of learning on our two campuses,” says Clendenin. “We hope that our new publications continue to attractthe core following we have always had among college-boundstudents, but we are extending our reach to prospective studentswe may have missed in the past.” x

—Rosemary Harty

The Light-Bulb Factor in the YouTube EraSt. John’s adopts new approaches to recruit students

Tour guide Gabe Luzier (A10, center) knew St. John’s was right for him assoon as he learned of the college. A new admissions initiative—includingnew publications—will cast a wider net for students who are right forSt. John’s.

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We asked readers of The College to tell us how theylearned about St. John’s—was itthe catalog, a teacher, a happyaccident?

Mortimer AdlerI was reading Mortimer Adler’sbook How to Read a Book, inwhich he mentions St. John’s andthe great books. It took meanother year (with encourage-ment from others) to apply.Richard Weigle came to SanFrancisco on business and invitedme to meet him at the SheratonPalace, where he was staying. I was accepted and offered somemodest scholarships and a job atthe library. St. John’s was a formof “salvation” for me, as I wasthen in my mid-20s.

–Jerry Milhollan (Class of 1958)

Discovery in the StacksI “heard” about St. John’s whilea student at the University ofIllinois. At some point I readMortimer Adler’s How to Reada Book, where he says that SJCis the only place to obtain aliberal education. Some timelater, while working as a page inthe library, I was shelvingbooks towards the end of theday when I realized that the lastbook in my hands was the SJCcatalog. Since I had a little timebefore the end of my shift, I satdown on the floor of the stacksin front of where I wassupposed to shelve the catalog,and I read it from beginning toend. When I finished reading, I noticed a tear-out card to sendfor more information. I sent inthe card, I went to St. John’s,and I graduated.

– Mike Anthony (A69)

An Educated ManI was a nontraditional student,having begun my undergrad-uate studies at age 35 in a smallcollege in Pittsburgh. I wasfortunate to have an SJC

alumnus, Ben Moskowitz (classof 1950), as one of my firstprofessors. He called us “Mr.”and “Ms.” He gave us threeoptions for demonstrating whatwe learned in his World Historyclass: take a test, write a paper,or have a conversation withhim. He reminisced about asmall liberal arts college inAnnapolis where there were nodesks, no majors, and nowritten exams. Everyonestudied the “great books.” His father had asked him whathe intended to be with a“liberal arts” degree, and heanswered, “An educated man.”Decades later, I had the oppor-tunity to visit the GraduateInstitute in Annapolis, and Iwas hooked. Now, with myMaster of Arts in Liberal Arts, I teach at a small college inPittsburgh. Thanks, Ben.

–Carol Brinjak (SFGI96)

A Positive ModelLike many others, I receivedthe famous 1962 SaturdayReview article about St. John’sCollege in the mail during mysenior year in high school. I remember reading the articleduring English class andthinking immediately: this iswhere I want to go to school.Although getting excellentgrades, I had been very angry athow most of our education washandled. But once I heard aboutSt. John’s, I knew that educa-tion could be better. That’s notto say that St. John’s was easyfor me. In fact the adjustmentwas very difficult, and I almostleft after the first semester. But I struggled through and, inretrospect, wouldn’t trade it foranything.

–Rick Wicks (SF68)

A “Wacko” CollegeI was registered at Rutger’sUniversity in my senior year ofhigh school and had receivedmy eight-digit student number.

Something about those eightdigits left a bad taste in mymouth. At the same time, I received a phone call from agood friend—also a senior—whowas laughing hysterically. Hehad scored a perfect 1600 onhis SATs, so he received mailfrom virtually every college anduniversity, and that day he hadreceived an application from St. John’s. He was calling to tellme about “this wacko collegewhere everyone takes the samecourses and they have thisGreat Books program, andthere are only a few hundredstudents, and you have tocomplete this ridiculous 10-page application!” I was tooembarrassed to tell him itsounded pretty cool to me, so Icalled St. John’s as soon as wehung up. When I worked upenough courage, I called myfriend to tell him I was acceptedat St. John’s and was planningto attend. It took a while toconvince him I wasn’t joking.

— Caroline Mandy Sharkey (A78)

Adler, ReduxI had joined the Marine Corpsafter a disappointing year at aliberal arts college in LosAngeles. One day whilewandering through a postlibrary at Camp Pendleton, I came across Mortimer Adler’sHow to Read a Book. Adlerwrites, “There is one collegethat I know of in this countrywhich is trying to turn out

liberal artists in the true sense.That is St. John’s College inAnnapolis, Maryland.” I wroteto Adler asking, since the bookwas written in 1941, had notother colleges, maybe closer toCalifornia, seen the light andreintroduced the classics andthe sciences in place of the elective system? Adler kindlywrote back that, no, there wasstill only St. John’s. So I wroteto the college for a catalog andafter discharge from active dutywas admitted.

—Joseph P. Baratta (A69)

A Classical EducationI was in my first year at a prepschool and hating pretty mucheverything about it. Every sooften, a representative of somecollege would stop by, trollingfor recruits. Such worries wereyears ahead of me, so I didn’tpay much attention to them.Until a man from a smallcollege in Maryland spun talesof a classical education, in anatmosphere that seemed muchmore cordial to me than the oneI was enduring. I evenremember, more than 50 yearslater, that the recruiter wasAdmissions director Jim Tolbert(HA86), a wonderful man.When it came to applying for

college, I remembered St.John’s and Mr. Tolbert. But Ididn’t have the courage toapply. So I stumbled around.They call Tulane “the Harvardof the South,” but I never hearHarvard advertised as “theTulane of the North.” In anycase, the humidity got to me. I regrouped at a junior college.Finally, deciding that I hadnothing to lose, I applied to St. John’s and was accepted. Ijumped at the chance [to partic-ipate] in the founding Santa Feclass. Though I only lasted twoyears—I failed enabling, but theArmy wanted me—I don’t regreta minute of the time spent. I learned a lot and grew enoughto know that I’d spend the restof my life growing.

—Todd Everett (SF68)

How did you hear about St. John’s?

Caroline Sharkey



4

When Josiah Stephens (A10)settled on a question for hissenior essay (“What is thebenefit of a liberal education toa free-market system?”), hischoice for a paper advisorseemed a natural one.Annapolis President Christo-pher Nelson (SF70) has beenwriting and speaking about theliberal arts for more than twodecades. Stephens first came to know

the president away from thecampus because he docked his28-foot sloop Doris at Nelson’shouse on the Severn River formore than a year while heslowly worked to make the boatseaworthy. The two would talkwhile Stephens worked. WhileDoris still isn’t ready for a longvoyage, both Stephens andNelson—along with the all-important essay committee—thought the paper turned out well. Stephens read Adam Smith’s

The Wealth of Nations andTheory of Moral Sentiments forhis essay. He first became inter-ested in his topic at the start ofthe greatest economic down-turn in the United States sincethe Great Depression. Heclosely followed news aboutproposed legislation to curbabuses on Wall Street anddecided to explore how a liberaleducation creates natural safe-

guards in citizens who can askquestions and make choices forthe good of society. Educatedcitizens, he posited, were lesslikely to “lose touch with the

foundations upon which their society was founded.”Ultimately, less government isneeded in a society with peopleequipped to ask questionsabout virtue, morality, andjustice, he wrote.

Though Nelson has servedon several committees forsenior orals, this was only thesecond essay he has advised inhis 19 years as president. (Thefirst was by Arthur Allen, A06,who wrote on the film AndreiRublev). Advising Stephensgave him the opportunity torevisit the two Smith works. He found in The Wealth of

Nations, as Stephens did, aparallel between Smith’s divi-sion of labor and a modernhigher education system thatfunnels graduates into narrowspecializations.Though early in his presi-

dency Nelson was able to co-lead undergraduate seminars,the demands of the job havelimited him to leading Execu-tive Seminars and occasionalparents’ or community semi-nars. Being a paper advisorhelped him reconnect with theProgram: “Spending asustained amount of time witha student, thinking through aninteresting problem andreading Adam Smith—it was agreat opportunity to partici-

pate in the life of the mind.” Nelson’s busy schedule

meant arranging paper confer-ences weeks in advance, so thetwo started meeting early in thefall. Yet Mr. Stephens doesn’tconsider himself shorted in anyway. “Anyone who has spentmore than five or ten minuteswith Mr. Nelson knows thathe’s someone who is genuinely

interested in the students andtheir experiences here. It wasgreat to talk about issues thatexist outside the books and togain insight from his experi-ences. It made writing thisessay so much moreenriching.” Nelson, too, will count the

experience among the high-lights of his year. “For onething, it reinforces for me howmuch the tutors do here to helpguide the students in theirwork,” he says. “And secondly,it was fun.” x

— Rosemary Harty

Presidential AdviceBeing a paper advisor is a treat for abusy president

Advising Josiah Stephens (A10) on his senior essay gave Annapolis President Christopher Nelson achance to reconnect with the intellectual life of the college.

Changes for the St. John’s ReviewAnnapolis tutor William Pastille is the new editor of the St. John’s Review, the college’s scholarly journal. Pastilletakes on the role from Pamela Kraus, who has edited thepublication for more than 10 years. Kraus begins her term asAnnapolis dean July 1.In addition, the publication is increasing its online

presence and expects to make back issues available online.Find out more by visiting the college website: www.stjohn-scollege.edu; click on Publications and St. John’s Review.

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Combine a president whosecareer took him all over theglobe with a group of studentskeenly interested in the mostcritical issues affecting theworld today, and you have theForeign Policy Study Group onthe Santa Fe campus. One latewinter’s afternoon, thestudents came to the seminartable with their text (a ForeignAffairs article on how tofinance and manage a moresecure global energy system),ready for President MichaelPeters’ opening question:“What is the problem theauthors are talking about?”For the next hour or so, the

discussion embraces globalpolitics and historic precedentwhile hovering close to thetext: “The New Energy Order,”by David G. Victor and LindaYueh. One student teases outthe economic theory underpin-ning the article’s argument,while another focuses on

ethical concerns. A thirdstudent questions the feasibilityof the mechanism the authorspropose to solve the challengeof global, environmentallyresponsible investment inenergy resources. As they flipthrough the article, thestudents advance their waythrough the authors’ argu-ments and point out perceivedgaps in the reasoning. Whilethe discussion stays close to thetext, Peters also encourages aslightly broader exploration ofglobal political reality.The issue, Peters offers, is

the shift in global power,which, as one student suggests,has historically led to conflict.Thus, the discussion, whichtook off from the point ofenergy insecurity, returns theidea that political instability inresource-rich parts of the worldremains a serious internationalthreat.“The study group was some-

thing I had in mind when Icame to the college, but actu-ally some students came to meand asked if I’d be willing to dosomething like this, and ofcourse, I said ‘yes,’” Petersrecalls. Before he joined thecollege in 2005, Peters servedas executive vice president ofthe Council on Foreign Rela-tions, where during his 10-yeartenure he helped developCFR’s National Program,which sponsors seminars acrossthe country to encourage abroader debate on interna-tional affairs and U.S. foreignpolicy. Peters’ prior militarycareer—he is a graduate of theUnited States Military Academyand retired as a colonel—tookhim to Vietnam, Panama, SaudiArabia, and Russia. Peters alsotaught economics to cadets atWest Point, where he later waschief of staff. In addition to the study

group, about 10 to 15 studentsjoin Peters in his office everycouple of weeks to gatheraround his speakerphone forthe CFR’s Academic Confer-ence Call series. Students atcolleges across the country

have the opportunity to askquestions of a CFR Fellow orForeign Affairs author.While Peters solicits ideas for

discussion topics and invitesstudents to suggest specificreadings, he usually selects thearticles, as Johnnies are typically pressed for time. Many who attend regularly areinterested in careers in interna-tional relations; some simplywant to understand issues thataffect citizens of the world. Thegroup has several regulars, andothers join in when time allowsor when they find the topicparticularly appealing. Somestudents are notably tenaciousabout the enterprise, saysPeters: “This year we haveseveral juniors who joined thegroup as freshmen.”In addition, some students

have drawn a direct linebetween their study-groupparticipation and their post-St. John’s endeavors. Onestudent who graduated acouple of years ago is now aForeign Service Officer, Peterssays. Several other participantshave gone on to pursue lawdegrees with a focus in interna-tional relations. All benefitfrom the perspectives of thetwo dozen or so internationalstudents on the Santa Fecampus, some of whom takepart in the study group. “One of the things that is

different this year and reflectswhat’s happening in the collegeis that we have a growingnumber of internationalstudents in the group,” saysPeters. “That adds a completelydifferent perspective.”

—Deborah Spiegelman


{ F r o m t h e B e l l T o w e r s } 5

The World and St. John’sSanta Fe President Mike Peters offersstudents a global picture

Santa Fe President MichaelPeters shares his interna-tional experience withstudents through his ForeignPolicy Study Group.ch

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{ F r o m t h e B e l l T o w e r s }6

Tutor Pamela Kraus will facesome tough challenges whenshe becomes Annapolis deanJuly 1, among them, newadmissions initiatives, tightbudgets, and the pressing needto make sound choices for thelong-term future of the college.Since her appointment was

approved earlier this year,Kraus has been on a crashcourse to learn everythingabout one of the most complexand important roles at thecollege. As dean she will chairthe Instruction Committee,which oversees the college’sacademic program. Hiringtutors, dismissing students,ensuring new tutors aresupported, inviting lecturers,and dealing with parents arejust a few of her roles. As deanshe will also oversee Admis-

sions, the Registrar, CareerServices, and GreenfieldLibrary—all central to theacademic life of the college.She’ll serve as a member of thecollege’s Board of Visitors andGovernors. In the long run, shehas a bigger challenge: makingsure the college and itsacademic program continue tothrive.“We need to bring the

importance of liberal artseducation to public attention,”says Kraus. “It’s hard to makepeople see the intangibles,hard to convey the living,working and learning that takesplace in the classroom. Theactive learning here at St.John’s is distinctive. It’s not thebooks themselves so much asthe way we read them. It can belife changing. ”

Kraus’ deep dedication tothe college has its roots in herearly career and was partly dueto the influence of her latehusband, Richard Kennington.While teaching philosophy atCatholic University in the1980s (where Kennington was aprofessor) she occasionallyattended Friday night lecturesat St. John’s. Her husband’ssupport helped her decide tojoin the St. John’s faculty in1985. “Giving up a traditionalacademic career is a big deci-sion,” she says. “I could havecontinued on a certain path toresearch and publish, but I wasattracted to the breadth anddepth at St. John’s. You caneasily get into a narrow worldin traditional academia and talkwith colleagues only in the field that they are in. Here at

St. John’s we talkabout ideas across the spectrum. There is a serious interest inall kinds of books and ideas.” Her own wide-

ranging interests havebeen nurtured at St. John’s. “I have adeep, long interest inpoetry. MarianneMoore, ElizabethBishop, and RobertLowell are a few of thepoets whose work Iadmire. I love litera-ture, including HenryJames and of course,Shakespeare. Andthere is history,philosophy, theater,and fine art. I alwayscome home with apainting by a studentfrom the communityart show at St. John’s.” When she was

looking at colleges,Kraus didn’t knowabout St. John’s, andas the daughter of a

coppersmith, she wonders ifshe could have afforded thetuition. Now, as dean, her jobwill be to promote the collegeand ensure accessibilitythrough financial aid. “I wantyoung people to know thecollege exists, that St. John’s isa seedbed for your thinking,”she says. “There is a cumula-tive effect from this education.This is an education that willcarry you through the rest ofyour life and serve you well infacing many challenges.” As she prepares for her new

position, Kraus is meeting withas many members of thecommunity as she can,including staff, boardmembers, and alumni.Learning to be dean isn’tunlike the learning thathappens in the classroom at St. John’s. “My door is alwaysopen and I hope my mind istoo,” she says. “At St. John’syou learn to try not to love yourown opinions so much that youare stuck in them. The studentand tutor have to expose them-selves to other ways oflearning. Would you normallysay, ‘I want to take a course onelectricity and magnetism?’No. But here you are exposed toit—and to so many otherperspectives.” Tutor Nick Maistrellis, who

served on the dean selectioncommittee, says colleaguesrecognize Kraus’ commitmentto the Program as well as heradministrative know-how (shewas editor of the St. John’sReview for more than 15 years).“She has intelligence, goodjudgment, graciousness, andstyle,” says Maistrellis. Thesequalities will make her a goodleader of the college, and aneffective advocate for itsprogram of study. She willalways have the good of thecommunity in mind.” x

–Patricia Dempsey

A New Dean in Annapolis

Tutor Pamela Kraus is only the second woman to serve as dean on theAnnapolis campus; Eva Brann (HA89) was the first.

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7{ F r o m t h e B e l l T o w e r s }

The role of dean at St. John’s isunlike that at any other highereducation institution: chiefacademic officer and guardianof the Program, but also theoverseer of important functionssuch as admissions, athletics,the registrar, library, and finan-cial aid. The College asked twoquestions of several formerdeans: What was most the mostdifficult part of the job? Andwhat most surprised themduring their term as dean?

CURTIS WILSON (HA83),ANNAPOLIS, 1958-1962 AND1973-1979“The most difficult thing aboutbeing dean? I think it is theresponsibility that you have(and are frequently remindedthat you have!) to everymember of the community, fortheir welfare, for their having aworthwhile experience oflearning at the college, andgenerally just for getting thingsto go well. I would hope thecurtain of charity might fall onthose incidents in which Ididn’t manage very well. Themost surprising thing aboutbeing dean: Certainly the mostgratifying thing that happens atthe college is a student wakingup to the possibility of thinkingfreshly and insightfully aboutone of the questions arising inour studies.”

EVA BRANN (HA89),ANNAPOLIS, 1990-1997“What was most difficult?Keeping the balance betweenthe college as an efficient insti-tution and as a humane place oflearning. What was mostsurprising? That when peopleasked me whether I was happybeing dean, I found myselfsaying: ‘I wouldn’t know, I’mtoo deep in.’”

HARVEY FLAUMENHAFT,ANNAPOLIS, 1997-2005“The most difficult thing washaving so little time for study.The most surprising thing was

how very many good thingsmust be foregone or neglectedin order to be able to ministerto at least some matters of long-term importance—not becausemoney is lacking but becauseurgencies are multitudinouswhile resources of time, effort,and attention are limited.”

DAVID LEVINE (A67),SANTA FE, 2001-2006“While there’s a lot of work todo in the dean’s office—20different things at the sametime—that is not the difficultthing. The most difficult thingis, in and amidst all the variousdemands, to keep a clear senseof who we are as a college. Atthe end of my term a colleague,Phil Le Cuyer, asked me what Ihad learned as dean. Myresponse was even surprisingto me: ‘How much work it takesto keep us who we are.’We went through a number

of crises—presidential, studentlife, admissions, etc.—and whatwas wonderfully surprising wasthat the unique structure of thecollege proved strong: theProgram provided stabilitythrough change, and with thesupport of the faculty, we wereable to make significantheadway in addressing thepressing issues standing in theway of the college being agenuine community oflearning.”

VICTORIA MORA, SANTA FE,2006-PRESENT“I’d rather talk in terms ofchallenges rather than difficul-ties, as I’ve experienced theformer more than the latter.One significant challenge hasto do with the nature of thedean’s position itself. It is quiteintentionally configured so thatthe dean is involved at everylevel of the college; the deanworks with the board, themanagement committee, thecampus officers, the faculty,the staff, the students, the

parents, and the alumni. Thisconfiguration ensures that theProgram remains at the centerof every decision we make atthe college, which is to thegood. But it does mean that thedean is challenged to work atevery level, often in the sameday, making recommendationsand decisions that affect thecollege as a whole, constituen-cies within the college, and ofcourse individuals. The chal-lenge is to be fully present ateach of these levels, bearing inmind how the decisions at each level affect the others. It is, as Husserl would say, an ‘infinite task.’I’ve been surprised at how

satisfying it is to be able toserve the college in this way.This doesn’t mean that I’m notlooking forward to being backin the classroom, but it doesmean that I have not experi-enced my service primarily as a

burden! Maybe my greatestsurprise is how indebted I havebecome to my husband andchildren for making my workpossible!”

MICHAEL DINK (A75),ANNAPOLIS, 2005-2010“It’s easy to say what thehardest thing is: making thedecision that it is time forsomeone to leave the college:student, tutor, or staff member,and communicating that deci-sion. I was surprised by theamount of supervisory workinvolved and by the variety ofcrises that are possible. I mostenjoyed the opportunity to getto know and to work with thewhole range of the collegecommunity, and I was mostdisappointed that I didn’t findways to spend more time withstudents.” x

Being dean involves making sure the Program is at the heart ofevery decision made at the college, says Santa Fe DeanVictoria Mora.

On Being Dean

8 { F r o m t h e B e l l T o w e r s }

Esme Gaisford:Fruitflies and DNA Last summer, Esme Gaisford(SF10) worked in the Universityof Chicago EvolutionaryEcology Laboratories’ KrietmanLab, thanks to Santa Fe’s ARIEL(Award for Relating IntenseEducation to Life) internshipprogram.Gaisford had previously won

an ARIEL in 2008 to work at theCity of Hope cancer center inLos Angeles in laboratoriesheaded by Dr. Stephen J.Forman (A70). Her work inChicago took her into the realmof evolutionary genetics. “It wasa huge thing to be in this kind ofresearch lab as an undergrad-uate,” said Gaisford. An inspiring high school

science teacher piqued Gaisford’s interest in cellularbiology. Gaisford remembershim telling students, “I want youto know what you are doing andto understand why.” Surroundedby brilliant researchers and dedicated college interns in theuniversity laboratory, Gaisfordfound her St. John’s backgroundto be an asset. She soon pickedup the specialized terminologyand was even helping her peers

with the lab work.The work that occupied

Gaisford and her fellow internsinvolved repeated procedures tounzip and copy DNA, a tech-nique called PCR. “You have tobe clean, you have to be careful,you have to know what you’redoing at the right temperature,”she explains. The ultimate goalof all the experiments is agreater understanding of theevolution of the fruit fly. Forinstance, one researcher wasmanipulating the size of flies’eggs to understand how special-ization occurs and discoveredinteresting results about thesignaling differentiation inembryo development, Gaisfordexplained. “[The researchers]want to understand evolution-arily how the on-off gene-switching mechanism works,”she says. “These guys were very into

what they were doing,” Gaisfordsaid of the researchers in theUniversity of Chicago labs. “I think that when you get thatfar into academia, that’s whatyou do.” However, she suggests,at the top labs there are peoplelike her mentor who can makeconnections and take theresearch to the next step.

In addition, sheobserved that theresearchers wereconstantly talkingand helping eachother. “It’s all about conversation,”she says. —Deborah Spiegelman

Scott Weber:Up Close in theERAs a medical scribein the EmergencyDepartment at Anne

Arundel MedicalCenter, ScottWeber (A09) hasbeen by the sideof physicians,nurse practi-tioners and physi-cian assistants asthey set brokenlegs, stitched upwounds, resusci-tated somepatients, and lostothers. Weber’s intern-

ship, which hebegan with thesupport of aHodson Intern-ship in February of his senioryear, involved creating themedical and legal record of apatient’s treatment. Heobserved and documentedprocedures, test results, infor-mation provided by patients andtheir families, and other impor-tant aspects of patient treat-ment. “It is the best experience I

can imagine for any studentconsidering a career in clinicalmedicine,” says Weber, anaspiring doctor. “And I’mgrateful to The Hodson Trust formaking it possible.”Weber completed the intern-

ship last year, but he continuesto work as a scribe, one day aweek in the emergency roomand four days a week for anoncologist. Weber’s job is toaccompany the physician to thepatient’s bedside, where herecords the exact nature of anillness or injury and documentsthe physical exam. He uses ahandheld tablet computer thatallows him to record notesefficiently. A scribe also keeps an eye on

all the doctor’s patients and isoften the first to alert the physi-cian to important and some-times life-threatening results of

laboratory or imaging studies.Scribes soon learn what studiesare necessary to evaluate acondition based on a patient’shistory, symptoms andcomplaints. “I find that learningto take a good history is muchlike making a good argument inseminar,” says Weber. Seeing patients die, Weber

says, is perhaps the more tryingpart of the job: “I can stillremember the name of the firstpatient I saw die. I was morethan a little shocked to see thestrangely ashen color of his skinand the limp way his body movedas the nurses prepared him forhis family to see. Since then Ihave seen more people die than Icare to remember; it is a sad butordinary occurrence. As a scribeyou will also confront some ofthe nastier aspects of humanity.You will also see some patientsfilled with grateful relief andmoments I can best describe asquiet dignity.” More than ever, Weber knows

a medical career is right for him.“There is an infectious excite-ment to working on a goodcase—it’s an intellectual chal-lenge with the supreme rewardof being able to help someonetruly in need.” x

Evolutionary Genetics and Emergency Medicine Internships give Johnnies a glimpse of potential careers

Esme Gaisford spent her summer withfruitflies last year.


Scott Weber’s experience as a medical scribedeepened his desire to be a doctor.

9



Kindles have been sighted atthe home of the great books: inthe coffee shop, in the dormsand—gasp!—even in the libraryin Annapolis. Their ownerslove them, but the devices havetheir detractors as well, and theguardians of the college’sacademic program arewondering what will happen if students start toting them to seminar.For those who haven’t inves-

tigated, electronic readers suchas the Kindle are usually abouta quarter-of-an-inch thick andcome in a variety of sizes. Thescreen is called “electronicpaper,” and because it uses nobacklight, it isn’t hard on theeyes in the way a computerscreen is. They can come withnice leather cases that makethem appear more book-like.But of course, there are nopages to turn, no corners tofold over, no smell of paper, no margins to write in, no dustjacket—all those things thatcharm book lovers.Charles Cargal and Sarah

Pearlman (both A12) receivedtheir Kindles as gifts. Sincegetting his Kindle last summer,Cargal says he’s reading morethan ever. Having an entirestack of books with him every-where he goes means that hecan read a page or two when-ever he has a free minute. The best thing about their

devices, say Cargal andPearlman, is that even thoughthe readers can cost up to $500,e-books are much cheaper(about $10 for a bestseller), andtexts including Shakespeareplays can be acquired forfree.“The Kindle is not forpeople who don’t love books,”says Pearlman. “It is for peoplewho love books more thananyone else.”

Naturally, some book-lov-ing Johnnies are horrified bythe idea of e-books. “A bookcan be shared,” notes Galen

Cook-Thomas (A12). “If I havea book, once I’ve read it, I cangive it to someone else to read.With an e-book, the otherperson has to have one too inorder to read the book.” Cook-Thomas prefers to hold a realbook in his hands, not some-thing that turns on and off.“Books are prettier and

certainly less fragile,” he notes.“A book doesn’t lose all thewords if I drop it.”For Pearlman, however, the

physical aspect of reading is notas important as having access tomore books. “A lot of peopleobject to owning one ingeneral, or specifically object toJohnnies owning them because

they worship the form of thebook. I don’t think that’s fairbecause the good part ofreading is the way the booktransports you somewhereelse.”The collegewide Manage-

ment Committee has consid-ered the issue of e-books, notesAnnapolis Dean Michael Dink

(A75). The committee agreedthat the college can’tdiscourage students from usingthem. “To my mind, the onlyconcern is the availability oftexts and the availability of waysof locating where in a text youare (page or line numbers).”Santa Fe Dean Victoria Mora

has yet to spot a Kindle on her

campus. “I think we certainlyprefer that students take booksto class, but we have no policyagainst [e-books] and probablyshouldn’t,” she says. “I thinkwe would not allow computerswhere faces would be blocked ifa student were reading a text inthat way. The faculty has not,however, talked this through.” Pearlman can’t envision

e-books fully replacing paperbooks. Cargal disagrees andpoints to the example of thephonograph and the iPod. Itwon’t happen soon, says Cargal,“but give it a hundred years andbooks will be gone.”

—Keileigh Rhodes

Sarah Pearlman and Charles Kargal (both A12) are delighted with their digital readers, but theydon’t use them in seminar.

Kant on a Kindle?The college considers the impact ofdigital readers

“I think we certainly prefer thatstudents take books to class.”

Santa Fe Dean Victoria Mora

10



Santa Fe StudentsHeaded to NepalA group of Santa Fe studentshas received $10,000 in fundingfrom the Davis Foundation tohelp combat water-bornediseases in Nepal. The project isone of 100 selected fromsubmissions by college studentsacross the country. St. John’sstudents have submittedwinning proposals four years ina row.

David McGee and ChrisPataki (both SF10); ShishavParajuli, Prakash Pathak,and Brain Woodbury (allSF11); and Manish Thapa(SF12) will spend this summerin Nepal working to raise thepublic health standard in ruralareas of a country recentlyravaged by civil war and highlyvulnerable to annual monsoonsthat damage rudimentary sani-tation facilities. Nearly a third of

the population lacks access tosanitation and potable water.The students will build a

temporary clinic to providebasic medical care and also toprovide education abouthygiene and prevention of waterand sanitation-related illnesses.In addition, the team plans toconstruct low-impact, efficientsanitation and water-treatmentfacilities that are both inexpen-sive and sustainable.For more information about

the project, “Founding Peace –Building Peace and HealthThrough Sanitation and Educa-tion,” visit the students website,http://foundations4peace.wordpress.com.

Harvard Fellowship Jamaal Barnes (A10) hasreceived a Reynolds Fellowshipto study in the Harvard Grad-uate School of Education. TheCatherine B. Reynolds

FoundationFellowships inSocial Entrepre-neurship aredesigned to equipindividuals fornational leader-ship positions thatbring the real-world insights ofmanagement andentrepreneurshipto bear on socialproblems.

LanguageScholarshipAnnMarie Saun-ders (A12) hasbeen selected for aU.S. Departmentof State CriticalLanguage Scholar-ship to studyKorean in SouthKorea thissummer. She will spend 10weeks in an intensive languageinstitute and take part inimmersion activities. The schol-arship program is part of awider effort to dramaticallyexpand the number of Ameri-cans studying and masteringcritical-need languages. Saun-ders hopes to pursue a career asa professor of Korean Studies orKorean Literature.

Tutor Honored In recognition of “outstandingprofessional accomplishments,”Annapolis tutor Peter Kalkavagehas been named an AlumniFellow of Penn State University.Kalkavage earned his bach-elor’s, master’s, and doctoraldegrees from the university.Among other accomplishments,the citation noted Kalkavage’smost recent book: The Logic ofDesire: An Introduction toHegel’s Phenomenology ofSpirit.

Mind-Body ChallengeFans of Iglehart Hall havecontributed $64,000 to datetoward a $500,000 endowmentto support the treasured gymna-sium in Annapolis, as well as

athletic programs on theAnnapolis campus. In addition to supporting the

effort, alumni continue to shareIglehart memories:

Mike Van Beuren (A75):“I remember the fitness testthat Bryce Jacobsen used toadminister annually. Oneelement was a quarter-mile runthat was timed for individualrunners on the suspendedwooden track high in therafters. There were five laps to aquarter mile. Two things weredaunting: the optical illusionthat the overhead girders wouldhit you and the banked curves.Newtonian physics were out infull force. It felt as though I’d flyoff the curve as I leaned awayfrom the banked floor. Brycestood there impassively with thestop watch. Time froze.”

Matt Carter (A95): “Mysenior year, we put together aclub volleyball team and playeda few other Maryland teams,including Hopkins, WashingtonCollege and UMBC. It was thegame against UMBC Iremember. They were big andseemed much more talented.We were the basketball school,not the volleyball school. In fact,the reason we had this team was

News and Announcements

Johnnie-Mid Seminar More than 60 midshipmen and four Naval Academy professorsstrolled across the street to join about 30 St. John’s studentsand five tutors for the annual Johnnie-Mid seminar, held thisyear on March 23 in McDowell Hall. Ethan Brooks (A10)organized the seminar and reception afterward, and chose thereading, “Gooseberries,” a short story by Anton Chekov. At the reception held in the Great Hall after the seminar, John-nies, tutors, professors, and midshipmen mingled, discussingeverything from weekend plans and waltz parties to life at thetwo schools, and questions raised in their seminars—untilcurfew at the Naval Academy. x

jamaal Barnes (A10) is headed to Harvard.

jennifer behrens

patricia dempsey

11



a lack of interest in volleyball atthe time.

It was a best-of-5 match. Weheld a 2-1 lead before taking athumping in game 4. They hadthe momentum. We seemedheaded for defeat. During game5, the Temple really came intoplay. We were used to the low-hanging beams and could serveover, under and through themwith relative ease (an advantagewe finally exploited). TheUMBC team was frustrated bymultiple balls hitting thosebeams and bouncing back tothem. We prevailed in what Istill consider one of the greatestupsets in the history of Amer-ican sports.”

Ray Cave (class of 1948): “As was obvious to Eva Brannand anybody else who botheredto review my academic course

through St. John’s, the class-room that received the bulk ofmy attention was Temple Igle-hart. I learned how to turn onthe lights late at night andstudied jump shots by the hour.The bleakest day in my St.John’s career came when thenurse had me banned from thegym for three months out of

concern for the considerabledamage I was doing to my knees.(It was during this bleak periodof my junior year that I discov-ered some of the books wereactually interesting.)

In the end I earned eightblazers and have the octagon-edged college seal to prove it.Alas, you could only be awarded

two actual blazers. I had noother coats. Two years aftergraduation, I was still wearingthe blazer, now covering threeBaltimore police districts for theEvening Sun. Not a trench coat,but you go with what you got.” x

Poignant PoseThanks for the fine job you andyour staff do with our excellentmagazine. Someone deservesextra credit for the “word”photos! (Winter 2010).

I believe I recognize myself inmid-back row of the aspiringdancers in the archival photo.I’m surer that my classmateAugusta Goldstein (SF68) isright in front of the teacher,displaying her beautiful

posture! And the good-lookingguy to her right was . . . it willcome to me—another classmate.

No way could I even approxi-mate such a pose now, so Ifound it poignant to bereminded of a time when Icould take a stab at it! Mindyou, I do a version of railroadballet everyday in work boots,without a pointed toe. But myknees rebel loudly at gettingdown, and then up again, fromany floor.

I’m guessing we were sophomores, so that would have been 1965-66.

Elsa Blum (SF68)

Editor’s note: The photos werethe work of Jen Behrens, artdirector for The College.

One College, Two Campuses I must confess at the outset thatI am not a regular reader of TheCollege; being a currentstudent, I have picked it up onlyin passing once or twice.Anyway, I am writing to pointout that the atmosphere of theWinter 2010 issue indicates animmense tilt towards theAnnapolis campus of thecollege. I realize that Annapolisis the original campus, that ithas far more alumni, and thatmost contributors to the maga-zine are also based there. Never-theless, it is discouraging to seethe disproportionate efforts inthis regard.

Specifically, I was verypleased to read about the Story-tellers group in Annapolis (p. 6). We happen to have onehere too, and they also meetWednesday evenings. Wouldn’tit have been a wonderful, morecomprehensive article toinclude both? It would haveattested to the “one college, twocampuses” slogan of St. John’s,apart from reaffirming the like-mindedness of the students onboth locations.

In general, there seem to betoo many articles about theAnnapolis campus and too littlefrom Santa Fe. I understandthat there may be budgeting orspace issues involved. And,again, I am not a terriblyregular reader of the magazine,so my perceptions might be off.Whatever the case may be, Iwould simply like to draw yourattention to this fact.

Thank you very much. Keepup the good work,

–Nareg Seferian (SF11)Dancers on the Santa Fe campus strike a pose.

{ L e t t e r s }

The banked track at Iglehart Hall intimidated some runners.

12


{ T h e P r o g r a m }

For Santa Fe tutor Susan Stickney,there’s a scene in Pride and Preju-dice that provides a fitting analogyfor the deeper value of readingfiction. It’s the morning after Eliza-beth Bennet has just rejectedDarcy’s offer of marriage, and shereceives a long letter from him. Hiswords initially confirm Elizabeth’s

great dislike for Darcy—until she has a chance to read theletter carefully and think about it for a while. “The first time she reads it, she’s infuriated,” says

Stickney, a member of the college’s InstructionCommittee. “She’s so insulted that she can’t bear it. Then,when she reads it again later and gains distance andperspective, she uses the letter as a chance to reflect onherself and her family. She’s able to re-envision things andreorient herself.”To some, Austen’s novel may not have the weight of a

work by Plato or Aristotle, Kant or Hegel. Yet fiction cannotbe seen as mere entertainment, Stickney says, and theProgram would be far poorer without it. “What I get fromreading literature, particularly novels, is the chance to lookat the whole human being in all its complexity. When I reada novel, I have a chance to ask: can I see myself in this? Andwhat does that reflection look like?” In a college devoted to cultivating skills in language,

novels turn our attention to the power of expression, shesays. “We work so hard to follow Kant’s argument, or Aris-totle’s, that we barely have time to look at the words theargument uses. The hope is that in literature, this aspectcomes more to the foreground and can increase our sensi-tivity to the expressive possibilities of language.”Because of the roughly chronological design of the

Program, novels turn up on the reading list in junior year,and—with some small deviations—a handful of novels havepretty much been the mainstay for many years: DonQuixote, Gulliver’s Travels, Pride and Prejudice, Middle-march, The Brothers Karamazov, Huckleberry Finn, Heartof Darkness, War and Peace, and various works byFaulkner and Woolf in senior year. Talking about fiction in seminar can be uncomfortable

for some students who would rather confront a politicaltreatise, a mathematical formula, or a scientific concept.According to Annapolis tutor Judy Seeger, an InstructionCommittee member, that’s not a rare sentiment. “For onething, the novel is not laying out an argument for you. Andan author such as Austen may be particularly difficultbecause she is so very subtle.” That’s not to say that novels fail to offer truths for serious

W H A T M A K E S AG R E A T N O V E L ?And which ones deserve a place

on the Program?

by Rosemary Harty (AGI09)

H. Christian Blood (SF02) brought an “intense and fieryconnection” to literature with him to St. John’s.

13



“I have no desire to reform St. John’s. But if I started a great books college,

it would have a lot more fiction on the reading list.”H. Christian Blood (SF02)

consideration and discussion, Seeger explains, “but clearlywe can’t read a novel the way we read a philosophical argu-ment.” Instead, we examine human nature in the context ofsituations—from the ravages of war in Russia to the drawing-room life of an Austen heroine.Students are sometimes quiet in seminar because it isn’t

easy to engage the novel on a level deeper than plot. (Eliza-beth hates Darcy. Elizabeth loves Darcy. All ends well.) “If itdoesn’t speak to you in a way that’s genuine, it’s difficult toget beyond a surface level of understanding,” says Seeger.In those cases, the tutors can be helpful in guiding thediscussion. In her Austen seminar, co-led by tutor AmandaPrintz, the opening question—“what is the differencebetween pride and vanity?”—led students into conversa-tions about Jane’s virtue, the importance of social standing,and the unthinkable concept of a loveless marriage.

Ruth Ann Brown (A11) loves reading novels, but she findsphilosophy and politics much easier to talk about inseminar. She had already read Pride and Prejudice 11 timesby the night her junior seminar met this year to discuss thework. To her, the topics in the George Eliot’s Middlemarchseemed deeper, more universal than the conflicts in theAusten novel. “Austen’s style of writing is such a pleasure toread. There’s a way in which you feel like you’re sitting inthe room with her. But Pride and Prejudice just doesn’t havethe depth of Middlemarch.”Several St. John’s alumni who came to the college loving

literature and who now read novels with their own studentssuggest that, just as the laboratory must accommodatemodern science, the college may want to consider adding tothe seminar reading list works by modern Americanwriters, more contemporary international fiction, works

that reflect ethnic and racial diversity, and afew more works by women.H. Christian Blood (SF02), just completing

his doctorate in comparative literature at theUniversity of California, Santa Cruz, offersthis suggestion: “I have no desire to reformSt. John’s. But if I started a great bookscollege, it would have a lot more fiction onthe reading list.”

Defining greatnessSince 1937, the criteria for whether a bookmakes the seminar list have centered on thework’s power to raise persisting questions, beopen to rich and varied interpretation, betimeless, yet timely. For Jana Giles (A88),when it comes to fiction, there has to bemore. Giles, assistant professor at the Univer-sity of Louisiana-Monroe, believes a trulygreat novel will have a puzzle of some kind:“There are interpretations that are stablethat you can go through and prove that this ishow you come to a certain conclusion. But at

{ T h e P r o g r a m }14


Jana Giles (A88) would like to see more works onthe Program that reflect ethnic and culturaldiversity.je

nny ellerbe

15



the center is a fundamental uncertainty. That’s probablytrue of a lot of great novels.” To illustrate her point, Giles points to Heart of Darkness

and a passage that she read many times before seeing itsimportance: “It’s the passage where Marlow and his crewhave almost reached Kurtz. They’re on the river with theso-called cannibal crew, though we don’t know if they areactually cannibals. And Marlow has this realization: whyhave they not eaten me? He sees that they’re hungry. Herealizes that these men are exercising, at least in his mind,some kind of ethical restraint, but he doesn’t understandwhat it is. They have restraint and Kurtz doesn’t, and that’sthe pivotal issue in the whole novel. Marlow is alwaystalking about how everything in Africa is indescribable; thetruth is he doesn’t need to actually understand the truth ina discursive way for meaning to come home to him.”Great novels have the power to move us through the

thoughts and actions of unforgettable characters, but theyalso move us in relationship to themes and historicalevents, says Giles. “Great novels mark their time,” sheadds. “They are commentaries emblematic of historicalprocesses.” For example, Giles included a lesser-knownnovel by Elizabeth Gaskell, Mary Barton, in one of hercourses because she wanted her students to read about thelives of mill workers during the Industrial Revolution andunderstand the precedents for labor laws. “Everyoneknows that people don’t like being preached at,” she notes,but a novel can help illuminate buried and unexaminedopinions just as effectively as a work of philosophy.Carol Colatrella (A79), professor of literature and

cultural studies at Georgia Tech University, finds plotsecondary to character and setting. In a novel, she’sseeking “a lot of intimate detail about character andsetting” and the opportunity to gain a glimpse of anothertime and another place. Reading The Brothers Karamazovand Emma at St. John’s were life-changing experiences forher and helped set her on her path to academe.Similarly, Stickney most values a novel that creates a

world with complicated people. Take the rich universe of anovel such as The Brothers Karamazov. In books of thisscale, “people do surprising things, or they’re pained, orthey’re angered. It’s a place where I get to watch humanbeings respond, and I have to make sense of it.” For Christian Blood, a great novel is something that you

never leave behind no matter how many times you move,because no matter how many times you read it, there issomething else to uncover. “You can spend your lifereading, studying, ruminating, turning it over in your souland your mind over and over, and then one day you reread apassage and all of a sudden you catch a small detail that’snever stood out before, and it’s as if you’ve never seen thatnarrative before in your life even though you could recitelengthy passages of it from memory.”

The Reading List It’s always the same dilemma at St. John’s: Time marcheson. New works are written. But adding a novel to thereading list means taking something off. And there’s alsothe problem of epic proportions: seminars on long novelshave to be scheduled at the beginning of a semester or afterspring break. Preceptorials allow a tutor to offer any inter-esting novel students are willing to read. Although it’s noton the reading list, Moby-Dick is frequently read in precep-torial. Joyce’s Ulysses and Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s AHundred Years of Solitude have been recent choices. Adding contemporary fiction to the seminar reading list

would be trickier, because of the question: what goes?Santa Fe’s Stickney can’t imagine not reading Dostoevsky(“he’s so good at the human soul”), though the choicecould be Demons, or The Idiot. As the juniors read Hobbes,Locke, and Rousseau, they must be reading Jane Austen,but Emma and Persuasion are good choices, too. “We’rereading philosophers who are talking about human societyand how to organize a government, and there’s Jane Austenportraying society in the drawing room.” A great lover of fiction before he entered St. John’s,

Christian Blood left a little frustrated when it came to thenovel. “I knew I wasn’t getting the whole story,” he says.“So I went to graduate school in comparative literature towork on the question of the history of the novel.”In many ways, Blood was more widely read than his peers

in grad school; no one else had read Ptolemy, for example.But he was amazed at how much he didn’t know. “What wasimmediately amazing to me upon arriving in grad school ishow much prose fiction there is from antiquity, the MiddleAges and the Renaissance,” Blood says. “At St. John’s,students sometimes get the impression that Greco-Romanliterature is history, epic and tragedy; that the Middle Ages

“A good novel is a masterpiece of language.” Tutor Judy Seeger

16



is Chaucer; the early-modern period isCervantes; and that novels are somethingautochthonous to modernity. I was in forsuch a shock when I realized what a smallslice of literary history the canon [at St.John’s] really is.” Intending to write onRabelais for his dissertation, he insteadhoned in on Greco-Roman literature.Blood knows that the Program can’t be all

things to all people, yet he thinks the collegeshould take a look at Apuleius, Chariton,Longus, Petronius, and others “whose narra-tives explicitly engage with Homer, Plato andVirgil and uncannily anticipate the novel aswe know it.” In addition to what novels are read, Blood

often thinks about how novels are read. “Ithink that in some ways, St. John’s presentsliterature as didactic; you read about a char-acter and you learn how to be like him andnot to be like him. Those are the kinds ofquestions we asked about Billy Budd at St. John’s.”It was hard for Blood to adapt to classes in

graduate school with colleagues who broughtMarxist and post-feminist interpretations tothe works they read, and the very idea of research tooksome getting used to. “Any time I looked up somethingabout a work, I felt like I was cheating,” he says.But sometimes he thinks knowing a little bit more about

Virginia Woolf might add to an undergraduate’s grasp of anovel like The Waves, whose author stretched well beyondthe boundaries of the conventional narrative. “I under-stood nothing of that book,” says Blood. “Maybe I was adistracted senior, but maybe I would have grasped more ifsomeone had given me some inkling of what she was up to.” If Blood would add works from antiquity, Jana Giles

would like to see modern works that explore gender issuesand ethnic and cultural diversity. She focused on Heart ofDarkness, Jean Rhys’ Wide Sargasso Sea, and Forster’sPassage to India for her dissertation, and considers thenovels worthy of St. John’s. In fiction, there’s room for thecollege to address the oft-heard criticism that that there are

too many “dead white men” on the Program. Havinggrown up in New Mexico and studied in Santa Fe, Gilessuggests Native American novelist Leslie Marmon-Silko’sCeremony, if not for seminar, then at least for precepts andtutorials. “It’s an emotionally and powerfully engagingnovel.”Unless they read them in preceptorials or on their own,

St. John’s students can miss out on some great Americannovels, Colatrella says. “When I’m teaching my ownclasses, I think about what kinds of experiences I wantstudents to be exposed to: novels where there are differentvalues and where there’s an immersive world with lots ofdetails where students are learning about a differentculture, even if it’s America,” says Colatrella. Huckleberry Finn addresses this in some respect, but

there are also powerful novels about and by Americanwomen. For example, Colatrella’s students read EdithWharton’s House of Mirth. While they initially saw the

Reading more American novels would give Johnnies a better sense of their ownculture and history, says Georgia Tech Professor Carol Colatrella (A79).

protagonist, Lily, as selfish and shallow, they viewed herdifferently as they thought more about the narrow choicesfor a woman with limited means during the Gilded Age.Iola Leroy, by African-American writer Frances EllenWatkins Harper, explores slavery and racial identity, andTheir Eyes Were Watching God portrays the continuingstruggles of African-Americans in the Deep South.St. John’s should consider more modern novels for the

Program, but at the same time, Colatrella laments thatMoby-Dick remains off the seminar list. “People who get toread Moby-Dickwith others are so lucky, because it really isa book that needs to be talked about,” she says. Although she has some suggestions for the reading list,

Colatrella appreciates the Program for what it is and shouldalways be. She wouldn’t have traded her laboratory classes,math, music, philosophy—the full breadth of the Program—

for a different beginning to her career. “I came to collegewith the feeling I shouldn’t cut off any pathways. I kept allof my books from St. John’s, and I open them now fordifferent reasons.” In future years, novels may come and go from the

Program, says tutor Judy Seeger, but whatever is read willenrich the lives of students. “A good novel is a masterpieceof language,” she says. “When we read a novel we reallyhave to take into account what is said as well as how it issaid. That isn’t always easy to do in seminar. But if you canreally learn that, then you really understand what it is toread.” “For the most part,” adds Susan Stickney, “I think the

novels we read at St. John’s teach us how to read novels.Then, Johnnies can go out and eat up the whole rest of theworld of literature.” x

17



The Russians Win Thanks to the alumni who responded to our short pollthrough Survey Monkey last winter, we have a slice ofJohnnie opinions about the novels read in the undergraduateprogram. We received 671 responses. As far as the mostpopular novels read, The Brothers Karamazov edgedTolstoy’s War and Peace by a slim margin, but overall theRussians emerged far ahead of third-place Don Quixote. OneJohnnie chided us: “Don’t you dare make me choose betweenDostoevsky and Austen.” Other write-in responses includeMrs. Dalloway, The Tale of Genji, and The Magic Mountain.What novels should be read in seminar that are not on the

list now? (Several on our list have been read in precepts,language tutorial, and in the GI. “Most on the list aredreadful or high school,” one Johnnie commented.)Melville’s Moby-Dick came out ahead. We included Thack-eray’s Vanity Fair because it was among one of the firstnovels read on the New Program, but apparently Johnniesare not keen to see it back. Write-ins for this questionincluded Wharton’s Age of Innocence, Hardy’s Jude theObscure, Toni Morrison’s Beloved, Achebe’s Things FallApart, Ford’s The Good Soldier, and Iris Murdoch’s TheBlack Prince. We like to think the alumni who suggestedSkinny Legs and All by Tom Robbins, The Little Engine thatCould, and Kujo were joking. x

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Other

Proust, In Search of Lost Time

Thackeray, Vanity Fair

Dickens, David Copperfield

Forster, A Passage to India

Flaubert, Madame Bovary

Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath

Faulkner, The Sound and the Fury

Melville, Moby-Dick 27.4%

12.2%

12.2%

8.7%

8.6%

22.1%

1.8%

3.0%

4.0%

0 5 10 15 20 25

Other

Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter

Woolf, To the Lighthouse

Swift, Gulliver’s Travels

Conrad, Heart of Darkness

Austen, Pride and Prejudice

Twain, Huckleberry Finn

Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

Cervantes, Don Quixote

Tolstoy, War and Peace

Eliot, Middlemarch 6.9%

21.4%

13.3%

23.1%

7.0%

8.5%

3.3%

3.9%

3.1%

8.1%

1.2%

What was your favorite novel read in Seminar?

What novel should be added to the reading list?

18


{ J o h n n i e s a n d F a c e b o o k }

“[T]hose who are . . . locally separated arenot performing, but are disposed toperform, the activities of friendship;distance does not break off the friendshipabsolutely, but only the activity of it.” (Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics)

This morning, Aristotlesigned into Facebook: heupdated his status to “Lazyday—think my rational soulis still asleep”; wishedAlexander the Great ahappy 33rd birthday(“Many happy returns!”);tagged himself hoisting an

amphora in Theophrastus’ photo album “Wine-Dark Shindig”; added the Prime Mover applica-tion (he can move you, but you can’t move him);and for the nth time, ignored a friend requestfrom Thomas Aquinas. Activities of friendship,indeed.

The social networking site Facebook, created in 2004 by agroup of Harvard students, takes its name from the once-common (now, one suspects, obsolete) practice by collegeadministrators of distributing Xeroxed, stapled sheaves ofstudent ID pictures as a handy means of linking names withfaces. The social utility quickly expanded from Harvard toother universities; in late 2005 it launched a high schoolversion, and since September 2006, it’s been available toanyone over the age of 13 with a valid e-mail address. This is,of course, a good chunk of the world, and indeed, were Face-book a sovereign nation, its population of 350 million uniqueusers would make it the third largest in the world. Seventypercent of these users live outside the United States. And while media continues to regard social networking ingeneral, and Facebook in particular, with a wry, “these kidstoday” attitude, as of October 2009 one-fifth of folks on FB were over 45.So what is Facebook? Is it a means or an end? Is it an inane

waste of time or a revolution in communication? Does itdestroy or facilitate discussion, bolster or ruin relationships?Is it a real solution, in a world where our friends are ever morefar-flung, to Aristotle’s requirement of proximity for perfectfriendship?

The Virtual Table J O H N N I E S S I G N

O N T O FAC E B O O K

by Anna Perleberg (SF02)

19


{ F a c e b o o k }

Profiles, Friending, and The WallThe first thing one does after signing upfor Facebook is create a profile: an onlineidentity, consisting mostly of lists andaffirmations. (My Neighbor Totoro is myfavorite movie. I was born October 1. Igraduated from St. John’s College, SantaFe, in 2002. Here’s a picture of my cats!)But as Facebook’s interface has evolved,argues Anne Page McClard (SF83), thisstatic, self-promoting element has fadedfrom prominence, in favor of manydifferent forms of interaction. In anarticle she co-authored for AnthropologyNews in March 2008, she attributes thepopularity of Facebook to its ability to“[shift] identity-making on the Web awayfrom the individual to the collective in anew way, enabling low-maintenance,automatically generated, interaction-based content creation.” For Johnnies in particular, she says,who “gain satisfaction through conversation, a collectiveactivity,” the constant stream of connection is intuitive andcomfortable.These connections take a wide variety of forms.Through

Facebook one can invite people to a party or a concert, joingroups with common interests, declare fandom for TV showsand philosophers, even play games ranging from oldstandbys such as Scrabble to complex role-playing gameswhere one pretends to be a vampire or a farmer. The mostbasic tie, of course, has led to the neologism “to friend” (andits opposite, “to unfriend,” the Oxford English Dictionary’s2009 Word of the Year). Here, with a single mouse click, oneFacebook user gains access to another’s entire profile:personal information (the aforementioned lists and affirma-tions), register of other friends, and the all-important Wall.The Wall is where most one-on-one Facebook contact

takes place; it’s a way to promulgate photos, videos, links,and status updates (musings quotidian or epic, posted by auser; e.g., “Anna Perleberg is not on Facebook right now,because this article is due tomorrow”). Depending onprivacy settings, whatever gets posted on a person’s wall,whether by that person or one of their friends, can be read byany friend of the user. Wondering what I’ve been up to lately?Head for my Wall and peruse reams of fascinating trivialities,from what I had for dinner one Tuesday (black currant vodkaand duck pelmeni in Cointreau sauce) to what people you’veperhaps never met and perhaps never will meet think of the meal.

But the genius (and arguably, the danger) of Facebook isn’tits ability to link one friend to another; e-mail, telephone,letter-writing, and actually speaking to one another get thejob done just as well. Facebook’s innovation over previousmeans of communication lies in its distillation of Wallcontent from potentially hundreds of friends (the average isaround 130, but a profile can have up to 5,000) into one flowof content called the News Feed, a kind of online agora whereWall activities galore appear on one page. Whereas keepingup with dozens of acquaintances of various ages on variouscontinents via face-to-face interaction, or even a phone call,would require vast funds and an exhausting travel schedule—not to mention the social awkwardness of showing up on thedoorstep of someone not seen since high school—the Face-book News Feed does it all automatically. Interaction andfriendship become effortless, much to Aristotle’s delight.Or maybe they don’t.

Community and CounterargumentThe genesis of this article was, naturally, a Facebook group Icreated. “Johnnies on Facebook” currently stands at 265 members; in comparison, the Johnnie Chair, which hasits own profile page, has close to 2,200 friends. (The official St. John’s College page has about 2,400 and gets about 800visits a week.) Most members who commented see no contra-diction between the examined life and the jovial cacophonyof the Wall and the News Feed. Many feel that Facebook facil-itates connection: Lauren Yannerella (SF03) thinks that partof the reason she uses Facebook is because she went to St. John’s. “Our alumni tend to cover the globe, and it can be

20


{ F a c e b o o k }

very difficult to keep in touch and stay in the loop. I don’twant to lose touch with the general student population, andFacebook means I really don’t have to.” For Ruth Johnston (A85), who is an invalid and “pretty

severely isolated,” Facebook has proved a boon. “I post lotsof history trivia. I always read with one eye open for what Ican use to amuse the Johnnies. Book illustrators mixed earwax into egg white to make book paint! The Black Deathstarted as an illness native to Asian groundhogs, known astarabagans!” She’s also enjoyed forming online friendshipswith Johnnies previously unfamiliar: “I’ve picked up a rangeof Johnnies I don’t know, as a reward for being interesting.When I went to Homecoming last fall, a few people I wasn’tsure I recognized told me, ‘Oh, I follow you on FB!’” Andwhile Santa Fe tutor Jacques Duvoisin doesn’t usually acceptfriend requests from current students, he uses the site to“hear from the few alums who really matter to me, as well asall the others who may turn out to be interesting as timepasses.” Facebook’s not a threat to conversation, he says,“since it primarily connects people who otherwise would notbe likely to converse at all because of time or space (howKantian!).”

Not all correspondents painted such a rosy picture. AlexisBrown (SF00, EC03) uses Facebook primarily to chat withnon-Johnnie friends. “A few folks from SJC who graduatedaround the same time as I did utilize a chat room to keep intouch with one another on a regular basis (daily). It is veryintimate. Facebook is a networking site, and makes it easierto stay in touch with people on a fairly impersonal level. ButFacebook is way too impersonal for real conversation.”Where Anne Page McClard casts Facebook’s communalnature as well-suited to seminar-trained thinkers, Brownfeels that “the individual, for me, was a key element in whatmade a good or bad seminar. The individual is very much apart of a discussion.”Another alumna, Leila Khaleghi (SF05), highlights the

peculiar knots of etiquette a Facebooker can find herself in.“People try to contact me on Facebook, we become friends,yada yada. I assume that it’s just the ‘we went to the samecollege’ thing and think nothing of it. Then they write memessages like we know/knew each other and I literally haveno recollection of ever speaking a word to them. What do youdo in a situation such as this? Do I play along? I feel like Face-book is always getting me into strange and uncomfortable

scenarios.” Brown’s assertion that “even if a discussion

starts to happen on FB, it falls apart quickly dueto limited space, time, format of the site, etc.” isindeed borne out by the “Johnnies on Facebook”group itself. An attempt by this intrepid reporterto start a seminar-style discussion on the Aris-totle quote above garnered a whopping tworesponses (although several people had helpfulsuggestions as to other Program texts that dealwith the concept of friendship). And while acursory search reveals a plethora of Johnnie-related groups—Johnnies Abroad, Johnnies inMedicine, Johnnies in Chicago, Johnnies inPublic Policy, Johnnies Do It With Arete—average membership is about 35. Compared withthe 400,000 members of the group “I Will GoSlightly Out of My Way To Step On ThatCrunchy-Looking Leaf,” that’s negligible, to saythe least.Some Johnnies avoid the site altogether. Jamie

Bowman (SF99) confesses he has no logicallyrigorous reason for his opposition, “besides a gutreaction to anything that many people are soexcited about.” He’s not anti-Internet. “Since2002, I’ve run a message board for Santa FeJohnnies from the mid-to-late ’90s. . . . It’s areally cool board. It’s very active. I think Face-book is slowly killing it. The board (sfjohn-

21{ F a c e b o o k }


Facebook isn’t the only way Johnnies are reaching out in cyber-space. Many alumni are finding a voice in the blogosphere. Here are just a few we’ve heard about:

Lisa Simeone (A79), a writer for Baltimore’s Style magazine aswell as a National Public Radio host, writes a lively blog called“Glamour Girl.” Want to gain some tips on Jackie O’s simple,but elegant style? Check out Glamour Girl at: www.baltimorestyle.com/index.php/style/glamour_girl.

Alana Chernila (SF02) blogs about food and life and raisingkids. Every post includes a new recipe, as well as some spectac-ular photos of raspberries, rhubarb, and her campaign signs(read the blog for more on that). The blog has a friendly,

personable approach. Check out her recipe for herb dumplingsat www.eatingfromthegroundup.com.

Nate Downey (SF91), author of Harvest the Rain, writes a blogon sustainability at www.backyarddigest.com. Downey is anadvocate for “gradual greening,” which starts with devoting 10minutes a day to sustainable living. Read about his visits to thefarmer’s market, composting, and just getting outside.

Baltimore bloggers Lou Kovacs (A02) and Talley ScroggsKovacs (A01) borrowed the name of a famous book about theChesapeake Bay (Beautiful Swimmers) for a blog about “kitchenexploits, urban adventures, country forays, and little one'smilestones.” (http://thebeautifulswimmers.blogspot.com)

nies3.yuku.com) is the localMom & Pop coffee shop andFacebook is Starbucks.”Besides its ubiquity, hedislikes how Facebook candredge up tenuous associa-tions. “I don’t need toreconnect with the kid whosat next to me in 10th-gradeEnglish. I’ve heard manystories of annoying peoplewanting to be your Face-book friend and you have to make up some excusewhy you don’t want to meet them for lunch and‘catch up.’”Michael Sullivan (A02)

takes a moderate approach. He absented himself from thesite for more than six months because he thought it “debasesrelationships by reducing them all to the lowest commondenominator.”“All of the interactions, with friends I’d been in constant

contact with for 10 years or more and those I’d had no knowl-edge of since finding them on Facebook, seemed equally inti-mate and superficial,” he said. Recently, though, he resumedposting, admitting that while Facebook is “no substitute forconversation, it’s definitely a substitute for nothing. The factis that we no longer live in a polis, and if the technologywhich has broken all familial and social ties by driving us tothe four winds doesn’t also bring us back together, thennothing will. If the shallowness of the relationship-preserva-tion that FB offers bothers me, so does the oblivion which isthe alternative.”

Utopia or dystopia, Face-book is inhabited bymillions. And while a Googlesearch of the phrase “Face-book is destroying” gener-ates 54,000 hits—creditingthe social network withdamaging the sanctity ofmarriage, academic per-formance, the economy,memory, America—it seemsprudent to reserve judgmentabout something thatentered the public con-sciousness less than fouryears ago. Perhaps Facebookis the new Gutenberg press,part of a paradigm shift in

the way human beings communicate. Perhaps it’s just adiversion. Would that be so bad? Even Aristotle, a thinkernot given to frivolity, recognizes that friendship comes inmany forms, that “[o]ne cannot be a friend to many people inthe sense of having friendship of the perfect type with them.. . . But with a view to utility or pleasure it is possible thatmany people should please one; for many people are usefulor pleasant, and these services take little time.” x

Anna Perleberg (SF02) is a Brooklyn bookseller who checks herFacebook two dozen times a day, but remains skeptical of Twitter.Illustrator Caitlin Cass (SF09) recently paid tribute to St. John’sin her collection of illustrations, Great Moments in Western Civilization. Read more about Caitlin on her website: www.greatmomentsinwesternciv.com

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{ H i s t o r y }

Few people know thecollege as well as CurtisWilson (HA83), tutoremeritus and formerdean, and Samuel Kutler(class of 1954), tutoremeritus and formerdean. Wilson came to thecollege in 1948 as a young

tutor, just after Barr and Buchanan departed.Kutler was headed to the University ofChicago until he learned of a college withabout 200 students where he could studymath and read philosophy. What’s mostremarkable about these two individuals is theway they live the life of the mind. Both remainactive and involved in the college, andintensely, intellectually curious. Untilrecently, Kutler was still leading seminars inthe Graduate Institute, delivering lectures,and working on a book about poetry andmathematics. Wilson was awaiting the publi-cation of his new book, The Hill-BrownTheory of the Moon’s Motion: Its Coming-to-be and Short-lived Ascendancy (1877-1984). They sat down together in Annapolis this

winter to share their memories from sixdecades at St. John’s.

On choosing St. John’sCurtis: I was in the history department at Columbia and washaving trouble with my dissertation. I was assigned to study a15th-century Italian and do something like a previous student ofmy advisor had done with another 15th-century Italian. This wasall on the premise that Galileo was only following things thatwere already proposed and done in the Middle Ages—the thesisof continuity. My gut feeling was that there had been a revolu-tion sometime around there, and it was not continuity. A friendsuggested I attend lectures by Leo Strauss at the New School forSocial Research, so I went and listened to his lectures on Plato’sRepublic. These were wonderful to me because you studied thetext very carefully and then thought out possible interpreta-tions. You didn’t try to fit the text into some historical themeproposed by scholars. Then my friend suggested I should godown to St. John’s and talk with Jacob Klein, and he added, “bythe way, when you’re there, ask for a job.” I’d had disappointinginterviews; people willing to hire me, but it meant imposingsome context on me. St. John’s was just—fresh air! We wouldactually read the books you need to read in order to have opin-ions about history or to know that your opinions were not worth-while.

Sam: I had wanted to go to the University of Chicago, but whenI read the St. John’s catalog, I said, “that’s what I want to do.”That we studied the ancients was unbelievably important to me.That we studied ancient mathematics before ending up in thesenior year with the calculus—that was priceless. You could seethe change Descartes and company brought about. Most peoplethink mathematics is one thing, but it isn’t one river like that.

On laboratory and language Curtis: I was asked by [then dean] Raymond Wilburn to teach aclass in organic chemistry when I got here—to the whole seniorclass, about 40 students. Scott Buchanan and StringfellowBarr’s departure was a towering fact, and the seniors effected apervasive melancholy. These were the after days; the glory days

S A M A N D C U R T I SL o o k B a c k o n a L i f e S p e n t a t S t . J o h n ’ s

by Rosemary Harty (AGI09)

23


{ H i s t o r y }

were gone. A second fact of some import to me was that thesestudents knew no chemistry whatsoever. Teaching them organicchemistry was a problem because of that, and it was made sort ofa crisis because the textbook was a cookbook, nothing more. Westarted out by making cleaning solution that was potentiallylethal, and not used in college laboratories nowadays. The students were totally skeptical of this enterprise and with

good reason. Somehow, in mid-course, I took them through anelementary history of chemistry, to seek why and how theatomic theory got established. I asked them to write papersabout that, and they did a good job. What had happened was thatthe lab program had proved a difficulty for the college, and atsome point before I arrived, a decision was made to use ordinarytextbooks. This was not at all in accordance with anythingrelated to the Program, and with others I spent the next 10 yearsworking primarily in the laboratory to try to find ways of doingthings that might be more helpful to students.

Sam: Curtis was on sabbatical when I got here in 1950. We werestill making scary things in the laboratory. We called one theuniversal solution, and the theory we had was that it would eatthrough anything there is on earth if it got through glass. Wethought it could eat through us and right down to the center ofthe earth!There were also some really good discussions in the labora-

tory, so I found it a good experience. But then, and over the

years, it was tough for the poor students to fit laboratory into theschedule. All the other classes were five days a week, and labora-tories were only twice. You were preparing crazily to get yourlanguage, mathematics, and laboratory done. I studied calculuswith Curtis, and it was really rigorous. We sure went through thetheory of everything. There were a group of young tutors here,Robert Bart, Hugh McGrath, Curtis—they were a splendidgroup.

Curtis: Hugh and Bob were especially concerned with language.Latin had been taken out of the program and we got two years ofGreek. Then there was a thought that we could have some timefor English poetry, something a little different at the end of thesecond year.

Sam: I didn’t benefit from that. We had two solid years of Greek,and we translated every word of the Hippolytus of Euripedes.When I came back as a tutor, then we worked English poetry inthe second terms of tutorials. But it still seems a shame to havejust a year and a half with the Greek language.

Sam Kutler (left, class of 1954) knew Curtis Wilson (HA83) asone of his tutors; later they served together as tutors. Bothmen have served as dean, and both have stayed very involved inthe life of the college even after retiring.

jennifer

beh

ren

s

{ H i s t o r y }


24

The community was very small.Not everything about that wasgood, but you knew everybody andwhen there was a play performed,you expected every single facultymember to be there and say thatyou were very good, whether youwere or not. I was in The Winter’sTale, and that’s where I met mywife (Emily, class of 1955).

On Dean Jacob Klein Curtis: I visited the collegeinitially in April 1948, in thespring, to talk with Jacob Kleinabout my dissertation. I met himfirst in what was then the SeniorCommon Room. He was seated ona red leather sofa, which I think isstill possessed somewhere at thecollege. He smoked cigarettes andhis cigarette ash fell on his vest sohe would be perpetually wipingaway ash. I told him about the subject I was assigned and he said,“nonsense, all nonsense.” I was at a stage where that seemed avery gratifying statement. He really felt the responsibility ofbeing dean, and he took it very seriously. He talked to the wholecollege and said, “The Golden Age of Athens is succeeded by theAlexandrian period. We (St. John’s) are in the Alexandrianperiod.” He was trying to address this pervasive melancholy[post Barr and Buchanan], and what he was saying was, “we haveto get down to work.” I admired him tremendously.

Sam: He would appear in the Coffee Shop at lunchtime andeverybody would gather around him and he would start a discus-sion, even though he had work to do as dean. I remember oncewhen students tried to grab him and ask about Picasso. And hesaid, “I’ll tell you about Picasso; he was always thinking.” Andwhish! He was gone. As a student, I thought that he always hadbeen dean and he always would be dean. The main thing aboutSt. John’s was that we read old books, and we took them withcomplete seriousness, and he helped enormously with thatbecause they were so important in his life, Plato and Aristotle.And the college became settled around that.

On PresidentRichard Weigle Curtis: He brought the necessaryattempts to raise funds. But therewas always a tension between himand Jacob Klein; Jasha watched himlike a hawk, thinking somethingdreadful was likely to happen. Forinstance, Dick Weigle wanted toinstitute having Phi Beta Kappahere. It was derailed. Then therewere a lot of discussions before thededication of the new Mellonbuilding; certain people were to be named honorary fellows of St. John’s. Some people wantedstrongly to have Barr and Buchananso named—but not Adler!

Sam: As a student, I didn’t appreciate Dick Weigle. It was onlyafter he spent 32 years as president that I realized how lucky wewere to have him. He really cared about the good of the collegeand he sure kept us alive. The college was concerned aboutgrowing too big, and we thought 300 students was the perfectnumber. One day, students burned Weigle in effigy because theythought he wanted to make the college bigger. He did so bycreating the Santa Fe campus—it was very, very important tohim. And he brought us the women: the women saved us!

On Mortimer AdlerCurtis: He’s not enormously interesting in my opinion. Heinfluenced some people in his book How to Read a Book, andmany people learned of St. John’s because of it. He had theopinion that he’d come every year to lecture, but that wasn’ttrue. It was a picture he built up and believed.

Sam: It was true to me! When I was dean he would call me upand tell me when he was free to come to lecture.

Tutor Emeritus Curtis Wilsonserved two terms as dean and wasone of the first faculty membersin Santa Fe.

{ H i s t o r y }


25

Curtis: On one of the Adler occa-sions, the prank was to releasefrom the back of the auditoriumsome thousands of marbles, whichthen rolled downhill and gave amost unnatural sound. Mr. Weiglestood up at the time and apolo-gized for it. A year or two later,Adler had dinner in our diningroom, and I told him what thatsound had been. He said, “If I’donly known, I could have said Ithink I’ve lost my marbles!”

On being deanCurtis:My first deanship was 1958-62. I found it difficult, and I wasdiscouraged sometimes, but wedid do a few things. We eliminatedGerman, got two years of French,and instituted the preceptorials.You can’t believe how muchdiscouragement and depressionwas rampant in the upper levels of the student body at that time.They’d been doing the same thing in so many ways. We neededto stimulate intellectual excitement and interest. It seemed agood idea to some of us that tutors should choose topics thatthey themselves had some interest in pursuing and that allowedfor variety.The Program is not a complete education for anybody. The

idea is—and always has been at St. John’s—that you’d better go onlearning after leaving the college, for 60 or so years, whatever isavailable to you. I think the dean’s opening lecture is enormously important.

Somehow or other, by example or engagement, the dean shouldopen up questions, inspire his or her audience with the ideal ofa life of inquiry. It needs to be fresh and unexpected. No, I didn’tand don’t know how to do it! And I drove my family crazy in thesummers when I was trying to concoct my efforts in that genre.

On change and the collegeCurtis: It’s natural for change to happen at St. John’s, and it’snot something to be bemoaned. I remember I spent a semesterat the University of Toronto in the ’90s and met one of thestudents I’d had the previous year. And he immediately spoke

up, worried that the “specialthing” that his class had wouldvanish from the earth sincethey’d left St. John’s. Some like totalk about a “Golden Age.” Idon’t know about the Golden Agebecause when I came it had justvanished. But I look back on mytimes with members of Sam’sclass as a very special time. Wewere having good conversations.The students were learning, and Iwas learning.

Sam: What can’t change?Imagine if we read only modernbooks? Or even worse, onlyancient books? That interplay

between the two is one of the most important things that we do.

What St. John’s meant in your lifeCurtis: It’s like asking a fish to explain how it is to be in thewater. I think my habit of questioning is potentially very good.Not always! There are hostile circumstances in which ques-tioning is not welcomed and as a consequence, not immediatelyhelpful. Then one must work quietly towards improving theatmosphere. But we need potential whistleblowers in oursociety. We need people to say: “We don’t get it—why are wehere?” It’s those people who are going to make the difference.

Sam: My student years at St. John’s—they were magic years forme. I think I would have had greater tunnel vision had I notcome here, and the factors were my fellow students. And thefaculty. There are plenty of works I probably wouldn’t have readif I hadn’t come to St. John’s: Platonic dialogues, Aristotle. AndI’ve read a lot of Shakespeare since coming to St. John’s. Couldyou imagine not reading Shakespeare? x

Sam Kutler left a job as a mathe-matician at Johns Hopkins’Applied Physics Laboratory tojoin the college faculty.

{ C r o q u e t }26


“St. John’s Fight Song” O Johnnie, as you play croquet,

Defend our honor on this day.

Your battle cry: Let Middies kneel

To the form of Good reveal.

O hear us when we boldly say,

Defeat the Middies at croquet.

O ye who books do seldom read,

Your unexamined lives concede.

Beware each Middie girl and boy,

We are the Danaans to your Troy!

O hear us when we boldly say,

Defeat the Middies at croquet!

Amen.

In the fall of 2001, tutor Tom Maynoticed his students needed morepractice singing in four-part harmonyand that fewer students seemed tohave experience in singing hymns.Casting about for something to sing,

May came up with the Navy Hymn. “Icouldn’t think of anything more appropriate,and I thought we should sing it at Croquet.”

The Navy Hymn sung at the Academy isadopted from Britain’s Royal Navy. The orig-inal words were written as a poem in 1860 byWilliam Whiting, and the melody was by theRev. John Bacchus Dykes, who originallycomposed the tune as a song called “Melita.”As the students practiced the hymn for thecroquet match, May wondered what else theycould perform in honor of St. John’s.

While the college has a fight song, May hasnever been a fan: “It’s very dated, it’s all aboutthe ‘men of St. John’s,’ and it sounds like aFranz Liszt reject.” Instead, he suggested tohis students that they develop new lyrics for aJohnnie version of the Navy Hymn.

“Ms. (Tanya) Hadlock-Piltz (A05) came tome with the words, and after a few changes,we printed them below the more familiarlyrics to sing at croquet,” May recalls. “Thefirst year, there was no announcement. Wesang ‘The Star-Spangled Banner,’ then theNavy Hymn, and then we just vamped rightinto singing the St. John’s song. It was inter-esting to watch the change of expression. Bythe time we got to the lyrics ‘beat theMiddies at croquet,’ it was perfectly clearthat we weren’t singing the Navy Hymnanymore.”

This year, May was surprised by thenumber of students and alumni singingalong. He’d like to see even more Johnniesjoin in, so clip out the words and be ready tosing next April! x

“ W E A R E T H E DA N A A N S T OYO U R T ROY ”

Navy HymnEternal Father, strong to save,

Whose arm hath bound the restless

wave,

Who bidd’st the mighty ocean deep

Its own appointed limits keep;

Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,

For those in peril on the sea!

Most Holy Spirit! Who didst brood

Upon the chaos dark and rude,

And bid its angry tumult cease,

And give, for wild confusion, peace;

Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,

For those in peril on the sea!

Ben Hutchins (A10) greets MidshipmanAmanda Howard before the start of theannual match.

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{ C r o q u e t } 27

Clockwise from top left: Citali and PatrickMcDowell (A01); Luke Russell (A09); Fashion-ista and family; Spectacular hats were ondisplay; Picnics; Swing dancing.

The 28th annual croquet match against theNaval Academy took place Saturday, April 18.More than 2,000 spectators turned out for thematch, with the Johnnies prevailing, 5-zip. That makes 23 St. John’s victories since the

match began. Fully embracing the misnomerof St. John’s as “that basketball school,” John-nies suited up in basketball uniforms andheadbands for their sound defeat of thecardigan-clad Mids. x

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28 { B i b l i o fi l e }

J. Robert Oppenheimer, The Cold War, and theAtomic Westby Jon Hunner (SF74)Oklahoma University Press, 2009

In November 1942, a professor ofphysics from Berkeley and anArmy colonel on a secret govern-ment mission drove through NewMexico’s Jemez Mountains to anisolated boys’ boarding school. J. Robert Oppenheimer and Col. Leslie Groves were evaluatingsites for a top-secret laboratory. As Jon Hunner (SF74) recounts inhis book, J. Robert Oppenheimer,The Cold War, and the AtomicWest, the Los Alamos RanchSchool was not an ideal site to build anatomic bomb. But Oppenheimer, theimprobable civilian director of theManhattan Project, loved New Mexico:

“Even though Los Alamos did not fit theselection criteria for the lab’s location,Oppie wanted the site. He had lamented inthe 1930s that it was a pity he could notcombine two of the loves of his life—physicsand New Mexico. Los Alamos fulfilled hisdream,” Hunner writes.

Oppenheimer initially thought he wouldneed about half a dozen scientists to helphim develop the atomic bomb. “By the fallof 1945,” Hunner writes, “approximately5,000 men, women and children lived onthe Hill.” The work of these individuals,who raised families and lived “normal” liveswhile they worked to build a devastatingweapon, contributed to a new era in humanhistory. The West was transformed as aburgeoning atomic industry took root.

Hunner, professor of history at NewMexico State University, has long beenfascinated with Los Alamos. His disserta-tion at the University of New Mexico, asocial and cultural history of Los Alamos,developed into his first book, Inventing Los Alamos: The Growth of an AtomicCommunity. He spent 14 years researchingand writing that book, yet still felt “I hadreally just scratched the surface”concerning Oppenheimer.

Hunner was eager to return to thesubject. Oppenheimer was an enigmaticcharacter whose life was filled with greattriumphs and staggering personaltragedies. He grew up in a wealthy Jewishfamily in New York City; his brilliance was

recognized at ayoung age. Whenhe became ill as ayoung man, hewas sent west torecover and fell inlove with NewMexico. He laterbought a cabin inthe mountainsthat wouldbecome a lifelongrefuge for him andhis family. “Idefinitely try tounderstand theimpact of LosAlamos on NewMexico, but also

the impact of New Mexico on Los Alamos,”Hunner explains. “A lot of people camefrom Ivy League colleges, and they startedwearing cowboy boots. Oppenheimer wasright there with them.”

Oppenheimer earned his bachelor’s inchemistry in Harvard in three years. Hespent a disastrous year in experimentalphysics at Cavendish Laboratory atCambridge before moving to theoreticalphysics at the University of Göttingen. Afterhe finished his doctorate, he had many posi-tions to choose from, and in part because ofhis attraction to the West, headed toBerkeley.

As a professor, Oppenheimer was a greattheoretical physicist, but most of hisstudents couldn’t understand his lectures.When word came that two German scientists had split the atom, Oppenheimerjoined others in seeking to unlock thesecrets to developing atomic weapons. Hisscientific acumen—but perhaps more sohis naked ambition—helped him stand outamong other candi-dates for the job ascivilian director ofthe ManhattanProject. Although hehad never evenmanaged a physicsdepartment, Oppen-heimer turned out tobe a successfulmanager of theproject. Hunnerdescribes the citythat grew from the

laboratory, as workers and scientistsbrought their families, built schools andhospitals and went about their lives, mostlyin ignorance of the laboratory’s work. Hedescribes the Trinity test, on July 16, 1945,as well as Oppenheimer’s reaction: “Around6:30 a.m., he commented: ‘My faith in thehuman mind has been somewhat restored.’”

Hunner admires Oppenheimer in part forhis intelligence and charisma, but also for“his attempt, after he opened up thePandora’s box of atomic weapons, to try tofigure out ethically what he could do” toprevent the world from destroying itself.The scientist joined others in a movementcalled One World or None, which advocatedthe creation of an international agency tocontrol atomic weapons.

While Oppenheimer’s downfall occurredduring the McCarthy era, he was more avictim of J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI, offormer colleagues who were eager todiscredit him, and of his own bad decisions.The hearing on Oppenheimer’s securityclearance ( which allowed him to play a keyrole as an advisor on U.S. atomic policy) wassupposed to be secret. “But as soon as thehearing was over, the head of the atomicenergy commission released a 1,000-pagetranscript to newspapers,” Hunner pointsout. “It was a well-orchestrated campaign todiscredit Oppenheimer because he wasstarting to publicly question the officialpolicy. It was partly political, partlypersonal vindictiveness, and it was also afork in the road for our atomic policy.”

Oppenheimer wanted a public, opendialogue about atomic weapons. Those likeTeller, who would eventually prevail, advo-cated secrecy. Oppenheimer was alsogrowing increasingly concerned about the

potential consequences ofthe military-industrialcomplex in the United States.

After he joinedPrinceton’s Institute forAdvanced Studies, Oppen-heimer continued to try toinfluence public policy. He was a sought-afterlecturer and appeared ontelevision programs. Duringthe Kennedy years, his reputation “was kind ofrehabilitated by the govern-ment,” says Hunner. Oppen-

Jon Hunner

{ B i b l i o f i l e }


29

heimer died of cancer in 1967.The interest in Los Alamos and Oppen-

heimer has roots in Hunner’s personalhistory. He grew up in the 1950s and ‘60s inAlbuquerque, and his father administeredatomic weapons programs for the Air Force.“We had photographs of atomic bombmushroom clouds hanging on our walls,”Hunner recalls. “Then when I went to St. John’s and started talking to my class-mates, I realized that not everybody grewup with photographs of atomic bombs, andno one else’s parents worked with atomicweapons. It was kind of a shock.”His family history is one reason Hunner

considers Los Alamos and Oppenheimerfrom a viewpoint other historians may notshare. His book details the devastation inHiroshima and Nagasaki, but he also talliesthe millions of lives lost in conventionalwarfare in World War II. “I think when welook at the morality of this weapon of massdestruction, it’s easy to be pro or con, butbecause my own father was involved withadministering nuclear weapons, it’s not soblack and white for me,” he explains. “Idon’t want to think of my father as someonewho was ready to blow up the world. I like toargue that this is a horrendous weapon, andit has horrendous implications forhumanity. But it also helped end the mosthorrendous war in history.”

—Rosemary Harty

Stateside by Jehanne Dubrow (A97)Northwest University Press, 2010

Jehanne Dubrow’s latest volume of poetry,Stateside, explores a timely theme: theeveryday lives of partners, spouses, andfamilies left behind when a loved one inmilitary service ships out to a war zone.Dubrow wrote the poems before herhusband, Navy Lt. Jeremy Schaub (A97),left last winter for an eight-month tour ofduty. Yet the poems are written from anauthentic viewpoint of uncertainty, fear,loneliness—and at times, anger.Inspired by the Odyssey, the volume is

divided into three sections: before, during,and after a deployment. Military termi-nology is mingled with domestic images, acivilian life contrasted with a life of militaryservice. In “O’ Dark Hundred” the writerimagines her husband’s pre-dawn shift:“My words are just reflections from theshore, / and the page, imperfect mirror of

his ship, / where white lights blink aboveeach metal door.”“Love in the Time of Coalition”

combines images of a lover’s attention to awoman with sinister words such as “toxin,”sarin,” and “plutonium.” “At the Mall withTelemachus” portrays a harried militarywife dealing with a child’s temper tantrumin the food court. And “Whiskey TangoFoxtrot, ” coyly profane, describes themoment when a wife first hears the newsthat her husband is headed to a war zone.When Dubrow and Schaub dated as

students in Annapolis, she couldn’t haveimagined she would one day be a Navy wife,separated for months at a time withoutdefinitive word on her husband’s where-abouts. After graduating, Dubrow stayed inAnnapolis, managed a coffee shop, readProust, and became serious about poetry.The couple broke up, and Dubrow went onto earn an MFA at the University of Maryland and a PhD at the University ofNebraska. Although they had a “tragic, dramatic

breakup,” Dubrow knew that Schaub hadjoined the Navy, and after 9/11, she got intouch. They started e-mailing, got backtogether, managed a long-distance relation-ship while she finished her doctorate, andwere married in 2005. Schaub is about fivemonths into an eight-month deployment“on a ship somewhere”; Dubrow is an assistant professor at Washington Collegein Chestertown, Maryland.When her husband first raised the idea of

volunteering for deployment morethan a year ago, “the danger of hiswork became very real to me,”Dubrow explains. That’s when shebegan writing poems about familiesand the military, and she conductedresearch on the military wife in liter-ature. “What I quickly discoveredwas that she’s almost an entirelysilent figure,” Dubrow says. “Basi-cally, the only model we have is Pene-lope, who is a highly impracticalmodel for a woman in the 21stcentury. She’s patient, she’s devout,she’s chaste—basically, unimpeach-able. The standards she sets areimpossible.” While the book doesn’t mirror her

own experiences, Dubrow says thepoems allowed her to express herviews and frustrations: “I distrustthis pressure from the military forwomen to be silent about theirmisgivings and to not express when

things are difficult because that looks likeweakness or it looks unpatriotic.” Herpoems in Stateside seek to show that awoman’s patriotic sacrifices are no lessheroic because they take place on the homefront. Dubrow has always drawn from her own

life and her sense of identity for her poems.Her first volume of poetry, The HardshipPost (2009), explores her Jewish identitythrough the experience of being adiplomat’s daughter. Dubrow conductedresearch for her second collection, From theFever-World, during a fellowship at theUnited States Holocaust Museum. Thework is a collection of fragments written inthe voice of a Yiddish poet, the product ofDubrow’s imagination.Not quite finished with the themes she

explored in Stateside, Dubrow is nowwriting a book of lyrical essays on beingmarried to the military. In addition, she’sediting an anthology of modern Jewishpoetry and finishing up a volume of poemsexploring her adolescence in EasternEurope before and after the fall of theBerlin Wall. The poems use “the oppressivetyrannical language of Communism tospeak about the oppressiveness of theadolescent body. Adolescence is a morbid,embarrassing, naked time—it makes forgreat poems.” x

— Rosemary Harty

Jehanne Dubrow

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{ A l u m n i }

Before they even had children,Aaron Lewis (A95) and hiswife, Elizabeth, worked to gettheir small parish school toadopt a classical/traditionalcurriculum. Kirsten Jacobson

(SF96) started a series of philosophy seminars at a local high school, with herundergraduate students serving as seminarleaders. At Tulane University, RyanMcBride (SFGI96) created a program thatseeks to make debate champions of middle-schoolers, and Lee Perlman (A73) is part ofa new freshman program at MIT that bringstogether humanities and the sciences.

Much like Scott Buchanan, who broughtgreat books to working adults in New YorkCity before he helped bring them to St. John’s, these Johnnies believe classicsare for everyone.

Ryan McBride, Aristotle in New Orleans What is virtue? The students in RyanMcBride’s undergraduate philosophyclasses at Tulane University are readingabout the concept in Aristotle and Plato,but they’re also trying to be more virtuousby working as volunteer debate coaches formiddle-school students in New Orleanspublic schools. McBride, a postdoctoralfellow at Tulane, created “Aristotle in New Orleans” as a Tulane project thatcombines academics with service learning.In St. John’s terms, McBride explains, hisclass is like a preceptorial on the Nico-machean Ethics, “with a lab mixed in wherewe go out and take part in our community.”

His idea was simple: “Rather than justtalking about what virtue is, why don’t wego out into the world and practicegenerosity and courage and see how theyare components of the good life?”

McBride himself was never a debater. But his interest in Aristotle led him to Book VIII of the Topics, where Aristotledescribes gymnastic dialect, a type ofcompetitive exercise. He decided to create acourse based around these dialecticalbattles. McBride’s students revived thisstyle of debate and used their experiences as a basis for thinking about method in Aristotle’s Ethics and Platonic dialogues.

Before moving to New Orleans, McBridewas a visiting assistant professor at St. Norbert University. After graduatingfrom the GI, he taught English at theUniversity of Oregon, then earned hisdoctorate at Marquette University. As a grad student, McBride spent summers inNew Orleans, and he applied for the post-doc fellowship because he loves the city.

None of the three middle schools had adebate team before McBride launched hisproject last fall. With his department’sapproval, he required a mandatory 40 hoursof service from every student who signed up for his course. His undergraduatesadjusted quickly to the younger students,“although some of my students are a littleoverwhelmed to be in a middle school,”especially where students are from economically disadvantaged families.

Studying the way words work for Aristotleand Plato gives the Tulane students an inter-esting way to understand a debate. Quin-tilian helps by giving classical, yet practical,advice. “Quintilian makes the pursuit ofbecoming the ideal orator into a game,something that should be fun,” he says.

In their first three debates, the middle-schoolers have done quite well. “You can’tbelieve how these kids—who were terrifiedto speak in front of five or six kids—develop

the composure to be articulate and on theball in front of hundreds of people. They’refearless,” he says.

McBride plans to try to expand Aristotlein New Orleans to reach more schools. Hecan count on his undergraduates: of his 40 coaches who took his class last semester,12 came back to continue as volunteers.

Lee Perlman, Concourse Lee Perlman has been teaching in MIT’sfreshman alternative program, the Experi-mental Studies Program, for many years.Now he’s pleased to be a part of a renewedemphasis on integrating the sciences andthe humanities through a freshmanprogram called Concourse. The project’sroots go back four years, when Perlmanbegan teaching a class with MIT ProfessorBernhard Trout on “The PhilosophicalHistory of Energy,” which began with Aris-totle and ended up with modern science.

“We got the idea of trying to startanother one of these freshman alternativeprograms, a great-books-oriented program.We went to the dean in charge and talked tohim, and it turned out a program alreadyexisted, called Concourse.”

Several decades ago, the universitycreated the program to address concernsraised over the division of the sciences and

Aristotle in New Orleans, Meditations in MaineLike evangelists, alumni bring St. John’s ways to the world

by Rosemary Harty

Inspired by Aristotle and Quintilian, Ryan McBride (SFGI96), fifth from left, back row,created a course that pairs philosophy with teaching middle school students how to debate.

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{ A l u m n i }

humanities, as articulated by C.P. Snow inhis famous essay, “The Two Cultures.” Over the years, says Perlman, “that missionfaded, and it became a teaching community,with classes, a lounge, a kitchen, but no realdistinct character.” This year, Trout and Perlman began

working to revive the original mission ofConcourse. Trout will be the new director,and Perlman will teach yearlong courses inthe humanities. The program is starting outslowly, with 60 freshman enrolled in year-long courses each year, but he hopes to seeit grow to look more like a core textscurriculum, open to more students. Perlman earned a PhD at MIT and taught

at Swarthmore and Brown before returningto MIT’s Experimental Study Group in1994. Over the years, he’s taught coursesincluding a seminar on ancient Greek mathematics and a class on the Philosophyof Love. What is missing in this program,however, is giving students the opportunityto make connections across the disciplines.“What I found after I started teachingancient Greek philosophy was that in theend, it was really an ethics course. But putthat together with a course on how theGreeks thought about mathematics and ourplace in the universe and that gives yousurprising conclusions.” Perlman is excited about the possibilities

for Concourse. “My goal is to re-create St. John’s to the extent that it’s possible andappropriate in a place like MIT,” explainsPerlman.

Kirsten Jacobson, Philosophyacross the AgesFor Kirsten Jacobson, teaching philosophyis just one part of her job—getting studentsto really talk about philosophical ideas andtheir real-world applica-tions is more important.With that in mind,Jacobson recently launcheda program called “Philos-ophy across the Ages,”connecting University ofMaine undergraduates withOrono High Schoolstudents through seminar-style discussions of keytexts of philosophy. Theundergraduates leadsessions by asking a well-crafted opening question.This semester, the studentsstarted by reading Plato’s

Apology and Crito. Later in the year, theytook on readings Descartes’ Meditations and de Beauvoir’s Ethics of Ambiguity.Jacobson thrived in the seminar setting at

St. John’s, having transferred from Middle-bury. She earned her PhD at Penn State, andspecializes in 19th- and 20th-century conti-nental philosophy. Her teaching style is verymuch influenced by St. John’s. “A lot of mystudents say, ‘your courses are so differentbecause you’re so committed to getting usto talk,’” Jacobson says. Currently about 10 high school students

are signed up; about three or four Universityof Maine students take part in each seminar.Jacobson and her students meet in advanceto discuss the major themes of a text andchoose an opening question. “I reallyemphasize that I want them to think aboutnot instructing the students, but trying toengage the text, lead the conversation, andencourage discussion.” Jacobson finds it amazing and significant

that teenagers want to read Plato andDescartes, and she’s consistently surprisedby the depth of their thinking. For example,in a seminar on the Apology, the studentstalked about how important it is to questionauthority, that there is a danger to society ifeveryone blindly follows the rules. On theother hand, another student pointed outthat anarchy would result if no one followedthe laws. With the belief that “philosophy really is

for everyone,” Jacobson titled her program“Philosophy across the Ages” with adouble-entendre in mind: “I hope we’ll behaving seminars with folks in local retire-ment communities soon. These conversa-tions should be happening at all stages ofour lives.”

Aaron Lewis: Immanuel LutheranSchoolFor many years, Aaron Lewis worked onCapitol Hill; now he’s a marketing execu-tive in D.C. But for the last decade, he’shad a side pursuit: working with hisparish, Immanuel Lutheran, to bring thetrivium and quadrivium to the parish’sschool in Alexandria, Virginia. Now that it’s firmly in place, he’s been “gobsmacked” at how successful themodel has been. Lewis and his wife, Elizabeth, worked toget the curriculum accepted by the parishbefore they started their own family. (Theynow have three daughters.) Yet Lewis wasso convinced that a classical education wasright for the school that he worked to over-come the initial skepticism that someparishioners felt about the enterprise.Lewis served on the search committee forthe new principal, and his wife was on theschool board. “About six years ago, wehired a principal who was strictly clas-sical,” says Lewis. “He slowly convertedthe curriculum from progressive to clas-sical, hiring teachers that had experienceteaching a classical curriculum andtraining Immanuel’s rostered teachers inthe ways of classical education.”Lewis has enough political and

marketing experience to know how to gainsupport for the idea. In an area whereprivate schools are sought after, and prop-erty values closely monitored, the Lewisespromoted the idea that school’s academicprogram would be equally attractive toparents and parishioners without children.And finally, “since it’s a Lutheran school,we sold it to the parish with the idea thatMartin Luther would have studied under a

similar curriculum.” The Lewises couldn’t be

more pleased with the way theschool is thriving. Their oldestdaughter will start pre-schoolthere in the fall. “Once a liberaleducation is in your bones, youreally have to pass it on,” Lewis says. x

Kirsten Jacobson (SF96, right)hopes her high school project“Philosophy Across the Ages”is the beginning of a series ofphilosophy seminars in Orono.

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1946In March, PETER WEISS spoke on“The Goldstone Report: DoesInternational Law ReallyMatter?” at the Church Centerfor the United Nations. Hisanswer: “Yes, and the viciousattacks on Justice Goldstoneprove it.”

1956JOHN CHASE is a maverick whodoesn’t believe in “careers,” butin following his heart. Followinghis military service, he attendedacting school in England and wasa professional actor, teacher, play-wright and director for severalyears. He later lived on a farm inMaine and had a house-paintingbusiness in North Carolina. Hereturned to Maine and ran acharter sailing business out ofFriendship, a small lobsteringcommunity. Now back in N.C., he devotes his time to recitingpoetry, writing, and observingnature. He is currently employedby the U.S. Census Bureau.

1958JOHN BREMER has retired fromhis endowed chair at CambridgeCollege and is living peaceably inLudlow, Vt., with his marmaladecat, Molly. Last year he gave thecommencement address at theCollege of St. Joseph in Rutland,Vt., and was awarded thehonorary degree of Doctor ofHumanities. He has just finisheda new version of the Iliad andcontinues to write on Plato. He ison the board of Black RiverAcademy Museum in Ludlow andis writing a history of earlyLudlow for the museum; he hasalso devised a celebration forShakespeare’s birthday for themuseum. His book Plato’s Ionwas nominated for the StevenRunciman Award.

1962DAVID W. BENFIELD reports thatJim Forrester (class of 1962) andhis wife stopped by on their wayto and from Florida. “It is alwayssuch a pleasure to reminisceabout our good old days withDEAN WILSON (HA83) and MR. OSSORGIN (HSF86) andMR. SPARROW (HA93), amongother favorites! Remember folks,2012 will bring an important election in November and our50th reunion in September! Soonit will be time to book rooms andmake a seminar book choice.”

“It looks like my film of AnthonyBurgess’ novel A Dead Man inDeptford, about ChristopherMarlowe, is finally going ahead,”reports Michael Elias. “Shootingis planned to begin in Septemberin England. I also adapted RobertSilverberg’s classic sci-fi novelThe Man in the Maze. It is basedon Sophocles’ Philoctetes. InSilverberg’s version the hero isabandoned on a deserted planet(Lemnos) in a city that is filledwith killing mazes and traps.When Earth needs him, herefuses to come out. Alsofinishing a novel about the Incasand working to get my play TheCatskill Sonata to New York.

Paul Mazursky directed it in LosAngeles, where it ran for fourmonths.

1963Since retiring from teachingphilosophy and literature, DAN

SHERMAN spends roughly half theyear at his house on Brittany’snorth coast, along with Sophiethe goat, the chickens, LuLu andChick, the two cats, Coca andCola, the miniature goat,Moumoute, and the threeHaflinger ponies (with strangeBreton names). The rest of theyear he lives in Toronto.

DAVID MICHAEL TRUSTY, nicelyrecovered from smashed ribs andexploded collarbone, is ready tosaddle up and start riding again.

1968DONALD BOOTH will be spendinga year and a half working on anew, small hotel in Ipoh,Malaysia, about two hours northeast of Kuala Lumpur, onthe road to Penang. “It’s near themountains,” he reports. “AnyJohnnies who stop by Ipoh will be welcome. Call me at (6) 017-569-9588 or e-mail or

locate Tin City Hotel construc-tion site on Jalan Sultan IdrisShah.”

News from BART LEE: “My sonChristoffer Lee (and two part-ners) just won the world champi-onship Negotiation Prize inLeipzig. He is a second-year lawstudent at Hastings College of theLaw, San Francisco, andinterning for his second federaljudge. There does come a timewhen one is more forthcomingabout the accomplishments ofprogeny than one’s own!Nonetheless, I am pleased to havehornswoggled the AWA Reviewinto publishing yet another radiointelligence-at-work article, thisone about the CIA operations onSwan Island. The fall included aweek or so in Greece (fortunatelybetween riots), with visits to theMycenae of Agamemnon, theCorinth of St. Paul, and then offto Delphi for an Oracle. As goodas the Oracle’s intelligenceservice was, and that is very goodindeed, it got the Persian Warwrong. Last spring, Australiabeckoned—my, what a bigcountry! I came to appreciate thepowers of mind required ofAborigines to survive and thrivein the Outback. The practice oflaw continues to pay the rent,barely.”

1969LEE MCKUSICK (SF) is employedas a para-educator, where sheworks with severely disabledyouth. “Every day I get to workwith the fascinating puzzle ofwhat is learning, how does itwork, and how do I facilitatelearning with my kids.”

1970“All is well in Paris,” writes JOHN

DEAN (A). “Never thought thiswas where SJC would lead me, butas Fats Waller used to say, ‘Onenever knows, do one?’ OtherwiseI’m professor of Cultural Historyat the University of Versailles, do

{ A l u m n i N o t e s }

“’Tis to Another Sea”

RICHARD MOREHOUSE (A83) “was sailing alongfine as an art dealer in 20th-century photo-graphs (morehousegallery.com) when therecession came along and decimated myclients.” Morehouse is grateful to the collegefor preparing him for inevitable change. “I am

now working in sales for a company that makes the world’smost scalable software for time series data and events(osisoft.com). It used to be easier to describe my work! Butthe new job is fascinating. I am lucky to be a re-trainablemember of the workforce at a time when jobs are disap-pearing, never to return. I credit St. John’s for distinguishingtethered knowledge from untethered true opinion. We nevergot any of the latter kind (none at least from the 21st century).Therefore, by rejection of the absurd, we must have gottenthe former kind—the kind that gets one through recessionsand other turbulent times.” x

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a fair amount of public diplomacywork across Europe; write (on arich variety of topics, mostrecently articles on: ‘The Busi-nessman as Artist’; ‘The Power ofCool in U.S. Youth Culture’;‘Adapting U.S. History to U.S.Movies’; edit; teach; run confer-ences—most recently this last fall2009 in a joint-venture withAmerican University in Paris onthe subject of ‘European Read-ings of Abraham Lincoln.’ Can’tcomplain. Keepin’ busy.”

YEHUDITH “HUDI” PODOLSKY

(SF) lost her beloved husband,Joe, of cancer in July 2007. “But life is full of miracles, andI’ve married a wonderful manwho had also lost a belovedpartner. We’re creating awonderful new family together,full of children and grandchil-dren. My work is with highschools and high school districtsin low-income communities,mostly in California. Theseschools are trying to restructurein a way that will support richerrelationships between studentsand teachers and within teacherteams. The state of education inthese schools is pretty shocking,but they’re all on paths thatshould make some improve-ments.”

1971In November 2009, JOHN STARK

BELLAMY II (A) published hiseighth book, Cleveland’s GreatestDisasters: 16 Tragic True Tales ofDeath and Destruction, with Gray& Co. Meanwhile, sporadicexcerpts from his lurid memoir-in-progress entitled “Wasted onthe Young” have been recentlyposted at the CoolCleveland.comwebsite.

1972HAROLD ANDERSON (A) isworking on ethnographicresearch projects as an inde-pendent contractor and teachingcultural and urban anthropologyat Bowie State University. “Mostinterestingly, I am teachingCultural Documentation as amember of the core faculty for thenew Master of Arts in CulturalSustainability Program atGoucher College in Towson, Md.Have a look at our programwww.goucher.edu/x33261.xml.It’s really quite wonderful! Also you can comment on ourcultural sustainability blog at:http://blogs.goucher.edu/culturalsustainability.”

1974SALLY BELL (SF) “finally decidedto write, first with somewonderful/joyful news, in thatour daughter graduated this yearwith her DVM from Tufts Univer-sity Cummings School of Veteri-nary Medicine, after graduatingfrom Boston University with adegree in biology summa cumlaude in 2005, then gettingmarried! She has worked toward[being a veterinarian] since shewas six years old, unlike her momand dad who never figured outwhat they wanted to do. HelpingKath learn to care for her sheep,rabbits, and chickens along theway was the most like being at St. John’s of anything I did. I never thought I’d be raisingsheep, but after St. John’s, I wasn’t afraid to try anything.“Second, some unhappy news, in that I have been diagnosedwith pulmonary arterial hyper-tension plus auto-immune hepa-titis. I have been disabled and notworking since 2005, and thisbrings my chronic illnesses up to10. Life is terminal anyhow, so Ihope to be in touch with oldfriends if I can, and I am gratefulfor this warning and the time Istill have. Although Kath didn’tgo to St. John’s, I hope I passedon to her the self-examinationand the precision of thought thatI learned to reach for. Maybesomeday she will go to SGI. I aman indifferent correspondent—notmuch energy—but anyone canwrite at [email protected].”

ELLEN CHAVEZ DE LEITNER (SF)and her husband, Hans, are nolonger empty-nesters: their twodaughters, with families, havereturned to live with them: “Sowe have a 2-year-old grandsonand a 4-month-old granddaughterto cheer our days. I now teachviolin at Northern New MexicoCommunity College in Espanolaand play in the San JuanSymphony in Durango, Colo.,and Farmington, N.M. Withdaughter Cecilia (MM VocalPerformance, Yale), I openedSanta Cecilia Music Studio for

teaching and rehearsing in SantaFe. Also, I’m still paintingretablos, participating in the SJCAlumni Art Show in Santa Fe, aswell as the February Auction andSpanish Art Market. Any SJCalumni are welcome to visit me atmy home studio, SF music studio,or the traditional Spanish Marketthis summer. Violin and voicestudents would be welcome, too,as we still have openings. Pleasecontact me through my website:www.chavezdeleitner.com.”

1975“Still relaxing in relaxing Ohio,”writes TINA BELL (A). “I havestarted training to become avolunteer for a local hospiceorganization. I have always beendrawn to that kind of work. A lotof it involves just listening topeople, being there for them, andyou can help the whole familywith respite care, counseling,bereavement counseling. I amlooking forward to it. Since myown parents died I feel I haveenough experience to start tohelp others down the same road.Emily Bell is a struggling youngwriter in NYC, Tim going tocounseling school, ditto Joe, andJulia has really begun to runmarathons a lot. A lot. But shealso has a new cat, Toby.”

1976ISABEL CZECH (NEE

WERTHEIMER, A) is now theexecutive director of ALPSPNorth America. ALPSP is theAssociation of Learned andProfessional Society Publishers.She can be reached at:[email protected]. Shecontinues to live in Philadelphia,where she roots for the hometeam: “Go Phillies!”

Tell Jokes, Be Smarter

JOHN CAPPS (A91) has a serious day job as associate dean ofthe College of Liberal Arts at the Rochester Institute ofTechnology. Yet his new book, You’ve Got to Be Kidding:How Jokes Can Help You Think (Wiley 2009), exploresthe lighter side of his discipline. Capps wrote the bookwith his father, Donald Capps, a psychologist of religion

and professor emeritus at Princeton Theological Seminary.“The basic idea behind the book is that there’s a connectionbetween jokes and thinking critically,” John Capps explains.“Jokes make us laugh because jokes are about people saying ordoing something irrational. Figuring out why we laugh is figuringout why something is irrational—and that helps us avoid the samemistakes. We came to write this book, first, because we like toshare jokes and, second, because it really did seem to us that jokesare especially good at revealing what is rational and what is not(an idea going back to Freud).” More on the book can be found onthe publisher’s website: wiley.com. x

34


1979RICK KEMPA (SF) lives in RockSprings, Wyo., where he directsthe honors program at WesternWyoming College. A book of his poems, Keeping the Quiet, was recently published byBellowing Ark Press(www.bellowingark.org/). ThisAugust, he will be the artist-in-residence at the South Rim, whilehe works on a collection of essaysabout the Grand Canyon from abackpacker’s perspective.

1982It’s been a busy year for DON

DENNIS (SF): “Was married inMarch 2009 to a lovely dairyfarmer here in the InnerHebrides. We run an old baronialmansion as a 12-bedroom B&B,and I also give boat tours aroundthe region in a small commercialRIB I skipper. But my main busi-ness involves both selling andmaking our own flower essences(in the tradition of the BachRemedies). Ours are made withtropical orchids I grow in ourgreenhouse here on the Isle ofGigha. Have just sent a book offto the printers about them:“Orchid Essence Healing” shouldbe in my hands by the end ofApril. Johnnies are very welcomehere; we have, as you may guess, apretty good library, beautifulwalks, and a snooker room. Oh,

and a 52-acre garden surroundsthe house as well. www.achamore-house.com and www.healin-gorchids.com.”

1983News from JIM BAILEY (A):“Sharon and I are still inMemphis,” he writes. “My focusis health system research andteaching internal medicine resi-dent physicians. We are organ-izing our fifth Search for theHealthy City seminar and studytour in Italy. Johnnies are morethan welcome!”

PETER MCCLARD (SF) writes:“Very much enjoying raising acouple of pre-teens (such a sweetage), making art (tracymac.biz)and music, selling our softwarebusiness (gluon.com) and stayingin touch with folks on Facebook.Best to all!”

1984FATHER BRUCE WREN (SF)continues his life as a priest in asmall seminary about one houreast of Paris. He would like toknow the whereabouts ofTHEODORE BENSON III andJEFFREY POPE, to keep in touch.

1985“I wasn’t at St. John’s long, butmy time there was memorable,”writes MARY ANN FLYNN

CUSHMAN (A). “I moved on toscience, where I worked as a labo-ratory researcher and manager formany years. Being involved inresearch piqued an interest inintellectual property, so I studiedto become a paralegal, thenworked primarily in commercialtransactional law. I am pleased tosay that I am again working withscientists as an editor forresearchers residing in Japan.”

MAGGIE HOHLE (A) is busy.“After a tough year following mymom’s sudden diagnosis anddeath (stage IV lung cancer, lastparent, so sad), I’m swampedwith work again, notably transla-tions of a book about the Japanese‘no-brand’ brand MUJI forRizzoli, and of a monograph ofthe work of designer Chie Morimoto. In addition, a projectbegun years ago has beenpublished by University of TexasPress (a surprise to me!). It’scalled Spiritual Passports: TheUnseen Images of an Artist WhoNever Lived to See Them. Let it beknown that I wasn’t consulted onthe subtitle. We are lookingforward to the high school gradu-ation of the first of the four Hohlekids and her departure to post-secondary education at somesmall liberal arts school, unfortu-nately not SJC. Anyone out in theSF Bay Area, please look us [email protected]. Seeyou at the 25th reunion!”

In 2008 MARGO HOBBS

THOMPSON (A) relocated toAllentown to take a job teachingart history at MuhlenbergCollege, a small liberal arts insti-tution. “It’s a wonderful place,and Allentown is delightfullyurban and diverse compared tothe wilds of Vermont, my formerhome,” she writes. “My husband,Court, is starting a clock repairbusiness; he’ll fix mechanical toysand instruments as well, and youcan reach him through me:[email protected]. And I am

pleased to announce that my bookon graffiti art, American Graffiti,was published by Parkstone Presslate last year.”

1986KRISTEN CAVEN (SF86) writes ofher career: “At last the truth canbe told: after St. John’s it waseither the funny farm or the funnypapers. (Thank ye ol’ gods for themightiness of a pencil.) In thisunusual memoir I discuss mydedication to the ‘liberal’ arts andthe upside of ‘hysteria,’ of whichthere was a lot at the women’scollege where I landed. JackLincoln, wherever you are,I owe you a free copy. PerfectlyRevolting: My ‘Glamorous’Cartooning Career is available on Amazon and www.kristencaven.com thisspring.”

1988KIM PAFFENROTH’s (A) versionof Dante’s Inferno, Valley of theDead, is now available as aregular trade paperback fromPermuted Press. His first novel,Dying to Live, is now available inGerman from Festa Verlag, withthe title Vom Überleben unterZombies.

1989RAYMOND GIFFORD (A) hasswitched law firms, becoming themanaging partner of the newDenver office of WilkinsonBarker Knauer LLP, a Wash-ington DC-based regulatory firm.“Still in the scintillating world ofthe law and economics of networkindustry regulation—broadband,electricity and smart grid,” hewrites. “That and going to a lot ofkids’ hockey games for Thomas,14; William, 10; and Michael, 4.”


A Mission to Mars

GEOFF MARSLETT (SF96) has been directingmovies since he graduated. To date, he has made14 short films of his own, plus collaborativework. In March, his first feature-length filmpremiered at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin,Texas. “Mars,” done in an animation style

invented by Marslett specifically for the film, tells the story ofthree astronauts on the first manned mission to the red planet.An upbeat romantic comedy, “Mars” moves focus off of slapstickhumor and cataclysmic events. Says Marslett, “Hopefully, thelaughs come from [the characters’] very human responses toremarkable events.” x

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{ A l u m n i P r o f i l e }

Mat Strickland (SF96)doesn’t think ofhimself as interesting.He’s wrong, of course,but the feeling’sunderstandable:

there’s nothing flashy or dramatic abouthis life as a pediatrician with the IndianHealth Service in Chinle, Arizona, theheart of the Navajo Nation. It’s the very lack of spectacle, though, that’sextraordinary.During Strickland’s freshman year at

St. John’s, his mother, who was alicensed vocational nurse, died of hepatitis C. Struggling to understandhis loss, and, along with his classmates,searching for the good and just life, hewas led to the path of medicine as apossible answer. Thanks to a scholar-ship, he was able to take science classesat the University of California atBerkeley during the summers, and whileworking as a paralegal after St. John’s,he volunteered at Oakland Children’sHospital, working with HIV/AIDSpatients. In 2006 he earned his M.D. and an

Master of Public Health degree fromNew Orleans’s Tulane University. “Youmake a decision,” he says, “and youhave no idea what medical school isgoing to be like, how consuming.” He completed his residency at EmoryUniversity in Atlanta.Throughout his medical studies and

training, however, Strickland missed thesense of “discovery, adventure, andnewness” he had found at St. John’s.“There’s lot of rigor in medicaltraining,” he says. “You study thesciences, memorize the body parts,memorize the drugs—it’s very struc-tured. I rebelled against that.” Strick-land wanted to recapture the feeling ofbeing part of a close-knit, supportivecommunity such as St. John’s. He alsomissed the big skies and open space ofthe high desert. “That sense of vastnessis inspiring,” he says.Luckily, just as the codified reading

lists of the Program provide differentstudents with different questions, the

seemingly inflexible field of medicine iswide enough to provide for the uncon-ventional. Strickland found an outlet forhis resistance to structure near Canyonde Chelly, in the most remote of thehealth centers on the 26,000-square-mile Navajo reservation. The hospitaland clinic where he works serves 13,000children, the majority of whom live inextreme poverty. Though the area doeshave one traffic light and a grocerystore, many inhabitants don’t haverunning water or electricity, makingaccess to health care that much morevital. Paradoxically, Strickland foundfellowship in the middle of nowhere,living on the hospital compound withthe other physicians, similarlyunorthodox souls who may have workedwith Doctors Without Borders or thePediatric AIDS Corps in Africa. Likehim, they wanted to take medicine offthe beaten path to where it was mostneeded.

Strickland’s patients, as well, form avaluable community. Their interdepend-ence makes him a better doctor, he says.“The thing I like most about medicine isthe relationships. Talking to yourpatients and their families, trying tohelp them in the truest way—I think I’mreally good at that, talking to people andempathizing. So much of medicine isnot about, ‘Oh here’s a prescription.’That’s easy. It’s spending time with thefamily, unraveling the real truth to thematter.So why does Strickland think he’s not

interesting? Perhaps because he doesn’tthink of himself much at all. “One of thethings you learn at St. John’s is that thebest part of life is relating to others, tolive outside yourself,” he says. “We’retrapped in our own little world.” In the blankness of the desert, instead

of isolation, Strickland has found aworld in others. x

Doctor in the DesertMat Strickland (SF96) pursues an alternative path

by Anna Perleberg (SF02)

Pediatrician Mat Strickland (SF96) practices medicine off the beaten path, in the heartof the Navajo nation.

36



1990Beyond Redistribution: WhiteSupremacy and Racial Justice,by KEVIN GRAHAM (A), waspublished by Lexington Books inJanuary 2010. It is the first bookpublished by Kevin, who teachesphilosophy at Creighton University in Omaha, Neb.

KEN TURNBULL (A) has changedlaw firms and is now a partner inthe Washington, D.C. office ofKing & Spalding LLP.

1991NATE DOWNEY (SF) is pleased toreport that his philosophical-trea-tise-cum-ecological-how-to,Harvest the Rain, will bepublished in 2010 by SunstonePress. Please visit www.harvest-therain.com for book info orcomment on his sustainability-blog at www.backyarddigest.com.

1992ANNE ASPEN (SF) is working forthe Fort Collins DowntownDevelopment Authority. She’sdoing many of the same thingsthat she handled as a city planner,but has a lot more room forcreativity. “I’m focused entirelyon the downtown now and use alot more of my architecturedegree and art background. It wasa good move! On the home front,life is good, too. Jane and I cele-brate 15 years together this year,and we’ve convinced Jane’sdaughter Michelle and the threegrandkids (16, 14, and 8 years old)to move here, so we have a lots ofgreat family time now and use alot more of my architecturedegree and art background. It wasa good move! Hello to everyonewho’s not on Facebook.”

1993OMAR MANEJWALA (A) writes:“After a wonderful four years asassociate medical director of TheFarley Center in Williamsburg,Va., I have accepted a position asthe Medical Director of HazeldenFoundation in Center City, whichis the nation’s oldest and largestaddiction treatment center. I’malso finishing up (in May) an MBAfrom the University of Virginia‘sDarden School of Business. Mywife, Cecily, and I have moved tothe Twin Cities and welcome theopportunity to connect with Johnnies in the area.”

1994PEGGY JONES (SF) and herhusband, Bill ‘Bones’ Jones, willcelebrate their 50th weddinganniversary in July, opting for agala family reunion of four chil-dren, their spouses, and 10 livelygrandchildren, and a longweekend of family activities inNew Mexico. “Our children grewup in Santa Fe, and Bill and I stilloccupy the house where theygrew up, but alas, they all live inother states now,” she writes.“Since the 10 grandkids willrange in age from 12 years to 1 month, we’re all expecting tohave a wild and wonderful timetogether! And we hope there’ll besome future Johnnies amongthose grandchildren of ours!”

JAMES PASSIN (A) is pleased toannounce the birth of hisdaughter, Anya. He lives in NewYork City with his wife, Sydney;his four-year-old son, Oscar; andlittle Anya. He has just success-fully launched Firebird MongoliaFund, a fund focused on Mongolian securities. He alsofounded and manages two globalhedge funds and serves on theboards of a number of public andprivate Canadian and Mongoliancompanies.

MARILYN ROPER (AGI) writesthat her daughter Allison, a 2005graduate of Kenyon College,finished work on her Master ofArts in Liberal Arts from St. John’s in Santa Fe inDecember and received herdiploma in May. Marilyn and herhusband, Dan, moved to HiltonHead, S.C., in 2004.

1995DARIEN LARGE (SF) is living inAustin and happily married theman of his dreams, Justin Nevill,on March 27, 2010. Drop Darien aline at [email protected].

COREY A. CHRISTY (SEBASTIAN,A) writes: “My husband, Jesse,and I are delighted to announcethe birth of our first child, ourbeautiful daughter Iona Jean onAugust 4, 2009.”

1997KIRA MOCK (A) started a newposition on December 7, 2009, atthe American Association for theAdvancement of Science. She is asenior program manager for theEnergy, Environment and Agri-culture S&T fellowship in theExecutive Branch.

HOWARD R. SAUERTIEG (A)recently became LitigationSupport Specialist with the lawfirm of McCarthy WeisbergCummings, P.C., Harrisburg, Pa.

1999“My husband, Jesse, and I aredelighted to announce the birthof our first child, our beautifuldaughter Iona Jean, on August 4,2009,” writes COREY A.CHRISTY (A99).

2000ZACH and ERIKA (FORMERLY

CARLSON) WARZEL (both SF)celebrated the birth of theirdaughter Corrina Lu on February15, 2010, in Denver, Colo. Likeher mom, Corrina has a very fullhead of hair!

2001GEOFF (SF),CARISA (SF99) andRenee Galilea Petrie (big sister,age 4) welcomed FrancescaCalliope Petrie on February 4,2010. She weighed 7 pounds, 3 ounces. “Her first name is a playon Frances, her great-grandfatherand father’s name. We choseCalliope because she wasHomer’s muse and what Johnniedoesn’t have the first few lines ofthe Iliad embedded in her brain?Francesca is a calm, communica-tive baby and we are enjoying herevery day.”

Shaping Foreign Policy

After taking a break from teaching overseas andthen several years working on research, design,and management of conservation and develop-ment programs in both the United States and WestAfrica, Shelley Saxen (SFGI02, SFEC) and herhusband, Doug Saxen (SFGI03, EC) are now

happily living in Mexico. Shelley shapes and implements U.S.foreign policy as a diplomat with the U.S. Department of State, andDoug splits his time between teaching, writing, and multimedia artprojects. When not at work, they are swiftly becoming tequilaconnoisseurs who enjoy cumbia and lively discussions of whateverrecent Johnnie-ish text they have recently read. x

37



KATY (CHRISTOPHER) DAVIS

(SF) has news: “On October 31,2009, Lucy Katharine Davis wasborn at the Andaluz Birth Centerin Portland, Ore. She’s a sweet,happy, and mellow baby who loveseveryone, and we are all delightedto have a little girl in the family.Three-year-old Sam is gettingused to being a big brother andgrows smarter and more funevery day; among his many inter-ests are singing the Greekalphabet and playing with hisstuffed tigers Hegel andHeidegger. On the farm, we’relooking forward to lots of babygoats and an expanded gardenand orchard this summer.”

2002JONATHAN COOPER (A) is inVermont: “After receiving ourMAs in sustainable landscapeplanning and design from theConway School of LandscapeDesign, my girlfriend Katharineand I moved to Waterbury, Vt., to begin our careers. The town islovely, the people are friendly,and the spring thaw has broughtour kittens out to the backyard. It all seems like a Graham Nashsong, but I can’t think of whichone. Maybe I’m just having déjà vu…”

JUSTIN (A) and DILLON

(WRIGHT-FITZGERALD, A05)NAYLOR celebrated the birth oftheir second boy, James Matthew,on November 12, 2009. Bigbrother Peter will be 3 in July.

2003ANN (CARRUTHERS) ORSINGER

(SF) and STEPHEN ORSINGER

(SF) welcomed OdysseusRemington Orsinger into theworld on January 1. Weighing 10lbs. 8 oz., he would be able to liveup to the name, they decided. Thefamily is currently living inDallas, Texas, where Stephen ispracticing civil appellate andfamily law. Ann is staying homewith Ody and working on herdissertation in political philos-ophy (on the role of art in civiceducation), freelance writing, andtraining to be a life coach.

2004STUART BANNAN (A) andDEBORAH (MANGUM) BANNAN

(A06) were joined in Holy Matri-mony on January 2, 2010, at HillCountry Bible Church inPflugerville, Texas. In attendancewere several Johnnies includinggroomsmen MARTIN ANDERSON

(A04) and MICHAEL MALONE

(A04), and bridesmaids LAURA

(MANGUM) MOORE (A04) andEMILY DEBUSK (A06). KERRY

MORSE (A06), SARAJEAN

WRIGHT (A08) and DWIGHT

KNOLL (A05) also offered theirsupport and lent a hand with thefestivities. The couple nowresides in Anchorage, Alaska,where Stuart is an associate in alaw firm and Deborah a graduatestudent in counseling psychology.

ERIKA GINSBERG-KLEMMT

(SFGI) lives in Sarasota Floridaand aside from being mother oftwo and doing marketing for animmigration law firm is acting asadvocate and activist for investorswho have been burned in theFlorida foreclosure market...www.pangaea.to/realforeclose.

ERIC SCHAEFER (SF) andTIFFANY SIMONS (SF06) areexcited to share that they will becelebrating a relationship thatbegan at St. John’s College sevenyears ago, with a marriage ceremony and reception on May 22, 2010, in San Francisco.Since leaving St. John’s College,Eric has become interested instudying food systems with thedesire to create an urban agricul-tural system that may one dayrevolutionize the way Americagets its food. Tiffany has beenpursuing a BA in psychology atMills College in Oakland, with afocus on cognitive research, andwill graduate this spring. Theyare both excited about what thecoming years will bring and hopeto see everyone at the next WestCoast Croquet!

MALCOLM SMITH-CARLILE andLAURA PERLEBERG (both SF)were happily married in front offamily and friends in the beautifulLoretto Chapel in Santa Fe onMarch 19. The Smiths continue toreside in Santa Fe, where Laura isa librarian at the College of Santa Fe and Malcolm works with disadvantaged and challenged youth.

NEAL HATFIELD TURNQUIST (SF)proposed to BROOKE ANN

NUTINI (SF05) on June 17 of

2009, and they will be married onJuly 31st of 2010 in New Hamp-shire.

2005ISAAC (A) and KATHRYN (A06)Weiner welcomed CarolineEsther into their family early inthe morning last November 23.Caroline was born at homeweighing 10 lbs. 6 oz. Shecontinues to be healthy andthriving, though she’s notenjoying teething very much.Isaac and Kathryn are pleased aspunch with their beautiful babygirl.

JARED (AGI) and RHONDA

(FRANKLIN) ORTIZ (A04) havebeen busy in recent months:“Jared recently passed his PhDcomprehensive exams in Histor-ical Theology at the CatholicUniversity of America; he’s plan-ning to write his dissertation onAugustine. We are both assistingour parish’s school, St. Jerome’sin Hyattsville, Md., in imple-menting a classical/great bookscurriculum (dropping hints aboutthe Graduate Institute among thefaculty all the while). But the bestnews of all is the expectation of aBaby Ortiz at the end of August orearly September. We’ll be sure tokeep everyone posted.”

2006GEOFFREY (AGI) and JENNY

(KAWA) BAGWELL (AGI05)recently celebrated the firstbirthday of their daughter LuciaMarie, who spent much of the daystudying her new books and toys.Geoffrey is presently a visitingprofessor of ancient philosophy atXavier University in Cincinnati,Ohio, and looks forward to theend of graduate school with hisdissertation defense on Plato’sCratylusApril 6. Jenny spendsher days with Lucy, exploring newrecipes, and reading AgathaChristie. They hope to start analumni reading group in Cincin-nati. Any takers?

A Novel in Three Days

ERICA NAONE (A05) won an honorable mention forher novel draft “Needle and Fang” in the 32ndAnnual International 3-Day Novel contest. “Thistakes place every year over Labor Day weekend,and the goal is to produce the best novel you can inthree days,” she explains. “Producing any novel at

all in that period of time is quite a feat. This year, 650 peopleentered the contest and 460 submitted drafts.” Just 15 honorablementions were named. This was Naone’s second year in thecompetition. “Needle and Fang” is a dark urban fantasy about avampire hunter who befriends a vampire because they’re bothstruggling with intravenous drug addiction. Naone penned hernovel immediately after a two-week stint on jury duty for a first-degree murder case, “and the nightmarish details of the trialdefinitely made their way into the book.” She’s busy revising thenovel to get it in publishable form. Check it out on the web at:www.3daynovel.com.x

Shimer College Professor SteveWerlin (A85) first went to Haiti asvolunteer in 1997, spendingmonths in the country teachingin literacy programs, introducingSt. John’s-inspired seminars to

other educators in the country, and eventu-ally working full-time as a teacher andcommunity organizer. Now, as the people of Haiti struggle to

recover from January’s devastating earth-quake, he finds himself in an entirely newand unexpected role: managing a branch ofHaiti’s largest microfinance bank. “It is thelast thing I ever, ever would have imaginedcould happen,” Werlin says.He can trace this new path back to the

lasting influence of the late Brother RobertSmith (HA90), St. John’s tutor and his long-time friend. In his role as an educationalconsultant for the bank, Werlin worked withbank staff on educational outreach. “One ofthe things Brother Robert taught me is thatyou’ll find whenever you get people to talkabout what matters to them, it really is inter-esting,” Werlin says. “I started to hear aboutthe serious issues involved in operating abank, and saw that the good operation of abranch has a real chance of making a differ-ence in the lives of the people who depend onit.” When he learned that the bank needed anew branch manager, “the opportunity wastoo good to pass up.”Werlin lives in the tiny harbor town of

Marigot; he walks just a few blocks from histwo-room home to his job at the local branchof Fonkoze. The microfinance bank’s name isan abbreviation of Fundacion Kole Zepole,Creole for “Shoulder to Shoulder Founda-tion.” The operation is housed in a one-storybuilding, half of which is now uninhabitable.“We have some pretty good-sized cracks,”says Werlin.Werlin’s commitment to Haiti had its

genesis at St. John’s. After St. John’s, heearned master’s and doctoral degrees inphilosophy from Loyola University inChicago. As a visiting tutor in the GI, Werlinmet a student, David Diggs (AGI91), who hadbeen a literacy volunteer in Haiti. Werlin hadbeen working with Touchstones, a programcreated by St. John’s tutors to bring adaptedgreat books conversations into differenteducational environments, from middle

schools to prisons. He went to Haiti with the original goal of adapting Touchstones for Haiti. From the beginning Werlin has been awed

by the hunger for education among theHaitian people. One day, he accompaniedDiggs to a literacy center in an elementaryschool. “I saw these fully grown womencramming themselves uncomfortably intobenches created for nine-year-olds, for twohours a day, four days a week, just so theycould learn to read and write a little,” Werlinrecalls. “It seemed extraordinary to me whatpeople will go through for the chance at aneducation,” Werlin says.Werlin worked on literacy education

projects with volunteer organizations, firstwith a network of community activists in LaGanub, then with a group of Baptist minis-ters who had developed academic programsfor older children. In 1999, Werlin began

working with the social sciences section ofthe National Public University, a project thatgave him the opportunity to get Touchstonestexts printed in Creole and distributed toeducational centers throughout the country. His work has extended beyond education

to community organizing. For two years,Werlin met each week with a network of rapevictims who organized themselves to providecounseling and other services for victims ofrape. Initially, it seemed impossible to getthe women—hardened by experience anddivided by conflicting approaches—to worktogether. “Today, they’re a real model ofwhat collaboration can be when people areoffered the give-and-take of the dialogue toguide them.”His work in microfinance naturally

involves financial responsibilities—such ascounting the bank’s money in the morningand at closing time—but education remains a

An Accidental BankerSteve Werlin (A85) lends hope to Haitian women

by Rosemary Harty

After the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti in January, Steve Werlin (A85)shifted his efforts from education to banking, making loans to market women throughHaiti’s largest microfinance bank.

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{ A l u m n i P r o f i l e } 39

MICHAEL BALES (SF) is repre-senting St. John’s as the onlyJohnnie in this year’s Fannie Maeanalyst training program in D.C.

ELEANOR CLARK (A) says:“I am happily working oncompleting my final year of agraduate degree in TESOL(Teaching English to Speakers ofOther Languages) at BrighamYoung University-Provo. I loveteaching and exploring newcultures (which are part of whereI am at right now). The plans sofar are to live and work in Londonand at some point go to India.”

TONOPAH GREENLEE (SF) iscurrently living in Waltham,Mass., attending school at Bran-deis University. “I am hoping tobecome a mama around May ofnext year, or rather a M.A./M.A.in Sustainable InternationalDevelopment and Coexistenceand Conflict Management. Thiscoming fall I hope to be workingon sustainable agriculture/waterrights in Latin America (hope-fully Brazil).”

ALLISON HENNIGAN (A) andDylan Martin met while teachingEnglish in Prague. “We weremarried Jan 4, 2010, in a smallfamily-only ceremony in Decatur,

Ala. We are now living on JejuIsland, South Korea, and teachingEnglish in the Korean publicschool system. The kids (elemen-tary and middle school) areadorable little demons. We’ll behere until March 2011, maybelonger. If there are other Johnniesin the area or passing through,it’d be nice to meet up. My e-mail is still [email protected].”

JACQUELINE KENNEDY (AGI) is inNaples, Fla., trudging through hersecond year at Ave Maria School ofLaw. It’s going quickly, she says.“Not sure if I will stay in Naplesafter law school, but I’m definitelyconsidering Florida as a perma-nent (at least for the next fiveyears) home. I’m also a member ofthe South Florida St. John’sAlumni Chapter, which hasprovided me with a much-neededJohnnie connection. I would enjoyhearing from other Johnnies,especially any 2004-2006Annapolis GI alums, especially ifyou're in the Florida-Georgiaregion, and can be reached via e-mail at [email protected].”

HOLLIS THOMS (AGI) recentlyhad the world premiere of histhird opera, “The Rime of the

Ancient Mariner,” based onSamuel Taylor Coleridge’sfamous poem, at St. JohnsCollege in Annapolis on February14, 2010. Two hundred peopleattended the premiere. The 60-minute work is scored for three singers, 12 winds andtwo percussion, and includes theprojection of 40 prints by Gustave Dore.

2007HOLLY TORGERSON (SF) iscurrently working on an MS inHerbal Medicine at Tai SophiaInstitute in Laurel, Md. In Mayshe begins the clinical portion ofher studies, where she will beginto see clients in the faculty-super-vised clinic. “I am very excited,and I invite anyone who wants toknow more to visit my website:longeviteawellness.com.”

2008JOHN HOFFMANN (SF) will becheerfully attending the Univer-sity of Chicago Masters of ArtsProgram in the Humanities.

JERICHA PHILLIPS (SF) and PAUL

FRANZ (SF) were married onMarch 21, 2010, in Kaneohe,Hawaii. After Paul receives hisMaster’s in Education from Stan-ford University in August, he andJericha plan to move to Hawaii,where Paul will work with NaluStudies, a marine educationprogram for high-risk teens.Jericha will find a job when shefinds one.

major part of his work. Fonkoze lends to“credit centers,” networks of 30-40 womenwho borrow together as a community. Thesehard-working, determined women representthe backbone of the Haitian economy. Forexample, Werlin’s clients buy fresh fish inMarigot and sell it in Port-au-Prince. Theyuse those profits to buy something else, say,shampoo or clothing—and return to sell theseproducts in the rural areas. “All of themmake money the same way,” he explains.“Buy something here, sell it there.” One difference between a microfinance

bank and a conventional bank is the supportthe bank provides to credit centers and thesupport women provide to each other.Fonkoze reaches out to women in very ruralcommunities and helps them develop as“independent centers of mutual solidarityand support,” Werlin explains.Even before the earthquake, Werlin

observes, Haitians struggled just for subsis-tence: 53 percent of the nation’s citizens livebelow $1 a day; 75 percent below $2 a day.

Loans from Fonkoze are a lifeline for thesemarket women—and Werlin is quick to pointout that the bank lends only to women. “Thesocial reality in Haiti is that the woman is theperson who takes personal responsibility forthe family,” explains Werlin. “A lot of theworst poverty in Haiti results from womennot having that independent source ofincome. We make loans to women to supportthe family as a whole.”Overcoming adversity is a way of life in

Haiti; when Werlin began working with thebank as an educational consultant, thewomen were just recovering their businessesafter four tropical storms in 2008. Theearthquake was felt in Marigot; a lot of build-ings cracked, but none collapsed. At least 20percent of the bank’s borrowers lost theirhomes, and 70 percent of the homes aredamaged. Those who sell their goods in Port-au-Prince have been hit hard. “I know of onewoman who had 250 pounds of fresh fish inThermos trunks the day of the earthquakeand it sat for a week—you can imagine what

that fish was good for,” Werlin says.Living in Haiti has forever changed how

Werlin views everyday life. “People (outsideHaiti) use words like intolerable, unen-durable” to describe what they see in televi-sion images and what they read in newspa-pers, Werlin says. “Those words seemstrange to me now because I’ve seen whatpeople can endure when they have to. Theyhave no choice. They find ways. They’resmart, and they’re very, very tough.” The international outpouring of support

for the devastating country is helping, saysWerlin. “Right now, Haiti needs an infusionof resources,” he says. In the long run, Haitineeds a committed neighbor in America andsupporters willing to help Haiti recover,thrive, and educate its people. Werlin is grateful that Shimer supports his

work in Haiti, allowing him to continue toeducate, to finance, to serve the people whohave so inspired him: “I work with remark-able, remarkable people who teach me a lot.I think that about covers it.” x

What’s Up?The College wants to hear fromyou. Call us, write us, e-mail us.Let your classmates know whatyou’re doing. The next issuewill be published in October;deadline for the alumni notessection is September 1.

Alumni will also be sent a callvia e-mail.

The College Magazine St. John’s College, P.O. Box 2800 Annapolis, MD 21404 [email protected]

40



Abeat-up copy of the Beatle’sYellow Submarine. A basketfull of stuffed animals,including a Snoopyacquired in first grade. Acloset brimming with keep-

sakes, ill-fitting clothes, misfit shoes, andexercise equipment that will never emergefrom under a heap of mismatched socks. Attached to things you think you really

should pitch? Leah Fisch (SF98) can help.After St. John’s, Fisch worked and trav-

eled, learned new languages, and castabout for the best way to apply her skillsand education. Just back from travels inCosta Rica, she was crashing at her sister’shouse in 2002 when her mother called toannounce that she’d discovered Leah’s truepath in life. “She was listening to a radio interview

with someone from the National Associa-tion of Professional Organizers, and sheheard her say, ‘clutter is a decisiondelayed.’ My mother said, ‘that is so Leah!’and she called me right away. Two weekslater, she had gotten me my first job.” It turned out Mrs. Fisch

knew her daughter well:organizing (she prefersthe term “reorganizing”)is a perfect fit for Fisch,who was featured earlierthis spring on TheLearning Channel (TLC)show Hoarders: BuriedAlive. As a “recoveringclutterer,” she under-stands the problem first-hand. “I grew up in ahouse of sentimentalJewish packrats,” saysFisch. “People found away to make do with whatthey had, and that’s still inus. We’ve become veryconfused as a societybecause we’re always pressured to buy, buy, buy.And people hate to throwthings away.”

As she built her business, Fisch grewmore interested in the social patterns shenoticed among her clients. She observedthat many people devote themselves toacquiring material possessions becausethey lack satisfying social relationships.She enrolled in the London School ofHygiene and Tropical Medicine, where sheearned a master’s degree in demography,and gained certification as a narrative therapist at the Evanston Family TherapyCenter in Illinois. “People are over-whelmed,” Fisch explains. “It’s my job tohelp them identify and honor their values.All of it is about helping people clarifywhat they want.” Being attached to stuff is usually not

about the stuff, says Fisch. “We hold ontothings that make us feel bad aboutourselves, we rent a dumpster, put thesethings in a dumpster, and it’s more traumatizing than ever to throw thesethings away.” When a TLC producer first called, Fisch

declined to be involved because similarcable shows seemed mean-spirited. “It’s all

about people crying as someone throwstheir things away.” If she could take a morecompassionate approach, Fisch said, shemight do it. That led to her TV debut inMay. Just 22 minutes long, the show tookup hours of her time, but it was a goodexperience, “a chance to show people thatthere is another way.”Listening carefully and looking for what

lies beneath the clutter have been the keysto Fisch’s success. “A lot of what I do is justsit with people. When I do the initial tour,I count the number of times they say‘should.’ They should get rid of somethingbut they don’t want to. They should sortthrough their books and get them organ-ized, but they can’t. That’s when they cry.” One client, an insurance executive,

consulted her about reorganizing heroffice. In her initial session with “Jean,”Fisch observed that the office seemed fairly neat, but as the two talked, Fischuncovered a basket wedged between afiling cabinet and some boxes. It was a craft project the woman hoped to make,but was now determined to throw away.

As Fisch talked with herclient, she discovered thewoman was frustrated andunhappy about being unable topursue hobbies because of herdemanding job. They workedtogether to organize not justthe physical layout of Jean’soffice, but also her workroutines and her communica-tion style. “The first thing Ihad her do was make thatHalloween basket,” she says.“Then we put together atraining manual for her assistant, so she could assignher more tasks and trust themto be done efficiently. She hasmore time for herself, and Ithink she’s happier now.” x

Clues Behind the Clutter Leah Fisch (SF98) brings order to hoarders

by Rosemary Harty

Leah Fisch (SF98) guidesclients in reorganizing theirlives.

41


{ O b i t u a r i e s }

ROBERT A. GOLDWINCLASS OF 1950 Robert A. Goldwin, class of1950, died on January 12,2010, at the age of 88. A bril-liant Constitutional scholar,Mr. Goldwin took Socraticdialogues from the classroomsof St. John’s to the Ford WhiteHouse, believing that only athorough and balanced studyof an issue could yield theunderstanding needed forsound public policy. In thewords of his friend DonaldRumsfeld, Mr. Goldwin “was a man of sweeping, ambitious ideas, but personalmodesty and quiet compe-tence. He had the rare talentof asking the right questionsat the right time, and gentlynudging discussions towardthe ‘eureka moment.’”A native of New York City,

Mr. Goldwin was among thewave of veterans who came toSt. John’s after serving inWorld War II. He attended theUniversity of Arizona beforeenlisting in the U.S. Cavalryfor four years, taking part inthe liberation of the Philip-pines. While stationed at FortMeade in Maryland, Mr. Goldwin and his wife,Daisy, visited the campus andchanced upon several refer-ences to the college. As Mr. Goldberg later recounted,one magazine “had an articleby Mortimer Adler aboutliberal education [that was]full of praise for St John’s. Andthe New Yorker that sameweek had a profile of a world-famous authority on thephilosophy of Hegel whoturned down appointment tothe faculty of St. John’s, sayingthat he wasn’t qualified toteach at such a fine school, buthe would like to be a studentthere. These led us to get thecollege catalog, and reading itled us to the decision that I

should go to St. John’s when Ileft the army.”After graduating from

St. John’s, Mr. Goldwincontinued his studies at theUniversity of Chicago, wherehe earned his master’s anddoctoral degrees in politicalscience. He also taught polit-ical science at Chicago, was aGuggenheim Fellow in 1966,and taught at Kenyon College.He help create a summerprogram of study in Santa Fe,which would eventuallydevelop into the GraduateInstitute.

Mr. Goldwin returned to St. John’s as dean, servingfrom 1969-1973. He was luredaway to a new career in publicservice when Rumsfeld, thenserving as U.S. Ambassador toNATO in Brussels, asked Mr. Goldwin to become hisadviser. Mr. Goldwin nextserved concurrently as aspecial consultant to PresidentGerald Ford and in thePentagon as an advisor toRumsfeld, who was then in hisfirst tour as Secretary ofDefense. In the Ford adminis-tration, Mr. Goldwin wasconsidered a one-man think

tank, and described by thepress, to his chagrin, as“Ford’s intellectual-in-resi-dence.” He arranged a seriesof small seminars between thePresident, governmentofficials, and academic expertson topics such as crime,welfare, higher education,ethnicity, and unemployment.After leaving the White

House, Mr. Goldwin joinedthe American EnterpriseInstitute as a resident scholarof Constitutional Studies, apost he held for more than 20 years. He led the institute’sdecade-long study of theConstitution, which produceda 10-volume collection ofessays. He was the author ofFrom Parchment to Power:How James Madison Used theBill of Rights to Save theConstitution. In addition, heedited some 30 books onAmerican politics.Mr. Goldwin served as a

member of the Board of Visi-tors and Governors from 1980to 1988; he became a visitoremeritus in 1999. In 1977, theAlumni Association honoredhim with an Award of Merit.He is survived by four chil-

dren: Nancy Goldwin Harvey(A69), Jane Goldwin Bandler(A71), Elizabeth Goldwin(SF73), and Seth Goldwin.

WILLIAM M. GOLDSMITHCLASS OF 1945William Michael Goldsmith ofVineyard Haven, Mass., anauthor, presidential scholar,political activist and retiredprofessor, died March 23,2010, at the age of 90. Mr. Goldsmith had a long andvaried career that includedwork in the labor movement,civil rights activism andteaching at Brandeis University.Born in New York City,

Mr. Goldsmith attendedCatholic University, but left

Robert A. Goldwin, alumnus, former dean, and BVG member,was a distinguished Constitutional scholar at the AmericanEnterprise Institute.

In the Ford administration, Mr. Goldwin was considered

a one-man think tank.

42



after his first year to supporthis family, which had sufferedfinancial setbacks in the stockmarket crash. In the summerof 1940, after readingMortimer Adler’s How toRead a Book, Mr. Goldsmithhitchhiked to Chicago, deter-mined to meet with Universityof Chicago President RobertMaynard Hutchins to convincehim to admit him to theuniversity’s liberal artsprogram. Hutchins told Mr.Goldsmith that Chicago wasnot for him. Rather, hebelonged at St. John’s.Hutchins made a few calls andMr. Goldsmith was in. Thenext few years, he would laterrecall, were some of the bestof his life: reading anddiscussing ideas deep into thenight while waiting tables andworking odd jobs, sendingextra cash home throughout.Mr. Goldsmith’s college

career was interrupted again,this time by World War II. Heenlisted in the Air Force andshipped out to Guam with aSignal Corps outfit. Hereturned to St. John’s, gradu-ated in 1948, and took a jobwith the International LadiesGarment Workers Union,doing educational work in theSouth. He later became theSouthern EducationalDirector for the TextileWorkers Union. In 1954, hereturned to New York, wherehe worked for the Ford Foun-dation and later earned adoctorate at Columbia Univer-sity. At Brandeis, Mr. Goldsmith

taught in the Politics Depart-ment and became a foundingmember of a new, interdisci-plinary department, AmericanStudies. His three-volumestudy, The Growth of Presiden-tial Power, was published in1974 and is still considered bymany to be the definitive workin its field. He also created the

Brandeis Papers Commissionat Brandeis University, apermanent repository for thepapers of Justice Brandeis. Hewas instrumental in bringingto Brandeis the ground-breaking Upward Boundprogram, a summer programfor talented high schoolstudents from underservedneighborhoods.Mr. Goldsmith retired in

1984. He is survived by hiswife of 50 years, Dr. MarianneGoldsmith; two daughters,Suzanne Goldsmith-Hirschand Alexandra Forbes; a son, Michael; and fivegrandchildren.

DAVID DOBREERCLASS OF 1948 David Dobreer, who unitedalumni in a strong and activeAlumni Association, died inSan Gabriel, Calif., onJanuary 17, 2010, at the age of90. He was a decoratedveteran of World War II, adedicated and accomplishedphysician, and an active andloyal alumnus of St. John’sCollege. His leadership of theAlumni Association during acritical time contributedsignificantly to strengthenedties between the college andalumni. He served as amember of the college’s Boardof Visitors and Governorsfrom 1974 to 1980, and from1986 to 1992. He became anemeritus member in 2002. A native of Washington,

D.C., Dr. Dobreer started withthe class of 1944, but WorldWar II interrupted his studies.He served as a lieutenant inthe Army, as a navigator on aB-24 bomber. He flew 34missions over Europe and wonthe Air Medal with Oak LeafClusters for meritoriousservice. After graduating from St.

John’s in 1948, he earned aDoctor of Osteopathic Medi-

cine degree from the Collegeof Osteopathic Physicians andSurgeons of Los Angeles. Helater earned an MD degreefrom the California College ofMedicine. He led “greatbooks” seminars at HollywoodHigh School, in his home, andvarious other locations in theLos Angeles area for morethan 40 years, and laterthrough the Plato Society atUCLA.The long-time president of

the Southern Californiaalumni group, Dr. Dobreerwas an active and involvedalumnus with a genuine lovefor the Program. He served forsix years as the first presidentof the Alumni Associationafter its reorganization as anational body. The associationflourished and grew under hisleadership. In recognition ofhis service to the college, andin acknowledgement of hisdistinguished medical career,the association selected himfor its highest honor, theAward of Merit, in 1977. Dr. Dobreer is survived by

four daughters: Leslee Rigter,Peggy Dobreer, Sallie Raspa(A75), and Janice Yaruss.

JACK LADD CARRCLASS OF 1950Jack Ladd Carr, class of 1950,died January 10, 2010, at theage of 84. Mr. Carr was an avidsupporter of his alma mater.He served as a board memberof the college’s MitchellGallery, where he was adocent. An active member ofthe Alumni Association, hewas awarded the Alumni Asso-ciation Award of Merit in 1990in recognition of his service tothe college.Mr. Carr served in the U.S.

Army during World War II andparticipated in the liberationof the Philippines. After grad-uating from St. John’s, heearned a master’s degree inurban planning at TempleUniversity. He worked in plan-ning in Charleston, S.C., thenreturned to Annapolis, wherehe served as the first planningdirector for the city. He laterjoined the Maryland StateDepartment of Economic andCommunity Planning.His long-time friend, tutor

Curtis Wilson (HA83) remem-bered Mr. Carr as “public-spirited person” who enjoyedgood-natured arguments, who

Jack Ladd Carr was involved in the Mitchell Gallery and theAlumni Association.

43



seriously explored culturalpursuits, and who cared aboutthe quality of life in hiscommunity.” John Moore(HA01), who brought Mr. Carrinto state planning, says,“Jack handled everything withdiplomacy and patience. He reflected his St. John’sbackground very well.”Mr. Carr is survived by his

wife, Lois, and stepson,Andrew.

LHASA DE SELA (SF94)Lhasa de Sela (SF94), a trilin-gual singer and songwriter,died on January 1, 2010, ofbreast cancer. Born in BigIndian, N.Y., in the CatskillMountains, de Sela spent herchildhood traveling throughthe U.S. and Mexico in aconverted school bus thatserved as her family’s home.From the early 1990s onward,she lived in Montreal, whereshe sang in bars and learned,as she told a reporter in 2004,“how to reach people, evenpeople who were only there

for beer and conversation.”The British newspaper TheGuardian noted in a tributearticle that de Sela “createdthree extraordinary albumsover the course of 12 years.She achieved fame more byword of mouth than throughthe media, but won variousawards, including the Québé-cois Félix in 1997, a CanadianJuno in 1998, and a BBC awardfor world music in 2005.”

ELIZABETH BLETTNER

TUTORElizabeth Blettner, a tutor atSt. John’s since 1982, diedApril 19, 2010, in Annapolis,after a short illness. Miss Blet-tner earned her bachelor’sdegree from Stanford Univer-sity, and master’s and doctoraldegrees in philosophy fromPenn State University. Origi-nally drawn to literature, MissBlettner fell in love withphilosophy and Ancient Greekas a graduate student, and wasparticularly drawn to the workof Kant.

Miss Blettner was respon-sible for the current shape ofthe college’s sophomoremusic tutorial, said tutorPeter Kalkavage, her long-time friend. “Our currentsophomore music program isdue to the tremendous careand work Elizabeth put in,” he says “The college is verymuch in her debt.” A gifted singer who loved

music, Miss Blettner was alsoa faithful and supportivemember of the audiencewhenever the freshmanchorus performed. In recentyears, she taught frequently inthe Graduate Institute, whereshe led a preceptorial onAncient Greek. “By allaccounts, she was a superbtutor of Greek,” Mr. Kalka-vage notes. “Her studentswere quite devoted to her.”Miss Blettner was drawn to

St. John’s by the seriouspursuit of academics, he adds,and she enhanced the collegethrough her dedication. “She

had a deep relation to what-ever she would take up: thestudy of Plato, the study ofmusic. Like many of us here,she was very much shaped byJacob Klein. She was a verydear friend to me.” In Miss Blettner’s honor, the

St. John’s Chorus dedicatedits spring performance ofFaure’s Requiem to her. x

ALSO NOTED

RALPH BALTZEL (CLASS OF1943), DEC. 8, 2009

REAR ADMIRAL ALLEN BERGER(CLASS OF 1939), MARCH 22,2010

DAVID DICKEY (A67), NOV. 24,2009

STEFANIE PRIGGE (A86), DEC. 31, 2009

JOHN RITNER (A84), JAN. 28,2009

LOUIS SAULT (CLASS OF 1956),JAN. 10. 2010

KATHRYN STOLZENBACH (A95),JAN. 20, 2010

LAWRENCE SANDEKCLASS OF 1954

My father, Lawrence Sandek, class of1954, died September 4, 2009, in PaloAlto, Calif. He was born December 23,1923, in the Bronx, N.Y. A veteran ofWW II, he attended St. John’s on theGI Bill. The two most frequentcomments that he made in reference toSt. John’s College were: 1: It was theonly college worth attending; and 2: Itwas the first place that felt like hishome.At least two alumni are as much due

to his influence: myself (1984), and mymother’s sister, Arlene Banks Andrew(class of 1964). Additionally, his firstchild, India Sandek, was born at AnneArundel Hospital while he was a student.He spoke often of [tutors] Jacob Klein and Simon Kaplan.

My understanding is that my father was something of a forcein seminar and the Coffee Shop, but not always as attendant in

all his other tutorials. He won the senior essayprize for his year, writingon Don Quixote. Heworked in the bindery,where he developed hisown flat-spine binding.Some of these books arestill on his bookshelftoday.After St. John’s, my

father settled into familylife, making his living asa freelance writer in theNew York City area. Helater spent many yearstraveling first in Mexico,then India, finally againsettling near family in

Big Bear, Calif. He is survived by three daughters, IndiaSandek, Jessica Sandek, and Lydia Sandek Leizman; one son-in-law, Jon Leizman; and six grandchildren x

Larry Sandek (class of 1954, right), shown here withclassmate Sam Kutler, thought St. John’s College “theonly college worth attending.”

by Lydia Sandek Leizman (A84)

How many institutions canboast an alumnus like SteveThomas (SF74) who caresso deeply about thecurriculum that he’s closelyfollowing the development

of a new math manual for junior lab? More than three decades after graduating,

Thomas, an attorney and president of theAlumni Association, remains passionateabout the Program and stays involved toensure that undergraduates today have thesame or even a better educational experi-ence than he did. “When I talk to alumni,this is one thing they deeply care about—theProgram,” says Thomas. “Is it still theProgram? Will it survive? I hear this overand over again.”The Program has always been the super

glue, that instant bond among Johnniealumni. ”We are defined in part by having

gone through the Program,” says PattySollars (A80), a neuroscientist and vice pres-ident of the Alumni Association. “It is some-thing we carry with us forever.”Yet if most Johnnies care deeply about the

Program—as indicated by a recent (2008)survey—then why aren’t they involved withlocal and national alumni programs inhigher numbers? In 2008 the 12-memberPresidents’ Task Force on Alumni Relationswrestled with this question and embracedrecommendations that Presidents MichaelPeters and Christopher Nelson (SF70)accepted late last year. One recommendation was to encourage

the St. John’s Alumni Association to serve asan umbrella organization for a greatervariety of alumni activities. A new, streamlined 18-member Alumni AssociationBoard will consist of 4 officers, the college-wide Alumni Director, the immediate

past-president of the association, and 12 at-large members. Shorter terms and termlimits for board members will mean morealumni voices will be heard. And the annualAlumni Leadership Forum—the first wasscheduled for Annapolis June 11-13, 2010—will bring alumni leaders together to createopportunities for alumni involvement ineducational and social activities and work onassisting the college with fundraising,admissions, career and graduate schoolmentoring, and networking.Ray Cave (class of 1948), who chaired the

task force, says the changes arose from aneed to actively recognize alumni as valuablemembers of the college community. “In thepast not as much attention has been given tothe alumni as to the Program and students,”says Cave. “Yet it is the alumni who can helpthe Program continue.” The more alumni are involved with

St. John’s, the more they care about itsfuture, says Cave, a formerTimemagazineeditor and member of the college’s Board ofVisitors and Governors. “In the first 30 yearsafter I graduated I gave no evidence that Iwas interested in St. John’s,” he says. “Butmore important, St. John’s gave no evidencethat it was interested in me. When St. John’sgot interested, so did I—which is what wehope to see happen with hundreds, or even

44


{ S p e c i a l R e p o r t : A l u m n i R e l a t i o n s }

About this Report Can virtue be taught? Can Aristotle explain a butterfly’s metamorphosis? Whatdrove Ophelia mad? Does a steel marble really fall at the same rate as a feather?

Johnnies have considered these questions and many more, from their first seminaron the Iliad or their first days in the Graduate Institute. The habit of questioningstays with them long after they leave the college.Over the past year, the college’s Alumni Association, a task force of alumni

leaders, and staff at the college have applied their Johnnie habit of questioning,considering, and discussing things to the state of alumni relations at St. John’sCollege. Among the questions they posed to each other—and to you, alumni, are:How can the college better nurture the bond with alumni? How can the close rela-tionship formed through a common academic program be maintained after alumniare scattered to every corner of the globe? How can the college better inform itsalumni about what’s happening on the campuses? And what’s the best way foralumni to support a college they care about? This special section of The College explains the work completed by a Presidents’

Task Force, changes to the Alumni Association, and a new leadership forum thatserves as the starting point for widening the circle of alumni involvement. Lookingto get involved? Follow up on the contact info here, and look for periodic updates tothis effort in the magazine, your alumni e-newsletter, and the online community.

Through the Program, Alumni share acommon bond that keeps them close to thecollege--no matter where they go.

by Patricia Dempsey

E N G AG I N G A LU M N ITapping a wellspring of Johnnie pride

{ A l u m n i R e l a t i o n s } 45


thousands, of our alumni today. The survivalof St. John’s may well depend on it.”Expanding the touch points of alumni

involvement is the driving force behind thisnew era in alumni relations, explains MattCalise (A00), a task force member who alsochairs the Alumni Giving Council (formerlycalled Philanthropia) and who directs alumnirelations at Georgetown Law. “We aresteeped in and proud of our history, but wehave a tendency to look back, to dissect,”says Calise. “We are distinctive pedagogi-cally, but in some ways we are not up withthe times.” The alumni survey showed that“our alumni are thirsting for more ways to beconnected to the college. So let’s ignite thispassion.” College-alumni relations in the 21st

century demand innovation, even a culturalshift says Sanjay Poovadan (SF83), a memberof the Board of Visitors and Governors whochairs the board’s Alumni RelationsCommittee. “The new changes mean adeeper, richer, widespread alumni engage-ment. There was a time, in the 1960s, whenour way of education was under siege. We

had a circle of wagons around us, and welooked inward.“But today we are no longer under siege

culturally, financially or philosophically. Weare strong enough to introduce the ‘new,’ tobranch out our involvement of alumni tocareer services, Piraeus, communications,diversity, fundraising—there are many poten-tial areas for alumni to get involved.” A major step forward is the Alumni Lead-

ership Forum, an event already generatingbuzz. “It’s very American, very Tocquevil-lesque, with new communities being createdand a bubbling up of ideas,” says BarbaraGoyette (A73), vice president for advance-ment in Annapolis. The inaugural forum thisJune in Annapolis brought together chapterand reading group leaders, Reunion ClassLeaders, the Alumni Giving Council, andyoung alumni leaders. Says Calise, “Ifthere’s a cracker-Jack alum out there whowants to get involved, we want to hear fromhim or her.” The forum included an updatewith college presidents and officers followedby roundtables among volunteer leaders onissues affecting the college and alumni.

Expanding alumni involvement also opensthe door to a new generation of volunteerleaders. Many are tech-savvy and adept atcreating virtual and in-person communities.Like all Johnnies they are passionate aboutthe Program and have fresh ideas, includingnetworking events that go beyond theseminar to assist with job hunting, dating,housing and health. Poovadan is eager tolearn from younger alumni, especially thosefrom the 1980s on. “I want to help changethe culture of the college so we involve allthe alumni voices,” he says. Among the next generation of leaders is

New York City chapter president CharlotteLucy Latham (SF02). Latham is enthusi-astic about the changes that include asmaller board and shorter term limits forboard members. Juggling work, yogateacher training, and graduate studies,Latham will trade four board meetings ayear for the once-a-year Leadership Forum.“Now I’ll have time to invest my energies inthe activities that mean the most to me—those here at my chapter,” says Latham.Another young alumnus, Robert Morris

(SF04), welcomes the changes. An activeleader among D.C. alumni, Morris saysalumni gain the chance to shape “a big-picture view.” “I want to establish acommon vision of what alumni should beand do. What is really needed is the answerto the question: ‘Who are we?’ This is anetwork of smart, successful people I reallylike and respect, a caring community withwhom I share a common bond. But when Iencounter alumni who say they attended aquirky, weird college I want to change howwe view ourselves. I’d rather say, ‘I receivedthe best liberal arts undergraduate educa-tion there is.” Coalescing a common vision among the

college’s 9,500 living alumni poses a challenge, but at the heart of it all is theshared experience—unique and enduring—of being a Johnnie. As Cave puts it, “Alumniengagement is emotional and intellectual.Other schools have football games. We havethe Program.” x

During Homecoming 2009 in Santa Fe,Steve Thomas (SF74) presented Santa FePresident Michael Peters with a symboliccheck from the Alumni Association,representing the final installment of theassociation’s contributions to thecollege’s capital campaign.

What’s Next? by Linda Stabler-Talty (SFGI76)

“YES, you are a member of the AlumniAssociation.” Sound familiar? Thisappeared on the Alumni Association duesmailer for years, and now that our associa-tion no longer collects dues, the currentboard members would like to boldlyconfirm that “YES, you are a member ofthe Alumni Association”—if you have adegree from the college, have completedat least one semester of undergraduatestudy or one segment of Graduate InstituteStudy, or if you have been welcomed as anhonorary member. The college presidents wrote to alumni

recently and declared their hope “to builda more vibrant and mutually sustainingrelationship” with us, the alumni. Likewise, the association board membershave been hard at work to increase theopportunities to participate in the diverseactivities of the association and college. To this end, you can look forward to mailings and electronic postings that willexplain the changes and help you explorethe possibilities to become more involved. Here is what will arrive soon:• Draft of the new Alumni Associationbylaws

• Narrative in plain language of theseby-laws and changes from prior ones

• Explanation of all the structuralchanges within the AlumniAssociation

• Notification of the Annual Meetingdate/time, including the AssociationSlate of Officers and BoardRepresentatives

• Notice that directors and officers maybe elected by petition

• Transition resolution that will allowall of the above to move ahead

Also included will be an offer to letalumni “opt out” of electronic notifica-tions, with hard copies mailed from theAlumni Office. The highlight of these changes is the

first annual Alumni Leadership Forum,June 11-13 in Annapolis. This inauguralevent engages alumni on many differentlevels, with results continuing well intothe future. And, you are encouraged to askquestions, discuss your ideas, and to get in

touch with the association as well as yourfellow alumni.Welcome to this energized era of alumni

activity!

Contact: Jo Ann Mattson [email protected], phone 410-295-6926; or Nancie Wingo [email protected], phone 505-984-6121; [email protected].


{ A l u m n i R e l a t i o n s }46

Responses to the St. John’s CollegeAlumni Survey (October 2008),conducted by an independentconsultant, reveal that St. John’s “hasthe basic DNA upon which strong,ongoing alumni relationships have beenbuilt. . . .” Alumni have strong feelingsfor their alma mater, yet alumni involvement is not correspondingly ashigh. Here are some highlights fromundergraduate respondents: • 73 percent of St. John’s alumni arevery satisfied with their student

experience (compared to 47 percent-83 percent at other institutionssurveyed).

• 70 percent report that overall theyhave very positive feelings about thecollege today (compared to 34-73 percent at other institutionssurveyed).

• 9 out of 10 alumni take pride in theirSt. John’s affiliation and feel that St. John’s is a part of who they are.

• 6 out of 10 feel they are part of the

St. John’s community and have astake in the college’s achievementsand success.

• 28 percent report that they only hearfrom the college when it’s asking forfinancial support.

• 55 percent said the Program was themost meaningful aspect of their St. John’s experience.

Alumni can help plan and organize increased educational opportunities such asPiraeus, shown above.

47


{ A l u m n i R e l a t i o n s }

Alumni CalendarMake plans now to join yourfriends for Homecoming 2010!This year, the event takes place onthe same weekend on bothcampuses: September 24-26.

SANTA FEFridayRegistration, 4-8 p.m.Alumni/students networking

reception, 4-5:30 p.m.Welcome Home reception, 5:30-

7:30 p.m.Lecture, 8 p.m.Question Period, 9 p.m.

SaturdayRegistration. 8:30 a.m.-noonSeminars, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.Luncheon and State of the

College address, 12:30-2 p.m.Levan Hall dedication, 2 p.m.Alumni Association meeting,

3 p.m.Bocce and other lawn games,

3:30 p.m.Art Show reception and Waltz

Party, 5-7 p.m. Dance, 9-12 p.m.

SundayAlumni Association Board

meeting, 9 a.m.-10 a.m.Brunch, complete with reunion-

year toasts, 10:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m.

ANNAPOLISFridayRegistration, 4-8 p.m.Reunion Class/Graduate Institute

receptions, 5:45-7 p.m.Fiftieth Reunion Dinner for the

Class of 1960, 5:45 p.m.Lecture, 8:15 p.m.Question Period, after LectureRock Party, 10:30 p.m.

SaturdayRegistration, 8:30 a.m. to noonAll-alumni Meeting/Awards

Assembly, 9:30 a.m. Seminars, 10:30 a.m. Family Lunch; Classes of the

1940s and Friends Luncheon,noon

Children’s Activities, 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Mitchell Gallery tour, 3 p.m.Cocktail reception, 5-7 p.m. Alumni Banquet, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Homecoming Ball, Great Hall,

9:30 p.m.Rock Party, Coffee Shop,

10 p.m.

SundayPresident’s Brunch, 11 a.m. Around the Chapters

What is the Alumni Leadership Forum? The Alumni Leadership Forum is a major step in the reorganizationof alumni relations taking place at St. John’s. This annual gatheringof volunteer alumni leaders, held during the summer on alternatingcampuses, recognizes the contributions of dedicated alumni, trainsthem in their areas of volunteer interest, and offers an opportunityto engage with fellow alumni as well as college officers and staff.

What is the goal of the first forum in Annapolis?The first Alumni Leadership Forum was held in Annapolis on June 11-13, 2010. Attendees, including alumni leaders, college staffand officers, gathered to learn from each other and plan for thecollege’s future. Questions for the forum included: How can thecollege enhance communication and engagement with its alumni?How can alumni get involved to help the college? In this way, thecollege will be able to better serve the evolving needs of its alumni.Look for a report on the meeting in e-newsletters as well as the fallissue of The College.

Who was invited? How can I get involved?The first Alumni Leadership Forum brought together a smallergroup of leaders than will attend future forums. These includeChapter and Reading Group leadership, Reunion Class Leaders,the Alumni Giving Council, and Young Alumni leaders. However,all interested alumni are encouraged to contact the Alumni Officeon either campus for more information: in Annapolis, 410-295-6926; in Santa Fe, 505-984-6121. For questions about the changesto the Alumni Association or how to get involved, please contactthe Alumni Association at this email: [email protected].

How else is the Alumni Association changing?The St. John’s College Alumni Association remains a separate501(c)3 organization, but it will work in partnership with thecollege to increase alumni involvement. The Alumni AssociationBoard will manage the partnership of the association with thecollege and ensure that the alumni working groups are focused onkey priorities. The volunteer group Philanthropia has been

renamed the Alumni Giving Council and will continue its workunder the umbrella of the Alumni Association, as will all alumnivolunteer groups, such as Reunion Class Leaders and Chapter Presidents. There will be more opportunities for alumni: serviceprojects and career mentoring, for example.

What will this change mean for me? It means more involvement and communication with alumni andcollege staff. The new, streamlined 18-member board consists offour officers, the college-wide Alumni Director, the immediate PastPresident of the Association, and 12 at-large members. Each at-large member of the board will be familiar with one or more of theworking groups. These working groups will take the lead on manyalumni activities –and offer opportunities for those who want to getinvolved. Ideas for working groups are welcome; how and whenthese groups form will vary with needs. This opportunity forincreased connection and involvement will benefit of all members

Join the 6,000 Johnnies already participating in the Alumni OnlineCommunity. Go to: stjohnscollege.edu and click on “Alumni.”

Call for Artists: All-college Alumni and Santa FeFaculty, Staff and Student Art Show

Artists from both campuses are invited to participate in theannual fall art show, which will be on display September 25through October 17, 2010, on the second floor of the PetersonStudent Center. The opening of the show will coincide withHomecoming on the Santa Fe campus. Plan to attend the openingreception Saturday, September 25, 5-7 p.m.Alumni who wish to enter their artwork should contact the

college by August 1 to declare their intent to participate. Entries need to be received no later than September 10.For more details, contact Maggie Magalnick at 505-984-6199 or

e-mail [email protected].

of the college community.


{ S t . J o h n ’ s F o r e v e r }

Before St. John’s gained fame for several lacrossechampionships in the 1930s, there was just one sportat St. John’s: baseball. These serious young men intheir striped jerseys, posed in front of the LibertyTree, were members of the team sometime between1901 and 1905, according to Greenfield Library

records. Football came along in the 1880s and St. John’s fielded

powerhouse teams in football as well as lacrosse. (Johnnies oncedefeated Washington College on the gridiron by a score of 116-0.)Today, Johnnies are much more likely to be playing basketball orsoccer, with Ultimate Frisbee fast becoming a favorite sport forboth Santa Fe and Annapolis Johnnies. Santa Fe students are alsoplaying hockey competitively; they recently captured a city championship. x

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Field of Dreams

{ E i d o s }


Over the last 10 years, textileartist Richard Saja (SF93)has made quite a name forhimself in the designcommunity. He had hisfirst solo show, “The

Bright and Shining Light of Irreverence:Richard Saja and the Historically Inaccu-rate School,” last year at the ShelburneMuseum in Vermont. The New York Timeshas brought attention to his work, whichhas also been praised in Antiquesmagazine,ReadyMade, and O. He also won a Search-light Fellowship from the American CraftsCouncil and was an exhibitor at thecouncil’s 2009 show.

Through his company, Historically Inac-curate Decorative Arts (historically-inaccu-rate.blogspot.com), Saja pursues a uniqueniche in the decorative arts. He takesclassic toile prints and embellishes theirdesigns with hand-embroidered additionsdrawn from his own imagination and senseof humor. Saja describes it as “a cheeky,irreverent take on a pattern of Westerncivilization.”

He began his studies at the PhiladelphiaCollege of Art, spending a year there beforedeciding he needed a fresh perspective. Heheaded to Santa Fe, where he crashed on aJohnnie’s floor, went to class on a lark, andwas “blown away” by St. John’s. He joinedthe January Freshman class in 1990 andremains grateful for the challenging educa-tion he found at the college. “While I wasterrible in math, junior math with JohnCornell was pure magic.”

After graduating from St. John’s, Sajataught himself graphics programs such asPhotoshop and Illustrator and landed a jobin advertising. After a layoff in 2000, heteamed up with Johnnie Martha Alexander(SF95). The two discovered a mutual lovefor textiles, so they joined together tocreate a company, Marisaal, dedicated tocreating hand-embroidered pillows that“made people think.”

After Alexander moved on, Saja hascontinued the work through HistoricallyInaccurate. While the pillows were popular,

Saja began to wonder: “Why am I just doingcushions? I decided to concentrate onlarger-scale pieces,” says Saja. The Shel-burne show in 2009 was a great opportu-nity to showcase his talents. He created anoriginal work of embroidery called JUSTTHIS ONCE, which was paired with the

Erastus Salisbury Field oil painting TheGarden of Eden.

Saja hopes his work is provocative. “A lotof time, art is passive. I want to workaround themes, to use humor, to forcepeople to ask why. A lot of that, I got at St. John’s.” x

Historically Inaccurate Richard Saja (SF93)

24" x 36" and is an archival giclée print on heavy-weight canvas, embroidered withrayon floss, stretched and mounted. The custom toile design of “The Lost Girls” was inspired by J.M. Barrie’s characters from Peter Pan. Right: One of Saja’s “fauxnasetti” bar towels: electronic clip art manipulating the face of a woman used inhundreds of different iterations by Saja’s favorite 20th-century designer, Piero Fornasetti.

Above and left: prints from Richard Saja’s series “The Lost Girls.” Each measures

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