Stay Connected to Smith
The Office of Alumnae Relations and Development welcomes you to “Stay Connected to Smith,” where you can explore the vibrant tapestry of Smith’s academic, cultural, and social initiatives. Here, you’ll find a wealth of engaging content, from thought-provoking lectures to insightful articles and impactful student projects, all to keep you connected, informed, and inspired.
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Learn Something New
- Associate Professor Alex Barron was part of the research team behind a new study which found that decreased air pollution from net zero policies could reduce early deaths in the U.S. by between 4,000 and 15,000 a year by 2035. Quoted in The Guardian, Barron said, “A decarbonised society means cleaner air. At the same time, how many clean air benefits we realise and who benefits will depend on how policymakers shape this transition.”
- Giovanna Bellesia, professor emerita of Italian studies, and Victoria Poletto, senior lecturer emerita in Italian language and literature, collaborated to translate My Language Is a Jealous Lover by Adrián Bravi; in recognition of their work on the book, they received the 2024 Translated Literature Award from the Massachusetts Book Awards.
- Christophe Golé, professor of mathematical sciences, and his co-authors explore questions about botanical spirals in their new book, Do Plants Know Math: Unwinding the Story of Plant Spirals, from Leonardo da Vinci to Now.
- Associate Professor Kate Soper recently released a recording of her critically acclaimed opera The Romance of the Rose. According to BroadwayWorld, the opera “blends medieval and contemporary allegory to dramatize how love, sex, and music wreak havoc on our sense of self.” Soper was also named the 2024 Kravis Emerging Composer. Her NY Phil-commissioned work will premiere in May.
- Carrie Baker, Sylvia Dlugasch Bauman Chair of American Studies and Professor of the Study of Women and Gender, is the author of “Misogynist Manifesto,” a three-part series of articles about Project 25 published in Ms. magazine.
- In the exhibit Fatal Flora: Poisonous Revenge Narratives, Susan Montomgery, who teaches drawing at Smith, asks how in the hands of knowledgeable women, the natural world can be transformed from medicinal to murderous in a pinch, dash or splash of ingredients. Fatal Flora is on view through January 2025.
- This fall, the New York Historical Society presents Real clothes, real lives: 200 years of what women wore, the Smith College Historic Clothing Collection.
- Check out Smith Executive Education to enroll in women’s leadership programs.
Offerings for Alums
Feel Good
- To help us celebrate the college’s 150th anniversary, send a love story to Smith. Write about a favorite place on campus, an influential professor or staff member, an enduring memory or friendship—something that captures the essence of what makes Smith special. We’ll post responses to this page and possibly use some of the stories in an upcoming issue of the Smith Quarterly.
- Smithies from across the globe gathered in Paris for the 2024 Smith in Europe Reunion.
- Sip, sip, hooray! First introduced during the inauguration of President Sarah Willie-LeBreton, Smith’s two custom tea blends are available for sale.
- Check out the winners of the Global Encounters Photo Contest.
- Download a beautiful Smith photo for your Zoom background.
Smithies Create
Check out a selection of the books by Smithies being released in 2025:
- The Last Bookstore on Earth by Lily Braun-Arnold ’26
- Feminism in the Wild: How Human Biases Shape Our Understanding of Animal Behavior by Melina Packer ’04 and Ambika Kamath
- Mostly French: Recipes from a Kitchen in Provence (A Cookbook) by Makenna Held ’07
- The Gloomy Girl Variety Show: A Memoir by Freda Epum ’15
- purl by Michele Evans (Michele Peterson Evans ’94)
Smithies have made their mark in literature. If you would like to have your work appear on our list of Smithie authors, please fill out this form.
Connect with Campus
Smithies in the Community
- In an article for the Washington Post, Olivia Rynberg-Going ’23 speaks about working for the U.S. Department of Justice. “I wanted to work for the civil rights division … to change the world, make America more equitable. But I’ve found the ability to think that way about antitrust law,” she says.
- Nancy Erba ’88 was one of four finance leaders honored by the Silicon Valley chapter of Financial Executives International for their outstanding professional achievements. Erba serves as the chief financial and accounting officer for Infinera, a company that specializes in fiber-optic telecommunications solutions.
- Olivia Dufour ’20 was hired by the Great Meadows Public Health Collaborative as its first Substance Use Prevention Coordinator.
- As the inaugural assistant director of Saint Mary’s College LGBTQ+ Center, Eli Williams ’13 focuses on creating spaces where students feel respected and valued. “Smith was empowering for me personally and professionally, in the same way Saint Mary’s is for its students. I honestly feel I have found my dream job,” she tells The Observer.
- Miroslava Prazak ’79, an anthropologist and Bennington College faculty member, was one of four fellows recently inducted into the Vermont Academy of Arts and Sciences.
- Thelma Golden ’87, director and chief curator at the Studio Museum in Harlem, and Tigress Osborn ’96, fat rights advocate and chair of the board of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, and are among TIME Magazine’s most influential people of 2024.
