Browse Items (55 total)
- Collection: Skidmore College Retirees
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Interview with Vasantha Narasimhan
Vasantha Narasimhan joined the Skidmore faculty in 1980 to offer courses in organic and biochemical chemistry. She introduced the importance of hands-on undergraduate research and began Skidmore students’ participation in the regional American…
Interview with Tom Denny
Tom Denny grew up in Pittsburgh and received his graduate degree at the Eastman School of Music. He arrived at Skidmore in 1982 and spent his entire career in the Music Department, serving as department chair for a number of years. He experienced…
Interview with Tim Brown
Tim Brown joined the Skidmore faculty in 1979 as Athletic Director and Chair of the Physical Education and Dance Department, with a mandate to develop an intramural and intercollegiate athletic program and to attract men to the College which had…
Interview with Terry Diggory
After earning his D. Phil. at Oxford, Terry Diggory was born outside began teaching at Skidmore in the Fall of 1977, offering courses in poetry and the Classical World. He participated programs at the College, broadly including the Classical Studies…
Interview with Susan Zappen
Susan Zappen came to Skidmore in 1995 as a head of Scribner Library technical services. She was named Associate College Librarian for Collections in 2001. Susan was active in the greater library community; she was president of ENY/ACRL, and named…
Interview with Susan Kress
Susan Kress joined Skidmore’s English faculty in 1975 and retired in 2013. During her years at Skidmore she served as chair of the English Department, chair of 3 major college committees, Vice President for Academic Affairs, and Acting President…
Interview with Susan J. Bender
Susan Bender, was a faculty member in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work from 1982-2010 and also served as Associate Dean of the Faculty from 1998-2002. In this interview she covers her academic background in archeology; being…
Interview with Sue Van Hook
A member of the Biology Department faculty from 1992 to 2010, Sue Van Hook was a senior teaching associate specializing in botany and mycology. She was a leader in campus sustainability projects and in the stewardship of Skidmore’s North Woods. In…
Interview with Sue Rosenberg
Sue Rosenberg joined Skidmore’s Office of Communications & Marketing as a writer/editor in 1992, after having worked in publications at Kenyon College and SUNY Binghamton. Her major responsibility was to shape the publication of Scope, Skidmore’s…
Interview with Steve Otrembiak
Former Skidmore College media technician, Saratoga Native, and second generation Skidmore employee, Steve Otrembiak, recalls his extensive, over 30-year career working in a growing and changing community. As someone who has witnessed the college’s…
Interview with Sarah Goodwin
Sarah Goodwin joined the Skidmore English faculty in 1983 teaching courses in composition, women’s studies, British romantic poetry, feminist theory and participated in the Liberal Studies program. Her passion was interdisciplinary thinking and…
Interview with Sandy Welter
Sandra Welter began at Skidmore in 1968 as a teacher in the University Without Walls (UWW) program at the Washington County Correctional Facility. She later became a full-time advisor for that program and finally its Director until the program…
Interview with Ruth Copans
Ruth Copans joined the Scribner library staff in 1991, serving as the Humanities Librarian and overseer of Special Collections. During the library’s first renovation, Ruth was named the Library Director, and she oversaw the completion of that…
Interview with Robert Foulke
Robert Foulke was a member of Skidmore’s English department from 1970-1992 and served as department chair for ten of those years. In this interview, he discusses department leadership, changes in the English curriculum, developing a winter term class…
Interview with Robert Boyers
Robert Boyers, came to Skidmore in 1969 as a professor of English and editor-in-chief of "Salmagundi Magazine," which has been housed at the College ever since. In this interview, Professor Boyers talks about the journal’s influence on campus and…
Interview with Robert (Bob) Mahoney
Robert P. Mahoney was a professor of biology at Skidmore from 1964 to 1994, with interests centering on microbiology, electron microscopy, and bioethics. He also was instrumental starting Skidmore’s tradition of support for the Red Cross, launching…
Interview with Ralph Ciancio
Ralph Ciancio was a member of Skidmore’s English faculty 1965-2000 and served as department chair, in addition to his service on numerous important all-college committees. In this interview he talks about challenges and changes in the English…
Interview with Philip Glotzbach
Phil Glotzbach, Skidmore president from 2003-2020, grew up in the mid-west, received his undergraduate degree in philosophy from Notre Dame and his Ph.D from Yale in 1972. After years as a professor in the philosophy department at Denison, he became…
Interview with Penny Jolly
Penny Jolly grew up in the greater New York City area where she was very influenced by museums in the city. After undergraduate study at Oberlin and graduate degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, Penny arrived at Skidmore in 1976 where she…
Interview with Patricia Rubio
Patricia Rubio began her career at Skidmore in 1983 after graduating from Valparaiso University in Chile and, after arrival at Skidmore, her PhD at the University of Alberta in Canada. She filled many roles at Skidmore - coordinator of the…
Interview with Patricia Poirier
Patricia Poirier came to Skidmore in 1979 as a support staff member in the President’s Office and retired as the Coordinator of Biographical Records in the Office of Advancement in 2020. In her 41 years at Skidmore, Pat worked under four Presidents,…
Interview with Mimi Ciancio
Mimi Ciancio, held a variety of positions at Skidmore College. She started out as an active faculty wife in 1965, worked briefly in the Admissions Office, then was hired to teach in the English department. She later became one of the creators of…
Interview with Michael Arnush
Michael Arnush came to Skidmore in 1989 as Director of Classical Studies, after receiving his PhD in classics and ancient history from the University of Pennsylvania. He served many roles during his tenure at the College: he taught Greek and Latin…
Interview with Mark Hofmann
Mark Hofmann came to Skidmore in 1985 as Assistant Professor in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department. He served as Chair of the department, became a Full Professor and from 2005-2008 served as an Associate Dean of the Faculty. In this…
Interview with Lynne Gelber
Lynne Gelber, was at the college from 1966-2002 as a faculty and later chair of the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department (now World Languages and Literatures). In this interview she discusses establishing the first Skidmore-run study abroad…
Interview with Louise B. Wise
Louise Beinetti Wise, a 1940 Skidmore graduate, served as president of the then-College Government Association while a student and was active in the Alumni Association after earning a degree in theater. She joined the Admissions staff in 1970,…
Interview with Lisa Aronson
Lisa Aronson joined Skidmore’s Art History faculty in 1986. In this interview she traces her academic journey to Skidmore and reflects on the influences that led her to specialize in the study if African textiles. While at Skidmore, Aronson…
Interview with Leo Geoffrion
Leo Geoffrion joined Skidmore’s Information Technology staff in 1982 at a time when computer usage at the college was limited and its support staff quite small. Over the next 22 years Geoffrion oversaw the development of academic computing and…
Interview with Larry Ries
Larry Ries came to Skidmore in 1979 after teaching and working in the administration for 9 years at SUNY-Albany. His initial job was as an advisor in the University Without Walls prison program at Great Meadows Correctional Facility. He later became…
Interview with Kathy Carter
Kathy Carter joined Skidmore’s Human Resources team in 1986 where her primary responsibilities included administering the college’s benefits programs and managing its labor relations. In this interview she describes transitioning from a corporate to…
Interview with Karl Broekhuizen
Karl Broekhuizen came to Skidmore in 1981 as Vice President of Business Affairs and remained in that position until 2005. In this interview he describes his path to Skidmore, including his education and experiences as a financial officer at other…
Interview with Judy Halstead
After receiving her PhD in physical chemistry from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Judy Halstead taught at Russell Sage and Williams Colleges before joining Skidmore’s Chemistry Department in 1986. In addition to teaching general and…
Interview with John Cunningham
John Cunningham grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut. In this interview he discusses how he combined his interest in physical chemistry and math with the art influence that surrounded him since childhood. After receiving a BA and MFA from Yale, he…
Interview with John Anzalone
Since September 1985, John Anzalone has been a professor of French at Skidmore College. An interdisciplinary scholar, Anzalone has taught in language, film, and the art of translation. He was centrally involved with Skidmore’s study abroad programs…
Interview with Joanna Zangrando
During her years at the College (1976-2007), Joanna Zangrando was a central figure in Skidmore’s American Studies Department and a leading voice for incorporating interdisciplinarity and the study of diverse perspectives into the College curriculum.…
Interview with Joan Berenguer
Joan Berenguer came to Skidmore in 1974. She taught Spanish in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures for two years and then served as an academic advisor for UWW in 1978-79. When Skidmore began its own junior year abroad programs,…
Interview with Jill Sweet
Jill Sweet intended to be a dancer, but her work with native Americans to learn about their dance turned into an interest in cultural anthropology which she studied at the University of New New Mexico before coming to Skidmore in 1981. In this…
Interview with Isabelle Williams
Isabelle Williams arrived at Skidmore in 1972 and contributed to every corner of the campus over the next twenty-one years. Educator, pianist, administrator. Dr. Williams consistently demonstrated her deep dedication to the life of the mind and the…
Interview with Eric Weller
Eric Weller joined the Philosophy Faculty at Skidmore in 1963. He became Dean of the Faculty in 1975, a post that he retained until 1990. Despite Weller’s substantial administrative responsibilities, teaching philosophy remained a…
Interview with Eleanor Samworth
Eleanor Samworth came to Skidmore in 1964. During her tenure she experienced the move to the new campus, growth in student enrollments, inception of coeducation in 1970, expansion of Liberal Studies, and computer use as central to many disciplines. …