The African American Alumnae/i of Vassar College (AAAVC) celebrated its 13th Triennial April 9-11, hosting nearly 100 alumnae/i of the College. While the event was virtual, Karen Roberts Turner ’86 echoed what many AAAVC members expressed throughout the weekend: “The virtual platform actually allowed some alums to participate who otherwise might not have been able to travel. I was delighted to reconnect with so many of the people who made my Vassar experience as a student and as an alum so incredibly meaningful,” she said.
This year, the alumnae/i association, AAVC, turns 150. Throughout 2021, the College will be celebrating this anniversary by highlighting a few of Vassar’s most notable alumnae/i in architecture, arts, business, education, entertainment, healthcare, humanitarian efforts, law, social justice, and technology.
In conjunction with a Poughkeepsie nonprofit, Vassar faculty, administrators, and students are helping to shed light on the contributions of enslaved Africans and their descendants to the growth and prosperity of the Hudson Valley.
Throughout a wide-ranging career in the Episcopal priesthood, Rev. Canon Petero Sabune ’77 has tackled issues as global as the acceptance of women priests in Africa and as local as the food insecurity of his neighbors in Mount Vernon, NY.
Dr. Barbara Barlow ’60, an award-winning pediatric surgeon, has worked tirelessly to prevent traumatic injury to children throughout her long and distinguished career.
Four alumnae/i journalists recently engaged in a lively Zoom panel discussion, “American Democracy at a Crossroad: Views from the Media,” presented by the Office of Regional and International Programs.
Connor Towne O’Neill ’11’s book Down Devil’s Bones: A Reckoning with Monuments, Memory and the Legacy of White Supremacy is a mix of history, reporting, and memoir that explores the conflicts over Confederate monuments.
Thanks to a donation from Vassar Trustee Debra Fagel Treyz ’74 and her husband, Jim, scholars from all over the world can now easily gain access to information about Vassar’s Archives and Special Collections.
