Thirty-three alumnae who first stepped on campus in 1974 returned to campus on September 12 for a weekend celebrating their contributions to the school and allowing them to get to know the school of today.
In the Rotunda, an exhibit entitled “The Road to Coeducation” displays photographs of each of the 89 pioneers. An artwork of the school’s façade made up of signatures from matriculations by Marisin McLain ’25 hangs outside the English Wing, and the pioneers were invited to add their names to the piece as part of the celebration.
The weekend’s programming began with a tour of Fairfield Farm and main campus. Alumnae then visited Buehler, the first all-girls dormitory, where they all lived together five decades ago.
On Friday, September 13, four pioneers led a panel at All-School Meeting alongside McLain, Aaliyah Wang ’25 and Lucy Hall ’25, three members of the student steering committee, in which they shared their experiences and gave advice to current students. After a Q&A session, the women participated in classes, choosing from “Anatomy of Revolutions” with Mr. Tom Drake, instructor of history; “Upper Mid English” with Dr. Katie Fleishman, head of the English department; and “Russian History” with Mr. Keith Moon, instructor in English and history.
The pioneers then had lunch with students in the FFC. Ophelia Cham ’25, captain of the dance team, spoke with a pioneer who danced while a student at the school. Cham said, “I told her about our recent dance events, such as the inter-school dance show last spring. She said that she was so proud of us for the work we have done to expand the program and she hopes that our experiences performing will help us grow our confidence at school and in the outside world.”
The celebration, planned by Ms. Robin Chandler ’87, communications project manager, and the school’s adult and student steering committees, has been in the works for over two years. Ms. Chandler said, “As project manager for the 50th, I wanted students to know the history of coeducation at Hotchkiss, what it took to get here, what it was like in the beginning, and of course, what has happened over those 50 years leading us to today.”
