Spring 2008 Viewpoints
The Abbreviated College
What is the name of our college? Is it Mount Holyoke? Or is it Mt. Holyoke? Is it both? Does it matter? For many of my generation, Miss Harriet Newhall was the face of Mount Holyoke College. She told us never, never to abbreviate “Mount” to “Mt.” It simply was wrong. Unfortunately, with the Internet, we now have mtholyoke.edu everywhere. I think the integrity of our college name was sacrificed to save a few keyboard strokes; perhaps mhc. edu would have been a better abbreviation if that were the intent. Mine is a serious question provoked by a slide I recently saw in a presentation at Yale. Our college was shown as Mt. Holyoke, and I cringed a bit. Does the college now approve of that abbreviation in print or only on the Internet?
Barbara Blanco Gaab ‘60
New Haven, Connecticut
[Editor’s note: Miss Newhall would no doubt be pleased to know that Mount Holyoke is used in all college communications. (Mt. Holyoke refers to the mountain, not the college.) Our Web address is mtholyoke.edu, but mhc.edu is already in use by another institution.]
Born Gay, Sister
It just rips my heart apart to read a homophobic letter such as the one Lenora Castles Bryant ’64 sent to the winter 2008 Quarterly. Her reaction to the Jolene Fund (which aids gay Mount Holyoke students who have been cut off from funding by their parents) is not unexpected, simply disappointing and cruel.
One doesn’t choose to become gay. One is born gay. Throughout history there have been gay people who have chosen to live straight lives but at great mental and emotional cost. No one is forcing Ms. Bryant to live the life she has chosen; no one is insisting that she become gay. Why can’t she allow others the same kind of freedom to live an honest, open life?
At Mount Holyoke, one gets a full view of what she terms “both sides” of the sexual orientation question. I always found Mount Holyoke to be strongly “straight” oriented. And I am outraged that she suggests that only straight people face “real” dilemmas. Gays also work, have families, have children, own homes, meet mortgages, put their children through school, and take care of their elderly parents.
Ms. Bryant would throw away those young women who suddenly find themselves without support at Mount Holyoke. What a waste of potential! I suggest that anyone with true family values consider contributing to the Jolene Fund. It embraces what some might consider the more uncommon of Mount Holyoke’s uncommon women. It shows that no one is disposable. The sisterhood of Mount Holyoke is surely strong and thoughtful and charitable enough to embrace all its members.
Pamela Thiele ’70
Lakewood, Colorado
[Editor’s note: See the "comments" section of this site for more comments on this topic.
Ethical Nepal
I was excited to see the article “Doing Well by Doing Good” (fall 2007 Quarterly), but was disappointed that I missed the opportunity to promote my work.
Himalayan Techies (www.himalayantechies.com) is an offshore software development company I founded in 2000 in Katmandu, Nepal. I moved here, after adopting the first of my two Nepali children, so that I could more easily “make a difference.” My company is dedicated to private-sector job creation; we employ educated Nepalis who would otherwise have to leave the country to find meaningful work.
Foreign employment, and the resulting foreign remittances, is the single largest contributor to Nepal’s economy. This, in a country struggling to retain values such as multigenerational families living under one roof. Himalayan Techies is doing its bit to help Nepal retain its unique cultural identity while engaging in the global economy. Living in a part of the world in which aid money calls the shots, I am passionate about for-profit development. Himalayan Techies is living proof that this model works.
We write software, under contract, for small to midsized companies in America and the United Kingdom. Generally, the work would not be done at all if prevailing local wages had to be paid, so we are creating jobs, not stealing them. Significantly, our developers learn how to operate and thrive in an American-style entrepreneurial organization. They learn to question plans and processes proposed by our clients, and me. This translates into a sense of having more power in society. Many of our developers are now actively involved in not-for-profit initiatives outside HT, using their newfound voices to build a better Nepal, and so a better world.
Ellie Skeele ’75
Katmandu, Nepal
What’s Wrong With Me?
It’s alienating enough when you know something is wrong, health-wise; it’s worse when your concerns are dismissed. Hopefully, during Kara Baskin’s odyssey for answers (“Fear Itself,” fall 2007 Quarterly), she did not come across attitudes such as, “What you’re looking for is a doctor who will tell you what you want to hear.” That comment from a medical doctor did not stop my searches, despite my debilitated state. Like Kara, I too, pored over Web sites, even subscribing to Medscape for the latest on osteoporosis—one of the manifestations of my condition. Finally, I found a new family physician who read my lab reports with care, discovering the underlying cause of several issues. Now in my third year of revisions, with proper attention to complications and better nutritional guidance, I’m aiming to fully function again someday. Kara’s article should help those debilitated by little-understood conditions, or by medical inattentiveness. It should also inspire those who persist in seeking solutions when something is not quite right.
Sydney Hedderich ’74
Toronto, Canada
Outsourcing Child Study?
Today I received the news that the College is revamping its children’s services, which in effect will change the quality of programming for MHC students studying in the Psychology and Education Department as well as for the children and families attending. I have been following the discussions from afar with interest since I have been an MHC student in the program, a parent of children attending the Gorse Child Study Center, and a teacher at Gorse. I know intimately the quality of the programming that Gorse provides for both students and children.
I am so disappointed to hear that the program will be “outsourced.” Our college will be losing a program that is unique and serves the students in ways that will not be able to be replicated. Surely there is a way for the college to avoid following in the footsteps of major corporations that consolidate services to the detriment of the consumer.
Suzannah Heard FP’77
Arrowsic, Maine
[Editor’s note: For details on the college’s decision, see the brief in Campus Currents; more comments about Gorse are online at alumnae.mtholyoke.edu.]
New Letters Policy
We continue to welcome letters for the printed Quarterly. In addition, readers are encouraged to post their comments to the Quarterly’s online “blogazine.” Letters for which we don’t have room in the printed magazine will be posted online. In turn, comments from the blogazine may be published in the printed magazine, as space permits.
The editors will edit correspondence for accuracy and clarity and to meet space needs.
Three ways to share your thoughts:
- POST COMMENTS on the blogazine (click on “add/view comments.”)
- SEND AN E-MAIL to associate editor Mieke Bomann at mbomann@mtholyoke.edu.
- MAIL A LETTER to Mieke Bomann, Alumnae Quarterly, Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075-1486.
