Stephens' 175th anniversary: A Year in Review

The highlights ...

Stephens kicked off its 175th anniversary year with a birthday party and invited the campus community to participate in a semester-long treasure hunt designed to celebrate the College's history.

Illustrious visitors included eco-heroine Simran Sethi and David Batstone, founder of the Not For Sale Campaign Against Human Trafficking.

With Mayor Darwin Hindman, Stephens challenged Columbia residents to lead greener lives, and through the Citizen Jane Film Festival, the College's filmmakers brought to Columbia film enthusiasts from all over the country to celebrate the work of women in front of and behind the camera.

About 300 alumnae came back to Stephens for An Ideal Time!: Reunion 2008, and a few days later students, faculty and staff tucked away memories in the time capsule donated to the College on behalf of all students by the Student Government Association.

The year came to an end with a holiday party inspired by Stephens' rich history and celebrating all she is today.

Happy Birthday, Stephens!
Jan. 31, 2008
Watch the video
View photos

It was January 31 on the year Stephens turned 175 years old ...
Members of the Stephens Concert Choir sang old Stephens songs while hundreds of bemused guests (faculty, staff and students) trickled in and took their seats. The festivities began with a video that took party-goers on a journey through 175 years of history in just under five minutes, and continued with musical performances by the Velvetones, Stephens' a capella jazz ensemble; remarks by President Wendy Libby; and a special appearance by Peter Pan (played by Caroline Rhoads, a junior from Harrisburg, Pa. majoring in theatre) and Captain Hook (played by Rob Doyen, professor of theatre).

Through lively dialogue with Captain Hook, Peter Pan (a wink to former faculty member Maude Adam's most famous Broadway role), announced details of a three-part, semester-long treasure hunt designed to unite the Stephens community in learning about the College's history.

Then, a special announcement was made by Student Government Association President Lindsey Weber, a senior broadcasting major from High Ridge, Mo. Lindsey invited the campus community to give Stephens a birthday present by contributing items to the time capsule that SGA donated at the end of the year as the student body's gift to the College.

After a lively group rendition of "Happy Birthday!" to Stephens, President Libby cut the Queen Cake (the women's college version of the King Cake, a Mardi Gras staple) and was joined by several guests in blowing out birthday candles. And, in the Queen Cake tradition, those who found a little plastic baby in their piece of cake received a year's worth of good luck – or at least a small present!

If you just can't imagine what all this might have looked like, watch the video.

The jesters and queens were part of the "Renaissance court" theme chosen for this birthday party. The theme represented a twist on the remarkable period of growth and revitalization that we have experienced on the Stephens campus in the past few years, a period we have come to know as the Renaissance of Stephens College.

The Hunt for Stephens' Treasure : A three-part treasure hunt
Feb. 15; March 10; April 30 – May 1
See photos from Part III of the hunt

The Stephens story is one of many big events and major milestones, but also one of little-known facts and fascinating anecdotes. The Hunt for Stephens Treasure was conceived as an opportunity for the Stephens community to learn more about the College in its 175th anniversary year, but also as a chance for students, faculty, staff and alumnae to get to know one another better and to realize that they, too, are making history by making Stephens great today.

Participating teams or individuals won prizes after each of the three parts of the hunt. The more they participated, the greater their chances of winning the Grand Prize ($1,000 or a $1,500 scholarship) at the end of the semester.

• Part I was held Feb. 15 from sunrise to sunset. Participants were sent scouting across campus in search of answers to clues designed by the treasure hunt committee, composed of retired faculty members Kelly Archer, Bertrice Bartlett, John Blakemore, Bennie Ruth Gilbert, Alan Havig and Dan Schuffman.

  Team winners
  First: Four Susies and a Max
  Second: The Sailing Stars
  Third: That?fs Not the Stephens Way
  Special mention: The Gold Diggers
  
  Individual winners
  First: Amy Wenzl
  Second: Rachael Henney
  Third: LaParis Phillips

• Part II took the form of a women?'s trivia night, held March 10, in honor of Women?'s History Month. Vicki Russell, associate publisher of the Columbia Daily Tribune and Stephens College trustee, was the emcee for the evening. Participants were tested in categories such as history and politics, places, fashion and sports, all with a focus on women?'s accomplishments.

  Team winners
  First: Prudentilla Dread Rackhams
  Second: Bonny Sparrow Flints
  Third: Morty Bart Pearls Third (tie): Bloody Marys
  
  Individual winners
  First: Calico Jackie (aka Rachael Henney)
  Second: Annie Roberts Kidd (aka Madelyn Kontis)
  Third: Red Bonny (aka Kim Knaust)

• Part III of the hunt had participants find as many items on a list as they could. All they had to do was find the items on the list in any order and take a picture of each. Although some factual information crept into the list and also found its way into the photographs participants submitted, creativity was essential. There was no single right way to interpret the items on this list, but participants showed great imagination! Click here to see some of the pictures they took.
  

  Team winners
  First: That's Not the Stephens Way
  Second: Four Susies and a Max
  Third: The Sailing Stars
  Special mention: The Student Services Scalawags
  
  No individual participants

 

Eco-heroine Simran Sethi visits Stephens during "Women Making History Month"
March 5, 2008

Immersed in a celebration of her 175 years of history, Stephens decided to look toward the future during Women's History Month. As part of what became known around here as "Women Making History Month," the College hosted a talk by Simran Sethi, an award-winning freelance journalist who focuses on social and environmental sustainability.

The talk, titled "Clean Air, Clean Soil, Clean Water: Environmental Access and Justice for All," was introduced with a special announcement by Columbia's Mayor, Darwin Hindman. Right before Sethi took the stage, Mayor Hindman joined Stephens in issuing a "green challenge." Everyone in the community was invited to implement at least one green idea during the month of March (click here to see suggestions given). Then, participants were asked to come back to Stephens on April 2nd to share their experience trying to lead "a greener life."

Sethi's visit to Stephens was a great source of inspiration, as it came in the middle of two green programs launched by Stephens College Going Green (SCG2), a student-led effort to increase awareness and action in matters of sustainability at the College.

Recyclemania (Jan. 27 - April 5) , a friendly contest among hundreds colleges and universities all over the U.S., challenged the Stephens community to step up recycling efforts. During the 10-week competition, students, faculty and staff collected recyclables all over campus and slowly watched the College rise up to 6 th place nationally out of 180 colleges participating in the "Per Capita Classic" category. Stephens also won first place in the paper category nationwide, with a total of 31.82 pounds of paper recycled per person.

The "Kill-a-Watt" program (Feb. 1 ?| April 15), a competition among residence halls to reduce electricity consumption by turning off lights when not in use, also produced results. SCG2 challenged faculty and staff also to save electricity in their areas. As a result of the program, all campus buildings (with only one exception) significantly decreased energy consumption, with more than half registering decreases of between 10 and 40 percent as compared to last year?fs records. Overall, Stephens "killed" a total of 103,120 kilowatt-hours, which represents an 8 percent decrease in total consumption.

 

"A Greener Life": City-Wide Green Challenge Community Forum
April 2, 2008

At this event Columbians had a chance to share their experiences after participating in the ?"green challenge?" issued jointly by Stephens College and Columbia Mayor Darwin Hindman. The challenge, issued on March 5, invited Columbia residents to embrace a more sustainable lifestyle guided by these recommendations.

A panel of experts and informational booths presented other ways to lead a sustainable lifestyle and to maintain it throughout the year. Panelists included:

Barbara Hoppe, Ward 6 Council Representative
Berkley Hudson, MU Journalism professor, former L.A. Times environmental correspondent
Leigh Lockhart, Owner, Main Squeeze Natural Foods Cafe
Brian Pape, Architect
Eric Peterson, President, Septagon Construction
Tony St. Romaine, Assistant City Manager

The following groups had informational booths at the event:

Columbia Farmers?' Market
Boone County Smart Growth Coalition
Brian Pape (Fay Street Lofts)
Colors
Inside Columbia
Missouri River Communities Network
Not for Sale
Peckham & Wright Architects, Inc.
Public Works Volunteer Program (City of Columbia)
Septagon Construction
Stephens College Going Green (Student Government Association initiative)
Water Quality (City of Columbia)
Water and Light (City of Columbia)

Reunion 2008: An Ideal Time!
April 24 – 26, 2008
View photos.

Nearly 300 Stephens alumnae, spouses and families gathered for Reunion 2008: An Ideal Time! In celebration of Stephens' 175th anniversary, a special Ten Ideals Luncheon was held to recognize alumnae who were honored as one of the Ten Ideals during their time at Stephens. Karith Foster '96, comedienne and performer featured on the Don Imus radio show, gave a talk as part of the College's Woman of Distinction Lecture Series. Other weekend events included the traditional Classics Tea; "Jewels & Jods" Prince of Wales charity horse show; "Reflection," the 64th annual student designer fashion show; and Reunion Gala.

 

Do Not Open Until 2033
May 5, 2008

The traditional Midnight Breakfast included, as usual, a DJ and karaoke, but on this special year there were a few surprises. First, the winner of the Kill-A-Watt Competition was announced. Then Peter Pan (aka junior Caroline Rhoads) drew the name of the Grand Prize winner of the Treasure Hunt (financial aid assistant Sheryl Birdsong – to see her with her prize, go here and scroll all the way to the bottom of the page). And last but not least, Stephens' time capsule was sealed until our 200th anniversary, in 2033.

 

David Batstone visits Stephens during Columbia's Human Trafficking Awareness Week
Sept. 14 – 20
Watch an interview with David Batstone during his visit

David Batstone, founder of the Not For Sale Campaign against human trafficking, visited several classes at Stephens and gave a public lecture titled "Generation J (Justice): Roadmaps and Detours." Batstone also conducted a workshop titled "Becoming a Backyard Abolitionist," which laid out specific ways in which students can fight human trafficking "in their own backyards."

Other events during the week included church services, a benefit concert and a town hall meeting.

 

Citizen Jane Film Festival
Oct. 17 – 19, 2008

Our 175th anniversary year also marked the premiere of Stephens' Citizen Jane Film Festival. The festival, which will be held annually, gathered the Columbia community and filmmakers from around the country to celebrate women in film.

The event opened with "Trouble the Water," winner of the 2008 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize, and went on to present a sample of the best of features, documentaries, animation, and experimental and short films, all showcasing women both in front of and behind the camera.

Citizen Jane also featured art installations, rare screenings of short documentaries, handmade films, panel discussions, workshops and screenings with live soundtracks, in addition to an opportunity to interact in an intimate setting with the 20 acclaimed artists and professionals whose work was showcased during the 3-day event.

 

... And Many More!
Dec. 12, 2008
View photos
See the event's program

All aboard! This special event drew inspiration from the Stephens Special, the train that year after year brought Stephens women to campus from all over the country. In that spirit, students, faculty, staff and friends gathered to celebrate everything that Stephens has been and everything that she is today. To cap off the evening and this very special year, the School of Performing Arts hosted a special performance of "Little Women," directed by Broadway actress/producer and Stephens alumna Jana Robbins.