Page Eight
THE BENNETT BANNER
FRIDAY, JANUARY 27, 1978
First ISP Grads Set High Marks
Judging from the performance
of the first class of Interdisciplin
ary Studies Program (ISP) stu
dents, graduates of the program
are bent on distinguishing them
selves.
A recent survey of the class of
’75, the first graduates of the pro
gram, which elicited responses
from 19 of the 20 graduates, re
vealed that the majority have gone
on for advanced study and many
have already been awarded ad
vanced degrees or are anticipating
them soon.
Linda Davis-Raiford, whose
concentration was in political
science, is a third-year law stu
dent at the Antioch School of Law
in Washington, D. C. and is ex
pecting to be awarded the degree
of juris doctor in May. Lucia is
also working part-time in legal
assistance. But she does not intend
to stop there. She notes that she
is planning to take a job in the
legal field after she receives her
McCoy’s
Jackie William
Not many women are sales ser
vice supervisors for a major na
tional insurance company.
Shirlene McCoy, ’75, interdisci
plinary studies major with a con
centration in business and mass
media, is one of those few. She is
with the Metropolitan Insurance
Co. as a sales service supervisor
for group insurance.
Her job is to visit policy holders
who usually are the presidents or
vice presidents of corporations
and to do an “enrollment.” An en
rollment is explaining to employ-
“Do things in a manner which
you would be proud of, and try
to live your life in a manner that
would inspire others or influence
someone else positively,” said
Diane Jones, a media specialist, in
expressing the philosophy of life
that has guided her.
Diane D. Jones is a Bennett
College graduate of 1974. Her ma
jor was history and her minor was
library science. She is presently
employed as a media specialist on
educational leave. She is attend
ing graduate school at the Univer
sity of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill and is a student in the mas
ter’s program in Library Science.
Media specialist is the career
that Diane had in mind while she
was a student at Bennett. She had
planned to go on to advanced
study after graduating from Ben
nett. She feels the longer you wait
Keeping Up with
by Jacqueline Roberts
“The choice of career is not
as important as one’s interest
in that field. When you get a
job you must be interested
and willing enough to con
tinue to keep up with the new
and changing technology in
your field,” says Dorothine
Murphy, an alumna of Ben
nett College.
Dorothine was a mathe
matics major when she at
tended Bennett College. She is
a graduate of 1971. Her pres
ent profession is operation
research analyst at the Engi
neering Topographic Labora
tory in Fort Belvoir, Va.
Bennett helped Dorothine
prepare for her present ca
reer. “My present position
deals with research in cost
and operational analysis of
military geographic informa
tion. This involves using an-
doctorate and begin work on a
masters in business administration
with “an eye towards a career in
investment banking and/or cor
porate financing.”
Master’s degrees are in abund-
dance. Polly Ashley Douglas,
whose concentrations were biolo
gy and chemistry received her
M.S. from the Harvard School of
Public Health and is presently
engaged in research in nutrition
in the School of Education at Har
vard. She is also trying to decide
she says, “whether my next degree
will be an M.B.A., a Ph.D. in
nutrition, or a law degree.”
Agnes Duncan, who graduated
from Bennett with a psychology
concentration, has received the
M.S. degree from Roosevelt Uni
versity in Chicago and is working
as a therapist for the Chicago De
partment of Mental Health. Gwen
McLean Mami, another political
science student, earned the M.A.
degree in Urban Planning from
ees their benefits and getting them
to sign up. for group insurance.
She also does “installations” which
is setting up the plan of adminis
tration.
Shirlene, who comes from Co
lumbus, Georgia, covers four dis
tricts in Atlanta.
“I work with agents and brokers
in the capacity of a group repre
sentative,” says Shirlene. “This is
a pretty challenging position in
that there are no other females
in this position in the Southeas
tern Region.”
When asked if the career she
to return to graduate school the
harder it is to get back into the
“swing of things.”
Bennett helped to prepare Diane
for her present career. “The li
brary science program at Bennett
was well-rounded in that I was
exposed to a lot of information
needed for me to function in my
job and feel confident in knowing
what to do and how to do it,” said
Diane.
Diane feels that neither her race
nor her sex was of significance in
her career. “I feel that my career
has been influenced mainly by the
type of work I attempted to do. If
your grades are of high caliber,
and if you have high recommen
dations from instructors, you can
find a job of some nature. After
that it’s up to you to prove your
self and if you can do that, no
matter what yovir sex or race is,
then there is nothing that can be
said,” said Diane.
Diane’s motivation to succeed
alytical techniques to make
and validate conclusions used
to develop recommendations
in systems concepts and de
sign. Therefore, the mathe
matical and programming
skills that I obtained at Ben
nett have played a very im
portant role in preparing me
for a career in Operation Re
search Analysis,” said Doro
thine.
Dorothine feels that her
race and sex have been an
advantage in her career.
“Pressure is being put on
companies and organizations
to increase the number of
qualified black minorities in
the higher level positions. As
a black woman today it is to
my advantage to get the ex
perience, training and self
development needed so that I
can take advantage of this
effort,” she said.
Trinity University, San Antonio,
Texas, and is now in law school
in Houston.
Balaynesh Tekeste, who concen
trated in library science, has
earned an M.S. degree in library
science and media.
Janice Hatch Canady, who con
centrated in elementary education,
is employed as a classroom teach
er in the Dekalb County (Ga.)
school system and is working on
an M.A. at Georgia State Univer
sity which she expects to complete
in 1979.
A business and mass media stu
dent, Shirlene McCoy, is working
on a master’s degree in business
administration (MBA) at Atlanta
University and Georgia State
while she holds the position of
acocunt representative for group
insurance and pensions at the
Metropolitan Life Insurance Com
pany in Atlanta.
LaRita Sprott, a mathematics
and French student at Bennett, is
now has is the one she had in
mind while she was a student, she
replied, “Yes and no. While a stu
dent, I was unaware of the man.v
opportunities available in the in
surance industry. I did however
anticipate a career that would in-
ter-relate many skills and inter
ests. In this sense, my career is
what I had in mind.” This is why
she chose to be an interdisciplin
ary studies major.
Shirlene definitely feels that
Bennett helped her for her pre
sent career. She feels that she re
ceived “intellectual and creative
came from her family, instnjctors
at Bennett, and her belief in her
self. The teachers that helped her
most in preparing for a career and
in life were Carrie Shute, assistant
professor of library science; Wil
liam Alcorn, assistant professor of
education; Willie Mae McCallum,
assistant professor of social science
and academic advising; and Linda
Addo, assistant professor of his
tory. “These people really stood
behind me, pushed me when they
felt that I could do better. I really
appreciate their belief in me which
in turn caused me to believe in
myself,” said Diane.
Diane has some advice for
“Bennett Belles” on choosing and
preparing careers: “Think big
when choosing a career. Go into
a field where there aren’t many
black women. Never set your
sights too low or underestimate
yourself. Attend graduate school
immediately after undergraduate
school.”
Dorothine advises Belles
preparing for careers, “Don’t
just do enough to get by. Pre
pare yourself for a career by
taking advantage of all the
knowledge that Bennett has
to offer.”
Though she isn’t married
yet, she thinks that it is pos
sible to reconcile marriage
with a career. “Pm working
with professional women who
seem to have successful mar
riages. It seems that married
career women have more sat
isfying relationships with
their mates than housewives
who don’t work outside the
home,” she said.
The philosophy of life that
has guided Dorothine “is to
continue to set goals and ob
jectives and try to achieve as
many of them as possible
while at the same time enjoy
ing myself.”
an engineer planner with General
Dynamics in Fort Worth, Texas
but finds time to work on an
M.S. in Industrial Administration
at the University of Dallas.
After concentrating in mass
media at Bennett, Tsedale Mulu-
getta moved into a position as a
seminar executive for the Inter
national Association of Business
Communicators in San Francisco.
She says her job is primarily in
the area of public relations and
“there is never a dull moment.”
She is also working on an M.A.
in Broadcast Communication Arts.
Kathleen Hicks Suggs, after
studying special and intermediate
education at Bennett, works in
special education with the Guil
ford County Public Schools in
Greensboro and is working on an
M.A. at the University of North
Carolina at Greensboro.
One of the classes’ two Air
Force Officers is Lt. Yardley Nel
son who is an air training officer
Woman
experiences” which gave her con
fidence. This increased her percep
tion, enabling her to relate “pos
itively and work effectively” with
people of different backgrounds
and cultures.
When asked what advice she
would give Bennett Belles now on
the choice of careers, she said,
“Explore as many areas or job
opportunities as are available in
making a choice. You may be
astounded to find that certain
careers that you always consid
ered boring have areas of interest
that can be quite fulfilling.”
“Speech is very important as is
appearance. Procrastination is no
good; organization a must,” she
said.
Developing skills in speaking,
reading and writing to the utmost,
she feels, is a good way to prepare
for any career.
The motivation that pushed her
to succeed was, “An independence
that I’ve had since childhood,
coupled with the desire to reach
my fullest potential.”
“Don’t expect handouts. Hard
work mixed with moderate pleas
ure and determination leads to
wards success,” Shirlene said.
Shirlene feels that her race and
sex were an advantage in getting
her hired. However, it has not
determined or affected how suc
cessful she has been. She had to
work extra hard to be better than
the next guy to prove her success.
She feels that if she had to do
it again she would choose Bennett.
Her vivid memories of her years
at Bennett included I,S.P. classes.
Diversion I and II, the Concert
and Gospel choirs, and A&T. She
felt the choirs were a beautiful
experience. They even recorded an
album while she was here.
Shirlene feels that Dr. Helen
Trobian was most influential as
was Barbara Procton. Courses in
speech and forensics, synergetic
strategies, mass media, and the
Guided Individual Study Program,
as well as problems seminars were
valuable in preparing her for her
carrer. Her Co-Operative Educa
tion experience under the direc
tion of Mrs. Mae Nash also pre
pared her.
Although Shirlene is not now
married, she believes that a carecr
can be reconciled with marriaged.
She said, “While a husband, chil
dren and family life are important
to me, so is my individuality. I
wouldn’t feel complete in one
without the other.”
Finally Shirlene gives a few
words of advice. “I must empha
size, to graduating seniors espe
cially, the importance of taking
advantage of any and all inter
views available, even for positions
you feel you’re sure you don’t
want. You will find that you’ll
have more selections when making
important decisions of which job
to take.”
at the U. S. Air Force Academy
and is working on an M.A. in
Guidance and Counselling at Colo
rado University. Yardley’s field of
study at Bennett was English.
The second Air Force officer is
Lt. Dyora Thomas Kinsey who is
on a joint assignment with her
husband at March Air Force Base
in California. Dyora studied diete
tics at Bennett.
Valerie Tillman Southerland,
who concentrated in English, is
working as a telephone operator
in Toronto, Canada. Valerie has
done advanced study in photog
raphy and plans to enter graduate
school in Buffalo, New York.
Paulette Wicks has completed at
Tuskegee an internship in diete
tics, a field she pursued at Ben
nett, and is a specialist in cardiac
nutrition and responsible for staff
development and education at the
Veterans Administration hospital
in Buffalo, New York.
After concentrating in arts and
humanities at Bennett, Gina Mc-
.'Vdoo is presently employed as a
receptionist/secretary at the Of
fice of Undei'graduate Financial
.■^id at Duke University and plan
ning to enter law school at North
Carolina Central University in the
fall of 1978. She hopes to work in
the area of criminal reform for
juveniles.
Jacqueline Hemphill, who con
centrated in sociology and music,
is minister of music at the Christ
Lutheran Church in Greenville,
Alabama, where she was formerly
director of music at Lomax-
Hannon Junior College.
A secretarial position with
Southern Bell in Charlotte, N. C.,
was the fruit of Jacqueline How
ard’s study of secretarial science
at Bennett.
Two other members of the class
who have stayed close to home
are Connell Pinnix Burnette, who
concentrated in social welfare and
is now employed as a bank teller
in Burlington; and Gail Dickerson,
who concentrated in French, and
is employed by Rolane Corpora
tion in Greensboro.
The most distant member of the
class is Chris Ofoma Obiagi who
is now teaching art, her area of
concentration, in a secondary
school in her home country of
Nigeria.
Information on more recent
graduates is not as full yet as on
the class of ’75 but encouraging
reports are coming from them,
too. Cheryl 1L Johnson, ’76, has
just completed her master’s in
journalism at the University of
Michigan and is working for the
Booth Newspaper chain on their
paper in Flint, Michigan. Cheryl
concentrated in communications
media and was editor of the
Banner for two years.
Kris Dennard, ’76, is teaching
dance in a public school in Detroit.
Deborah Lundy is in her second
year of dental school at Howard.
Clarencia Simmons Collins is in
chemical research work and took
a graduate course in the fall
semester.
Janice Blair vanjohnson, after
a year and a half as financial
coordinator for the Women’s In
ternational League of Peace and
Freedom, has now stepped up, as
of November, to coordinator of
recruitment for the American
Friends Service Committee.
Rita Duren was selected to par
ticipate in a special graduate pro
gram at Florida International
University, for the severely/pro
foundly retarded. She is now
teaching in a special education
position and “loves every minute
of it.”
A look at the class of ’77 reveals
that Sheree Johnson is in law
school at Columbia University and
Thorna Humphries is studying
computer science at Massachusetts
Institute of Technology. Both have
graduate fellowships.
Katie Gailes, who graduated in
December 1977 after remaining an
extra semester to complete a con
centration in accounting, is cur
rently employed by IBM.
74 Graduate Advises: Take Pride in Doing Things Well
by Sheila Purnell
Job Unusual For
Technology Vital Says Math Grad