jMeredith
March 26, 2002
ERALD
Volume XVIII, Issue
Graduation speaker announced
□ Commence
ment speaker
confirmed just in
time for graduation.
Christina Holder
Editor In Chief
The College confirmed
yesterday that author Marion
Luna Brem will address the
Class of 2002 on May 12 in
the Mclver Amphitheatre, an
announcement that comes
with only a little over a month
left before the exercises lake
place.
Brem has gained national
recognition for her book The
Seven Greatest Truths About
Successful Women, a work that
recounts her rise as a
successful entrepreneur in the
male-dominated automotive
industry despite a battle with
cancer.
The book was named one of
the Ten Business Books for
2001,
Brem is part of only 3% of
women who own automotive
dealerships in the United
States. She now owns two
franchises in Corpus Christi,
Texas, and four other speakers.
agency, a pub-1
lishing compa
ny, a real estate
firm and part of
a local bank.
The official
decision to
invite Brem
came after
months of
debate among a
commencement
committee
composed of Dr.
Maureen
Hartford,
President of the
College; Rory
Mueller,
assistant to the
President; Dr.
Rosalind
Reichard, vice
president of
Academic
Affairs and the
officers of the
senior class.
The
committee
began meeting
officially in
early September
to draft a list of
prospective
businesses including an ad
Among those
Author and entrepreneur Marion Luna Brem will
address the Class of 2002 on May 12.
COiJBTESY OF THE OFFICE OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS
on the list,
according to
Mueller, were
news anchors
such as Katie
Couric of
NBC’s The
^ Today Show
and Leslie Stahl
of CBS’s 60
minutes', New
York mayor
Rudy Guillani
and a New York
City firefighter.
Senior class
President
Christine Kel
ley said that
intially the
committee was
looking for
women
speakers related
to the news
media or who
were involved
in Sept. 11.
However,
Kelley said that
i“after Sept. 11,
I [the committee]
I had a hard time
getting
someone” to
commit to the
commencement
date because of the volatile
nature of the journalism
field.
According to Kelley,
Mueller suggested contacting
Brem.
"We needed a speaker,”
said Kelley, and Brem met the
committee’s requirement of
“a woman who had really
done something.”
Senior Courtney Arrington
said that after Senate candi
date Elizabeth Dole spoke at
commencement last year, she
was hoping Ds?le could
“come back two years in a
row.”
“When I heard Liddy Dole
was coming.” said Arrington,
“1 thought Meredith was
coming into her own.”
Kelley said that she is
pleased with the committee’s
selection.
“A woman overcoming
challenges is great for any
young woman going out into
the world,” she said. “I think
she appeals to all the
students.”
The College's students will
see
SPEAKER
page four
Landscape master plan in progress
□ Renovations will
^protect the natural
beauty of
Meredith.”
LaDonna Lcx^ue
Siafl Writer
Beginning soon, Meredith
College will be taking on a
new look—again.
With the help of Shepley
Bulfinch Richardson and
Abbott, a design firm, some
student suggestions for
improving the campus will be
taken seriously and perhaps
reevaluated in a new
master plan.
One representative of the
firm. Bill Colehower, said,
“An important challenge of
the 'master plan’ will be to
devise strategies that protect
the natural beauty of
Meredith.”
Over the past couple of
weeks, representatives from
the design finn have met with
both students and faculty to
receive suggestions and begin
planning for renovations.
The Student Government
Association for 2002-2003 was
able to meet with the firm
March 19.
Some of the student requests
voiced by SGA included a
game room for males and
females to spend time together
on campus and extended hours
of the BeeHive.
There was also an open
forum for faculty and students
last Thursday, Mar. 21 in the
Chapel.
The firms representatives on
campus included; Carol
Wedge, principal in charge;
Bill Massey, architect;
William Colehower; and
Peter Crowley.
Massey’s goal for Meredith
is to "energize the campus,
have everyone be involved,
and embrace the changes. If
everyone remains interested
and patient, the improvements
will be made throughout the
campus,”
The desires of students and
faculty Massey heard
repeatedly include: a variety of
housing types, rather than the
typical suite style; better
recreation and athletic fields;
upgrades for older buildings
(including the renovation of
Harris and Hunter); enhancing
the natural landscape; more
outside gathering areas to
accommodate larger groups or
classes; pedestrian walkways;
and better lighting.
The highly-demanded
upgrades focused on parking
and the heating and cooling
systems.
“It is important to maintain
the essence of Meredith—the
quality of its faculty and the
interactions between faculty
and faculty, faculty and
students. students and
students," said Massey.
The plans for renovation
will evolve over the next ten
months. The firm will also be
returning to meet with the
students again in order to
provide feedback and give
time to react and respond to
the plans. This is tentatively
scheduled for April 26.
However, the firm cannot
guarantee an open forum for
students to attend. Students
should listen for updates on
future meetings and, if
possible, be present and
willing to contribute to
discussions.
Shepley, Bulfinch, Richard
son and Abbott was
established in 1874 and has
worked on different
renovation projects, including
projects at Harvard (I960),
Cambridge (1939), Dartmouth
(1962) and Vanderbilt (1965).
The firm won the American
Institute of Architects*
National Honor Award in
1970 for their design of the
Tramway Terminal in
California.
When asked if he enjoyed
working with the College.
Colehower answered,
"Everyone we have had the
chance to interview has been
wonderful and eager to
participate. Most important,
everyone is excited about the
future of Meredith College.”