By Michelle No ’12 and Madeleine Nakamura
illustration by Erin Maala
written for the fall 2023 issue of Scripps magazine
One of the greatest benefits of a Scripps education is the foundation of lifelong learning and intellectual flexibility it builds, preparing students and alums to pursue their personal and professional interests across a variety of disciplines. In true liberal arts tradition, students are encouraged to explore academic possibilities in a supportive, collaborative environment. And although every graduate’s path is different, the common threads connecting the Scripps community provide guidance, assistance, and encouragement along the way.
In two roundtable discussions earlier this fall, current students and alums participated in lively discussions about their academic and career journeys and the enduring connections they forged during their time at Scripps. While the Scripps experience defies neat categorization and the College continues to evolve, each student and alum remains part of a network characterized by a shared pursuit of learning and exploring, innate curiosity, meaningful leadership, and a firm belief in possibility.
Q: As both the landscape of higher education and Scripps itself evolve throughout the years, what do you think is the primary role of a women’s college?
Melina Durre ’25: Women’s colleges serve as important places of community. I work in the Office of Admission and give tours, and we’re always talking about this. At Scripps, there is an emphasis on uplifting people of marginalized gender identities. Having that foundation embedded within the College serves to make it inherent to everything that’s going on. Even if you’re not involved with the social justice groups, just by virtue of going to Scripps, you are supporting that community building.
Annette Scarpitta ’83: For me, it was about developing self-confidence and self-esteem. During my sophomore year, I took a series of leadership training sessions as part of my College Council experience. Facilitated by then–Associate Dean of Students Ellen Leggett, it was absolutely life-changing. I found my voice and my self-assertiveness. There was a convocation in which I was invited to speak about the class. In describing a benefit of Scripps, I explained a then-commonly repeated concept that women are more likely to speak out in the presence of only other women and in the absence of men who tended to dominate class discussions. I don’t know if that’s accurate anymore, but that’s the way it was when I was at Scripps. I’m really happy that Scripps helped me to find my voice.
Meagan Miller-McKeever ’06: One of the most important things a women’s college does is create a network of alums who support each other. I still keep in touch with my former roommates in a group chat. I’ve been embraced by people in whatever city I’ve moved to, as long as I reach out to a Scripps alum. They’re always like, “Oh, come over! We should meet!” There are groups like the Women’s College Alum Network group on Facebook that are full of educated women staying connected and helping each other out. It’s amazing. I know how great the education at Scripps is, so that makes it an easy choice to reach back out to another alum who wants to get into my industry.
Karen Piacentini ’74: I’m still very connected to my three closest friends from Scripps with whom I can debate current issues as well as reminisce. These are all accomplished women whom I can count on to bring laughter to the conversation along with intellectual challenges. Something that hasn’t changed about the role of women’s colleges is that they empower us to be independent, to live courageously, and to have confidence. The interdisciplinary education I received at Scripps gave me the tools to transition from a major in religion to becoming a successful business executive. The networks you build with people who have shared your experience create a common bond and contribute to establishing new relationships, which are so important.
Zoey Lofgren ’24: I wasn’t initially looking to enroll in a women’s college, but the tour I took when visiting was remarkable. All around me, I saw women who were brave enough to speak up, and I thought that was a community I wanted to be a part of. One of the main things I appreciate about my Scripps experience is the opportunity to have literature discussions in a space where it’s easier to have your voice heard. The environment encourages women to be bold and say what’s on their mind and to learn to articulate their thoughts in a responsible and kind way.
Henriette Diouf ’24: I wasn’t looking specifically for a women’s college, but what surprised me coming into Scripps was how easy it feels to be open with other students here. I was always told that in college, you’ll have to be on the lookout and be ready to advocate for yourself. I assumed that there would be a level of intense competitiveness. That idea was nerve-wracking. Starting out in college is a very vulnerable experience, but I don’t feel that way at Scripps.
Q: How has Scripps’ interdisciplinary approach to education driven the work you do and the way you live?
Karen Piacentini ’74: When I was 37 years old and my marriage was ending, I decided that I would get my MBA before going back to work. While the decision to make that change came from me alone, my Scripps education gave me the confidence to tackle what I had to do. Throughout my career as a healthcare and business executive, what has made me successful is my ability to think critically and to seek different perspectives. The interdisciplinary education I received at Scripps has helped to give me the skillset to think through big problems and big solutions.
Abigail Ley ’00: I have always been afraid of being pigeonholed. All through high school, I thought I was going to go into the sciences, and then I was exposed to art history my junior year. That, to me, was a great way to analyze history, languages, politics, and more. When I got to Scripps, I double majored in art history and French. After graduation, I pursued a master’s degree in art history from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. While I was there, I thought I’d like to work in medicine, so I went into a post-bacc program and did my residency and fellowship in child neurology. I’m now a child neurologist focused on autism spectrum disorder.
Even though I have a specialty, I see my work as extremely broad. When I treat kids, it’s all about finding out who that person is first, and I think my background, especially at Scripps, has lent me the ability to see things from a broad perspective.
Diouf ’24: I started out wanting to study anthropology, but I didn’t connect with the structure. I was taking an art history class, and my professor, Associate Professor of Classics Michelle L. Berenfeld, encouraged me to major in art history because it involves what I had wanted from anthropology while adding a creative and visual focus. My anthropology advisor, Associate Professor of Anthropology Seo Young Park, was a huge contributor to this step as well. I majored in art history, and I’ve since become interested in curation.
Among art history majors there’s an unspoken stigma that it’s going to be difficult to find a job and break into the field. Especially as a Black woman, I don’t see a lot of other people who look like me in my courses or in my field in general, and a lot of art history survey courses come with a disclaimer that Black and African artists won’t be included heavily. Scripps was able to connect me with an alum, Dwandalyn Reece ’85, a Black woman and former Trustee who is the associate director of the office for curatorial affairs at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. She was so kind and open to my questions. It was a great experience, and it was conducive to me feeling more optimistic about going into a field that can seem to not be very diverse.
Lofgren ’24: I thought I’d like to study art originally, and while taking courses online during COVID-19, I was against the idea of taking art classes or lab science courses remotely. I later took a lot of art history and media studies classes because I thought I might enjoy going into film or journalism, and I quickly realized that I didn’t necessarily need to major in what I wanted to do to be happy. I decided to major in English and cognitive science because that combination would allow me to take the widest variety of classes over different departments. I wanted to have the most interdisciplinary experience possible.
Arathi Govind ’06: I was an environmental studies major and a music minor, and my interests have always been extremely broad. After college, I completed a PhD in ethnomusicology, which is the study of music and culture. My focus was on musicians involved in social justice, advocacy, and activism. It was a long journey, but my interest in social justice, environmental justice, and the arts has led me to where I am now, working at the Redford Center, a nonprofit that supports environmental filmmakers. What stayed with me from Scripps was the freedom to explore. I didn’t feel like I had to stay in a lane when I was there. And I think, having worked with fellow students when I did my PhD at UC Berkeley, that’s not the case at large schools. Having that freedom allowed me to be open and imagine a broad future.
Durre ’25: I’m now a media studies major, but I’m double minoring in biology and German studies. I always knew that I had different interests within the sciences and more creatively within the arts. I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do, but just knowing that I have the ability to take my interests and combine them is very important.
Q: How has Scripps changed over the years, in your opinion?
Scarpitta ’83: I recognize a big difference between what Scripps was and what Scripps is, and I’m really in awe of what it is today. I think the level of academic excellence has skyrocketed.
Ley ’00: I do think that Scripps has changed in the best of ways. It’s grown. Individuals and institutions all need to change and evolve, and Scripps’ trajectory has been in a very positive direction. I sense that its development is still ongoing.
Miller-McKeever ’06: I’ve noticed that Scripps has started to place an increasing emphasis on the sciences. The College used to be more arts-centered, but there’s been a dramatic focus on preparing women for the sciences that’s become apparent over my time in the community.
Lofgren ’24: I think more students are majoring solely on campus, although students still take classes at the other colleges. At the same time, I’ve noticed that there are more cross-college events available now. The amount of programming shared between the 5Cs has risen. I also agree that the sciences are very strong at Scripps, but recently, I’ve noticed a rise in popularity of the English major. There’s still a lot of interest in the humanities.
Q: What do you think connects current Scripps students and alums from different decades?
Ley ’00: My sister-in-law graduated from Scripps in 2022. I told her about Scripps, and the reason I thought she would fit into the Scripps community is that she has this incredible creative optimism. She’s interested in everything; she wants to know about everything.
Scarpitta ’83: I think intellectual curiosity, the quest for knowledge, and ongoing study remain huge at Scripps. And we share a love of the campus.
Piacentini ’74: One of the surprising benefits to me of attending Scripps was that I made so many friends outside my graduating class. The connections you make through your college experience don’t stop with the people you attended with. My network has expanded exponentially over time; there is a whole community of Scripps alums whom you will get to know better and better.
Miller-McKeever ’06: I also have Scripps friends who reach out to me, both older and younger, and it’s great to be able to see them shift along their own paths as they grow. I had a friend from Pomona College who returned to teach at The Claremont Colleges, so I came back several times to talk with students about what it’s like to be in the film industry. It was lovely and interesting to see them start becoming more curious and start realizing what leaps they could take now. It’s an exciting moment when people start to take those first jumps. You get so focused in college on what you’re doing in that exact moment, and then there’s this moment of recognition about what the next step could be.
Govind ’06: My closest friends from Scripps and I are on an active WhatsApp thread. All of them lived in my dorm during my first year. My experience touches on what Abigail was saying, which is that Scripps students tend to have a lot of optimism. We’re very thoughtful and broad-thinking, and that shifted my own mindset and allowed me to open up to an optimism that I didn’t know I had.
There’s a bond that comes with knowing that you experienced this small college that nurtures women and believes in their abilities without question.