Author Archives: Melissa Kean

I’m sure many of you have already seen last week’s post by my colleague Norie Guthrie in our What’s in Woodson blog, but if you haven’t this link will get you there. It’s about a collection of American Civil War … Continue reading →

So this all started last week when I was looking in the information files for the Service Awards folder. Here’s what it looks like inside one of these drawers: It’s safe to say I’ve opened this drawer hundreds of times … Continue reading →

Nothing says “I’ve arrived at an elite institution of higher learning” quite like a shopping cart race: This is a really nice Baker College scrapbook that has everything except a date. Note: The Woodson is closed Monday so I’ll be … Continue reading →

I got some questions in the comments to yesterday’s post about John Alan Robinson and the possibility that arose in 1966 of starting a Department of Computer Science–so here’s what I know. In the fall of 1966 President Pitzer brought … Continue reading →

From what I can tell it was offered by the Department of Philosophy, Psychology, and Education. (How’s that for frugal administration?) It was taught by John Alan Robinson, a British born philosopher, mathematician, and computer scientist: This class was an … Continue reading →

I got a kick out of this clipping I found in a student scrapbook yesterday. It reads like a message from the Old Rice, that far distant place whose social world was dominated by the activities of classes rather than … Continue reading →

This afternoon I was looking for the file on Moshe Vardi and I paused to check out the folder right next to his. Interestingly, it’s mislabeled. It says”Francis Van Zandt,” which is also how her name appears in the 1922 Campanile. … Continue reading →

It’s the P.S. that made me laugh: There’s no date and I don’t have an alumni directory handy but I’d guess mid-70s.

I came across this note yesterday while looking for something truly obscure in Dr. Lovett’s files concerning the French Department. Very unexpected and the sort of thing that you just have to go look up whether you have the time … Continue reading →

Remember Monday’s awful bonus picture? A commenter took the trouble to look at it closely and then asked a really good question: what does it say on the mantle? Those are clearly letters but they’re so stylized it’s very hard … Continue reading →