The Endlessly Renewable Story of Saint Mary's College

Dear Saint Mary’s Friends,

The academic year is in the rear-view mirror, with Commencement and now even Reunion behind us. What a whirlwind of festivities, smiles, and tears. I am taking a little time to reflect on what really matters in the work that our faculty and staff do with students every day.

So here’s something I experienced personally. In a moment of obvious delirium back in mid-February, I raised my hand for a tiny cameo role in the SMC Spring musical, Anne of Green Gables. I had no idea how much I would learn.

I expect that many of you have read Lucy Maud Montgomery’s classic story of Anne Shirley, a wildly imaginative red-haired girl who is delivered for adoption to Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, a brother and sister in rural Prince Edward Island, Canada. The problem? They had wanted a boy. They needed a boy—to help Matthew on the farm. A girl, they said in dismay, was of no practical good to them. As it turns out, they didn’t really know what they needed. They needed “Anne-with-an-e” Shirley. The whole community of Avonlea needed her.

Based on a novel set in the late 19th century, Anne was a wonderful choice for SMC. After all, it is a story in which a girl ends up having the smarts and the resources to surprise everyone: to reach the top of her class, to win a scholarship to Redmond College, and to become the young woman who is the glue that holds her community together. Marilla and Matthew’s decision to drop their original plans for adopting a boy and instead invest their time and energy in the child they received by mistake makes all the difference for Anne—and for everyone she touches.

Making this kind of difference is what Saint Mary’s has always been about. Accepting the students who choose us—in effect, choosing them in return—we take them seriously, helping to grow their intellects, their talents, their spirits, and their professional capacities.

I got to see all this at work through my small role in the play. When my costume needed alterations, the faculty costume designer handed that assignment to two student interns who took charge: four inches off the petticoat; a jacket adjustment to show more of the blouse. Students took notes and made the alterations. As I left the theater at 10:15 on the evening of the final dress rehearsal, I saw the stage, lighting, and sound professionals sitting in a classroom with the students responsible for those aspects of the production. It was remarkable to observe them quietly going over the details that needed attention before the first performance. And the guest director (a Saint Mary’s alumna) and associate director built a wonderful camaraderie among the cast members, promoting and participating in their rituals and “pump up” exercises and feeding their spirits. It made me extraordinarily proud of what happens at Saint Mary’s.

Of course, that pride, while specifically evoked by the theater program, was also about every program we offer at the College. Especially at the end of the academic year, we see the fruits of so many labors: student art exhibits, concerts, athletic championship competitions and honors, Mission Division awards, Student Life awards, Senior comps, and the Symposium—a day-long event highlighting the research and creative accomplishments of students across all disciplines. And then there are the departmental hoodings and prizes preceding Commencement—all demonstrating those faculty-student relationships that are part of the Saint Mary’s promise.

When over 700 alumnae returned to campus in late May for Reunion, they were reaffirming those same experiences from their own generations. This year we had alumnae from classes ending in 4 and 9—ranging from the Class of 1959 to the Class of 2019. They celebrated their friendships and their life milestones—-and they sought out the faculty, the staff, and the Sisters of the Holy Cross whom they had known in their own time on campus.

They wanted to reconnect because alumnae remember the commitment made to them during their own years at Saint Mary’s. So many graduates from across more than six decades told me that they discovered themselves at SMC—precisely because faculty and staff members had faith in their talents and skills. This is the endlessly renewable story of Saint Mary’s, a story of promise and growth. A story about investing in—almost adopting!—our students and the tremendous difference it makes.

Warm regards,

Katie Conboy, Ph.D.
President

June 10, 2024