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During her tenure, Ruth Simmons galvanized the campus through a number of landmark initiatives. The Simmons Years Read tributes to Ruth Simmons from faculty, staff and students. ............................

An ''Extraordinary'' President, Another Historic Step Ruth J. Simmons, whose 1995 appointment as Smith's ninth president was hailed as a historic moment in higher education, will leave Smith at the end of June to become president of Brown University. The first African-American president of a Seven Sisters college, Simmons now takes another historic step as she becomes the first woman to be president of Brown and the first African American to head an Ivy League institution. Under Simmons' leadership, Smith has forged ahead on a number of fronts. Extensive developments in its programs and infrastructure have greatly enriched students' experiences and raised standards for quality and access to higher education nationwide. A committed and outspoken advocate for diversity in higher education, Simmons has worked to ensure that the high-quality education offered at private colleges such as Smith is accessible to students from all economic, racial and ethnic backgrounds. "One of the reasons that Smith is in such an enviable position today is that it has had extraordinary presidents," Shelly Lazarus '68, chair of the Smith board of trustees, observed. "Ruth Simmons has continued that tradition. Her hard and enlightened work on behalf of the college has ensured that Smith's future remains bright." During her tenure at Smith, Simmons galvanized the campus through an ambitious campuswide self-study process that has resulted in a number of landmark initiatives: Praxis, a program that allows every Smith student to select an internship funded by the college. The program has funded almost one thousand summer internships in its first two years. The Picker Program in Engineering and Technology, the first undergraduate engineering program at a women's college and one of very few at liberal arts colleges. Now in its first full year, the program has attracted support from the Ford Motor Company, the Institute of Women in Technology, Hewlett-Packard, and Women in Technology International. Programs in the humanities, including the establishment of a poetry center that has brought a number of eminent poets to campus since its inception and Meridians, a peer-reviewed journal devoted to publishing outstanding scholarly works by and about women of color. Curricular innovations that include intensive seminars for first-year students and programs to encourage students' speaking and writing skills. A target of opportunity program for recruitment of minority faculty. Creation of the Campus Climate Working Group, the ombudsperson's office and the Office of Institutional Diversity to facilitate diversity efforts and reduce conflicts. The Kahn Institute, an innovative, interdisciplinary program that encourages the interaction of students, faculty and visiting scholars through intensive research and other collaborations and enhances the intellectual life of the college through symposia, performances, exhibitions and workshops. A reduction in the faculty teaching load from 3-2 to 2-2. An increase in student financial aid. An overall increase in admission yields and selectivity; minority applications have risen dramatically and the current first-year class is one of the most diverse in decades. A steady increase in gifts to the college, notably among alumnae, parents, corporations and foundations. A $250 million campaign is expected to reach its initial goal two years ahead of schedule. In addition, a number of significant building projects have been launched during President Simmons' administration: A $35-million expansion and renovation of the college's fine arts center is currently under construction. Ground will be broken in the spring of 2002 for a campus center. Plans are complete for a renovation of the Lyman Conservatory, to be completed in the summer of 2002. A number of student residences and athletic facilities have undergone significant renovations over the past six years. New science facilities and refurbishing of the Mendenhall Center for the Performing Arts are well along in the planning stages. In a letter to students, faculty and staff announcing her departure, Simmons said she has been "enormously proud to lead the college during this exciting and productive era." "More than anything," she said, "I have been touched by the warmth and affection of the students and the collegiality of staff and faculty. I have also appreciated the opportunity to get to know so many outstanding alumnae as well as the many friends and supporters of Smith around the country and the world. These associations have made this experience an unforgettably moving and happy one for me." Simmons will be feted in early May at a Texas barbecue, hosted by the board of trustees, for students, faculty and staff, and will be involved in all of the traditional Commencement and reunion activities in May.

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NewsSmith is published by the Smith College Office of College Relations for alumnae, staff, students and friends.
Copyright © 2001, Smith College. Portions of this publication may be reproduced with the permission of the Office
of College Relations, Garrison Hall, Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts 01063. Last update: 5/9/2001.

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