A Message from Barbara A. Smith, Director of Alumni Relations

lc40years — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:59:46 +0000

“Memories, like the corner of my mind…” I remember being so nervous at the prospect of going back to school after so many, many years. Would I be able to keep up? Would the other students be much younger? Would I be a fish out of water? These are the questions that plagued me before I finally took the plunge.

I was accepted into the Adult Degree Program and my first course was Literature and Composition with Professor Billy Collins, now Distinguished Professor. What a marvelous experience. I looked forward to going to class, reading all of the wonderful short stories and discussing them in class. I did not, however, love the writing. I remember taking the CWE’s and wondering why the subject of Blackfoot Indians and their land seemed so difficult to write about. Choosing a major was easier. Dr. Murray Hausknecht made Sociology so interesting that I was hooked. He clearly loved the subject and taught it with great enthusiasm. When he finished teaching he was covered from head to toe with chalk.

Graduation day, June 1, 1992, what a feeling of accomplishment! The College will always be special to me. In celebration of the 40th anniversary of Lehman College, please join me and share some of your special memories.

Barbara A. Smith ‘92