Anonymous Gift Sparks One Million Dollar Renovation Project

"This gift will enable Wells to be a more cohesive, residential community," said the college's Dean of Students Susan H. Ryan. "Weld has been under-utilized in recent years - its re-opening will create a tight circle of residence halls at the center of campus and enable all our students to feel they are a part of the close-knit community that Henry Wells envisioned when he founded the college."

In 1993, Weld was closed as a student residence due to extensive deferred maintenance. Since that time, it has provided housing for conferences, visiting sports teams, parents, and alumnae visitors.

Named in honor of William Ernest Weld, the college's eighth president who served from 1936-46, the Greek Revival structure was designed by Frank Frederick Larson and built in 1948. Weld housed 57 students and a head resident when it first opened. In the 1960s, it served as Das deutsche Haus (The German House) for summer language institutes and became the college's international student dormitory in the early 1980s.

The $250,000 gift has been pledged by a member of the Wells Class of 1937 and comes in the form of a challenge. In order to fully realize the donation, the college must raise an additional $750,000 by June 30, 1997. "The donor has great personal affection and respect for former President and Mrs. Weld and their family and wishes to honor them. Restoring the residence hall that bears their name is also a top priority in our current comprehensive campaign," says Arthur J. Bellinzoni, Wells' director of planned and leadership giving and professor of religion.

Renovation plans include both improvements to infrastructure and cosmetic refurbishment of living spaces. The building will also be networked as part of the college's technology initiative. The anonymous gift will be used to restore public spaces on the first floor, the resident adviser suite, and three student rooms in honor of Dr. Weld and his family.

October, 1996

Wells Representatives Attend ACLU Celebration in Texas

On Saturday, September 28, the Greater Houston Chapter of the ACLU presented Farenthold with The Lifetime Achievement Award for Civil Liberties, the organization's highest honor. Arthur J. Bellinzoni, professor of religion and director of planned and leadership giving at Wells, and Attilio Rezzonico, manager of Wells' bookshop, attended the event.

Bellinzoni met Farenthold when she served as Wells' president from 1976-80. "I was honored to be invited to Texas," he says. "The most impressive thing about Sissy's years at Wells and her distinguished life of public service is her dedication to reform, equal rights for all, environmental responsibility, humanized government, and most of all her integrity."

A native Texan, Farenthold successfully ran for the Texas legislature in 1968. She ran for the Texas Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 1970 and 1972. During that era, she also had an impact on national politics: her name was put forward as a possible vice-presidential candidate at the Democratic National Convention in Miami - the first time a woman's name had ever been brought forth in that capacity.

From 1973-94, she repeatedly served as a human rights observer and sometimes leader of delegations of elected women officials to Iraq, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Cuba, South Korea, the former Soviet Union, and other countries.

Farenthold was the first woman president of Wells. She balanced the college budget, increased alumnae giving, established a new athletic facility, boosted enrollment, and made curricular innovations. She also founded the Public Leadership Education Network (PLEN) - a consortium of women's colleges that offers programs designed to prepare women for active involvement in political life and public leadership.

Farenthold received a letter from President Clinton which she shared with Bellinzoni. It reads in part: "In a lifetime of monumental achievement, many things stand out. I want to thank you for two in particular. First, for your service to Texas, to the nation, and to the Democratic Party. Second, for being such a good friend to us [Hillary and me] over all these years."

October, 1996

Wells Soccer Team Wins Conference Title

The tournament was played at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland. Wells defeated Hood 3-0 in the semi-final game to advance into the championship round. Goals were scored by first-year students Jalina Kahler of Cold Brook, New York, Corine Sebast of Burnt Hills, New York, and senior Lillian Atteridge of Amherst, Mass.

In the championship game, Wells defeated Mary Baldwin College of Staunton, Virginia 1-0. The Wells goal was scored by Jalina Kahler. Kahler was named the tournament's MVP.

"We were absolutely thrilled to win this tournament in our first year in the league," said Wells' Soccer Coach Chris Perkins. "Our students are great players, and they truly deserve this."

The AWCC is committed to promoting the highest level of excellence for women in academics and athletics through organized regular and post-season competition among its members.

In addition to competing against teams in the AWCC, Wells competes against schools in New York State and is a member of the New York State Women's College Athletic Association.

October, 1996

A Wells Student's Research Contributes to Tropical Disease Study

Abold is a biological and chemical sciences major with a concentration in chemistry at Wells. Her internship was in the medicinal chemistry department of the division of experimental therapeutics at Walter Reed where she joined a research group under the supervision of Dr. Nancy Roth that develops anti-malarial compounds from natural products. "Dr. Roth gave me ideas about how to do the experiments, and I developed them by myself," says Abold.

Dr. Linda S. Schwab, professor of chemistry at Wells, provided contact information for Walter Reed's Col. John Scovill to set up the internship. "Walter Reed is a premier location for the study of tropical diseases," says Schwab. "I knew Kate enjoyed synthetic work in medicinal chemistry and the study of natural products."

Abold modified the structure of artemisinin, a natural anti-malarial substance found in plants of the wormwood family, used since ancient times in China for the treatment of malarial fevers. She prepared the new compound, deoxyartelinic acid, by removing an oxygen atom from the peroxide bridge of artemisinin. In addition to her work in chemical synthesis, she evaluated the anti-malarial activity of various compounds prepared at Walter Reed.

"Research I was doing at Wells was very similar to what I did in the internship," says Abold. "The lab techniques were about the same. The technology at Walter Reed is more sophisticated, so I had to be trained to use it. In the lab, I was well-prepared." She continues to explore anti-cancer compounds at Wells and plans another internship at Walter Reed in January.

These research experiences have helped shape Abold's plans for the future. "After the internship I made the decision that research on anti-cancer compounds will be my career," she says. "I want to go into an M.D./Ph.D. program. I'm going into the Air Force, and what I would ultimately like to do is work in the medicinal chemistry field as a doctor who does research rather than work directly with patients."

A resident of Woodbridge, Virginia, Abold is involved in many college activities. She is a member of the soccer team, a singer with the Whirligigs vocal group, a resident adviser, and a participant in the Air Force ROTC program.

Schwab is proud of the fact that an undergraduate from Wells is already making important contributions to science and medicine. "Kate got off to a great start in the biological chemical sciences major at Wells since she had the advanced placement credit to begin her college study of chemistry at the second course, Organic Chemistry. In particular, her coursework in Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products was directly relevant to her malaria research. These two courses are not invariably available in college chemistry programs even singly, much less together - it's an excellent combination for someone with Kate's interests and I think helped her to tie together her other coursework in biology and chemistry." Abold has been involved in research projects with faculty members at Wells for several semesters, and this experience has given her not only practical experience but also the setting to exercise her curiosity, creativity, and independence.

"Finding out just which features of a chemical structure are necessary for a desired kind of biological activity is the cornerstone of the drug development process. Potential new pharmaceuticals are always valuable. The more we learn, the better may be the range of treatments we will eventually have for diseases like malaria, endemic in so much of the world," says Schwab.

October, 1996

Other Articles in Wells College News:

September, 2002	September, 2000. - May.,2001	May,1998	May - June,1997
August, 2002	September, 1999 - August, 2000	April,1998	March - April,1997
September, 2001. - May.,2002	August,1999	March,1998	February,1997
	May,1999	February,1998	November - December,1996
	April,1999	January,1998	October,1996
	February -March, 1999	December,1997	September,1996
	January,1999	November,1997	June - Aug.,1996
	Fall,1998	October,1997	May,1996
	August,1998	September,1997	April,1996
	June -July, 1998	July - August, 1997	February - March, 1996