Raise Your Cuppa' Tea Today In Honor Of Susan Mills Susan was born in Vermont on November 18, 1825. Susan graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1845 and taught there for three years after graduation. She was on staff while Emily Dickenson was a student at MHC, and taught geography, geology, chemistry, and botany at schools in Sri Lanka and Hawaii after leaving Massachusetts. In 1865, Susan and her husband, Cyrus, bought the Young Ladies' Seminary in Benecia, CA from Principal Mary Atkins, a graduate of Oberlin College who had established the school's reputation. They moved the school to Oakland and changed the name to Mills. Susan served as principal and later president of the college. |
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169 years after its founding, the liberal arts Mills College still stands in Oakland as a gender-diverse historically women's college, welcoming undergrads who identify as women or nonbinary/ genderqueer, and grad students of all genders. In 2014, Mills was the first HWC to adopt a pro-trans admission policy and is the only HWC to reverse a decision to go co-ed, after students occupied campus in 1990. Susan and Cyrus are buried on campus. |
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Today, Susan's legacy is on the verge of ending. We're not clear why since Alums have broken fundraising records and the endowment grew to $206M this year... we've only heard that the 58% LGBTQ student community is a "marketing problem." (um, what?!!!) At the request of CA Attorney General Rob Bonta, alums provided an extensive forensic report that shows Mills is viable and can survive with some changes. Bonta has the power to stop this sale. Yet, he remains quiet on the subject. |
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Get Numbered Up Matt Hendricks, Dept. Chair of Economics at the University of Tulsa, will be discussing his findings on the financial health of Mills College. We encourage you to join us for a presentation of his research this Saturday, Nov. 20, at 10 am PST. This event is hosted by the Save Mills College Coalition. Here’s the registration link. |
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Get Teamed Up Immediately following Matt's presentation above, our All4Mills team will host its regular Saturday check-in. Grab your lunch and join us! Your presence, ideas and participation is welcome. Zoom with us. Saturday, 11/20, 12pm pst. |
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The AAMC Needs Help With Day-to-Day Business Employees are needed. If you can only Volunteer, they can probably use your talents! See what's happening: AAMC Jobs |
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Keep Petitioning! This week, we continue the work of gathering support of our petition. We will use this public support to pressure CA Attorney General Bonta to investigate this deal. Please reach out to your circle and beyond. Send an email to influencers and invite them to learn more and support our efforts. The Petition, Podcasts featuring Alumnae and related news articles can be found on our website. Use/Edit this sample letter. |
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"She has given to her children, the Alumnae of the school, and to the women of California, an inheritance whose value cannot be measured. She bids us pass it on a priceless heritage to our children's children." - from a former Mills student in a memory book about Susan Mills |
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