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Hail Queen Jennifer...
Miss Blue And White 1984
by Thomasina Toles
We’ve seen them come, we’ve
seen them go but now Spelman
is seeing a queen that will leave
something very special behind.
Jennifer Dorthea Harkness of
Columbia, South Carolina has
been chosen to serve as Miss
Spelman for the year 1984-85.
Yes, this year has, been a good
year for it has brought us a black
woman who we can be proud to
call our queen
Jennifer is a member of the
class of 1986. She is an English
and Mass Communications ma
jor with a strong interest in
international law. Jennifer is
involved in many activities on
campus. She is social chairperson
of the sophomore class and a
member of the S.G.A. She is also
a resident assistant in the Living
and Learning Center and
currently a member of the Living
and Learning Program. It is no
secret that Jennifer is a talented
young lady, for her performance
on January 26, the night of the
Blue and White Pageant, left a
packed house screaming for
more. If one were to close their
eyes they could have actually
envisioned Natalie Cole on the
stage singing a melody of her
songs. But not only is Jennifer a
singer, she is also an actress. We
can look forward to seeing her
on the stage again as she per
forms the role of Ruth in the play
"Raisin."
When asked how she felt
Jennifer Harkness, Miss Blue and White 1984
about being Miss Spelman, Jen
nifer replied, "I feel lots of
emotions. I am honored to be
Miss Spelman because it tells me
that my Spelman Sisters believed
in me enough to select me to
represent them. I will represent
Spelman at different functions at
the school, the AUC Center and
the city. To really represent a
school one must give love,
dedication, loyalty, and
respect." Jennifer wants to let
her Spelman Sisters know that
she is here and she is striving to
represent them to her fullest
capacity. She went on to say,
"Being Miss Spelman has
broadened my outlook on life. It
is beautiful to see black women
come together in a bond of
unity. I have so much respect for
the SGA because of their
hard work and dedication to
their school.”
There is no doubtthatjennifer
will hold the position as queen
magnificently for the rest of her
reign. Jennifer’s advice to others
who may one day follow in her
footsteps as queen is to “go into
the preliminary and interviews
with confidence. Love your
school enough to want to repre
sent it but you can’t do that
unless your heart is in it. Believe
in yourself and trust in God
because he will always lead you
in the right path.”
Spelman will see many more
queens come and many more
queens go but Jennifer Harkness
will always be remembered as
the queen with a warming smile,
a strong belief in God and love
for her sisters and all mankind.
HAIL QUEEN JENNIFER HAIL
Past Spelman Grads
by Angela McCormick
We all know that someone is
responsible for recruiting
students to Spelman, but did you
ever stop to think exactly who
these people are? Let us meet
Mrs. Patricia Johnson who serves
as assistant director of ad
missions.
A native New Yorker, Mrs.
Johnson graduated from
Spelman in 1979 with a degree in
Sociology. She then attended
Atlanta University where she
received a masters degree in
Social Work. In focusing on her
college years, Mrs. Johnson
commented that she attended
Spelman during a period when
the atmosphere on any college
campus could have been termed
“turbulent.” Though in the early
70’s nearly all young adults
(including Spelmanites) were
fighting against “The establish
ment,” Spelman’s administration
insisted on maintaining some of
the values on which Spelman was
based. Mrs. Johnson believesthis
insistence to be the reason for
the success of so many of her
classmates and others who
attended Spelman during these
times. She also finds it ironic that
she and many of the others who
participated in protests against
“the establishment” are now
themselves parts of “the es
tablishment.”
When asked whether she feels
that the ideal of Spelman
sisterhood has changed since her
years as a student Mrs. Johnson
responded that she sees positive
relationships among students,
but fears that everyone is not
getting the same things from
their years at Spelman.
Before beginning her work at
Spelman, Mrs. Johnson held
counseling positions ranging
from work with school drop -
outs and unwed mothers to
coordinating volunteer services.
In addition to her initiation of
the use of volunteers for recruit
ment purposes Mrs. Johnson is
planning to begin a program
through which parents of
current Spelman students can
become acquainted with parents
of prospective Spelman students
so that they can discuss the
advantages and disadvantages of
sending their daughters to
Spelman.
Mrs. Johnson is just one of the
many Spelman gradudates who
still consider Spelman home.
Patricia Johnson
Photo by: Nelson Valentine
Accomplished
Alumni
by T.J. Zachery
Many Spelman College alum
nae have attained great ac
complishments. Alice Walker
attended Spelman from 1961 to
1963 and graduated from Sarah
Lawrence in 1965. By age 36, she
had authored such books as The
Third Life of Grange Copeland,
Meridian, Once, Revolutionary
Petunias and Other Poems, In
Love and Trouble, and Langston
Hughes, American Poet. Her
essays and short stories have
appeared in several journals and
magazines. She is currently a
contributing editor to Ms.
magazine. She was awarded a
Guggenheim in fiction for 1977-
1978 and was the recipient of the
Lillian Smith Award and a
Creative Writing Award from the
National Endowment for the
Arts, among other fellowshops.
In 1974 Revolutionary Petunias
and Other Poems was
nominated for a National Book
Award, and In Love and Trouble
won the Rosenthal Award of the
National Institute of Arts and
Letters. The poet, novelist, short
story writer, - essayist, and
biographer truly epitomizes the
Spelman Spirit of Excellence. A
collection of her works is on
display in the Centennial Room.
Mattiwilda Dobbs, who
graduated from Spelman in 1946,
is an internationally acclaimed
opera and concert singer. The
sopranist has performed leading
roles at La Scala, the
Metropolitan Opera, and with
major symphony orchestras
throughout the world. Ms.
Dobbs was an artist-in-residence
at Spelman from 1974 to 1975.
She is another example of the
"Spirit that is Spelman.”
Other noteworthy Spelman
alumnae include Margery W.
Brown, the editor of That Ruby,
Animals Made by Me, and
Yesterday I Climbed A Moun
tain; Lois B. Moreland, author of
White Racism and the Law; and
The Mystic Female by Pinkie
Gordon Lane.
Ask one of
the 3 million
Americans
who’ve
survived
cancer,
if the money
spent on
research
is worth it.
We are
winning.
SUMMER JOBS!
The Ida Prather YWCA is seeking energetic well
qualified counselors for this year’s summer day
camp program. Positions include: Lead counselor,
senior counselors, and junior counselors. Ex
perience preferred but not required.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: March 31, 1984
For further information call 344-7402.
IDA PRATHER YWCA
3911 Campbellton Road SW
AMERICAN
CANCER
SOCIETY"
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