Wilson, Rudenstine Reassure Alumnae

In what may be her final speech as Radcliffe President, Linda S. Wilson discussed her nearly 10 years in office at Radcliffe's annual alumnae luncheon and passed on her robes of office to her successor Mary Maples Dunn.

"She will insure the [Radcliffe] Institute is a womanly place, and so I give her to you and to her I give the robes of office," Wilson said of Dunn at the ceremony, which also included speeches by University President Neil L. Rudenstine and Radcliffe Medal Recipient Johnetta B. Cole.

Wilson--who, will hold the title of `president emerita' after she leaves the post on June 30, said she will always remember her days as president of the College.

"I have a kaleidoscope of memories...and they are intense," Wilson said. "I will always remember the commitment of alumnae leaders, and the tears that always come to my eyes when we sing the alma mater."

Wilson said that planning the merger had required "good will and a strong stomach for talking and talking and talking," and that the complicated process is still on her mind.

"I know in the years to come my assessment of my professional life will come more into focus and I will awaken many nights with Radcliffe on my mind," Wilson said. "But I know at this point that the most important thing is that Radcliffe is a strong institution."

Wilson told the several hundred alumnae and family members assembled in Radcliffe Yard for the ceremony that the formation of the new Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study is the logical next step for a school which has undergone many changes in the past.

"It's been a life of change for this institution more than most," she said. "This was the fulfillment of a 20-year relationship [since the 1977 articulation of the Harvard-Radcliffe alliance]...Now we go forth with a new mission built upon the old."

And Wilson assured alumnae that Radcliffe will continue to control its well-situated properties in Radcliffe Yard and continue to run its influential programs.

"We will fly the Harvard flag over these properties along with the Radcliffe flags, but our programs form the foundation of this Institute," Wilson said.

In a brief speech, University President Neil L. Rudenstine also reassured alumnae that Radcliffe will remain recognizable to them.

"We want the symbols and traditions of Radcliffe College to remain and flourish wherever it seems reasonable and possible for them," he said.

He thanked Wilson and the members of the Board of Trustees for trusting Harvard to be attentive to women's issues.

"I am very aware of the fact that there is virtually no reason in the world for Radcliffe to trust Harvard," he said as alumnae applauded. "Even in my own eight years, I've probably done more damage than anybody realized."

"I regard this merger not only as a joint venture but as a very deep trust," he added.

During the luncheon, the RCAA also presented the Radcliffe Medal--awarded "to an individual whose life and work have had a significant impact on society"--to Cole, who is herself a former college president.

Cole, the first female African-American president of Spelman University, heralded Wilson as "a wonderful sister president" and praised Radcliffe's new incarnation.

"Radcliffe has always been more than a College. It is a cause," she said. "It is a cause indeed to advance society by advancing women folk. The cause.