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Contact: Jenni Brockman Phone: 804-443-3357 Fax: 804-443-6781 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tappahannock (January 12, 2004) - St. Margaret’s prepared them well for the challenges of college, said young alumnae that responded to a recent survey conducted by the school’s college counseling office. 
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St. Margaret’s School graduates Patti Webb, Emily Fisher, Britt Faulkner and Carolyn Stephenson Gosse, shown here leading a panel discussion, were among the 25 recent graduates who came back to campus to share their college experiences with SMS juniors and seniors.
“Our graduates told us that we do more than get them into good colleges,” said SMS Director of College Counseling Mollie Conklin. “We help them develop the skills they will need to succeed in, and successfully complete, their higher education.” Respondents cited learning how to write well, study effectively, manage time and use academic resources as among the most valuable lessons they learned at SMS. Their answers are consistent with a larger set of statistics compiled by the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, which found that more than 90% of girls’ school alumnae believe their school prepared them better for the rigors of college than did their classmates’ co-ed schools. Both SMS and other girls’ school alumnae say the confidence in themselves and their ideas that they gained in high school has served them well in co-ed colleges and the “real world” beyond. “St. Margaret’s taught me how to speak up in class and relate to teachers,” said Carolyn Stephenson Gosse, a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Virginia who is a member of the SMS Class of 1999. Gosse and other young alumnae also shared their insights with current SMS juniors and seniors in a mid-December panel discussion. A total of 25 graduates returned to campus for the event, including Merritt Allaun, a Flagler College freshman; Madison Barkley of Hague, a Mount Holyoke College freshman; Lucy Brandon, a Virginia Tech freshman; Marin Brown, a Lynchburg College freshman; Allie Burdette, a Catawba College freshman; Nikki Clark of Lively, a JMU sophomore; Cassy Cormack, a Savannah College of Art and Design freshman; Tess Duncan of Kilmarnock, a Randolph-Macon College junior; Britton Faulkner of White Stone, a JMU junior; Emily Fisher of Lottsburg, a Longwood University sophomore; Katie Herrick, a George Mason University sophomore; Rachel Kurtis, a GMU freshman; Olivia Longest of Tappahannock, a JMU sophomore. Also attending were Lindsay Neist of Tappahannock, a Virginia Tech freshman; Heather Porter of Walkerton, an Elon University sophomore; Kate Rice of Tappahannock, a Davis and Elkins College freshman; Cameron Sgroi of Tappahannock, a Virginia Tech senior; Rachelle Slotnick of Tappahannock, a Mary Washington College junior; Claire Stephenson of Tappahannock, a University of Virginia junior; Jacky Sydnor of Tappahannock, a Virginia Commonwealth University freshman; Sarah Taliaferro of Center Cross, a Virginia Tech sophomore; Amanda-Hunter Taylor, a Mary Baldwin College freshman; Brittany Walker of Callao, a Randolph-Macon College sophomore; and Patti Webb, a University of Florida freshman. The recent SMS graduates are pursuing a diverse group of majors and courses that range from the more traditional English, math and history to statistics, biochemistry, Chinese, foreign policy and business. |
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