Year in Review

July

Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg '01 is honored by the U.N. Alliance of Civilizations for her work in founding and supporting a nonprofit scholarship organization benefitting Kenyan girls.

August

Doug Juers, associate professor of physics, receives a $202,400 grant from the National Science Foundation to study ways of improving the X-ray diffraction method of determining the shapes of biological molecules.

College rankings again affirm excellence at Whitman. Forbes ranks Whitman No. 16 on its Best Colleges list; U.S. News & World Report cites Whitman for "making the most promising and innovative changes in the areas of academics, faculty and student life," and The Princeton Review ranks Whitman's classroom experience and professors in the top 20 in the nation.

The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation grants the college $150,000 to support the Harper Joy Theatre renovation project.

The members of the Class of 2014 move onto campus, representing 35 states and 14 foreign nations and speaking more than 20 different languages. Nearly 60 are first-generation college students.

September

Ashifi Gogo '05 shares a New York City stage with President Bill Clinton, who commends the Whitman alumnus for his work to combat pharmaceutical fraud in developing nations.

The American Political Science Association honors Patrick Peel '93 with the 2010 Edward S. Corwin award for the best doctoral dissertation in the field of public law.

Whitman receives a $549,446 National Science Foundation grant to purchase a sophisticated laser scanning confocal microscope, adding another jewel to Whitman's crown of laboratory resources. It is the third such addition in the last two years.

Jon Walters, professor of religion, is recommended as the inaugural holder of the George Hudson Ball Endowed Chair in the Humanities, established over the past year thanks to the generous support of many alumni donors.

October

Colleen Willoughby '55 coordinates and hosts the annual Whitman Women's Leadership Symposium, which she founded more than 25 years ago.

Kiplinger's Personal Finance rates Whitman as a "Best Value" college, defined as institutions "that exemplify excellent academics while keeping their costs to a minimum."

November

Suzanne Dodd '84 is named project manager of the Voyager program at NASA. The crafts, Voyager 1 and 2, are NASA's longest operated and most remote, respectively.

Melissa Clearfield, associate professor of psychology, is named the 2010 recipient of the Pete and Hedda Reid Service to Walla Walla Award.

December

Reporting the 2008 graduation rate of 92 percent, The Chronicle of Higher Education ranks Whitman among the top schools in the country ­— and best in Washington State — for helping students successfully, and efficiently, complete their undergraduate degrees.

January

The Teagle Foundation awards the college a $25,000 planning grant to help support the effort to improve student learning through assessment of major-specific capstone experiences.

Henry Louis Gates Jr. presents a lecture titled "Roots: Genealogy, Genetics and African American History" to a packed crowd in Cordiner Hall.

The college adds a WiFi hotspot to improve wireless security and provide access to visitors.

February

The men's swim team tops the nation in combined grade-point average.

Men's basketball team defeats the No. 1 team in the nation, 82-79, en route to the playoffs.

March

David Schmitz, Robert Allen Skotheim chair of history, publishes his ninth book, titled "Brent Scowcroft: Internationalism and Post-Vietnam War American Foreign Policy," published by Rowman & Littlefield Inc.

Kate Jackson, assistant professor of biology, is chosen for a 2011 "Women of Discovery" award, presented by WINGS WorldQuest, which supports "visionary women advancing scientific inquiry and environmental conservation."

The website of The Pioneer is honored for the second time as "Best of Show" in its category of schools at the 27th Annual Associated Collegiate Press National College Journalism Convention.

Third annual Global Studies Symposium gathers students and faculty to listen and share opinions with a group of esteemed visiting speakers on their notions of "Global Media, Global Spectacles."

Whitman College is once again named one of the nation's 50 "Best Value" private colleges and universities by The Princeton Review.

April

The 13th annual Undergraduate Conference showcases student academic excellence and pursuits through a day devoted to presentations, posters and performances.

The men's tennis team wins the Northwest Conference championship and earns a fifth straight ticket to NCAA DIII Nationals.

Whitman athletic teams complete the best year overall in college history, across all sports and all seasons.

May

At Commencement, Whitman confers 378 degrees. Meda Chesney-Lind '69 accepts an honorary doctor of humane letters degree and delivers the Commencement address.

For the fifth year, Whitman is named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

June

Mellon Foundation awards Whitman a $644,000 grant to support academic excellence by funding eight tenure-track faculty positions.

The tally of major fellowships, grants and scholarships awarded to Whitman students and alumni in 2010-11 is a record-setting 39.