In 1930 it was clear that Swarthmore was on the verge of a
building boom. Architects were hired and plans were drawn, but the
grand designs fell afoul of the Depression and World War II. Two
alumnae look at the history and architecture of these unbuilt
ideas.
Ellen Barry ’75 is a fighter against injustice for women
prisoners and their families. Rebecca Nelson ’82 is engaged in a
different battle&emdash;against the world’s worst crop disease.
Each “genius” is among this year’s recipients of
MacArthur Fellowships.
Why are we so fascinated by famous people? “There are
two worlds now,” says Leo Braudy, “the media world and all
the momentarily grand things that happen in it and the world of
normality, which seems constantly shrinking in significance"
Rebuilding war-torn Europe was the goal of idealistic young
Swarthmoreans who worked in camps across the continent as part of the
Quaker International Volunteers. That summer remains with them. as
“a defining experience of our adult lives.”
