Women in the Sciences

Saving the Acropolis

"I want to learn about why Venice is sinking, and I plan to study the history of the Acropolis, which is built of limestone. I want to learn about origins of this rock, ancient mining techniques, rock erosion, reasons for the building's deterioration in the past 80 years."
Tara '05

Tara 's goal is to study and practice international environmental law, specifically in the area of preservation. Knowing she would need a strong science background, she signed up for a geology course. "What I hadn't anticipated is that I would become enthralled with this subject. Geology and classics really complement one another. I want to learn about why Venice is sinking, and I plan to study the history of the Acropolis, which is built of limestone. I want to learn about origins of this rock, ancient mining techniques, rock erosion, reasons for the building's deterioration in the past 80 years, economics of tourism, and preservation techniques. I was so excited when one of the Wellesley research librarians called to tell me she had found 60 books about ancient mining techniques.

"Last summer, through an internship with the Geology Department, I studied ancient volcanoes in the Blue Hills southwest of Boston, where a fault line runs from there to Newfoundland. I hiked hills and, with a sledgehammer, gathered samples of granite outcroppings to analyze. I plan to pursue additional internships as an underwater geoarcheologist, and I'm also exploring semester programs off campus at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and Williams Mystic Seaport program.

"Wellesley is very empowering. From the minute you step on campus, you feel as though you can do anything and that all your goals are attainable. Faculty members, the community, and alumnae have a vested interest in your future. Even Diana Chapman Walsh, Wellesley's president, knows my name. I sometimes see her in the morning exercising with her dog. She teases me about my color-coded Latin flash cards that accompany me on my walks around the lake. And when I call my class dean she knows who I am. She doesn't say 'Tara who?' In June I worked at reunion and met many older alumnae. Women from the Class of 1933 and 1938 were so happy and curious, and they were really interested in me. At Wellesley you are truly embraced into a sisterhood. You will never feel the same about yourself again."

> Next profile: Kassidy: Science, Shadowing,and Singing
< Home: Why consider a women's college?