Kay Lehman Schlozman ’68

During the spring of my junior year, an invitation from my sociology professor to lunch at the Wellesley College Club changed my life. She asked, “Isn’t it time to think about where you are planning to apply to graduate school?” My astonished reply: “Me? Graduate school?” I had always been good in school and liked academic environments, but I had never considered doctoral study. I probably had assumed that I would follow a path traditionally acceptable for women—high school teaching.

The fruit of the seed planted that day was a PhD in political science and a challenging and rewarding academic career in a field that had very few women when I entered it. Less than a year ago, I retired after five decades of teaching American politics and a long-term, collaborative research project about citizen participation in American public life. Thank you, Professor Giele. Thank you, Wellesley.