Growing up in Poughkeepsie

by Karen Lipschutz Goodis, Class of 1973

Having grown up in Poughkeepsie, I have many different memories of Vassar. My earliest memory is playing on the swings at the Wimpfheimer Nursery School. Growing up I loved to bike through the campus when no one was around. One of my favorite summer jobs was working as a mother’s helper for Professor Glen Johnson [Political Science]. The Dean’s house was wonderful.

I transferred to Vassar in 1971 for my last two years of college, and living on campus made Vassar home. I loved living in Main and spent far too many evenings after demi-tasse in the parlor solving all of the problems of the world. I was a religion major and still have wonderful memories of courses with [professors] Patrick Sullivan, Bob Fortna, and Mel Scult. Coming to Vassar from a large urban university challenged me intellectually in ways that I never imagined. The small classes and seminars let us learn from each other as well as our professors. One of my classmates was someone I had actually gone to nursery school with at Vassar and all through school in Poughkeepsie. I wonder how many alumni can make that claim.

When I go back to Poughkeepsie to visit my mother, campus is a frequent stop since it is around the corner from her apartment. It is beautiful, peaceful and charming when the students are gone, and dynamic and energetic when they are there. I am grateful for my Vassar education and know it has served me well.