Dean Karen Tidmarsh '71 Recognized for
Extraordinary Service to Bryn Mawr College

At the annual State of the College address during this year's Bryn Mawr reunion, the alumnae gathered in Goodhart Theater raised their most enthusiastic cheer for the presentation of the Helen Taft Manning Award to Karen Tidmarsh '71, the dean of Bryn Mawr's undergraduate college. The award, named after an alumna who served as a professor, dean and acting president of the College during the early 20th century, is made jointly by the College and the Alumnae Association. It recognizes extraordinary service to the College.

The award was a surprise to Tidmarsh, who had just interrupted her celebration of her own 35th reunion to discharge her annual deanly duty of introducing the alumnae gathered in the hall to the current generation of Bryn Mawr students with a few judiciously chosen verbal portraits. The dean maintains close, direct ties with the student body, not only through her work with student government, but as the primary academic adviser to undergraduates whose surnames begin with "S."

In its use of concrete, sometimes poignant detail and sly wit to give listeners a broader understanding of life at the College, Tidmarsh's address was characteristic of those she has regularly delivered to students, faculty, staff and alumnae in her years as dean of the College. The warm reception it received illustrated a point made by Alumnae Association President Mary Berg Hollinshead '69 as she presented the award with Bryn Mawr College President Nancy J. Vickers. "lt is fascinating," she noted, "to see how many students and staff, past and present ... believe Karen belongs to them."

Tidmarsh as a Bryn Mawr senior

Tidmarsh graduated from Bryn Mawr magna cum laude, with honors in English. After teaching high-school English for a few years, she earned a Ph.D. at the University of Virginia. She returned to Bryn Mawr as an assistant dean in 1979. She has remained at the College since, serving as an admissions officer for several years in the early 1980s before returning to the dean's office, where, as Vickers noted, "she became progressively more indispensable until in 1990 she was appointed dean of the undergraduate college." Vickers continued:

"In some way or other, Karen's work shapes just about every part of the Bryn Mawr student experience, academic and co-curricular. The list of offices that report to her is lengthy indeed: the Registrar, Career Development, the Health Center and Counseling Service, Civic Engagement, Athletics and Physical Education, Residential Life, International Advising, Access Services and Student Activities.

Advising a student as an associate dean

"During her tenure, Karen has guided a number of important curricular reforms through the faculty. She has played a central role in the creation of the College Seminar Program, and has greatly expanded the academic resources available to students in such areas as writing and peer mentoring. She has used her influence (and often her budget) to support faculty/student interaction outside the classroom. She is a passionate advocate for the importance of giving students a meaningful voice in governing the institution. She is equally persuasive on the importance of giving students room during their years here to become independent decision-makers, and to make the transition to adult life."

As a "worthy" in a May Day parade

Tidmarsh has also been a consistent advocate for improvements in the quality of undergraduate life. In an early Fall Convocation address, the Dean sounded a theme to which she has returned repeatedly throughout her tenure: the importance of nonacademic activity to education. Citing research showing a correlation between achievement in mathematics and frequent recreation periods among elementary-school students, Tidmarsh advised students: "You need lots of recess … we now have scientific proof that extracurricular activity is not bad for your mind. Quite the opposite. Devoting significant periods of time to athletics, the arts, community service, political activity, or the like would appear to enrich the learning process."

Vickers noted that she could rely on the dean to bring the values that define Bryn Mawr College to every meeting and consultation. Hollinshead added, "Karen's accomplishments are many and large, but they have been achieved in daily diplomacy, hard work and humor, in the acts and decisions of an empathetic and ethical person."

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