The Website of The Future of Newcomb College
Directors
Below are short biographical descriptions of The Future of Newcomb College’s officers, directors, and committee chairmen.
Renee F. Seblatnigg of Riverside, Connecticut is the President of the Future of Newcomb College, Inc. and an attorney practicing in New York and Connecticut. She was prompted to act on behalf of Newcomb when she recognized that the Renewal Plan was flawed and dissolving Newcomb was not based on financial issues. Ms. Seblatnigg helped organize the Newcomb Lawyers’ Committee to bring legal action to enforce the terms of Josephine Louise Newcomb’s gifts. She firmly believes that Tulane and New Orleans will be stronger, better poised for recovery with the coordinate women’s college intact and the support of its alumnae base restored. Ms. Seblatnigg is former Vice President of the Newcomb Alumnae Association and is active in the Newcomb in New York alumnae network, as well as civic and local government boards in her hometown. She is the co-author of The Great Estates: Greenwich, Connecticut, 1880-1930 and has served as Vice President of the Junior League of Greenwich. As president of the Old Greenwich Association, she led a successful campaign to preserve her district’s elementary school that had been slated to close because of incorrect interpretation of federal census data.
Chris Jacobs (N’91), vice president of TFoNC, is a program management consultant residing in Marietta, Georgia. As a past managing editor of the Tulane Hullabaloo, she strongly believes in the power of public opinion and the responsibility of the community to hold its leaders accountable for their actions. When the renewal plan was announced, Jacobs was still reeling from the impact of Katrina on her own family, and began immediately to research the reasons and legitimacy of the decision to eliminate Newcomb College. Incensed at discovering that the loss of Newcomb was not caused by financial necessity, but by a political agenda that had been active even when she was a freshman in 1987, Ms. Jacobs agreed to serve as an officer of TFoNC.
Paige Gold (N’77) serves as Secretary of The Future of Newcomb, Inc. An attorney, she became involved after learning that Newcomb lawyers around the country were planning legal action. Two decades of employment in male-dominated industries have given her an appreciation for the way in which Newcomb helps nurture young women, both personally and professionally Ms. Gold currently has her own law practice in Los Angeles, California, specializing in entertainment and business law.
Amy Burr (N ‘93) agreed to serve as TFoNC’s Treasurer because she appreciates alumnae efforts to preserve Newcomb’s legacy. She says, “My undergraduate experience was directly and profoundly shaped because [Newcomb alumnae] had stood up and ultimately were victorious. In thanks to all of the alumnae who have built Newcomb’s legacy, I’ll do whatever I can to ensure that Newcomb remains strong.” A recipient of the Newcomb College Outstanding Sophomore Award, Ms. Burr was very active in the Associated Student Body, Newcomb Assets and Mortar Board. She also was a member of the Daisy Chain and had the honor of being her class graduation speaker. She currently resides in Berkeley, California and is a software development manager for the Federal Reserve Bank.
Winifred “Wendy” Delery Hills (N’75, JD ‘78), one of TFoNC’s Directors, is a fourth generation graduate of Tulane and a second generation graduate of Newcomb College with deep connections to New Orleans. In spite of the tragic loss of her family home in the wake of hurricane Katrina, she got involved with TFoNC because of her strong commitment to Newcomb. She believes that the way Tulane has handled the restructuring changes is highly questionable. As an attorney, Ms. Hills is deeply disturbed that Tulane ignored donor intent and the cy pres doctrine. She states “Tulane is not above the law.” While at Newcomb, she served as Newcomb Senate Vice President, Newcomb Orientation Chair and Junior Class President. She also was part of the committee that founded the Women’s Center. After graduating from law school, Ms. Hills served as a law clerk to Judge William V. Redmann on the Louisiana Court of Appeal, Fourth Circuit. She was president of the Newcomb Alumnae Association when the college celebrated its centennial and was very involved in the events of 1986-87.
Laura Anne Spriggs graduated from Newcomb College in 1995. She recognizes the advantages that her Newcomb education has provided throughout her career. With a Bachelors Degree in English Literature, Laura spent more than ten years working in public relations, marketing and communications. Taking a leave of absence from the working world, Laura is eager to lend her time and talents in support of restoring Newcomb College to its rightful place within Tulane University. Providing women a foundation and structure that caters to their individual needs is one of the greatest assets of being a Newcomb College student. Laura lives in Atlanta with her husband Paul and 4-month-old daughter, Eleanor (“Ellie”.) (Laura’s mom, Sara Jane Reynolds, is the Charleston painter of “Newcomb Hall, the Dawning of a New Day” that graces our website.)
Linda Torrence Muir (N’68) is a Director of TFoNC and lawyer residing in Atlanta and St. Simons Island, Georgia. A Phi Beta Kappa and recipient of the Anne Butler Hess Award in Philosophy, Ms. Muir fondly remembers her days at Newcomb including the Mardi Gras Balls with the boys from the Citadel, Saturday nights in the French Quarter
and special dinners in Caroline Richardson Hall. Some of her best friends today are the friends she made at Newcomb. She says she “came of age in a way that would not have been possible in a strictly co-ed setting or on a larger campus.” Ms. Muir spent a year in London through the JYA program. She is involved with TFoNC because she believes a women-only academic setting encourages students to fully develop their talents and abilities among outstanding peers and under the tutelage of a gifted, dedicated faculty.
Harriett Bobo (N’64), an economics major, was active at Newcomb as Student Body President and president of her sorority. Her distinguished 37-year career with the government in Washington included US Treasury’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. She also ran the treasury department’s Executive Institute for three years on behalf of Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin. Now a resident of Keystone, Colorado, she describes herself as a “ski and hiking bum” who lives at a ski resort and works as a hostess at the highest (11,444′) fine dining restaurant in North America.
Lena Juarez (N’91), one of TFoNC’s Directors, is a governmental affairs consultant residing in Tallahassee, Florida. As a past Vice President of Classes of the Newcomb Alumnae Association, she strongly disagreed with the actions taken by the Board of Administrators to eliminate Newcomb. “When a decision to restructure 120 years of
proven liberal arts education for women is dissolved based on the false premise of financial expediency, it’s time to take a stand,” she says of becoming involved with TFoNC. While at Newcomb, Ms. Juarez was active with CACTUS, Residence Life and spent a year in Madrid through the JYA program.
Margaret Whalen Kelly (N ‘85), one of TFoNC’s Directors, was shocked and dismayed by the major overhaul of the university after hurricane Katrina, particularly the wholesale firing of faculty on the uptown campus and Medical Center. She believes the University administration showed a lack of courage in the face of a major disaster and a lack of faith in the university community, the faculty, staff, alumni and supporters. She remembers the 1987 fight to preserve Newcomb College from an entirely different viewpoint than most alumnae. As the wife of then-President Eamon Kelly, Ms. Kelly was instrumental in fighting to preserve Mrs. Newcomb’s legacy to educate women in a dual liberal arts environment. She has been honored by the Tulane Alumni Association, the Tulane University Women’s Association and the Tulane Athletic Fund for her support for a variety of programs. She graduated summa cum laude as a returning student after raising her sons. Ms. Kelly currently is reconstructing and refurnishing her flooded New Orleans home and volunteering with a number of organizations.
Marla Custard (N’91), a TFoNC officer, was very active in negotiations with the Tulane Administration in the Spring of 2006 as a lead representative for the Dean’s Advisory Council. When she learned the renewal plan was a vehicle for the opportunistic elimination of Newcomb, with no financial benefit for the university, she joined the Federal lawsuit as a plaintiff and then joined TFoNC. Ms. Custard has been an active alumna, serving on the 20th and 25th anniversary committees for the Newcomb College Center for Research on Women and served three consecutive terms on the Newcomb Dean’s Advisory Council (2000-2006). She donated a collection of more than 700 books to the Nadine Vorhoff Library and recently set up an operating Endowment at the Newcomb Center for Research on Women. Ms. Custard is a charter member of the Krewe of Muses. She is a third-generation partner in her Texas family’s businesses which include oil and gas exploration, production, marketing, drilling and oilfield services, ranching, real estate and asset management.
Marsha Londe (N ‘64) of Atlanta proves English majors can earn a living. Grateful for the vision and determination of those who refused to accept the demise of a successful, self-sustaining, leading woman’s college, she joined TFoNC after attending a parlor party. The Newcomb experience provided a strong and supportive environment in which to discover and test skills. Her education came not only from the classroom but by being involved in campus organizations and student government, including as head of the resident student body. Because at Newcomb she could pursue any opportunity, she didn’t realize that the real world had a “glass ceiling” and was officially honored for breaking through in her chosen field. After 25 years as a leader in the promotional product industry, she identified a niche and recently started Tango Partners, industry-specific search consultants to major businesses. Newcomb-educated women enjoyed a unique, multi-faceted educational opportunity, and Marsha wants to be part of the team that saves Newcomb College so future women can realize their potential.
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Anna Raimer (N ‘00) graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Newcomb College and is presently an intellectual property lawyer residing in Los Angeles, California. While at Newcomb College, Anna received The Emerging Student Leader Award, and was a Newcomb Asset, a representative on the Newcomb Senate, and Assistant Rush Chair for the Panhellenic Council. Some of Anna’s closest friends today are women she met in the Josephine Louise dorm her freshman year. Anna is involved with TFoNC because she believes that a separate, women-only college is important to follow the intentions of Mrs. Newcomb’s gift to Tulane University and to honor the tradition and values of a college that supports women’s programs and academic success, as well as making the university as a whole more attractive to potential students.
Beryl Edwards Robertson Trawick (N ‘69), a lawyer practicing in Illinois and Louisiana, is TFoNC’s Newcomb Pottery Auction Chair. She fondly remembers her aunt and godmother’s interest in Newcomb pottery and its related history to the early years of the College. Recalling the efforts to save the College in the late Eighties, she wanted to revive her commitment to keep Newcomb alive and honor the memories of her family members who were Newcomb alumnae. Ms. Trawick currently resides in Mobile, Alabama and rural Louisiana.