Miss Porter's School • 60 Main Street • Farmington, CT 06032 • 860-409-3500 • admission@missporters.org
Miss Porter's School • 60 Main Street • Farmington, CT 06032 • 860-409-3500 • admission@missporters.org
From the backyard to the boardroom, from the classroom to the C-suite, from the laboratory to the legislature – our notable alumnae have shaped industries, changed landscapes, and solved problems that matter.
With noteworthy accomplishments in business, golf and education, Emily “Missy” Ridgway Crisp seeks excellence in all her endeavors.
A graduate of Vassar College and Hofstra University, Missy was an early leader in computing who established Crisp Computer Corporation in 1983. She specialized in providing information technology consulting services to businesses, schools and municipalities. Following a merger, Missy stayed on as chief financial officer for another 18 years. In education, Missy also applied her talents to teaching high school math and computer science and developed a computer literacy program for adults.
Missy’s first foray onto a fairway at age 5 sparked a lifelong passion. She became a nationally recognized expert in golf, earning accreditation by the American Junior Golf Association and the United States Golf Association. The latter organization honored her seven years of volunteer service on its executive committee with a distinguished service award.
Missy actively served as a Porter’s trustee from 1982 to 2000. She was board president for nine years and chair for three years.
Madeline “Maddie” Anne Goldberg is a visionary creative who has transformed her extraordinary passion and talent for film into award-winning artistry.
At Miss Porter’s School, Maddie founded the MPS Film Club and was the driving force behind several creative projects. After graduating from Porter’s, she further honed her craft at the Los Angeles Film School, where in 2022 she earned an honors bachelor’s degree in animation and visual effects.
Maddie now thrives as a full-time animator in the Creative Studio of ESPN, where she creates emotional, eye-catching content for commercials and TV spots. In 2024, her animation talent earned her an Emmy Award for Outstanding Graphic Design for ESPN’s “Toy Story Funday Football,” a live animated broadcast featuring characters from Disney’s hit comedy film.
Maddie credits her parents — her father is a musician, and her mother is an artist — and Porter’s for fostering her creativity, which enabled her to turn her passion for animation and filmmaking into a rewarding career.
Glenda Newell-Harris is a distinguished internal medicine physician, author and speaker who has devoted her career to empowering communities through health advocacy, education and service.
The first Black student to attend Miss Porter’s School, Glenda has held clinical positions with multiple prestigious health care organizations, held leadership roles within diverse medical societies and consulted for several medical organizations. Currently, the California resident is a regional medical director of YesCare, which provides health services to patients at correctional facilities.
Glenda co-authored “Focus on Your BEST HEALTH: Smart Guide to the Health Care You Deserve,” a practical guide for navigating the complexities of health care systems. She has traveled extensively around the world to educate patients and families from underserved populations on advocating for the health care services they deserve.
Glenda earned her biology degree from Tufts University and her medical degree from the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine. She has received many awards and recognitions from health, civic and corporate organizations.
From 1993 to 1999, Glenda served on the board of trustees at Porter’s. In 2022, the school honored her achievements by announcing the dedication of the Dr. Glenda Newell-Harris ’71 Student Center. Glenda’s legacy inspires future generations to continue breaking down barriers and making lasting contributions of change.
A deep and enduring commitment to community service has defined the life of Mimi Colgate Kirk, whose significant volunteer contributions have benefited health care, the environment and Miss Porter’s School.
The resident of Greenwich, Connecticut, has supported Porter’s in fulfilling its promise of providing transformational education to girls. Over four decades, Mimi cochaired two fundraising campaigns and six reunion gift committees. She also served multiple terms on Porter’s board of trustees and has been a current member since 2023.
Just as dedicated to improving life in her local community, Mimi volunteered for years at Greenwich Hospital. Understanding the importance of preserving natural heritage, she has also volunteered for the Greenwich Botanical Center to support its plant conservation and education work.
An accomplished track and field athlete and a Rhodes Scholar who is keen to tackle systemic racism and influence positive change in today’s world, Sydni Alexis Scott is well positioned to meaningfully shape our changing world.
At Miss Porter’s School, the native of Unionville, Connecticut, strove to advance racial equity on campus by serving as the student head of diversity. After graduating from Porter’s, Sydni pursued a political science degree with a minor in African American studies at Columbia University. While competing on Columbia’s track and field team, she achieved two top-10 finishes, for the long jump and triple jump events, in her first college meet.
Sydni’s scholarly pursuits at Columbia included founding and directing The Amendment Project, a student-led initiative focused on engaging youth in lobbying for reparative justice. Their efforts included working with city councillors in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to develop a resolution acknowledging the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
In 2022, Sydni became the first student to attend both Porter’s and Columbia and receive the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship. In 2025, Sydni completed a Master of Philosophy in politics, a comparative government degree, from Oxford University in England.
With her diverse and distinguished achievements in politics, television news and media consulting, Milbry “Missie” Rennie Taylor has helped shape more thoughtful public discourse.
A political science graduate of Vassar College who received the school’s Outstanding Service to Vassar Award, Missie began her career in politics as an aide to John Lindsay, the mayor of New York City from 1966 to 1973, and Charles Percy, former Illinois senator (1967 to 1985).
Later, Missie built a rewarding 30-year career in TV news, primarily as executive producer of “CBS News Sunday” and “CBS Weekend News,” that earned her eight Emmy Awards and the George Foster Peabody Award. Missie also served as a strategic consultant to PBS and ABC News.
In addition, Missie strives to make a difference in global affairs and humanitarian work. As a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, she helps America engage with the world in informed ways. Missie also serves on the advisory board of the International Rescue Committee, which helps those affected by conflict, natural disasters and other crises.
Giving back to Miss Porter’s School has been a consistent priority for Missie: She served two terms totaling 18 years on the board of trustees — including as chair from 2000 to 2006 — and was also a member of the Alumnae Board.
Photo courtesy of Vassar College, photographer Samuel Stuart Photography.
Miss Porter’s School recognizes the extraordinary contributions and exceptional achievements of our Ancients whose efforts transform fields, redefine excellence, and elevate our historic legacy.
Our most prestigious honor celebrates Ancients whose exceptional service to school embodies Sarah Porter’s spirit, service and dedication.
Gaylynn Burroughs is shaping our changing world in ways that address social inequality and create better opportunities for women, children and families.
The Arlington, Virginia-based lawyer is the vice president for education and workplace justice at the National Women’s Law Center, a nonprofit organization working for gender justice, democracy and prosperity for working families. Her role involves overseeing advocacy, policy and litigation efforts to allow women and girls to achieve and succeed at work and at school.
Previously, Gaylynn served for six years as the policy director of the Feminist Majority Foundation, which is dedicated to women’s equality, reproductive health and nonviolence. Her involvement with the foundation began through an internship that she completed while a student at Miss Porter’s School. Gaylynn also served as senior counsel to the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
Gaylynn’s resolve to advance opportunities for girls has also driven her volunteering for Porter’s; she served on the board of trustees from 2012 to 2021, with the last two of those years in the role of vice president.
A dedicated philanthropist who is passionate about making gains in brain science, children’s health, early literacy and the environment, Nancy Klingenstein Simpkin is moving the needle on social progress.
Together with her family, Nancy leads Klingenstein Philanthropies, three foundations that fund initiatives that focus on areas such as neuroscience research, climate change preparedness and children’s mental health. The overarching goal of the organization is to improve people’s health, well-being and education, particularly those with the most need.
The holder of a bachelor of arts degree from Smith College in Massachusetts, Nancy has worked to make a meaningful difference in the world in other ways. She is a founding trustee and the current board chair of The Wild Center, a natural history museum in the Adirondacks. She also volunteers for Columbia University’s Teachers College as a trustee and as an advisory board member of its Klingenstein Center.
In her capacity as a member and then president of the Miss Porter’s School Board of Trustees from 2003 to 2019, Nancy played a pivotal role in strategically guiding the direction of the school, including through the distinct challenges posed by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many lives and communities in Ohio and beyond have been positively transformed by the wide-ranging community service contributions of Margaret Nash Gifford.
Margaret’s long and noteworthy track record of addressing inequality in society began with her volunteering for a summer camp for underprivileged children. Keen to support diverse social causes more strategically, she served on or led the boards of several organizations, such as the League of Women Voters, Planned Parenthood of Northwest Ohio (as president) and Family Services of Toledo (as vice president).
In 1981, Margaret took a significant step forward in her commitment to social impact and formed a consulting business aimed at supporting the success of nonprofits; over the years, she helped 25 organizations improve their fundraising efforts and board functionality.
Margaret’s dedication to uplifting organizations with social missions she believed in extended to Miss Porter’s School. She served as a member of the school’s board of trustees from 1987 to 1993.
For her extensive volunteering at Miss Porter’s School and within her community in New York, Ann Stillman Nordeman is an Ancient with an admirable service ethic.
While a student at Miss Porter’s, Ann served as co-head of new girls, a leadership role that involved welcoming new students and helping them fit in. After graduating, she completed an associate of arts degree at Pine Manor Junior College (now part of Boston College).
Ann’s early career involved a role with the Columbia Broadcasting System. She is currently the director of admissions at St. Bernard’s School, a private K-9 school for boys in Manhattan.
Embracing community engagement, Ann has volunteered for organizations such as the Frances L. and Edwin L. Cummings Memorial Fund, which funds social service operations in New York City and Northeastern New Jersey, and American Ballroom Theater Dancing Classrooms, a nonprofit initiative that teaches social ballroom dance to fifth graders to foster their personal growth. She is also a member of the Daughters of Cincinnati and the Southampton Garden Club.
Ann has prioritized giving back to Miss Porter’s School by volunteering for several years as a member of its board of trustees, including for three years as its vice president.
2022: Gaylynn A. Burroughs ’95
2018: Nancy Klingenstein Simpkins ’74
2015: Anne Stillman Nordeman ’65
2014: Margaret Nash Gifford ’48
2013: Judith Milliken Holden ’68
2012: Mimi Colgate Kirk ’57
2009: Barbara Higgins Epifanio ’79
2008: Elizabeth Mead Merck ’38
2007: M. Burch Tracy Ford
2006: Marianna Mead O’Brien, P’74, ’76, ’78
2005: Edith McBride Bass ’50
2005: Beverley Waud Sutherland ’55
2004: Missie Rennie Taylor ’64
2003: Isabel Morrell Beadleston ’28
2002: Virginia Wells Truesdale ’52
1999: Judy Olin Higgins ’54
1997: Alice Babst Bent ’27
1997: Sally du Pont Cahill ’47
1996: Jean Marckwald Chapin ’56
1995: Marie Powell Hincks ’45
1994: Emily Ridgway Crisp ’59
1994: Eleanor Ashforth Harvey ’43
1993: Rachel Hammond Breck 1925
1990: Lucy Pulling Cutting ’54
1989: Edwina Shea Millington ’49
1988: Margaret Taube Harper ’53
1986: Caroline Morgan Macomber ’50
1984: Margaret Porter Davis ’52
1984: Lynn Weyerhaeuser Day ’49
1984: Elizabeth Hanavan Hube
1982: Louisa Copeland Duemling ’54
1981: Emily Parsons Ridgway ’29
1980: Polly Fenton Dickerson ’37
1980: Alice Rutgers Dodge ’37
1979: Elizabeth Buffinton Briggs ’44
1973: Nancy Fenton Perkins ’35
1973: Gloria Barnes Van Norden ’41
1970: Dorothy Dennis Marsh 1910
1969: Katharine Derr Barney 1918
1967: Anna Matheson Wood 1901
1965: Mrs. Hollis French
1965: Harriet McClure Stuart 1907
1963: Mrs. Robert Porter Keep
1963: Margaret Porter Ijams 1912
1963: Ellenor Cook Lane 1915
1963: Katharine Bunker Parsons 1918
1963: Eleanor Ames Powell 1924
1963: Mary DuBois Schwarz ’29
1963: Annie Burr Auchincloss Lewis 1920
This distinguished award celebrates exceptional service to Miss Porter’s School and the broader community. Recipients embody school values through transformational leadership and unwavering commitment to service.
Evan Burger Donaldson ’51 transformed lives with hands-on work dedicated to family advocacy, health causes, and women’s advancement. Her husband William H. Donaldson generously established this award to celebrate her legacy.
Defending America’s democracy is no small task, but seasoned voting rights advocate Andrea Hailey has proven she is more than up to the task.
As CEO of vote.org, the country’s largest nonpartisan digital voter engagement organization, Andrea plays a pivotal role in equipping Americans with the information and access they need to cast a ballot. Before helming vote.org, she co-founded the Civic Engagement Fund, an incubator for nonprofit organizations focused on voter empowerment.
A political science graduate of George Washington University, Andrea began her career in the office of former Rhode Island congressman Patrick Kennedy. She has advised multiple political candidates in state and federal campaigns, including former U.S. president Barack Obama.
Outside the political arena, Andrea has promoted action on gun violence by helping Marjory Stoneman Douglas High students conduct more than 100 national town halls about gun violence. She also helped raise more than $1 million in fewer than 60 days to build the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.
Andrea has been honored for her considerable accomplishments in political media strategy and fundraising with two Pollie Awards from the American Association of Political Consultants.
From 2010 to 2013, Andrea served as a member of the Alumnae Board at Miss Porter’s School.
When it comes to creating opportunities and prosperity for Native Americans, among those leading the way is innovator Vanessa Roanhorse.
A member of the Diné tribe, the resident of Albuquerque, New Mexico, is CEO of Roanhorse Consulting, an Indigenous-led social enterprise that promotes self-determination for Native Americans. By providing strategic planning, research and project development support that center Indigenous ways of knowing, the firm is uplifting Indigenous communities.
Vanessa co-founded Native Women Lead, a nonprofit organization that supports the entrepreneurial ventures of Native women. She also advises the Angels of Impact Fund, which invests in women-led community-based sustainable enterprises, and the Decolonizing Wealth Project, which works for economic equity for communities harmed by colonialism.
Other ways Vanessa helps uplift historically marginalized people is by serving on the board of directors of Seven Fires and Native Community Capital, nonprofit organizations focused on Indigenous empowerment; Delta Institute, a nonprofit addressing environmental challenges in the Midwest; and Zebras Unite, a business founders co-op working for a sustainable, just economy.
In 2021, Vanessa’s contributions to social progress were recognized with the PayPal Maggie Lena Walker Emerging Leader Award, which celebrates those working for a more inclusive economy.
With her deep commitment to urban education, social justice and community development, Josephine “Jodie” Moore has created brighter futures for numerous inner city youths.
The St. Louis native began her career as an interior designer before moving to Pittsburgh in 1980, where she founded the regional office of a design firm. Feeling called to ministry, she enrolled in the Master of Divinity program at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, which she completed in 1996. While pursuing her degree, Jodie founded the Larimer Avenue Youth Club, a street ministry for at-risk youth in Pittsburgh’s distressed neighborhoods that was supported by five East End churches.
At the same time, Jodie partnered with the Rev. Tom Johnson to create a summer school for teens. In 2001, their efforts evolved into The Neighborhood Academy, a faith-based college preparatory school for underserved youth. She led a $10.2 million capital campaign in 2008 to build the school’s new campus, and in 2015, she spearheaded a $4.5 million middle school expansion.
Jodie is now retired from The Neighborhood Academy and serves as its president emerita, but her positive impact endures: The organization now serves 200 students from 34 zip codes and 100 percent of graduates go on to college.
Opening doors to better life opportunities to disadvantaged residents of Greenwich, Connecticut, was the mission and life’s work of Anne Firestone Ball.
Anne was a longtime champion of Family Centers, a nonprofit organization offering education, health and human services to children, adults and families in Fairfield County. Serving on the organization’s board of directors for 21 years, including as chairperson for four terms, she supported its delivery of programs in areas such as early childhood education, adult literacy and job training. Family Centers honored Anne’s extensive contributions with its Helen Gratz Rockefeller Outstanding Volunteerism Award.
Miss Porter’s School held a special place in Anne’s heart, and she cared deeply about empowering its students to realize their full potential. She served as a trustee to the school from 1989 to 1995, including a one-year term as vice president. Anne was also a representative for her class. Her legacy of generous giving to Porter’s is reflected in the Anne Firestone Ball ’51 Fund, which her family and friends established as a testament to her affection for the school.
2024: Andrea Hailey ’99
CEO of Vote.org
2022: Vanessa Roanhorse ’96
Co-Founder, Native Women Lead
CEO of Roanhorse Consulting LLC
2019: Josephine Brodhead Moore ’68
Co-Founder and President Emerita, The Neighborhood Academy
Master of Divinity, advocate for social justice
2017: Anne Firestone Ball ’51
Community volunteer and philanthropist
2015: Louise Vietor Oliver ’62
U.S. Ambassador to UNESCO
Expert in education, philanthropy and public policy
2011: Louisa Copeland Duemling ’54
Philanthropist and conservationist
2009: Tracy D. Gary ’69
Founder and President, Inspired Legacies
Donor, activist and philanthropist
2007: India Howell ’75
Founder, Rift Valley Children’s Village, Tanzanian Children’s Fund and Rift Valley Children’s Fund
2005: Isabel Van Devanter Sawhill ’55
Senior Fellow, Brookings Institute
2003: Agnes Gund ’56
Founder, Studio in a School
Chairman Emerita, Museum of Modern Art
Chair, NYC Art Commission
2001: Elizabeth Cushman Putnam ’51
Founder, Student Conservation Association
1998: Elizabeth May ’72
Executive Director, Sierra Club of Canada
Our Athletics Hall of Fame honors the students, Ancients, coaches, and teams who have achieved distinction in sports. Persistence over perfection and training over triumph – inductees are recognized for their inspirational success in athletics.
In 2004, the Miss Porter’s School varsity softball team achieved perfection with a 17-0 record, capturing both Founders League and Western New England Prep School Girls Softball Association Class A Championships. This historic season crowned Coach Mel’s nearly 20-year tenure, during which she built a dynasty with over 100 wins and developed numerous collegiate athletes.
But Coach Mel’s impact extended far beyond the scoreboard. A trailblazer for equity and inclusion, she eliminated financial barriers to ensure every player accessed the full team experience. Her mentorship created a culture where #GirlsWinHere—fostering bonds that went beyond softball and teaching lessons about resilience, teamwork, and leadership that shaped young women’s lives.
The first complete team inducted into the MPS Athletic Hall of Fame, the 2004 varsity softball team represents both a moment of athletic perfection and the lasting influence of a coach who believed in limitless potential. Their legacy continues to inspire generations of Porter’s athletes.
Mercedes “Ellie” Large is a distinguished athlete, entrepreneur, business advisor and community volunteer.
A varsity soccer player, Ellie was a top performer at all-state and regional prep school competitions. While earning her bachelor’s degree at Tufts University, Ellie co-captained the lacrosse team to its first-ever undefeated season and became an All-American lacrosse player, which earned her a spot in Tuft’s Athletics Hall of Fame.
After earning her MBA at Harvard Business School in 1993, the resident of West Hartford, Connecticut, went on to hold strategic roles at organizations such as The Hartford, Travelers Insurance and Ernst & Young. Returning to Porter’s, she worked as a senior development officer. She also led her own business consulting firm and with her husband started a computer gaming center, The Bleeding Edge.
Ellie is an avid golfer who in 2018 won the women’s club championship at Wampanoag Country Club in West Hartford. She has also twice won the individual title in the Endicott Cup, a tristate golf event.
Ellie has served on the boards of organizations such as Foodshare, Girl Scouts of Connecticut, Hartford Youth Scholars and the YWCA of Hartford. She has also volunteered extensively for Porter’s as a trustee, Alumnae Board member, class representative, reunion committee member and chair of the annual giving committee.
A preternaturally gifted rower who made her mark on the sport at the highest level of competition, Corinne “Coco” (Schoeller) Hein exemplifies athletic excellence.
Having started her rowing career at Miss Porter’s School, Coco graduated in 2011 as captain of the team and had the distinction of being one of the top collegiate rowing recruits in the country. At Brown University, home to an internationally renowned rowing program, she helped lead the women’s team to several key victories. As team captain, she played a critical role in securing three Ivy League Championship titles at NCAA Division 1 rowing competitions. The team also achieved a first-place ranking among collegiate rowing teams in the U.S. In 2015, the university bestowed Coco with its Marjorie Smith Award, which is presented to the outstanding female varsity athlete of the year.
Coco’s illustrious track record in collegiate rowing earned her a spot on the women’s team of USRowing. Over five years of competing — including as the only woman from the United States — on its elite Senior National Team, she secured gold and silver medals at multiple national and world rowing championships.
Retiring from the U.S. National Team in 2018, Coco is the most decorated and accomplished rower among Porter’s alumnae.
As Miss Porter’s School’s most distinguished swimmer, having set multiple records during her time at the school and later at university, Kathrine Fugge McNamara reflects what is possible when talent intersects with perseverance.
Competing on the Porter’s swim team throughout her four years at the school, Kathrine demonstrated extraordinary natural talent in the pool. She excelled at the 100-yard freestyle, and her achievements in the event include setting a new record among New England preparatory schools and scoring the 11th-fastest time in the 2004 All American swim race. In total, Kathrine set more than 50 school and pool records in her first three seasons as a Porter’s swim athlete.
After Porter’s, Kathrine went on to enjoy an illustrious tenure on the Division 1 swim team at Northeastern University in Massachusetts. Her accomplishments included setting six different school records in freestyle, butterfly, breaststroke and individual medley events. She was named the most valuable player for all four of her seasons on the team.
In 2018, Porter’s honored Kathrine’s swimming feats by inducting her into its Athletic Hall of Fame. Her outstanding performance in the pool has provided inspiration to subsequent swim team members to strive for excellence.
A standout golfer whose many victories over more than four decades of competition earned her some of the sport’s highest honors, Carole Semple Thompson has opened new doors for women in golf.
Between 1965 and 2008, Carole racked up 62 wins in amateur golf — a track record that makes her one of the best female golfers who never turned pro. Carole’s first win was at the 1965 Western Pennsylvania Women’s Championship, when the 16-year-old beat her mother in the finals. She went on to achieve further success at high-profile amateur golf competitions. Notably, she scored four consecutive wins from 1999 to 2002 at the United States Golf Association’s Senior Women’s Amateur Championship.
In 2015, Carole helped advance gender equity in golf by becoming one of the first 14 women to be admitted into The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, Scotland, which until that point had been a men-only venue for 260 years.
Carole was inducted into the Golf Hall of Fame and the Hollins Athletic Hall of Fame at her alma mater, Hollins University in Virginia. Carole was also inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame at Miss Porter’s School.
2021: Mercedes “Ellie” Large ’81 – Soccer, Lacrosse and Golf
2021: Dorothea “Dotty” Morrell-Coleman ’26 – Tennis, Skating, Skiing and Sailing
2019: Pamela B. Bent ’62 – Lacrosse & Field Hockey
2019: Corinne “Coco” Schoeller Hein ’11 – Crew
2018: Carol Semple Thompson ’66 – Golf
2018: Kathrine Fugge McNamara ’06 – Swimming
To nominate an Ancient for the Evan Burger Donaldson ’51 Achievement Award or the Athletic Hall of Fame, please fill in the nominee’s information on the form below.
Nominations for the 2025 cycle are closed. Nominations submitted after July 1, 2025 will be considered for the next award cycle.
