Albie Dickinson C’91 and Laura Oppenheimer C’91 Volunteer Profile

Albie Dickinson and Laura Oppenheimer serve as 1991 Class Co-Chairs. They celebrated their 20th Reunion in the fall of 2011. 

Albie:  Laura: 

1. Why did you choose to attend Sewanee?

Albie: I chose to attend Sewanee because when I got out of the car for a visit after I was accepted it just felt like the right place for me.  The Mountain, the buildings, and the people all seemed so welcoming.  Call it simply a feeling, but it lead to a decision I have never regretted.

Laura: I was brainwashed.  Well, sort of….  My father (Lee Prout, C’61) went to Sewanee so I grew up visiting the Mountain from a young age.  Whenever I visited the Mountain I felt totally at home.  When I applied to colleges it also fit my profile of a small, liberal arts school with a top-notch education.  I knew Sewanee would be a very unique experience and while I did apply to other schools I decided that college was my one and only opportunity to attend Sewanee whereas I could always attend graduate school at the other places I applied.  I’ve never regretted my decision for a second.

2. Why did you choose to major in English and Economics?

Albie: I chose to major in English because I have always enjoyed writing and numbers of any kind have never been my strong suit!  I also wanted to take advantage of the strong presence of Southern Literature.  My career goal was public relations, and I knew an English major would help with that.

Laura: After deciding against going to medical school (a decision made at age 19 which I still question) I really didn’t know what I wanted to do and Economics seemed like it would be “practical.”  I went on to get my MBA so it did help with that.  Sewanee prepared me extremely well for graduate school, and I can honestly say that I think Sewanee was much more difficult than my graduate program.

3. Who was your hardest/most admired professor?

Albie: The professor I admired the most was one I asked to be my advisor, Dr. Robert Benson.  His enthusiasm for Chaucer while reading the work aloud in Old English made it come alive.  He seemed to me to be the quintessential Sewanee professor, with a love for what he taught, an appreciation for the Mountain, and a regard for the traditions that make Sewanee so special.

Laura: This is a tough one!  Bran Potter was one of my professors on the St. Catherine’s Island Ecology program.  He brings such a passion to both the classroom and the field.  I’m not sure anyone else could make rocks and sediment so fascinating!  I had to dig numerous post-holes on the island in sweltering heat for Dr. Potter’s portion of the program and enjoyed every minute of it.  There aren’t many people out there that can inspire that type of motivation!

I feel compelled to mention two close runners-up in different departments:  Dr. Gottfried in the Economics Department and Dr. Richardson in the English Department.  Dr. Gottfried was by far my most difficult professor, but he prepared me well for graduate school, and I am thankful for that.  Dr. Richardson made Canterbury Tales come alive in his lectures, and I never tired of listening to him. 

4. How would you define your Sewanee experience?

Albie: If I had to choose only one word to define my Sewanee experience, it would be “intimate.”  The size of the student body and resulting class sizes clearly contributes to this.  Encounters with professors beyond the classroom, whether at Shenanigan’s, a football game, or along a hiking trail, contributes to this intimacy.  However, it was the relationships and the experiences shared with treasured friends in dorms like Phillips that allowed for the truest opportunity to develop lifelong intimate friendships.

Laura: Sewanee is one of those experiences like going to a beloved summer camp that stays with you for a life time.  It was truly a formative experience for me and has helped shape the person that I am today.   The key parts of my experience were the lasting friendships that were formed, the incredible domain and opportunities to enjoy the outdoors, and the love of learning we all shared.  Having just attended my 20th class reunion I can say that I think we truly have something special at Sewanee that bonds us together for a lifetime.

Fortunately, my parents decided to build a second home on the Mountain so I return to visit at least once year.  It is the best feeling when I drive through the gates of the domain and get to “return my angel” for a while.  It is truly a feeling of coming home.

5. What is your favorite Sewanee memory?

Albie: My favorite Sewanee memory is definitely hard to single out.  Until I got married and had my sons, my time on the Mountain was the best four years of my life.  There was one day in April of my senior year when there was a great intersection of so many things that were part of my Sewanee.  I found myself sitting in Walsh Ellet at 8 a.m. on Saturday morning beginning my Comps in English.  All of the classes I had ever taken in my major would be covered in some way.  The “Comps Notebook” I created as I studied was truly a masterpiece, and I have saved it to this day.  There is a significant amount of stress associated with Comps, as well as a great desire to show one’s professors how much their enthusiasm for the material covered in the classroom had been absorbed.

At 3 o’clock that afternoon, I performed three pieces in Perpetual Motion’s spring dance production. One of these was a beautiful solo choreographed for me by Phoebe Pearigen to “Somewhere in Time.”  I had never performed a solo of that length before and my nerves were evidence of this.  My parents came up from Atlanta to see me, my friends were in the audience supporting me, and I really wanted to do justice to the time Phoebe and the whole cast put into that production.  I cannot say it was flawless, but I was pleased when I took my final courtesy.

The day was capped off by the Theta Kappa Phi Spring Formal, an event anxiously anticipated by all seniors.  It is the night we are roasted for the colorful events of our four years at Sewanee.  So, surrounded by my pledge sisters, our entire sorority, and everyone’s dates, I endured a recap of decisions made as I grew from high school senior to adult entering the real world. Thankfully they weren’t too hard on me, and I could laugh at myself.  What a day! I had passed comps, made it through my solo, and been reminded of things that can only happen in college.  I fell into bed that night with a feeling of great satisfaction and joy, grateful for my Sewanee experience.

Laura: It’s really difficult to call out a favorite because I have so many wonderful memories, but the one memory that I will carry with me forever is the time I spent on St. Catherine’s Island.  It was such a unique experience to spend six weeks on a private, barrier island with no one on the island except yourself, nine classmates, a professor, a cook, the island manager and his family, and a few visiting scientists.  The field experience we gained was invaluable and it also provided an opportunity to see some of our professors in a different light.  You could tell how much both the professors and the students loved taking the classroom outdoors and learning through hands-on field study.  It also fostered camaraderie among us which sometimes took the form of marsh mud fights and practical jokes.  I recall being a few minutes late to dinner one evening to find a baby alligator in my chair.  Now that I will never forget!

6. Why did you volunteer to become class chair/agent?

Albie: The simple answer is that I volunteered for class chair because Dean Pearigen asked me to.  The fact that Laura Prout Oppenhimer would be my co-chair made the responsibility even more appealing.  Laura and I had a good relationship on the Mountain with many members of our class and continue to keep in touch.  I felt like we had an opportunity to really make a difference with our gift and could help create a memorable Homecoming weekend.  I was very pleased with the work of our committee, our financial result, and our reunion.

Laura: There were 3 reasons:
1) Rob Pearigen asked me to and how can you say no to Rob?
2) Our 15th class reunion was disappointing for a number of reasons, and I wanted to make sure our 20th reunion was much better.
3) Sewanee has given so much to me, and I wanted to give something back.

7. How long have you served as class chair/agent?

Albie: I have served as co-chair for the Class of 1991 for FY10, FY11, and FY12, including our 20th reunion.

Laura: I’ve served as a co-chair with Albie since FY10.

8. How long have you worked for in your current position?

Albie: In real life, I am a stay-at-home mom and have been since my first of three sons was born in October of 1996.  Prior to that I worked for a PR firm in DC, the Democratic National Committee, and was a political appointee in the Clinton Administration at the Department of Justice.

Laura: I’ve worked at Compuware Corporation for twelve years including four years at Changepoint, a software company, prior to it being acquired by Compuware.

9. How has Sewanee changed since you graduated?

Albie: Since I graduated, I feel that Sewanee has become more recognized nationally as a unique place to get a college education.  Physically, the campus has changed remarkably since 1991, and the number of eateries is astounding!  (We only had Shenanigan’s, City Café, Four Seasons Pizza, Hardee’s and the Truck Stop.)  It’s hard to imagine Sewanee being any better than it was when I was there, and I am thankful that the traditions that I loved are still such an important part of Sewanee.  However, it’s wonderful that there are so many dedicated people always looking forward too.

Laura: Sewanee has continued to improve its facilities and educational offerings to further enrich the student experience.  For example, the newly renovated Snowden building is amazing.  I encourage any alumni who have not seen it to make that a priority on your next visit to the Mountain.  Another big change is that sororities now have their own houses and I understand that there is at least one national sorority on campus.  We only had the local sororities and we always had to rent out the fraternity houses for our social functions.  There are also a number of dining alternatives available now which is great.   Dining options were much more limited when I was in school on the Mountain.