Nancy Bekavac was the sixth president of

Scripps College Scripps College is a private liberal arts women's college in Claremont, California. It was founded as a member of the Claremont Colleges in 1926, a year after the consortium's formation. Journalist and philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps prov ...

and the first woman to hold that position. She began her tenure on July 1, 1990, and concluded it on June 30, 2007. Scripps College is a

liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...

women's college Women's colleges in higher education are undergraduate, bachelor's degree-granting institutions, often liberal arts colleges, whose student populations are composed exclusively or almost exclusively of women. Some women's colleges admit male st ...

Claremont, California Claremont () is a suburban city on the eastern edge of Los Angeles County, California, United States, east of downtown Los Angeles. It is in the Pomona Valley, at the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. As of the 2010 census it had a popu ...

Scripps College

In 1990 as a result of Scripps alumni pushing for a woman president, Nancy Bekavac became the sixth president of Scripps College. During her tenure, the endowment of Scripps College increased from $57 million to $230 million, student enrollment increased from 630 to 880, and applications doubled to 1,900. Student quality also increased: first-year students now have combined median SAT scores of 1350, up from 1140 in 1991. Scripps also has more National Merit Finalists than any other women's college in the nation. In 2003, Scripps College Summer Academy began an annual two-week residential program for underserved high school students. Many changes were made to the physical structure of the campus during Bekavac's tenure. The college's physical plant was extended and improved. In 1994, the

Millard Sheets Millard Owen Sheets (June 24, 1907 – March 31, 1989) was an American artist, teacher, and architectural designer. He was one of the earliest of the California Scene Painting artists and helped define the art movement. Many of his large-scale bui ...

Art Center was opened. In 2000, the Malott Commons was opened for college-wide dining and special programs. Also in 2000, a new residence hall (Gabrielle Jungels-Winkler Hall) was opened and the former President's House on campus was renamed as the Ellen Clark Revelle House. In 2001, a 25-meter swimming pool was built, and in 2006 ground was broken for the Sallie Tiernan Field House, a recreation and athletic center with a woman-friendly environment. The Field House now accommodates nutrition and health classes and includes workout rooms.

Early life and education

Bekavac was born and raised in

Clairton, Pennsylvania Clairton is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. It is located along the Monongahela River and is part of the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area. The population was 6,181 at the 2020 census. Under Pennsylvania legal classifications for local go ...

, a suburb of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, where her family ran the Bekavac Funeral Home. She graduated from

Clairton High School Clairton High School is located in suburban Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in Allegheny County Allegheny County () is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in Southwestern P ...

in 1965. She earned a bachelor's degree from

Swarthmore College Swarthmore College ( , ) is a private liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the earliest coeducational colleges in the United States. It was established as ...

where she graduated

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...

in 1969, and she graduated from

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by '' U.S. News & Worl ...

in 1973. She was one of four Swarthmore College team members on the weekly

College Bowl ''College Bowl'' (which has carried a naming rights sponsor, initially General Electric and later Capital One) is a radio, television, and student quiz show. ''College Bowl'' first aired on the NBC Radio Network in 1953 as ''College Quiz Bowl ...

"quiz" show during the 1968-1969 season that defeated competing teams for five consecutive weeks. She was also a

Watson Fellow The Thomas J. Watson Foundation is a charitable trust formed 1961 in honor of former chairman and CEO of IBM, Thomas J. Watson. The Foundation's stated vision is to empower students “to expand their vision, test and develop their potential, a ...

, traveling in South Asia and Eastern Europe. At Yale Law School, she was a classmate of president-to-be

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (Birth name, né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 ...

.PBS Frontline interviews, 'The Choice '96'
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Career

She practiced law in Los Angeles, and was a partner at the firm now known as

Munger, Tolles & Olson Munger, Tolles, & Olson LLP (MTO) is a Californian law firm with offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. Charles Munger founded the firm in 1962 along with six other attorneys. Legal practice Munger, Tolles & Olson is kn ...

; she was Director of the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, and was counselor to the president of

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

prior to her appointment as president of Scripps College. She is currently RIT Kosovo Trustee Chair.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bekavac, Nancy Swarthmore College alumni Living people Heads of universities and colleges in the United States Yale Law School alumni Scripps College People from Clairton, Pennsylvania Year of birth missing (living people) People associated with Munger, Tolles & Olson