On Feb. 3, an email was sent to Brookhaven campus staff and faculty to share that a former Brookhaven President, Alice Villadsen, passed away in late January of this year. Villadsen served as Brookhaven College President from 1998-2005 and was the fifth president of Brookhaven College.
According to an obituary on wolfefuneralhomes.com, a memorial service was held for Villadsen on March 8. In place of flowers, mourners were asked to send donations to St. Andrews Church in Gulf Shores, Alabama.
Multiple Brookhaven faculty and staff remember Villadsen as a small, but formidable, force. Kendra Vaglienti, English chair at Brookhaven, also remembered Villadsen as “a southern belle.” Vaglienti recalled that Villadsen was “…once upon a time an English faculty as well,” and Vaglienti said that Villadsen was the person to convince them to become an administrator.
In a phone interview with The Courier, Donna Robinson-Taylor, biology lab specialist at Brookhaven, said that Villadsen dressed up as “little orphan Annie” as part of a performance of the musical “Annie.” Performances like these were common when Villadsen was president.
Glenn Kaspirian, professor of biology at Brookhaven said: “Alice was a unique character, she was a tiny lady – I remember, very energetic, animated and always wanted to be – I think, secretly, or not-so-secretly – in musical theater.” Villadsen performed skits at convocations during staff development days to help boost morale and make the day more entertaining for all.
Jane Quetin, former Brookhaven faculty of dance, drama, and stagecraft and director of Theatre Brookhaven said: “It was my duty and pleasure to implement Alice’s theatrical ideas and provide the staging, costuming and direction… Most productions included faculty and staff and administrators as actors and singers. One of my fondest memories was when I accompanied Alice to a conference in Atlanta where she was slated to give a talk on the many jobs of a college president. As her property assistant, I made several hats and handed them to her as she changed ‘jobs’ that she enumerated during the talk.”
Kaspirian also remembered participating in these skits, and said, “At different times [Villadsen] was known to take on the persona and dress of popular film or TV personalities to emphasize a particular program or community event, such as Lucille Ball for the local automobile museum As I remember, I portrayed Luke Skywalker trying to slay a fifteen-foot tall, Jabba the Hutt.”
Michael Dennehy, former Brookhaven faculty, said, said that Villadsen was highly respected for her care for the college’s students, faculty, and staff. “Her legacy of dedication and support for higher education will be remembered fondly by all who had the privilege of working with her,” Dennehy said.
Carrie Schweitzer, who was the executive assistant to Villadsen, said,“I considered Alice Villadsen to be my boss, friend, advocate and collaborator when developing student programs and activities. Though very professional, she always had time for fun in the form of novel ways of imagining programs and college mission.
