WATCH: Staff Parents and Seniors Share Barnard Stories

three staff parents stand behind their three seniors on campus — L-R: Alison Davis and Arielle Davis ’24; Carrie Glasser and Orlie May White ’24; Gregory and Nora Triandis ’24

When President Laura Rosenbury announced OneBarnard: Foundation for the Future as one of the College’s five foundations during her inaugural address in February, she spoke of a “community of care” that already existed through family connections and strong bonds between students, faculty, and staff. Taking care of one another is literally how the College thrived over the past four years — from the moment the Class of 2024 entered their first year with remote learning. With each new semester, they have shown resilience and fortitude.

Now, as the campus looks forward to its biggest party of the year, Commencement on May 15 at Radio City Music Hall, Barnard has extra reasons to celebrate the Class of 2024 — three graduating seniors just so happen to have parents who are also dedicated staff members.

Family ties at Barnard are certainly not new, as there are longtime staff members who are related, faculty who are married, and students across class years who are siblings. For this "Countdown to Commencement" story, three sets of parents and students sat in discussion about what it was like to spend four years working and studying together in the same place — and shared why the experience was so special.

Arielle ’24 and Alison Davis

— Graduating History Major and Senior Associate Director for the Center for Toddler Development

Alison Davis joined Barnard in August 2018, where she works with some of the College’s smallest scholars and youngest psychologists at the Barnard Toddler Center — children and Barnard students who study childhood development. Her daughter, Arielle, enrolled at the College two years later. Today, Arielle focuses her scholarship on the history of public health and puts it into action as a generative editor for the student neuroscience journal Grey Matters Columbia University.

Orlie May White ’24 and Carrie Glasser

— Graduating Art Major and Associate Director of Multimedia Productions for Communications

For seven years, Carrie Glasser has been the eyes and ears of the College. She’s told visual stories about individual and institutional accomplishments, capturing the tone of campus for the world. This makes Orlie’s passion for art seem inherited. In the spirit of her creative parent, Orlie enthusiastically agreed to document her class’s recent spring break trip to Berlin for the College. She has honed her artistic vision by interning at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (twice), Christian Louboutin, Eric Firestone Gallery, and for photographer Daniel Faust, assisting with his digital archives and exhibitions.

Gregory Triandis and Nora ’24

— Director of Partnerships and Employer Relations for Beyond Barnard and Graduating Psychology Major

Well before leaving his Wall Street career to join Barnard in 2015, Gregory Triandis was already a fan of the College; his wife, Sheila Murphy, is a Class of 1980 alumna. Now, with Beyond Barnard, the College’s career resource hub, Triandis strategically works with employers, alumnae, parents, and other stakeholders to start students on their career paths. His daughter, Nora, has also helped students in her own way by writing about bouncing back from an academic failure and speaking about maintaining health and wellness in college.