The Catherine M.S. Gordan Nightingale Mind Lecture Series

The Catherine M.S. Gordan Nightingale Mind Lecture Series celebrates intellectual life at Nightingale. Established in 2013, the lecture honors the myriad contributions made to Nightingale by former Associate Head of School and History Faculty Member Catherne “Kitty” Gordan in her more than 42 years at the school. The annual series focuses on the scholarly pursuits and interests of our current teaching faculty, both inside and outside the classroom.

The 2025 Gordan Lecture was titled “Black Country Music & the Black Cowboy: How Black People Shaped Country and Cowboy Culture and Identity in the United States,” and was delivered by Performing Arts Faculty Member Samantha Spiridellis. In her address, she explored the history, cultural impact, and connections of Black cowboys and country music as she examined the impact of slavery on ranching practices, the music genre of hip hop and the connection to Black country culture, and the history of the banjo. She tied it all together in her conclusion, showing Beyoncé’s Christmas Day NFL Halftime performance, which included a medley of songs from her Grammy Award-winning album, Cowboy Carter, and references to many of the details that were shared during the lecture.

The Joan Stitt McMenamin Lecture in American History and Politics

Established in 2005, The Joan Stitt McMenamin Lecture in American History and Politics honors the legacy of Nightingale’s fifth head of school, who served from 1971 to 1992. The lecture celebrates her passion for history and, more specifically, American politics and government.

The 2025 McMenamin Memorial Lecture was delivered by Melissa Chua, co-director of the Immigrant Protection Unit at the New York Legal Assistance Group. In her lecture, she detailed her experience supporting migrant families during the crises of the last few years and her history with this work.

The Werner Feig Annual Lecture Series on the Holocaust

The Werner Feig Holocaust Memorial lecture was established in 1999 by former trustee Patti Kenner P’94 and is named in memory of Werner Feig, a Holocaust survivor who taught history at Nightingale from 1991–1997. The lecture honors the legacy he left within the Nightingale community.

This year, Nightingale was honored to welcome Marion Ein Lewin. Born alongside her twin brother Steven Hess on January 14, 1938 in Amsterdam, their once happy childhood was shattered in 1943 when they were torn from their home with their parents and sent to Westerbork, a Nazi transit camp, before enduring the horrors of Bergen-Belsen. Against all odds, her entire family survived the Holocaust and moved to America in 1947.

In her powerful address to the community, Ms. Lewin recounted her memories of Westerbrok and Bergen-Belsen with unflinching detail, drawing stark images of what she had lived through. Despite starvation, abuse, and grave uncertainty about the future, her parents always held out hope that their family would survive. In telling her story, she honors their courage and determination.

The Shirley Bennette Lecture in Classics

The Shirley Bennette Lecture in Classics honors Shirley Bennette, who came to Nightingale as a part-time Latin teacher in 1968 and retired as Chair of the Classical Languages Department in 1990.

The 2025 Bennette Lecture was delivered by Professor of Classics and Ancient Studies at Barnard College Kristina Milnor. Her address, titled “More than a Maidservant: Dark-Skinned Women in Pompeian Wall Painting,” examined the representation of race and gender in Pompeian wall painting and suggested alternate ways of ‘seeing’ Blackness in ancient art.

This article recently appeared in the summer issue of The Blue Doors.