Elizabeth Topham Kennan, Ph.D. (Mount Holyoke College'60) was the sixteenth president of Mount Holyoke from 1978 - 1995. She was also the president of Five Colleges (Massachusetts) inc. from 1985-1994. Jump to: navigation, search Mount Holyoke College, a liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, is the oldest womens college in the United States, and the oldest continuing institution of womens higher education in the world. ... The Five Colleges are affiliated colleges in the Connecticut River valley of western Massachusetts, belonging to a consortium called Five Colleges, Incorporated. ...

After Kennan received her B.A. (summa cum laude) in history from Mount Holyoke, she pursued an M.A. at Oxford University which she completed in 1962. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Washington in 1966. She was a professor of medieval history at Catholic University from 1966-1978 before joining Mount Holyoke as president. Upon her retirement from Mount Holyoke in 1995, the Kennan Faculty Chair and Lectureship was established. The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford in England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... The University of Washington, founded in 1861, is a major public research university in the Seattle metropolitan area. ... The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (abbreviated CUA), located in Washington, DC, is unique as the national university of the Catholic Church and as the only higher education institution founded by the U.S. bishops. ...

In 2000, Kennan co-authored the mystery novel, Overnight Float, with Jill Ker Conway (former president of Smith College). The novel is published under the pen - name Clare Munnings and was their first venture into the mystery genre [1]. Jill Ker Conway (born 9 September 1934) is an Australian-American author, best known for her autobiographies, in particular her first memoirs The Road from Coorain. ... Smith College campus center Smith College, located in Northampton, Massachusetts, is the largest womens college in the United States. ...

Kennan currently lives in Kentucky with her husband, Michael Burns, professor emeritus in history from Mount Holyoke. They have restored a thoroughbred horse farm on the National Register of Historic Places. Michael Burns, Ph. ... The National Register of Historic Places is the USAs official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects worthy of preservation. ...

External links

• Retirement press release 1
• Retirement press release 2
• Overnight Float review
• Press release on her official presidential portrait, 1996 & Another view of the portrait