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A Visionary Gift for Leadership

Supporting Smith

Margaret Wurtele seated in a chair in her house

Published October 24, 2017

A visionary $10 million gift from Margaret Wurtele ’67 and her late husband Angus Wurtele is enabling Smith College to create the Wurtele Center for Leadership.

The new center unites several existing programs—the Center for Work and Life, the Phoebe Reese Lewis Leadership Program and the BOLD Scholars—under a single umbrella.

The Center for Work and Life will be renamed the Narratives Project and will continue under the leadership of Jessica Bacal.

The Wurtele Center for Leadership is staffed by Ana Devlin Gauthier, senior leadership coordinator, and Rachel Simmons, leadership development specialist. A search will begin in the spring to identify a full-time director.

When fully realized, the Wurtele Center will offer courses, workshops, a speaker series and a multi-year program called the Wurtele Fellows.

Smith College is grateful to Margaret Wurtele for her gift and expects the WCL to further distinguish Smith as the preeminent college for women’s leadership.

Margaret Wurtele in her home on Lake Minnetonka. Photo by Mark Trockman.