Bio

As a student, Katherine Curtis "Kitsy" Rigler was engaged in scholarship, leadership and service. She was a Durant Scholar, a member of the Athletic Association and an avid participant in both dorm basketball and class crew. Kitsy also demonstrated her fierce competitive drive as a two-time winner of the Wellesley Squash Tournament. Beyond graduation, Kitsy served as a member of the Wellesley College Board of Trustees and supported the fundraising efforts to build the Keohane Sports Center. In 1987, following her service on the Board of Trustees, Kitsy served as the initial alumnae co-chair of the Friends of Wellesley College Athletics National Committee alongside Department Chair/Director and Friends of Athletics founder Linda Vaughan. In 2012, Kitsy agreed to rejoin the National Committee and currently serves as an at-large representative continuing to advocate for all scholar-athletes. In recognition of Kitsy’s support for Wellesley Athletics, the program christened a varsity crew shell in her honor as the Kitsy Rigler, Class of ’61 on October 18, 2014.

Sports have always been an important part of my life. Growing up, it was shooting baskets for hours, pickup games of football, basketball, and baseball in the neighborhood, swim team in the summers. Field days in elementary school were fun, and being catcher on the first place team in the girl’s softball team in junior high was exciting.

At Wellesley, I took advantage of the physical education requirement to try sports that were new to me—eg. lacrosse, field hockey, crew, golf—as well as ones I had already done. Unfortunately, and to the frustration of many students, there were no varsity athletics at Wellesley when I was here. It was said that the president of the college thought athletics would interfere with our studying. So I did what I could do, participating in many, if not most, of the extracurricular sports offerings, including dorm and class competitions, field days with other colleges, the all-college squash tournament, and even a particularly vigorous game of basketball against the Framingham Women’s Reformatory. Sports at Wellesley were a welcome counterpoint to academics, and provided an opportunity not only for exercise but also to meet students whom I did not know from classes or dorm living.

Wellesley has also been an important part of my life. I have been a volunteer for Wellesley since I graduated. I treasure the friendships I have made and the opportunities this work has given me to stay in contact with “today’s Wellesley” and various Wellesley leaders over the years. I am honored to be in the inaugural class of 2014 with Barbara Barnes Hauptfuhrer, Nannerl Overholser Keohane, and Linda K. Vaughan, three women with whom I have worked and for whom I have considerable respect and affection.

It is always meaningful to be recognized by one’s peers, who know both your strengths and weaknesses. This recognition is particularly meaningful to me because it combines two major foci of my life outside of my family: Wellesley and sports. Going forward, I will do my best to be worthy of this important recognition.