Simon's Rock Loses Beloved Dance Professor Wendy Shifrin

Wendy Shifrin, beloved colleague, teacher, and friend, died in March after a long illness. A member of the Simon’s Rock faculty since 1984, Wendy was not only an accomplished dancer and choreographer but also a dedicated, compassionate, and gifted teacher. Her devotion to the College was legendary, and her door was always open to the many students -- including over 150 advisees during her career at Simon’s Rock -- who found her a caring mentor and guide and who remained in touch with her long after graduating.

Wendy will be remembered for the biannual Dance Concerts, a great Simon’s Rock tradition, which she arranged and orchestrated. Wide-ranging, highly participatory, and always joyous, the concerts embodied both Wendy’s spirit and that of the College – a spirit that, over the course of her 31 years at Simon’s Rock, she was instrumental in shaping. 

Wendy also will be remembered for her energetic participation in College life. She served as Arts Division Head and as Chair of Faculty Senate, sat on the Policies and Procedures and the Judicial and Appeals committees, and for twelve years served as a member of the merit scholarship committee. 

“We knew Wendy best as a teacher, a job – for her, a vocation – at which she was profoundly talented and to which she was deeply devoted,” said Provost Peter Laipson. “Wendy loved her students, and that love was evident in her in everything she did here at Simon’s Rock. We mourn her loss.”