Class of 1961
Mildred “Millie” Grenough
- Hard-headed
- Resilient
- Creative
- Curious
- Music-lover
- Innovative
- Hiker
- Meditator
01. What did you study at SU and when did you graduate?
B.S. in Education 1961
02. What is your professional role- how would you describe your work?
I am an international trainer and Clinical Instructor in Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine. Long-time social worker and Executive Coach. Author of “Oasis in the Overwhelm – 60-second Strategies for Balance in a Busy World.” The Oasis Strategies have now helped thousands of people around the world find greater balance, focus and pleasure in these stressful days. The Oasis Training Program has graduates throughout the USA, in Europe, Latin America, and New Zealand. Currently an active member of the City of New Haven CT Peace Commission working for justice and peace in our city streets, our nation and the world.
03. What are the ways SU helped prepare you for what you are currently experiencing both at work and in your personal life?
It got me out of the warm but narrow confines of Louisville’s West End and opened me to other people, other ideas. A scholarship — thanks! — made it possible for me, the 5th of 7 children in a working-class family, to receive a full college education. And I paid for college expenses by having a part-time job working in the Spalding Library. This spirit of sharing — offering resources to those who need it — influenced me to become a Maryknoll Sister for eight years, and continues to influence me in the decades since I left the religious order. Geography was my favorite subject. That probably led me to live and work in Bolivia and Peru for three years, in Spain for three years, and to be constantly curious about other people, other cultures, other lands.
04. What is your favorite memory from your time at SU?
The realization that I had the incredible opportunity, thanks to librarian Sister James Ellen, to stack books alongside a quiet young man then named Cassius Clay. It still stuns me to know that I worked alongside Muhammad Ali who became a hero and role model for me and for so many people around the world.
05. What was your favorite spot on campus as a student?
The ground floor where we gathered to talk, play cards. I can’t remember the name of the room but I still remember my friends from that time and place.
Miss Dunleavy, who was our basketball coach let us know that even if we didn’t win, what counted was how we played, how we interacted with each other and with the other team. We did have fun!
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