Dr. Connie Colwell has been a faithful member of the Presbyterian College faculty since 1977. She is currently serving as an adjunct for the French department but retired from PC in 2011. She primarily teaches introductory French classes as well as upper-level French classes. Colwell also taught German when the program was still here.

Colwell is a native of New York and received her bachelor’s at Middlebury College in Vermont. After completing her B.A., she taught high school for one year in upstate New York. Soon after, Colwell sought her PhD at Cornell University. She was hired at PC shortly after she finished her degree to teach French and German. 

During her time here, Colwell has seen many changes to PC, mostly physical ones. She has seen the addition of buildings like Harrington Peachtree and the demolition of previous dorms like Doyle and Spencer, but the most notable changes to PC’s campus was Neville Hall. There was a chapel where the writing center and a fourth floor that was home to various offices. Oddly, there was a first, second, third, third-and-a-half and fourth floor in Neville. There was an elevator, in what is Kuhne auditorium today, that took you to the third-and-a-half floor. Only professors had a key to the elevator, which meant students had to take the stairs. Colwell then shared a story of when students would go into a third-floor classroom, open a window, grab a desk and walk across a tiny ledge to put them on the roof of Neville, but don’t let that encourage you! 

Colwell appreciates the close connections that she has developed with her colleagues and students. She hopes that PC remains a liberal arts college with great teachings and personal relationships.