Finding a home away from home
In 1969, when the first batch of female students arrived on Yale’s campus Master’s Teas used to look different.
On weekends, Rachel Hockett ’73 could be found sipping a tasty punch with a circle of young women — in her residential college master’s house.
Originally from Ithaca, New York, Hockett found a home away from home at Saybrook College in the company of Alison Henning, then-Master Basil Henning’s ’32 wife.
“[The Hennings] were such an integral part of us becoming assimilated as women,” Hockett said. She added of Alison: “She just loved us young women and she was...
I really enjoyed talking with Esther about my college memories. And, I must say, I had to laugh at the caption under my innocent-looking yearbook picture, which refers to the "alcohol-fueled" gatherings, hosted by our beloved master's beloved wife, Alison Henning. Lest you think otherwise, we did study, too, and go to class . . . on occasion! Yale was, and remains, an essential part of my life.