She is a medievalist. She is an activist. And she is looking toward new adventure. Professor Martha Rampton will be retiring from Pacific University after 25 years of dedicated teaching and 18 years of part-time directing at the Center of Gender Equity (CGE).
Kathleen Converse, director of Campus Wellness, will be taking over the CGE in place of Rampton following the end of this term. The university has invested more money into the organization, and now Converse will be working full-time to run the center, opposed to Rampton’s half-time position. Converse will still be doing her work with sexual assault victims, which will tie into the organizations previous work in comprehensive educational programming and support services.
“It’s time for someone else with new ideas and a new perspective to come in and direct the organization,” Rampton said. “I think the center will benefit from new eyes.”
According to Rampton, the organization always needed a little more administrative support, and having someone work full-time rather than part-time will greatly benefit the productivity of the center.
After Rampton’s departure the university will not be hiring a replacement professor for her, or for Professor Larry Lipin, who is also leaving Pacific’s history department this year.
“This retirement process has been a gradual transition,” Rampton said. “I’ve been feeling really ambivalent, because sometimes it will be really difficult to envision leaving, and other times I know I’m ready.”
Rampton’s next step includes moving with her husband to Las Cruces, New Mexico. She plans to continue her work with the Democratic party, and is looking forward to the activist work she will be able to do in such close proximity to the border.
After she retires, Rampton says she will also be putting more time into working on her scholarship, the Annual Award for Senior Capstone Presentation. This scholarship offers $200 for the senior capstone project that best addresses issues related to gender and sexuality.
“Working at Pacific was a wonderful life experience, but I’m ready for a new adventure,” Rampton said. “Doing the same thing so long is hard, and I’m looking forward to new challenges.”
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