Welcome to "the club": with her appointment as president of Saint Joseph College, Dr. Pamela Trotman Reid joins her husband, Wayne State University president, Dr. Irvin Reid, in making history

Diverse Issues in Higher Education, Nov 15, 2007 by B. Denise Hawkins

Pulling a page from her hectic yet storybook life, Pamela Reid talks about the recipe for success in a dual-career, commuter family. Take note: "There has to be a lot of communication. People have to share and support each other, even share the stresses. You have to have fun, enjoy each other, and have a good sense of humor.

"You can't make everything about your career. We place a lot of importance on our family, not just our children and grandchildren, but on our relatives. You have to be able to keep that balance," she explains.

As she prepared to embark on a 10-day student- and faculty-recruiting trip to China for Roosevelt University, Pamela Reid was up late sorting through the clothes she wanted to pack. In the midst of it all, she spent a few minutes thoughtfully unfolding the rich fabric of her extraordinary life--speaking nostalgically of the 13 years she spent in Catholic schools while growing up in Brooklyn and Queens, N.Y., and the plans she has for Saint Joseph College, "a small place to grow" and where she hopes young women, not just Catholics, "can develop values and a sense of self respect." As Pamela Reid tells it, the fabric of her successful life exists because of the "friends and family who love and nurture me.

"I've always learned so much from the people and institutions where I have been. And now, I am looking forward to new opportunities, making new friends and to just having a great time."