Like many young people before her and scores after, Ruth Meixner-Bird, CAS/MA '62, moved to Washington, DC, in the 1950s with sights set on a career in the federal government. Armed with a master's in political science from the University of Wisconsin, she landed a position at the Central Intelligence Agency. Soon after her arrival in DC, however, Meixner-Bird began taking graduate classes in painting and art criticism at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ—a move that would spark a colorful career change.
"The study of art can open up new attitudes," says Meixner-Bird, pictured in an MFA studio in the Katzen Arts Center. "I felt enriched by my experience at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ and was inspired to go into teaching." Her newfound profession as an arts educator included positions at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, the Corcoran School of Design, and Montgomery College, where she taught painting for nearly three decades. Â
A dedicated supporter of Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, Meixner-Bird included the university in her charitable estate plans as a way to nurture generations of students to come. Her future gift will create an endowed, fully-funded scholarship for students pursuing a master's in fine arts at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ's College of Arts and Sciences. "Investing in people and education is my legacy," she says.
Now an award-winning abstract painter, Meixner-Bird exhibits her work in galleries across the DC area, including a recent show at the Arts Club of Washington. She hopes her investment in Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ students will inspire them to follow their creative passions, both as artists and teachers.
For information on how your vision and charitable estate planning can
create a legacy at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, contact Kara Barnes, director
of planned giving, at 202-885-5914 or kbarnes@american.edu, or visit
american.edu/plannedgiving.