by Kristin Proulx Jarvis

Karen Mitchell O'Shaughnessy '80 with sons Patrick (L) and Brian (R) in Mary Lyon Hall. Photo by John Hession.

When Karen Mitchell O’Shaughnessy ’80 was at Plymouth State, students went to Friday night dances at Speare, the drinking age was 18 and hardly anyone on campus had a car. Dorms weren’t coed, Biederman’s was called the Cellar Pub and the bookstore sold t-shirts and mugs bearing the name “Plymouth State College.”

Other things about the school haven’t changed. The seasons are still celebrated with snowball fights, sunbathing trips to Livermore beach, pumpkins on Rounds, floating down the Pemigewasset River and springtime Frisbee games that sprawl across the campus. Students still mark the hours by listening to the chimes from the Rounds Hall clock tower. O’Shaughnessy’s twin sons, Patrick and Brian ’07, agree that Plymouth, with its small classes and close-knit atmosphere, is still a place where everyone knows your name.

Patrick and Brian have been witnesses to their mother’s enthusiasm for Plymouth State since they were in diapers. As toddlers, they posed for photographs in matching Plymouth sweatshirts and sweatpants. Later, they wore white “PSC Vice” shirts that came down to their knees. They accompanied their mother to homecomings and graduations, and for years they heard stories of how wonderful Plymouth was. As they grew older, Patrick and Brian teased their mother about her extreme dedication to her alma mater. One year, when Mary Lyon was undergoing renovations, O’Shaughnessy even asked if she could have her old dorm room door.

But when it came time to decide where they wanted to attend college, Patrick, a physical education major, and Brian, a vocal performance major, weren’t as gung ho as their mother about Plymouth.

“They kept saying, ‘Forget it, Mom. We’re not going to Plymouth,’” says O’Shaughnessy.

But the twins ended up surprising their mother. When Brian learned more about the school’s music department, he decided to apply. As a student, he has become immersed in his vocal performance major. He is a member of the men’s a capella singing group, and recently toured Rome with the University’s Chamber Chorus.

This semester, Patrick transferred to Plymouth from the University of New Hampshire. He enjoys Plymouth’s small-school atmosphere and friendly campus.

“I see a lot of the same faces all the time, and I always feel comfortable,” says Patrick.

O’Shaughnessy, now a fourth grade teacher at Jewett Street School in Manchester, feels fortunate that her sons are attending her own beloved school. She too has returned to Plymouth to take graduate classes towards her M.Ed.

Patrick and Brian are slated to graduate in 2007, while their mother only recently began her graduate program. O’Shaughnessy says she hopes she will have completed her M.Ed. within a year or two, but she may hold out until 2007, so that she can participate in graduation ceremonies with her twins.

Visiting her sons at Plymouth brings back lots of fond memories for O’Shaughnessy. She recalls the openness of the faculty in her elementary education program.

“My teachers all knew me by name. I could drop in for help whenever I wanted, and they were usually always in their offices,” she says.

She remembers her close-knit group of friends, young women who lived together in Mary Lyon. O’Shaughnessy and her friends participated in all kinds of Mary Lyon traditions, from telling stories of the dorm’s ghost sightings to holding screaming matches from open windows, competing with the boys’ dorms across the lawn. Some winters, she and her roommates even snuck a Christmas tree into their dorm room. Her years at Mary Lyon were some of the best years of her life, she says.

O’Shaughnessy was a die-hard Panther sports fan as well. She was a cheerleader for the basketball team, and loved to watch lacrosse and hockey games. During homecoming weekend, she and her friends bedecked themselves in Plymouth State garb and cheered on their classmates tirelessly.

Back then, O’Shaughnessy recalls, few students had cars and most stayed at Plymouth every weekend to attend parties, dances, games and events. Despite being on her own for the first time, O’Shaughnessy—who grew up in Manchester, the oldest of five—was never homesick.

“It was a wonderful community,” she says. “We all knew each other and took care of each other. I always felt safe, and I never felt like I was alone.”