Born a Clarkie

When Kristen Williams, professor of political science, arrived at Clark for the fall 2001 semester, she was glad to meet Jackie Geoghegan, professor of economics. Like Kristen, Jackie was pregnant. In fact, their due dates were just weeks apart.

The shared experience paved the way for a quick bond as the two balanced research responsibilities while on the tenure track while preparing for motherhood — a connection that blossomed into a close friendship.

“The six-week difference made it very special,” recalls Kristen. “It was nice to have somebody in the same position.”

A few months later, Jackie and Kristen became mothers: Maire Geoghegan ’24, CDP ’25, was born Feb. 3, 2002, and Anne Culhane-Williams ’24, MBA ’25, arrived a few weeks later on March 16. That spring, Kristen and Jackie spent their first Mother’s Day together. A photo of infants Anne and Maire at Jackie’s house memorializes the occasion.

One could say that the daughters’ Clark journeys started in childhood.

“I have memories sitting in Sackler 121 painting my nails and looking at the periodic table,” says Maire. Anne can remember running up and down the staircase in Jefferson. “My mom would try to tire us out before heading home,” she says.

“The Clark campus has always felt like home for me.”

-Maire Geoghegan ’24, CDP ’25

When grade school wasn’t in session, young Anne and Maire would sometimes join the college students in their mothers’ classrooms, sitting off to the side engrossed in a coloring book or quiet activity while Kristen and Jackie taught. College had an air of intrigue and mystery in their young eyes.

“I thought that the students were such big grown-ups and had all this time for ‘recess’ on the green,” says Maire. Anne recalls wondering why everyone carried such big backpacks.

Anne and Maire attended a few All Kinds of Girls (now known as All Kinds of Growth) club meetings and would be around for events like admitted students’ day.

“A lot of the people that my mom is close with at Clark are our family friends,” says Anne. “If I would come to work with my mom, I’d see people I knew who were at my house pretty frequently. It didn’t feel like this big college experience. It just felt like hanging out with my mom’s friends.”

Throughout those years, Anne and Maire built a friendship on and off campus. There were dinners, birthday parties, and seasonal activities like apple picking.

“She’s someone I trust will be completely honest with me, and she’ll give me her best feedback and advice,” Maire says of Anne. “She’s known me my whole life.”

As their daughters grew up, Kristen and Jackie collaborated professionally. Kristen is currently the faculty chair, a role she served previously with Jackie as her vice chair. “I’m a native New Yorker; she’s from Southern California,” Jackie says. “The facades are different, but we both deeply care about the institution.”

They also had second children, sons Ryan Geoghegan (a student at The George Washington University) and Matthew Culhane-Williams ’26. Matthew is an economics major and Jackie’s advisee. “Our families spend a lot of time together,” Jackie notes with a laugh.

Attending Clark felt right for Maire and Anne. Like their mothers, the two are ambitious and dedicated; their undergraduate years were jam-packed. Anne, a political science major and math and history minor, was a member of the women’s crew team, model UN, started the Diversity and Inclusion in Math club with peers, and studied abroad in Australia. Maire, a geography major and marketing minor, was an admissions ambassador, president of the Student Alumni Relations Committee, treasurer of All Kinds of Growth, a member of the Clark University Geography Association, and studied abroad in Ireland. Both had several internships.

“I never had that sense of homesickness students sometimes get during their first year because the Clark campus has always felt like home for me,” says Maire.

Finishing their undergrad experience has been monumental. After all, Anne and Maire have been walking Clark’s halls for about five times longer than a student’s typical four years on campus.

“We used to watch graduation happen on the livestream and we’d be like, ‘Look, there’s mom,’” says Maire. “Finally being one of those graduates is kind of wild.”

Jackie’s perspective changed as the children grew into adults.

“Having kids of a certain age at home means I understand the teenage and 20-year-old mind more in the classroom,” she says. “As I get older, I don’t make students call me ‘Professor Geoghegan’ anymore. I sign things ‘Jackie.’”

For Kristen, watching Anne close this chapter has been surreal.

“It’s been great to have her here and watch her from afar,” she says. “Anne has come into her own and it’s been lovely for me to watch her do all the Clarkie stuff over these past four years.”