“I was born a Cornellian,” said Doris “Dori” Goudsmit Albert ’57—and not as a figure of speech.
Dori’s parents—Hellen Goudsmit 1936 and Arnoldus Goudsmit 1936—immigrated to the United States from Holland in 1933 after they were married.
“My grandfather had said yes, they could get married, but they each had to get another degree,” she said.
Dori was born at New York Hospital, the teaching hospital of Cornell University Medical College while her parents were completing their PhDs in research biochemistry. (The medical school partnership is now NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.)
“I never thought about going anywhere else,” she said. “When I was two, they found me putting Cornell stickers on the toilet seat. There was never any question about it.”
As a Cornell student, Dori majored in sociology with minors in textiles and clothing, and housing and design. She was a member of Delta Gamma, volunteered for events at Willard Straight, and took part in YASNY, “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet”, a group that decorated for formal dances held in Barton Hall featuring bands like Benny Goodman and His Orchestra.
Dori married David J. Albert ’54 the week she graduated from Cornell. The pair settled in New York City, where Dori put her textiles and clothing background to work at the Stearns department store on 42nd Street, teaching sales technique and training staff on everything from cash registers to customer service.
A year later, Dori started graduate school to qualify for teaching positions. She taught elementary school for two years until pregnancy ended her classroom career—at the time, “when you got pregnant, you were no longer allowed to teach,” she explained.
Dori kept active playing tennis and skiing, and focused on raising her three children, Debbie, Douglas, and Dan. Later, she spent 25-years in real estate, living in Buffalo, and then Rochester, New York.
Throughout these transitions, Dori maintained close ties to Cornell; she was treasurer of the Delta Gamma alumni assocation, and rarely missing a Reunion for her class. Dori’s volunteer leadership began around her 30th Reunion, when she took charge of displays and memorabilia—putting together scrapbooks of items alumni brought back to show off from their school days. She quickly became known for her dedication, always arriving on campus several days early to help with setup.
“You just get in the groove with everybody else that does the same kind of thing,” she said. “It’s neat because you can see what’s going on and what other classes are doing before you have to be totally busy with your own stuff.”
Dori is also a member of the Continuous Reunion Club, which she found as a chance to sit back and enjoy the event rather than focusing on planning. She was a Cornell University Council member for 12 years and has been a Class of 1957 council member for decades—with roles ranging from nominating chair to class president, as well as Reunion chair three times.
Dori’s second time chairing Reunion was for her class’s milestone 50th Reunion, something she doesn’t think she could have done the first time around.
“It’s a huge job, and being Reunion chair for the 50th is much bigger than the others. There are many more people who come, many who come for the first time in 50 years,” she said.
Dori’s involvement with Cornell took another dimension through Cornell’s Adult University (CAU). She enjoyed participating in many summer programs, bringing her three children and nine grandchildren to participate in courses of their own. Dori took classes in everything from cooking to tennis and rowing. Her enthusiasm for rowing, first sparked by CAU, even led her to volunteer her time coaching high school novice girls’ rowing for 10 years.
“Working with these kids who were getting ready to go to college eel like one of the most rewarding things I’ve done over the years,” she said.
She was a particular fan of Cornell Outdoor Education (COE), and is a member of the advisory board. Over the years, Dori had taken many outdoor education courses with COE founder David Moriah ’72, who introduced her to rock climbing and with whom she became good friends.
“When I got the award, I had a note right away from David—‘Congratulations to my best student.’ I was certainly the oldest! When we started doing those outdoor courses, I was 60, way older than anybody else in the classes,” she said.
She has also found ways to support future generations of Cornellians. Dori and her three sisters banded together to form the Arnoldus and Hellen C. Goudsmit Scholarship, which has been supporting Arts and Sciences students since 1995.
Dori has also found innovative ways to support young alumni. At a Cornell Alumni Leadership Conference (CALC) before her class’s 55th Reunion, she overheard members of the Class of 2007 worried about funding their first Reunion.
Dori brought their concern to the Class of 1957 council, which voted to donate funds from their treasury to support the younger class—with one condition: rather than paying back the Class of 1957, they should “pay it forward,” perhaps to the Class of 2057. Beyond the financial support, Dori also offered her experience and friendship to the young alumni, fostering a connection that continues to this day.
For Dori, staying involved with Cornell has never felt like an obligation. “There’s a lot that I’ve gotten out of Cornell. And it’s a two-way street; it’s a great way to have lifelong friends.”
