One Woman’s Quest To Help Thousands
Jane Stephenson ... A Story Of Hope And Heart

By Mark Mitchell

Who benefits? They benefit, I benefit, and it is all a result of a higher power at work.

What is the goal? Diffuse their fears and help restore their self-confidence while they grow.

Why? Because women are bright and can do anything if given help and direction.

Jane Baucom Stephenson is not only the founder of the New Opportunity School for Women, but also currently serves as the chair of the Lees-McRae College Board of Trustees. Submitted photo

Journalists are taught to immediately inform their readers of the who, what and why of their story, but the who, what and why of the life of Jane Baucom Stephenson barely scratches the surface of the profound and long-lasting impact the 69-year-old, Banner Elk native has made on the life of hundreds and thousands of women.

Oh yes, there are two more elements that need to be discussed ... the when and the how. When? For more than 20 years. And the how, as in how has Stephenson assisted these hundreds and thousands of women? By first founding the New Opportunity School For Women in Berea, KY in 1987, and then later, by undertaking the same venture at Lees-McRae College in 2005.

The New Opportunity School for Women grew out of an urgent need for women in Appalachia to become better educated and employed. The mission is to improve the educational, financial and personal circumstances of low-income, middle-aged women in the Appalachian region.

During the free, three-week residential program, women explore career options, educational goals, and leadership development as well as a self-esteem building curriculum. Among numerous topics, weekday mornings and some evenings are spent in workshops with topics including computer training, job search skills, Appalachian literature, basic math, and creative writing.

During evenings and weekends, participants continue classes and workshops as well as field trips to museum and attendance at cultural events. The curriculum also includes a workshop on how to go back to school, receive financial aid, and take the SAT or ACT.

While there are numerous statistics that illustrate how the New Opportunity School for Women (NOSW) has impacted the lives of the women who have attended the school. While we have yet to mention Stephenson’s role as chair of the LMC Board of Trustees or her recent appearance on UNC-TV’s North Carolina People with Bill Friday, it’s time to do more than scratch the surface, it’s time to go deeper and find out how Stephenson arrived at this particular point in time.

Stephenson was born and reared in Banner Elk, just as most of her immediate family. From an early age, she already had two thoughts that would eventually shape her life.

“I always felt that women had more potential than they were given credit for,” Stephenson remarked. “It seemed like they were told that, in terms of a career, they could be a nurse or a teacher.”

What was the other thought? “That education was a key. That I had to go to college and get my education in order to succeed in life.”

Stephenson did just that, earning an associates degree from LMC in 1957. She then made the trek to Greensboro to attend the Women’s College of the University of North Carolina, a school now known as the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Stephenson graduated from UNC-G in 1959 with a degree in Business.

After a brief teaching stint in Asheville, Stephenson returned to LMC in 1960 for a teaching position, and while there, also embarked on a Master’s program in Business and Education. It was also during this period that she would meet her soon-to-be husband, John Stephenson. The two would eventually marry, bring their first child into the world, and move to Chapel Hill in 1964.

When her husband acquired a position at the University of Kentucky, the Stephenson family ventured to the Bluegrass State, where John and Jane would have two more children. It was during this period that a prelude to her work with NOSW was evidenced when Jane started a program to assist non-traditional students with various forms of support.

The next major move for the family came in 1984 when John was hired as the new president of Berea College. It was in this locale where Jane met the women who were the inspiration for her next path in life.

“I met these bright, wonderful women, who were living a life of poverty, abuse and low self-esteem,” said the NOSW founder, “and I felt that a program which would help them was needed.”

It was from those thoughts from which the NOSW was founded in 1987. It was from those thoughts from which countless women have benefited. Finally, it was from those thoughts from which a recent survey found that 75 percent of the school’s graduates or either employed or are currently furthering their educational standing.

There was more more step to be taken for Jane, however, and that was to return to her roots. To come back to Banner Elk, and spread the success she witnessed in Kentucky to her native land.

“We found that most of the women who attended the school in Berea came from a destination only two hours away,” Jane said, “and I wanted to share this opportunity with women in the two-hour Appalachian region that surrounds Banner Elk and Lees-McRae. The Lees-McRae motto is in the mountains, of the mountains, and for the mountains, and I wanted this opportunity to be available to the people of these mountains.”

This desire was fulfilled when the second NOSW opened at LMC in 2005.

“It has been so wonderful how the community has embraced the school,” said the LMC alum. “Everyone has been so supportive of the school and all the women who have attended. It has worked beautifully and I just feel that Lees-McRae is a perfect place for the school.”

While LMC has been a perfect destination for the second NOSW, the school has also been ideal for Jane, who currently is chair of the school’s Board of Trustees, and in addition, imparts knowledge as a teacher of an Appalachian Literature class.

“In terms of my role with the NOSW, I’m there more for advice now,” Jane remarked. “We have wonderful and capable people who are in charge. I’m a resource at LMC, just like in Berea. I now have a title that I think sums it up and which I like, I’m Jane Stephenson ... founder and advisor.”

While the Banner Elk native may not be featured as much in the day-to-day operations of her two NOSW programs, she was recently featured on UNC-TV’s North Carolina People with Bill Friday. The show, which has spent more than three decades on the air, engages the Tar Heel state’s best thinkers, writers, politicians, educators, athletes, entertainers and other newsmakers in one-on-one interviews.

Jane’s appearance aired on June 15.

“I haven’t actually seen my appearance,” said the LMC alum, “but I can tell you it was a wonderful experience. He (Bill Friday) just put me at ease and did a great job of telling my story.”

It is a great story to tell because the story of Jane Baucom Stephenson is a story not only about the who, what, why, when and how, but also is a story about a kind spirit, a helping hand, and a promise of hope. It is a story about the human heart.