Oral History with Madieth Malone and Isabelle (Thomas) LeSane (W'72)

Born and raised in what was called the “West End” of the city of Richmond, Madieth P. Malone attended Richmond Public Schools near the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. In 1962, she was one of eleven black students chosen to integrate Binford Junior High School. Two years later, she attended Thomas Jefferson High School, continuing the push to desegregate schools in the city. Madieth developed many friendships and many interests while attending TJ, and when Westhampton College was presented as a possible choice, she found it to be a good fit. Several of her high school friends were attending, and it was a convenient commute from home. The goal at Westhampton was to get the best liberal arts education possible. While there, she pursued a wide variety of interests, but was most involved with the theater department. In 1972, she graduated with a degree in Speech and Theater Arts. After graduation, Madieth worked as a teacher for Richmond Public Schools. It was the perfect job, because she could travel during the summer and be involved with theater – performing in community and dinner theaters, summer theater at Dogwood Dell, TV commercials, industrial films, and as a film extra. She also worked several years as a per diem reading consultant for SRA-McGraw-Hill. Today, Madieth spends her retirement doing whatever she wants and enjoying every minute of it.

Isabelle LeSane was born and raised in Richmond, VA and educated in the Richmond Public School System. She had no experience with interracial schooling until she came to Westhampton. But she was raised in a family of entrepreneurs and that gave her plenty of practice in dealing with many nationalities. Like her father, Isabelle never met a stranger, so enrolling in an all white school was not a challenge for her. 

At the University of Richmond, Isabelle majored in Russian with the intention of becoming an interpreter at the UN. But life intervened and she got married and had children instead and didn’t want to leave Richmond. Because she had earned a teacher’s certificate while at the university, Isabelle applied for and was hired by RPS. Although she was hired as a German teacher, she was given the opportunity to teach Russian once it was known that she had that expertise. Isabelle is now retired and spends her days doing fun things with her grandkids and with friends who are in the same boat-being intentionally lazy and unapologetic!