20 HOOD MAGAZINE | SUMMER 2008 Louise Renninger Rittenhouse ’48 Excellence in Service Award Louise Renninger Rittenhouse ’48 has seen Hood grow, expand and transform. She has seen nine of Hood’s 10 presidents govern over College affairs. When she came to Hood as a fresh man in 1944, tuition was $325. When she graduated in 1948 with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry, one of the highlights she surely mentioned to classmates was how delightful it had been during the fall semester to have, for the very first time, Hood’s choir join the U.S. Naval Academy Choir for the singing of Handel’s “Messiah.” Louise has seen two generations of her family earn degrees from Hood—her daughter Elizabeth Louise Rittenhouse ’74 and her granddaughter, Rebecca Rittenhouse Dupont ’07. But amidst all the change, there has and continues to be one very apparent constant—her admiration for her alma mater. Whether on campus or from her home in Pennsylvania, Louise’s connection to Hood spans across many levels, as she served on the board of associates from 1995 to 1998 and ran her class’ 25th year fund-raiser as reunion fund chair. She is also a longstanding member of the Hood College Club of Philadelphia.