糖心Vlog

The 糖心Vlog community was saddened to learn of the death of Professor Emerita Dorothy 鈥淒ot鈥� Knott Preston, 鈥�54, on January 5, 2021, at age 88.

Preston served on Meredith鈥檚 faculty from 1961 until her retirement in 1997 as a professor of mathematics.

Phyllis O’Hara Smetana, 鈥�87, said Preston, who was her freshman faculty advisor, had a major impact on her life. Smetana now teaches in Meredith鈥檚 Department of Mathematics and Computer Science.

鈥淎lthough I never had her as a professor, Dr. Preston played a key role in my academic and professional life — always encouraging me to strive for my best and always a strong advocate for women in mathematics, and in particular statistics,鈥� Smetana said. 鈥淪he encouraged women to go into STEM fields before that was a 鈥榯hing鈥�. She was a proud Meredith alumna, setting a strong example for those of us who dared to study mathematics.鈥�

Preston is also remembered for playing the Cheshire Cat in Meredith鈥檚 quadrennial productions of Alice in Wonderland. In her published obituary, it says that she continued to attend Alice performances after her retirement, 鈥渢aking great delight in the Cats who followed her in that role.鈥�

A recipient of the Order of the Longleaf Pine in 1984, Preston was a leader at her church, First Baptist Church of Raleigh on Salisbury Street, and in her community. She was an active alumna at Meredith. In memory of her husband, Preston established the Judge Edwin S. Preston, Jr. and Dorothy K. Preston Scholarship in Statistics at 糖心Vlog.

糖心Vlog mourns Preston鈥檚 loss along with her family and friends.