Stephanie Riggio (‘85) entered Webb as a freshman and was part of the first VWS class to go through all four years. Like most of her classmates, Riggio attended Foothill Country Day in Claremont prior to her transfer to Webb. Riggio’s brother, Christopher Riggio (‘83), had already been attending Webb before the school founded VWS, which made her decision to enroll much easier and convenient.  

At Webb, Riggio dedicated a lot of her time to theater and was part of several musical productions. 

“I realized that there was something to performance that was really important to me and was really helping me become the person I was meant to become, so that was a gift,” Riggio said. 

Besides the incredible memories Riggio made on stage and in the theater, she mentions some of her favorite memories at Webb being her time spent on the VWS volleyball team and the summer peccary trips. From blasting music in the vans on the way to her volleyball games to exploring the fossil formations throughout Utah and California, Riggio built some of her closest friendships during her time in VWS. 

Although it was undeniable that many WSC students and parents were not so approving of the presence of women on campus, Riggio agrees that, as time went on, WSC became much more accepting of the new school. Eventually, through opportunities like peccary trips, she forged strong bonds with other WSC students.  

After Riggio graduated, she went on to study at Northwestern University and now works in voice acting. 

One of her favorite aspects of Webb when she attended was the celebration of intelligence, and how it was considered cool to be smart at Webb, which fostered her intellectual curiosity. Even though Riggio had done different activities compared to her current job in radio at Webb or Northwestern, she took a leap of faith in her career path, which speaks to one of the biggest lessons she learned at Webb. 

“When it comes to your life, what you want to do and your plans, it’s important to have basic blueprints and to be smart,” Riggio said. “But you have to leave room for the unknown because all of the things that I do for a living now I could not have predicted.”  

As Webb progresses to a one-school model, Riggio hopes that all the girls at Webb do not fall into a cycle of self-doubt and realize that they have just as much of a right as anyone to be there and to learn.