In March, the Norfolk (Va.) Cosmopolitan Club declared Jane Parke Batten ’58 Norfolk’s First Citizen and gave her the Cosmopolitan Distinguished Service Award Medal. According to The Virginian-Pilot (3/6/11), the word among community leaders about Batten is that “it’s her personal interest and involvement that define her as a woman of both wealth and warmth.” Batten told the newspaper that, like her husband, the late Frank Batten, former chair of Landmark Communications and former Hollins trustee, she is most drawn to educational causes. “If you want a better society or to improve your community, it seems to me you have to educate and advocate for whatever you want. And let’s face it, children are our future.” Jane Batten serves on the boards of Wesleyan College, the YMCA of South Hampton Roads, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and Smart Beginnings South Hampton Roads, a nonprofit group that provides daycare.