Joan Helen Coulborn Stevens passed away after a valiant fight against cancer, on April 2, 2020, at age 77.

Born January 14, 1943 in Atlanta, Georgia, she was the fourth of five children born to Rushton and Helen (McIntosh) Coulborn. She was a graduate of St. Pius X High School in Atlanta, and she was awarded a Benjamin Franklin Scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania. There, she studied French Literature and graduated in 1964. While at Penn, she met James H. Stevens on a blind date. They married in 1966 and were married for over 53 years.

She went on to get a PhD in French Literature from Bryn Mawr College. She spent nearly her entire professional career at Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia. She taught in the liberal arts department and chaired different departments and committees through the years. Later in her career, she became the Dean of Students, and then returned to teaching, finally retiring in May, 2019. Not one to miss out on a challenge, she and Jim also raised four sons.

She was never one to shy away from making lifelong friends of the people she met, and was a mother, sister, aunt, and grandmother to countless people, including innumerable students that she mentored at Moore. Connections to others and meaningful conversations were a cornerstone of her life.

She is survived by her husband James, her four sons, Alec and Russell of Massachusetts and Geoffrey and John of California, their respective partners, and six grandchildren. She is also survived by her sisters Frances of Philadelphia and Kathleen of Ann Arbor, MI and Taos, NM, and her brother Geoffrey of Roswell, GA. She was predeceased by her older brother John of Fort Worth, TX.

She spent the last fifty-plus summers in Greensboro, Vermont surrounded by family and friends. She was an avid golfer at the Mountain View Country Club. She also had a lifelong love of literature, participating in many book clubs, and she loved to knit and cook.

The family would like to express its gratitude for the care provided by Dr. Schnall and her team at Bryn Mawr Hospital throughout the course of her illness. Services will be held in both Philadelphia and Greensboro with the dates to be determined. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a scholarship in her name at Moore College of Art and Design, Philadelphia. https://moore.edu/give