November 2021
In This Issue:
Profile on new Provost: Page 3
Afrofutures at the Davis Gallery: Page 4
Attica Untold: Page 5
Veronica Ashby Tribute- Pages 6 & 7
Professor Werner’s New Book: Page 8
Profile on Professor Wilson: Page 9
Opinion on Student Government: Page 10
HEOP at HWS: Page 13
Haunted Houghton: Page 15
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By Liz Crimmins ‘24 Staff Writer
Earlier this year, Dr. Sarah R. Kirk was named as Hobart and William Smith’s new Provost and Dean of Faculty. Provost Kirk recently sat down with the Herald to help the commu nity get to know her and her new position to welcome her into our community.
Tell us about your self, where did you go to school, how did you wind up here?
I went to Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, which is a small liberal arts college and studied chemistry there. While at Whitman I played on the soccer team and was panhellenic pres ident. I then spent seven years in San Diego, first I went to graduate school at University of California San Diego, and then teaching at the University of San Diego. Followed by my first ten ured track position teaching chemistry at Willamette University in Salem Ore gon. I then spent nearly 20 years at Willamette first as a professor and then chairing the department and moving up into administration as an associate dean, interim dean, and then provost, which is how I ended up here! I am a strong believer in the liberal arts education; one of my favorite class es was my senior semi nar where students came together from different disciplines and read books together and talked about things from the perspec tives of various disciplines.
I think the most interesting problems are at the inter section of bringing together different perspectives and ideas.
we want to strategically use our resources to highlight those strengths and become even better. On the flip side, I ask the question, “What do we not need to still be doing, what can we let go of?”
I think I would like to take a class in Sociology or American studies. I am a medicinal chemist, so I have spent a lot of time thinking about access to medical care and inequities, so a lot of my attention has turned that way. I would love to get a stronger grounding in some of the foundational theories about the ways in which our structures have been created.
What is one piece of advice you would like to share with this gen eration of “Covid stu dents”?
What does your day to day look like now? What would you day to day look like without Covid?
With Covid there are a lot of thoughts about how we keep everyone as safe as possible and keep the best parts of what we can about college, in terms of building community. My day-to-day work is about meeting with as many people as I can and learning about the colleges and what makes the colleges distinct and what aspects are special to the experience here. I also spend a lot of time thinking about the curricular structure, and I would say HWS is a wellkept secret, and I would like us not to be a well-kept secret. I would really like to be shouting from the rooftops about how wonder ful a community this is, so I spend a lot of time thinking about, “How do I work with faculty to understand the things we do really well?” I want to understand where
What are your plans for changes or what would you like to imple ment at the colleges?
I have had an eye to wards equity for a long time. Part of what I’m interested in looking at is the ways in which we use our resourc es, and in particular, how are people spending their time? Are we thoughtful about the work that people do and honoring the work that most aligns with the values that we hold? I am also interested in innovating and pushing people to think differently in an area that highlights their skills. We have an exceptional group of faculty, and we continue to think about the ways in which we can continue to support and grow in the work that they are doing directly with students.
I think that Covid has caused us all to connect deeper with those around us, and in some sense emboldened this fear of the unknown. When it comes to engaging with people outside of your little co hort, people in our political system are so polarized, so I think my advice would be to engage with people who think differently than you, who have a different back ground than you, or may be a different philosophy than you. Spend some time listening to each other and engaging and participate in respectful conversation. My other advice is to have fun! You have to balance the seriousness with lightness.
If you could take one class on campus, or major in something new
On October 15th, The Davis Gallery at Houghton House opened its latest art exhibition Afrofutures: Before and Beyond. To get a closer look at the artwork and its meaning, The Her ald went to the gallery and spoke to several individuals involved with it.
Afrofutures: Before and Beyond includes an array of art forms that conveys the philosophies, politics, and aesthetics of Afrofuturism. Afrofuturism visualizes a place and time where Black identity and experiences are created without colonial ideologies.
The exhibition includes artists Kimberly Ashby, Ta nia Balan-Gaubert and Stac ey Robinson, all of whom express what their identities and/or experiences could be like without colonization affecting their individuality in society. Their art featured in the gallery depicts disper sion, hybrids, and critiques of governmental and soci etal control. Moreover, the bodies and pieces dedicated to being are conveyed by the artists as neither utopic nor apocalyptic in order to build other forms of being and worlds, which is the essence of Afrofuturism.
The exhibit features dig ital collages, installations, sculptures, graphic arts, music, and film throughout the Davis Gallery. Addition ally, the Solarium Gallery in Houghton House featured an installation of Afrofutur ism Short Films curated by the course ENV 360: En vironmental Afrofuturism. The smaller gallery space was transformed into a theater for viewers
to sit and watch segments throughout film history where Afrofuturism is depicted and Black identity is redefined without the constraints and trauma of colonialism.
Co-collaborator of the collection Anna Wagner shared her thoughts on why HWS opened their Afrofu turism exhibit:
“This exhibition spoke to many things that we wanted to incorporate into our exhibition program
futurism as a genre is so pluralistic, enfolding music, art, literature, poetry, and theory, we also wanted to bring those threads together as much as we could, with as much student agency and input as possible.”
Afrofutures: Before and Beyond has been viewed as remarkable for the histo ry of the Davis Gallery’s exhibitions due to the lack of attention and space made for Black artists in general.
as being diverse. By doing a show like this has been empowering for a lot of stu dents, like Rose Colon-Mar tinez––a student here––whose work is included in the gallery. Focusing on Black artists is something we have classes on, but the gallery is typically more Eurocentric, so using this gallery for artists of color has been really great.”
Opening the Davis Gallery as a space for Black artists to openly express themselves is a step towards expanding diversity and inclusivity at HWS with an exhibition dedicated to Black identity, specifically Black identity imagined without colonial ideologies. This has the potential for more freedom of expression from BIPOC students in higher education.
Congratulations to the team that curated this season’s exhibition Afrofu tures: Before and Beyond, a momentous show that tran scends Black identity from its origins and effortlessly guides spectators through the journey and essence of Afrofuturism.
The exhibition will be open until December 1st, 2021 at the Davis Gallery in Houghton House.
ming this year, especial ly the collaborative and generative possibilities of Afrofuturism as forward looking, questioning, and envisioning better/different worlds—crucially, where white voices aren’t the default perspective,” said Wagner. “With the interest from ENV 360, we wanted to also explore the rela tionship between science, environmental justice, and art practice. Because Afro
This major step in di versifying the Davis Gallery did not go unnoticed by students.
Student and Davis Gallery worker Annie Wert heimer (’22) shared her thoughts on the gallery with The Herald:
“As an art history stu dent, we learn a lot about museums in institutions, and especially at Hobart and William Smith, we never think of our collection
On October 26th, the Department of Sociology sponsored Attica Untold: Seeking Justice for the Atti ca Prison Uprising, an event that is part of a larger series of talks on Crime, Victimiza tion, and Justice.
The event featured Deanne Quinn Miller, au thor of The Prison Guard’s Daughter and Gary Craig, a journalist who covered the aftermath of the Attica Pris on uprising. Miller’s father, Billy Quinn, died because of an injury sustained due to the actions of inmates during the Attica Prison uprising.
Although Miller was five years old at the time, she has had deep psychologi cal impacts from the loss, and has dedicated herself to gaining justice for those impacted by Attica.
Numerous members of the HWS community attended the event, includ ing Director of CCESL Katie Flowers and President Joyce P. Jacobsen, in addition to many students. One student in attendance was Christi Ashenden, a member of the Classes of 2024, studying Sociology and Educational Studies. She reflected on her decision to attend the event by saying,
“I decided to come to this event… because the Attica Prison Rebellion was such a significant event in history, our own state’s his tory, yet I had never heard of it prior to the advertise ment of this event.”
Miller began the event by describing her life as a child in Attica, and by pro viding context for the Attica Prison uprising. She then
went on to describe the events of the day from her perspective as a first-grade student. She admitted that many events are hard to remember, as she was so young when it happened, so she uses her mother’s per spective to tell her story.
Following the death, she transitioned to discussing the initial aftermath. Miller suffered physical symptoms such as stomach pains due to anxiety following the
journey that her and fellow victims’ families took to receive reparations and an apology from the State of New York. While the group of the victims’ families was able to gain $12 million in reparations, they still have not received a formal apol ogy from the State of New York. Despite this, Miller is hopeful that Governor Kathy Hochul will issue an apology, as she is from Western New York.
understand that prison ers’ rights were not being respected but also that the measures that they ulti mately took to make their concerns known led to sev eral unrighteous deaths.”
Despite this, Ashenden agreed that Miller’s story was remarkable, as she was able to advocate for herself and the fellow victims’ fam ilies. She reflected on Mill er’s experience by saying,
“The most interesting part of the event was hear ing how Miller was able to fight for compensation for her loss and bring justice to the families who lost loved ones to the Attica Prison Rebellion… It is outstanding to see how Miller has chan neled her grief into a career of fighting for what she believes is right.”
When asked by The Herald if she would recom mend this event, Ashenden replied,
Photo By Kyle Mast ‘24 Deanne Quinn Miller and author Gary Craig speak at the Attica Untold event on October 26thdeath of her father.
Perhaps the most shocking event following the death was the revela tion that her mother was pregnant with her father’s child following the death. Soon, Miller’s life would be uprooted, as her mother remarried, and she gained a stepsibling. This contribut ed to Miller’s distress.
The latter half of Miller’s talk focused on her mission to find justice for her father’s death. She began this journey by doing large amounts of research about Attica in high school and college, as she realized that her family had a “black and white” view of what occurred at the prison.
She described the
The talk focused on the perspective of the correc tions officers, rather than the prisoners, which is a unique viewpoint when tackling Attica. As a so ciology student, Ashenden described encountering this perspective by saying,
“When we talk about the prison system in sociology, we often talk about prison ers and their experiences. Prisoners’ rights are at the crux of the rebellion, but this talk focused on the experience of correctional officers– a perspective we don’t often hear.”
Ashenden went on to describe the complexities of this event by saying,
“It was challenging to listen to this story and
“Yes, I would totally rec ommend that others attend a similar event or read The Prison Guard’s Daughter: My Journey Through the Ashes of Attica! Deanne Quinn Miller has a lot to say about the criminal justice system and how it affects all of us!”
Those who are interest ed in talks similar to Attica Untold: Seeking Justice for the Attica Prison Uprising, should be on the lookout for future events held by the Department of Sociology in the series of talks on Crime, Victimization, and Justice.
We love and miss you always. You will never be forgotten, Veronica. Fly high, butterfly.
On the night of October 28th, Associate Professor of Writing and Rhetoric Maggie M. Werner stepped onstage at Bartlett The ater in Coxe Hall in front of a room filled with her students and colleagues, wearing Halloween masks and eager to hear her read from her recently published book. In the midst of the pandemic, Werner’s book Stripped: Reading the Erotic Body was published by Penn State University Press. The Herald sat down with Professor Werner to discuss her experience writing and sharing this accomplish ment.
“Stripped is a book that proposes different ways of analyzing bodily commu nication,” Werner told the Herald. More specifically, Werner clarified, the book breaks down different styles of looking at “embodied erotic rhetoric.”
As Werner explained the content of her book, she told the Herald more about the deeper meaning that the body takes on through this type of analysis. “So, instead of treating bodies the same way as we would treat text, […] these methods that I’m proposing try to take into account that bodies are not text, and there are multi ple symbolic systems that they communicate in,” she stated.
Werner hopes to shift conversations about how embodied erotic rhetoric functions beyond “conver sations that just want to talk about them as oppressive or empowering.”
Werner perceives this
as a limiting binary, especially in regard to feminist theory.
When prompted about her experience in writing the book, Werner disclosed that it was a long process, beginning back in 2005, revealing it to be an im mersive time of her life in the communities where the erotic body could be ob served. “It’s depended a lot
erotic rhetoric. She claimed, “I don’t think anything operates as simply as, ‘it’s good or bad,’ and it wasn’t what I was seeing, it wasn’t what the sex workers that I met were concerned with.”
As her research deepened, Werner found a greater motivation to change the way that sex workers and the body are analyzed and discussed. She realized that
deal of enthusiasm to be the reality.
Given the specified, and what Werner perceives to be provocative material, the Herald shifted the conver sation towards the potential larger impact of sparking conversations about the topics in Stripped. Werner hopes that this will create “a space for other people to be able to talk about the things [she] hadn’t been able to talk about,” referencing back to when she first came out. In doing so, Werner wants to create a sense of normalcy and safety about this discussion, as she told the Herald, “It is normal, and we are sexual bodies and people have sexual bodies.”
on ethnography, going and looking and being a par ticipant/observer at these sites,” Werner continued, “Going to strip clubs, going to burlesque shows, being an audience member” were all critical aspects of her research for Stripped.
As the interview con tinued, the Herald asked Professor Werner what provoked her interest in this area of research. She answered, frankly, “Honest ly, it all comes back to the fact that I’m interested in women’s sexuality.”
Werner then elaborated, “These are really important areas because of the ways that the conversations are so limited.” In research ing and writing this book, Werner hoped to challenge and complicate the discus sions around embodied
“There was a disconnect be tween the lived experience of sex workers, including strippers, and what I saw represented by academics, news sources, and just peo ple in conversation—and so I just wanted to intervene in that conversation.”
Sharing this accom plishment was no easy task for Werner, she admitted. “I was shaky,” she told the Herald, “I think that being a queer faculty member who deals with explicit sexuality is something that I worry about.” Despite these fears, Werner saw positive sup port and reception from the audience. “I think it was received well,” she stated simply, but the crowds of students and colleagues that flooded towards her at the end of the October 28th reading proved a great
“It’s not dirty—but it is, and that’s why we like it,” Werner said. “We don’t want to normalize sexuality too much, because it takes the sexiness out of it.”
Nearing the end of the interview, Werner told the Herald she hopes that she will not only complicate this conversation, but also “encourage people to listen.”
In the process of research ing for Stripped, Werner revealed how she learned to listen to the workers she engaged with, emphasizing the importance of this act. “If somebody is saying, I’m doing this work, but I also wouldn’t be doing it if I wasn’t addicted to drugs and living in poverty, that you also listen to that and work with that,” she emphatically said. “That would then start making those important distinctions between people who are kidnapped and trafficked, and between people who
are addicted and need help, and between people who are making the choice and do not need help.”
Werner would like read ers to know the importance of “understanding that when you meet people who are not like you, that you have to do a lot of stepping outside of yourself to listen to them.” In relation to the body, Werner asserted that people tend to react with regard to their own bodies rather than considering the person’s differences. “When people hear about sex work, they tend to think, ‘I wouldn’t want to do that’”—a fact that Werner hopes will be disrupted by her book as others learn to listen and consider the body in a different, more complex way.
Moving forward, Wer ner is unsure of the direc tion her research will take after the release of Stripped. Despite this uncertainty, Werner did express her interest in mental health, and that she wants to inter vene in that conversation as well. “I want to remind people that we talk about our brains and our bodies as though they’re separate, but they’re not,” she said. Wer ner furthered this point by saying, “I think a lot of the stuff that I’ve done with the body will already help me think about mental health.” Essentially, Werner hopes to look into this rhetorical discussion as she did with embodied erotic rhetoric, but cannot say what di rection that will take her presently. “I just don’t know what that will look like,” she said.
Stripped: Reading the Erotic Body can be pur chased at the HWS College Bookstore, directly from Penn State University Press, or online from Amazon.
interesting shift in life––a fact some students might be unaware of. She was a per sistent student during her undergrad, and after school
ist thought. She describes abolitionist thought as a “school of thought focused on moving our society from punishment, violence; an approach in radical eco nomics that moves away from exploitation and domination.” In her course Economics and Gender, she embarks students to think radically and critically, and to question the traditional economic system.
in Economics from Uni versity of Massachusetts at Amherst. With prior experience in teaching at larger research universi ties, she is originally from Western Massachusetts and moved to Geneva during the pandemic. “I actually failed a couple of my first econ courses; I had thought it wasn’t for me,” she told the Herald.
she realized during the financial crisis how much economics meant to her. “I went back to school; I took econ courses again and gave it another chance,” Wilson said. According to Wilson, economics kept her mind active and continued to question her, it helped her “put things together, how it impacted the world.”
She described her teach ing style to the Herald as, “trying to draw on what you all already know and con nect the dots with the class readings.” Wilson teaches with the philosophy in mind to make economics “acces sible to everyone, regardless of background or educa tion.” Her heterodox eco nomics approach roots from her experience growing up, seeing struggles in the com munity. Wilson explained that “Making ends meet was not quite there. Hospitals being unaffordable and inaccessible, homes being foreclosed, people being incarcerated: all of these is sues cause long-term effects on people.”
Professor Wilson had an
Professor Wilson’s scholarly interest lies in the focus of critical political economics and abolition
Professor Wilson enjoys teaching at HWS because of the “close knit community,” where “everyone knows each other compared to be ing in big schools.” Wilson told the Herald, “It has been delightful to see students around campus, in the halls, saying hi to each other––they are some of my best daily experiences.” Outside of the classroom, Professor Wilson can be found explor ing the Finger Lakes and cycling around town.
As one of the first-year class presidents, I was intimidated by the opacity of my new role in the first weeks of the semester. To me it seemed to rash at the time and lacked a logical basis, to be a first-year class president. I was inspired by government meetings, see ing students across all walks of life here at the colleges who aregranted the oppor tunity to make electoral choices on all issues peti tioned during those weekly meetings.
From time to time, key members of the institutional administration would be present to discuss policy, goals, and the agenda of the administration in a given time. It is an incredibly beautiful experience wit nessing students talk about the issues they are passion ate about and not only talk about but allocate resourc es to those causes where meaningful change and outcomes can be seen.
What comes to one mind when the term govern ment is uttered, some may think of WashingtonD.C and all the architectural ex pressions that is contained therein, which includes but is not limited to the White House, the Capitol build ing,and the monuments and statues that boldly convey governance.
To others, the word governmentis equal to an individual figurethat is thought torepresentallthe flaws orall the highlights and esteemed accom plishments of the
idea of government. Precise ly, regardless of what that word means toyou, it should not undermine the fact that in HWS’ government,power is generatedby the people it represents. It is impera tive to hold the entities that represent you,i.e., govern ment,accountable and chal lenge the institutionsthat they abide byto implement change. That sentiment is held across the board by all members of Hobart Student Governmentand William
ernmentscatalyzed not only institutional change but far-reaching national change as well. This is where studentengagement plays a significant role in the shap ing of the type of student government that could rep resent changesthat students wantto see. To achieve those,the HWS Executive Boardencouragesstudents to go out to townhalls, go to weekly student government meetings, emailclass presi
According to the records of HSG+WSC secretary ledger: These are the Achievements of the student government thus farfor semester 1
•Provided funding to R.E.D, a campus organi zation that distributes free menstrual products around campus.
•Extended Discussion with Provost Sarah Kirk on program expansions and curriculum de velopment including anti-racist curriculum development. Also discussed the possible inequi ties that exist among academic departments.
•Discussed with President Jacobsen on the budget, includ ing the institution investment in ESG portfoliosin addition to the overall stability of the colleges.
The Student Government Board from left to right, Top Row: Johanna Golden ‘23, James Anderson ‘23, Litzy Bautista ‘23, Noah Thrkill ‘23, Sharon Lopez ‘23, Bot tom Row: Freya Birkas-Dent ‘22, Tenzin Yonten ‘23, William Koepp ‘23
Smith Congress.
Majority of the members were of the belief ascollege students we are at a critical juncturewhere we are theones moldingthe futurethat we want to reside and thrive in. That process of molding and shaping the future begins right here, at the institutionthat provides us with the toolsnecessaryto make that change.
There is precedent in the United States and the world where students empowered through their respective student gov
dents,and suggest ideas. In the absence of that elevated level of engagement, the decadence of institutional democracy is a certainty.It is well recorded thatthere is a correlation betweenthe institutions with the most active student body and campuses that is flexible, open-minded and willing to ameliorate policies that are necessarily student-friend ly,especially in ways of equity and justice.
•Funded the all-male aca pella group, theHobartTones• Funded HWS Spike-Ball Club
•And many other pro ductive discussions with the student body. One thing that is imperative to any institu tion’s stability and progress is the ability to effectively communicate. Student government as an institu tion that must communicate and evaluateinteractions with the larger institution of HWS. As an elected repre sentative of HWS student government framework, I spokewith other elected representatives about the process of leadership and shaping a campus culture that reflects the aspira tions of an open-minded, fair,and equitable society. In my conversations with my colleagues, I attempted to
get a sense of their thoughts on Hobart Student Govern ment and William Smith Congress.
With all my colleagues I spoke to, there was this overwhelming sense of student government being of vital importanceto the sharing of student ideas and suggestions. It is clear every session that there isa con sistent group of non-elected students who show up and vote. This one of the unique aspects of HSG & WSC, ac cording to Johanna Golden the William Smith Congress Vice President. According to Hobart Student Gov ernment Treasurer, James Anderson,one of the most visible accomplishmentsin student governmentis the creation of the Dreamers Committee.This initiative is designed to improve mar ginalizedstudents experi encehere at HWS, and as a practical demonstration of that commitment, 25% of the board excess funds will be used for that pur pose.
In the end, it is up to we the students to get involved in that part of stu dent life. Secretary of Ho bart Student Government, Noah Thirkill,believes one of the principal elementsof student government here is the “power and autonomy students are given,”there fore engagement is import ant. President ofthe William Smith Congress, Litzy Bautista,subscribed to that belief of “students being em powered” as she referenced WSC & HSG suggesting a Covid-19 dashboardduring the height of the pandemic. This was great as it reduced speculation and gave stu dents correct information at such delicate emotional mo ments, and per Bautista,that change was only possible through
engagement. Lastly, the changes and achievement slisted here could only be achievedthrough student engagement. We have so much work to do students of HWS, there is hope in our ability to create the change we want to see,holding our institutionaccountable is not a source of hate, but love for progress, change,and respect to theevolution of a 21stcentury that calls for open mindedness, resil ience, and equity.
Thank you to all members of Hobart Student Government and William Smith Congress for your service, time,and commit ment to ensuring students’ voices are heard.
By Katelyn Oswalt ‘24 Staff Writer
After a long hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kinetic Dance Collective
will finally be back to the Smith Opera House! The Herald was recently able to catch up with Co-Presidents Bryna Gage (’22) and Gem ma Carr-Locke (’22), who offered insights on what to expect for this year’s show.
What should the audience expect for the first show back?
The audience should expect high energy and ex citement; all our dancers are super excited to be perform ing live and in-person again! The concert showcases works from 22 choreogra phers in styles ranging from tap to modern, hip-hop to Bollywood, contemporary to K-pop, step to jazz and more. We cannot wait to be back and share with the greater HWS community our love for dance after the last year. We hope the audi ence enjoys the show!
Performing in KDC is unlike most dance concerts. The energy and support dancers receive from the audience throughout the performance is unlike any show that either of us have danced in before. We are most excited to experience that feeling again and to share what we have been working on all semester with our friends, family, and the greater Geneva commu nity. It has been great to be back in the studio with the dancers again and will be so great to be back at the Smith!
Info: What time is the show, where, and how much does it cost?
Friday, November 12th and Saturday, November 13th at 7:30pm
Free to HWS students (with OneCard) and chil dren under 12 $10 for adults
All patrons must show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test.
By Emily Echavarria ‘25 and Paulina Tejada ‘25 Staff Writers
The Higher Education Opportunity Program was founded in 1969 by Aur ther O. Eve to financially and academically support marginalized students in over 50 colleges, including in our very own Hobart and William Smith colleges. This is a program that affords opportunities to students within New York State look ing to further their higher educa tion by allotting them the nec essary tools for success. It is a rigorous program that requires the par ticipants to fully dedicate them selves to their studies, while also creating a community that stands on shared experiences.
What does HEOP mean to you?
We asked our HWS HEOP Community what HEOP signified to them.
“What HEOP means to me is giving people a chance to get a higher education. It’s giving an oppor tunity to do some
thing that they deserve and have the right to do which is become educated”- Djeneba Diop’25
“A community that’s al ways there to support me”Jamie Moreno (’25)
“Financial Aid..... Lemme stop. It means a community of people who I truly can trust and will feel comfortable with. Like, y’all feel like family.”- Bryan
essential component for fostering community amongst students of color, specifically at predom inantly white academic institutions. Programs such as HEOP allow students with similar backgrounds but different experiences to display their talents and potential in spaces that they would otherwise be exclud ed from. Ultimately, I feel that the HEOP program is shifting the culture of higher education from exclusivity and societal perceptions of belonging to acceptance and
or assisted. This does not necessarily mean that HWS isn’t welcoming to minority students, however, HEOP gives these students a secure circle before, during, and after college. This program is not solely looking at stu dents’ success when admit ted, this program focuses on making sure that HEOP students thrive in a social setting and learn more than what they need to achieve a degree.
Gonzales Soto (’25)
“It means opportunity. A chance to make some thing of myself that I wasn’t beforehand. Further myself beyond all possibilities”Paulina Tejada’25
“HEOP is family,com munity, and a learning environment.” - Joshua Cruz (’24)
“HEOP, to me, is an
equality, two qualities of academia that have continu ously hindered and misrep resented academic opportu nities for scholars of color.” - Nassir Whitley (’22)
We believe what sets HEOP apart from many financial and academic pro grams is that HEOP truly garners a sense of commu nity and belonging even in an environment where mar ginalized students have not historically been welcomed
With Covid cases trickling down to zero, CAB was able to host Haunted Houghton once again, a beloved spooky HWS event that culminates Halloween in all its amusement and horror. The Herald was able to attend and observe the event, as well as speak to several students about their experience upon its return.
food trucks on site that enamored students with their enticing warm com fort foods such as kebabs and hot deluxe sandwiches served with fries on the side. On top of the good eats, CAB provided students with warm apple cider in the spirit of fall to sip on while roasting marshmallows by an alluring fire that sparked embers of blue and violet.
The main area of the Arts Campus dedicated to
The Herald observed the most popular events this year to be the broomstick ride and haunted hayride. There, zombies and other creatures of the night lurked in-between the trees of the arts campus, tempted to show themselves and inter act with the students onboard their tour of Haunted Houghton.
Abby Palin (’23), shared that her favorite moments from Haunted Houghton
“Haunted Houghton has been one of my favorite HWS events since freshman year,” said Makhdoomi.
“I was so happy to see that it was back again for my senior year! With hot cider, food trucks, psychic readings and a fun hayride, what else can you ask for during spooky season!”
Students and vampires that gathered on the arts campus that night agreed that it was a pleasure to have HWS wel come back
After a year of HWS silently appreciating the seasons as they come and go, we have had a loss of community events that bring students and faculty alike to openly gather and celebrate the seasons and their holidays. Fortunate ly, CAB revived Haunted Houghton on the chilly evening of October 23rd to warm up HWS and spread Halloween spirit during this busy fall semester.
This year, Haunted Houghton welcomed stu dents back with two new
A student gets a tarot card reading at the Haunted Houghton event
fall festivities was filled with tarot card readings and psychics for those inter ested in delving into their past, present, and futures while the moon spectated as it slowly rose to the top of the sky. The crisp air was brought to life through the sharp riffs and steady beat of the drums that serenaded students throughout the night by the live band, The Boogeymen, playing classics and Halloween medleys.
consisted of “the live per formance, the food and the face painting.” Despite the cold, Palin shared that “the food was delicious and kept me warm,” speaking to the Herald while dressed up in her witch costume. “I got to enjoy it all while looking cool and listening to music.”
Zerina Makhdoomi (’22) shared how special it has been to experience Haunt ed Houghton one last time at HWS with The Herald.
Haunted Houghton after a long year of missing activi ties and events such as this that bring the community together in such high spirits.
I know it has certainly been a turbulent one, but one that has yet again showcased this community’s resiliency and drive to get back to engaging meaningfully with others and all of our passions. In just the past couple of months, we have been able to connect with professors and see the incredible projects and research they have finished or continue to work on. We have watched sports and the arts come back to life and bring us together to cel ebrate the triumphs of our athletes, artists, and performers. We have seen clubs new and old bring us together to shed light on mental health aware ness, encourage us to try rock climbing, insight mindfulness, creatively fund raise for charity or simply get a meaningful conversation started. Effectively, we have seen HWS come back to life.
The past two years have undoubtedly been filled with loss, but it is the months and years to come that will give us the chance to reclaim some of that, a reclamation which has most definitely already occurred here. It has not been easy to get to this point, but the fact of the matter is: we have. As a senior, I’ve witnessed amazing club events, research, exhibitions, and sports go on here––but I’ve also witnessed those things taken away from the impas sioned hands that made them all possible.
And now I’ve been able to witness what it looks like when new life and op portunity are put back into those hands and the power that comes with that. The new life given to this campus is owed to everyone on it, and I can tell that this first-year class has brought that fire with them too as they empower us all with their strength and determination.
Amongst all of this hope, we are now moving deep into autumn, when the vibrant leaves cascading down Hale Hall make us forget that it’s a dorm and the trees lining the walkway to around the Quad make us feel like we’re in an idyllic, cliché college scene. As the wind gets colder and sharper, beginning to cut into our faces and lungs, I am hopeful that the power of this community will keep the looming coldness at bay. And I’m eager for what other new life will be brought to HWS.
With this being our final print issue of the fall semester, I would like to thank everyone on the Herald team for the work and commitment that they put forth these past couple of months. Most notably, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the efforts of our editorial board: Design Editor Paul Janes, Copy Editor Morgan Murphy, Operations Manager Hrithik Biswas, and finally our faculty advisor Charlie Wilson. These individuals have put in a great deal of work into making this newspaper successful as we continue its legacy.
Thank you all for a great semester, and I am looking forward to seeing everything else that HWS’ community is capable of achieving.
Sincerely, Ani Freedman Editor-in-Chief of the Herald