The Miscellany News June 6, 2021
miscellanynews.org
Vassar College’s student newspaper of record since 1866 Volume 155 | Issue 13
Congratulations, Class of 2021! Class of ’21 to have in-person Commencement Lucy Brewster and Annabelle Wang
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News Editors
hen COVID-19 emerged last spring, seniors everywhere had their college experience cut short and celebrated the milestone of their graduation over a screen. This year, Vassar’s Class of 2021 will be able to have an in-person Commencement ceremony on June 6; however, friends and family will have to watch from home. Students have expressed excitement about ending a difficult year with an in-person ceremony. However, some have also expressed frustration about not being able to have even fully-vaccinated family members and visitors join them on Vassar’s campus for the ceremony. Graduating senior Marisa Petticord ’21 expressed her dismay: “I view Commencement not only [as one] of my accomplishments over the last four years, but the start of the next step of education and profes-
Inside this issue
Alex Wilson
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sional life … I will say I am very disappointed my parents will not be able to watch me walk in person.” Another graduating senior, Morgan Swartz ’21, also shared his disappointment but acknowledged that the Col-
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Sandro Luis Lorenzo/The Miscellany News.
lege designed Commencement according to COVID-19 safety guidelines: “I would like my parents to be there. I, you know, I feel like everyone wants their parents to be there when they graduate … But I understand that the college has to make their
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Arts Editor
ore than one year ago, as stages across the world went dark due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Vassar Dance Repertory Theatre (VRDT) was one of the many dance companies across the world that had to cancel operations. This year, the company sprung back to life when Vassar returned in person last fall. Director of VRDT John Meehan and Visiting Instructor in Dance and Drama Leslie Partridge Sachs convened with the
rest of the dance faculty over the summer to plan for the new year and figure out how to adjust to COVID guidelines. In a Zoom interview along with Meehan, Sachs, who also serves as the Assistant Director of VRDT, detailed all of the procedures and rules that the Department implemented. From washing down every surface of the studios (from the floors to the bars) to marking the floors with social distancing guidelines while the students were in the studio, the professors of the Dance Department adopted lots of rules
Student-athletes
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Wonder how seniors are feeling right now? Check out Jessica SENIORS Moss’ senior retrospective and read her reflections.
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Do you have music that resonates with particular memories ARTS from your life? Rachael Hahn discusses how music helps her reminisce.
own rules, as much as it is going to disappoint the students.” Despite qualms regarding this year’s unique Commencement, many Vassar seniors are grateful for even having the possibility to attend an in-person See Graduation on page 3
Asst. News Editor
s colleges across the country have worked to respond effectively to the COVID-19 pandemic, students have been forced to grapple with the new normal of a socially-distanced social scene, awkward Zoom breakout rooms and growing pools of peers competing for a shrunken number of internship opportunities. With thesis deadlines having come and gone, Vassar’s Class of 2021 is taking the time to reflect on a senior year riddled with memorable highs and unprecedented lows. For many college seniors, the pandemic has amplified the stress of attending school and job hunting. Employers are expected to hire 7.2 percent more recent graduates than the previous year, but this rise is by no means a return to See Seniors on page 3
Vassar Repertory Dance Theater performs remotely Leila Raines
In response to conflict, the VSA reinstates the Judicial Board. NEWS What does that mean? Read Will Sorge’s article to find out.
Seniors reflect on Covid year
Doug Cobb
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Sports Editor
ven though I felt awful, and I knew beforehand that I was going to feel awful, it was still an exciting thing. I look back on it and I still get excited thinking about it.” This is how Hannah Martin ’21, a member of the Vassar women’s cross country and track teams, described her experience of running her first marathon. Some people are baffled by the idea of training for months just to force your body to run 26.2 miles continuously. Many don’t understand the gratification that comes with not just discovering your physical and mental boundaries, but courageously pushing them. “[The marathon] was a total unknown. I had no idea what was going to happen,”
to ensure a safe yet productive year for student dancers. Despite all of these new rules and regulations, dancer Jalene Medina ʼ23 was happy to return in person with VRDT this year. When I sat down to talk with her in person, her enthusiasm and passion for the company shone through, even when reflecting on the new COVID regulations: “I was relieved that we were even going to get to dance, because I know a lot of the other physical activities on campus had to completely shut down or have been looking super differ-
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Martin said. “With my personality and social settings, I don’t do that many risky or super exciting things. Running gives me a space to challenge myself.” Martin has been a runner for 12 years now. When she was a little kid, she had an abundance of energy and was difficult to control. To try and keep her in check, Martin’s mom had her run laps around the house. Later, during the summer prior to fifth grade, her parents sent her to a sports camp where she chose to partake in cross country. She felt no strong desire to continue with it in the fall, but was too nervous to tell the coach she wasn’t interested in racing, so she stuck with it anyway. But, once she ran that first race, she ceased just being someone who runs, and became a runner.
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At her small Lutheran school in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Martin lined up against kids from the other Lutheran schools in her area. She raced side-by-side with a chatterbox of a boy, who kept nagging her with questions throughout the entire race. She remembered a moment where she thought to herself, “We’re supposed to be racing. Stop talking to me.” That was the first time she took running seriously, discovering that she had a knack for it. It boosted her self-esteem to be able to keep up with the eighth graders as a ten-year-old. She had found her own thing that wasn’t just school work. Similarly, Augusta Stockman ’23, also a member of the Vassar women’s cross country and track teams, fell in love with running at a young age. When she was a
ent than they were pre-COVID.” She continued, “We were lucky enough that we got to be in the studio and got to see each other, even though it was masked, social distanced and with limited capacities,” she described. Medina and all of the other dancers had to wear masks while they were dancing, but as Medina summed up nicely: “It was better to be dancing with a mask than not dancing at all.” The new guidelines did not come without challenges. Bonding between the dancers in See VRDT on page 4
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rising sixth grader, Stockman began to go on runs with her mom over the summer. “It didn’t take long for me to be able to leave her in the dust,” she recalled. Stockman relished that first taste of victory, but when the fall came around, she enjoyed racing and being on a team even more. “I liked being good at it. As an awkward kid, it was nice to have a block of time where I knew exactly what to do.” For Stockman and Martin, running is therapeutic. After lacing up her size 9.5 Hoka sneakers, Stockman will tune into a podcast or music, using running to help escape “deep and hard thinking.” Alternatively, Stockman sometimes reflects on the day or replays conversations in her head. See Running on page 5