Scripps Community Mobilizes for Wildfire Relief
By Ishita Jayadev ’26, Ellen Wang ’25, and Belén Yudess ’25 Editors-in-Chief and Copy Editor
Members of the Scripps community have come together in the past two months since wildfires devastated Los Angeles County at the end of winter break.
Beginning on Jan. 7, a series of eight wildfires ravaged over 50,000 acres of land, with the Eaton Fire in Altadena and the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades causing the most destruction. Although the fires have since been contained, the damage left behind by these disasters continue to affect both residents and wildlife.
Community members both directly and indirectly impacted by the fires reflected on both the physical and emotional turmoil they have experienced as they continue to recover.
“A large portion of my childhood and the place I call home [the Pacific Palisades] are gone — my brother’s high school, my favorite hiking trails, homes of my closest friends, restaurants, and my favorite places to go are completely burnt to the ground,” Quincy Solomon ’25 said.
Erin Curtis, director of the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery, talked about her own experience evacuating from the Eaton Fire. While her daughter’s preschool burnt down, she expressed gratitude that her apartment had survived.
“One of the things that struck me about this was how quickly it happened,” she said. “I had put my daughter to bed. My husband and I were sitting down to dinner. [And] we heard a neighbor in our apartment complex saying that she's about to leave … And we looked off our back balcony and the fire was right in the hills, [so] we decided to pack right then and go. And when we came back to our apartment, there was still food that we had left out on the table.”
On Jan. 9, a message from President Amy Marcus-Newhall was published to the Scripps website affirming the college’s mission to support those most affected by the wildfires and listing resources made available through both public and institutional means.
“Whether you have lost your home, had to evacuate, experienced power outages, are hosting displaced family and friends, and/or worried about what’s happening around us – this is an incredibly difficult time,” MarcusNewhall said in her written statement. “Your well-being and safety are our absolute highest priority. Please take care of yourself, your family, and your loved ones first and do what you need to stay safe.”
In a Jan. 14 email from the Chair of
IN THIS ISSUE
the Board of Trustees Laura Hockett ’85 and Marcus-Newhall, the college announced the creation of the Scripps College Emergency Fund, established “to provide dedicated emergency aid to help the College’s students, faculty, and staff assist with costs incurred by disasters such as the devastating wildfires.”
The Board of Trustees made initial donations with Scripps families, students, alumni, faculty, and staff following suit. According to a statement published by the college on Jan. 30, $200,000 has been raised.
Student initiatives have also led to an outpouring of additional financial and emotional support. Some of these grassroots projects include the Scripps Associated Students (SAS) Winter Art Market, a Scripps Dance benefit concert, the creation of Clean Air Claremont, and the 5C Environmental Justice (EJ) Club donation drive.
The SAS Winter Art Market, a collaboration with the Pomona first year class and local nonprofit It’s Bigger Than Us, hosted an array of student artwork for sale along with henna, tarot card readings, and a clothing swap. The event raised $597 for It’s Bigger Than Us to support wildfire recovery and students also had the chance to donate directly to GoFundMe pages.
“Not only were we able to raise funds for those impacted by the LA fires, we were also able to support student artists and firefighters,” Kimai McPhee ’25, Co-Student Organizations Commissioner (SOC) and event co-organizer, said.
McPhee highlighted the way the
market represented unity in the face of crises.
“However, what was special about the art market were the various members of our community we were able to engage — whether a vendor, community partner, alumni, student, or even a store in the Village,” McPhee said.
The 5C EJ club also mobilized the community while advocating for the importance of environmental awareness during natural disasters. The club ran a weeks-long donation drive featuring various drop-off spots around the 5Cs where students could donate emergency items such as clothing and toiletries.
“Environmental justice is not just about pollution and policy change, it’s also about meeting people’s immediate needs,” said a representative for 5C EJ. “After climate crisis fueled natural disasters, we all need to be ready to come together as a community and help each other out.”
Another effort geared towards the environmental ramifications of the fires is Clean Air Claremont. Founded by Samson Zhang PO ’25 and a Pomona professor, the organization raises funds and gathers parts to build air purifiers for those in affected communities.
“[This project] was not as intentional at the start, because there was this immediate need, but now there are people that are like ‘I'm so glad that there's a clean air club now in the Inland Empire,’” they said.
Zhang also emphasized the need for Clean Air Claremont to continue as
The Fight for Student Autonomy in NSPO Admin Fails to Declare Campus ICE Sanctuary After New Trump Executive Orders Scrippsies Rejoice and Reflect on Family Weekend
a long term project beyond the Eaton and Palisades fires as the conditions leading to wildfires continue to worsen.
“There's going to be more wildfires [and] urban areas burning down and things are not really going to get better soon in terms of global warming and in terms of drought,” they said. “The state is not investing resources into protecting a lot of communities, particularly working class communities of color, [so] it's on us to be protecting ourselves and each other and so this is one front.”
Solomon also noted how events such as these should act as a rallying call to combat climate change.
“We always had fires growing up, but they were never so residential to the point where entire communities disappeared,” Solomon said. “Every single house in the alphabet streets of the Palisades burnt down, and it breaks my heart to know that it could have been prevented.”
Curtis additionally raised the alarm on the environmental concerns continuing to affect the 5C community and the significance of grassroots support networks.
“It may feel like fires aren't necessarily going to come to the 5Cs, but … as the result of climate change, there's a very good possibility that we can be affected by these kinds of disasters at any time,” she said. “It's made me realize the importance of all of this community care work that we do more broadly, [it] has a ripple effect of shoring people up and helping them get through these acute situations.”
Masc-oticized: Have We Gone too Far?
Photo courtesty of Ella Young '24
The Fight for Student Autonomy in NSPO
By Ishita Jayadev ‘26 and Amy Jayasuriya ‘26 Editors-in-Chief
The SAS Transparency and Accountability Committee (TAC) successfully advocated for adding two student representative positions to the formerly student-less New Student Programs and Orientation (NSPO) committee in an effort to build more student input in the programming.
The committee chose Ava Colleran ’28 and Belén Yudess ’25 to serve as student representatives on the NSPO committee after an application process.
“We were thinking of getting first years because they have most recently done NSPO [and additionally] it would be helpful to have somebody who’s really experienced on campus and knows how campus runs,” Marin Plut ’25 said about the selection.
Plut helped create the TAC in fall 2024 to facilitate more communication and awareness between students and administrators after realizing how many changes were decided on campus without student input.
One of the first issues the TAC focused on was reforming NSPO due to broad student dissatisfaction. The committee felt they could generate a large body of student support to change the program, as every Scripps student participates in NSPO as a newcomer.
In the spring 2024 semester, the TAC distributed a survey gathering student feedback on NSPO and proceeded to send a list of demands for the upcoming NSPO to the former Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs, Adriana di Bartolo-Beckman, who left her position at the end of the semester.
Including two students on the following year’s NSPO committee was the only demand met. The other demands included more optional social activities during downtime that can help people interact with people outside of their NSPO group; passing out green boxes instead of disposables during the week to get used to the system of taking food out of the dining hall; more resources for homesickness and affinity communities; and looking into low cost day trips.
Rebecca Yao ’26 also set up a meeting with administration during the spring 2024 semester to discuss her frustrations with NSPO.
“Many students might point to orientation as the beginning of a bad experience at Scripps [when] it should be setting freshmen up for success,” she said.
Yao described NSPO as an isolating experience as she struggled to form bonds with other Scripps community members due to the cohort structure of the program. She explained that many people from feeder schools knew each other before NSPO started. This problem was only exacerbated by the lack of downtime built into the schedule, making it difficult to reach out to new people.
Yao tried to rectify this problem during her time as an NSPO leader her
second year by incorporating separate tours into the NSPO schedule because she wanted the first-years to feel a genuine connection to their new school and its traditions. However, these tours were neither part of her training nor was she paid for any of the extra effort she put in.
While Yao is optimistic about how NSPO can change in the coming years, she is hesitant about the administration’s reaction to changing NSPO’s structure.
“Change does not happen very fast at any institution,” Yao said. “I think the institutions are so slow at responding to feedback and responding to changes being made because it’s just not the norm.”
Plut pointed to this unwillingness to change NSPO as stemming from a larger history of the sidelining of student-led programs at Scripps.
“A lot of [my inspiration] came from talking with Francesca Simmons [SC’14 and current Equity and Justice fellow],” Plut said. “She was talking about her experience co-leading NSPO [and it] was shocking to hear about what it used to be like. They used to give students so much more responsibility and [have] trust in students that they just don’t anymore.”
Simmons provided a written statement to TSV talking about her time as New Student Program (NSP) coordinator.
“I co-headed a team of 30 Peer Mentors and nine Team Leaders,” Simmons said. “We planned over 20 social events for the 260 members of the class of 2016 during the academic year, including trips to Disneyland and Pantages Theater; a welcome carnival during orientation for the entire 5C community; and collegiate-lifefocused workshops to help in navigating the social and academic aspects of matriculation.”
The former year-long program was led by two co-coordinators, nine team leaders — eight as representatives for each residence hall and one for transfer students, with an additional 30 peer mentors across campus.
“While I was at Scripps, the program was focused on helping first-years socially connect to the wider Scripps
community through peer mentors – it was for students by students,” Simmons explained.
Plut contrasted this with how many programs at Scripps are currently run.
“All of the ways for students to participate now are on a committee, as part of SAS, or in a club,” she said. “You can be a public events intern, but you’re not gonna be planning speakers to bring on campus.”
Plut pointed to loss of institutional memory from administrative staff turnover as a possible reason current administrators may be more reluctant to incorporate changes to the NSPO program.
“I think most of the Dean of Students, Student Affairs, and Student Engagement [including Reslife] staff had complete turnover during COVID,” Plut said. “Their only experience with the campus was that they got hired to keep everybody safe when everybody was coming back to campus without having any history of what Scripps used to be like. And so I think they have a really hard time envisioning students taking a different role or NSPO looking different.”
While Plut acknowledged that going back to the former functions of NSPO was probably impossible because of increased concern on optics and liability, she emphasized that having students in places where decisions were getting made could slowly shift these administrative institutions moving forward.
Simmons offered advice to current students invested in reforming NSPO.
“Current students have to be willing to put in the same amount of work we were willing to do during my time if they want the same results,” she said. “I encourage the student representatives on the committee to identify what additional responsibilities students can take on in the execution of the program, and work with the administrators to develop a plan on how to get their fellow students involved.”
Yao suggested a few short-term changes to improve NSPO, like a trip to the Village where each student could buy a snack or drink from one of the shops.
“I feel like that’s doable and forces
Anna Grez ’27 • The Scripps Voice
people to actually foster more community and bond with [other] students because you’re going off campus,” Yao said.
She reflected on the committee’s potential and the importance of highlighting student voices while restructuring NSPO.
“I think there are much better ways to actually foster community within Scripps and within the 5Cs,” she said. “A lot of it starts with actually getting more input from students or having someone work on this who isn’t an administrative person. Let’s actually make change because so much of this is all talk and there are so many doable things that we could implement for the next year.”
TSV Editorial Staff
2024-2025
Ishita Jayadev ’26 Editor-in-Chief
Amy Jayasuriya ’26 Editor-in-Chief
Ellen Wang ’25 Editor-in-Chief
Frances Walton ’26 Editor-in-Chief
Juliette Des Rosiers ’26 Editor-in-Chief
Belén Yudess ’25
Copy Editor
Charlotte Korer ’27
Copy Editor
Clara Ann Bagnoli ’28
Copy Editor Intern
Hannah Fawley ’27
Head Design Editor
Nawal Hassan ’27
Design Editor
Anna Grez ’27
Design Editor
Zoe Cooper ’26
Design Editor
Carah Allen ’26
Webmaster
Leah Gorence ’28
Social Media Manager
Students Delegate to Pitzer Trustees, Demand Rehiring of Adan Campos and Support for Undocumented & DACAmented Workers
By Claremont Undercurrents
On Feb. 7, 20 students from the Claremont Student Worker Alliance (CSWA) disrupted a Pitzer College Board of Trustees meeting to demand the rehiring of Adan Campos. Campos, a McConnell Dining Hall cook for nine years, was fired last February while his DACA work authorization was being renewed.
The students also demanded that Pitzer implement better treatment and protections for undocumented and DACAmented workers, including committing to not running document checks on workers.
As students tried to enter the meeting and delegate to the Board of Trustees, Mike Crawbuck, Senior Director of Facilities and Safety & Event Management, attempted to physically block them from going inside.
Once inside, a student speaker began by talking about the history of the Rehire Adan campaign.
Since Campos’ firing in Feb. 2024, students have delegated five times to Pitzer administrators, Pitzer Student Senate unanimously passed a resolution to rehire Campos and over 90% of unionized Pitzer staff and 1300+ students signed a petition demanding Campos’ rehiring.
“We [were] asking that he have a fair chance to be rehired just like anyone else. We were met with excuses, scare tactics, and misinformation,” the speaker said.
“Over family weekend [Strom
Thacker] told families that Adan didn’t want to be rehired, that he had gotten another job or that it violated the union contract,” a student said, detailing Pitzer administration’s excuses for not rehiring Campos.
To combat Thacker’s statements, students handed out copies of a past Undercurrents story in which Campos explained that he had reapplied to entry-level positions at McConnell three times and was turned away for multiple reasons, including being “overqualified.”
Another student speaker spoke about Pitzer’s failure to protect undocumented and DACAmented status workers.
In the aftermath of the 2016 presidential election, former Pitzer President Melvin Oliver released a statement declaring Pitzer a sanctuary college and promising to support undocumented and DACAmented students and community members. Students at last week’s delegation argued that Pitzer’s refusal to rehire Campos, a DACAmented worker, signals Pitzer’s failure to uphold this promise.
“Pitzer has the ability and the responsibility to protect and support any immigrants that are a part of its community, especially its immigrant workers,” a student speaker said. “By not rehiring Adan, Pitzer has failed its community.”
One student posed the question, “How is this college a sanctuary when it fires beloved community
members and the very people it promised to protect?”
Other students referenced the Claremont Colleges’ history of exploitative practices against undocumented and underdocumented workers. In 2011, Pomona College ran an internal audit of their faculty, staff and student workers, resulting in the termination of 17 employees who failed to provide their documents for verification. In the ensuing protests, Pomona called the Claremont Police Department, who arrested 15 protestors, including Pitzer Professor José Calderón.
Pitzer has also had its share of exploitative labor issues in the past. In an effort to prevent dining workers from unionizing, Bon Appetit General Manager Miguel Menjivar discouraged subcontracted workers from supporting the union, and the Bon Appetit Management Company later fired three McConnell workers for alleged union support.
Student speakers urged Pitzer to do better and protect the undocumented and underdocumented workers in their staff, which includes rehiring Campos.
“Pitzer profits from undocumented labor. Pitzer gets its community activism reputation by working with organizations that serve undocumented people,” one student said. “Pitzer must do everything it can to protect undocumented workers, community partners and students, or else it is just exploiting undocumented people.”
Speakers described Pitzer’s refusal to listen to their students and workers and rehire Adan as a betrayal of the College’s core value of social responsibility.
“As you are here talking about navigating difficult conversations and values of activism and social responsibility, we are the ones finding ourselves upholding these values,” a student said, “in spite of what Pitzer administration is doing instead of because of it. All it takes is a signature on a piece of paper to give Adan a fair deal back.”
Students ended the delegation with chants of “we’ll be back,” emphasizing that the fight to Rehire Adan was still going strong.
Admin Fails to Declare Campus ICE Sanctuary After New Trump Executive Orders
By Clara Ann Bagnoli ‘28
Copy Editor Intern
Scripps College’s administration and Board of Trustees have yet to release a statement in response to President Donald Trump’s executive orders to enforce deportations of undocumented immigrants in line with his declaration of a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Trump’s rhetoric and executive orders have created uncertainty for undocumented students and may threaten universities’ abilities to act as sanctuary campuses — which is a college or university with policies to protect undocumented students from deportation.
The Trump administration’s attitude toward undocumented immigrants, as indicated in a statement from Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman, called into question the validity of sanctuary spaces formerly seen as untouchable.
Scripps Senior Communications Manager Emily Peters said via email that the college is “monitoring the evolving legal implications of recent executive orders on our sanctuary campus status, and will share updates when the potential impact on our community becomes clearer.”
This is not the first time Trump administration policies have targeted undocumented immigrants. In Jan. 2016, Trump issued multiple executive orders to imprison and deport undocumented immigrants.
Following these orders, 750 students, faculty, alumni, and community members signed a petition requesting immigration status to be protected under Scripps’ Discrimination and Harassment Policy and recommending Scripps declare itself a sanctuary center of higher education.
The following month, former Scripps President Lara Tiedens wrote a statement regarding student concerns amidst the policy changes.
“In January, the Board of Trustees declared Scripps College a sanctuary center of higher education because we aim for our campus to be a sanctuary where students, faculty, and staff are free from fears of deportation or persecution,” Tiedens said. “I remind the community, and especially those who are most impacted by the decision out of Washington today, of the ways Scripps will support the members of our community who are most vulnerable to changes in immigration laws.”
In light of Trump’s current policies, Scripps administration has yet to confirm that they will continue to hold their precedent of protecting their undocumented and DACAmented students.
With raised concerns regarding new immigration policies, some students and campus groups asked administrators about Scripps’ status as a sanctuary campus and what that status entails during Scripps President Amy Marcus Newhall’s office hours.
One such student, who requested to remain anonymous due to safety concerns, explained that the lack of communication from Scripps about its sanctuary status is especially concerning given the increase in Campus Safety and private security presence at Scripps over the last semester.
“At the end of the day, campus security are the ones who deal with ICE and border control,” they said. “But they have been brutal in harassing students and faculty [so how are] we just supposed to blindly trust them to protect us?”
The anonymous student’s sentiment comes after a semester of heightened distrust amongst stu-
dents towards Campus Safety, following their active participation in the arrests of 19 5C students on April 5 for their participation in a divestment sit-in at Pomona College.
Scripps, as a private institution, is not required to comply with an administrative arrest or removal warrant issued by DHS (Form I-200 or I-205), as it is not a judicial warrant and does not authorize DHS officers to enter private areas of a premises without consent. School officials would not be required to comply with agents seeking locations of specific individuals in private spaces on campus, such as a closed-door classroom or dorm hall. Notably, some Pitzer College professors are insisting on closed doors during class times for this reason.
On top of legal protection, Scripps politics professor Thomas Kim highlighted Scripps’ sociopolitical power as a more dominant deterrence of authorities.
“Homeland security could be armed and start asking questions but they won’t, not because it’s constitutionally not allowed but because it’s Scripps and there are easier targets with far less institutional privilege,” Kim said.
The Claremont Colleges have historically wielded political power in the face of government inquiry, as was the case in 2006 when two members of the Joint Task Force on Terrorism questioned former Pomona professor Miguel Tinker Salas. The visit was met with such harsh political backlash from the Claremont community that the FBI’s Los Angeles Office released an apology statement.
“The point wasn’t that what they did was illegal, it was that they were forced to apologize because politically the weight of the colleges was brought to bear,” Kim said.
However, Scripps could face
consequences for not complying with federal orders, jeopardizing the college’s ability to receive funding from the federal government. Federal funding through grants is essential to providing funds for low-income students to attend Scripps.
Outside of legal protection, students are asking for the school to create a resource for financially supporting those impacted by the threat of border control, similar to the emergency fund established in the wake of wildfires in January.
“There has been so much organizing for the fires that happened but nothing for those impacted by border control, even though we’ve specifically asked for some sort of financial resource,” the anonymous student said. “People’s families feel fearful of going to work and school but they need groceries and need to pay their bills.”
The student expanded on how the 5C community should be showing up for one another during this time.
“No matter one’s positionality they do have a responsibility to act, even if you don’t know someone who is being targeted,” they said. “Southern California is built on exploited labor and everyone has a responsibility because everyone benefits from that.”
In the meantime, student groups are creating resources for knowing your rights. Chicano Latino Student Affairs, a Claremont Colleges Latino student affinity group, and IDEAS, a club dedicated to the immigrant experience at the Claremont Colleges, have compiled resources for undocumented students available through their Linktrees. Additionally, the Higher Education Immigration portal has links and explainers on how to access tuition help, legal representation, healthcare, employment opportunities, and graduate school opportunities.
Photo courtesy of Claremont Undercurrents
Scrippsies Rejoice and Reflect on Family Weekend
By Belén Yudess ’25 Copy Editor
S cripps hosted its annual Family Weekend from Feb. 15-16 with a range of events and talks spanning both days.
The itinerary included academic events, including a Denison Library open house and a Study Abroad and Global Education (SAGE) panel, as well as social-oriented events, such as a moonlit campus tour and Zumba morning workout at Tiernan Field House. The weekend concluded with a Queen cover band for students and families to enjoy beneath the setting sun.
As families had a chance to explore the variety of fruit trees, peruse student internship posters spread throughout Seal Court, and browse the Scripps Store in search of the elusive Scripps Dad t-shirt, first-year parents were enamored by the weekend’s display.
“I’ve learned there is so much she can get involved with and how many opportunities there are,” Trish Lagrant, parent of Eva Lagrant ’28, said. “Reading [about] all of the various internships that have happened — although Eva’s going into the sciences — there’s so many opportunities within so many areas.”
In addition to the gallery of past internships, a student panel featured college-funded summer research projects from three seniors.
“I believe that central to the academic experience at Scripps is the excellent work our students do, both in the classrooms and beyond, and often under the direct mentorship of our amazing faculty,” Assistant Dean of Faculty Warren Liu said via email. “This past Saturday’s Student Research Panel served as a perfect illustration of this, highlighting summer research projects exhibiting a wide range of inquiry, including
Belén Yudess’s exploration of the novels of Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Taylor Kindron’s analysis of the ‘poetics of violence’ in Restoration Theater, and Corina Silverstein’s engagement with the representation of LA street vendors in visual art.”
Aside from the more formal aspects of Family Weekend, the event served as an invitation for family members to take a glimpse into the everyday lives of their students.
“[Eva and I] talk all the time and she’ll talk about different people and different places,” Lagrant said. “It’s just nice because when we were here in the summer, it was all brand new to Eva — she didn’t know any of it, so it’s really nice to be in this place [that has become] her second home.”
Cecilia Brown ’28 echoed this sentiment as she discussed sharing her routines and favorite on-campus spots with her parents.
“I think they could see more of my excitement being here and the things I love about the school, it was kind of like admitted students day part two,”
she said. “Just being able to experience this new chapter of my life with my family while also being incredibly independent.”
Although newer families were elated by the array of opportunities Family Weekend highlighted that their students could one day partake in, families of seniors on the brink of commencement season used the weekend as a period of reflection.
“Each year has been a different experience, both in how we see the campus and how we witness Abbie’s growth and maturity — especially as she is deeply involved in school and student life,” Holly Oh and Juan Carlos Arroyo-Rosas, parents of Abbie Oh Arroyo ’25, said.
Oh Arroyo also commented how her parents’ involvement in Family Weekend has shifted over the years, representing how accustomed she has become to her life and community on campus.
“My freshman year, my parents participated in the official programming, but in the years since, they
haven’t,” she said. “Instead, I’ve been more interested in giving them a genuine perspective of my day-today life. Since I’m local to Claremont, our weekend usually consists of me taking them around campus, sharing stories, introducing them to friends, and letting them relax in my room.”
Yet, Oh Arroyo was also skeptical of Family Weekend and the narrative Scripps attempts to create for the public palette.
“The school works hard to polish its image, highlighting resources and activities in a way that showcases the best aspects of campus life,” she said. “One part that stood out to me was the statement displayed at The Motley [about why the walls are still blank], which sparked important conversations about [how these] policies impact student life. It was a great opportunity to discuss some of the challenges students face and engage with parents on these topics.”
In the fall of 2024, Scripps administration faced backlash over their decision to close The Motley regarding their display of the Palestinian flag, as well as their subsequent mandate of allowing reopening only under the condition of maintaining blank walls. These policies, as well as a general lack of transparency and communication from Scripps, have led students to hold a more critical lens when considering the promotional events hosted by the college.
“Looking ahead to Alumni and Reunion Weekend, I want to pay closer attention to the kinds of conversations that take place about Scripps’ image and policies,” Oh Arroyo said. “With past students returning instead of parents, it’ll be interesting to see how they reflect on their time at Scripps, how their perspectives align, or clash, with the way the school presents itself now, and what kinds of discussions emerge around student life and institutional changes.”
HOT TO GO: How to Sustainably Use Your Heating and Cooling System
By Lucia Marquez-Uppman ’25
Willow Lehrich ’26, Amber Sarch ’28, Raka Mukherjee ’25
Sustainabilititeam
Guest Writers
W hen I sat down with Scripps Maintenance Manager David Turner to talk about HVAC sustainability, my jaw dropped multiple times. Not only have I been using my AC unit completely unsustainably, but I was telling everyone else incorrect information too.
For Earth day in elementary school, our teachers told us to turn the faucet off when we were brushing our teeth and turn the lights off when we weren’t in the room. In my head, energy conservation was the same as water conservation. With this logic, I assumed turning my AC unit off as I left my room was the correct way to conserve it, but unfortunately this train of thinking was entirely wrong.
Turner walked us through the two different types of HVAC systems in Scripps dorms. GJW, Wilbur, Clark, Frankel, and Routt use fan coil AC units. Each room or suite has two dials, one for fan speed and one for hot versus cold air.
The most sustainable way to use them? Fan on low and temperature on a comfortable level at all times. Since the building is circulating air 24/7 anyway, turning the units off and on uses more energy than keeping the unit on at all times and adjusting as needed. That is, it takes more energy to reheat or cool than to maintain the temperature.
You should only use the high fan speeds if you need to cool or heat your room quickly. In fact, Turner recommended only turning the unit off entirely if you won’t be in your room for more than two entire days.
The other type of HVAC system, the LG units in Toll, Dorsey, Browning, Schow, and Kimberly use similar
methods with their variable refrigeration system. Keep the units on at all times, preferably between 68 and 78 degrees Fahrenheit, and adjust as needed. Each icon on the LG unit depicts a different setting: the snowflake means the unit is cooling, the sun means it’s heating, the water droplet is a dehumidifier, the AI face shouldn’t be used (it doesn’t work with our building’s system), and the fan icon adjusts the speed of the fan.
Turner was adamant about using the dehumidifier setting for showers as it prevents mold from growing in the building, especially in bathrooms. While the fan coil units don’t technically have dehumidifiers, their fans should still be on near hot showers. Although never turning on the AC units or just opening the window to get air circulating would save energy, Turner also brought up a few points to take into consideration.
For one, the building is designed to get clean, filtered air circulated
through every room and is already using that energy. Plus, with Los Angeles County’s less than perfect air quality, it may be healthier to keep those windows closed. If you do need some fresh air and decide to open the windows, make sure to keep your AC unit’s fan on low (or turn it off for a few days) so it isn’t pumping out air that is needlessly let outside and wasting energy.
In 2023, the building with the most gas usage was Frankel and Routt. That same year Scripps used 23 million kBtu of gas and 21 million kBtu of electricity.
Getting the right information on how to be sustainable is one thing, but putting the action forward is another. Though headlines about climate change are daunting, making individual and community-wide changes are nonetheless important steps toward a more sustainable world.
Ellen Wang ’25 • The Scripps Voice
Masc-oticized: Have We Gone Too Far?
By Anna Grez ’27 and Anna Odell ’27
Design Editor and Staff Writer
Lesbians have always existed at Scripps, but their history is largely found in oral accounts of relationships and clubs.
Kathleen McHale ’22 created a collection of Scripps’ history for their senior thesis entitled, “Domestic Arts, Dates, Drugs, and Dress Codes: Scripps College’s Early Attitudes Towards Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Education.” The collection chronicles how a “homosocial” environment has existed in Scripps’ history as far back as the 1930s, with women taking on the role of the male dance partner at dance events.
Similarly, another Scripps alum Melville Gilcrest ’19 archived queer history at Scripps on the website “Scripps Underground,” where they interviewed queer Scripps alumni about their experiences.
The website contains an interview between Gilcrest and Sue Talbot, a Scripps alum from the class of 1969. Talbot discussed her experiences as a lesbian at Scripps and how she had to hide her sexuality because of the time period.
“For a while I thought I was the only lesbian at Scripps or Claremont, or maybe in the world,” Sue Talbot ’69 said. “And we never really could do anything openly. I suspect stuff went on even when we were there, but … in this country it was still a crime, and lesbians were labeled and stigmatized.”
In 1985, Scripps students founded the Pink Triangles, a group for lesbian and bisexual students heavily involved in AIDS activism and community events. Today, queer students at Scripps can join Family, the LGBTQ+ affinity group at Scripps. However, no affinity group strictly for lesbian students exists openly at Scripps.
Because of Scripps’ large body of queer students, many of its events are influenced by and integrated within queer culture. A prime example of this is The Motley Coffeehouse’s opening theme this spring, the “Masc, Mask, Motsquerade.”
Decorated with photos of queer icons like Billie Eilish and Shane from The L Word, and with a drink called the “Gold Star Lesbian” –renamed the “Mot 75” during the event, but remained on premade posters – The Motley’s party was clearly a reference to Scripps’ active queer student body.
When asked about their thoughts on The Motley’s opening theme, Malena Sparano ‘26 had two conflicting opinions.
“I thought it was hilarious. I think it’s lighthearted and jovial, but I also think it can be reductive of presenting as masculine when you have a bunch of assumed cis-gender, straight-presenting or straightpassing women wearing backward baseball caps, white wife-pleasers, and boxers showing,” they said.
Others echoed Sparano’s thoughts.
“I feel like these types of parties make me feel like I am always flirting with people because [being perceived as masc is] kind of a symbol of being a player,” Helen Ball ’26 said. “I am all for helping people explore their identity and supporting people when they are figuring out how they want to express themselves and how they feel the most free in that way. But to have ‘masc parties,’ the whole idea is to dress up how someone else presents.”
For many masc-pre senting people, cloth ing and overall physi cal presentation are in credibly important. In these cases, where do we draw the line between exploring presentation and sexualizing a spe cific way of dress ing and using it as a costume? When dressing masc isn’t just about style, but more of an expression and alignment to how people feel, it can be come uncomfort able to see others putting on that same look for reasons other than identity.
Within this idea, it is important to understand and be aware of other lev appropria the way dress. com long cism for styles culture is es sary
of adopting styles out of context. This topic has many layers of complexity, and while it may feel easier to overlook them, we must acknowledge the cultural and historical contexts at play.
While a lot of good has come from masc representation, such as people receiving less criticism, or perhaps just more covert criticism, for their look and identity, it might be worth asking: have we overshot our goal of acceptance, landing instead on mockery?
“Sure maybe it was nice for some people to, one night, put on a backward hat and basketball shorts and have fun and be reckless or whatever, but for me, that’s my everyday life, and it’s not so easy to walk into a women’s bathroom and be asked ‘What are you doing here?’” Isa Bravo PZ ’26 said.
Sparano shared a similar feeling. “Gender is such a personal thing. It’s something you wrestle with yourself. If you want to dress masc one day, go for it, I think we should be more accepting of people dressing masc … I do think that Scripps can be a little toxic with how narrowly it defines gender and sexuality,” they said. To further understand the masc identity, one must understand lesbian history. Even though masculine-presenting lesbians have been around for years, the term “masc” is relatively new. Before the modern-day masc, mid20th century butch lesbians were challenging gender norms also by working in traditionally male-dominated fields. These women faced discrimination and violence on the daily but also worked to protect gay spaces from the same kinds of violence they faced.
Butch and femme lesbians faced a lot of backlash, especially from radical feminists in the 60s and 70s who believed that this lesbian dynamic was upholding patriarchal values and expectations. Lesbians who were in butch-femme relationships were often accused of trying to copy heterosexual relationships, with butches “pretending to be men.”
While strict heteronormative rules and expectations likely influenced lesbian relationship dynamics, gender is inherently fluid. What might have appeared to non-queer people as women “pretending to be men” was more likely an expression of their own gender fluidity. Going forward, butch lesbians continued to advocate for the freedom to express themselves.
What it means to be gay or queer has changed significantly since the ’60s and there is now a lot more room for individuality and fluidity. The lesbian community has evolved past strict binaries of “femme” or “butch,” though these labels do still resonate with many. The pressure to fit into one label or the gender binary is no longer as intense as it once was. Due to increased visibility and acceptance, we no longer need to have such rigid labels, which has allowed queer people to be more free with gender expression.
This is likely why identifying as masc has become so popular. While the term “butch” is associated with being lesbian, the term masc is not limited to one sexuality, leaving room for fluidity.
“I always hear butch lesbian and I don’t really identify with the word lesbian just because of my gender queerness,” Bravo said. “That’s why masculine resonates more with me because it leaves the door open for some fluidity in my gender.”
Other people share the same sentiment, saying that describing themselves as masc feels the most comfortable for them because it doesn’t mean one specific thing. Exploring identity is important and a lot of good can come from trying out different things to see what works. However, it is also important to recognize and respect others’ identities when engaging in this practice. For many people who identify as ‘masc,’ the identity is less of a choice and more of a way of life. Where we draw the line between exploration and mockery or disrespect remains an open question.
Zoë Cooper ’26 • The Scripps Voice
Major Dos of Majoring Off Campus (Some Slightly Satirical Sophomore Advice)
By Charlotte Korer ’27 Copy Editor
For many, the major selling point of atten ding the Claremont Colleges is the five-for-one school deal. You can take classes at other schools, eat at one of the seven dining halls, and have more friends than you could ever imagine having at just a singular liberal arts school. Additionally, if the school you attend does not offer the major you want, you can just take it at another one of the 5Cs. Or can you?
Firstly, you didn’t get into Pomona? You now have two options. The first option is to attend any other 5C and never take a Pomona class just to spite them. Option two (the more embarrassing one) is to eat, sleep, and breathe Pomona. Only eat at Frary, have Pomona friends, maybe even pick a major not offered by Scripps just to major at your dream school.
Now, a preface to my spiel. Yes, I was rejected from Pomona. No, it did not crush my spirit in any capacity (really, it didn’t, I promise). No, I did not go to Scripps planning on majoring at Pomona. So please keep that in mind.
I am a sophomore at Scripps majoring in English (at Scripps) and Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) through Pomona. As a young, naive freshman, I started Scripps
thinking I would major in Politics. I took some politics classes (all boring, sorry not sorry) and decided I needed a little guidance from the Scripps politics department.
I am a planner. I have had my fouryear plan in my beloved Google Doc since my first semester of freshman year. However, when I went to the politics department for guidance, they told me that everything I thought I knew was wrong and that I was an idiot for ever assuming I could figure out what I was doing on my own (roughly paraphrased for dramatic effect).
Safe to say, I was pissed and worried that I had wasted my time. The calling card of 90k-per-year tuition is one-on-one advising from a professor who cares about you and your academic career. And the Politics department was far from it.
After my incredibly disheartening talks with the Politics faculty, I considered majoring at another campus. I was slightly bored by the politics classes, but maybe another school would do the trick. That is when I came across the PPE major at Pomona.
Now, please don’t take this to mean that majoring through Pomona was my saving grace and I found the academic mentor I so desperately sought for. That would be incorrect. What I found at Pomona was an advisor who couldn’t care less about me but was incredibly loyal to the
PPE department. And with that came a beautiful academic relationship. I am not saying this works for everyone. If you are not a planner or able to self-advocate, I would advise you to stay close to home with your Scripps advisor. They certainly know the law of the land better than any professor from any other campus, including what you need to do to graduate.
But, for those discontented few out there who are not afraid to speak up for themselves and face a little pushback, majoring off campus might be for you. While I do not have any life-changing advice that will instantly make the experience easier, I can share my own trials and tribulations.
If you are double-majoring like I am, your Scripps advisor will know nothing about majoring through another 5C. Not to worry, you are proactive and self-sufficient. Start by emailing the head of the department that you would like to major in. If you are hoping some classes you took when you dreamt of majoring at Scripps will transfer, make sure you include those and the requirements you hope they will fulfill. Keep your email as straightforward as possible while also stating your case. Please don’t beg, I’ll be embarrassed for you. I recommend setting up a meeting just so your new advisor can know your face. Flatter them by laughing at their awkward jokes and saying
you just couldn’t imagine majoring in a better department. If they seem relatively bashful, ask them to be your advisor. If you are majoring off campus you need someone who is flexible and susceptible to a little pushing.
Once you have met in person, you probably won’t ever have to do that again. Unless you don’t know how to use Box (like me) and you need your major declaration form signed. From now on, email your advisor so that, one, you don’t have to make the trek down to Pomona again and, two, you have paper trails of everything. And by everything, I mean EVERYTHING. If you want a class to transfer, make sure you have a screenshot of the email with the course code, name, school, and approval. An advisor can really screw you over if they don’t remember agreeing to something and change their mind.
By no means am I saying that I know best. I have really only been doing this off-campus major stuff for a semester and even then, I have never taken a class at Pomona. I will get around to it eventually. Even so, I wanted to offer the few things I have learned on this journey so that others are not so intimidated by the mysterious, bureaucratic process of off-campus majoring that they find themselves trapped in an illfitting department for another seven semesters.
Una Agradecimiento para la Luz de mi Vida: mi Mamá
By Belén Yudess ’25 Copy Editor
When I was younger, I don’t think I saw my mom as a person. She was an omniscient presence, an ineffable being with a talent for making chilaquiles with an extra dash of love. She was a summer storm, an evening breeze, a warm sugar cookie fresh out of the oven, but never a person. She was always there, always knew the right thing to do, always a mother.
Growing up, I had a onedimensional view of motherhood and what it entails. I’m not very good at math, but an equation that always seemed very straightforward in my head was motherhood equals unconditional love. Plain and simple with no need to double-check the answer because, like every indisputable solution, there was proof that backed up the work.
In the summer of 2023, I watched my mom courageously and compassionately show up for my dad as he prepared to have cancer surgery. Although she was afraid, she consistently walked into our house with the open arms and resilience needed to hold up our entire family. She meticulously prepared every room, comforted my
dad as he processed the situation, and worked to ensure lesson plans for hundreds of students, all while succeeding in her role as a mother.
Even though she wore several hats: caretaker, educator, nurse, wife, sibling, daughter, she was always a mom.
For a long time, I didn’t see my mom as a person. I believed that her role as my mom was a binding contract, that everything she did as my mom was something she had to do as my mom. I was wrong. Every day, my mom chooses to show up for me.
She chooses to love me unabridged and unapologetically. She chooses to stick around and support me in every way she can. She chooses to rub Vix on my runny nose when I’m sick. She chooses to drive three hours on her day off to take me to breakfast. She chooses to encourage my passion for literature, she chooses to pay for my education, two loves I learned from her. She chooses to lecture me about wearing socks and not going to bed with wet hair, she chooses to care about my health and well-being.
She chooses to listen to my dad and me about our problems and chooses to hold our hands through it all. She chooses to be there for her
parents night and day, she chooses to bring her siblings together when she can. She chooses to make me laugh when I’m in a bad mood, and chooses to let me pick the show we’ll watch because she knows it will make me smile. She chooses my dad and I every day, not just because she is a wife and mother, but because she is a person capable of immense love and acceptance.
I think that my mom believes that by crying in front of me, she is portraying weakness, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Every day I watch as she battles her body without complaint, a war that she must physically fight alone day in and day out. She takes on all our burdens and asks for nothing in return. She deserves to cry and to be able to turn to us for the same endless support she gives to us. It is a sign of her humanity, which does not make her weak, but stronger than anyone I will ever know. She will always be the sun, more brilliant than anything around her, and even the sun has rainy days, and it’s those rainy days that allow for growth.
As I prepare to graduate, I admire and see my mom more than ever before. Our conversations have matured from endless rants about my disdain for high-school geometry
to discussions about our mutual concerns and joys as we both prepare to enter new chapters of our lives and as I seek her advice on how to navigate my first love. Every time I am paralyzed by a crippling fear of this massive, magnificent abyss of the future, I am mobilized and inspired by my mom’s story.
Her tenacity as she put a hold on her career plans to support my grandmother’s business during the L.A. Riots. The way her eyes light up whenever she talks about her first couple of years teaching kindergarten; a position she never imagined herself in and that led her to meeting my dad. Her intense knowledge and passion for multilingual education and her belief that this was indeed the path meant for her. Her unwavering belief that life is not linear, therefore, it is okay to take chances and lean into the uncertainty. The first lesson of motherhood.
Although I am unsure what life after May 17 will hold, I know I am in total control of at least one choice: to continue to choose to love and see my mom in her unimaginably beautiful humanness. And I know at least one thing, no matter where I am in life, my proudest accomplishment will always be being her daughter.
Honk! Shoo! Mi Mi Mi: A Reflection on Campus Nap Spots
By Lydia Jung ’25 Staff Writer
WhenI was a wee freshman, there were few things I treasured more than plopping down on my bed in Toll 226 to lie flat for 15 minutes. Unfortunately, come my sophomore year, the housing powers decided that I could not have an on-campus room. I wound up at College Park unable to easily run back to my room and recline when I had less than an hour between classes. As a result, I projected my desire to nap onto a few public armchairs, of which there are many across the campuses.
Even now, as a senior with a fine residence at Schow 214, every so often, I return to the habit of napping in public spaces. Here are some thoughts about the good, the bad, and the humorous places to catch some zzzs. Noise levels vary by time, but I generally nap publicly between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. so consider that your window to recapture my experience if you desire.
My first selection for a good nap spot is the GJW rec room, a little rectangle decorated with horses and a foosball table. The room is less crusty than Toll or Clark and has very soft couches and fewer windows than the others, so great for reducing the midday Claremont sun. If it is empty, the world is your nap oyster. 8/10, would nap again but it still doesn’t compare to lying flat on a bed.
If GJW is too out of the way, consider the Clark rec room as a potential alternative. There is a very nice couch here where I have legitimately fallen asleep. The building may be uncomfortable to live in with its crusty infrastructure, mold problems, bugs, etc. but its age means that the couches and armchairs are soft and well-worn, easier to sink into to honk shoo honk shoo. The room is softly lit during the day, so the sun will not be terribly
disruptive to you. 8/10, would nap again.
If you’re headed further south, you may consider the Kimbo living room as an alternative to GJW or Clark. I spotted a bug on one of the couches which I feared to be a head louse, but upon further inspection, it turned out to be some other little creepy crawly. A good rule of thumb for public napping is to be prepared, but don’t freak out without a proper examination of insect or stain anatomy. 7.5/10, would nap again.
Unfortunately, not all public cushiony seating areas are created equal. I would not nap at Scott Hall’s lobby in the early afternoon under any circumstances. Those quirky orange bean bags look enticing but unfortunately, this lobby is a real lobby with people going through, hanging out to chat, and clanking their heels across the floor like little girls on the way to tap class (no hate to little girls at tap class or busy heel clankers with somewhere to be, it just must be known that this hinders the space’s nappability). 1/10, would not recommend.
Outside of the expectedly calm rec rooms and busy administrative buildings, I have discovered a few surprisingly pleasant if not ideal public spaces to rest in the bustling center of campus.
The first one worthy of attention is the first floor of the HonnoldMudd library. It seems common sense to think that the floor with no noise restrictions in the library is not a good place for a quiet nap. However, despite the noise allowances, few people sit on the first floor and actually talk because of the windowless, liminal character it has. The tables on the far left side of the entrance particularly exemplify this character and I once had a refreshing five-minute face plant on one of them. I have unfortunately been unable to replicate this experience. 5/10, it depends.
A bit further east, the infamous Cube of CMC is very echoey, in the middle of campus, surrounded by thoroughfares, also has clear walls which let in a lot of sun. Nonetheless, if it is a quiet Friday afternoon, you may be able to catch some zzzs on one of the higher-backed chairs. 7/10, would do it again in a peak Scripps outfit just to dab on the econ bros.
Our final stop on the nap tour is Scripps’ pride and joy, the Motley Coffeehouse, initially labelled among places I would never dare nap.
However, one Tuesday or Thursday last semester, I was lower on sleep than usual, and it was the most convenient place to drop down on a couch. The sun rays softly filtered through the windows onto my face, the background conversation was similarly subdued and I felt like I was in some weird dreamscape organic market somewhere in Berkeley as my consciousness began to dwindle toward slumber. 7/10, would recommend for an adventurous napper.
Tales from the Notorious Scripps Rabid Coyote
By Clara Ann Bagnoli ’27 Copy Editor Intern
Given readers’ personal experiences spotting me on their way to classes, I will waste no time on my introduction.
I am currently on day four of the BEST! PARTY! EVER! I have been racing around the Claremont Colleges, feeling the best but also the worst I have ever felt. About five sunrises ago, my raccoon friend was licking one of my many open wounds, and I suddenly felt a rush. I was frothing at the mouth, and I had an unusual ache in the spot between my ears.
I have observed this phenomenon before in my nighttime stalking of students, but it usually comes after they investigate a certain white powder with their snouts. But what I am enduring feels much more natural. Perhaps I was made for this feeling, and perhaps every coyote has to go through this metamorphosis to enter the second phase of life.
I can attest I have lived a good life. I remember my first few months with my mother and siblings, snuggled up
in our den at the basin of Mount Baldy. Every morning, we would awake to the setting sun, and if I was lucky, I would even get a peek at the final slivers of gold, orange, and pink from the sunset. My first three or so years were spent with my pack, my mother, and my many siblings.
As nocturnal animals, we would go out and hunt at the darkest hours, spending the dusk playing with the tumbleweeds and harmonizing our howls to the sound of the babbling streams. Once I grew up, I knew I needed to face the big city of Upland by myself and become a so-called urban coyote; I mean, how hard can gentrification be? Once I reached Foothill Boulevard, I discovered heaven on earth: the Claremont Domino’s Pizza. At 11:56 p.m. on the dot, four or more full trash bags of pizza scraps are discarded into the dumpster where I lay in wait.
Then, there are the colleges. I met them so long ago that Amy Marcus Newhall was still the so-called interim president. It was an exceptionally fruity week when I discovered the Scripps campus. First were the
kumquats that came raining down like hail in a thunderstorm–not that I have much experience with ice as a SoCal coyote. Then there were the orange trees I would quietly investigate as I watched two girls stargazing and looking longingly into each other’s eyes.
I discovered the ripe fruits of a pomegranate tree and coaxed out a rush of sweet pink juice from the gem-like seeds with my tongue. I realized I, too, was a lesbian, even as a male canine past my sexual prime. However, the Mudders were quite heterocentric with their hysterical reaction to the stains on my fur.
Humans call this disease I have rabies. I assume it must have come from my friend, as I have not seen her at our watering hole, Seal Court Pond, in days. I wish this drunkenness that I am feeling came from my usual source, the puddles on Green Beach after a water polo pregame, but I have accepted my true fate of nearing death. My muscles feel weak, and I stumble much more than I run. Now, I am venturing out in the daytime, as I must see the rose garden once in
the light of day. The fizz post after my appearance was a positive and plentiful surprise. It feels good to be a campus celeb for once.
Recently, the smell of a lingering cigarette stopped me in my tracks as I strolled through Jaqua on my way to the Makerspace. A couple of people in the Toll balconies shouted out to me, but I quickly had to excuse myself to a nearby bush.
I will probably be dead by the time you are reading this. I thank all the students for your politeness during my final days. I noticed the gorgeous mural of a coyote on the Pitzer campus, and even with my own biases about Greg, it was a thoughtful tribute. Though, I hope to be memorialized the same way the possum was, in a bed of roses. My story is not unique. I am not the first rabid coyote to grace these lawns, and I will not be the last. Try to learn from my mistakes and stay away from toxic friends.
XO, Curtis the Coyote (2018 - 2025)
Charlotte Korer ’27 • The Scripps Voice
Oh! The Places You’ll Go: Scripps Study Abroad Across the World
By Frances Walton ’26 and Juliette Des Rosiers ’26 Editors-in-Chief
This semester was the perfect storm for The Scripps Voice: our Editors-in-Chief were leaving campus in the Spring semester. In our efforts to keep in touch and archive our adventures, we thought to share letters from our respective study abroad experiences, with Juliette Des Rosiers ’26 in New Zealand and Frances Walton ’26 in Madrid.
Dear Frances,
Kia ora from New Zealand! I greet you from the future! (New Zealand is 18 hours ahead of Washington D.C. and 12 hours ahead of Spain). At the time of writing this, I have only been here for six days, but I am already enamored with the beauty of Aotearoa.
We started our program with a two day orientation outside Auckland where the kayaking, touch rugby games, and archery competitions satisfied my nostalgia for summer camp. I also got to know about 40odd other study abroad students so well that our departure to the respective school across the country was bittersweet. We received great guidance from our IFSA counselors on how to be respectful visitors in New Zealand, learning about Kiwi and Māori customs. Additionally, we discussed our perceptions of ourselves in new environments and
I was impressed by the vulnerability of my friends when sharing how they view their home culture and identity.
Since arriving at Christchurch, I have grown even more appreciative of the friendly and welcoming Kiwi culture. On a walking tour of the city, we learned the impressive way Christchurch rebuilt after a series of destructive earthquakes in 2011. Christchurch urban planners were very intentional in their restructuring of the city center to include more green space, pedestrian walkways, and input from residents.
This inclusivity continued onto the University of Canterbury campus, where buildings are named after Māori stories and incorporate Māori symbolism for progress and education. For example, the engineering building is named after the Maori warrior Rata, who’s story speaks to respect for details and processes in craftsmanship – a message aligned with the meticulous work of engineers. Furthermore, the building is constructed to mirror the design of Rata’s great canoe he built to help his people migrate.
The University of Canterbury is the only university in New Zealand to have a formal relationship with the local Māori iwi (tribe), and we were in awe of how respectfully this relationship is exercised. Still, our guide from Te Whare Ākonga o Te Akatoki (the center for Māori students) reminded us that there are politicians and members of the public working to
Once Found Dead
By Lizzie Clark ’27 Staff Writer
You were my first disposal. Curled into a fetal position, you settled in a bed of dirt and cricket carcasses under plastic azaleas growing toward slits of white light. I swathed you in paper towels and wrote an epitaph on red lab tape, headed with your name–Anole in Cage B, and now you will sit in a freezer, Ziploc-bagged until they can dissect your little body to examine little bones, thin, cream-colored, like toothpicks dragged through plaque.
What they don’t know is, give or take millions of years, you’d clomp their femurs into dust, butt scalpels from meek hands. A mingling of ancestors, panoramic souls, relying quiet in your eyes.
So I’ll sneak your body from the wanton cold and drive you out one night to Joshua Tree, orient your belly towards the Milky Way, and like a baby, splaying, sponging, staring up at planets strung on ceilings, I’ll lift your legs to the stars–watch you swing into the universe.
reverse these equitable relations, and urged us to listen to indigenous knowledge while here and carry this empowerment back home.
As I start classes this week, I am so excited for my life here. The laidback energy in New Zealand is a refreshing change of pace and it has been so surprisingly wonderful to push myself out of my comfort zone to meet new people. We are already planning a hike for next weekend, a dinner and live music karaoke night on Thursday, and a joint birthday bender for my and another student’s February birthdays. I cannot wait to share more with you, both the good and the bad, and hear about your adventures!
With love from across the world,
Juliette
Dear Juliette,
Since arriving a month ago, I have fallen in love with Madrid. With its friendly atmosphere, large city vibes, and delicious food, Madrid is precisely what I wanted while planning to study abroad.
My program, through Syracuse University, has introduced me to the culture of the city through many of my classes (three out of four are in Spanish, too).
The metro is a highlight of Madrid. Every day, I compare it to Los Angeles’ public transport and remind myself to appreciate every moment I get with
a clean, easy-to-use, and safe metro system.
The food here is also fantastic. I need to try more Spanish food, but Madrid has so many international restaurants that I have never been challenged to find affordable, delicious food. A favorite is Tres Cerditos, a dumpling place right next to my dorm. In fact, I’m going there again tonight. I’ve taken three trips over the weekends. The first was to Toledo, a historic city where I learned about “convivencia,” or the somewhat peaceful/equal co-living of Abrahamic religions in the city. With my program, we visited a mosque, cathedral, and synagogue.
I also visited Segovia, which was an eight-euro train ride (crazy cheap price!!) away from Madrid with a friend. We visited a cathedral and castle there and ate churros con chocolate, a specialty in Spain.
The last trip was to see a Scripps friend studying abroad in Paris, which was so enjoyable, especially with the culture shock I’ve experienced with Syracuse students (Greek life is a very, very big thing here). We peoplewatched at a café, saw the Eiffel Tower, and went out with a Pitzer friend one night!
I miss you guys so much, and I’m excited to keep on sharing about studying abroad in Madrid.
Sending love, Frances
1965 Ford Galaxy Engulfed in Flames
By Rebecca Allen ’25 Staff Writer
That was my husband’s Ford Galaxy. We drove Joni home from the hospital in that car.
My mom was 40 when she had me. Everyone told her she was too old to be a mother.
I put my hand through the little window, and he’d squeeze my finger, and I’d tell him life was very big, and unknown;
And she told me that there were animals and sky and cities, Music, movies. He’d fall in love, Have his own children, Have passions, have meaning, Have his mom and dad.
When they got divorced, My father moved back east and left the car with us. He calls on birthdays and Christmas. The last time I felt close to him was on my birthday in 1974, He bought me mirrored sunglasses. I saw the president fall down the stairs, And I threw up on the carpet.