Indigenous Heritage Month was celebrated through the sponsorship of several offices and programs at Mount Holyoke College last month, with several events featuring guest speaker Larry Spotted Crow Mann. The first event, “The Living Presence of Nipmuc People,” was held virtually on Nov. 14 from 7-8:30 p.m., inviting all community members to view online. A second event, an interfaith lunch, was held in person on Nov. 21 from 12-1:30 p.m.
The South Asian community at Mount Holyoke College illuminated Chapin Auditorium with the vibrant celebration of Diwali, the Festival of Lights, on Saturday, Nov. 23. Organized by AWAZ, the South Asian Association on campus, and co-sponsored by the Weissman Center for Leadership and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, the event brought together students, faculty and visitors for an unforgettable evening of cultural immersion.
VariAsians, the annual celebration of Pan-Asian culture and heritage in the Five College Consortium, took place on Nov. 15 in Chapin Auditorium with unprecedented hype and high spirits. Even though ticket sales for VariAsians began almost a week before the show, tickets sold out in several minutes each day when the registration opened.
With Halloween having passed by on campus, the Mount Holyoke community has reflected on how they spent their spooky weekend. While many students attended student-run parties both on and off campus, Mount Holyoke News interviewed students who preferred alternative festivities, including the beloved Monsters Ball.
The annual STEMPOC mixer, run by the student organization STEMPOC, took place on Friday, Oct. 18, with their theme “100 years of Clapp.” The event celebrated alums within the science, technology, engineering and math fields, appreciating their academic involvement and achievements in the field of STEM.
The vice presidential debate watch party, just like last month’s presidential debate watch party, was hosted by the Mount Holyoke College Democrats in collaboration with the Division of Student Life. All community members were invited to the viewing of the debate in Gamble Auditorium. The event was held on Oct. 1 and ran from 9-10:30 p.m. The MHC Democrats provided refreshments for the duration of the viewing.
The Supreme Court of the United States is more political than ever. In just its most recent term, the Court has — led by a 6-to-3 conservative majority — overturned a major precedent for administrative agencies, granted broad immunity to the office of the president and drawn criticisms for the alleged corruption taking place among its Justices.
Students enjoyed a silent disco, light-up games, Batch ice cream and more at Nightfest: Celebration Edition. Hosted on Sept. 7 by the Office of Student Involvement, students could participate in a dance party in Chapin Auditorium or a silent disco on the Abbey/Buck Green. Besides the music, there was a photo booth for taking pictures with friends and bags of kettle corn to snack on. Outside, there were LED ping pong tables and mini golf, as well as two food trucks, where students could choose between five flavors of Batch ice cream and three styles of grilled cheese sandwiches.
As described on Mount Holyoke’s Inclusive Admissions webpage, the College is a “women’s college that is gender diverse” and “welcome[s] applications from female, transgender and nonbinary students.” Upon its introduction in 2014, this policy put into clear writing that transgender women, transgender men and nonbinary people — regardless of sex assigned at birth — were invited to apply.
This academic year, for the policy’s 10 year anniversary, the College is launching a trans and gender nonconforming — or TGNC — student-led project called TGNC10: Commemorating TGNC Inclusion at MHC.
It began like any other afternoon for Madelynn Hardtke ’24. In 2022, she was scrolling through Instagram until a particular post caught her eye: an advertisement for the Miss Western Massachusetts organization. She thought of her unused high school prom dress, left over from the pandemic, and her memories of watching Miss America as a child and being “a really big fan.” She was immediately drawn in.
Little did Hardtke know, she would go on to win the title of Miss East Longmeadow the following year, and the title of Miss Pioneer Valley this January. Now, as of June 2024, she can also say she was a contestant for Miss Massachusetts, a preliminary to the Miss America competition.
Several accounts appearing to masquerade as current college students have targeted Mount Holyoke College. These accounts have pushed vague, possibly political agendas, instigating arguments with actual students and student-led organizations on campus.
Who is behind these accounts, what do they want and how and why did they target Mount Holyoke College?
How well do we all know the residence halls on campus? There are 18 dorms at Mount Holyoke College. All of them were gradually added to campus following the fire that burned down the original Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in 1896. A colorful bunch, the dorms each have distinct quirks and drawbacks. Your personal taste may affect how you see each one, but they all have something to offer that truly makes a resident’s experience unique. This past week, I visited Porter Hall, Safford Hall and Brigham Hall: the first dorms, all built within the first year after the Seminary fire. With these three dorms, Mount Holyoke’s expansion and evolution were truly catapulted into motion.
Built in 1897, Pearsons Hall is right across the street from Williston Memorial Library and a stone’s throw from the Village Commons and the Gaylord Memorial Library. It is a large brown brick building with yellow trim above the windows and its construction year carved prominently into the entrance facade. While built immediately after the Seminary fire of 1896, Pearsons Hall is distinctly separate from its three compatriots (stay tuned).
I’ve always thought there to be something so magical about Scotland: the soulful tunes of their bagpipes, the fog that clings to the Highlands, and the legends of monsters who dwell beneath their lochs. It has been a privilege and a dream come true to study at the University of Edinburgh in the nation’s capital for the past semester, with much thanks to Mount Holyoke College’s Laurel Fellowship through the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives.
