At approximately 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 9, a large white goose was discovered lying motionless on the ground outside the Dining Commons entrance at Mount Holyoke College. Amid pouring rain, a small group of students gathered around the animal’s unmoving body. While the sight of a dead bird might elicit pity at any institution, at the College the scene was tragic: the dead goose appeared to be Jorge, the lone pilgrim goose living on campus and the College’s beloved unofficial mascot.
The residents of the Shirley Chisholm Living Learning Community celebrated the 100th birthday of the community’s namesake, previous Mount Holyoke College Professor of Anthropology and Sociology Shirley Chisholm, on Nov. 22. Chisholm, who died in 2005, would have turned 100 years old on Nov. 30. To honor her legacy and importance to the College, the community’s many residents of the third and fourth floor of North Rockefeller Hall gathered at the Betty Shabazz Cultural Center for a community dinner organized by Shirley Chisholm LLC Resident Advisors Karoline Bastien ’27 and Madoussou Dem ’27.
For the first time since its inception in 2018, Mount Holyoke’s annual Semester in D.C. program is taking place in-person during a presidential election year. While Mount Holyoke College students on campus may have experienced election night through a college-sponsored watch party or on laptop screens in dorm rooms, a select group of students currently completing the program were able to witness former president Donald Trump’s reelection and its aftermath as it unfolded in the heart of the United States capital.
“It is a milestone that the Betty [Shabazz Cultural Center] has survived … the essence of the Betty has survived. Even though it has changed bodies, the essence still remains,” Dani Darku ’27 said as she walked across campus on Oct. 30, on her way to celebrate the 55th birthday of the Betty Shabazz Cultural Center. “We have to keep in mind that the school did not have the Betty in mind when it was being built. [The school] didn’t have the identities of Black students when it was being built, so we need to keep that in mind and come to the Betty because it is not about the distance, it's about the Betty being a home for us.”
Serving a variety of dishes that take inspiration from regional Thai cuisines, the newest restaurant in the Village Commons aims to bring authentic Thai food to South Hadley. Since its grand opening on Oct. 18, Kiao Wan has become a point of interest for Mount Holyoke College students, who can visit the restaurant at 9 College Street, directly behind the Odyssey Bookshop.
A small brush fire broke out in the wooded area behind 1837 Hall and Prospect Hall on Mount Holyoke College’s campus on Tuesday afternoon. While no flames were visible at time of reporting, a large plume of smoke could be seen emerging from above the trees. Students were evacuated from Prospect Hall and the neighboring Fimbel Maker and Innovation Lab. No injuries have been reported. There appears to be no damage to any residence halls or academic buildings. An MHC Emergency Alert from Public Safety & Services at 1:13 p.m. stated that the fire is “contained.”
Democratic Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and Republican challenger John Deaton met in Springfield, Massachusetts. on Oct. 17 for their second and final debate ahead of the Nov. 5 General Election. During the hour-long debate, hosted by GBH News and New England Public Media, the candidates grappled with each other’s visions for the future of Massachusetts as well as how they would function under a future Trump or Harris administration if elected senator.
For the past few months, the 2024 United States presidential election has been a highly anticipated event nationwide and across the globe. Since Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic candidate after current President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in July, many have been curious to see how the election will pan out with the nation’s first female presidency being a possible outcome.
The Oct. 1 Senate meeting began with the Mount Holyoke College land acknowledgement, which was introduced by SGA President Julia Keane ’26 and Vice President Cindy Ntembe ’27. The Board officially began the meeting by providing a brief list of club events taking place this week, rather than holding an open floor. These events included “Noche Latina” on Oct. 4, MHCASA’s “All Black Party” and the Office of Community and Belonging’s “Autumn Reels” event on Oct. 5.
