For the first time in several years, the College president welcomed Jewish students to their home on Wednesday, Oct. 5 to break the Yom Kippur fast. Photo courtesy of Dr. Travis Tatum.
Emma Quirk ’26
Staff Writer
Content warning: This article mentions antisemitism.
On Wednesday, Oct. 5, students, faculty members and their families walked the path to Interim President Beverly Daniel Tatum’s house to break the Yom Kippur fast. As people trickled in, Tatum personally introduced herself to each person in attendance. Guests were then treated to a dinner that featured bagels with lox, apple cider in wine glasses and fresh fruit. During the meal, people sat at dining room tables, lounged on couches and perched on folding chairs.
This was the first time in several years that the Mount Holyoke president hosted Break the Fast for Yom Kippur. While this used to be an annual tradition, it has not been held consistently since Dr. Joanne V. Creighton, who unkempt the practice, was the president of the College from 1996-2010, Tatum reasoned.
“[Tatum] brings a very student-centered perspective and lens to the presidency … [and she hopes to] recognize that there’s a diversity of faith and human experience at Mount Holyoke,” Kijua Sanders-McMurtry, vice president for equity and inclusion and interim Title IX coordinator, said.
Sanders-McMurtry explained that while the College has discussed how it can better support Jewish people, this event was held because “[Tatum] wanted to open her home for something so important.”
When Tatum knew that she would be back at the College this year, she decided that she wanted to hold an event to break the fast as [she] wasn’t aware that the tradition had been discontinued. “I always thought it was an important way to acknowledge and affirm the Jewish students on campus following the fasting that is part of Yom Kippur,” Tatum said.
Additionally, Tatum plans to host as Iftar for Muslim students who will be fasting for Ramadan. “I did that every year that Ramadan fell during the academic calendar while I was the president at Spelman, and I look forward to working with our Muslim chaplain to plan that event,” Tatum said.
People who attended the dinner were excited that the president wished to celebrate with them. “It was a really big deal. … It was nice to have the president reach out to us instead of us having to reach out to the president in the context of a problem,” Natalie Glick ’23, co-president of the Jewish Student Union, said.
“It was a really big deal. … It was nice to have the president reach out to us instead of us having to reach out to the president in the context of a problem.”
Newer students were pleased with how the event reflected the president’s commitment to the Jewish community. “It meant a lot to me to be invited by President Tatum … because it showed the value that [Tatum] feels Jewish people have at Mount Holyoke,” Amanda Weber ’26 said.
The invitation validated the experiences of the Jewish community on campus, according to another student. “It’s not very often that we get to celebrate our Judaism with people who have so much power,” Axis Familant ’25 explained.
Tatum reached out to the Jewish Student Union in August to begin planning this dinner. Members of the JSU, chaplain to the College and adviser to the Jewish community Amelia Ender, The Office of Community and Belonging and the president’s staff all collaborated to organize everything.
“[The event planners] went above and beyond to make sure that all of our food needs and timing needs and everything [were] just like what we wanted,” Glick stated.
Tatum is grateful for the work that dining services put in to create a traditional menu. “I thought it was a delightful gathering. The students seemed to really enjoy being there,” Tatum said.
Overall, students and faculty agree that being all together in the President’s House was the best part of the night. “It was just really amazing to be in community together,” Glick said. Sanders-McMurtry agreed, stating that the most memorable part of the actual event was getting to spend time with students.
Familant felt the atmosphere was comfortable and enjoyed sharing the space and is looking forward to related events being hosted in the future. “We’re getting to celebrate together, almost as a family,” Familant said. “This very much felt like [Tatum] going out of her way to do something for us. … I hope future presidents feel inspired by this.”
Likewise, Weber said she would like to participate in similar gatherings in the future and is hopeful that the College will continue to provide these opportunities when Tatum’s interim presidency is over.
After facing multiple antisemitic incidents throughout her four years at Mount Holyoke, Glick said, “I’m happy that for once we were able to be Jewish and it was happy.”