Kijua Sanders-McMurtry

Mount Holyoke commits to land acknowledgment, repatriation

Mount Holyoke commits to land acknowledgment, repatriation

Content warning: this article discusses anti-Indigenous violence.

Beginning this semester, a land acknowledgment recognizing the Indigenous nations which once occupied the land currently owned by Mount Holyoke College must be given before every public event at Mount Holyoke. As the College takes steps to repair its relationship to Indigenous communities both on and off campus, the institution’s history of anti-Indigenous acts has resurfaced. Earlier this month, the College repatriated Indigenous remains that had previously been in their possession. As the College reckons with this and other past violences this National Indigenous Heritage Month, some members of the Mount Holyoke community are calling for further action and accountability.

Kijua Sanders-McMurtry joins Lowery Institute as board member; brings new opportunities to Mount Holyoke students

When Kijua Sanders-Murtry, Mount Holyoke College’s Vice President for Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer, was first invited to join the board of directors for The Joseph & Evelyn Lowery Institute for Justice & Human Rights in Atlanta, GA, their first instinct was to decline the opportunity. They were afraid that this new position would interfere with their ability to connect students with opportunities at the Institute.

College Cabinet holds open town hall meeting for student questions

Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students Marcella Runell Hall and other members of the Mount Holyoke Cabinet held a town hall meeting open to students on Monday, April 26. In notifying students of the event, Hall wrote that the town hall would be “an opportunity for [students] to learn and ask questions about how the college works and about the present and future of Mount Holyoke.”

Weissman Center holds virtual town hall event with Rep. Cori Bush and Nina Turner

Rep. Cori Bush and former Ohio Sen. Nina Turner joined Carmen Yulín Cruz, the Harriet L. Weissman and Paul M. Weissman distinguished fellow in leadership at Mount Holyoke College, for a discussion on racial justice on April 26. This event was one in a series of town halls held by the Weissman Center for Leadership as a part of the “Our Voices, Our Platforms” series. According to the Mount Holyoke website, these town halls seek to “explore how people can use their voices to make meaningful change and how people can discover and create the platforms necessary to achieve that transformative change.”

Week Two of the College’s Week of Racial Justice and Reconciliation Week Features More Virtual Events

Week Two of the College’s Week of Racial Justice and Reconciliation Week Features More Virtual Events

Mount Holyoke continued its second annual Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King Week of Racial Justice and Reconciliation with a series of events and virtual talks.

On Jan. 24, Mount Holyoke alumna Quanita Haley ’12 gave a sermon entitled “Let Justice Roll Down: A Christian Service in Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”

Mount Holyoke Celebrates MLK and Coretta Scott King With a Week of Events Devoted To Racial Justice

Mount Holyoke began its first week of the spring term with the second annual Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King Week of Racial Justice and Reconciliation. The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion partnered with the Division of Student Life to create a program of events “in recognition of the ongoing challenges with race relations in the United States.” According to the Mount Holyoke events calendar, the week’s theme was “Our Interconnectedness Binds Us Together.”

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College To Hold Reunion 2021 Virtually; Decisions on Commencement To Be Announced This February

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On the evening of Wednesday, Dec. 9, the College sent out an email containing updates on the plans for Commencement and reunion 2021. With a vaccine seemingly on the way, plans may change depending on how the COVID-19 pandemic develops over the coming months. However, as COVID-19 restrictions on outdoor gatherings continue to tighten in the state of Massachusetts, an official decision on the class of 2021’s commencement ceremony has yet to be made. Over the following months, the College will continue to monitor the state of the pandemic and inform decisions based on the safety guidelines regarding in-person gatherings and travel. An official decision about Commencement 2021 will be announced by the end of this February.

College Issues New Anti-Racism Plan

“Mount Holyoke must be persistent and uncompromising in addressing the challenges that members of our community who identify as BIPOC — Black, Indigenous and people of color — have brought to our attention. We must identify and address all forms of implicit and explicit racism, bias and discrimination on our campus,” wrote President of the College Sonya Stephens in an Aug. 27 letter to Mount Holyoke community members.

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Senate town hall discusses issues of diversity, equity and inclusion

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Senate town hall discusses issues of diversity, equity and inclusion

This week, the Student Government Association (SGA) senate meeting largely revolved around diversity and inclusion, the theme of the month.

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Third annual BOOM learning symposium engages campus

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Third annual BOOM learning symposium engages campus

BY CAITLIN LYNCH ’20

Classes and other college obligations were paused this Tuesday, April 9 as community members participated in Mount Holyoke’s third annual Building on Our Momentum (BOOM) learning symposium for diversity, equity and inclusion. 

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