Spring officially begins on March 19, but a new season clearly sprung this week on Claremont McKenna College’s campus with a joyful welcome back to students, faculty, and staff, as classes began and engaging activities launched.
For a returning CMC President Hiram Chodosh, the new semester seemed especially rejuvenating. He shared his original haiku and Qwalala-inspired artwork in a community message to mark the first day of classes.
The president’s labradoodle, Theo, who scampered about the Athenaeum’s north patio, also appeared eager to reconnect, as students paused from their excited conversations and reunion hugs, to kneel down to his level and provide a scratch or two under the chin.
A variety of upcoming opportunities are planned for CMCers to re-engage with their community this spring semester, including:
- On Thursday, January 25, Dr. Corey D. B. Walker will deliver CMC’s 2024 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Lecture, “On Earth As It Is”: Martin Luther King, Jr., Ethics, and the Environment in the Age of the Anthropocene” at the Athenaeum. Dr. Walker is Dean of the Wake Forest University School of Divinity, an ordained American Baptist clergyperson, and a scholar of American and African American social and religious thought. His insights will tie Dr. King’s legacy to the contemporary climate crisis. (Full Ath lineup is coming soon!)
- Students seeking ways to get involved on campus, are encouraged to attend the Spring Club Fair on Friday, January 26 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at Flamson Plaza to meet representatives from CMC’s wide array of clubs and organizations.
- The Athenaeum is holding a special Friday night Ath on January 26 to welcome John McWhorter, the Spring 2024 Res Publica Society Speaker. A linguist, podcaster, New York Times Opinion writer, and professor at Columbia University, McWhorter will discuss “Word Wars: Wokeism and the Battle Over Language.”
- For CMCers interested in wellness opportunities, CMS Recreation debuted spring programming, while the CARE Center, Dean of Students Office, Soll Center for Student Opportunity, Murty Sunak Quantitative and Computing Lab (QCL), and the Center for Writing and Public Discourse, each offer a range of workshops, personalized assistance, and resources to enhance academic success and deepen the CMC experience.
