Members of the Occidental Class of 2028.
Origin Stories
Before arriving at Occidental, these eight members of the Class of ’28 (and a transfer student from the Class of ’27) discovered their superpowers in the classroom, in their communities, in competition, and in service to their...

Occidental magazine brings you campus news, in-depth features, and profiles of exceptional alumni. For the 2024-25 academic year, the magazine will publish two print and digital issues (Fall 2024 and Spring 2025) and two digital-only issues (Summer 2024 and Winter 2025).

Two sides of the coin on the football debate, and timely questions about climate change
A master class with Esperanza Spalding, an Online Pacemaker award for The Occidental Weekly, and a reprieve on sharing your personal user data online
Senior Claire Strohm kills, women’s soccer standouts thrill, and Oxy’s cross country squads aim for the top of the hill in fall sports action
As its staunchest advocates will attest, the Barack Obama Scholars Program expands the legacy of the nation’s 44th president, builds the bench for public service and civic engagement, and...
In just four years, Bombas has sold 5 million pairs of socks and given away 5 million more—but Andrew Heath ’04 and brother David are only getting started
Entrepreneur and sociologist Kevin F. Adler ’07 tackles the nation’s homeless crisis by rebuilding social support systems and reconnecting loved ones—one Miracle Message at a time.
Ambitious, thoughtful, quirky, worldly—and smarter than most of us were at that age—the third-largest entering class in Oxy history is ready for its closeup
Chris Brickman
Responding to shifts in the retail landscape and partnering with online influencers, Sally Beauty Holdings CEO Chris Brickman ’86 strives to make believers out of analysts and investors
For students and faculty across multiple disciplines, climate change is real—and they’re exploring solutions through classroom study and field research
With an ingredient list high in protein and low in “weird stuff,” Anthony Ostland ’08 and Michael Winchell ’07 create a protein bar to their liking
New deans Wendy Sternberg and Rob Flot discuss the opportunities and synergies of building bridges between faculty, students, and the offices that support them
From the arts and sciences to computer science and religious studies, Occidental’s latest tenure-track appointees run the academic gamut
Frederick Douglass
New books, music, and movies with an Oxy connection
Six years after its introduction as a minor, Oxy’s new computer science major encourages students to explore cyber connections with the liberal arts
For three Oxy professors and a research team of eight undergraduates not afraid of a little rain, La Selva Biological Station is the ultimate field trip

Features

Professor William D. Ward at his desk in the Hall of Letters on Occidental’s Highland Park campus.
Unseen Occidental
From 1898 to 1914, Occidental College called Highland Park home—and a treasure trove of photos from the 1910s offers a glimpse of campus life before the move to Eagle Rock
Filmmaker Angelina Lee '22
Farm to Film
Combining her interest in sustainability with her prowess behind the camera, Angelina Lee ’22 harvests a new documentary around permaculture
Ben Dalgetty ’10 in the Office of the Mayor in Seattle.
Campaign Trails
Campaign Semester can be a gateway to a career in politics, advocacy work, or even elected office, as seven seasoned campaigners will attest
Members of the Occidental Class of 2028.
Origin Stories
Before arriving at Occidental, these eight members of the Class of ’28 (and a transfer student from the Class of ’27) discovered their superpowers in the classroom, in their communities, in...
Campaign Semester participants Cady Carr '27 and Rachel Obbard '27
Ground Game
For Campaign Semester students in battleground Pennsylvania and 13 other states, the road map to Election Day entails knocking on every door

First Word

From the Quad

Chris Kim, the Choi Family Director of Instrumental Music, conducts the Occidental Symphony in a performance of Michael Jackson’s “Human Nature.”
The Sounds of Branca
A concert for the ages celebrates the generations-spanning clientele of music attorney John Branca ’72 and the launch of the John Branca Institute for Music
Members of the Pacific Crossings “Dream Team”: From left, Nakatsuka, Gilder Lehrman program coordinator Leah Baer, administrative assistant Thea Wilson ’24, and Hong.
Teachable Moments
Associate Professor Jane Hong and a “dream team” of educators bring 150 years of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander history into focus
Projects for Peace participants Stephen Amankonah Sekyere ’27 and Eleanor Goddard ’25
A STEM Grows in Ghana
Projects for Peace participants Eleanor Goddard ’25 and Stephen Amankonah Sekyere ’27 bring technology—and hope—to middle-schoolers in West Africa
Tylor Lee '26 interned with Healthcare in Action, which provides healthcare and social services to unhoused people.
Summer in the City
A 10-week summer internship program pairs 28 Oxy students with 20 community partners to contribute to the work of advancing social justice in Los Angeles

Mixed Media

Carole MacNeil ’84 with her mom, Eleanor, in 2019.
Mixed Media
New books by Carole MacNeil ’84, Jessica C. Harris ’08, Jessica Keith ’00, Marsha de la O ’74, and the latest documentary short by César Martínez Barba ’17
Author Susan Coll '81, photographed at Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C.
Mixed Media
Susan Coll ’81’s latest comic novel, Professor Amy Lyford’s examination of the art and life of Dorothea Tanning, and more

Oxy Talk

As program director of Research Corporation for Science Advance- ment’s RCSA Fellows Initiative, Spain will support postdocs in physics, astronomy, and chemistry as they transition into their faculty careers.
To Chemistry and Beyond
After 28 years in the classroom and mentoring 74 students in her lab at Oxy, Professor Eileen Spain pivots to prepare future generations of faculty in the physical sciences
Suke Takayuki Kubota in an undated photo.
Oxy’s Samurai Grandmaster
Soke Takayuki Kubota (1934-2024) became a martial arts legend, developing his own karate style and amassing a worldwide following. And for more than 40 years, he taught his methods to the...

Last Page

Professor Emeritus Eric Newhall '67, author of Always Resisting
Resistance Remembered
Professor Emeritus Eric Newhall ’67 recounts the fallout from his decision to oppose the Vietnam War in a memoir more than 50 years in the making
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