The Biology Department faculty and staff have read several articles and books to educate themselves on the historical and current practices of racism in science. We want to share some of these materials and continue these discussions to move toward a more inclusive, anti-racist community. We invite your additional thoughts and ideas, your voices and concerns, and we pledge to listen and engage with you every step of the way.
Books
This concert is free and open to the public. Stay afterward for an informal reception with Glee Club members and director Desiree La Vertu.
Presented by the Occidental College Music Department.
“Some people can publish books while they are teaching undergraduates,” says Professor of English Emeritus Eric Newhall ’67, “and I wasn’t one of those people.” But he had a story in him dating back to 1970, when he was released from prison after spending nine and a half months behind bars as a draft resister.
Each fall, an influx of new faces arrives on the Occidental campus—bringing with them new ideas, new dreams, and new visions that may shape our collective futures. Hyperbole, you say? It was 45 years ago that a freshman named “Barry” Obama joined the Oxy community. We introduce to you nine new members of the Tiger family—we don’t know where they’re going, but every hero has an origin story.
Eleanor Goddard ’25 lived in Ghana for seventh and eighth grade and had been eager to return ever since. “Being in Ghana is more of a feeling—it’s like listening to your favorite song and thinking, ‘Everything’s going to be OK,’” says Goddard, a biochemistry major from Minneapolis. “The people of Ghana smile about everything. They put other people first. They’re part of such an amazing community that it’s hard not to want to go there.”
With a body of work that includes more than 200 TV shows, in addition to his work in film, commercials, and theater, actor Loren Lester ’83 gets recognized fairly often—even if people don’t know exactly who he is.
As a graduate student at USC half a century ago, Lynn Mehl was attending a karate tournament in Hollywood when she decided that she wanted to train with Takayuki Kubota—known to all as “Soke,” the title bestowed upon him as the creator of his own karate style called Gosoku-ryu. (“Soke” means “founder” or “grandmaster.”) There was one slight hitch—“Soke wasn’t overly excited about training a woman,” Mehl recalls—but she persisted. “Week after week, month after month, year after year I was fortunate enough—and stubborn enough—to train with Soke and ultimately teach for him.”
Growing up in North Carolina, my family took home delivery of The Charlotte Observer, which for years published “Strictly Perso
Watch related video on sustainability at Oxy
Zoe Bush ’26 enjoys her role as a chicken tender at Occidental’s FEAST Garden, the student-run organic garden just south of the UEPI House on Campus Road. “A couple of times a week I’ll go in and check on the chickens—make sure they have food and water, see if they laid any eggs, and just cuddle them and make sure they’re happy,” says Bush, an urban and environmental policy major from Culver City.