Pitzer College Family Association

A season of triumph: Our scholar-athletes thrived this fall season in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports. It wasn't just the victory of the men's football team against the CMS Stags, but a whole series of men's and women's milestones in basketball, soccer, swimming, and diving, too!

Read this recap story for more on how the Sagehens fared this season. And if you're a supporter of Sagehens athletics, thank you!!

Read story: https://www.pitzer.edu/communications/2022/12/20/pomona-pitzer-sagehens-make-personal-team-triumphs-this-fall/

What do students learn at Pitzer?

How to produce real social impact with their research. They learn this from our expert faculty.

That includes Professor Susan Phillips, who directs the Robert Redford Conservancy for Southern California Sustainability.

The conservancy has teamed up with Radical Research to create a powerful data tool that enables anyone to quickly answer the question: What does your city's warehouse situation/carbon footprint look like?

The Guardian recently profiled their creation of this tool in response to a growing crisis in the Inland Empire in an article with a very blunt headline: "Revealed: How Warehouses took over Southern California ‘like a slow death.’ "

Check out the Guardian article here: http://ow.ly/5cOj50MiLHv

Check out your own SoCal city with this new data tool: http://ow.ly/wXMT50MiLHw

Unsure what to read in 2023?

Start by checking out some of the latest books from our outstanding Pitzer faculty!

Topics included in this recent roundup are:

---Joseph Conrad, Nadine Gordimer (pictured), and works of postcolonial fiction
---racism in medical schools
---Disney, Pixar, and language

Pitzer College is proud of its faculty, who are leading scholars in their disciplines as well as powerful mentors to the next generation of changemakers!

Read more about new faculty books here: https://www.pitzer.edu/communications/2022/12/20/faculty-bookshelf-waiting-in-the-postcolonial-world-medical-school-racism-and-more/

Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens Make Personal & Team Triumphs This Fall

A season of triumph: Our Sagehens didn't just make news in football this fall -- it's been an exciting season for many of our Pomona-Pitzer teams!

Read this recap about our incredible student-athletes, and please consider supporting the Sagehens athletic program in 2023!

Read more: https://www.pitzer.edu/communications/2022/12/20/pomona-pitzer-sagehens-make-personal-team-triumphs-this-fall/

Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens Make Personal & Team Triumphs This Fall Our scholar-athletes have been thriving this fall season in NCAA Division III intercollegiate sports as they push themselves in their academic and athletic prowess. With the help of our supporters, staff, and the newly opened Center for Athletics, Recreation, and Wellness, our Sagehens are achieving...

An art treasure hunt in today's ! For one night only at the end of the semester, Pitzer College Studio Arts presented "UNDER-GROUND," a campus-wide exhibition of student artwork in ceramics, sculpture, photography, painting, and drawing.

As they explored the various art studios on campus, community members enjoyed refreshments from Saca’s Mediterranean Cuisine and discovered the work of talented artists from across the 5Cs.

📸: Keely Nguyen '23

Check out another to Professor Jessica Kizer’s sociology podcast listening party for her class Race & Ethnic Relations.

Pitzer community members heard a sampling of students’ bite-sized podcasts about the Flint Water crisis, meritocracy, food apartheid, mental health in AAPI communities, and more.

Want to take a listen? Visit https://profekizer.notion.site/Race-Ethnic-Relations-Season-2-d5ab6595b2b84dec99c435498b5ad8db

How are science, technology, and social justice linked? In the fall 2022 course Technofuturos: Chicanxs/Latinxs & Technology in Society and the Future, students like Sergio Quechol '23 collaborated on a zine to explore how Latinidades manifest in the digital world.

To celebrate the zine's completion, Visiting Assistant Professor of Chicana/o Latina/o Transnational Studies Magally Miranda hosted a launch party at the Grove House. Attendees were treated to pozole, agua de jamaica, and more!

The zine's introduction says: "The more students learned, the more they began to see themselves as the future of Latinx science and technology studies."

A holiday treat! To celebrate their sponsors and sponsees, the Asian Pacific American Coalition at Pitzer recently hosted a gingerbread house competition for good fun and good sweets. 📸: Keely Nguyen '23

At the nexus of archaeology, art, and family history lies the distinctly Pitzer experience of Shelby Ottengheime ’23. Her multifaceted interests begin with her anthropology major—which will soon culminate in an archaeological dig of an ancient Maya city in Belize.

“This major is about understanding why we make things and what it reflects about us. The creation of art is a mirror for our society.”

Pictured: Ottengheime with her "Meiko" mural on Mead Hall.

Read more:
http://ow.ly/J3KX50M1AYa

What could sociological imagination look like? For Professor Jessica Kizer's social responsibility praxis course "Introduction to Sociology," the answer is children's books. Kizer's students presented their work in a storybook festival for elementary students and parents from the Pomona Unified School District.

Juliana Jaasma ’26, Delaney Post ’26, and Dominic Feder Di Toro ’26 read books that they authored and illustrated. Festival attendees also enjoyed Pitzer swag, pizza, and a meet and greet with Cecil the Sagehen!

We're thrilled to announce the next president of Pitzer College: Strom C. Thacker!

A political scientist and higher ed leader from Union College in upstate New York, President-Designate Thacker will take office in July as Pitzer's seventh president.

We're not only thrilled by his outstanding career as a scholar and leader, he's also a product of The Claremont Colleges: Thacker graduated with a degree in international relations from Pomona College!

"I can’t wait to come ‘home’ to Claremont to help advance this amazing college," Thacker said in a statement to the Pitzer community sent today by Board of Trustees Chair Donald P. Gould.

Please join us in welcoming President-Designate Thacker to Pitzer, and read more about his career: https://www.pitzer.edu/president/president-designate/

Photo credit: Matt Milless

Dominic Arzadon ’23 has become the first Pitzer student to win the Marshall Scholarship! This prestigious award funds up to three years of graduate study in any discipline at any British university. Arzadon is among 41 Marshall Scholars this year and plans to study at Oxford University.

“Yes, I’m the first, and I’m very proud of that,” said Arzadon, “but I’m definitely not going to be the last.”

Read more: http://ow.ly/mrTt50M1vyj

Would you like to make a zine for your homework? Students did just that in Visiting Professor Carla Macal’s “Gender, Race and Class: Women of Color in the U.S.”

For their bilingual zine “Las Luchonas de Los Ángeles,” Michelle Hernandez ’24, Sofia Marquez-Gomez ’25, and Daniella Hernandez-Garcia PO’25 interviewed women in their own lives about their experiences in domestic work.

In the news: Shaheen Husain '78 has been appointed as Chief Development Officer for Girl Scouts of Orange County. The organization announced Husain's selection in a news release praising her as "a seasoned business development and fundraising executive with a strong community network."

Born in Khartoum, Sudan, Husain attended schools on four continents by the time she reached the ninth grade.

At Pitzer, she received a bachelor's degree in Psychology with a minor in Organizational Studies.

Congratulations on her new role!

Read more about Husain joining the executive team of Girl Scouts of Orange County: http://ow.ly/I5wZ50LUfhy

Environmental artist Lauren Bon reimagines the Los Angeles River for the Pepper Distinguished Visiting Artist Lecture on Tuesday, December 6, at Pitzer's Benson Auditorium at 4:15 p.m. Open to the public, the lecture culminates an exhibition by Lauren Bon and The Metabolic Studio about "Bending the River."

Located on Tongva land, "Bending the River" aims to utilize Los Angeles’ first private water right to deliver 106 acre-feet of water annually from the L.A. River to over 50 acres of land in the historic core of downtown L.A. This model can be replicated to regenerate the 52-mile L.A. River, reconnect it to its floodplain, and form a citizens’ utility.

Learn more: http://ow.ly/2JzU50LQFkA

For our next Native American Heritage Month community spotlight, learn about Tongva Elder Julia Bogany (July 16, 1948–March 28, 2021). Julia Bogany was a member of the Tongva tribe, was on their Tribal Council, and was their cultural consultant. She worked for over thirty years for the American Indian community for her Tongva tribe.

Bogany taught Tongva language and cultural classes. She attended many language workshops around the country to learn, strengthen, and enhance her tribe’s language. She helped to revive the Tongva language, as well as assemble a Tongva dictionary.

She was president of Kuruvanga Springs, a representative for California tribes on Route 66, a member of California Native American College board, and Pitzer College elder in residence.

She taught native culture and history and women’s issues at Scripps College, Pomona College, Harvey Mudd College, and the Claremont School of Theology in addition to Pitzer. She worked on theses with students and assisted with the Native Youth to College program.

Bogany consulted with and trained teachers and school boards on how to revise their curriculum to reflect the correct history of California and California tribes. She sought to change the future for her tribe, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. All the work she did was for their future and for the future of her Tongva tribe.

“I always say Tongva women never left their ancestral homeland, they just became invisible. ‘How do we make ourselves not invisible?’ is the question I ask every day.” – Julia Bogany

Bio adapted from “About Julia Bogany” on To Be Visible. Photo by Ben Cowan '18 and Mason Polk ’19.

Learn more about Julia Bogany: http://ow.ly/OGgu50LGlPH

One more Pitzer update for all of you: We're nearly at the $150,000 mark with several hours still to go towards our goal of $500,000!

Momentum has been building all afternoon: Help us to keep it going!

Make your gift now: http://ow.ly/srGx50LQF2Y

We are so thankful to EVERYONE for responding to our messages and student videos!

Thank you for everything you do to support the rich academic experience of students at Pitzer!

Pitzer's is doing great, and we still need more support to help our students realize their dreams.

A gift of any size makes a big difference.

Please make your gift today at: http://ow.ly/bYak50LQBUR

Pitzer College is off to a good start for , but we still need help. Please make your gift today to help us reach our goal: http://ow.ly/5OzM50LQub2

On behalf of our students, we thank you!

Meet Alexander “Alé” Rodriguez ’24 (he/they), a sociology major, a 2022 Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow, and a Native Indigenous Initiatives coordinator through Pitzer’s Community Engagement Center.

How do your culture and family background influence your work?

I have extended family in New York City starting in the ’60s. My specific family came in the ’90s. Seeing the diversity in my family’s religious practices, growing up hearing stories of los misterios del campo, recipes for remedios, and my family’s generational agricultural practices gave me an indication of indigeneity at an early age.

What does this heritage month mean to you?

Remembrance, but remembrance that Indigenous people are and always have been thriving and present. This month should encourage people to confront what it means when you “remember” Indigenous people and what biases make you feel like you must remember something that has never been gone. At the same time, Indigenous Heritage Month should be a smoke signal for what change looks like.

Read our full Q&A on our Native American Heritage Month page: http://ow.ly/HNi350LAF59

Sippin' on Sunshine-"Brazil" by Declan McKenna (Pitzer College Harvest Fest 2022)

For your listening pleasure on this Monday morning:

..... A clip from this fall's Pitzer College Harvest Fest!

The student band Sippin' on Sunshine set up underneath the Brant Clock Tower and treated listeners to an ample serving of indie rock, including this rendition of Declan McKenna's classic "Brazil."

Enjoy!



http://ow.ly/JqC750LPeZm

Sippin' on Sunshine-"Brazil" by Declan McKenna (Pitzer College Harvest Fest 2022)

Meet Pitzer Assistant Professor of History Urmi Engineer Willoughby, who researches disease and ecology in North America as well as histories of disease and medicine from a global and ecological perspective.

Willoughby recently took her First-Year Seminar class, Histories of Health and the Environment, on a field trip to Pitzer’s community partner Huerta del Valle to learn about sustainable agriculture, histories of environmental change, and human health impacts.

For her project about the environmental and cultural history of malaria in early America, Willoughby hired student research assistants, Benjamin Willett ’23, an environmental analysis major, and Leah Harrison-Lurie ’24, a self-designed major in public health. Working with research assistants motivates Willoughby’s research and plays a dynamic role in talking through data and discoveries.

Willoughby plans to create a research trip to New Orleans for students to study social justice and racial capitalism. Willoughby’s first book, “Yellow Fever, Race, and Ecology in Nineteenth-Century New Orleans,” was awarded the 2017 Williams prize for best book in Louisiana history.

GivingTuesday 2022

is almost here!

This November 29, we hope you will show your support for Pitzer College's unique mission in higher education by making a gift in support of our amazing students!

follows Thanksgiving and is a global generosity movement aimed at helping organizations get the help they need to transform the world.

At Pitzer, we're preparing the next generation of changemakers to improve lives and communities, and we appreciate your support of this mission.

You don't have to wait until November 29, though: You can make your gift early! Follow the link in this post to find out how you can give now.

We thank you very much!



http://ow.ly/2xho50LLAuO

GivingTuesday 2022 Join me and make a gift to GivingTuesday 2022

High Attendance Marks First In-Person Family Weekend in Three Years

After a three-year hiatus from being held in person, this year's Family Weekend celebration was a major success!

Pitzer welcomed nearly 400 registered guests in October for three days of activities including faculty talks, campus tours, community meals, yoga on the Mounds, tie-dying, and more.

All of this took place under mild blue sunny skies with temperatures in the mid-70s.

Are you thinking of attending next year's Family Weekend?

Read this story to learn more about what you'll have a chance to experience with your student!

The dates for Family Weekend 2023 will be coming soon. Stay tuned!



http://ow.ly/aLB550LGn7L

High Attendance Marks First In-Person Family Weekend in Three Years Visiting Southern California in late October for Family Weekend was the perfect getaway for Pitzer parent Daniela Frankova P’26. Not only did she and husband Jan get a chance to see their son Lukas, but the trip also gave them a brief reprieve from the cold weather back home in Des Moines, which w...

As Pitzer College continues its November celebration of Native American Heritage Month, we want to shine a spotlight on someone who has been an important part of our community: the late Tongva Elder Barbara Drake (Feb. 2, 1940–Nov. 18, 2020).

Known as “Auntie Barbara,” she was a central force in cultivating partnerships between the Claremont Colleges and the Tongva community.

Drake came to Pitzer in 1993 to lecture on ethnoecology and participated in Pitzer’s Leadership in Environmental Education Program, where she introduced children to Tongva perspectives on the environment.

Did you know that she began planning a library at Pitzer’s Robert Redford Conservancy dedicated to Tongva culture, history, language, and California native plants?

After her death, her husband, Gary Drake, donated her books to the Conservancy and gave her papers to Special Collections at the Honnold Mudd Library.

Learn more about Barbara Drake: http://ow.ly/7avn50LGmEh