Casey Roepke

Casey Roepke ’21 has taken full advantage of her Mount Holyoke education, pursuing a double major in physics and politics, a Nexus concentration in Journalism, Media, and Public Discourse, and participating in numerous cocurricular activities. Her experience has been defined by her interactions with her fellow members of the College community.

When you invest in Mount Holyoke, particularly through one of our scholarship aid destinations, you are paving the way for passionate students like Casey to thrive and grow in a diverse, collaborative and supportive community.

“The academics here truly emphasize the importance of collaboration. I can engage more deeply with my education by working alongside my classmates instead of competing against them. I am so grateful to be involved in a wide variety of cocurriculars because it allows me to work with students from all kinds of backgrounds and academic disciplines and to engage more closely with my beloved Mount Holyoke community.”

—Casey Roepke ’21
Physics and Politics
Nexus concentration in
Journalism, Media, and Public Discourse
San Francisco, California

Why did you choose Mount Holyoke?
Mount Holyoke had a lot of amazing qualities on paper — great academics, beautiful buildings and a wide array of cocurricular opportunities. But the reasons I chose Mount Holyoke were less tangible. I was attracted to its legacy of elevating marginalized voices, the deeply supportive community of students and alums, and the traditions. The community of students, alums, faculty and staff were my deciding factor.

What do you value most about your Mount Holyoke education? How has this community helped you thrive?
I am not exaggerating when I say that I would not be a physics major at any other institution but Mount Holyoke. The academics here truly emphasize the importance of collaboration. I can engage more deeply with my education by working alongside my classmates instead of competing against them. I have the best memories of sitting in the physics lounge late into the night struggling on a special relativity problem set with my classmates and eventually reaching that breakthrough.

What academic project or pursuit are you most proud of and why?
I am most proud of my senior thesis in politics. While I am still in the beginning stages of writing, I am proud of my research process and conversations with my research advisor. I was able to conduct qualitative interviews as research with the help of the Institutional Review Board and the Miller Worley Center for the Environment, which helped fund me. I am proud because I am conducting research in a field with few publications and I feel like I am paving an academic path of inquiry.

What cocurricular activities are you involved in and how have they impacted your academic work?
I am the captain of the varsity rowing team, news editor at the Mount Holyoke News, senator for the 2021 class board, DJ at WMHC radio, peer mentor and liaison for the SAW Program, research assistant at Kerstin Nordstrom's physics lab, and a regular participant in the Unitarian Universalist group on campus. I am so grateful to be involved in a wide variety of cocurriculars because it allows me to work with students from all kinds of backgrounds and academic disciplines and to engage more closely with my beloved Mount Holyoke community.

Have you participated in any internships or research experiences? What were your top takeaways?
My Lynk-funded internship was at radio station KPFA in Berkeley, California, where I was a field reporter and producer on two daily news broadcasts. I learned so many tangible and intangible skills, including audio editing, resilience, interviewing guests and how to take criticism. I conducted remote research during the summer of 2020 with Kerstin Nordstrom, which taught me a multitude of research and coding skills alongside fostering collaboration and communication amidst a pandemic remote-work atmosphere.

What would you say to an alum who donates to Mount Holyoke to support things like student scholarship aid and internships?
Thank you! I would not be able to participate in all of the amazing opportunities that I have experienced without your generous support.