Welcome to the Spring 2021 Semester

Dear members of the Mount Holyoke community,

Last week marked the start of the spring 2021 semester. This was an important moment, as we welcomed more than 700 students to campus, and moved them into their single rooms in residence halls around Skinner Green, in 1837 Hall, Abbey-Buckland halls and the Mandelles. It was just wonderful to feel the excitement of Move-in, on the part of families as well as students, and I want to express my deepest gratitude to all the faculty and staff who volunteered to help keep the move-in moving, and everyone involved safe. Another 1,200 students are joining us virtually this semester, participating in classes and in the Mount Holyoke experience across the United States and around the world.

The new year, despite the usual hope that comes with it (including, this year, the hope of widespread vaccination), began with a continued surge in cases of COVID-19 and even more lives and livelihoods lost, as well as with the realization that we are still far from turning a corner on the pandemic, on racial, economic and health injustice, and on the violence and division that has beset the nation.

This was confirmed by the deadly siege of the Capitol by white supremacists who sought to delegitimize American democracy, the electoral process and its outcome, and to violate the Constitution. That dignity and order was restored in a peaceful transition of power last week was deeply reassuring, although there is much work yet to be done to bridge our divisions and to assure opportunity and justice for all. Mount Holyoke alums are engaged in this work across the nation and the world, and that is a source of great pride for the College. We take this opportunity to congratulate alums Kathleen Hicks ’91 and Suzy George ’90, who have been tapped for roles in the Biden-Harris administration, as well as to celebrate the historic inauguration of Vice President Kamala Harris, the first Black and South Asian woman to hold such a high office in the United States — and indeed the efforts of this administration to reflect the gender and racial diversity of the country in critical roles.

Early signs of hope for higher education

Some of the early actions taken by the new administration were much anticipated by the higher education community, and will have a significant impact on our work at Mount Holyoke and students wishing to pursue their education here. We applaud the administration’s decision to rejoin the World Health Organization and the Paris climate accord. We also celebrate the executive orders that bolster the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and that end the so-called Muslim ban, which blocked travel to the United States from several predominantly Muslim and African countries.

We were gratified to see the revocation of the order limiting the ability of federal agencies and other institutions to hold diversity and inclusion training; the reinforcement of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, requiring the federal government not to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity; as well as an explicit order on advancing racial equity and support for underserved communities through the federal government. We are hopeful that we will also see the realization of electoral promises to double the federal Pell Grants program. Like many of our colleagues in peer institutions, we understand these measures to be supporting our educational goals and our mission, reflecting the many ways in which higher education is vital to science and evidence-based argument, economic opportunity, job creation and a thriving democracy.

When borders open and it is once again safe to travel, we look forward to welcoming more of our new international students to our campus. Some have been able to come to campus for the first time this spring, joining other first-year and returning students in residence. International students, faculty and staff have been an integral part of Mount Holyoke and of the intellectual and cultural life of the College since 1839, and continue to contribute global perspectives to many endeavors on our campus.

We have been so grateful for the coordinated efforts of national organizations, including the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, which have continued to make visible the commitment of our sector to these values and opportunities, and to advocate for immigration policies that support talented students, faculty and staff to pursue their education or work here, as well as enabling collaborative research and the advancement of knowledge and global understanding.

As of January 26, international travelers arriving in the United States will have to provide evidence of a negative COVID-19 test. We expect travel arrangements to continue to evolve with public health conditions. We recommend that those with questions or concerns about the new requirements, and returning students and any campus community members who are currently abroad or who plan to travel internationally for personal reasons, contact the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives. College-sponsored travel is still not permitted at this time.

Week of Racial Justice and Reconciliation

Despite all of these positive developments, much work remains to combat racism, xenophobia, antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia and other biases that have been promoted and embraced by some. We continue to move forward with the efforts detailed in our Anti-Racism Action Plan, as described in our December report, and will provide a further update in the coming weeks. An important part of this work continues to be engaging across difference and raising awareness and understanding of bias, inequities and injustice.

Last week we kicked off our second annual Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King Week of Racial Justice and Reconciliation. As many of you know, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visited Mount Holyoke College and spoke in the Gettel Amphitheater on October 20, 1963. In his address, he spoke to the interrelatedness of the universe, of all nations and all people. “All life is interrelated,” he said. “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be.” Dr. King’s words on that solemn occasion resonate as much in this time as they did in October 1963.

The “soul force” of which he spoke was evident in Amanda Gorman’s inauguration poem, “The Hill We Climb,” which explored interconnectedness in both form and substance. The bridges she made in prosody were an exhortation that we continue to make them in our lives and work together. And she expressed the same confidence as Dr. King did here in 1963 that, through love, effort and bravery, “we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one,” that “we will rebuild, reconcile and recover.” There is much healing and reconciliation still needed, as well as considerable work before us to fulfill that vision of equity and equality, to meet this moment with truly transformational and lasting change. And we bring renewed commitment to that work this semester and recognize the individual and collective responsibility we have in creating this change.

The week of racial justice and reconciliation events began with a two-day teach-in to challenge antisemitism in all its forms, with members of the Mount Holyoke and Five College communities engaging with Rabbi Sandra Lawson, Rabbi Josh Lesser and Mount Holyoke alum, Rabbi Hilly Haber ’10 — three rabbis whose histories of activism and social justice are intersectional, rooted in their faith and culture, and focused on creating anti-racist practices. A conversation between Lawson and Lesser explored with great honesty the personal challenges they have faced in their work, and the ways in which they have built solidarity between diverse groups of people, as well as the role white supremacy has played in perpetuating divisions between Black and Jewish communities more specifically. The annual program culminates this week, on Jan. 27, Dr. King’s birthday, with a public lecture by Jelani Cobb, “Frontline” correspondent and New Yorker staff writer. He will be speaking on the topic of “The Half-Life of Freedom: Race and Justice in America Today.”

The spring semester begins

As planned, this semester’s classes will continue to be taught through our Flexible Immersive Teaching, or FIT, model, in predominantly remote format so that students can engage, whether on campus or thousands of miles away. My thanks go as ever to the faculty and staff who are making all of this possible and doing their work in new and imaginative ways. You can read more about FIT at Mount Holyoke in this week’s Chronicle of Higher Education. While this is not Mount Holyoke as we have known it, the extraordinary efforts of faculty to keep students engaged, combined with all of the support in terms of technology and so much more, have truly kept the intellectual spirit and adventure of the liberal arts alive and well here. This has been met with the enthusiasm and effort of the students. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard from faculty members how amazingly dedicated the students have been.

As always, the faculty and staff of Mount Holyoke are all here to support students: Please reach out to advisors, faculty and class deans if you have any questions. We are so glad to have many more of you back on campus this semester, and remain hopeful that conditions will continue to improve.

Campus restrictions due to COVID-19

Currently, every residential student is required to observe campus quarantine, as described on the COVID-19 dashboard. Our campus living and learning plan relies on high-impact practices known to mitigate the spread of cases: COVID-19 testing, contact tracing and full compliance with all health and safety protocols. Our safety plan also includes the ability to expand and contract quarantine as needed, based on testing and contact tracing data. As we expected in welcoming more students to campus, positive cases have been identified. Not only are we working with those individuals directly impacted, we also have plans in place to identify and restrict movement for others who may not technically be close contacts but may be at a higher risk due to living conditions. Those notifications are made directly to impacted individuals.

Privacy considerations require our utmost attention to confidentiality. Therefore, campus-wide notifications are reserved for instances when there are significant changes to overall campus operations with broad impact and/or to announce a significant change in campus operations. If students have questions about on-campus residential living, they can email res-life@mtholyoke.edu. Those who have questions about COVID-19 planning and protocols in general should email covid19info@mtholyoke.edu.

To all who live and work on campus, please remember that our ability to maintain campus operations depends on compliance: Please continue to be vigilant and wear masks in the presence of others. Maintain 6 feet of distance from others at all times. Wash or sanitize your hands frequently, and receive absolutely no visitors (including Mount Holyoke students living in other halls or off-campus). Please note that these protocols will continue all semester, even as students are permitted limited access to buildings other than residence halls. Each individual’s behavior can positively or negatively impact our ability to operate campus safely. We are in this together!

We will continue to prioritize the safety and well-being of our community, and, to that end, the campus is closed in order to protect those in residence or working on site. Hard though it is to take this position, closed really means closed: It means that any students living off-campus, and any alums who live locally or happen to be nearby, may not enjoy the beautiful Mount Holyoke grounds and trails and must not enter any campus buildings. For the health and safety of all in our community, those faculty, staff and students permitted on campus must wear their Mount Holyoke lanyard with their OneCard visible at all times. If you see someone on campus who does not have a lanyard, please contact Public Safety and Service at 413-538-2304.

We are likely to have to practice these public health measures for the foreseeable future. Some Mount Holyoke staff in frontline positions have already received their first shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, but immunization of the general population has not yet begun. Each state is adopting a different approach to vaccine distribution and we do not know when the vaccine will be available more widely to faculty, staff and students. The most current distribution information is available on the Massachusetts vaccine website. At this time, the state has indicated that it will not start vaccinating college students and employees until Phase 3, slated to begin in April 2021.

While the COVID-19 vaccines have been shown to be highly effective in preventing significant symptoms, studies to date have not ruled out the possibility that those vaccinated might still be asymptomatic positives, capable of infecting others. Vaccinated individuals, like everyone else authorized to be on campus, will continue to be tested, must wear a mask, and follow all other health and safety protocols.

The College’s largest gift to financial aid

We are delighted to be starting this semester with all the usual excitement of new courses and new encounters, as well as a significant number of students on campus. And as we continue to look to and plan for the future, we are excited to announce the largest gift ever to financial aid at the College and an effort that will support students in their pursuit of a Mount Holyoke education for generations to come. This $10 million gift is both a commitment by Liz Cochary Gross ’79 and Philip Gross to financial aid at Mount Holyoke, and an invitation to other donors to join them in this Meet the Moment Scholarship Challenge. We are immensely grateful to them, and to all of you who have supported and continue to support the work and mission of the College.

Below you will find a selection of campus updates and a retrospective look at the top stories of 2020. I wish you all an enriching and healthy semester, along with success in all your endeavors this year.

Sincerely,

Sonya