“Pro Voice: The Abortion Monologues,” will take place at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 3, in Dewing 103.
A theatrical performance at Kalamazoo College that shares student interviews with members of the Southwest Michigan community will explore the deeper meaning of reproductive justice and its impact.
Pro Voice: The Abortion Monologues, directed by Ynika Yuag ’21, will take place at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 3, in Dewing 103. The event is organized by K’s Feminist Psychology of Women class in partnership with Planned Parenthood Affiliates of Michigan, K’s Office of Student Involvement and the Mary Jane Underwood Stryker Center for Civic Engagement.
Student actors, through monologues about abortion, will dramatize experiences that were shared in interviews. A talk-back panel discussion on reproductive justice will follow the event. Snacks will be provided. Attendees must wear masks, be fully vaccinated and show proof of vaccination with ID.
K has six representatives from the class of 2021 in the U.S. Student Program, placing the College among the top-producing bachelor’s institutions.
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announced Monday that Kalamazoo College is among the top producers of Fulbright recipients for the 2021-22 academic year.
K has six representatives from the class of 2021 in the U.S. Student Program, leading to the honor for the fourth time in the past five years. K is the only college in Michigan to earn the distinction in the bachelor’s institution category.
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program offers fellowships to graduating seniors, graduate students, young professionals and artists so they may teach English, perform research or study abroad for one academic year. Many candidates apply for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program as graduating seniors, though alumni may apply as well. Graduating seniors apply through their institution. Alumni can apply through their institution or as at-large candidates. K has one alumni representative this year from the class of 2013.
K’s representatives in 2021-22 and their host countries are:
Helen Pelak ’21, Australia
Katherine Miller-Purrenhage ’21, Germany
Sophia Goebel ’21, Spain
Molly Roberts ’21, France
Margaret Totten ’21, Thailand
Nina Szalkiewicz ’21, Austria
Evelyn Rosero ’13, South Korea
Katherine Miller-Purrenhage studied abroad in Germany and has returned there on a Fulbright award through the U.S. Student Program.
“K’s consistent recognition through the renowned Fulbright program confirms that our students have the abilities required to earn these transformational global experiences,” Center for International Programs Executive Director Margaret Wiedenhoeft said. “We’re proud of these students and the terrific faculty and staff who enable them to make an impact throughout the world.”
About the Fulbright Program
The Fulbright Program is the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program. Top-producing institutions are highlighted annually.
Since 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided more than 380,000 participants, chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential, with opportunities to exchange ideas and contribute to solutions to shared international concerns. More than 1,900 U.S. students, artists and young professionals in more than 100 fields of study are offered Fulbright Program grants to study, teach English and conduct research abroad each year. The Fulbright U.S. Student Program operates in more than 140 countries throughout the world.
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is a program of the U.S. Department of State, funded by an annual appropriation from Congress to the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and supported in its implementation by the Institute of International Education.
The Fulbright Program also awards grants to U.S. scholars, teachers and faculty to conduct research and teach overseas. In addition, about 4,000 foreign Fulbright students and scholars come to the United States annually to study, lecture, conduct research and teach foreign languages.
Will Keller ’23 will offer a presentation regarding his Big Year in birding to the Audubon Society of Kalamazoo at 7:30 p.m. Monday, February 28.
Will Keller ’23 documented more than 300 varieties of birds across Michigan including a LeConte’s sparrow at Whitefish Point near Paradise while challenging himself to a Big Year of birding. All photos by Will Keller.
For bird enthusiasts like Keller, a biology and philosophy double major from Kalamazoo, a Big Year is a personal challenge or an informal competition to spot and identify as many bird species as possible within a calendar year in a specific geographic area. Although he’s always had an interest in birding and completed a Big Year with a mentor in 2012, 2021 was the first time he attempted one by himself thanks to his pursuits during the pandemic triggering a desire.
“In the spring of 2020, I was back at my parents’ house, where I had access to a car,” Keller said. “Attending K for me was completely online and asynchronous. Every day, from sunup to sundown, I was driving across the state, and then I would do my classwork at night. I woke up the next day and did the exact same thing. I didn’t even make plans for Saturday, or Friday night for that matter, because I knew I wanted to be up at 7 a.m. and bird until sundown.”
Roseate spoonbill in Washtenaw County, Michigan
Rufous hummingbird in Saginaw, Michigan
Such passions helped him set a goal of documenting 300 species of birds in 2021, all within Michigan’s borders, a benchmark he exceeded by finding 311 varieties. Keller doesn’t know exactly how far he drove to accomplish that feat, although he estimates he traveled more than 5,000 miles just in trips to Whitefish Point, an area on Lake Superior near Paradise, Michigan, in the Upper Peninsula, more than 350 miles from Kalamazoo.
“It amazes me when I think about how high gas prices are right now, but I’m driving every weekend,” Keller said. “I’m often either in Holland or St. Joseph. Then, if I’m not at Whitefish Point, I’ll sometimes end up on the east side of the state. If I’m chasing a specific bird, I might even end up in Marquette County. On Thanksgiving in 2020, my buddy and I drove from Kalamazoo to Copper Harbor, which is at the very tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula so we could find a Cassin’s finch.”
If driving about 600 miles to Copper Harbor seems random, you might be surprised. There’s a strategy to birding through a Big Year that begins with a list of birds that can commonly be spotted in Michigan. Along with those, it’s important to know the migrant varieties that pass through the state.
“You get about 295 to 300 birds you know you’ll see if you’re birding every weekend and maybe a little during the week,” Keller said. “Then there’s a range of about 40 to 45 birds that are not Michigan resident birds. They don’t breed here and they don’t regularly migrate here. They only show up in Michigan as vagrants, and to be really competitive in a Big Year, you need to make sure you’re getting a large portion of those potential vagrants.”
Sprague’s pipit at Whitefish Point near Paradise, Michigan
Some of those vagrants stop in areas known as migrant traps.
“It’s not necessarily that the habitat in a migrant trap makes it really good for birds, but it’s the only good habitat for a three- or four-mile radius around it, especially if it’s less than 100 acres,” Keller said. “What you get then is a high concentration of these migrant birds.”
The best migrant trap for Keller is Tiscornia Park at the St. Joseph River with Benton Harbor to the north and the city of St. Joseph to the south. Thanks to its geography, the area attracts water birds and birds that migrate south. He also closely watches areas such as the Muskegon Wastewater Treatment Plant, which has a large lake and an unimpeded shoreline.
Mississippi kite at Cherry Hill Nature Preserve in Washtenaw County, Michigan
For even rarer birds, Keller relies on modern technology, especially eBird, an app that aggregates information and sends alerts on what birds are being found by spotters, when and where. If Keller believes a spotter is reputable, he will drive to a bird’s reported location to find it.
Ash-throated flycatcher in Paradise, Michigan
Such tools and strategies allowed Keller to find birds from an ash-throated fly catcher to a Roseate spoonbill in numbers from one to 60 across the state including some species that are rare in Michigan.
“I was surprised that I reached my goal of 300 so quickly in early September,” Keller said. “I had a lot of time after that to focus on a few of the rarer birds. In October, I was birding with some friends at Holland State Park in this campground, and we came across a bird that we first thought was a late orchard oriole, which was cool in its own right, because it really shouldn’t be here past August. And then we followed it around to get better looks at it, and it actually turned out to be a western tanager, which really doesn’t belong within 500 miles of here. It’s not a mind-boggling record, but it’s something I didn’t expect to find. It’s fair to say I just happened to be in the right place at the right time to find one of the biggest highlights of the year.”
Keller will present his findings to the Audubon Society of Kalamazoo at 7:30 p.m. Monday, February 28.
“I’m going to go through some birds that I stumbled across, some birds that I chased and some epic stories of driving six hours at a time, covering 450 miles,” Keller said. “I think there are even some funny stories of ways that I’ve hurt myself in 2021, so it’s going to be interesting.”
Assistant Professor of Chemistry Daniela Arias-Rotondo and Hannah Hong ’22 helped students, faculty and staff pursue random acts of kindness with a wall of warm-and-fuzzy messages to solve the winter blahs.
Some thoughtful planning from Assistant Professor of Chemistry Daniela Arias-Rotondo provided the students, faculty and staff at Kalamazoo College’s Dow Science Center with methods for solving the winter blahs that just might inspire you today, on Random Acts of Kindness Day.
Let’s face it. Winter has been difficult for most people in higher education, especially in the Midwest.
“I personally don’t like February in Michigan,” said Arias-Rotondo, who is fondly known on campus as Dr. DAR. “You’re sick of the cold, you’re sick of the snow and the lack of sunlight is hitting you. With COVID added to that mix, it’s been rough.”
As a result, she wanted to do something nice in February to serve as a pick-me-up for as many of her colleagues and students as possible.
“I was trying to think about what the chemistry department does throughout the year,” she said. “We dress up for Halloween and we have some activities closer to the summer, but we usually don’t have anything planned for the winter.”
That’s when Arias-Rotondo remembered that Hannah Hong ’22, inspired by Hong’s participation in a PossePlus retreat, developed a wall for warm-and-fuzzy messages last summer at Dow, where the students, faculty and staff—relatively lonely with limited numbers of people on campus—could post appreciative cards and messages to their peers.
“I was trying to figure out how can we bring some joy to the month, and with Valentine’s Day, I thought about bringing back the Warm and Fuzzies for the whole department,” Arias-Rotondo said.
Hong was thrilled with the idea. She readily posted a “Warm and Fuzzies” banner complete with entertaining chemistry puns appropriate for the holiday such as “We share a strong bond” with a drawing of a bond between atoms and “You’re the brightest person I’ve ‘xenon’ this planet.”
When the project launched, some feared it wouldn’t have much participation, but it was a hit. Within days the glass window outside the red couch room on the chemistry department’s floor was covered with fan mail intended for students, faculty and staff. That fan mail was collected on Valentine’s Day and distributed to their intended recipients, spreading cheer.
“It was a very inexpensive thing to do,” Arias-Rotondo said. “The cards were about $7 and it’s even cheaper if you do it with Post-It Notes. You could see how excited everyone was about them. It would be so fun to make this a campus wide thing. Maybe we could spread it next year to the Hicks Student Center with a bunch of different banners and cards. I think the students would really buy into it.”
Random Acts of Kindness Day, which for some involves a week of activities, encourages participants to make the world a better place by sharing light to make kindness a part of our everyday lives. Perhaps others can draw their own inspiration, today or any day, from Arias-Rotondo and her students and colleagues.
“This felt to me like buying that perfect present for someone,” she said. “You’re so eager to see them open it. I’m happy that people thought it was a good idea and that students were writing all these different cards and getting excited about them.”
Grace Hancock ’22 and her senior integrated project (SIP) are proving that something fishy is going on with the rising water temperatures caused by climate change.
Hancock, a biology major and Spanish minor from Portland, Oregon, recently conducted her SIP in the fish ecology lab at K with guidance from Roger F. and Harriet G. Varney Assistant Professor of Biology Santiago Salinas. Through it, she administered an analysis of Atlantic silverside fish, foragers that grow to be no longer than 6 inches in length, which exhibit temperature-dependent sex determination.
“When the temperature is generally colder, the fish produce more females,” Hancock said. “When it’s warmer, they produce more males because the females need to reach a bigger size before they hit sexual maturity.”
Grace Hancock ’22
Through the Fish Ecology Lab at Kalamazoo College, Grace Hancock ’22 analyzed Atlantic silverside fish and how climate change is threatening their reproductive patterns.
Grace Hancock ’22 measures a fish during her survey
work as an intern at Sarett Nature Center.
Such a process is nature’s way of ensuring optimal numbers of males and females along with ideal conditions for breeding. However, that only works if their water temperatures follow seasonal patterns that are unaffected by climate change. As a result, climate change can cause problems for not only a variety of temperature-dependent sex determination-exhibiting fish, but humans as well.
“Skewed sex ratios in populations are crazy to monitor because they mean there aren’t as many viable mates for them and it’s dangerous for the species,” Hancock said. “I can see how these fish are going to need our help and how climate change needs to slow down if we want to continue to explore and work with these resources that we have in our oceans. If some fish are struggling and some are not, it will create an imbalance.”
Grace Hancock conducted her senior integrated project in the fish ecology lab at K.
Grace Hancock ’22 examined Atlantic silverside fish in her senior integrated project.
Atlantic silverfish
Grace Hancock ’22 determined through her senior integrated project that climate change could skew fish populations.
Thanks to her research and her passion for science, Hancock is a great example of someone the United Nations is celebrating today, February 11, on the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. The day, first marked in 2015, encourages women scientists and targets equal access to and participation in science for women and girls.
Such a day is desired because U.N. statistics show that fewer than 30 percent of scientific researchers in the world are women and only about 30 percent of all female students select fields in science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) to pursue in their higher education. Only about 22 percent of the professionals in cutting edge fields such as artificial intelligence are women. Plus, representation among women is especially low professionally in fields such as information and communication technology at 3 percent; natural science, mathematics and statistics at 5 percent; and engineering at 8 percent.
“This happens in high school, college, middle school and as far back as I can remember,” Hancock said. “Women in science classes have to fight for their place. I feel like we’re getting better, but even in college, I feel talked over. I feel like I don’t have as much of a voice or authority in those communities. There are extra roadblocks for women to stick around in STEM, and it can be taxing emotionally and mentally to experience those environments.”
Grace Hancock ’22 had student support systems such as the Kalamazoo Birding Club throughout her years at K.
Hancock is among the many women in science at K working to reverse such trends. In addition to her marine biology work, she has enjoyed taking classes involving ecology and animal behavior, while encouraging students new to K to stick with the sciences and seek support systems. Hancock had her own support systems even outside the classroom through the Kalamazoo Birding Club and the women’s swimming and diving team.
“There’s so much research and so much to be said about staying healthy physically, and how that helps you mentally,” Hancock said of her athletics experience. “Even if I’m having a hard trimester, taking classes like organic chemistry or calculus, if I’m working out regularly or I have a team of women supporting me in the water, then my classroom work is going to be better. I would say almost half of the women on the swimming and diving team were STEM majors or taking STEM classes and we consistently had one of the highest GPAs among the athletics programs at K. It was an academically-driven community and I loved being a student-athlete.”
In targeting life after K, Hancock obtained class credit by working for a trimester in an internship at Sarett Nature Center in Benton Harbor, Michigan.
“That was a really great experience, because I got to visit every week and see how the naturalists worked,” Hancock said. “We used GIS equipment to survey and record the locations of different plants and demographic data on the fish living in streams. It was observational data, which was great exposure for me as someone who is more research focused.”
Grace Hancock works at the birding station at Sarett Nature Center.
Grace Hancock ’22 observed birds like this one working as an intern at Sarett Nature Center.
Grace Hancock ’22 holds an owl while working as an intern.
Grace Hancock ’22 holds an owl at the Sarett Nature Center.
After graduation, Hancock hopes to obtain a short-term marine biology job that might involve working in a lab or on a boat to monitor marine mammals. After that, she would like to obtain a Fulbright scholarship in a country in South America to work on her Spanish skills and later find a graduate program that suits her. In the meantime, she will continue mentoring younger students, while following in the footsteps of students who started at K before her.
“Mentorship from our professors is important, but there’s a lot to be said for women looking after women in the classroom,” she said. “I have a few students who have graduated as my role models and I hope to emulate them for younger students. I’m a TA for Form and Function and some other entry-level biology classes. Through that I’m able to work with first-year students. I’m continuing that legacy that the older students gave to me.”
Matthew Swarthout ’22 will present “Acting Shakespeare,” his own play adapted from Sir Ian McKellen’s production of the same name, this Thursday–Sunday at the Dungeon Theatre, 139 Thompson St.
If you desire an appreciation for the works of William Shakespeare yet find his plays challenging, you’ll want to attend a show coming this week to Kalamazoo College. Matthew Swarthout ’22 will present his self-written senior integrated project (SIP), a play titled Acting Shakespeare, adapted from Sir Ian McKellen’s production of the same name, this Thursday–Sunday at the Dungeon Theatre, 139 Thompson St.
The original production featured McKellen alone on stage with no props or scenery, performing monologues from Shakespeare’s work, and discussing some of his plays. McKellen first performed it in 1980, and a 1984 Broadway engagement earned him the Drama Desk Award for an Outstanding One-Person Show and a Tony Award nomination.
This version will encompass both Swarthout’s and McKellen’s insight into Shakespeare’s plays, featuring monologues and scenes from plays such as Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet, Macbeth, Henry the Fourth Part One and Henry the Fifth.
“This is the kind of Shakespeare show for people who don’t know Shakespeare,” Swarthout said. “I can talk in my 2022 language, which everyone can understand, and then I can shift into Shakespearean language and say, ‘This is what Shakespeare meant by this.’ It’s like a sampler of plays. You’ve got a comedy, a tragedy, a history and you can decide for yourself if you enjoy Shakespeare enough to see more of his plays.”
Matthew Swarthout ’22 offers his insights into William Shakespeare’s plays in “Acting Shakespeare,” coming this week to the Dungeon Theatre at Kalamazoo College.
Swarthout first developed his appreciation for Shakespeare as a young child when he saw As You Like It at the Stratford Festival in Canada. He later was drawn to K as he found the liberal arts could empower him to double major in biology and theatre. Since, Swarthout has performed in several Festival Playhouse shows with roles including the comical character Sir Andrew in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, and Buzz Windrip, a politician who unexpectedly wins the U.S. presidency in It Can’t Happen Here, a play based on Sinclair Lewis’ 1935 satire of what could happen if Fascism spreads to the United States.
“I’ve had a lot of freedom at K with directors who really like to see some big, expressive characters, and that’s the kind of role I’m often cast into,” Swarthout said. “Even for Acting Shakespeare, I change things around one day and try something completely different the next day to see what works. It’s nice to see what goes wrong in order to see what’s going to go right.”
“Acting Shakespeare” will encompass plays such as “Romeo and Juliet,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “Hamlet,” “Macbeth,” “Henry the Fourth Part One” and “Henry the Fifth.”
That freedom takes on more complexity in preparing for Acting Shakespeare as Swarthout serves as both actor and director. He listens to recordings of himself reciting the play while snowboarding for memorization purposes in addition to maintaining regular rehearsals.
“There’s a challenge in looking at yourself with such a critical eye,” he said. “Usually as an actor, you’re doing your best and then it’s up to the director to say, ‘You could improve upon this.’ But since I’m directing myself, I’ve had rehearsals where I go over about three lines in 45 minutes. It’s hard to separate the director from the actor.”
In additional theatre pursuits, Swarthout participated in the New York Arts Program, a study away opportunity that places students from Great Lakes College Association (GLCA) affiliated schools in Broadway and off-Broadway theatre organizations, opera houses, dance companies, publishing houses, literary agencies and music performance venues. Swarthout worked at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, finishing just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the city. An adviser told him not to expect an opportunity to act on stage while there, as most of the acting opportunities go to New York University students. However, his talents enabled him to accept the role of Underling in a production of The Drowsy Chaperone, a parody of American musical comedies of the 1920s.
“That was probably the best experience I had in New York just because I felt like I was living there as a working actor,” Swarthout said. “I had my classes, I had my job and then I had the gig, which was really fantastic.”
Swarthout is sending out audition tapes to adapt to theatre’s current virtual landscape in the hopes of one day returning to the East Coast and eventually New York after graduation. In the meantime, he’s excited to think of how his audiences could develop an interest in Shakespeare as a result of his performances. Tickets for Acting Shakespeare, which is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday–Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, are available online. Kalamazoo College students, faculty and staff are admitted free. Tickets for the general public are $5. Please note that proof of vaccination and masks are required for admittance to the theatre.
“People should enjoy Shakespeare and keep Shakespeare alive, not for the history of it, but what we can do with it,” Swarthout said. “We can change its meaning and interpret it in so many ways to get a point across. If you’re trying to have a theatre season that’s focused on anti-racism or has some themes around homophobia, for example, you can use a Shakespeare show to bridge gaps of understanding. Shakespeare becomes a powerful tool.”
As a strategic communications intern, Thomas Lichtenberg ’23 backed the Bazelon Center’s efforts by planning and drafting many of its social media posts and strategies.
A Kalamazoo College student experienced an internship with an organization that protects the disabled this term.
Thomas Lichtenberg ’23—a political science and philosophy major and math minor—worked in Washington, D.C., for the Judge David A. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, which helps attorneys and others who work to protect the legal rights of people who experience mental disabilities. In some cases, the center will also represent individuals in court who face discrimination or a denial of needed services.
Lichtenberg earned the opportunity through the Washington Center, a group that unites college students with a variety of nonprofit organizations in the nation’s capital. As a strategic communications intern, he backed the Bazelon Center’s efforts by planning and drafting many of its social media posts and strategies. His drafts, which would get approved by a policy or legal director, touted events such as a virtual awards ceremony highlighting the center’s 49th year. That event featured figures such as singer John Legend and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. He also attended a virtual briefing on infrastructure with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, and separately met some well-known people, even if only virtually in some cases.
“I attended a congressional briefing,” he said. “I walked to the Supreme Court once and Representative Ilhan Omar was speaking about court reform there. I also met a lot of newscasters. We have a pretty strong relationship with PBS and I got to meet Judy Woodruff and a couple other PBS reporters at an afterparty for our award ceremony.”
Another event he covered through social media was a live YouTube discussion concerning the use of student resource officers in schools and how some officers have mistreated students of color and students who have disabilities. In a social campaign, however, the Bazelon Center more directly targeted publicity regarding an active case, CVS Pharmacy Inc. v. Doe, in cooperation with other disability and civil-rights groups.
“At the end of my time, we actually won that Supreme Court case and social media was essential to it,” Lichtenberg said. “It involved CVS and a group of people with HIV who argued that they were receiving different treatment based on their condition. CVS was trying to say that if it’s unintentional discrimination, then Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 doesn’t apply.”
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a civil-rights law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability.
“A ruling like that would’ve been catastrophic for disability rights,” Lichtenberg said. “Essentially, if that were in place, the person who didn’t have full use of their legs, for example, wouldn’t have a legal recourse if someone built a building that could only be accessed by stairs. “Our social media campaign pressured CVS into withdrawing the case and commit to find a solution which respects the rights of people with disabilities, which is pretty unheard of for such a big company.”
Lichtenberg is returning to K’s campus for winter, where he served last spring as a teacher’s assistant for a logic and reasoning philosophy class that includes an independent study requirement. For that, he wanted to figure out how someone might codify a version of Star Trek’s Prime Directive, a guiding principle that prohibits Starfleet members from interfering with the natural development of alien civilizations while protecting unprepared civilizations from receiving advanced technology, knowledge and values before they’re ready for it. For now, however, he will reflect on an overwhelmingly positive experience in Washington, D.C.
“I find it amazing that there are only about seven people who work for the Bazelon Center,” Lichtenberg said. “It’s incredible that they’re able to manage the cases they do. It was a real honor to work for them and I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned to my classes in a new context.”
David Kent ‘22 interned this term in Washington, D.C., at Shared Hope International, a nonprofit organization that seeks to prevent sex trafficking while comforting and bringing justice to victimized women and children.
A Kalamazoo College student is reflecting on an eye-opening internship opportunity that explored a global problem while providing experience that will benefit him in his life after K.
David Kent ‘22, a business and political science double major from Beverly Hills, Michigan, worked in Washington, D.C., at Shared Hope International this term. The nonprofit organization seeks to prevent sex trafficking while comforting and bringing justice to victimized women and children.
“I thought it would be a great opportunity to learn more about an important issue,” Kent said. “I learned that the practice of sex trafficking is rooted in human civilization. It’s been around as long as people have lived together in societies. It went hand in hand with the institution of slavery. But even now, as slavery is mostly illegal, it persists. I think there is a preconception that it only happens in back alleys and at night. But the reality is there are large operations that work in plain sight and they can sell to people who are well known and very influential. I learned that it can be anybody.”
Part of Kent’s opportunity was funded by the John Dingell Memorial Scholarship, which provides funds for students from Michigan colleges and universities while they participate in an internship. The internship itself was offered through Shared Hope International’s connection with the Washington Center, a group that unites college students with a variety of nonprofit organizations and other companies in the nation’s capital.
Kent worked at Shared Hope International as a policy and communications intern, meaning he was responsible for assisting the organization’s legal team with whatever it needed. Its biggest project involved issuing grades and report cards to each state based on its sex-trafficking laws. Kent served as a media relations contact as he connected with news professionals from around the country.
“It wasn’t necessarily a surprise, but I learned that Michigan is one of the worst states for trafficking with I-94 coming in from Detroit and going on through Chicago, and the state’s connections to Ohio, which is also one of the worst states because of its own highway system,” Kent said. “Michigan certainly has a lot to do in terms of getting laws on the books and enforcing them to better address the situation.”
In addition to the state report card project, Kent performed individual research on large-scale sex-trafficking operations before presenting to the organization’s staff on it. He also helped the organization prepare for a national conference conducted in Washington, D.C., that brought together activists, nonprofit organizations, policymakers, senators and survivors, while running a breakout session and funneling questions from virtual attendees to presenters.
Looking back, Kent said he has some ideas for how the world can fight sex trafficking.
“It starts with individual action,” he said. “Shared Hope International was founded by a former Congresswoman. It started with one person and that’s how we can advocate for such an organization—through one person at a time. These organizations always need volunteers, whether it’s donors contributing supplies or money, or volunteers for activities or shelters. You have to start there and work your way to bigger solutions.”
Emily Worline ’19 founded Refugee Outreach Kalamazoo in 2017 at Kalamazoo College. The organization has spread to other college campuses and expanded into a nonprofit organization called Refugee Outreach Collective. It’s an organization that embodies the spirit of Human Rights Day every day of the year.
The United Nations can count on a Kalamazoo College student group along with its networks and outgrowing nonprofit organization to embody the spirit of Human Rights Day—which is every December 10—on any day of the year.
The U.N. observes the day to mark the anniversary of the General Assembly adopting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948. The declaration proclaims a series of inalienable rights to which everyone is entitled regardless of one’s race, color, religion, sex, language, opinions, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. According to the U.N., it’s the most-translated document in the world given that it’s available in more than 500 languages.
This year’s theme for Human Rights Day is “Equality: Reducing Inequalities, Advancing Human Rights.” Equality includes addressing and finding solutions for deep-rooted forms of discrimination that have affected the most vulnerable people in societies including women and girls, indigenous peoples, people of African descent, the LGBTQ community, migrants and displaced people, and people with disabilities, among others.
Within those groups of vulnerable people, those who face displacement have advocates in the Refugee Outreach Collective (ROC). The group, first organized as Refugee Outreach Kalamazoo at K in 2017, has since grown to seven campuses in Michigan—including Western Michigan University, Grand Valley State University and Michigan State University—and has even become a full-fledged nonprofit organization with national and international reach.
Emily Worline ’19, who is now in law school at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, was the founder of ROC at K and still carries out official duties as the full organization’s chairperson. She’s been inspired to extend her work with ROC as a result of witnessing first hand the conditions at refugee camps around the world.
People experiencing displacement in Malawi, Africa, attend the Global Classroom program offered by Refugee Outreach Collective.
“The unifying factor at all of these camps is that no one wants to be there,” Worline said. “ROC works to shake the narrative that encampments are normal places to house people by organizing advocacy efforts and leveraging networks to alleviate the injustices people face while living there.”
In staying involved, Worline oversees ROC’s Global Classroom, a program that helps displaced individuals from the Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Malawi, Africa, get access to university-level educational opportunities through digital courses at Michigan campuses, such as Northern and Central Michigan universities, while offering one-on-one tutoring assistance. The courses combine theory and practice to create space for students to challenge themselves intellectually and learn skills. The first cohort of students is working to receive their associate’s degrees.
“One hope is it will bolster their asylum claim and provide a better chance to resettle somewhere,” Worline said. “Oftentimes, when people are able to prove they have network connections, that can also help the process of resettlement. The other hope is that they can get a job in Malawi with a recognized, accredited associate’s degree.”
Currently at K, ROC amplifies narratives involving migrant and displaced communities through alliance and relationship building. In other words, it collaborates with local organizations in its efforts to make the Kalamazoo community a more welcoming and inclusive place for students and families of diverse backgrounds. Maddy Harding ’22 serves as the organization’s president.
Maddy Harding ’22 is the president of Kalamazoo College’s chapter of the Refugee Outreach Collective, which is an organization that embodies the spirit of Human Rights Day.
“We have the chance to work directly with people at refugee camps overseas, but additionally, we’re able to have volunteer programs that help recently resettled refugees in the Kalamazoo area,” she said. “I think that’s pretty unique. When I first started with ROC, we had a family partnership program in which I would go into recently resettled refugees’ homes and help out the family in any way I could. I’ve learned how to interact with people who have cultural differences from me and I love that.”
One of these programs is the Homework Champions Tutoring program, which was developed in partnership with K’s Mary Jane Underwood Stryker Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) and the local ROC. The tutoring benefits displaced students in Kalamazoo Public Schools. Katia Duoibes ’23, a civic engagement scholar, helped the program start virtually during the pandemic.
“There previously was an afterschool program that I joined at Maple Street Middle School with Emily Worline,” Duoibes said. “When the pandemic hit, I was close with all of those students. I was contacting them and we were still working together virtually because all of their support systems and the support they received completely stopped. That spring, it was me and some other tutors who were doing that program just informally, helping them virtually with their homework.”
That effort continued through fall 2020 as she and Worline reached out to Samaritas, a Michigan social services nonprofit, which helped ROC connect with more resettling refugees. Afterward, about 20 tutors were paired with students who needed help through winter.
Civic Engagement Scholar Katia Duoibes ’23
The program kept growing when Duoibes and Worline later connected the local ROC and Western Michigan University Professor of Educational Foundations Dini Metro-Roland to make the tutoring a service-learning component for the professor’s introductory education course, allowing 50 WMU students to join their efforts.
“Emily and I quickly realized that we needed a lot more administrative instructional support to keep the program growing and improving, so I was connected with the CCE,” Duoibes said.
CCE representatives including Associate Director Teresa Denton were ecstatic to add this program to the its previous initiatives working with the English as Second Language programs at Kalamazoo Public Schools. Now, Duoibes and Sydney Lenzini ’24, another civic engagement scholar, are working to restart the tutoring program’s in-person components.
“I’m inspired by educational equity, especially in public education,” Lenzini said. “Growing up in Chicago, I saw very unequal opportunities in the public-school system. Some kids got a lot of resources and others didn’t. I feel that can be internalized, and then create a lot of problems down the road. In the realm of public education equity, I feel like all students can succeed. Some students just need different support systems, and public-school systems often can’t or don’t want to provide those supports. I feel education is powerful. I think addressing educational inequities is a big step because education and access to it is like freedom.”
Civic Engagement Scholar Sydney Lenzini ’24
The CCE will couple its efforts with the Homework Champions Tutoring program with a service-learning course at K next term that will help more KPS students whose families are new to Kalamazoo. Plus, the ROC nonprofit will continue its international outreach with open-to-the-public events and fundraising for the sake of advocacy, outreach to people subjected to poverty and socio-political constraints such as refugee camps, and connecting individuals to job opportunities, internet access, healing circles and more through its existing networks of people and organizations.
“ROC’s biggest focus right now is on education,” Worline said. “We’re opening doors to making educational spaces more accessible. With every camp I visit, whether that be at the U.S.-Mexico border, in Greece and Serbia, or in Malawi, it’s very obvious that displaced people are being pushed to the very margins of society. They’re excluded from participating in various political processes. They’re excluded from attending college. Their movement is restricted. And to me, the idea of just excluding an entire 84 million people from the rest of society is a huge violation of human rights. I think ROC efforts are placed in reversing that and trying to make it so people aren’t so excluded.”
An image from the Refugee Outreach Collective shows tents in the refugee camp at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Congrats to the Kalamazoo College students who qualified for the fall 2021 Dean’s List.
Congratulations to the following Kalamazoo College students, who achieved a grade point average of 3.5 or better for a full-time course load of at least three units, without failing or withdrawing from any course, during the fall 2021 academic term. Students who elect to take a letter-graded course on a credit/no credit basis (CR/NC) are not eligible for Dean’s List consideration during that term. Nor are students who receive an F, NC or W grade for that particular term. Students with incomplete (I) or in-progress (IP) grades will be considered for Dean’s List upon receipt of the final grades. Dean’s List recognition is posted on students’ transcripts. Kudos to the entire group.
Fall 2021
A
Shannon Abbott Morgan Acord Kayla Acosta Aliyah Adams Kelley Akerley Shahriar Akhavan Tafti Hashim Akhtar Abigail Allen Adnan Alousi Paige Anderson Mia Andrews Ava Apolo Jeremy Ardshahi Alexandra Armin Joshua Atwell
B
Aidan Baas Litzy Bahena Guenevere Baierle Annalise Bailey Bryan Baires Lindsey Baker Chloe Baker Elizabeth Ballinger Madison Barch Ethan Barnes Evelyn Bartley Jenna Beach Danielle Bennett Carolyn Bennett Jane Bentley Meghan Best Jonah Beurkens Maryam Rafiah Beverly Anna Binkley Ella Black Katherine Black Nora Blanchard Rose Bogard Zachary Borden Daphne Bos Mairin Boshoven Mabel Bowdle Holly Bowling Breven Brill Jacquelyn Brines Chason Brodsky Eamon Bronson Irie Browne Anna Buck Anna Budnick Marilu Bueno Jaden Buist Drake Butcher
C
Natalie Call Grace Cancro Chloe Carlson Eleanor Carr Colin Carroll Ashley Casagrande Isabella Caza Alexandra Chafetz Jessica Chaidez Iris Chalk Lily Chambers Josetta Checkett Lance Choe An-Ting Chu Noah Chukwuma Maile Church Madeleine Coffman Quinn Collins Zachary Connor Rowan Cook Kyle Cooper Indigo Corvidae Violet Crampton Lucy Cripe Isabella Cross Lauren Crossman Lilian Crowder Smith Emma Curcuru
D
Nicholas Dailey Beatrix Damashek Jessica Dant Talia Dave Claire Davis Emma Davis-Rodak Claire de Vries Zachary Dean Tali Deaner Sophie Decker Julia Degazio Lille Dekker Julia Del Olmo Parrado Ethan DeNeen Catherine Dennis Sarah Densham Olivia Depauli Laura DeVilbiss Christopher DeVito Katerina Deyoung Liam Diaz Olivia DiGiulio Savannah Dobreff Brooke Dolhay Rorie Dougherty Ryan Drew Dylan Drier Katia Duoibes Hannah Durant
E
Eli Edlefson Jairo Eguia Nathanael Ehmann Alden Ehrhardt Sara Elfring Kelsi Elliott Adaora Emenyonu Sara English Dean Ersher Justin Essing Chad Ewing
F
Faith Faber Daniel Fahle Sabina Fall Brady Farr Madalyn Farrey Andreas Fathalla Ava Fischer Morgan Fischer Peter Fitzgerald Julia Fitzgerald Jameson Fitzsimmons Payton Fleming Sofia Fleming Jordan Flink Parker Foster Melanie Fouque Daniel Foura Caroline Francis Janna Franco Emma Frederiksen Allison French Hana Frisch Nathaniel Fuller Tristan Fuller
Sydney Hagaman Emma Hahn Emily Haigh Vien Hang Ryan Hanifan Alison Hankins Garrett Hanson Eleanor Harris Lucy Hart Meaghan Hartman Tanner Hawkins Beatrice Hawkins Noah Hecht Megan Herbst Maya Hester Ella Heystek Sierra Hieshetter Jacob Hoffman Thomas Hole Julia Holt Cole Horman Jaelyn Horn Joseph Horsfield Molly Horton Hazel Houghton Gavin Houtkooper Sharon Huang Micah Hudgins-Lopez Samuel Hughes Trevor Hunsanger Ian Hurley Madelaine Hurley Megan Hybels
I
Ngozi Idika Carolyn Ingram Daniel Isacksen
J
Colton Jacobs Ashani Jewell Deepa Jha Hao Jiang Jonathan Jiang Casey Johnson Aaron Johnson Amelia Johnson Logan Johnston Ellie Jones Maxwell Joos
K
Amalia Kaerezi Kiana Kanegawa Leo Kaplan Judah Karesh Thomas Kartes Maria Kasperek Lucas Kastran Lillian Kehoe Ava Keller Will Keller Ella Kelly Roze Kerr Mphumelelo Khaba Mahum Khan Hunter Kiesling Jackson Kiino-Terburg Vivian Kim Joshua Kim Si Yun Kimball Lily Kindle Kaylee Kipfmueller Alexander Kish Joergen Klakulak Molly Kohl Melody Kondoff Cole Koryto Daniel Koselka Reese Koski Katya Koublitsky Christian Kraft Brandon Kramer Rachel Kramer Kieya Kubert-Davis Celia Kuch Koshiro Kuroda
L
Margaret LaFramboise Caroline Lamb Kathryn Larick Blaze Lauer Annmarie Lawrence Madeleine Lawson Grace Leahey Angel Ledesma Isaac Lee Margaret Lekan Alejandra Lemus Sydney Lenzini Milan Levy Connor Lignell Sydney Lis Mengzhuo Liu Luis Lizardo-Rodriguez Ava Loncharte Christian Lopez Madeline Lovins Teresa Lucas Chloe Lucci Nicholas Lucking Elizabeth Luhrs Jacob Lynett
M
Selina Ma MacKenzy Maddock Natalie Maki Andrew Mallon Arjun Manyam Lesly Mares-Castro Isabel Martin Daniel Martinez Molly Martinez Stephanie Martinez Harshpreet Matharu Lillian Mattern Nicholas Matuszak Claire McCall Lauren McColley Liam McElroy Grace McGlynn Dylan McGorisk Molly McGrath Lucas McGraw Leo McGreevy Ashlynne McKee Amy McNutt Sophia Merchant Eva Metro-Roland Gabriel Meyers Luke Middlebrook Jade Milton Ameera Mirza Camille Misra Caleb Mitchell-Ward Anna Modlinski Lina Moghrabi Brooklyn Mohr Jana Molby Aleksandr Molchagin Rachel Molho Raven Montagna Mackenzie Moore Ryan Morgan Isabel Morillo Wyatt Mortensen Samantha Moss Ezekiel Mulder Anna Murphy Madison Murphy Ryan Muschler Rishaan Muthanna Sydney Myszenski
N
Alex Nam Blagoja Naskovski Maya Nathwani Matthew Nelson Elizabeth Nestle Nguyen Nguyen Char Nieberding Stefan Nielsen Alexandra Noel Joanna Nonato Malin Nordmoe Rohan Nuthalapati
O
Larkin O’Gorman Ileana Oeschger Jeremiah Ohren-Hoeft Akinyi Okero Emma Olson Gabe Orosan-Weine Eliana Orozco Gunzi Otj
P
Ella Palacios Jenna Paterob Paul Pavliscak Houston Peach Isabella Pellegrom Natalia Pena Ochoa Kaitlin Peot Anthony Peraza Nionni Permelia Margaret Perry Alexander Perry Alexis Petty Mary Phillips Sydney Pickell Benjamin Pickrel Noah Piercy Megan Ploucha Elaine Pollard Evan Pollens-Voigt Grayson Pratt Noah Prentice Melissa Preston Lucas Priemer Doug Propson Elena Pulliam Mason Purdy Noah Pyle
Q
Emma Quail Alex Quesada Jorence Quiambao
R
Elizabeth Rachiele Tieran Rafferty Elle Ragan Julia Rambo Leah Ramirez Roman Ramos Samantha Ramser Ali Randel Abby Rawlings Clarice Ray Sara Reathaford Laura Reinaux Silva Oliveira Kelli Rexroad Keegan Reynolds Maxwell Rhames Gabrielle Riaz Mya Richter Kayla Ridenour Sheldon Riley Ashley Rill Emory Roberts Xochitl Robertson Michael Robertson Kaitlyn Robinson Skyler Rogers Madison Roland Joshua Roman Luke Rop Panayiotis Rotsios Elizabeth Rottenberk Jacob Roubein Sofia Rowland Charlotte Ruiter Angel Ruiz Luisa Ruiz
S
Richard Sakurai-Kearns Sydney Salgado Sofia Santos Leslie Santos Isabel Schantz McKenna Schilling Leo Schinker Allison Schmidt Vivian Schmidt D.J. Schneider Eden Schnurstein Madeline Schroeder Audrey Schulz Hannah Schurman Michael Schwartz Darby Scott Isabella Shapiro Eli Shavit William Shaw Morgan Shearer Steven Shelton Austin Shepherd Elijah Shiel Riley Shoemaker Elizabeth Silber Xavier Silva Samantha Silverman Zachary Simmons Colby Skinner Meganne Skoug Ping Smith Grace Snyder Ariana Soderberg Allison Sokacz Erin Somsel Armaan Sood-Mankar Kaden Sotomayor Jonah Spates Maxwell Spitler Adam Stapleton David Stechow Eleanor Stevenson Meredith Steward Abby Stewart Alex Stolberg Maeve Sullivan Hannah Summerfield Michael Sweeney Ella Szczublewski
T
Madison Talarico Nicole Taylor Claire Taylor Emily Tenniswood Abhi Thakur Levi Thomas Sophia Timm-Blow Rojina Timsina Jack Tomer Luke Torres Danielle Treyger Nghia Trinh Uyen Trinh Maria Tripodis MiaFlora Tucci May Tun Dean Turpin
Emma Van Houten Samantha Vande Pol Hannah Vander Lugt Brianne Vanderbilt Anna Varitek Ella VarnHagen Anna Veselenak Lucille Voss Jessalyn Vrieland Dat Vu
W
Kaytin Waddell Megan Walczak Ivy Walker Audrey Walker Alex Wallace Lucinda Wallis Rosesandy Walters Madison Walther Elizabeth Wang McKenna Wasmer Alaina Wayne Jadon Weber Riley Weber Margaret Wedge Elias Wennen Emerson Wesselhoff Andrew Widger Lee Wilkinson Megan Williams Tariq Williams Ava Williams Carson Williams Hannah Willit Jordyn Wilson Joshua Wilson Madelyn Wojcik Olivia Wolfe Laurel Wolfe Alexa Wonacott
X
Y
Tony Yazbeck Hillary Yousif
Z
Maddie Zang Zoe Zawacki Nathaniel Zona Margaret Zorn