News Bites – Week Of April 22

Pomona Experiences Rash Of Thefts

Pomona College experienced a recent spike in burglaries from residence hall rooms, as well as other types of on campus robberies, according to a Monday email from associate dean Frank Bedoya.

Stolen items have included laptops, other personal electronics, and other valuables.

Jack Conner PO ’19 said he believes someone went into his room while he was asleep and stole his laptop. He did not lock his door before he went to bed. “I was in my room until around 2 a.m. and my backpack was with me, so I was very confused when I woke up and I couldn’t find it,” he said.

Campus Safety has also received a number of recent calls about suspicious activity from various locations at Pomona. Bedoya encouraged students to keep their doors and windows closed and locked, notify Campus Safety about suspicious activity, report lost or stolen keys to Housing and Residence Life, and report issues with locks, doors, and windows.

— Marc Rod and Laney Pope

Pitzer Senate Holds Additional Elections

Pitzer College Student Senate elections committee chair Claire Wengrod PZ ’19 announced the results for Pitzer Senate’s legislative elections April 20.

Nimiye Ogoun PZ ’19 was elected as senior class representative, Becca Zimmerman PZ ’21 was elected sophomore class representative, Zhuocen Shi PZ ’21 was elected international representative, Kamya Sud PZ ’19 was elected environmental rep, Dana Nothnagel PZ ’19 and Sylvie Wilson PZ ’21 were elected to the campus aesthetics committee, Brendan Schultz PZ ’20 and Matthew Brunstad PZ ’20 were elected to the academic planning committee, Victor Bene PZ ’19 was elected to the diversity committee, Arianna Dang PZ ‘21 was elected to the study abroad and international programs committee, Nicole Aquino PZ ’21 was elected to the curriculum committee, and Conner Wells PZ ’21 was elected to the campus life committee.

No candidates applied to run for junior class representative, and Pitzer will hold elections for the position in the fall.

Campus-wide voter turnout was, as with executive board elections, low at 35.8 percent, or 358 students.

— Marc Rod

Pomona, HMC Continue Dean of Students Searches

Pomona is bringing candidates for its vice president of student affairs and dean of students position to campus to replace former dean Miriam Feldblum, who resigned in February in while on sabbatical. The first candidate visited Monday, and additional candidates will be visiting April 30 from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Rose Hills Theater and May 1. Janet Dickerson is currently the acting VPSA and dean of students.

Harvey Mudd College recently brought its three vice president for division of student affairs/dean of students candidates to campus and conducted a student survey about the candidates. The search committee is now reviewing the survey data and deliberating, according to an email from President Maria Klawe to HMC students.

— Marc Rod

Pomona Signs DACA Amicus Brief

Pomona College signed onto an amicus brief supporting plaintiffs suing the Trump administration to preserve the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.

The Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, led by former Dean of Students Miriam Feldblum and former President David Oxtoby, filed the brief in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and its approximately 70 member schools signed on.

— Marc Rod