About 150 students gathered on Scripps College’s Bowling Green Lawn Oct. 23 for the first Power Organizing Web (POW) Community Fair, bringing together campus organizations and local groups to connect students with opportunities for community organizing.
Tag: Scripps College
Ups and downs: Two power outages hit 5Cs in first half of semester
Two major power outages hit the Claremont Colleges this fall, disrupting campus operations and raising questions about electrical infrastructure reliability across the consortium. The Oct. 12 outage led to multiple disruptions including a loss of power at Auen Hall at Claremont McKenna College and Liam Grady PZ ’30 being stuck in an elevator for an hour and a half.
Mac to the future: In the age of AI, Scripps looks back at the history of digital art
“Pixel Palettes: 40 Years of Digital Art at Scripps College,” which opened Oct. 21 and runs through Dec. 4, is co-curated by art professor Nancy Macko and art history professor Zsofi Valyi-Nagy as part of Scripps’ centennial celebration. The show offers a historical, materially grounded and feminist account that positions Scripps as an early seedbed for digital art in Southern California, featuring a talk by Amy Ellingson SC ’86.
5Cs and student governments invest in U-Pass program amid Metrolink fare hike in prices
Metrolink, the commuter rail transport system across Southern California, raised fare prices on Oct. 5 for the first time in 13 years. In a press release, Metrolink said that “limited fare increases” are due to rising operational costs, decreased ridership and a lack of federal funding. One-way Metrolink fares rose by up to about 14%, while the weekday SoCal Day Pass rose from $15 to $19 and the weekend and holiday pass rose from $10 to $12. Metrolink maintained its 50% student discount, but students still had to pay more as the underlying fares increased.
Report finds four Claremont Colleges linked to ‘uncivil’ discourse programs with billionaire, anti-activist ties
A September report by higher education research collective UnCivil called out four Claremont Colleges for their ties to civil discourse programs it says embrace anti-activist agendas or are funded by billionaire-led conservative nonprofits: the College Presidents for Civic Preparedness, the Constructive Dialogue Institute (CDI) and BridgeUSA.UnCivil aims to map the donor networks and conceptual origins of the Civil Industrial Complex, or the series of conservative campus initiatives and private- and state-funded “civic thought” centers that claim to support civil discourse and viewpoint diversity.
Simone Biles awarded Ellen Browning Scripps Medal in centennial year
Olympic gymnast Simone Biles received the Ellen Browning Scripps Medal at Scripps College on Friday, Oct. 9, reflecting on mental health, redefining success and the importance of giving back to her community. The ceremony drew a packed auditorium of students, families and young athletes eager to hear from one of the most decorated gymnasts in history.
New visa and CPT restrictions threaten international students’ off-campus jobs
After the Trump administration placed new restrictions on Curricular Practical Training (CPT), a program that has historically allowed F-1 international students to work off campus, some international students have had to turn down jobs, while others expressed uncertainty about future opportunities.
In August, ICE sent a memo to colleges and universities directing them to issue CPT only when an internship or practical training experience is necessary for graduation, a stricter interpretation of the existing policy. The memo states that “improper CPT authorization” could result in “administrative or legal consequences,” such as a college losing its ability to enroll international students.
COVID-19 is back on campus, at a lower rate than last year
While the 5Cs continue to grapple with COVID-19, positive COVID test rates administered by Student Health Services (SHS) are lower this year than last.
Since the start of the academic year, SHS reported 15 positive COVID results out of 100 students tested through Sept. 25, meaning a 15% positivity rate. Last year, the positivity rate across a similar time period was 19%, meaning a four percentage point decrease.
Still, SHS warns that the figures do not represent all COVID infections across the Claremont Colleges, as many community members self-test with campus resources. “Students who are ill are encouraged to stay home when they have a fever, mask when appropriate, test when symptomatic, and contact SHS with questions or if symptoms worsen,” SHS stated.
ACLU, Amnesty International report on repression cites Pomona, Pitzer, Scripps; Pomona disputes claims
Pomona, Pitzer and Scripps Colleges were mentioned in a Sept. 23 report by Amnesty International USA and the American Civil Liberties Union addressing suppression of “pro-Palestine speech and dissent” across college campuses nationwide. In a statement to TSL, a Pomona spokesperson wrote that the report “makes serious errors, unsupported by the source material.”
CMC ranks second in FIRE free speech rankings, other 5Cs receive failing grades
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) gave Claremont McKenna College (CMC) the second-place spot on its 2027 College Free Speech Rankings, a report that rates the free speech climates at college and university campuses nationwide. CMC received a passing “B-” grade from FIRE, while all of the other undergraduate Claremont Colleges received failing “F” grades.
Of the 261 colleges surveyed, Pitzer College ranked 160th, Scripps College ranked 167th, Harvey Mudd College ranked 184th and Pomona College ranked 226th. While the other Claremont Colleges saw increases in their rankings compared to last year, CMC dropped by one rank, losing its first-place spot to the University of Chicago.