Mount Holyoke News

11/16/2025

BY ELODIE MULLER ’29
STAFF WRITER
SPORTS| NOV. 11, 2025

As the month of November dawned upon the college, Mount Holyoke’s varsity hunt seat equestrian team was preparing for its competition against Trinity College. The competition took place on Sunday, Nov. 2, in Simsbury, Connecticut. Spirits and camaraderie were high amongst those competing. The Lyons finished in second place with 28 points, tied with Bentley University and Smith College, out of the nine teams competing in the Trinity College Show at Folly Farm.
Mount Holyoke College is part of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association, which employs what is called “catch-riding.” In this, riders are randomly assigned a horse to ride in the competition through drawing lots. The horses are supplied by the college hosting the event. These riders do not warm up with these horses; instead, they are immediately thrust into competition with a random horse. In competition, they are judged based on how they ride the horse, how they communicate with the horse and how they maintain body position. There are two classes: flat and fence or “jumping.”
“This is a really unique opportunity because it is meant to put everyone on an even playing field — you don’t have to own a fancy horse to show,” Em Jablonka ’28 wrote in an email to Mount Holyoke News.

📸: Mount Holyoke Athletics

11/15/2025

BY KARISHMA RAMKARRAN ’27
COPY CHIEF
OPINION | NOV. 11, 2025

The freedom of press has always been viewed as a cornerstone of democracy. Journalists seek out what is concealed, corrupt, and entirely animus to the well-being of a nation and shed light upon it; perhaps they do not carry out societal transformations, but they are certainly the stimuli which sparks it.
To say my journalistic career began with this belief may be to admit a starry-eyed sense of naivety that imbued my perspective of American journalism. For my high school newspaper, under my staff profile, I once wrote that one “appreciates journalistic writing because of its unique ability to protect democracy by keeping the people informed. Journalists have, since the foundation of America, played a pivotal role in holding those in power accountable.”
Under the tutelage of John Stuart Mill and greatly inspired by my AP U.S. history class, my younger self saw the brilliance of American journalism. Journalists such as Ida B. Wells or Upton Sinclair only seemed to prove the power of investigative journalism by exposing the insidious injustices of a dominant status quo. To me, Wells’ campaign against lynching as a form of socio-political terror against Black Americans or Sinclair’s exposé on the stomach-churning working conditions of immigrants in seedy meat-packing factories confirmed that journalism was the inertia that pushed America ever closer to a hazy dream of egalitarian democracy.

✍️: Mari Al Tayb ’26

11/13/2025

BY KENNEDY OLIVIA BAGLEY-FORTNER ’26
STAFF WRITER
GLOBAL| NOV. 11, 2025

On Oct. 21, the National Diet — Japan’s federal legislature — confirmed Sanae Takaichi as the first woman prime minister of Japan.
Takaichi was born and raised in Nara Prefecture, according to the BBC. Her father worked as an office worker, while her mother worked as a police officer. Before she entered politics, she worked as a television host and entered into the realm of politics during the 1980s.
In 1992 she ran as an independent in her first parliamentary election, but it resulted in a loss. For the next 20 years, Takaichi continued to solidify her position in politics by holding senior positions in the government, including minister for economic security, minister for trade and industry, among others, the BBC reported.
While some have seen Takaichi’s election as a rather progressive and enormous feat for the country, her politics lean more conservative.
“Sanae Takaichi is a conservative with a traditional view of gender roles and a penchant for heavy metal music,” NPR stated. “She has advocated for tougher immigration restrictions and embraced [aggressive] policies on China.”

✍️: Car Alexander ’28

11/12/2025

SINDY MALDONADO ’27
CONTRIBUTING WRITER A&E
A&E| NOV. 11,2025

Storytelling lies at the heart of both music and film, and the new Bruce Springsteen biopic, “Deliver Me from Nowhere,” combines them to offer audiences a deeper understanding of Springsteen and his artistic process. In an interview for E Street Radio on Sirius XM, Springsteen described the film as “a character-driven drama with music.”
The biopic began showing at South Hadley’s Tower Theaters on Oct. 23, a day before its national release. Directed by Scott Cooper and starring Jeremy Allen White, the film takes place between 1981-82, and focuses on Springsteen’s sixth studio album “Nebraska.” “Nebraska” has darker themes than his previous releases, and features several childhood stories, making it a significant part of his musical career and personal story. Filming took place from fall 2024 to early spring 2025.
Rather than tell Springsteen’s life story, the film is set near the peak of his career in the early 1980s. Cooper was determined to “capture the singer-songwriter’s struggles in addition to his success.” 

📸: Sidney Maldonado ’27

11/12/2025

BY ANI MECCA ’27 
STAFF WRITER

Hanna Hanneghan ’25 did not expect to take courses about Russia, Eastern Europe, or Eurasia during her time at Mount Holyoke, as someone with no cultural connection or familiarity with the region. Neither had Cat Dippell ’25.  However, a class about the works of Russian playwright Anton Chekov — taught by now retired Professor Peter Scotto — changed that for both students. 
Scotto “was so much more involved and passionate than most other professors,” Dippell recalls. “He would stay after class and give us extra classes in Russian phonetics just for fun.” 
For Hanneghan, the rest of the Russian and Eurasian studies — abbreviated as RES — department echoed this enthusiasm. Once she began taking classes in the department, she found that “[RES] was such a vibrant community … even though the number of people [in the department] was small, it was so much more … active than other departments I was involved in.” 
For several years, the RES department has offered an interdisciplinary study of the literature, politics, history, culture and language of a vast region, including Russia, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Hanneghan ended up graduating in 2025 as a Russian and Eurasian studies and Romance languages and culture double major, while Dipell minored in Russian and Eurasian language and culture. They were some of the last to be able to do so, however; it was disclosed in spring 2023 and after fall 2026, the entire department is to be dissolved.

📸: Kiera McLaughlin ’26

11/11/2025

BY LILIANA STINSON ’27 & QUILL NISHI-LEONARD ’27
STAFF WRITER | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
NEWS| NOV. 11, 2025
One of Justice Ketanji Onyika Brown Jackson’s earliest memories is sitting at the kitchen table alongside her father, coloring as he studied law. Her relationship with her parents — her father, who inspired her by pursuing a career in law and her mother, who taught her she could “do or be anything [she] wanted” — was just one of the many subjects she and Mount Holyoke College President, Danielle Holley discussed on Oct. 27 at the Springfield Public Forum.
Just a few hours earlier, at approximately 4:30 p.m., two buses full of Mount Holyoke College students departed campus for the event. Due to the limited number of tickets available, the College had held a raffle earlier in the month for those interested in attending. Students who received a seat were informed via email on Tuesday, Oct. 14.
Students were seated at about 5:30 p.m. and around 30 minutes after, SGA President Nathania Amadi ’26 formally opened the event by providing an introduction for Jackson. Before Jackson had the opportunity to speak, she received a standing ovation; many attendees stood and cheered as she took the stage.
Jackson began by reading an excerpt from her new memoir, “Lovely One.”As she would later explain, the title is a translation of her name, Ketanji Onyika. “My parents gave me an African name because they always wanted me to know where my people came from,” Jackson stated.

📸: Quill Nishi-Leonard ’27

11/10/2025

11/03/2025

QUILL NISHI-LEONARD ’27
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENT | OCT. 15, 2025
With over a hundred student organizations at Mount Holyoke College, it’s easy to get overwhelmed when deciding which clubs to join. For those interested in joining a science or environment-focused club, Mount Holyoke News interviewed the leaders of four student organizations to learn more about their histories, what they do, and how to join.
Biology Club
Biology Club provides a community for students interested in the biological sciences, from biology majors to those who are just curious about biology. According to President Natalija Radosavljevic ’28, the club is “open to anyone.”
“[Biology] is one of the biggest majors here at Mount Holyoke, and there are so many different interests, from like plant biology, to human biology,” she said. “We just kind of want to connect people more … We’re big on collaboration, bringing together … the science network in Mount Holyoke.”
While Biology Club doesn’t have regular general meetings, Radosavljevic stated they “usually just do two events a month.”
“Last semester, we did a scrapbooking collaboration with Students for Health Humanities,” Radosavljevic explained. “We had a lot of berries and snacks that everyone liked. And it was just really good to be in community and make art and talk about our classes and just be around people with similar interests.”

✍️: Mari Al Tayb ’26

11/03/2025

BY MIRA CRANE ’27
GLOBAL EDITOR
GLOBAL | OCT. 27, 2025
As of the 2024-25 school year, international students make up around 20% of Mount Holyoke’s student population, hailing from over 80 different countries. 
On-campus resources for international students include the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives, a variety of student organizations and the International Student Organizing Committee, abbreviated as ISOC. 
According to their website, ISOC works under the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives and focuses on providing support and a welcoming environment for international students. 
Their work includes leading Orientation for international students and promoting cross-cultural connections between students through various events they host. 
ISOC was originally known as the “International Student Orientation Committee,” and, according to a new Archives exhibit on the history of international students at Mount Holyoke College, originally began more narrowly as an orientation group. The organization expanded to take on its larger current role in 2013. 

✍️: Betty Smart ’26

11/02/2025

SINDY MALDONADO ‘27
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT | OCT. 15, 2025
Mount Holyoke College prides itself on having rigorous academics and a plethora of unique, hands-on courses available to students. One of these courses is Directing Actors for the Screen, offered by the department of film, media, and theater and taught by Visiting Assistant Professor in Film Production, Dien Vo.
The course aims to give film students foundational skills needed in the sphere of production, such as screenwriting, casting, and most importantly, directing. Students take on these roles by creating their own short films or scenes if working on a bigger project. They have already wrapped up auditions, which were open to all students within the Five College Consortium, and are now entering the filming phase following their table reads held the week of Oct. 5.
Students currently in the class gave Mount Holyoke News insight into the course and their projects. Gabriella Cordero ’26, a neuroscience and behavior major and FMT minor, is creating a short film titled “Chandelier.” The story takes place inside a parked car at a gas station, and follows two characters, Aubrey and Dylan, on their first date. Why it is called “Chandelier” is a secret.
When asked what the story means to her and why she chose these characters, Cordero said, “I just really wanted to capture that, you know, teenage feeling of liking someone else and finally allowing yourself to open up.” The two characters bond over their shared love for music and film but find it difficult to become fully comfortable since the characters don’t know if they can quite trust each other yet.

✍️: Sindy Maldonado ’27

11/01/2025

ELIZABETH MURRAY ’26
FEATURES EDITOR
FEATURES| OCT. 15, 2025
The Frances Perk café is a popular stop for students in between classes or on a study break. Located in the Williston Memorial Library Atrium, the Perk is managed by Mount Holyoke’s Dining Services and staffed almost entirely by students. The café is open most days of the semester and offers a mix of beverages and pastries.
Recently, baristas have grown more frustrated with their treatment by upper management. “Especially this semester, it kind of feels like we’re on our own,” one Perk staff member who asked to remain anonymous said. Another anonymous student echoed this sentiment, stating, “It feels like [the administration] doesn’t care about us at all.”
One concern is the onboarding of new baristas. The Perk hires staff once the café is open, which isn’t until students return for a new semester. Hired staff must have experience working as a barista, and they are normally trained in three training sessions before they can work on their own. Recently, new staff have had difficulty being able to schedule training sessions, leaving experienced staff to train during regular shifts, adding to their usual duties. This can be incredibly difficult during particularly busy shifts that overlap with rush times. One of the staff members we spoke to voiced their frustration, saying, “It was solely up to the students and it felt like management knew, but they were like, oh, it’s not that big of a deal. You guys should figure it out on your own. That’s how it felt.”

📸: Sydney Wiser ’27

10/30/2025

BY: ELIZABETH MURRAY ‘26
FEATURES EDITOR
FEATURES| SEP. 15, 2025

It was a sunny day, and students enthusiastically filled the Gettell Amphitheater as the Five College West African Music Ensemble played. On Sept. 2, Mount Holyoke College held its annual Convocation to mark the beginning of a new academic year.
Convocation is a time-honored Mount Holyoke tradition, welcoming new and returning students. For first years, it’s the wrap-up to orientation and their first campus-wide tradition. For seniors, it’s a great way to start their last year. “Everyone was cheering for all classes and faculty with catchy chants that made it hard not [to] join in! Not to mention some of the insanely creative outfits of some students that were a sight to see! I had such a great time and can’t wait for next year’s convocation!” Adrian Moncrief ’29 said in an email interview with Mount Holyoke News.
Although the Amphitheater’s ramp was blocked by construction, an accessible viewing was organized in the Gamble Auditorium. When asked about experiencing convocation indoors, Mia Gonzales Jackson ’26 said, “Folks in charge made sure we got water and beads, so we were well taken care of; [they] even made sure I made it back outside for the senior photo.”

📸: Elizabeth Murray ’26