The Student Life (2025)

14/03/2025

Campus Safety notified the 5C community at 4:55 p.m. today that there was police activity at Claremont McKenna College, warning students to stay away from the area. At 5:11 p.m., they sent an update that there was a potential shooter on CMC campus.

Another message sent at 5:15 p.m. said to shelter in place if on a neighboring 5C campus, and directed those off campus not to return. A SWAT team and helicopters were seen on site.

Students on and near the borders of CMC’s campus were told to evacuate the area, running in clusters north towards Harvey Mudd College. Cars and individuals initially headed toward the area at the time were redirected to shelter by Campus Security. Many CMC students were also evacuated to Pitzer College.

This is breaking news and will be updated as the story develops.
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Words by Madeleine Farr | Photo by Jiaying Cao
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

11/03/2025

Jun Kwon PO ’28 is back and better than ever with another gym review. This week, he continues his series in which he provides conclusive reviews on the gyms around campus. He cites size, amenities, machinery, study spaces and more to give a final rating out of 10. In this edition, he tackles Harvey Mudd College’s Linde Activities Center (LAC).

“I wasn’t a fan of the space,” Kwon writes. “The equipment is definitely older and more worn out than that of the other gyms, and it was all crammed together. There weren’t any particular stand-out qualities about the workout space itself, but I was a big fan of the basketball gymnasium.”

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Words by Jun Kwon | Photo courtesy of Harvey Mudd College

11/03/2025

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued letters to 60 higher education institutions — including Pomona College — threatening consequences if they “do not fulfill their obligations” to protect Jewish students’ rights encoded in Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.

Title VI protects participants in any federally funded program or activity in the United States from discrimination “on the ground of race, color or national origin.”

OCR published the full list of institutions in a digital press release. As of March 10, OCR has not issued a letter to any other 7C. Several Ivy League schools were included in the 60, including Columbia University, whose pro-Palestine encampment — and the NYPD’s response — garnered extensive media attention last spring.
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Words by Madeleine Farr | Photo by Andrew Yuan
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

09/03/2025

Last week, after a months-long fight from the Claremont Student Worker Alliance (CSWA), Pitzer College officially documented its agreement to rehire Adan Campos for the next available entry-level position.

Adan was terminated in February 2024 after nine years of service at McConnell Bistro, Pitzer’s dining hall. He was in the middle of the renewal process for his DACA work authorization.

“I’m really glad that it all came together and I’m just really happy that Pitzer finally caved,” CSWA co-leader Jack Weidner PO ’25 said. “At a time when so much else is really depressing and out of our control, it feels really good to be able to do our best to do right by our community members.”
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Words by Madeline Farr & Joelle Rudolf | Photo by Sid Goldfader-Dufty
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

09/03/2025

A flu outbreak in the 5Cs last month led to 37 reported student cases across campus. The virus’ spread provoked concern among Claremont community experts over vaccine access and recent changes in federal health policies.

Several of the reported cases came from the 5C Ski & Snowboard Team, who was hit after their first competition of the season. Lily Waldman SC ’26, a team captain, affirmed that the team did not contract the flu during the competition but instead brought it with them from campus.

“The unfortunate thing is that the 5Cs as a whole are not really keeping up on their vaccination requirements,” Waldman said.

According to The Claremont Colleges Services, the case numbers are milder than they have been in previous years, but some community members are still concerned, especially following a recent uptick in anti-vax sentiments.

“Easiest way to stop the flu is to get vaccinated,” Dean of Research at Keck Graduate Institute Larry Grill said. “If you get the flu, at least wear a mask if you’re going to go around other people, because that at least will stop most of the droplets — if you wear it properly, of course.”
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Words by Kahani Malholtra | Photo by Sarah Ziff
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

09/03/2025

Claremont Graduate University (CGU) has been celebrating their 100th anniversary as an independent institution through a year-long series of events that kicked off on March 1.

The spring celebration featured live music performances, a presentation of new CGU100 merchandise, an art gallery and more exhibitions that highlighted CGU’s interdisciplinary values.
Notable community members, like Betty Hagelbarger — namesake of the on-campus café Hagelbarger’s — are scheduled to participate in future events as the celebration continues.
“The festivities are a great reason to come together as a community and celebrate a longstanding legacy,” Smriti Nambudiri CG ’25, a graduate assistant for international admissions at CGU, said.

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Words by Kalia Manayan | Photo by Sarah Ziff
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

06/03/2025

Emily Kim PO ’25 discusses the silly way she romanticizes her process of working on her cognitive science senior thesis. When coding for the first time in freshman year to seven semesters later for her thesis, Kim reimmerses herself in the world of while loops, if statements and frightful indentation errors.
“I put on my headphones, quietly let my favorite music fill my ears, and as I write a line of code, sip,” Kim writes. “As I debug, sip. As I cross my fingers and run my code, sip. As I disheartenedly discover that the program still doesn’t do what I want, big sip.”
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Words by Emily Kim | Graphic by Max Ranney
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

28/02/2025

Both the Claremont McKenna College Model United Nation (CMCMUN) and Pomona College Model United Nation (PCMUN) teams traveled to Boston this past weekend to attend the “Super Bowl of Model UN,” with CMCMUN walking away with the award for Best Large Delegation, the conference’s top honor.

12 of the 16 delegates from CMCMUN came away with awards, including three Best Delegate awards. PCMUN, which represents the other 4Cs, sent five delegates, with Joshua Mosley PO ’26 winning a Diplomatic Commendation within his committee.

CMCMUN’s recent success left Josh Morganstein CM ’25, the club’s president, excited for the remainder of the season.

“More important than the awards and the ranking is what it represents about the talent we have on our team, the hard work that people are putting in, culturally how strong we are and how well we get along,” Morganstein said.

With the season still in full swing, both teams are looking to finish strong. The upcoming Harvard World Model United Nations (HWMUN) conference in Manila, Philippines, provides another chance for CMCMUN to maintain momentum.
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(Words by Patrick McDowell | Photo courtesy of Claremont McKenna Model UN)
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

27/02/2025

The green energy revolution has been a promise of the new millennium. With growing wind, solar and hydroelectric resources supplanting existing carbon resources, the energy capacities, and resultantly, production abilities of our nation are seemingly endless, capable of fueling an ever-growing economy. Eric Lu PO ’28 argues that, for any of the changes made by green energy to have lasting effects, we need to change our economy and consumption patterns.
“Instead of forcing coal and oil into obsolescence, we’re merely adding more energy to the system — filling the gap with renewables while still burning record amounts of fossil fuels,” Lu writes. “This is the real danger of the ‘energy abundance’ mindset: it assumes that a limitless supply of clean energy will eventually render fossil fuels obsolete.”
We need to be able to make compromises and changes in our lives if we want to see any real actualized change in our community.
“Renewability doesn’t give us the license to unscrupulously consume and produce energy without attention to consequence,” Lu writes. “It’s about reconsidering what we truly need, what we can cut out, and how we can minimally use energy so that we can sufficiently meet our energy needs without unnecessary overproduction.”

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Words by Eric Lu | Graphic by Sasha Matthews
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

25/02/2025

On Feb. 11, President Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to stop purchasing paper straws, encompassing a broader plan to end their use nationwide and return to plastic products. This reverses former President Biden’s efforts to move away from single-use plastic products like plastic straws.

Char Miller, an environmental analysis and politics professor at Pomona, said that the order’s effects will be very minimal because it lacks funding and implementation plans.

“It is a statement of desire,” Miller said.

Most dining facilities at the 5Cs do not have plans to change their policies surrounding plastic or paper straw use despite Trump’s executive order. All of the Claremont Colleges — except for Harvey Mudd, who did not respond for an interview — said they will continue to uphold sustainable practices that do not involve plastic straws.

Words by Ava Fleisher | Graphic by Sasha Matthews
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

23/02/2025

Following Claremont McKenna College’s vote on Jan. 24 in favor of a motion to recommend the suspension of their current test-optional admissions policy, TSL compiled a data set comparing admitted students’ test scores from 2016 to 2024.
Since requirements were lifted, the number of admitted students opting to submit their standardized test scores has been steadily decreasing.

During the 2024 admissions cycle, only 26 percent of admitted students submitted an SAT score, and only 13 percent submitted an ACT score.

“I trust the Claremont faculty to make the right decision regarding the caliber of students they teach,” Henry Finna CM ’25 wrote in an email to TSL. “If they believe, based on the information given to them, that the test-optional policy produced admissions outcomes that did not align with the academic standards CMC should expect, then it makes sense to revert to requiring test scores.”

Words by Brecken Enright | Graph by Brecken Enright
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

22/02/2025

TSL conducted a survey on first-years at Pomona College regarding their sense of safety following a recent trespassing incident in the Lyon Court residence hall, where an unauthorized man was reportedly found ma********ng in a gender neutral bathroom.

The survey results revealed a significant level of dissatisfaction among students regarding campus safety, with 75.5 percent of respondents rating their satisfaction with the college’s actions between 1 and 3 on a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 indicating extreme dissatisfaction.

Anya Offenbacher-Jones PO ’28, a Lyon resident, claimed that the incident heightened her sense of fear.

“I’m more aware when I’m out and about, especially late at night,” Jones said. “My roommates and I have talked about locking our doors now, which we never thought about before the incident.”

Words by Jun Kwon and Audrey Park| Photo by Sarah Ziff
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

21/02/2025

Part of Pomona College’s Humanities Toolkit Series, a Feb. 7 panel highlighted alumni of the English and Media Studies departments who have pursued Hollywood careers. The alumni –– Lucas Rojas PO ’12, Nick Hurwitz PO ’12, Steph Saxton PO ’12 and Nelson Cole PO ’16 –– described how they navigated the tumultuous world of the entertainment industry post-graduation.

“One of the very weird things about Hollywood is that no one cares about where you went to college,” Hurwitz said. “No one cares.”
“[A career in the entertainment industry] requires a tremendous, almost irrational, degree of optimism and perseverance,” Rojas said. “Having a tremendous rational faith you are going to persist and come out victorious, while at the same time having a sobering awareness of the brutal realities of your day-to-day existence and maintaining both these mindsets at the same time — I would describe that as being quintessential for survival in a career.”

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Words and Photo by Nickolas Morales
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

21/02/2025

It’s Valentine’s Day. You had questions. And we have answers. Our very own Claremont Cupids (bow and arrow not included), have written a column using their expertise on all things s*x.

“Welcome to 5C Shades of Grey, a s*x advice column serving the Claremont Colleges since 2025. We’re two self-proclaimed advice experts at TSL, taking on the great honor of continuing the paper’s beloved but irregularly published s*x column. This Valentine’s Day, your Claremont Cupids are here to give 5C students advice on your darkest, most intimate, deepest, wettest, hardest questions,” the Cupids write.

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Words by Claremont Cupids | Graphic by PJ James
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

21/02/2025

In the wake of increased security spending by Pomona Campus spurred by student protests, the students of Lyon Court have been neglected. Sara Russo PO ’28 details a semester of break-ins and unresponsiveness from Campus Security that culminated in an intruder ma********ng in a Lyon bathroom while a resident was showering. Russo argues that Pomona should utilize its increased security to protect, not persecute its students.
(Words by Sarah Russo | Photo by Sarah Ziff)

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Read the full story at the link in our bio.

21/02/2025

On Saturday, Feb. 8, the Sagehens — currently eighth in Division III rankings — declawed the No. 10 East Texas Baptist University Tigers 2-1 on Alumni Field to open their season. After a rainout on Friday afternoon, the birds took the field behind pitchers Max Brunngraber PZ ’27 and Will Polishuk PO ’28 for their first collegiate starts.

“I’m pretty confident that we have one of the best offenses in the country,” Brunngraber said. “So if we can limit the other team as a staff, we’ll be able to win a lot of games, which I think we proved.”

The Sagehens also had the bats working this weekend with 16 runs on seven extra-base hits. Between the Hens hitting their stride at the plate and dominance on the mound, P-P hopes to build on the success they had last year.

“ETBU is a very good baseball team, and we had two first-time starters go out there and pitch very effectively, throw strikes [and] compete well,” Coach Frank Pericolosi said. “A lot of different guys did good things. Good day overall.”

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Read the full story at the link in our bio.

21/02/2025

Pitzer College ushered in the spring season with its annual Citrus Fest at the Pitzer Student Garden. The event, a collaboration between the garden and the Grove House, offered students a chance to engage in hands-on activities like crafting orange garlands, printmaking and creating citrus-scented candles. Attendees also enjoyed delicious citrus-themed treats, such as orange cheesecake and lemon cookies, while learning about the garden’s sustainable practices.

A meaningful opportunity for connection, creativity and sustainability, Citrus Fest brought the campus community together in celebration of the season’s harvest.

“I stumbled upon this drawn in by the music and the sight of delicious treats,” Stella Seid PZ ’26 said. “All the events at the Grove House are the best and this is super cute, getting to see what’s come of all of the abundance of citrus that we have growing on campus.”

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Words by Yahjairi Castillon | Photo by Anjali Rao
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

18/02/2025

On Feb. 7, the Datamatch survey opened for students at 49 colleges and universities throughout North America. Started by a group of Harvard undergraduates in 1994, the college-specific online matchmaking service runs annually in early February.

“I did Datamatch because I like meeting new people, and I’m curious to see new faces,” Mimi Lopez SC ’26 said. “I feel like at the 5Cs once I know about somebody, I see them all the time, so maybe I’ll find more people like that.”

Matches are released on Valentine’s Day in the early morning, but if users don’t get their perfect matches, there is always another opportunity ahead. As the Cupids write on the Datamatch website, “What can you do about it? What can any of us do about it? Maybe don’t let the existential dread get you today; go out there and meet someone new!”

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Words by Grace Valashinas | Graphic by Shixiao Yu
Read the full story at the link in our bio.

The Student Life

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