Q&A: Adam Sapp, Assistant Vice President & Director of Admissions

In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision in June that ended race-conscious college admissions, Pomona College Magazine asked Adam Sapp, assistant vice president and director of admissions, what it means for Pomona—and for all students applying to college. The interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Q: In her message after the ruling that effectively struck down affirmative action in admissions, Pomona College President G. Gabrielle Starr said Pomona remains committed to striving for a diverse student body and providing access to talented students from all backgrounds. How will that work?

We have a history of recruiting broadly across California, the U.S. and the world, and that will not change. It’s also true that Pomona sits in one of the most diverse parts of the country. As a national, global liberal arts college, we will continue to recruit broadly, but can we do more outreach in our own backyard? I think the answer is yes. In addition to our usual school visits in the region, this year we are planning to support more visits to campus for under-resourced and first-generation students, host more events for local high school guidance counselors to join us on campus, and continue to grow our presence at area community colleges. As our alumni know well, their continued support of the College’s efforts to raise funds in support of financial aid, global engagement and student support initiatives is critical to maintaining our national leadership position on diversity.

Q: The opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts seemed to leave an opening with the application essay, allowing colleges to consider “an applicant’s discussion of how race affected his or her life, be it through discrimination, inspiration, or otherwise.” Where does that leave admissions readers and, for that matter, the students writing application essays?

Some obvious changes will be made. For example, admissions readers will not have access to applicants’ self-reported race answers. Our application partners like the Common Application, the Coalition and QuestBridge have all made allowances for that change. I anticipate Pomona will not be alone in firewalling this information in the review and selection process.

Where does this leave students? Tell us your individual story. Every student has a unique ability to contribute to the Pomona community and our essay questions were devised with that idea in mind. Our individual and holistic process means we consider many factors for each candidate and responses to essay questions are one of those factors. We are public on our website about what qualities we value, and our essay questions are designed to help students not only think critically about issues important to Pomona, but also to understand Pomona better and reflect on whether we are a community where they see themselves fitting in. College admissions is a two-way process. It’s as important for our office to tell students who we are as it is for students to reflect on the kind of college experience they seek. We believe our essay questions serve both those goals well.

Q: The group of students offered admission to the Class of 2027 was the most diverse in Pomona’s history, with 62.5% domestic students of color. What does that reflect, and do you expect the percentage to be lower next year?

It’s certainly true that in the last decade Pomona’s applicant pool has become more racially and ethnically diverse. It’s also become much more global. As with any shift like this, the reason why is complicated. Yes, the Office of Admissions has been strategic in our outreach to ensure the pool is full of academically talented candidates from all backgrounds, but at the same time there are real demographic shifts taking place in American high schools that suggest the future student population will be even more diverse than the present. It is also true that the COVID-19 pandemic created more outreach opportunities for online engagement, and that the College’s financial aid program, which has always been amongst the best in the country, continues to be a clear motivating factor for applicants. I would also argue that the College’s work to increase programming and support for students to ensure they have excellent experiences, and the success of our alumni, ever more diverse, cannot be overstated as a factor in influencing future applicants to see Pomona as a place where they can flourish. Will we see declines in enrollments from students from diverse populations? In the short term the answer is probably yes. But are less diverse classes something we believe is a new status quo? Definitely not. That’s the work of our office going forward: to work within the limits of the law to ensure we make good on the values of diversity, values that were critical to the College’s founding and remain central to our mission today.

Q: Many alumni are parents of students applying to colleges, both to Pomona and elsewhere. What recommendations do you have for their students’ approach to admissions in the new era?

I think it’s key to understand that in the next few years we may continue to see shifts and changes. We haven’t even touched on the national conversations about the test-optional movement or legacy admissions policies (remember: Pomona does not consider legacy status in the admissions process), or the continued public dialogue criticizing the value of a liberal arts education. These issues and more will continue to loom on the minds of students as they make decisions about their future.

For parents reading this, I would say two things. First, do your very best to have a good attitude for your student about change. Help them see the opportunities in this moment and resist defaulting to the language that change is inherently negative. When parents stress, it gives students permission to stress too, and that just isn’t helpful in the long run. Second, talk to your student about who they are becoming as a human, not what they want to major in, or what kind of profession they seek. Students who know who they are, know what they value, have reflected on what they care about in the world and who have engaged in activities that they feel help them grow as a person are going to be much stronger college applicants. Just as we evaluate students holistically, encourage the young people under your roof to develop themselves holistically. Your children are incredibly talented and their worth in the world can be measured in so many ways. Helping them see that fact as early as possible will have benefits way beyond college admissions.

Hans C. Palmer: Emeritus Professor of Economics 1933-2023

Emeritus Professor of Economics Hans C. Palmer, a former dean of the College and a professor of economics at Pomona for 46 years, died on May 26, 2023. He was 89.

Palmer devoted his entire professional career to students at Pomona College. He was a member of Pomona’s faculty during five different decades—including three years as vice president and dean of the College—and became, for many on this campus, the quintessential Pomona professor: erudite, witty, supportive and demanding. Palmer also was a longtime promoter of international initiatives at the College, and was a leader of the Pacific Basin Institute after its move to Pomona College in the late 1990s.

A four-time winner of the Wig Distinguished Professor Award, Palmer is remembered by students for always pushing and prodding them to give their very best. “He wasn’t letting me off the hook,” Emeritus Chair of the Pomona College Board of Trustees Stewart R. Smith ’68 once said. “A B-plus wasn’t good enough if I could do better—and that was one of the best things that could have happened to me.”

In anonymous nominations for the Wig Award, one student praised Palmer’s exacting standards for writing. “It was painful at the time, but receiving paper after paper marked up beyond recognition did quite a bit towards pushing me to a clearer and more concise writing style,” the student wrote. Another commented, “Professor Palmer simply knows everything … but that’s not why the students love him. Professor Palmer really draws the best out of his students, always asking that third or fourth question that takes discussion to a whole new level.”

A native of New York City, Palmer came west for college, earning his B.A. and M.A. from UC Berkeley. After two years of service as a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army, he returned to Berkeley to earn his Ph.D. He joined the Pomona faculty in 1962, rising to full professor of economics—with the endowed titles of Stedman-Sumner Professor of Economics and W.M. Keck Distinguished Service Professor—as well as chair of the Economics Department.

Taking on the role of dean of the College in 1998, Palmer led the academic program through the creation of a new Linguistics and Cognitive Science Department and a number of major academic construction projects, including the new Andrew Science Building and renovations of Bridges Hall of Music and Seaver Laboratory for Chemistry, now known as Seaver North. After completing his tenure as dean in 2001, Palmer returned to his first love, teaching economics, before retiring from Pomona in 2008.

Palmer’s research focused mainly on the economics of health care issues and the economies of Eastern European nations. Among the honors he received for his work were a John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation Fellowship and a National Science Foundation Faculty Fellowship. He was a member of the American Economic Association, Association for Health Services Research, Economic History Association, Economic History Society of the United Kingdom, History of Economics Society and Association for Comparative Economic Studies.

Both his philosophy of life and his philosophy of teaching are perhaps best encapsulated in a quotation from the Convocation speech he gave upon assuming the mantle of dean: “Above all, keep our sense of humor and lighten up. Learning and teaching can be hard work, but they also should be sources of joy in the best sense. If they are not, we have missed something very precious, and all our attainments may be meaningless.”

Palmer is survived by his wife Beverly, daughter Margaret Woodruff and son David, as well as five grandchildren. He was preceded in death by an infant daughter, Jane, in 1967.

Top row left to right: Steve Olson, Carlos Garcia, Erika James. Bottom row left to right: Christina Tong, Nathan Dean, Johny Ek Aban and Betsy Atwater.

Betsy Atwater ’79

Atwater has engaged in nonprofit board work for a variety of institutions, including the Guthrie Theater, Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, Breakthrough Collaborative and Public Radio International, and has served as board chair of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art and Graywolf Press. Her work has focused on governance, development and strategic support for the nonprofits’ missions and executive directors. A history major at Pomona, she earned a J.D. degree at the NYU School of Law before moving to Minneapolis and now lives in Santa Barbara, California. Her mother, uncle and two grandparents attended Pomona.

Nathan Dean ’10

A forensic accountant in FTI Consulting’s Los Angeles office, Dean focuses on understanding companies and their internal and external records, including financial and non-financial records. He advises outside counsel on damages and accounting issues in commercial litigations and advises entities on their environmental, social and corporate governance reporting. For the last three years, Dean served as the national chair of annual giving at Pomona. A biology major, he earned a master’s degree in accounting from the University of Southern California and is a certified public accountant.

Johny Ek Aban ’19

An investment associate at Architect Capital in San Francisco, Ek Aban works with startups across the world and particularly in Latin America to provide debt funding at early stages of a company’s life. He enjoys working with entrepreneurs and startup hubs that reach beyond Silicon Valley. Ek Aban also serves on the Young Leaders Board for Next Generation Scholars, a nonprofit college access program in Marin County that coached him on his journey to be the first in his family to graduate from college and enter the corporate workforce. An economics major, Ek Aban was very active during his time at Pomona, serving on the President’s Advisory Committee on Diversity and as a leader and advocate for first-generation, low-income students at Pomona.

Carlos Garcia ’73

Garcia has had a long career in marketing research with a focus on the Latino sector. He currently serves as the CEO of Garcia Research, a 90-employee firm based in Palm Desert, California. A foreign languages major at Pomona, Garcia appeared in some of Professor Leonard Pronko’s Kabuki productions. His senior year production was one of 10 shows featured by the American College Theater Festival at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He later earned a master’s degree from UC Berkeley in comparative literature, an MBA from National University in San Diego and studied medieval theater and French literature at the Sorbonne III. While at Berkeley, he earned a Ford Foundation Fellowship for Mexican Americans.

Erika H. James ’91

James became dean of The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 2020. Trained as an organizational psychologist, she is a leading expert on crisis leadership, workplace diversity and management strategy. Before her appointment at Wharton, she was the John H. Harland Dean at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. An award-winning educator, accomplished consultant and innovative researcher, James has paved the way for women in leadership both in education and corporate America. She serves on the boards of Morgan Stanley and the Philadelphia Orchestra and Kimmel Center. She is a sought-after thought leader whose expertise has been quoted by The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, MSNBC and Bloomberg, among others.

Steve Olson P’23 P’26

Olson is a partner in the Los Angeles office of O’Melveny & Myers and co-chair of the firm’s white-collar defense and corporate investigations practice. He also advises non-U.S. headquartered companies on investing and operating in the U.S. and on navigating the regulatory and political environment. In 2021, he served as interim general counsel and chief legal officer for Hyundai and Genesis Motor America. Olson is chair of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. and the World Trade Center Los Angeles. He also serves on the boards of the Public Policy Institute of California and the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation. He and his wife, Liz Olson P’23 P’26, chair Pomona College’s Family Leadership Council.

Christina Tong ’17 (ex officio)

Tong joins the group as Pomona’s national chair for annual giving, an ex officio member of the Board of Trustees. A senior product manager at Google Maps, Tong leads a team responsible for the user experience and growth of products including Immersive View, Street View, Live View and the look and feel of the Google Maps mobile apps. Her work has been featured in leading tech publications such as The Verge, TechCrunch, Engadget and VentureBeat, and she has Augmented Reality research patents. Tong also lends her leadership to LGBTQ+ nonprofits. She is board chair at InReach, the world’s first tech platform connecting LGBTQ+ people in need with verified, safe resources such as therapists and lawyers.

Payton Distinguished Lectureship Featuring Anita Hill

The annual John A. Payton ’73 Distinguished Lectureship has moved to the fall, where each year’s Family Weekend visitors will be able to join the campus community and the public for a talk by a distinguished speaker in honor of Payton, the late civil rights attorney and member of Pomona College Board of Trustees.

Learn more about Payton Distinguished Lectureship.