If you’re comparing yourself to others, you’re often going to find yourself short on something, especially if they have a background that’s different from your own. … Don’t measure yourself against others. Measure yourself against you. How much have you done to get where you are? And take pride in that, because that adds to the richness of your university and the place that you’re in.
—Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor during a visit to campus in October
For nearly 20 years, the Pomona College Museum of Art has been home to a series of exhibitions designed to turn a spotlight on emerging and underrepresented artists from Southern California. After 49 exhibits in what became known as the Project Series, senior curator Rebecca McGrew ’85 decided to take it up a notch for Project #50 by showcasing seven artists in concurrent solo exhibitions in “R.S.V.P Los Angeles,” which will be open through Dec. 19. “I envisioned collaborating directly with the artists who themselves were engaging with the contemporary cultural moment through a rich, boundary-blurring dialogue of art, culture, history, social issues, politics, music, science and more,” says McGrew on how the Project Series was conceived in 1999. Many of the artists who have been featured in the series have gone on to major national recognition.
Each summer, the students working in Chemistry Professor Mal Johal’s research lab take a break from their work on ultra-thin assemblies to create a dessert version of the periodic table for one of their weekly barbecues. Past efforts have included cookies and cakes—this year, it was brownies, complete with rainbow sprinkles for the radioactive elements. Posing with their creation are: (from left, front row) Carlos Hernandez ’18, Devin Gladys ’17, Zi-Chen Liu ’18, Samuel To ’18, (back row) Kavoos Kolahdouzan ’18, Vanessa Machuca ’18, Conner Kummerlowe ’16 and Hannah Wayment-Steele ’15.
Dance, Ethnicity and Nationalism looks at dance as a vehicle for achieving political goals and establishing ethnic identities. Students study such examples as Irish step dancing, Ukrainian and Russian folk dancing and the Hawaiian hula, all of which have served past regimes. Instructor: Anthony Shay
Disease, Destruction, & Disaster examines disaster as a social phenomenon and trends in managing and responding to threats and catastrophe. Students look at such case studies as Hurricane Katrina, Fuku-shima and the Ebola outbreaks. Instructor: Brady Potts
Drone Theory focuses on the drone as part of a network of ubiquitous, always-active sensors for automated data collection, processing and response. Looking at the drone through critical media theory, students think about asymmetrical power and remote control, and the historic relationship between military and media technology. Instructor: Mark Andrejevic
Here are just a few of the many interesting and unique individual accomplishments reported by members of the admitted Class of 2019:
Save the Date: October 3, 2015
The focus will be on the wonders of physics, astronomy and mathematics during Pomona’s 2015 Founders Day, which will feature the official opening of the beautiful new Millikan Laboratory and the renovated Andrew Science Hall. The dedication ceremony is set to begin at 1:30 p.m., and to be followed by a range of interactive science and math activities for all age groups throughout the afternoon, ending around 7 p.m. Food trucks will be available for dinner from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
The spring tour of the Pomona College Glee Club took them to a range of performance spaces, from a high school gymnasium in New York’s Washington Heights to a retirement community in Stamford, Conn., to the Church of the Holy Trinity in Philadelphia. However, the undisputed highlight of the tour was a half-hour concert in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.
“To sing music in a space that is like what the composer thought about really brings the music to life in a way that we can’t recreate here on campus,” says conductor and Professor of Music Donna Di Grazia. “From an educational perspective as well as an artistic one—those things go hand in hand—there’s nothing like that experience for our students. … And then you also get to give this gift of music to those who come.”
Drought is changing the face of Southern California, as more and more green lawns give way to desert plantings requiring a fraction of the water. At Pomona, turf removal hit a new high this summer, with the replacement of an additional 140,000 square feet (3.4 acres) of grass, according to Head of Grounds Kevin Quanstrom. Among the swaths of grass to be removed were areas around Alexander, Oldenborg, Hahn and Wig halls. Grass-lovers can take heart, however, that the broad, grassy lawn of Marston Quadrangle will remain green—at least for now.
“From now on, your ability to make a plan will matter a lot less than your ability to respond and adapt to unexpected new inputs, whether those new inputs come in the form of crisis or opportunity. If you should find your mind wandering a little bit in the two hours we have to go here, maybe spend a minute thinking about what kind of story you might like to tell when you’re back on the stagegetting your honorary Ph.D. in 10 or 20 years. Then get ready for it to all play out nothing like you expected.”
—Mikey Dickerson ’01 to the Class of 2015, after receiving his honorary doctorate
