On Sunday, Aug. 31, Smith held its first-ever digital Convocation.
The event, which was held as a webinar over Zoom, featured addresses from the new Dean of the College Baishakhi Taylor and President Kathleen McCartney, a musical performance by the Smith College Glee Club, and speeches from SGA President Esther Mejia ’21 and Senior Class President Jane Casey-Fleener ’21. The ceremony lasted for just under 30 minutes.
Speakers regretted that Convocation could not be held in person, especially given that the event is known for its boisterous mood. Even so, they were also optimistic that the Smith community would make the best of the remote semester.
“I will confess,” said Pres. McCartney, speaking in front of a Zoom background of Paradise Pond, “that I miss seeing the Cushing House bunnies, and the Wilson House saran wrap outfits, Tenney’s pots and pans, and of course, the King House crowns. […] I hope you make some noise wherever you are.” Later, she added, “This fall may be unlike any other, but in some ways that’s okay, because this community is unlike any other.”
She ended her speech by drawing attention to three key issues: the need to end racial inequity, the need to get out the vote in the upcoming Presidential election, and the need to fight back against the devastating effects of climate change. “This is what I admire most about Smithies,” she said. “You know how to change what needs to be changed.”
Many Smith students saw Convocation itself as an opportunity to rise to this ideal, choosing to boycott the event in support of low-income students and students struggling financially due to the pandemic. The organizers have put forth a list of demands for the college, including a full commitment to meeting students’ financial need.
Both SGA President Mejia ’21 and Senior Class President Casey-Fleener ’21 announced that they stand in solidarity with the student protesters.
The highpoint of the event was the Glee Club’s pre-recorded rendition of Tongue Tied by Grouplove. While a remote choir might seem impossible, according to Julia Frothingham ’23, “making the video was super fun and easy.” Singers studied the choreography and music in their own homes before filming videos of themselves singing and dancing which were cut into a single performance by choir accompanist Lemuel Gurtowsky. The result was catchy, fun, and Convocation’s clearest argument that Smithies can collaborate over physical distance.
The event also featured, of course, the awkward moments that are unavoidable with remote communication. While in-person Convocation always presents a stark contrast between Smith’s students and its staff and faculty — the former screaming and cheering, dressed in colorful costumes or very little at all, the latter somber in floor-length black robes — the democratizing lens of Zoom places everyone on the same level. There were pauses, and lag, and an almost comical moment in which the event’s closing video, a montage of the new Student Public Health Leaders, abruptly cut to a screen that read “Convocation 2020 — this event has ended.”
But even in person, the most memorable part of Convocation is never the ceremony. It is the frenzy surrounding it, the party after. While this year featured no carnival, no free T-shirts on Chapin Lawn, this is still perhaps more true than ever before.
What students will remember about Convocation 2020 is whatever fun they forged for themselves, whether that was taking a meaningful stand in support of their peers, participating in the drinking game that circled social media, watching live over a group-call with their house or friends, or dressing up in glitter in the comfort of their own bedrooms. Convocation still has meaning to people as the kick-off for another year of academics and college life, as expressed by Hayley Soehle ’22, a student who chose to boycott the ceremony. “I did not attend because I wanted to show support for students and faculty who have been further inconvenienced economically by the school’s decisions,” she said. “I did still celebrate Convocation in my own way, though, because I love the school, traditions, and the people.”
