Born and raised in Kaneohe, Hawaii, Assistant Professor of English Language & Literature Melissa Parrish grew up wanting to be a marine biologist, fascinated by the marine life around her. After spending a day with her mother’s marine biologist friend, Parrish realized that life was not for her, and instead “went for the thing she loved most — books and reading.”
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Over the last few years, Webster, an eight-year-old English lab, has been coined as the “unofficial mascot” of Smith College. Sporting a variety of colorful bandanas during the day and an LED light-up harness at night, Webster walks around campus with his owner, Robert Abuza.
Nov. 2 marked this year’s Cromwell Day, an annual celebration of Otelia and Adelaide Cromwell, the first Black graduate and first Black professor at Smith, respectively. The theme this year was “Finding Joy on Our Journey to Racial Justice,” adding to the semester’s focus on finding joy in sorrow while on the path toward justice. The Cromwell Day Committee — a group of students, staff, and faculty — decided on this theme together, which gave a sense of continuity after poet Ross Gay’s visit in September.
In Aug. 2023, Smith College’s Lazarus Center welcomed Heather Deland, its first career specialist in law, government, policy and international affairs. Before joining the Smith community, Deland worked as the Internship and Career Coordinator at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass).
The Northampton municipal elections are coming up on Nov. 7 and voters will be able to cast their ballots for eight different races.
In the upcoming Northampton election, four candidates are vying for two City Council at-large seats.
On Nov. 7, four names will appear on the ballot for Councilor-at-Large: Incumbent Marissa Elkins, Ward 4 Councilor Garrick M. Perry, former city councilor David Murphy and former mayoral candidate Roy C. Martin.
Current city councilor Jamilia Gore will not be running for a second term in office. Gore was the first African American woman to hold the at-large seat.
The last time Ross Gay visited Smith College was in the fall of 2016 when he was drafting “The Book of Delights” which was published in 2019. Since then, the United States has plunged into a new political landscape and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has forever altered the world.
After moving from Ghana to New York City four years ago, Ada Comstock Scholar Bernice Agyeiwaa found herself in search of a community. Intending to attend a graduate program for nursing, she began taking classes at Bronx Community College.
Thin Wyut Yi Nan ’27 lived what she describes as a “very privileged life” in her home country of Myanmar, a developing southeast Asian country. Nan attended an international high school, enjoyed private transportation and ate at expensive restaurants. However, her life was turned upside down two years ago when political upheaval with the overthrow of the country’s democracy by the military in a coup d’etat thrusted Myanmar into political upheaval. The rest of Nan’s time in her home country was more different than she ever imagined.
Due to recent redistricting, three incumbent Northampton School Committee members will be fighting for two at-large seats. The school committee seat is a two-year term and is chaired by Northampton Mayor Gina-Louise Scarria ’96.