President’s Racial Justice Award winners and honorable mentions
The 2021 President’s Racial Justice Award Selection Committee has announced the inaugural recipients of the President’s Racial Justice Award in Honor of Samantha Sasenarine ’21. The award is given for outstanding student scholarly/creative work engaging with issues of race, racism, or racial justice and/or focusing on the lives and experiences of Black/African Americans in North America or the African diaspora. Awardees are selected from each division across the College: the humanities, visual and performing arts, natural sciences, pre-professional and social sciences. This year’s recipients are: Kayla Lugo ’21 for “What Mama Didn’t Know: A Collection of Poems” (humanities); Destiny Donelson ’21 for “A Qualitative and Quantitative Review on the Effects of Chemical Ingredients in Personal Products on the Health of Individuals of Color” (natural sciences); Jacob Kelly ’23 for “How Ragtime Moved America And Why it Doesn’t Anymore” (pre-professional); Haja Bah ’21, Sophia Livecchi ’21 and Saima Hannan for “Environmental Justice is Exhausting: Five Decades of Air Pollution at Ezra Prentice Homes in Albany, New York” (social sciences); and UPLIFT team members Will Carter ’23, Anne-Sophie Vandenberk ’23, Dare Wedgeworth ’23, Wynn Lee ’21, Braedon Quinlan ’24, Isabella Kiely ’24, Arielle Lam ’24, Anesu Mukombiwa ’24, Sarita Padukone ’23, Annalise Sawit ’21, Jacob Smith ’24, Isha Smith-Ramakrishnan ’22, Marina Kalaw ’22 and Silas Seno Mitchell ’21 (visual and performing arts).
In addition, the committee recognizes the following honorable mentions: Issa Traore ’21 for “Reimagining Representations: Freeway Rick Ross”; Sarah Spruill ’22 for “Mapping Systems: Beneath the Bonnet”; Sanjna Selvarajan ’21 for her international affairs capstone, “The Cost of Freedom”; Destiny Donelson ’21 and Bathabile Khumalo ’21 for “Taking Stage as a Black Classical Singer”; Josh Ridenhour ’21 for “Disease and Black Bodies: ‘When America catches a cold, African Americans catch pneumonia’”; and Yasmin Nicole Richards ’22 for “The Post-Effects of Eurocentrism: Dinah Washington.”
Make Your Voice Heard Skidmore Public Policy Prize
Skidmore’s Subcommittee on Responsible Citizenship is pleased to announce the winners of the 2021 Make Your Voice Heard Skidmore Public Policy Prize. The competition is an opportunity for Skidmore students to engage with vital public policy issues. Applications were evaluated on the quality of policy analysis and research, the clarity of presentation, the persuasiveness of the rationale, and the quality and feasibility of the proposal for a grassroots effort. This year’s contest was judged by local policy experts and Skidmore faculty. Please join us in congratulating the following students: Abby MacDonald ’22 (first place, $1,500); Jennifer Norcross ’21, Lucy Battle ’21 and Sophie Altman ’23, and Emily Davis ’23 and Sylvana Szuhay ’22 (runners-up, $500).
Update on the National Assessment of Collegiate Campus Climates (NACCC) survey for students
As part of the College’s efforts to further create a diverse and inclusive community for everyone, Skidmore students were encouraged by the Committee on Intercultural and Global Understanding (CIGU) to participate in the NACCC survey to help the College gain deeper insights into racial dynamics on campus and better equip our campus to respond to student experiences involving racism and bias. The survey closed on April 21 with a 53.1% response rate. Students who completed the survey were entered into a drawing for four $100 Visa gift cards, and the winners were: Delia Qiu, Aden Brody-Ogborn, Claire Wolgast and Isabel Tobin. NACCC administrators will share the data with us in fall 2021. CIGU’s survey working group thanks all students who participated and those who encouraged them to do so. We look forward to receiving the data and sharing the findings with the campus community.
Campus Master Planning Open Listening Sessions
Skidmore is embarking on the development of a new campus master plan to help shape and transform the physical environment to support the aspirations of the College’s strategic plan. The Campus Master Planning Task Force has announced two open listening sessions this week for all students, faculty and staff — from noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, May 13, and from 9 to 10 a.m. Friday, May 14 — to gather opinions, experiences and observations. If you can join one of these sessions (even if you attended a previous session), please respond to the calendar invitation you received Friday, May 7, from Ayers Saint Gross.
Tang Live: Senior Thesis Show
Join us at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 13, on the Tang’s Instagram for the final Tang Live of the 2020-21 academic year, in which Student Advisory Council member and Public Programming Intern Charlotte Squire ’21 gives a preview of the 2021 Senior Thesis Show. Squire will speak with senior studio art majors from various disciplines, including ceramics, communication design, drawing, painting, digital media, fiber arts, metals, photography, printmaking and sculpture. For more information, contact Olivia Cammisa-Frost.
Senior Thesis Art Exhibition 2021
Skidmore’s annual Senior Thesis Exhibition is scheduled for May 15-22 at the Tang Teaching Museum. Twenty-six senior studio art majors will be displaying their work as a capstone to their studies. The exhibition is open to all Skidmore students, faculty and staff. Safety measures, including strict 6-foot social distancing and mask wearing, will be enforced. Virtual viewing will be available to the public beginning Monday, May 17. A private reception for exhibiting senior studio art majors, art faculty and staff is scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, May 14.
Lunchtime Crochet: Saratoga Springs Satellite Reef
Associate Curator Rebecca McNamara hosts a lunchtime drop-in crocheting session from noon to 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 19. Join at your leisure to crochet and chat as we create corals for the “Saratoga Springs Satellite Reef.” Open to everyone, and all skill levels are welcome. For more information, contact Rebecca McNamara.
Skidmore Writing Center
The Writing Center will be open through the exam period for online tutoring; please check our schedule for appointment times.
Private Music Lessons Scholarship opportunity
The Skidmore Music Department invites students who are thinking of studying or continuing the study of an instrument or voice to consider applying for a lesson scholarship. The submission deadline is June 1 for the fall semester. Details and eligibility requirements are posted on this website. For more information, please contact Artist-in-Residence Michael Emery.
Camp Northwoods registration
Online registration for Camp Northwoods, Skidmore’s summer day camp for children entering grades one through six, is now open. Questions may be sent by email.
Summer Sports Camps
Summer sports camps are now accepting online registrations. Weeklong camps for children and teens are led by Skidmore’s own award-winning coaches who have won numerous Liberty League championships, coached All-American athletes and represented the College in over 30 NCAA appearances. Camps include basketball, baseball, lacrosse, soccer, volleyball, rowing and field hockey. Email Coleen Stephenson should you have any questions.
NeedleLittleLove
The Skidmore community NeedleLittleLove quilt is on view in Saisselin Art Building foyer. It boasts over 60 works by people from all across campus – 38 students, 13 staff members and 11 faculty members. If you need building access, call the number posted at the entrance.
Give+Go Move-Out Donation Collection
Our annual move-out donation collection yields 20,000 pounds of goods to donate to local organizations on an average year. Let’s see what we can do for 2021! Students donate nonperishable food items, mini-fridges, home goods, clothes, shoes and accessories to pop-up Give+Go locations. All goods are donated to the Backstretch Employee Service Team of Saratoga, Trinity Alliance and Capital District Rescue Mission. Staff and faculty volunteers are needed to staff collection locations and sort goods. Please sign up to volunteer and read more about Give+Go on our website.
Scribner Library Extended Hours
From Thursday, May 6, to Wednesday, May 12, Scribner Library will close at 10 p.m. During those days, we will continue to open at 9 a.m. Monday through Saturday and at 11 a.m. Sunday.
Fall 2021 vegetable CSA shares now available
9 Miles East Farm will be delivering freshly harvested vegetables and herbs to subscribers in the Skidmore community for 12 consecutive Fridays starting Sept. 3. Shares are available by subscription only. Sign up online. Joining a CSA is a great way to support the local farm community. There are only 100 shares available for the entire campus community, so sign up now. Send questions to 9 Miles East Farm.
Fall 2021 Scheduling Notes from Religious and Spiritual Life
Faculty and staff are invited to check the Holidays and Religious Observances Calendar updated by the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life (ORSL) as events are planned for the coming year. Of particular note for this year: Rosh Hashanah overlaps with New Student Orientation and the first day of classes, and Yom Kippur will be during the first full week of classes. Contact ORSL with any questions about scheduling and accommodations, as well as suggestions for updates and additions for the calendar.
Lost and found website
Campus Safety maintains a webpage listing items that have been lost and found on campus. Please visit the website to report a lost or found item, or to review a list of items that have been reported to Campus Safety. Items found last semester are also listed.
Scheduling and events reminder
Planning an event? Need space, tables or media services? You’ll find information on how to submit everything you need for your event in EMS here. Questions? Email the Scheduling Office for more information.
Skidmore Shop
Congratulations to Dennis Sepúlveda, the winner of our MacBook contest! At the Skidmore Shop, we proudly carry an array of Apple products, from iPads to MacBooks. Check out our selection of the newest models as well as our marked-down devices. If you have any questions, please contact Doug Chang by email or call 518-580-5491. The Skidmore Shop also invites you to stop by its “sidewalk” sale in front of the Shop on Thursday, May 13. Sale items will be marked down 40% off the original ticket price.
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