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The Claremont Independent

Truth and Excellence

Claremont McKenna College Hires New Assistant Dean Of Students For Academic Success

The Claremont Independent

Aug 14, 2021

Claremont McKenna College Hires New Assistant Dean Of Students For Academic Success

In an email to Claremont McKenna College (CMC) students this afternoon, Senior Associate Dean of Students Susan Layden announced that CMC hired Matthew Layman as its new Assistant Dean of Students (ADS) for Academic Success. According to the email, the position has been empty since shortly before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, the former ADS for Academic Success, Sean Rollolazo, took on a new role as the ADS for Health and Well-Being. The new ADS for Academ

Scripps Juniors Compelled To Live Off-Campus By Overenrollment, COVID-19 Restrictions

The Claremont Independent

May 26, 2021

Scripps Juniors Compelled To Live Off-Campus By Overenrollment, COVID-19 Restrictions

In the Scripps College Class of 2023 Facebook group, rising Scripps College junior and outgoing Judicial and Academic Review Chair Maddy Levine announced that rising juniors will have the last priority for housing in “room draw” and that “up to 120 juniors will be forced to live off-campus in the Claremont Collegiate Apartments (“CCA”),” following the Fall Planning 2021 announcement Dean Charlotte Johnson shared with the Scripps community on April 26. Scripps College sent the

Student Gov’t Passes Israeli Boycott Without Club Divestment Clause

May 6, 2021

Student Gov’t Passes Israeli Boycott Without Club Divestment Clause

Earlier today, the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC), Pomona College’s student governing body, passed a modified version of its previous resolution to boycott companies listed by the United Nations as active in Israeli West Bank settlements. The version of the resolution passed by ASPC today removed the hotly contested final clause that was the subject of serious debate at ASPC’s meeting last week. The current resolution governs only internal ASPC spending, not clu

Student Gov’t Tables Israeli Boycott Resolution For Further Discussion On Mandatory Club Divestment

The Claremont Independent

Apr 30, 2021

Student Gov’t Tables Israeli Boycott Resolution For Further Discussion On Mandatory Club Divestment

In a Zoom meeting held yesterday afternoon, members of the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC) fielded questions and concerns about the recently passed resolution “divesting all ASPC funds from companies complicit in the occupation of Palestine, and banning future use of funds towards such companies.” The senators were particularly focused on the final clause of the resolution, which specified that ASPC aims to lead the other student governments of the Claremont Cons

Widespread Backlash to Student Gov’t Israel Boycott, Anti-Discrimination Petition Reaches 500 Signat

Apr 29, 2021

Widespread Backlash to Student Gov’t Israel Boycott, Anti-Discrimination Petition Reaches 500 Signat

Last week, the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC) passed a resolution divesting from companies operating in Israel as listed by the United Nations. The decision prompted outrage among many prominent Jewish groups and on social media nationwide. A petition circulated by Pomona students that called for Pomona President G. Gabrielle Starr to “condemn this resolution and protect the Jewish student body” received around 500 signatures in five days. The resolution has als

Student Gov’t Proposes Change Of Coop Fountain Ownership To End Five Year Budget Deficit

The Claremont Independent

Apr 27, 2021

Student Gov’t Proposes Change Of Coop Fountain Ownership To End Five Year Budget Deficit

This afternoon, the Vice President of Finance (VPF) of the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC) sent an email to the student body proposing a “non-permanent” transfer of ownership of the Coop Fountain, a popular on-campus restaurant, from ASPC to the College. According to the email, the proposal promises to “more than double student employment and increase the variety of student jobs, end the annual average ~$100,000 loss, and redirect funding back to student programm

Pomona President Urges Student Gov’t To “Reverse Course” On Israel Boycott

The Claremont Independent

Apr 23, 2021

Pomona President Urges Student Gov’t To “Reverse Course” On Israel Boycott

In response to yesterday’s vote by the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC), Pomona College’s student government organization, to boycott companies invested in Israel, Pomona President G. Gabrielle Starr and other senior administrators urged ASPC “to reverse course and allow for full discussion” of the issue. Starr cited a lack of representation from student opposition as a reason for her objection. In her email, Starr implied that Pomona’s administration only learned

Pomona Student Gov’t Passes Israel Boycott, Bans Future Investment

The Claremont Independent

Apr 22, 2021

Pomona Student Gov’t Passes Israel Boycott, Bans Future Investment

In an Instagram post released on Thursday, Claremont Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) announced that Pomona College’s student government, the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC) “unanimously passed a resolution on Thursday, April 22, 2021 divesting all ASPC funds from companies complicit in the occupation of Palestine, and banning future use of funds towards such companies.” The companies from which ASPC will divest are drawn from a list compiled by the United

Pomona Students Protest Against “Forced” Room And Board Fees, Mandatory On-Campus Housing

The Claremont Independent

Apr 22, 2021

Pomona Students Protest Against “Forced” Room And Board Fees, Mandatory On-Campus Housing

In response to an email sent last night explaining that Pomona College would restrict the number of students allowed to live off-campus to 60 and require students living off-campus to pay for a 10-meal plan despite not living on-campus, students from the Pomona class of 2022 drafted a Google Form to protest what one student called “[a]bsurdity.” For the 2020-2021 academic year, the estimated average cost of room and board was $12,820 for students living off-campus. In the ema

Pomona To Provide Off-Campus Housing For Students

The Claremont Independent

Apr 21, 2021

Pomona To Provide Off-Campus Housing For Students

In an email sent earlier this evening, Pomona College Dean of Campus Life Josh Eisenberg informed students that, in addition to the normal on-campus housing, “Pomona will also lease housing at Oasis KGI Commons, an apartment complex located at 111 Bucknell Ave., Claremont, CA, right in the Claremont Village adjacent to the Packing House.” According to Eisenberg, the college expects to lease rooms at Oasis only for the fall 2021 semester. Pomona will also provide all students

Pomona Releases Draft Of Return Plan For Staff

The Claremont Independent

Apr 21, 2021

Pomona Releases Draft Of Return Plan For Staff

Today, Pomona College students received an email detailing plans for an on-campus return this fall. The email included a link to a draft “Return to Campus: Policies, Guidelines and Protocols” and “Frequently Asked Questions” document for staff. Last revised on April 7, 2021, the draft states that “Pomona College is preparing for regular operations in the fall of 2021, including the return of residential, in-person instruction.” The draft plans suggest a phased return for staf

Rebuttal: Reactions To Lil Nas X’s New Video Exemplify Cancel Culture’s Double Standard

The Claremont Independent

Apr 18, 2021

Rebuttal: Reactions To Lil Nas X’s New Video Exemplify Cancel Culture’s Double Standard

Last month, popular singer Lil Nas X depicted himself descending into Hell on a stripper pole in his new hit music video “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name).” The graphic imagery immediately shocked many people, especially Christians. In the video, Lil Nas X performs a lap dance with the devil in the fiery landscape of Hell. And as many people have an aversion to the devil, the video met with backlash from all corners of American society. Many fans of “MONTERO,” including a colum

Pomona To Bring Back Furloughed Workers, Require Vaccines For Students

The Claremont Independent

Apr 14, 2021

Pomona To Bring Back Furloughed Workers, Require Vaccines For Students

Pomona College President G. Gabrielle Starr sent an email to students today stating that Pomona is planning for “a limited campus population in summer and the full return of students for fall semester.” Starr also confirmed that staff who had been furloughed last fall would begin returning to work in June and July, and that vaccines will be required for students returning in the fall semester “with exemptions for documented medical reasons or sincerely held religious beliefs.

ASPC Approves Recall Vote For VP Of Finance For “Racial Insensitivity”

The Claremont Independent

Apr 13, 2021

ASPC Approves Recall Vote For VP Of Finance For “Racial Insensitivity”

In an email sent earlier this evening, Pomona College Dean of Campus Life Josh Eisenberg released a statement on behalf of the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC) announcing the approval of “a motion for a recall election to remove the ASPC Vice President for Finance from their position for the remainder of the 20-21 academic year.” Pomona’s Black Student Union (BSU), which demanded the recall election, cited the “VP of Finance’s lack of empathy, apology, and continu

CMC To Make Full Return In Fall, Require Vaccination For All Students

The Claremont Independent

Apr 8, 2021

CMC To Make Full Return In Fall, Require Vaccination For All Students

In an email sent earlier this morning, Claremont McKenna College (CMC) President Hiram E. Chodosh informed students, staff, and faculty that they “will be back for a full CMC return this fall.” Chodosh also confirmed that “all students enrolled this coming fall must be fully vaccinated,” a move that CMC has been considering since at least March 31. According to the email, students will go “[b]ack to seminars, labs, and the Athenaeum; living in the dorms; eating in Collins Din

CMC To Provide Summer Housing, Free COVID Testing, For Students

The Claremont Independent

Apr 6, 2021

CMC To Provide Summer Housing, Free COVID Testing, For Students

In an email sent earlier this evening, Claremont McKenna College (CMC) Associate Vice President and Dean of Students Diana Graves informed students that CMC will be providing “limited summer housing at the Alexan Kendry Apartments (about 1.5 miles south of campus) for rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors who will be enrolled at CMC in fall 2021 and meet additional criteria.” Students who participate in the housing program will be subject to guidelines “including daily heal

Pomona To Eliminate Points System, Replace With Educational, Not Punitive, Discipline Process

The Claremont Independent

Apr 2, 2021

Pomona To Eliminate Points System, Replace With Educational, Not Punitive, Discipline Process

In an email sent to the student body earlier today, Pomona College Dean of Campus Life Josh Eisenberg informed students that the Point System, Pomona’s disciplinary system in which students received a certain number of “points” for committing drug- and alcohol-related infractions, will be replaced “with a conduct process for low-level violations of the Student Code that is educational rather than punitive.” The email explains that the Point System “will be replaced with a con

CMC Likely To Require Vaccinations, Restrict Gatherings, For Student Return To Campus

The Claremont Independent

Mar 31, 2021

CMC Likely To Require Vaccinations, Restrict Gatherings, For Student Return To Campus

As of yesterday, LA County has moved from the red tier (substantial risk) to the orange tier (moderate risk) for COVID-19, as cases have been dropping and ICU availability has increased. With the county continuing to improve, Claremont McKenna College (CMC) announced at its Student Return forum that it is leaning towards mandating COVID-19 vaccines for returning students. The increasing number of vaccinations across LA county has helped to decrease the number of cases. On Apr

OPINION: The US Should Boycott The 2022 Olympics In China

Mar 30, 2021

OPINION: The US Should Boycott The 2022 Olympics In China

China is destroying promised liberties in Hong Kong, committing genocide in Xinjiang, and oppressing more people than any other authoritarian regime in the world. Apparently, these horrors do not matter to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), as Beijing is set to host the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. The IOC has a weak record regarding cracking down on human rights abuses; in 1936, the games were held in Berlin under Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime. Neither the US nor the rest

Pomona Admits Class Of 2025

The Claremont Independent

Mar 25, 2021

Pomona Admits Class Of 2025

Pomona College will release its admissions decisions for the class of 2025 today starting at 5 pm PST. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, students were offered a test-optional admissions policy. Nevertheless, 57% of the 748 students admitted to the class of 2025 elected to submit an ACT or SAT test score. In addition, eighty-three students admitted to the incoming class were offered admission in a previous year, but deferred enrollment until this admissions cycle, a figure