As Election Day approaches, discussions across campus regarding the candidates and the state of politics in the United States have grown. These discussions have shed light on which political issues students are prioritizing at the polls this year and how students are being civically engaged on campus.
The Aronson Center for International Studies, in collaboration with the International Studies Leadership Council, hosted the last event of their Fall 2024 Speaker Series, titled “Faculty Fridays: A New World Ahead,” on Friday, Oct. 25. The event featured a discussion by Professor Bentley Allan — an associate professor of political science — regarding the evolving dynamics of global climate governance.
Dr. Carolyn Sufrin is a physician and associate professor at the School of Medicine and the School of Public Health. In an interview with The News-Letter, she discussed her research, work in obstetrics and gynecology, and advocacy for the reproductive rights of incarcerated people.
Hoptoberfest 2024, one of the signature events of the Hopkins Student Organization for Programming (the HOP), started on Wednesday, Oct. 23 on the Keyser Quad and featured various activities ranging from inflatables to lawn games. The event held Farm Day on Oct. 24, a haunted house event on Oct. 25 and a concert with Kiana Ledé and student openers on Oct. 26.
The Johns Hopkins Name Review Board (NRB) made recommendations on the use of former United States President and Hopkins alumni Woodrow Wilson’s name for an undergraduate research program and residence hall entryway on Oct. 24. The Board recommended that the Woodrow Wilson Undergraduate Research Fellowship, which provides funding for students to conduct independent research, be renamed as the University Undergraduate Research Fellowship, effective immediately. The NRB also recommended that AMR I’s Wilson House entrance retain its name but with added contextual information.
On Oct. 14, the Center for Diversity and Inclusion hosted a program from 3–8 p.m to honor Indigenous Peoples’ Day, with a focus on Indigenous innovation and impact. The program included a community gathering event, a keynote presentation from Dr. Donald Warne — co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health — and a performance from the Piscataway Nation Singers & Dancers.
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Agora Institute and the Center for Social Concern (CSC) hosted an event titled “Presidential Pardon Power: Where is the Limit?” on Wednesday, Oct. 9. As part of an ongoing discussion series tailored for engaging undergraduates in political issues, the event featured a discussion between Kim Wehle, a professor at the University of Maryland Law School and a legal contributor for ABC News, and Emily Zackin, a political science professor at Hopkins, about the contents of Wehle’s new book Pardon Power: How The Pardon System Works — And Why.
The 112th Student Government Association (SGA) convened on Tuesday, Oct. 15 for their weekly meeting.
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Agora Institute organized an event titled “Silencing the Press in Criminal Wars: Why the War on Drugs Turned Mexico Into the World's Most Dangerous Country for Journalists” on Tuesday, Oct. 1. The event brought in Guillermo Trejo, a professor of political science at Notre Dame University and director of the Violence and Transitional Justice Lab at the Kellogg Institute for International Studies. Trejo is an avid researcher in examining political and criminal violence, as well as an advocate for human rights and social justice in Mexico and Latin American.
On Tuesday, Oct. 8 the SNF Agora Institute, in partnership with Johns Hopkins Model United Nations (HopMUN), hosted “How to Lose a Democracy,” a panel discussion that brought together four regional experts to present case studies of de-democratization.
This year, the Milton S. Eisenhower Library (MSE) closed for renovations. The plan was announced in the fall of 2023, and, as of last October, the renovations were expected to cost $100 million and to be completed in two and a half years. This semester, The News-Letter conducted a survey gauging student responses to this closure and assessing its impact on student life at Hopkins.
The Hopkins Lecture Series, a group within the Hopkins Student Organization for Programming, was formed following the merger of the Milton S. Eisenhower Symposium (MSE) and the Foreign Affairs Symposium (FAS). The Lecture Series hosts year-round programming on Homewood Campus and aims to facilitate dialogue at Hopkins and within the greater Baltimore community.
Peyton Mikolayek is a first-year undergraduate studying English and Psychology at the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences. She’s also a social media influencer with over 500K followers on TikTok. In an interview with The News-Letter, Peyton discussed how she’s adapted to life in college and the reality of navigating dual worlds while maintaining authenticity, as well as how social media has created new opportunities for her.
Journalist and author Scott Shane discussed the history of his newest work, Flee North: A Forgotten Hero and the Fight for Freedom in Slavery's Borderland, at the Homewood Museum on Tuesday, Oct. 1. Jeannette Marxen, the Programs and Interpretation Manager for JHU Museums and organizer of this event, emphasized the discussion’s importance in relation to the museum’s focus on public education and Baltimore’s history in an interview with The News-Letter.
Founded to give student artists a place to express themselves, bARTimore seeks to foster community on campus and connect Hopkins with the broader Baltimore community through visual art. The club holds weekly painting and mural sessions to contribute to a visual arts culture on campus.
On Thursday, Sept. 26, the Hopkins Lecture Series, in partnership with the SNF Agora Institute and the Aronson Center for International Studies, hosted a lecture on the future of the two-party system in Shriver Hall. The talk hosted Andrew Yang, former presidential candidate in the 2020 election cycle as well as founder of the Forward Party, and Adam Kinzinger, former U.S. Representative for Illinois’ 16th district.
The 112th Student Government Association (SGA) convened on Tuesday, Oct. 1 for their weekly meeting.
What is Project 2025? The latest Hop Talks event, hosted by the Center for Social Concern (CSC) on Sept. 17, sought to address this question through a dinner discussion. Executive Director for the CSC Jasmine L. Blanks Jones underscored the importance of events like these on college campuses during an election year.
J.D. Tovar is a professor at the Department of Chemistry, leading a research group focused on the synthesis and investigation of organic materials with extended pi-electron conjugation. In an interview with The News-Letter, Tovar discussed his fascination with the colors and applications of pi-electron systems, as well as how he balances the demands of teaching and research.
The 112th Student Government Association (SGA) convened on Tuesday, Sept. 24 for their weekly meeting, led by Senate President Nasreen Naqvi.
