Additional Reading
We Remember June Jackson Christmas ’45–4, Groundbreaking Psychiatrist and Ardent Supporter of the Vassar Community
The Vassar community is mourning the death of Dr. June Jackson Christmas ’45–4. She died on New Year’s Eve at age 99. Her contributions to the field of mental health and to the Vassar community were vast and deep.
New Faculty Members Hit the Ground Running
Vassar’s 14 new tenure-track faculty arrived at the College this academic year with unique and diverse talents, interests, and areas of expertise.
The Engaged Pluralism Initiative Community Mural
In the Spring of 2022, Vassar students were asked by the Engaged Pluralism Initiative: What does community mean to them?
Complicating Founder’s Day
A critical look at Founder’s Day antics sheds light on racism on campus
New Native American Artwork Announced at Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center in Collaboration with Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts
An innovative collaboration between the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center and Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts (CSIA) will bring new, original Native American Art to the Loeb over the next three years.
Focused on Native American Women, Course Offers Insight—not Stereotypes
Native American women held significant positions of power within their social and political spheres before white Christian settlers targeted Native people’s egalitarian societies for eradication.
New Vassar Faculty Members Bring Unique Talents, Diverse Backgrounds to Campus
Márquez, Whiteduck, and Baker are bringing their unique talents and backgrounds to Vassar classrooms this fall as new members of the faculty. They are among the 30 new members of the faculty, six of whom are on tenure track appointments, to join the more than 300 existing faculty.
A Quest for Racial Justice: We Must Do More
Vassar has long appreciated the richness that diversity engenders, and has often had deep involvement in movements for social change. But we are committed to doing more.
Hidden History: Slavery in the Hudson Valley?
In conjunction with a Poughkeepsie nonprofit, Vassar faculty, administrators, and students are helping to shed light on the contributions of enslaved Africans and their descendants to the growth and prosperity of the Hudson Valley.
On Mattering Discussion Series Focuses on Racial Disparities in an “Unjust Ecosystem”
A new discussion series initiated by the African American Alumnae/i of Vassar College (AAAVC) is bringing Vassar expertise to bear on specific areas of racial injustice in the United States.
Visible Bodies: Representing Blackness Celebrates Black Visibility through Photography
Visible Bodies: Representing Blackness is an illuminating exhibition currently on view at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center that uses the photography made by Black artists to illustrate the critical importance of being seen.
Visible Bodies: Representing Blackness
This exhibition centers the tension between visibility and invisibility, inherent to the medium of photography, through works by Black American artists.
Vassar Summer Institute Examines Race, Power, and Resources
A commitment to collaboration and the willingness of leaders to cede some of their power are the keys to fostering racial justice and equitable economic progress. That was the message from academicians, philanthropists, and community activists at a two-day conference hosted by the Vassar Summer Institute for the Liberal Arts.
Getting Their Voices Heard: The 1969 Main Building Takeover
On Thursday October 30, 1969, at 2:45 a.m., thirty-four Black women successfully barricaded the elevator and the doors of Main Building, taking over the building. In this act of civil disobedience, these students stood up to demand to be included in the fabric of Vassar College.
Speaking Across the Centuries That Connect African Americans to Africa
Nemata Blyden describes her latest work, African Americans and Africa, as a small book with a big topic. “It’s not a long book,” said Blyden, Associate Professor of History and International Affairs at George Washington University, “but it covers more than 400 years of history.”
Uncovering Community
Research by Andrea Roberts ’96 Is Revealing Long-Hidden African American “Freedom Colonies”
Memorial Conference Celebrates 50 Years of Africana Studies at Vassar
On November 1, 1969, 34 African American Vassar students ended a successful three-day occupation of Main Building after gaining assurances from then-President Alan Simpson and the Board of Trustees that their demands for continued funding and enhanced administrative support for the college’s new Black Studies program had been granted.
Vassar Celebrates 50 Years of Africana Studies Curriculum with Three-Day Conference
From November 1 to November 3, the College celebrated the 50th anniversary of the program with a conference, “Africana Studies and the Future of Freedom.” The event featured noted scholars, current and former faculty and staff, and current and former students—including some who helped create the program 50 years ago.
Africana Studies, 1969–2019: A History of Imagining Otherwise
The Vassar College Library is proud to present this exhibition as part of the yearlong celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of Vassar’s Africana Studies Program.
Vassar Conference Draws Scholarly Examinations on Topic of “Passing”
“Quiet as It’s Kept: Passing Subjects, Contested Identities,” a scholarly conference on “passing” held April 5–7 on the Vassar College campus, advanced the dialog about racial, ethnic, and gender identity in substantial ways.
Vassar Conference and Exhibition to Explore “Passing”
As attention is drawn to Vassar’s “scandal” in 1897, two Vassar faculty members have decided it’s time to take a scholarly look at “passing.”
Where We Are and Where We’re Headed
In 2017, Vassar launched its Engaged Pluralism Initiative (EPI). A founder of the project, Associate Prof. of Anthropology Candice Lowe Swift, provides an update on what’s been accomplished so far and what’s ahead for EPI in the coming year.
The Commencement of Vassar’s “First Collegiate” Class
As Vassar’s Class of 2018 prepares to graduate, it’s the 150th anniversary of the College’s first full-fledged Commencement. College Historian Colton Johnson and retired Dean of Students D.B. Brown tell the story of those graduates.
Black Judges and the U.S. Judiciary
Assistant Political Science Prof. Taneisha Means and Ford Scholar Kaitlin Prado ’19 aim to survey black judges across the U.S. to assess their experiences in and perspectives on the judicial system.
The Early Graduates of Vassar College
In September of 1865, 353 young women were admitted as students at Vassar College. Who were they? Where did they come from? How did their lives unfold?
Kaleidoscope: A Celebration of Cultural Diversity at Vassar
Every year, the Office of International Services and the Vassar International Students Association cohost one of the most vibrant events of the fall semester—Kaleidoscope. A celebration of Vassar’s cultural diversity, Kaleidoscope features international cuisine, a dessert contest, a flag ceremony, and a talent show.