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September 18, 2025 September 18, 2025 | Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896

News & Features

SNF Agora and CSC host event discussing the significance of presidential pardons

By MYRA SAEED | October 22, 2024

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.

COURTESY OF EESHA BELLAD Trejo spoke about how local journalists are the primary victims of assassinations in Mexico.

SNF Agora hosts Guillermo Trejo in presentation of violence against journalists in Mexico

By EESHA BELLAD | October 12, 2024

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.

RUI DO ROSARIO / DESIGN & LAYOUT EDITOR The results of a survey on student responses to the MSE closure by The News-Letter showed general student dissatisfaction.

N-L survey highlights student backlash to the closure of MSE

By LANA SWINDLE | October 10, 2024

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. 

COURTESY OF YASMINA METTEWA  The Hopkins Lecture Series, formed from the merger of the Milton S. Eisenhower Symposium and the Foreign Affairs Symposium, organizes speaker events on the Homewood Campus.

The Hopkins Lecture Series fosters dialogue on campus through guest speakers

By SAMHI BOPPANA | October 10, 2024

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.

COURTESY OF PEYTON MIKOLAYEK Mikolayek shares her experience being a social media influencer, while also a student at Hopkins.

Humans of Hopkins: Peyton Mikolayek

By JOHN CINTRON | October 10, 2024

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.

COURTESY OF MYRA SAEED Shane discusses his new book Flee North with audience at the Homewood Museum.

Book Talk Highlights the Underground Railroad’s Forgotten Hero

By MYRA SAEED | October 9, 2024

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. 

COURTESY OF RILEY STRAIT Yang and Kinzinger discuss the role of the two-party system in modern day politics.

SNF Agora Institute hosts Andrew Yang and Adam Kinzinger in a discussion of America's two-party system

By RILEY STRAIT | October 7, 2024

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. 

COURTESY OF J.D. TOVAR Tovar highlights his research on pi-conjugated systems and shares how his teaching style connects organic concepts to its applications and research.  

Humans of Hopkins: J.D. Tovar

By JESSICA HONG | October 1, 2024

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.

COURTESY OF BERNADETTE KIM Student line up at the Beach to register to vote and fill forms for absentee ballots. 

Hopkins encourages civic participation at National Voter Registration Day

By BERNADETTE KIM | September 25, 2024

On Sept. 17, students gathered at the Beach for National Voter Registration Day, an annual event dedicated to encouraging civic participation. Hosted by Hopkins Votes and the Center for Social Concern (CSC), the event aimed to provide students with resources to register to vote and prepare for the upcoming election cycle.

SAMHI BOPPANA / CO-EDITOR IN CHIEF The data released by the University on the racial and ethnic makeup of the incoming class of first-year undergraduates in 2024 showed a drop in the percentage of Black, Hispanic and under-represented groups. 

University announces drop in percentage of students from underrepresented groups in the Class of 2028

By LEO QI and MAYA BRITTO | September 21, 2024

The University has released data on the socioeconomic, racial and ethnic backgrounds of the class of 2028, marking the first admissions cycle since the Supreme Court's 2023 decision to restrict race-conscious admissions. While the academic qualifications of the new class remain consistent with previous years, the percentage of students from underrepresented racial groups has declined sharply from the data for incoming students in fall of 2023.

JH Accountability Board faces backlash from community during virtual meeting

By LANA SWINDLE | September 20, 2024

On Saturday, Sept. 14, the Johns Hopkins University Police Accountability Board (JH Accountability Board) hosted an open virtual meeting to discuss the policies and deployment of the Johns Hopkins Police Department (JHPD). The JH Accountability Board is responsible for sharing community feedback with JHPD leadership; reviewing JHPD metrics involving crime; and assessing departmental policies, procedures and training to provide recommendations for improvement.

An event by Hopkins Hillel hosting speaker Arky Staiman was met by a protest outside the building. 

Protestors assemble outside Hillel event featuring Arky Staiman

By SAMHI BOPPANA | September 19, 2024

On Sept. 15, Hopkins Hillel hosted a talk at the the Smokler Center for Jewish Life at the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Building with speaker Aaron “Arky” Staiman, an American who serves in the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) military reserve as part of the Yasar, a body retrieval unit. 

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