Step Up week, the University’s effort to encourage students to give back to Hopkins both now and after graduation, kicked off on Sunday. The weeklong series of events is being coordinated by JHU Step Up, the student-run group that tries to draw attention on campus to the impact of institutional philanthropy by alumni, parents, students, and other members of the Hopkins community.
A panel on Iran and al-Qaida drew a standing-room only crowd to Charles Commons on Wednesday evening. Political Science Professor Steven David was the moderator for the event, which was sponsored by the Foreign Affairs Symposium (FAS), the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) Executive Council and the Department of Military Science.
Last night, Peter Engel, a Hopkins alumnus and deputy commissioner for Baltimore Housing, discussed housing issues within the city and the need for affordable housing in a presentation to the College Democrats and other interested students. He analyzed how the city’s evolution and population changes have led to vacant housing and gentrification issues.
This past weekend Levering Hall played host to JohnCon 2014, adding yet another installation to the long history of the annual gaming convention. In response to the reductions in content and participation in recent years, the JohnCon organizers sought to turn the event around by increasing sponsorship, publicity and diversity of activities.
More than 699 people have signed a petition to amend the University’s Sexual Violence policy to make it more comprehensive in its definition of sexual violence.
On April 3, the Oversight Action and Awareness Committee (OAAC) launched a public Facebook page to further its mission of increasing transparency and accountability among student-run organizations on campus. The group is categorized as a community organization, though it is not an official campus group because its application to the Student Government Association (SGA) was not submitted until a day after deadline. Director of Student Activities Robert Turning confirmed that the application was received on March 2 at 3:49 p.m.
As of last week, the Hopkins Wading Team secured its first official corporate sponsorship.
Before voting for the Student Government Association (SGA) Executive Board begins on Friday, Hopkins clubs classified as Advocacy and Awareness groups have banded together to form the Advocacy and Awareness Alliance, which vowed to endorse certain candidates who promise to meet the alliance’s demands while in office.
Sarah Turner, a professor of economics at the University of Virginia, spoke in Hodson Hall on March 27 as part of the JHU Social Policy Seminar Series. The talk, which was sponsored by the School of Public Health’s Institute for Health and Social Policy, delved into the details of Turner’s recent research into the behavior of low-income but high-achieving students pursuing higher education.
Vice Provost for Student Affairs Kevin Shollenberger emailed the University community on March 27 to announce that Susan Boswell, dean of student life, will be stepping down to take on a new role as his special advisor on July 1. Terry Martinez, the interim dean of students at Columbia University, will take over as the new dean of student life.
Decision day arrived on Friday for the 22,281 high school students who applied regular decision to Hopkins. Out of that large pool of applicants, 3,070 students were accepted into the Class of 2018.
On Wednesday, the Committee for Student Elections (CSE) hosted a debate for candidates running for Student Government Association (SGA) executive board positions. Two tickets of candidates are running, in addition to one independent candidate contending for treasurer.
Hundreds of students gathered in Shriver Hall on Tuesday night for this year’s Presidential Event, a debate between General Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA and NSA, and David Cole, Georgetown professor of constitutional law. The debate was presented by the Foreign Affairs Symposium (FAS) and moderated by Chief White House Correspondent for CBS News Major Garrett.
Operating as an advertising company called AdHop Creative, students in an advertising and marketing communications course launched a three week advertising campaign for web-based company MindSumo on March 24 on the Homewood campus.
Hopkins hosted the annual B’more Proud LGBTQIA Leadership Summit this past Saturday in the Glass Pavilion. Several hundred people attended the conference, which was themed “Breaking Boundaries: The Intersection of our Identities.” Those who came for the event included both students and visitors from the surrounding area. The event featured two keynote speakers, Julia Serano and Zach Wahls, who spoke about their personal experiences combating prejudice.
Former United States Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton spoke to members of the Hopkins community in Shriver Hall on March 13 as a part of this spring’s Foreign Affairs Symposium (FAS) speakers series. Bolton, who represented the U.S. at the U.N. from 2005 to 2006, spent the majority of his speech denouncing President Obama’s foreign policy platform and criticizing the president for not placing national security at the top of his priority list.
On Wednesday, March 26, the Foreign Affairs Symposium (FAS) hosted philosopher, political commentator and activist Cornel West in Shriver Hall.
Student members of Voice for Choice (VFC) traveled to Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to join thousands of activists from all over the country as they protested the Hobby Lobby contraception case before the Supreme Court this week. The group attended the rally with Planned Parenthood, whose Towson office assisted the group in organizing their trip.
On Tuesday, the University named YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki as this year’s commencement speaker. Wojcicki has been named among Fortune’s “50 Most Powerful Women in Business,” Forbes’ “100 Most Powerful Women,” and Vanity Fair’s 50 “leading innovators [that] shake the foundations of their industries,” according to an article by The Hub. Prior to becoming CEO at YouTube, she served as senior vice president of advertising and commerce at Google after joining the company as its first marketing manager in 1999.
The first ever Sophomore Formal was held on March 13 at the National Aquarium at the Inner Harbor. The Student Government Association (SGA) provided transportation to and from the venue along with catered finger foods and a DJ.
