Voices

Hopkins is a diverse university where an incredible mix of cultures, academic interests and personalities coexist and thrive. Here is the section where you can publish your unique thoughts, ideas and perspectives on life at Hopkins and beyond.

Why I joined The News-Letter, and why you should too

By KELSEY KO
August 30, 2018

In high school, I was an arts kid. Theater, orchestra, choir — you name it, I did it. I also took classes in poetry and did a lot of that. To me, journalism seemed like another creative outlet that I hadn’t explored yet, and like any eager college ...

EDA Incekara/Photography Editor Kelsey Ko right)  joined The News-Letter during her freshman year and is now one of the editors-in-chief.

Our best tips for navigating Brody and MSE

By ARIELLA SHUA | August 28, 2018

You’ve no doubt noticed the interconnected buildings behind the Beach, one older and shorter, the other newer and sleek. They’re empty now but they won’t be for long. These are MSE and Brody. If you’re a typical Hopkins student, they’ll become your second home.

COURTESY OF ROLLIN HU Constructed in 2012, Brody is a popular study spot with group study rooms and a yummy cafe.
COURTESY OF DIVA PAREKH Parekh was able to find a family at Hopkins by leaning on friends for support throughout the years.

Advice for freshmen: embrace failures and new friends

By DIVA PAREKH | August 28, 2018

I’m writing an article called “Advice from a senior to a freshman.” Has it really been that long? It doesn’t feel like that long ago I was walking onto Homewood for the first time, standing in the middle of the Gilman Quad utterly and completely lost. I don’t think I’m ready to leave yet. 

No fun and no humanities? Your Hopkins stereotypes, debunked

By JAE CHOI | August 28, 2018

During my first days at Hopkins, I was incredibly anxious about how I would fare and whether I would be happy. But after forging meaningful relationships with friends from diverse backgrounds and getting a taste of the undergraduate experience, I learned that the negative stereotypes concerning Hopkins are based more on fearful speculation than actual experience. 

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Stand up, be heard: a spotlight on student activism at Hopkins

By EMILY MCDONALD | August 28, 2018

Clarissa Chen, president of Refuel our Future, explained that one thing she learned from her efforts to persuade Hopkins to divest from fossil fuels is the unique ability of Hopkins students to sway the University. She reminded future student activists to recognize and use this. 

COURTESY OF CLARISSA CHEN

Why I joined The News-Letter, and why you should too

By MORGAN OME | August 28, 2018

People often say that love makes you do crazy things. During the winter break of my freshman year — still sad about the end of my first high school relationship — those crazy things included watching clips of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind on loop, crying in bed for hours and rereading old messages late at night. Needless to say, I was not the most fun person to be around. 

Supergirl continues to deserve a better love life

By CATHERINE PALMER | May 3, 2018

Around this time last year, I wrote about how Supergirl had never given Kara Danvers (Melissa Benoist) a good romantic storyline. This season, she has fortunately not been forced into another cringey relationship, but that’s only because she’s been hung up on her most recent ex, Mon-El (Chris Wood), who never deserved her in the first place.

 COURTESY OF VAGUEONTHEHOW/ CC BY-SA 2.0 Mellisa Benoistst’s Kara Danvers is entitled to a fulfilling love life.
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Grappling with what it means to be an activist

By GILLIAN LELCHUK and JACOB TOOK | April 30, 2018

As a queer person, I feel like I have an obligation to be an activist, but I’ve struggled with what that means for me. Is this column activism? Is writing a short story with a queer protagonist activism? Is educating my cisgender heterosexual peers about LGBTQ issues activism?

The history behind the superhero movie genre

By ARIELLA SHUA | April 26, 2018

I’ve always had a vague interest in comic books but could never get into the superhero genre at all — until I began watching the movies that is. But superhero movies have been around for a while, and they’ve never been as popular as they are now. What caused the change?

Appreciating the beauty of natural phenomena

By BESSIE LIU | April 26, 2018

I’ve always loved both science and writing. During my senior year of high school, as I wrote my college essays, I tried to find a way to weave the two together into a feasible future for myself: to explain why I love poems that overflow with biological imagery; to try to articulate the parallels I saw in the processes of biology and creating literature. And then when I read the book The Lives of a Cell by Lewis Thomas, I felt like all my efforts were put to shame. 

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Taking the time to press pause and reflect this spring

By MORGAN OME | April 30, 2018

I’m grateful that junior year is coming to a close, thankful to be out of the mindset that every week is hell week and every day is a poor day. There is no sugarcoating reality: It’s grueling to be a college student, no matter how much you love your major or how much you enjoy studying.