Top "Back to School" News at Whitman College

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Top “Back to School” News at Whitman College

MOVE-IN DAY – Thursday, Aug 26 – 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

WHAT: More than 400 first-year students, most with help from their families, will move into their new home-away-from-home.

WHERE: Residence halls all over campus.

VISUALS: Students and families lugging college-life “essentials”: guitars, stuffed animals, mini-fridges, bedding, and plenty more.

BEST NEW COURSE TITLE

WHAT: “Physics for Future Presidents” – otherwise known as Physics 101A.

The course explores a range of physical principles necessary to understand contemporary science and technology issues, such as energy and power, nuclear reactions and radiation, climate change, optics, quantum physics, and relativity. While utilizing concepts of modern physics, the focus will be on addressing real world problems using basic facts and simple mathematical reasoning. Potential topics for the course include alternative energy sources, satellite imaging, nuclear proliferation, and cell phone technology.

WHO: Sarah Nichols, assistant professor of physics.

“Physics is life. You use it every day to drive your car, turn on your computer and talk on your cell phone. I am hoping that students can realize this,” said Prof. Nichols. An introductory class catered to non-science majors, Physics for Future Presidents serves as a way to explore the presence of physics in our everyday lives, as well as the responsibility of understanding its bigger implications in the world around us.

MOST MOVE-IN, 20 HEAD OUT TO EXPLORE THE WEST

WHAT: Whitman’s unique, biannual Semester in the West program, an academic exploration of the American West through an interdisciplinary lens focused on public land conservation. The program’s objective is to understand the West in its many dimensions, including its diverse ecosystems and social and political communities, and how these aspects of are reflected in environmental writing and public policy.

WHO: Phil Brick, professor of political science, 20 students and a crew of professors and support staff.

VISUALS: Pre-trip organization and orientation begins Thursday, Aug. 26, at Whitman’s Johnston Wilderness Campus up Mill Creek. Contact wardwers@whitman.edu for details or to visit the pre-trip camp.

HARPER JOY THEATRE CONSTRUCTION – $7.4 MILLION RENOVATION

WHAT: The Harper Joy Theatre is under construction, a project that will expand and renovate the facility that serves both as a teaching/learning venue for students and a staple of cultural opportunity for Walla Walla Valley residents. Read more about it and see architectural renderings here.

VISUALS: It’s a hard hat area. Exterior shots are available at this time.