Whitman Stories

In a statement to the Whitman College community on Feb. 22, 2021, Kathleen M. Murray, the college’s 14th president, announced her plans to retire at the end of the 2021-2022 school year.

A recently published study by psychology professor Thomas Armstrong, a Cambridge researcher and several Whitties examines disgust’s resistance to exposure therapy.

Whitman’s annual student-run Power & Privilege Symposium, which provides opportunities for the Whitman community to discuss forms of structural oppression, opened with a keynote address and discussion led by Nigerian-American writer and photographer Teju Cole.

New York Times columnist Ron Lieber references Whitman's financial aid policy in favorable terms in an interview with NPR about his new book, “The Price You Pay for College.”

The YouTube channel, Story Time With Whitman College, features Whitman students reading aloud a variety of children's books in English and Spanish. Story Time program leader, Claire Weissman '23, explains that the project aims to continue the essential practice of reading with the youngest members of the community, especially during the pandemic. The more than 40 story time videos promote diversity, accceptance and the celebration of culture through stories.

New York Times columnist Ron Lieber discusses his new book, The Price You Pay for College, in an interview with the podcost Motley Fool Answers. He praises Whitman's policy of providing financial aid guarantees to prospective students before they even apply.

Through a partnership with the Walla Walla YWCA, Malia Lewis has been hired as the new Sexual Assault Victim’s Advocate (SAVA) for Whitman College, Walla Walla Community College and Walla Walla University.

Jackson joined other leading constitutional scholars and lawyers in arguing that former President Donald Trump’s claim that he is shielded by the First Amendment is “legally frivolous” and should not stop the Senate from convicting him.

Associate Professor of Art History and Visual Culture Studies and Garrett Fellow Lisa Uddin reflects on the artwork by Favianna Rodriguez that was chosen to represent Whitman College’s 2020-2021 Academic Theme. Rodriguez is a social justice worker, a cultural organizer and a visual artist.

With Kamala Harris being sworn in as the country's first female vice president, Associate Professor of Psychology Erin Pahlke explains how kids see sexism and racism in politics, and how to teach them to understand discrimination.

In January 2021, Whitman students returned to campus with excitement and strict safety protocols.

Prior to the 2020 election, the U.S. faced not only a pandemic, but a shortage of poll workers. Power the Polls worked with nonprofits and businesses to encourage people to be poll workers. Over 700,000 people stepped up to meet that challenge. One of those thousands was Whitman alum and actor Kaliswa Brewster ’05. Her experience as a poll worker would prove just how essential and powerful poll workers are on election day.