Whitman Stories

Debi (Aucutt) Toews '76 journey to Whitman College began in a hair salon. That's where her mother ran into another mom whose daughter was a sophomore at Whitman. Her mom loved the idea of the small class sizes. For Toews, she loved the friendly approach of then-director of admissions William Tingley, whom she met at a college fair shortly thereafter.

Kate (Pringle) VanDonge ’11 met her future husband in the History of Ancient Greece. But it wasn’t the battle of Troy or the birth of philosophy that ignited young love. It was the wardrobe of a guest lecturer.

Nancy Tavelli and Keith Farrington came to Whitman College in 1977. Farrington took a faculty position in the Department of Sociology. Tavelli was a resident director in “new dorm” — now William O. Douglas Hall.

Opportunities that strengthen the experience for Whitman’s scholar-athletes come because of the generosity of donors. Experiences like when the team got to play at what was then Safeco Field in Seattle. Or when Kitamura saved up to purchase a new pitching machine. Or this year, when the team was able to travel to Tucson, Arizona, and play in the Kino Sports Complex, a former MBL spring training facility.

First-year Whitties Salma Anguiano ’22 and Ameliz Price-Dominguez ’22 tied for first place in the national Letters to an Elected Official Competition, presented by Project Pericles.

Carl E. Peterson Endowed Chair of Sciences and Emeritus Professor of Biology Paul Yancey described the "exciting" new genetic mapping of the hadal snailfish, the first animal from the extreme depths of the ocean to have its genome sequenced. It may reveal clues as to how such organisms survive in hostile environments like the Mariana Trench, the deepest place in the ocean.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Álvaro Santana-Acuña, an expert on world heritage sites, reflects on the symbolic and material damage of the fire at France's Notre Dame cathedral (link in Spanish).

In Professor of Politics Aaron Bobrow-Strain's new book, The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2019), he explores the boundaries of empathy and justice and reveals the human cost of militarizing the U.S.-Mexico border.

Whitman College graduates have been joining the Peace Corps since it was founded in 1961. More than 330 Whitties have joined the agency that works across the globe to create sustainable solutions to a multitude of issues. There are nine Whitman alumni serving in countries around the world — and this summer, new graduates will join their ranks.

To the south and east of Walla Walla are the Blue Mountains, a long anticlinal ridge composed of basalt flows. Unlike the Wallowa Mountains in Oregon, the Blue Mountains are not tall enough to have been glaciated. They consist of upland plateaus cut by deep V-shaped canyons.

Whitman College’s annual Undergraduate Conference is bringing a variety of student-led and produced research to the Whitman community on Tuesday, April 9, 2019. In its 21st year, the conference has grown to a record 69 students presenting 57 posters in Cordiner Hall, three unique sessions of panels and music performances by the Chamber Ensemble, and Jazz Ensembles I and II.

People interested in exploring the history of Whitman College from a student’s perspective have a new avenue for research: This spring, the archivist at the Penrose Library finished a yearlong effort to digitize archives of the Whitman Pioneer and Whitman Wire newspapers.