Tuesday, May 28, 2024

Feature by: Geology Department

Earlier this month, the Whitman College Geology Department made a strong appearance at the 2024 Joint Cordilleran and Rocky Mountain Section Meeting hosted by the Geological Society of America (GSA) in Spokane.

Seventeen Whitman Geology majors attended the conference, which was sandwiched between the end of finals and graduation. Eleven of those students presented posters in an undergraduate research symposium on Thursday afternoon.

Arlo Smith ’24, Harshvardhan Chopra ’24, Coden Stark ’24, Morgan Sharp ’24, Cameryn Greenough ’24 and Sarah Hoffman ’24 presented posters based on their senior theses. Ekaterina Vieialtsina ’26, McKenna McShane ’26, Rebecca Patterson ’25, Aneesah Sands ’26 and Mehrimo Bakhtalieva ’25 presented posters based on independent studies that they worked on during the previous year.

Whitman Geology professors Lyman Persico, Nick Bader and Pat Spencer and Geology Technician Katie Krause attended the conference as well. Persico gave a talk on the causes and impacts of the 2022 extreme flooding in Yellowstone National Park. Throughout the conference, students delved into a variety of fascinating topical sessions, exploring everything from carbon sequestration to exceptional floods to the fiery world of Cascades volcanism.

(More photos from the conference are available on Instagram.)

The Whitman men’s golf team recently finished 17th in the nation at the NCAA Division III National Championship. Mason Remington ’27, concluded the season with a PING/GCAA All-Region selection and was also named to the GCAA All-Freshman Team made up only of seven individuals. 

The Northwest Conference (NWC) recently announced postseason honors. Brian Kitamura, Head Baseball Coach & Lecturer of Sport Studies, was named NWC Coach of the Year. Julien Hernandez ’24 received Pitcher of the Year honors for the second straight season. In addition, Halen Otte ’26, Jack Bickerton ’25, Brandon Ting ’25, Jack Hostetler ’25 and Hernandez were named to the first team; Garrett Runyan ’24 and Mateus Conaway ’24 were named to the second team; and Beck Maguire ’25 received honorable mention.

Park Street will be closed between Cordiner Hall and Sherwood Athletic Center today through Monday, June 3 for some infrastructure upgrades. (Illustration attached.)

As a reminder, a crane is being used on campus this week to lift equipment to the roof of the Hall of Science. A few parking spaces will be temporarily available and cones will be set up around the crane for safety. (Illustration attached.)

The Climbing Center, now operating on summer hours, is open to Whitman faculty, staff and students to climb at no charge. Guests of the Whitman community are also welcome and will pay an entrance fee.

The Listeners Project: Queremos Escucharte will partner with the Walla Walla Public Library for a conversation with artist, writer and adventurer Tessa Hulls on Wednesday, May 29. Hulls will talk about “Feeding Ghosts,” an illustrated memoir of intergenerational and immigrant trauma. A reception with light refreshments will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the library’s main reading room, followed by Hulls’ talk at 6:45 p.m. Spanish interpretation will be available. Questions? Email tlpwallawalla@gmail.com. The Listeners Project: Queremos Escucharte is a community collaboration between several local organizations, including the Whitman College and Northwest Archives.

At the recent Staff Recognition Breakfast, this year’s recipients of the Janice Abraham Award were announced: Associate Director of Annual Giving Claire Evans (pictured, left) and Boiler Technician/Plumber Mike Willard (pictured, right). The annual award honors and celebrates staff who go above and beyond job expectations.

The Whitman College calendar is quiet this week. If you are looking for something to do in the community, explore the Visit Walla Walla calendar of events.

Would you like to share an event with campus? Submit the information to the Events Calendar.

“Whitman Today” is produced by the Office of Communications and is emailed Monday through Friday to Whitman College staff, faculty and students.

All submissions are welcome! If you have accomplishments to celebrate, an event to publicize or other content to share with the Whitman community, email whitmantoday@whitman.edu. Submissions of 125 words or less are due by noon for the following day’s newsletter. Submissions may be edited and/or held for a later date according to space and editorial needs. Your submission also authorizes use on Whitman's social media unless otherwise specified.

Previous issues of Whitman Today are archived on our website.

Find us on social media: @whitmancollege