Tuesday, December 9, 2025
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Welty Answers Your Questions
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By Michelle Shin ’23, Prevention Specialist
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As finals approach, the Welty Health and Counseling Center would like to answer some common questions that students tend to ask this time of the semester.
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Can Welty help me deal with the stress of finals season?
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- Welty physical and mental health care support continues normally through the end of finals week.
- Welty will host a Destress Fest event for students on Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Reid Campus Center Young Ballroom. (Flyer attached.)
- If you need a study break, Uwill offers various free videos that you can watch on your own schedule, including Pilates, stretching and meditation.
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Will the clinic be closed during break?
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- Nurse triage (during standard business hours) and urgent walk-in counseling (at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.) will be available through Tuesday, Dec. 23, and will resume on Monday, Jan. 5.
- Normal scheduling for ongoing counseling will resume after break on Tuesday, Jan. 20.
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How can I get help when the clinic is not open?
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- Go to any urgent care or the emergency room for immediate medical needs.
- For mental health care, call the urgent counseling line at 509-527-5588, access teletherapy through Uwill or use any of the text lines found on our website.
- A nurse hotline can be found on the back of insurance cards.
- The Sexual Assault Victim Advocate will be available during regular hours through finals week and by calling 509-876-7075 during break. On Mondays and after hours, students can also access the YWCA Crisis Line at 509-529-9922.
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Are there separate health and counseling centers at Welty?
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- Health and counseling services used to be separate, but we are now a combined clinic under the name “Welty Health and Counseling Center.” We aim to offer more holistic, integrated care to address the physical, mental and emotional care that students need.
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Physics Professor Publishes Study in Scientific Reports
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Andrés Aragoneses, the Benjamin Brown Associate Professor of Physics, recently published a study titled “Emergent Multiscale Dynamics in Photonic Neurons With Dual Feedback” in Scientific Reports. The study reveals how multiple timescales interact cooperatively to generate complex, emergent behavior in photonic neurons—laser-based systems that mimic the spiking dynamics of biological neurons but operate a million times faster. The work shows that the interplay of fast, shallow peaks and slower, deeper spikes creates rich dynamical patterns that neither scale produces on its own. Using high-resolution time-series measurements and an ordinal-pattern analysis of inter-spike intervals, the study uncovers strong cross-scale correlations, robust temporal structure and distinct families of events whose interactions give rise to unique global regimes. A universal symmetry-mapping framework (“Φ-space”) visualizes these behaviors and highlights how they deviate from randomness. These findings position photonic neurons as powerful platforms for exploring universal principles of multiscale dynamics, with implications for neuromorphic computing and the broader study of complex nonlinear systems.
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Talk & Exhibition by Indigenous Kichwa Leader
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The Politics Department will host a virtual public talk with Indigenous Kichwa leader Zoila Castillo on Tuesday, Dec. 9, at 2:30 p.m. in Reid Campus Center, Room G02. In a talk titled “Weaving the Anti-Extractive Struggle in the Amazon,” Castillo will focus on her lifelong defense of Indigenous land against the expansion of oil and mining industries in the Amazon rainforest. (Flyer attached.)
In connection with the talk, an exhibition of Castillo’s art in clay, seeds and beads will be displayed in Stevens Gallery in Reid Campus Center, beginning with an opening reception on Thursday, Dec. 11, from 5–7 p.m.
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Share Your Feedback With The Princeton Review
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Whitman students are invited to complete The Princeton Review survey to share their unique perspective and experiences about academics, social activities, residence life, food and more. These anonymous insights help guide future college-bound students and will be featured in The Princeton Review’s resources. Everyone who completes the survey will be entered for a chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card!
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Dance Concert at Harper Joy Theatre
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The Harper Joy Theatre season continues with “Feeling Forward: A Dance Concert” with multiple performances from Thursday, Dec. 11, through Sunday, Dec. 14. The event will feature three original choreographic works created by Associate Professor of Dance Renée Archibald, Senior Lecturer of Dance Peter de Grasse, Associate Professor of Art History and Paul Garrett Fellow Lisa Uddin, and guest artist Kara Mack in collaboration with their students. Tickets—free for Whitman students—are available through the box office. (Flyer attached.)
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Wilderness First Aid Courses Next Semester
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The Outdoor Program will host several wilderness first aid courses in the spring semester. (Flyer attached.)
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- Jan. 9–18: Wilderness First Responder
- Feb. 14–15: Wilderness First Aid
- Feb. 14–16: Wilderness First Responder Recertification
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Courses are open to students, staff, faculty and community members. Students should sign up through the normal course enrollment process. Community folks should contact Lish Gutierrez at rileyab@whitman.edu to register. More information is available online.
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The Whitman College and Northwest Archives will host “Archives After Hours” today, Tuesday, Dec. 9, from 4:30–6 p.m. at Penrose Library. Discover historic snow and winter photographs from Walla Walla, a beautifully illustrated 1916 edition of the Snow Queen, pop-up books depicting winter scenes and more.
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Sherwood Athletic Center, Room 106
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Reid Campus Center, Room G02
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Penrose Library, Archives Classroom
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Prentiss Hall, Great Hall
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Would you like to share an event with campus? Submit the information to the Events Calendar.
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Whitman Today is emailed to Whitman College staff, faculty and students each weekday during the academic year and twice a week during breaks. An archive of previous issues is available online.
All submissions are welcome! If you have accomplishments to celebrate, an event to publicize or other Whitman content to share, email whitmantoday@whitman.edu. Submissions of 125 words or less are due by noon on the business day prior to publication. 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.
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