In an email sent to the college community on Oct. 20, President Biddy Martin announced that starting in the 2022-2023 academic year, the college will end its legacy admission preference as well as implement an expanded and simplified financial aid program.

CA Shoshanna Peifer ’23 assisted a drunk Smith College student on Morris Pratt quad on Sunday, Sept. 12. Five days later, Peifer was fired. Peifer and her coworkers suspect that her involvement with the student workers’ union played a factor in her firing.

The Association of Amherst Students (AAS) discussed a new program called Amherst Superfan, their internal communication practices, and an upcoming hearing with the Judiciary Council in their most recent meeting on Oct. 18.

ACPD will adopt a comfort dog before the beginning of the spring semester in an attempt to improve mental health and the department’s relationship with students. Though they appreciate the sentiment, students are wary that it does not actually respond to demands surrounding campus safety.

Leaders of the Amherst Asian Alumni Network (AAAN) met with members of the administration on Oct. 6 to discuss the open letter they published calling for A/P/A studies. The administration affirmed their support of pursuing an A/P/A studies major at the college.

The latest installment of the Police Log, from Oct. 12 to Oct. 19, can be found here.

President Martin sent out an email update on the college’s anti-racism work, initially launched by the Anti-Racism Action Plan of August 2020. Students have felt that, though the college has made some tangible changes, the updates seem to rely on unsubstantial committee work and shallow promises.

On Oct. 11, the Association of Amherst Students (AAS) Senate issued a response to a series of hateful emails sent to Black student groups at UMass Amherst. The message criticized the college for its insufficient response to the incident.

In an email sent on Oct. 7, Chair of the Board of Trustees Andrew Nussbaum ’85 updated the college community on the search and selection process for the next president of Amherst College, who will succeed President Biddy Martin after this academic year.

Reneé Alvarez is a Meal Checker at Valentine Dining Hall. She is beloved on campus for her warm and enthusiastic greetings. Alvarez previously worked as a business manager at the University of Missouri, but moved to Amherst with her husband, Professor of Mathematics Ryan Alvarado.

The latest installment of the Police Log, from Oct. 5 to Oct. 13, can be found here.

Genealogist Nicka Smith presented her research into the people enslaved by Israel Trask and their descendants in a talk given on Oct. 4 in Lipton Lecture Hall. The presentation was sponsored by the Steering Committee on the Racial History of Amherst.

Writer and medical ethicist Harriet Washington spoke in Johnson Chapel on Sept. 30 as the inaugural scholar in the college’s Presidential Scholars series. The conversation covered topics including racial health disparities and vaccine hesitancy.

The latest installment of the Police Log, from Sept. 27 to Oct. 4, can be found here.

Lee Spector is a professor of computer science. He received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Oberlin College and attended the University of Maryland, College Park, where he earned a Ph.D. in computer science.

The AAS held its third meeting of the year on Oct. 4, discussing new committee appointments, Budgetary Committee recommendations and the role that the Senate has in addressing controversial incidents across the Five Colleges.

A cold that students have termed the “Amherst flu” has spread across campus. Due to the many symptoms influenza shares with Covid-19, however, students have been wary to seek care from the Health Center out of fear of being quarantined.

Off-campus travel will not be restricted during Fall Break (Oct. 9-12), although the college strongly encourages students to stay on campus. Students expressed excitement over the opportunity for a change in routine and scenery, as well as gratitude for the college’s return testing protocol.