Campus News
Safe Travels and Happy Thanksgiving
November 25, 2015
Marvin Krislov
I want to thank the students, faculty, staff, and local residents who attended the annual Oberlin Town and College Thanksgiving and Multi-faith Gathering this past Sunday evening, as well as the sponsors of the potluck—the Interfaith Student Council, Oberlin Area Cooperating Ministries, and the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life—for such a thought-provoking and life-affirming event.
The event was dedicated to the memory of Tamir Rice, who was killed one year ago. I was very moved by the program, which honored Tamir’s life and also honored the contributions to the Oberlin community—town and gown—of Linda and John Gates.
In addition to the meal, the program included music by Quartet M and Daniel Spearman's jazz group, as well as a poem by Meeko Israel.
As many speakers reminded us, even in hard times we can still give thanks and be grateful for the positive things in our lives and communities. I know I am deeply grateful to be part of a community with such a deep commitment to working for social justice and educational and artistic excellence.
We’ve been having many events and discussions about race and equity on campus this semester and about the kind of world we want. I know we’ll be having many more.
I wish you all safe travels and a Happy Thanksgiving.
Tags:
You may also like…
Thank you, Oberlin
June 22, 2017
It is hard to believe this will be my final "President’s Desk" column. But in August, I will become president of Pace University in New York. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as your president.
Remembering Jonathan Demme
May 5, 2017
I’ve been thinking a lot about Oberlin parents and families since I received the sad news last week that Jonathan Demme, the brilliant film director, had passed away. Although Oberlin isn’t his alma mater, Jonathan really came to appreciate the College, Conservatory, and our community. His visits always seemed to energize him, and he became a stalwart supporter of our cinema studies program and the Apollo Outreach Initiative, which offers filmmaking classes to local school kids.
Response to Proposed Federal Budget Cuts
March 31, 2017
The budget proposals being put forward by the Trump administration are deeply troubling in many ways for our society and for American higher education, especially for liberal arts institutions such as Oberlin. The proposed cuts in discretionary spending are contrary to our values of access and inclusion, and our commitment to scientific research, the arts, and the humanities.
