Election Week Updates and Resources

To: The Wellesley College Community
From: President Paula A. Johnson
Re: Election Week Updates and Resources
Date: October 31, 2020

Tuesday’s election will be a historic event—not only because for the first time a woman of color is included on a major party ticket, but because it is taking place in the midst of an ongoing pandemic. I am excited by the energy we have already seen in terms of early voting. As of October 29, early voting in the 2020 election had already reached 61.7 percent of 2016’s total turnout. This is a good sign for democracy.

If you haven’t already voted, please make sure that you do. I still remember my mother casting her vote for Rep. Shirley Chisholm when I was growing up in Brooklyn. Rep. Chisholm, who became the first Black woman in Congress and went on to run for president, was my hero, and she showed me there was nothing that I, as a Black woman, couldn’t do. I am thrilled that this year, a Black and Indian woman, Sen. Kamala Harris, is on the ballot. Regardless of the outcome of the election, her candidacy is an important step forward.

We might not know the results of the election for several days, if not weeks, as election officials do the hard work to make sure that every vote is counted. We do know that election night, and the days that follow, may inspire a range of reactions and emotions, and we want to support each other and create ways to come together—to reflect, to listen, and to share in the strength and sustenance community provides. In that spirit, I want to inform you about some of the election-related activities and support we will have available next week, as well as some health and safety guidance.

Faculty, staff, and the Division of Student Life have planned a number of events to help students study and learn from the election as well as programs that encourage them to come together to mark this moment. These include:

• November 2 through November 9: The Archives and Special Collections team, together with the Office of the Provost and faculty from a number of departments, is inviting students to create and submit writing, photography, film, and other projects that will ultimately be shared, displayed, and archived at Wellesley to mark this historic moment.

• November 3: The Institute for Mathematics and Democracy will host a series of lectures and discussions from 5 to 8 p.m. on voting methods, the electoral college, apportionment, gerrymandering, and math and politics.

• November 4: The art department is planning to open its Jewett exhibition spaces and the Pendleton West 203 studio so that students can visit and express themselves by creating ensemble displays. On-campus community members do not need to be enrolled in a studio art course to participate.

• November 4: As part of the Wellesley College 2020 Election Speaker Series and #WellesleyVotes, the political science department will host an Election Wrap-Up panel featuring Danilo Contreras, assistant professor of political science, Chipo Dendere, assistant professor of Africana studies, Brenna Greer, associate professor of history, and Laura Grattan, Jane Bishop ’51 Associate Professor of Political Science, moderated by Maneesh Arora, assistant professor of political science.

• November 10: Pilar Birriel ’22, Jenn Horkovich ’22, and Avery Lumeng ’21 will talk about their experiences working on campaigns during this election cycle in a panel discussion moderated by Maneesh Arora.

• November 18: The Project on Public Leadership and Action (PPLA) will host a conversation with Hahrie Han, a former political science professor at Wellesley and currently the inaugural director of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Agora Institute and faculty director of the P3 Research Lab at Johns Hopkins University, and Laura Grattan, Jane Bishop ’51 Associate Professor of Political Science at Wellesley, about building grassroots power in the aftermath of the 2020 election.

• November 19: The College will host a post-election conversation with Jocelyn Benson ’99, Michigan’s secretary of state, Hakeem Jefferson, assistant professor of political science at Stanford University, and Jennifer Chudy, Knafel Assistant Professor of Social Sciences and assistant professor of political science at Wellesley.

• For more information about many of these events, please visit the #WellesleyVotes events page.

We will be expanding student resources during election week in the following ways:

• November 3, Election Night:

  • The Committee for Public and Legislative Awareness (CPLA) is planning four in-person events, which will be residentially based, one per neighborhood. CPLA will also host a virtual watch party and political trivia event from 7 to 10 p.m.

  • The Office of Intercultural Education’s LGBTQ+ Programs and Services will host a first-year chat with Tazrean Hossain ’24 from 2 to 5 p.m. on the fourth floor of Billings. To RSVP, please email Tazrean Hossain.

• In the days following the election, a number of offices will provide expanded virtual office hours and appointments to support all students:

  • All class deans will have expanded office hours November 4 to 6.

  • The Slater International Center will host a virtual post-election community time gathering from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

  • Intercultural advisors will have extended office hours.

  • The Stone Center will have additional appointments available for students, as well as group workshops.

    • Robin Cook-Nobles and Taylor Stewart will be holding a space for students of African descent on November 4 from 3 to 4:30 p.m. To register, please email Robin Cook-Nobles or Taylor Stewart.

    • Jan Park and Jessica Long will hold a space for all students to process the election on November 5 from 9 to 10 a.m.

  • College chaplains in the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life will offer extended pastoral care and counseling hours on November 4 and 5.

• The Office of Intercultural Education will be hosting the following gatherings on November 4:

  • Harambee House Virtual Coffee Hour from 2 to 3 p.m. For more information, please email Ines Maturana Sendoya.

  • The Latinx Cafecito, reserved for Latinx students, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. For more information, please email Mared Alicea-Westort.

  • LGBTQ+ Programs and Services will host Craft & Self-Care with Landon, reserved for trans students, from 2 to 4 p.m. on the fourth floor of Billings. To RSVP, please email Madeline Casolari ’21.

  • LGBTQ+ Programs and Services will also host Game Night and Conversations with Breanna, from 5 to 7 p.m. on the fourth floor of Billings. To RSVP, please email Breanna White ’22.

• On-campus students can register to take part in PERA’s in-person pop-up group fitness classes on November 4: 

  • Full Body Fitness, Severance Green, 10 a.m., maximum of 24 students

  • Outdoor Spin, West End of the KSC, 1:15 p.m., maximum of 10 students

  • Core Cardio, Severance Green, 3:30 p.m., maximum of 24 students

We understand that on Election Day and afterward many in our community may be compelled to come together to process the news, celebrate, or protest. With that in mind, I’d like to remind you of the health and safety guidelines our community must continue to adhere to in the days ahead:

• We expect students on campus to wear masks and maintain physical distancing throughout election night and in the days following.

• Current limits on gatherings on campus inside (10 persons) and outside (25 persons) will remain in effect. The travel and off-campus restrictions we have implemented help keep our community safe, and it is essential that we uphold them in order to continue to have in-person instruction and on-campus living. It is critical that we continue to follow the public health guidelines the College has put in place.

• Students who wish to protest may do so on campus or in the Town of Wellesley, provided that they are masked and following physical distancing guidelines. Travel to Boston remains prohibited.

• On election night and in the days following, Campus Police will increase its presence at the road entrances to campus as well as at key pedestrian entrances. These measures are designed to keep our community safe and help ensure that our campus remains closed to visitors. We encourage everyone, including faculty, staff and students, to keep your Wellesley OneCards with you so that Campus Police can easily identify you as a community member.

Whatever the results of the election may be, we must all remember that we are stronger when we come together, and when we embrace the hope, encouragement, and possibility that community can offer. In addition to the various events and initiatives happening on campus, we are planning a virtual gathering on Saturday, November 7, for a moment of reflection. Details will be forthcoming.

I want to close with some words of wisdom and encouragement that Massachusetts State Rep. Liz Miranda ’02 shared during a recent #WellesleyVotes conversation. When asked why it’s important to vote, she said, “Your vote is your love and your power.” I urge all of us to act on her words, and to remember that when we raise our voices and use our votes—our love and our power—there’s nothing we can’t do.