In her own words, President Alison Byerly has the “equivalent of two bachelor’s degrees”—eight years at the college has meant seeing two entirely different student bodies rotate through. As president, Byerly led the largest-ever capital campaign, oversaw the largest-ever capital project and saw the college’s endowment crest $1 billion. She also spearheaded initiatives to grow […]
To the Lafayette community, This past year was dense with history. We endured—and are enduring—a global pandemic. We witnessed a historical battle for the presidency, one whose echoes will be heard on campus and in the world for years to come. We saw an eruption of activism and protest against forces of oppression, spurred by […]
Basit Balogun ’21 keeps odd hours. It’s not uncommon to find him working on a project at 4 a.m. or taking calls long before the sun rises. His phone is constantly buzzing. When he walks on campus, he rarely makes it more than a few feet before stopping to chat with someone. None of this […]
The year was 1998—the year of the Lafayette Renaissance. Yolanda Wisher ’98 had just arrived with a rental van full of Philadelphia poets she met while spending a semester in the city. They gathered in the black box theater in the Williams Center for the Arts, where couches and coffee tables had been dragged in […]
There has been no word from the Student Government Association (SGA) as of Thursday morning on the current status of the impeachment proceedings against President Mary Zimmerman ’21, which were announced in an Instagram post more than two weeks ago. None of the 12 members of the executive board responded to an official request for […]
The Class of 2021 will be having an in-person commencement ceremony this spring, provided Pennsylvania state restrictions allow for large outdoor events at the time. This is one of the first steps as the college looks to return to normalcy next fall, with all in-person classes and a typical offering of extracurricular activities. The 186th […]
Martin Ssessanga ’21 was leaving for soccer practice on a Saturday afternoon when he noticed something shocking in his kitchen: murky brown water rising out of his sink and spilling out onto the floor. Ssessanga and his roommate Hale Lombard ’23 tried turning on the garbage disposal to bring the water level down. But the […]
After 39 years, it’s finally time to replace the Markle parking deck. The structure is planned to be torn down and rebuilt starting around the end of this year, with some new additions to give first-time visitors a better first impression of the college. The deck will boast 228 new parking spaces, many of which […]
The Portlock Black Cultural Center is being demolished for the second time in its history, this time to make way for another new dormitory on McCartney Street. The Center will be given over $1 million worth of renovations and will now be adjacent to the president’s house, moving from its old location at the corner […]
Some student organizers just want to be students—and they are asking the college to help them do just that. Recently, many social justice organizations on campus have called for increased administrative support in matters of diversity, equity and inclusion to reduce the strain on students. And now, with a new presidential administration starting this summer, […]
The search for Lafayette’s next president is well underway and is expected to finish in time for a smooth transition this summer, according to Chair of the Board of Trustees Robert Sell ’84. President Alison Byerly announced her intentions to step down in a memo to the community last October, stating that she would end […]
To the Lafayette Community: This fall was the first semester in a very long time that The Lafayette went without printing. Through the devotion of the editorial board and our staff, we were able to chronicle the courage and chaos of the semester away online. As well as this went, I am pleased to announce […]
Student activists are calling on the college to assume a greater role in combatting sexual violence on campus. In an open letter delivered to the administration and the Board of Trustees this morning, members of Pards Against Sexual Assault (PASA) demanded that the college create a comprehensive strategic plan around goals presented in the letter […]
The spring 2021 semester will be delayed by two weeks, starting on Feb. 8 rather than the original scheduled date of Jan. 25. The school had also been considering an even later start date of Feb. 15 to mitigate the effects of the flu season and to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus once […]
