Occidental College

Artist, explorer, trained astronaut...Tavares Strachan is set to kick off Oxy Live! next week. The MacArthur Fellow and visual artist's sculpture, “The Encyclopedia of Invisibility,” features thousands of entries focused on historically marginalized individuals. He'll discuss this project and much more on September 24.

The sculpture is now on display at OXY ARTS as part of the gallery’s collaboration with Getty’s PST ART: Art and Science Collide, Southern California’s landmark arts event.

Artist Tavares Strachan to Launch 2024-25 Oxy Live! Season Strachan will speak about his award-winning work, including his sculpture “The Encyclopedia of Invisibility,” which features thousands of entries focused on historically marginalized individuals. The sculpture will be on display at OXY ARTS as part of the gallery’s collaboration with Getty’s...

As the Oxy community settles into a new academic year, President Tom Stritikus shares his impressions after three months on the job.

Embracing Excellence As the school year gets underway, I can feel the hum of excitement on campus. To me, August is always a time of anticipation and opportunity. We’re establishing new routines, setting goals for the months ahead, and embarking on new chapters in our academic journey.

The latest Oxy Arts exhibit is a collaboration with Getty PST ART: Art & Science Collide and opens on September 17.

"Invisibility: Power & Perils" strives to render visible the people, histories and planetary conditions that have been erased within the cultural mainstream.

Invisibility: Powers & Perils | OXY ARTS The condition of invisibility—and its counterpart, hypervisibility—has long played an important role in science, literature and the arts. More recently it has become the locus of some of the most pressing struggles of our time. Vulnerable populations around the world have long borne the effects ...

So you think you know Oxy? Put your memory to the test (and your guessing cap on) with 30 new Tiger teasers.

Trivial Pursuits II Growing up in North Carolina, my family took home delivery of The Charlotte Observer, which for years published “Strictly Personal,” a syndica

Award-winning and renowned artists and writers are headed back to Occidental for the 2024-25 Oxy Live! Speaker Series.

Occidental Announces 2024-25 Oxy Live! Season The flagship series, curated by OXY ARTS, brings a diverse lineup of cultural luminaries to Occidental College’s campus in Eagle Rock. Tickets for all Oxy Live! events are available on the Oxy Live! webpage.

Four months ago, the world said goodbye to Sam Rubin '82. The beloved entertainment reporter was remembered by Hollywood heavyweights like Tom Hanks and Jamie Lee Curtis, as well as his Oxy family. The latest Occidental magazine looks back on his time as a student and as KTLA 5 Morning News' red carpet fixture.

The Morning Showman Sam Rubin ’82 got his first taste of broadcasting at the tender age of 19. After his first year at Oxy, he spent the summer reporting the weather for the CBS affiliate in toasty El Centro, 212 miles southeast of Los Angeles and the nation’s 230th-largest TV market. Temperatures notwithstanding, ...

The newest season of Oxy Live! kicks off with a conversation between artist Tavares Strachan with acclaimed interviewer and cultural interlocutor Paul Holdengräber.

Strachan's sculpture "The Encyclopedia of Invisibility" will soon be on display in the Invisibility: Powers & Perils exhibition at OXY ARTS.

Oxy Live! Presents: A Conversation with Tavares Strachan Join us for an evening of conversation between artist Tavares Strachan and acclaimed interviewer and cultural interlocutor Paul Holdengräber

Assistant Professor of Theater & Performance Studies Will Power's epic tale of a powerful Ethiopian king, "Memnon," can be experienced every Thursday this month at the Getty Villa.

Memnon | Getty Written by Will PowerConceived by Carl Cofield and Will PowerDirected by Carl Cofield and choreographed by Tiffany Rea-FisherCoproduced by the Classical Theatre of HarlemWith bold, vivid language and gripping dramatic conflict, Memnon tells the tale of a powerful Ethiopian king who journeys to the c...

On October 1, join Academy Award-winning actor and activist Jane Fonda who will speak with Greg Dalton '86 about her decades-long commitment to sustainability, climate justice and voting rights, focused on supporting the next generation of leaders. Reserve your free tickets at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/jane-fonda-in-conversation-with-greg-dalton-86-tickets-1000335358987.

Scenes from our first week of fall semester. Welcome back, Tigers!

Save the date! Alumni, students, families, and the entire Oxy community will soon come together for Homecoming & Family Weekend. 🐯 http://alumni.oxy.edu/homecoming

Through Oxy's new 4-3 Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) partnership, qualified students will be guaranteed a spot in Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences' DPT program.

Occidental College Launches 4-3 Pathway to Doctoral Degree in Physical Therapy The 4-3 Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) pathway offers an opportunity for qualified Occidental students to complete a bachelor’s degree in designated subjects, including prerequisite coursework, at which point they are guaranteed an interview or conditional acceptance into a three-year DPT progra...

Convocation marks the start of a new chapter for these Occidental students and the College. Faculty and staff cheered on our Class of 2028 and new transfers in Thorne Hall amid the beat of Taiko drummers this morning. Fall semester here we go!

“In and through the arts, we gain insight into the changing human experience in all its dimensions," remarked President Elam during last year's inaugural Oxy Live! event.

The latest Occidental magazine looks back on the series' first season (the second kicks off September 24 with artist Tavares Strachan. https://www.oxy.edu/events/2024/09/oxy-live-presents-conversation-tavares-strachan)

An Evening of Eavesdropping “The arts provide us with a special window on the truth,” President Harry J. Elam, Jr. said last October to an enthusiastic Thorne Hall audience on the opening night of Oxy Live!—a new conversation series highlighting a diverse lineup of cultural luminaries at the forefront of their fields....

Our Class of 2028 and newest transfer students were welcomed to Oxy earlier this week amid cheers from O-Team and messages from President Tom Stritikus and student body president Cecilia Grané. Io triumphe!

Ready, Set, Unpack! 📦 The residence halls are buzzing with excitement as we welcome our newest class of students. Welcome to your home away from home, Tigers!

Looking for a late summer read? Peruse the latest publications authored by members of the Occidental community including Susan Coll ’81’s latest comic novel, Professor Amy Lyford’s examination of the art and life of Dorothea Tanning, and more.

Mixed Media Real Life and Other Fictions, by Susan Coll ’81 (Harper Muse). Cassie Klein is a 50-something aspiring novelist waiting for her li

Realizing a long-standing goal of Occidental’s Latino Alumni Association (OCLAA), two dozen alumni shared their stories with students for an oral history project this past spring.

Voices of OCLAA As a college access counselor and podcaster (The College Match Podcast and Inspired Conversations With Changemakers in Higher Education), “Storytelling truly is in my blood,” says Andrea Cova-Bernal ’08, who recently completed a term as president of the Occidental College Latino Alumni Asso...

For three Media Arts & Culture majors, this summer was a transformative experience thanks to a three-week trip to Nepal alongside Assistant Professor Vivian Lin—all part of Oxy's faculty-led Richter research program.

Pursuing Creative Projects in Nepal The project was a collaboration between Occidental College and Voices of Women Media (VOW Media) in Nepal to create a participatory video curriculum for Techno Hub, a media literacy initiative for young women from urban Kathmandu. VOW Media is a media rights and literacy organization founded in 2007...

As its second century dawns, Oxy’s Theater and Performance Studies Department is remixing the curriculum with a blend of theory and practice. 🎭

Resetting the Stage In the fall of 1923—mere months before the birth of Omar Paxson ’48, longtime professor and patron saint of Oxy theater—Occidental established a speech education department with the hiring of Charles F. Lindsley, an actor and orator of considerable renown. (More than 110 reels and disks of ...

This summer, 49 Oxy students spent their school break interning at L.A.-based nonprofit organizations thanks to the Hameetman Career Center's donor-funded program InternLA. Along with on-site work experience, students also attended professional development workshops and joined networking events to enhance their college-to-career journey!

Discover more about InternLA at https://www.oxy.edu/student-life/career-services/students/jobs-internships/internla-program.

Pictured:
Joomi Park '25 at Gasol Foundation
Josephine Silva '26 at Baby2Baby
Noah Aguilar '25 at San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments
Emily Wills '25 at The British Consulate

Many Occidental students find themselves in need of advice and guidance following graduation—providing an opportunity for alumni to step in. Thanks to Talia Robinson '97 and Kwame Do '16, a new GOLD Mentorship Project invites alumni to mentor recent grads and grow a stronger Oxy network around the world.

Looking for Career Advice? Ask an Oxy GOLD Mentor Greetings from the Alumni Board of Governors Career and Mentorship Committee! Our committee is dedicated to fostering meaningful connections among alumni and between alumni and students, empowering individuals on their professional journeys. Through a variety of networking events and professional...

Brit Bennett's historical fiction novel is this year's pick for Occidental's Community Book Program, and everyone in the community is invited to read along.

The Vanishing Half Selected for Occidental’s Community Book Program The Community Book Program supports the mission of Occidental College by creating opportunities for students, faculty, staff, alumni, and parents to experience the joy of reading and learning together. Through thoughtful selection of book titles and innovative and inspiring programs, the program pro...

Happy Birthday to Barack Obama '83, who showed the world the power of hope and change. This year's Obama Scholars continue to carry on the tradition.

Nine Students Selected for 2024–25 Obama Scholars Program Obama Scholars, who can pursue any field of study Occidental offers, are selected on the basis of a strong record of academic achievement and a demonstrated commitment to the public good, with an emphasis on first-generation students, veterans, and community college transfers. The program, inspired....

Tamás Lengyel, professor of mathematics, died February 6, 2024. We remember the internationally renowned scholar in the latest Occidental magazine.

Remembering Professor Tamás Lengyel Tamás Lengyel, professor of mathematics, died February 6, 2024. He was 73. Tamás graduated from the prestigious Eötvös University in Budapest, Hungary, in 1974 and earned his Ph.D. in mathematics, with a specific focus on probability theory and statistics, from Eötvös in 1979. Prior to moving ...

Our 2024 cohort of Summer Research Program participants has spent the last ten weeks immersed in independent research and creative projects across a spectrum of academic fields. Yesterday these students presented their work to the community, showcasing their academic interests, research practices and findings. Thank you to the faculty and staff who have made the Undergraduate Research Center's summer program possible for the last 25 years!

This past spring, Patt Morrison ’74 shared a curated collection of books with Special Collections—and 50 years of words and wisdom in conversation with AirTalk host Larry Mantle.

Hats Off to Patt! Pulitzer Prize-winning Los Angeles Times journalist and Emmy Award recipient Patt Morrison ’74 returned to campus March 1 for an invigorating conversation with Larry Mantle, the host of AirTalk, the longest-running daily talk show in Southern California. Their far-ranging discussion, co-hosted by ...

During his travels around the country, urban planner Max Podemski '06 came to appreciate the unique housing types that distinguish one city from another. Now his new book is tracing the the evolution, devolution, and potential rebirth of urban housing.

We Built These Cities Growing up in Portland, Ore., Max Podemski ’06 became interested in urban planning at a very early age. “Portland has a reputation for progressive urban planning, and every day I’d read The Oregonian and decided that’s what I wanted to study,” he recalls. “I also wanted to go to a lib...

Oxy's Olympic history includes seven medalists! 🙌 We’re proud to celebrate the Olympians who walked our halls.

Oxy at the Olympics: Keeping the Flame Alive But the College’s presence at the Olympic Games extends far beyond its student and alumni athletes. It has produced a legendary coach, organizers of the 1932 and 1984 Games in Los Angeles, and an Olympic historian.