Twenty students in Assistant Professor Joshua deLeeuw’s Cognitive Science 320 class designed and built their own autonomous robots. Emmett, a robot that wasn’t working until the very end of the semester, rose to the occasion at Vassar’s annual Autonomous Robot Design Competition.
The Engaged Pluralism Race and Racism in Historical Collections Working Group hosted an event three days before Founder’s Day that asked members of the Vassar community to examine the racist elements that were present during Founders Day’s in the past.
Vassar recently hosted a three-part webinar titled “Innovation in Higher Education: Building Capacity for Inclusive Leadership” that featured conversations with people in the academic and business worlds. All agreed that transforming global society into a more equitable one will require today’s students to engage in a broad, liberal arts education.
Students, administrators, alums, and others in the Vassar community enjoyed a plethora of events in observation of Black History Month, included exhibitions, a panel on STEM-related fields, a dinner, and an update of the Buildings and Belonging project, focused on the history of African Americans on campus.
Three alums and three faculty members talked about their own journeys as people of color in STEM fields and offered some advice to current Vassar students.
