Whitman Stories
April 30, 2019
Patrick Page '85 Nominated for Tony Award
The actor earned his first Tony nod for his role in the new Broadway musical "Hadestown," from director Rachel Chavkin and singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell. The show, which brings the ancient Greek story of Orpheus and Eurydice and their journey to the underworld to 1930s America, leads the field of Tony Award nominations this year with 14, including Page's for best featured actor in a musical.
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![Becky Avila and other advocates hold roses at an event.](/images/whitman-stories/stories/2019/April/Becky-Avila-3.jpg)
April 29, 2019
Alumna Becky Avila '09 Shares Advocacy Message with Students
Becky Avila ’09 knows how hard it can be for first-generation students of color to succeed in college. As a first-year student at Whitman College in 2005, she worked hard to overcome hurdles. Since graduating with her degree in race and ethnic studies, Avila went on to earn a graduate degree and return to the Los Angeles neighborhood where she grew up.
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![A portrait of Leah Wilson-Velasco.](/images/whitman-stories/stories/2019/April/LWV_Headshot.jpg)
April 29, 2019
Life After Whitman: Leah Wilson-Velasco '03
As CEO of the Walla Walla Symphony, Leah Wilson-Velasco '03 brings people together through music. Starting with her undergraduate work managing the Fridays at Four recital series at Whitman College, Wilson-Velasco found her calling in the arts administration field.
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April 28, 2019
Lauren McCullough '12 Featured in Photography Series on Multilayered Identity
A politics major at Whitman who currently resides in Seoul, McCullough provided this statement to accompany her portrait: "I'm Korean. I'm American. I'm an adoptee. I don't care to hyphenate or qualify; if I did, where would it end? I push against the rigid boundaries of Koreanness." Korean-Canadian photographer Hannah Yoon, who is behind the project, says connecting with other Koreans abroad while collaborating on her work led to a deeper understanding of her own life experience.
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April 22, 2019
Sociology Professor Discusses Implications of Household Contaminants
Assistant Professor of Sociology and Garrett Fellow Alissa Cordner, who specializes in environmental health and risk management, talked about the public safety concerns associated with a group of fluorinated pollutants known as PFAS, common but little-understood chemicals used in water-resistant clothing, stain-resistant furniture, nonstick cookware and many other consumer products. Cordner is one of the organizers of a nationwide PFAS contamination list.
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April 21, 2019
Sociology Professor Explores How to Help Kids in Blended Families Feel at Home
Raymond and Elsie DeBurgh Chair of Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology Michelle Janning explained the importance of personal space for children living in blended families, whether that means a room, a shelf, a chest, a desk or a drawer of their own. She noted, "The amount of stuff or the size of the space one controls doesn’t matter so much as the feeling that you have control over your things."
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April 20, 2019
Politics Professor Interviewed on New Immigration Book, Border Policy
Professor of Politics Aaron Bobrow-Strain spoke to NPR Weekend Edition host Scott Simon about his new book, The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez, which chronicles one undocumented woman's journey through the U.S. immigration system.
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![A portrait of student Lukas Koester sitting at the piano.](/images/whitman-stories/stories/2019/April/Lukas-Koester-Thumbnail.jpg)
April 18, 2019
VIDEO: I'm a Whittie - Lukas Koester '19
Lukas Koester graduates from Whitman in May 2019. From trombone playing to working in the student engagement center, Lukas has learned a lot during his four years at Whitman, a place he knew he could call home the first time he visited.
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![Debate students sit around a table practicing.](/images/whitman-stories/stories/2019/April/Debate-Team-Thumbnail.jpg)
April 18, 2019
Debate Team Trains Students to Listen Critically
At Whitman College, students are learning the critical role that well-honed arguments and careful listening play in the art of debate. Led by Lauran Schaefer, director of Debate and Forensics, and Baker Weilert, assistant director, the Whitman Debate Team is training students not just to argue, but also to listen.
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![Whitman students from the FGWC Club and Club Latinx assisted at a printmaking class at the Fouts Center for the Visual Arts on the campus of Whitman College.](/images/whitman-stories/stories/2019/April/printmaking%20whittie.jpg)
April 17, 2019
Whitman Hosts Printmaking Classes for Bilingual First-Graders
This spring, the Fouts Center for the Visual Arts is the site of a new arts program bringing bilingual first-graders from Edison Elementary School in Walla Walla to Whitman’s campus.
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![A portrait of Debi Toews](/images/whitman-stories/stories/2019/April/Debi-Toews-Thumbnail.jpg)
April 16, 2019
All In: Debi Toews '76 Knows the Impact of Scholarships
Debi (Aucutt) Toews '76 journey to Whitman College began in a hair salon. That's where her mother ran into another mom whose daughter was a sophomore at Whitman. Her mom loved the idea of the small class sizes. For Toews, she loved the friendly approach of then-director of admissions William Tingley, whom she met at a college fair shortly thereafter.
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![A portrait of Ben, Kate and Brienne VanDonge next to the Styx sculpture on Akeny Field.](/images/edit/VanDonges-Thumbnail.jpg)
April 16, 2019
All In: Community Connections Spur Alumni Couple to Give Back
Kate (Pringle) VanDonge ’11 met her future husband in the History of Ancient Greece. But it wasn’t the battle of Troy or the birth of philosophy that ignited young love. It was the wardrobe of a guest lecturer.
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