Back to Campus The two most common refrains among CMC students, faculty, and staff members during our fall semester return to campus? “I’ve been waiting a year and a half to be here,” followed by an all-too human response given the prolonged pandemic, “I have to remind myself how to do this again.”
It’s true, early jitters and lingering questions made everyone feel like a newcomer to CMC. But those feelings eventually gave way to the joy, warmth, and yes, rigor of in-person residential living and learning again— or as President Hiram Chodosh described it during Convocation, a “duality of experience,” a step back and a leap ahead. Just as the 2020 virtual academic year was uncharted territory for the College, this fall also marks a historic, uniquely shared experience with its own learning moments and necessary adjustments. Best of all, we are together again; the way CMC was meant to be. That’s definitely worth celebrating. In this special photo essay, CMC photographer Anibal Ortiz shares some of his favorite images from this momentous semester of return and renewal.
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READY FOR ADVENTURE: Second-year students gather outside Bauer Center in preparation for their Welcome Orientation Adventure (WOA) trip. Both first and second-year students participated in the annual offcampus excursion that helps strengthen bonds and develop leadership skills before the academic year begins.
CLAREMONT MCKENNA COLLEGE