common good

Counting Sleep: What happens when you mix a financial entrepreneur and an insomniac?

“Jason, stop. Go to sleep!”

It was 4 a.m. Once again, Jason Jin ’20 was clacking away on his keyboard, disturbing his roommate’s sleep. “Jason had a lot of sleep issues,” says Josh Collin ’20. “And I got a front-row seat.”

Headshot of Jason Jin

Jason Jin ’20

Josh Collin seated with his hands folded and wearing a suit.

Josh Collin ’20

Like many Swarthmoreans, Jin was a self-described overachiever. Stress turned into insomnia. Jin struggled with sleep each night, only to fly awake at 6 a.m. to find Collin doing pushups.

“He was a lark with an elaborate morning routine,” Jin says ruefully.

Yet the Swarthmore roommates proved a good match. Jin grew fascinated with wearable health-tracking devices that can analyze sleep data, becoming principal investigator on a sleep study in Assistant Professor Maggie Delano’s engineering lab. Meanwhile, Collin founded SWIFT — Savings, Wealth, Investment, Finance, and Trade — a campus organization promoting financial literacy. After seeing Jin’s insomnia first-hand, Collin thought, “Someone has to solve this problem.”

Collin’s entrepreneurial instincts and Jin’s fascination with sleep devices combined. They launched Bioloop, a sleep-coaching company, from their dorm room, receiving mentoring and early funding from Swarthmore’s Center for Innovation and Leadership. Bioloop interprets data from devices like the Apple Watch, Fitbit, and Oura Ring.

Those devices are cool, says Collin, but too much data can be overwhelming. The pair’s idea was to add a human element to all the data — a sort of personal sleep-trainer — to help people stop bad habits (eating before bed, too much blue light from screens) and develop and maintain good ones (meditation, healthy wind-down routines).

“Sleep is something we brush aside,” says Collin. “But we’re hurting our own longevity. Sleep is this missing pillar of health.”

As for the former roommates? They’re currently housemates in San Francisco, sharing a house with 12 other founders and seven newly hatched companies. And they’re both sleeping a healthy 7–8 hours a night.
— HEATHER RIGNEY SHUMAKER ’91

Artist’s rendering of the exterior of the Dining and Community Commons building
The College community has been challenged to raise $1.5 million for the Dining and Community Commons.

Energy Movement

Following the announcement of the College’s ambitious energy plan this spring, Rosamund Stone Zander ’64 made a $5 million gift to help fund the geo-exchange plant that will be housed in the basement of the forthcoming Dining and Community Commons. In addition to the gift, Zander will also support a challenge: If the College community raises $1.5 million for the geo-exchange plant by June 30, 2022, she will match the sum to fully fund the $8 million project. “What we have done to our environment since the Industrial Revolution stands out as the most critical issue of our time,” says Zander, a family therapist and executive coach who also serves on the board of Climate Reality, a nonprofit group headed by former Vice President Al Gore. “I am thrilled to support this amazing project, having experienced that Swarthmore’s commitment to reducing carbon in the air, and sustainability overall, runs very deep indeed.” Learn more: bit.ly/GeoExchangeDCC

We Are Humans

HAYDIL HENRIQUEZ ’14, an arts educator and cultural worker from the Bronx, has been named the first-ever Bronx Poet Laureate. During her two-year term, Henriquez will promote the inclusion of and passion for poetry across the NYC borough, looking to inspire a new generation of writers and poets, and to educate Bronx residents about the history of poetry. “It’s something so basic, but we often forget we’re humans,” Henriquez told the Bulletin in 2017. “In order for us to fill voids within us, we need to speak, we need to feel community, we need to share our stories.” Henriquez is the NYC Scholastic Art & Writing Awards manager at the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers.
voices we turn to
Headshot of Eric Holder wearing a suit with a blue tie
courtesy of eric holder
“Regular, powerful citizens can be involved in the process and have an impact,” said Eric Holder, the 82nd U.S. attorney general.

Democracy and Civil Rights

We should never underestimate the power we have
by Kate Campbell
E

ric Holder, the 82nd U.S. attorney general, spoke to more than 500 College community members as part of the inaugural event in a virtual series sponsored by the President’s Fund for Racial Justice and the Social Responsibility Committee of the Board of Managers.

Holder, the first African American in that role (he served from February 2009 to April 2015), discussed a wide range of topics, including the state of American democracy, civil rights, and voting rights.

“Eric Holder was a natural choice to kick off this series on the challenges of citizenship in a multiracial democracy,” said James Snipes ’75, chair of the Social Responsibility Committee of the Board of Managers. “Throughout his career, as a lawyer, judge, and attorney general, he has shown an extraordinary commitment to civil rights, and voting rights in particular. He set the bar high for the programs that will follow.”

The remote event featured a conversation with Holder and Professor of History Allison Dorsey, with questions moderated by Tristan Alston ’22, Sonia Linares ’22, and Daniel Torres Balauro ’23, and an introduction from President Valerie Smith.

Holder acknowledged the psychological toll that the events of 2020 and the historic realities of race in America have taken on Black citizens. Despite the past year’s events relating to police abuses, Holder said he remains optimistic that the energy behind the growing social-justice movements will continue to inspire change for the better.

Holder urged audience members to increase their engagement in their communities and in government organizations. “Regular, powerful citizens can be involved in the process and have an impact,” said Holder. “We should never underestimate the power we have and young people especially. … The largest voting bloc in this country is young people.”

Gathering together as citizens to demand change and participating in the process is crucial, he said.

“There’s no question that 2020 was a moment,” Holder said. “But the question really is going to be, does the moment lead to a movement.”

MORE: bit.ly/HolderSwat
Neil Heskel in blue scrubs examining the ear of a child as a mother holds the patient

courtesy of the haiti clinic

On the Ground in Haiti

Neil Heskel ’74 and Kevin Browngoehl ’78 established the Haiti Clinic in 2007 and were on the ground to help when the 2010 earthquake devastated the island nation. The two doctors again coordinated relief efforts in 2021 when a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck the Tiburon Peninsula in Haiti on Aug. 14. “The death toll is over 2,100, with more than 13,000 injured and an unknown number of people missing,” says Heskel (pictured above with a young patient and his mother). “Hurricane Grace swept over Haiti, hampering the complicated search-and-rescue mission. The Haiti Clinic provided medical care and supplies in several of the hardest-hit areas.” Hiring Haitian physicians, nurses, and other health care workers to help with their efforts also helps local families have a source of income. “The permanent clinic in Cité Soleil is open and seeing patients daily while offering telemedicine visits for those who cannot safely travel,” says Heskel. “The Haiti Clinic’s remote team is collaborating with other organizations in efforts to care for as many sick and injured as possible.” Water and food are desperately needed, Heskel adds: “Our team had to drive over two hours — each way — to fill water buckets. Our volunteers in the U.S. are assembling and shipping supplies.”
Headshot of Eric Holder wearing a suit with a blue tie
courtesy of eric holder
“Regular, powerful citizens can be involved in the process and have an impact,” said Eric Holder, the 82nd U.S. attorney general.

Democracy and Civil Rights

We should never underestimate the power we have
by Kate Campbell
E

ric Holder, the 82nd U.S. attorney general, spoke to more than 500 College community members as part of the inaugural event in a virtual series sponsored by the President’s Fund for Racial Justice and the Social Responsibility Committee of the Board of Managers.

Holder, the first African American in that role (he served from February 2009 to April 2015), discussed a wide range of topics, including the state of American democracy, civil rights, and voting rights.

“Eric Holder was a natural choice to kick off this series on the challenges of citizenship in a multiracial democracy,” said James Snipes ’75, chair of the Social Responsibility Committee of the Board of Managers. “Throughout his career, as a lawyer, judge, and attorney general, he has shown an extraordinary commitment to civil rights, and voting rights in particular. He set the bar high for the programs that will follow.”

The remote event featured a conversation with Holder and Professor of History Allison Dorsey, with questions moderated by Tristan Alston ’22, Sonia Linares ’22, and Daniel Torres Balauro ’23, and an introduction from President Valerie Smith.

Holder acknowledged the psychological toll that the events of 2020 and the historic realities of race in America have taken on Black citizens. Despite the past year’s events relating to police abuses, Holder said he remains optimistic that the energy behind the growing social-justice movements will continue to inspire change for the better.

Holder urged audience members to increase their engagement in their communities and in government organizations. “Regular, powerful citizens can be involved in the process and have an impact,” said Holder. “We should never underestimate the power we have and young people especially. … The largest voting bloc in this country is young people.”

Gathering together as citizens to demand change and participating in the process is crucial, he said.

“There’s no question that 2020 was a moment,” Holder said. “But the question really is going to be, does the moment lead to a movement.”

MORE: bit.ly/HolderSwat

Neil Heskel in blue scrubs examining the ear of a child as a mother holds the patient

courtesy of the haiti clinic

On the Ground in Haiti

Neil Heskel ’74 and Kevin Browngoehl ’78 established the Haiti Clinic in 2007 and were on the ground to help when the 2010 earthquake devastated the island nation. The two doctors again coordinated relief efforts in 2021 when a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck the Tiburon Peninsula in Haiti on Aug. 14. “The death toll is over 2,100, with more than 13,000 injured and an unknown number of people missing,” says Heskel (pictured above with a young patient and his mother). “Hurricane Grace swept over Haiti, hampering the complicated search-and-rescue mission. The Haiti Clinic provided medical care and supplies in several of the hardest-hit areas.” Hiring Haitian physicians, nurses, and other health care workers to help with their efforts also helps local families have a source of income. “The permanent clinic in Cité Soleil is open and seeing patients daily while offering telemedicine visits for those who cannot safely travel,” says Heskel. “The Haiti Clinic’s remote team is collaborating with other organizations in efforts to care for as many sick and injured as possible.” Water and food are desperately needed, Heskel adds: “Our team had to drive over two hours — each way — to fill water buckets. Our volunteers in the U.S. are assembling and shipping supplies.”

common good

Campus Quickly

Campus Quickly

Strengthening Indigenous Studies

James Fenelon a scholar of urban inequality, Native Nations, race and racism, and social movements, joined Swarthmore this fall as the 2021–22 Lang Visiting Professor for Social Change. Fenelon, who is Lakota/Dakota from Standing Rock (Nation), is a professor of sociology at California State University, San Bernardino, and founder and director of its Center for Indigenous Peoples Studies. He is hosted by Swarthmore’s Department of Sociology & Anthropology and will teach one course per semester, the first being Indigenous Peoples and Globalization.Fenelon will also work alongside Assistant Professor Adrienne Benally, an incoming colleague in Environmental Studies specializing in Indigenous humanities, and with Davina Two Bears, a postdoctoral fellow in Sociology & Anthropology, to strengthen Swarthmore’s learning and research opportunities in Indigenous studies, and to forge meaningful connections and partnerships with Native Nations. Benally’s appointment is Swarthmore’s first tenure-track position fully dedicated to Environmental Studies.

Farewell to 11 Retiring Faculty Members

The College celebrated the retirement of 11 esteemed faculty members, who combined for more than 370 years of service to Swarthmore. Though they will be missed on campus, each leaves behind a legacy, fostered through their notable scholarship, devoted mentorship, and lasting commitment to the liberal arts.

The 2020–21 retirees are: Nathalie Anderson, English Literature; Caroline Burkhard, Chemistry and Biochemistry; Joy Charlton, Sociology; Arthur McGarity, Engineering; Braulio Muñoz, Sociology; Marjorie Murphy, History; Carol Nackenoff, Political Science; Helen Plotkin, Classics; Micheline Rice-Maximin, French and Francophone Studies; Allen Schneider, Psychology; and Faruq Siddiqui, Engineering.

MORE: bit.ly/SwatRetirees2021
Closeup of a bee sitting on purple flowers

Makayla Davis

BLOOMING IMPRESSIVE: This summer, the Chester Children’s Chorus returned to camp on campus. Highlights included a photography class with Jeremy Polk of the College’s Media Center. This beautiful image of a bee resting on a flower was taken by Makayla Davis, 13, an eighth grader who sings in the chorus’s Festival Choir.

Leading the Way

Swarthmore recently welcomed four new members to the President’s Staff:

  • Elizabeth Boluch Wood, vice president for advancement, brings to Swarthmore 35 years’ experience in higher education and nonprofit fundraising, including nearly two decades at Princeton University.
  • Brad Koch, the Marion Ware Director of Athletics, Physical Education, and Recreation, joins the College from Cabrini University, where he had spent nine years as athletic director.
  • Beth Glassman, vice president for human resources, brings more than 25 years of experience as an attorney and chief human resources officer, including five years at Widener University.
  • Erin Brownlee Dell, chief of staff and secretary of the College, comes to Swarthmore from Guilford College, where she had served in multiple roles during her 18-year tenure, including as an associate academic dean.
yellow and turquoise circles
common good

A Few New Faces Join the Board of Managers

The Board of Managers welcomes five new members:
Headshot of Lauren Glant

Lauren Glant ’83, a litigator who taught at New York University Law School, Pace University School of Law, and Brooklyn Law School, and now consults with nonprofits.

Headshot of Edgar Lee

Edgar Lee ’98, a private investor with more than 20 years of finance and alternative-investing experience; he served as a portfolio manager at Oaktree Capital Management from 2007 to 2020.

Headshot of Asahi Pompey

Asahi Pompey ’94, global head of corporate engagement at Goldman Sachs and president of the Goldman Sachs Foundation.

Headshot of Brian Wong

Brian Wong ’96, founder and chairman of RADII Media and former vice president of Alibaba Group.

Headshot of Winston Zee

Winston Zee P’07, a transnational business lawyer who is a member of the faculty of Shanghai Jiao Tong University KoGuan Law School.

MORE: bit.ly/SwatBOM
Black-and-white image of Friends Historical Library, with two women smiling and talking, wearing 1960s-era clothing

Check it out: Friends Historical Library, circa February 1968.

Happy 150th, FHL! The Friends Historical Library is 150 years young this year! The Anson Lapham Repository (as it was then known, named for its initial donor) opened its doors in 1871.

Activist tendencies within the Religious Society of Friends make FHL an extraordinary resource not just for the study of Quakerism but also for abolitionism, women’s rights, Native American history, and more.

With more than 50,000 books and approximately 10,000 linear feet of manuscripts and archives, FHL functions not solely as an important educational resource for the Swarthmore College community but also as an international research facility. FHL launched its 150th anniversary on World Quaker Day, Oct. 3.

— Jordan Landes, Curator of Friends Historical Library

swarthmore and the johan skytte prize
Three consecutive winners of the Johan Skytte Prize — the equivalent of the Nobel in political science — are friends who had been classmates as undergraduates. David Laitin ’67, Peter Katzenstein ’67, and Bryn Mawr’s Margaret Levi recently discussed their connection in a podcast at the Immigration Policy Lab at Stanford (bit.ly/SwatSkytte) in which they reflected on the value of their Swarthmore education and how it shaped the course of their careers. Laitin, a Stanford professor and Immigration Policy Lab co-director, was named this year’s winner. He followed Katzenstein (2020), his Swarthmore roommate, and their friend Levi (2019), Laitin’s colleague in Stanford’s Department of Political Science. The three became friends when they studied political theory in parallel Swarthmore seminars in 1966 and reflected on politics and political science in postseminar suppers. Robert Keohane, who taught at Swarthmore while the trio were students, received the Skytte Prize in 2005, and was followed in 2006 by Robert Putnam ’63, H’90, the Peter and Isabel Malkin Professor Emeritus of Public Policy at Harvard University.

A Few New Faces Join the Board of Managers

The Board of Managers welcomes five new members:
Headshot of Lauren Glant
Lauren Glant ’83, a litigator who taught at New York University Law School, Pace University School of Law, and Brooklyn Law School, and now consults with nonprofits.
Headshot of Edgar Lee
Edgar Lee ’98, a private investor with more than 20 years of finance and alternative-investing experience; he served as a portfolio manager at Oaktree Capital Management from 2007 to 2020.
Headshot of Asahi Pompey
Asahi Pompey ’94, global head of corporate engagement at Goldman Sachs and president of the Goldman Sachs Foundation.
Headshot of Brian Wong
Brian Wong ’96, founder and chairman of RADII Media and former vice president of Alibaba Group.
Winston Zee headshot

Winston Zee P’07, a transnational business lawyer who is a member of the faculty of Shanghai Jiao Tong University KoGuan Law School.

Black-and-white image of Friends Historical Library, with two women smiling and talking, wearing 1960s-era clothing

Check it out: Friends Historical Library, circa February 1968.

Happy 150th, FHL! The Friends Historical Library is 150 years young this year! The Anson Lapham Repository (as it was then known, named for its initial donor) opened its doors in 1871.

Activist tendencies within the Religious Society of Friends make FHL an extraordinary resource not just for the study of Quakerism but also for abolitionism, women’s rights, Native American history, and more.

With more than 50,000 books and approximately 10,000 linear feet of manuscripts and archives, FHL functions not solely as an important educational resource for the Swarthmore College community but also as an international research facility.

FHL launched its 150th anniversary on World Quaker Day, Oct. 3.

— Jordan Landes, Curator of Friends Historical Library

swarthmore and the johan skytte prize
Three consecutive winners of the Johan Skytte Prize — the equivalent of the Nobel in political science — are friends who had been classmates as undergraduates. David Laitin ’67, Peter Katzenstein ’67, and Bryn Mawr’s Margaret Levi recently discussed their connection in a podcast at the Immigration Policy Lab at Stanford (bit.ly/SwatSkytte) in which they reflected on the value of their Swarthmore education and how it shaped the course of their careers. Laitin, a Stanford professor and Immigration Policy Lab co-director, was named this year’s winner. He followed Katzenstein (2020), his Swarthmore roommate, and their friend Levi (2019), Laitin’s colleague in Stanford’s Department of Political Science. The three became friends when they studied political theory in parallel Swarthmore seminars in 1966 and reflected on politics and political science in postseminar suppers. Robert Keohane, who taught at Swarthmore while the trio were students, received the Skytte Prize in 2005, and was followed in 2006 by Robert Putnam ’63, H’90, the Peter and Isabel Malkin Professor Emeritus of Public Policy at Harvard University.
A round volvelle, created from colorful pieces of scrap paper

Creative Bonds

Alumni, families, and friends were unable to gather in person during the 2020–21 academic year, but nearly 4,000 community members attended 141 individual virtual events hosted by the Advancement Office. Swarthmore celebrated its first virtual reunion with trivia nights, interactive workshops, class happy hours, and musical performances, thanks to the efforts of dedicated volunteers. One workshop focused on creating handmade volvelles, like this piece (left) created by Jen Yeoh Schneller ’91. “What great fun that class was!” Schneller says. A special series of SwatTalks, sponsored by the President’s Fund for Racial Justice, focused on racial identity, representation, access to resources, and the structural changes and solutions necessary to moving forward. The Alumni & Parent Engagement Office is planning creative ways to bring as many alumni together as possible for Alumni Weekend 2022. The latest information about upcoming events — whether in person, hybrid, or virtual — is available at swarthmore.edu/alumni.

The Life of a Teacher-Scholar

Headshot of Bob Pasternack
Robert F. Pasternack, the Edmund Allen Professor Emeritus of Chemistry and Biochemistry, died June 5 at age 84. With his passing, Swarthmore has lost one of its most respected and influential scholars, who inspired students and colleagues alike.

Known as one of the world’s leading bioinorganic chemists, Pasternack joined Swarthmore in 1982 from Ithaca College. Pasternack also frequently collaborated with Peter Collings, the Morris L. Clothier Professor Emeritus of Physics. A conversation about a possible overlap in their research ultimately led to the now widely used technique of resonance light scattering, and it changed the trajectory of their work for years to come.

“Bob loved the life of the teacher-scholar, and saw no separation between the two,” Collings says. “In the research laboratory, he mentored and instructed students to accomplishments they never envisioned for themselves. In the classroom, he utilized examples from research to illustrate and explore course content. Bob was both proper and kind, serious and friendly — a wonderful class act.”

MORE: bit.ly/BPasternack

data & democracy

Sorelle Friedler ’04 has been named the assistant director for data and democracy at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Friedler, who graduated with a degree in computer science and is an associate professor of computer science at Haverford College, focuses her work on the fairness and interpretability of machine-learning algorithms, with applications from criminal justice to materials discovery. She will be the first person in White House history with a job title focused specifically on data and democracy.
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