What appeals to many prospective students considering Swarthmore is the idea of community. Swarthmore prides itself on offering an environment where students can feel free to speak their ideas, express their individuality, and create lasting connections. Recently, a new club on campus has emerged, aiming to do just that for Latina and gender-nonconforming students of Latin American descent. In October, Brenda Mondragon, Kayla Nicholas, and Natalie Rosa — all members of the class of 2026 — introduced the Comunidad de Amor, Solidaridad, y Apoyo (the community of love, solidarity, and support) or CASA and now serve as executive board members. In a sit-down interview, Mondragon, Nicholas, and Rosa opened up about the journey CASA has taken to become an official club here at Swarthmore: What prompted the idea? What was their intention? Why CASA?
“We have a community here of strong Latina women and non-binary Latin American individuals and I think we can really come together in this community … We have a lot of independence,” Mondragon said. Rosa explained they had “a very particular intent of creating an expansive environment for individuals of minority background.” Many students, when considering possible colleges, look for institutions that not only have extracurriculars that pursue their interests, but that also foster a sense of belonging. Nicholas, Mondragon, and Rosa explained their desire to foster community at Swarthmore after seeing that “the Latina community here … it’s small.” Mondragon explained that she “thinks creating a space where you can really be comfortable saying ‘Hi’ to each other in the hallways … [is] great.”
“I think really the results of the last election should really tell people a lot of why we need more spaces for people,” Mondragon said, referring to the recent election of the next U.S president. “55% of Latino men voted for [President-elect] Donald Trump.”
Fostering an inclusive space on campus wasn’t the only thing prompting the creation of CASA, they explained. “There is a strong presence of macho culture,” Mondragon stated. “[There’s] just a really male-oriented [system with] traditional roles … we have a shared experience of dealing with that in our own lives.” All three members expressed their desire for CASA to be a place where individuals of Latin American descent can realize that dealing with machismo doesn’t need to be an identity. “We exist outside our femininity, our gender … we exist as a community,” Mondragon said.
“A little bit of what we’ve noticed is that [misogyny] sometimes almost feels like it’s internalized,” Rosa said. “There are attacks being thrown within our culture. I feel like it’s important to foster a sense of compassion and love for your culture — don’t be ashamed of it. It can be very hurtful, as we can see with things like what’s happening in today’s politics.”
The group opened up about their personal experiences with macho culture as women: being told they belong in the kitchen, not getting taken seriously, being told not to work hard in school, and being told all they need to do is find a husband. “If you come from our communities it honestly shouldn’t come as a surprise because we’ve all dealt with it … especially [from] a lot of men,” Mondragon explained.
Mondragon described these stereotypes and experiences as degrading, and Rosa said, “It’s already hard being a part of the culture … [even] just identifying as a woman … [it] makes navigating this space harder.” She continued, “That’s why I think we’re focusing more on facilitating community building within our events.”
The first CASA club event, held Oct. 7, was a success. The event, Chisme y Churros, consisted of lively icebreakers and discussion prompts that brought people of similar origin together. The group explains that the goal was to “make it a really warm, non-intimidating type of scene.” They wanted students to find genuine friends and make new connections that go beyond the discussions of majors, favorite colors, or other generic topics. Nicholas says the main takeaway from the event was “just to get people to … get out there … [and] get out of the monotony of meeting new people.”
The CASA club may have just gotten started, but its executive board members have high hopes for the club’s future. “I think in terms of what I envision for CASA five years from now … is that it lives on as a good memory.” Nicholas said. The board members emphasized that being at a school that’s so rigorous and focused on academics can make it hard to find time to relax or partake in extracurriculars. “We found a space for [those currently on campus] and went the extra mile to make [it last] for other people in the future … and [we hope that] people can look back on that and be like ‘I’m really grateful for the time I spent there,’” Nicholas elaborated.
Rosa and Nicholas then explained the club’s upcoming memory capsule project. “Our hope is to do a scrapbook, yearbook type of scenario, where we put all the photos from a year together, like a memory capsule,” Nicholas said. Rosa continued, “[We plan on] putting in pictures of how much fun we’re having … [and] the community that we’re building, so people can look back on it … We wanted to make this to show the longevity of this club,” Rosa explained.
So what does the future look like for CASA here at Swarthmore?
“Now that we’re chartered successfully and have a budget, we have a lot of good ideas… and we’re so eager to hear everybody else’s ideas [from] the campus community,” Mondragon said. She added that they’re hoping to collaborate with other women-identifying clubs on campus as well, and in general, clubs who are interested in making the community better, saying, “We don’t have to stay separate just because we have separate clubs.”
They urge students, if interested, to get involved and come to future events, emphasizing that they’ll “make space for everyone” to “foster family and friend relationships.” All students on the team that made CASA club a reality are “incredibly grateful” for the people, administrators, and organizations here at Swarthmore that offer and continue to offer their support. “We’re so incredibly happy,” Nicholas said.
Mondragon closed,“I think people really need to know that the Latina community is here to stay. It’s really important for people to understand and value their culture … value the people that they’re in community with. I can focus on personal growth. I can focus on community growth.” Mondragon emphasized that the intention behind the club is to teach students to be “loud and proud.” The team says they’re still in the works of planning their next event, but encourages students to be on the lookout for great things to come.
