The Phoenix

Val Smith Announces Plan to End Presidency After 2026-27 Academic Year

February 26, 2026

News

Val Smith announces the upcoming end of her time as Swarthmore president, the community responds and prepares for a period of transition.

Student-Athletes on the Upcoming Cunningham Fields and Fieldhouse Renovations

Alex AvanesyanandLuca CampianiandEli CoganandEllie FermoandJada GreenandKatherine KermanandJames SheltonandThomas Shelton

February 26, 2026

Varsity and club athletes share their thoughts on how the recently proposed

Swarthmore Supports Harvard-Led Lawsuit Defending International Students

by Zephyr Weinreich

February 26, 2026

Swarthmore joins many other higher education institutions in support for Harvard's legal

Resilience in the Face of Oppression: Reflections on Black History Month

by Nasrin Ahmed

February 26, 2026

As BHM concludes, Nasrin Ahmed '28 discusses the importance of telling Black

A Conversation with John Alston: 32 Years of Music, Math, and Love with the Chester Children’s Chorus

by Dylan Herink

February 26, 2026

Chorus director John Alston discusses his time at the Chester Children's Chorus

Latest Stories

Swarthmore Accepts 231 Early Decision Applicants

by Ellen Stewart

February 26, 2026

McCabe Library: From Dirt to Dust

by Vivian Li

February 26, 2026

Embodying the Process: An Exploration of Gender and the Self in Swarthmore Theater’s ‘Orlando’

by Jasper Cober-Lake

February 26, 2026

Political Scientist Jonathan Kirshner Lectures on (Un)Realism in the Trump Age

by Marra Irons

February 26, 2026

Boston College's Jonathan Kirshner discusses Trump's "America First" doctrine from a classical realist perspective for the 2026 Gilbert Lecture.

Becca Rothfeld and Jonny Thakkar speaks at the Night Owls Event. Phoenix Photo/Xinto Xu

‘Making Yourself Beautiful’: Night Owls Event on The Philosophy of Mogging

by Xinto Xu

February 26, 2026

Night Owls lecture examines the meaning and implications of aesthetic expression through physical alteration and the looksmaxxing trend.

Longtime Dining Staff Member Severely Injured, Hospitalized After Dishwasher Accident

Ella WalkerandDaniel Perrin

February 19, 2026

The Phoenix reports on a devastating incident in which a Dining and Community Commons industrial dishwasher left a worker that was attending to it

The Rise, Fall, and Tentative Rebirth of Philadelphia’s ‘President’s House’ Memorial

by Zephyr Weinreich

February 19, 2026

News Editor Zephyr Weinreich '28 traces the history of America's first 'White House' through more than 200 years of turmoil and transformation.

Swarthmore Endowment Sees 9.5% Return in 2024-25 Fiscal Year

by Daniel Perrin

February 19, 2026

The college's endowment enjoyed stronger returns in 2024-25 than in the years before it. Chief Investment Officer Frank Grunseich contextualizes the numbers.

Opinions

Weekly Column: Swat Says

Rafi KarpowitzandNasrin AhmedandCorinne Lafont

February 26, 2026

In this edition of Swat Says, students share their on Swarthmore's party culture, Val Smith's recent announcement, and the renaming of Trotter Hall.

Students: Stand Up for Your Rights!

by Wyatt Brannon

February 19, 2026

Wyatt Brannon '26 argues that, if students want to have some control over how the college operates, they should use the historically radical power of student government.

The College and the CO-OP: An Interconnected History of Two Swarthmore Institutions

by Nathanael D. Brown

February 19, 2026

Former Opinions Editor Nathanael Brown takes a deep dive into the history of the Swarthmore CO-OP's intertwined, and sometime fraught, relationship with Swarthmore College.

Arts

Cirque Calder: Past and Future Present

by Alma Greenfield

February 26, 2026

A reflection on Alexander Calder's "Cirque Calder."

Corinne’s Connections Puzzle: Symposium, Sort-Of

by Corinne Lafont

February 26, 2026

Answers Below

Sports

The Best 60 Days of Sports?

by Charlie Watson

February 26, 2026

Charlie Watson '27 discusses exciting athletic events taking place in February and March.

Athlete of the Week: Jack McHenry ’27

by Katherine Kerman

February 26, 2026

Lacrosse player Jack McHenry '27 shares about his goals, routines, and experiences as a student-athlete at Swarthmore.

Swarthmore Women’s Lacrosse Seniors Anticipate Their Final Season

by Olivia Huang

February 19, 2026

Olivia Huang '29 interviews her graduating teammates about their reflections on strong college careers.

Features

The Ultimate Swarthmore College Quiz: Are You a Stereotypical Swattie?

by Megumi Jindo

February 19, 2026

Take the ultimate Swattie quiz and see — I bet you are a Swattie! Answers: If you mostly got 1), Yay, you belong at this school! You are the “Swattie” who wakes up right before class because you’ve worked your butt off

From My Dad to Yours

by Zoe Washington

February 12, 2026

Washington '29 shares a father-daughter playlist, the first of a monthly column.

Comic: Frosty Frenzy

by Paris Kampel

February 12, 2026

On “The Innocence of Muslims”: Free Speech Covers the Unpalatable

by A. S. Kroeber

September 19, 2012

The violence that occurred in Libya and Egypt last week over a YouTube video, “The Innocence of Muslims,” has been rightfully condemned, but too often it has also been rationalized, justified, and given credence. The inciting video is seen as hateful enough,

Jacob Adenbaum ’14 for Financial Policy Representative

by The Phoenix

September 19, 2012

Hi, my name is Jacob and I’m running to be your StuCo Financial Policy Rep. The way that the college budgets for student life and other activities is both one of the most complicated and one of the most important thing that

Vic Brady ’13 for Co-President

by The Phoenix

September 19, 2012

Hey Swat! My name is Vic Brady ’13, and I am running for StuCo Co-President. As StuCo Co-President, I will: 1. Expand the Small Steps Campaign that I created as Student Life Representative in 2011 to target more areas of contention on

Dan Cho ’13 for Co-President

by The Phoenix

September 19, 2012

Hello! My name is Daniel Cho ’13 and I would love to be your next Student Council Co-President. I ran for Co-President last spring because I believed my ideas could improve our student experience at Swarthmore. I had hoped to organize a

Rachel Stein ’15 for Educational Policy Representative

by The Phoenix

September 19, 2012

Thank you for reading this. My name is Rachel Stein, and I am hoping that you will grant me the privilege of being your educational policy representative. I am a sophomore from suburban Chicago. But far more importantly to you, if elected,

Natalia Choi ’15 for Financial Policy Representative

by The Phoenix

September 19, 2012

Hello fellow Swatties! My name is Natalia Choi ’15 and I’d like to urge you to vote for me as the Financial Aid Policy Representative this year! I’m running for the position not because I’m an economics expert but because I’m a

Paces: A New Café

by Nehmat Kaur

September 19, 2012

Since September last year, Paces Café has been in a state of transformation, edging towards becoming an improved and more welcoming version of the café that has been around as long as anyone cares to remember. The process began with a repainting

Concrete Action in Mind, SLAP Builds Student Support

by Andrew Karas

September 19, 2012

Editor’s note: This article was initially published in The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s online, daily newspaper founded in Fall 1996. As of Fall 2018, the DG has merged with The Phoenix. See the about page to read more about the DG. Hundreds of