The night before Così fan tutte was scheduled to open this past Wednesday, the entire cast, crew, orchestra, creative team, and every voice faculty member gathered on the stage of Hall Auditorium as Dean of the Conservatory William Quillen officially announced that the opera would be closed to the general public. The show must go on — even if the audience is banned from attending. Aside from the two tickets that every cast member is allowed to give friends and family, Hall Auditorium will be empty as the show is performed. The audience, instead, will be watching the show from computers or TV screens as it is livestreamed tonight at 8 p.m. In the age of COVID-19, the question we are all forced to ask is a new version o...

Zahida Sherman stepped into her new role as director of Oberlin’s Multicultural Resource Center on Monday, Feb. 18. Most recently, Sherman was an assistant director of Black Student Success at the University of the Pacific. She has also worked as an associate development coordinator for Diversity and Inclusion at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP in Los Angeles, and as an assistant director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Kenyon College. Sherman earned her BA in anthropology fro...

The Multicultural Resource Center moved from its former space on the second floor of Wilder and into North Campus’ International House, previously occupied by the International Student Organization and Wilder Voice, along with other groups. An on-campus resource for marginalized and underrepresented students, the MRC defines itself in its mission statement as a “gathering place for the collaborative support of historically disenfranchised communities,” serving members of the College and th...

  Vice President and Dean of Studies Eric Estes will be leaving at the end of this semester to become the vice president for campus life and student services at Brown University. He came to Oberlin College in 2004 as an associate dean of studies and director of the Multicultural Resource Center. Here, he advocated for student activism and organizing and brought students and faculty together for community building. He has led the Division of Student Life, which includes 16 departments and offices, since 2011. During his time at Oberlin, Dean Estes has become one of the most recognizable administrators on campus. He has increased the staff in the Counseling Center and Office of Disability Services and serv...