The biggest events on campus and in Evanston during the class of 2022’s time at Northwestern
June 6, 2022
Graduation Issue 2022
Sept. 30, 2018 — With new freshman class, Northwestern reaches admissions goal of 20 percent low-income students
Northwestern has reached its goal of admitting a class of 20 percent Pell Grant-eligible students, a step toward increasing access for underrepresented students. The undergraduate class of 2022 was Northwestern’s most diverse class at the time.
Jan. 28, 2019 — Northwestern cancels classes due to polar vortex
Northwestern students said the University made the right choice to cancel school due to forecasts of sub-zero temperatures — a rare move for a school that has only closed six times in the last century because of the winter weather.
April 21, 2019 — Northwestern investigates three racist incidents on campus
A visitor of the Henry Crown Sports Pavilion informed the gym’s staff of a noose she found on top of a table in the common area outside the locker rooms March 15. Then, a student said on Facebook that he found a sticker with the white supremacist slogan placed on a pillar in Allison dining hall April 6, and another student reported finding a second “IT’S OKAY TO BE WHITE” sticker two weeks later.
Oct. 27, 2019 — ‘F—k John Evans’ painted on The Rock, denouncing University’s failure to remove founder’s name from campus buildings
Alumni and students found the phrases “F—k John Evans” and “THIS LAND IS COLONIZED” painted around The Rock on Saturday during Homecoming weekend, denouncing Northwestern’s reluctance to remove the University founder’s name from campus buildings despite his involvement in the Sand Creek Massacre.
Nov. 6, 2019 — Students protest Jeff Sessions’ speech, police presence
Students protested Northwestern College Republicans’ decision to host former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, chanting outside Lutkin Hall before attempting to interrupt Sessions’ talk by climbing through open windows and pushing through doors.
March 13, 2020 — Northwestern announces first confirmed case of COVID-19
An employee in the Kellogg School of Management’s Global Hub tested positive for COVID-19, the first confirmed on Northwestern’s campus.
April 6, 2020 — Northwestern announces Spring Quarter will be entirely virtual
After the first day of remote learning, Northwestern has extended remote learning for the rest of Spring Quarter, University President Morton Schapiro wrote in an email.
May 31, 2020 — Evanston residents join national police brutality protests following the murder of George Floyd
Evanston joined the ranks of cities nationwide protesting against police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s death. Over a thousand residents marched throughout Evanston and congregated in a parking lot across from Evanston Township High School. Evanston youths organized the protest to address police brutality and the death of Floyd.
Sept. 7, 2020 — Northwestern Panhellenic Association calls on Greek organizations to consider disbanding following calls to abolish Greek life
Northwestern’s Panhellenic Association, which governed 11 chapters at the time, released a statement acknowledging its harmful history and current movement to abolish Greek life on campus.
“When we say abolish Greek life, we have no intention of leaving a space that allows it to return,” the executive board wrote. “Therefore, we are looking into ways that would prevent national Greek chapters from coming to campus to ‘recolonize.’”
Oct. 31, 2020 — Students pepper-sprayed, one arrested during Halloween action to abolish NUPD
Evanston police and Illinois crowd control officers, deployed in riot gear with K-9 support, used chemical ammunition and made one arrest during an anti-policing protest led by NU Community Not Cops on Halloween. Evanston Police Department and Northern Illinois Police Alarm System’s Mobile Field Force officers flanked the crowd of about 150 students and unleashed pepper spray and fired pepperballs.
Feb. 23, 2021 — Daniel Biss to become Evanston’s next mayor
Former state Sen. Daniel Biss was elected Evanston’s next mayor. Unofficial results showed he secured over 73 percent of votes, with all precincts reporting. Biss, an Evanston resident of over a decade, faced off in the city’s mayoral primary against local activist Lori Keenan and 2018 Evanston Township High School graduate Sebastian Nalls.
March 4, 2021 — President Morton Schapiro to conclude tenure in 2022
After 13 years at Northwestern, University President Morton Schapiro will end his tenure on Aug. 31, 2022. During his time at Northwestern, annual research funding rose 86 percent and Northwestern broke the top 10 ranked universities in the country.
In months leading up to the announcement, Schapiro faced backlash from students and faculty around his response to the Northwestern University Community Not Cops protests. In the daily protests to abolish University Police in the fall, students repeatedly called on Schapiro to resign.
May 12, 2021 — Mike Polisky resigns as Northwestern’s athletic director
Nine days after his official announcement as Northwestern’s next athletic director, Mike Polisky resigned from the position and will be departing the University. The hire was met with backlash from members of the Northwestern community, as Polisky was named a defendant in a federal lawsuit alleging sexual harassment within the cheerleading program.
Sept. 26, 2021 — ‘No more excuses’: Students protest Greek life after series of reported druggings at fraternity houses
Students surrounded the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity house during a protest held outside the on-campus houses of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and AEPi Sunday night, following two University Police crime notices. According to the Friday notice, multiple individuals reported they were drugged at an AEPi house event, and according to the Saturday notice, another individual reported they were drugged at an SAE house event.
Oct. 11, 2021 — Rebecca Blank named next president of Northwestern
Rebecca Blank will be Northwestern’s 17th president. Blank, currently the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will replace University President Morton Schapiro, whose tenure will conclude in August 2022. Blank’s appointment as NU’s first woman president will be a return to the University, where she became the first tenured woman in the economics department.
Oct. 18, 2021 — NU dining workers ratify agreement with Compass Group
Northwestern dining and service workers voted to ratify an agreement for a new contract with Compass Group, the University’s food service provider. The new agreement includes a minimum hourly wage of $19.88 and a permanent extension of health insurance benefits to all workers, according to a Monday news release from UNITE HERE Local 1, the union representing NU’s subcontracted service workers. Compass workers have been advocating for these demands for over two years.
Jan. 14, 2022 — First recipients selected for Evanston reparations program
Evanston’s Reparations Committee selected the first residents to receive reparations through the Restorative Housing Program. Committee members drew numbered ping-pong balls from a bingo cage to determine the order in which the 122 recipients in the Ancestor category would receive $25,000 housing benefits.
May 21, 2022 — Captured: Mayfest Productions brings 50th Dillo Day to the Lakefill
Mayfest Productions held its 50th Dillo Day on Saturday — the first in-person Dillo Day after two years of virtual performances. The student-run music festival featured daytime headliner Remi Wolf and nighttime headliner Dominic Fike.
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @isabellesarraf
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @haley_fuller_
