On Friday, September 29, 2023, the Caltech Graduate Students and Postdocs United (C/GPU) hosted a rally to celebrate reaching a majority of signed union authorization cards. For those unfamiliar or just confused about the process, this was not a vote. Those in charge of the union effort made it clear that according to their recorded numbers, enough graduate students and postdocs currently support moving forward to a vote to force the issue. These same leaders have also been very vocal about the fact that a vote would not have needed to be forced if the administration had simply consented early on to let us hold one.
After over two decades ofcontinuous operation, Caltech Administration has banned the firing of the potato cannon as part of Blacker Hovse’s rotation events. Built in 2002 as part of a Ditch Day stack, firing it has been a Blacker Hovse tradition ever since. “The potato cannon was my favorite rotation event last year. I’m disappointed that this year’s frosh [weren’t] able to have the same experience as I did,” says Ethan Labelson (EE ‘26, Blacker/Dabney).
While houses throw a significant portion of the social events during the year, ASCIT throws events open to the entire student body every term. We’ve listed an overview of the events that we both host and help out with, often with our advisor, Tom Mannion, the Senior Director of Student Activities and Alumni Engagement.
Over this summer, the blazing-pink cinematic nuclear warhead that is Barbenheimer – the sobriquet of the dual releases of Barbie and Oppenheimer – hit theaters worldwide.
Following Dabney Boat Tours, Chill at Page, and Ricketts Open Mic Night, the team-based, tournament-style competition centered around the promise of a massive water fight at the end, which participants could use their tickets to prepare for. Up for sale were water guns, tubs of water balloons, and defensive materials like mattresses and cardboard. To earn tickets, participants competed against each other in a series of games - ranging from lock picking to tug of war.
The Caltech Men’s Soccer team has been having a groundbreaking season this year, displaying a level of excellence and resilience that has made the institute proud. Their prowess on the field has been nothing short of phenomenal, displaying a level of excellence and resilience that has resonated across the campus.
In the mystical realm of Yosemite National Park, where towering sequoias whisper tales of centuries past and granite giants stand as stoic sentinels to the whims of time, a brave band of Caltech students - prefrosh, returning undergrads, and grad students - embarked on a four-day backpacking and camping odyssey as a part of the annual Caltech Y hiking trip.
Last Wednesday, September 27th 2023, the Caltech Grad Researchers and Postdocs United (CGPU) held a New Year, New Union rally to demonstrate that a supermajority of graduate students and postdocs at Caltech support forming a union.
[TW: Eating disorders, starvation] For me, it was a comment from my dad that planted the seed. My friends watered it. Social media gave it light. I nurtured it myself at times, until it broke through the one thing I swore I would protect: my curiosity, my joy, my desire to learn.
