Joey Fox

Williamstown sees largest Massachusetts forest fire in over 20 years

Joey Fox • May 19, 2021

A wildfire burned nearly 1,000 acres over the weekend, tearing across East Mountain, Pine Cobble, and Clarksburg State Forest to become the largest fire in Massachusetts since 1999.

May 10 Select Board meeting: Blanchard chooses Ziemba as interim police chief, board discusses role of DIRE committee

Joey Fox and Ella Marx • May 16, 2021

At the Select Board’s May 10 meeting, Interim Town Manager Charles Blanchard announced that after receiving six applications, he had chosen Acting Williamstown Police Department (WPD) Chief Mike Ziemba as interim police chief.

Johnson and Hasty win Select Board elections in victory for progressive slate

Lawrence, Dew win seats on Planning Board, Housing Authority

Joey Fox • May 12, 2021

Jeff Johnson and Wade Hasty defeated Tony Boskovich ’74 and Albert Cummings IV after a hotly contested campaign in yesterday’s double-header Select Board election. Johnson and Hasty were informally aligned in a progressive-leaning slate that emphasized the need for racial justice in the Town.

Double-header Select Board elections heat up over racial justice, Town civility

Joey Fox and Ella Marx • May 5, 2021

As Election Day fast approaches, the Record spoke with three Select Board candidates, as well as local advocates and activists, to better understand the dynamics of two races that will define the Town government for years to come.

Contested races on the ballot for Town elections in May

Joey Fox and Ella Marx • April 21, 2021

After a turbulent year for Williamstown marked by reports of police misconduct, the continued hardships of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the resignation of several Town officials, Williamstown voters will go to the polls on May 11 to vote for two new members of the Williamstown Select Board alongside several other local races.

A year into the pandemic, staff still face unique burdens

Joey Fox and Nigel Jaffe • April 14, 2021

The Record sent a survey to every staff member at the College, and spoke with seven of them about their experiences since the pandemic began. The stories they told speak to the challenges staff have confronted in the past year, the ways staff feel they do and don’t fit in at Williams, and the hopes many staff have for a post-COVID future.

The perks and perils of sharing a name

Joey Fox • March 31, 2021

For three glorious years at the College, I, Joey Fox ’21, got to be unique just like everybody else. Then Joe Fox ’24 arrived.

Finding ‘glimmers of joy’: Samra Brouk ’08 discusses path to New York State Senate

Joey Fox • March 10, 2021

According to Samra Brouk ’08, few of her peers from her time at the College would have predicted a future for her in public office. Yet last November, Brouk made history by becoming the first Black woman ever elected to the New York State Senate from upstate New York.

NESCAC presidents announce limited spring sports season

Williams opts in to competition, but with no spectators

Joey Fox • March 10, 2021

The presidents of NESCAC institutions announced in a statement yesterday that the athletic conference will hold a limited spring sports season from mid-April until mid-May.

Tom Bernard ’92 announces he will not seek reelection as North Adams mayor

Joey Fox • March 3, 2021

North Adams Mayor Tom Bernard ’92 announced Feb. 23 that he would not seek reelection this year to a third term in office. Bernard, who grew up in North Adams before attending the College, was elected in 2017 and reelected in 2019, both times with commanding majorities.

One in Two Thousand: Jared Berger ’21

Joey Fox • February 24, 2021

This week the computer (using a script in R) chose Jared Berger ’21, who talked about playing trumpet, being tall, and how sledding makes your butt hurt. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Mt. Greylock HS Zoom attack perpetrated by students of color, investigation finds

Joey Fox • February 17, 2021

An investigation into a Jan. 21 Zoom-bombing attack that targeted a Black child of College employees has concluded that the primary perpetrator was a student of color, Mount Greylock Regional School District Superintendent Jake McCandless said at a school committee meeting on Thursday.

Course registration period beset by overenrollment, PeopleSoft issues

Joey Fox • February 7, 2021

According to Dean of the College Marlene Sandstrom, 991 students were dropped from at least one class, compared to 816 last spring. The registration software PeopleSoft was overloaded by hundreds of students last Monday night as regular registration opened, making matters even more difficult for those dropped from classes.

Spring semester to start as scheduled; College plans to hold in-person commencement

Joey Fox, Megan Lin, Irene Loewenson, Annie Lu, Lucy Walker, and Kevin Yang • January 28, 2021

The spring semester will start as previously scheduled, with students returning to campus beginning Feb. 10, President of the College Maud S. Mandel and Dean of the College Marlene Sandstrom announced today in an email to students, staff, and faculty. Additionally, the College plans to hold an in-person commencement for seniors, albeit with no off-campus guests.

JA applications drop slightly from last year

Irene Loewenson and Joey Fox • January 22, 2021

Applications from current sophomores to be Junior Advisors (JAs) for the Class of 2025 dropped slightly this year to 95, down from 109 applications last year and 118 applications the year before. Still, the total number of applications remains much higher than the number received three years ago from the Class of 2020, when a record-low 70 applications forced the Junior Advisor Advisory Board (JAAB) to reconfigure the entry system.

On-campus holdouts confront a newly emptied campus

Joey Fox and Kit Conklin • December 9, 2020

On the weekend before Thanksgiving, the College was a flurry of packing and panic, as a large majority of the College’s on-campus population prepared to head home for the remainder of the semester. But for the 157 students who were approved to stay in Williamstown, the weekend simply marked a new chapter of their time on campus.

One semester, ten cases: A timeline

Joey Fox and Annie Lu • November 25, 2020

Fourteen weeks since students first arrived on campus for the fall semester. 44,139 COVID tests conducted since Aug. 17. Ten positive test results on campus.

Record survey projects increase in on-campus enrollment for spring semester

Joey Fox • November 25, 2020

After a fall semester in which over one-third of students chose to learn remotely, take time off or study abroad, the results of an anonymous Record survey sent to the entire student body last Friday, and filled out by over one-third of students, indicate that the spring semester will see a notable increase in on-campus enrollment.

Korean Garden moves to new Williamstown location

Joey Fox • November 18, 2020

Korean Garden, long a staple of Korean fare in northern Berkshire County, will move to a new Williamstown location within the next few months. The restaurant’s final day in its original North Adams location was Oct. 31.

After four Cello Shots, College goes wild

Joey Fox • November 18, 2020

The cello ensemble Cello Shots — including, from left, Nat Davidson ’22, Esther Kim ’23 and Michael Fallon ’24 — held their fall semester concert remotely last week. (Joey Fox/The Williams Record.) Ten...

Once again, Berkshire County incumbents run unopposed

Joey Fox • November 3, 2020

In most Berkshire County races, voters aren’t given any choices. In Williamstown, Neal, state Sen. Adam Hinds (D-Pittsfield) and state Rep. John Barrett (D-North Adams) will all be re-elected without major-party opposition; all three similarly escaped without Republican opponents in 2018. In fact, none of the five state legislators representing Berkshire County — all Democrats — face opponents this year.

This Halloween, the masks aren’t just for costumes

Joey Fox • October 28, 2020

Both Williamstown and the College are preparing for a Halloween unlike any other, this year placing an emphasis on small gatherings and socially distanced activities.

How’s remote learning going? For most remote students, pretty well.

Joey Fox • October 21, 2020

Nearly two months into the fall semester, most remote students report that they have been able to access the high-quality education that they were promised, though they’ve still experienced problems connecting with professors and juggling home and academic life.

Faculty to vote on spring 2021 calendar; students express preference for continuous model

Joey Fox and Annie Lu • October 14, 2020

The faculty will vote in a meeting today to adopt one of two models for the spring 2021 academic calendar, both of which the Calendar and Scheduling Committee (CSC) have been developing over the past month. Described in a CSC memo, Option A, the “continuous model,” allows students to remain on campus for the duration of the spring semester but replaces spring break with a series of “health days,” while option B, the “Thanksgiving model,” has most students vacate campus during spring break and finish the semester remotely.

Newly-formed COVID ad hoc committee deliberates on campus guidelines

Joey Fox • September 30, 2020

With the College’s self-imposed deadline for reconsidering its COVID-19 policies arriving tomorrow, members of the administration and the newly formed ad hoc committee on COVID and campus life policies are working to determine what changes the College is equipped to make safely.

Some professors originally listed their classes as hybrid. Now, they’re fully remote.

Joey Fox • September 23, 2020

According to data provided by Dean of the College Marlene Sandstrom, 55.1 percent of all classes at the College this semester are currently listed as remote, while 40.5 percent are hybrid and the remaining 4.5 percent are in-person.

Three positive cases represent first test of College’s isolation procedures

Joey Fox • September 16, 2020

For most students on campus, the first full week of classes has also brought the first full week of freedom from quarantine. After remaining in their rooms until receiving confirmation of two negative COVID-19 tests, most students are now free to visit the entire campus. The College’s COVID Dashboard, which ticked up to three confirmed cases this weekend, remains a distant worry.

Incumbents win competitive Massachusetts primaries

Joey Fox • September 1, 2020

After a long and turbulent primary season, two incumbents representing Western Massachusetts — Democratic Sen. Ed Markey and Democratic Rep. Richard Neal — were re-nominated on Tuesday night. They defeated Rep. Joe Kennedy III and Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse, respectively.

Neal, Morse face off in close Berkshire congressional primary

Joey Fox and Tali Natter • August 29, 2020

Rep. Richard Neal (D-Springfield) and Mayor of Holyoke Alex Morse are competing in the Democratic primary for Massachusetts' 1st congressional district this Tuesday.

College libraries prepare for fall semester

Joey Fox and Jackson Hartigan • July 7, 2020

Campus in the fall will no doubt be a dramatically different place for those who return, with social distancing restrictions, hybrid or all-remote classes and countless other changes. But despite the unusual circumstances, the College’s libraries are approaching the upcoming semester with relatively few major alterations to their pre-COVID-19 operations.

BREAKING: Williams announces plan to reconvene on campus for fall semester, with reduced tuition

Irene Loewenson, Joey Fox, and Annie Lu • June 29, 2020

The College has announced that it will reopen the campus to students for the fall semester, though with stringent measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and with a 15 percent lower cost of attendance.

WSU, Libraries team up to initiate Black Lives Matter Project

Joey Fox • June 24, 2020

The Williams Black Lives Matter Project, a collaboration between the newly established Williams Student Union (WSU) and Williams Libraries, is aiming to capture student perspectives on the protests, from any place and in any form. With the project, its founders hope to build accounts of the ongoing movement into the historical and institutional record, even with campus itself nearly deserted.

Seniors reminisce on the clubs they founded

Joey Fox • May 23, 2020

For some members of the Class of 2020, the end of the academic year means saying goodbye to the clubs they founded, led and guided, and passing them on to a new generation of leaders.

Faculty alter two academic requirements in all-faculty meeting

Joey Fox • May 20, 2020

At last Wednesday’s virtual faculty meeting, the faculty voted near-unanimously to approve two motions submitted by the Committee on Academic Standing (CAS) concerning academic requirements. Both motions will go into effect starting in fall 2020.

Blogs, journals and memes: Library seeks to preserve student experiences through COVID-19 archival project

Joey Fox • April 29, 2020

Rito Tanaka ’23 had a rather boring Monday. “Nothing Interesting Happened Today,” he wrote in his blog, Live From Quarantined Williamstown, before summarizing his day with a simple and evocative emoticon: ‘ :[ ’.

OIDEI appoints Jacqueline Hidalgo as new associate dean for institutional diversity, equity and inclusion

Joey Fox • April 22, 2020

An all-campus email sent last Thursday announced the appointment of Chair of Religion and Associate Professor of Latina/o/x Studies Jacqueline Hidalgo as the new associate dean for institutional diversity, equity and inclusion. Hidalgo will officially begin her term as associate dean on July 1, succeeding Professor of Political Science Ngonidzashe Munemo, who has held the position since July 2016.

Record Recs: (Free) sci-fi flicks, ’90s rom-coms

Irene Loewenson and Joey Fox • April 22, 2020

The Record offers 10 movie recommendations from Williams' free-to-access movie archive.

Physical education classes continue through remote learning

Joey Fox and Stephanie Teng • April 8, 2020

Remote physical education (PE) classes began this week, in an effort to allow seniors still in need of PE credit to fulfill their requirements and to provide other students with a healthy option for exercise...

College orders all non-essential staff to cease on-campus work

Joey Fox and Annie Lu • April 1, 2020

Since Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker signed an executive order on March 23 ordering all nonessential businesses in the state to close due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, staff at the College were directed to work remotely unless their in-person services are determined to be essential. Staff duties had already been significantly altered following the departure of most students from campus.

Alums on international fellowships return early to the U.S.

Joey Fox • April 1, 2020

As colleges and universities around the country were forced to close or move to remote learning due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, international fellowships and scholarships have similarly paused their programs and encouraged students to return home.

Mandel mandates most students leave campus by Tuesday, announces transition to remote learning after spring break due to coronavirus pandemic

Sofie Jones, Kevin Yang, Rebecca Tauber, Joey Fox, and Samuel Wolf • March 11, 2020

For the first time in over 50 years, the College has decided to disrupt normal operations mid-semester in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. President of the College Maud S. Mandel announced in...

Rising coronavirus concerns affect various facets of campus life

Jeongyoon Han, Joey Fox, and Sonia Prasad • March 11, 2020

As the number of reported cases of COVID-19 (also known as coronavirus) has increased to five in Berkshire County and over 1,000 nationwide, the College is scrambling to implement academic and administrative measures to maintain the safety of the College community.

Professor Sharpe performs jazz set about black experience

Joey Fox • March 4, 2020

Avery Sharpe, who is retiring this year after 10 years teaching bass, leading jazz ensembles and advising the College’s gospel choir, held a performance of his album 400 last Thursday alongside a band of fellow music professors, students and guests. The album, which was released in 2019, includes 10 songs, nine originals and one arrangement, and was designed to encapsulate 400 years of black history in America.

Mandel announces release of strategic planning draft reports

Alice Qu and Joey Fox • February 19, 2020

Last Wednesday, President Maud S. Mandel sent an email to students, faculty and staff announcing the public release of draft strategic planning reports, marking a new phase in the multi-year strategic planning process.

Claiming Williams event examines DPE requirement

Joey Fox • February 12, 2020

In a Claiming Williams event last Thursday examining the Difference, Power and Equity (DPE) requirement, approximately 40 students, faculty members and administrators reviewed the history of the requirement...

Closer Look: How the town’s government works

Joey Fox • December 6, 2019

With 22 elected officials and 63 employees, the government of Williamstown is the third largest institution in the town, surpassed only by the College and the school district. But for many College students, who are not registered to vote in the town and who only have limited interactions with its government, the bureaucracy can seem difficult to understand.

Joey Fox, Senior Writer

The Williams Record