Skip to Main Content
The Student-Run Newspaper of Williams College Since 1887

The Williams Record

The Student-Run Newspaper of Williams College Since 1887

The Williams Record

The Student-Run Newspaper of Williams College Since 1887

The Williams Record

Catherine Debenham

Catherine Debenham is a prospective political science major from Redwood City, Calif. She is a staff writer for the features section.

All content by Catherine Debenham
Former College professor Beth Wellman wins $1 million on game show Beat Shazam

Former College professor Beth Wellman wins $1 million on game show Beat Shazam

Catherine Debenham September 26, 2023
What do your professors do outside of the classroom? On Sept. 12, former Visiting Professor of Political Science Beth Wellman won $1 million on the season finale of Fox’s game show Beat Shazam. 
Community members can donate clothing, school supplies, and household items to the Free Store. (Catherine Debenham/The Williams Record)

‘For students, by students’: Free Store serves student needs through item exchange

Catherine Debenham April 11, 2023
This past Saturday, the College’s Free Store officially opened for business. The student-run store will provide clothing, school supplies, and household items free of charge to those who visit the cozy Wightman Room on the second floor of Goodrich Hall during the coffee bar’s open hours.
Writing the history of the College: My experience at the Special Collections Transcribe-a-Thon

Writing the history of the College: My experience at the Special Collections Transcribe-a-Thon

Catherine Debenham March 8, 2023
Catherine Debenham gives a first-person account of her experience at Special Collections' Transcribe-a-Thon event, where she reproduced letters from a president of the College written in the 1830s.
The personal and professional: A Wednesday night at Lyceum dinner

The personal and professional: A Wednesday night at Lyceum dinner

Catherine Debenham February 22, 2023
Every month, 60 to 90 students sign up in groups on a first-come, first-served basis to take their professors “out to dinner” or, at least, to a three-course meal at the Faculty House. September marked the revival of the beloved program, which is organized by the Office of Campus Life and Dining Services, after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Students prepare for a WOOLF trip in 1979 — one of the first trips after the program’s founding two years earlier. Photo courtesy of The Williams Record.

‘A different way of getting to know people’: Founders recount the beginnings of WOOLF

Emily Swope and Catherine Debenham December 7, 2022
An unsatisfactory orientation experience as a first-year student that led Laschever to imagine a different start for first-years at the College. In his senior year, he helped establish Williams Outdoor Orientation For Living as First-years (WOOLF), which is now a four-day wilderness adventure orientation program, alongside a group of students two years below him.
Many students seek employment at businesses on Spring Street, where they interact with the greater Town community. (Photo courtesy of Shirley Lin.)

For some students, working on Spring St. casts light on class divides, Town-College relations

Haley Zimmerman and Catherine Debenham November 30, 2022
The Record spoke to three students who have had off-campus jobs at Spring Street businesses as they discussed their observations on Town-Gown relations.
Transfer students reflect on creating community at the College

Transfer students reflect on creating community at the College

Luke Chinman and Catherine Debenham November 9, 2022
The Record spoke to four students who transferred last year about their experiences before Williams, their transitions to life at the College, and how they’ve found community despite their nontraditional college paths.
Load More Stories