Courtesy of Grace Schmidt ’26
SGA Executive Board Announced
By Theo Andres
This past Thursday, the Student Government Association (SGA) kicked off our first General Assembly of the year with an understandably bureaucratic start. We introduced new members to the voting processes, laid out our ground rules for respectful discussion, and new accessibility guidelines for informing the campus. We also voted in new members for the Finance Committee and Co-Sponsorship Committee, and began the much longer process of voting in House Senators to our plurality of committees– to be continued.
I might not have any pressing news to bring you today, but for now, keep yourself informed: make sure you know who your House Senator is, and keep your eyes on the ongoing elections! And, in case you don’t know, here’s a very brief introduction to your hard-at-work 2025-26 SGA Executive Board:
President: Adriana Manzano ‘28
Vice President: Vincent Tan ‘27
Chair of Academic Affairs: Nicole Sanfilippo ‘27
Chair of Communications: Julia Ana Pelczarski ‘28
Chair of Equity and Inclusion: Alex Eikinas ‘26
Chair of Finance: Riley Schlick ‘27
Chair of Honor Council: Jenifer Alvarado ‘26
Chair of Residential Affairs: Morganne Young ‘28
Chair of Sustainability: Elaine Sandoval ‘28
Parliamentarian: Maddie McDaniel ‘27
Presidential Associate: Tenzin Choedak ‘27
Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?: A Profile of the New Admissions Dog
By Grace Schmidt
(see photo of Scooby above)
It’s almost impossible not to love dogs. They’re friendly, energetic, and research even shows that owning a dog can increase physical activity, reduce stress, and improve heart health. You may have seen around campus Dean of Admission Andy Strickler’s dog Utley, a lab and shepherd mix (probably). Last summer, though, a new dog was introduced into the admissions office, named Scooby! Recently, I got the opportunity to interview Scooby’s owner, Laurie Tolles, who works in Admissions, and learn more about our campus’ new furry friend.
As I spoke with Laurie, Scooby barely moved from his dog bed, perfectly content with listening to me fawn over him. Scooby is a Great Dane puppy, just like the mystery-solving dog he was named for. He is 4 months old, born in April. About 2 months ago, Laurie adopted him from her friend whose dog had had a litter of puppies. “He was gifted to us,” she told me as she explained that Scooby was the last remaining puppy from his litter. For a puppy, Scooby is a large dog, a fact that Laurie and I discussed– we found a common ground here, since we both have big dogs.
Laurie described Scooby as a relatively calm dog. He is able to hang out in the Admissions office, and walk around our bustling campus. She described a time where she walked Scooby near the construction happening in between Cro and Harris. Construction was active, and even around the large trucks and loud drills, Scooby remained calm. I was astonished at this, laughing as I imagined how berserk my dog would go upon seeing and hearing the construction. Laurie explained that she is trying to train Scooby to be as socialized as possible. “He’s very friendly,” concluded Laurie, as she told me and my fellow Conn students, “if you ever see us walking, come say hi.”
