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Claremont McKenna dean of students resigns following student protests

Jamie Altman
Chapman University

Mary Spellman, the dean of students at Claremont McKenna College, stepped down Thursday following calls from students who demanded her resignation.

"Today I am submitting my letter of resignation, effective immediately," Spellman wrote in an email to the Claremont McKenna community. "I do so with sadness beyond words, because these nearly six years have been the most rewarding and fulfilling of my life, but also with the conviction that it is the right thing to do for the school and the students I care about so deeply."

Claremont McKenna, in Claremont, Calif., joins a growing national protest against universities' treatment of minority students. At Ithaca College, President Tom Rochon is accused of inadequately responding to racial incidents on campus. The University of Missouri has seen the resignation of its president and other administrators, and a professor at Yale University came under fire for an email about cultural appropriation and Halloween costumes.

In October, a student shared an article with Spellman that she had written about feeling marginalized at Claremont McKenna. Spellman's responsed that she is trying to better serve students who don't fit the "CMC mold."

Her email ignited student protests — two students began hunger strikes on Wednesday calling for Spellman's resignation.

In a demonstration on Wednesday afternoon, students confronted Spellman, who apologized for her "poorly worded email."

“The CMC mold is a thing I talk about with students every day," she said. "They come to me and tell me how they don’t fit in … That is what I am referring to as the mold."

Spellman's resignation comes a few days after the resignation of junior class president Kris Brackmann, who stepped down when a photo of her from Halloween circulated on Facebook. The picture features two female students wearing sombreros, fake mustaches and ponchos, with Brackmann posing in front as a dancer from Justin Bieber's music video, "Sorry."

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The picture gained attention when junior Casey Garcelon reposted it as her cover photo, which has received more than 130 shares.

"Dear Claremont community," Casey Garcelon wrote in the picture's caption. "For anyone who ever tries to invalidate the experiences of POC at the Claremont Colleges, here is a reminder of why we feel the way we do. Don’t tell me I’m overreacting, don’t tell me I’m being too sensitive. My voice will not be silenced."

On Tuesday, Brackmann resigned in an email to the student body.

“As a bystander I did not assertively speak out against the costumes, despite knowing that they were disrespectful," she wrote. "Even worse, I associated myself with the offensive message by willingly standing in a photo with the costumes ... I am regretfully sorry to have been associated with this harmful incident, and after thoughtful consideration I have decided to leave my position as the Junior Class President.”

 Jamie Altman is a Chapman University student and a fall 2015 breaking news correspondent.

This story originally appeared on the USA TODAY College blog, a news source produced for college students by student journalists. The blog closed in September of 2017.

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