News: Student Life

On Saturday, the Society of Professional Journalists announced the recipients of its 2021 Mark of Excellence Awards, which honor the best of collegiate journalism at the national level. Spectator, which submitted eight articles and its editions for consideration, won in three categories—including best all-around student newspaper—and had four finalists.

This week, many undergraduates received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in Lerner Hall. With the recent addition of individuals 16 and older to the eligibility pool for COVID-19 vaccines, almost the entire Columbia community is now eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Columbia College and the School of Engineering and Applied Science have released offers of admission to 2,218 students, the office of undergraduate admissions announced on Tuesday, causing the acceptance rate to plummet to a record-low 3.66 percent. Admitted students come from all 50 states and 100 countries.

Columbia-Barnard Young Democratic Socialists of America’s tuition strike, which organizers claim mobilized at least 1,000 student strikers at its peak, ended on Monday, April 5.

The School of General Studies’ 2021 Class Day ceremony will feature Elegance Bratton, GS ’14, as keynote speaker and Christopher Thompson, GS ’21, and Qimeng Shi, GS ’21, as the class of 2021′s valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively. Bratton, Thompson, and Shi will each address the General Studies class of 2021 virtually on Wednesday, April 28 during Class Day.

The Columbia College Student Council and the Engineering Student Council announced election results for the 2021-22 academic year Monday morning. Less than 30 percent of the Columbia College and SEAS student bodies voted in student council elections this year. Over half of all CCSC races were unopposed; the same was true for over 75 percent of ESC races.

As the Graduate Workers of Columbia-United Auto Workers’ strike enters its second week, many undergraduate students on and off campus are voicing their support for the movement, as are other unions and students at other universities.