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Sustainability activities at Occidental College.
Changing the Climate
Emboldened by a proactive student body, Oxy doubles down on its commitment to a more sustainable campus

Occidental magazine brings you campus news, in-depth features, and profiles of exceptional alumni. For the 2024-25 academic year, the magazine will publish two print and digital issues (Fall 2024 and Spring 2025) and two digital-only issues (Summer 2024 and Winter 2025).

Spring12_Freedman
College dropout, screenwriter, and novelist Benedict Freedman (1919-2012) went back to school in his late 40s en route to Oxy
Spring12_MLK2
As Oxy honors Martin Luther King's legacy through community service, President Richard Gilman remembers King's historic 1967 visit to campus
Tetsuo Otsuki
Tetsuo Otsuki: 1942-2012
The Elephant in the Room: Reflections on 125 Years
Spring12_Reading
Oxy alumni have published hundreds (if not thousands) of books in just about every genre you can download. Here are 18 for the ages
Spring12_Weller
Occidental's founding president has always been something of an enigma. But a treasure trove of family keepsakes and archival research reveals a fuller portrait of Rev. Samuel H. Weller
He was a rising star in Oxy's philosophy department when he took his own life in 1966. Today, his name is synonymous with teaching excellence. Who was Donald Loftsgordon?
Its Presbyterian roots. Its early financial struggles. The fire that destroyed its Boyle Heights campus. The perseverance of a school to realize its destiny. Occidental's early history has...
Occidental's liberal arts mission has been shaped by presidents, professors, protests, and progress. We look back at a dozen milestone movements
As Occidental prepares to induct its inaugural class into the Athletics Hall of Fame during Homecoming & Family Weekend, the playing field has never been more level for men and women. And...
From planning the freeway system and aiding the conservation movement to bringing the Dodgers and the Olympics to town, Oxy alumni have been integral to the development of the City of Angels...
Robert T. Moore, Moore Laboratory, Occidental College
After more than 60 years of sitting in oak case drawers, the 60,000-plus specimens in Oxy's Moore Lab of Zoology are more vital than ever, as advances in DNA sequencing technology offer new...
Fascinated by sharks from an early age, marine biologist Lisa Natanson '81 takes to the ocean, her $17 knife close at hand, to explore the mysteries of nature's most toothsome predators
Oxy's marine biology program studies California's near-shore environment
If these mementoes from the Roy Dennis Trophy Room could talk, they would share many stories of Oxy's rich sports heritage

Features

Campaign Semester participants Cady Carr '27 and Rachel Obbard '27
Ground Game
For Campaign Semester students in battleground Pennsylvania and 13 other states, the road map to Election Day entails knocking on every door
Actor Loren Lester ’83 in Times Square
Broadway Baby
In the third act of a career that spans stage, screen, and television, actor Loren Lester ’83 realizes a lifelong dream of performing on the Great White Way
The Occidental Gospel Choir in 1975.
Precious Memories
Founded by students in 1971, the Occidental Gospel Choir made music for a quarter-century—and a reunion of former members celebrates its nearly forgotten legacy
Sam Rubin '82 and Stacie Roshon '08
The Morning Showman
Sam Rubin ’82 became a fixture of the entertainment journalism landscape over his 33 years with KTLA—and his unexpected death in May resonated well beyond Hollywood's red carpets
Hats Off to Patt!
Patt Morrison ’74 shares a curated collection of books with Special Collections—and 50 years of words and wisdom in conversation with Larry Mantle

First Word

From the Quad

Tylor Lee '26 interned with Healthcare in Action, which provides healthcare and social services to unhoused people.
Summer in the City
A 10-week summer internship program pairs 28 Oxy students with 20 community partners to contribute to the work of advancing social justice in Los Angeles
Occidental’s women's basketball team after winning the 2024 SCIAC Post­season Tournament championship.
Bringing the Heat
Playing through injuries, fatigue, and in front of opposing crowds, Oxy’s ‘relentless’ women’s hoops team wins its way into the NCAA tourney
Coach Rod Lafaurie and members of the 2023 men's soccer team
Kicking and Dreaming
From its first SCIAC championship to a berth in the Sweet 16, Oxy men’s soccer soared to new heights this season. But Coach Rod Lafaurie and his players are hungry for more

Mixed Media

Author Susan Coll '81, photographed at Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C.
Mixed Media
Susan Coll ’81’s latest comic novel, Professor Amy Lyford’s examination of the art and life of Dorothea Tanning, and more

Oxy Talk

Suke Takayuki Kubota in an undated photo.
Oxy’s Samurai Grandmaster
Soke Takayuki Kubota (1934-2024) became a martial arts legend, developing his own karate style and amassing a worldwide following. And for more than 40 years, he taught his methods to the...
Spectators view the OCLAA oral history gallery in the Academic Commons in February 2024.
Voices of OCLAA
Realizing a long-standing goal of Occidental’s Latino Alumni Association, two dozen alumni share their stories with students for an oral history project

Last Page

Journalist Max Chun '19 in the offices of Lookout Santa Cruz.
Local Heroes
When disaster struck his native Santa Cruz last year, reporter Max Chun ’19 and a small team of journalists sprang into action for their community—and pocketed a Pulitzer Prize for their work
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