Welcome to The Quad!

The Quad is your source for all of the academic, athletic, social, and recreational activities going on at St. John’s College, Annapolis. Below you’ll find listings of available activities, arranged by category. If you have a club or group you want to promote, please contact the Community Facilitator for Student Activities and Events, Rachelle Munsey.

Available Activities

Publications

Energeia

Co-Archons: Allyson Brink (ambrink(at)sjc.edu), Kelly Kane (kmkane(at)sjc.edu)

Contact: energeia(at)sjc.edu

Instagram: @energeiasjc

Energeia is the college’s official student-run literary and arts magazine. Our purpose is to provide a venue for creative expression through various media, including visual arts, creative written pieces—both fiction and non-fiction—and audio artworks, both musical and otherwise, along with a place to hone editing, selection, layout design, and other publication skills. And, finally, to share the polity’s artwork with the rest of the polity.

Energeia latest issue (PDF)

The GadFly

Co-Archons: Craig Koch (cekoch(at)sjc.edu), Cooper Ussery (jcussery(at)sjc.edu)

Submissions: sjca.gadfly(at)gmail.com

The Gadfly is the college’s long running student newsmagazine. Founded in 1980 it has consistently provided a home for campus news, opinion, art, and culture. The magazine is published biweekly and is an excellent way for students to practice their writing and creativity in a public forum of real readership and impact. The Gadfly distributes at least 150 physical copies every printing cycle, is emailed to every student upon release, and is archived in the St. John’s College Digital Archives. It is a significant part of St. John’s history and its ongoing creation. Those interested in learning more should reach out to Craig Koch.

814 Magazine

Archons: Cassie Desmond; Natalie Kreppner (nrkreppner(at)sjc.edu)

814 Magazine is a photography publication that strives to present the analog and digital work of the student body in a way that represents the artist while simultaneously engaging the audience. If you love taking photos, come hang!

Yearbook Staff

Archon: Nathaniel Martin (nrmartin(at)sjc.edu)

Co-Archon & Assistant Editor: Bridget Mace (bemace(at)sjc.edu)

Instagram: @sjcyearbook

The St. John’s College annual publication for students, by students. All things writing, photographing, layouting, and publishing. We are hoping to provide a way for graduating students to memorialize their time at St. John’s College.

How to Lose Your Mind

Archons: Kai Gyorki (elgyorki(at)sjc.edu), Owen Healy (orhealy(at)sjc.edu)

How to Lose Your Mind, a comprehensive guide to narrative insanity welcomes you! Please bring a writing utensil you enjoy along with something to use it on.

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Music and Dance

St. John’s Chorus

Archon: Allegra Hall (adhall(at)sjc.edu), Ella Harel Kirschner (enharel(at)sjc.edu), Isabel Emond (ikemond(at)sjc.edu)

The St. John’s Chorus is an ensemble conducted by our very own Peter Kalkavage (tutor) and is open to the entire polity, regardless of musical experience or background. We meet every Wednesday night in the Great Hall from 7-8:30 p.m. ET, learning a range of primarily sacred works to be performed at Collegium and at a formal concert in the spring. It is a wonderful thing to hear what our community sounds like together; with your diligence and heart we are capable of making some truly beautiful music.

SJC Christmas Carolers

Archon: Isabella Kiedrowski (imkiedrowski(at)sjc.edu)

The St. John’s Carolers is a group which holds post-seminar meetings every Monday at 10:15 p.m. in the Hodson Room to rehearse Christmas carols. We’re always done by 11 p.m., so you can get to homework (and/or bed) afterwards. In mid-December, we’ll head into Downtown Annapolis and sing for people!

The Waltz Committee

Waltz party St Johns College Annapolis
Waltz party on the Annapolis campus.

Archon: Lirian Spolaore (lsspolaore(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archons: Helen Felbek, Rachel Hauben, Rebecca Hile

Do you want to learn how to dance or add some groovy moves to your repertoire? We host dance lessons twice a week and throw awesome dance parties! We learn a bit of everything but primarily East Coast Swing. Waltz, Latin American dances, like Bachata, Merengue and Salsa, and many more are a sweet bonus. Where? Tuesday in the Great Hall at 8:30 p.m. Sometimes on the weekends too, so keep a lookout for specific emails!

Student Jazz Coalition

Archon: John Teague (jateague(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archons: Caleb Clark (cfclark(at)sjc.edu), Troy Herner-Brown (tahernerbrown(at)sjc.edu)

The Student Jazz Coalition is dedicated to the understanding of the craft of improvised music. It also provides free musical entertainment to the Polity.

Sinfonia

Archon: John Alford (jmalford(at)sjc.edu)

Sicut Sing

Meets in the Pendulum Pit every Wednesday at 2:20 p.m. to sing Sicut Cervus. Sheet music provided.

Madrigal Choir

Contact: Mr. Eric Stoltzfus (eric.stoltzfus(at)sjc.edu)

Everyone (undergrads, GIs, tutors, staff, friends) is welcome to come sing every Tuesday at 11:45 a.m. in the Great Hall with the Madrigal Choir. This semester we have started with a setting of John I:1 by Josquin des Prez. We are also singing some chorales from various centuries, and other music for a cappella choir. There is room for singers in every voice part.

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Theater, Arts, and Games

The King William Players

Archon: Alayna Raymond (akraymond(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archon: Magnolia Vandiver (mrvandiver(at)sjc.edu)

Secretary: Elizabeth ‘Birdi’ Mueller (eamueller(at)sjc.edu)

Treasurer: Jordan Kammeyer (jtkammeyer(at)sjc.edu)

Instagram: @kingwilliamplayers

Facebook: King William Players Facebook

KWP is the resident theater company of St. John’s College and is responsible for producing, rehearsing and performing all theatrical endeavors which occur on campus, open to both the polity and the general public. We typically produce three to six shows a year. This year we will be performing The Haunting of Hill House, Hedda Gabler, As You Like It, and more. Those involved in KWP span a range of theatrical interests, and we welcome actors, directors, and techies alike.

Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind

Archon: Ben Berghammer (beberghammer(at)sjc.org)

Description: 30 plays in 60 minutes. First we write, then we perform. Funny? Cringey? Horrifying? Hopefully all of the above. Come if you enjoy writing plays and seeing them brought to life! Come if you want to act! Come if you have a ridiculous idea you want to force your friends to perform! Everyone is welcome.

Baking Club

Baking Club
Whip up something tasty with the Baking Club.

Archon: Rose Zhang (mzhang(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archons: Songeun Jang, Meagan Callahan

After hours of Greek and Euclid, calculus and French, or even just the usual interesting-but-sometimes-confounding seminar readings, it’s always fun to put work aside and make something to treat yourself! Baking Club is a place students come to take a break from their rigorous schoolwork and have fun in the kitchen.

Board Game Club

Archons: James Bieneman (jlbieneman(at)sjc.edu) and Jonah Donis (jadonis(at)sjc.edu)

A relaxed weekly gathering for people who love to play board games. Play old favorites and discover new ones! Players of all levels of experience welcome.

Join our Discord server where you can:

  • Get info regarding online and in-person gaming opportunities
  • Organize/participate in TTRPG campaigns and one-shots
  • Stay informed about special events
  • Talk about board games!

Chess Club

Archon: Michael Jeramaz (mjeramaz(at)sjc.edu)

Co-Archons: Nicholas Peitchev (nrpeitchev(at)sjc.edu) and Liana Lee

Chess Club meets at 3:45 p.m. on Fridays on the BBC Balcony. Whether you just want to play a few games or learn the game better, chess club offers a space for players of all levels. Feel free to come even if you don’t have experience, and we will teach you the basics.

Darkroom Lounge

Archon: Daryl Locke

Darkroom Lounge is a place for Johnnies interested in film—although it won’t just be about film. Members will meet monthly and discuss things ranging from film to art. There will also be a Netflix night occasionally, where we just watch movies and hang out in this stressful time. This will be a safe space for photographers and film enthusiasts to work on their art. You can bring your camera or borrow a camera. P.S. Film will be provided, of course.

Drunk Poets Society

Archon: Daryl Locke (djlocke(at)sjc.edu)

Drunk Poets Society is a group for all Johnnies, whether you write something for fun or class; whether you’re a poet, writer of short stories, writer of prose, etc. Even artists, photographers, and enthusiasts are welcome. Also, feel free to work on essays here. This is a safe space for people to do their art and work. You can write on the paper provided or bring your own; you can write on the chalkboard, your phone, etc.

Garden Club

Archons: Ms. Charlotte Nicholas (cinicholas(at)sjc.edu); Mr. Dolan Polglaze (dcpolglaze(at)sjc.edu)

Our Garden Club aims to unite the campus through community nurturing and harvesting. Our plot will be receiving some much-needed TLC after a difficult past year. Help us grow herbs, fruits and beautiful flowers for the campus to enjoy! Our ultimate goal is to foster a peaceful and thriving space where our community can sit still and relax, while connecting with nature. Whether you want to come every week to do some weeding, or just show up once to pick some berries, everyone is welcome in our plot!

Juggling Club

Archon: Mr. Troy Herner-Brown (tahernerbrown(at)sjc.edu)

Learn how to juggle, all skill levels welcome from expert to absolute beginner. We meet on the Quad at 4:30 p.m. every Wednesday.

Sewing, Mending, and Fashion Club

Archon: Sam Wickersham (sowickersham(at)sjc.edu)

Sewing, Mending, and Fashion Club is a space for students of all levels of sewing ability to be creative together. The archon and vice archons will be available during meetings to help other students mend their own clothes or create something new. We are focused mainly on assisting students to mend their old clothes, altering their clothes to fit better, sewing new clothes, drafting patterns for clothing, and fashion design. We will also have sewing kits available to be lent out to students as a library system. Please email the archon if you are interested in taking out a sewing kit.

Storyteller’s Guild

Archon: Valentine Lamb

Vice Archon: Charles Dang

Virtue Archon: Honor Stanton;

Contact: aglamb(at)sjc.edu

The Storyteller’s Guild is a fairly low-key club that meets on Wednesday evenings to read and listen to short stories, books, poems, and whatever else people want to read. This year, we’re excited to be back in the Chasement with milk, cookies, and a fire in the colder months.

Tea Eaters Association (TEA)

Archon: Mr. Daniel Redish (dsredish(at)sjc.edu)

If you want to hang out with a bunch of tea lovers then come and drink with us!

Purls of Wisdom Club

Archon: Liz Dowdy (esdowdy(at)sjc.edu)

Purls of Wisdom is a club dedicated to crafts, with an emphasis on fiber arts—knitting, crocheting, embroidery—but welcome to other crafts as well! Its goal is to provide resources to students as well as be a fun and safe space to spend time with fellow artists!

Insect Farming

Archons: Louis Rosenberg (lrrosenberg(at)sjc.edu), Tabby Rutledge (tkrutledge(at)sjc.edu)

Instagram: @insectsjc

Do you like bugs? Do you like reading about bugs?? Do you like caring for and breeding bugs??? Come join the SJC Insect Farming Club! We’ll meet weekly in Mellon—contact the archons for specifics—to share our passion for bugs and take care of some ourselves!

The Platonic Players

Archon/Artistic Director: Isabel McDonald (lmcdonald(at)sjc.edu);

Musical Director: Jake Lees (jslees(at)sjc.edu)

The Platonic Players is returning to St. John’s to provide a platform for the polity to write, act, and enjoy musical theatre. The 2022–23 season will include a small cabaret event and a small ensemble musical in the winter, and a large musical in the spring.

Video Game Club

Archons: Matthew Fisher (mgfisher(at)sjc.edu), Cooper Ussery

Video Game Club is back this year with two Xbox Ones and dreams. We plan on hosting weekly tournaments of various games such as Rocket League and Mortal Kombat. There will be gamer snacks and prizes for the winners.

Film Society

Archon: Will Marchman (wjmarchman(at)sjc.edu)

3D Printing Club

Archon: Caleb Briggs (cabriggs(at)sjc.edu)

Vice-Archon: John Hollowed (jhhollowed(at)sjc.edu)

3D printing club seeks to benefit the polity and its clubs by providing 3D printing services. Many small plastic objects, from tabletop minis to insect feeders, are more expensive than they ought to be and we’re here to alleviate some of the financial burden on clubs and the polity. Additionally, in keeping with the liberal arts spirit of the college, the club lies at the intersection of art and science combining both a modern technology with the age-old tradition of creating art in three dimensions. Come to one of our meetings if you’re interested in printing something yourself, asking for something to be printed, or just learning how it all works!

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Community and Discussion

Alexander Hamilton Society

Archon: Luke Widenhouse

Vice Archon: Colin Josler (cmjosler(at)sjc.edu)

Treasurer: Adam Powers

Are you interested in global affairs and national security? We are excited to launch the St. John’s College Chapter of the Alexander Hamilton Society (AHS). The Society is a non-partisan, not-for-profit, national organization that seeks to identify, educate, and launch young men and women into foreign policy and national security careers imbued with the Hamiltonian perspective of strong and principled American leadership in global affairs. Primarily through engaging in debate, our programming is critical to the intellectual and professional development of a new generation of American leaders. It also acts as a bridge for Johnnies to pursue internships, graduate programs, and professional opportunities in the worlds of academia, business, finance, policymaking, politics, and journalism.

Johnnies of Color (Santa Fe & Annapolis)

Archons: Stephanie Harris (syharris(at)sjc.edu); Linda Bellamy (lfbellamy(at)sjc.edu)

Our purpose is to provide a safe space for people of color on our campus to discuss current events on and off campus and what is happening in the world. We will hold monthly meetings on a topic prepared for entire polity. This will sometimes take the form of panels, open discussion, and/or seminars.

The club is not limited to only students of color, but we will put students of color at the center and educate and include the wider community—and we would like to do so with an open mind and open heart.

Orthodox and Catholic Fellowship

Archons: Ms. Chloe Steer (cesteer(at)sjc.edu); Mr. Ezra Melchor (egmelchor(at)sjc.edu)

Hello! We are the Orthodox and Catholic Fellowship. Our central activity is reading through some of the early Church Father’s and the Scriptures at a measured pace with plenty of discussion. Our focus will also include the lives of the Saints and early Church History, always keeping in mind the question, what is the Faith and how is it practiced? We also hope to dive deeper into the prayer life of the early Church, especially through practicing the Liturgy of The Hours. All are welcome and invited!

Óρθοδοξία(Orthodoxy): Right belief.
Kαθολικός(Catholic): Universal

Pangaea: International Student Club

Archon: Hyojeong Lee (hlee(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archon: Sihwan Cha (scha(at)sjc.edu)

Are you an international student, or interested in various cultures around the world? Do you want to meet other international students and hang out, but don’t know where you can find them? Now, there’s Pangaea: International Student Club! We hold the International Student Party every year and provide different events to share and explore each other’s cultures. If you have any good ideas for sharing your cultural experiences but don’t know what to do? Don’t hesitate to contact us! We will work on it together, and make it happen! This club is not confined to only internationals but is open to everyone, so join us!

Philautia

Archon: Louis Rosenberg (lrrosenberg(at)sjc.edu)

Formerly Pink Triangle, Philautia aims to create a safe community focused on supporting LGBTQ+ students on campus through social and educational events. Our name comes from the Greek word for self-regard, as we believe that being true to oneself is the ultimate way to love and take care of oneself. Though we focus on issues important to the LGBTQ+ community, all polity members, regardless of their identities, are welcome to attend our meetings!

Project Polity

Archon: Alayna Raymond (akraymond(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archon: Luke Briner (lbriner(at)sjc.edu)

Project Polity works at actively engaging the Polity in meaningful service to both St. John’s College and the Greater Annapolis Community, as well as forging sustainable relationships between the two. This includes weekly tutoring at the Stanton center, yearly canned goods and clothing drives, and much more. Volunteers are always welcome.

Reality

Archons: Rylee Bain (rebain(at)sjc.edu)

Co-Archon: Faith Chang (fkchang(at)sjc.edu)

Reality is known around campus as being the life of the party. A lovely club with decades of history. This club might be for you if you enjoy event planning, decorating, and carrying on Johnnie tradition. We are always looking for more Reality members, so reach out if you are interested! Wouldn’t you like to know more?

Shammai

Archons: El’ad Nichols-Kaufman (eanicholskaufman(at)sjc.edu)

Shalom to all who may be reading this! Shammai is St. John’s Jewish campus club. We aim to build a strong community on campus by eating, talking, praying, studying and having fun together. Come join us at kabalat shabbat every Friday, or at one of our holiday celebrations, or study groups. We welcome all, whether Jewish, Jew-ish, or just curious about Judaism, to join us in our little community.

St. John’s Christian Fellowship

Archons: Joseph Padgett (jrpadgett(at)sjc.edu), Jackson Green (jcgreen(at)sjc.edu), Seneca Case (sscase(at)sjc.edu)

Jesus is the center of what we do and why we meet. At St. John’s, there are ample opportunities to experience Jesus. We seek to come alongside students so that they can get to know Jesus more deeply and build connections. We meet weekly to pray, worship, and dialogue together. Whether you feel like you know Jesus or not, are curious about what faith means or wondering about who God is, we invite you to come join us. You are welcome here and we look forward to meeting you!

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Athletics and Fitness

For the latest information, including schedules, fitness challenges, and gym appointments, please visit the Athletics Program site.

Intercollegiate Sports

St. John’s College Sailing Team

Captain: Maddie Minor (meminor(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Captain: Reagan Bottomley (rmbottomley(at)sjc.edu)

Ghost Captain: Jonah Donis (jadonis(at)sjc.edu)

We are one of the teams on campus competing at an intercollegiate level. No experience necessary.

St. John’s College Crew

Captains: Peter Boersema (paboersema(at)sjc.edu), Adam Francavilla (agfrancavilla(at)sjc.edu)

Annapolis Crew 2016
Improve your rowing skills with SJC Crew.

The St John’s Crew team is one of the college’s intercollegiate sports teams. We welcome people of any skill level! Whether you’ve been rowing for years, or never set foot in a boat before, we encourage you to come out and row with us! The crew team is a fun, close knit community that encourages people to become better rowers. Towards the end of the fall semester, the crew team attends several rowing regattas, which always turn out to be incredible experiences.

St. John’s College Fencing Union

Archon: Erin Allen (eballen(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archon: Nicolas Turner (ngturner(at)sjc.edu)

The SJCFU is one of the three intercollegiate sports on campus. Our fencing team competes in the Baltimore-Washington Collegiate Fencing Conference. Club activities continued in the virtual sphere with a podcast titled The Five Of Swords and study groups on the rich history of Olympic fencing. Fencing has now returned to campus. If any member of the polity would like to fence, they should schedule an appointment through the athletics portal.

Intramural Sports and Clubs

Historical European Martial Arts Club (HEMA)

Archons: Mr. Augustus Pananas, Mr. Micah Warren, Ms. Tuyết-Nhi Nghiêm (ttnghiem(at)sjc.edu)

HEMA Club is a club that studies the art of sword fighting as those who lived in Medieval Europe by reading from the fighting manuals of the time. We practice and fence with both synthetic and steel swords. This semester, we will be meeting twice a week Tuesdays and Saturdays at 4 p.m. ET.

Q: What swords and schools will we be teaching?

A: Italian longsword (Fiore De Liberi) and ms.I33 arming sword and buckler. Note: As part of Fiore’s manual, we will be practicing some grappling and perhaps some dagger.

St. John’s College Croquet

Archons: Mia Kobylski (mrkobylski(at)sjc.edu), James Bieneman (jlbieneman(at)sjc.edu)

Contact: wickets(at)sjc.edu

The SJC Croquet Team has the (unofficial) title of best collegiate croquet team in the world, and more importantly we have a tendency to BEAT NAVY in the long tradition of the Annapolis Cup Croquet Match every spring! But if you ask the team, they will tell you it’s just good fun. The team is a family and we love to hang out, and we just happen to play croquet (very well) while we do it.

Tuesdays in the Great Hall at 8:45 p.m., and special lessons on Sundays in the Boathouse at 1 p.m.

St. John’s College Polo Club

Archon: Mr. Tom Ni; (ttni(at)sjc.edu)

We provide members of the polity an opportunity to develop their horsemanship through the ancient sport of polo. No prior riding experience needed. Whether you come out for foot mallet practice on the quad with a hobby horse, galloping down the arena on a real pony at 30 mph, or simply discussing a chapter of Xenophon’s On Horsemanship, you will enjoy learning about the rich histories and traditions of horsemanship.

Rock Climbing Club

Archon: Brooke Murphy-Petri (bamurphypetri(at)sjc.edu)

Vice Archon: Kat Bates (kmbates(at)sjc.edu)

The rock climbing club climbs one or twice a week at Columbia Movement, an indoor gym with beautiful bouldering and top rope routes. Every single level of experience is welcome and encouraged. Come learn and make epic sends with us!

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Archon: Xiaochen Deng (Daniel) (xdeng(at)sjc.edu)

Jiu-Jitsu, translated as “the gentle art,” is a grappling-based martial arts system that focuses on controlling and resisting an opponent in order cause them to submit. It is very useful in self-defense situations for a 3 smaller/weaker person to resist and out maneuver a larger attacker. As with most martial arts, Jiu-Jitsu values honor, respect, and safety. It is a great way to build discipline of mind and body. No experience is required. All are welcome to have fun and learn this beautiful art. (Some call it Human Chess).

Swim Club

Archon: Yeojin Kim (ykim(at)sjc.edu)

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Study Groups

Chinese Philosophy

Contact: Kurtis Bleakley (kurtis.bleakley(at)sjc.edu)

We will be reading selections from, or the entirety of, The Analects, The Tao/Dao, The I Ching, The Zhuangzi, the Hanfeizi, as well as various shorter philosophical stories from an anthology I got from the library. If there are not enough copies available from 2 the library for the books, I will endeavor to find PDFs online so we can all enjoy the wonders of Chinese philosophy.

French Conversation

Contact: Cristopher Ford (cbford(at)sjc.edu)

If you love the sound of French words rolling off your tongue and want to get better at Junior and Senior language, venez ici et parlez francais. Meets Tuesdays at 3:45 p.m. in McDowell Hall, Room 22.

German Study Group

Led by: Samuel Soderlund

If you want a leg-up in your music classes next semester, then this is the study group for you! As you should know, in second semester you will be poring over Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, which is written entirely in German. Imagine yourself listening to your homework for tomorrow, discovering the repeated alignment of a perfect cadence and “some German word.” Then, realizing you don’t know German, you spend the next half hour scouring the English translation for a word that sounds “close enough” to this mysterious German word (trust me, it can happen). To save you from this struggle, Ms. Fodor and I will be hosting a German Study Group this year! This club is aimed towards rising Sophomores, but everyone is invited, student and tutor alike! This will help you grasp the very basics of the German language: enough to recognize the grammar and most of the vocabulary which you will be hearing. We will be meeting for about 1–2 hours per week (exact dates TBD), so most of the learning will be dependent on how many hours you decide to put in. If you are interested, please reach out to me at scsoderlund(at)sjc.edu.

Postmodern Literature

Postmodernism is a philosophical and artistic movement that rose to prominence in the latter half of the 20th century. The term was coined by Philosopher Jean-Francois Lyotard, who said postmodernism could most simply be defined as “incredulity toward meta-narratives”. Starting next semester, I would like to focus on postmodern fiction (see below for a list of potential readings). But over the break I will be hosting a series of online discussions on the aforementioned philosopher Lyotard’s influential book: The Postmodern Condition. If you are interested in joining, please contact me at tahernerbrown(at)sjc.edu.

Syriac Study Group

Led by: Henry Hills (hdhills(at)sjc.edu), Peter Boersema (paboersema(at)sjc.edu)

Peace to you all from Henry Hills and Peter Boersema, students of St. John’s School Annapolis,

We would like to announce that the Syriac Study Group will be returning this upcoming semester to St. John’s College Annapolis. Huzzah! Those with no experience in Syriac are encouraged to come - we plan to start from the basics. Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic, was a lingua franca of the Near East from around the 1st century through the 9th century AD. This
period saw the rise of Christianity and many subsequent theological debates. Notable Syriac works include the Peshitta (the Holy Bible of the Syrian tradition) and the poetry of St. Ephrem the Syrian, one of the greatest poet-theologians of all time. If you would like to take a look at Christianity from a perspective different than the classic western one we get from the likes of Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine (wink wink, upcoming sophomores), you should consider joining us!

If you are interested or have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact Henry Hills or Peter Boersema.

Maimonides’ “Guide to the Perplexed” Study Group

Contact: El’ad Nichols-Kaufman

Metaphmorpheses Latin Reading Group

Contact: Nicholas Bellinson

It is said (fama est) that a number of people on campus would like the opportunity to read some Latin. This year I’ll be organizing an informal weekly meeting where we’ll sight-read a section of Ovid’s Metamorphoses. We’ll start from the beginning (proemium and creation of the world) in the first meeting and aim to read roughly one story per meeting. Anyone who wants to join is welcome (undergraduate, GI, faculty, staff) and no particular background is required—though I do recommend that you have at least a little experience reading Latin poetry. Anyone who wants to prepare, may, but I won’t expect that you do so; I’ll try to have answers to questions you might have about vocabulary and grammar. Bring a Latin dictionary if you like, and any Latin edition of the Metamorphoses, but don’t bring the Loeb or any other facing-page edition—lest you, like Actaeon, find yourself looking where you shouldn’t. Please email Mr. Bellinson if interested.

Philosophy of Science Study Group

Contact: Troy Herner Brown (tahernerbrown(at)sjc.edu)

This semester I will be holding a study group on the philosophy of science in the 20th century. We will be reading three renowned thinkers, Karl Popper, Thomas Kuhn, and Paul Feyerabend, all of whom are trying to answer one big question: what is science, and how does it differ from nonscience? I’d encourage you to seek out physical copies, but PDFs of all the readings will be provided.

World’s First 15-Minute Reading Group

Contact: Aaron Shelsby (agshelsby(at)sjc.edu), Max Mersmann-Jones (mcmersmannjones(at)sjc.edu).

Do you want more art and conversation in your life but don’t have the free hours each week you would need to commit to a reading group? Now there’s a better way. Each Saturday you get a short poem in your email, each Friday you discuss it at 3:45 p.m. on the quad (until it gets too cold) for 15–30 minutes, depending on the flow of the conversation. We’d like to cover as wide a range of poetry as possible and will take suggestions frequently. Add yourself to the email list by contacting either Aaron Shelsby or Max Mersmann-Jones .

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Academic Assistance

You can reach a student assistant and receive help in a specific subject using the following email addresses:

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Currently Inactive Clubs

Contact Community Facilitator for Student Activities and Events Rachelle Munsey if you are interested in restarting one of these clubs.

The Epoch Journal

The Epoch Journal is the nonpartisan, long form, opinion journal on campus. Simply put, our goal is to show some of the best work members of the polity can write on the (broadly interpreted) categories of Culture, Politics, and Foreign Affairs. We are looking for writers, editors, and designers for the coming year. Your entrance essay is likely a good candidate for submission, so don’t delay!

Historia

An academic magazine that publishes student essays on Program or Program-adjacent books as well as interviews with faculty and staff. Historically only in print, but we are looking to move online soon!

St. John’s Orchestra

We welcome all instruments at all skill levels to our casual group for the purpose of making and enjoying classical music together. In this virtual era, we are looking to stream and discuss musical performances as interest allows.

Experimental Philosophy

Contact: Facebook group

Experimental Philosophy is a club that is dedicated to practicing and exploring classical virtue by simulating the lives of those who actually lived it. To achieve such aims, we do activities like practicing traditional cooking and sewing, as well as boffer combat, to simulate ancient Greek fighting. You may have seen us practicing last fall out in front of the planetarium. While we do fight a lot, it is only 51 percent of our activities; we also organize symposiums and crafting and sewing events.

Model United Nations

From our charter: the Model United Nations (MUN) club plans to create and run a MUN conference for local high school students (delegates), with the goal of bringing the joy of reading and civil debate to the greater community.

Whether you were involved in MUN in high school or are new to the ideas of the club, you’re welcome to attend our meetings and get involved with our conference!

Orchesis

Orchesis is a dance crew at St. John’s that focuses on hip-hop, ballet, and contemporary dance. We teach both original and cover dances to dancers of all levels. No experience required.

St. John’s Sunrise

We are the St. John’s Sunrise hub! A subset of Sunrise national, we work for a just sustainable future and a Green New Deal.

Investment Club

We are focused on understanding economic and investment principles in the capital markets.

Queer Theory Study Group

We will explore questions of gender identity and sexuality through writers from the late 20th century onward.

Medieval Philosophy Study Group

We will explore questions of ethics, psychology, metaphysics, and theology through writers from the beginning to the end of the period.

Jane Austen Study Group

Open to students and faculty. We will be reading:

Reading List for Jane Austen Study Group