August 22, 2024

The Cur Non Way

Cur Non means “why not,” and it’s something you’ll hear a lot around here. The Marquis de Lafayette’s motto, this ethic sparks a drive to take risks and defy expectations. Meet some of our outstanding students and learn more about their Cur Non moments.

Read more about the students featured in the latest issue of Cur Non.

Larger Than Life

Jolie Saint Vil ’27 is capturing the emotion of her family history and connecting with the Easton art community, creating canvas portraits that stand over six- feet tall. From contributing to the College literary magazine to forging connections with art history faculty, Saint Vil is finding her place at Lafayette through art.

Commercial Success

Through programming hosted by Gateway Career Center, Isabella Gaglione ’25, Joshua Chait ’25, and David Antwi ’26 shadowed professionals, including Lucy Kade ’22, at NBCUniversal. Their experience focused on the company’s post production process for Peacock advertisements. Students also discussed the growing presence of artificial intelligence in the film industry and conducted a resume review with Kade.

Laundry Days Made Easier

With support from Dyer Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, a group of determined, enterprising students, including Kashif Chopra ’26, Sam Satalof ’26, and Robbie Leslie ’25, placed compact motion sensors on Watson Residence Hall washers and dryers and developed a website that displays the availability of each unit.

Composting by the Numbers

Working alongside economics professor Hongxing Lui, Jacqueline Britton ’25 conducted research to determine the value of the College’s campus-wide composting program. “In the field of economics, we’re starting to see more and more of this interdisciplinary work that combines the knowledge of multiple disciplines, which means it can have a bigger impact on society,” Liu shared.

Advancing Education

From College Hill to Capitol Hill, Dashawn Sheffield ’27 is an advocate for educational equity. During the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Pennsylvania (AICUP) Day on the Hill, Sheffield has represented Lafayette two years in a row, becoming the only student to be selected twice to read lawmakers his essays.

Literacy Day Legacy

Held at a local elementary school, the annual Literacy Day welcomed students for a day of STEM activities, free books, and performances by Lafayette student groups. The Lafayette community donated about 2,300 books for the event, and participating students were able to take home as many as they wanted.

Soaring High

Seniors in Prof. Scott Hummel's mechanical engineering capstone, including Jack Wuerfl '24 and Wilmer Carranza '24, used 3D printing to create a battery-operated, radio-controlled airplane.

Lafayette Votes!

In a democracy, every vote counts. And through their work with the Lafayette Votes! program, Dimitri Chernozhukov ’25 and Kaitlin Ahern ’23 aim to ensure that all Lafayette students have the resources and opportunities they need to cast their ballots.