Reflections by Amelia Potter ‘26, one of the student-curators, about working on the exhibit “Across Oceans, Across Time: A History of International Students at Mount Holyoke College”, summer 2025.
I was privileged this past summer to be an archival assistant through a Lynk internship in the MHC Archives and Special Collections, alongside some of my really wonderful peers. I researched and curated a case for our exhibit Across Oceans, Across Time, focused on how the international makeup of our school evolved following the second world war, up until the late 1980s. After the 1940s, students came to Mount Holyoke from new parts of the globe — in greater numbers than ever before from Latin America, Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia.
There are very complex reasons for these shifts that brought students to the U.S. for education, determining their access through these gates. Too often, war was the cause. Many international students contended with a duality of feelings regarding their native country and the U.S. But every student had different motivations that drew them to Mount Holyoke, and likewise had different experiences during their time here. I hope these complexities are well exemplified in my case, where, for the most part, these students speak for themselves, and tell their own stories. I tried only to provide the platform to amplify their narratives, and give an accurate historical context into which these stories fitted — a time of many decolonial movements and much Cold War conflict.
What I took away from all this research, more than anything else, was the centrality of international students at this college. Mount Holyoke would not be Mount Holyoke without our international students.
They are and have always been an intrinsic part of this community.
They have contributed so much historically, and presently, to this school and beyond — as vital scholars, leaders, artists, activists. As very dear friends. As family. They began new and essential organizations. Language initiatives. Affinity groups. Advocacy and educational organizations. Fundraising efforts for future students to follow in their footsteps. They joined forces with the domestic student body for national and international activism. They petitioned for increased civil rights in the 60s and 70s. They boycotted corporations involved in apartheid South Africa in the 80s.
It is too clear that the strengths of our school come from bringing together so many different perspectives. Together we learn and together we accomplish.
But we need to acknowledge the fact that many international students are really afraid right now. That this is a perilous time. This moment. 2025.
Historically, Mount Holyoke has claimed to be a place that prioritizes diversity. Now, more than ever, this is a commitment that we need to continue to live by every day in our words and actions. We need to protect each other, look out for each others’ interests. To stand by the relationships we have formed here that extend beyond national boundaries. We need to uphold a culture of care, and remain critical of the divisive rhetoric that would tear all this away.
Thank you.