Bright lights illuminate the pillars of Samuel Phillips Hall at night.
Throughout the Winter term, blue-white LED string lights have twinkled brightly from the pillars of Samuel Phillips Hall. Recently, departments such as the Head of School Office, Campus Safety, and the Office of Physical Plant (OPP) in collaboration with Cluster Council have been involved in preparing “Snooze the Blues” events for students as winter term progresses to boost spirit and morale.
The kickoff event for Snooze the Blues took place on January 12 and invited students to spend time in George Washington Hall to enjoy donuts, cupcakes, and hot chocolate in place of All-School Meeting (ASM). Campus Safety also hosted a pop-up munch on January 22 in Sam Phil during Conference period, offering Rice Krispie Treats and other snacks. Aya S. Murata, Assistant Dean of Students, described the purpose of the event series in the first place and also stressed the importance of Snooze the Blues.
“Snooze the Blues is just something fun and uplifting and joyful in a term that can sometimes feel a little bit dark and dreary. The idea [of Snooze the Blues] came from a colleague, Paul Murphy [’84]. We were chatting and we thought [that] it would be fun if there were some fun little things happening over the course of Winter term,” said Murata.
Similarly, Ryan Lam ’24, Student Body Co-President, spoke about how Winter Term is usually a hard time for a majority of students. Lam also elaborated on the importance of connecting with others and exploring spaces on campus that host these events.
“Historically, we place the winter as a depressive time where students hate the winter and the cold. This year, we wanted a way for students to avoid feeling those winter blues and seasonal depression. We wanted to have students connect with different spaces on campus. You’ll notice that a lot of events, such as the one hosted in George Washington Hall [GW] by the Head of School Office, is a way for students to connect with areas on campus as well as each other,” said Lam.
Maggie Fulop ’26 expressed that she enjoyed the hot cocoa, cupcake, and donut party that was hosted during the ASM block because it allowed her to have time to rest, have fun, and eat some treats. In the future, she hopes to see the events more spread out across campus, because the activities recently have been extremely full.
“I appreciated not having ASM because I was able to take a nap. Also, the donut portions were very generous, and so I was able to split a couple and have multiple different flavors… [But in the future] I think they should spread [the events] out a little more. I don’t know how to fix that to avoid the huge crowd [gathering] since it’s a pretty big school, but there was a little bit of a mob,” said Fulop.
Accordingly, Mira Phan ’27 discussed her initial surprise at the huge crowd that was gathered at the hot cocoa, cupcake, and donut party in GW. Phan also commented on how the donuts featured at the event were unique and very enjoyable, contributing to the positive atmosphere created by the Snooze the Blues events for the winter season.
“There were so many more people than I expected [at the event]. I came down the stairs of GW and I just saw a crowd of people there. The donuts were really quirky and I had a maple bacon donut with meat on the bread… I honestly think that something like this is good [because] it match[es] the winter season and vibe. It made sense to do donuts and hot chocolate because it was cold outside,” said Phan.
Murata shared the plans for upcoming Snooze the Blues events hosted by departments including the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library (OWHL), the Dean of Studies Office, and the Alumni Engagement Office.
“Next week our Alumni Engagement Office is going to do a s’mores fest, and the library is doing a paper-snowflake-making opportunity with some kind of winter treat, probably a hot chocolate and a sweet. During protected time, Student Activities [is doing] a ‘be a kid’ time, so there will be old school cartoons on the TV and silly snacks like Capri-Suns, Play-Doh, and coloring books. The Dean of Studies Office is doing [an event with] cookies where you can write messages of friendship and positivity on Valentine’s Day… I hope that it brings a little bit of cheer,” said Murata.
