Next semester, the Wheaton College theme house community will welcome two new theme houses onto campus. The first, House of REPS (Residents Engaged in Political Science), will be a political science focused house headed by Joshua Kelly ‘17. The second, SOHL (Student Organization of Hispanics and Latinos) House, will concentrate on raising awareness for Hispanic and Latin American cultures as presided over by Mateo Espinosa ‘19.
House of REPS will work closely with Wheaton’s Political Science Department and organizations like Model United Nations to engage the campus in political activity. It will reside in the 46 East Main Street property. The goal of House of REPS is to provide its residents and the Wheaton community as a whole with the opportunity to openly discuss and debate political issues through both ideological and practical lenses.
SOHL House, which will reside in Bittersweet House, plans to work closely with student organizations such as the Latino Student Association to raise awareness of Hispanic and Latin American cultures on Wheaton’s campus. The six residents of this house are all from different places, including Ecuador, Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, Puerto Rico and Miami. Despite the house’s small size, president Mateo Espinosa ‘19 has said that while they were applying for the house, 28 students expressed interest in being involved and living there. SOHL House already has a number of events planned for next semester to accomplish their goals. “We have a ton of events planned already and have a really good calendar,” said Espinosa, “I’m most happy about our Latin American barbecue and simple events that just have to do with culture.”
SOHL House plans on having a number of small events, such as a Day of the Dead celebration, and plans on hosting student dances with LSA. “We have a few huge events planned too for next semester. People will be able to come to the house and learn about what it’s like to be Latin American and Hispanic,” said Espinosa. Espinosa said that the house will also help to increase awareness of diversity on campus. “When people hear about Wheaton College, they don’t specifically think about our diversity. We’re not as diverse as we could be, but one of the good things for prospective students is saying we have this theme house,” said Espinosa.
These two theme houses will definitely add to the diverse culture of Wheaton’s theme houses next semester.