Isa Otero ’26

Why Smith?
It’s not uncommon that you’ll see a dancer featured on a Smith College stage, only to discover that their major is quantitative economics. That’s what drew me to Smith—the possibilities for students to pursue their varied passions, drawing strong connections between seemingly opposing fields.

What does being a Smithie mean to you?
To be a Smithie is to be constantly inspired by those around you.

What does financial aid mean to you?
Financial aid offers the gifts of time, energy, freedom, and focus. It means you can fully immerse yourself in your academic pursuits and extracurricular opportunities. It gives you the chance to be a present and engaged member of the Smith community.

Who’s had the greatest influence on you?
Probably kindergarteners. My mother has been a New York City kindergarten teacher for the past 23 years. After school, I would get to see her students in their element—playing, collaborating, making mistakes. They were living out this quote by the musician and theorist Pauline Oliveros that I love: “Play is the greatest research tool that the human race has.”

Is there a staff or faculty member who stands out to you?
Debra Immergut, assistant director of the Lazarus Center’s Arts, Media and Communications career community. Discovering a cohort of students and mentors who are fiercely dedicated to the arts was like when someone puts words to a feeling you thought could never be articulated: “Aha! Yes! Thank you! This is where I’m meant to be!”

What’s an accomplishment you’re proud of?
My past four years at Smith have been rich with Latin Honors courses, internships, and invaluable support from Smith Arts members including Jonathan Gosnell (chair, Department of French Studies, and Posse Foundation faculty mentor), Jake Meginsky (musician and filmmaker), and Leigh Fagin (Smith Office for the Arts). Their encouragement led me to co-create an artist collective at 33 Hawley, now sponsored by three Northampton organizations—Hungry Ghost Bread, A.P.E. Gallery, and Serious Play Theatre Ensemble—and open to the Western Massachusetts and Smith College communities.

What’s something special about Smith? 
Smith professors have a specific way of using language to empower students. Instead of saying “if” as they describe your future, they use “when”—“when you enter the field, when you are appointed to this position, when you are called to take on a project of this scale”—and so we learn to adopt powerful language that expresses who we are and manifests who we will become.

What would you say to a financial aid donor?
The first thing I’d say to a donor is—come to campus!

Smith is a liberal arts playground, where students collaborate across the arts, sciences, and mathematics to contribute to society through sharp, exciting, novel lenses. I would invite donors to the Smith College Faculty Dance Concert, the Smith College Museum of Art, and students’ senior thesis presentations, which would give donors a chance to hear from students themselves about their current projects. To support Smith is to invest in creating space for inspiring, imaginative, interdisciplinary minds.

What’s a little known fact about you?
I carried drumsticks in my bag for a year before I began playing.