During the summer months, Southwestern’s campus stayed quiet and peaceful – other than the occasional “meow” from the campus cats, especially Supercal. The resident felines roamed around freely, desperate for any attention they could attract, meowing at every summer intern that crossed their path. As summer drew to a close, however, news struck from SU’s Chief of Police, Joseph Barragan. He sent an email out to the Cat Partners email group on August 13, stating:

“Good afternoon All Concerned:

Due to an overwhelming increase in wildlife and infestation of rodents and fleas, it has been decided to suspend the cat partner feeding program. We have had several reports of coyotes, raccoons, foxes, rats, mice, and fleas, on our campuses and rodents inside our buildings. Please  let me know if you have any questions. During the transition, if you would like to at least have fresh water available for Supercal, Pumpkin, and Princess and partners this would be greatly appreciated.”

Many interpreted this email negatively, and outrage sparked among students and faculty alike. Heading the feedback, Kelly Lessard, the recently retired Cat Partners advisor for the past 10 years, made sure her voice and the students’ voices were heard via a variety of emails.

In a quick response the next day, August 14, Southwestern Communications sent out an email in an attempt to clear the air. It stated that “incorrect information began spreading that indicated that the Cat Partners program has been suspended. This is not the case.” They continued on to restate what Chief Barragan’s email originally discussed in regards to the excess critters, something that has “created a health and safety issue that has impacted not only the campus cats, but our entire campus community.” 

At the time of the email, Loren Galloway, SU’s Title IX Coordinator, volunteered to be the new staff advisor and immediately began working with Facilities Management to “determine the safest and most effective way to continue caring for our campus cats without attracting other outside wildlife to campus.”

Soon after, Dr. Steve Alexander stood up to head Cat Partners’ advising with Loren, becoming the faculty advisor. 

Sitting down for an interview with the newly elected Cat Partners president Jaelyn Matthews ‘27 and Dr. Alexander, the confusion dissipated and the only true ‘blame’ was decidedly placed on miscommunication. Both admitted that the intention of Chief Barragan’s initial email was definitely unclear but did not intend to spark the outraged response that it did. SUPD has supported Cat Partners since their origin, as the former Chief of Police Dunn acted as their biggest advocate. Currently, the main person to feed the cats is, in fact, Officer McPhail, and he does so for every time slot that students and members of Cat Partners cannot fill.

Over the summer, facilities staff noticed a major increase in rodents due to all of the construction occurring on campus. The uprooting of their homes led to the rodents “invading” the cats’ spaces, specifically the feeding stations. Their attention to the cat food led the critters to be drawn to other parts of campus, creating the problem of an infestation. The facilities staff expressed concern to SUPD, as it was becoming a growing issue, and Chief Barragan sent out his email. The intent of his email was not to say they were suspending the program, but rather briefly pausing it until they could figure out a solution.

Upon reentry into the school year, Jaelyn, Dr. Alexander, Loren, and Officer McPhail found a temporary solution. Currently, it involves feeding and ‘unfeeding.’ The kitties are fed in the morning but around dusk, their bowls are picked up. The thieves are mostly nocturnal critters, such as racoons and possums. By putting the food up at night, it takes away the draw and attraction for the pests. There is still more brainstorming happening, but, as of right now, this is the best and swiftest solution. 

In the essence of moving forward, Jaelyn states, “I’m doing my best to get the club back together as it was, to make sure all cats are healthy and well, and finding new cats and making sure they’re okay.” She wants to bring attention back to the organization to help uplift the wellness and love of and for the cats!

Currently, there are three feeding stations that must be tended to: Mabee (the First Year dorms), the Welcome Center, and the Lords apartments. Pumpkin and Princess roam the First Year grounds, Mama Grey and Itty Bitty lounge near the Welcome Center, and Supercal, Ziggy, and Patches make their home among the Lords apartments. 

If you also love the campus cats, you are highly encouraged to join Cat Partners! They meet every other Wednesday in FJS 100 at 5pm. The next meeting will be September 24th.

Dr. Alexander is working diligently with Jaelyn in support and has even created a Moodle site for Cat Partners! If you are interested in learning more about this or being added to the site, email alexands@southwestern.edu. Make sure to follow the official Instagram page @su_cat_partners, which is not to be confused with the student ‘fan page’ @sucampuscats. 

The resident kitties are here to support you if you wish and appreciate the support in return!