Please meet our brave adventurers who dare to research medieval history! It’s not easy to slay dragons (or heavy library books), but hey, it’s honest work.

Madelyn Halperin

She/Her, ’25J — Madelyn Halperin is a junior majoring in Government and Middle East Studies with concentrations in international politics and religion within those fields. She has spent the past two summers abroad completing solidarity work in Palestine and subsequently, studying Arabic in Jordan on the Critical Language Scholarship. In CODEX, she has worked on Stupor Mundi and created a project on Medieval Jihad Discourse which aims to examine how works and authors of texts on medieval jihad are referenced today online. Outside of CODEX, Madelyn is a captain of the Smith College Rugby Club and enjoys going to the beach with her family in Florida.
Projects: JIHAD in social media
FORMER: STUPOR MUNDI

Tenaya Fottrell

They/Them, ’25 — Tenaya is a senior Medieval Studies major and English minor who loves to play with the intersection of these in the vernacular literature of their favorite dead languages (namely Old English). They also have a passion for the histories of the Crusades and a soft spot for poetry both modern and medieval. Outside of CODEX, they love spinning stories of their own through rpgs, (folk) dancing the night away, and vanishing into the forest.

CURRENT Projects: STUPOR MUNDI
FORMER: black sea iconography, archives

Daphne Hwang Spencer

’25 — Daphne is a current senior and embarking upon a triumphant return to the realm of Medieval Studies after three years of absence. When not pouring through endless bawdy fabliaux with their academic compatriot Fern, Daphne can be found admiring wildflowers, curling up with a good book, and exploring their newfound love of naps.

CURRENT Projects: Fabliaux

FORMER: STUPOR MUNDI

Stella Metcalf

She/Her, ’25 —Stella is a History and Middle East studies major. Some of her favorite books are Pnin by Nabokov, One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Beloved by Toni Morrison, and Middlemarch by George Eliot. Her academic interests include apocalyptic cults, the “First Crusade,” and Islamism in 1970s Egypt.
Projects:aha visualization, dies legibles

Fern Poling

Fern Poling '25 poses with their cat, Toby, who seems to express anger with their narrowed amber eyes.

They/She, ’25 — Fern is a Medieval Studies major with a minor in Geoscience. In CODEX, Fern has worked on Stupor Mundi, Mapping of Acre, and currently is doing alchemy. When not looking at fossils, you can find Fern knitting, contra dancing, or tending to her houseplants.
Projects: FABLIAUX
FORMER: ALCHEMY, ACRE MAP, STUPOR MUNDI
Simone Tricca '25, a masterpiece, stands with other works of art.

Simone Tricca ’25, a masterpiece, stands with other works of art.

Simone Tricca

They/Them, ’25 — Simone Tricca is a history student with a museums concentration and prospective Russian minor and has found the perfect combination of all three in Russian icons. They are also interested in garment construction and folk dance, inside and outside academic settings. In their free time, Simone enjoys plotting, scheming, and forcing their friends to eat cookies.

Projects: AHA VISUALIZATION, Medieval academy conference planning

Former: Black Sea Iconography

Amy Vo '25 asks himself: "Could I possibly be the second coming of King Arthur?"

Amy Vo ’25 asks himself: “Could I possibly be the second coming of King Arthur?”

Amy Vo

She/Him, ’25 — Amy Vo is on an eternal quest to become a knight, so she’s declared in Medieval Studies and Ancient History. With an unparalleled commitment to keeping chivalry alive, Amy loves the healing power of sheep, learning Victorian flower language, and playing paladins in any D&D campaign.
Projects: ARCHIVES, ARMS & armory
FORMER: STUPOR MUNDI, frederick II mapping
Dalia Cohen '26J proves Newton right: gravity is real!

Dalia Cohen ’26J proves Newton right: gravity is real!

Dalia Dainora Cohen

She/Her, ’26J — Dalia Dainora Cohen is delighted to begin her fourth semester in CODEX and her third edition as editor-in-chief of Dies Legibiles. She is a senior History and French Studies double major and Archives concentrator who recently completed an internship at the National Archives. She is passionate about the Smith history club, student theater, and translation studies!

Projects: DIES LEGIBLES

Lucy O’Brien

She/Her, ’26 — Lucy is a data science and history double major concentrating in the history of science and medicine. In CODEX, she works on the AHA project and curses the inventors of Python on the daily. In her free time, she enjoys watching too much TV and downloading journal articles she probably won’t read.

Projects: AHA VISUALIZATION