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Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Kasteel Well

Debradita Ganguly in the OSA office on Monday, March 24, 2025 (Bryan Hecht / Beacon Staff).

Who is the new hire in the Office of Student Affairs? Meet Debadrita Ganguly.

By Bryan Hecht, Kasteel Well Bureau Chief / March 26, 2025

Like students abroad at Kasteel Well, Debadrita Ganguly is a newcomer to the Netherlands. Making a long-term move to the country nine months ago, Ganguly,...

Emerson College European Center Assistant Director Rob Dückers approaches a member of De Explosieven Opruimingsdienst Defensie (EOD) inside the Kasteel Well courtyard after a WWII grenade was found on campus on Thursday, February 27, 2024 (Tallulah Schorvitz / Courtesy)

World War II grenade found on Kasteel Well campus, safely detonated shortly after

By Bryan Hecht and Sam Shipman / February 27, 2025

A grenade was found by facilities workers at Kasteel Well while working in the gardens in front of the Voorburcht, a residence building for students, late...

A drone view of Kasteel Well between 1920 and 1940 from the Netherlands Institute for Military History / Courtesy Archief Well

From noble house to Nazi occupation to Emerson dormitory: The many lives of Kasteel Well

By Bryan Hecht, Kasteel Well Bureau Chief / February 19, 2025

Emerson will celebrate its 40th anniversary of sending students to its Kasteel Well campus in Well, Netherlands, next year. While this is a big milestone...

Students at Emerson’s Kasteel Well campus in the Limburg, Netherlands arrived for orientation just days before Trump was sworn in (Bryan Hecht / Beacon Staff).

Some Americans said they would leave when Trump took office. Students studying abroad actually did.

Last November, late into the night, Kasteel Well students watched with bated breath as Donald Trump won the 2024 election. This semester, many said they...

Born to Hula, 2012. (Kristen Barrett/Beacon Correspondent)

A conversation with Amsterdam-based artist Esiri Erheriene-Essi

By Kristin Barrett / December 6, 2024

English-born artist Esiri Erheriene-Essi seeks to represent cultural capital and the influence of celebrity in her painting, “Born to Hula.” She...

Office of Student Affairs (OSA) members outside the main gate of the Kasteel Well campus. (Chase Henfey/Beacon Correspondent)

The faces of the Castle: Office of Student Affairs

By DJ Mara and Chase Henfey / December 5, 2024

When students arrive at Schipol Airport ahead of their semester at Kasteel Well, they are greeted by Office of Student Affairs (OSA) staff members. OSA...

Melanea Vemealssel, a member of the Kasteel Well dining staff, stands by some of the breakfast offerings on Nov. 27, 2024 (Kaitlyn Smitten/Beacon Staff).

Cooking up community at Kasteel Well

By Kaitlyn Smitten, Staff Writer / November 27, 2024

Nestled in the small village of Well, located in the Dutch province of Limburg, the Emerson College Kasteel Well program resides. With around 80 students...

Students gather in the Kasteel Well barn for an Election Night watch party. (Iselin Bratz/Beacon Staff)

Emerson College’s Kasteel Well holds their breath at election watch party

By Iselin Bratz, News Editor / November 7, 2024

Kasteel Well students gathered Tuesday at 1 a.m. CEST to watch election results come in at a watch party organized by the Office of Student Affairs (OSA)...

"The Amsterdam," a former slave ship located at the Maritime Museum in Amsterdam. (Photo courtesy Chase Henfey)

Amsterdam’s Maritime Museum leaves Kasteel Well students grappling with display of colonial histories

By Iselin Bratz, Chase Henfey and Aparna Prabhakar / October 15, 2024
Emerson‘s fall 2024 Kasteel Well cohort visited Amsterdam’s Maritime Museum in late September during their first academic excursion.
Kasteel Well (DJ Mara/Beacon Staff)

Emerson’s provost visits Kasteel Well for the first time

By DJ Mara, Dept. Metro Editor / October 8, 2024
Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Alexandra Socarides visited Kasteel Well from Sept. 23–26, her first trip to Emerson’s Netherlands campus since assuming her position in July. 
A canal in Amsterdam (Chase Henfey/ Beacon Correspondent)

Kasteel Well students travel to Amsterdam for their first academic excursion of the semester

By Chase Henfey, Beacon Correspondent / October 1, 2024
Emerson’s Kasteel Well program has many unique aspects, including an excursion to Amsterdam, which occurs during the second weekend of the semester. 
An Instagram post announcing the return of Black Swan for the Spring 2024 semester.

Meet Black Swan, Kasteel Well’s magazine by students, for students

By Jordan Pagkalinawan, Dept. Sports Editor / March 21, 2024

As Kasteel Well students approach the final weeks of their semester, they’ve likely already collected plenty of souvenirs and trinkets across Europe....

Sophomore marketing communications student Sam Switall stands in front of Il Paradiso, a canvas painting in the Grand Council Hall at the Doge’s Palace, a landmark building that was once the Doge's residence and the center of the Venetian government, in Venice, Italy. (Photo courtesy of Samantha Switall)

Photos: Kasteel Well students explore Europe on travel break

By Jordan Pagkalinawan, Dept. Sports Editor / March 19, 2024
Twice a semester, Emerson students at Kasteel Well go on academic excursions to various countries.
Kasteel Well students prepare to participate in the Carnival festivities.

Kasteel Well students connect with community in Carnival celebration

By Jordan Pagkalinawan, Dept. Sports Editor / February 22, 2024

While Americans geared up for Super Bowl 58, Emerson students studying abroad at Kasteel Well prepared for a different celebration—participating in the...

Coming to Kasteel Well? Don’t pack the kitchen sink.

Coming to Kasteel Well? Don’t pack the kitchen sink.

By Maeve Lawler, Kasteel Well Bureau Chief / April 12, 2023

Are you a future Kasteel Well dweller? If the answer is yes, then you’re probably wondering how to prepare for your semester abroad. What do I pack?...

Kasteel Well campus ends weekly testing protocol, shift to symptomatic testing only

Kasteel Well campus ends weekly testing protocol, shift to symptomatic testing only

By Maeve Lawler, Kasteel Well Bureau Chief / March 22, 2023

As of March 9, Emerson’s Kasteel Well campus no longer requires twice-a-week COVID-19 testing, according to an email sent to Kasteel Well students from...

Kasteel Well’s assistant director of student affairs embraces life’s challenges and community building

Kasteel Well’s assistant director of student affairs embraces life’s challenges and community building

By Maeve Lawler, Kasteel Well Bureau Chief / February 18, 2023

Each semester, a new group of students participating in the Kasteel Well program are welcomed by a medieval castle tucked in the countryside of Well, Limburg....

Emerson's Kasteel Well campus.

Kasteel Well community feels mixed emotions about the Ukraine-Russia war

By Mariyam Quaisar, Managing Editor / March 3, 2022

A mere 1,200 miles away from the fighting in Ukraine, students and faculty at Emerson’s Kasteel Well campus are anxiously watching history unfold as...

Emerson's Kasteel Well campus in Well, Netherlands.

COVID outbreak at Kasteel Well forces students out of rooms

By Bailey Allen, Former news editor / February 17, 2022

Students at Emerson’s Kasteel Well have been moved out of their dorms to make space for quarantine and isolation housing as part of the satellite campus’...

The exterior of the Kasteel Well castle

No change in sight for Kasteel Well following Omicron variant detection in Netherlands

By Bailey Allen, Former news editor / December 2, 2021

Weeks after a surge in COVID-19 cases forced the Netherlands into another lockdown, the appearance of Omicron—the latest mutation of the virus—threatens...