The GW community has faced a lot of changes this past year.

The Hatchet’s photo team looked back through images that captured some of those significant moments throughout 2021. From an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol to a repopulated campus to many student protests, here are some of the most memorable moments from this year:

[gwh_image id=”1133539″ credit=”File Photo by Zach Schonfeld | Staff Photographer” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]On Jan. 6th, Pro-Trump rioters stormed the Capitol building despite law enforcement’s blockade.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1134630″ credit=”File Photo by Lillian Bautista” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]Leading up to the presidential inauguration, thousands of National Guard members were stationed around D.C., including in Foggy Bottom.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1134657″ credit=”File Photo by Gabrielle Rhoads | Staff Photographer” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]With massive blockades around the Capitol and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, supporters observed President Joe Biden being sworn into office from afar this year.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1149797″ credit=”File Photo by Danielle Towers | Assistant Photo Editor” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]University President Thomas LeBlanc announced in May that he would retire as the 17th president of GW at the end of the academic year, a timeline that was moved up when Board of Trustees Chair Grace Speights announced in October that an interim president would take over at the start of 2022.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1150366″ credit=”File Photo by Elissa Detellis | Photographer” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]Students returned to in-person classes at the end of August after more than a year of online classes sparked by the pandemic.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1146901″ credit=”File Photo by Grace Hromin | Senior Photo Editor” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]As the pandemic proceeded, testing requirements for all faculty, students and staff continued regularly to monitor campus positivity rates.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1147431″ credit=”File Photo by Grace Hromin | Senior Photo Editor” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]Sheets of plastic covered Townhouse Row after reports of mold forced residents to evacuate, prompting many other students to report mold in other University buildings.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1149873″ credit=”File Photo by Sophia Young | Assistant Photo Editor” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]Students from the graduating classes of 2020 and 2021 were able to return to D.C. in October to celebrate in person on the National Mall.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1155056″ credit=”File Photo by Danielle Towers | Assistant Photo Editor” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]GW capped the culmination of its bicentennial celebration with a dance performance on the side of Gelman Library following Commencement.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1150376″ credit=”File Photo by Sydney Walsh | Assistant Photo Editor” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]More than 600,000 white flags were planted along the National Mall this past October to honor those who have lost their lives throughout the pandemic in the United States.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1152483″ credit=”File Photo by Skylar Epstein | Staff Photographer” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]After the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity discovered a Torah scroll vandalized in their on-campus house, hundreds of GW community members processed through campus in support of GW’s Jewish community.[/gwh_image]

[gwh_image id=”1153685″ credit=”File Photo by Sydney Walsh | Assistant Photo Editor” size=”embedded-img” align=”none”]Beginning in the spring semester, students will have access to unlimited Metro rides after a multi-year push from Student Association leaders for officials to enroll in the U-Pass program.[/gwh_image]