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(03/20/13 10:56pm)
On March 18, Community Council voted to disband Delta. The decision came after the Residential Life Committee conducted its biennial review of Middlebury’s five social houses. Delta was the only social house that the committee recommended for disbandment.
While disbanding Delta, formerly known as ADP, may seem like an unnecessarily dramatic move on the part of Community Council, the decision did not come out of nowhere. Delta membership failed to comply with the steps urged by the administration in order to avoid disbandment this academic year. In addition, Prescott house has already surpassed its $1,500 annual dorm damage limit implemented by Community Council as of last year.
President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz therefore has a clear basis to support Community Council’s decision to dissolve Delta. Even after the report released by the Residential Life Committee, the organization had multiple chances to prove its commitment to change — yet its leadership failed to do so.
However, Delta should not be solely to blame for this year’s transgressions. Dorm damage is not confined to Prescott house — it occurs everywhere on campus. Prescott is just one of a number of large party spaces that the College has shut down as a result of damage in recent years — Fletcher and the Bunker are two examples. If the College’s prescribed method of dealing with the issue — shutting down the spaces where the most damage occurs — continues to yield weak results, perhaps it is not the solution to the problem. It may even be the case that dorm damage is inevitable.
Whether this last statement is true or not, as it currently stands, the Community Council’s policy does not overlook the unfortunate reality of the situation; by allowing for a certain dorm damage threshold, the College explicitly acknowledges that dorm damage will happen. Therefore, as students, we must uphold our end of the bargain. Accidents happen, but cutting loose does not necessitate breaking windows. We all must work to ensure that partying does not become synonymous with destruction, and this responsibility does not just fall on members of social houses.
We must recognize that many students here — and not just those who are members of social houses — want the type of party scene that these spaces provide, and these students should not be vilified for preferring to socialize in this way. However, under the College’s current restrictions, it remains unclear whether the typical “college” parties we grew up seeing on TV and in movies can exist in our community.
The disbanding of Delta will undoubtedly have some effect on Middlebury’s social scene. Many of us took part in the typical first-year activity of trekking down to ADP or Tavern with a huge group of hall-mates in search of a stereotypical, big college party. And attendance at social house parties is not limited to first-years — judging by the overwhelming crowds that can be found in Ridgeline basements on any given weekend, social houses play a role in the social lives of a critical portion of Middlebury’s student body and eliminating large party spaces will reduce weekend options for students.
In addition, with fewer large party spaces, students will likely hold smaller, less inclusive parties where they are unlikely to meet new people and likely to drink more irresponsibly, creating additional risk to students’ safety. Instead of grabbing a beer in a basement of a social house, students may be driven to drink in small groups behind closed doors.
Weekend partying aside, Delta as an organization has historically had strong ties to the space as a residence. Administrators have indicated that with the dissolution of Delta, Prescott house will likely serve as a regular dorm for the 2013-2014 academic year, comprised of singles and doubles, rather than be offered up as a superblock. We can anticipate that this change will affect the feeling of community created when organization membership and residence combine.
There are no obvious solutions to address these larger issues, and we are unsure as to whether removing Delta from the social scene will in the end yield any real positive change. Looking at the past few years, Delta’s extensive dorm damage is likely a symptom of an overarching campus-wide problem.
The question that needs answering is, where do we go from here? How do we fill the void that Delta is bound to leave? It seems that some of this responsibility of ensuring that students can find a communal place to party will fall on the social houses still in existence. From the big picture perspective, however, it is clear that the onus for creating a healthy, functional social scene that still satisfies student preferences falls on all of us. The administration should ensure that its expectations remain realistic, and continue to help students remain aware of and capable of meeting these expectations. However, as students, we must fulfill our side of the bargain by respecting these expectations and making ourselves accountable. Respect for our surroundings and our peers cannot go by the wayside come Thursday night. Accidents are inevitable, but no one has a right to commit them.
(03/20/13 4:39pm)
The Student Government Organization (SGA) held meetings on Sunday, March 10 and Sunday, March 17.
Finance Committee Report and Compromise
On March 3, the SGA approved every section of the Finance Committee Report, except the section pertaining to transportation reimbursement. A proposal was made to reduce the driving reimbursement to $0.24 a mile, but a compromise was reached to raise that value to $0.35. This final section of the Finance Committee Report was approved unanimously.
Housing Update
Doug Adams, associate dean of students and chair of the Residential Life Committee, spoke to the SGA about housing. There are no major upcoming changes regarding housing at the College. There could be changes in the future dealing with new residence halls, but nothing has been determined at this point.
Election of a New Feb Senator
Evan Allis ’15.5 has been elected to the newly created position of Feb Senator. He attended his first meeting on March 17.
We the Middkids
Chief of Staff Anna Esten ’13 and Senator Hasher Nisar ’16 helped create a new online petition system for students to address their concerns about the College.
“I’m very excited by the potential of We the Middkids to fill a communication gap between the SGA and the student body,” wrote Esten in an email.
“Oftentimes students don’t have a venue to share their ideas or suggestions unless they personally know a Senator,” she added. “I hope this will give every student the opportunity to pass their concerns on to the SGA and will give the SGA a better sense of what the rest of the student body wants and needs.”
Senators urged that the student body use the new website seriously so that legitimate concerns can be raised and addressed.
Re-Evaluation of Increased Parking Fines
Junior Senator Killian Naylor ’14.5 sponsored a bill titled “A resolution in support of the re-evaluation of fines for parking in faculty/staff designated spaces.”
The main concern of the bill was that parking fines had been raised from $10 to $50. Naylor argued that many parking tickets are a result of innocent mistakes, and that it is unfair to students to increase rates by 500 percent. He suggested that fines be changed to $25.
“A 500 percent increase seems too drastic and, given the complicated and intricate rules surrounding parking, excessive for what is often an honest mistake,” said Naylor.
SGA President Charlie Arnowitz ’13 added, “I think the $25 fee that the SGA suggested represents a good compromise between setting the right incentives and not overcharging students who end up making a mistake. $25 is a significant enough disincentive and is on par with almost all of our peer schools.”
Ultimately, the SGA approved Naylor’s bill unanimously, and it will be recommended to Public Safety that parking fines be reduced from $50 to $25.
The Email Revolution Resolution
Arnowitz proposed a bill titled, “The Email Revolution Resolution.” The bill proposes to allow students to subscribe and unsubscribe to whatever emails they like from Middlebury accounts. The SGA approved the bill unanimously with little debate.
(03/20/13 12:39am)
Officials, coaches, corresponding staff and one hundred forty-eight racers traveled across the country to Middlebury this year for the NCAA Skiing Championships. Of course, with this influx of visitors also came an astounding boom in business for the Middlebury community. Andrew Gardner, Middlebury’s nordic ski coach, notes that the event brought in an estimated quarter of a million in revenue to the area between lodging, dining and shopping, among other activities.
While hosting 21 teams was a great opportunity for the surrounding community overall, it was particularly beneficial for local hotels.
Accommodations for the athletes, coaches, officials and support staff began over a year prior to the event. General Manager of the Middlebury Inn Geoffrey Conrad notes that “Middlebury College and the NCAA came to us a year ago and we told them we’d love to be the Host Inn for the event.”
Robin Vaughan, Sales Manager at the Middlebury Courtyard by Marriott notes that teams started booking rooms as early as March 2012 and Conrad adds, “some of the larger teams such as Denver and Utah reserved their rooms immediately after the location decision was finalized.” The smaller teams filled things in closer to the event.
The Middlebury Inn and the Courtyard hosted seven teams each as well as a mix of fans and parents. Conrad notes that in addition to simply housing the athletes the Inn also “hosted a number of dinners and receptions” and “local restaurants were quite popular amongst the athletes.”
Moreover, the event seemed to be held at an ideal time in terms of the community’s tourism calendar. The fact that the Skiing NCAAs are held just as the commercial skiing season draws to an end and before spring traveling picks up is an added benefit for hotels and local businesses, says Middlebury’s Alpine Ski Coach Steve Bartlett. Gardner estimates that there were roughly 1,500 spectators at the nordic event on Saturday.
Vaughan remarks that a handful other events such as Winter Carnival, Alumni Weekend, family fall Weekend and, of course, graduation, bring quite a few visitors to the area. “We always appreciate being partners with Middlebury College,” says Vaughan.
While it is certain that these and a variety of other sporting events bring business to Middlebury, skiing events are especially beneficial. The extent to which the skiing championships benefit the community is usually high due to the duration of the athletes’ stay. Bartlett remarks that ski teams stay in Middlebury for almost a week, which is typically much longer than other sports.
Conrad reiterates this point.
“Most of the teams came in over the second and third weekend and stayed through the following weekend, which is an unusually long time for a big event.”
Of course, organizing an event like the Skiing NCAAs is a massive production. Coach Gardner notes, “It’s an honor that Middlebury’s been afforded only five times in the last quarter century and it reflects a lot of work.”
All the added business that the event brought to Middlebury clearly wouldn’t be possible without the help and hard work of many community members. Just to name a few, Gardner notes that Terry Aldrich deserves a ton of credit for his work.
Additionally, Bartlett and Patty Ross “refused to let the little details get lost in the shuffle.” Franklin Dean Farrar was also an immense help in hosting and organizing a banquet for roughly 300 people.
“Overall, this was a huge effort from many, many people and I’m grateful we’ve been able to host it,” says Gardner.
Conrad sums up the event from a business standpoint: “In a nutshell it was a great piece of business for the town of Middlebury and we’re very pleased to have been a part of it.”
(03/13/13 4:56pm)
On Tuesday, March 12, Community Council met to vote on the fate of Delta, formerly known as ADP. After a 30-minute open meeting and an hour of deliberation in executive session, during which only members of the Council were present, the motion to vote came to 8-8-1, thereby tabling the decision until the next meeting on Monday, March 18.
“We were not able to come to a decision today because it is a very complex issue, but I am confident that taking extra time to deliberate further will allow us to craft a decision that is ultimately best for the community,” said Student Co-Chair of Community Council Barrett Smith ’13.
Following the meeting’s adjournment, Doug Adams, associate dean of students and chair of the Residential Life Committee, a subcommittee of Community Council, emphasized that during the coming week, Delta will continue its operations as normal.
Tuesday’s meeting was packed to standing room-only, with a large student audience filling all corners of the Axinn Center’s first-floor classroom. Smith led the meeting, during which Council members were given the opportunity to ask members of Delta any questions or clarifications. Delta members were then given an open floor for five minutes.
During this time, leaders of Delta outlined changes that they would like to introduce in the future.
“Our most important point is to try and change the image of the house to the student body,” explained former Delta President Dan Lungo ’13. Current President Luke Battle ’14 was unable to attend the meeting as he was out of town for an interview.
In an interview after the meeting, Lungo clarified the challenges of changing the student body’s perception of Prescott house.
“We’re seen as this vital social scene on campus, but we also want people to understand that this is a residence — this is where we live — and we do more than just throw parties,” said Lungo.
Tuesday’s meeting convened in order to vote on the Residential Life Committee’s recommendations regarding the status of the College’s five social houses. The Council voted to continue Tavern, Xenia, the Mill and KDR for the next two academic years.
Delta’s fate, however, remains undecided. The Residential Life Committee’s biennial report recommends discontinuation of the organization due to several violations of College and IHC policy, including damage done to Prescott house, Delta’s 29-person residence; a continued pattern of throwing unregistered parties and failure to meet sexual assault training and hazing education requirements for the membership.
Although it was reported during the Feb. 25 Community Council meeting that Delta’s damages for this academic year had reached $1,800 with work orders pending, according to the report, Delta has now accrued a total of $2,592 in dorm damage, which puts Delta in violation of the $1,500 annual dorm damage limit that Community Council placed on the house after it accrued over $8,500 in damage during the 2011 - 2012 academic year.
During the meeting, Assistant Director of Custodial Services Linda Ross and Lungo both acknowledged the need for better communication between Facilities Services and Prescott house. On March 5, Delta received a $288 charge for clean up, yet Lungo explained that this was unexpected.
“The house spent over two hours cleaning on Sunday,” said Lungo. “We thought the job was done. Apparently it wasn’t, and going forward we’re going to make sure this doesn’t happen again. We were really surprised by that charge.”
Ross, who is also a member of Community Council, clarified the situation her team faced.
“The charge came from the six hours needed to finish cleaning the house in addition to the normal customary process that Facilities provides,” said Ross. “There was broken glass and the floors were very sticky.”
In the hours following the meeting, Lungo reached out to Public Safety and Facilities Services, proposing to meet as soon as possible to facilitate a stronger working relationship. The leadership also plans to work toward finding a faculty adviser, as the organization currently does not have one. In addition, Delta has thrown two registered parties since the leadership was informed of the committee’s recommendation, and Lungo also described Delta’s plans to host more daytime events in the near future.
“We want to show Community Council that we’re taking the initiative to actually enact what they recommended,” said Lungo after the meeting.
Emma Kramer ’13, a member of Delta, highlighted to Council members the difficulty of crowd control, proposing that Delta could hire Green Mountain Security or work more closely with Public Safety to help monitor party attendance. Party attendance numbers are continually high for Delta; the Community Council report describes “a large unregistered party with between 400-600 students present.”
“I can’t control a rowdy population,” explained Kramer, who has often been in charge of crowd control at the door to Delta’s parties. “We want to change the situation and control the problem before it [becomes] a real issue — before people are in our house that we don’t want to be there, [because] they might not be in a right state of mind.”
In an interview after the meeting, Lungo emphasized that the behavior of non-members at Delta functions also has an impact on the organization’s reputation.
“We need [the student body] to cooperate with us if we’re going to stay as an organization,” said Lungo. “It’s important for the student body to understand that when they come to an event, they have to be respectful to Public Safety.
Immediately following Delta’s remarks, the Council moved into an hour of executive session while a handful of members of Delta waited outside. Council members emerged from the room at 6 p.m. to announce that the decision had been tabled until its next meeting on Monday, March 18 at 4:30 p.m.
(03/13/13 2:44pm)
On Saturday, March 9, more than 5,000 chili enthusiasts from across the state and across the country flooded downtown Middlebury for the fifth annual Vermont Chili Festival.
The Chili Festival, which has been ranked as one of Vermont’s top 10 winter events by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce every year since it started, is the largest festival hosted in the town of Middlebury.
On the morning of the March 9, the town closed off Main Street for the festival. The day’s festivities included live music by Vermont band the Grift, a performance by the College’s own Riddim dance troupe, face-painting, a beverage tent, street performers, a Zumba flash mob and many other exciting activities and performances.
The star of the show, however, was the chili.
The day is structured around a massive chili contest — the winner of which is determined by popular vote.
Upon paying the $5 admission fee, visitors of the chili festival received a chili badge, a spoon and three voting tokens to be given to the visitors’ favorite chili makers.
This year, there were more than 50 entries. These 50 participants included both professional and amateur chili chefs from across the state. The wide spread included a number of local restaurants, social organizations, and a joint entry from the College’s Dining Services and the Solar Decathlon Team.
The choice was nothing if not difficult for visitors. The festival featured different types of chili from all across the state.
Festival-goers were impressed with the wide variety of options available, which included beef chilis, chicken chilis, fish chilis, moose chilis, veggie chilis, seafood chilis and other exotic chili options.
Furthermore, in an attempt to improve the dining experience and woo potential voters, many chili purveyors provide a little something extra. As if the staggering amount of delicious ingredients in the chili wasn’t enough, many vendors provide small pieces of cornbread or chips. Some kiosks featured self-service condiment bars, and others offered eclectic accompaniments like jelly beans or cider.
Competitors vied for a grand prize of $1,000, a second-place prize of $750 and a third-place prize of $500. In addition, winners of six chili categories also received $100 each. These categories were beef, chicken, pork, game, veggie and kitchen sink — a combination of many different ingredients. For a list of all the winners, see below.
Some of the proceeds from the event went to Addison County HOPE and the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO).
THE WINNERS
-->Overall:
1st Place — Indulge Salon
2nd Place — Black Sheep Bistro
3rd Place — Tourterelle
Beef:
1st Place — Jessica's
2nd Place — The Pour House
3rd Place — Greg's Meat Market
Chicken:
1st Place — Indulge Salon
2nd Place — Tourterelle/Misty Knoll
3rd Place — St Stephen’s
Pork:
1st Place — Black Sheep
2nd Place — Bluebird Tavern/Whistle Pig
3rd Place — The Lakehouse
Game:
1st Place — Fish Tail Tavern
2nd Place — Middlebury Fire Department
3rd Place — Sweet Marie's
Kitchen Sink:
1st Place — Cyclewise
2nd Place — Liberty Mutual
3rd Place — Otter Creek Brewery
Veggie:
1st Place — Middlebury College Solar Decathlon Team
2nd Place — Addison Central Teens
3rd Place — American Flatbread
(03/07/13 1:43am)
On Thursday, Feb. 28, a group of 50 gathered at the American Legion in Middlebury, Vt. to connect with the Vermont Right to Know GMO coalition, a group that is campaigning to require the labeling of all food derived from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the state. Representatives from the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA), Cedar Circle Farm, Rural Vermont and the Vermont Public Interest Group (VPIRG) joined other farmers, activists and cooperatives to host five forums across Vermont over the course of the week.
The talks are a continuation of the fierce debate that has been argued in U.S. courtrooms and dining rooms alike over the last two decades about the merits and the safety of GMOs.
Visiting Assistant Professor of Geography Kacy McKinney, who conducted much of her Master’s and Doctoral research on GMOs and currently offers a class on the subject, gave a clear definition of GMOs during an interview with the Campus this past week.
“One way of defining GMOs is to distinguish between genetic engineering and classic hybrid technology … With genetic engineering, we’re now able to go across species in a way that hybridizing plants could never do,” said McKinney. “We’re changing the genetic structure, and altering it to include a gene from another species.”
Despite this alteration, the FDA ruled in 1992 that GMOs were not substantively different from other food products and thus opened the floodgates. Today in the U.S., around 75 percent of processed foods are thought to be made with GMO products, while some specific crops like corn and soybeans — essential building blocks for processed foods and many other goods — are closer to 80 or 90 percent GMO.
The reason behind these Vermont forums is the bill H.112, which would require any product derived from GMOs being sold in Vermont to sport a label. After failing to make it to the floor last year, the bill has been reintroduced and has just passed out of the House Agricultural (Ag.) committee this past Friday. As the bill moves to the judiciary committee, supporters prepare with renewed vigor for another year of campaigning.
“The House Ag. committee worked for weeks on this,” recalled Dave Rogers, a policy advisor for NOFA Vermont and a speaker at Thursday night’s forum. “They came up with all these findings that say that ‘yeah, there are significant concerns and that the federal government is not doing its job, namely the FDA.’ They came to that conclusion after hearing diverse and wide-ranging testimony last year and they’re back at it this year.”
In its current condition, the bill requires the labeling of GMO products sold in Vermont and excludes dairy, livestock, food for immediate consumption and anything sold out of state. While these protocols were all present in the 2012 bill, there is one piece that was omitted in this year’s legislation: the trigger clause.
“The question of whether or not there will be a trigger clause — that is that the bill would not go into effect until some number of other states passed similar legislation — was being talked about today,” said Rogers. “Last year there was a trigger clause.”
Last year’s clause stated that after the bill was passed, the law would only go into effect after California and two other states passed similar legislation. Given that California failed to pass its labeling referendum this past fall, however, it seems that Vermont will now have to move ahead of the pack if it wants to see labeling any time soon.
“Our position is no trigger clause,” said Rogers. “There’s a fair amount of anxiety about being first, particularly when the feelings are so high … [But] if it’s the right thing to do, it’s the right thing to do.”
This moral righteousness may carry some weight in the State House, but it has become clear that other concerns are more pressing, namely the question of constitutionality and the lawsuit that many predict would follow passing legislation of this kind.
Creators of these genetically modified products like Syngenta and Monsanto have a long history of success in the courtroom. In the 90’s, Vermont passed an ambitious law requiring that milk produced from cows that had been given Monsanto’s Bovine Growth Hormone (BST) be labeled. Monsanto, ranked among America’s Fortune 500 companies, then sued the government over the law’s relation to their product. Monsanto won, and has been diligently defending its corporate, first amendment rights ever since.
“The issue is compelled speech,” said Rogers. “You are not allowed to force someone to say something that’s not true; and in the view of Monsanto et al., a label would convey false information, or suggest that there’s some difference that does not exist.”
The Right to Know coalition has done a great deal of work with the Vermont Law School to draft legislation that will stand up in court against Monsanto’s lawyers. Given that Monsanto’s revenues last year (~$12 billion) more than double the recently approved 2013 budget for Vermont, it’s not hard to see why legislators would be hesitant to invite a lawsuit that is all but guaranteed to follow this legislation.
“I’ve been talking to staffers for Vermont legislators,” said McKinney, “about how if this bill were to pass and labeling were to be put in place the state of Vermont will be sued by Monsanto. It’s a question of what kinds of resources will Vermont lose because they’re the first state to pass a bill … I just don’t see how a tiny, wonderful state like Vermont has the potential to beat out a giant, multi-national corporation that dominates the life-sciences industry.”
While the Right to Know coalition has been looking into ways for Vermonters to contribute to some kind of labeling defense fund, it is unclear as of yet if the state is willing to take on this added financial burden, particularly in light of Hurricane Irene and the recent recession.
Katie Michaels ’14.5, the student co-director of the College’s organic garden and a member of McKinney’s class, was among the handful of students present at Thursday’s forum.
“The GMO forum was certainly an experience in grassroots organizing,” said Michaels. “The audience was very enthusiastic about labeling GM products, and all seemed to share a mistrust of GM foods and the companies that create it.”
Yet while those assembled represented a unified group, Michaels pointed out that the voices of those Vermonters currently reliant on GMO technology for their livelihood were entirely unrepresented, and perhaps not considered.
“I wish there had been a bit of discussion on any analysis Right to Know GMO’s had done on the results of GMO labeling on the folks who currently grow GMO crops,” said Michaels. “I just hope that appropriate infrastructure will accompany this effort to help those currently growing GMO crops transition towards non-GMO or perhaps even organic varieties.”
Though labeling will not affect the majority of the state’s largest GMO growers because it excludes the labeling of dairy products, it does still remain that Vermont’s conventional farmers have yet to share in this labeling enthusiasm.
The lack of organizations like the Vermont Farm Bureau or the Vermont Dairy Industry Association — two lobbying groups for larger, conventional farmers — indicates a diversity of opinion on the matter, at least among the farming community.
“Vermont Farm Bureau, recognizing the importance of biotechnology to the future economic well being of the state, encourages funding effort to develop biotech industries,” reads the farm Bureau’s 2013 policy book. “We oppose placing prohibitions or undue restrictions on the development of biotechnology products which have been deemed safe and effective by appropriate regulatory agencies.”
Though again, labeling would not technically require any shift in farmer-practices, “[many] see this as a backdoor way to ban GMOs,” said Rogers.
“One of the interesting discourses,” McKinney added, “is that farmers should have the right to choose … It’s a compelling argument. Farmers do all this work for us and they need to be able to profit, they need to be able to sustain themselves, and here’s something that some believe might be able to help them to do so. It’s hard to argue to keep it from them. I’ve written articles about the problematic nature of that argument, but I still think it’s compelling. If you’re trying to avoid pests taking over your plants, why wouldn’t you want that?”
On the other hand, labeling-supporters cite research indicating a correlation between GMO crops and the onset of pesticide-resistant bugs, land degradation and other environmental hazards.
“We don’t know if they’re good or bad,” said Michaels, “but personally I don’t think we should be screwing with organisms’ DNA and then releasing them everywhere. We’re just not that smart! We don’t know what the ripple effects are going to be.”
Part of the reason for our lack of information is related to the lifetime-ownership that companies hold over their biotechnologies.
“Recently, there have been studies finding that there’s no problem with GMOs,” said Rogers, “but the research has been conducted by the industry or by people funded by the industry.”
The conflict of interests here is clear, but it could perhaps be overlooked if there were competing studies performed by independent researchers and universities. Yet not only have companies like Monsanto been able to prevent independent research, but they have also persuaded the FDA to use their studies when evaluating GMOs for market.
“Farmers have long bought seeds,” said McKinney, “but in this case, they’re buying seeds and signing a contract that says that they will not reuse, they will not share, they will not do any of the other things that they might do with seeds. They will plant them once, sell them off, and then buy again. I think that’s the crux of what’s different, that you are not allowed to experiment.”
One food company with local ties that has decided not to bet on GMOs is Ben & Jerry’s. In a recent press release that surprised many, the company announced its intention to make its ingredients 100 percent GMO-free by the end of 2013. The surprise came because the company was recently sold to Unilever, a British multi-national food corporation that contributed over $400,000 to anti-labeling campaigns in California this past year.
Though Jerry did make an appearance at Thursday’s forum, his presentation was merely to express his support for the campaign and his delight that his old company — now completely outside of his control — is continuing its tradition of labeling and transparency. In the 90’s, Ben and Jerry’s made a point of labeling its products free of bovine growth hormones, and though Monsanto filed a lawsuit, the company has been able to keep that particular label.
“When you put all of this together,” said Rogers, “I just say, this stuff is in 75 percent of the processed foods we’re eating; people are getting it three times a day; there are legitimate concerns, unanswered questions and a lack of responsiveness; in this situation, labeling something seems perfectly reasonable.”
The question for this year will be whether or not this campaign will be able to persuade legislators to take on the risk of labeling. While over a dozen other states are considering similar bills and referendums, none have passed anything yet, and it will be up to whoever goes first to take on American agribusiness in the courtroom.
(03/06/13 10:52pm)
On Feb. 10, “The Map Project” went up in Davis Library. The project documented locations where students had experienced sexual assault at Middlebury. And if there was one lesson from this map, it was that sexual assault occurs everywhere at Middlebury. With the exclusion of one residential building, every dormitory on campus was covered by at least one dot. And with more than 100 red dots spread out across the Middlebury campus, the fact that sexual violence has affected so many of us was made visually clear.
Collecting locations for this project was extremely easy, a fact that unfortunately speaks to the pervasive and common experience of sexual violence at Middlebury. However, this also shows the willingness of students to bravely share their experiences in order to raise awareness of an urgent issue. After a few weeks of light advertisement for the project, more than 100 students had submitted locations.
As a group, “It Happens Here” chose to pair this project with the powerful stories that students submitted for the event last spring. No matter how often we hear the statistic that one in four women, as well as one in seven men, will experience attempted or completed rape during college, the gravity and the pain inflicted from this violence is most truly understood through personal narrative. The event last spring brought 500 Middlebury students, faculty and staff to listen to and stand with students who had personal experiences with this violence, whether it was a close friend who was a survivor, a mother or themselves. The event highlighted our intolerance of permitting this form of assault in the Middlebury community. This intolerance of sexual violence is extremely necessary in order to form a community that is aware of sexual assault, is kind and sensitive to its survivors and is willing to stand up and prevent sexual assault in the future. Therefore, we are asking you to share your story — whatever that story might be — for the spring event this year.
Seeing the more-than-100 red dots spread across the Middlebury campus gave me the chills. It wasn’t just the sheer number of dots — just one dot is one too many. But I can imagine the powerful stories that each dot represents, and I know that the sharing of these stories can truly spur change. It can be a poem, it can be a sentence and it can be 10 pages long. It can be about rape. It can be about words. It can be about anything in between that was violating. It can be about an experience at Middlebury or an experience that occurred before you started college. It can be about your sister, your brother or your friend. When sexual assault touches one in four women at college, we all have a story to share and we all have the power to write our way to social change, to a campus where there might not be so many red dots and so much pain covering our home. Share your story at go/IHH.
Written by EMILY PEDOWITZ '13 of Briarcliff, N.Y.
(03/06/13 5:24pm)
The Residential Life Committee, a subcommittee of Community Council, has recommended that Delta house be disbanded due to failure to comply with Inter-House Council (IHC) and college regulations.
On Tuesday, March 12, Community Council at-large will vote on the passage of the report that could pose a steep challenge to the existence of the house commonly referred to by students as “ADP.” The results of the Council’s vote will then go to the desk of President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz for a final decision on the future of the organization.
“This is the biggest place to party on campus — without question,” said President of Delta Luke Battle ’14. “Without it, I think there would be a really, really big void in the social scene that wouldn’t be filled by anywhere else.”
The primary concern of the Residential Life Committee is the amount of dorm damage — approximately $1,800 — that Delta has already accumulated this academic year. After seeing around $10,000 of dorm damage last year, the College stipulated that Delta’s damage would have to remain below $1,500 for the 2012-2013 academic year. The other social houses’ damage is capped at $2,500.
Battle called the $1,500 goal “unattainable” given the size of Delta’s parties, which often draw 200 to 400 students, according to Battle. “They’re really setting us up to fail here, as far as dorm damage goes,” he added.
Co-Chair of Community Council Barrett Smith ’13 also cited the lack of registered parties as a serious concern.
“Part of the responsibility of a social house is to throw registered parties,” said Smith. “[The houses] are given certain privileges, and in exchange, they have to comply with Vermont state law and other requests of the College.”
Battle maintains that while Delta is making a concerted effort to follow the rules, the registration process for parties is overly exhaustive.
“We understand that we have not complied completely with the College,” said Battle. “We’re trying to change so that we are complying with their wishes. We threw our first registered party of the year this past Saturday and it was a big success, but at the same time, the preparations that had to go into that and the regulations we had to follow are pretty ridiculous.”
Residential Life Committee member and former Tavern president Zach Marlette ’13 said that, even discounting errors of procedure, Delta has shown a lack of cooperation with Public Safety.
“Delta can’t have people at the house — whether they’re members or guests — that are disrespecting Public Safety,” said Marlette. “It’s all tied to the culture that they cultivate.”
Additionally, the IHC handbook requires that a minimum of 80 percent of social house members complete hazing and sexual assault training, but Delta has not met this requirement. Battle explained that many members have neglected this duty because the majority of the organization is made up of varsity athletes, who are required to complete hazing and sexual assault training with their teammates, albeit with a different module. There is no system in place in which varsity athletes can be waived from social house hazing and sexual assault training.
The Residential Life Committee reviewed all five social houses as part of a standard review process that happens every other year, alternating with a review of academic interest houses. The process begins with a questionnaire filled out by house leadership that serves to explain the house’s role in the campus community.
According to Smith, this year, the College has streamlined this questionnaire and required only initial, brief meetings. If issues arise during that meeting, then the house is called back for a more thorough review.
Marlette said that Delta did not fully complete the initial questionnaire.
“It was very bare bones,” said Marlette. “People on the committee really would have liked to see more incentive on behalf of Delta’s leadership to show that they genuinely do care about trying to do better.”
“Members of the committee seemed put off by some of [Delta’s] answers on the questionnaire and by [Battle’s] responses during the meeting, particularly surrounding the issue of party registration,” added Smith.
For next Tuesday’s meeting, Marlette advises Delta to bring “all the resources” they have.
“Delta’s really in the hole right now, and if they want to get out of this hole, then they need to show that they’re going to do better and that there actually is a huge student contingency that wants them around,” he said.
Marlette offered an alternative suggestion to Delta’s current goal of gathering a petition with 1,000 signatures.
“It’s going to make more of an impact if a bunch of students come to [Tuesday’s meeting] and show, with stories or just with their presence, that they do care about this house and that they want it to stick around, rather than just a piece of paper,” said Marlette.
“Aside from that, they just really need to address the things they messed up on,” added Marlette.
Battle hopes to gather Delta members, IHC members, other social house members and teammates at the Community Council meeting to show support for Delta.
“We’re going to try to address all their issues,” said Battle.
Smith explained that Community Council will likely utilize an executive session — during which only Council members are present — for final discussion and voting.
“The most important part of this is coming to a fair decision but also respecting the process,” said Smith. “I want to hear different voices from the community, but I also want to honor the work the Residential Life Committee has done.”
While the vote is scheduled for Tuesday, given the gravity of the outcome, there is a distinct likelihood that the Council will extend the discussion and voting into additional meetings.
(02/27/13 11:15pm)
Textbook sales at the College Store have been declining in recent years, with only approximately 55 percent of stocked textbooks sold in the fall 2012 semester, down over 20 percentage points from the previous semester. While the College has yet to identify a particular reason for the decline in sales, it is likely due to students choosing to purchase their textbooks elsewhere.
According to a December 2012 study by the Pew Research Center, the population of e-book readers is growing. The study reported that 23 percent of Americans read e-books due to increased ownership of e-reading devices. E-reader ownership grew from 18 percent in 2011 to 33 percent in late 2012.
With this information at hand, Library and Information Services (LIS) has been exploring methods of appropriately adapting to the increasingly digital educational shift, namely by participating in an e-textbook pilot program and increasing e-book rental offerings at the College.
In fall 2012, the College signed up for a McGraw-Hill e-textbook pilot program through EDUCAUSE, a company focused on exploring the potentials of new technology in higher education. With LIS funding, professors who had requested that the College Bookstore order McGraw-Hill textbooks for the fall semester were able to offer students free e-textbooks. Professors using McGraw-Hill textbooks took part in the pilot program by choice, as did students in the participating courses.
“We didn’t want to be perceived as asking the faculty to do something,” said Director of Library and Information Services Terry Simpkins. “We wanted to leave as much of the control up to them.”
Approximately 500 students in over 20 classes were offered e-textbooks. The bookstore’s online textbook catalog indicated which texts were covered under the pilot program, and the College Store ordered fewer copies of the bound textbooks available through the pilot program in anticipation of lower sales.
“We left it that if a student preferred to have the printed copy, we would order a copy for them,” wrote Bookstore Manager Georgia Best in an email. “I think we received three or four requests for printed copies.”
The e-textbooks, accessible online with any Internet-enabled device, contained the exact same material as their printed and bound counterparts, and offered interactive and share-able annotation capabilities. Readers had the option to highlight the e-text, take notes, link to secondary articles and share them with their professor and classmates.
According to Simpkins, most students and professors opted not to use the interactive capabilities, due in part to the pilot’s limited duration and uncertainty about the continued use of e-books in the future.
“The [faculty] were not interested in totally rethinking the way they teach with this technology, especially if there’s no guarantee that the technology is going to be here the next semester,” Simpkins said.
“Somebody who’s been teaching a class for five years and knows how they’re going to approach the class isn’t going to want to rethink their syllabus just for one semester,” he added.
In speaking with students who participated in the pilot, Simpkins concluded that cost was the driving factor in students’ decisions to opt for the e-book.
“All else being equal, i.e. cost, I got the sense that students would actually prefer print,” he said, noting the inconvenience and difficulty of long-form reading on a laptop as opposed to a printed book or even a Kindle, Nook or iPad.
Alison Maxwell ’15 used a McGraw-Hill e-textbook in her ECON 0155 introductory microeconomics class and cited the convenience of being able to complete homework readings when she had her computer with her, regardless of location, as one of the pilot’s main perks, but had difficulty adjusting to studying material on a screen.
“Without the cost saving, I don’t think I would use them because it was actually harder to study with,” said Maxwell. “Flipping between pages was cumbersome because I would be constantly scrolling up and down between pages. If the text refers to something on the opposite page, it’s inconvenient to have an e-textbook where you can only view one page at a time.”
Students were able to print pages from their e-textbooks and had the option of purchasing loose-leaf copies of the textbooks made of unbound high-quality monochrome printouts.The loose-leaf copies cost $28 for texts with fewer than 600 pages, and $34 for longer books. The loose-leaf copies also gave students the ability to maintain access to the text after the digital version was no longer available.
“In the end, a number of my students didn’t use the e-text as their primary text,” wrote Professor of Economics William Pyle in an email with regard to his ECON 0255 micro theory course’s e-textbook pilot participation. “But instead, perhaps one third to one half sent away for the loose-leaf hard copies that they could store in a binder.”
The ultimate goal of the EDUCAUSE pilot was to learn how students and faculty might use e-textbooks, and to establish the pros and cons of e-textbook usage.
While students seem to prefer printed books to e-textbooks, Simpkins noted that improved communication, more training sessions for faculty and a long-term pilot period would have likely changed the program’s reception.
While the EDUCAUSE e-textbook program has ended at the College, some students have found their own e-textbook resources through booksellers like Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
More commonly, however, students seek alternate book purchasing methods instead of going directly to the College Store.
The mail center has noted an especially great volume of incoming packages as of late, with over 650 USPS packages processed on Feb. 20. While the source of incoming shipments cannot be tracked, Mail Center Supervisor Jacqueline Galenkamp believes that many of the packages contained textbooks.
In addition to purchasing books from outside retailers, students have begun to rent textbooks from the College Store with greater frequency.
In Spring 2011, 12 textbook titles were available for rent and 58 copies were rented out for the semester at a significantly lower cost. Four semesters later, in fall 2012, students rented 582 textbooks from the 53 titles available for rent.
(02/21/13 5:00am)
This Friday, Feb 22, Christian A. Johnson Professor of History of Art Cynthia Packert will lead a discussion about a new painting that will soon be hanging in the College’s Museum of Art. The College recently obtained the painting, “Illustration from the Ramayana,” which depicts an epic event in Hindu lore. It was purchased with funds provided by the Robert P. and Barbara P. Youngman Acquisition Fund for Asian Art. The discussion is part of the “Off the Wall: Informal Discussions About Art” series.
The Ramayana , or “Story of Rama,” is one of India’s most ancient and revered epics. It is an adventure story centered on Rama, an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu, and was written in Sanskrit around 500 BCE by the poet Valmiki. Rama was the rightful heir to the throne of the kingdom Ayodhya, and was forced into exile by his evil step-mother. Yet he remained obedient to her, and set off into the wilderness with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana. Sita is captured by a demon named Ravana, and a monkey named Hanuman teams up with Rama to rescue her. Rama returns to Ayodhya and is crowned king.
The painting illustrates the moment where Rama and Lakshmana, accompanied by an army of Hanuman’s monkeys, begin their journey to rescue Sita. It is a climactic image, with various animals preparing for battle as Rama rides on Hanuman’s back. Gold accents highlight royal animals and the halos behind Rama and Lakshmana.
“Illustration from the Ramayana” is a detached image from an 18th century manuscript. Such a manuscript would probably have been commissioned by one of the aristocratic families of the Rajput ruling class, who ruled over much of northwestern India.
The piece is an anticipated addition to the art Museum’s collection, as it complements another Ramayana painting in its collection. In the painting already owned by the College, Rama, Lakshmana and Sita are just beginning their exile into the forest.
The new addition will add another chapter to the story by showing the preparation for the battle for Sita’s freedom.
The “Off the Wall” discussion will start in the Kevin P. Mahaney ’84 Center for the Arts, Room 125 on Feb. 22 at 12:15 p.m., and then will proceed to the Museum of Art. Lunch will be provided. The event is free to College ID cardholders, and community donations are welcomed.
(02/20/13 6:23pm)
The women’s swimming and diving team competed in the NESCAC championship at Bowdoin over three days this weekend, Feb. 15-17, finishing fourth in a competitive field. The women were in third place for much of the weekend – trailing conference powers Williams and Amherst – but were overtaken by Tufts on the final day of competition to match their fourth-place finish from 2012.
“I was extremely proud with how we swam,” said head coach Bob Rueppel. “If you watched the meet, we stood out as the most unified team. Our athletes were up the whole meet. They were energetic.”
On the opening day of competition, Feb. 15, Jamie Hillas ’15 got the Panthers out to a fast start by defending her 50-yard breaststroke title from last season, finishing in a time of 29.82. Megan Griffin ’16 placed fifth in the 50-yard butterfly, while Colleen Harper ’14 finished fourth in the one-meter diving event and Andie Tibbetts ’13 took fifth in the 50-yard backstroke to put the Panthers in third heading into the second day. The 400-yard medley relay team of Tibbetts, Hillas, Courtney Haron ’15 and Maddy Berkman ’15 earned an NCAA “B” cut in 3:51.98, good for third place. Haron also made a “B” cut in the 500-yard freestyle, but finished last in the eight-person final, a fact indicative of the strength of the conference field this year.
“When everything shook down after this weekend, this was definitely the fastest conference in the country,” said Rueppel. “Throwing young kids into that situation, I just thought they handled it very, very well.”
The Panthers came into Saturday’s finals in third place, and were buoyed by the individual top-five finishes from Hillas in the 100-yard breaststroke and Haron in the 200-yard freestyle, both making “B” cuts. Hillas, who won that event at last year’s NESCACs, finished just 0.17 seconds behind the winner with a faster time than her conference-winning time from the year before. The 200-yard medley relay of Tibbetts, Hillas, Griffin and Haron also finished third and made an NCAA “B” cut.
“The biggest thing I was happy about was the number of kids that made it back to finals,” said Rueppel. “Saturday night we had 17 out of 21 swimmers competing. Last year it was six or seven.”
For much of day three, the Panthers held a narrow margin over fourth-place Tufts. In three-meter diving, Harper and Hannah King ’13 finished fifth and sixth, respectively.
As the meet came down to the final event, however, Tufts gained a lead over Middlebury by placing four swimmers in the final of the 200-yard butterfly. Though the Panther team of Cece Burkey ’15, Nora Daly ’13, Lydia Carpenter ’15 and Ann Carpenter ’15 defeated the Jumbos in the meet’s final event – the 400-yard freestyle relay – it was not enough, as the Panthers could not make up the gap.
“All four girls were just awesome,” said Rueppel. “You always want to be perfect, but when you look back at the whole situation, we took a nice big step.”
Amherst won the overall team title, marking the first time in 13 years that Williams has failed to win the women’s conference crown. The Panthers finished just 11 points from a podium finish, an improvement from last year when they were over 100 points out of third.
“It would have been nice to get third,” said Rueppel. “I’m not going to lie. Going into the last relay knowing we were 15 down and it was going to take a disqualification in order to get third, we still beat Tufts in both the A and the B relay. That just speaks volumes of what we wanted to get done.”
With eight NCAA provisionary cuts from the weekend, the Panthers will have to wait and see how many of their swimmers will compete in the national championship meet, held in late March in The Woodlands, Texas.
“It’s a process that we have to go through here because we’re building a program and it’s all going through these steps,” said Rueppel. “As a coach I have to step back, because we’re building that foundation.”
While the women were competing at Bowdoin, the men prepared for their own conference championship meet, held this weekend, Feb. 22-24, at Wesleyan.
The men finished seventh at the NESCAC meet a year ago, and will rely heavily on the return of Ian Mackay ’14 to get back into the conference mix. Mackay won both the 50-yard freestyle and 50-yard butterfly at the 2011 championship before missing last season with an injury.
“Having a guy like Mackay not only strengthens your relays, it makes the other guys stronger,” said Rueppel. “He makes everybody around him just a little bit better.”
Stephan Koenigsberger ’16 enters the meet as the conference’s fifth seed in the 50-yard breaststroke. The Panthers’ 200-yard freestyle relay, 400-yard freestyle relay and 200-yard medley relay are each seeded fifth going into the meet.
“We’ve got some pretty strong relays,” said Rueppel. “We would have good relays this year because of the new guys we’ve got in the program and some older guys swimming well, but putting Ian back in the mix puts us on the cusp of being great.”
Rueppel commented on the team’s underdog status heading into the meet.
“We’re not on anybody’s radar,” he said. “I think what we’re trying to do is relish that role. Nobody’s paying attention to us so we can just go about our business. I think we’re going to surprise some people.”
The meet kicks off on Friday, Feb. 22, and continues with trials in the mornings and finals in the afternoons through Sunday
“We have nothing to lose,” said Rueppel. “When you compete without limitations, without expectations, in that sense I think it allows you to perform instinctively. When you’re put in that position where you can just instinctively swim, it’s a great position to be in. That’s exactly where we are.”
(02/13/13 10:31pm)
Over the years, the Internet has become a source of alternative methods of education, making information readily available. InstaEDU, an online tutoring service launched publicly in May of last year, makes virtual education even more accessible by adding a human element.
Launched by three Stanford University graduates, the service aims to connect students of all ages to “provide an online tutoring platform where students in need can instantly connect with available tutors from top universities.” Their goal is “to make sure that every student has access to personal academic support whenever they need it,” in hopes that help is available more quickly to students struggling in any subject.
There are currently 1,500 tutors that work for InstaEDU, many of whom are Middlebury students, with over 400 tutors online at any time. Alison Johnston, one of the founders of the program, believes that having a tutoring service online makes the education process easier and more practical for students of all ages
“InstaEDU offers a wider variety of tutors to you,” said Johnston. “It could be pretty hard to find someone to help you with advanced chemical engineering, but online you are not limited by location.”
The program is designed to work for all levels of students — from elementary to college levels — by matching students at their moment of need. A user signs on to search for tutors in a variety of subjects and then connects to chat through Facebook or Gchat. If a tutor is online and receives a notification that a student is in need of help, they either ignore the message or click the link if they are available.
Since the launch of the program, Johnston says that they have learned more about the online tutoring process, and they have developed the website to make the program fit the demands of its users.
“[We have learned] that people want continued relationships, and that our functionality is core feature,” said Johnston. “Everyone has last-minute needs, so we changed to have our tutors connect with people personally.”
In addition to providing tutors knowledgeable in a vast array of subjects, Johnston believes that the format of InstaEDU meshes well with tutors living the college lifestyle. Because the tutors have hectic and varied schedules, the online functionality allows them to work when they are available, rather than at a specific time. Johnston also mentioned that college students often make the best tutors, as they are enthusiastic and usually in need of money.
“With home tutoring, it’s expensive and there are often scheduling problems,” said Johnston. “A lot of students don’t need a strict tutoring schedule, but everyone has moments where they run into trouble. Our tutors can help at 11 p.m. when they run into issues with a problem set.”
InstaEDU currently employs Nate Beatty ’13.5. Beatty has always been interested in tutoring, but could never commit the time required for traditional tutoring.
“InstaEDU gives me an opportunity to help others learn and understand physics and math on my own time,” said Beatty. “It fits perfectly with my passion for the subject, my desire to teach and help others find that passion, and my crazy Middlebury schedule.”
Beatty believes InstaEDU to be a good initiative but also understands that online education has its downfalls when compared to face-to-face interactions.
“Honestly, I don’t think anything will ever replace face-to-face tutoring,” said Beatty. “Questions are easier to ask and explanations more easily given when both the tutor and the student have access to models, a pencil and paper or a chalkboard. But if it’s the night before an exam, turning to help from a real person online could be a better option than soldiering through pages of a textbook for hours.”
Beatty is one of many Middlebury and NESCAC students that InstaEDU employs. Johnston says that the program is always recruiting tutors from top colleges and universities, and that they are currently looking to expand both by number of users and tutors.
(02/13/13 10:13pm)
Although the men’s and women’s latest meet at Tufts was cancelled due to complications from winter storm Nemo, the team had ample opportunities to improve in both the Terrier Classic at Boston University on Jan. 25 and Jan. 26 and at Dartmouth on Feb. 2.
Middlebury traveled to Boston University to compete against teams from Division I, II and III including Harvard, Yale, University of Rhode Island and University of Albany. Both the women and the men distinguished themselves despite the tough competition.
The women’s distance medley relay team of Addie Tousley ’13, Juliet Ryan-Davis ’13, Sarah O’Brien ’13 and Alexandra Morris ’16 placed an impressive third, finishing behind only teams from University of Albany and Monmouth University. Their time of 11:52.95 placed them first within Division III. On the men’s side Jack Davies ’13 had an impressive race in the 5,000-meter, finishing fifth with a time of 14:31.31.
The following weekend the teams traveled to Dartmouth to start off the February recess strong against teams such as the Naval Academy, Dartmouth, Bentley University and RPI. Despite the size of the competition, the College stood out as Bryan Holtzman’ 14 and Will Bain ’15 finished in the top eight in the 60-meter dash. While Bain finished seventh overall with a time of 7.24 seconds,
Holtzman placed fourth overall, breaking his own school record in the preliminaries with a time of 7.09 seconds.
“Breaking the record was nice because it meant that I did better than I ever had before,” said Holtzman. “It left a little bit of a sour taste in my mouth though because I did it in the preliminary round and then ran slower in the final — ideally, I improve in each progressive round in a day, but I can’t complain about a PR.”
This was not his first school record this season as Holtzman continues to improve looking forward.
“I’d like to place highly at Division III New Englands this weekend,” said Holtzman. After that, my goal is to run as fast as I can and possibly qualify for NCAAs.”
Kevin Chu ’14 also had an impressive day clinching a third-place finish in the 60-meter hurdles in a time of 8.32 seconds, setting another school record.
The men’s sprinters continued to prove their strength as both Fritz Parker ’15 and Louis Cornacchione ’13 placed third in the 200-meter and 500-meter dashes, respectively.
The team’s depth became evident in the 800-meter run as four Middlebury runners placed in the top eight spots. Wilder Schaaf ’14 ran to a third place finish for the Panthers while Peter Hetzler ’14, Samuel Cartwright ’16 and Gilbert Kipkorir ’16 placed sixth, seventh and eighth place, respectively.
The team continued its strong all-around performance, as five of the top-10 athletes in the mile run were Panthers. Davies placed second finishing with a time of 4:16.04. Schaaf and Anthony Lee ’13 finished close behind in third and fourth place, respectively. Davies also finished second in the 3,000 meter run in a time of 8:41.95.
It was not just the men’s side that had success at the meet, as the women’s side set a new school record and boasted several second-place finishes. First-year Lauren Henry ’16 set a new school record in just the fourth race of her career in the 60-meter dash with a fifth place finish in a time of 8.05 seconds. Distance runners Addie Tousley ’13 and Katherine Tercek ’16 earned second place finishes in the mile and the 3,000-meter run, respectively. In the field events, Emma McGuirk ’15 also finished second in the triple jump, reaching the 10.42-meter mark.
The team also had several third-place finishes, demonstrating the depth of the women’s side. Allison Maxwell ’15 ran a 2:18.12 in the 800-meter run, while Chelsea Montello ’16 jumped to 4.86 meters in the long jump.
Next up for the team are New Englands, which will occur at Bates this coming weekend Feb. 15 and 16. For those who qualify, Open New Englands follow the next weekend. The indoor season will end for all indoor track and field athletes after NCAA Championships on March 8 and 9. The spring season will then begin just two weeks later during the team’s training trip in San Diego at Point Loma Nazarene.
(02/13/13 2:29pm)
On Tuesday, Jan. 15, during the second week of the 2013 legislative session, state senators Robert Hartwell (D) and Joseph Benning (R) introduced a bill calling for a three-year moratorium on all large-scale wind projects in the state of Vermont to allow for further research and consideration. The bill came after months of increasingly intense debate over the role of wind power in Vermont’s energy future, and the debate is far from over.
Vermont activists, citizens and legislators alike are caught on either side of a debate that will likely decide the future of the state’s energy portfolio as well as its landscape. The state legislature voted in 2005 to set a goal of 20 percent renewable energy by 2017 and Governor Peter Shumlin supported a 90 percent renewable by 2050 goal in his 2011 Comprehensive Energy Plan.
Thus, the state has demonstrated its commitment to incorporating renewable energy into its portfolio and moving away from fossil fuels; the question now is whether or not industrial wind projects will be a part of the coming push towards green technologies.
For some opponents of the moratorium, like Schumann Distinguished Scholar Bill McKibben, any stall on green technology construction while heat waves, droughts and disastrous storms continue to ravage our warming world is not acceptable.
On Jan. 30, McKibben spoke before the Vermont state legislature on the urgency of addressing its contribution to global climate change. After detailing many of the global repercussions of climate change, McKibben spoke of Vermont’s future in the context of continued fossil fuel use.
“The computer modeling shows a dramatically warming world won’t support the birch, beech and maple forests that we love in Vermont, and that the hemlock will be driven north of the Canadian border,” said McKibben. “The future of our mountains depends on our ability to get ahead of the global warming crisis.
“Renewable electricity is the only chance we have moving forward, and increasingly, it’s a good chance,” said McKibben after noting the fact that Germany was able to produce 50 percent of its electricity from renewable sources one day this past summer.
Setting aside his global perspective, McKibben then addressed Vermont’s proposed wind moratorium.
“ I … read the science carefully, and am thoroughly convinced that by far the greatest threat to their integrity, their biology, and their beauty is the onset of rapid climate change,” McKibben said to those concerned about the integrity of Vermont’s pristine ridgelines that are the primary sites for new wind projects.
“Let me say that if anything in my description of that crisis so far leaves you thinking that we have three years to spare for a timeout,” said McKibben, “then I’ve done a poor job indeed. We need to be doing all we can on every front.”
Just two days prior to McKibben’s address, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders (I) also spoke in opposition to the proposed wind moratorium.
“If Vermont ceases new wind development the message will go out all across the country, spread by the well-funded coal and oil companies, that even in Vermont — progressive Vermont — there is not a serious commitment to combating global warming,” Sanders said.
While Sanders received a great deal of criticism for this position, he spoke in solidarity with a number of Vermont’s leading environmental groups including, Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG), 350 Vermont, the Vermont Natural Resources Council, the Vermont chapter of the Sierra Club and many others.
“I think it’s part of the long-term energy picture for Vermont,” said Alex DePillis, senior agricultural development coordinator for Vermont’s Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets. DePillis has worked for many years on small- and medium-sized wind projects in the Midwest and Vermont. At the Agency, he focuses on energy policy and on helping farmers implement energy-related improvements.
“The idea of a three-year moratorium on wind power in Vermont ignores the reality that there’s tens of thousands of utility-scale wind turbines placed in forested areas, on ridge line and prominent areas, in densely populated areas [throughout] Europe, particularly in Germany and Austria. If there’s an issue, it’s already been identified. Just go look at what’s been done and you’ll have your answers.
“In the short term, it’s important to do something now in Vermont,” said DePillis. Those other projects that people are pointing to out west, or maybe efficient natural gas plants, are all fine and good solutions, but they take time. It’s really quick to build PV arrays, and actually, it’s relatively quick to put up wind turbines if there’s not a three-year moratorium.”
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Vermont produced 33 thousand MWh of electricity from wind energy in 2011, nearly three times the output in 2009. Based on household averages from Vermont's Comprehensive Energy Plan, this provides enough electricity to power around 5,500 homes. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) estimated in a 2010 nationwide survey, however, that Vermont could produce 5,395 GWh, or more than five million MWh, if the state chose to develop all its highly productive wind areas, excluding unlikely sites like urban areas, parks, wilderness areas and water features. This would be enough to power over 800,000 homes, around three times the number of homes in the state.
The research indicates that while Vermont certainly does not have the greatest potential for wind in the country, it is pursuing some production and has the potential for a great deal more.
Yet those who support the moratorium, like the nearly 200 Vermonters who rallied at the state house last fall, argue that this headlong rush into wind energy projects will result in significant impacts to the environment and human health based on their experience with existing Vermont projects.
On Monday Jan. 28, the same day as Sanders’s address, a non-profit group called Ridgeprotectors issued a press release to express their exasperation with Vermont’s continued push for industrial wind.
“As Vermonters who support an effective climate change adaptation strategy, we are baffled by the insistence of environmentalists who champion an ineffective, expensive and unreliable approach to emissions reduction: industrial wind turbines on Vermont’s ridgelines,” reads the press release. “The moratorium on new utility scale wind energy is intended as a thoughtful, bi-partisan period of inquiry and planning.”
The press release goes on to say that electricity represents less than 10 percent of Vermont’s energy budget and encourages the legislature to support the moratorium and any initiatives that “[reduce] emissions at the source.”
Additionally, a number of Vermonters testified before the state senate’s Energy and Natural Resource Committee, expressing their concerns over a wide range of issues relating to wind energy in Vermont.
Sandy Reider, a doctor who has practiced in the state for the last 17 years, spoke of patients who experience what has become known as “Wind Turbine Syndrome.”
“At this point,” said Reider, “I have seen six persons in my office with symptoms that seem to stem from these turbines.”
Reider testified that these symptoms include insomnia, dizziness, inability to focus, headaches and ringing in the ears. In the case of one patient, these symptoms were linked to his house’s proximity to a wind turbine. Though the patient could not hear anything, Reider hypothesized that inaudible frequencies produced by the motion of the turbine were related to these health effects.
“We certainly need better science and more study is needed,” said Reider, concluding with his support for the moratorium.
Stephen Ambrose, an industrial noise control specialist, also testified in favor of the moratorium.
“Wind turbines sound awful,” said Ambrose. “Blade rotations cause the noise levels to fluctuate loudly with an unnatural sound character. Pedersen & Waye research shows that wind turbine sounds are more objectionable than noise produced by traffic, trains and planes.”
Assistant Professor of Geology Will Amidon similarly expressed his concerns about the impacts of wind turbines on ridgeline areas.
“The magnitude of environmental impact scales directly with the size and scale of wind development in Vermont,” said Amidon. “Will a single turbine with underground transmission have bad ecological impacts — no. Will 40 wind turbines, roads and a huge transmission clear-cut have real impacts — yes.
“The key point is that wind will disturb the core of our fragile sub-alpine habitats and migration corridors,” added Amidon, “whereas solar, hydro and nuclear will occupy more human-influenced parts of the landscape.”
For many who oppose wind production in Vermont, the irony of developing Vermont’s green, rolling hills to protect them from climate change is hard to miss. So far, the transition toward large-scale, renewable energy has been rocky and will likely continue to present challenges.
Whether it is job creation, renewable standards, human health effects or environmental impacts, the costs and benefits of wind run the gamut; the question now is whether Vermont will harness the potential of its ridgelines or leave them untouched for coming generations.
(01/23/13 6:54pm)
Bright flags from around the world, fast-paced dance music and bouncing dancers filled the McCullough Social Space beginning at 4 p.m. on last Saturday, Jan. 19, kicking off the second annual Middlebury College Dance Marathon. The event was organized to raise money for the Vermont Children’s Hospital. Organizers in black and green t-shirts darted around making last-minute adjustments and welcoming eager dancers of all ages for 12 straight hours of music, food and (of course) dancing. “Twenty four hours in a day, 12 hours for a life” was the motto of the night.
The evening began with mixes from DJ Officer Chris, followed by a performance by the Middlebury Baby Ballet dancers and the annual welcoming address by head pediatrician, Dr. Lewis First, of the Vermont Children’s Hospital.
After thanking everyone for coming out to dance, First handed the microphone over to the keynote speaker of the night, eight-year-old Gavin Shamis, who is currently halfway through his treatment for leukemia at the hospital. Naturally at ease on stage, Shamis told the story of his leukemia diagnosis and expressed his thoughts about the hospital.
“They make it as fun as it can possibly be in a hospital and it’s not scary at all,” he says. “They treat you like an individual.” Shamis is also known for his successful lemonade-selling endeavor which last year raised over $1,600 for the hospital. “In the summer I do lemonade but thanks for dancing in the winter when I’m not doing lemonade!” Shamis said.
Shamis’ speech was followed by a song written and performed by First, to the tune of My Fair Lady’s “I Could Have Danced All Night,” successfully setting the mood for a night of laughter and energy. The dance floor filled up with students, little ballerinas, community members and even a couple toddlers clinging to the legs of their parents, wobbling happily to the music.
“It’s a great way to hang out with kids,” said Cooper Couch ’15, while taking a dance break. “You don’t really get to hang out with kids that much on campus.”
The nationwide Dance Marathon program was brought to the College for the first time last year, raising over $5,500 for the children and families of the Vermont branch of the Children’s Miracle Network Hospital in Burlington.
“Everyone around here has some connection to the children’s hospital,” said this year’s Dance Marathon committee co-chair Maureen Wyse ’13.
For the second time around, the marathon was moved to winter term and began earlier in the afternoon. Committee co-chairs Barbara Ofosu-Somuah ’13 and Wyse began planning for this event last spring when they were both abroad. Since then, they have been hard at work screening DJs, communicating with the hospital, coordinating performers and advertising throughout the community to make this event a reality. Their initial fundraising goal was $10,000.
“We figured we could be ambitious,” said Ofosu-Somuah.
The hours flew by as freestyle dancing was mixed in with Zumba routines, choreographed morale dances, a performance by the RIDDIM dance troupe and raffle drawings by enthusiastic MCs Cheswayo Mphanza ‘16 and Milcielys Baez ‘16. Chipotle, Starbucks, the Grille, Ben & Jerry’s and Bruegger’s provided the alimentary fuel to keep the dancers going through the night.
“I can’t think of a better way to bring the community together to celebrate our children and families, to see what Middlebury students are doing for our kids and the Children’s Hospital” reflected Dr. First between Zumba segments. “There are no words that can express the gratitude.”
The Dance Marathon has raised approximately $5,100 through the $10 admission fee, group pre-registration and donations. With about 30 tired but happy dancers left on their feet, the marathon came to an end at 4 a.m. Sunday morning. Although the event didn’t meet its initial fundraising goal of $10,000, First said there’s nothing wrong with being ambitious.
“As much as the dollars are important, it’s the effort that infuses the spirit in all of us to make sure we are here and delivering the highest quality care possible,” said First.
“Whether they raise $1 or $10,000, you have no idea what this means to the kids.”
(01/22/13 11:59pm)
Following Sunday evening's discussion on divestment by Schumann Distinguished Scholar Bill McKibben, the Campus Current is back with another liveblog from McCullough Social Space, starting at 7:30 p.m. Tonight will feature a "wide-ranging panel [discussing] the ongoing debate over whether environmental and social concerns should influence investment policies of college and university endowments." The panel will include Charlie Arnowitz ’13, Ralph Earle, Alice Handy, Mark Kritzman, Vice President for Finance Patrick Norton, and McKibben. The event will be moderated by David Salem '78. Additional information on the panelists is available on a website devoted to the discussion.
According to the press release, "It will focus on two questions: what factors should the college’s board of trustees consider in determining whether to place restrictions on how Middlebury’s endowment is invested, and what are the advantages and disadvantages of using divestment as a means of addressing climate-related concerns?"
The Campus Current will provide a liveblog below, but a live stream is also available online. Additionally, the Campus will be providing detailed analysis of the panel in Thursday's issue.
With Additional Reporting and Photography by KATHRYN DESUTTER and CHARLOTTE GARDINER
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9:33 - Salem thanks the audience, and smooth jazz begins playing as the audience continue the discussion amongst one another. Signing off from the McCullough Social Space. Thanks for reading!
9:32 - Salem concludes the panel, reminding the audience that he has done his best to maintain neutrality. Salem admits that he has heard things that “don’t ring true to me.” He encourages audience members to use the website to continue to investigate the facts.
9:30 - As McKibben speaks, there is snapping in agreement from the audience. Salem gives Earle the final word, who confirms McKibben’s assertion the investment field “is an exercise in masochism.” He continues, “The missing piece — not just in the US, but globally — is government [action] against climate change.” McKibben then jumps in and confirms the need for action at the governmental level.
9:28 - McKibben continues, “There is no $420 million cost at stake here. We’ve found out tonight that less than 1% of our endowment is invested in the top 200 companies we’re targeting here.” Handy interrupts and asks McKibben to remember that due to the commingled investment, more than just Middlebury’s 1%, or $9 million dollars, is at stake. After a brief interjection from Kritzman to support Handy’s argument, McKibben again takes the mic to quote the “Middlebury Divestment Reader” that was distributed by student volunteers at the start of the forum, and available for download below.
9:24 - A student asks what solutions would be more effective than divestment, and if it’s feasible for Middlebury to spend the amount currently invested in fossil fuels and arms manufacturers “directly on its values.” Kritzman fields the question: “I apologize for trying to interject some of the science and rationality into the conversation.” He continues by elaborating based on the historical example of tobacco.
9:20 - This is followed by a request for Handy and McKibben to address the differentiation between divesting from fossil fuel companies and arms manufacturers. McKibben begins by thanking Liebowitz for providing numbers on the College’s endowment and highlighting that less than 1% of our endowment is invested in arms manufacturers, and in combination with investment in fossil fuels, the amount in question remains less than 5%. Handy emphasizes that investment is in commingled managers, which presents broader implications of the issue before McKibben injects that there are other places to find $900 million. "That's the beautiful thing about Capitalism."
9:17 - Another student then asks Norton about the potential effect of divestment on need-blind admissions. Norton echoes Kritzman’s findings that the loss that would come as a result of SRI would have a “devastating” impact on the College from a long-term perspective.
9:15 - Teddy Smith '15 askes Handy if she would be willing to work with students to better understand the endowment. Handy’s reply is short: “Absolutely.”
9:14 - "That was about three and a half minutes," Salem says before moving onto the next question.
9:13 - Jay Saper ’13 asks the panelists and the audience to recognize that those most affected by climate change and violence are not present. Saper walks along the first row of chairs, naming parties and individuals not present — ranging from the Palestinian people to a student from Sandy Hook elementary — and highlights their absence at the forum. "There is a cost to death. The cost is unimaginable."
9:11 - Fernando Sandoval Jimenez '15 asks how many clients need to support a move to SRI in order to enact the policy completely? Handy responds by saying it would take an agreement by all clients.
9:07 - Earle responds first and confirms Kagan’s assertion of the risk of opportunity cost. According to Earle, if divestment turns out to be an ineffective strategy, then there is an enormous opportunity cost of the money and energy expended on divestment campaigns. McKibben follows Earle, stating: "It's by no means a silver bullet, it's one thing we need to do!" McKibben, citing Professor of Economics Jon Isham’s research, laments the lack of a price on carbon to motivate investors.
9:00 - Max Kagan ’14 directs a question toward McKibben and Earle, asking about potential downsides to divestment, primarily within the framework of opportunity costs and the historical record of divestment in the tobacco industry, Sudan and South Africa. He released an op-ed in the Campus with similar points in November.
8:59 - Salem then solicits questions from the audience and requests that the questions be limited to approximately one minute. He also encourages audience members to consult online College materials for answers, and also to share remaining questions on the forum’s website.
8:57 - Kritzman then presses McKibben for the “scientific outcomes” of divestment. McKibben again uses the historical anecdote of South Africa to draw a parallel.
8:54 - Salem quiets the audience before moving the panel onto questions, which will be posed among one another before being posed by the audience. For the first question, Arnowitz presses Handy to elaborate on the aforementioned “creative solutions” that Investure could employ in a divestment strategy. When Handy answers in somewhat vague terms about Investure’s model, Arnowitz presses for specific solutions. Handy’s response: “I don’t have an answer for that.”
8:52 -"It's hard to imagine how we could live with ourselves otherwise," he concludes. McKibben receives a standing ovation by approximately one-third of the audience. A letter from Steyer is distributed to members of the audience.
8:51 - McKibben, in citing personal friend Tom Steyer, manager of a hedge fund of over $20 billion, argues that “this [divestment] can be done, is a good investment strategy, and that divestment is a way to make yourselves heard."
8:47 - McKibben emphasizes that “endowment return is not the only financial indicator to worry about” when considering the funding source of the College. McKibben cites donations as one of several other sources of revenue. He continues in discussing his pride in the College’s pledge to carbon neutrality, but argues that “it makes no sense to green the campus without also greening the portfolio.”
8:44 - "My car gets more than 50 mpg, and the Arctic melted last summer.”
8:42 - “Our hope is not that we can bankrupt Exxon … but we do believe that history shows that divestment can change the course!” McKibben cites the liberation of South Africa, which fell victim to a strong divestment movement in the 1980s, and eventually repealed apartheid.
8:41 - McKibben reiterates many of his points from Sunday evening: “These industries are different — the flaw is the business plan.” A few students snap throughout the many of McKibben's remarks.
8:40 - McKibben proposes that the College pledge, in the course of the spring semester, not to invest new money in fossil fuel companies, and over the next five years, taper the investment to zero. He proposes that the same policy be adopted for arms manufacturers. McKibben acknowledges Norton’s reference to “inter-generational equity” and explains his view that it is “morally wrong” to invest in companies whose missions “ensure that students will not have a planet” to inherit.
8:37 - McKibben begins by explaining that he is nervous. When he remarks about his own “low net worth,” several members of the audience chuckle and snap. McKibben then thanks Arnowitz, to more applause, before requesting that the audience not applaud or interrupt so he can remain within his time limit.
8:35 - Salem now introduces McKibben, the sixth and final panelist. He challenges McKibben to propose a process that the board of trustees could employ if the board chose to embrace divestment.
8:34 - Earle concludes by urging critical thinking. “This is a multi-generational problem that will not be solved overnight,” says Earle.
8:33 - Earle then proposes steps that colleges and universities might take: 1) Encourage proxy voting that would require environmental expertise on the board of energy companies. Earle warns, “you [currently] can’t vote if you’re not a shareholder.” 2) Encourage collaborative research and use of resources to develop sustainable technologies. 3) “What can students do?” He suggests a pledge to never buy a vehicle that consumes less than 50 mpg. He then suggests that students shift their own consumption from coal to renewables. “Find out how your utility generates electricity. If it’s from coal — fire them!”
8:30 - 'It’s my view that the entire fossil fuel industry is too large a target, and I advocate a more specific strategy directed primarily at the greatest [firms] that impact climate change, namely coal.'
8:29 - Earle advocates for the use of funds toward purchasing “vast supplies of inexpensive natural gas,” which has half the warming potential of coal.
8:27 - Earle announces that he is “in complete agreement with 350.org’s goals.” However, he immediately clarifies that “I don’t think that divestiture from fossil fuel stocks will be effective in reducing climate change.” Earle cities divestment from the tobacco industry and the Sudan as not having a large impact. He further argues that the world's largest fossil fuel companies aren’t publically traded.
8:25 - Salem then introduces Ralph Earle, asking for his reactions to what he has heard thus far; in particular, he highlighting Arnowitz’s opinions of the importance of student input.
8:23 - Kritzman closes with the advice that “well-intentioned investors should measure these two approaches and decide which they believe to be most effective."
8:21 - Kritzman then shows a slide that assumes a $1 billion portfolio invested in the S&P 500, EAFE, the Developed World and the entire world over a period of 5, 10 and 20 years. A table of these factors demonstrates the cost of socially responsible investing, culminating in a $420 million loss if the $1 billion was invested worldwide over 20 years.
8:18 - "I hope you're following. I know it's hard to concentrate when it's so exciting."
8:15 - "An inarguable mathematical truth that socially responsible investment is costly." Kritzman follows his statement that “it’s pretty simple to estimate the costs,” and introduces a (very) text-heavy slide which utilizes a “Monte Carlo simulation."
8:14 - Kritzman explains the channels through which socially responsible investing has an economic impact. Socially responsible investing can raise a bad company’s cost of capital, draw attention to a "bad" company’s "bad" behavior, and in drawing attention to this company, may persuade it to reform.
8:11 - “At the outset, let me just say that I do not have a view as to whether you should restrict your investment universe or not, but I have a view that you should at least understand the consequences of these two choices when you make that decision."
8:10 - Salem then introduces Mark Kritzman, who loads a visual PowerPoint presentation to accompany his response. Kritzman explains that he will outline the cost of socially responsible investing.
8:09 - Arnowitz urges students to remember that "every student's voice is legitimate" and "not [to] demonize other community members." Rather, student must focus on "the most effective way to steer this debate." Arnowitz concludes to an enthusiastic applause.
8:07 - Arnowitz cites the SGA student survey, which has surveyed almost 50% of the student body. According to collected data, 40% of respondents thought divestment was a “very or extremely important issue.” Arnowitz cites several other stats that demonstrate student commitment to the issue of divestment. Here is the full breakdown of numbers provided by Arnowitz following the panel:
Based on the SGA’s recent survey, which as of 3:00 this afternoon had 1,031 respondents, around 45% of the student body: 63% of respondents think the College should apply the principles of socially responsible investing to its endowment. 14% are opposed and 23% have no opinion. In terms of prioritizing SRI, 28% think it’s not particularly important, 32% think it’s somewhat important, 40% think it’s very or extremely important. In terms of divestment, students favor a diversity of approaches. 38% support divestment from arms and the top 200 fossil fuel manufacturers. 10% prioritize fossil fuels. 12% prioritize arms manufacturers. So total of 60% support some kind of divestment, 15% don’t support divestment, 25% have no opinion.
8:05 - Salem introduces Arnowitz. He thanks the organizers for including a student on the panel and acknowledges that many parties affected by these decisions are not present at the forum, to which a few audience members snap in agreement. Arnowitz continues, “We insist that student views be at the table and that students’ views be taken into account.”
8:03 - Handy discusses constraints, such as the required 8 percent return (5 percent to cover spending and 3 percent to cover inflation). She then acknowledges the added pressure of Middlebury’s duty to its students, faculty and staff, as well as its desire to be “a perpetual institution.” Handy concludes, “our number one priority is to support all of our clients to work together to make the world a better place.”
7:58 - Handy states that Middlebury has about $6 million invested in explicitly sustainable companies, and another $20 million in a manager that uses ESG criteria.
7:58 - “Divestment would require a buy-in by all of our group.”
7:57 - Handy explains that Investure strives “to provide a service level comparable to that of any individually-managed investment office.” She tells the audience that “we [Investure], like everyone here, want to leave the world a better place, and believe that we can provide our clients with the resources to continue their missions.”
7:55 - Handy will speak next, discussing why Investure relies on commingled funds to meet clients’ needs, what constraints govern the management of Middlebury’s endowments, and Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria that Investure employs.
7:54 - Norton adds that his financial role is to provide for the education opportunity of both current and future Middlebury students. He concludes by asking the trustees to consider the implications of divesting from fossil fuels, as the energy companies occupy a “large portion of the investment space.”
7:51 - Norton continues in explaining that since 2005, Middlebury has contracted with Investure to manage the College’s portfolio. He states that the College decided to contract with Investure for the promise of “access to investment opportunity comparable to large endowments.”
7:50 - Norton explains that the role of the College endowment is two-fold: 1) It is used to support the education of current Middlebury students, which was $50 million for FY 2013. 2) It is used to support the education of future Middlebury students. This is done by creating future generational equity, which aims to maximize returns, with a return objective of at least 5% plus inflation to ensure preservation if not positive gain.
7:47 - Salem begins the panel by asking Norton four questions: “Why does the Colelge have an endowment? Who decides how much is spent and on what basis? Why does the College delegate to Investure? What are the key elements of Investure’s mandate to the College?”
7:45 - Salem announces that the forum will last for approximately 100 minutes. The first half will be a series of questions posed by the moderator to each panelist in turn. Each panelist will answer in approximately 5-7 minutes. The panelists are then encouraged to “cross-examine” each other.
7:44 - Salem acknowledges that the “tools of my trade [are] tedious at best and maddening at worst — including many of us that manage money for a living.” He urges the audience to “base your views on primary sources, search aggressively and endlessly for facts contrary to your evolving thesis and defend at all costs ‘the illimitable freedom of the human mind.’”
7:41 - Salem takes the podium and thanks Liebowitz, the panelists and the audience. He jokes that the recording of the forum should contain the warning, “viewer discretion advised.” Salem requests that the panelists and the audience “leave for another day the scientific challenges that lie at the heart of the global debate about climate change … to important to be taken up — yet alone resolved — by tonight’s panel.”
7:38 - Liebowitz discusses decorum, and asks that “no one does anything to interfere with anyone’s ability to see or hear this discussion.” He then welcomes the moderator, David Salem ’78.
7:36 - Liebowitz welcomes and thanks the audience for attending. He explains that this is the first of a series of discussions about divestment, an issue of “great interest and importance,” and he expresses his pleasure that “the College is taking a leadership role.” Liebowtiz cites other examples of student involvement in the creation of institutional policy, such as the establishment of study abroad sites and the retention of winter term. He mentions that “several student groups raised questions regarding Middlebury’s endowment” throughout the fall.
7:33 - McCullough has continued to fill, but there are still many open seats throughout the auditorium. All panelists are on stage, conversing. Various seats throughout the auditorium are reserved for displaced peoples, a silent protest of sorts. The crowd quiets as the panelists sit down and President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz takes the podium.
7:18 - McCullough Social Space is slowly filling up. Ushers are checking IDs at the door if you're planning on coming. Some individuals are wearing "DIVEST MIDD" shirts. Upon entering, many attendees were given a pamphlet entitled "The Middlebury Divestment Reader," compiled by 350.org.
[A Note About Liveblogs: Although we do our best to accurately present events and quotes, the instant nature of liveblogging sometimes leads to errors in our reporting. If you feel like you have been misrepresented or misquoted in our coverage above, please do not hesitate to contact the Campus.]
(01/17/13 5:39pm)
Alpenglow, a five-piece folk band formed in Vermont, will perform in Mead Memorial Chapel at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 19. The band features students Graeme Daubert ’12.5 and Elori Kramer ’13.5. Peter Coccoma '12, Kenneth Root and Colin Weeks complete the group.
This is the band’s second concert in a month’s time. Their first concert introduced a Kickstarter campaign, which was designed to fund their debut album. Now, their second performance on Saturday will celebrate the band’s successful fundraising over the past 25 days for their album.
“We’re really grateful for everyone at Middlebury because we get to see who all the backers are, and the majority of them are students at Middlebury and it’s really endearing,” Coccoma said. “It’s very positive, and [it] gives you a lot of energy to keep going.”
Daubert and Coccoma began sharing their respective rock and folk songs with one another in the fall of 2010. Kramer soon added another folk component, followed by Root on percussion. By semester’s end, they were performing at the Old Stone Mill’s M Gallery.
“I think when [the individual members] came together, that was the beginning of the sound,” Daubert said. Alpenglow quickly earned local praise and recognition.
“So they pretty much win, hands down, for the best new local band,” Seven Days’ Dan Bolles wrote following the Waking Windows festival in Winooski. “Yep. The five-piece outfit has a sprawling indie-folk sound that fans of bands such as Fleet Foxes and the Low Anthem could eat with a spork.”
GCFM Productions added: “My advice is to speak with your friends quickly between songs, because you won’t want to while they’re playing.”
After performing at various venues throughout Vermont and New York, as well as releasing two tracks online, Alpenglow began recording an album at Burlington’s Signal Kitchen in the fall of 2012. Although beneficial for both exploring and developing their sound, production has been costly.
“The recording is almost finished, but there is still a lot of post-production work to be done, and we need to compensate all those involved for their time and energy,” Alpenglow writes. “$6,000 to record mix, master and press the album is the bare minimum to get this album out there.”
The band turned to Kickstarter, an online funding platform through which donors, or backers, can provide monetary assistance to “kickstart” creative projects. Campaign times are limited – 30 days in Alpenglow’s case – and funding is only received if all or more of the requested funds are pledged. If projects are unable to reach this goal within the timeframe, pledges are returned to backers.
“We thought we set it a little high,” Coccoma says. “And we were like, ‘I don’t know if we can do it, but if we work really hard, and we have thirty days, and we just network like crazy, maybe we can pull it off.’”
Nevertheless, Alpenglow’s debut album was quickly funded. Backers received almost daily updates during the first five days as the $3,000, $4,000, and $5,000 dollar marks were reached. On New Year’s Day, less than ten days after starting the campaign, the project was successfully funded.
“Within six days, we did the whole thing and it was just kind of a shock,” Coccoma says.
“It was definitely significantly faster than we anticipated,” Kramer added.
Backers had incentive to fund the project and ensure its success. As is the case with most Kickstarter campaigns, Alpenglow will send various prizes to its backers based on pledge level. Most backers have donated $15 or $20 dollars, earning them either a digital or physical album two weeks prior to its expected release in May. There have also been two $500 dollar pledges, which earns those two donors a personal concert with friends from the band.
“Right now we’re just really focused on getting this first album done and making sure it’s what we want,” Coccoma says. “So far we think it’ll represent us really well.”
Pledging has slowed since the campaign’s successful funding, and the pledge amount now sits just above $7,000. If Alpenglow reaches the $10,000 mark by Tuesday, Jan. 22, they have promised an additional song to backers as a special thank you.
Listen to the Campus' complete interview with Alpenglow, or play either Track #1 or Track #2.
(12/05/12 11:45pm)
From Nov. 29 through Dec. 1, The Vanek Trilogy, a collection of three, interconnected one-act plays, ran in the Hepburn Zoo. The performance was directed by Paula Bogutyn ’13.5, whose direction counted towards 700-level senior work.
The play was written by Vaclav Havel, an influential playwright during the time of the Soviet regime and the first president of the Czech Republic. The three one-acts each have the strength and depth to stand alone as separate pieces but are best enjoyed in the manner put on by Middlebury College’s theatre department this past weekend; consecutively, as a single, three-scene piece. One character Vanek, the play’s namesake and a playwright recently hired at a brewery (played by Adam Milano ’15) is featured in all three scenes. Noah Berman ’13 and Isabel Shill ’12.5, who both received 500-level junior work credit for the production, played the other characters in the piece, changing between scene.
Milano’s performance proved his strength as a rising actor within the College’s theatre department. While the other characters throughout the piece seemed to dance chaotically about, anxious to earn Vanek’s approval — or lure him into something sinister — Vanek remained largely silent, offering short words and strong insight. Milano did a beautiful job of highlighting his character’s paradoxical passive activism. In the final scene, as the audience put together the final pieces of the play’s backstory and after two scenes of Vanek’s apparent inactivity, he presents an already-written protest just as quickly as fellow-writer Stankova suggests it.
In all regards, the acting on stage was incredibly strong. While the second scene did, at times, feel a bit over-acted (and in a lot of ways, that may have been the point), I was impressed with both Berman and Shill’s ability to switch between such drastically different characters. In the first scene, Berman portrayed the drunken foreman of the brewery, practically begging Vanek for his approval. The audience could pity his character as well as criticize his attentions, ever attentive of his oft-repeated phrase, “Vanek, don’t be depressed.” And in the second scene, while the attempt to project his own insecurities onto Vanek remained the same, the overall demeanor of Berman’s character shifted drastically, running about the stage frantically, from couch to fireplace back to couch over to Vanek back to the fireplace.
The play’s slow process of revealing the backstories of the characters at first was a bit off-putting. In the first scene, we see Vanek speaking with the foreman of the brewery where he has been recently hired. The audience is thrown into the middle of this conversation, with references to the goings-on of the world without any real explanation. I struggled as I watched, trying to put together Vanek’s story while still paying attention to what was happeneng on stage. However, as the production continued more and more was revealed, both explicitly and implicitly.
This slow reveal of the backstory was the highlight of the play’s directing. Not only did the dialogue of the characters hint at Vanek’s story, but it also highlighted what was happening in the world and how he fit into it all. Bogutyn did a fantastic job at using subtle hints in the characters’ actions that showed us so much more of the world. As the stage-hands changed the props on stage between scenes, brief actions on the part of characters revealed more about the characters. Between the first and second scene, Shill’s character followed the stage-hands frantically, making sure everything was pristine and in the right place, a strong hint at the hectic caricature to come.
And before the third scene, anonymous men in suits placed bugs throughout the room, the first explicit hint at the tyrannical regime against which Vanek and his contemporaries were quietly fighting.
Another unique feature of the production with which I struggled was the use of repetition, especially in the first two scenes. At times, the repetition was an incredibly strong enhancement to the piece, emphasizing points and offering a common thread that ran between the first two scenes which otherwise, seemed a bit disjointed until it was all brought together in the third scene.
However, by the end of each scene, especially the second, the repetition moved from a matter of artistic design to feeling like the actors and author were simply trying to sledgehammer the message into the minds of the audience. Sometimes subtlety can be a play’s best friend.
With a minimally designed set that hinted at Vanek’s secrets while leaving a lot to the imagination, artful acting on part of the whole cast and some wonderful decisions by the director, The Vanek Trilogy proved to be a phenomenal production. Shifting wildly from humor (though I must admit, the rest of the audience seemed to find the jokes much funnier than I did) to powerful dialogue of emotion and depth, The Vanek Trilogy is theater I won’t soon forget. Depressed, it certainly was not.
(11/29/12 3:23am)
Vermont farmers have a lot at stake in the drafting of the 2012 Farm Bill, which is expected to include a record number of budget cuts due to the current state of the economy. The farm bill, which is renewed every five years, has been a recurring entity in legislation since the years of the Great Depression, when growers of commodity crops first began receiving subsidies.
Vermont dairy farmers are struggling as a result of the record drought last summer, among other factors. Though grain belt farmers were directly impacted by the drought, the cost burden was passed on to dairy farmers, who are forced to pay a higher price for grain in order to feed their animals. Now these same farmers face the risk of losing the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) safety net they have depended on for years.
This past September when the 2008 Farm Bill expired, dairy policy leaders in the Senate and House pushed for an interim budget plan to serve as a temporary safety net until the new Farm Bill passed. This initiative at the national level was led by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), as well as Representative Peter Welch (D-VT). However, they were unable to divert attention from other priorities in Congress and as a result, commodity farmers dependent on the federal government for subsidies now find themselves in limbo.
Many in Congress agree that it is unfair to put farmers’ lives on hold and continue to push for action.
“The farmers already confront enough uncertainty running their businesses. When we let farm programs expire without enacting a new farm bill, it needlessly compounds that uncertainty and it is irresponsible,” argued Leahy in a speech this month on the Senate floor. He pointed out that both farmers and underprivileged urban classes are suffering as a result of this delay, which has also put funding for federal nutrition and food stamps programs on hold.
“Vermonters, like tens of millions of people across the country, depend upon these programs [when] they are struggling to put enough food on their table during these very tough economic times,” Leahy added.
Now that the 2008 Farm Bill (officially called the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008) has expired, Congress is still unable to agree on a final 2012 bill, which will be called the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2012. This $500 billion farm bill is currently deadlocked in Congress during the post-election lame duck session.
“The challenge for the current farm bill is that many conservative Republican members in the House want to see federal government spending cut substantially, which means cuts to programs and interests,” pointed out Stafford Professor of Public Policy, Political Science and Environmental Studies Chris Klyza.
“This influences the political dynamics — a representative from urban Philadelphia may have voted for the Farm Bill in the past because of food aid for her constituents. If that aid is cut, why should she vote for drought aid for western ranchers?” Klyza proposed.
Many conservatives in Congress are pressing for budget cuts all around. The Democrat-led Senate passed their version of the bill in June, proposing budget cuts of around $35 billion over the next 10 years. While this proposal was enough to appease Senate Republicans wary of government spending, the Republican-led House has still been unable to reach a compromise. Up until early this month, representatives had the excuse of being distracted by campaigns for reelection, but now the only remaining obstacle is gridlock.
Gridlock usually refers to clashing partisan interests, but in the farm bill debate it is actually regional interests that are preventing compromise. The recurring farm bill debate is unusual in that it actually transcends political party divisions.
Democrats and Republicans alike from districts with agriculturally-dependent economies tend to push equally for generous subsidies. Similarly, other conservatives find a common goal with liberals involved in the local foods movement: to eliminate excessive subsidies for wealthy farmers who don’t actually need them. Back in 2008, President George W. Bush vetoed the Farm Bill for benefiting overly wealthy farmers, as it guaranteed aid to farmers with a gross income of up to $750,000. The overwhelmingly Democratic Congress overrode his veto.
Some point out that there is an incredible amount of antiquated logic embedded in the farm bill. Josh Slotnick, farmer and professor at the University of Montana who lectured at the College earlier this week, pointed out the injustice in our food system.
“If you want to sell your bike on Craigslist, you are the one who sets the price,” said Slotnick. “For growers of commodity crops, they don’t have that privilege. The buyer sets the price. You’re dealing with a whole different realm.”
Gradual cutback of subsidies would work in the favor of commodity farmers in the long run, gradually giving them more autonomy and stability over their incomes. Budget cuts would benefit smaller farmers by putting them on a more level playing field with large-scale conventional farmers of commodity crops.
In recent years, concerns over the impact of dwindling natural resources and increasing demand due to rising population have pushed conservation issues into consideration under the Farm Bill. Support for local, sustainably grown food was also growing; although the 2008 financial crisis has dampened this support.
Native Vermonter Hillary Chutter-Ames ’13 emphasizes how farms are “the key to maintaining a sustainable local food system and building strong communities.” According to Chutter-Ames, they are “a vital part of the social and economic fabric of Vermont.”
With the uncertainty of the upcoming bill, this social and economic fabric — and farmers’ livelihoods — remain at stake.
(11/29/12 2:02am)
This fall, the College announced the launch of MiddCORE Immersion, a new summer leadership and innovation program to be based at Sierra Nevada College (SNC). MiddCore Immersion, which will closely resemble the College’s existing winter term MiddCORE course and curriculum, will run its inaugural month-long session from June 17 to July 12 of summer 2013.
MiddCORE, which first started as an intensive winter term class five years ago, aims to build leadership, communication and entrepreneurial skills and insights to create opportunities and expand networks for its students.
MiddCORE is part of the Project on Creativity and Innovation in the Liberal Arts (PCI) at the College, which seeks to develop productive environments on campus in which students can exercise creativity, innovation and risk-taking. Over the past five years, PCI has grown significantly in its number of programs, and the scaling up of MiddCORE to include a summer program is the most recent development in a growing portfolio of PCI initiatives.
Under Jessica Holmes, the current MiddCORE director and associate professor of economics, the MiddCORE program has expanded over the past year to include a paid summer academic internship at the College, a semester-long workshop series on campus, and an additional winter term course at the Monterey Institute for International Studies.
In summer 2013, MiddCORE Immersion will run its inaugural four-week program at Sierra Nevada College, located near Lake Tahoe in Incline Village, Nevada. The course, which will cost $9,500 per student, is open to current students and recent graduates of any college or university, with an enrollment limit of 60. According to Holmes, applications will be reviewed by members of the MiddCORE staff, and applicants will be assessed based on indicated creativity, drive and ingenuity that is demonstrated through recommendation letters, written responses to “rather unconventional essay questions” that accompany the application and students’ transcripts.
“The stars were aligned to consider a [MiddCORE] expansion,” wrote Holmes in an email. “First, after fielding calls from several other institutions interested in establishing a MiddCORE program on their campus, it quickly became apparent that we had a unique niche and an enviable program.”
Sierra Nevada College was identified by MiddCORE’s CFO Patrick Norton as an ideal establishment for the summer program, and was selected because of its small size, picturesque setting and its west coast location, which allows for a new network of possible mentors who would perhaps be unable to travel to Vermont for the winter term course.
In its mission to cultivate future leaders and innovators, MiddCORE relies heavily on its mentors — a group of carefully chosen individuals that includes CEOs, entrepreneurs, business owners, artists, actors, political leaders and doctors — who have a proven record of accomplishment in their fields and are willing to help students develop strengths in leadership and innovation.
“I would love to see more faculty and staff get involved in MiddCORE,” Holmes wrote. “The only prerequisite is a strong willingness to engage with students and an appreciation for the importance of developing strengths in leadership and innovation.”
The decision to expand the MiddCORE program and make it available to non-Middlebury students was made without consulting most members of the faculty. The Faculty Council, which includes the Educational Affairs Committee that oversees the general direction of the college curriculum, did not play a role in the creation of the new summer immersion course, and its members were purportedly unaware of the launch until the College’s press release.
“Speaking personally ... I see the merit in making the theory-praxis connection systematically,” Sujata Moorti, secretary of the Faculty Council and professor of women’s and gender studies, said of the program. “However, as Middlebury sets up credit-granting programs, we as a community need to discuss what this means for our understanding of a liberal arts education.”
The decision to create a summer MiddCORE program stemmed from the recognition that the time-intensive nature of the College’s winter term course may have prevented some students from taking the class. Also, aside from attracting additional students from the College, the CORE team hopes that the summer program will draw a diverse group of highly motivated students from around the world.
Ernie Parizeau, a six-year winter term MiddCORE mentor, former venture capitalist and current Babson professor who will be one of the Immersion mentors this summer, sees benefits to students in the expansion of the program.
“Expanding the program to Sierra Nevada College on Lake Tahoe seems like a great opportunity to me,” wrote Parizeau in an email. “It is close to west coast mentors in Silicon Valley, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Mentors from the west coast could open doors for students interested in careers in fields with significant west coast presence like technology or entertainment. Further, opening the program to students outside Middlebury offers a great opportunity for cross-fertilization and networking.”
Emma Kitchen ’14, a winter term 2012 MiddCORE student agreed that inviting non-Middlebury participants to apply to MiddCORE Immersion will bring benefits to the program. Kitchen also founded Concussions Speak, a website for athletes to share their concussion stories to raise awareness about athletic injuries, after first pitching the idea to her MiddCORE peers.
“I think [the new program] will be a great way for MiddCORE to attract more students that want to make use of their summer … [and] a great way for the students to utilize a whole new set of awesome resources out on the west coast,” wrote in an email. “Taking MiddCORE was the best decision I’ve made at Middlebury.”
Holmes and the CORE team have discussed several possibilities for further future expansion, but also acknowledge the rapidity of recent developments and the program’s current limits.
“We have [had] tremendous growth for 2012,” wrote Holmes. “That said, with additional donor funding, I can imagine expanding the MiddCOREplus internship program to more students and multiple cities, but the real constraint there is funding.”
While the program has some competition in the Dartmouth Business Bridge Program at Tuck and the BASE program at Berkeley College, MiddCORE Immersion seeks to fill an untapped niche in the market for college-level summer programs. “
MiddCORE is different in several ways [from its competitors],” said Parizeau. “It makes great use of experienced mentors from businesses, non-profits, government and various other non-academic institutions. It focuses the learning on highly immersive, experiential exercises that drive learning by doing.”
MiddCORE Immersion at SNC is accepting applications for its 2013 course through a rolling admissions process.
