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(10/17/19 10:04am)
Tucked away in the foothills of the Green Mountains, the Spirit in Nature Interfaith Path (SPiN) Sanctuary provides a haven for contemplation, reflection and interfaith dialogue.
The series of walking trails in Ripton, Vt. is intended to “connect the experience of nature with faith traditions,” according to the SPiN website. Each of the 14 paths is designated a specific faith and is bespeckled periodically with posted quotes, designed to provoke thoughtful interaction with the natural world. All paths lead to the Sacred Circle, a clearing in the trees that centers the entire sanctuary. The faith traditions range from Druid to Buddhist, including Interfaith and Pagan trails.
The inspiration for the sanctuary came in 1997 with the Dalai Lama’s historic visit to Middlebury College. During his time on campus, the Dalai Lama gave a talk entitled “Spirit and Nature,” which connected interaction with the natural world and practicing faith. Carol and Reg Spooner, current board members of Spirit in Nature and environmental activists, took the talk to heart and created the Spirit in Nature Interfaith Path Sanctuary.
After a series of negotiations, the Spooners convinced then-President of Middlebury College John McCardell to lease them college-owned forest land, eventually settling on SPiN’s current location just off Highway 125, near Ripton.
In fact, the sanctuary’s history is indelibly intertwined with that of the college, from its original inspiration at a college lecture to its location on college land, Middlebury College students have historically engaged with SPiN, walking on the trails and volunteering their time to the sanctuary. Several students have even served on the SPiN board, including Ella Houlihan ’21. She learned about the sanctuary from the Spooners, who she got to know while working in town and was inspired to take time and explore the area, eventually leading to her role on their board.
“Few students know about (SPiN),” Houlihan said. “It’s an incredible study break and opportunity to admire the fall foliage and soak in the world around you.”
Houlihan also noted that the board intends to actively market to Middlebury students in the future, hopefully exposing more of the student body to the remarkable experiences that SPiN has to offer. The sanctuary’s most recent newsletter highlights the first-year seminar that used the sanctuary as the backdrop for its writing workshop last year. Craig Zondag, SPiN board member, led the students on a short orientation through the paths before the seminar did a writing exercise.
However, the vast majority of students seem to have never heard of SPiN, let alone visited the sanctuary themselves. And they are missing out.
SPiN is more than just a series of paths. The intention of the space is not only to facilitate interfaith dialogue, but also to foster a sense of caring for the environment. “Spirit in Nature is an antidote to seeing nature as a resource to be exploited,” SPiN board member Ron Slabough said.
Slabough also explained that “forest bathing” is key to the sanctuary’s mission. Forest bathing, which is a literal translation of the Japanese word “Shinrin-yoku,” involves the meditative practice of bathing in the forest atmosphere, using all five senses to experience and explore the natural world. SPiN is the perfect place to forest bathe, with its multitude of trails and meditative atmosphere.
The idea of Spirit in Nature has proved popular and has spread to six other locations in the Northeast, including one in Norwich and others in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
SPiN is located just off Highway 125 on Goshen Road. To access the sanctuary, students can either drive directly there or take the ACTR bus towards the Snow Bowl, to be either dropped off at Goshen Road for a 0.4 mile walk to SPiN or sometimes riding the bus directly to the SPiN parking lot. Anyone interested in further information can visit the SPiN website at spiritinnature.org.
(10/17/19 10:00am)
The word “inclusivity” gets thrown around a lot. At Middlebury, we commit time and time again to building an inclusive campus, to creating inclusive communities that stage inclusive conversations. Still, people rarely seem sure what inclusivity actually looks like — it’s much easier to say what it doesn’t look like, or to identify spaces in which doesn’t exist.
And so we as a board are impressed with the college’s new Inclusive Practitioners Program, which aims to implement tangible inclusivity measures in Middlebury classrooms and around campus more generally. The program, designed by Director of Education for Equity and Inclusion Renee Wells, is comprised of 14 different workshops related to inclusivity and anti-bias, from dealing with difficult student comments to properly using students’ preferred gender pronouns.
Although these classes are optional, we ask that faculty attend.
We’ve seen firsthand why this kind of training is so important. Members of the editorial board remember friends dropping courses after being excluded from class spaces. Others remember professors failing to make accommodations for religious observances, or offering inadequate support to students navigating disabilities. In some cases, these professors’ un-inclusive reputations preceded them — students were warned by their peers not to register for certain courses in the first place. Issues of inclusivity can impede not only a student’s ability to learn, but also a professor’s ability to teach.
While these are losses, we believe they’re avoidable ones. We’ve also had shining examples of what inclusive learning environments do look like — and these glimpses leave us excited about the IPP’s broader vision. We’ve been in lecture halls when professors have publicly apologized for comments that left class members feeling marginalized, and took the time and effort to adjust their discourse moving forward. We’ve received new syllabi after teachers, learning from students that assigned articles struck the wrong note, reconsidered their reading lists. And we’ve known faculty members who have skillfully turned tense, potentially divisive discussions into teaching moments.
Class period after class period, these classrooms held robust and challenging conversations. The saliency and impact of these conversations make these classrooms the kind that convinced so many of us to come to Middlebury in the first place.
As far as we’re concerned, every professor on campus stands to benefit from IPP workshops. We recognize the organizers’ deliberate decision not to make the program mandatory — Wells told The Campus she had better experiences with opt-in programs than with mandatory ones. “You can’t give someone a training that makes them not biased,” she told our reporter earlier this fall. “It’s a process of becoming critically more aware.”
Still, we encourage any and all professors to attend. What’s more, we want you to want to go, and we believe this to be a part of your responsibility as teachers. Just as doctors are expected to keep up with the latest medical terminology and procedures, so too should professors be made to brush up on any new vocabulary and strategies that allow them to perform their own pedagogical operations effectively. Students undertake their own anti-bias training in the form of JusTalks, which is far from all-encompassing but is certainly a good start.
We also urge you to take advantage of the wide variety of workshops available. Inclusivity can’t be created through any one measure; it takes many different strategies for a diverse group of students to feel supported in the same, shared learning space.
We realize some members of the faculty aren’t as excited about IPP as we are. As a result, most of the faculty have yet to sign up. We speculate that some professors see this training as unnecessary; others may even consider it part of a greater effort to encourage confining and cushy “PC culture” on campus. As your students, we’re telling you it is necessary. And claims about PC culture overlook the fundamental nature of inclusivity — by opening up the floor to all students, inclusive classrooms expand conversations rather than contract them. Students are much more likely to share difficult or unpopular opinions in classrooms in which they are made to feel comfortable and intellectually welcomed. Cognitively receptive professors provide students with supportive spaces in which they can collectively tackle the tough issues. It’s that simple.
Inclusivity also extends far beyond the classroom (even though that remains a great place to start). Semesters come and go, but many faculty and staff spend years working at the college. We believe the IPP can cultivate a more permanent culture of respect among all stakeholders in the Middlebury community, generating real progress that outlasts any one student’s individual college career (or any one bad MiddCourses review).
To be clear: We don’t expect you to attend every workshop offered this year. Instead, consider this a research project extended over the course of several semesters. When it comes to developing this kind of awareness, we students are learning too. But as the people standing at the front of the room, you occupy uniquely powerful positions from which you can set inclusive precedents and contribute to a culture of learning that reaches far beyond the confines of the classroom. We ask that you take advantage of it.
(10/10/19 10:15am)
Double trouble: Midd beats Amherst in double overtime thriller
By LAUREN BOYD
The Middlebury football team won a close battle against the Amherst Mammoths in overtime, on Saturday, Sept. 5, maintaining its undefeated season. Prior to the game, both teams were undefeated, making this win a decisive factor in NESCAC standings. The Panthers now co-lead the conference alongside Wesleyan, who is still undefeated on the season.
The game’s excitement started with a Middlebury interception on the Mammoth’s first offensive drive. Kevin Hartley ’20 got the Middlebury fans onto their feet with the first defensive turnover on the game. This thrilling atmosphere would keep the Panthers’s momentum going throughout the subsequent three quarters, through a rollercoaster of emotions.
Middlebury started off going 21–0 against the Mammoths, thanks to a rushing touchdown from Alex Maldjian ’23 and passing touchdowns by Will Jernigan ’21 to Maxim Bochman ’20 and Frank Cosolito ’20. After one Amherst touchdown, but two key Middlebury defensive stops right before the half, the momentum was still in the Panthers’ favor. The fans, excited and on their feet, could feel a win within reach.
A complete momentum shift at the second half enabled Amherst to tie the game, 28–28. Motivated to extend their win streak, and overcome a consistently tough NESCAC competitor, the Panther offense trudged down the field with one minute left on the clock. Less than 10 yards from the goal line, and seconds left on the clock, a shocking Mammoth interception led the game into overtime.
During overtime, both teams failed to convert a field goal or touchdown in their first attempts. Tensions were high as the teams switched sides, both looking to maintain their undefeated seasons.
After the Amherst squad could not score during its second OT attempt, the Panthers had a shot to claim the game. On third down, Jernigan escaped a Mammoth defensemen, rolled to the right side, and connected with Maxwell Rye ’20 for a nine-yard touchdown. The fans both near and afar erupted into cheers as the team piled in the endzone, keeping the winning streak alive and exciting.
“It was one of the best games I’ve been a part of,” offensive lineman Colin Paskewitz ’21 said when asked about the atmosphere of the game, “Throughout the second half when they began to come back, our fans and our bench stayed loud and hopeful. By the second overtime, I was as tired as I’ve ever been during a game. On the last play, [Jernigan] tossed the ball up to [Rye] and it felt like the ball had been in the air for an eternity before [Rye] came down with it. Immediately our bench rushed the field.”
The electric atmosphere of such a close battle was felt both at the Amherst stadium, and with the fans back at home.
“Words cannot describe the sense of pride and joy I felt after such a resilient win,” Paskewitz said.
Jack Pistorius ’21 was awarded NESCAC defensive player of the week, accumulating 13 tackles. Kevin Hartley ’20, Michael Carr ’20, Zander Bailey ’21 and Finn Muldoon ’23 each recorded an interception in the game, respectively.
Next week, on Saturday, Oct. 12, the Panthers will be back at home against Colby College (0-4) for an exciting homecoming weekend. Although the Panthers were elated with the results of the game, they know there is more to be done.
“It’s been an electric atmosphere,” Linebacker Pete Huggins ’21 said about the feeling of winning such an intense game. “Winning a game like that after working the entire offseason is such a rewarding feeling. At the same time, we know we’ve got more wood to chop. Our goal going into the season wasn’t to beat Amherst. Our goal is to win a championship.”
Women’s golf places third at conference qualifier
By MICHAEL SEGEL
This past weekend, the Middlebury women’s golf team was one of six teams competing in the NESCAC Qualifier/Williams Fall Invitational at the Taconic Golf Club in Williamstown, Mass. After day one of the action, the host Williams led with 312 strokes, Amherst followed with 318, and Middlebury ranked third with 326. On Saturday, Katie Murphy ’23 led the squad by shooting a 77 which ranked her tied for second overall. Blake Yaccino ’20 shot second best on the team with an 80 which ranked her as tied for seventh overall. Chloe Levins ’20, after taking medalist honors last weekend, finished in 12th with an 81.
On Sunday, the girls were unable to reverse their luck as they remained in third place and finishing at 309 strokes for the day. These results put them at 635 overall behind Williams (619) and Amherst (624), but in front of Hamilton (679), Bowdoin (694) and Trinity (898). Murphy led the squad again, finishing with 75 strokes to put her at a 152 and third overall. Levins finished next on the squad with 159 (seventh overall), then Yaccino with 160 (ninth), rounded out by Kayla Li ’23 (164, T12) and Lizzie Kenter ’23 (178, 22nd).
It was a tough end to a very successful fall season in which the Panthers never finished below third place in any of their five tournaments and which featured memorable moments such as the squad’s first place finish at the Phinney Golf Classic last weekend where Levins finished first overall.
Cross country teams divide and conquer
By JORDAN HOWELL
Saturday, Oct. 5 featured two races for the Panthers: the Keene State Invitational and the Paul Short Invitational.
In the Keene State Invitational, the men came in fifth place. Their top runner was Max Cluss ’23 who got eighth place with a time of 26:32.5. In the Paul Short Invitational, the men got 37th place. The top finisher was Henry Fleming ’20 with a time of 24:50.9, leading him to place 142nd.
In the Keene State Invitational, the women captured sixth place. A crucial finisher was Leah Metzger ’20 who place 34th with a time of `19:36.2. In the Paul Short Invitational, the women netted seventh place. Cassie Kearney ’22 was the top runner for the Panthers as a time of 21:30.8 got her 14th place.
The Panthers’ next challenge will be the Connecticut College Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 19. The team will have some extra time to prepare for the Invitational. Afterward, the teams will focus on championships.
Women's soccer blanks Bates
By MIGUEL ESPINOSA
Second-ranked women’s soccer defeated Bates College by a score of 5–0 on the road on Saturday, Oct. 5th. Midfielder Gretchen McGrath ’21 began the offensive beatdown when she scored during the ninth minute. Forward Simone Ameer ’21 made two consecutive goals at the 32nd and 44th minutes, while Quinn Rogers ’23 and Ellie Greenberg ’20 tallied goals at the 60th and 75th minutes, respectively.
As always, the Panthers’ defense denied any opportunities to catch up. Bates attempted only three shots on goal, whereas Middlebury had 21. Ursula Alwang ’20 and Eva Shaw ’21 shared goaltender responsibilities and each recorded one save.
The Panthers, however, committed eight fouls penalties compared to Bates’ four.
The squad will get back in action against Colby in a homecoming contest this weekend at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12th. The Mules sit at 1–4–2 in the conference compared to the Panthers’ 4–0–1.
Men’s soccer suffers first loss, splits weekend
By ERIK ARVIDSSON
The men’s soccer team completed a Maine double-header on the weekend of Oct. 5-6. In their first game, the fifteenth-ranked Panthers suffered a close, 1-0 loss against Bates. This heartbreaking loss was their first of the season. Luckily, they had the opportunity to bounce back the next day.
On Sunday, Oct. 6, the team headed to Maine Maritime. After a 1-1 start, Middlebury dominated the match for the remaining 40 minutes of the game. Ben Powers ’23, Brendan Barry ’22, Drew Goulart ’20, and Jacob Charles ’23 added goals to give the team a convincing 5-1 win.
Jack Spiridellis ’21 was impressed with the teams resiliency this weekend.
“It was awesome to get the win on Sunday after a tough loss on Saturday. There’s a lot of fight and hunger this year,” said Spiridellis. “Guys aren’t satisfied with mediocre performances.”
Next, the Panthers will face Colby at home for Homecoming. Get out to the turf and cheer them on!
(10/10/19 10:05am)
While a crisp, chilly air confirmed the presence of fall on campus, the shouts, cheers and music emanating from Battell Beach signaled the arrival of another yearly event: the Middlebury Classic Quidditch Festival. Wizards and witches from RPI, UVM, Harvard, Brandeis, Skidmore and Burlington journeyed to campus on Saturday, Oct. 5 to participate in the Harry Potter-inspired sport.
Food trucks serving tacos, Ethiopian cuisine and ice cream assembled by the Quidditch fields. One booth produced butterbeer, a popular Harry Potter beverage resembling butterscotch. Children could take part in Quidditch workshops, observe potions demonstrations and have their faces painted.
A spectacle of such magnitude was certainly appropriate for Middlebury, considering it is the birthplace of quidditch.
In 2005, students Xandel Manshel ’09 and Alex Benepe ’09 began playing the first games of Quidditch to fill their Sundays. Consistent with the “Harry Potter” universe, they donned towels as capes and carried broomsticks between their legs.
The gender-inclusive sport quickly expanded to intramurals on campus and once word reached other colleges, those schools created their own teams as well. CBS News, the Wall Street Journal, and USA Today even captured the game’s rising popularity, which in turn, accelerated its growth. Since 2007, teams from across the world have participated in the Quidditch World Cup.
While unofficial and much smaller in size, the Middlebury Quidditch Festival offers players the opportunity to visit the hallowed grounds that gave birth to the sport. It’s been 14 years since Quidditch was founded on Battell Beach, but the keys to winning the game have always remained the same.
A good Quidditch team possesses speed, physicality, and, most importantly, teamwork. Confined within a 60- by 36-yard pitch, two teams of six must gain as many points as possible by kicking or throwing a volleyball, known as a “quaffle,” into one of three hoops located at the opposite end of the field. Getting the quaffle through a hoop earns 10 points.
Doing so is more difficult than it sounds.
Each team carries a keeper to guard the hoops and three chasers, who are the only players allowed to handle the quaffle. The quaffle isn’t the only ball in the mix; three dodgeballs, or bludgers, can be picked up and thrown at opposing players. Only two players per team, called beaters, can use bludgers. Any player struck by a bludger must run back and touch their defending hoop. If that player is holding the quaffle, then the quaffle must be dropped.
Finally, each team has one player, called a seeker, who must chase and grab a yellow Velcro tail, attached to a runner called a snitch. Snitches are released at the 15th minute of the game. Catching the snitch gains 30 points and ends the match.
Middlebury won all its games at the festival in group play. The blue and white downed RPI (120–90) in its first match, UVM (190–70) in the second, and Harvard (160–100) in its last. In all three games, Middlebury seized victory by taking the snitch.
Middlebury’s most lethal performance would come against Brandeis in the tournament semifinals. Brandeis maintained the best record in the second pool of quidditch teams, but was not as dominant, only winning two of three games.
The hosts began by scoring seven unanswered goals, or 70 points. Middlebury maintained a clear height advantage at the chaser positions, enabling it to attack Brandeis’ hoops creatively. Long passes connected across the pitch, which on several occasions set up the Panthers for easy fastbreaks and lay-ups.
Offense, however, only presents half the story.
“Throughout the match, we maintained very consistent blunger control, which allowed us to effectively repel their offense and bolster our own,” Sam Lyons ’21 said.
Our semifinal game against Brandeis was just a display of how well our team can play when we are all communicating and mentally on the same page.
-Ian Scura ’19.5
Brandeis would only score one goal, while the Panthers would respond with five more. By the 18th minute, the score was 130–10 Middlebury. The semifinal ended once Brandeis caught the snitch, settling the match at 130–40.
“Our semifinal game against Brandeis was just a display of how well our team can play when we are all communicating and mentally on the same page,” Ian Scura ’19.5 said. “I also think our team just really hit our groove by the end of the day, and people were finding the right cuts.”
Because the tournament was running behind schedule and Middlebury’s championship opponent, RPI, faced a long drive home, the two teams agreed to play a time-capped 15 minute match. The time-cap prevented the possibility of snitches and seekers from entering the game.
The two schools fought a tough, back-and-forth battle in which the scoring deficit never grew larger than 20 points. RPI’s chasers speedily attacked Middlebury’s zone and boasted competitive length. As a result of their scrappiness. players from both teams collided several times in front of the hoops. Defensively, crucial blocks and turnovers were made on both ends. The game ended at 50–50.
“Because the classic is an unofficial tournament, at the end of the day, what we’re really all there for is to play Quidditch and have fun, and I think the ‘final’ embodied that spirit as well as a fully competitive game would have,” co-captain Abraham Beningson ’21 said.
“I would have liked to see how we would have fared against RPI, but we’ve had that opportunity at official tournaments recently and will have it again soon,” he added.
(10/10/19 10:04am)
“The important things in your life,” Katherine Arden ’11 said, “happen when you say, ‘screw it, let’s do it.’” Arden and I sat in the Adirondack chairs by McCullough on one of the last warm days in Middlebury, which comes about two months earlier than in many other places. Arden, a current Middlebury resident, is no stranger to this phenomenon. The national best-selling author, with five published novels and six more on the way, had no idea that post-Midd life would include being a full-time novelist.
Her plan was to take time off, get a masters degree in interpretation, and eventually work for the U.N. That path couldn’t be more different from the one she’s on now. Recounting her fascinating detour, Arden said that she worked on a farm in Hawaii with World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) during her free time. “I got bored farming so I started writing a book,” she said. “I enjoyed it and decided to put the interpreting on hold to finish the book, and I sold it to a publisher as part of a trilogy.” Arden’s first book, “The Bear and The Nightingale,” was published in 2017, and the series’ second and third installments were published in the two years that followed. More recently, Arden has written two children’s books titled “Small Spaces” (2018) and “Dead Voices” (2019).
“It’s been super rewarding and I enjoy the freedom, the traveling and making stuff up for a living,” Arden said.
Of course, as a college student, I was curious about how Arden’s Middlebury education had impacted her career. Arden graduated with a degree in Russian and French. She recalled using what she learned in class to “seed” her first novel, which is set in Russia. “I guess trying to create an authentic sense of a place is challenging, and it helps to have been there and to have studied it,” she said.
[pullquote speaker="Katherine Arden '11" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]You don’t have to know everything right away and make decisions right away. The achievements will still be there, the advanced degree will still be there if you take two or three years and just discover.[/pullquote]
On the topic of practicality and stability in career choice, Arden said that she is the only one of her friends to pursue the same career path since leaving college. “Everyone tries different stuff, everyone goes back for a second degree, everyone tries to make it work in this weird 21st-century economy,” she said. “It’s important to make decisions based off what is right for you. You can’t think, ‘This career won’t give me security,’ because, well, it has for me. Professionally, financially… spiritually. It’s been a good and stable career. You never know, and there’s so much self-motivation involved.”
Cognizant of the pressure that students feel to have their futures mapped out, Arden offered words of advice. “One thing that happens in college is that you have this sense that ‘I must hurry, I must decide, I must not get behind everyone else — the sense of a rush. In reality, when you’re 21 you have so much time; you have tons of time. Take a year off, go be a ski bum in Colorado. Do what I did and go work on a farm in Hawaii. You don’t have to know everything right away and make decisions right away,” she said. “The achievements will still be there, the advanced degree will still be there if you take two or three years and just discover.”
This leads us to another monumental influence in Katherine’s life: travel.
Already having spent a year in France and Russia before coming to the college, Arden returned to France and Russia in her junior year abroad. Before returning to Vermont, she farmed in Hawaii on two separate occasions, worked as a teaching assistant in the French Alps and backpacked across the world. “Traveling is important. It’s how you grow and learn about places that aren’t your place,” she said. “And it’s more than just being a tourist. It means going and trying to live somewhere else. Just going and looking at the Eiffel Tower isn’t going to make a difference,” she said. “Life surprises you, I didn’t expect to come back to Vermont. But I did, and it ended up being home.” According to Arden, it was travel that gave her confidence in herself and her purpose.
It’s easy to get caught up in the culture we establish on this campus. It’s even easier to get caught up in the opinions of others — on our goals, our majors, our summer plans. But coming from someone who has been in our Blundstones, who has hiked up the same Snake Mountain and found success in doing what she loves every day, I ask that you don’t take her advice too lightly.
“Take advantage of the freedom while you have it,” Arden said. “Because you will eventually have responsibilities, and then it gets harder to keep exploring. You might discover weird life curve balls, like being a novelist.”
(10/10/19 10:02am)
With preparation for midterm assessments dominating students’ schedules, many may find opportunities for reflecting on their values and choices few and far between. In recognition of this absence, the Center for Creativity, Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship, better known as the Innovation Hub, hosts Reflection Fridays, parts of a series that occurs several times per semester.
Through the series, which began a few years ago, participants have found a way to tap into Middlebury community members’ experiences, bringing together a collection of interviews throughout the semester that engage with the question “What matters to you, and why?”
Each Reflection Friday installment features an interview-style talk in front of an audience that allows guest speakers to discuss their academic and career paths in the context of their core values.
“We often are in this very formal learning environment at Middlebury, and the series also is intended to allow members of the Middlebury community to perhaps share aspects of their identity or their life or their interests that may not have surfaced in a more professional context,” said Charlotte Sullivan, an associate of the Social Entrepreneurship Program and coordinator for the series.
This year, the coordinators of the series are partnering with the Charles P. Scott Center for Spiritual and Religious Life.
“Being creative and being innovative really requires a depth of thought and feeling that is often very spiritual,” Sullivan said.
The Innovation Hub has been working with Mark Orten, the director of the Scott Center, to design a set of fall semester interviews focusing on beginnings and endings. Interviewees include members of the Middlebury community both new and old. The upcoming weeks will feature interviews with David Gibson, the new vice president for communications and marketing, and Nan Jenks-Jay, dean of environmental affairs and director of the Franklin Environmental Center, who is retiring this year.
The Reflection Friday series began after a suggestion from Tiffany Sargent, director of the Center for Community Engagement. Sargent was inspired by a similar program at Yale University that proposed the question: “What matters to me and why?”
Coincidentally, Jonathan Isham, an economics and environmental studies professor who helped found the series, was already asking this question in his classroom. Isham had his students break up into groups of three, with one person posing the question to another and the third observing. After two minutes, every group paused to debrief before switching roles.
“It’s such an important question and it’s embedded in questions about your identity and agency, how you see yourself, and how you go through the world,” Isham said.
One of Isham’s advisees, Alyssa Brown ’20, was the first person to be interviewed for the series this semester. Brown spoke about forgiveness, both of herself and others, as well as where she is from and matters of identity, race and inclusivity.
“I didn’t think I would have a lot to say, but after the interview, I found that people were actually interested in my thoughts and words,” Brown said. “My most powerful takeaway is that most people are interested in what others have to say — I love hearing people speak, and the same goes for others who listen to me.”
Reflection Friday interviewees are able to select their own interviewers, giving the discussions a comfortable atmosphere. Brown was interviewed by Isham.
Gibson has yet to select his interviewer, but Jenks-Jay will be interviewed by longtime colleague Steve Trombulak, a recent retiree from the Biology Department. Generally, speakers can choose anyone to interview them, even those without a direct connection to the college. As Sullivan said, “It can be your mom. It can be your little brother. That would be so fun.”
In addition to the college faculty, staff, students and friends of interviewees who often attend, residents of the town of Middlebury may attend Reflection Friday installments. This has proved difficult, however, as the discussions are held in the Chateau, which is inacessible for those without a Middlebury ID.
The series’ hosts hope to provide a time for Middlebury community members to examine how each interviewee’s values have shaped their experiences. However, the series seems particularly applicable to the students in the audience, who are in the process of developing their own principles and interests, especially while selecting a major or looking for a job.
“There’s so much pressure to have the thing that you’re doing be from external pressures or from fear or from money or from all this noise that doesn’t necessarily have to do with the interior or personal values,” Sullivan said, “So to hear about that aspect of making choices even with all the noise is also really valuable to complete the picture.”
(10/10/19 9:58am)
Dear Tre,
Thoughts on the use of the n-word by Hispanics and Asians, or people from low-income communities?
— Anonymous
Hello reader,
Thank you for submitting this question to me! It’s so interesting how this question keeps coming up. Well, let’s dive right in, shall we?
Let me start off by saying that I think that ANYONE who is not BLACK should not say or even think about using the n-word. Now let’s get into why. For y’all that don’t know, let me give you a real quick history lesson. The n-word we all know and love today, (and yeah I said “we all” because y’all are fiending to use it), was derived from the n-word with a “hard ‘r’” — a word used to dehumanize my ancestors, disenfranchise my people and allow bigoted white Americans to ingrain in my people a false sense of inferiority. Now, as terrifying as that must sound, my people decided to reclaim the word and make it something positive for our community. The n-word has been reclaimed and used with an “a” instead of a hard “r.” It’s used in the black community in many different ways; it’s used as a term of endearment, a curse word and a call out in an argument. Regardless of its ambiguous meaning, however, if you are not black then don’t use the word.
“But Tre, my black friends let me say the word all the time and they don’t have a problem with it.”
Well, I think you should find some new friends. Let me explain something to all the non-black people that will read this. Being a person of color does not and never will give you the right to say the n-word. Why? Because the word does no harm to you. When I use the n-word it’s always between me and another black person, and it’s usually because we are using it as a term of endearment. Y’all wanna use the word because you think it’s cool, because you think it will make you better friends with us, or because you hear it in music. My advice is to just STOP. You don’t get to say a word that was used against us.
“Tre, if black people are so offended then why do y’all say it to each other?”
BECAUSE WE CAN! I shouldn’t have to explain to you why using a word that my people have reclaimed is okay for us to use and not for you to use. More importantly, because you can’t. I can’t speak for all black people, but I personally enjoy knowing that so much reclaimed power can be held in a word, and seeing all non-black people squirm in their seats because they want to use it so badly. Well, you can’t. Look, the point I’m trying to make here is that no matter what you say or how you feel, if you are not BLACK do not say the n-word. There are so many reasons why only black people are able to use the word (honestly too many to explain in a college newspaper column) but I hope this gives you the idea.
Love,
Tre Stephens
As always, I look forward to my readers submitting questions to my column. If you don’t know, you can submit your own questions at the go link: go/asktre/. My goal is to produce one piece every week for the entire year, so keep the questions coming.
(10/03/19 10:24am)
PALANA’s first party in its new digs was a resounding success —by the end of the night, people crowded on the back porch to join the excitement.
Starting this year, PALANA (Pan-African, Latino, Asian and Native American) is recognized by Community Council as an official social house, and has been granted a new, larger living space in Palmer House, previously reserved for superblocks.
“PALANA has grown into a bigger community, so we needed a bigger space to live and create the environment we wanted to see,” said Jayla Johnson ’21, co-president of PALANA and resident of the new house.
Johnson said PALANA envisions itself as a “multi-cultural innovation hub” where everyone feels welcome. According to some of its newer members, this vision has already proved successful.
“PALANA is a space to come and decompress from the stresses that we face during the academic school day,” said Kayla Richards ’22, a member of the new pledge class. “Community is the first word that comes to mind.”
Richards said she also appreciated “not feeling like you’re being watched or expected to say the right thing when talking about certain issues and just be people.”
PALANA was first established in 1991 as the Black and Latino Bi-Cultural Center in Fletcher House. Later, it was moved to Carr Hall, which now houses the Anderson Freeman Resource Center, and renamed with its current moniker. Until this year, PALANA had been an academic special interest house at 97 Adirondack View.
PALANA has long served as a sanctuary for marginalized students at Middlebury and has formed a significant part of its members’ college experience.
“The people in PALANA are the only ones I really connected with, and I felt close to,” said Luis Daza ’22, a member of the new pledge class. Daza said he joined the organization knowing that he is supporting the work of his friends.
When PALANA’s physical space could no longer accommodate the house’s growing membership, its members appealed to Community Council for a bigger place to host activities and social events.
According to Tre Stephens ’21, treasurer of PALANA, the process of becoming a social house was time-consuming and involved a lot of planning, but Community Council was overall supportive of PALANA’s ideas.
“PALANA itself has served many functions throughout its time here,” Stephens said. “I think the [Community Council] knew it wanted to give us Palmer, but it wasn’t sure if we were actually about it. We definitely showed them that we are.”
Members of PALANA hope the new space will prompt increased inclusivity at Middlebury. In the previous eight-person house, according to Stephens, the tight-knit group of PALANA members who lived together became closed off to the rest of the organization, due in part to the intimacy of the small space.
In its transition to social house, PALANA leadership knew it needed to change the atmosphere to welcome more people.
“This has become a place for people of all different backgrounds — and not just racial diversity. It is a predominantly POC [people of color] space, and that is really important because there are a lot of people on this campus who feel like they can’t interact in the social atmospheres,” house resident Christian Kummer ’22 said. “We are not trying to isolate ourselves from the community. People here care about inclusivity and talking about it based on our experiences.”
A few weeks into living in the new house, PALANA’s members are already feeling its impact. PALANA members agreed that Palmer had previously been a predominantly white space on campus. With PALANA’s new location, its members feel more comfortable being around the other social houses in the area because they have a place to claim as their own.
“Culture is a part of identity, and PALANA is a place I get to share in other people’s cultures and where I am surrounded by my culture, too,” Richards said. “I feel like without PALANA as a space, a huge part of myself would be lost. I would feel like there is a war between who I am and how I’ve grown up and how I’m expected to be while at Middlebury.”
According to Stephens, PALANA will release its official events calendar soon. PALANA leadership hopes to host community dinners and residential events for people to interact with each other.
However, its members also hope to keep their new space casual, spontaneous and full of surprises, to preserve the comfort of their living environment.
“We are not going to go out there and spread the word. It’s an open space where people can come to us and learn, but we’re not going to do all the emotional labor and spread the word about being POC, because everyone has very different experiences,” house resident Alondra Carmona ’21 said.
Stephens encourages students to come visit and explore the space.
“It is a place where not only under-prepresented students at Middlebury go to chill out and live, it is a home away from home,” he said. “Anyone is welcome here.”
Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the leadership titles of PALANA board members Tre Stephens and Jayla Johnson.
(09/26/19 10:04am)
“There will never be a new world order until women are a part of it.”
These are the words of Alice Paul, an activist who fought for ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which declared that the right to vote shall not be denied on the basis of sex.
As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of that amendment, we ought to remember the people and organizations that worked to make this important milestone possible. That is the message behind Middlebury’s latest museum exhibit, “Votes… for women?”, which opened Sept. 13. Curated by History Professor Amy Morsman, the exhibit acknowledges the remarkable contributions of those involved in the push for women’s suffrage while also examining their words and actions through a critical lens.
The exhibit was partly inspired by the work of my first-year seminar, “The Woman Question.” Taught by Professor Morsman, the class explored the changing roles of women in the U.S. in the years prior to 1919, when women were relegated to housework and removed from the public sphere.
The exhibit begins with the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848, organised by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott. At the historic convention, delegates drafted the “Declaration of Sentiments,” a manifesto demanding gender equality. Resembling the 1776 Declaration of Independence in its language, the document insisted on the equality of men and women and their fundamental rights of “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” Among its resolutions was a call for suffrage, for which Stanton and Mott became subjects of ridicule in the press at the time.
A theme of the exhibit is that suffragists struggled with internal politics. They were divided over the 15th Amendment, which was passed in 1870 and prohibited voting discrimination only on the basis of race. This division led to the creation of two separate groups, the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) and the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA). The NWSA sought enfranchisement through a federal amendment, whereas the AWSA took a state-by-state campaign strategy. The two groups later merged into the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) in 1890, which decided on the state-by-state approach.
The National Women’s Party (NWP), another suffrage group, emerged during the 1910s. It was founded by Alice Paul, who had prior experience leading suffrage campaigns in England. She brought this experience to the U.S. and organised protests in Washington D.C. for federal suffrage legislation. The exhibit shows original banners that NWP members held while picketing in front of the White House, as well as images of these pickets.
The exhibit critically explores the intersection of women’s suffrage, racial justice and economic status and states that the suffrage movement was divisive at its core. It points out that Ida Wells-Barnett was told to march in the back with other black women during the 1913 suffrage parade in Washington D.C. It also says that working class women in the suffrage movement often worked behind the scenes since they had to balance activism with their employment, whereas the women at the center of the movement often came from backgrounds of privilege and status.
[pullquote speaker="Carrie Chapman Catt" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]The vote is a power, a weapon of offense and defense, a prayer. Use it intelligently, conscientiously, prayerfully. Progress is calling to you to make no pause. Act![/pullquote]
A panel dedicated to Vermont discusses the rather small suffrage movement in the state. It attributes the lack of a widespread movement to the rural nature of the state compared to neighboring New York, which had a very active suffrage movement. A separate timeline also features important milestones here at Middlebury. The college — founded as an all-male institution — became coeducational in 1883, and the Chellis House opened on campus in 1993 as a resource for female students.
As we celebrate the centenary of women’s suffrage in the U.S., the exhibit reminds us that further progress still needs to be made to secure voting rights for all Americans. According to the exhibit, the 15th and 19th Amendments were worded as vaguely as possible and, as a result, allowed for the possibility of poll taxes and other disenfranchisement techniques. For instance, black women could not vote until the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Even today, citizens in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories cannot vote in federal elections even though they are just as American as those in the 50 states. Many states have attempted to enact strict identification laws that disproportionately affect certain marginalized groups.
Morsman concluded her opening remarks with an uplifting quote from Carrie Chapman Catt: “The vote is a power, a weapon of offense and defense, a prayer. Use it intelligently, conscientiously, prayerfully. Progress is calling to you to make no pause. Act!”
Catt said these words in celebration of the 19th Amendment being ratified in 1920, but they are just as applicable today.
The “Votes… for women?” exhibition will remain open through Dec. 8. Professor Morsman will also discuss key strategies of the suffrage movement this Thursday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in the Museum.
(09/26/19 10:03am)
Some say comedy is a boy’s club ... but the joke’s on them!
Last Friday and Saturday evenings, Sept. 20–21, Middlebury students gathered in Coltrane Lounge to learn about sketch comedy from some leading comics on campus.
The workshop, led by female-identifying members of the student-run sketch comedy group Middlebury Discount Comedy (MDC), was part of a larger program this past weekend called the Funny Femme Fest. The Femme Fest was a celebration of women in comedy and comprised of four workshops over the course of two days meant to encourage diverse voices in comedy.
In addition to MDC’s Friday session, the festival included a stand-up workshop led by American Studies Professor J. Finley. The women of Middlebury’s satirical newspaper, The Local Noodle, and members of various on-campus improv groups led workshops on satirical news writing and improv.
The MDC sketch lesson began, quite aptly, with a bizarre getting-to-know-you question. The attendees were asked to share not their majors or hometowns, but rather their most serial killer-like trait, setting the playful yet open-minded tone for the workshop.
After settling into the workshop with the serial killers among us, we were brought through an introduction to the ins and outs of sketch comedy, which usually consists of a series of short, few minute-long scenes known as “sketches.” The session’s leaders, Amy Conaway ’20, Em Ballou ’21 and Laurel Rand-Lewis ’20, provided us with the vocabulary to discuss sketches, as well as some of the basic structures we could use to craft them ourselves.
One of the fundamentals we learned was the idea of “The Game,” which is a bit of a catch-all term to describe what is truly funny or interesting about a scene. We also discussed the importance of creating a cast of characters that is balanced to include both traditionally funny or bizarre characters and what is known as a “straight character.” This character, unlike the other characters (but similar to the audience), is able to recognize the eccentricity of the situation. We then touched on practical elements to take into account when writing sketches to be performed, like including stage directions, sound cues and descriptions of physicality.
After going over the background of the discipline of sketch comedy writing, we dove deeper into feminist comedy writing and how intersections of gender and other identities inform the meaning of a joke or sketch.
When revising drafts of sketches, writers will often look at assumptions made about the gender or other identity markers of a character, asking themselves, “Does this character really need to be ______?” In other words, does the gender of a character matter in order for the joke to work? If not, assigning a gender through a character’s name or physical description may be unnecessary or limiting. One way the writers work around this is by assigning gender neutral names or even referring to characters as “Character no. 1.” After all, Conaway pointed out, we rarely define character by other specific aspects of their identity, such as their religion, favorite sports team or astrological sign.
With regards to addressing controversial subjects in sketches, the session’s leaders highlighted the importance of working honestly and openly with those around you. Sketch comedy, like other works of art, either theatrical or material, can be a powerful tool when it comes to examining societal norms and systems of oppression. But, if poorly executed, jokes can quickly become harmful reinforcements of structural inequalities.
A general rule of thumb, the leaders suggested, is known as “punching up,” wherein jokes remain aware of positionality. The rule enables the critique of power structures, rather than perpetuating them through stereotypes that continue to disempower different groups.
“The world of comedy is still presented with internalized sexism,” Ballou said. “It’s possible for women to be funny not because they play into stereotypes or misogynistic views for laughs, but because they themselves are humorous.”
According to Ballou, there is a general lack of diverse and inclusive comedy. “We need more comedians of color. We need more queer, disabled and working-class comedians.”
(09/26/19 10:02am)
The first time I read this work, at 14 or 15, I had an extremely limited understanding of colonialism. But I returned to it, twice, years later, having met a variety of African people and having visited the continent twice. If you did not cross paths with “Things Fall Apart” in high school, the work, Chinua Achebe’s magnum opus, tells the fictional tale of a West African people/village/tribe/group/region, Umuofia, and its first encounters with European colonizers. No, that’s not quite right, is it? It tells of Umuofia’s traditions, language, society, hierarchies, fashion, celebrations, structure, folk tales, myths, religious and spiritual beliefs, law, diplomacy and habits of war. And then, and only then, does it tell of its first encounters with white, religious European colonizers. That’s really quite better put, as one of the unspoken theses of the work is that African peoples had a “before.” A past. An identity. A cosmos and universe before contact with Europeans. Africans’ stories did not begin when Europeans arrived to the lands inhabited by black peoples. Isn’t that an extraordinary thought? One not enough of us in the United States or around the world sit and grapple with nearly enough.
Why do I love this book? Its creation feels like an act of love and a gift to all people who have been disenfranchised by the imperialist ventures of the last few centuries. It addresses the idea of “erasures” on a global scale. It wrestles with the idea of gender roles and suggests that their suffocating strictures are hardly new. The plot of “Things” is not what I would call “speedy” or “dynamic.” However, while Achebe’s artistry and plot are leisurely, the author is nothing if not deliberate. Every word is intentional and reflects his skillful craftsmanship. I’d recommend this work to anyone enrolling in a postcolonial literature class, anyone studying abroad in West Africa or South Asia and anyone wanting to study historical periods that highlight contact, encounters and clashes between cultures. For more works that treat contact between Africa and Europe, I highly recommend the film “Paradise: Love,” directed by Ulrich Seidl, which covers sex tourism in Kenya.
(09/26/19 10:00am)
Here at Arts & Academics, we spend our time in the newsroom covering the cultural happenings on campus. But what about the latest phenomena in the online world?
These topics often enter our conversations while editing the section, and we thought it was about time to let you all in on the fun. Each week, one of us assigns a current pop culture moment, whether it be a music release or fashion style, and we’ll each share our thoughts.
This week, Elsa brought us to a CrossFit class on campus.
EK: What better bonding activity for our section than mutual suffering? CrossFit has been part of the repertoire of fitness Instagram and lifestyle magazines for some time now, so when a source in my Russian class encouraged me to join CrossFit, I knew it belonged in this column. The setup of the workout is simple: first, a group warmup, then 10 to 20 minutes of hardcore working out. It can’t be that bad, right?
False. By the last round of our glute-focused circuit, I was mentally going through every swear word in the Finnish language (of which there are a lot). Even so, all the frustration vanished the second time was called. The post-workout endorphins hit hard. Special thanks to the coaches for the high fives and can-do atmosphere — this was a good introduction.
SB: I’ve never been more sore in my entire life. As someone who doesn’t ever lift weights, I was really nervous about this workout. “Doing CrossFit” is a status marker that some really athletic people wear like a badge. As we headed over we joked that we wanted to stand in the back the whole time, “for journalistic purposes,” but really because we were scared of standing out. However, I felt very supported and encouraged by all the student trainers and never felt judged. For anyone who is nervous about their fitness level and being judged by other students in the class — don’t be! Every- one else is in so much pain during the workouts they don’t even notice what anyone else is doing. I think I’ll go back, but only once my body recovers.
AQ: There’s a certain stereotype I think of when someone mentions CrossFit — images of intimidating muscle-men and women double sting protein shakes come to mind. The atmosphere of rapport in the class, however, convinced me otherwise, though the class was definitely challenging. But who would’ve known — doing box-jumps brought out a competitive side in me that I never even knew existed. What can I say? We’re converts.
Classes take place weekly on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at 4:30pm and 5:30pm in the indoor tennis courts in the Nelson Recreation Center.
(09/26/19 9:59am)
Each week, the Campus’ editorial board gets together to talk about that week’s editorial; each member gives input and provides insight. Two weeks ago, that topic was supposed to be about Middlebury’s diversity and demographics.
We very quickly realized that we didn’t know what the word “diversity” meant to us. Did it just mean race and sexuality? Did it include ability and socioeconomic class? How were we going to write this is in a way that didn’t upset anyone? We couldn’t think of one — we thought it best to table the topic.
[pullquote speaker="" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]I’ve decided that isn’t good enough.[/pullquote]
Well, it’s been two weeks and I’ve decided that isn’t good enough. I understand that this topic might not be something that we, as a board, can agree on. As a Latina on this campus, I cannot sit idly and watch yet another opportunity to talk meaningfully about race pass by. In all honesty, writing this scares me, and it’s bound to upset someone. That being said, I’d like to change the way people at Middlebury talk and think about racial issues and this may be my one shot.
Race is not an acceptable topic at Middlebury, at least not an acceptable topic of deep, honest discussion. Talks about race aren’t necessarily rare at Middlebury; they happen in JustTalks and with various guest lecturers. However, people waste these and other opportunities and end up only having surface level conversations. Discussions start with everyone sharing stories and parroting facts, and end with some moderator going “everyone has their own truth.” The white guys usually sit quietly to the side, too scared to say anything because they might seem “racist.” That isn’t meaningful conversation, progress is not made that way.
Talking about race shouldn’t be easy. In fact, it should be deeply unsettling. The political atmosphere we find ourselves in should be enough to prove that. Just because talking about race is uncomfortable does not make doing so bad. In the age of “trigger warnings,” that is something we so often forget. Comfort is the enemy of progress, and now, more than ever, conversations about race need to change.
[pullquote speaker="" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]From the moment we enter this world we are put into one group or another; whether we are black, white, brown, Republican, Democrat; we are told that the opposing party is in some way fundamentally bad.[/pullquote]
This is a call to have these rough conversations about race, despite the fear and discomfort that so often accompany them. It is only by having these conversations that POCs, like myself, can be seen as human and not just another shade of brown. From the moment we enter this world we are put into one group or another; whether we are black, white, brown, Republican, Democrat; we are told that the opposing party is in some way fundamentally bad. The opposing party need not necessarily be seen as the opposition — it can simply be another group living in the same world. Republicans are told that Democrats want to take their money and their freedom. Democrats are told that republicans are racist, sexist bigots who prey on the weakness of others. White people are taught to fear those who failed to be born with porcelain skin, they’re told that being dark is bad, that it’s dangerous. Black people learn from a very early age that their words do not compare to that of a white person’s — that the fight for legitimacy is a fight, indeed. If you’re Latino, you’re told you’re lazy, stupid, and that you belong elsewhere. If you’re not white you learn from a very early age that this world is not made for you and that every day in one way or another, you will suffer because you dared to be born a shade darker than paper.
It is painfully easy to see the problems with America today. Obviously, being black, white, brown, purple, chartreuse, says nothing at all about your mental acuity or the content of your character; all it says about you is the amount of melanin in your skin. Despite this, we clump together based on nothing more than the color of our skin. While that may bring comfort, this practice is very dangerous.
[pullquote speaker="" photo="" align="center" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]Talking behind closed doors is not the way to put an end to the injustices POCs face on a daily basis.[/pullquote]
When I was a Preview Days host, my prospie, like myself, was Latina. The first thing she asked me about was POC groups on campus, specifically PALANA — my heart sank. PALANA is not inherently bad, but it can serve as an excuse for POCs to not interact with the rest of the school. I know some POCs see PALANA as a place of refuge from a white populus that at times seems unwilling to interact with the POCs on campus, but I was horrified that she was so willing to hide herself away before even giving them a chance. People put so much stock in the color of their skin, POCs try to make “‘being brown”’ a character trait, they forget that they are so much more than that. I am so much more than that. By grouping together on the basis of skin color they starve the world of their stories.
I know that as a Latina on this campus I’m not supposed to say that, but I cannot condone separating one’s self solely on the basis of race. Talking behind closed doors is not the way to put an end to the injustices POCs face on a daily basis. And I understand how scary and disheartening it is to be judged poorly because I made the mistake of not being white, I know what it’s like to share my story and have it fall on deaf ears, but that does not mean I should not try. The comfort we get from being around people who look like us is not worth ignorance that it fosters in others. Not sharing our story at all is worse than having it falling on deaf ears.
Middlebury is not a diverse campus by any means. However, we do have people who are black, brown, white, gay, straight, trans, male, female, neither; we have people who need time and a half on exams; people who can’t walk a mile in their own shoes. We just don’t have them in equal numbers. And for that reason, we cannot stay in our circles that are made of little more than mirrors of ourselves. Talk. Talk to everyone. Talk to the people who are so different from you it’s terrifying. By not talking, by keeping our doors closed and our walls up, we do ourselves a great disservice. We continue the narrative that promotes fear and misunderstanding when we are too afraid to speak.
(09/19/19 10:04am)
Brilliant. Having the opportunity to listen to it read by the author on the very first days of 2019’s Black History Month was a special and meaningful treat. Published to mass acclaim, author Ta-Nehisi Coates — and Middlebury College French Language Schools alum — writes a letter to his son, Samori, that is a testimony and a word of caution to a young black boy growing up in a society — ours — which is regularly hostile to Blacks. Coates spends time detailing how the culture surrounding his youth in Baltimore forced him to adopt an ill-fitting code of conduct that engaged violence and mandated that he navigate his city blocks with a hypervigilance that would protect his body. He also describes his time at Howard University, calling it a “Mecca,” as it welcomed, oriented, fed and sustained college students from every corner of the worldwide black diaspora. This “epistle,” in many ways, is a memoir that traces multiple ways that the black male body can encounter violence in a society whose tradition and heritage is designed to destroy it.
Coates’ work is intelligent, deft and of value to every American of any shade because it underscores how we can live under one flag and have markedly different experiences. The gold of “Between the World and Me” for me, however, is the discussion it engages regarding education — something that takes place in and outside of the classroom. When Coates was growing up in Baltimore, one of his main concerns was getting to and from school safely, as one misstep could lead him into dire straits. Once he made it to class, he studied a curriculum that included French and its verb conjugations. His quandary centered on the sharp and contrasting disjuncture between the social and environmental education — between his need to make it home alive and the formal, bookish education he needed to earn the good grades necessary for upward socioeconomic mobility. What served him in one world, perhaps bravado, aggression and street smarts, would likely punish him in another, say, the world of white collars that may favor approachability, cooperation and studiousness. But as a black boy/man wanting to escape danger — be that danger the violence of the streets or the school to prison pipeline — he was required to master both worlds.
In this work, Coates poignantly asks what aim mass education serves: to allow space, opportunity and structure for agile minds to explore what is curious, or to prepare a broad body of meek, obedient automatons towards lives of compliance — a worthy chunk of fat to chew for any student. Coates also makes a distinction between the rigidity of a curriculum and the free, unlimited knowledge available in libraries, spaces where students can direct their own learning. You have at least three ways to engage with “Between the World and Me” in our collection: print, ebook or audiobook on go/overdrive/. Feel free to ask any librarian at the Research Desk about accessing the audiobook collection. For another work that poses the important questions of “What is an education?” and “Who sets the curriculum?,” see Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed, available in print and as an audiobook.
(09/12/19 10:05am)
Drive down scenic Route 125 and you’ll find, situated across from the Robert Frost Interpretive Trail, Middlebury College’s Breadloaf Campus in Ripton, Vt.: home to the Breadloaf School of English graduate programs during the summer as well as various MiddView groups during first-year orientation week. What’s lesser known, however, is that for 44 consecutive years, Breadloaf has welcomed back hundreds of alumni, their friends and spouses, and parents of students for an annual four-day program called Alumni College.
From Aug. 29 to Sept. 1 this year, 139 alumni came to Breadloaf to reconnect with friends, soak in the Vermont scenery and explore one of the weekend’s five course offerings. Most hailed from the New England area, but many others traveled from California, Texas and the UK to participate in the program.
According to Associate Director of Alumni and Parent Programws Lori Mackey, classes filled within the first few weeks that registration was open.
Professor of Psychology Matthew Kimble taught a course on happiness at Alumni College in 2001, and has since 2013 overseen the program’s course programming as its faculty director.
Courses for Alumni College are typically decided upon in February. Generally, Kimble looks for a program of five courses that span the humanities, social sciences and physical sciences. One Alumni College tradition is that there is almost always a field class offered, so that students have the opportunity to take full advantage of Alumni College’s pastoral setting in Ripton.
Kimble said that one of the major attractions of Alumni College is its location at the Breadloaf campus. “I don’t know what percentage of people we would lose if we were like, ‘Oh, we’re going to have classes in BiHall this year,’ but I’m feeling it would be a lot,” Kimble said. “I think people would be very disappointed. There’s something special about being up [at Breadloaf] at that time of year; it’s so beautiful.”
Despite being relatively unknown among current students, news of Alumni College travels fast through word of mouth among alumni friend groups, and the program welcomed its largest group in its 44-year history this year.
Often, classes and friends will come back regularly, using Alumni College as a reunion. “Some of [the participants] are real regulars,” Kimble said. Participants this year ranged from individuals in the class of 1951 to those in the class of 2007. Of the participants, the Class of ’55 has been known for attending Alumni College together as annual mini-reunions. They will be celebrating their 65th reunion in June of 2020.
[pullquote speaker="Bruce Byers '55" photo="" align="left" background="on" border="all" shadow="on"]Breakfast, lunch and dinner. You can’t overestimate how important it is for our group to be sitting together, three times a day.[/pullquote]
Sue Byers ’55 and Bruce Byers ’55 have been attending Alumni College for 18 years. “We became kind of famous, the class of ‘55, because we had so many of our class come. And then their spouses would come, and they just loved it, as we did,” Bruce Byers said.
This year, 14 members of the Class of ’55 cohort attended Alumni College. “These people came with us in 1951, and we’ve been pretty close with all of this group for all that time. We’ve lost a few last couple of years, but that’s one reason why we come,” Bruce Byers said.
“The setting is number two,” Sue Byers continued, echoing Kimble’s sentiments about the beauty of late summer in Vermont. “You can hike after your class, or you can play tennis after your class, or you can sit in the wonderful Adirondack chairs anywhere around and catch up on your reading for the nexwt day,” she said.
And sometimes, the pure pleasure of seeing old friends and familiar faces is enough to keep people coming back. “Breakfast, lunch and dinner,” Bruce said. “You can’t overestimate how important it is for our group to be sitting together, three times a day.”
This year, Bruce took a course with Associate Professor of Geology Will Amidon on Geologic Controls on Human History in the Champlain Valley, which took the class on field trips to the Robert Frost Interpretive Trail and to Port Henry. He noted the difference in age between students at Alumni College and undergraduates at Middlebury College. “From the professors’ point of view,” he said, “they’re talking to people in their 60s and 70s and 80s instead of teenagers.”
Sue, however, pointed out that “because of their age, [Alumni College participants] can draw on experiences that are pertinent to what the course is about.” She said that in her course with Associate Professor of Philosophy Martha Woodruff on Socratic Legacies Today, there were about four teachers or school counselors in the class, who were able to provide input about their experiences with the Socratic method in K–12 education.
“The one thing that’s different about Alumni College is that students bring so much experience to the table,” Kimble said. He said that most attendees of Alumni College have “fairly recently retired” and estimates the average age of a student at Alumni College to be around 70, which made for interesting discussions in courses like his on Happiness, which had “individuals with a lifetime of experience” and “will comment on ways that are really different than what you’ll see in undergraduates.” The insights that can be gained from the wealth of experiences of students at Alumni College can often be rewarding for faculty as well. According to Kimble, most faculty who have taught at Alumni College describe it as one of their most rewarding teaching experiences.
“Most alums don’t know about [Alumni College] until they’re older,” said Alumni College participant Bobo Sideli ’77, P’08, P’13. Sideli had been curious about the demographics of the program’s participants, and did a little analysis of his own. “You can get the attendee list online,” he said, “and I sorted it, and 99 out of 140 people are alumni; the rest are spouses or parents. And then I looked at it in excel, and the peak is in the class of ’67. Thirty-five percent of the attendees are from the classes of ’63 to ’68, so they’re in their seventies. It’s a bell curve.”
Sideli is trying to convince friends from his class to come to Alumni College. “They still haven’t gotten around to it. In their mind it’s an old people’s thing,” Sideli said. “They’re still – you know – the go-go. I’m the early group.”
Despite a generally positive experience at Alumni College, however, Sideli also noted a lack of racial diversity in the program’s attendants. “One thing that bothers me is the total lack of diversity — it’s so obvious.” Sideli said. “You look at the Middlebury student population and you come here, and it’s like — what the hell is going on? But you also have to remember, you’re thinking about mostly people who came to Middlebury in the mid-60s. When I came to Middlebury in ’72 I think we had a dozen or 20 African Americans. I always joked that because I’m an Italian from South Shore, Long Island, that I was diversity.”
Sideli took a course titled James Brown, Bob Marley, and Beyoncé: Protest Music as Political Mobilization Across Countries taught by Associate Professor of Political Science Kemi Fuentes-George. The course was based on a J-term course Fuentes-George had taught in the past, and included numbers from a variety of genres and origins and ranged from songs that celebrated subaltern identities, to those that were more provocative and explicit. Fela Kuti’s “Lady”, Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright”, and NWA’s “F**k the Police” were among the songs on the syllabus. “We didn’t just do hip hop music, we did music from Jamaica, we did music from Nigeria, we did Pussy Riots from Russia, and we did music from Egypt and Tunisia as well,” Fuentes-George said.
Fuentes-George went into the weekend with some reservations of his own: “I’ll be honest,” he said, “I was a little bit — I don’t know if nervousness is the word -- but I was a little bit concerned: how are these retirees, older white people, going to deal with Tupac and Kendrick Lamar? But if this is material that’s new to them and subject matter that’s new to them, I think that’s probably even better than just — ‘Oh, here’s more of just stuff that you’ve already read.’”
To prepare his students for the program, Fuentes-George sent them a video in June about the technical construction of rap music, background on the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as the involvement of certain music in that movement, “stuff coming out from Beyonce and Kendrick and so on.” It was Fuentes-George’s attempt to “situate this so that people who might not have a familiarity with hip hop and rap music see that, not whatever their stereotype of it was.”
“It was an opportunity for me to get people to think about things that they ordinarily wouldn’t have thought about,” he said. “The way to do that is to have people do readings and make them engage with material that they ordinarily wouldn’t have engaged with. I didn’t want it to be just a dog and pony show.”
“I think they engaged with it,” Fuentes-George said when asked about how his students had responded to the course material. “I know that there were some who came away from it with a not just a better familiarity, but a better appreciation for some of the artists that they didn’t necessarily know.”
“I know protest music from the civil rights movement, but I didn’t know any other protest music, and I had no knowledge of rap,” Sideli said. “And hip-hop — I mean, that was foreign to me. So I thought it would be good exposure, and it is.”
A recent retiree, Sideli had worked in healthcare for most of his adult life. Now he “does” music, he said. He plays, reads about and studies music, and sees Fuentes-George’s course as a further exploration into the “larger macro level of music.”
Though Sideli doesn’t typically write protest songs, “’cause I have nothing to protest about,” he made an exception for the last night of Alumni College: putting his own spin on James Brown’s iconic 1969 song “I’m Black and I’m Proud,” Sideli and his classmates serenaded the Alumni College with “I’m Old and I’m Proud.”
“We’re so sick of our culture that’s so youth-oriented — and so this is our protest song,” he said.
Sideli is one of many participants for whom Alumni College was an opportunity to rekindle interests and passions they had temporarily set aside in life post-Middlebury.
“For anyone who’s gone to college, there’s just always part of you that misses that environment and longs to go back, and so many do,” Kimble said. “To some extent, my worst fear is that people will learn what an amazing thing Alumni College is and we won’t be able to accommodate everybody. I do feel like it’s a bit of a secret.”
Correction: A previous version of the article suggested that Professor Matthew Kimble assumed the role of faculty director of Alumni College immediately after teaching a class at Alumni College in 2001. Kimble assumed the role in 2013, taking over from Jim Ralph, Dean of Faculty Development & Research and Rehnquist Professor of American History and Culture, who was faculty director from 2008 to 2013. James Jermain Professor Emeritus of Political Economy and International Law Russell Leng was faculty director of Alumni College from 1993 to 2008.
(09/12/19 10:04am)
Russ Lewis Reilly, a beloved assistant men’s basketball coach and former athletic director at Middlebury College, died surrounded by family at his New Haven home on July 24.
As a “pillar of the community” who drove the athletic department’s success, in the words of Athletic Director Erin Quinn, Reilly worked for Middlebury athletics for more than 40 years. He served as the head men’s basketball coach from 1977 to 1996, then as athletic director from 1997 until his retirement in 2006. After retiring, he spent 13 years as a volunteer assistant coach for the men’s basketball team.
Those who interacted with Reilly within the sphere of Middlebury athletics saw him as an exceptionally considerate and thoughtful presence, known as much for the kindness he showed players and colleagues as for his sincere love for sports. He pushed for equality between men’s and women’s athletics, was a lead caretaker for Butch Varno (a longtime Middlebury resident and Panthers fan who suffers from cerebral palsy), and was a regular attendee of other sports games as a spectator and announcer.
“Having Russ on staff was truly a blessing for me and the program,” said Head Men’s Basketball Coach Jeff Brown. “I will miss his wisdom, kindness, generosity and humor, but his positive spirit will remain with the many people that call him a friend.”
As a player for the men’s basketball team, I had the honor of being coached by Reilly for two years. Like everyone else on our team, what I will remember most about Coach Russ is the infectious positivity he brought to our practices every day. As players would stretch during warmups before each practice, he was fond of checking in with each of us individually. He always did so with thoughtfulness and sincerity, asking about families, classes and local sports teams.
“He would always ask how I was doing, and I would answer with a ‘Good, how are you?’,’’ said Jack Farrell ’21, a member of the team. “Every single day he would respond, ‘that’s the only way to be’. It wouldn’t matter what was happening that day — nothing could get in the way of his ability to spread positivity.”
Reilly was unrelentingly upbeat, though never overpoweringly so, which was perhaps part of the reason his optimism was so appreciated by his players; he was always understanding when the frustrations that come with a grueling four-month season reared their heads. But when we became frustrated, he was there to offer gentle and genuine reminders of the gift we’ve been given in having the opportunity to play a game we love, and one that was so dear to him.
“I could truly talk to him about everything and anything and I always admired the positive attitude he had every day,” said Eric McCord ’19, a captain of last year’s team.
As an assistant, Reilly developed an affinity for working with the team’s post players, referred to sometimes as “bigs” — centers and power forwards, positions where physicality and hard work are calling cards. He ran position-breakdown workouts for big men in practice that quickly became “one of the most important parts” of practice, Brown said.
“Our approach was to have Russ coach a team within a team,” Brown said. “He developed our post players masterfully, but he also impacted all the players in our program.”
After our 15-minute workout we would huddle up, and Reilly would deliver his favorite mantra: “Good, better, best, never ever rest, till the good gets better and the better gets best.” Every Middlebury big man who plays on the team now has a shirt with that slogan written down the back.
Matt Folger ’20, a three-year starter and captain for the men’s basketball team this upcoming season, remembers designing a shirt emblazoned with the “good, better, best” slogan and preparing to gift it to Reilly, only to find that Reilly had been one step ahead.
“Just a few days before it was scheduled to arrive, we walked on the bus to go to an away game, and he was sitting on the bus with a large box,” Folger said. “He called us over and gave us all t-shirts with that exact quote on it. We were shocked that he had beat us to our own idea, but we gave our own shirt to him a few days later and he still loved what we had done. I laugh about it to this day.”
Fiercely loyal to his players and fellow coaches, Coach Russ also had a fiery side.
“I think sometimes he took it personally when I would criticize in our coaches meetings how one of the bigs played the day before, which I always thought was funny,” said Kyle Dudley ’09, who joined the men’s basketball as Brown’s lead assistant in 2013 after spending his college years playing for Reilly and Brown.
“There is something special about a veteran coach questioning the toughness of a 20-year-old or expressing his dislike of the color purple, like he did in 2011 when we beat Amherst and Williams in a weekend to win the Nescac Championship,” Brown said.
Mostly, though, the men’s basketball program and athletic community will remember Coach Russ for his penchant for fostering close, caring relationships with those who played the game he loved. Coach Russ was fond of inviting players to his home for dinner — he hosted an annual “bigs’ dinner” each February, an occasion where freshmen big men are first given their “good, better, best” shirts.
Some of my best college memories were made on Thanksgiving with Coach Reilly’s family. As one of the few players on our team not from New England, I’m not able to make it home for Thanksgiving and be back in time for post-Thanksgiving practices. In November of 2017, when I was a freshman on the team, Coach Reilly realized this before I did, and invited me to his family’s Thanksgiving dinner after the very first practice of our season.
Last Thanksgiving I was invited back to the Reillys’ home where I was joined by Will Ingram ’21, from Dallas, and Matt Folger. We played Monopoly with Coach Russ’ grandkids, Russell and William, and ate some of the best Thanksgiving food imaginable in front of a window that looked out on the Adirondack mountains.
Coach Reilly and his wife, Jane, welcomed us like family. The kindness they showed me those two Thanksgivings turned what easily could have been dark holidays away from home into some of my fondest college memories.
My teammates and I were recipients of Coach Reilly’s kindness every day, and got to see it more up-close and personal than most. But the impression he made on the broader Middlebury community was still personal and profound for all he interacted with.
“Russ’ impact cannot be defined by any particular role or job he held over his long tenure at Middlebury,” Quinn said. “It is defined more by his sense of humor, sense of service, and his integrity, regardless of his role.”
A celebration of life for Russ Reilly will be held on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019 at 3 p.m. at Mead Chapel, followed by a reception in Pepin Gymnasium.
(09/12/19 10:04am)
So, you want to be a Broadway star? For a few chosen Middlebury students, this dream becomes a reality each summer with the Potomac Theatre Project.
The Potomac Theatre Project, or PTP/NYC, is a Middlebury Theatre Department program that allows undergraduate students to be a part of the professional theatre world while still studying at the college. The project was founded in 1987 by Professors Cheryl Faraone, Richard Romagnoli and Boston University Professor Jim Petosa who were “determined to establish a dynamic and provocative company that would also provide a bridge to professional theatre for aspiring young students,” according to the company’s website. Students work alongside Actor’s Equity professionals and professors on two different productions that run in an Off-Broadway theatre in New York City for five weeks throughout the summer.
This program is unique to Middlebury and cannot be found at any other liberal arts college. Students are able to see what the “real world” of professional theatre is like while working with established actors and learning from their professors. Many of the Actor’s Equity professionals are Middlebury alumni who were originally students at PTP.
Students audition for the two summer productions at the college in a more personal setting than others in the industry. Zachary Varricchione ’21 said this was a major draw for him to do the program because he knew how other students had to deal with “huge cattle-call type auditions” to work in professional theater. The addition of having the program led by Middlebury professors made his decision even more clear. “To have a program that’s run by your own professors with intimate auditions is almost unheard of,” he said.
Madeline Ciocci ’20, who has been a part of PTP for two summers, says that the special connections between students and Equity actors are also what make the program so impactful. “It’s really exciting to get to know them, their craft, and their process, to learn from them.”
Varricchione said that observing the professionals at work contributed to “some of the biggest artistic growth I had this summer...[they] really inspired me to do my best and take some of their habits to raise my work to a higher caliber.”
Students at PTP are incorporated into every facet of the production, not just performing onstage. The entire cast and crew work together to help with marketing, business planning, and even set and costume design.
This deep-dive into the intensity of the Off-Broadway world is eye-opening and exciting for students who have been involved in theater previously. “I’ve been doing theatre for almost my whole life, but not until I did PTP did I understand not only how much emotional work theatre can be, but also how exhausting it can be in a physical sense,” Ciocci said. “It’s a life that’s totally and completely exciting, but also one that takes a wild amount of constant energy and commitment.”
The added responsibilities involved in being a member of the company is more realistic to what the professional world is like, which Varricchione appreciated coming from a college theater setting. At shows at the college, cast and crew members often have their designated roles with not that much overlap. PTP is more the “classic theater company experience, where the actors are in charge of run crew, and building sets, and everything else,” said Varricchione.
This season, the company put on two productions, “Dogg’s Hamlet,” “Cahoot’s Macbeth,” two plays often performed together by Tom Stoppard and “Havel: The Passion of Thought,” written by Harold Pinter, Václav Havel and Samuel Beckett. “Dogg’s Hamlet” is a play where three young boys try to confuse a driver by speaking “Dogg,” a language that is comprised of English words that mean the opposite of what speakers are used to. The play then turns into a 15-minute interpretation of “Hamlet.” The same cast also performed “Cahoot’s Macbeth,” which consists of actors performing Macbeth in a controlling state while under surveillance by a hidden government agent.
The other cast performed “Havel: The Passion of Thought,” which is composed of five one act plays that expose the challenges living in an oppressive Communist state. These plays were once considered so controversial that they were banned in Czechoslovakia, leaving actors to perform them in private homes and distribute them illegally.
This season’s choice of plays is in line with PTP’s focus on art that critically examines the world outside of the theater. On their website, the organization states how since its inception, PTP’s work has “addressed the necessity and difficulty of art, homelessness, censorship, pornography, AIDS, totalitarianism, apartheid and gender wars -- always in passionate, deeply human terms.”
When asked about what he wanted audiences to take away from “Dogg’s Hamlet” and “Cahoot’s Macbeth,” Varricchione said that the cast hoped that “the audience would think about how their actions have been complicit and how they have been resistant to oppressive systems today.”
Ciocci, a member of the “Havel” cast, felt that when she was “working on this set of plays that investigates resistance and dissidence under an oppressive regime, it’s impossible to not think about how timely the content feels.”
She elaborated on a specific moment in the play where a character, Stanekova is forced to decide whether or not to protest a fellow artist’s incarceration because of his activism or to “continue to subtly fight while existing within an unethical system.” She felt that this crisis when deciding which way to act against oppression to be relevant in today’s world where “it’s not clear which actions will yield the best results, and which actions you’ll be able to live with and respect yourself for.”
PTP co-founder, co-artistic director, director of “Dogg’s Hamlet,” “Cahoot’s Macbeth” and Chair of the Theatre Department Cheryl Faraone stated in the season’s introduction video that these plays are “the best kind of theatre; it makes you think, and it makes you feel, which has been kind of a PTP mantra for most of our 33 years.”
(09/12/19 10:03am)
Anyone strolling past Middlebury’s noticeboards is bound to come across the saturated posters of the Hirschfield International Film Series. Highlights from prominent film festivals and other critically acclaimed films will be screened free of charge in Dana Auditorium beginning on Saturday, September 14 at 3 and 8 p.m.
“The key qualifier of films is to bring in films that otherwise wouldn’t be screened at Middlebury,” said Film and Media Professor Leger Grindon.
Per its title, the Hirschfield International Series has sought to represent every language taught at Middlebury. Language departments are encouraged to submit titles and co-sponsor screenings, an offer that the French department has reportedly been especially prone to take up. Screenings can be used as an educational activity for foreign language students.
Curation was previously led by the chair of the Film and Media Studies Department with input from professors, yet since 2018 student and staff representatives have sat on the committee. After reaching out to distributors, two members of the committee watch the promotional “screeners” of films in the catalog. To keep selections up to date, the committee transitioned to adding new titles to the programme in chunks, rather than scheduling a year’s worth of screenings at once.
The series, which has included pre-release screenings and films that went on to become box office successes, has typically obtained screening rights at discounted prices because of its affiliation with the college. Media Production Specialist Ethan Murphy, who sits on the programming committee, declined to share exact costs, citing ongoing negotiations.
In an article published in the Campus in 2013, then Catalog and Acquisitions Associate Sue Driscoll priced the rights at $200-750, with an average cost of $450-550 per film. According to Driscoll, these figures are still accurate today.
The Hirschfield endowment is separate from that of the college. In addition to screening rights, it finances marketing and external speakers. For the screening of “Children of Men” earlier this year, organizers invited Burlington-based screenwriter and Academy Award nominee Hawk Ostby to Middlebury to share his thoughts on the film and his writing process.
More than 30 years after its inception, the Hirschfield Series retains an underground character.
“In a way [the series] has been around for so long that it’s taken for granted,’’ Murphy said.
According to Professor Grindon, the department often struggles to get its own students to attend screenings. Streaming services like Netflix and Hulu have become the default scapegoat for the declining popularity of movie theaters, yet recent research shows otherwise. A 2018 study by Ernst & Young’s Quantitative Economics and Statistics group showed that “those who attended movies in theaters [...] also tended to consume streaming content more frequently.” In other words, people who enjoy film will most likely enjoy it through more than one medium.
The Hirschfield Series does not attempt to compete with these services, and instead promises a unique viewing experience. According to Murphy, the technical features of Dana Auditorium alone create an unrivaled environment.
“There are many films that depend more on composition, as opposed to plot, that can’t really make an impact on your computer [screen]. There’s a division in what kind of experience you’re looking for,” Grindon said. “If you take the time to go to a particular screening (...), you’re going to be more patient in watching the film. It gives more challenging films a chance to make a greater impact.”
The 2019-2020 season will launch with “Monos,” a Colombian “survivalist saga” directed by Alejandro Landes. The film is Colombia’s official selection for Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards.
(09/12/19 10:03am)
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Seventy-five Shannon St. is a lot like an Ikea dresser. If you unpacked and assembled a piece of the Swedish brand’s furniture in your dorm last week, you’re already partly privy to what the building’s construction looked like for Project Manager Tom McGinn.
“The pre-engineered building manufacturer designed it, engineered it, manufactured the parts and sent it to us,” he said. “And we took it off the truck, stood it up and bolted it together.”
Unlike a “Kallax” shelf or a “Poäng” armchair, the new steel-framed building – which the college is calling “75 Shannon Street” or the “interim academic space,” but which some faculty refer to as the “Middlebury Ikea” – measures in at 22,000 square feet. The first floor is dedicated almost entirely to offices for Sociology, Anthropology, Religion, and Political Science professors displaced from the construction on Munroe Hall, although “offices” may be too strong a word. They’re more open-air cubicles, equipped with shelves and desks.
Seven “meeting rooms” stemming off from the main work space offer a more private alternative for office hours and small conferences. Those are fitted with small circle tables, television monitors, and white noise machines, to keep chatter from seeping through.
Upstairs, things are a bit roomier. Fourteen computer science faculty and staff have moved into full-sized offices from their previous quarters in Bicentennial Hall, to accommodate the department’s growing need for more space. There are also four research labs, much like those in BiHall, and four classrooms.
Each floor has its own kitchenette and common study space, and on the first day of classes, students are already plugging away at homework there between classes. Natural light pours in through large mountain-facing windows, some of the space’s most distinctly modern features.
Commenters on last year’s newsroom article about the building voiced fears that its modern style would clash with the college’s quintessential grey-stone architecture. But McGinn said that the building’s physical location on campus permitted more creative freedom.
“Because we’re on the edge of campus, we thought that we could do something a little different,” he said. “And we could do it for a lower cost than what you would spend for a central campus building,” he added.
The building’s modernity extends past the aesthetic realm. While Munroe was an energy “sieve,” the new space is well-insulated and lit with LED lighting, and there’s a bike rack out front for sustainable commuters. The bathrooms are gender neutral, an intentional upgrade to Munroe’s single-gender toilets.
By June 1, 2020, the Munroe staff will move back into their new(ish) digs. At the same time, the college will empty out Warner Hall and repeat the process with that building’s staff. Then the same with Johnson Memorial Building and the Adirondack House, with other renovations to be determined.
There’s no definitive cap date for the CS department’s occupation of the space, and McGinn is unsure whether the college will even need to build another space.
“We haven’t reached the point where we think a new academic building is needed to accommodate the college,” he said. “We have other projects that are taking priority over a new academic building. Those are what we’re working on now.”
The college lists its future projects on page nine of the 2008 Master Plan. The construction of Munroe marks the first phase of that plan.
(09/12/19 10:01am)
On the Tuesday after I found out that my brother had died by suicide, one of my students told me that his best friend was his sunshine; she was his light when he felt himself surrounded by darkness. Eric was not like the warmth of sunshine. Eric was my moonlight—that cool, beautiful brilliance that perfectly complements the starry darkness of the universe. He was an ever-changing yet constant presence that filled me with wonder at the creative capacity of the human soul.
I started to draw and paint and write because he drew, and painted, and wrote—because once we were sitting on the thin mattress of his college dorm-room bed and I lamented the insignificance of human life, lamented that we are just specks of dust crying out into the void and so often we leave nothing behind but a few memories. And he was flipping through his sketchbook as he sat at the bench of his electric piano and he said—look, this is me, crying out into the void.
He cried out into the void in a voice tinged with the comic absurdity of his melodica, an instrument that ridiculously combines a mouth nozzle with a miniature keyboard. Unnecessary. Absurd. Hilarious. And beautiful for being a combination of those qualities. Eric loved that melodica because he knew it was the result of trying to create meaning in a universe without any meaning at all, and he was someone who fundamentally understood the importance of creating your own meaning.
Even though his striving has ceased, I will forever be grateful for the inspiration he gave me to cultivate my own creativity, to unabashedly pursue something that other people don’t consider valuable, because you love the process of striving.
Like staring up at the moon, there were times he felt just out of reach. As we spent this last year together at Middlebury, I saw him growing into the kind of man I didn’t just love as a brother, but a person I deeply enjoyed being around—a talented young man with varied passions and an edge of cynical humor that put the world in a new perspective. And it hurts beyond words to know that I lost him just as I was getting to know him.
I hate when people tell me things will get better. Because love and suffering go hand in hand, and if I ever cease to suffer at the loss of him, I will have ceased to love him. And that, I refuse to do.
Editors’ note: Eric Masinter ’21 died by suicide July, 2019. Eric took his life during a cross-country road trip returning to his home in Colorado from Middlebury, according to an all-school email from President Laurie L. Patton sent on July 11.
Eric is survived by his parents, Rob ’86 and Kathy, and siblings Jess ’19 and Sarah, U.S. Air Force Academy ’21. He was previously a contributing writer to the the Campus.
Those of us on the editorial board who worked with Eric were heartbroken by this news. Eric displayed thoughtful writing ability through the valuable contributions he made to the news and features sections of this paper. During his time at the Campus, Eric’s reporting focused on the greater Middlebury community, covering the achievements of alumni and students. We as a board would like to express our deepest sympathies to the Masinter family and to Eric’s close friends.
