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Fall family weekend approaches, other visitors still barred from campus

Although families will begin arriving at Middlebury this weekend, the college’s Covid-19 guidelines for the fall semester still prohibit students from hosting visitors. Sports recruits, prospective students, and family members arriving for Fall Family Weekend are allowed on campus, as well as approved speakers and performers. The school has set vaccination requirements and safety procedures for approved visitors.   In an email to students on Aug. 13, Chief Health Officer and College Physician Mark Peluso and Vice President for Student Affairs Smita Ruzicka wrote that “visitors are [only] allowed on campus with departmental permission and for approved events or programs.”  According to the same email, all visitors are required to have received the Covid-19 vaccine unless they have a valid religious or medical exemption and continue to wear face coverings indoors. The college considers Fall Family Weekend a sanctioned school event and will welcome families from across the country on Oct. 8 to 10. Chief Health Officer Mark Peluso and Dean of Students Derek Doucet said Fall Family Weekend, admissions tours and recruiting trips should be handled differently from unapproved visitors hosted by students on campus. While Fall Family Weekend activities will also take place outdoors whenever possible, campus buildings, including residential halls, will still be open to families. “Fall Family Weekend, campus tours and athletic activities are all organized events with specific oversight and mitigation measures in place, and coordinated through various departments on campus. This is different from other guests visiting campus,” Peluso and Doucet wrote in an email to The Campus. Student guests often stay overnight in dorms or other college housing, which increases risk of Covid-19 transmission, according to Peluso and Doucet.  “This is among the primary reasons we have made a distinction between organized events and student visitors in our policies,” they said. This fall, sports teams are also permitted to invite prospective athletes to campus for in-person recruiting visits, but recruits are not approved to stay overnight. The athletics department continues to monitor the status of Covid-19 cases and is taking precautions to prevent the spread of the virus.  “The Athletics Department organizes and manages their visits and there is a process for allowing [prospective athletes] on campus,” Peluso and Doucet said. “Prospective student athletes are only on campus briefly and do not stay overnight.” Peluso and Doucet also said that it is appropriate for certain special guests to be allowed on campus for approved events at this time.  “Experts who give lectures or participate in panels, guest speakers who visit a class, and performers are just some of the guests who take part in approved events or programs,” they said. “Their presence enhances the educational experience of our students.” Peluso feels that the Delta variant and the fact that children under 12 are not able to be vaccinated still warrant a cautious approach to Covid-19 guidelines at this time. “As we transition from a pandemic situation to a more endemic situation, we expect mitigation measures to loosen even further, but it is not an on-off switch,” Peluso said. “We are still actively managing visitors, events and other situations.”

Women’s club rugby relishes return to competition

In light of the abundance of talent on the team, it may come as a surprise that no one on the women's rugby club (MCWRC) team played rugby before joining the squad. A significant portion of credit is owed to the team’s legendary coach, K.O. Onufry. One of the founding members of Boston’s Beantown Rugby Club, Onufry has worked at Middlebury for 21 years. “She’s really a central part of the team,” MCWRC president Lily Shannon ’23 said. “You can tell how much she cares about each and every one of us.” MCWRC (1–1) is now two games into its fall season. On Saturday, Sept. 25, the Panthers defeated Southern Connecticut State University, 22–0. Last Saturday, they traveled to Bowdoin College, falling 27–17. Many MCWRC members—including students from the class of 2024 and 2024.5—are playing in games for the first time ever in their Middlebury career. Last season, due to the pandemic, the team didn’t compete against other schools, and couldn’t have full-contact practices. Instead, they focused on tactical and skill work. The Panthers play in Rugby Northeast and under USA Rugby, so most of their matches are against other NESCAC schools or smaller New England universities. The team has expectations of qualifying for playoffs this year, which have tentative dates of Nov. 6 and 13. One pillar of MCWRC is its inclusivity and camaraderie—the team is very accepting of all players, no matter their prior experience. “The team culture is so good,” Elizabeth Austin ’24 said. “It’s a very open community, very non-judgemental, and [supportive] no matter your skill level.” The Panthers are back in action on Oct. 9, when they host St. Michael’s College. You can stay up to date with MCWRC by following them on Instagram.

First cases on campus this year put college Covid-19 policy to the test

Two students tested positive for Covid-19 upon arrival to Middlebury and one student tested positive post-arrival, according to Julia Ferrante, associate vice president for public affairs, putting into action the college’s policies for confirmed cases on campus and outbreak prevention. Fourteen additional students tested positive as part of Middlebury’s pre-arrival testing program and had to delay their arrival to campus.  These cases were announced to students via email last Friday. The figures provided in the email — included under the heading “Face Covering Reminder” as an example of the necessity of mask-wearing — were 16 pre-arrival cases (combining the two who tested positive upon arrival and the 14 who tested positive before coming to campus) and the one student post-arrival case.   “We do not define these three cases as an ‘outbreak,’” Ferrante said in an email to The Campus. According to Ferrante, the college’s contact tracing efforts in response to the most recent case are ongoing. “As soon as we identify a positive student case, we instruct them to isolate away from others and they are moved to isolation housing or to a location off campus where they can safely recover,” Ferrante said.  Ferrante said that the school then conducts contact tracing to identify any students who may have been infected with the virus. Fully vaccinated close contacts are required to wear masks and be re-test in three to five days, but do not have to quarantine. Unvaccinated contacts must quarantine until they receive a negative Day Seven test result and have no symptoms, unless given other directions by the Vermont Department of Health and CDC guidance.  Other NESCAC institutions have also managed positive cases — and significant outbreaks— at their campuses since the return of students this fall. Most have responded to growing case counts by increasing the frequency of their already regular and widespread testing. Some schools also increased their campus’ level of alert, placing restrictions on dining and gathering limits, and instating other measures to increase physical distancing. At Connecticut College in New London, Conn., 169 students tested positive for Covid-19 in a single week, prompting a campus lockdown on Sept. 7, according to the school’s Covid-19 dashboard. On Sept. 13, after a week of the school’s highest alert level, some restrictions were relaxed, allowing students to return to in-person classes and athletic practices, while dining remained take-out only, and gathering limits stayed low.  Connecticut College students are tested twice per week, and the college’s administration said it believes the outbreak was related to a large number of gatherings indoors in crowded spaces — both on campus in dorms and off campus in bars and apartments — causing a “chain reaction” of spread among the student body. There are currently 20 cases on campus. On Sept. 3, Bowdoin College in Brunswick, ME announced it would increase student testing from once a month to twice per week after a substantial increase in identified cases — at that time there were 30 students in isolation. Bowdoin also increased its alert level, restricting indoor dining capacity and gathering sizes. Bowdoin has not identified a positive student case since Sept. 14. After identifying eight positive cases on campus the week of Aug. 31, Bates College in Lewiston, ME announced that students would be tested twice per week, as a measure to prevent a large-scale outbreak, on top of other health and safety guidelines.  “This ongoing testing is critical to understand the transmission of Covid-19 on campus, particularly among individuals who are asymptomatic, and will provide the data we need to determine whether additional public health measures are necessary to protect the health of the community,” Joshua McIntosh, vice president for campus life at Bates, told students. McIntosh also said the school is prepared to further increase testing — as well as restrict building access, off campus travel and gathering sizes — if case counts increase substantially.  Tufts University also increased their regular student testing from weekly to twice weekly on Sept. 14 after a rise in cases. The Medford, Mass. school identified 85 cases on campus in the last seven days.  Middlebury is the only NESCAC school not testing students across the student population at least once per week, with most schools testing all students once or twice per week. “We are ready to ramp up testing for all students if needed and would do so if prevalence indicates it is needed,” Ferrante said. Ferrante did not say what threshold would trigger widespread testing. The Fall 2021 Campus Guide states that “Decisions about testing — including how often and how many students or employees are tested throughout the semester — will be informed by the health conditions of Addison County and Vermont, campus health conditions, and applicable guidance or requirements.” Vermont registered its highest single-day increase in positive Covid-19 cases of the entire pandemic last week. “We know that the best course of action is for all students, faculty, and staff to follow the protocols in place and do everything we can to prevent an outbreak,” Ferrante said. “That is one of the reasons we decided to require pre-arrival testing”— a measure not undertaken by most NESCACS — “and masks indoors, and we will consider additional measures as conditions evolve.”  A Sept. 16 email from Dean of Students Derek Doucet noted that the college’s pre-arrival testing had identified 16 positive Covid-19 cases.  Though Ferrante did not outline Middlebury’s specific plan for managing an outbreak, she described the options available to Middlebury if case counts increase.  “If we were to identify an increase in cases on campus, we have several options: limiting travel to Vermont, or to Addison County or implementing a campus quarantine for a period of time,” Ferrante said. “Given that 99 percent of our students will be vaccinated, we also offer the option for students to recover at an off-campus location if they are medically cleared to do so.” The Campus spoke with Jessie* ’24, who tested positive for Covid-19 and is currently in isolation housing. Jessie said they had begun to feel unwell early last week but did not believe they had Covid-19. Jessie was tested as a part of the international student arrival-testing process. According to Middlebury’s Fall 2021 Campus Guide, all students arriving from an international point of origin completed a week of arrival testing — students received a test upon arrival and were tested again twice in the following week.  Jessie said that while they provided the student health center with their list of close contacts, they felt, with the increased transmissibility of the Delta Variant, it was difficult to know if they might have exposed anyone else. Jessie said they attended classes last week before receiving their positive test, but ate meals in their room.  Ferrante said that students experiencing even mild symptoms should immediately seek testing at the Health Center.   *Jessie is a pseudonym used to protect the anonymity of a student.  Further resources and information on the Covid-19 protocols and policies can be found here.

Songs from Dusk

I did not know what to expect when I waited for George in front of Mead Memorial Chapel at 5:30 p.m. I have only heard the instrument from afar. When the sun falls behind the trees and paints the late summer sky pink and blue, then, you hear the bells, opening with the same tune every day.The 75-step climb to the top of the chapel was arduous. With amazement, I watched George, who is 86, navigate the steep wooden stairs and low ceilings with a familiarity that only comes with decades of repetition. As the college’s carillonneur, George Matthew Jr. has climbed these stairs since 1986.  “I have played here for 36 years, and I have no intention to stop,” he said.For all the time I’ve spent at the college, I have never seen the instrument behind our daily chimes. Set up like a keyboard, it sits on the top chamber of the chapel and has wooden keys that are connected to bells of various sizes. According to George, its largest bell weighs up to 2,300 pounds — as heavy as the liberty bell.

To Kill a Bookworm: book recs inspired by the season

The leaves are beginning to change in Vermont, and it's starting to feel like fall. I compiled a list of books that remind me of autumn, my favorite time of year to curl up with a cup of tea and a good read. “Circe” by Madeline Miller When I think about fall reading, “Circe” is one of the first novels that comes to mind. Although Miller does not specify the season in which it takes place, “Circe” is filled with magic and stunning landscapes, two aspects that remind me of fall at Middlebury. There is an enchanting feeling on campus that is echoed in the book — the time when the leaves begin to change and golden light filters through the trees.   Circe is the daughter of the sun god Helios and the ocean nymph Perse. There’s something unusual about her from a young age as she quickly discovers that she possesses the power of witchcraft. This power is strong enough to threaten even the gods, leading Zeus to banish her to a remote island.  Circe is one of my favorite female protagonists. She is strong-willed, independent and resilient. Miller expertly weaves countless well-known Greek myths into this story, making it a very fun read.  “Writers and Lovers” by Lily King  I love stories that are deeply rooted in a place. In “Writers and Lovers,” the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts is tangible to the reader. The novel follows Casey Peabody, a young woman who feels lost as she arrives there in 1997.  She picks up a waitressing job and is forced to find her way in a new place with new people.  I found a lot of comfort in this book, making it perfect to curl up with in the fall. Casey has no idea what she’s doing, and I read it during a time when I was feeling a bit unmoored myself. Casey is a relatable protagonist, and I appreciated that King does not sugarcoat her experience. “The Secret History” by Donna Tartt  “The Secret History” is a classic New England fall read. This novel takes place at a small liberal arts college in Vermont, a place that draws many parallels to Middlebury with its intimate classes and beautiful campus. However, unlike its setting, the plot of “The Secret History” is far from tranquil. The tight-knit group of classics majors, who are the central figures in the novel, murders one of their closest friends.  I loved the unpredictability of this novel as well as the suspense that grows with each page. It is not a whodunnit story, but instead an investigation into what led to the dire circumstances that are revealed in the prologue. The characters are vibrant and twisted, each carrying their own secrets and demons.  “Sing, Unburied, Sing” by Jesmyn Ward  “Sing, Unburied, Sing” is a Southern Gothic novel filled with ghosts and complicated family dynamics. Jojo and his younger sister Kayla live with their grandparents, since  their parents are largely absent.  This is a sad read, dealing with drug addiction, prison and parents ill-equipped to raise their mixed-race  children; however,  I loved the relationship between Jojo and Kayla, which is both beautiful and heartbreaking. Jojo is forced to take on responsibilities that no child should have to deal with at the age of 13. The paranormal aspect of “Sing, Unburied, Sing,” in particular reminded me of fall. It is rare to find a novel that successfully mixes elements of spookiness with strong lyrical writing, something Ward achieves effortlessly here. I also loved the Mississippi setting. 

A Coincidence of Time and Place: How I almost met Lionel Messi

The strength of the bond between Lionel Messi and FC Barcelona cannot be overstated. He joined the team when he was just 13, and has led the club to the pinnacle of domestic and international soccer. When he recently became a free agent on July 1, it scarcely made the news. It was his complete intention to rejoin Barcelona, taking a pay cut so that the team could be rebuilt around him. Messi is 34, with the possibility of two or three contract extensions left in his career.    When Messi became a free agent, I was just about to start my grand European adventure. Like many students, I enrolled in Middlebury with the hope of utilizing their vast network of schools abroad to spend a semester in another country. And when it came time for me to apply to these schools and programs, I did just that. I was set to arrive in Copenhagen in the fall of 2020, but of course the world had other plans. After deferring to the spring 2021 semester, I withdrew my application, realizing that it wasn’t worth the eight hour flight and the financial burden to sit in a room, staring out my window at an unavailable outside world. Instead of semesters filled with new experiences, foods and languages, I returned to campus for two semesters of online courses, clubs and friends.     After spending two weeks alone in Copenhagen, gorging myself on fried foods and art museums, I flew to Paris for the remainder of my summer abroad. One day in Paris, I was sitting in my rented apartment late at night, watching the day's Olympic events and medals recapped on the small television that sat in the living room. I had just purchased tickets to a Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) soccer match on a whim. They were $30, and as far back in the stadium as you could go. And I was going to see Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, Messi’s former teammate, and Kylian Mbappé Lottin, a top star in world soccer, pummel whichever team was unfortunate enough to face-off against the Parisian juggernauts. Their season home opener was just days away, giving me enough time to see them play before I had to board the eight-hour flight home.    I picked up my phone and scrolled through Instagram to kill some time before I could go to bed at a reasonably late hour. Just after 9 p.m., I saw a post about Messi pop into my feed. He had left Barcelona without a contract renewal. I feverishly went to the Twitter page of Fabrizio Romano, the world’s leading soccer transfer reporter. He had confirmed it: Messi was leaving Barcelona. I was shocked, stunned, and energized, like I had downed two espressos. I wanted to tell someone about it — shock like this needs to be shared — but there was no one. I was alone in a foreign country, with no local friends or family. I texted my brother, who was still asleep due to his near nocturnal sleep schedule, but it didn’t satiate the urge I had to share the news. I needed to tell someone. So I tested how it sounded out loud. “Messi is leaving Barcelona,” I said to my empty apartment. I wanted to run out in the streets and talk with strangers, to see how they felt, but it was night, and I scarcely spoke their language enough to convey the news.    I spent the night flipping through the rolodex of teams that both wanted and — more importantly — could afford to sign Messi. By the time I woke up, PSG had extended an offer. Not only that, they were Messi’s first choice. My eyes shot open as I came to the realization that I might have bought the cheapest tickets ever to see Messi play.    Two days later, I was heading to the airport to pick up my girlfriend from her arriving flight, as she would spend the last week with me in Paris before we both returned home. After leaving the airport, my feed was flooded with pictures of  hoards of fans just yards from where I had been. They were at the airport to see Messi. He had just flown in from Spain to a hero’s welcome. Hundreds of Parisians flocked to the airport to catch a glimpse of the man who would bring fame and glory to their team and, for this week, my team.   Before the match, I wanted to get a real Messi PSG jersey. I thought it was momentous to be in Paris when the world’s greatest soccer player joined the local team, the kind of story I’d tell my grandkids about. So I ventured to the PSG store on the Champs-Élysées. Before I even rounded the corner to the correct block, a father and son, in matching navy-blue jerseys, passed by. I swiveled to see “Messi” printed across the back. One out of every ten people walking along the Champs-Élysées that day wore a Messi jersey. It was incredible. I had to wait over an hour just to get inside the store — it was a Black-Friday-like rush to grab each and every Messi jersey the store could print.    Messi didn’t play in the match I attended; he was understandably taking time to adjust to his new life in a new country before he was ready to make his debut. When we arrived, however, they were giving a special presentation of all the year’s new signings. After each one was presented, the anticipation built until finally the Argentine stepped foot onto the field. A hauntingly loud chant of “Messi. Messi. Messi.” echoed through the stadium. It was followed by an equally spirited chant of “Ici c’est Paris” (This is Paris).    It was the first time in over a year that it mattered where I was. In a year that was remote, when you could be a student or a friend from anywhere in the world, it never mattered where I set up my computer. I’ll always remember the time that I was in Paris when the world’s best decided to lace up his boots for this city. It felt like it was my city too.   

Fall sports: Season previews

With the academic year underway at Middlebury, fall sports are back in full swing — and in typical fashion, the Panther squads carry high expectations this season. Here are previews for each of the 11 fall varsity sports teams competing this season.    Women’s golf season preview by Josh Rosenstein   Head coach: Bill Mandigo (33 years at Midd)    Captains: Maddy Cordeiro ’23, Katie Murphy ’23   Players to watch for: Audrey Tir ’25, Kayla Li ’23, Jacqueline Slinkard ’24   Background: Women’s golf didn’t have the best of seasons last spring, finishing fourth among five teams in the 2021 NESCAC Championship. There are positives to take away from last semester, though, including the play of captain Katie Murphy ’23. Last spring, Murphy led the Panthers in finishes in every tournament. With her paving the way, how far can the Panthers go? Are there any first-year players who can step in and immediately compete for a top spot?    Key matches: George Phinney Classic (Home; Sept. 18–19), Williams Invitational (Away; Oct. 2–3)   The Middlebury women’s golf team kicked off their season last weekend at the Hamilton Invitational at Yahnundasis Golf Club in New Hartford, New York. The opener was the first of five tournaments of the fall season.   The Panthers are also excited to travel together as a team in a more normal manner, as far as Covid-19 restrictions are concerned. The players still get tested every Monday, and remain cautious when interacting with other teams, but their travel schedule is that of a typical season.   Besides the tournament at home next weekend, the NESCAC qualifiers on Oct. 9 and 10 are marked on all the players’ calendars. The top four teams qualify for the NESCAC Championships in the spring, and the winner gets the privilege of hosting the tournament.   “We are so beyond grateful and just so pumped to be able to compete this season,” Murphy and Cordeiro said in an interview with The Campus. “There is still a lot of uncertainty in the world, so [we are] thankful Midd and the NESCAC did everything possible to make this happen.”   Men’s golf season preview By Charles Crounse   Head coach: Bill Beaney (34 years at Midd)   Players to watch for: Colin McCaigue ’24, Anthony King ’23, Sean McGarrity ’23, Hogan Beazley ’23, KJ Dieker ’22   Background: Men’s golf won the NESCAC Championship last spring, giving them some momentum ahead of this season. The Panthers will certainly miss the contributions of recently graduated captain Jordan Bessalel ’21, the reigning NESCAC Player of the Year, but the team has the pieces to restock the lineup. One key player will be Hogan Beazley ’23 — the junior was an All-NESCAC First Team player last year.    Key matches: Williams Fall Invitational (Away; Sept. 18–19), Sap Bucket Challenge (Away; Oct. 12)    Men’s golf opened its season this past weekend with a home match against 22 other teams, with the Panthers taking fourth over the course of the two-day event. Beazley took home the individual honors with an impressive score of 140 over the two 18-hole rounds, finishing a comfortable three strokes ahead of second place.   The team will turn to their returning seniors for leadership this year, with Phin Choukas ’22 and Chris Thompson ’22 among those returning to the team after taking the past year off due to Covid-19. Thompson and Choukas were among those competing for Middlebury’s first team this weekend, with both set to play key roles this season. Returning NESCAC Freshman of the Year Colin McCaigue also looks set to star, as do Hogan Beazley ’23 and Sean McGarrity ’23. The team has also added four first years to its all-star lineup as they look to blend youth with experience.    Men’s cross country by Charles Crounse   Head coach: Nicole Wilkerson (19 years at Midd)   Captains: Quinlan McGaugh ’22, Noah Whiting ’22   Players to watch for: Drew Donahue ’25, Alec Gironda ’24, Zander Kessler ’22.5, Max Cluss ’23   Background: Men’s cross country has depth in every class this season, from first years to seniors. The question is, as usual: How do the Panthers stack up against other leaders in the NESCAC? How well could they do against Williams, a perennial national contender, for example? Middlebury always finds a way to compete, but could they vault to the top of the NESCAC this year?   Key matches: Aldrich Invitational (Home; Sept. 18), Purple Valley Classic (Away; Sept. 25), Connecticut College Invitational (Away; Oct. 16)   Men’s cross country kicked off their season this past week with a win at the Maple Syrup Challenge. The Panthers nearly swept the top ten with just three rivals sneaking in in second, seventh and eighth respectively. Alec Gironda ’24 earned an impressive victory in his Panthers cross-country debut.    The team looks primed for a strong year this season, hoping to improve on their third place in the NESCAC back in 2019. They will look to top their sixth place finish in the NCAA Regionals and 29th place at the NCAA Championship.    Captains Noah Whiting ’22 and Quin McGaugh ’22 are excited about the team’s prospects this season. Whiting says the team is particularly excited about the first-year and sophomore classes, all of whom had yet to race a proper college 8k coming into the season. Alec Gironda ’24, Peter Burke ’24, Drew Donahue ’25, Oscar deFrancis ’24.5 and Will Lavey ’25 all look set to play big roles as part of the up-and-coming cast of untested runners. Other key runners will include Zander Kessler ’22.5, who placed 57th at the last edition of the NCAA Regional race, and captain Quinlan McGaugh ’22, who placed 62nd at the same race.   The team remains under the leadership of coach Nicole Wilkerson, who has led the team to the NCAA Championship race in every year of her coaching tenure, which spans back to 2011.   Women’s Field Hockey - Blaise Siefer   Head coach: K​​atharine DeLorenzo (20 years at Midd)   Captains: Isabel Chandler ’21.5, Danielle Brown ’21.5, Erin Nicholas ’22   Players to watch for: Katie George ’23 (F), Grace Harlan ’22.5 (GK), Meg Fearey ’21.5 (D)   Background: Is there a better D-3 women’s field hockey team in the nation? The answer is probably no. Women’s field hockey has won the NCAA National Championship the past three seasons — 2017, 2018 and 2019 — and return a core group of top players. It would be silly to bet against this team in any game this season.    Key matches: Bowdoin (Home; Sept. 18), Tufts (Home; Oct. 10), Williams (Away; Oct. 26)   Women’s Soccer - Blaise Siefer   Head coach: Peter Kim (17 years at Midd)   Captains: Eliza van Voorhis ’21.5, Isabelle Hartnett ’21.5, Simone Ameer ’21.5   Players to watch for: Fanny Lodge ’24 (F), Elizabeth Peebles ’23 (M), Eliza Robinson ’21.5 (M)   Background: After an early exit in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, how well can women’s soccer respond this year? They are a perennial juggernaut, last making the NCAA Championship game in 2018, when they fell in dramatic fashion to Williams. The Panthers will have firm tests against Tufts, Williams and Amherst this fall, which could go a long way in determining the ultimate course of their season.    Key matches: Amherst (Home; Oct. 3), Tufts (Home; Oct. 10), Williams (Away; Oct. 26)   Men’s Soccer - Blaise Siefer   Head coach: Alex Elias ’08 (6 years at Midd)   Captains:  Liam Sloan ’22.5, Raffi Barsamian ’21.5, Michael McFarlane ’22   Players to watch for: Ryan Grady ’23 (GK), Jordan Saint-Louis ’24 (F), Ben Powers ’23 (M), Brandon Reid ’21.5 (F)   Background: Men’s soccer hasn’t finished atop the NESCAC since 2008 — could this finally be the year that breaks that streak? The team would need to get past the likes of Tufts, Amherst and Connecticut College first, which won’t be an easy task. But there is a lot of promise among the first-year and sophomore classes, and the Panthers have no shortage of experience; Liam Sloan ’22.5, Raffi Barsamian ’21.5 and Michael McFarlane ’22 are all All-NESCAC caliber players when healthy. Don’t bet against men’s soccer turning a few heads this season.    Key matches: Connecticut College (Away; Oct. 2), Amherst (Home; Oct. 3), Tufts (Home; Oct. 10)   Men’s Tennis - Blaise Siefer   Head coach: Andrew Thomson ’10 (3 years at Midd)   Captains: David Vilys ’22, Stan Morris ’22, and Zach Hilty ’22   Players to watch for: Robby Ward ’23, Aidan Harris ’23   Background: It’s been two years since men’s tennis competed, as the team didn’t have enough players to field a team last spring. After all that time off — and with a relatively new head coach — it’s hard to predict how men’s tennis might fare this season. Will their senior leadership help propel them to success?   Key matches: Middlebury Invitational (Home; Sept. 18–19), Panther Classic (Home; Oct. 2–3), Wesleyan Invitational (Away; Oct. 16–17)   Women’s Tennis - Blaise Siefer    Head coach: Rob Barr (interim head coach)   Captains: Brinlea La Barge ’23, Amanda Frank ’23, Caitlin Neal ’23, Nora Dahl ’22, Ruhi Kamdar ’22.5   Players to watch for: Gena Huang ’24, Amy Delman ’24   Background: Many sophomores and juniors on women’s tennis took the spring semester off — how strong will they return? Also, with former head coach Rachel Kahan taking the head women’s tennis coaching job at Yale several months ago, the team enters an adjustment period as they search for a permanent head coach.    Key matches: Williams Invitational (Away; Sept. 24–26), Middlebury Invitational (Home; Oct. 8–10)   Women’s Volleyball - Sam Lipin   Head Coach: Sarah Raunecker (26 years at Midd)   Captains: Corley Doyle ’22, Maggie Wise ’22, Jane Nelson ’22   Players to Watch: Laney Sullivan ’23 (OH), Gabbie O’Toole ’25 (S), Kelly Ferrero ’23.5 (L)   Background: After jumping out to a 5–0 start to the season having only lost one set in total, the volleyball team is primed for a big season. The squad went 15–10 two seasons prior, and those sophomores and first-years (five players total) have worked tirelessly to rebuild their team. Senior Jane Nelson ’22 claimed she has never been a part of a team as closely knit as this one. The Panthers will look to stay undefeated when they play their first NESCAC opponents of the year this coming weekend.    Key Matches: Amherst (Home; Sept. 24), Wesleyan (Away; Oct. 8), Tufts (Away; Oct. 16)   Women’s Cross Country - Sam Lipin   Head Coach: Nicole Wilkerson (19 years at Midd)   Captains: Emily Bulczynski ’22, Cassie Kearney ’22, Grace Kirkpatrick ’22   Players to Watch: Sophie Nardelli ’23, Eliza Broughton ’22, Katelyn Pease ’22   Background: Cassie Kearney ’22 has dominated the field during her time at Middlebury, once again doing so when she broke a course record in the 5k at Vermont Tech this past weekend. She leads an experienced team poised to build upon their fourth place NESCAC finish in 2019. Middlebury hosts their only cross country event of the season this coming Saturday at their annual Aldrich Invitational.    Key Matches: Aldrich Invitational (Home; Sept. 18), Connecticut College Invitational (Away; Oct. 16)   Men’s Football -  Sam Lipin   Head Coach: Bob Ritter (26 years at Midd)   Captains: Gordon Pollock ’22, Will Jernigan ’21.5, Jack Pistorius ’21.5   Players to watch: Zander Bailey ’21.5 (LB), Jimmy Connell ’21.5 (TE)   Background: In their last full season in 2019, Middlebury football dominated the field, going 9–0 and winning the NESCAC Championship. However, their games were not won by huge margins, with five games ending in a one-score lead. As players return from their semesters off due to Covid-19 and a large freshmen class steps onto the field, will Middlebury once again prevail as champs? Key Matches: Williams (Away; Sept. 18), Hamilton (Away; Nov. 6), Tufts (Home; Nov. 13)

A Midd-Summer Night’s Dream

In between semesters, many students chose to spend their summers on campus, providing the perfect chance to enjoy Middlebury without having to endure the harsh weather and harsher workload. After being online during the summer of 2020, many of the Middlebury Language Schools were back in person this year, making campus all the more vibrant with multilingual students. Many students also chose to work on campus, helping to keep the campus up and running over the summer, whether it was at the gym, the library or the dining hall. Reika Herman ’24 attended the French language school for the majority of the summer. Herman spent her time diligently studying French, taking up to four classes each weekday. In addition to studying, she was a participant in the French School Choir. “Weekends were mostly spent in town with other French students or going to the French school dances at Wilson Hall,” Herman said. She was one of more than a hundred Language School students to call the Middlebury campus home for the summer.  In addition, some students stayed on campus due to travel restrictions or logistical difficulties that barred them from international travel. One such student was Angela Izi ’24. Izi worked five times a week in Proctor Dining Hall, serving language school students from late June, when the program started, until it ended August 13. “I had a great time just meeting the nice people that were there and being able to help the language students that were on campus,” she said.  For Izi, summer at Middlebury meant time to explore and become more familiar with a place that she had not fully gotten to know. “I didn’t have any host family. Because of Covid, we never really got to do that for international students,” Izi said.  She used her time on campus this summer to become more acclimated to the college. Izi also had free time to explore the town of Middlebury and the surrounding area, something she was not able to do this past year because she studied remotely in the fall and was too busy in the spring. “I managed to find a circle of friends that I hung out with the whole summer, and we did a lot of exploring around Midd,” she said. The group spent their time biking to the East Middlebury Gorge and down Weybridge Street. Izi was also able to explore Burlington for the first time. Other students used time over the summer to gain experience working and volunteering. Abed Abbas ’24 stayed on campus over the summer due to the present economic and political circumstances back home in Lebanon. “I wanted to make use of the summer to grow and get some experience,” he said. Abbas worked as a student intern in the Disability Resource Center and as a lab assistant in the stock room of Bicentennial Hall. In addition to working forty hours a week, Abbas volunteered to work in Assistant Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience Clarissa Parker’s lab for ten hours a week, helping with research on the effects of withdrawal on mice.  Abbas experienced an ever-changing social scene that was unlike the past school year. “It was kind of boring at the beginning, as not everyone was here yet,” he said. But once the language school students arrived on campus in mid-June, the campus was much more vibrant. “It was much easier to focus on the close relationships and friendships after the work is done, which was totally different than last semester,” he said. For some students who spent their summer at Middlebury, it was time to explore the area and focus on gaining non-academic experiences, while others devoted themselves to language learning or work while getting to know Vermont and the campus better. 

Testing reveals four Covid-19 cases at summer language schools

Two students and two employees at the Middlebury Language Schools tested positive for Covid-19 near the end of the college’s seven-week summer program, prompting tighter restrictions for those staying on campus. Both students remained in self-isolation on campus, the college announced on Aug. 13, while positive employee cases recovered off campus.  Rumors began to circulate around Thursday, Aug. 12, just two days before many students planned to leave campus. Students in different language programs received conflicting information about the source and location of the outbreak, while some were led to believe that canceled classes were a result of scheduling conflicts, according to Sydney Armor ’24, who attended the German Language School over the summer. “I did have a friend in [another language school] who was texting me and said, ‘All of my classes got canceled, but they didn’t tell us why,’” Armor said. “They just said it was due to ‘scheduling conflicts.’ And then I explained to her what I had heard, and then she didn’t hear the truth from her school until about two days later.” Ben Beese ’21.5, also a member of the German school this summer, said the program’s administration communicated some information about Covid-19 exposure and event cancellations on Thursday afternoon. “Most information we were working with were [essentially] rumors,” Beese said in an email to The Campus. “We heard bits and pieces of info from admins as we ran into them outside but nothing concrete. It sounded like the students might have been from the Spanish program. Maybe they were unvaccinated.” Until August 13, when the college updated face covering requirements and visitor policies via email, vaccinated students were not required to wear masks in any setting.  According to Beese, masks and Covid-19 guidelines were loosely enforced, especially after arrival testing yielded zero positive results. All students were required to be vaccinated before or during the summer session, and vaccinated students were not tested during the summer. Meanwhile, student research assistants and lab workers relied on their peers for any information they could gather. Hira Zeeshan ’22, who studied in a neuroscience lab on campus this summer, said she heard about the two active Covid-19 cases from a group of peers. “I first learned about the Covid outbreak amongst language school students from my fellow RAs,” Zeeshan said. “The school didn’t inform us until a few days later when they started implementing Covid restrictions in the dining halls and in buildings.” Zeeshan said that many language school students and research assistants did not mix over the summer, instead forming their own factions within the school. She expressed disappointment with some language schools students’ failure to respect Covid-19 protocols. She also suggested that the guidelines for social gatherings among research assistants seemed to be undefined. “One thing, however, that we were unclear about was that [sic] whether research assistants could have small gatherings, because they were common for language school students,” Zeeshan said. “There was a strong divide between the language school students and the research assistants… RAs were quite disappointed with language school students because we were respectful of the Covid guidelines but had to adjust to this change after a summer of not wearing face coverings.” Before the outbreak, students experienced a “near-normal” summer session, thanks to a high vaccination rate among students in the language programs and lower rates of infection near Middlebury. “We were going in town, having parties, masks were just about nowhere to be seen. It was great, and I think everyone felt pretty safe,” Beese said. “We weren’t being tested regularly — after all, we all thought the vaccines were going to prevent infection until Delta took off this summer.” In the final weeks of the session, the college offered testing to students who needed to show a negative PCR test for international flights, but did not provide universal testing for vaccinated students. Some language schools directors instead encouraged their students to receive testing at a site in town, but there were few available appointments before groups were scheduled to depart on Aug. 13 and 14.  As the college commences what seems to be a more “normal” fall semester thus far — with in-person classes, traditional dining hall operations and sports competitions — student concerns about Covid-19 cases and the spread of the Delta variant linger.  “It was amazing to be back to normal,” Beese said. “Hearing that there were [Covid] cases on campus then and that we should be masking and distancing, etc, made it feel like we’d been too optimistic… So realizing that there was a chink in our utopia was a big wakeup call, and I think we were unsure of what that meant for us personally, for the fall and for the pandemic in general.”

Print Schedule

We print on Thursdays throughout each semester and during J-Term. You can find print copies of the paper for free at 7 a.m. in stands around campus, and you can find stories on our website at 6 a.m. on Thursday mornings. 

“Everybody” raises hell in Wright Memorial Theatre

Based on the 15th-century morality play “Everyman,” each character in the Middlebury Department of Theatre’s production of “Everybody,” a play by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, seeks to personify a worldly value. Presented live by a company of actors and dancers, “Everybody” was performed for a limited in-person audience from May 13 to 16, and will be available for streaming until May 21.  At its crux, “Everybody” follows Meili Huang ’23 in the title role (Everybody), on a quest issued by Death, played by Gabrielle Martin ’21.5. In creating a final presentation of their lifetime prior to meeting Death, Everybody aspires to recruit a few followers on the way. The play begins with Devon Hunt ’23, dressed as an usher and ready to issue your typical pre-show warnings. The kicker is that they punctuate each instruction with a zesty rebuke and remain onstage, just as the “voice of God” comes into play. Here, Everybody takes an early step into the reflexive, ready to confuse and bewilder the audience as they blur the line between fact and fiction. It’s unclear whether Hunt is an usher for the show or in the show, but perhaps that’s the daring charm. There is no end to the confusion as Everybody continues onwards. We encounter Friendship (Teddy Best ’22), Kinship (Vivian Zagotta ’24)  and even Time (Irith Fuks ’21.5). Phenomenal lighting and sound design add to the purposefully vague performances, blending together the dances and monologues of what felt like fifty different voices. Even when the audience is “evacuated” outside due to a diegetic fire drill, the scenes blend seamlessly into one another. Huang stuns in her performance as Everybody, traversing the enthusiasm, confusion and anger that come with dealing with death. Events come to a head after Everybody confronts Stuff (Katelyn Wenkoff ’24). Stuff best represents the jokingly reflexive nature of this play, criticizing human consumption with hilarious poses and lines. In a frenzy, Everybody grows desperate and breaks down, deciding to go the route alone. At this point, Love (Masha Makutonina ’21) appears. Like much of the cast, Love begins as part of the audience and first breaks her silence by threatening to leave, only for Everybody to earn her back. The trip to Death is now well underway, and the show accelerates rapidly, ascending to an outdoor rendition of the “Danse Macabre.” In a flurry of neon lights, the cast of “Everybody” makes its rounds outside. Dancers dressed in black spin around the audience. It is never specified whether they are meant to represent life or spirit, but the energy they put off is irrefutable. Bringing vivacity to the piece, the rendition of the “Danse Macabre” is stunningly interpretive. Situated outside, “Everybody” cleverly utilizes its surroundings to craft the story and involve the audience. When we, the “everybody” of the audience, encounter the big questions in life, accepting universals like death or solitude can be daunting. But the cast of “Everybody,” and its eponymous main character, navigated these questions with ease.  

Siefer’s Scoop Podcast: A year in review

This academic year, I hosted my first ever podcast: Siefer’s Scoop. I began recording episodes in September — having absolutely no idea what I was doing — and just wrapped up my last episode this week, still with no clue what I’m doing.The idea behind the podcast was to explore the unique athletic journeys of Middlebury’s student athletes. So many athletes at Middlebury carry fascinating stories — from how they picked up their sport(s) to how they got to Middlebury — but I found that many of these stories were going untold. I hoped that Siefer’s Scoop would begin to bridge that gap. While there was a steep learning curve associated with breaking into the podcasting world, I’ve enjoyed the challenge every week, and have recorded 19 total episodes with Middlebury athletes. From my first episode of the year with Cole Crider ‘23, to my special episode on student-athlete activism, to my final episode with Brett Perlmutter ‘24, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to chat with some of the most interesting student athletes at Middlebury. The athletes I’ve interviewed span 18 varsity teams, a little over half of Middlebury’s 31 athletic programs. While there are many other athletes that I wish I could’ve hosted on the podcast this year, I’m still really happy with what I’ve covered. There were so many highlights from this year — too many to count, to be honest — so, for those who maybe didn’t catch every episode, I thought I’d list my favorite quote from each episode this spring. I also wrote a semester in review article last winter, so go check that out if you want more details on my fall coverage.I hope these quotes put a smile on your face. Most of them come from the “Why Midd?” section of the episodes, but others are just snippets from interesting stories that student athletes have told me on the podcast. Looking forward to returning to the airwaves soon — whether it be this summer or fall. ’Til then, stay well, and Go Panthers! Episode #9: Nate Moll ’22, men’s squash“What’s really telling is that we spend time outside of scheduled practice to hang out with each other. We’ll just watch a movie on the weekend or just hang out and enjoy each others’ company. I was extremely lucky to find that at Middlebury.” Episode #10: Delanie Goniwiecha ’23, women’s hockey“Middlebury appealed to me in so many ways — just walking around on campus, it felt more like a home than other campuses’ did. I really liked the way they went about things and treated students and athletes very similarly: [athletes] aren’t going to be put on a higher level than anyone else, and I actually really respected that.” Episode #11: Jordyn Johnson ’23, women’s softball“Freshmen have to decorate the locker room. Something really funny was us trying to come up with the theme. All the sophomores are like, ‘Yours isn’t going to be as good as ours.’ We went to the Dollar Store and we got a Buzz Lightyear piñata, which is kind of random. We ordered alien glasses — and they never came.”Episode #12: Beau Root ’23, men’s baseball“It seemed like there was such a bond to the school. My dad had a couple friends that went to [other schools], and when my dad mentioned I was thinking of going there, they were like, ‘Oh nice, if he wants to talk about it let me know.’ Whereas, when he talked to friends who had gone to Middlebury, they were like, ‘Oh my god, that’s great, I loved it there. Please, get me his number, I’ll reach out to him.’”Episode #13: Hans Pessl ’22.5, men’s Nordic“Midd skiing has been a total dream. I’d be with those guys all the time — it’s a great group of people. Episode #14: Lucy Ambach ’23, women’s volleyball“I didn’t want to visit Middlebury at first. My dad and I were about to take this long road trip… and I was feeling very tired and didn’t want to go. I remember my mom telling me that I would love the campus. So, I grudgingly said, ‘Ok, I’ll go.’ And my dad and I visited in April, and we were touring the campus in a blizzard. I fell in love with the campus — I had that cliché, gut feeling that everyone talks about.”Episode #15: Men’s baseball captains Jack Farrell ’21 and Tommy Eastman ’21Tommy: “I was amazed at how close the team was, how much time the team spent together. Everyone was such good friends and it was so natural. We are all friends for life now.” Episode #16: Men’s golf captains Jordan Bessalel ’21 and John Mikus ’21Jordan: “Everybody is really close with each other, everybody really wants each other to succeed. When we qualified to have the NESCAC Championships hosted here, it was pretty competitive for who would end up making the playing squad. But one thing that really stood out to me was just how much everybody wanted the next guy to succeed and give the team the best chance. That’s a testament to how close everyone is and what kind of a culture we have.”Episode #17: Ellie Barney ’21.5, women’s hockey“My mom and I were visiting a bunch of schools on the East Coast, and the pass from Boston to Middlebury was closed the day we wanted to go, so we had to go through Rutland. And my mom doesn’t like driving on two-way highways and hated it. It was the longest drive, and I was in such a bad mood; when we got there, I didn’t even get out of the car. But then we got Schaffer’s, and I was like ‘This is the best sandwich of my life. I like this place.’ I didn’t even get out of the car — I was such a drama queen.’” Episode #18: Bochu Ding ’21, rower and editor in chief of The Campus  “[Middlebury has taught me] it’s OK to not have everything figured out. It’s fine to not necessarily know what you are doing, who your friends are, [or] what you are going to study. It’s okay to let that go — because you will find some sort of direction eventually.”Episode #19: Brett Pearlmutter ’24, men’s swimming and diving“I get to Middlebury, and it was pretty high up on my list to begin with — but I wasn’t necessarily sold. My host takes me back to the dorm and we see two of his friends in the hallway. And I say to them, ‘So what do you think of Middlebury?’ And without hesitation, [they say] ‘I love it, I absolutely adore this place.’ And what I found was literally the rest of the 24 hours I was there, every single person I talked to [said] ‘I love this place. This place is unbelievable. Yeah, it’s hard, but I don’t mind — I love the challenge.’ I left my recruit trip [thinking] this is the place for me.”Editor’s Note: Quotes have been lightly edited. 

Season in Review: Men’s golf

The competitive sports season may have now come to an end, but the sweet taste of victory remains fresh for men’s golf. Despite many obstacles — ranging from a reduced number of players on campus to an abbreviated season — the Panthers staged an impressive come-from-behind win in the NESCAC championship to claim the school’s ninth-ever title. Only five rostered men’s golf players returned to campus for the spring semester, despite the official roster numbering in the double digits.  Captains Jordan Bessalel ’21 and John Mikus ’21 were greeted with a talented — but young and inexperienced — squad: Hogan Beazley ’23, who had only experienced five days of collegiate competition before the long layoff due to Covid-19; Derek Ban ’24, a first year from Rancho Cucamonga, California; and Colin McCaigue ’24, a first year out of Brookline, New Hampshire.  With the squad of five meaning he would have no available substitutes, coach Bill Beaney recruited Porter Bowman ’21.5 as a walk-on. The team made its first competitive appearance in nearly 18 months at the Hamilton College shootout, finishing 13 strokes off the pace in third place but still beating both Williams and Amherst. Colin McCaigue’s debut was undoubtedly the highlight as he led the team with a three over par.  The team began rounding into form in their next match at Williams College, finishing second out of five teams behind the hosts. McCaigue once again led the Panthers in scoring with Bessalel and Mikus not far behind.  Just two weeks into the season, the Panthers were given the daunting task of competing against the NESCAC’s best at the conference championship. A two-day, 36 hole competition, the competition would test the skill and composure of the competing teams. Bowman was called upon to join the starting lineup for the contest after impressing in practice.  The Panthers made a strong start, placing third on the opening day, but they still had plenty of work to do in the second round as they finished three strokes back on Tufts and two behind Trinity. Hungry for victory, the Panthers hunted down the two teams in front of them and claimed victory on the second day behind huge performances from Beazley, Bessalel, and Mikus. The second round victory proved to be decisive as Middlebury claimed its ninth NESCAC title, stealing it from the clutches of Tufts and Trinity by a single stroke.  The Panthers then concluded their season with an individual shootout against Hamilton College, sweeping the top four spots with Beazley taking home the individual medalist honors. His award was just one of many for the team, as Bessalel claimed the NESCAC Player of the Year award, McCaigue took rookie of the year distinction, Beaney won the coach of the year award, and Mikus and Beazley were both attributed All-NESCAC honors.  Bessalel becomes Middlebury’s fifth Player of the Year since 2010, while McCaigue followed in Bessalel’s footsteps by becoming the sixth Panther to be deemed rookie of the year. Coach Bill Beaney’s coach of the year award was his fifth ever and his first since his three year streak of winning it ended in 2017.  “It was a special season… the boys went out there, held their composure, and gave it their all,” Beaney said.  The Panthers are expected to begin the next campaign sometime in the fall with the return of the autumn season, while they will look to defend their title next spring. Editor’s Note: Porter Bowman ’21.5 is the Senior Opinion Editor for The Campus. 

Season in review: Men’s track and field

Men’s track and field ended their season on a high note as they traveled to Williams College this weekend, competing against several colleges including Tufts, Amherst and Williams.  While the event wasn’t scored, it didn’t stop Middlebury from showing out: Quinlan McGaugh ’22 placed second in the 1500-meter with a time of 3 minutes, 57.21 seconds, while Aaron Tobias ’24 took the silver in the 100 with a time of 11.03.  Nothing stopped Middlebury in the throwing events either, as Nathaniel Klein ’21 snatched first in both the hammer throw (46.01 meters) and shot put (13.93 meters). James Caprio ’21 also won the discus with an impressive throw of 42.58 meters.  “I feel incredibly thankful to the coaches and administration who worked hard to make it happen,” Klein stated. “I am sad to leave but I had a wonderful time competing for Midd, and I know our team has a bright future.” Some athletes will get the chance to compete a final time in the Tufts Last-Chance Meet at Tufts University today, May 20, yet most will be finished and looking onward toward summer.  While there was no NESCAC Championship meet this season, several Panthers earned All-NESCAC honors. Nadji Ngbokoli ’24, Matthew Durst ’21, Finn Warner ’24, and Tobias each earned this honor with their 43.54-second mark in the 4x100, while Arden Coleman ‘21 also took home the distinction with a 49.72 second 400. Klein and Zack Seib ’21 were also tabbed All-NESCAC athletes, the second time each thrower has earned the honor. 

Part 5: Transparency & Accountability

The Transparency and Accountability section of the Action Plan (Section V) was designed to assess and communicate progress towards strategic goals and ensure responsible parties complete them. The section also commits to ongoing assessment and planning to ensure the mission behind DEI continues into the future.  Section V aims to create intentionality behind the work and enable the completion of tangible progress and goals rather than merely written promises, according to Director of Education for Equity and Inclusion Renee Wells. Of the 13 strategies in this section, two have been completed, seven are underway and four have not yet started due to a later timeline. The section differs from the rest of the plan due to the greater variety amongst the strategies. Many of the strategies are based on sharing progress and data, while others introduce key initiatives and projects to the college. This has made the Transparency and Accountability section more challenging to work on, according to Miguel Fernández.  “The thing about this kind of work is that if there's no intentionality around being accountable and no process for being held accountable, it's really easy for stuff to just not get done,” Wells said. “So we're saying to ourselves that we need to be accountable for doing this work, but we're also saying to the community we need you to hold us accountable for doing this work. We're going to try to be as transparent in an ongoing way about where we're at, so that we don't just issue a plan and then assume that everything is magically happening, because that rarely is the case.”  Communication with the college community is a central theme in the Transparency and Accountability section, and the opening strategy of the section commits to developing a communication plan to “ensure the centrality of diversity, equity and inclusion to Middlebury’s mission is clear and messaged both consistently and effectively.”  “The communications plan to be developed will take into account the needs and voices of all Middlebury stakeholders and include all means of connection—letters to the community, podcasts, news and magazine stories, social media, press outreach, and more” David Gibson, vice president for communications, said.  Four of the strategies in the section propose a timeline for the 2020-2021 school year, most of which are still currently in the works.  Strategy #4 of the plan, one of the four of the 2020-2021 strategies, aims to create and maintain a dashboard that tracks progress towards institutional DEI goals and anti-racist initiatives. The Office of Institutional Diversity Equity and Inclusion (OIDEI), however, has had difficulty trying to create a proper model for the website, and a dashboard has not yet been made available to the community.  “We have found that a dashboard is very hard to create when you don’t have numbers, this work is qualitative and not quantitative ...we have work to do in that area; we’re trying to improve our communication,” Fernández said. OIDEI has a mock-up for the dashboard and is working with Information Technology Services and the SGA Innovation and Technology committee to complete the project.  While OIDEI works towards a way to properly present this material, Fernández has started a monthly update sharing information addressing aspects of the plan. These alternative forms of communication have included newsletters via email and webinars with students, alumni, parents and faculty. Both Fernández and Wells noted the importance of the dashboard in regards to creating transparency and accountability and hope it can be up and running soon. Two other 2020-2021 strategies include the creation of the Anti-Racist Taskforce (Strategy #7) and a DEI committee within the Board of Trustees (Strategy #8), both of which have been formed and are ongoing initiatives. The Anti-Racist Taskforce was created last fall and meets twice per month with a consistent group of 18 members comprised of faculty, staff and students. The force is divided into three working groups: funding transformative projects, launching an Anti-Racist learning hub in the Davis Library and creating a community dialogic standard. The task-force also facilitates monthly Story Circles, which seeks to understand the school’s collective history through sharing personal stories.    “The Anti-Racist Task Force is interested in creating pathways towards anti-racism by educating and empowering individuals to evaluate their dependance on racist principles and ideologies,” Associate Professor of Dance Christal Brown, who heads the task force, said. “By creating personal accountability and relational understanding, we believe sustainable institutional change is possible; being accountable to one another is the first step.” In addressing strategy #8, the Board of Trustees voted to create a DEI subcommittee last October which reports to the Strategy Committee within the Board. The group had their first meeting as a subcommittee last January and plan on having more meetings to best identify ways the Board can align with and support efforts outlined in the DEI action plan. The fourth and final strategy for the 2020-2021 school year involves collecting and reporting out aggregate data on the diversity of students, staff and faculty. This data, however, will not be collected until the end of the academic year, according to Fernández A majority of the remaining plans have a later timeline, so many initiatives have not yet been implemented. This includes providing an annual State of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion address starting in the 2021-2022 school year (Strategy #5), hiring an external consulting firm to conduct campus climate studies (Strategy #9), and integrating inclusive excellence goals and benchmarks into the evaluation of senior academic and administrative leaders (Strategy #13). Other strategies, however, are in the early stages of progress and are more difficult to concretely track.  Strategy #12, for instance, aims to “support unit-level efforts to identify and implement DEI goals and strategies relevant to individual departments, units, programs or offices.” Although it is more difficult to track the progress on strategies such as these, OIDEI is giving time for different departments to lay out their DEI goals.  “I'm working with different departments and currently that's more of them reaching out proactively versus me reaching out to every department on campus. A lot of folks have been really trying to think about and identify what this support looks like in their respective units,” Wells said, in reference to Strategy #12. “Some of those are academic units, some of those are student affairs and student life units. So some of that work is already starting to happen.”  Wells and Fernández both hope these goals within the Transparency and Accountability section will help create ongoing conversation and responsibility in the school’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion that goes beyond just numbers.  “Diversity is about numbers and bringing people in, but the real work is in equity and inclusion,” Fernández said. “You can bring in all the people you want, and if they don't feel that they are a part of this community or a sense of belonging then what have you really achieved? You haven't achieved much right? And so the hard work as far as I'm concerned is that equity and inclusion.”

Part 3: Fostering & Restoring Community

The Fostering and Restoring Community section involves strategies that are concerned with creating restorative mechanisms to address harm, facilitating spaces for critical conversations and workshops, creating avenues for dialogue between different stakeholders and providing opportunities to report incidents of bias and discrimination. These strategies are wide in scope, addressing students, faculty, staff, administration and community members.  Director of Equity and Inclusion Renee Wells said that being in a community means that people will both experience and cause harm that is often unintentional.  “Harm is happening all over the campus all the time,” Wells said. “I think that cultural change requires that we acknowledge where systemic, institutional, interpersonal barriers and harms exist and the ways in which we are either unintentionally complicit in or sometimes benefit from that.”  “Due to differences in lived experience, every individual has a different comfort level navigating and talking about harm, and it is important to meet students where they are at in their journey,” Wells said. Though some people may feel discomfort during conversations about diversity, equity and inclusion, ultimately, they are feeling discomfort with a threat to the status quo, Wells explained.  “But what we have to acknowledge is that this status quo is a whole bunch of interconnected systems of oppression that perpetuate inequity and harm,” she said. “So we have to get comfortable with the fact that people are going to be uncomfortable with that.”  Of the 14 strategies detailed in the Fostering and Restoring Community Section of the Action Plan, 10 were scheduled for completion this year. Twelve of the fourteen have either been accomplished or commenced at the time of publication, and eight strategies are ongoing.  Responding to incidents of harm Strategy #1 is about developing a system for using restorative practices, which is a framework used to proactively build community in response to incidents that cause harm on campus. There is a current framework in place, but the Restorative Practices Steering Committee — which includes several staff and administrators — is constantly tweaking the framework and is still integrating it into bodies around campus.  Associate Dean of Community Standards Brian Lind said that restorative practices, which have been employed by the college for several years in place of traditional disciplinary avenues, consist of three pillars: community building, responding to harm, and leadership. Residential Life and staff members have been trained in facilitating community building circles and restorative frameworks to address breakdowns in community, such as when communities cause harm to each other.  The restorative practices framework can be used in a variety of contexts, but often involves bringing parties who have experienced and caused harm together to discuss the impact of a behavior or breakdown in community.  “Restorative practices give us a meaningful framework to develop relationships so that we have stronger bonds when we cause or experience harm,” Lind said. “And we have a shared practice of how to respond to [harm] appropriately.”  Strategy #12 establishes alternative options for responding to incidents of relationship misconduct outside of the traditional adjudication process. Before this alternative pathway was available, students who wished to report misconduct filed a complaint with the Title IX office and underwent a formal investigation, according to Lind. This strategy creates another option.  “The [adaptable process] gives us a way, I think, to address it in a form that isn't punitive, that will hopefully help repair the harm that's been caused, and help everybody involved kind of process and work through writing the situation. Establishing opportunities for critical conversations  Strategy #2 is about engaging students in critical conversations around healthy relationships including sexual encounters and consent, and strategy #4 is about critical conversations about consent, sexual violence, and misconduct. These initiatives have commenced and are ongoing. According to Emily Wagner, assistant director of health and wellness education, their office has already had successful engagement with a variety of programs, including ProjectConnect, a six-week group series where students learn about developing authentic relationships, and Finding Your People, a panel for students to share ideas about expanding your friendship circle and creating community at Middlebury.  Green Dot, a pre-existing program that aims to prevent sexual violence and promote healthy relationships through bystander intervention and conversation, will begin providing training at each of the Middlebury schools abroad. The training will be tailored to the cultural and linguistic differences of that country beginning in the fall of 2021, Wagner said in an email to the Campus. Sex Positive Education for College Students (SPECS) and confidential advocacy services such as MiddSafe have also sought to create a safer space on campus regarding relationships and consent. For the past three semesters, the Title IX office has also incorporated Speak About It — a program about consent and communication — into first-year student student orientation. The Title IX office also hosted a book club for students for the book Sexual Citizens, which discusses sexual assault on college campuses, according to Wagner and Civil Rights and Title IX Coordinator Marti McCaleb.  “As we move into the 2021-2022 school year, we are working closely with Residential Life and other campus partners around strategic ways to reach more students in person,” Wagner said in an email.  Avenues for dialogue and feedback Several strategies in this section are concerned with establishing channels of communication between students and staff, faculty, and administration.  Wells hosts weekly office hours on Fridays from 12 to two and by appointment where students, faculty and staff can share concerns, seek support, and explore strategies to address concerns, an initiative introduced in strategy #6 of the Plan.  Per strategy #7, the Senior Leadership Group (SLG) — a collection of senior-level administrators — has been meeting monthly with a group of BIPOC students who “represent key stakeholders and leadership of different cultural organizations to have collaborative discussions that aim for the implementation of institutional change,” according to a school-wide email from Dec. 15.  Strategy #8 calls for the creation of a Student Advisory Council for the Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to provide feedback and recommendations related to campus concerns, barriers to marginalized students on campus and forms of oppression. According to Chief Diversity Officer Miguel Fernández, this strategy has not yet been implemented.  Strategy #9 tasks Faculty Council and the Educational Affairs Committee with “explor[ing] the possibility of including a question about accessibility, equity, and classroom climate on Course Response Forms.” This strategy is slated for 2021–2022, and work has not yet begun on this initiative, according to Faculty Council member Natalie Eppelsheimer.  Strategy #13 tasks Community Council (CC) with exploring the role of Public Safety and collaboration with police and security. CC will then present a proposal to SLG outlining their findings. According to Co-Chair of Community Council Christian Kummer, CC has been in conversation with administration to create a formal recommendation on this topic, which will likely be completed next fall.  Workshops Strategy #5 calls for regular workshops for faculty and staff to better understand the reporting requirements and investigation process for discrimination, harassmaent and sexual violence, and appropriate resources for members of the campus community. OIDEI provides the workshops and has presented them to various offices and groups, including Directors of the Language Schools, faculty and staff at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies, staff of the Schools Abroad and incoming new faculty at Middlebury, according to McCaleb.  “Every Middlebury employee has the responsibility to participate in and promote a respectful environment at Middlebury,” said McCaleb in an email. “Our conversations in this area are geared towards individuals understanding their personal impact and obligations within our community.”  Strategy #14 calls for “regular education opportunities related to diversity, equity and inclusion in the local community.”  Wells has spearheaded these efforts, and has facilitated various workshops in the past year about anti-racism, microaggressions and stereotyping for local non-profits, the Rutland NAACP, campus and community members, Middlebury Co-op managers and the Ilsley Public Library.  Communication and Reporting  Strategy #3 is concerned with clear communication about behaviors prohibited under the Non-Discrimination Policy and how to report breaches of this policy. This strategy has already been implemented.  Strategy #10 advises the creation of an online form that can be used to report incidents of discrimincation, harassment and violence. This form has been in use since at least last fall, and can be found at go/bias. As of January of this year, the form had received 28 incident reports representing 16 incidents, according to Fernández.  Strategy #11 recommends that an online form be used to report incidents of discrimination, harassment and violence. This form can be found at go/report and has been promoted through various social media channels and partners, though it is not yet widely utilized, according to  McCaleb.

Part 2: Students

The section of the Action Plan for Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion that focuses on students is broken down into four categories of initiatives: recruitment, financial aid, development and support.  Renee Wells, Director of Education for Equity and Inclusion, hopes that these initiatives address the questions about community  “How do you help students understand what it means to be a part of a community and to foster community with and for others?” Wells said.  Wells, working alongside Chief Diversity Officer Miguel Fernández and a variety of other staff members across the college, have aimed to interact with students when there are opportunities to engage with the entire student body, specifically through ResLife and Orientation.  Fernández has also aimed to increase the amount of direct student feedback for the respective initiatives, and has met consistently with Concerned Students of Middlebury and the SGA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee.  They hope to use these initiatives to make DEI a key component of the Middlebury experience across all parts of campus and academic life.  “Part of what it means to be at Middlebury is to be a part of a community and to think about how you are part of a community in a way that's intentional,” Wells said.  Out of 15 total initiatives in the student section of the Action Plan, eight have been completed, four have been partially completed, one is unknown, and four have not yet been completed. The initiatives that have not been completed at all have completion dates in future years.  Recruitment Nicole Curvin, Dean of Admissions, has relied on demographic data and institutional research to integrate DEI initiatives into several aspects of the admissions process.  Strategy #1 is to increase the admission of historically underrepresented groups. Curvin reports that 40% of the incoming class of 2025 is BIPOC. In 2019, for comparison, only 27% of the student body were BIPOC.   Strategy #2 outlines the creation of a Student Ambassador Program, which was formed in the last academic year in order to reach underrepresented prospective students. The program, which typically sends ambassadors to high schools around the country, has temporarily moved online because of the Covid-19 pandemic.  “We plan to continue to develop this program and eventually return to in-person visits with high school students once it is safe to do so,” Curvin said.  Strategy #3 involves introducing DEI as a core value in the recruitment process. This has involved training staff and student employees on DEI in a variety of ways.  “In the past two years, we hosted facilitators during our annual staff retreat and as we embarked on application review to consider how we approach our evaluation of lived experiences and school context,” Curvin said.  Staff have also read texts, listened to podcasts, and attended conferences and workshops focused on DEI in order to better understand how to best recruit a diverse student body.  “We become better recruiters by understanding and acknowledging our applicant pool for who they are,” Curvin said.  Strategy #4, to increase the accessibility of campus visits, has been put on pause as in-person campus tours did not resume until May 6. Now that in-person tours are allowed, Curvin hopes to consult the community about how to make them more accessible to all prospective students.  “We have already begun discussions and have added features to our website and videos to support prospective students,” Curvin said.  Financial Aid  Strategy #5 outlines a plan to offer opportunities for critical conversations about DEI among staff in both Admissions and Financial Aid, both of which have taken part in DEI workshops. ResLife staff have also attended four mandatory DEI workshops this year, according to Dean of Student Life AJ Place. According to Kim Downs-Burns, associate vice president of student financial services (SFS), SFS has initiated several strategies to implement DEI in their work that aim to better support low-income students.  The SFS office has met with incoming Posse cohorts to review financial aid decisions, collaborated with other NESCAC schools to reach out to low-income students to answer questions about financial aid, worked with SGA to provide an emergency assistance fund for J-term, and participated in Discover Middlebury to meet first-generation students.  Strategy #6 aims to increase accessibility to Middlebury by creating a financial aid policy that goes “beyond need blind and covering full demonstrated need.” One example of this policy that the college has started implementing, according to Downs-Burns, is that many students in Posse cohorts receive financial aid that goes above and beyond their demonstrated need.  SFS has also worked to use fundraising as a way to increase financial support available.  “One of our upcoming fundraising campaigns is prioritizing new gift funds to expand our current pool of eligible students,” said Downs-Burns.  Strategy #7 also addresses accessibility by aiming to reduce the barrier of the cost of course materials such as textbooks.  “SFS has done some work analyzing the costs of textbooks, average course costs, and comparing textbook allowances with what our peer institutions offer in their aid packages,” Fernández said.  SFS already conducts an annual review of their average textbook costs compared to peer institutions. More work will continue on the project in upcoming semesters.  “Currently Midd incorporates a $1000 annual book allowance in the individual student aid budgets which is the median of all Consortium of Financing Higher Education (COFHE) colleges,” said Downs-Burns. COFHE contains 35 other selective liberal arts colleges.  In the fall of 2020, 489 students qualified for SFS’ book advance program, but many students didn’t take advantage of their qualification, which has led SFS to reevaluate the program.  SFS plans to work with the Office of Advancement to fundraise for a book grant program to assist aid recipients with purchasing textbooks, which has been hampered by Covid-19 costs.  “Currently the funding is limited, but we hope a successful pilot will lead to an increase in eligible students,” Downs-Burns said.  Fernández will be working on the textbook accessibility initiative, as well as Strategy #8, which aims to grow an endowed fund to enable students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds to participate in the full Middlebury experience, including funding for travel home or trips to Burlington. An endowed fund entails investments of capital that can be periodically withdrawn.  Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for funds has been so high that all donated funds have been put in use and not placed in an endowed fund.  According to Fernández, President Patton plans to make the fund a priority in upcoming fundraising campaigns. The college aims to have the textbook accessibility initiative complete within the next year, while the endowed funds for underprivileged students is expected to be completed in two years.  Development  Strategy #9 extends Wells’s work with DEI workshops to student leaders in Orientation, ResLife, International Student Services, MiddSafe, SGA, and other student organizations.  Similarly, Strategy #10 aims to embed DEI into Orientation programming, and Strategy #11 outlines increasing opportunities for critical conversations among the general student body.  “I have been meeting weekly with the JusTalks students throughout the 2020-2021 academic year, and they have developed and facilitated dozens of peer education workshops during the fall, J-term, and spring semesters,” Wells said. JusTalks also collaborated with Orientation to offer workshops for the class of 2024.5.  While the scale of activities has been inhibited by social distancing requirements, there are plans to expand these initiatives once operations go back to normal. Amanda Reinhardt, Director of Student Activities, said that the virtual workshops are just the beginning.  “As we start planning for MiddView 2021 and Feb Orientation 2022, we will continue to explore ways to incorporate and assess additional DEI content into Middlebury’s Orientation programming in order to meet the goals outlined in the Action Plan,” Reinhardt said.  Rob Moeller, Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of Residential Education and Innovation has been involved in adding DEI components to the ResLife program.  “This spring we have been partnering with the Anti-Racist Task Force to join and support their work fostering these important conversations. ResLife has also been working in collaboration with JusTalks to hold workshops for first-year [residential hall] communities in-person and virtually this past fall and in the planning process for doing the same this spring,” Moeller said.  To help with these initiatives, Crystal Jones, who will join the staff in July as the inaugural Assistant Director of Education for Equity and Inclusion, will help to develop and facilitate these critical conversations.  Strategy #12 aims to provide more mental health resources to students and support for historically underrepresented groups. Moeller has worked with ResLife to create skill building sessions on making friends, addressing friendship myths and creating panels for students to discuss navigating the social contexts of Middlebury. “Additional collaborations are underway with CTLR to help reduce stress by offering tried and true time management strategies,” Moeller said.  Maddie Hope, Assistant Director of Health and Wellness Education, has also worked with ResLife to promote mental health strategies through several events and training. Some of these events include ProjectConnect, stressbuster series, speed friending events, mental health peer educator workshops and ResLife student staff training.  Support As listed in Strategy #13, the College plans to join the Consortium on High Achievement and Success (CHAS) to focus on advancing the academic success of BIPOC students at selective liberal arts institutions by 2023.  Strategy #14 is a broad goal, hoping to increase resources to underrepresented groups, specifically in the Parton Center for Health and Wellness and Anderson Freeman Resource Center (AFC). The initiative to assess staffing at the AFC has been initiated and a new director will be starting July 1. “We have just hired a new Director of Counseling who is a person of color and has years of experience providing counseling to these communities,” Fernández said. The new director, Alberto Soto, specializes in advocating for diverse populations and the intersection of social justice and mental health, according to Fernández.   Ben Gooch, associate director of clinical operations for counseling services, said that social justice practices and experiences with multicultural counseling are a required component of counselings’ application process.  “We work with programs that we know have a strong stance on supporting underserved communities and training their future counselors to be social justice advocates and allies,” Gooch said.  The counseling department has also recently adopted a new model of counseling called the Flexible Care Model (FCM). FCM, which Soto is an expert in, aims to move care away from systems that perpetuate white and Eurocentric concepts of counseling.  “Our overall goal with this model is to increase immediate access to counseling for students, incorporate multicultural counseling understandings into our session to make sure that we are providing good care that takes into account the diversity of our campus community, and to provide more options to students for what their relationship to counseling can look like,” Gooch said.  The counseling deparment also participates in anti-racist reading groups and training oppurtunities. The Center for Health and Wellness has also collaborated across departments to form working groups for specific issues.  “An example of this is our Trans Care Working Group, which is designed to help make sure staff are up-to-date on the best practices and to work toward dismantling barriers to care for trans-identifying students,” Gooch said.  The Office of the President has completed Strategy #15 by creating a taskforce that has been meeting since the start of the year to explore the creation of a center to support LGBTQ+ students.  Fernández explained that there is a multi-year plan to move forward. “The first year, we will work to find a designated lounge or another existing meeting space; the second year, we will explore the possibility of using a College-owned house; and during a subsequent year, once the new student center is built, we recommend that the center for LGBTQ+ students be located there,” said Fernández.