View From Old Chapel
By Laurie Patton | November 18, 2015I will be writing at further length on these concerns in future issues, but I thank The Campus for the opportunity to comment now.
Opinion
Middlebury Refuses to Commit to Full Inclusion
By Guest Contributor | November 18, 2015Our Trustees’ response to the petition asking Middlebury to change the design of the new residence halls west of Adirondack View is profoundly disappointing. On the one hand, our VP for Communications and Marketing, Bill Burger, and the Editorial Board of the Campus make a very important point: ...
Philosophie: The Death of Divestment
By Sophie Vaughan | November 18, 2015The topic of this column — the death of the divestment movement — may appear strange, given that it is coming on the heels of The Campus’ editorial endorsement of fossil fuel divestment a few weeks ago, and moreover, because I am, as avid readers of my column know, an active leader in the Middlebury ...
The "Other" Tragedies
By Ivan Zeavin-Moss | November 18, 2015I was inspired to write this piece in light of the Paris attacks. About an hour before I read about the beginning of the siege, I spoke with my mom and sister who were in Paris at the time as they were relaxing at a friend’s apartment getting ready to go out to dinner. They’re safe, as are all the ...
The Antidote to Stockholm Syndrome: the Confluence of Academics, Mental Health and Stress
By Guest Contributor | November 18, 2015I was accepted into Middlebury as a Top 100 Applicant (a now discontinued program) with a 32 on the ACT and a 3.91 GPA. I served for three years on Community Council, one year on the Academic Appeals Board, two years as a Residential Advisor of an academic interest house; I committed time to various ...
Beyond the Blackout
By Middlebury Campus | November 18, 2015Across the United States, controversies are erupting over race relations on college campuses. The responses to these controversies reflect a range of emotions — from revulsion to surprise and even defiance that such issues still plague our nation. These outside events are incredibly relevant to our ...
What's Not To Get?
By David Mnitsa | November 11, 2015I recently read Heinrich von Kleist’s short essay, “On the Marionette Theatre,” in which he recounts a conversation with a dancer friend, known as Mr. C. To von Kleist’s surprise, Mr. C expresses delight in watching marionettes. Von Kleist “had regarded the handling of marionettes as something ...
Reader Response
By Guest Contributor | November 11, 2015“We apologize that we offended with our poster. We care about the role of comedy in discourse on this campus. As intentional members of the community, we take this issue seriously. We look forward to reflecting and engaging in future dialogue.” The Otter Nonsense Players are an improv comedy ...
The Need for Thoughtful Comedy
By Jasmine Ross | November 11, 2015Recently posters advertising an improv show, an athletic event and more have been circulating around campus with jokes evoking marginalized identities — specifically race, class and ability — and their corresponding stereotypes. These posters have been met with opposition from marginalized people, ...
The State of Our Endowment is Strong
By Guest Contributor | November 11, 2015I read with interest the opinion piece by Ethan Brady, “The State of the Endowment,” and I feel it’s important to address some of what Ethan discussed in his piece and to provide some important context and facts that readers of the Campus can use to make up their own minds.
Remembering Debs
By Travis Sanderson | November 11, 2015Last Thursday, film enthusiasts and our friends across the pond celebrated Guy Fawkes. He wasn’t the greatest guy to grace the planet, nor was he particularly successful in his endeavor to blow up government. But he became iconic. He’s a symbol for resisting government oppression; thus, he’s especially ...
Students Need a Seat at the Table
By Middlebury Campus | November 11, 2015This past Friday, the Middlebury faculty met for its monthly session to discuss the AAL requirement and whether or not to renew the pass/D/fail option. Representatives from the Campus and the SGA were present, as is sanctioned by the College’s bylaws. When the conversation turned to student stress, ...
Eliminate AAL (& All Our Other Current Requirements)
By Josh Berlowitz | November 4, 2015As the faculty prepare to discuss and possibly even vote on distribution requirement changes this Friday, as a community, I encourage us to reflect on what we mean by “liberal arts” education. What is it that we, the Middlebury community, seek to achieve here? Though 2015 Vermont is not Ancient ...
A New Look at Americana
By Alex Newhouse | November 4, 2015It is easy to discount “American Culture” as a loose, insufficient, reductionist term for the patchwork heritage of the U.S. As we all know, America is called a “melting pot” for a reason – this country is primarily composed of people who have cultural roots elsewhere, often across several ...
Poor Appropriation
By Travis Sanderson | November 4, 2015“What would America be like if we loved black people as much as we love black culture?” Amandla Stenberg, teen actress and pop prophet, asked exactly that in a videopublished on Tumblr nine months ago. She wasn’t the first, but she fanned the question’s popularity. Since then it has blazed ...
The State of Our Endowment
By Ethan Brady | November 4, 2015I am disappointed by this paper’s recent coverage of the endowment return for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2015. Let’s get one thing straight: Middlebury’s endowment had a terrible showing this year. The return on investment was 6.9 percent, which equates to a $19.1 million increase from ...
Against Mandatory Accessibility at New Dorms
By Guest Contributor | November 4, 2015Four years ago as a sophomore enjoying my first summer at Middlebury, I would also have another first — giving my first accessible tour. Up to this point during my career at admissions, and in the three subsequent years I spent working there, not once did I tour an individual in a wheelchair or see ...
Ridgeline Petition
By Guest Contributor | November 4, 2015Below is a letter drafted by Lauren Kelly ’13, Dan Egol ’13, and Barbara Ofosu-Somuah ‘13. It aims to communicate interest and concern regarding accessibility in the four new residential buildings currently under construction at Ridgeline. It is currently a Google document that is being signed ...
Reflections from Old Chapel
By Laurie Patton | November 4, 2015The construction of a new residence hall—the first at Middlebury in more than a decade—has sparked an important discussion in our community over what standards we should set for ourselves regarding the accessibility of our campus. I’m sure we all wish this question had arisen last spring during ...
Pragmatic Passion on Ridgeline Project
By Middlebury Campus | November 4, 2015Passion is palpable on Middlebury’s campus. As students, we devote ourselves to a wide variety of causes – perhaps best evidenced by the College’s 169 clubs and organizations. While we are certainly an engaged student body, we do not always act constructively on our passions. The Campus editorial ...