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News & Views is a
bi-monthly
e-publication of the Sterling College Admissions Office.
In this issue:
-Admissions Notes
-Environmental Career Opportunities: Sterling College Hosts 7th Annual Environmental Career and Internship Fair
-Alumni Profile: Anna (Heidorn) Wilkins '02
-The 30th Annual Woodshow
-Faculty Spotlight: David Gilligan
-Driver's Education at Sterling College
-Who Goes Here? Andrew Karajgi '09
News and Views Staff:
Gwyn Harris (Editor), Jenna Ryan (Tech Support), Paul Ferrari '06, and Jay Merrill '02.
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Where will you be next fall?
Are you still considering the myriad of college options available? Its not too late to apply to Sterling College for the fall of 2007! Financial Aid is still available.
Sterling College provides a depth of learning and intensity of interaction distinctive in higher education. Our environmental focus, our commitment to experiential learning, and our community is not for everyone, but it may be right for you.
Click here to apply now. |
Mountain Cultures Semester Travel Log
In the last edition of News and Views we reported on this year's Mountain Cultures Semester before they had embarked on their journey to India. The group departed for India on March 8th and have been sending us periodic reports on the highlights of their trip and many wonderful photos. Check out their on-line travel log. |
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Alumni Profile: Anna Wilkins (Heidorn) ‘02
Gardner, Massachusetts
Employer: Lincoln Conservation Department
Title: Land Steward
“The general knowledge I gained in Sterling’s science and writing courses has been elemental in preparing me for a profession in land conservation. Learning about environmental issues on a small scale and local level and then building upon that base, expanding into regional, national, and international environmental topics, has given me a well rounded background to draw from.” |
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When Anna Wilkins graduated from Sterling College in 2002 she and the rest of her graduating class took an oath. They vowed to be responsible problem solvers, stewards of the environment, and active members of their communities. Each individual wore a ribbon during graduation as a symbol of this promise. The ribbons, displaying all the colors of the rainbow, were a celebration of and a commitment to bio-diversity and environmental stewardship. Five years later after receiving her Bachelor’s degree in Conservation Ecology, Anna has kept that promise.
Anna currently works as a Land Steward for the Lincoln Conservation Department in Lincoln, Massachusetts. The Lincoln Conservation Department administers and enforces state and local wetlands regulations and is responsible for natural resource management and protection. They are also actively engaged in land preservation efforts and environmental education. (Click here to read more) |
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The 30th Annual Sterling College Woodshow
After weeks of creative toil in the first floor woodshop in Paradise Hall, students of this year’s A Reverence for Wood course proudly displayed the fruits of their labor during the 30th Annual Woodshow on Thursday, April 12th. Students, parents, community members, faculty, and staff packed Simpson Hall for the event that has become a long-standing Sterling College tradition. A Reverence for Wood is a 2 credit course offered in the spring that focuses on teaching traditional woodworking techniques and challenges students to complete a finished product in 10 weeks. This year’s students created a wide range of items from the functional to the esoteric.
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Faculty Spotlight: David Gilligan
B.A., Natural History, Philosophy/Religion, Prescott College, 1995. M.A. Natural History and Ecology, Prescott College, 1999.
Professor David Gilligan—world traveler, sometime philosopher, accomplished mountaineer, musician, published author, and by all accounts a dynamic instructor. If this is the path to self-actualization, many would argue that he is well on his way.
Most recently from Arizona, where he was teaching at Prescott College, David was drawn to Sterling College specifically by the Center for Northern Studies. Sterling College is the only institution in the contiguous United States that offers a degree in Circumpolar Studies. It was this fact and the intriguing nature of the curriculum that drew Professor Gilligan to Sterling. “If you want to approach Circumpolar Studies from an interdisciplinary perspective that includes the social sciences, the natural sciences, and the humanities—and study in a cabin in the woods—this is the place to be.”
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Professor Gilligan spent the 2005-2006 school year as Sterling’s scholar in residence teaching courses such as Conservation Biology and Ecology. This year, Sterling College is fortunate to have him on board as a full time faculty member, teaching courses such as Natural History of the North Woods, Spring Flora, Geology, and Field Study in Newfoundland and Labrador (part of Sterling’s Global Field Studies program).
As a seasoned traveler, Professor Gilligan is well qualified to teach global field study courses. After traveling extensively in U.S. wilderness areas, David decided at age 28 to explore “his roots” in Ireland and Scotland for a few months. He describes this experience as a transformative one, “A whole new world opened up once I crossed international borders. All of the sudden I was interested—not just in wilderness areas and elemental nature—but also in culture. For the first time I was experiencing culture that had evolved in sync with their landscapes over thousands of years…”
This experience abroad led to further international travel as David “intentionally engaged in a systematic pilgrimage to mountain regions of the world.” Travels to the Swiss Alps, the Himalayas in Nepal, the Southern Alps of New Zealand, and the North American Cordillera were the result of this systematic pilgrimage. Later this extensive journeying became the fodder for David Gilligan’s second published book, In the Years of the Mountain: Exploring the World’s High Ranges in Search of the Culture, Geology, and Ecology.
(Click here to read more) |
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Driver's Education at Sterling College
by Paul Ferrari '06, Admissions Counselor
Halley cautiously backed up. She was careful not to disturb the bright orange plastic cones on either side of her. Once she was done backing she relaxed and looked to her left, then to her right. The blaze cones stood undisturbed. She then looked to her driving instructor for approval. “Great job…perfect,” he says. “Now come forward.” With renewed confidence she gives the command, “Up! Up!” and the two steers step forward in unison. Then both team and teamster’s heads turned to look up the road.
A team of draft horses cautiously place one hoof in front of the other as they roll down the farm road. The brichen on their harnesses tightens as they hold back their burden. As the hill flattens out the team of horses tightens up the tugs as they lean into their collars. They’re pulling a lengthy pine log down the cobble strewn road on a freshly painted red and white log arch. Nick, the student-teamster, perched atop the arch sits up off the seat and gives a protracted sub-baritone, “Whoooooa.” The horses come to a smooth stop. Nick hands the lines to Rick Thomas, the other driving instructor at work today. Nick hops down off the arch while another student makes her way up the back to take the driving lines. Nick is handed the goad stick and turns his attention to the steers…
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Driver education at Sterling College is an evolving world of horns, hooves, yokes, and harness. We have recently begun the process of expanding our draft horse curriculum to include instruction on newly acquired technology, such as a new log arch fresh from Farmer Brown’s Plow Shop. At the same time we have been striving to incorporate an Introduction to Oxen Basics into the traditional draft horse curriculum. |
As part of the
Folk Art Workshop series, Rick Thomas will offer a day-long Draft Horse Driving workshop on Saturday, May 19th.
Learn more. |
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Who Goes Here?
Andrew Karajgi '09
Hometown: Nashua, New Hampshire
Major: Outdoor Education and Leadership
Andrew Karajgi, a second-year student at Sterling College, is no stranger to challenging himself in the outdoors. Growing up in southern New Hampshire, he spent copious time outdoors, climbing trees, and fulfilling all the responsibilities of an adolescent boy.
Andrew’s love for the outdoors inspired him to complete three Outward Bound courses during his high school years. Then, he realized that these experiences were directing him towards the field of Outdoor Education. He decided that he would like to find a college where he could engage in similar experiences for personal growth while preparing to become a practitioner of the outdoor adventures that shaped his own life. Enter Sterling College.
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At the end of his first year at Sterling College, Andrew began searching for an internship with an organization that provides kids with outdoor experiences and challenges similar to Outward Bound. His search ended with a summer camp in Rhinebeck, New York, called Ramapo for Children, which serves children who are at-risk or have special needs and learning differences. Andrew chose Ramapo in particular because he is also challenged by learning differences and felt he would be able to connect with the campers. His desire was to provide the same experience that he had during his Outward Bound courses to the campers at Ramapo. (Click here to read more) |
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