MiddNews - December 2005
A monthly update of news and events from Middlebury College
Middlebury and Monterey Ink Deal
The Monterey Institute of International Studies is now officially an affiliate of Middlebury College.
Administrators from Middlebury and MIIS signed an agreement in Monterey, California, on December 2 that makes Monterey an affiliate of Middlebury - bringing together two leaders in the field of international education.
"With this affiliation, Middlebury is greatly expanding its role in international education," said Middlebury College President Ronald D. Liebowitz. "Through its new relationship with Monterey, Middlebury is extending its reach in graduate education into the fields of international policy studies and international business."
For more on the signing and the affiliation, see:
http://go.middlebury.edu/middnews?200512monterey
American Literature Department, Major to Merge with English
Starting next fall, the College curriculum will offer a new major, a new department, and a new program of study.
On December 12, the Middlebury faculty voted to create a new department and major in English and American Literatures and a new program in American Studies. The move - which has been discussed and debated for more than two years - abolishes the Department of American Literature and Civilization, merges the major of American Literature with English (creating a new department and major) and establishes a program and major in American Studies.
With a majority vote required to approve the proposed merge, 101 faculty members voted in favor of the proposal, 41 voted against it, and six members abstained from voting.
For more on the story, see coverage in the Middlebury Campus.
Midd Students Heard in Montreal
More than 130 Middlebury students joined 10,000 participants from more than 180 countries in Montreal in early December at the United Nations climate change conference.
Twenty-five of the students were registered as official observers and participated with officials from governments, industries, and businesses in a range of conference activities.
For more on the story, see:
http://go.middlebury.edu/middnews?200512climate
Marshall Plans for Motley
Biochemistry major Will Motley '06 is one of 43 American students to be awarded a prestigious Marshall Scholarship, which will finance graduate study at the British university of Motley's choice.
Motley has spent the past five summers working at Maine's Mount Desert Island Biological Lab, researching chlorine transport through the protein that is defective in patients with cystic fibrosis.
Motley plans to attend Oxford, where he will pursue a doctorate in molecular biology.
For more on Motley, see:
http://go.middlebury.edu/middnews?200512motley
A Window on Study Abroad
Each fall, the College's Office of Off-Campus Study sponsors a photo contest for students who have studied abroad the previous year. The 2005 winner is Clark Smith '06 for his submission, "China's Diverging Paths."
To view the winner, as well as the 15 honorable mention selections, see:
http://go.middlebury.edu/sa?photocontest
A Matter of Degrees
A cohort of Midd students have started a movement that seeks to lower the default temperature in all buildings on campus by two degrees - an effort, they say, will save the College around $60,000 in heating costs.
The "Two Degrees Campaign" was launched in late October by The Sunday Night Group, a student organization dedicated to climate change issues. A recent survey conducted by the campaign indicates that student opinion is largely in favor of the temperature reduction. With more than 1,100 responses - nearly half of the student body - the survey indicated that more than 70 percent of the respondents supported a two-degree reduction in temperature in both classroom and residential buildings on campus.
For more on the "Two Degrees Campaign," see this Middlebury Campus story.
Tea for Two
Perhaps the most popular event sponsored by the Career Services Office is an annual soiree/seminar on etiquette.
This year, the 75 slots for the four-course dinner and "mocktail" were filled in a matter of days; a number of students showed up at the door, hoping to fill the spots of no-shows.
According to a study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, business etiquette was found to be among the top three skills lacking among college graduates.
For more on the business of etiquette, see:
http://www.nacufs.org/Files/public/newsletter/nov05/index.html
Choi's the Choice
Sunhee Choi, a professor and department chair of chemistry and biochemistry, was recently named the 2005 Vermont Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.
A member of the American Chemical Society, Iota Sigma Pi National Honor Society for Women in Chemistry, and the Council on Undergraduate Research, Choi has been a member of the Middlebury faculty since 1987.
For more on the honor, see
http://go.middlebury.edu/middnews?200512choi
Reconstructing Afghanistan
A pair of Middlebury students - Khairani Barokka '06 and Zohra Safi '09 - recently attended the first research-oriented conference in the United States on Afghan women's role in their country's social reconstruction. Barokka is from Indonesia; Safi is from Kabul, Afghanistan.
The conference, titled "Afghan Women Leaders Speak: Conflict Mitigation and Social Reconstruction," and held at Ohio State University, brought together Afghan women leaders with U.S.-based scholars and students who share expertise and interests relevant to the experiences of women working for social change in Afghanistan.
For more on the conference, see:
http://www.mershon.ohio-state.edu/Events/05-06events/afghanwomen/afghanhome.htm
The Story of War-Torn Sierra Leone - Told Through Song
From 1991 to 2002, hundreds of thousands of citizens of Sierra Leone were forced from their homes during a brutal civil war. In The Refugee All Stars, filmmakers Banker White '96 and Zach Niles '96 tell the story of six refugees who turned to music to relate the experience.
The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the AFI Festival in Los Angeles and had its international premiere at the IDFA International Documentary Fest in Amsterdam.
For more on the film, see:
http://refugeeallstars.org
To hear Zach Niles on NPR, see:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5036368
Panthers Roar into Break
The Middlebury athletic teams head into the winter break on a collective high note.
Both hockey teams have yet to drop a contest. The men are 6-0-1 and the women a perfect 7-0.
Both hoops squads are thriving in the early season, as well. The men are off to their best start since 1917, heading into break with a 7-1 record. The women are 8-1.
In other athletics news, men's soccer player Derek Cece '06 was named third-team All-American by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. A two-time first team All-NESCAC selection, Cece anchored a Middlebury defense that allowed just .58 goals per game, including a scoreless streak of 600 minutes.
For the latest in Panther news, see:
http://go.middlebury.edu/panthers
Alumni College Goes West
Join Middlebury biology professor Sallie Sheldon in Monterey, California, to learn about aquatic ecology. The Alumni College course will take place from March 22-26, 2006, and will include a trip to the renowned Monterey Bay Aquarium.
For more information, see:
http://www.middlebury.edu/alumni/events/travel/
Call for Student Stories
The Middlebury College Office of Public Affairs maintains a web page of student stories and is looking for submissions. Any stories submitted will then be forwarded to the Public Affairs office for consideration.
Check out the student stories page at:
http://www.middlebury.edu/about/pubaff/sstory/
The submissions form can be found here:
http://go.middlebury.edu/pubaff?tellstory