MiddNews - November 2007
A monthly update of news & events from Middlebury College
A Global Initiative
On October 6, Middlebury officially launched The Middlebury Initiative, an ambitious effort to position the College as the first truly global liberal arts college for the 21st century. Over the course of five years, Middlebury will seek to implement more than 80 recommendations contained in the College's recently adopted strategic plan. At that time, says Middlebury College President Ronald D. Liebowitz, "we will see a College that is stronger academically and financially, more accessible to a wider range of exceptional students, and considerably more visible and influential in this country and abroad." For more, please see http://www.middleburyinitiative.org
High Green Marks
Innovative environmental initiatives and a solid record of investment in renewable energy investment funds have earned the College high marks from the Sustainable Endowment Institute. Middlebury was one of just six institutions nationally to be selected as an "Overall College Sustainability Leader" in the 2008 edition of the College Sustainability Report Card. For more, see http://www.endowmentinstitute.org/sustainability/
Town-Gown Partnership
Last month, Middlebury cemented a partnership with the community's Town Hall Theater, an agreement that will expand performing arts opportunities for the community and Middlebury students. To learn more, see http://go.middlebury.edu/middnews?200711tht
World Fellow
Alex Hall, a Middlebury junior, has earned a prestigious fellowship that will prepare the international politics and economics major for a career in the Foreign Service. For more on Hall and the Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship, see http://go.middlebury.edu/middnews?200711pickering
Train Mishap
A freight train carrying tens of thousands of gallons of gasoline derailed in the middle of town last month, forcing the evacuation of much of the down town area, as well as some College buildings. For more, see http://www.addisonindependent.com/?q=node/795
Return on Investment
Does it pay to attend an elite college or university? Senior economist Stephen Woodbury '75 thinks so. For more on his recent talk at Middlebury see: http://media.www.middleburycampus.com/media/storage/paper446/news/2007/11/15/Features/Economist.Examines.Pay.Off.Of.Elite.Educations-3098456.shtml
How Long For a Mug of Joe?
A study conducted by assistant professor of economics Caitlin Myers and a number of her 2007 winter term students has garnered a lot of national attention. Myers and her team set out to see if coffee shops discriminate against women. To learn what they discovered, see: http://www.slate.com/id/2177697/nav/tap3/
Consular Posting
Pierre Francois Mourier, a member of the French School faculty in 2006, was recently named French Consul General in San Francisco. Francophiles can learn more about Mourier here: http://www.consulfrance-sanfrancisco.org/article.php3?id_article=1088
Top Honors
Confirming what many of us already know, Middlebury men's hockey coach Bill Beaney was recently named one of the 100 most influential sports educators in the world. For more, see: http://go.middlebury.edu/middnews?200711beaney
Game Time
The Middlebury football team captured its first outright NESCAC championship in school history; the field hockey team is headed to the NCAA Final Four; the men's soccer team will host one of four NCAA sectionals this weekend; and the women's cross country team has once again qualified for the NCAA championships. For all your Panther sports news, see http://www.gomidd.com