Welcome New Students!
Welcome Class of 2025!
The Scott Center is the hub of spiritual life on campus. It’s the place where students gather to explore big questions, celebrate together, find time to reflect, and enjoy social time with other students from all walks of life. This ranges from students who do not identify religiously at all, finding The Scott Center to be a radically hospitable and relaxing place to be, to students who are hoping to delve deeply into one or more spiritual traditions while at college.
Everyone is welcome!
We can’t wait to meet you and hope you can come to our Fall 2021 Orientation events; see our schedule below. Click here to see a walking map to our home at 46 South St.
If we can help make this semester a smooth transition and these years a successful and fulfilling part of your life’s journey, please do not hesitate to let us know. Please give us a call at (802) 443-5626.
We look forward to meeting you and being a part of your life at Middlebury College.
Peace and Blessings,
Saifa Hussain, Associate Chaplain and Muslim Advisor
Ellen Blackmer McKay, Program Coordinator
Mark R. Orten, Dean of Spiritual and Religious Life
Rabbi Danielle Stillman, Associate Chaplain
Orientation Activities from The Scott Center
via Zoom
Meet the chaplains and staff and learn more about what we do at The Scott Center. Zoom link here; password 223710.
46 South Street
Stop by to meet the staff at The Scott Center! We are educators, compassionate caregivers, ritual leaders, allies, and advocates. We help create a campus atmosphere that is open to religious faith and practice, and encourages moral reflection and spiritual development. As part of the Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, we make these concerns central to our work across campus and throughout the college.
Scott Center Meditation Room, 46 South St.
Tuesday, 9:00-9:30 am. Led by Mark Orten, Dean of Spiritual & Religious Life.
Wednesday, 9:30-10:00 am. Led by Carter Branley, Staff Counselor
Thursday, 9:00-9:30 am. Led by Zoya Kobets ‘23, 2021 Mindfulness Fellow
Friday, 9-9:30 am. Led by Saifa Hussain, Muslim Advisor/Associate Chaplain
46 South Street
Join Dean of Spiritual & Religious Life Mark Orten, Zoya Kobets ‘23 and incoming students in a session that will introduce mindfulness concepts and practices. Students will learn about empirically-verified practices to reduce stress, improve attention and memory, help with sleep, and improve ability to respond to stress with equanimity, along with many other valuable benefits. Feel free to bring a box lunch from the dining halls. No experience necessary. Please contact Ellen McKay Jewett, emckay@middlebury.edu, with questions.
Axinn 220
Our goal for this afternoon is that students will leave with tangible ways to be anti-racist, anti-oppressive, engage in critical reflection, and have conversations that challenge their social norms. Go to Presence to register for any of these Unlearning@ Midd activities. go/middpresence.
3:00 pm — A Closer Look at Antisemitism and Islamophobia
In this workshop we will look closely at two forms of anti-religious hate and discrimination, exploring their origins, characteristics, and how they manifest today— especially in America and on campus. Led by Rabbi/Associate Chaplain Danielle Stillman, and Muslim Advisor/Associate Chaplain Saifa Hussain.
4:00 pm — Mindfulness and Anti-Oppression
Drawing on the principles and practices of mindfulness, we will explore non-violent approaches to dismantling oppressive hierarchies and power structures. Led by Dean of Spiritual & Religious Life Mark R. Orten.
Labyrinth at The Knoll
Join Dean of Spiritual & Religious Life Mark Orten for guided 30-minute meditative walks through the labyrinth at The Knoll. Meet Zoya Kobets, the Mindfulness Fellow 23’, at Adirondack View Circle (ADK) for a guided walk down to The Knoll.