COA NEWS WINTER 1998/99 COLLEGE OF THE ATLANTIC BAR HARBOR, MAINE PHOTO: FIELDER MATTOX AND A LITTLE COLLEGE SHALL LEAD THEM: College of the Atlantic President Steven K. Katona A Blueprint for and COA Board of Trustees Chairman Clyde E. Shorey, Undergraduate Education Jr., lead the 26th Commencement by Norah Davis processional across the north lawn of campus. Undergraduates at the in U.S. undergraduate edu- cautions that they will be Immediately behind them nation's major universities cation and calls for a radi- controversial. Some univer- are not getting their cal reformation. sity administrators and fac- are lan McHarg (left), who money's worth. That is the The commission, which ulty members will call the received an honorary disturbing conclusion of a includes a former U.S. assis- goals unreachable or master of philosophy report released by the tant secretary of education, impractical. degree in human ecology, Boyer Commission, a blue a Nobel Prize-winning Not so. All but one of ribbon panel funded by the physicist, two university the commission's ten rec- and William Drayton, Carnegie Foundation. The presidents, and other nota- ommendations were pio- keynote speaker. Trustees, report, "Reinventing bles, maintains that what is neered successfully by a faculty and students Undergraduate Education: needed is "dramatic tiny college in Bar Harbor, follow. A Blueprint for America's change, not half measures." Maine. Founded 29 years Research Universities," The commission offers ago, College of the Atlantic asserts that there is a crisis ten recommendations but continued on page 6 COA News Careers for the 21 st Century The Newsletter of From President Steven K. Katona's Convocation Address College of the Atlantic The year that has passed since last convocation has offered ever more examples of the Winter 1998/1999 increasing scope and complexity of challenges faced by society. Whether El Niño caused EDITOR AND DIRECTOR all of the damage for which it is blamed may be debated, but in combination with envi- OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS ronmental mismanagement in various places it has contributed to changes of global pro- Carl Little portions, ranging from appalling drought and widespread burning of Indonesian rain- PRESIDENT forests to floods of epic proportions in China. Steven K. Katona Soaring financial markets in the Unites States are now struggling to contain major economic crises in Russia, Asia and Latin America. Fundamentalist governments in CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES Afghanistan, Sudan, Iraq and elsewhere remain locked in mortal combat with liberal Clyde E. Shorey, Jr. groups within their own nations as well as with governments of western nations. Even in the west, ethnic and religious warfare rages or smolders in the former Yugoslavia and in DIRECTOR OF Ireland. The fallout of these conflicts, some of which have continued for centuries or DEVELOPEMENT more, has claimed countless innocent lives in addition to the lives of combatants. Fran Day Two nations, India and Pakistan, have detonated atomic bombs to demonstrate their EDITOR: Carl Little, status as nuclear powers, perhaps kindling new arms races. Yet instead of issues such as Director of Public Affairs those, questions of ethics, privacy, power, responsibility and politics have ensnarled our WRITERS: federal government, as well as too many of our after-dinner conversations. Rebecca Buyers-Basso '81 I am not sure how much each of us, or our entire college, can contribute to solving Sara Heifetz '01 problems on that scale, but we can do-and already are doing-a great deal in our own Emily Bracale '90 region, while at the same time preparing some of you to participate in those more global Kelly Sheets Dickson m.Phil. '97 solutions. Carl Little Three of the initiatives designed to implement the college's Strategic Plan are already taking shape. Grant proposals have been submitted for seed money to develop the pro- COA News is published gram in Governance, Leadership and Decision-Making. Grant requests are being pre- twice a year. It is circulated pared to fund the Productive Landscape initiative, which will bring together all of the to alumni, students, parents college's efforts in applied botany, including landscape architecture, landscape design, and friends of agriculture, horticulture, forestry, nutrition and related public policy issues. And grant College of the Atlantic. requests have already been submitted and others are nearing completion, to fund the PRINT Downeast Watersheds portion of the new Integrated Program in Marine Studies. Downeast Printing Furthermore, the college now owns Mount Desert Rock and the southern ten acres and Graphics of Great Duck Island, each with a lighthouse, light-keeper's house, boat house and other buildings, all of which will support the marine program and other college activities. DESIGN At convocation last year, I mentioned my personal list of careers for the 21st century. Z Studio I want to reiterate them now. Decision-Making, Consensus-Building and Arbitration: If you can help people learn to do these things better, you will be able to help individuals, families, corporations, gov- THE COLLEGE continued on page 4 OF THE ATLANTIC "VISION STATEMENT" The faculty, students, trustees, staff and alumni of College of Contents the Atlantic envision a world where people value creativity, "A Blueprint for 26th Commencement pp. 14-15 intellectual achievement, and Undergraduate Education" the diversity of nature and by Norah Davis pp. 1, 6-8 Alumni Notes pp. 16-18 human cultures. With respect and compassion, individuals Convocation 1998 p. 3-5 Eco/Eco Confronts Sprawl will construct meaningful lives by Peter Cox p. 19 for themselves, gain apprecia- Endowment tion for the relationships Campaign News pp. 5,8, 10-11 Around Campus pp. 20-25 among all forms of life, and safeguard the heritage of Economic Impact Statement Memorials and Tributes pp. 26-28 future generations. & Lighthouses p. 9 Faculty and Staff News pp. 29-31 New Trustees p. 10 VISIT THE COLLEGE OF THE COA Arts pp. 32-36 ATLANTIC WEBSITE AT Alumni Profile: Willowind Farm www.coa.edu by Rebecca Buyers-Basso '81 p. 12-13 Book Review: Chance & Change pp. 37 COA NEWS 2 WINTER 1998/1999 PHOTO: PETE TRAVERS They're off! Fifty or so COA swimmers head for Bar Island. The cold crossing was the subject of a feature article, "Skinny guys are the first to freeze," in the July 1998 issue of Yankee magazine. College of the Atlantic Holds 27th Convocation College of the Atlantic's 27th convocation, held on Wednes- tainment, drawing upon his skills as the "Standup day, September 9, in the Gates Community Center auditori- Chameleon." One of his skits was a pastiche, written by um, was a celebration and a leave-taking. Even as the col- Bob Blue, of the tenure process, sung to the tune of Frank lege community bade a fond farewell to veteran staff mem- Sinatra's "My Way." bers Sally Crock, registrar, who will be moving to Califor- In her address, Barbarina Heyerdahl '88 defined human nia, and Steve Thomas, director of admissions, who will ecology. "Human ecology puts human beings and their direct the admissions office at Colby College, President endeavors within a context, especially a context of relation- Steven K. Katona and COA alums Jackson Gillman and ships," she said. She went on to detail how a human ecolog- Barbarina Heyerdahl welcomed 94 new men and women to ical perspective has guided her since graduating 14 years the COA student body. ago. She spoke of her role in the creation of the Women's Of the new students, 57 are first year, 26 are transfer, 8 Health Center in Bar Harbor, the opening of Beech Hill are visitors and 3 are in the graduate Master of Philosophy Farm in Somesville and the establishment of a Waldorf in Human Ecology program. Maine students remain the School in Northeast Harbor. largest contingent-20 in all this year-with the rest of the President Katona reviewed the accomplishments of the incoming students hailing from a wide range of locales past year at COA, highlighting such initiatives as the acqui- across the country and abroad (France, Germany, Ireland, sition of Mount Desert Rock and Great Duck Island light- Ghana, Kenya, Turkey and the Czech Republic). Overall house, which will be used to support marine programs and enrollment at the college stands at 270. other college activities, and the completion of the new Nat- A number of new students participated in the Outdoor ural History Museum. He also provided his personal list of Orientation Programs (OOPS), canoeing the Allagash and careers for the 21st century (see pp. 4-5). St. Croix Rivers, hiking the Appalachian Trail and sea- Orientation week ended with the annual Bar Island kayaking. One group chose community service and worked Swim, which drew well over fifty participants, a record at H.O.M.E. in East Orland. turnout for this event. Following the swim, students, faculty Gillman, of the class of 78, provided high spirited enter- and staff joined together for a community picnic. COA NEWS 3 WINTER 1998/1999 Convocation, from page 2 ernments, nations and others to exist more peacefully and productively. Hydrology: Water, particularly fresh water, will probably become an increasingly threatened and precious resource in coming years. Conserving, managing and remediating lakes, rivers, aquifers and other sources of water will prob- ably be an important career path. Managing Mega Projects: One COA graduate is a manager of the Boston Artery Project, perhaps the largest civil engi- NICOLE D'AVIS neering project ever undertaken on the U.S. east coast. Our world had enormous needs and enormous responses may be required. Imagine, if you will, a generation-long commitment to consolidate and de-sprawl the city of Los Angeles so that mass transport could replace automobiles. Ethics and Law: Successful solution or amelioration of problems or issues such as inequitable distribution of land, wealth or resources; environmental justice; miliary justice; privacy in the electronic age; implications of new medical procedures; and use of shared resources, such as the air or the sea, will require advocates with a broad and multi-cul- tural understanding of ethical and legal systems. Our initia- tives in Governance, Leadership and Decision-Making, as well as others, will help students to address these issues effectively. Design, Art and Music: A steadily increasing proportion of our learning and experience comes through our senses, CARL LITTLE rather than our intellect. The images, structures, sounds, smells, tastes and feel of the structures and activities sur- rounding us can bring beauty, pleasure and improved function to our lives and move us in desirable ways and directions. Communication: Effective communication in writing, oral presentation and media will be necessary to engage and educate the populace to participate thoughtfully in the issues of coming decades. Education: Talented, effective teachers and mentors are urgently needed at all levels, in the home, in elementary and secondary schools, and in colleges, universities and professional schools. Perhaps nothing is as important to the next generation of citizens as the teachers who will guide their mental development. For those of you consid- CARL LITTLE ering education, it is worth noting that tens of thousands of teachers from the baby-boomer generation will be retir- ing during the next few years, opening up opportunities for new teachers on an unprecedented scale. From top to bottom: The calm before the dive: students, staff and faculty gather for a group photograph on the Business, Ecology and Economics: Businesses and corpo- COA pier before taking the plunge into Frenchman Bay in rations may be the most effective model for getting things the seventh annual Bar Island Swim. done that humans have created. Continuing to point them A sad farewell: Katie Kutny '99 gives departing director in the right directions for increasing economic and envi- of admission Steve Thomas a hug at the end of orienta- ronmental sustainability will be one of the challenges of tion week. the coming decades. Environmental renovation of cities, factories, farms, hotels and other institutions are hot topics Barbarina Heyerdahl '88 takes to the podium as a featured now and will need skilled people to guide them. speaker at the college convocation. COA NEWS 4 WINTER 1998/1999 Restoration biology: Learning strategies and skills for restoring damaged lands and waters to full diversity and productivity is becoming increasingly important as soci- eties around the world begin to repair abuses to streams and rivers, marshes, harbors, forests, and industrial and military sites. A recent issue of Bioscience was dedicated entirely to this topic. If this list has piqued your interest or included a choice that might interest you, I will be delighted. I hope that you will begin making your own lists. This is your time to learn and your education at College of the Atlantic will have more personal meaning for you, as well as more utility to nature and society, if you approach it deliberately, strategi- cally and mindfully. There is much to do. You will be challenged, puzzled and frustrated on the way to success. The task may at times demand more of you than you feel able to give. CARL LITTLE When that happens, remember that everyone here in this room, and many others, have pledged to do all they can to Graphics lab director Douglas Barkey (left), his wife, Ingrid help you and make your time at the college as productive, Bircann-Barkey, and their son, Peter, enjoy the company of enjoyable and successful as it can be. students during a community picnic that capped off orienta- Good luck to all of you and have a great year. tion week. College of the Atlantic is well on the way to establishing the Rachel Car- Rachel son Chair in Ecological Studies to recognize the pioneer ecologist's con- tributions to science and humanity. Carson (1907-1964), one of this cen- Carson tury's most insightful and influential science writers, was responsible for revolutionizing ecological thought and inspiring the environmental movement. Honored Renowned for calling attention to the harmful effects of the misuse of chemical pesticides in her book Silent Spring, Carson taught readers to view their relationship with the environment as one of interdependence rather than one of control. Her observation that all living things are interrelated gave rise to a new direction in environmental thinking, one which forms the cornerstone of a College of the Atlantic education. In order to raise awareness and appreciation for Carson's contribu- tions to science and humanity, and simultaneously raise $1 million to endow the Rachel Carson Chair in Ecological Studies, the college has declared this "Rachel Carson Year" and is sponsoring a series of events to illuminate her life and work. The Rachel Carson Year began with a dramatic performance by actress Kaiulani Lee in A Sense of Wonder, a one-woman play based on Carson's life and writings. In November, College of the Atlantic screened the Public Broadcasting System special "Rachel Carson's Silent Spring" for students and community members. The film was followed by a dis- cussion led by Kenneth Cline, COA's professor of environmental law. During the winter months the college will host lectures related to Car- son's life and work, including a slide talk by falconer Erin Gott '99, who has been involved in raptor conservation. Other events include a read-in of Silent Spring, an environmental art exhibition in Carson's honor and, in the fall, a special presentation by nationally-acclaimed storyteller Jay CARL LITTLE O'Callahan. The most ambitious Rachel Carson Year event will be the premiere of Silent Spring, an original cantata celebrating Carson's life, composed by Actress Kaiulani Lee greets COA trustee Henry Mollicone, award-winning composer of contemporary opera who Susan Storey Lyman at the reception in has written Coyote Tales and The Face on the Barroom Floor. The cantata Camp Community Lounge following will premiere in the Gates Center, to be followed by performances in Lee's one-woman performance A Sense other parts of the country. of Wonder. That's Philip Geyelin, anoth- For further information on the Rachel Carson Year, please call er COA trustee, standing behind them. Rebecca Buyers-Basso at College of the Atlantic (207-288-5015). COA NEWS 5 WINTER 1998/1999 Blueprint, from page 1 was created at a time when the inadequacies and fragmenta- ian populations crashing in some parts of North America? tion of conventional education were becoming evident. Similarly, in an economics class, the students learn how COA's far-sighted founders realized that the limitations of to apply their learning in a real-world situation. Working for academic specialization demanded a wider vision. The result a real client such as a nonprofit organization, the class iden- was an institution dedicated to the interdisciplinary study of tifies issues and trends, collects and analyzes data, develops human ecology. strategies, and explores legal considerations for the client. A human ecologi- Other classes also cal perspective inte- undertake research grates personal expe- projects in education, rience and knowledge regional planning, law from all academic dis- and history. ciplines in order to Another COA investigate and junior, Nicole Cabana, improve the relation- won a Barry M. Gold- ships between human water Scholarship and beings and the natural completed an intern- world. The aim at ship assisting in popu- COA is identical with lation studies of the that of the Boyer New Zealand fur seal. Commission: to create Ten-week internships a sense of wholeness working on real-life among the disparate problems are required elements of an under- of all COA students. graduate education. Internships are one of Recent awards the goals under the received by the col- Boyer commission's lege testify to its suc- first recommendation. cess. In 1997 the John Traci Hickson '98 hosts "Green Fire," an environmental radio show at 2. The freshman D. and Catherine T. the studios of WERU-FM in East Orland, Maine. Hickson received a Wat- program should be MacArthur Founda- son Fellowship to study community radio stations around the world. carefully constructed tion selected COA as as an integrated, one of six colleges to receive a one-time award of $750,000 interdisciplinary, inquiry-based experience. All first-year in recognition "that the education offered at COA is the students should attend a freshmen seminar taught by expe- kind of education that is really necessary for solving the rienced faculty and requiring extensive writing. The class, problems the world faces today." which should be limited in size, should investigate a single For 14 years in a row, COA students received a presti- complicated problem. Professors should plan the course gious Thomas J. Watson Foundation fellowship, which pro- together, and the content should allow students to range vides recipients with a focused wanderjahr of their own devis- freely before selecting a major. ing to explore a particular interest. The latest COA winner, From its inception, COA has required entering students Traci D. Hickson, will use the $19,000 grant to live her to take a foundation course in human ecology. The course is dream of visiting community radio stations in South Africa, team-taught by a cross-section of five or six full-time faculty the Philippines, Australia and Canada. Hickson, who from disciplines ranging from art and science to psychology. believes that community radio "gives a voice to the voice- An explicit purpose is to explore the strengths and weakness- less," has hosted programs on community radio stations es of academic specialties and the possibilities for new ideas while she was a student in Maine and in her home state of and visions to be found at the interfaces between disciplines. West Virginia. 3. Every student at a research university should have a Another COA student, Yasmin O'Brien-Lucero, is one long-term mentoring relationship with a faculty member. of 75 recipients nationwide to be named a Morris K. Udall All new COA students are assigned an advisor. As the year Scholar. The COA junior was honored for research she did progresses, every student is expected to move toward associ- on the incubation of common and Arctic terns on an island ation with a long-term advisor. The ultimate goal is to estab- off the Maine coast. lish a team who remain with a student through graduation. 1. Undergraduate education should be research-based The team is composed of one teaching faculty member, a learning. A college junior like Yasmin can participate mean- student and, optionally, a third person from COA or the ingfully in scientific research because COA adheres to the broader community. Boyer Commission's first recommendation. Professors The advising team helps the student customize an indi- should engage undergraduates as junior members of their vidual course of study that may include independent work, research teams so that, like graduate students, undergrads tutorials on advanced subjects, labs, studios, seminars, can learn through research on real issues. group studies designed by students and possibly a One COA class monitored the health of frog popula- practicum, such as Geographical Information Systems (GIS), tions in collaboration with a resource management specialist environmental education or the techniques of preparing at Acadia National Park (the college's next-door neighbor). natural history exhibits for the college's museum. The col- The compilation of field data will continue for several years lege's 10-to-1 student-faculty ratio makes this individualized to help shed light on a worrisome mystery: Why are amphib- learning possible. COA NEWS 6 WINTER 1998/1999 4. Customize interdisciplinary majors and remove bar- cept. The essay is a degree requirement and serves as the riers to interdisciplinary education. The college's curricu- final basis for evaluating writing competency. lum is organized into three multidisciplinary resource areas: Verbal communication skills are sharpened by serving arts and design, environmental science, and human studies. on college committees, including faculty hiring and evalua- One popular new course at COA, "The Eye and the Poet," tion committees (where students have full voting rights) and is team-taught by a graphic artist working in computer the All-College Meeting, which reviews the work of the com- design and a creative writing instructor. Students are chal- mittees and is moderated by a student. One former All-Col- lenged to create their own work integrating text and illustra- lege Meeting moderator said, "Involvement in governance is tion. "I've been teaching creative writing for twenty years, one way of expressing the long-term commitment to COA and I've never seen such an explosion of creativity," says that many of us here feel deeply." It is also an excellent way COA faculty member William Carpenter, a novelist and to build competence and effectiveness in collaborative deci- nationally-recognized poet. sion-making. The school's course catalog offers one example after 6. Use information technology creatively. One course at another of multidisciplinary courses. One class explores the COA provides a hands-on introduction to Geographic Infor- impact of parasites on human history, integrating biology, mation Systems. Another, an advanced land planning semi- anthropology and history. nar, employs the ArcInfo geographical database system and 5. Link communication skills and coursework. "COA computer modeling to assist decisionmakers in the commu- places almost no limits on what you can study," states the nities on Mount Desert Island to develop regulations and catalog, "but places on you the burden of justifying what policies. In another class, concepts from non-digital media, you want to do." A student applying for independent study, such as performance art, sculpture and architecture, are internship, or tutorial must write a proposal describing the integrated in multimedia projects that combine sound, goals, methods and plan for evaluation. three-dimensional visual elements and animation, and are Students are required to write a self-evaluation at the published on the Web. end of every course. Comments can include: skills acquired 7. Culminate the undergraduate education with a cap- or improved; the biggest challenge overcome; authors, texts, stone experience. At COA, the final required project may or concepts explored; projects, papers, or topics of particu- be a treatise, experimental work, or original research that lar value; and how work in that course tied in with other advances understanding in a particular academic area and classes. Teachers also write narrative evaluations, and those, brings together the skills and knowledge acquired during together with grades, if selected, form a transcript showing the student's college career. how courses and projects mesh into a coherent education of 8. Educate graduate students as apprentice teachers. the student's own design. This recommendation is fulfilled only partially at COA. The Composition courses often relate to other classes college began offering graduate degrees in 1991, but the pro- offered during the same term, and the professors plan gram, which offers a master of philosophy in human ecology, assignments together (e.g., Biology I and Writing Seminar I, is a limited one, and the faculty are very wary of using gradu- which emphasizes writing scientific and technical papers). ate students as teachers. The college does have a teacher certi- Most classes emphasize real-life writing to an audience of lay fication program at the BA level and has been a recognized people, not academics. Every student completes a human leader in interdisciplinary teacher-training since 1985. ecology essay stating an individual interpretation of the con- continued on page 8 CARL LITTLE Beth White '99 (left, with golf club), fondly known as "Carrot," moderated the All College Meeting in the fall. Here she and her colleagues perform a skit highlighting the governance process at College of the Atlantic. COA NEWS 7 WINTER 1998/1999 Heckscher Scholarship Fund Completed Thanks to an anonymous annually, with prefer- $20,000 challenge grant, ence for those whose the August Heckscher work focuses on public Scholarship Fund has lands, government or reached its goal of the arts. $150,000. The fund was Heckscher was established in 1997 to chief editorial writer honor the late August for the New York Herald Heckscher, an author Tribune and author of a and public servant whose number of books, life and work encom- including a history of passed many of the val- St. Paul's School and a ues and principles under- major biography of lying the study of human Woodrow Wilson. He ecology. played significant roles "As part of the col- lege's endowment, the PETE TRAVERS/BAR HARBOR TIMES in the creation of such diverse organizations as fund celebrates Heck- the United Nations and scher's life and legacy in the National Endow- perpetuity," said College ment for the Arts, and of the Atlantic President served for six years as Steven K. Katona. "It is a New York Parks Com- great honor for all of us missioner. He also at the college to help in Philip Heckscher, son of the late August Heckscher, showed examples of designed and printed the remembrance of this his calligraphy in the Ethel H. Blum Gallery in October. limited edition books extraordinary man and of writings by Mar- the remarkable contributions he made in so many aspects of guerite Yourcenar, Hortense Flexner and others on his press at public life," he said. High Loft in Seal Harbor. The scholarship will be awarded to one or more students Blueprint, from page 7 9. Change the faculty reward systems. Tenure based on Approximately 35 percent of graduates have obtained a the publish-or-perish rule was never established at the col- masters or doctorate degree, or are enrolled in such a pro- lege. In fact, tenure is not awarded at COA, period. Stu- gram now. A sampling of graduate degrees earned by COA dents sit on faculty evaluation teams, and student input is graduates include advanced degrees in these fields at Anti- expected for professors and administrators alike. The major och, Boston University, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, criterion considered during faculty evaluations is excellence Duke, Harvard, MIT, Northeastern, Oxford, Rhode Island in teaching. School of Design, Tufts, University of California, Berkeley, 10. Cultivate a sense of community through shared rit- University of Michigan, Vanderbilt and Yale. uals, collaborative project teams and the enriching experi- Graduates include an architect who designed an $18-mil- ence of forums on issues. COA holds annual events such lion recycling center in Phoenix, a rabbi, an attorney with as a five-day Maine wilderness outdoor orientation for the U.S. Department of Justice, a neurologist, a photogra- incoming students, a half mile community swim from cam- pher with The New York Times, an award-winning painter, a pus to nearby Bar Island, Earth Day and the student- pilot for American Airlines, and associate directors for con- designed graduation ceremony. Collaborative teams run servation and scientific research at the New England Aquari- the college's popular Natural History Museum and the um. Two graduates married and became co-authors and co- nationally-recognized marine mammal research group, owners of a Maine guide service. Allied Whale. The college offers lectures by distinguished One of the college's international students, Nishanta scholars throughout the year and sponsors the ECO/ECO Rajakaruna, returned to his native Sri Lanka for an intern- (Ecology/Economics) Policy Forum, which brings together ship as a research assistant, then after graduation worked environmental, business, and government leaders to for a year in a Harvard University laboratory assisting in explore the relationship between economics and ecology in studies of plant physiology. He currently is enrolled in a Maine's future. Ph.D. program in botany at the University of British How successful have the Boyer recommendations been, Columbia. as practiced at College of the Atlantic? In terms of alumni Are the Boyer Commission's recommendations unreach- careers, 19 percent of COA graduates follow a career path in able or impractical? You be the judge. the natural sciences, 23 percent in education, 21 percent in art or design, 12 percent in business, 13 percent in social ser- Norah Davis is a faculty associate with College of the Atlantic, but vice or government, 6 percent in the medical professions, 2 she resides in Alexandria, Virginia. She is the author of two books, percent in engineering, and 2 percent in communications. The Father of Waters (Sierra Club Books) and At Home in About 40 percent of graduates work in the non-profit sector. the Sun (Garden Way). COA NEWS 8 WINTER 1998/1999 College of the Atlantic Unveils Economic Impact Statement In October 1998, as the first element in a comprehensive examination of College of the Atlantic's economic and cultural progress, the college commissioned an economic analysis of its impact on the local economy. A special presentation of the report "The Economic Impact of College of the Atlantic, Hancock County, Maine 1998" was given in the Gates Community Center auditorium in January. COA President Steven K. Katona presented the highlights of the economic analysis, which was undertaken by CERI, the County Economic Research Institute Inc. of Overland Park, Kansas. Highlights of the study: College of the Atlantic spent $7,759,000 in operations in 1998. The impact of these dollars on Hancock County's economy was $10,951,082. The operations of the college created the equivalent of 152 jobs. Total Hancock Country expenditures by COA faculty and staff house- holds were $4,586,875, which created 61 jobs. COA brought 4,734 visitors to Hancock County in 1998 with an economic impact of $1,442,548, which created 28 jobs. To provide some idea of the growth that has occurred since the college's founding, President Katona noted that the college's operating budget in its first fiscal year was $435,331. Staff and faculty have grown from 11 to 83; stu- dent enrollment from 32 to over 250; and a handful of buildings to twenty. CERI performed the study utilizing an economic impact model formulated for Hancock County, Maine. The model is based on industry output, household earnings and employment multiplier coefficients that take into account Hancock County's economic structure, trading patterns and work force. The coefficients were developed specifically for the Hancock County economy by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis. Copies of the CERI report and an executive summary are available from the development office at College of the Atlantic. The college plans to commission a detailed cultural impact study during fiscal 1999-2000. Two Lighthouses Acquired The Maine Lights Program of the Island Institute has selected College of the Atlantic to be the new owner of lighthouse stations on Great Duck Island and Mount Desert Rock. Joining Petit Manan Island, Great Duck and Mount Desert Rock field stations will expand the campus in exciting and useful ways. Eight miles out to sea from Mount Desert Island, the 250-acre Great Duck fea- tures forest, fields, wetlands and rocky shore that support a large variety of birds, plants and mammals. Thousands of Leach's storm petrels, the largest population of this bird in the United States, maintain burrows on the island, returning every year from their winter home in South America. More that 400 pairs of black guille- mots-the largest on the East Coast-nest along the shore. An active bald eagle nest is also on the island, and migrating songbirds and hawks make stopovers. The cold maritime climate provides ideal habitat for several rare plants, includ- ing the beach-head iris. Seals haul out to sun themselves on granite ledges. COA will work in cooperation with the Nature Conservancy, the largest land holder on Great Duck, to study these and other flora and fauna. Located twenty miles from Mount Desert Island, Mount Desert Rock is the fur- thest island off the Maine coast. Already well known to Allied Whale researchers, "The Rock" will once again serve as a field station for marine mammal research and for oceanographic and marine biology studies and senior projects. The field stations will add value to the undergraduate experience by strength- KATE CAMPBELL ening the experiential aspect of a COA education. At the same time, the historic The lighthouse on Great Duck will value of these properties will appeal to enthusiasts of Maine maritime culture and serve as a base for research activities history. on this island. COA NEWS 9 WINTER 1998/1999 ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL Major Grant From McCormick Foundation Boosts College of the Atlantic Endowment Campaign The Chauncey and Marion Deering McCormick Founda- and $10 million in planned and deferred gifts by the tion has awarded a grant of $500,000 to College of the beginning of the new millennium. Endowment funds will Atlantic's Silver Anniversary Endowment Campaign. The support the library, faculty chairs, student scholarship aid, grant will be directed toward endowing the position of faculty research and development, facilities and equip- director for the college's Thorndike Library. ment, and expenses associated with the college's opera- The Thorndike Library serves an academic communi- tions. ty of approximately 350 students, teachers and staff. It is To date, the Silver Anniversary Endowment Campaign also a valuable resource for Mount Desert Island's 10,000 has reached over 65 percent of its goal for immediate and residents and, through interlibrary loan, to citizens and planned gifts. "Not only does the McCormick Foundation scholars throughout northern New England. The grant bring us closer to our goal," said Clyde E. Shorey, McCormick funds will help to ensure that the Thorndike Jr., chairman of the College of the Atlantic Board of Library will always benefit from experienced and innova- Trustees, "it is also a tremendous vote of confidence in tive leadership. what the college is accomplishing as an innovator in high- Launched in the summer of 1996 by the Board of er education." Trustees to celebrate College of the Atlantic's first quarter Inquiries regarding the Silver Anniversary Endowment century, the Silver Anniversary Endowment Campaign is a Campaign should be directed to Fran Day, Director of four-year program to secure $10 million in outright gifts Development, at 207-288-5015. College of the Atlantic Elects New Trustees Clyde E. Shorey, Jr., chair- the Garden Club of Mount man of the Board of Desert and St. Mary's Epis- Trustees, has announced copal Church in Northeast Harbor. the election of four new Ann Sullivan became trustees. They are: Profes- sor John Wilmerding of Director of Development at Friends Seminary in New Northeast Harbor and York City in 1994, having Princeton, New Jersey; previously served in a Linda Lewis of Somesville; range of positions, includ- Ann Sullivan of Great ing Director of College Cranberry Island and Counseling and Admis- Brooklyn, New York; and sions, Chair of the English Victoria Savage of Tren- ton, Maine. Professor Wilmerding COURTESY OF ANN SULLIVAN Department and teacher. Among her volunteer activ- ities, she is a benefit com- has been chair of the Department of Art and PETE TRAVERS mittee member for the National Center for Learn- Archaeology at Princeton ing Disabilities and serves University since 1992. He Ann Sullivan (left) is Director of Development at the Friends Semi- on the boards of the Great also serves as a visiting nary in New York City. Victoria Savage '80 directs the College of the Cranberry Island Library curator in the Department Atlantic Alumni Association. and the Seal Harbor Club. of American Art at the Victoria Savage is a Metropolitan Museum of 1980 graduate of College of the Atlantic and president of Art and previously was Deputy Director of the National the COA Alumni Association. She will be the new Alumni Gallery of Art in Washington. He is the author of numerous Trustee on the board. Savage is currently enrolled in the books, including monographs on Fitz Hugh Lane and master degree program in clinical social work at the Univer- Winslow Homer, and has narrated a number of documen- sity of Maine at Orono and is an intern at Kids Peace New taries on American art. England in Ellsworth. Familiar to many on Mount Desert Island as co-owner "College of the Atlantic trustees play a key role in plan- and founder of Port in a Storm Bookstore, Linda Lewis has ning the direction of the institution," Chairman Shorey stat- served on the Board of Directors of Friends of Acadia since ed. "These new members with their diverse backgrounds in 1990 and was chairman of that organization from 1994 to the arts, business and education will bring outstanding 1997. She is an active member of the Acadia Choral Society, expertise and energy to COA." COA NEWS 10 WINTER 1998/1999 College of the Atlantic Receives First Endowed Chair As part of its Silver Anniversary Endowment Campaign, genetics. In his role as associate dean of advanced studies, College of the Atlantic has received a $1 million gift from Dr. Greene is responsible for administration of the college's the family of the late Elizabeth Battles Newlin of Northeast Masters of Philosophy in human ecology program. Harbor, Maine, and Philadelphia. The funds endow a chair Dr. Greene is recognized as a leading authority on the in botany, the first endowed professorship in the history of taxonomy of the grass genus Calamagrostis, the reedgrasses, and on the flora of the Mt. College of the Atlantic. Dr. Craig Greene, who has taught botany at COA since 1980 and is an authority on rare and "Mother was an Desert Island region of Maine. endangered plants of coastal Maine, has accepted a five-year His interests also include repro- appointment as the Newlin Chair. environmentalist ductive biology of flowering William V.P. Newlin, a trustee of College of the plants. He was principal investi- Atlantic, and his sister, Lucy Bell Newlin Sellers, director of long before gator for several plant invento- COA's Theatre Workshop, expressed their pleasure with ries undertaken by Acadia the establishment of the chair in their mother's name. "At we had heard National Park, including a recent home or abroad, Mother was always learning from land- survey of freshwater aquatic veg- scapes," Mrs. Sellers said; "Wherever she lived, she was of the word." etation. He is a member of the always making and tending gardens." They noted that she Botanical Advisory Group of the never studied botany formally, but that her profound inter- Maine State Planning Office and has served as a consultant for the State of Maine Critical est in growing things lasted her whole life. "She was an Areas Program. environmentalist long before we had heard of the word." Dr. Greene's research has appeared in a number of sci- In appointing Dr. Greene to the Newlin Chair, Presi- dent Steven K. Katona paid tribute to Mrs. Newlin, a long- entific publications, including The American Journal of time friend and benefactor of the college. "Mrs. Newlin Botany, The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California and provided the funds to create the Newlin Gardens, named Vascular Plants of British Columbia. He is a contributing for her late husband, E. Mortimer Newlin, and she support- author to the Grass Manual of North America and The Flora of North America. ed scholarships for academically excellent and financially needy students," President Katona said. Among the duties related to the Newlin Chair, Dr. Dr. Greene holds a Bachelor of Science in biology Greene will present a lecture for the public each year; from the State University of New York's College of Environ- encourage students to become involved in research in mental Science and Forestry, a Masters in Science in plant botany and related fields; and develop courses that provide taxonomy from the University of Alberta and a Ph.D in new perspectives on botany or that relate the world of biology from Harvard University. Among the courses he plants to other areas of the college's human ecology cur- riculum. Dr. Greene lives with his wife, Sara ("Bo"), and teaches at COA are plant taxonomy, morphology and diver- their son, Will, in Hulls Cove, Maine. sity of plants, economic botany, natural history, biology and COLLEGE ARCHIVES Dr. Craig Greene, above, the first Newlin Chair in Botany, points out a botanical detail on a cactus to Angela Delvecchio '92 in the Amos Eno greenhouse at Collge of the Atlantic. From left to right: Lucy Bell Newlin Sellers, Mrs. Elizabeth Battles Newlin and William V.P. Newlin COLLEGE ARCHIVES celebrate at the opening of the Newlin Gardens at Garden College of the Atlantic. COA NEWS 11 WINTER 1998/1999 ALUMNI PROFILE Willowind At Willowind, riding is about connecting and communicating with a primitive animal, which can be the means to empowerment and healing. by Rebecca Buyers-Basso '81 He is a scallop fisherman who loves messing about with cally for therapeutic riding. "Brenna," a favorite lesson boats; she is a landscaper with a passion for horses. Togeth- horse, and another mare are now pregnant. er they are "Surf 'n' Turf," Joanna Crell-Folger jokes. She While Joanna discusses the benefits of therapeutic rid- and husband, David Folger '81, are the founders of Wil- ing with me, David picks up the kids, meets with a builder lowind, a therapeutic riding center in Salisbury Cove, and takes care of other business. Later on this warm Maine. September afternoon, Joanna and David will give a riding The Folgers share a vision of Willowind as a progressive lesson to an autistic child. working model for integrating people with disabilities into "We are truly partners," Joanna declares, just as they are the community. They have been working since 1994 to in their landscaping business and their marriage. She over- build community support for their ideal. Incorporated as a sees the horses' care, teaches the lessons and attends to the non-profit organization in 1998, Willowind's mission is to needs of her students. David brings a builder's eye to Wil- provide recreational and therapeutic horseback riding for lowind's construction and landscaping projects and helps children and adults. A volunteer board of directors, which care for the horses. includes doctors, therapists, people with disabilities and par- ents of children with disabilities oversees the organization. Although David is not a rider, he has a calm, peaceful way David serves as President and Joanna as Executive Director. with the horses and brings a balancing male presence to an Willowind's facilities abut the Folger's home. The horse activity that disproportionately attracts females. Joanna, farm currently consists of ten acres of leased pastureland who grew up riding horses on her grandparents' farm in and trails, a new eight-stall barn built with the help of a North Carolina, understands. community barn-raising last fall and an indoor riding arena, "It's powerful to be a 70-pound girl controlling a 1,000- still under construction. As soon as the funds can be raised, pound animal!" Joanna recalls. Grateful for the opportunity Willowind will add an outdoor riding ring, handicapped- she had to learn respect and responsibility through horse- accessible ramps to all the buildings and a septic system for manship, she believes that horses provide a great opportu- an Americans with Disabilities Act-approved bathroom. nity for girls to engage their mind, body and soul in an "The goal is to make the farm completely accessible to activity that she insists is more than a sport. the physically handicapped, using what is known as 'univer- "Riding is about connecting and communicating with a sal design," Joanna explains. "Willowind has hired an office primitive animal, which can be the means to empowerment worker who is confined to a wheelchair and we want to and healing," Joanna explains. She knows from first-hand make sure she can get around." experience; after she suffered a stroke at the age of 30, Willowind currently employs a young woman who is therapeutic riding helped her recover lost motor skills and developmentally delayed. She does barn chores for the balance. "Riding helped me back into my life and I have farm's herd of eight horses, including three Norwegian stayed close to horses ever since. I no longer want to com- Fjords. This ancient breed of horse is recognizable by their pete, but I love teaching, especially children." dun-colored coats marked with a distinctive dark dorsal Joanna's goals are the same for all her students: stripe. They are very docile and not much taller than improved health, recreation, and the creation of a sense of ponies, but their broad backs are strong enough to carry well being. For students with disabilities, riding becomes adults. The Folgers are breeding Norwegian Fjords specifi- the modality for therapy-physical, occupational or even speech therapy. COA NEWS 12 WINTER 1998/1999 A few examples: The motion of the horse's spine as it moves forward massages the base of the rider's spine and stimulates mobility. This is especially beneficial for people who spend a lot of time in wheelchairs. Learning to control a horse empowers the rider and gives them the confidence to take control of their own lives. Conversely, acknowledging real external danger-the possibility of being kicked by a horse or falling off- teaches autistic children and adults self-preservation skills. Just grooming a horse can help children overcome tac- tile defensiveness, help them build relationships and learn appropriate behavior. Success is measured individually. Joanna reports the greatest progress with victims of abuse. It is harder to break into the private world of autistic children, she says, but she is pleased if they sleep better at night, if they are able to Sarah Shultz and Brenna pose for the camera. function throughout a whole school day, if their bodies become stronger or more supple. Clients are referred to Joanna by the local public schools, which pay for the relatively inexpensive cost of therapeutic riding. One school has given internship credit to a student who volunteered at Willowind. Joanna and David would like to see more College of the Atlantic interns at the farm where they could get hands-on experience in several aspects of the operation-running a non-profit business, farm man- agement, riding instruction, how children learn, coping with disabilities, building construction, or fund-raising. Willowind is still in the start-up phase of its develop- ment and needs additional funds for construction and pro- gram development, but it is being built for perpetuity, says Joanna. It is modeled after High Hopes, a self-sustaining therapeutic riding center in Old Lyme, Connecticut, which David and Joanna visited during the research phase of the farm's development. "I have always wanted to live my life with a spiritual cen- ter," David confides. Willowind has provided that center and has created a holistic lifestyle for him and his family. He is pleased to see no separations between the able and disabled at Willowind and is proud of how naturally his chil- dren relate to those with handicaps. Building community at Willowind. Does an education in human ecology come in handy while running a non-profit horse farm? You bet. Although he is not a rider, David has a peaceful way with "As a COA student, I studied the sea, plants, art, carpen- the horses. try, group process, writing and community problem-solv- ing," David recalls. "I use the knowledge and skills I learned there every day." His education at COA also yielded a board member. Peter Wayne '83, now a postdoctoral student in botany at Harvard and tai chi instructor, sits on Willowind's board of directors. Rebecca Buyers-Basso '81 is a freelance journalist, grantwriting consultant and gymnastics instructor. She lives in Bar Harbor with her husband, Skip, curator of the college's Natural History Museum, and their 13-year-old daughter, Marisa. Above left: David Folger '81 stands by proudly as his wife, Joanna Crell-Folger (far left), and stablehand Sarah Shultz (center) enjoy a moment with Brenna, one of Willowind's Norwegian Fjords. COA NEWS 13 WINTER 1998/1999 lan L. McHarg, professor emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania, gave a spirited speech in accepting an hon- orary master of philosophy degree in human ecology at the college's 26th Com- mencement. Sally Crock (below, with flowers ), outgoing registrar, joins the class of 1998 on the stage during a special commencement tribute to her long-time contributions to College of the Atlantic. FIELDER MATTOX FIELDER MATTOX COA NEWS 14 WINTER 1998/1999 Clyde E. Shorey, Jr., Chairman of the College of the Atlantic's Board of Trustees, and Steven K. Katona, COA President, presided over the 26th 26th Commencement exercises, held under a tent on the north lawn of campus on Saturday, June 6, 1998. Fifty-four seniors received B.A. degrees in human ecology. A single Master of Philosophy in Commencement human ecology went to Robert Collins. Chairman Shorey called upon the class of 1998 to be messengers carrying the COA philoso- phy into the world and encouraged them to serve Celebrated their communities. President Katona saluted the graduates for their contributions to developing a strategic plan for COA; to configuring the Silver Honors, tears, humor and a call Anniversary Endowment Campaign, which will eventually guarantee the college's financial health to community service marked in perpetuity; and to the re-accreditation process, which led to the Commission on Higher Educa- this year's graduation. tion's recommendation to re-accredit COA for the maximum time possible, ten years. The ceremony opened with a humorous skit about a COA student written in verse by Toby Stephenson '98. Senior perspectives, the college's alternative to the traditional valedictorian speech, were delivered by Rebecca Kerin, Shawn Hamilton and Kate Francis, from the class of '98. Francis received the Center for Applied Human Ecology Award in recognition of her efforts to create a green plan for the college cam- pus. The William H. Drury, Jr. Prize went to Sarah Faull in honor of her work in conservation biology; the Daniel H. Kane Award, to Jessica Schmidt for her work in environmental law; and the Interna- tional Studies Award, to Rebecca White, who taught in the Czech Republic last year. The Alumni Merit Scholarship Award was presented to Jacob Eichenlaub '99 in recognition of his academic excellence and community service. An honorary master of philosophy in human ecology degree was conferred on Ian L. McHarg, distinguished landscape architect, regional planner and educator, and professor emeritus at the Uni- versity of Pennsylvania where he co-founded the Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning Department in the Graduate School of Fine Arts. Two of his former students, COA trustee Samuel Hamill and COA graduate Gordon Longsworth, introduced him. In his acceptance speech, McHarg spoke of Charles Eliot, who conducted the first ecological surveys of Mount Desert Island. "He should be the patron saint of COA," McHarg said. Keynote speaker William Drayton, founder and director Ashoka: Innovators for the Public, called upon the class of '98 to start citizen organi- zations using the market tools of business. He high- lighted the achievements of several Ashoka-sup- CARL LITTLE ported entrepreneurs around the world who have turned their visions into reality and then carried out their innovations across society. "Everyone in Top: Commencement photographer Fielder Mattox '00 takes this class has a choice to make a difference," he the offical photograph of the class of 1998 on the lawn in front said. of the Turrets. A special tribute was made to Sally Crock, the Registrar Sally Crock (right) presided over her last Senior Pro- college's registrar for the past twenty years. She jects presentation before the COA Board of Trustees in the joined the seniors on stage as a fellow graduate Gates Center auditorium. Here she reacts to a humorous of the class of 1998. moment during senior Jasmine Tanguay's presentation of her project, "The Financing of Freedom." COA NEWS 15 WINTER 1998/1999 Alumni Notes A sampling of the where- D.C., Melissa Danskin '94 abouts and livelihoods of Col- is an information specialist lege of the Atlantic graduates: for the Land Trust Alliance. She provides Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer & research and technical Nelson, one of Maine's assistance to land trust pro- largest law firms, has fessionals, landowners and announced the appoint- others interested in pri- ment of Katherine Clark vate, voluntary land conser- '91 to their civil litigation vation and conservation team. Formerly a law clerk partnerships. Prior to join- for Justice Howard H. ing the Land Trust Dana, Jr. of the Maine Alliance, Danskin was Supreme Judicial Court, interim information officer Clark is a resident of Port- for the Africa Resources land and a member of the Trusts. Maine State Bar Associa- tion. She graduated magna In June 1996 Sajit (Wendy) cum laude from Vermont Greene '80 joined the COURTESY OF HYDRO-PHOTON Law School in 1996. Mental Health Corps of Denver. She practices a Humpert Wolnitzek Archi- combination of dance, play tects, of Covington, Ken- The Steri-Pen, manufactured by Hydro-Photon of and cognitive/behavioral tucky, has appointed Tenia Blue Hill, Maine, provides a novel way to treat drink- therapy with emotionally- "Teni" L. Bannick '86 to ing water. disturbed children ages 3- their staff as an intern 12. Greene also led her architect. Bannick earned Maine, where she is teach- The college hosted a "Sci- third trip to Ghana, West her Master of Architecture ing all subjects to students ence by COA Graduates" Africa, to study traditional from Miami University in in grades 1 through 5 in gathering in October. Fea- dance and drumming. It Oxford, Ohio, in 1994. She the island's one-room tured speakers were Scott was her first experience as co-authored an article "Sus- schoolhouse. She complet- Kraus 77, Director of a guide for American trav- tainability Happens In the ed her student teacher ellers. Research at the New Eng- Greater Cincinnati Area" training at the Conners- land Aquarium in Boston, that appeared in Archi- This past August Cather- Emerson Elementary Mass.; Jane Winchell '82, TEXT. ine Kozaryn '94 took up School in Bar Harbor in Curator of Natural History residence on Frenchboro, 1994. at the Peabody Essex Muse- Based in Washington, um in Salem, Mass.; Rich David Lamon '91 (left) "hangs out" with fellow Motion Collective mem- bers Ginger Manna, Lee Litov, Don Grieco and Scott Springer (yes, there are five dancers in the photograph). Founded in 1991, the Motion Col- lective has performed widely in New England, most recently at the Maine Festival held at Thomas Point in Brunswick. The group will be hosting a week- end dance festival at the Mount Desert Island FIELDER MATTOX Regional High School April 9-10, 1999. COA NEWS 16 WINTER 1998/1999 Alumni Notes Emmons '92, a Ph.D. can- expects to market the Harry McDaniel '81 has Out on Isle au Haut, Glen didate at Washington Uni- device this year. The pro- recently set up a web site Mittelhauser '89 continues versity in St. Louis, Mis- jected cost is rather steep, for his sculpture at to study the harlequin souri; and Pati Vitt and $195, but as Newsweek put www.HarryMcDaniel.com. duck, a bird he began Matthew Hare, both class it, "that's a small price to "When not doing artwork," researching as a part of his of '84 and both postdoctor- pay to avoid dancing the he writes, "I am usually tak- Senior Project at College ate research associates and green-apple two-step." Be ing care of my children (3 of the Atlantic. Working teachers at, respectively, sure to visit the company's 1/2 and 5 years old) or on his master degree in the University of Connecti- web site at www.hydro-pho- working on our 75-year-old biology from the University cut in Storrs and Harvard ton.com. house." McDaniel lives in of Maine at Orono, Mittel- University. Asheville, North Carolina. hauser is trying to answer a E-mailing from Washing- variety of questions related When he isn't facilitating ton, D.C., David Malakoff In a recent letter to the col- to this species common on the Teacher Education Pro- '86 is a reporter covering lege, Bill McDowell '80 the West Coast but much gram at College of the the politics of science. caught us up on his activi- less on the Eastern Atlantic, David Lamon '91 NASA, the White House ties. He and his family, Seaboard. His research is dancing. He is a repre- Science Advisor, the which includes wife, Britt, was the subject of a recent sentative for the Maine Department of Energy and and kids Nina, Sam and feature article in the Sci- Dance Network and chore- the Defense Research Olivia, have been in Texas ence & Education section ographed the Mount Agency are on his beat for for the past four years. They of the Bangor Daily News. Desert Regional High Science Magazine. This live an hour northeast of School's production of weekly, which has about Dallas, where McDowell Susan Newborn '90 is a Evita. He received a grant 150,000 subscribers inter- teaches photography at mental health worker with from the Maine Arts Com- nationally, is a publication Texas A&M University- the Arahura Trust in Auck- mission to work with the of the American Associa- Commerce. He has upcom- land, New Zealand. She Liz Lerman Dance tion for the Advancement ing one-person shows of his manages a house with long- Exchange at the 1998 Bates of Science. They can be photographs in Los Ange- term psychiatric patients. College Dance Festival. visited on the world wide les, Portland (OR) and She has been attending This experience resulted in web at www. Houston. McDowell is also a Unitec in a national certifi- an article in the newsletter sciencemag.org. And you recipient of the 1998 Aaron cate program in mental of the Maine Arts Partner- can reach David at Siskind Individual Photogra- health support work. New- ship Program. dmalakoff@nasw.org. pher's Fellowship grant, one born has served as a cam- of six given internationally. paigner for Friends of the Hydro-Photon in Blue Hill, Maine, has unveiled a novel drinking water treat- ment device called the "Steri-Pen." According to the company's president, Miles Maiden '86, the device, which uses a high frequency, short wave, ger- Bill McDowell, micidal ultraviolet lamp Planetary Mobile, that is powered by a Wilkinson House, rechargeable lithium bat- Lily Dale, 1996. tery, is intended primarily Black-and-white for business and vacation photograph from travelers and hikers. The the exhibition "Ban- Steri-Pen can be used in ner of Light: The Lily places where other forms of treatments such as Dale Photographs," shown at the Men- chemicals, filters, or boil- schel Photography ing would be difficult-in Gallery, Syracuse restaurants, hotel rooms, University, March- on the road, or in the field. The invention has been July 1998. featured in a range of pub- lications around the world, including Newsweek, The London Sunday Times and Stern (Germany). Maiden COA NEWS 17 WINTER 1998/1999 Alumni Notes Earth in New Zealand and professionals. Packie also the Rhode Island School of Isaac Wagner '96 is work- is vice-chair of the board was a featured artist in the Design, is staying in the ing with the Peace Corps in for Greenpeace and a exhibition "The Mystery of area on a traveling fellow- Zambia, focusing on water trustee of Coconut Free Fire" organized by the ship. Tucker just complet- quality issues. His brother, Press. Union of Maine Visual ed a volunteer project on a Luke Wagner '99, a cur- Artists and shown in warm lake habitat for Bio- rent COA student, also was Photographer Tammy COA's Blum Gallery. sphere 2. Plant's wife, recently in Zambia, intern- Packie '97 was among Maria, is expecting a baby ing with Mporo Koso Dis- more than 50 award recipi- In an e-mail to President in May. trict Health Services. ents statewide in the Maine Katona, Bill Plant '95 Media Women 1998 Com- reported that he is enjoy- Greg Rainoff '82 is current- Timmon Milne Wallis, for- munications Contest. Pack- ing his new position at Bio- ly effects animator and edi- merly David Blum 78, is ie won first place for a sphere 2. Besides doing tor for Digital Magic in the coordinator for the black-and-white feature site interpretation he has Santa Monica, California. National Peace Council of photo; first place for a been mentoring a group of He is primary effects anima- Great Britain in London, black-and-white landscape; students who are in the tor on the Star Trek televi- England. He works with and third place for her Columbia Earth Semester. sion series. He holds a 200 peace organizations black-and-white news He reports that Jesse B.F.A. in painting from the throughout the United photo entry. Maine Media Tucker '95, who recently Massachusetts College of Kingdom. Women is a statewide orga- completed his masters in Art in Boston. nization of communication landscape architecture at Teacher Education Alumni Retreat by Emily Bracale '90 The first Teacher Education alumni retreat was held at To know that there are others of us out there working College of the Atlantic in August. Around twenty people in the field, whether it be in a public or private school, gathered from as far away as Oregon and Florida. home schooling or attending graduate school, writing, lec- At the opening circle Friday night, the group shared turing, tutoring, developing projects and curriculum, or brief descriptions of teaching experiences since graduation. conducting teacher training was uplifting for everyone. Catherine Kozaryn '94 reported that she has two students The depth of personal investment was remarkable. on the island of Frenchboro, Maine, while Mary Harney Kozaryn, for example, was absent from the Saturday meet- '96 facilitates pro- ing because she grams on AIDS aware- had to attend the ness and the "Safe Summer Picnic on Spaces" project that Frenchboro to reach thousands of raise money for a students and teachers new boiler to heat across Maine. Each the island's one- person seemed to be room school. working to his or her Due to the gor- fullest potential, and geous weather and putting strong visions a full moon, many into practice. Susan participants found Haynes, former Teach- it hard to stay in er Education faculty their seats for a member at COA, CARL LITTLE second session, so expressed her self- we elected to fol- image as that of a low our instincts "teacher-healer," a COA alumni joined Teacher Education Director past-Peter Corcoran in sun- toward a more title that might aptly glasses seated on ground-and Educational Studies Director present-Etta "experiential" and describe some aspect Kralovec at far left-for a group shot in the Newlin Garden. Corcoran is pro- "hands-on" of everyone's commit- fessor of environmental studies at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers. approach to the ments. afternoon. Every- Saturday morning we regrouped in the Turrets, where one went off in small groups for hikes, swimming, dining we engaged in passionate discussions about what moves us and an amazing moonlit walk along the shore path. to continue teaching (and learning and researching). Indi- Among those attending the reunion were Peter Corcoran, viduals shared their frustrations, hopes and concerns about founding director of the college's Teacher Education Pro- the education program and COA, public schools, children, gram and Etta Kralovec, the current director of Education- students, educators, communities and other topics. al Studies. COA NEWS 18 WINTER 1998/1999 Eco/Eco Confronts Sprawl by Peter Cox Eco/Eco began less than a decade ago as a largely self-selected group of Maine people discussing public policy. In the past two years, it has evolved into Maine's most visible and dynamic civic forum, due to the efforts of Ted Koffman, College of the Atlantic's director of government relations. The Eco/Eco forum was the brainchild of the late John Dreier, a COA trustee, who believed the confrontational mode between envi- ronmentalists and business people was undermining opportu- nities for progress. The decade of the 1980s was marked by increased acrimo- nious debate, distrust and gridlock. Dreier's idea was renewed and expanded by COA trustees in 1989 and Koffman was assigned the job of implementing it. Working closely with COA founding president Edward Kaelber, Koffman began interviewing business and environ- metnal organization CEOs to better understand their concerns and long-term objectives. These interviews helped shape a compelling agenda for Eco/Eco's first conference on the col- lege campus in 1990, which attracted 65 key leaders from the TAMMY PACKIE various sectors. That conference addressed the issue of policy gridlock and established Eco/Eco's (Ecology and Economy) College of the Atlantic trustee Sherry Huber and adjunct fac- role of looking beyond confrontation to problem solving. ulty member Ron Beard address the conference on sprawl Following the conference, participants formed an Eco/Eco sponsored by Eco/Eco. Steering Committee which met bi-monthly to plan future conv- erences and explore contentious issues and discover shared val- The pattern of interest became clear as the meetings pro- ues. These early convocations resulted in profitable dialogue gressed. In Camden, 40 people signed up in advance and 74 and the creation of a network of Maine cieitizens willing to actually attended. In Portland, the initial group of 62 swelled to drop old prejudices and bring new ideas to pulbic policy dis- more than 130; Brunswick also attracted a crowd nearing 130. cussions. The issue struck a chord and the public was hungry for the By 1993, Eco/Eco was looking for a concrete product and opportunity to participate in its resolution. At each meeting, initiated the Maine Environmental Priorities Project to evaluate the citizenry proved itself well informed and hotly contested comparative risk. Its 1997 final report showed that consensus some of Richert's ideas while presenting others from the floor. could be reached on identifying Maine's most pressing envi- Between the small meetings, the civic forums and ronmental problems, but implementing solutions lay ahead. Richert's speeches, more than 2,000 individuals have participat- As a result of that study, which cited urban sprawl as the ed in the discussion, Maine's largest and most geographically underlying cause of several of Maine's most urgent problems, diverse participatory exercise in recent years. the Eco/Eco Steering Committee decided to hold a statewide With Koffman in charge, the process won't stop there. conference on the subject in Bar Harbor in 1997. The major While Richert drafts possible initiatives for the King Adminis- difference between this and previous gatherings was the broad tration, Koffman and Eco/Eco will bring together the potential participation of the current gubernatorial administration, members of a coalition to promote what is now called "smart headed by Angus King, who had participated in the very first growth." That coalition already includes environmentalists and Eco/Eco forum as moderator. land preservationists; farmers feeling the pressures of develop- But even the good ideas and energy of this meeting might ment; downtown merchants who want to protect their eco- have dissipated had not Eco/Eco decided, in conjunction with nomic well being; historic preservationists who realize that only the State Planning Office, to take the show on the road, visiting economically healthy downtowns can maintain their architec- communities around the state to expose them to the costs of tural heritage; hunters who are seeing habitat lost and land sprawl and to discuss suggestions on what to do about it. posted as new houses spring up on two-acre lots; and taxpayers This taking of the issue to the public never would have who are beginning to realize the high cost of this dispersed pat- become reality without Koffman, who obtained an Environ- tern of development. mental Protection Agency (EPA) grant of $50,000 and a This coalition, in turn, will be a strong catalyst for action. $12,000 contract from the State Planning Office. Working with Koffman has directed Eco/Eco's evolution from sponsoring a Evan Richert, director of the planning office and keynote thoughtful conference on sprawl to becoming an effective speaker at the forums, Koffman organized meetings from agent for concrete action. Wells to Machias. In each community, Koffman worked with Eco/Eco Policy activist Peter Cox of Georgetown, Maine, was a cofounder members and planning office staff to set up small meetings of Maine Times; he currently writes a regular column for the with local officials and business people to participate in a give weekly. He serves on the boards of the Maine Civil Liberties and take discussion about their community. Typically, Richert Union, the Portland Museum of Art and the Maine Audubon would address the local Rotary Club early in the day and in Society as well as the steering committee of Eco/Eco. He is presi- the evening lay out his proposed solutions before a public dent of the Wolf's Neck Farm Preserve. forum. COA NEWS 19 WINTER 1998/1999 The Lobster Quadrille in August featured contra- dancing under the stars and a skit written by Lyman Feero to honor Trustees Edward McC. Blair and Alice Eno for their roles in founding the Champlain Society. Here Sally Crock, Steve Katona, Ted Koffman and Rich Borden try out their thespian skills at theShrine. Gordon Longsworth '91 (second from left), director of the Geo- graphic Information Systems Laboratory at COA, directs some REBECCA WHITE Global Positioning work in the Newlin Gardens with seniors (left to right) Erin Gott, Travis Hussey, Michael Around Morgenstern and Gordon Henriksen. CARL LITTLE Campus A touch of the surreal: Toby 1895 Stephenson's model of Ah ambulocetus natans, an archaic walking whale, takes a rest on the lawn in front of the Turrets before being installed in the Natural History Museum. CARL LITTLE Millard Dority (pointing), director of Campus Plan- ning, leads a tour of the Gardner property, recently purchased by College of the Atlantic. The 3.64-acre par- cel, adjoining the Bar Harbor CARL LITTLE end of campus, includes two houses and a garage. Plans are being developed for The college's front gate space use. More on this received a new coat of expansion in the next issue paint this fall, courtesy of of COA News. students Kelice Penny and Susan Dinolfo. CARL LITTLE COA NEWS 20 WINTER 1998/1999 The new all-weather bicycle shed, designed by student Isaac Jacobs, was completed this fall. Located near the Blair-Tyson dormitory, the building will protect bikes from the elements. The shrine to Our Lady of Fatima, built by the French Oblate Fathers in the 1950s, received a facelift courtesy Scott Bishop '97, whose Senior Project involved refur- CARL LITTLE bishing the weatherworn structure. The shrine has served as a stage for summer theater, including this perfor- mance of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. The past year has PETER TRAVERS brought many changes, large and small, to the College of the Atlantic campus. Here is a sam- pling, in pictures, of the CARL LITTLE various goings-on. The new Natural History Museum, consisting of the renovated 1914 Acadia National Park headquarters building and a two-story addi- tion, is under construction, with completion set for this spring. An ice rainbow tops a wall in front of the Thorndike Library. COA NEWS 21 WINTER 1998/1999 ON CAMPUS Among the Most Activist-and Best Fed The September/October issue of Mother Jones magazine even higher in the 1999 edition of The Princeton featured the investigative magazine's fifth annual "Top 10 Review's The Best 311 Colleges where it came in second in Activist School" list. College of the Atlantic ranked sixth in the nation. In the same student opinion-based guide, one the nation. After UCLA released its annual survey of of the country's most popu- incoming freshmen last January, observed the magazine's lar, the college scored in the " editors, "the media bemoaned students' declining interest [we] have a top ten in several quality of in campus activism." In its own survey, however, Mother life areas, including "Best Jones found ample evidence that activism is alive and well responsibility to quality of life," #2, "Happy students," #4, "Gay communi- on U.S. campuses. take a stand ty accepted," #9, "Beautiful The citation for College of the Atlantic reads: "Several campus," #2, and "Dorms like students of this small, liberal arts college developed a pro- palaces," #7. And for the sec- posal prohibiting the school from doing business with when the ond year running, the companies that trade with Burma. The school adopted the kitchen, under the direction policy and subsequently rejected an attractive bid from Acer Computer for new computers because of Acer's busi- opportunities of Michael Anderson, gar- nered the number one spot ness ties with Burma's dictatorship." College of the Atlantic activist Rob Fish, of Stanhope, are available." in the "Great Food" category. Overall quality of life was New Jersey, noted that while COA is isolated in location, rated 95. "members of the college community recognize that they COA students gave high marks to the academic pro- have a responsibility to take a stand when the opportuni- ties are available." gram. The college was ranked #8 in the "Class discussions encouraged" category and #15 in "Professors bring materi- Mother Jones compiles its annual Top 10 list by polling al to life." Academic rating stayed strong at 90. 21 organizations, including: Amnesty International, Cen- College of the Atlantic also received special notice in ter for Campus Organizing, Habitat for Humanity Interna- the 1999 edition of Newsweek's How to Get Into College tional, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, National Guide. Under the heading "Hot Schools, Cool Spots," Organization for Women, Peace Corps and the Student Environmental Action Coalition. COA was listed in the category "Green Scenes," with spe- cial attention given to its human ecology program. The college's most politically active ranking went Make a Difference Day= For the past two years, as part of Make A Differ- ence Day, a nationwide volunteer effort that takes Make Apple Sauce Day place in October, College of the Atlantic students and community members have made apple sauce. They have distributed jars of the homemade sauce to the elderly, as well as to food pantries and other groups in the greater Mount Desert Island area. The activity had been organized by the Social Environmental Action (SEA) committee at the college, and was the idea of Kate Francis '98. "We wanted a project that would benefit a range of people on the island," said Francis, "but we also wanted an activity that would fit the season and that would be fun." COA students have also organized the annual Card Brook Cleanup in Ellsworth, Maine, in honor of National Rivers Week in the spring. For CARL LITTLE the past three years, trash has been collected (so much one year that the Ellsworth Town Manager has offered use of a city dump truck). Students Students gather in the college kitchen to make apple sauce on continue to hope that the cleanup will raise the Make a Difference Day. The sauce was distributed to homeless community's awareness of the existence of Card shelters, childcare centers and health facilities. Brook and the importance of keeping it clean and beautiful. Members of the SEA group also hosted a litter-a-thon in November to raise money for relief for victims of Hurricane Mitch in Central America. COA NEWS 22 WINTER 1998/1999 The Black Flies Swarm at COA The Black Flies, aka "The Swarm," is Col- lege of the Atlantic's first intercollegiate team. The soccer team has been coached by Steve Thomas, director of admission, and Douglas Barkey, faculty member in graphic arts, who designed the team's jazzy uniforms. This past fall, Ander Thébaud and Abby Rowe both assisted on the sidelines. The Lady and Gentlemen Black Fly teams have competed with Maine Maritime Academy, Colby, Bates and Unity Colleges, among others. They have also taken on the COA faculty and staff in an end-of-season fun match. Home games have been held at the Bar Harbor playing field and at the Mount Desert Regional High School. While victories have been few, the spirit remains upbeat and energized. One of the Black Fly starters this past fall, Justin Mortenson, was named athlete of the week by the Bar Harbor Times. Besides his play for the Swarm, the citation recognized Mortenson's volunteer coach- ing at the Conners-Emerson School in Bar Harbor. DOUG BARKEY For the past several years, College of the Atlantic has been included in the cate- gory "Intercollegiate sports unpopular or nonexistent" in the annual Princeton Ardrianna French, a first year student from Auburn, Maine, goes up Review's Student Access Guide to the Best 309 against a player from Maine Maritime Academy in one of several Lady Colleges. "Perhaps our new teams will put Black Fly matches played this fall. an end to that ranking," said Thomas with a smile. ASASSINATED UNDO APRIL 4th IT 1968 CARL LITTLE Every January 18, students mark the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. at College of the Atlantic. Here they reenact a protest march from the '60s in the Gates Center auditorium. COA NEWS 23 WINTER 1998/1999 Davis Taylor: From the Army to the Environment by Kelly Sheets Dickson, m. Phil. '97 Since moving to Mount Desert Island from Oregon in late 1995, Dr. Davis Taylor, the economics teacher at College of the Atlantic, has become enmeshed in statewide forestry issues. Dr. Taylor's interest in forestry issues stems from work he did while finishing his Ph.D. at the University of Oregon in Eugene. While writing his dissertation on the political action of large firms, he worked as a consultant for the Fish and Wildlife Service in Oregon, analyzing the economic impact of critical habitat designation for the endangered marble murrelet. This project was a turning point in his life: it forced him to step outside the boundaries of his dis- cipline. "I realized that sociology, forest ecology and rural issues are all valid when framing forestry policy in this country," Taylor says. "It's not just economics, nor should it be." While at COA, Dr. Taylor has offered courses in com- parative forestry use, global economics, sustainability and resource economics, and environmental issues in develop- ing countries. The latter course was taught in Mérida on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico where College of the Atlantic has establish a human ecology program for stu- dents during the winter trimester. Dr. Taylor studied Spanish at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He enjoyed all the traveling he did during five years of active duty in the Army, so he was receptive to the idea of taking fifteen COA students south of the border last year. "Environmental issues are much more pressing in places like Mexico," he says. "Being there opens students' eyes to the difficult problems faced by developing countries," he says. As the designated "wet blanket," Dr. Taylor would challenge students to take a critical look at their often ideal- PETE TRAVERS/BAR HARBOR TIMES istic visions and temper them with reality. Taylor looks forward to doing the Yucatan program again and plans to guide students in a study of the effects Dr. Davis Taylor takes a break from one of his classes at of globalization on rural areas there. "One of the things I College of the Atlantic. love about COA is that you can create a class," he says. "It keeps you excited about teaching, and if you're excited, the chuckle, "I probably never would have done it." students are bound to be as well." During his job search from the Oregon graduate stu- Nine years ago, Dr. Taylor was serving in a light infantry dent office, Dr. Taylor saw a little ad for an economics division of the Army, trudging through jungles all over the teacher at a "small interdisciplinary college located on the Pacific, learning survival and warfare tactics. He plotted Maine coast." He showed it to an office mate, saying, flight plans and learned to disassemble and reassemble a "Wouldn't this be a dream?" semi-automatic weapon in a minute. How does one go Dr. Taylor has purchased a house on the Crooked Road from this experience to teaching economics at a school of and is feeling quite at home on Mount Desert Island. He human ecology? enjoys skiing with friends, training for marathons, cooking "I was interested in social and environmental issues way and reading. He is a board member for the Natural before I was ever interested in the Army, which I joined Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) and has appeared on because of the quality education," he replies. "Near the end Maine Public Broadcasting's popular show "Maine Watch." of the five years in the Army I thought of my career alter- The dream, as it were, has come true. natives as I took long walks on the beach in Hawaii, where I was stationed." He wanted to do something important and Kelly Sheets Dickson, m. Phil. '97, joined the fundraising firm of decided he would enjoy teaching environmental issues. "I Gary Friedmann & Associates in Bar Harbor in September. noticed that in most articles about environmental issues, Dickson most recently served as public relations and development writers consulted scientists, politicians and economists. Out coordinator for the MDI Biological Laboratory. She grew up in of these three, I felt I was best suited to be an economist." Alaska and received her B.A. in journalism from the University The budding economist didn't really thing about what it of Alaska. This profile originally appeared in The Bar Harbor would take to get a Ph.D. in this field, "and if I had known Times. how much math was involved," Dr. Taylor says with a COA NEWS 24 WINTER 1998/1999 Todd Little-Siebold: Teaching History As Process By Sarah Heifetz '01 New history professor Todd Little-Siebold harbors a pow- tory of the Enlightenment with philosophy professor erful desire for his students at College of the Atlantic to John Visvader. see beyond the black-and-white images of the past. Prior to coming to COA, Dr. Little-Siebold spent three Dr. Little-Siebold has long had an interest in Latin years teaching at Lewis and Clark College in Oregon. He American history and culture. His studies reflect his desire has held teaching positions at both Tulane and UMass- to understand the region, he says, "not as in crisis, but in Amherst. its own terms." In undergraduate work on the Nicaraguan "Coming to COA renewed my faith that education can Revolution at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, be done right," says Dr. Little-Siebold. "You can be credi- Dr. Little-Siebold says he felt compelled to understand the bly eclectic. It's what I imagine higher education to be." movements beyond the slogans. He combined his ardent The challenge of teaching history, he says, is getting stu- academic interest with an equally passionate involvement dents to see more than static points on a timeline. "History in grassroots political campaigns to stop U.S. involvement should be empowering. If you can inhabit the past with in Latin America in the mid-1980s. He went on to earn his real people, it becomes all the more inspiring." master's degree at UMass and his doctorate at Tulane Uni- Along with his wife, Christa, a visiting professor at COA, versity, both in Latin American history with a focus on and economics instructor Davis Taylor, Dr. Little-Siebold Guatemala. will direct the College of the Atlantic study-abroad program Dr. Little-Siebold finds teaching at COA rejuvenating. on the Yucatan Peninsula this winter. The program The small size of the school and its constantly evolving includes student home-stays with Mexican families, classes curriculum have allowed him to expand his course list in Mexican history, economics, anthropology and Spanish and teach more than Latin American history-an option language, and a two-week road trip through Mexico. often unavailable at more "traditional" institutions. This "The Yucatan program is a real model of human ecolog- past fall, for example, in addition to teaching one course ical education," says Dr. Little-Siebold. "This program in with a Latin American focus, he is team-teaching the his- Mexico takes us to a new environment. If human ecology is really a useful tool for understanding the world, then let's see if what we've learned makes sense in the world." Despite his work with the Yucatan program, his classes and several publications currently in the works, Dr. Little- Siebold manages to find his way out of his office on a regu- lar basis. Dr. Little Siebold has developed a close relation- ship with the island, and says he is especially impressed with its sense of history and its commitment to place and tradition. A collector of 18th- and 19th-century woodworking tools and a woodworker himself, Dr. Little-Siebold, who grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, appreciates the living history of Maine. An avid fly-fisherman, Dr. Little-Siebold has found opportunities to try new kinds of fishing on the island. He has fished for land-locked salmon on Long Pond and explored previously unfished streams. Cassie Anderson, a COA junior, has taken four of Dr. Little-Siebold's classes in as many terms. "What he has done for me is to continue to challenge me. Each time I think I've almost met the challenge, he throws in some- thing else," she says. "He gives me encouragement, but expects me to figure things out for myself." Dr. Little-Siebold's current projects include the compi- lation of a series of essays on Latin American history and an interpretive book on ethnicity. In both his teaching and his research, he seeks to go deeper and see what is COURTESY OF LITTLE-SIEBOLD between the lines, because "once you give up that black- and-white sense of history, you never stop learning." Sarah Heifetz '01, from the Boston area, is a second-year student at College of the Atlantic. She is fulfilling an academic year internship with The Bar Harbor Times, where this profile first appeared. Her studies are focused on journalism and communi- Dr. Todd Little-Siebold shows off one of the fruits of his cations. fly-fishing prowess. COA NEWS 25 WINTER 1998/1999 Obituaries Alida Donnel Milliken Camp College of the Atlantic mourns the passing of Alida Donnell Milliken Camp, a devoted trustee of College of the Atlantic. A lifelong sailor and philanthropist, who was a founding member of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Mrs. Camp died at her home, Blueberry Hill in East Blue Hill, Maine, on Saturday, September 1998. She was 89 years old. In 1946, shortly after her hus- band, Frederic E. Camp, had been diagnosed with MS, Mrs. Camp began meeting with others whose loved ones had the disease and together they established the Nation- al MS Society. Mrs. Camp was a member of the society's first board of trustees and continued to be a supporter and trustee for over fifty years, serving at one time as Vice President. In 1954, Mrs. Camp was one of the founders of the MS Soci- ety's Maine chapter. The national PHOTO: PETE TRAVERS and state chapter of the society pre- sented her with awards honoring her lifetime service. Alida Camp (right) enjoys an open air reception in the Newlin Gardens. She is Mrs. Camp met her husband in joined by Dr. Mona Rabineau (center) and her daughter, Elizabeth. the late 1920s when both were avid competitive sailors. They frequently get things done; "She was a real voice lor's degree in French from Smith raced against each other after their of energy and enthusiasm in some College in 1930, after attending the marriage in 1931. Mr. Camp died in pretty hard times," says zoology pro- Brearley School in New York and 1963. Mrs. Camp filled her hus- fessor John Anderson. graduating from Milton Academy in band's seat on the board of trustees Mrs. Camp supported many Milton, Massachusetts. She was an of Colby College, which awarded her state and national environmental active alumna and supporter of all with an honorary Doctor of Humane organizations. She was an early three institutions. Letters degree in 1979. board member of the Maine Com- In 1924, Mrs. Camp was in the In the early 1970s Mrs. Camp munity Foundation and created a original cast of the first production played a role in the founding of Col- charitable fund there. She served on by the Blue Hill Troupe, Gilbert and lege of the Atlantic. She enthusiasti- the board of the George Stevens Sullivan's "HMS Pinafore," per- cally endorsed the college's distinc- Academy and was an honorary formed offshore on her father's 90' tive educational philosophy, Human trustee of the Bay School, both instu- schooner Shawna and several smaller Ecology. She joined the college's titions in Blue Hill. She was also a craft. The production took place on board of trustees in 1975 and served longtime supporter of Blue Hill Morgan's Bay at the original Kol- until her death. Memorial Hospital and for several legewidgwok Yacht Club, which Dr. In 1989 the college awarded Mrs. years ran its volunteer switchboard Milliken founded, and of which Mrs. Camp an honorary Bachelor of Arts operator program. Camp was a lifelong member. degree in Human Ecology. She was Alida Camp was born in New Mrs. Camp raced sailboats com- elected a Life Trustee this past sum- York City in 1908, the first of five chil- petitively from her childhood until mer. The Camp Community Lounge dren of Dr. Seth M. Milliken and 1958, when she took to cruising the is named for her and her late hus- Alida Leese Milliken. A Maine resi- coast in a Concordia yawl, which band. She served on several impor- dent for much of her life, she divided she named Thistledown in tribute to tant campaigns at COA, including her time between Manhattan and East Thistle, her father's 103' yawl. She the Phoenix Fund, which was set up Blue Hill. As she said in an interview continued to sail with family and to rebuild the college following the not long before she died, "I was here friends until shortly before her devastating fire of 1983, and the first as a question mark and then I death. Gates Community Center Fund. came back as a baby and I've never The college community extends its Members of the faculty and staff been anywhere else in the summer." condolences to Mrs. Camp's family. recall the forthrightness of her will to Mrs. Camp received her bache- COA NEWS 26 WINTER 1998/1999 A Tribute to Alida Camp by COA President Steven K. Katona As one of the college's founding faculty year-old eyes saw every buoy and ledge, my knowledge Mr. Milliken never com- members and as a member of COA's or just knew them by heart. Thistledown plained and Alida always took great Board of Trustees from 1976-1984, I practically flew into Blue Hill harbor delight in having the President wash her had the privilege of working with Alida that day, and as Alida rounded up to the car. through nearly her entire tenure at the mooring, she announced with a tri- Like any mountain, Mount Alida had college, about 25 years. umphant smile, "I hate using the a few crags. Few things angered her, but Alida was a mountain on our land- motor." if one did, you quickly knew. Poor gram- scape. Everyone looked up to her, yet I have the feeling that Alida was an mar was high on her list of intolerable she did not look down on anyone. She equally fearless road warrior. On the sins. Addressing her as Mrs. Alida Camp was not easily moved from her position, Maine Turnpike five or six years ago, was an error to be made only once. nor was she easily crossed. And we often our family reached a toll booth just in Alida, yes. Mrs. Frederic Camp, yes. Mrs. took our bearings from her. Losing time to see a blue Volvo with a College Alida Camp, no. Alida was as disorienting as the sudden of the Atlantic decal accelerate out of And Alida could be impatient if disappearance of a familiar peak. the booth and down the road. We tried work proceeded too slowly, or if one Mountains are probably not to catch it, but couldn't. The same scene pulled the wrong line on Thistledown. I acquainted with the word "fear," and nei- was repeated at the next booth. Who always felt that her high expectations ther was Alida. This was a very useful was this mysterious COA person? encouraged us to do our best, and even quality for someone involved with a Resolved to find out, we increased our when we didn't, the squall of her displea- small college in its early infancy, as we pace and got close enough at the next sure passed quickly and her normally were when she joined the Board of toll to see that it was Alida. We never sunny disposition returned with no Trustees in 1975. Eight years later, when could catch her. grudge held. a fire destroyed much of the campus, she Parenthetically, I should mention Alida was not able to attend the was again fearless in urging the trustees that several years later, that same Volvo dinner our trustees held last August in to rebuild "immediately, if not sooner." was the inspiration for the only hint of her honor at the home of Melville and For nearly ten years she led campaigns to fear I ever saw in Alida. It was a Satur- Melissa Hodder, but she knew the deep rebuild the campus. She gave generous- day afternoon and the Board of affection, enormous respect and bound- ly, but perhaps the main reason why the Trustees meeting had ended. "Is there a less gratitude that everyone at College of campaigns succeeded was that Alida had car wash in town?," Alida asked. "But, the Atlantic had for her. We all know absolutely no hesitancy in asking people Alida," I replied, "your car is sparkling that she is one of a handful of people for large sums of money. They usually clean." "I know," she said, "but I'm without whom our college would not surrendered quickly. going to visit Gerrish and Phoebe for exist today. We will always remember I enjoyed witnessing Alida's fearless- dinner. If Gerrish sees any dirt on my her leadership, her kindness, her gen- ness in smaller tableaux, also, such as car, I'll never hear the end of it." So we erosity, her humanity. And whenever we sailing on Thistledown. Roaring down went together to the do-it-yourself wash face a challenge, I think we will always Blue Hill Bay under full sail and a fair in Bar Harbor, where I took off my tie, hear Alida's voice prompting us, "Let's breeze, I wondered whether those 88- coat and shoes, and washed the car. To get started. We have work to do." In Memoriam: Charles Hesse 1927-1998 The college is sad to report the death of Charles T. Hesse. He died in his sleep in a Worcester, Massachusetts, hospital on November 9, 1998. He was 71 years old. Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Hesse served as a medical corpsman in the Army during World War II and graduated from Harvard University in 1950. Moving to New York City, he worked in sales and then fund-raising, first at Roosevelt Hospital. He estab- lished the first development depart- ments at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art, serving as director of both. He also worked for a variety of community organizations, including the Chil- dren's Carnival of Harlem. Later he Charlie Hesse, left, joins College of the Atlantic colleagues Becky Keefe and Ted Koffman moved with his family to western Mas- for an all-smile photo. Hesse was on the COA staff from 1984 to 1990. continued on page 28 COA NEWS 27 WINTER 1998/1999 Millicent Anne Gates 1906-1998 The college marks with sadness the death of Millicent Anne Gates, 92, a long-time summer resident of North- east Harbor, who died on October 18, 1998, at her home in Devon, Pennsylvania. Born in Philadelphia, Mrs. Gates was active with the American Red Cross during World II; a volunteer at Paoli Memorial Hospital; and a mem- ber of the Board of Regents for Ken- more Association Inc. Members of the Gates family have been loyal supporters of College of the Atlantic since its earliest years. Mrs. Gates' husband, Thomas S. PETE TRAVERS/BAR HARBOR TIMES Gates, Jr., who was Chairman of Mor- gan Guaranty Trust and served as Secretary of the Navy and Secretary Mrs. Anne Gates (left) converses with Mary Rockefeller at the reception cele- of Defense under President Dwight brating the completion of the Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Community Center in July Eisenhower, was a COA trustee from 1992. 1973-1983, and was Chairman of the munity Center in 1993 was the first walked up her stairs at 90 years of age Board of Trustees from 1979-1981. public event of my presidency, and I to retrieve a photograph she wanted Mr. Gates died in 1983; the Thomas have periodically sent Mrs. Gates pro- me to see. She was a great lady. I will S. Gates, Jr. Community Center is grams from the lectures, concerts and miss her and the college will miss a named in his memory. other exciting events that have taken dear friend." Mrs. Gates continued the family's place there." Mrs. Gates is survived by three loyal involvement with the college, as Dr. Katona recalled visits to Mrs. daughters, Anne G. Ponce of Santa did one of the Gates's daughters, Gates at her home in Pennsylvania as Fe, NM; Patricia G. Norris of Palm Katharine Gates McCoy, who served high points in his year. "Her warm Beach, FL; and Katharine G. McCoy as a trustee from 1992-1994. enthusiasm for Mt. Desert Island, the of Steamboat Springs, CO.; nine "It was a great personal pleasure college, students, art, gardening and grandchildren and 14 great grand- and honor to know Mrs Gates," said the environment were always inspir- children. A memorial service will be COA President Steven K. Katona. ing." He was amazed by Mrs. Gates's held in Northeast Harbor in the "The dedication of the Gates Com- energy: "I remember how eagerly she summer. Hesse, from page 24 sachusetts where he was public affairs ment relations Ted Koffman. "And he Dworak recalled with fondness director of historic Sturbridge Village. was genuinely eager to hear your Hesse's rapport with the students at A recurring pattern in Hesse's story. His encouragement was uplift- COA: "He got to know them from career was to step in to get a fledgling ing." committee meetings, the hallways, din- organization off the ground, or pull an Later in his life Hesse was a famil- ing hall, and best of all from the plays old institution out of a rut or recover iar face around the island. He was a and musicals that he acted, danced from a disaster. Not long after a devas- greeter at the Jordan Pond House and and sung in at the college and on the tating campus fire, he joined the staff acted in musicals and plays. He partici- island." He was, Dworak said, "as com- at College of the Atlantic as Director pated in just about every amateur the- fortable in a tux or costume as he was of Development and Public Affairs (he atrical event that could find room in in a pair of blue jeans. And in any gar- retired as Vice President for Develop- the cast for a gray-haired gent with a ment, he was the best example of a ment and Public Affairs on December broad smile and a pleasant tenor. person with joie de vivre I've ever had 31, 1990). As recalled by COA Aca- "Charlie was my favorite person to the pleasure of meeting and know- demic Dean Richard Borden, "It was a run into at Don's Shop and Save or ing." low point for many of us, and Charlie any other place for that matter," Hesse is survived by his daughter, became a tremendous buoy for our Thorndike Library Director Marcia Kim, of Hopkinton, Massachusetts, spirits." Borden credits Hesse's intelli- Dworak reminisced. "I loved to hear and his son, Stephen, of Tokyo, gence, warmth, grace and leadership him tell about his son and daughter, Japan; three grandchildren; two dogs with helping to establish "a new era" grandchildren, pets, acting, public ser- and two cats. at the college. vice, work at the Jordan Pond House, Editor's note: This tribute draws heavily "Charlie was a good listener," and of course, all his years at College recalled COA's director of govern- of the Atlantic." on Nan Lincoln's obituary published in The Bar Harbor Times. COA NEWS 28 WINTER 1998/1999 FACULTY AND STAFF News Notes Academic Dean Richard Agents in the Resolution of Borden and Director of Human Ecological Prob- Government Relations Ted lems" to the faculty at CIN- Koffman co-authored VESTAV in Mérida. "Building Unlikely Partner- ships: Human Ecology Fran Day, former chief Models for Collaborative executive officer of the Leadership and the Man- Haskell Foundation in agement of Complexity," Lawrence, Kansas, has the opening chapter of been appointed director Research in Human Ecology: of development at College An Interdisciplinary of the Atlantic. In her four Overview. years at the Haskell Foun- dation, an endowment Three members of the association that raises COA community are fea- money for Haskell Indian tured in Eating Between the Nations University, Day Lines: A Maine Writer's developed individual and Cookbook published to ben- major donor programs. efit Maine Writers & Pub- She also helped to start lishers Alliance. Literature four new baccalaureate faculty member William degree programs and to Carpenter, director of pub- reestablish the Haskell lic affairs Carl Little and University Press. Prior to adjunct faculty writing Haskell, Day was director teacher Candice Stover of development at the contributed recipes. Stover Heart of America Family has recently published Services, the largest pri- work in The Beloit Poetry vate social service agency Journal, Hope Magazine and in the greater Kansas City Puckerbrush Review. area. She also served as major gifts and grants Dianne Clendaniel, Educa- manager for KCPT/Public tion Director for the Natu- Television 19 in Kansas ral History Museum, was ELIZABETH MILLER '99 City. Day is a member of named "Volunteer of the the Northern Cherokee of Yar" by the Hancock Coun- Arkansas and Missouri Fran Day, the new director of development, finds some ty Extension Association. Nation and the Eastern shade beneath one of the college's mighty copper beech The association, founded Band of the Cherokee trees by the Turrets. in 1914, links the land Nation. She first visited grant University of Maine, COA in 1972, to lecture earned his B.A. in physics President Steven K. the U.S. Department of on the American Indian from Carleton College and Katona received a Doctor- Agriculture and county Movement. a Ph.D. in the same sub- ate of Humane Letters government. Clendanial is ject from the University of from Green Mountain a member of the Island The Financial Aid Office at California at Davis. He has College in Poultney, Ver- Association of Museums COA welcomed aboard taught science and math at mont. The citation read in and Historical Societies Mary Dyer in November as the high school and under- part "Teacher, scholar, and serves on the board of an administrative assistant. graduate level. His areas leader, public servant-Dr. the Mount Desert Island Dyer was formerly at the of technical expertise Steven Katona represents YMCA. She has worked on University of Maine at include nonlinear dynam- the highest ideals of the a collaborative museum Augusta, where she worked ics and classical statistical liberal arts. We honor him project with the Abbe in the Financial Aid Office mechanics. today, both for his out- Museum and Pemetic and the Office of Admis- standing professional School and Mount Desert sions and Records. She is a Robin Furth joined the accomplishments and as Elementary School 5th graduate of UMaine admission staff in Septem- an affirmation of our soli- graders and their teachers. Augusta. Dyer was born on ber. Furth is a graduate of darity with the mission Mount Desert Island and the University of Pennsyl- In conjunction with COA's and values that guide him her family has a summer vania, and has an MA in program in Mexico last and the College of the home in Prospect Harbor, English Literature from the winter, Gray Cox, faculty Atlantic: an environmental so she feels like she has just University of York in Eng- member in political stud- vision broadened by the come home. land and a teaching certifi- ies, gave an address titled liberal arts heritage-and cate from University of "How and Why Businesses The new COA mathemati- liberal arts learning Maine. Can Serve as Principal cian, David P. Feldman, enlivened by environmen- COA NEWS 29 WINTER 1998/1999 Mesoamerica, one of which Marine ecologist Chris will attempt a synthetic Petersen published a interpretation of the demo- paper on fertilization in graphic hisotry of tropical fish in the Journal Guatemala. He delivered of Experimental Zoology. He scholarly papers at the has given seminars at East- annual meeting of the ern Michigan University, American Society of Ethno- Friday Harbor Laborato- historians in Mexico City ries at the University of and at the meeting of the Washington, Windsor Uni- Latin American Studies versity, University of Liver- Association in Chicago. pool and East Anglia Uni- versity. During his sabbati- This past May Isabel cal last year, his work on Mancinelli, faculty mem- temperate fishes received Annie ber in landscape design, funding from the Ameri- spoke at the Italian Society can Philosophical Society. of Human Ecology's annu- Dr. Petersen has also been al meeting at the Center of working with Dr. Maria Human Ecology for the Rosotto at the University Mediterranean Basin at the of Padua in Italy on University of Palermo, Sici- Mediterranean fish repro- ly. Her talk focused on ductive biology. using Geographic Informa- CARL LITTLE tion Systems (GIS) as a Jazz dancer Shelley Phelan planning tool and the col- is an adjunct faculty at lege's work through its COA, where she is current- Sally Crock donned her special eye-catching class registra- Center for Applied Human ly teaching dance. She is a tion earrings for a last time in September. That's Andrew Pix- Ecology (CAHE) to assist post-doctoral fellow at the ley and Blaise Maccarrone checking out the paper jewelry. in finding planning solu- Jackson Laboratory, where tions for Acadia National she is studying the genetics tal concerns." Dr. Katona homework has landed her, Park and the Mount Desert of heart disease in mice. has also been appointed to and the college, on the Island Communities. She holds a B.A. from the Acadia National Park front page of the Maine Advisory Commission. Sunday Telegram, the Boston Globe oped page, The New Melanie Klein-Robbenhaar York Times' "Education has been appointed the Life" section and Time college's registrar, replac- Magazine. Dr. Kralovec has ing Sally Crock. She comes coauthored a book on the to COA from the Kent's subject with political scien- Hill School in Kent's Hill, tist and newspaper colum- Maine, where she served as nist John Buell; the study is director of studies and reg- currently under considera- istrar and also taught math- tion by a press in Boston. ematics and coached. She was keynote speaker at Klein-Robbenhaan is a a meeting of the Environ- graduate of Wesleyan Uni- mental Education Institute versity and Harvard Gradu- in New York City. ate School of Education. She is currently a doctoral Public Affairs Director candidate at the University Carl Little's latest book is of Maine in educational The Watercolors of John leadership. Singer Sargent (University of California Press). He Director of Goverment attended the annual meet- Relations Ted Koffman ing of the Maine Public has joined the board of Relations Council in Port- trustees of the Green land and Public Relations Mountain Institute for Professionals hosted by Environmental Democracy. CASE, the Council for the He presented a workshop Advancement and Support at the VII International CARL LITTLE of Education. Congress of Ecology in Flo- rence, Italy. Todd Little-Siebold (see Sculptor and former College of the Atlantic trustee Clark profile on p. 25 ) is co-edi- FitzGerald discusses one of his works in progress with stu- Education Studies Director tor and co-author of two dents of one of JoAnne Carpenter's art classes on a visit to his Dr. Etta Kralovec's books related to studio in Castine, Maine. research on the topic of COA NEWS 30 WINTER 1998/1999 College of the Atlantic Receives Accreditation Continuation The Commission on Institutions of Higher Education revenues, gifts, government and foundation grants, of the New England Association of Schools and Col- and endowment, as well as budgeting and financial leges (NEASC) announced a continuation of College management. of the Atlantic's accreditation, following a comprehen- President Steven K. Katona hailed the report. sive evaluation visit. "We are gratified to know that College of the Atlantic The college received high marks from the accredit- will enter the 21st century with this important seal of ing team. Regarding the institution's focus on human approval," he said. "We also look forward to enhanc- ecology, the commission wrote, "We commend the ing student life and student services, improving our college for its careful implementation of a mission methods for assessing student learning and alumni which is unique, understood and supported by all con- outcomes, and strengthening the college in other stituencies at the institution, and a genuine contribu- ways." President Katona paid special tribute to Marcia tion to the diversity of American higher education." Dworak, director of the Thorndike Library and Assis- The COA faculty garnered praise for creating a tant to the President for Special Projects, for her role curriculum that crosses disciplinary boundaries. The in leading the college through the rigorous review. coursework, wrote the commission, is "sufficiently flex- The Commission on Institutions of Higher Educa- ible to permit both students and faculty to experi- tion, which is recognized by the U.S. Department of ment, explore and engage in extensive self-reflection Education, accredits approximately 200 institutions in about the character and goals of learning at the institu- the six-state New England region. College of the tion." The team complimented the college on the ways Atlantic has been accredited by the commission since in which it has "taken advantage of the natural wealth 1973 and was last reviewed in 1987. The accreditation of its campus to serve as a laboratory for responsible by NEASC encompassed the entire institution. environmental stewardship." The next comprehensive evaluation for the col- The commission also applauded the "truly lege will take place in Fall, 2007, with a fifth-year inter- extraordinary financial progress" the college has made im report to be submitted in the year 2002. over the past decade, citing in particular tuition, fee News, from page 28 Wellesley College and a 1997, has been hired as an with Disabilities at New office has undergone a Ph.D. from Harvard. She admission counselor. She Mexico State University. great deal of change. A received a Certificate of taught in the college's search for a replacement is Scientific Distinction from Summer Field Studies Anne K. Swann has joined under way. David Mahony the Federation of Ameri- Program. She is a 1998 the staff of the Thorndike '86, director of financial can Societies for Experi- graduate of Cornell Uni- Library at College of the aid, has been appointed mental Biology in 1998. versity's College of Atlantic. Swann, a 1986 Acting Director of Admis- Human Ecology. graduate of College of the sion and Financial Aid. Dr. Louis Rabineau, presi- Atlantic, has been appoint- Donna McFarland has dent emeritus of College of Education faculty member ed Library Media Special- been promoted to Assis- the Atlantic and a Distin- John Stiles published an ist, replacing Miriam John- tant Director of Admission guished Senior Fellow at article on single-sex son, who recently resigned and Student Services, the Academy for Educa- classes in Principal Maga- to take a position as a ref- while Ander Thébaud has tional Development in zine. He was elected vice erence librarian at St. Washington, D.C., deliv- Anselm's College. Swann been appointed Acting president of the board of Director of Student Life. ered the annual E.T. Dun- Acadia Wildlife Founda- recently completed her lap lecture on higher edu- tion. He is chair of the Masters in Library Science Jean Boddy left her posi- tion as Financial Aid Assis- cation and public policy at search committee to pick from Syracuse University. tant to become the new Southeastern Oklahoma a Teacher of the Year in Robert Nagle has been State University. The lec- Science for Students with hired to replace Swann as office manager of the Library Weekend Day COA Summer Program, tureship was established in Disabilities. The 1990 as a perpetual memo- Supervisor. He has worked replacing Katie Campbell, Lawrence Scadden Teach- at the Boston Public who took a position at the rial to Dr. Dunlap, long- er of the Year Award in Penobscot Marine Muse- time chancellor of the Science Education for Library and the Folger Oklahoma State System of Library at the University of um in Searsport, Maine. Students with Disabilities Higher Education. is sponsored by the Maine at Orono. Literature faculty member Regional Alliance for Sci- Karen Waldron has been Abbie Rowe, a visiting stu- ence, Engineering and With the departure of dent at COA in 1996 and Mathematics for Students Steve Thomas to Colby appointed Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. College, the admission COA NEWS 31 WINTER 1998/1999 COA Arts College of the Atlantic offers a wide range of arts programming throughout the year. Highlights of a few recent events follow THEATER Alexandra Lincoln Tom Stoppard's as Thomasina, Arcadia Kevin Felton as College of the Atlantic's The- Ezra Chater and ater Workshop, under the Matt Carroll as direction of Lucy Bell Sellers, presented Tom Stoppard's Septimus Hodge Arcadia in the Gates Communi- were among the ty Center auditorium in November. According to Sell- cast of the The- ers, Arcadia, like Stoppard's better-known Rosencrantz and ater Workshop's Guildenstein Are Dead, is "a production of feast of dazzling wit and verbal Tom Stoppard's shenanigans, but the play is NAN LINCOLN also a thoughtful, moving Arcadia. exploration of love, death and mutability." There are 13 characters in the play; four of the women's POETRY parts were double cast to accommodate COA Theater Resident COA Workshop members. Lighting philosopher John was by Bridie Farmer and the costumes were the work of Visvader points to a Ann Bohrer '95. character in one of The headline for a review of the play that appeared in Philip The Bar Harbor Times declared Heckscher's "A ripping good show at COA." calligraphic works featured in the "East/West" exhibi- tion in the Blum Gallery. Reading of Eastern Poetry In conjunction with the exhibition "East/West," Visvader has taught Chinese philosophy at the Blum Gallery at College of the Atlantic host- College of the Atlantic since 1986. He has been ed a reading of Chinese and Japanese poetry by translating poetry with Elizabeth Farrell. Their Candice Stover and John Visvader in October. translations have appeared in Rolling Stone, Sun Stover read a selection of old and new Chinese and other publications. They have focussed on and Japanese poems in translation, as well as the T'ang dynasty poet Wang Wei (701-761). works by Western writers who have been influ- Professor Visvader discussed how he translates enced and inspired by poets of the East, includ- this work and read different versions of several ing Billy Collins, Mary Oliver, Jane Hirshfield and poems. Robert Hass. Stover lived and taught in Shanghai from 1984-86. COA NEWS 32 WINTER 1998/1999 STORYTELLING Carmen Agra Deedy Nationally-known storyteller Carmen Agra Deedy presented an evening of stories in the Gates Community Center audi- torium in October. Ms. Deedy was born in Havana, Cuba, and emigrated to the United States with her family in 1963 during the aftermath of the Cuban Revolution. She grew up in Decatur, Georgia. The combination of her Latin American and Southern heritage has had a rich influence on her storytelling. Ms. Deedy has performed at the Disney Institute, on Broadway, at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washing- ton, DC, and at many storytelling festivals nationwide. She was the hit of the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesbor- ough, Tennessee. This year she presented ten perfor- CARL LITTLE mances at the Kennedy Center, based on her audio collec- tion, Growing Up Cuban in Decatur, Georgia, which was Cuban-born storyteller Carmen Deedy (center, with glass- named Best Audiobook-Storytelling in 1995 by Publishers es) greets admirers following her packed performance in Weekly and was also the recipient of the Parents' Choice the Gates Center. Gold Award. Ms. Deedy has been a regular contributor to National have benefitted Habitat for Humanity. Public Radio's weekend "All Things Considered" and "Lati- Deedy's appearance marked the fourth year running no USA." She is the author of five children's books and has that the college has presented a master storyteller. Past per- contributed stories to two anthologies the sales of which formers have included Batt Burns and Donald Davis. ART "Marin in Maine" John Marin, one of the great American Modernist painters, was the subject of the final summer exhibition in the Ethel H. Blum Gallery at College of the Atlantic. ANNE PORTER/COURTESY ELLWORTH AMERICAN Part of a circle of artists that includ- ed Georgia O'Keeffe, Marin (1870- 1953) drew inspiration for many of his watercolors and oil paintings from extended stays on the coast of Maine, first at Stonington and Small Point, and later at Cape Split in South Addison. "Marin in Maine" featured thirteen watercolors from private collections and three oils from the artist's estate, the latter courtesy of the Richard York Left to right: Richard York, Gallery in New York and Norma Marin, director of the Richard York the painter's daughter-in-law. The works Gallery in New York City; in the show dated from 1914 to 1951 Norma Marin, philan- and featured a range of subject matter, thropist; and Joan Meyers, including sailboats, islands and the hur- painter, enjoy the "Marin in ricane of 1944. Maine" exhibition in the The paintings were accompanied by Blum Gallery. six photographic portraits of John Marin by George Daniell of Trenton, Photographer George Maine. Daniell photographed Marin in Daniell peruses catalogues in his studio in Cliffside, New Jersey, and the Blum Gallery the morn- at his home on Cape Split. Wall texts ing of the opening of "Marin included excerpts from Marin's letters in Maine." The exhibition fea- and poems by Philip Booth and Mona tured several of Daniell's por- traits of John Marin. CARL LITTLE Van Duyn. COA NEWS 33 WINTER 1998/1999 ART Extraordinary Jewish Ritual Garménts In December and January, the Ethel H. Blum Gallery featured an exhibition of Jewish ritual garments created from ordinary and extraordinary materials by conceptual artist Bob Gottlieb. "The Tallit Katan: Does God Care If I Make Them Out Of..." consisted of twenty works based on the tallit katan, a tradition- al prayer shawl commonly worn by Orthodox Jewish men as a reminder of the 613 God-given mitzvot (commandments) that guide every aspect of traditional Jewish life. A standard cotton tallit katan is fabricated according to a specific set of rules designed to assure ritual purity. Gottlieb's Bob Gottlieb, works, while patterned closely on a traditional tallit katan he a conceptual purchased in Jerusalem during a 1996 sabbatical visit, are com- artist from Bar posed of a wide assortment of materials, including silk, dia- Harbor, poses mond plate steel and razor ribbon, newspaper comic strips with one of and granite. his remarkable The show received remarkable coverage, including feature Gottlieb's tallit katans have been exhibited at the Confer- PETER TRAVERS/COURTESY BAR HARBOR TIMES tallit katan articles in The Bar Harbor Times, The Ellsworth American, The works dis- Bangor Daily News, Maine Times and The Chronicle of Higher played in the Education. Blum Gallery this winter. ence on Judaism in Rural New England, Cornell University, Maine Coast Artists Gallery in Rockport, Maine, and Davidson and Daughters Gallery in Portland, Maine. He has upcoming displays of the work in Boston and Chicago. The Art of the Book" A selection of fine 20th-century bindings from a private collection filled the Blum Gallery this past fall. "The Art of the Book" includ- ed an array of designer bindings and artists' books. Many acclaimed binders were represented, among them, Gerard Charrière, Donald Glaister, Gray Parrot, Monique Lallier and Deborah Evetts. Sizes ranged from miniature books to large folios. Materials included PETER TRAVERS/COURTESY BAR HARBOR TIMES pear wood, calf leather, cloth, acrylic and agate stones. Works by authors and artists such as James Joyce, Rimbaud, NEW YORK STAINED- GLASS 1904-194 Herman Melville, Marguerite Yourcenar, Coleridge, Hortense Flexner, Emily Dickinson and Man Ray were included. A short docu- mentary film of Gerard Charrière A spine's-eye view of the fine bindings exhibition installed in the Blum Gallery creating a binding was available for in October. viewing throughout the show. COA NEWS 34 WINTER 1998/1999 MUSIC The Casco Bay Tummlers The Casco Bay Tummlers, one of New England's finest Klezmer bands, were a centerpieces of "WinterFest, An Evening of Jewish Music, Art and Desserts" hosted by College of the Atlantic in the Gates Community Center auditorium in January. The Tummlers (Tumm rhymes with boom) first got together on Peaks Island in Casco Bay in 1987. The band members play no fewer than a dozen instruments among them. Their lively music draws on a variety of sources, from traditional Klezmer recordings to Balkan folk music and Yiddish swing. By definition, a Tummler is an entertainer, rabble-rouser and creator of joyful chaos. The Casco Bay ensemble lived up to this description in a perfor- mance that opened with a concert of traditional and original selections from the group's 1998 CD release, plus new compositions and arrangements, and PAUL WOODFIN ended with a community dance. In the words of one participant, "Warm vibes marked the evening." The Tummlers recently appeared in a new play, Manifest, at the Portland Stage Company. According to band leader Julie Goell, the play provides an The Casco Bay Tummlers play up a storm on "interesting take on resistance and the Holocaust." the stage of the Gates Community Center auditorium. DANCE " "Celebration" Members of the "Creative Movement Dance Through Cultural Experience" class, under the direction of Sara Yarborough-Smith, performed "Celebra- tion," a variety of contemporary pieces, in the Thomas S. Gates Community Center auditorium. Among the featured selections was "Poems," a series of short dances based on the writings of poets Maya Angelou, T.S. Eliot and Lisa King. "Bobo De Dzo (Show Me Your Moves)," an African dance-style work based on drumming by Jordan Messan Benissan, was chore- ographed by Ms. Yarborough-Smith. Other works were choreographed by the dance students. Internationally hailed as one of the leading lights of the Alvin Ailey Ameri- can Dance Theatre for eleven years, Ms. Yarborough-Smith trained with the late George Balanchine at the School of American Ballet. She was a member of the Harkness Ballet Company, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, the Robert Joffrey Ballet and the Metropolitan Opera Ballet. She has had extensive teaching experience in the U.S. and abroad, holding master classes and work- shops in many universities and dance schools. LAURIE SCHREIBER Members of Sara Yarborough-Smith's dance class, including Kate Francis '98, put on "a classy and worldly performance in the Gates Center. COA NEWS 35 WINTER 1998/1999 The Art of Isa Dreier Born in Milton, Massachusetts, a graduate of the first class at Bennington College, Louisa "Isa" Richardson Dreier (1912-1995) studied art in Italy, at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Charles Woodbury Painting School in Ogunquit, Maine, and with George Grosz and other artists in New York City and Washington. Isa and her husband, the late John Caspar Dreier, started spending summers in Southwest Harbor in 1963, where Mrs. Dreier took classes with Carl Nelson. She had several exhibitions of her work in Washington and showed at the Causeway Club in Southwest Harbor. A ret- rospective of her work was mounted at Radcliffe College in 1990. Her View of Somes Sound took first place in the Arts Center of Acadia exhibition in 1981. A monograph on Dreier's art was published in the fall, with texts by her daughter, Susan Dreier, and the art his- torian Phyllis Anina Thompson Moriarty. "Isa's linear dexterity is a pleasure," writes Moriarty, "but her strength as an artist really is expressed in her sense of color." Dreier also had a wonderful sense of humor that some- times found expression in her art. Examples of her por- traits, landscapes and still lifes were featured in the exhi- bition "Isa Dreier: Paintings and Drawings," in the Thorndike Library in the fall. CARL LITTLE Copies of the monograph are available from Flying Mountain Press, P.O. Box 134, Southwest Harbor, Maine 04679. Isa Dreier, Ladies Knitting Circle, circa 1985. Ink on parchment, 6.25 X 8 inches. My mother participated in a num- ber of art shows, but she was always reluctant to part with her paintings and kept most of them hanging on every wall in her home. After she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and vivid color began to fade from her life, the family organized a retrospec- tive of her art at Radcliffe College. I have an indelible memory of the expression on my mother's face the day she walked into the exhibit room. Even among lines of aging that tied themselves across the flesh, her face was lovely and hardy, with a red flush across the pull of her cheekbones. Her mind by now light- ing only on what streamed by her immediate attention, she reached out for texture and color as she COURTESY SUSAN DREIER moved through her purely sensory world. Isa Dreier practicing plein air painting. As she walked into the room and raised her gaze from the sunlight's unglued from the mélange of her a flood of disjointed memories that pattern on the floor, she saw all insight, intellect and feel for life. Her flowed over her like a surprise gath- those freestanding walls of work that face opened into a great flushed ering of all the generations of one's had come through her hands, those oval, her mouth stretching in an forgotten family in one room. familiar moments of her own pas- ever-widening circle around her sion as it had woven itself into the deep exclamation: "Ohhhhh!" She -from Susan Dreier's introduction painted and charcoal images she had stood still, straightening slightly into to Isa Dreier: Paintings and Drawings COA NEWS 36 WINTER 1998/1999 REVIEW A New Conservation Agenda Chance and Change: Ecology for Conservationists by William Holland Drury, Jr., John G.T. Anderson, editor. Univer- sity of California Press, Berkeley, 1998. Hardback, 223 pp.; $22. As a former student of both Bill Drury and John Anderson at College of the Atlantic, I may not be most objective of reviewers. However, knowing both the ecologist and the edi- tor does introduce a viable not always accessible in a tradi- tional academic review: voice. Great credit in this case must be given to editor John Anderson, who has successfully managed to consolidate the ideas, manner and voice of one of the greatest ecologists of the century. With every page of Chance and Change the reader is immersed in the personality of Drury and will emerge with an appreciation of both the COURTESY MARY DRURY man and his ideas. Written for the savvy amateur naturalist and the profes- William H. Drury, Jr., ornithologist, ecologist and author. sional conservationist, Chance and Change demands some degree of ecological sophistication. Drury's ideas in them- selves are not dense, but his decades of experience as a nat- Cynthia Borden-Chisholm '86. The reader is guided through uralist attentive to the detail of the forest floor, the wash of a theoretical introduction, habitats beginning at the the surf, the behavior of the gull and the meander of the seashore and moving inland, and several chapters on more stream challenges the keen observer in every reader. general themes in ecology, before concluding with a chapter It is with this incredible attention to detail that we find on human ecology and conservation. the kernel of what could be called a Drurian ecology: Chance and Change is a flagship ushering in a new conser- "nature" is the association of an array of individuals, acting vation agenda, and is a must read for anyone hoping to par- and reacting to immediate circumstances. Any overall pat- ticipate. terns that emerge are simply that-patterns. Ecologists who Darron Collins '92 is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of have focused on the patterns rather than the individuals Anthropology at Tulane University. His dissertation research has have portrayed nature as a false "system" striving for bal- been focused on the tropical forests of Guatemala. He recently ance in an unbalanced world. received a doctoral dissertation grant from the Wenner-Gren foun- This is the message of Chance and Change. The text is dation for anthropological research. "I'll be leaving for Guatemala written beautifully and is highlighted with black-and-white for a good chunk of time in the end of January," he reported recent- photographs and pen-and-ink drawings by the author and by ly. This review originally appeared in the Bar Harbor Times. From William Drury's introduction to Chance and Change The differences in viewpoints of ecology are so pervasive between the complementary colors that controversies cre- that I need to describe a wide sweep of landscapes and ate, and the jarring effects when abstract theory (heavenly gossip about a lot of plants and animals to present my order) clashes with field data (earthly chaos). I will use alternative. In the course of my argument, I will describe sketches of landscapes and species as spots of color; they the deterioration of order from the mindless consistency are not "the whole story." It is up to you to decide of a meandering stream, through the marginally pre- whether they help you understand and appreciate what dictable behavior of plants and animals serving their self- you see outdoors. interests under changing conditions, to the human poten- I will focus on certain themes throughout the argu- tial for creativity, charity, and compassion. ment and examine how classical ecological theory uses My chapters are sketches that illustrate the atmo- these themes. These are mostly those loosely defined con- sphere and interrelations between parts of ordinary cepts that litter ecological theory, such as resource parti- scenes. In this they are like the pochades, or preliminary tioning, trophic levels, competition, carrying capacity, sketches in oil, painted by the Impressionists. The Impres- equilibrium, succession, and so on. When used as very sionists used light and dark, cool and warm colors to rep- general terms, they provide pigeonholes for our thinking resent a time of day and quality of the air, such as a hot and imply self-organizing principles that work in their sur- summer evening after the rain. The Impressionists roundings to-increase order among the organisms to reached across barriers that usually separate arts from sci- which they are applied. ences. In both painting and science, as V.A. Howard said, I think that we must examine each of these and test symbols shape the form of our thought. Both, after all, them against the idea of minimum complexity and depend on accurate observations of nature and creative against what evidence can be gathered from the field. As interpretations of the patterns evident to those who will Theophrastus said, order should not be presumed in notice them. nature; it must be demonstrated. In the following chapters I will describe the interplay COA NEWS 37 WINTER 1998/1999 Equipment Needed for "The Rock" Allied Whale, the marine mammal research group at Rock. In recent years Allied Whale has studied the abun- College of the Atlantic, needs help in founding a new dance and distribution of whales around in this area, research initiative at Mount Desert Rock. Recent accep- developed techniques for identifying and tracking individ- tance of ownership of the light station by COA will allow ual whales. Work at the Rock has led to a better under- scientists and students to resume marine mammal obser- standing of migration behavior of fin and humpback vations, aimed at unlocking natural history mysteries of whales, as well as calving rates and reproductive biology the great whales that inhabit the Gulf of Maine. for these species. Exciting new research initiatives will Mount Desert Rock is home to the most remote light- address questions of fin whale kinship as determined by house station on the Eastern seaboard. A lonely, genetics data and investigate the social interaction and windswept outcrop of granite located 26 miles off the behaviors of individual whales. coast of Mount Desert Island, "The Rock," as it is called, The research station is in need of equipment and sup- has proven to be an ideal research platform from which plies. Harsh offshore conditions, moisture and age have to conduct studies of the behavior and ecology of fin and taken their toll on the humble facilities. Donations of humpback whales. Perched atop the light house tower, used furniture or supplies will help to rejuvenate the researchers can monitor whales for over ten miles dis- "Rock Project" and facilitate the restoration of this light- tance, observing individuals for long periods of time in house and research station. their natural environment. If you would like to find out more about how you can When sea conditions allow, small boats are launched help the whale research effort at Mount Desert Rock, from the tiny island to conduct tracking or environmental please call Allied Whale at 288-5644. studies in the deep, nutrient-rich water surrounding the ISLAND HERITAGE TRUST COA President Steven K. Katona receives the deeds to Mount Desert Rock and Great Duck Island lighthouse from Admiral Richard I. Rybacki at a ceremony hosted by the Island Institute. Rising nearly 70 feet, Mount Desert Light makes an excellent post from which to see passing whales and other sea life. The college's research vessel Indigo made many trips back and forth to Great Duck Island this past summer, with Captain Andrew Peterson at the helm. KATE CAMPBELL COA NEWS 38 WINTER 1998/1999 Continuing Education: A Sampling of COA Lectures The college hosts numerous lectures each year, drawing on its faculty, staff, stu- dents, alumni and distinguished friends and guests. Most of the talks are open to the public, often free of charge. Here's a sampling from the past six months or so: "The Liberation of the Environment," slide talk by Jesse H. Ausubel, Director of the Program for the Human Environment at Rockefeller University and one of the principal organizers of the first United Nations World Climate Conference. "Curriculum and Culture: Reflections on Five Nations and Three Continents," talk by Marc S. Tucker, president of the National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE) and co-director of New Stan- dards, a national program to create internationally-benchmarked aca- demic standards and matching performance examinations for the schools. "Parental Care in Marine Fishes," slide talk by Dr. Helen Hess, biolo- gist and adjunct faculty member at College of the Atlantic, Ph.D. Uni- versity of Washington, comprehensive research on fish reproduction. Champlain Society Distinguished Lecture 1998: "A World in Need of Leadership: Tomorrow's United Nations-A Fresh Appraisal," talk by Sir Brian Urquhart, member of the U.N. Secretari- at 1945-1986, biographer of Dag Hammarskjold and Ralph Bunche, Scholar-in-Residence for the Ford Foundation's International Affairs CARL LITTLE Program, recipient of the Franklin D. Roosevelt "Freedom From Fear" Medal. Melville Coté (right), administrative dean, converses with visiting lecturer Jesse Ausubel "Sacred Sites and the Environment: An American Indian Perspec- from Rockefeller University. tive," talk by Dr. Henrietta Mann, professor of Native American Stud- ies at the University of Montana; 1983 Cheyenne Indian of the Year; 1987 National American Indian Woman of the Year, member of the Board of Trustees for the National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution. "Marine Mammals/Fisheries Interactions: Whose Ocean Is It, Anyway?," slide talk by Dr. Sean Todd, marine mammalogist, College of the Atlantic; Ph.D. Memorial University of Newfoundland; exten- sive research on whale reaction to acoustic noise. "Marine Conservation: A Global Perspective," a slide talk by Kathryn S. Fuller, president of World Wildlife Fund, former special advisor to the United Nations at the Earth Summit in Rio and current- ly a member of the U.S. Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations, the Council on Foreign Relations and the World Bank's Advisory Group on Environmentally Sustainable Development. "Environmental Toxins and Women's Heath," talk by Dr. Beverly Paigen, Ph.D., geneticist, senior staff scientist, the Jackson Laboratory; member of the Board of Directors of the Citizen's Clearing House for Hazardous Wastes and the Love Canal Medical Trust Fund; named Woman of the Year by the National Organization of Women in 1975. "China: Exploring the Interior, 1903-1904," slide lecture by Robert CARL LITTLE Sargent, founder of Volunteers for Geography Awareness in Sar- gentville, Maine, with additional remarks by Stephen A. Boardway, vis- President Katona speaks with Dr. Henrietta iting professor in the history of China and Japan at COA. gentville, Mann prior to her talk in the Gates Community Maine, with additional remarks by Stephen A. Boardway, visiting pro- Center. Seated at her right is Jason Day '00, fessor in the history of China and Japan at COA. son of development director Fran Day. COA NEWS 39 WINTER 1998/1999 TSO Manao tubahau Ep.34. Paul Ganguin Paul Gauguin (1848-1903), Manao Tupapau, lithograph, 1894, edition of 100. The Ethel H. Blum Gallery will be hosting "From Paradise to Eden: Gauguin in Tahiti" in August. The 28 works in the show are from a private collection. A friend of the French Impressionists and Symbolists, Gauguin is considered a founding father of modern art. He first visited the island of Tahiti in June 1891. Struck by the beauty of the place and its inhabitants, he settled there and lived much of the remainder of his life in Polyne- sia, in Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands, creating some of his most memorable work. The 28 pieces in this exhi- bition, consisting of watercolors, drawings (four of them two-sided) and a variety of prints, will be on loan from a private collection. COA NEWS Nonprofit Organization College of the Atlantic U.S. POSTAGE PAID 105 Eden Street Bar Harbor, ME Bar Harbor, Maine 04609 Permit #47 207 288-5015 ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED