Topic: Goddard College

Of pens, peonies and summer rain…

June 29, 2008 |

‘On the Road in America’ is an occasional column of meanderings and musings, written during my semi-annual sojourn north.

After the first bursts of near tropical heat in Clarksville, the cooling summer rain in Vermont is a gift to cherish. It began last night, after a day of haze and clouds. It ushered in coolness somewhere around sunset, and by nightfall I could hear the raindrops lightly kissing the brick sidewalks, dripping lightly from the eaves. No blustering wind, no storms. Just that gentle rain.

This morning I walked by a bank of peonies, damp and brightened by that rain, slightly bent by the weight of water. The temptation to pick a few stems was strong.

We are a large group this semester at Goddard College, writers all of poetry, prose, fiction and non, memoir, plays and screenplays, even graphic novels. Unlike other residencies here, this one — by its very nature as an MFA writing program — requires a certain amount of solitude in and around such activities as workshops, advisor sessions, seminars, and sometimes heated discussions abut things like style, form, voice, perspective, language… Students meet, interact and retreat for the solitary task that is composition. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Arts and Leisure, Education, Opinion, Spirituality | No Comments

COL Editor interviewed by Goddard College

By Debbie Boen | April 20, 2008 |

Early in 2005 I started the group, Clarksville Freethinkers for Peace and Civil Liberties. Christine was in the local Democratic group. We joined forces. I would call Christine and tell her what I was thinking of doing, and her instant response was, “When do you need me there? What can I do to help?” She lived out by the base, and when we had a downtown vigil, she hopped on a bus to get to it. She made things happen. She made no excuses. She took over planning vigils and calling the media.

Our most memorable, binding event happened when we heard that President Bush was landing at Fort Campbell in Tennessee, the home of the 101st Airborne, to travel to Hopkinsville, Kentucky, where he would talk to people (Republican supporters only) about his desire to seriously change social security. We tried without success to get onto the audience list, but Christine found out the exact line of travel that the Bush motorcade was going to take. We spent a day looking for places to ‘greet’ the motorcade. We made a list of possible places to stand, but when the day came for the presidential visit, the police tailed us, and kicked us out of all but one. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: News, Opinion | 1 Comment »

Low residency: Alternative programs fuel options in higher education

January 17, 2008 |

Distance learning. Low residency programs. The new way to mix higher education with real life.

Goddard College in northern Vermont (and now with a west coast Port Townsend campus) was among the first, a prototype program years ahead of its time, and not without rocky roads along the way. It offered graduate and undergraduate programs, but is no longer the solitary figure of progressive education. It’s in good company now.

With the hectic pace of modern life and extensive access to the internet a reality, more and more colleges, universities and specialized institutions of higher learning are jumping aboard the distance learning bandwagon. The select few have gone global. An educational industry. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Opinion | No Comments

Winter: A morning meditation

January 4, 2008 |

It is snowing. Lightly. Soft flurries that dance to the earth, not in the wild frenzy of a winter storm but rather, in a time-honored waltz that whispers “I’m here, come out and walk with me!” So what if it is -4. There is no wind, ergo, no wind chill.

A half hour before, I unfurled myself from the toasty warmth of wooley blankets and prepared to meet the day. Destination: computer lab. I step from my dorm to the outdoors when the magic of that gentle snow happened. In the lamplight, the ground (which is measured in feet of snow) sparkled with the crystalline glitter of well chilled granular snow, diamonds and shards of silver reflecting light. From the low roofline of the Clockhouse (below) icicles are measured by the yard, growing downward, earthbound and more weighty with each new inch.

I am the only one up and about, just me,  with a fleece scarf loosely hung around my neck, my wool coat still unbuttoned, gloves neatly folded in the pocket. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Opinion, Spirituality | No Comments

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