The Exit Interview: Laurie Patton reflects on legacy and leadership

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Arts & Culture

King Lear endears new generation to timeless classic

By Christy Liang | December 5, 2024

 From Nov. 14 – 16, the Middlebury community enjoyed a dazzling production of one  of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies, King Lear. Enthralling visual effects and costume design, original musical innovations, and a dynamic cast breathed contemporary life into this timeless classic, leaving ...

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News

Indigenous students share ongoing struggle for visibility at Middlebury

By Caroline (Xiaoyuan) Jiao | December 5, 2024

 The month of November is National American Indian Heritage Month, which was designed in 1990 to commemorate the nation's indigenous heritage. At Middlebury, students who celebrated the Indigenous community last month have said that their visibility on campus and their ability to maintain an organized ...

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Multimedia

The Closet Report: Nonna Madoyan ’28

By Aren Lau | December 5, 2024

December has arrived. The leaves have fallen, the skies are endlessly gray, the wind chills and Middlebury students have begun dressing more casually to accommodate the cold, prioritizing comfort to focus on finals. However, there are some, including Nonna Madoyan ’28, who embrace the dreariness with ...

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Arts & Culture

Crossword 12/05/2024: Solutions

By Josh Harkins | December 5, 2024

Crossword 12/05/2024: Solutions!

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News

Talking Trash: Where does Middlebury’s waste go?

By Maggie Bryan and Lily Mcgovern | December 5, 2024

 This semester, Talking Trash has detailed Middlebury’s food waste and recycling processes. This time, we’re investigating what happens to the waste that is not recycled or composted: landfill trash.  In 2023, Middlebury sent 943,520 pounds of waste to the landfill, which accounted for ...

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Sports

Winter Sports Previews

By Jonathan Buchholz, Ting Cui and Jack Mcguire | December 5, 2024

Women’s Basketball

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Opinion

SPECS Panther Column: A review of recent sexual health legislation in Vermont

By El Fahey | December 5, 2024

Did you know that Vermont, via Proposition 5, was the first state to enshrine the right to an abortion in its state constitution just two years ago? Vermont policymakers have been spearheading the movement toward a more inclusive version of sexual health care and reproductive justice. At SPECS, we affirm ...

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Sports

The Side Hustle: Middlebury on ice

By Madeleine Kaptein and Max Myers | December 5, 2024

The Middlebury figure skating team just keeps on gliding — backwards, in complex spins, but most importantly, forwards. The team has recently increased their activity in the intercollegiate figure skating circuit since competing in the Northeast Conference for the first time in several years in the ...

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Opinion

Middlebury College doesn’t have a cheating problem. It has an honor code problem.

By Cole Siefer | December 5, 2024

The Honor Code is no longer present in the minds of students. As a peer writing tutor for the CTLR, I have had countless students ask me what the Honor Code is, how to sign it on their assignments and what it actually means. As students no longer physically sign the Honor Code during their orientation ...

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Multimedia

I felt the sludge: Chat Pile at Higher Ground

By June Su | December 5, 2024

On Nov. 14, noise rock band Chat Pile brought the live sound of their new LP, “Cool World” to Higher Ground in Burlington. The band’s nihilistic lyrics, downtempo cuts, and punk influences have also led to widespread characterizations of their music as sludge metal. Released on Oct. 11, the band’s ...

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Arts & Culture

Crossword 12/05/2024

By Josh Harkins | December 5, 2024

Crossword 12/05/2024!

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News

Uncertainty rises in higher education following the U.S. election

By Rosella Graham and Hugo Zhang | December 5, 2024

 A month has passed since former President Donald Trump won the presidential election and the Middlebury community began discussions surrounding the implications of his return to office. Trump’s victory has sparked concerns among college faculty about the future of higher education, with specific ...

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Local

Rebates to Vermonters impacted by flooding extended into 2025

By Mandy Berghela | December 5, 2024

Efficiency Vermont has expanded its flood recovery rebates, offering significant financial assistance to eligible households and businesses affected by the flooding during the summers of 2023 and 2024 for heating systems, weatherization and appliances. Homeowners can receive up to $29,500 in rebates, ...

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Multimedia

Going on site: Our tour of the new first year dorm

By Cole Chaudhari, Ryan Mcelroy and Madeleine Kaptein | November 14, 2024

Exterior furnishing and interior development remain well underway on the new first year dorm located between Coffrin Hall and BiHall, situated on the northern end of Battell Beach. The new dorm is set to replace Battell Hall, which will be torn down and replaced by an updated college art museum and ...

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News

Faculty vote to reduce credits needed to graduate, will debate restricting Latin honors

By Ryan Mcelroy and Madeleine Kaptein | November 14, 2024

During a three-hour faculty meeting on Friday, Nov. 8, Middlebury professors voted in favor of the Faculty Council’s proposal to reduce the credits needed for graduation from 36 to 34. The decision will take effect on July 1, 2025, meaning that students enrolled in the fall 2025 semester will now ...

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News

Middlebury celebrates International Week

By Xiaoyuan Jiao | November 14, 2024

For international students at Middlebury, making sense of the turbulence in today’s world — from ongoing wars in Ukraine and the Middle East to the U.S. presidential election — can be particularly challenging in rural Vermont. Amidst the weight of global challenges, Middlebury’s International ...

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News

College donates section of Snow Bowl Long Trail, preserving public access

By Sophia Galuppo | November 14, 2024

Middlebury is now the latest contributor to Green Mountain Club’s (GMC) efforts to protect the Long Trail. Last month, the college donated a 1.5-mile segment of land — stretching from the summit of Worth Mountain to Vermont Route 125 — to GMC, leaving just two percent of the land on the Long Trail ...

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News

Middlebury reacts to Trump's victory

By Maggie Bryan and Declan Richards | November 14, 2024

In the early hours of Wednesday, Nov. 6, national news outlets called the 2024 presidential election for former President Donald Trump. As the election finally came to a close last week, Middlebury community members’ responses ranged from disappointed and anxious to celebratory. 

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News

Board of Trustees discusses finances, names Patton President Emerita

By Rosella Graham | November 14, 2024

On Tuesday, Nov. 5, the Board of Trustees met on campus from Oct. 24–26 to discuss a variety of issues affecting the college and to name Laurie Patton President Emerita prior to her departure in January. The trustees also reviewed new fundraising by the “For Every Future” campaign, learned about ...

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Local

Spilling the Aqua ViTea: Where Middlebury gets its kombucha fix

By Mandy Berghela | November 14, 2024

For years, Aqua ViTea Kombucha has been a beloved, refreshing drink for Middlebury students. Recognizable by its vibrant, colorful packaging, it is a familiar sight at local businesses around town, as well as on campus at spots like Midd Xpress and Crossroads Cafe.