The year in review

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Snow is on the ground, twinkles of light already adorn the College holiday tree on McCullough Lawn, and finals are just around the corner. Yes, the holiday season is here, and that means the end of 2007 is upon us. For Middlebury, the Year of the Boar included both valleys and peaks. The opening of a new campus in Alexandria, Egypt, a record 7,500 applicants for the class of 2011 and three athletic national titles all gave the College community cause for celebration. At the same time, several incidents of homophobic graffiti, an alleged sexual assault at Brackett House and reverberations of the Virginia Tech shooting reminded us of the challenges that Middlebury faces as its forges ahead into its third century. The Campus has searched through the biggest headlines from the past 12 months in order to revisit the events that have defined college life in 2007. As super-seniors prepare for the last finals of their undergraduate careers, and first-years anxiously await their first, a bit of reflection is just what the doctor ordered.
-Thomas Brant, Focus Editor

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Jan. 18
The foundation of the C.V. Starr-Middlebury School Abroad in the Middle East marked the first such language school to be opened by any American institution, the College announced on Jan. 18. The school, located in Alexandria, Egypt and affiliated with Alexandria University, offers courses to an estimated 15-20 students per semester beginning in the fall of 2007.

"The fact that we will have this sort of program - as far as we know, the only of its kind - will put Middlebury out front of other institutions when it comes to demonstrating the seriousness with which we take engaging the rest of the world in general, and the Middle East in particular," said Jeffrey Cason, dean of International Programs.

One of the most hotly contested topics this year in The Campus was the College's History Department's decision to ban the citation of Wikipedia on papers.

Jan. 24: First article appears
Faculty members of the College's Department of History passed a resolution forbidding students from using online interactive encyclopedia Wikipedia for academic assignments. The motion was passed unanimously on Tuesday, Jan. 9 after brief debate.

Kawashima Professor of Japanese Studies Neil Waters, who grew increasingly concerned with the reliability of the online encyclopedia after students began to cite it on essays and final exams, developed the new policy.

"Students are responsible for the accuracy of the information they give," said Waters. "They can't say, 'I saw it on Wikipedia and therefore that shields me.'"

The departmental statement, which was initially drafted by Waters, also forbids students from including Wikipedia in lists of bibliographic sources.

"To me, it was a sort of self-evident issue, and then I realized this wasn't the case," said Waters. "I'll be talking about it in the first week of classes so there isn't any doubt or confusion about the whole thing."

Feb. 14
Record snowfall fell on the College, closing school for the first time since 1998.

"The size of the storm, and the impact of what was the largest single 24-hour amount of snow to fall on central Vermont, revealed holes in our planning and assumptions," said President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz. "That said, our staff did remarkable work to ensure both safety and services that were essential for students."

Feb. 14: Chandler Koglmeier's Op-Ed
"What are you professors scared of? Please tell me an open source online encyclopedia doesn't actually threaten you. Are you really that scared of general commentary? Are you really arrogant enough to say that the opinions of the general public, albeit a general public who cares enough to get on Wikipedia and post about a specific topic, don't matter? To me, this stinks of the beginnings of censorship. According to Wikipedia, censorship is the removal of information from the public, or the prevention of circulation of information, where it is desired or felt best by some controlling group or body. I always thought the point of academia was that there was no censorship. Ideas, no matter how crazy, were embraced and allowed to circulate. Isn't that one of the reasons we grant tenure to our beloved professors?"

Feb. 21: James Davis' response
"Koglmeier describes the ban as an attack on "general commentary" and "the opinions of the general public," but Wikipedia doesn't purport to be a chat room for the expression of "views." It claims to be a depository of facts, and the accuracy of factual information is not simply a matter of popular opinion.

For example, it is legal fact that Professor Morsman spells her last name with one "o," and even if Koglmeier can find a thousand people to spell her name the way he insisted on penning it -"Moorsman"- that doesn't alter the fact that they'd be spelling her name wrong."

Feb. 28: Wikipedia debate
After sparking a wide debate that was picked up by The New York Times and a number of blogs, Assistant Professor of Film and Media Culture Jason Mittell defended Wikipedia.org against Asistant Professor of History Amy Morsman, who defended her department's position.

Morsman suggested that though justified for broad background research, the citation of a tertiary source such as Wikipedia on major assignments was inappropriate given professors' expectations of their students' work.

"I actually think that Middlebury College students, especially History majors who are taking 300- or 400-level courses, are beyond making Wikipedia the starting point of their research," said Morsman.

Mittell urged the skeptics to think about their position against potentially exciting technological developments.

"When you have any critical dialogue about the site," said Mittell, "you have to understand [Ö] whether your attitude is formed by the 'wiki-' part or by the '-pedia' part."

March
Over Spring Break, homophobic graffiti was found in the hallways of Ross Commons, prompting President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz to send a campus-wide e-mail over the break condemning the acts.

"We are a strong, open and resilient community, but we cannot tolerate actions that threaten the safety of community members and target individuals because of their differences," Liebowitz wrote in the e-mail. "We should also remember that the Ross incident, however egregious, is connected by attitude to other recent expressions of homophobia on this campus."

However, only two days after a forum held to discuss the acts, another instance of homophic graffiti was found written in permanent red marker on the white board of a student's door in Starr Hall. The incident underscored concerns that an earlier case of homophobic graffiti in Ross Commons was indicative of a larger problem at the College.

March 3
Paul Rusesabagina, who survived an ethnic bloodbath in Rwanda that would claim more than 800,000 lives in 100 days, spoke in Mead Chapel on March 3. While Hutu militiamen roamed the capital killing at will, Rusesabagina sheltered Tutsi refugees in his hotel with his charm and persuasive style.

"I took what I call my black binder, where I used to have a lot of phone numbers, and started calling all the generals I knew in the country," Rusesabagina said. "In life, I believe in the power of words. With words, you can kill, but with words, you can also civilize. The most important thing at that time was to open my mouth and open up a dialogue."

March 11: Waters' Op-Ed
Waters recaps the madness he created after what he says he thought was a simple, no-brainer move.

"The Campus published an article on the departmental policy, and the rest, as they say, is history. Alerted by t
he online version of The Campus, Tim Johnson of The Burlington Free Press interviewed me and a spokesman for Wikipedia who agreed with the history department's position, and published an article. Several college newspapers followed suit, and then Noam Cohen of The New York Times interviewed Don Wyatt, chair of the History Department, and me, and published the story. Within a day it received more online "hits" than any other New York Times feature. Another interview followed with the Asahi Shimbun in Tokyo, and additional articles appeared in El Pais in Spain, The Guardian in England, and then in literally hundreds of newspapers in the U.S. and abroad. Along with other members of the History Department, I found myself giving interviews almost daily - to radio stations, newspaper reporters, inquisitive high school students, WCAX television news in Burlington and even to the "NBC Nightly News," which sent correspondent Lisa Daniels to Middlebury to interview me and students in my "History of Modern Japan" class. A stream of phone calls and e-mails from a wide range of people, from Wikipedia disciples to besieged librarians who felt free at last to express their Wikipedia misgivings, continues to the present. Somehow the modest policy adoption by the History Department at Middlebury College hit a nerve."

April 27
Max Nardini '08 and Eric Hoest '08 were elected President of the Student Government Association (SGA) and Student Co-Chair of the Community Council (SCCOCC), respectively, for the 2007-2008 academic year after online polls closed on April 27.

Because his election race was uncontested, Nardini believed there was a tendency for students to write off the election by choosing not to vote, a significant problem Nardini hopes to counter for next year's elections.

"Most people want to get involved in the community somehow," said Nardini. "It's a matter of getting the opportunity out there and publicizing it well. SGA is more than a one-man job, [and] I look forward to working with talented and engaged members of the College community."

May
The senior work of Sally Swallow '07 and Bill Army '07 brought a full-scale musical to Middlebury. With a production too irreverent and too interactive for Wright Theater, the cast and crew decided the only option was to literally turn CFA's Seeler Theater into the seedy Kit Kat nightclub in late 1920s Berlin. The result was decidedly provocative and seriously sexy.

Distraught and alone, Swallow's gritty rendition of "Cabaret" was among her stronger and more serious moments on the stage. Its simplicity was juxtaposed with the equally moving "Finale," which included the entire company and used Barsalona and Beeman as powerful symbols for the Jewish and gay communities respectively. Army slowly opened a suitcase and popped up wearing a gas mask before the end of the show, capping off a truly remarkable production that had the audience laughing, thinking and on its feet for a standing ovation.

May 5
The Middlebury men's rugby squad captured its first national title Saturday, May 5 at Stanford's Steuger Stadium. Led by Pascal Losambe '07 and Ari Silverman '09, the club team beat Arkansas State 38-22 in a match that the Panthers controlled from the outset to the final seconds. Coach Ward Patterson described it as the greatest rugby game in which he had ever been involved.

"This day was one of those perfect days of college sports," said Patterson. "The parents, the weather, everything was perfect. The harmony was absolutely wonderful, and the honor we gave our opponents and that they gave us was spectacular. Everything from the bagpiping beforehand to the post-match celebration went flawlessly. There wasn't even a single foul for foul play."

It was not an easy road for the Panthers to reach the national championship field. They had to go through adversaries such as Northern Colorado and Yale that were significant tests. Moreover, those games came after countless hours of determined training.

"The factor that everything turned on was the decision made in February of last year that we were going to earn the right to play in this game," Patterson said, "and that we would do everything that came with that. After that, all the wheels started to turn in the right direction."

May 27
Former President of the United States William Jefferson Clinton addressed a record turnout crowd at the Middlebury College Commencement on May 27, reminding the Class of 2007 of the importance of community. Blue ponchos filled the lawn between the McCullough Student Center and Voter Hall as well over 5,000 graduates, family members and friends endured the rainy weather to celebrate the achievements of the graduating class.

The highlight of the ceremony was Clinton's much-anticipated address. Acknowledging problems in the world ranging from resource depletion and climate change to illegal immigration and terrorism, Clinton stressed the necessity of strong communities in the face of such challenges. "I believe questions of community and identity ... will determine our collective capacity to deal with all the problems."

Clinton concluded his speech by asking the over 600 graduates to go out into the world with eyes open to see one another. "As you save the world," he said, "remember all the people in it."

Oct. 26
The annual Vitality of the Artistic Community Association (VACA)-sponsored Halloween party required the presence of the Middlebury Police Department (MPD) for the second consecutive year as police arrested two people in connection with an altercation with officers from the College's Department of Public Safety at the Christian A. Johnson Memorial Building. The incident underscored student perceptions of an increased police presence on campus this semester, perceptions that the MPD claimed to be nothing but rumors.

Oct. 28
A freight train derailed in the middle of downtown Middlebury, spilling gasoline into Otter Creek and prompting the evacuation of the village center and some areas of campus. While no one was injured, 400 Middlebury residents were forced to leave their homes. In addition, numerous businesses in the vicinity were forced to close up shop. Among them was Carol's Hungry Mind CafÈ, which boasts a view of the tracks from its back window on Merchants Row. Although he was not working at the time, Carol's employee Greg Keebler said co-workers later described the event to him as sudden and jarring.

"Someone told me it felt like 10 different earthquakes when the cars went off the track," Keebler said.

The derailment registered as a figurative earthquake to a small town unaccustomed to being poised on the brink of catastrophe. By all accounts, Middlebury rose gracefully to the challenge, though it was no small undertaking.

"It bodes well for us that the community has a lot of confidence in the emergency services here, because they were wonderful," Middlebury Chief of Police Thomas Hanley said. "The people in this town responded very well to us."

Nov. 11
As the sun rose on a crisp, fall day, students took to Battell Beach, otherwise named "the pitch," with the goal of leaving the Muggle world. On Nov. 11, college students from all over entered the world of "Harry Potter" during the first annual Intercollegiate Quidditch World Cup Festival.

Twelve Middlebury teams battled during the first portion of the competition for the right to play the squad from Vassar College. The festival featured Quidditch matches interspersed with entertainment from various students groups, food and souvenirs. Alex Benepe '09, an organizer of the event, estimated that over 300 people attended the festival, which featured 143 College students. The Molly Wobbles won the Middlebury portion of the event before defeating Vassar 120-0.

Nov. 24
For the first time in school history, the men's soccer team captured the Division III NCAA National Championship, edging Trinity University (Tex.) in pena
lty kicks at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. on Nov. 24. It was the 28th national title for Middlebury since 1994 and the eighth different sport to bring the trophy home to Vermont.

After earning a much-deserved bye in the first round of the NCAA tournament, Middlebury knocked off each of its next three opponents with relative ease. A 5-0 rout of Wheaton kicked off the tournament and secured home field-advantage for the sectionals.