Editorial Looking back, looking forward

Author: [no author name found]

No sign marks the coming of winter better than the glow emanating from the library in the wee hours of the morning as students furiously type away the last pages of their theses alongside procrastinators working on that lingering assignment. Amidst this unmistakable omen, we look back and reflect upon the fall semester. It seems as if only yesterday the campus was awash in the warm sunshine of a late Vermont summer, but since then the College reaped an intellectual and athletic harvest of great abundance. Most recently, the women's cross country team won yet another national championship, cementing its reputation as Middlebury's quiet dynasty; also of note was the men's soccer team, which submitted another sterling postseason performance, thereby proving last year's title no fluke. Academically, the College hosted a number of provoking speakers and its students accumulated a number of achievements and fellowships. Even the mathematicians took the green chicken back from Williams.

But the harvest has been bitter in other regards. While the pages of this paper were filled with stories of idyllic October weekends and even an entire issue of boastful environmental content, they have also featured the unfortunate presence of obituaries, and a consistent stream of morose news of economic hardship and its continuing effect on the College's budget and future.

So as fall turns into winter, Middlebury students are in a similar position to the President-elect they celebrate so dearly. We have much to be thankful for, and look to the future with a great deal of hope; but we encounter challenges and expectations that border on insurmountable. The challenge in expectations is felt most painfully in the job market, which, despite the best efforts of Career Services, is contracting. There is a reduction in the amount of available positions and an expanding labor pool of talented candidates. Graduating seniors are most familiar with these market conditions, but the writing is on the wall for all Middlebury students who are considering internships, careers and summer jobs.

Amidst the uncertainty, the liberal arts education has prepared Middlebury students as best it can; we do believe that our broad focus and ability to think both critically and creatively will be of great utility in this era of financial doubt and skepticism.

The College too faces similar challenges. The economic wind has been let out of the sails driving the endowment and Middlebury Initiative, and terms like "budget cuts" and "hiring freeze" dominate the vernacular as growth and expansion had for the last decade. Old Chapel must struggle to maintain the academic excellence and reputation of this august institution during a time without financial excess.

Both the College and its students are embarking on a long winter with warmth in our memories and in our friends and family with which we'll celebrate the upcoming holiday season. We bid the fall adieu and alongside our fellow students and community members bundle up for the cold and look to the sky, wondering what the future will hold.