Princeton University Summer Journalism Program

Two months after my first year at Williams College and back at SJP as a counselor this summer, I find myself reflecting on the good, the bad, the fun, the stressful, and lazy times at the very small and isolated liberal arts college. Coming from New York City, my first week at Williams was, needless to say, very different from what I was used to. I made sure that the orientation program I chose did not involve any hikes or any outdoor activities involving nature too much. I avoided walking through the grass and made sure I did not partake in the Hopkins Forest rope challenge. I stayed true and loyal to my city mentality. Though getting accustomed to the different environment was one of my biggest challenges, an even bigger challenge was reminding myself that I had earned my way into this elite school, and that I was just as good as everybody else.

There was always something I didn’t understand or had never heard of in every conversation. The first article I wrote for The Williams Record, had been mutilated and destroyed to the point that I barely recognized my article. I spent two days without sleep trying to write my first seven page paper for my Ancient Political Theory class. I never knew what to say in class and the readings were impossible to finish. I just did not feel like I belonged with this group of such intelligent people who wrote their papers and spoke in class with so much ease. I was not as eloquent or as fast as the rest of my freshman class. I was just not going to fit in.

Little by little, however, I realized that though I didn’t always know what people were referring to, there were things I spoke about that people had no idea about either. I remembered that when I had been an editor for my high school newspaper, I had also changed a lot of the reporters’ articles. I noticed that I spent more time on my writing because yes, I had never written such long papers for my high school teachers, but it was more because I was a perfectionist and wanted to fully understand what I was writing about. I realized that the readings were impossible to finish because unlike all the other students, I never skimmed or skipped any parts. Each and every one of us had something to teach the other and it had nothing to do with being smarter or more knowledgeable … it had everything to do with our different backgrounds, experiences, and interests.

Now that the year has ended and the moment has passed, I miss those endless and sleepless nights. I miss the long practices for Sankofa’s (the step team) show. I miss the discussions about diversity at Williams and the parties where I always hoped they would play at least one Spanish song. I miss the lunches with my professors and the time spent with them during office hours. So yes, I am a Hispanic girl from New York City, but the cultural exchanges that have occurred up in the middle of the mountains with my friends and professors are invaluable.

Prof. Art Conducts Fourth Census of Hopkins Permanent Plots

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., August 10, 2010 -- This summer, Henry Art, Robert F. Rosenburg Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies at Williams College, is commencing the fourth census of the permanent plots in Hopkins Memorial Forest (HMF), a research project that is celebrating its 75th anniversary. The survey will take two summers to complete.
Art and his team of 10 students are carefully measuring the diameters of all trees that are 1/2-inch in diameter and larger in a system of 425 permanent plots, each being 1/4-acre in area, that were established by the U.S. Forest Service in 1935. In addition, several mature trees are cored to determine their growth rates and measurements are made of the shrub and herbaceous layers in a series of smaller plots nested in each tree plot.
"The long-term research project enables us to explore the legacies of past land on how the contemporary forested landscape functions," said Art. "It enables us to construct a historical environmental impact assessment, giving us insights on how past human activities and natural disturbances such as ice storms and animal population fluctuations have shaped our forests. Understanding the changes that we measure in this typical New England forest give us not only a window on the past, but also provides a portal to the future as we analyze the impacts of environmental factors such a climate change on the sustainability of our forested landscapes."
Art's student research assistant team include Matthew Cranshaw '11 of Atlanta, Ga.; Nick Lee '11 of Piedmont, Calif.; David Hansen '11 of Anchorage, Alaska; Alexandra Peruta '11 of Wallingford, Conn.; Mari Lliguicota '11 of East Elmhurst, N.Y.; Eric Outterson '12 of Norristown, Pa.; Dan Nachun '12 of Omaha, Neb.; Jackie Pineda '12 of Waco, Texas; Sarah Rowe '13 of Gambier, Ohio.
"Crown jewels" of the Hopkins Memorial Forest, the 425 permanent plots represent one of the finest long-term data bases on "unmanaged" deciduous forests in the world. They were established by the U.S. Forest Service in 1935. As the HMF has grown over time, the system has been expanded to include new land acquisitions.
Surveys of the permanent plots generally occur at roughly 15-year intervals. Norman Borlaug, the first agricultural scientist to receive a Nobel Peace Prize, conducted the first census in the 1930s while he was a forestry student at the University of Minnesota with the help of a team of Civilian Conservation Corpsmen. After the HMFC was given back to Williams, resurveys were conducted in the 1970s and 1990s by Art and numerous Williams undergraduates.
The fourth survey of the Hopkins Memorial Forest permanent plots is funded in part by the Price-Holloman Foundation, a family foundation based in Richardson, Texas, that supports projects on wilderness environment and conservation in general and research on climate change in particular. Additionally, the project is funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and Williams through its Center for Environmental Studies and Science Division.
At Williams since 1970, Art has played a key role in many local environmental organizations, such as the Williamstown Conservation Committee, the Williamstown Rural Lands Foundation, and the Williamstown Recycling Committee. Nationally, he has served as an evaluator of the National Park Service's Natural Landmarks Program and has received several grants from the National Science Foundation. At Williams he teaches courses in environmental biology and environmental studies.
Art is the author of numerous books and scholarly articles. His children's book, "Woods Walk," received Learning Magazine's Teachers' Choice Award in 2004, and his gardening book, "The Wildflower Gardener's Guide: Midwest, Great Plains, and Canadian Prairies Edition," received the Quill & Trowel Award in 1991.
Art received his A.B. from Dartmouth in 1966 and his Ph.D. from Yale in 1971.
Hopkins Memorial Forest is located at the junction of Northwest Hill Road and Bulkley Street in Williamstown. The reserve, managed by the Williams College Center for Environmental Studies, spans more than 2,500 acres in Massachusetts, New York, and Vermont. The land was donated to the college by the family of Colonel Amos Lawrence Hopkins in 1934, and was deeded to the U.S. Forest Service in 1935 for use as an experimental research facility. The forest was returned to Williams in 1968, and since 1971 the college has actively maintained the forest, which it uses for teaching and research.
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Founded in 1793, Williams College is the second oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts. The college’s 2,000 students are taught by a faculty noted for the quality of their teaching and research, and the achievement of academic goals includes active participation of students with faculty in their research. Students' educational experience is enriched by the residential campus environment in Williamstown, Mass., which provides a host of opportunities for interaction with one another and with faculty beyond the classroom. Admission decisions are made regardless of a student’s financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated needs of all who are admitted.
To visit the college on the Internet: www.williams.edu/ Williams College can also be found on Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/williamscollege and Twitter: http://twitter.com/williamscollegehttp://worldhotsearch1.blogspot.com/

Ryan Hardy is joining the men's ice hockey coaching staff for the 2010-11 season

Ryan Hardy will replace last year's assistant men's ice hockey assistant coach Peter Langella and assist longtime Eph head coach Bill Kangas for the 2010-11 season.

Hardy comes to Williams having spent the last two seasons working on the coaching staff of the Sacred Heart University Pioneers (NCAA Division I – Atlantic Hockey) in Fairfield, Connecticut.   At Sacred Heart, under the direction of head coaches Shaun Hannah and C.J. Marottolo, Hardy assisted in all facets of the hockey program.

Ryan Hardy

Primarily Hardy was involved in video coaching, practice planning and other hockey operations duties.  At Williams, he will continue video coaching, practice planning and hockey operations duties along with recruiting duties.
In addition to his work with the Pioneers, coach Hardy has been involved with the coaching of Bantam and Midget level hockey in Connecticut for the past six years.   He has also coached various select teams and worked numerous summer camps throughout his career.
Actively involved in USA Hockey, coach Hardy received his Level 5 (Master) Certification at the 2009 USA Hockey Coaches Symposium in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Hardy is a 2010 graduate of Sacred Heart where he earned a B.S. in Sport Management from the Jack Welch College of Business. The native of Branford, Connecticut now resides in Williamstown.