Photo-flashback: Snowier in 2018
Saint Michael’s College In the absence of having our normal student/faculty/staff populations and activities on campus this time of year, we've opted to periodically bring you past campus images from roughly the same time of year that appeared in previous THIS WEEK editions -- such as these March 30, 2018 edition photos captured from a drone that showed students' tracks in the snow across the 300s field, presumably as they made their way to actual in-person classes. It seems winter was holding on a bit longer that year. News from that week two years ago -- more typical for this time of the spring semester -- included host of campus guest speakers, sports teams on spring trips to launch seasons, student activism through marches on various issues, the anticiption of musical recitals, and major research grants being announced as preparations for Academic Symposium got well under way.
SAINT MICHAEL'S NEWS
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The Common Text selection for incoming first-year Saint Michael’s College students in 2020-2021 will be Reading with Patrick: A Teacher, a Student, and a Life-Changing Friendship (2017) by Michelle Kuo, who taught in rural Arkansas as a Teach for America volunteer after graduating from Harvard. Her book based on that experience is both an inspiring story of friendship and a moving meditation on education, poverty, race, and criminal justice, said Peter Vantine, director of the First-Year Seminar Program, professor of French and chair of the College’s Department of Classical and Modern Languages & Literatures, who announced the choice last week. Vantine explained some of the Common Text committee’s reasons for the selection: “As Saint Michael’s College celebrates 50 years of having women at the school, and as the United States celebrate the centennial of women’s suffrage, we wished to mark these important anniversaries by selecting a book written by a female author. Michelle Kuo’s stirring memoir further resonates with the legacy and ongoing work of the Edmundites, from their efforts in the South during the Civil Rights movement to their continuing ministry in Selma, Alabama” he said.
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The student volunteers and leaders of Saint Michael’s Fire and Rescue are meeting the “significant test” of the COVID-19 pandemic effectively and with determined professionalism, boosted by strong community support, reported a student member to the SMFR Board of Directors during a Zoom version of its regularly scheduled meeting this past weekend. The virtual meeting happened on a weekend that was to have marked the 50th Anniversary celebration of the organization before the pandemic changed everything. Instead, the Board passed a resolution recognizing the commitment and dedication of current members during this difficult time. Fire & Rescue leaders said the major event for the 50th anniversary celebration has been tentatively rescheduled for the fall, but annual recognitions still took place on-schedule, even though remotely: Named this year’s Rescuer of the Year was Amelia Lamberty ’20, a biology major from Moca, Puerto Rico, while Firefighter of the Year was Alec Guzauckas ’20, an information systems major from Kensington, CT.
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Creative efforts beyond the call of duty from employees of the Saint Michael’s College Early Learning Center (ELC) brought praise and appreciation this week from St. Mike’s employees who seek daily to productively occupy their young children at home even while trying to continue their own work for the College online. Two examples are the families of Michael Stefanowicz ‘09, director of Admission, and Lara Scott, director of Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts (MOVE), the service arm of Edmundite Campus Ministry. Said Scott, “I feel very thankful for the teachers at the ELC who have been working really hard to find new avenues to allow the children to connect, learn, and continue to grow. In the photo here, Mike and his son Patrick do online activities from home through the Early Learning Center where Patrick normally would spend part of his day. (photo courtesy of Nicole Stefanowicz)
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Staff in the College’s Marketing & Communications office are continuing to find and post stories from our community during these uncommon times brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.We’ve invited anybody among us to share whatever from their daily lives might inspire and make us feel connected, from the more serious to the whimsical.This past week we heard from a few more Purple Knights about their lives in our new shared reality. The idea here is to uplift and inspire through what we hope can be a running periodic forum for community-building, neighborly check-ins and collective sustenance. This week's submissions include a variety of examples of segments of our community creatively making things work with the help of technology, as people remain in physical isolation, and a reminder that life's joyful moments persist still. Please continue to share your news items, however seemingly small. We also welcome broader updates from your offices, departments and homes. Thanks to everyone who shared the following submissions and community snapshots. Keep them coming – email to
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From Edmundite Campus Ministry as we enter the weekend of Palm Sunday heading into Holy Week: "Each year for Lent, a group of Edmundite Campus Ministry staff and students study the Sunday readings during Lent to extract a focus statement to center our prayer during this season of reflection. This year our Lenten focus is: "Awake from darkness and live in Christ, the light of the world." Students, faculty, staff, and members of the Sunday Worshiping Community have written reflections based on the daily liturgical readings in Lent. We encourage those who are interested to go to the Lenten Reflections blog to read these daily reflections. New reflections will be posted daily. We hope you will join us in prayer as a member of the Saint Michael's College community and consider these reflections as an aid in your personal prayer during the Lenten season, as we prepare for the Resurrection of Christ Jesus." Watch the alumnii social media pages or check the S.S.E. YouTube page for the link to online Mass from the Chapel of Saint Michael the Archangel that should be posted late by Saturday afternoon as it has the past two weeks as well.
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