Our friends at the Brickhouse, in Newport, VT, have posted their May calendar, which we’re republishing below. The Brickhouse is dedicated to cultivating a creative ecology in Newport, and they are hosting their first Sterling intern this summer.

Brickhouse May Events:

Fri, 5/18, 7pm, Film: The Economics of Happiness:

“The number of Americans who say ‘Yes, I’m happy with my life’ peaks in 1956 and goes steadily downhill ever since.” This film is a great discussion starter that looks at how localized living can not only address the environmental and economic crises, but also lead to more fundamentally happier lives.

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First off, I’d like to thank my parents, my in-laws, my sister and niece, and especially my wife Abby, for making the trip up here to celebrate with me, but more importantly for their support while I was in school, both financially and emotionally.

Also, a big thank you to all the faculty and staff that I worked with during my time at Sterling. I wouldn’t be up here without you. I’ll extend that thanks to all graduates’ family and friends with us today, as I’m sure they would thank you from this podium if given the chance.

I’ve been away from this place for some time now, but to be invited to commencement, to be welcomed back so warmly, and to be selected as a speaker is truly an honor and a privilege. I suppose I’ve earned myself a reputation here as a bit of an entertainer. I have here a letter from Will Wootton, addressed to my father after I left school a year and a half ago, that says this about me:

“We’ll miss his enthusiastic singing, especially.”

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Eliza Mutino, ‘12, delivered the following speech at Sterling College’s 13th Baccalaureate Commencement.

My message is that by getting to know ourselves as well as we can, through compassion and awareness we will realize that we have nothing to fear, nothing to lose and endless room to create.

In order to create, in order to be the solutionaries that this world needs, it is useful to look back on the techniques used successfully throughout history. Many prophetic souls from past and present promote non-violent civil disobedience. They also shunned material wealth. Truly following these teachings is quite a big ask.

I find self-development to be a fine place to start to prepare ourselves. Personally I found that the meditation master Trungpa Rinpoche described it well. He said, “we must simplify rather than complicate the problem with theories of any kind. The situation of nowness, this very moment, contains whole case histories and future determinations. Everything is right here, so we do not have to go any further than this to prove who we were or might be”.

Joined here today, I feel bolstered by the situation of nowness. Yes, we have accomplished a lot. We also quite literally have “everything” before us. Turning our attention to the present moment might be our best navigational tool going forward.

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Sterling College announces the election of Matthew Derr as the next President of the College. Derr is currently a visiting fellow at the Great Lakes Colleges Association, a consortium of thirteen highly selective, independent liberal arts colleges and universities. In 2011, Derr was presented with the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), Chief Executive Leadership Award for the Midwest Region for his contributions to the revival of Antioch College, where he served as interim president. He succeeds Will Wootton who has served the College for the past 6 years. 

Robert Shelton, Chair of the Board of Trustees, made the announcement following the meeting of the Board during Sterling’s 13th Baccalaureate Commencement celebrated over the weekend. 

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The Commencement Ceremony was held in the Houston House Gardens this afternoon under a gorgeous blue sky. 28 graduates received their diplomas - the largest BA Class in Sterling’s history.

Speaker Majora Carter spoke of doing good work, building a better world, and knowing that all of us belong.

Student speakers Eliza Mutino and Andy Messenger gave thanks to their families and to the Sterling faculty, and called on their fellow graduates to work for positive change.

After the ceremony, graduates, families, and friends enjoyed a lovely reception in the front garden.

Click “Read More” to see a list of the graduates, including their major and senior project.

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Photo: A YES Program group in Switzerland.

Applications are now being accepted for the Youth Encounter on Sustainability’s first ever program in the United States. Apply today to take the lead in creating a sustainable future!

This August, a group of university students and young professionals from across the globe will address issues of sustainable development as part of the Youth Encounter on Sustainability (YES) program. The YES program offers each of its participants a once-in-a-lifetime experience to connect with like-minded individuals, delve into the complex challenges facing our planet today, and build up the skills and knowledge necessary to develop solutions.

Located at Sterling College in beautiful Craftsbury, Vermont, the YES program will engage participants in issues of sustainability through course lectures, field trips, workshops, discussions, and group work.

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Sterling College is a proud partner of the Center for an Agricultural Economy, a non-profit organization located just down the road in Hardwick, Vermont. The Center runs tours of the local agriculture scene, including a stop at the Sterling Farm. Here is the latest on this year’s tours.

Have you ever wondered about the farms and food businesses in the Hardwick area after reading an article, hearing a news blurb or eating some of their products? Well, now is your chance to join us while exploring the region’s many farms and businesses.

Beginning and ending at the Center for an Agricultural Economy (CAE), join an all-day caravan to tour farms and food producers. Our first tour is May 17th and then the 3rd Thursday of every month until September. Hear the stories, tour the facilities and meet the people that help make this area so rich in community-based agricultural enterprises as well as the subject of countless news articles and a book.

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I pledge to explore and take into account the social and environmental consequences of any action I consider and will seek to improve those aspects of any community to which I belong.

This voluntary pledge is part of a national effort encouraging graduating students to consider the social and environmental consequences of employment and life decisions.

Sterling’s Commencement is coming up on May 6th! We look forward to celebrating with all 28 graduates - the largest graduating class in the history of the College.

Students from Kroka Vermont visited campus last week and participated in All College Work Day. Here’s how one Kroka student described the experience:

We spent a day working alongside Sterling College students. I really enjoyed this social explosion. It was great to have so many new people to talk to, especially since most of them shared similar interests.

Luckily, most of the students seemed to enjoy having us there and talking to us. Sterling only has around a hundred students, so our group was almost ten percent of their student body. We were all happy to see new faces.

The atmosphere at Sterling was great. All the students really got into All College Work Day and were happy to clean up their campus. Everyone knew everybody. Only first names were needed for people to know whom you were talking about. This tight-knit community seemed so similar to ours and I felt very welcomed and at home.

Jeremy Carter, far left, shovels compost on the Sterling Farm. Jeremy is a sociology major at St. Michael’s College who spent the spring semester at Sterling via the new semester exchange program between the Association of Vermont Independent Colleges.

Common Voice caught up with Jeremy to hear about how his experience at Sterling fits with his educational goals.

I came to Sterling because I wanted some hands-on experience of the concepts and practices I was studying at Saint Michael’s College. 

Saint Michael’s has a young but growing Environmental Studies major, but no classes that offer experience in farming and sustainable living. Saint Michael’s is a big college, with a lot of different people, and not everyone wants to try and live sustainably. 

The people at Sterling are incredible. The teachers are really hands-on and are willing to meet students at their level. Students seem to be learning and teaching each other new things all the time.

I feel like the meal times really exemplify the essence of community here; everyone pours into the cafeteria chattering noisily to whomever may happen to be squeezed in next to them, and then all at once everyone descends upon the food, before retreating to the tables ready to devour the delicious meals. And yet, the food being shoveled into everyone’s mouths can’t prevent us from sharing stories about the day and facts learned in class.  It’s great.

My biggest interest in sociology is the question of how the current American mindset has been formed. I have spent my time at Saint Michael’s exploring the promulgating factors that have created the individualistic materialistic culture we now live in.

It’s nice to come to a place where these values have not yet penetrated through the bedrock of community.

About the AVIC Exchange:

The AVIC Exchange allows Vermont college students to spend a semester at any other participating Vermont college, without transferring. Tuition goes to the home institution, room and board to the host institution, and the transfer of credits is painless.

Colleges currently participating in the AVIC Semester Exchange:

Bennington College, Burlington College, Champlain College, College of St. Joseph, Goddard College, Green Mountain College, Landmark College, Marlboro College, Middlebury College, New England Culinary Institute, Norwich University, Saint Michael’s College, Southern Vermont College, and Sterling College.

Bethany Dunbar, Chronicler of the Northeast Kingdom, will be reading from her new book Kingdom’s Bounty on July12th at 6:30 pm in Simpson Hall. You can see a preview of Bethany’s work by visiting the Brown Library, where her photos are on display until April 30th.

Come hear Theresa Snow, Sterling Class of ‘01, and founder of Salvation Farms speak about building a resilient food system through managing farm surplus - Sunday, April 29th at 4:30 pm in Houston House.

A free meal will follow the talk, with a taste of our own local farm surplus, plus some extra treats (fermented foods, fresh bread, and more).

Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the scale and scope of charitable food in America and learn about innovative programs that use food and citizen engagement as agents of change. 

The event is free and open to the public, but donations are greatly appreciated and will go towards Salvation Farms.