Spring 2008 Academic Update
By Roni Ires
The springtime campus bursts with frisbees flying, students sunning, and the pervasive scent of lilacs. There is also a palpable sense of approaching deadlines as students reckon with finals, and some prepare for commencement and a future beyond CU. I am glad to say that this spring brought us more hellos than goodbyes - we have gained a new crop of bright, inquisitive, socially and environmentally concerned students that I look forward to getting well acquainted with over the next few years. Here are some highlights from the Spring 2008 semester:
March 26-30 - Hoffman Scholars: Aspen Environment Forum
Two environmental studies students spent their spring break in Aspen - not to ski, not to imbibe, but to attend the Aspen Environment Forum with Patty Limerick. Sponsored by the Aspen Institute and National Geographic Magazine, the forum presented exchanges on the future of the environment with some of today's leading experts. All expenses for students Haley Carmer and Patrick Bachmann were covered by the Hoffman Scholars fund, thanks to the generosity of Linda and Clancy Herbst. (See story by Haley Carmer)
April 9 - Student/Faculty Dinner
Chips Barry, manager of Denver Water since 1991, shared anecdotes and advice, well-laced with humble wit, with students and faculty at a dinner on April 9. Hosted by Patty Limerick, the evening gave students a chance to get better acquainted with Western Studies faculty and fellow students in a private setting. It also gave light to the subject of livelihood, and how students might integrate their passions, social concerns, and educations with their need for a steady income.
Chips revealed that his career decisions were influenced more by the desire for meaningful, satisfying work, and the love of adventure, than by the pursuit of financial gain. He also acknowledged the role of fate and happenstance in some of his choices. After graduating from Columbia Law School in 1969, when he might have joined a large Denver law firm and earned a very considerable income, he instead took a job in a western Alaska fishing village on the Bering Sea as a legal services attorney. He and his wife escorted twenty-seven Inuit students to Japan for six months. They spent three years on the Marshall Islands in the Pacific where he represented the people of Bikini Atoll whose land had been used to conduct twenty-one nuclear weapons tests. He served as executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources from 1988 - 1991. The continuous threads in his career and numerous civic involvements have always been community service and wise management of natural resources.
Chips stressed that we can all live lives of great value and service no matter where we may receive our educations - it makes little difference whether we attend an Ivy League school or a community college. He encouraged students to be open to possibilities throughout their college careers rather than fixing on one particular goal or path. He urged them to spend time living in other countries to foster a greater perspective on the benefits and weaknesses of our own.
We all enjoyed our evening with Chips, and we thank Patty for so kindly welcoming us to her home once again.
April 17 - Ninth Annual Thompson Writing Awards for Western American Writing
Once again, students, faculty, and friends of the Center turned out in various versions of semi-formal attire to celebrate the winners of the Thompson Awards. More details on this exciting event along with photos of the winners can be found in the article written by Kurt Gutjahr.