Visited October 2012.
I have visited all of the other Ivies in the past, but I had never seen Dartmouth before this trip. It certainly did not disappoint me. Dartmouth is comprised of 4,200 undergraduates and 1,700 graduate students. Their calendar system is called the D Plan. There are four academic terms per year, which are 10.5 weeks long. Each student takes three courses a term. All sophomore students are required to attend “sophomore summer”. This is a time for the entire class to come together and become a united group. Dartmouth has more athletic teams than all of the Ivies; they have 30 varsity teams in all!
The next morning we started heading north toward Burlington. On our way we stopped at Middlebury College for a tour and a visit with the admissions staff. Fortunate for me, I was the only person on the tour so I had five of the most articulate, fun-loving tour guides I could have possibly had. They were totally focused on telling me everything wonderful about their institution, and this did not take a great deal of persuading. Everything about Middlebury was impressive. It has five residential commons where the students live for their first semester. Then they can move to other housing if they choose. The curriculum is on a 4-1-4 plan. The J term in January offers wonderful opportunities that are out of the norm, such as boatbuilding, log rolling and even building an Adirondack chair! As we drove off of the beautiful campus where the local farmer’s market was being held on the green, I knew I would one day be back to visit this idyllic setting.
It was somewhat of a shock to arrive in Burlington after being in the country for five days. For the next two days I visited the University of Vermont and Champlain College. UVM has a beautiful campus that is packed with students enjoying themselves. It appeared that everyone was on a bike, skateboard or running down the well-worn paths on campus. I was sure I was going to be run over, but these students are experts. Although all of the programs at UVM are quite strong, its Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and the School of Nursing are standouts.
The walk to Champlain College from the UVM campus took me only five minutes! As I walked down the street I became aware of a much different feeling that that of UVM. The housing for most of the students at Champlain are renovated mansions on one of the main streets of town. The students were all on their front porches talking and enjoying the beautiful weather on this Friday afternoon. When I went into the info session, I was blown away by the inspired curriculum at Champlain. It has what is called an Upside Down Curriculum where the student declares his/her major the first semester of college. The goal of this program is ‘educating for an interconnected world”. Incorporated into every student’s curriculum are a liberal arts program, life and learning experiences, and community service is required of all students. Champlain College has certainly identified the skills necessary for students today to be successful in a career, and it has created a curriculum that focuses directly on these specific areas. I can easily say that Champlain College was the greatest surprise on my trip. This is a very special school, especially if a student is interested in creative media, digital filmmaking and game art.
Heading home, I was once again reminded that I truly have the best job in the world. How else would I be able travel across our beautiful country visiting colleges and meeting students from all over the world?
I will be heading to Florida later in January. The first week of April I am planning to visit Beloit College, Laurence University, Marquette University, Ripon College, and the University of Wisconsin. Finally my last college trip of the year will be to Rhodes College, the University of Mississippi, and Millsaps College. I look forward to sharing these experiences with you as well!