Green Mountain College

Green Mountain College
Seal of Green Mountain College
Motto Lux Fiat
Motto in English
Let There be Light
Type Private
Established 1834[1]
Affiliation United Methodist Church[1]
Endowment $2,926,034[1]
President Robert W. Allen[2]
Academic staff
46[3]
Students 710[1]
Location Poultney, Vermont, United States
Campus 155 acres (0.63 km2)[1]
Colors Golden yellow and hunter green          
Nickname Eagles
Mascot Larry the Eagle[4]
Website www.greenmtn.edu

Green Mountain College is a private liberal arts college in Poultney, Vermont, United States, at the foot of the Taconic Mountains between the Green Mountains and Adirondacks. The college has a core set of courses known as the Environmental Liberal Arts (ELA) curriculum, in environmental and natural sciences, writing, reading, history and philosophy.

History

Green Mountain was founded in 1834 as Troy Conference Academy, a coeducational institution. In 1863 the school's name changed to Ripley Female College; in 1874 back to Troy Conference Academy; and in 1937 to Green Mountain Junior College. Green Mountain became a two-year junior college for women in 1943.[5] In 1974, the school changed its name to Green Mountain College and returned to coeducational status, offering four-year baccalaureate degrees.[5] In the late 1990s the college began to focus on environmental literacy and citizenship.[6]

Academics

Green Mountain College offers 25 undergraduate majors and distance master's programs in Environmental Studies, Food Systems, and Sustainable and Resilient Communities, as well as an online master's of business administration.[7] The college is part of the Eco League, a group of liberal arts colleges committed to environmental sustainability.[8]

Progressive Program

GMC is home to an educational track known as the Progressive Program. Based on the ideas of philosopher John Dewey[9] and formed on a philosophy similar to that of Goddard College, a Vermont institution recognized for its dedication to progressive education,[10] the students in the program define their own education goals and work with faculty members individually to meet them.[9]

Green campus

In 2007, the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) awarded Green Mountain College the Campus Sustainability Leadership Award in the "Under 1,000" category. The award recognizes Green Mountain for commitment to environmental sustainability in its governance and administration, curriculum and research, operations, campus culture, and community outreach.[11][12]

Green Mountain was named an EPA Energy Star Showcase Campus following campus-wide retrofitting of light fixtures.[13]

Students have installed a wind turbine to power the campus green house and solar panel on the roof of the student center.[14]

On April 22, 2010, GMC formally opened a new combined heat and power (CHP) biomass plant costing $5.8m. The school expects to reduce carbon emissions by more than 50% and reach carbon neutrality by 2011. The plant will burn about 4,000-5,000 tons of locally harvested woodchips each year as the primary fuel and it is expected to provide 85% of the school's heat and generate 20% of its electricity and is capable of generating 400,000 kWh of electricity.[15]

Through the Student Campus Greening Fund (SCGF) every GMC student contributes $30 from the college activities fee. Students design projects and submit proposals. Awards are based on a student vote. SCGF money has been used to install bike racks, purchase recycling bins, use bio-diesel in campus maintenance equipment, and upgrade the alternative energy systems that power the farm greenhouse.[16]

Student clubs

Academic clubs: Agora Philosophy Club, Bio/Enviro, Camp Club, Education Club, Forestry Club, History Club, Outdoor Recreation Association, Pre-Law Club, Pre-Med/Pre-Vet Club, and Psychology Club

Club sports: men's rugby, Quidditch (Welsh Green Dragon), ultimate frisbee, and women's rugby

Other clubs: Anime Club (Green Mountain Otaku), Farm Crew, and Spirituality Club

Skills clubs: Equestrian Club, HERBAL Tribe, Shakti Tribal Dance Coupe, and Slow Foods Chapter

Social action and awareness clubs: Black Culture Club, Club Activism, DREAM Mentoring, International Awareness Club, Intercultural Club, PANTS (People Are Not Their Sex), and Pride[17]

According to the college, its choral group is the only collegiate choir in the United States with a repertoire of Welsh language music.[18][19]

Notable alumni

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Green Mountain College (2011)". U.S. News and World Report. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  2. "President Robert Allen". Green Mountain College. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  3. "Faculty". Green Mountain College. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  4. "Eagle Athletics". Green Mountain College. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  5. 1 2 Green Mountain College (2015). "Our Timeline". Green Mountain College. Archived from the original on 2015-09-25. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  6. Johnson, Tim (November 20, 2011). "Green Mountain College evolves toward environmentalism". Burlington Free Press. Archived from the original on January 18, 2013. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  7. "Graduate Program". Green Mountain College. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  8. "Green Mountain College". Eco League. Retrieved September 24, 2015.
  9. 1 2 "Chart Your Own Course". Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  10. "College History". Goddard College. Retrieved 2010-02-02.
  11. "Campus Sustainability Profiles". Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 2005–2010. Archived from the original on 2010-06-16. Retrieved 2010-02-02.
  12. "Green Mountain College 2007 Campus Sustainability Leadership Award Application". Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. 2007. Archived from the original on 2009-08-10. Retrieved 2010-02-02.
  13. Jesse B. Pyles (2008). "Campus Greening: Green Mountain College, Poultney, Vermont". Worldwatch Institute. Retrieved 2010-02-02.
  14. "Renewable Electricity: Wind Power on the Hill". Green Mountain College. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  15. "Green Mountain College Opens CHP Biomass Plant". 2010. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
  16. Green Mountain College Introduces New Intensive Sustainable Agriculture Major 02.21.10
  17. "Student Clubs". Green Mountain College. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  18. "The Music Program". Green Mountain College. 2015. Retrieved 2015-09-24.
  19. "American choir traces Welsh roots". BBC News. 2010-03-10.

Coordinates: 43°31′02″N 73°14′23″W / 43.5171°N 73.2396°W / 43.5171; -73.2396

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