A few minutes after 10 a.m. on a brilliant fall morning, Laurie Patton swept into her office greeted the tech guys who were fixing her computer, addressed her assistant, then turned to me, the task at hand for the next forty-five minutes before another group demanded her attention. She asked where it would be best to sit, desk or couch? She chose the table near the outlet. Better for me. Straightforward, gracious, without ostentation or false humility, a hint of humor always ready at the corners of her mouth. Laurie Patton, first woman president of Middlebury College.

In her inaugural address at Middlebury College this fall, Patton quoted poet Heather McHugh: “If you live on the edge of an enormous mountain or an enormous body of water, it’s harder to think of yourself as being so important.” Then Patton added the last line of McHugh’s poem: “That seems useful to me, spiritually”—words that seem to typify her remarkably approachability.

Patton is highly accomplished. First and foremost she is a distinguished religion scholar, teacher, and translator of classic Indian Sanskrit texts. Before Middlebury, she was the dean of Duke University’s Trinity College of Arts and Sciences and the Robert F. Durden Professor of Religion. Patton graduated from Harvard-Radcliffe College in comparative religions, received her master’s from University of Chicago Divinity School, and completed her doctorate on the history of religions at the University of Chicago. She conducted research in India and Israel on two separate Fulbright scholarships as well as in Paris and at Columbia University and is the author of several books, including two volumes of poetry. Patton can read in five languages: Sanskrit, French, Hindi, German, Old Irish, and biblical Hebrew.

Continue Reading...

 

Susan Minter, former secretary of transportation, announced her candidacy for governor in October. photo: Gordon Miller

It takes a unique person to leave an excellent and secure job that one loves and does well to take the risk of running for public office. That’s exactly what Sue Minter did in early September when she left her well-earned position as Vermont’s secretary of transportation.

With the encouragement of family and friends—including former secretary of human services Doug Racine and former governor Madeline Kunin—Minter worked with the Shumlin administration to find her replacement. And then she announced her candidacy for governor, jumping into a field of Democratic candidates that will face off in the Vermont Democratic primary election next August.

The Kick-Off

The official kick-off event for Sue Minter’s gubernatorial campaign was held Tuesday, October 6, in front of the historic train station across from the Waterbury green. As a friendly crowd slowly gathered on a perfect, cool, mostly sunny fall day, Minter spoke with press, campaign volunteers, and posed for a few photos, the collar and sleeves of her crisp white shirt framing a bright service-blue blazer. 

Several individuals with familiar faces from state government, nonprofits, and other community organizations, along with curious individuals wondering, “Who is Sue Minter,” moved about or mingled in small groups.

Continue Reading...

 

On an unseasonably hot May 26, 2015, afternoon in Burlington, Vermont, thousands of people jostled for position on the grass in Waterfront Park, and it wasn’t to get the free Ben & Jerry’s ice cream being offered. Enthusiastic college students stood shoulder to shoulder next to white-haired seniors discussing politics, as young children squeezed themselves through the crowd to get a better view of the main event. Following several speeches by local dignitaries, Ben (Cohen) and Jerry (Greenfield) among them, Vermont senator Bernie Sanders took the podium to announce his bid to be the next president of the United States. The cheers of the crowd rose to a deafening roar.

Continue Reading...

 

This is the second article for the new column,"Listen To Your Mother,"dedicated to our environment. We are fortunate to live in a state where protecting our environment is a priority for residents and for our government leaders: this is not a given in other states. But we are affected by other states’ choices and corporate and national policies over which we have little influence.

“Listen to Your Mother” will highlight current topics and bring you the most informed perspectives on issues that concern us all, such as divestment, renewable energy, and carbon pollution tax, and invite experts to write on these topics. ________________________________________________

In 2008, 350.org Bill McKibben and a group of Middlebury College students started 350.org to address global climate change. In 2012, the fossil fuel divestment campaign was launched, based on the concern that, as McKibben puts it, “If it’s wrong to wreck the planet, then it’s wrong to profit from that wreckage.” Divestment is modeled on the campaign to divest from apartheid South Africa, and it has grown to become a global movement.

Reasons to Divest

There have always been ethical reasons to divest. An investment is a loan that earns interest. Why would we loan money to a company that is selling products that accelerate climate change? Now there are also growing financial reasons to avoid investing in fossil fuel companies. Fund managers evaluate financial risks as it is their responsibility to protect the funds entrusted to them and help them grow. Over the past five years, the value of coal and oil shares has been falling, and more fund managers are divesting.

Continue Reading...