Tapped In: The Bennington Blog

Is there a cost to having your mac repaired at school? I understand there is an Apple authorized repair place. How does that work? If you have a new machine that is under warranty is there any cost for repairs?

theparkesicle — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:41:00 -0400

Hi friend. As you probably know, if you own Apple products, you’re gonna have to shell out the $$$ at some point. I think that the best person to contact would most likely be a representative at your closest Apple store. As far as I’m aware, Bennington is not affiliated with Apple (we do have Macs on campus but that’s about it) and we don’t have any deals with them or anything of the like. I’m fairly certain that as a college student you get a few deals, but I’m not going to pretend to be an expert on that. My best advice is to give Applecare a call and see what they have to say.

I pray for you that your laptop never breaks in college. I highly recommend investing in an external hard drive in case the worst ever comes to pass.

Here’s the back of my laptop. I did this when I was 15. Let’s just say I was THAT kind of adolescent. And by was…I mean….am.

— Parke ‘15

Electro swing? Hello stags and bucks of Bennington (I’m assuming you are all cool free-spirited woodland animals, correct me if i’m wrong), I am taking a gap year and therefor coming to join the fun in a year, but in the meantime, I was wondering if you offered swing dancing classes. Also, any chance of making an Electro Swing band or club to fill that gap if indeed there is one? P.S. The deer comment was meant out of love. Pure, sweet, unadulterated love.

selinap2015 — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:58:00 -0400

When asked what my spirit animal is I always say a deer so no worries, I’m feeling the love.

There is a swing club on campus! By the time you get here the guy and gal who lead it will be seniors but perhaps you can take it over after that? As for Electro Swing, Dominic, the main teacher, always loves music suggestions and if you were to round up some live musicians that would be fantastic! Below are some pictures from our final dance of term.

-Selina ‘15

Yesterday I took a trip down to the Purple Carrot Farm on the...

glennish — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:36:27 -0400

Joe and Brendan prepare the irrigation lines

planning, always planning

Yesterday I took a trip down to the Purple Carrot Farm on the edge of campus to see what Joe and Brendan, the student farm interns, were up to. When I was down there they were putting in irrigation lines for the corn, squash, and other crops that are sold to the dining hall. Things are sprouting and the farm is looking good.

The farmers have been blogging! Check out their updates here.

We will also try to keep up with them as the summer progresses.

-Glennis

Hey there, I hope this isn't too grim a question. But as a parent, I'm wondering if the students will be given training about what to do if the unthinkable happened and there was someone dangerous on campus with a weapon. I'm assuming campus security and staff has drilled for this.

selinap2015 — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:53:00 -0400

I firstly want to acknowledge this is a really valid concern. When we received this question we were all a little freaked out just because this sort of thing has never happened to any of us and we would hate to see it at Bennington.

Some things you should know:

Bennington is very small with just under 700 undergrad and and a little over 100 grad students. While I certainly don’t know everybody, it’s hard to hide in such a small community.

Campus Safety does a walk through of all the buildings on campus every shift. They also make an effort to get to know the students really well so if somebody unfamiliar were to show up they would notice.

We have an alert system called ‘send word now’ where students, staff, and faculty can enter their phone numbers and emails to receive emergency notices and instructions.

I talked to one of the Campus Safety officers, Mike, and he said if there was an armed emergency the whole campus would be on immediate lock down, house chairs (who have received special training) would be given instructions to secure their houses, and the local police force would be here within minutes.

I’m sorry I can’t give more specifics but if you have any further questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to contact Campus Safety directly: 802-447-4250.

-Selina ‘15

Are the kitchens in the dorms stocked with kitchen ware or do people bring whatever they think they'll need. Are there tea kettles? Coffee pots? Baking pans.

selinap2015 — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:29:00 -0400

That really depends on your house. I’ve cooked in Franklin, Woolley, Sawtell, and Perkins which all have the basics but you might not be as lucky in Kilpat or Stokes. Some people bring their own kitchen swag but I think it comes down to creativity. As my friend Carlos once said: “True college students eat out of a pot.”

-Selina ‘15

Does everyone live on campus?

selinap2015 — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:14:00 -0400

Almost everybody. There’s a handful of people who live in apartments or houses off campus as well as 31 of us who live in college owned houses that are either on the edges of campus or in North Bennington. The campus experience is a big part of Bennington and the different housing communities accommodate a variety of lifestyles. Even though I moved to the Welling Townhouse in North B. I really love spending time in Franklin where I was placed as a freshmen.

-Selina ‘15

i know this was answered before, but it's soo many pages away I'm in no position to go find it (still got work to do and have possible laziness?) but can you give me a full list of bands that came about from Bennington College ( like Yeesh and Mountain Man). I love the music and want to listen to everyone's works.

alandup — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:36:00 -0400

Besides Yeesh and Mountain Man, you might look into Skinnydippers, the lead singer from the Spin Doctors (thanks wikipedia!), the Spinto Band, BOBBY, Real Estate (Alex Bleeker) and Will Stratton. I probably forgot some. But I know you better than that. You want to listen to the good stuff before its cool. Bandcamp is handy, check out music under the tags ‘bennington’ and ‘bennington college’… link! There is some great work from current students as well as recent graduates. And there’s even more at the silo!

-Alan ‘15

what should i expect as an older student? not like, 40 or anything, but older than average

glennish — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 08:45:00 -0400

Hey, it is Glennis. I am a traditionally aged student so I decided to go straight to the horse’s mouth on this one. My good friend, Michiel just graduated and is a few years older than the average student. Here is what he has to say:

Michiel here. Straight out of retirement to share with you the experiences of a geriatric student. I transferred to Bennington at the ripe old age of 24—on the decline already, my looks and health waning fast—and just graduated this term at 26—gray hairs and all.

Here’s what I think: In the classroom age really doesn’t stand out. Bennington is full of incredibly sharp, creative, and driven individuals, and professors treat students with a level of respect that is hard to match anywhere else. No matter how old you are, you’ll be taken seriously for your work. As an older student, this was a breath of fresh air and made returning to the classroom environment a comfortable transition.

Social interactions may be the one arena where you’d run into hiccups now and then, but even those work themselves out. Being that Bennington is such a small community, I was worried about finding a group of students I could connect with; I was concerned that the maturity level and life experiences might be too disparate for any meaningful relationships to develop. Turns out I was wrong. Finding a group of friends here has a lot less to do with age and much more to do with personality, interests, and temperament. So while the group of “non-traditional” students may be small on campus, you certainly won’t feel restricted to hanging out with people your age. There are so many wonderful people from such interesting backgrounds on campus that you’ll eventually find a group that works best for you.

Closing advice: Be true to yourself. If you’re interested in having a full on college experience, living in the houses and dancing at parties, go for it. If you’re old enough where you’re accustomed to a lifestyle that’s a bit more settled (or intend to focus solely on Bennington’s academic offerings), feel free to live off campus. Non-traditional students are granted singles if they stay on campus but can easily live off campus if they choose. So do what feels right. Returning to school is a big decision. Best of luck!

Is there a major for environmental science? What kind of classes does Bennington have for environmental science?

selinap2015 — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 11:02:00 -0400

So instead of a typical major/minor system Bennington allows students to design their own course of study. The idea behind this educational approach, called the Plan Process, is that your education is much more enriching, valuable, meaningful, and personal when you design it. This model allows you to pull from a variety of disciplines and puts your passions, inquiries, and interests at the center of your education. It’s kind of complicated so please don’t hesitate to email me at selinap@bennington.edu for more details.

As for environmental science you can absolutely study that here! Check out all the classes tagged ‘environment’ in the Fall 2013 curriculum.

-Selina ‘15

How diverse is the student body?

theparkesicle — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 15:29:00 -0400

Oof, that’s a doozy of a question. There are a LOT of different kinds of diversity — social, racial, sexual, physical, mental, philosophical, geographical…not to mention skittles color preference….with only around 720 attending Bennington, we would have to select from an ENORMOUS pool in order to make the campus “perfectly diverse” (which, ahem, I don’t think is actually possible). I would say that instead of focusing on what makes us different, I can tell you about what brings us together: a sense of passion for what we do, working hard without anybody cracking the whip, ambition, relentless creativity, and focus (although sometimes we could work on the focus, amirite). If you come to Bennington and look around at the students, you will see how diverse we “look,” which is one part of a bigger picture. We’ve already answered some questions on this blog about being a person of color at Bennington — unfortunately I can’t answer those more fully because I’m white as a halloween ghost going through existential crisis (although now that I’m in LA maybe I’ll get my 1% tan on). So I would say if you’re worried about diversity, the best thing to do is visit Bennington and talk to people. There are some pretty diverse thinkers on this campus, I’ll tell you that much.

I used to wear a t-shirt like this all the time as a kid. Good educatin’ on my parents’ part.

— Parke ‘15

What can you guys tell me about the sculpting/architecture programs at bennington? Do they offer a lot of practical experience? Would you recommend them to students with little to no experience in those fields? What sort of FWTs do you get in those concentrations?

glennish — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 14:14:00 -0400

First, there are no formal programs at Bennington in any discipline, just a bunch of cool faculty members who want to teach students no matter what their experience level or expertise is.

That being said, sculpture and architecture work in a similar way as literature or math might, from day one you are working in the studio, diving in dumpsters for cardboard, or cutting up butter board or doing whatever you need to do to make your work. The other cool thing about those disciplines, like all disciplines at Bennington, is that students in the classes are coming from a wide variety of backgrounds. So, for example in one of my sculpture classes a music student (who also builds his own guitars) made several sculptures surrounding music. Another student who studies costume design was in a self declared “Princess phase” and decided to make a throne when we were asked to design a place to sit.

Field Work Terms vary greatly between students. I worked for a furniture builder building furniture. My friend who did the music sculptures worked for Jason Middlebrook, a sculptor. Another sculpture friend went to Uganda to teach art. Architecture wise students sometimes find jobs in architecture studios. A friend of mine wrote articles about old historic buildings around Philadelphia and another worked as a TA at a university in Ecuador. Basically whatever you can dream up you can find.

If you have any questions or would love to chat more I would love to talk, shoot me an email glennish@benningon.edu

-Glennis

when do we find out where we will be living?

rachelebj — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 13:15:00 -0400

Hey there,

All pertinent dates regarding incoming students can be found at this link http://www.bennington.edu/welcome.aspx under the Checklist: Tools & Timelines section. All incoming freshmen should be getting their housing and roommate assignments as well as their course pre-registration sometime in mid-July.

- Rachel ‘14

I was going through old photos and found this one I took last...

davidjames-black — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 09:36:00 -0400

I was going through old photos and found this one I took last fall on my way to breakfast.

Being a morning person at Bennington can be very rewarding.

- David ‘13

White Fur

glennish — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 14:56:16 -0400

White Fur:

A poem from literature faculty member Mark Wunderlich published in the New Republic.

Some beautiful footage of campus from recent grad Jessieh....

selinap2015 — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 12:57:44 -0400

Some beautiful footage of campus from recent grad Jessieh. Enjoy!

-Selina ‘15

This may sound a little bit weird, but I just wonder how can I wash and dry my underwear. Dont tell me that I have to put everything into the washer :(. Also, is there a specific place on campus that I can dry my own hand-washed clothes?

selinap2015 — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 11:15:00 -0400

I’d recommend hand washing them in your bathroom sink or bathtub. As far as drying goes probably the best spot is in your room or if you need more space and the weather’s nice a clothesline outside.

-Selina ‘15

Hi guys! I'm reading a novel and the protagonist, a writer, is a Bennington alum. Being a writer myself, I immediately Googled the school and fell head over heels with what I see on the website. Is there anyone here from the MFA in Writing programme who can share some experiences with me? Would be especially helpful from an international student's perspective, as I'm from Jamaica. Thanks!

selinap2015 — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 10:39:00 -0400

Unfortunately the MFA program isn’t handled through this office so none of us can speak to it. (As undergrads most of us aren’t even here when the program’s in session.) I’ve heard great things about it and you’re more than welcome to be in touch with the program coordinator, Dawn Dayton, at writing@bennington.edu.

Best of luck!

-Selina ‘15

Are there any kind of placement tests we need to take?

selinap2015 — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 10:26:00 -0400

If you’re interested in taking a foreign language that you’ve studied in the past there’s a short placement test. If you miss the online deadline you can also meet with one of the professors when you get to campus. Other than that, you’re good to go!

-Selina ‘15

Did any of you have moments of panic or doubt in your choice of college before your first year began? (Is that normal, or indicative of a bad choice of school?)

selinap2015 — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 10:11:00 -0400

I’m one of those people who doesn’t like to think about big decisions too much before they happen. I went to Bolivia this past FWT and instead of a reasonable amount of mental preparation I just jumped on a red-eye flight to Miami, spent a entire day wandering around the airport in a panic, finally arriving in Cochabamba exhausted, stressed but also excited. Despite all the nervousness I had an incredible seven weeks and would do it again in a second.

In my opinion, the most exciting and rewarding experiences we have are the ones we get most anxious about. Don’t worry! Coming to college is a pretty huge moment and it’s totally normal to feel apprehensive. I guarantee you’re not the only one. Try not to worry too much and enjoy your summer. You’ll be in the thick of college before you know it!

-Selina ‘15

P.S. This is what will be waiting for you!

Hi! I was wondering; what sort of kitchen-y things are we allowed to have in our room? toaster, fridge, microwave etc...

glennish — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 09:28:00 -0400

We checked the student handbook and below is what it says:

Permitted Appliances. Appliances permitted include computers,computer equipment, stereos,TVs,VCR’s, DVD players,clock radios, hair dryers (not exceeding 1,000 watts), small fans, refrigerators less than 3 cubic feet, and lamps with incandescent bulbs of 60 watts or less.

Prohibited Appliances. Appliances prohibited include air conditioners, any appliance with an exposed heating element, hot plates, toasters, toaster ovens, gas stoves or burners,camping stoves, halogen lamps, and any appliance, whether listed here or not, that exceeds 1,000 watts.

Also prohibited is any appliance that is not specifically approved by Underwriters Laboratory (UL), is in poor working condition, is not properly wired or lacks an appropriate cord, or is deemed inappropriate by the director of Campus Safety or Facilities Management; such appliances must be removed from College spaces.

When in doubt as to whether or not an appliance is allowed on campus, students should ask the director of Campus Safety or Director of Facilities Management for clarification.

Keep in mind that most of the house kitchens have what you need. Each one has at least a stove, microwave, sink, and fridge and many also have toasters, tea kettles, and coffee makers.

-Glennis