Unity college magazine building a beacon winter 2015

BUILDING A BEACON21st Century problem solving

Sustainability science brings distinction

Alumni provide leadership

WINTER 2015

2 | UNITY Summer 2009

We are out of time. Our collective action or inaction will determine the fate of civilization within the next decade. Climate change presently driven by historic emissions from burning fossil fuels will affect everything about the lives of the current generation of students in college. It will determine what they eat, where they work, how they get to work, where they can live, the kinds of careers available, and most of all, their quality of life. Failure to significantly curtail emissions will result in an estimated 4-6˚C global average temperature rise by 2100 and unthinkable consequences for civilization.

Because environmental change will be the dominant theme of the coming decades, I believe that this century will come to be known as The Environmental Century. This is a watershed moment for our species.

Despite the utter clarity and unassailable validity of this science, higher education has generally failed to provide students with the tools to address the environmental challenges of The Environmental Century. The vast majority of institutions in the U.S. continue to treat environmental studies and science as niche disciplines and regard sustainability as important only as it applies to operational efficiency. To be sure, institutions of higher learning should lead the way in energy efficiency and sustainable design, but this barely scratches the surface of this critically important area of learning and research. The purpose of higher education is not operational sustainability – it is teaching, learning, and research. It is in the classroom and in the field that sustainability needs to be universally developed. The U.S. National Academy of Science has identified the focus of this effort as Sustainability Science, and I believe that sustainability, like writing and basic communication, must be taught across the curriculum.

At Unity College we are passionately dedicated to the proposition that the status quo of higher education is unacceptable. Failure to integrate sustainability throughout higher learning is a breach of our social contract with our students. The ways that teaching, learning, and research are structured and delivered at most universities and colleges have not fundamentally changed in centuries. Such hierarchical delivery of knowledge from singular sources such as a professor does not move students to understanding and action. It does not empower them to seize the opportunities made available by universal access to information. Surely in the Information Age, we can and must find a better way.

The entire curriculum at Unity College is framed by Sustainability Science and emphasizes transdisciplinary integration of information from the social, natural, and physical sciences as necessary for crafting effective solutions. We build our effectiveness on a solid foundation of the humanities and liberal arts. This makes us unique in our approach to crafting solutions. A short walk around campus will convince you that the College is entering a new era of infrastructure development in which we will increasingly be able to offer excellence in instruction and facilities to help students meet these challenges.

Over the course of my career as an environmental scientist, I have sometimes found myself feeling hopeless in the face of the litany of environmental woes. My own antidote to hopelessness is action. At Unity College, we take action…..and we have hope.

Stephen Mulkey President, Unity College

LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT:

We are out of time. Our collective action or inaction will determine the fate of civilzation within the next decade

To see President Mulkey’s video go to www. unity.edu/the-environmental-century >>

BUILDING A BEACONUNITY COLLEGE IS BLAZING A PATH TO A SUSTAINABLE WORLD.

Stories about extraordinary people engaged in transformative endeavors Pages 3-30.

IN OUR ELEMENT31 CAMPUS NEWS

34 NEW FACES

37 FACULTY AND STAFF HIGHLIGHTS

38 STUDENTS IN ACTION

39 CLASS NOTES

At the beginning of the fall semester, Unity College installed kiosks across campus that are part of a comprehensive sustainability tour.

America’s Environmental College

WINTER 2015

2 | UNITY MAGAZINE WINTER 2015

FROM THE EDITOR

Whether attending a sporting event or a college function such as community weekend, faculty and staff learn through their interactions with alumni just how special it is to be a part of this institution. Every aspect of this college is rooted in its vibrant environmental mission. It is a mission that gives life to dreams and connects all alumni to the past, present, and future of this place that is fondly called America’s Environmental College. Soon this college will reach a milestone: its 50th anniversary. Events to formally ac-knowledge the dreams of our founders and all the college has become will take place during the 2014/15 year. A large celebration will be held on July 25, 2015 on the Unity Campus. During our celebration year I will be embarking upon listening tours with some of my col-leagues, meeting with alumni to learn firsthand their hopes for Unity College. Regardless of our meeting place, one fact will always remain true: that alumni who gather together share a lifelong bond. This college is as much about a state of mind as it is about one geographic location. The value of a Unity College education does not diminish over time. The skills gained, careers developed, leadership roles assumed, and lifelong friendships formed connect alumni to the College and each other. Alumni have a critically important role to play in shaping Unity’s future. They are in a position to encourage their neighbors with college bound sons and daughters to consider us. Others create internships for Unity students, or offer them jobs when they graduate. Many extend their support in a variety of ways, including donating through the annual fund, a major gift, or adding Unity College to their will. Every gift makes a difference in the lives of our students. What I have learned is the undeniable fact that each alum is proud to be a member of this community. If you are an alum who has not visited campus for some time, please know that it is your campus. Consider it your home away from home and know that my door is always open to you. As someone who has seen the progress this College has made in recent years, I take special delight in the reactions of alumni who are back for a visit after an absence. In August, we completed construction of a 70 bed residence hall for upperclassmen that was built to LEED Silver standards. We expanded Wyman Commons and at a time when colleges and universities are being forced to cut, Unity College can boast the largest student body in its history: 589. Make no mistake, upgrades and an increase in our student body is and will always be in service to our environmental mission. We are building a beacon of excellence for others to follow. Our first in the nation adoption of sustainability science – the leading-edge of 21st century transdisciplinary (collaborative) environmental problem solving – has placed us in a position to lead, and it is a responsibility that we take seriously. All that we do, and what you make possible with all of the ways that you support your alma mater, is focused on training the next generation of wise environmental problem-solvers and stewards. When they stride across the stage at commencement, they will have been trained for their fifth job as well as their first. They will be adaptable and ready to take on the significant chal-lenges of the 21st century, including the mitigation of global climate change. The alumni community of this college leads the way. It is a nation forged through a shared concern for this planet and its plight. Wherever you are, you have done your part to ensure a sustainable planet in perpetuity. Your continued efforts, friendship and support for the Col-lege provides the spark to the beacon we are building here on Quaker Hill.

Unity MagazineVolume 29, No. 2

Managing EditorSheryl Spann

Project ManagersKate Gilbert, Mark Tardif

Student EditorsMichael Rossi ’17

DesignerSkaar Design/Anneli Skaar

Class NotesErica Hutchinson, Dot Quimby

Contributing PhotographersLarry Ayotte, NESComBrenda BonnevilleHoward DavisJonathan Feldman and FamilyKate Gilbert George MatulaJohn McKeith PhotographyCarolyn NietupskiEmma PerryLily PielMakalya SyasMark TardifIsaac Woods

Board of TrusteesBruce Nickerson, Chair; John Newlin, Vice-Chair; Robert Kelley, Treasurer; P. Andrew Hamilton, Secretary; Stephen Mulkey, President; Michael Demko; Martha Dolben; Hallie Flint Gilman; Joseph Galli, William Hafford ’08, faculty representative; Sarah Jeffords; John Karyczak ’16, student representative; Coral-Jeanne O’Connor; Linda Povey; Sarah Ruef-Lindquist; Arlene Schaefer; Doug Sensenig; Gloria Sosa ’80; Travis Wagner ’83; Steven Whipple

We want to hear from you.Letters to the editor, story ideas, or address changes may be sent to:

Email: [email protected]

Mail: Letters, Unity Magazine 90 Quaker Hill Road Unity, Maine 04988

Web: www.unity.edu

We reserve the right to edit submissions for length, clarity, and style. Submissions should be no longer than 250 words.

Unity Magazine is printed by Franklin Printing, Farmington, Maine, an FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified printer and printed on Rolland Enviro 100, a 100% post-consumer paper manufactured using biomass energy.

> Cover Photo: Kari Lemelin ’14 prepares to sedate a bear recently trapped during the Unity College Bear Study, a “first of its kind” study in the US that directly involves undergraduates, is a perfect example of how sustainability science enriches the college experiences of students across the curriculum.

A UNITY STATE OF MINDBy Dr. Melik Peter KhouryExecutive Vice President and Liaison to the Board of Trustees

BUILDING A BEACON

UNITY MAGAZINE WINTER 2015 | 3

By Julie Cunningham, Director of

College Development & Alumni Affairs Strategic Plans are not new. Most organizations have them

sitting in a folder somewhere amidst the numerous items on their desk, or in their filing cabinet.

Naming a Strategic Plan with an intentional focus on the future makes it something more.

Building a Beacon is the name of the Unity College five year Strategic Plan. Aligning with the vision and mission, Building a Beacon sets the tone for where the college is head-ed and demands an aggressive, innovative approach on how it will get there.

Dr. Stephen Mulkey, Unity College President, envisions a Beacon as a guiding light that will draw people to their destination – Unity College. With the largest freshman class enrolled in history, it appears many young people feel the same way.

Dr. Melik Peter Khoury, Executive Vice President and Liaison to the Board of Trustees has been tasked with imple-menting this bold plan that will ensure America’s Environ-mental College continues to forge new ground in the world of higher education.

Unity College is entering its 50th year. Many things have changed over the past five decades, since the days of the “coop.” There have been many “firsts” for Unity during its history:

• First institution of higher education in Maine to receive a rating of “Gold” by the Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) administered by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) based in Denver• First institution of higher education to divest from invest-ments in fossil fuels, kicking off a growing global movement.• First college to adopt sustainability science as a framework for teaching and learning• TerraHaus was the first college residence hall in the nation built to the Passive House standard, one of the strictest build-ing energy performance standards in the world• Unity House, the president’s residence, was the first LEED Platinum, net-zero presidential residence in the nation• First college in the country to use GreenWeaver commence-ment regalia made from 100% post-consumer plastic bottles• First college in Maine with a solar power purchase agree-ment (PPA) with ReVision Energy

Building a Beacon

THE UNITY COLLEGE STRATEGIC PLAN

The Plan Goal 1: Offer the nation’s best sustainability and science-oriented liberal arts academic program

Goal 2 : Create and support a world-class student body

Goal 3 : Develop systemic policy-driven human, technological, physical, and financial infrastructures that allow our students, faculty, and staff to excel

Goal 4: Align the College’s curriculum, activ-ities, and operations with the goal of sustainability

Goal 5: Create a distinctive and renowned national brand

Goal 6: Ensure sustainable financial strength

BUILDING A BEACON


Being nationally recognized as first in the nation on several levels would, for many institutions signal a time to relax. Not at your alma mater!

This past summer:

• A new Residence Hall was constructed to LEED Silver Stan-dards and will house over 70 students • The Wyman dining hall was renovated and expanded adding 100 seats and a Mongolian Grill • The Student Activities Building underwent extensive renova-tions including lighting, furniture and bathrooms • Koons Hall Research Laboratory added geology, chemistry and clean laboratories • Every classroom on campus was renovated • New faculty have been added to maintain our enviable stu-dent to faculty ratio • The sustainability science framework has been both imple-mented and embraced ensuring our students will be trained and positioned to be the next generation of environmental leaders

Building a Beacon provides a roadmap for Unity College. As you read the goals, you will see that plans include the build-ing of a Sustainability Science Conference Center. This facil-ity will be state of the art, allowing faculty and students the opportunity to engage in more research, host conferences, and continue pushing the envelope in sustainability science. You will read about the commitment to developing graduate and undergraduate online programs. As with everything Unity, these courses will not be ordinary online courses. They will have an increased level of engagement emulating those courses taught on campus and provide those learners with the same Unity experience felt by all students.

The goals outlined in the strategic plan are bold, but being a beacon requires light that is bright enough to be seen from a distance and recognized as a pathway. Being America’s En-vironmental College is more than just educating students and

awarding them a degree; it is providing them with the tools and leadership capabilities they will need to battle the environmen-tal and ecological challenges that are facing us in the future.

While I am new to the Unity College community, I am familiar with higher education. In my time in this field, I have never heard a President tell students that he feels the college has an ethical responsibility to prepare them for the future. I have also never heard a President tell incoming freshmen that he encourages them to be activists – something that by its very nature requires excellent critical thinking skills.

Unity College is embarking on its 50th Anniversary and you are a valuable part of what has allowed the college to achieve this milestone in a manner that allows you to have pride in this accomplishment. Building a Beacon will lay the foundation for the next 50 years, but we cannot hope to achieve these high standards without you.

There are many new faces on my team in the Development/Alumni Relations office. Erica Hutchinson, Kurt Anderson, and John Fontaine have all been with Unity College under a year. What they lack in tenure at Unity, they more than make up for in enthusiasm to meet all of you. I hope you will give them a warm welcome.

We will be traveling around the country during this year - bringing some of Unity to your neighborhoods. Please try to join us at one of the many stops to catch up on what is new and tell us your unique story about your time at the college. Part-nerships are what is needed to ensure that we are successful in Building a Beacon.

There are many ways you can partner with us. Helping us get the word out to other alumni about what is new at the col-lege, invite your friends to come to an event, help us continue to find those students who want to be part of the Unity family, think about becoming a mentor for students, help with career fairs, and of course support the vision and mission of the college in the manner and at the level appropriate for you. We all play a role in the creation and future success of Unity College.

BUILDING A BEACON


By Zach FalconAs any visitor to Unity’s campus soon learns, the Col-

lege’s commitment to sustainability runs deep. From Ter-raHaus, to the library solar panels, to a newly-designed net-zero-carbon residence hall, campus operations are a model of sustainability.

According to President Dr. Stephen Mulkey, these cam-pus initiatives are the key to demonstrating Unity is “walk-ing the talk.” “We have ample opportunity to show that sustainability works for Unity College, and we do through these initiatives,” he says.

Dr. Mulkey is optimistic that Unity will continue to increase sustainability initiatives on campus. While these initiatives are necessary, he explains that they must be in conjunction with proper training of Unity students. “We have to train our students to go into the world with the background to show that businesses and agencies can save money and improve the economic bottom line by using sus-tainability to their competitive advantage.”

Understanding the bottom line is a specialty of Janis Bal-da, associate professor of sustainable enterprise. Balda ex-plains that there are actually three bottom lines: people, planet, and profits.

“What’s becoming clear is that businesses that are serious about sustainability’s triple bottom line are turning out to be more successful than those who aren’t.” Accordingly, many leading businesses are embracing the sustainability approach. Balda cites an MIT study showing that sustain-ability, at least in the U.S., now plays a permanent part in seventy percent of corporate agendas.

In both the private and nonprofit sectors, the current fo-cus has moved beyond the simple slogans of the past, such as “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.” Instead, sustainable businesses favor an approach that provides success both “below and above the line” in what Balda describes as the sustainability equation. In her formulation, the “denominator” reflects waste reduction, while the “numerator” captures growth in products or services that benefit the world. “This is true in hundreds of thousands of small and medium sized businesses as well as in Fortune 500 companies,” she says.

CAMPUS

Positioning for the Sustainable Economy

Students experience first-hand sustainable agriculture practices and entrepreneurship at a local farm.

BUILDING A BEACON


Balda contends the business world’s embrace of sustainability creates excit-ing possibilities. “Unity College has the opportunity to be at the forefront of this momentum, one based on a much big-ger movement for generating sustainable prosperity,” she says. “Unity is position-ing itself to provide the type of educa-tion that ensures students who want to change the world have the right array of knowledge, skills, and attitudes to make a significant difference in a wide variety of organizations and enterprises.”

She sees a particular niche for Unity’s graduates in positions related to corpo-rate social responsibility, and as environ-mental managers who can lead others to achieve complex environmental and sus-tainability goals.

To that end, Balda is working to inte-grate leadership and management train-ing across Unity’s sustainability science curriculum. “This is only a beginning step in a much bigger process of trans-

disciplinary education at Unity College, and only one of several other arenas that will be developed to help students ap-ply theoretical knowledge in ways that provide them greater employment and career opportunities,” noted Balda.

One place where the application of theoretical knowledge to practical prob-lems now occurs is Unity’s new McKay Agriculture Research Station.

Gifted to the college in December of 2013, the facility is a multi-faceted greenhouse operation where students in the sustainable agriculture program can hone their entrepreneurial skills in a re-al-world setting. Dr. Mulkey explains that the facility will provide Unity stu-dents not only with skills in agriculture, but also in business management.

“We want to have our students ac-tively involved in the business side of running a greenhouse, small farm, and/or community supported agriculture, so that they can get a job in the real world,”

Mulkey says. “They have to harvest crops and sell to the public while they consider energy input costs. This ap-proach ensures that they are credible en-vironmentalists and have a competitive edge in the job market.”

The promise of the Half Moon Gar-dens and McKay Research Facility as a center for innovative research is already being realized by Unity students and fac-ulty. The Spring 2014 Student Confer-ence featured a presentation titled “Half Moon Greenhouse Winter Greens,” which detailed a group project to grow and market winter crops while analyz-ing and controlling energy costs. The participating students; Lauren Cook, Quinn Boyle, Samantha Burgess, and Sarah Bicknell, earned the conference Sustainability Award for their efforts.

According to Balda, Unity’s focus on both innovation and results ideally po-sitions students for the burgeoning sus-tainable economy.

With one-on-one attention, hands-on learning, and classroom experiences, Unity College students acquire a variety of skills that prepare them to become sustainability science leaders and 21st century problem solvers.

BUILDING A BEACON


During the 2013-14 academic year Unity College entered into a relationship that has brought research and education projects to Allen Island, considered the Gulf of Maine family retreat of famed painter Andrew Wyeth.

During the spring and summer of 2014, the 450 acre private island located four miles off the coast of Port Clyde, Maine, served as a focus for three academic projects funded by the Up East Foundation. The projects were selected from a slate of proposals submitted by several academic centers of study at Unity College.

Dr. Michael Evans, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, says that additional proposals were presented

to the foundation during the summer and are under review. He is optimistic that the fledgling relationship will continue and blossom.

“Allen Island presents us with many opportunities,” Evans said. “One is it opens up the coast for us. What we have been doing is taking students to state parks to give them access to marine biological habitat. But with Allen Island, obviously we have something much more direct and exclusive. This is a partnership that we are developing that delivers incredible access to our students and faculty. Obviously, being an island it has a lot of shoreline and it allows us to do many projects that we can’t do at a state park.”

Wyeth Family Foundation Partners with Unity College for Research, Education Projects on Allen Island

BUILDING A BEACON


The three projects are framed by Unity College’s first-in-the-nation sustainability science focus for teaching and learning, a collaborative approach that works across academic disciplines to address the most complex, pressing environmental problems of the 21st century, including the mitigation of global climate change.

One of the three projects, a biodiversity baseline survey conducted by four Unity College scientists from the Center for Biodiversity, has the potential to develop valuable data over time on the effects of global climate change on the Maine coast. Such data may eventually save the lobster industry -- and other Maine coastal fisheries -- by helping to develop effective strategies to mitigate the ravages of global climate change.

Dr. Amy Arnett, Professor of Ecology and Director of the Center for Biodiversity, is studying beetles and ants on the island. Amanda Baker, Instructor of Biology, is studying the pollination activities of bees. David Potter, a Professor of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, is studying plankton, butterflies and birds. Dr. Emma Perry, Associate Professor of Marine Biology, is studying tardigrades, which are tiny organisms that can thrive in some of the most hostile conditions on earth, from the deepest Maine lakes to the vacuum of outer space.

Their work is comprehensive and ongoing.“We’re putting it all together,” said Arnett of the projects.

“There is no information on Allen Island in (scientific) literature or even with the citizen science databases.” She says that the information gathered during this project funded by the Up East Foundation will contribute to broader research projects in the future.

The second project funded by the foundation will bring two other scientists from the Center for Biodiversity to the Island. Dr. Aimee Phillippi, Associate Professor of Biology and Dr.

Pamela MacRae, Assistant Professor of Sustainable Fisheries Management, are studying rockweed habitat for juvenile lobsters and fish.

The third project is intended to spark transdiciplinary (collaborative) environmental problem solving across the disciplines.

This past summer, faculty members who committed to teaching in the general education program at Unity College, which includes keystone classes, distribution requirements, community-based learning, and environmental studies, traveled to the island to participate in a transdisciplinary problem solving education workshop. The keystone classes are Unity Experience, an entry level orientation course for new Unity College students, Environmental Issues and Insights, and Environmental Scenarios and Solutions.

“Because of the nature of these classes, the work done there affects the experience of every student at Unity College,” said Dr. Sarah Cunningham, Assistant Professor and Director of the Center for Experiential and Environmental Education.

Participants shared ideas about ways to encourage Unity College students to think deeply about sustainability, and define their roles as environmental citizens, says Cunningham.

They used part of their time to gather information for future reference.

“Faculty explored the island to identify areas where student and faculty research projects may be appropriate in the future,” explained Dr. Stephanie Wade, Assistant Professor of Writing and Director of Writing.

The island is fast becoming an anchor in the Gulf of Maine for a host of projects that will further enhance the range of scholarship, research, and discovery available to Unity College students.

Students assist Dr. Emma Perry in finding and identifying tardigrades on Allen Island.

BUILDING A BEACON


A transformative gift received by Unity College is enhancing teaching, research, entrepreneurship, experiential learning and programs in sustainable agriculture.

During the fall of 2013, Isabel McKay and Rick Thompson of Brooks gifted Unity College with Half Moon Gardens of Thorndike, a multifaceted greenhouse operation. The property comes with five years of financial support.

Unity College is known as America’s Environmental College in part for its leading-edge approach to experiential learning that features a first-in-the-nation focus on sustainability science.

Izzy McKay is enthusiastic about the real world skills that students will gain as a result of the donation. “Unity College students will come away with the ability to grow winter food and learn the ins and outs of running a large greenhouse operation,” McKay said. “This is valuable both from horticultural and business/economic viewpoints.”

The facility was open and available for classes and projects at the outset of the 2014 semester in August.

The donation has shone a light across the horizon of Unity’s future, providing vistas that extend the College’s national and international research in service to ensuring the sustainability of Earth in perpetuity.

“The entire Unity College community has been energized by this generous gift by Isabel McKay and Rick Thompson,” noted Stephen Mulkey, President of Unity College. “The possibilities to enrich every aspect of our community are varied. Unity College seeks to become a world-class institution and

A Transformative Gift Presents New Opportunities for Teaching, Learning, and Entrepreneurship

Quinn Boyle ’14 prepares soil for greens that will be used in the College’s dining hall salad bar.

BUILDING A BEACON


this gift will help us achieve our aspirations in service to an exemplary environmental mission.”

Dr. Melik Peter Khoury, Executive Vice President and Liason to the Board, sees the gift as an act of generosity that will live in perpetuity.

“Who knows what kind of invention that transforms agriculture in the developing world will be discovered, or which student will extend a research project all the way from idea to the marketplace? How many jobs will be created as a result of this gift?” Khoury said. “Isabel McKay and Rick Thompson have expressed their strong environmental values through this gift. It will be honored each day by students, faculty, staff and others who will benefit from the lessons, research, and innovation made possible by Half Moon Gardens and the McKay Agricultural Research Station.”

Dr. Michael Evans, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, praised the location and the positive impact that the entire endeavor is already having on the College. “Half Moon Gardens and the McKay Agricultural Research Station is just up the road and in a beautiful location,” Evans said. “One of the really exciting things about the research station is that it gives our students the opportunity to understand and appreciate the commercial side of agriculture.”

Since receiving the gift, officials at Unity College have been transforming the facility to support research, entrepreneurship, community outreach and scholarship, and hired its first director. Mary Saunders Bulan, Ph.D., has been named Director of the Half Moon Gardens and the McKay Agricultural Research Station. She will also serve as an Assistant Professor of Sustainable Agricultural Enterprise at Unity College.

A business plan for use and management of the complex has been created. The plan calls for the facility to serve the College in a number of ways.

Half Moon Gardens will be maintained as a commercial operation that provides products for the retail and wholesale markets, thereby creating opportunities for students to learn the business, financial, and customer-service skills needed to operate their own businesses. The McKay Agricultural Research Station is part of the Half Moon Gardens complex. The research station will contribute to research, outreach, and teaching.

Officials at the College feel the complex will provide an economic spark for the local economy that is centered in the Unity region with partners already interested in collaborating at the Research Station including the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA), Maine Farmland Trust, Johnny’s Selected Seeds, FedCo, and the Maine Sustainable Agriculture Society.

In addition to serving as a source of local foods for the College and regional customers and providing produce or other products for retail sale, it will also function as a resource for classes in sustainable agriculture business management in partnership with Thomas College.

Unity College will also conduct outreach and research in the newly named McKay Agricultural Research Station. “Research will include agricultural and alternative energy solutions for rural communities,” Koury said.

An essential goal for the Half Moon Gardens business plan is fiscal sustainability as a college-wide resource. The gift by Isabel McKay and Rick Thompson provides a five year period of operational subsidy during which time the College will implement an entrepreneurial, sustainable business model.

BUILDING A BEACON


Sarah “Sass” Linnekin is, among other things, a mom, filmmaker, activist, writer, and award winner. She is also a Unity College graduate.

A non-traditional student majoring in Environmental Writing and Media Studies, Linnekin ’14 was able to maintain an impressive balance between school and home. For Linnekin, being a student was so much more than simply attending class, studying and taking exams. Already a life-long activist, at Unity College Linnekin became connected with organizations including 350.org and 350Maine. She quickly began to dedicate herself to actively addressing environmental challenges.

“It has been such an incredible ride at Unity. I went from someone passionately concerned about the state of the world to someone with an ability to apply that passion in ways that were meaningful enough to play a role in making a real change,” said Linnekin.

In the fall of 2013, Linnekin was awarded the Unity College Nicholas Holt Challenge Scholarship, a fund that supports challenging, experiential learning projects that are self-initiated and curriculum-based. Through the Center for Ecological Living and Learning in Iceland, Linnekin spent 12 weeks in Solheimar, a tiny, first of its kind, almost completely self-sustaining eco-village. The scholarship helped Linnekin

document through film her study abroad experience.“When I left, I basically slung my video camera over my

shoulder, packed my motivation, and made my way to another corner of the Earth to look for the missing link to solving the climate change crisis,” said Linnekin.

“Unity College helped shape her passions into applicable talents that she uses to forge a better world.”

In Iceland, she studied the science of climate change and how to effectively implement sustainable community building practices on “her own side of the pond”. Linnekin’s fellow students were amazed to learn that an environmental theme is woven through all courses at Unity College, and because of her experiential hands-on learning and literacy of sustainability science, Linnekin found that she was extremely well versed in the subject matter. She was able to contribute to class discussions

Sass Linnekin ’14 Pursues Documentary Work in Iceland

ALUMNA PROFILE SARAH “SASS” LINNEKIN ’14

BUILDING A BEACON


in ways that complimented the material while boosting her confidence in strides.

During her time at Unity, Linnekin’s motivation, ambition and determination did not go unnoticed. Dean for Academic Services John Zavodny feels that Linnekin has an intellectual fearlessness that is truly rare. He has seen her take on challenges that have been intimidating and perhaps even out of her comfort zone, but notes that she was always ready to face any fear head on and ultimately adapt, flourish and eventually even “own” whatever the obstacle was.

“Sass’ trip to Iceland was a personal, family, financial, academic, and value challenge that clearly made her nervous. Maybe even fearful,” said Zavodny. “But she used that fear as a way to energize her learning and increase her professional commitment to environmental issues like climate change. Sass told me how flying itself was a new experience for her and she had to force herself to keep her eyes open, look out the window

as she landed, and take in everything the journey had to offer. I think that story is a good metaphor for Sass—keeping her eyes open, facing realities, and meeting challenges. Unflinchingly.”

Linnekin says coming to Unity College was the best decision she has ever made for herself on a professional and educational level, and that the College helped her shape her passions into applicable talents that she uses daily to try and forge a better world.

“Unity gave me the opportunity to go to Iceland, and my intent in going there was to try and learn about how to adapt to the looming climate crisis, and more importantly, how my family and I can best minimize our own contribution to it,” said Linnekin. “I want the world inherited by my children’s children to be one that’s livable, and I am hoping what I have experienced will help me set an example for that generation to learn new ways of thinking and living mindfully.”

Thanks to a scholarship, Sass Linnekin ’14 spent 12 weeks in Iceland experiencing and documenting life in an eco-village.

BUILDING A BEACON


By Mark TardifThe “green” jobs of the future will be entrepreneurial

and require business skills. This idea forms a new partnership between Unity College and business oriented Thomas College, located just a half-hour away in Waterville. The partnership began during the fall semester of 2014. A central feature of the three-year partnership will be online courses available to students at each college.

The development of the partnership dates to an ongoing dialogue between President Stephen Mulkey and Thomas College President Laurie Lachance, who visited Unity’s campus during the fall semester of 2013.

Dr. Michael Evans, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, worked out the details with Dr. Thomas Edwards, Provost at Thomas.

During the fall 2014 semester, Unity College students will have the opportunity to take the Management Principles course taught by a Thomas professor online. Meanwhile, a Unity professor will teach an online section of Environmental Issues and Insights to Thomas students. The partnership fills a need by each college. Unity College students will develop business and management skills, while Thomas students will learn about the environment and sustainability.

As the initial three-year term of the project goes forward, a new course will be added by each college, including over the summer, Evans says.

“By the end (of the initial three years) each institution will have nine courses that they are teaching online,” Evans said.

The partnership will make the expansion of other online offerings at Unity College easier, Evans says. It also strengthens each institution by expanding the range of skills that students develop.

“We are recognizing the strength that Thomas College has along with our own stengths, and taking advantage of the fact that those strengths mesh together very nicely,” Evans explained. Unity Students will be taking courses in management, leadership, accounting and economics, while their counterparts at Thomas will benefit from the sustainability and environmental perspectives that Unity faculty will provide.

Evans considers business skills to be essential for Unity graduates.

“One of the promises that we make to students is that we will help them prepare for their sixth career, as well as their first,” Evans said. “We recognize that they will very likely change careers as they go through their lives, and also work their way up through various career paths. In order for them to rise above entry level positions, it is imperative that they understand management, economics, and accounting. So by giving our students opportunities to gain those skills and perspectives through the course work that Thomas offers, we can ensure that we prepare our students for impressive career trajectories, without having to invent something that Thomas already does quite well.”

Partnership with Thomas College Will Broaden Student Skills, Create Dynamic Opportunities

BUILDING A BEACON


By Mark Tardif “We do not want to be the best kept secret anymore.”

That is a message shared widely by Joe Saltalamachia ’95, Director of Admissions, about the College that shaped his educational experience and serves as his career focus. Over his 22 years in Maine, Saltalamachia, a New York native, has embraced all that the state has to offer and sees Unity’s location as a fundamental draw that has not been a high profile aspect of recruitment efforts to date.

New assets recently obtained by the College such as Unity’s ongoing affiliation with Allen Island, the Wyeth family retreat in the Gulf of Maine, and the gift of Half-Moon Gardens and The McKay Agricultural Research Station in nearby Thorndike, have not only enlivened the curriculum but delivered strong narratives for Admissions professionals to share with prospective students.

Students from across the nation are learning about how Unity College offers a world-class sustainability science education made possible by award-winning faculty. They are supported by an environmental mission that is global in scope, in an idyllic geographic location with campus resources and learning opportunities that serve as a beacon for those who seek excellence.

Though Unity College has always attracted students from the Northeast, given its broader national recruitment objectives, conveying the array of strengths possessed by the College has changed in recent years.

In the past, it was up to new students to discover Unity’s place in Maine, and the potential for them to pursue research was not prominently shown. Photos of tourist destinations – ski areas, superior climbing and kayaking spots, proximity to larger cities like Portland, museums, hunting and fishing – were largely absent from recruitment materials.

“Students from Maine know where we are and what is available (to support academics and personal enrichment),” Saltalamachia said. “Students from away may not know that the ocean is 18 miles away. If you are from Ohio and you’re looking at Marine Biology, you see us on the map and you might not realize that the ocean is so close.”

Admissions professionals also use assets like Unity’s ongoing relationship with the Up East Foundation, the Wyeth family foundation that oversees Allen Island, to describe the type of

Best Kept Secret No More, Unity College Broadening National Profile for Long-Term Prosperity

(Above) Students represent Unity and answer questions during the Fall Open House, where registration numbers have been record-breaking for the last two years. (Below) Students and professors often take lessons outside the classroom, an essential component to Unity’s hands-on curriculum.”

BUILDING A BEACON


“hands-on” learning opportunities that are available to enhance learning.

Connecting the dots for prospective students, who may not even have visited the Northeast in their lifetimes, is now a daily objective for Saltalamachia and the Admissions team.

Gone are the days when students from middle America accessed the College web site only to wonder whether there is “anything to do” in Unity, Maine. Admissions counselors now include Maine’s coast, mountains, cultural offering, rivers and other experiences that are available as part of the recruitment outreach.

As Unity College establishes a national profile as a beacon for leading-edge, 21st century transdisciplinary environmental education, it is shining that beacon broadly to create and support a world-class student body. This is achieved through its first-in-the-nation focus on sustainability science as a framework for teaching and learning.

A decade or more ago members of the College community shied away from framing its location in broad terms, some even

fondly referring to the College as being located “in the middle of nowhere.” Now, Admissions counselors correctly refer to Unity College as being “in the middle of everything.”

The switch is not merely a nod to recruitment marketing; it is an accurate portrayal of an enterprise that is training graduates to address the most pressing environmental problems of the 21st century, including the mitigation of what President Stephen Mulkey calls the “game changer”: Global Climate Change.

“The pieces for Unity College to market itself nationally have always been there,” noted Saltalamachia. “Given the strengths of our programs, assets to support learning and provide for an outstanding social experience, and experiential learning approach, Unity’s message has resonance everywhere we go.”

The increasing geographic diversity of Unity’s student body, along with a historically large number of applications received, including both transfer and first-year students, serve as testament to the truth of his claim.

“The key questions that prospective students ask are: What is my role in addressing environmental concerns? Can I become part of the solution? At Unity College, they can make a difference.”

BUILDING A BEACON


By Debora Noone Environmental issues are global. Unity College is poised to educate students who will be leaders in a changing world.

“Unity is at the center of teaching students how to address environmental concerns and go out into the world to make a difference,” says Eva McVicar, assistant director of admissions and international counselor. “By bringing international students to Unity, we propagate the symbiotic environmental education match across borders.”

McVicar was hired in November 2013 to do just that—recruit students from around the world to learn about environmental and sustainable sciences and carry their new-found knowledge and experience back to their own countries. All the while, sharing their own experiences about how other countries address environmental issues.

Recruiting international students can be complex.A different approach is needed to bring students of diverse

backgrounds, culture, and language to mid-Maine. Many international students are interested in coastal big cities—those areas of the United States they’ve heard most about.

But at a recent conference in Canada, McVicar noticed something interesting. “There is organic interest in environmental media, adventure therapy, sustainable agriculture, marine biology, and environmental laws and policy, all offered at Unity.” This targeted interest shows how Unity courses cross culture and resonate in countries with diverse environmental needs. “These programs translate into jobs and opportunities for international students,” said McVicar.

Outreach occurs through a variety of programs specializing in reaching out to international students. The Kaplan Pathways Program partners with companies that appeal to English learners, helping to recruit students for summer programs where students can improve their English before attending an English-speaking college. McVicar also leverages an already established partnership with Unity that finds internship opportunities through the Washington Center. In turn, Unity is able to attract foreign students from this pool.

McVicar reached out to Global UGRAD, a program of student leaders selected from war-torn and conflict-ridden countries, who study in the U.S. then go back to make positive change in their countries. Other opportunities come through on-line application platforms such as Hot Covers Abroad. Based in the United Kingdom, this company caters to Spanish,

Portuguese, and Vietnamese speaking students.McVicar grew up in Czechoslovakia. She speaks Slavic, and

learned Russian and German from her grandparents. Trained as a German teacher, she worked for German and Czech magazines, and learned English after she married and moved to Maine. She started a faculty-led international exchange program at her children’s school—a project that fueled her passion for connecting international students.

Her expertise and passion will translate into building Unity’s first formal international recruitment program. Her vision is to turn the Unity program into an organic part of college life, eventually expanding the program to include exchanges between Unity and international organizations.

“When our students come back after an international adventure, they bring with them a whole new view of the world that they share with other students,” said McVicar. “Bringing diversity to Unity enhances all that we do.”

Environmental Education Across Borders: a Symbiotic Match

Eva McVicar visits Prague.

BUILDING A BEACON


If Unity College does not become one of the preeminent environmental colleges in the United States within a decade, it won’t be for lack of vision.

The vision for Unity’s development as outlined by the strategic plan is to “build a beacon” for the advancement of leading-edge educational programs carried out through sustainability science to position Unity College at the leading-edge of 21st century transdisciplinary (collaborative) environmental problem solving.

In unison, the call to action by President Stephen Mulkey, trustees, senior administrators, faculty, and staff is to rally around Unity’s strategic plan. The plan is bold, decisive, and well underway. It is a plan that leaves no room for the mediocre.

“Becoming a world-class institution of higher learning that advances solutions for the most pressing environmental problems of this century requires a campus infrastructure to make those aspirations possible,” Mulkey stated. Given the advances on the ground in recent years – from new construction to upgrades touching every corner of campus and beyond – there is no question that the current master plan is more a blueprint than aspirational rainbow. In short, it a functional call to action, tool for organizational stability, and template for evaluation.

There are two senior leaders charged with keeping the breakneck pace of day-to-day campus improvements in service to Mulkey’s vision moving forward.

A Campus Without LimitsDr. Michael Evans, Provost and Vice President for Academic

Affairs, and Dr. Melik Peter Khoury, Executive Vice President and Liaison to the Board of Trustees, work collaboratively to marshal resources (and in the case of Khoury, fundraise to increase capacity that supports growth) to advance the strategic plan. They are also empowering, accelerating, and evaluating Unity’s organizational culture. As a result, there is broad support on campus for both change and growth.

“We need a world-class infrastructure to support world-class

aspirations,” Khoury said. Within five years, he envisions a campus that has state of the art living, conference, classroom, and laboratory facilities, all built or renovated to reflect Unity College’s strong environmental values, he says.

Such a campus will attract and support the endeavors of superior faculty, staff, and students. Sustainability will be superior and the efficiencies will extend to workplace performance, bolstered by the best information technology infrastructure available. “We will be building these three components over the next five years,” Khoury said.

Both Evans and Khoury praised the strength and clarity of Unity’s mission and vision within the strategic plan that guides their efforts.

Khoury characterizes the strategic plan as requiring significant infrastructure upgrades.

“The strategic plan is bold and visionary in equal measures,” Khoury said. “If we are building a beacon for sustainability science at Unity College, serving as a hub for the country if not the world, then we need to have the physical, technological, and human infrastructure to support those aspirations.”

When Evans traveled to campus from Indiana to interview for the job he now holds, he was impressed by a strong sense of purpose that permeates the culture.

“I arrived in July of 2013 and the rapid pace of change on campus is one of the things that attracted me to this College,” Evans said. “We are working and thinking hard, trying to be innovative, and implementing the President’s vision, which is innovative and bold.”

“Our mission is so fundamentally important to the future of this planet and our species on it,” Evans said. “President Mulkey is trying to ensure that we can extend the impact of that mission far beyond our own campus and our own students. We do that in a lot of ways, with research that has been published and so on, but he is also trying to make the College itself serve as an example that other institutions can try to follow so as to get this kind of thinking out beyond just our own reach.”

Strides Made to Create Infrastructure That Supports World-Class Aspirations

Eva McVicar visits Prague.

BUILDING A BEACON


Rallying Behind a Shared VisionThe changes are being made both to the campus and

organizational structure, including academic programming, Evans says. He believes that just as Unity’s divestment leadership touched off a growing national movement, so too will its overall development at this juncture serve as an example for other institutions to try and emulate.

Melik has taken point on campus building and renovations. He has both formally and informally engaged the campus in a process of developing a collaborative vision for long-term success. No idea has been too big or too small for consideration.

An important component of Unity’s future will be fundraising to support the planning, design, and building of a sustainability science learning and conference center, Khoury says. That process may take the form of a capital campaign, though a timeline for such an endeavor has not been established.

While a timeline for building the sustainability science learning and conference center the crown jewel of Unity College’s future identity has not been announced, both Khoury and Evans suggest that a three to five year window seems feasible.

The largest building on campus, the Student Activities Building, has been the site of multi-year upgrades, including 2-3 inches of sprayed foam insulation, replacing all the windows in the building, covering all non-brick surfaces with a functional and esthetically pleasing metal siding. In August, interior upgrades to improve lighting and classroom space was completed.

Evans says that design of the classrooms is decidedly forward leaning, both from the type and configuration of furniture, to the shape of the classrooms themselves. Gone are the days when an instructor lectured at the front of a classroom with students organized in rows. The new approach clusters students in various ways, every group with equal access to the instructor and each other.

Campus life has been vibrant, supported by improved living space. Two projects that further enhanced the quality of life on campus is the construction of an approximately 18,000 square foot residence hall for upperclassmen, and a significant addition to the cafeteria.

During his listening tours with students across a plethora of campus constituencies, Khoury learned that an upgrade of the cafeteria was high on their wish lists. The result was to finalize plans and fast track a cafeteria renovation and expansion that would not only improve service, but provide the entire campus community with new dining, meeting, and recreating opportunities.

Given that the College was seeing consistent enrollment growth, and a new residence hall was being built in time for the 2014-15 Academic Year, Khoury advanced the idea that completing a significant cafeteria upgrade could not wait.

Within a short time of commencement in May, work on the renovation and expansion began. An addition to the existing cafeteria extends from founders hall.

“All of the new construction including the vestibule, sprinkler pump room, two new bathrooms, and the new dining area total 2,900 square feet,” said Dan LaForge, Director of Facilities and Public Safety. “The existing dining area was 1,625 square feet including the solarium area. The serving area – where students actually get their food – remains unchanged and has 1,054 square feet.”

Among the changes to the previous cafeteria, Unity consolidated office space into the former atrium, then devoted the square footage of the previous office space to the cafeteria. To further improve the cafeteria, a comprehensive kitchen upgrade will be complete during Christmas break in December, LaForge says.

Design characteristics include inspiring, eye catching features like floor to ceiling windows, new furniture, art, and serving options like a Mongolian grill – the only one of its kind at a college in Maine.

“The cafeteria was not large enough and did not have an ambiance to provide that all important home away from home look and feel,” Khoury said. “Our new cafeteria is a comfortable, spacious facility that provides this community with the kind of dining space it both requires and deserves.”.

(Top) Construction began on the new dining hall during summer 2014. (Below) Kiosks installed throughout campus are a part of the comprehensive sustainability tour.

BUILDING A BEACON


By Erica HutchinsonUnity College has the distinct privilege of working with the

Safari Club International Foundation Education Sables. Sables is deeply committed to supporting outdoor education programs that promote conservation and the positive role of hunting.

Since 2005, the Joe Leta Hunting Heritage Scholarship has been supporting young women studying wildlife management and conservation law enforcement at Unity. Unity College was chosen (one of only five such national scholarships) due to its core strength of respect for wildlife and passion for outdoor heritage.

Melik Khoury, Executive Vice President and Liaison to the Board of Trustees praises the donation and the positive impact it will have on the Unity College students.

“The generosity of the Safari Club International is greatly appreciated,” Khoury said. “Both Unity College and SCI are champions of wildlife conservation and education.”

When first established, the scholarship award was $500. With continued investment into the endowment, Sables has grown the award to a generous $4,000. To be considered for the award, students must maintain a minimum 3.0 grade point average. Eleven students at Unity College have been the recipient since its inception.

Part of the opportunity with this award is to attend Safari Club International’s annual convention. The student experiences, traveling across the country, engaging in a large national membership convention, interacting with individuals from a variety of backgrounds, meeting and hearing national speakers, and walking through an exhibit space, are like no other.

Students often return from the trip excited and energized about newly discovered career possibilities and continued educational focus. Through this scholarship program and its accompanying opportunities, students often find internships and professional networks that serve them well into their professional careers.

Sables offers an education tool through its American Wilderness Leadership School (AWLS), which is located in Bridger-Teton National Forest, a beautiful location near Jackson, Wyoming.

Safari Club International helping support Unity students

AWLS specifically works with educators in a professional development capacity. Enriching educators’ conservation knowledge base and experience through an active, engaged program reinvigorates and stimulates educators’ interaction and teaching with youth.

SCI Foundation Education Sables clearly displays its strong commitment to education through its own programming and its financial investments of student support. Unity College is fortunate to have such a supportive relationship with this international organization.

“The generosity of the Safari Club International is greatly appreciated. Both Unity College and SCI are champions of wildlife conservation and education.”

BUILDING A BEACON


Founded by area townspeople in 1965, Unity College has weathered challenges and enjoyed successes for almost 50 years. On the third weekend of September, 2014, the official kickoff of 50th anniversary festivities was attended by alumni, faculty staff and friends gathered at the college. Festivities for this celebration of five decades as “America’s Environmental College” will continue with a series of gatherings concluding with an event on July 25, 2015. From its humble origins, Unity College has grown into a nationally recognized environmental college that graduates academically prepared young adults in 16 majors relating to sustainability science to all points of the globe. With a growing international reputation, the college is providing leadership on a host of environmental issues, modeling a first in the nation focus on sustainability science as its focus for teaching and learning. Sustainability science is the leading edge of 21st century transdisciplinary (collaborative) environmental problem solving, including the mitigation of global climate change. The College is preparing students to flourish in the growing green economy, or pursue graduate studies. As the College community honors and celebrates its forthcoming 50 year milestone, it is also enjoying historically robust recruitment and fundraising success. Addressing a gathering on Saturday, September 20 at a 50th anniversary cake cutting and bonfire, Unity College President Stephen Mulkey described an institution that may have exceeded the dreams of even its founders. “We just welcomed the largest incoming class in Unity College history,” Mulkey told the gathering. “We have completed a new residence hall with another one on the way. We have upgraded our campus with projects like the expansion of Wyman Commons.”

Unity College Honors Its History with 50th Anniversary Kickoff

(Top) Many former faculty, staff and alums gathered in July for the Pioneer Picnic. (Below) Dot Quimby and Michele Leavitt enjoy a successful event.

BUILDING A BEACON


By Mark Tardif Where do trees go when the climate zones alter

dramatically? The answer may depend on whether they are a northern or southern species.

As climate change continues to revise the climate zones, southern tree species that are adapted to the heat will likely charge northward, a process already well underway, while cold weather species may retreat northward.

The social, political, and economic impacts of such movement will be profound. The timber industry is merely one among many that will be affected. Hope for the sustainability of the planet will come from scientists who turn their research into workable approaches to mitigate climate change.

Among the Unity College faculty members who are engaged in contributing to the enormous body of information about the ecological impact of climate change is Assistant Professor of Sustainable Forest Management Dylan Dillaway.

Since 2006, Dillaway has been studying the impact of climate change on four species of trees. The information he is gathering will contribute to the wise management of forest resources in a world facing significant changes. Dillaway has dedicated many hours of research based on climate change.

The end game for climate change research will be stewardship that ensures the long-term viability of mankind. In a very real way, Dillaway and his colleagues are on the front lines of a struggle to save the planet. They are soldiers in a new kind of war and their weapons are the frontiers of sustainability science, the vanguard of 21st century transdisciplinary (collaborative) environmental problem solving. Appropriately two years ago, Unity College became the first institution of higher learning in the United States to adopt sustainability science as its framework for teaching and learning.

Dylan Dillaway is Measuring the Impact of Climate Change One Tree at a Time

BUILDING A BEACON


In a very real way, Dillaway and his colleagues are on the front lines of a struggle to save the planet.

Dilloway says that based on the information he has gathered so far, it appears that southern species are expanding their northern range, while the northern species are on the retreat.

Since 2006, Dillaway and colleagues have been involved in research that focuses on two northern and two southern species. The two northern species are trembling aspen and paper birch, while the two southern species are eastern cottonwood and sweetgum. He is monitoring a line of trees that extends from Northern Wisconsin to Central Mississippi. A number of measurements offer an accurate picture of how these four tree species fare in higher temperatures.

“We had four locations along that transect in which we planted these species,” Dillaway noted. He has since been taking a variety of measurements – “everything in the world” he says -- including photosynthesis, respiration, and growth. “All of those measurements really culminate in this metric of carbon use efficiency.”

The northern species were not using carbon efficiently as temperatures increased, while the southern species flourished. In a side-by-side competition for resources, frankly put, the southern species have been clear winners. This means that

when faced with higher temperatures than are usually found in their native climate zones, the northern species have less ability to compete.

“When the northern species start to lag behind in growth, the southern species are going to win the race,” Dillaway said. “Eventually, the northern species will perish because they will lose the growth race.”

The implications of Dillaway’s ongoing research are profound.

“The reason these studies need to be done is because forestry happens on a long time horizon,” Dillaway noted. “In order to get a mature forest stand for some forest products we’re talking 80 to 100 years in these northern climates. So, in order to prepare for a forest product in 100 years, we have to deal with the climate that is going to be here at that time. It’s a really tricky situation. What is the climate going to be like in 100 years? The stands that we’re establishing right now aren’t going to be harvested until 2114. It’s such a long time horizon that what this tells us is that we’re probably not going to be dealing with the species that we’re dealing with in our current forests.”

Though his research is ongoing, there is one strong takeaway that Dillaway offers.

“We’re going to have to completely adjust how we think about the forests of the northern tier states,” Dillaway said. “When you talk about solutions you have to consider whether we ought to plant southern species in Maine. We’re going to have some loss of northern species due to this inability to effectively manage their metabolic rates.”

BUILDING A BEACON


Alumni in the WorldChanging the world one innovative program at a time, our alumni (and students) take what they learned at Unity into their communities and around the world to make a significant difference.

From working to partner a Tribal Council on Martha’s Vineyard with U.S. Federal Government agencies, to serving as an agricultural educator on a Pennsylvania farm, to building an integrated community gardening program to educate kids about healthy eating, our alumni are on the move.

By Michael Rossi ’17 Jonah Gula ’15, a student from San Diego, California embodies

the focus of Unity College. As founder and president of the herpetology club (the study

of reptiles and amphibians), he learned group management and leadership skills through his involvement.

Gula has been an instrumental part of the Unity College Bear Study, where he had the opportunity to work with many other students collectively in tracking and recording information about black bear populations in Maine.

“Working with other students gave me insight on different perspectives which I believe will be important for my future career,” Gula said.

His senior thesis will be based on the bear study. He will apply the data he collected from the study to his writing.

Gula originally decided to study wildlife biology at Unity. He believes there is unlimited information to learn about in the field. Unity has helped him learn more about the subject of wildlife and has influenced his perspective. After he leaves Unity, he hopes to attend graduate school where he wants to study wildlife research.

Gula has taken interest in several courses outside his major at Unity, including Natural Resource Law and Dendrology.

“I think it is important to learn about subjects that aren’t directly related to my major” Gula added. “I have the chance to see different perspectives of research and find interest in areas of

study that I wouldn’t normally pursue.”Gula’s personal passion is photography. He has focused on

wild animals and landscape. Some of the pictures he has taken have been used for multiple projects across campus including the Unity College website and magazine. He has traveled all over the country specifically to take photos at national parks and zoos.

Gula is proud to be a student at Unity College and seeks to further his knowledge of wildlife through the program.

> JONAH GULA ’15 WILDLIFE BIOLOGY

BUILDING A BEACON


By Deborah Noone Working in unchartered territory is a real joy for Bret Stearns

’94, director of the Wampanoag Tribe of Aquinnah Natural Resource Department.

“The Tribe and all Native American Nations have a palpable connection to the environment,” said Stearns. “I enjoy working and living in a place that makes conscious decisions based on environmental factors, and identifies with the importance of a ‘sense of place’ and protecting the environment for future generations. The challenge and the reward are finding ways to make that happen.”

While a student at Unity College, Stearns attended a conservation management conference. There, he overheard a conversation that would chart the course of his career. The director of the Wampanoag Tribe discussed issues around ecological preservation and tourism management. Stearns suggested a solution; operate Tribal lands as you would National Parks.

The exchange didn’t end there. Stearns returned to Unity and sent the director a proposal based on a similar sized park. The following week, they offered Stearns a summer position to implement his plan.

The rest is history. Over the past 13 years, Stearns’ work has been multifaceted;

all balanced by working with Tribal Council concerns to find unique solutions while allowing him to be creative.

The creativity comes in building relationships and working in partnership to solve problems that affect not only the Tribal lands but the surrounding towns on Martha’s Vineyard.

“What exists today has been built—not handed to anyone to administer—in an ever evolving programming process,” said Stearns. “This process of forging new ground both locally and on a federal level is what I find interesting, challenging and rewarding.”

Stearns not only writes grants, oversees staff, and administers the programs, but he serves as the laboratory director, a ranger, police officer both in the Tribal town of Aquinnah and his neighboring hometown of Chilmark, a volunteer EMT and ambulance driver, and in season, as the deputy shellfish constable and the assistant harbormaster. “Unfortunately, these days, instead of being the one driving the boat, I am usually the one trying to get it fixed,” said Stearns.

When asked if he ever has a chance to sleep, he laughs. “Never.” Besides his work, he and his wife own an equestrian farm and run an estate management business. One of these days he hopes to take a minute or two to enjoy the beach … or drive the harbormaster boat. But since he and his staff work endlessly to assure the preservation of the lands and the safety

of residents, he doesn’t regret missing a day at the beach. “The great thing is that we truly enjoy our jobs.”

Putting aside the challenges from wearing so many hats, Stearns is inspired by his chance to work with the Tribal Council, the surrounding towns, and the federal government to effect real and meaningful change.

His stories are endless—finding a need and then working together to solve the problem.

“We’ve worked on everything from ensuring safe and speedy ambulance service to negotiating use of sea turtle shells, a sacred animal to the Tribe, for cultural and religious purposes,” said Stearns. The challenge is to come up with a solution that would satisfy both the Tribe and the federal agency.

One of Stearns’ proudest moments was watching two of his Tribal Rangers, who work in his department, graduate from the Bureau of Indian Affairs Federal Law Enforcement Training Academy. “This is a terrific step forward, and the first two Wampanoag tribal members employed by the tribe to graduate in history,” explained Stearns.

When the programs all come together, the masterpiece resulting from cooperation, consensus, communication, and negotiation, paints a picture of a cohesive community that finds ways to do what’s best for all the island residents.

> MAKING A DIFFERENCE: BUILDING A UNIQUE ALLIANCE

BUILDING A BEACON


By Brenda BonnevilleAt Unity College, all learning is experiential. Professors

teach both classroom style and outdoors, using the natural environment as a learning backdrop. Unity students say this approach is what makes the College unique, and why they love being a student here.

Imagine the windfall for a Unity graduate when she is offered a position to practice what she learned in her four years at Unity—experiential, hands-on education.

Julie Fallon ’12 earned a degree in sustainable agriculture/food production along with an accredited elementary teaching degree. She is an agricultural educator at The Lands at Hillside Farms, a nonprofit educational dairy farm in Pennsylvania. Visitors get first-hand experiences in learning about the delicate balance among nature, the environment, and humans.

Fallon considers herself lucky. Her job allows her to continue what she enjoyed most about being a Unity student, only this time she is the educator.

“As a student, I loved being able to go back and forth between classrooms and the outdoors, doing experiments, conducting labs and assessing data,” said Fallon. “The opportunity to engage in actually ‘doing’ gave me a clearer understanding of what I was learning. I love that I get to pass those methods of learning along to the people who I interact with at The Lands.”

In her role, Fallon connects people with sustainable agriculture and imparts upon them a sense of respect for their food sources, inspiring people to eat locally or perhaps grow their own food. Much of her time is spent in the “412-Acre Classroom Without Walls”, where she conducts school tours of the farm for students as young as pre-kindergarten up to college-aged. On a given day, she might explain how farmers milk cows to 4 year-olds or inundate college students with information on water quality in relation to farms, the digestive system of ruminants, or the ecological impact of farming on our world.

A new program is a partnership with a local school for students with varying levels of autism. Working with the teachers, educators at The Lands tie farm lessons into classroom learning through a method called “frontloading”—using students’ prior knowledge as a method of engaging them in new learning experiences. Once a month, after the classroom lesson, all of the approximately 50 students spend the day at the farm putting these lessons into action. To date, this has been

By Kurt AndersonDebbie Dubitsky ’95 asserts humbly that she isn’t involved

with science anymore. Nothing could be farther from the truth. After graduating from Unity College with a degree in

environmental education and working for Connecticut Audubon Society as an environmental educator and director of their rolling nature center—a converted Winnebago equipped with all types of flora and fauna designed to teach children about nature—Debbie now directs a before- and after-school program and serves as president of the East Hartford Garden Club.

While each of her current pursuits might individually qualify her claim, Debbie’s unique ability to integrate the two proves that she is not only still involved with science, but that she continues to convey her passion for it to future generations.

Debbie receives and answers all inquiries for the garden club. Three years ago her correspondence with concerned citizens inspired her to join Healthy East Hartford–a committee of public service professionals and volunteers aimed at addressing childhood obesity.

Through a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Debbie and the committee have established and used public gardens and demonstration projects to draw kids away from their computers and into local, healthy food production.

While the committee’s focus has since expanded to include feeding the community with the abundant produce, Debbie plays an integral role in its success.

Debbie also finds time to consult on two different school vegetable gardens, serving as yet another example of Unity alumni imparting meaningful change as part of the global community.

> DEBBIE DUBITSKY ’95

> ALUMNA USES EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING ON THE JOB; MAKES A DIFFERENCE

one of the most successful programs at The Lands.“The progress we see in these students who go through their

own challenges, and the life lessons we impart has by far been the most rewarding part of my job,” said Fallon. “On visiting day, all of the farm staff become involved with the students, and we get to fall in love with them time and time again.”

BUILDING A BEACON


As Unity College builds the symbolic beacon expressed by the specifics of its strategic plan, high profile media opportunities underscore the College’s potential for creating a distinctive and renowned national brand.

The College has made significant inroads gaining the attention of a broad sweep of media both regionally and nationally, and at times even internationally.

When the fall semester began, President Stephen Mulkey and a group of students participated in interviews that informed a story for the MSNBC about Unity College’s divestment leadership. The story was posted to the MSNBC web site.

This high profile story is only the latest in a series that suggest the College is steadily improving its national and international visibility.

The MSNBC piece filmed in August took place in the wake of multiple other high profile national and regional stories.

A wire story about President Mulkey’s perspective on Stanford University’s divestment of coal stocks was carried by over 250 media outlets across the United States. These included print, television and radio outlets. Another story about Pitzer College’s decision to divest featuring comments by President Mulkey was carried by a similar number of media outlets. Yale Environment 360 prominently featured an interview with President Mulkey about Unity College’s first in the nation divestment and leadership on the issue.

National Public Radio and the Associated Press brought separate stories about the Unity College Bear Study to the general public from coast-to-coast. Two different front page stories about the bear study were run in Central Maine

Newspapers (Portland Press Herald, Kennebec Journal, and Morning Sentinel) and on the Bangor Daily News. Meanwhile, every Maine-based television station ran at least one story on the study. One of those stories featured on campus interviews with Associate Professor George Matula, Jr., and students employed by the study.

Several different stories about the farm at Unity College and efforts to preserve heritage breeds were run as prominent, below-the-masthead stories in two separate issues of Central Maine Newspapers. One of those stories also included a video interview with Barn Manager Meg Anderson that was embedded in the story.

Professor Doug Fox was featured in a Guardian (U.K.) story about sustainable agriculture. A prominent Florida newspaper, The Orlando Sentinel, published a commentary by Assistant Professor Sarah Cunningham about the educational value of animal parks. That newspaper also published a commentary by Professor Mick Womersley about nuclear power.

Commencement speaker Celine Cousteau attracted significant attention from both regional and national publications including The Chronicle of Higher Education, WGBH, Care 2 (environmental news), Maine Today Media, media television media (web site posts), Bloomberg News, and the Boston Globe. A release about commencement that prominently featured Cousteau was placed on PR Newswire and subsequently carried by over 200 media outlets from Maine to San Francisco, California.

Professor Don Lynch was featured in an article distributed in CVS Pharmacies across the United States. He offered insights

Yale Environment 360, MSNBC and Other Media Take Notice

IN OUR ELEMENT


on the special challenges faced by young men who are significantly taller than their peers. The article was developed by a nationally known communications firm based in Chicago, Illinois. Lynch was also featured in two National Public Radio stories offering his professional insights on psychological issues.

In July, President Mulkey was a featured guest to discuss Maine’s green economy on Maine Calling, a popular Maine Public Broadcasting Network call-in talk show.

Scientific American featured a story by David Biello, Editor, about the solar panels formerly atop the White House that are owned by Unity College.

The August issue of Sierra Magazine, which has over 1 million subscribers, featured an article about TerraHaus. Also in August, College Planning and Management Magazine featured a story about Half Moon Gardens and the McKay Agricultural Research Station. Lastly, an interview with President Stephen Mulkey about sustainability science will appear on the pages of The Ahahi Shimbum newspaper. It is the second most widely distributed newspaper in the world.

CAMPUS NEWS

On August 6, workers put the finishing touches on the final of three new Unity College campus signs that have been erected since the summer of 2013. The first two are located at the main entrances to campus along Quaker Hill Road and were completed in August of 2013. The third and final of the three is located near the intersection of Route 202 and Quaker Hill Road. All three sights were built by two companies. Shamrock Stoneworks built the rock bases and Minuteman Signs provided and installed the discs.

In Our Element Snapshot

IN OUR ELEMENT


CAMPUS NEWS

In a world beset by climate change, frogs and toads can provide clues about the severity of changes to ecosystems. FrogWatch USA is creating opportunities for volunteers to collect and report information about wetlands, including frog and toad populations.

During the 2013-14 academic year, Cheryl Frederick, Assistant Professor of Captive Wildlife Care and Education, and Jonah Gula ’15, a Wildlife Biology major, established one of the first FrogWatch chapters in Maine. The other chapter founded almost concurrently was the Mid-Coast Maine FrogWatch, which oversees the Belfast, Camden, Lincolnville, and Swanville region.

A good idea and an engaging template do not go unnoticed for long. By May of this year, an additional five FrogWatch chapters had been added in Maine.

Frogs and toads are both predators and prey in aquatic and terrestrial food webs, Frederick explained. They directly benefit humans by eating insects that can be pests and transmit diseases. They are sensitive to changes in their environment and are a well-known indicator species for wetland ecosystems.

“Many previously abundant frog and toad populations have experienced dramatic population declines in the United States and across the world,” Frederick noted. “It is essential that we understand the scope, scale, and cause of these declines. Factors such as climate change, environmental toxins affecting water quality, and the spread of certain diseases are causing dramatic shifts in many of these populations.”

Cheryl Frederick and Jonah Gula collect numbers of local frogs for the local chapter of FrogWatch.

Unity College Plays Leading Role in Bringing FrogWatch USA to Maine

Two American Guinea Hogs chill out at the Unity College barn on a warm fall day.

In Our Element Snapshot

IN OUR ELEMENT


CAMPUS NEWS

Paul Wade (center), OGT Board Chairman, received a check presented by (left to right, facing) Brittney Knust ’15, Josh Burnier ’17, Michael Latti ’17, and Ashley Moeller ’14.

Food lovers were not the only ones with a keen interest in a gourmet tradition at one of the nation’s premier environmental colleges.

The Unity College Bear Study and Maine Operation Game thief (OGT) benefited from $8,350 in proceeds raised during the tenth annual sportsmen’s conference and wild game dinner. Held at the Unity College Center for the Performing Arts on April 11, the gourmet caliber dinner attracted diners from across Maine and well beyond, including a diner who was visiting from Australia. Proceeds from the dinner benefit outdoor

oriented philanthropic causes. This year the organizers selected the Unity College bear study and OGT as the sole beneficiaries of what became the largest amount ever raised by the event.

As the first bear study in the nation to involve undergraduates in every facet of research, the Unity College bear study focuses its trapping and tagging efforts on bait sites in the greater Unity, Maine region. Participants in this first in the nation bear study involving undergraduates at Unity College chose to purchase an ATV from Chase Toys in Unity. For their part, Chase offered a steep discount on the ATV.

A TEN-YEAR MILESTONE

Bear Study and Operation Game Thief Benefit from Unity College’s Historically Successful Game Dinner

IN OUR ELEMENT


Kurt Anderson Kurt Anderson joined Unity College as a Development Officer/Grants Writer. His primary duties are cen-tered on increasing the competitiveness and coordination of institutional grants. Kurt is responsible for iden-tifying, cultivating, and stewarding relationships with philanthropic organizations and government agencies capable of supporting the college. Kurt previously worked as Land Project Coordinator for Maine Farmland Trust and Regional Biologist for Ducks Unlimited. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Fisheries and Wildlife from Michigan State University and a Master of Science degree in Wildlife Ecology from the Uni-versity of Delaware. Kurt is an avid sports and outdoor enthusiast. He also volunteers with the Sebasticook Regional Land Trust and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine.

Mary Saunders Bulan, Ph.D., Director of Half Moon Field Station and Assistant Professor of Sustainable Agricultural EnterpriseSaunders Bulan possesses broad experience in sustainable farming, value-added enterprise, research, teaching, and learning. She has served as a volunteer on biodynamic farms and specialty produce operations in British Columbia, was coordinator for a non-profit farm project in Rhode Island, has overseen membership, and greenhouse / field production. Bulan’s work on her Ph.D. program expanded her understanding of farming systems both globally and at home, and reinforced her commitment to sustainable agriculture. She holds a Ph.D. in Agronomy, University of Wisconsin at Madison, and a B.S. in International Relations from Brown University.

Jennifer Lorraine Cartier, Ph.D., Director of Teacher Education and ScienceAn experienced science teacher educator, Cartier most recently served as Director of Teacher Education at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Education. She has designed and taught 19 different courses related to science pedagogy, curriculum theory and design. She holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum & Instruction (Science Education) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, an M.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a B.A. from Williams College.

Matthew W.H. Chatfield, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Conservation BiologyChatfield has served in several capacities at Tulane University of New Orleans, Louisiana, including as a Re-search Assistant Professor at the Center for Bioenvironmental Research, Project Coordinator at the Tulane Center for Applied Coastal Sciences and Engineering, and visiting Assistant Professor. He served the Univer-sity of Michigan as a Post-doctoral researcher in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. He holds a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Michigan, and a B.A. in Biology from the University of Chicago of Chicago, Illinois.

Growing Popularity and Reputation of Unity College Leads to Unprecedented ExpansionWith the popularity of Unity College surging nationally and internationally, the College has announced an unprecedented ex-pansion of faculty and staff.

As the first college in the United States to adopt sustainability science – the leading-edge of 21st century transdisciplinary (col-laborative) environmental problem solving – as its framework for teaching and learning, Unity has attracted top talent to augment its visionary faculty, staff and administration. The College community welcomes the following individuals to an endeavor that is vibrant, focused and without borders. Just as Unity College issues forth environmental professionals who become leaders across the globe, so too, is it attracting professionals who are committed to ensuring that Unity reach its key goals in service to the sus-tainability of the planet.

The newest members of the Unity College community are:

NEW FACES

IN OUR ELEMENT


NEW FACES

Holli Costedio, Senior Accountant at Unity CollegeMost recently Costedio served as Finance Manager for Husson University of Bangor, Maine, addressing broad financial topics like cash and risk management. Prior to that position, Costedio served as the sole accountant for New England School of Communications, formerly a wholly owned subsidiary of Husson University of Bangor, Maine, now merged with that university. Her broad experience in accounting includes serving as an Accountant with the New England School of Communications; as a Senior Accountant for Irving Tanning Company of Hartland, Maine; and Accounts Payable Analyst, also at Irving Tanning Company. Costedio holds Master of Business Administration and Bachelor of Science in accounting degrees from Husson University.

Julie Briggs Cunningham, Director of College Development and Alumni AffairsShe will be integral with the College’s fundraising efforts and lead the Development staff to support a steadily improving campus infrastructure, academic programs that are developing world-class attributes and achieve-ments, and national aspirations related to a strong environmental mission. Most recently Briggs Cunningham served as Director of Annual Giving Programs at St. Bonaventure University. Her additional experience in-cludes serving as Executive Director and CPO of the Allegany County United Way of Wellsville, New York; an Account Executive with WJQZ / WLSV Radio Station; and Job Developer / Job Coach / Job Retention Specialist with Allegany County ARC of Wellsville, New York. Briggs Cunningham is currently a Board Member with the Allegany County Area Foundation. She has previously served as a Board Member with the Business and Education Community Coalition; Wellsville Central School Board of Education, and Literacy Volunteers of Allegany County.

Howard Davis, Director of Distance Education at Unity CollegeHoward Davis will ensure the delivery of online academic programming that is mission driven, effective, and embodies Unity College’s sustainability science framework for teaching and learning. He will provide the leadership, planning, and coordination to ensure the successful implementation of Distance Education. Most recently Davis served as Director of e-learning, Academic Consortium for Global Education in Carefree, Arizona. In that position he managed the company’s contracts with the United States Army training divi-sion, which were aligned with the Army’s ALM 2015 new training manifesto requiring a paradigmatic shift from PowerPoint-based lecture mode style courses to student-centered, technology-mandated learning. Other positons he has held include serving as Vice President of Online Education for Boston Architectural College, Boston, Massachusetts; and Academic Dean / Chief Learning Officer for Southern New Hampshire University ONLINE in Manchester, New Hampshire. He holds a Master of Arts degree from San Diego State University of San Diego, California; and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yeshiva University of New York, New York.

Zachary Falcon, Assistant Professor of Conservation Law and Environmental PolicyZach Falcon has been named Assistant Professor of Conservation Law and Environmental Policy at Unity College of Unity, Maine. Falcon is currently an adjunct Instructor at Unity College and previously taught at Eastern Maine Community College, Thomas College, and Husson College. He served as Associate Director of the Writing Resource Center at the University of Iowa College of Law. As an attorney, Falcon served in the State of Alaska Department of Law, where he represented the state in civil litigation, administrative hearings, and permit appeals. Falcon was also an associate with Faulkner Banfield, PC, during which time he served as a public defender for the City and Borough of Juneau. Upon graduating from the University of Michigan Law School, Falcon worked as an associate counsel for the Resources Committee of the U.S. House of Representa-tives in Washington, D.C.

John FontaineJohn joins the Development Team as a Major Gifts Officer. John has been involved with individual giving and planned giving for 20 years. He has worked in both the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. Coming to us most recently from the American Cancer Society and Maine Public Broadcasting Network, he acted as the Planned Giving Officer for both organizations and brings extensive estate planning to Unity College. He volunteers at the Bath YMCA and over this past summer he accompanied 80 middle school students to Washington D.C. He and his wife and daughter live in Lewiston, but you can see them all over Maine golfing, kayaking, and snowshoeing.

IN OUR ELEMENT


NEW FACES

Erica HutchinsonErica Hutchinson joined the college to serve as a Development Officer. Working as part of the Development Team to raise financial support for Unity College, Erica stewards relationships with friends and alumni. A professional with a history of creating strong giving programs, most recently at the Charlotte White Center in Bangor, she brings to Unity a variety of experiences from the non-profit sector, public education, and agriculture. Her com-munity involvement is extensive including service on the S.A.D. 22 Board of Directors, where she was Finance Committee Chair and a member of the Curriculum Committee; Maine School Board Association as President and on the Legislative Committee; among other community related volunteer

Philip Jones, Student Activities Coordinator at Unity CollegeJones possesses residence life and additional experience in a college setting, having served in several residence life positions at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, Connecticut. Most recently he served as Supervisor, Orien-tation Leader and Route Setter for the rock climbing gym at the University of Connecticut. While a student at the University of Connecticut, Jones was active in student government and sustainability issues. He participated as Elder at EcoHouse, the sustainable learning community at the University of Connecticut. Jones holds a Bachelor of Arts double major in Geography and History.

James Killarney, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Environmental ChemistryKillarney has demonstrated a laudable commitment to mentoring undergraduate research and has taught a variety of classes to students from across a broad spectrum of majors. He has taught chemistry for science and pre-med majors, in addition to teaching courses for non-science majors. Outside of the classroom, Killarney has been in-volved in service both in his field and community. He has mentored high school students, led community service projects that promote chemistry, and serves as a coordinator of the American Chemical Society (ACS) Chemistry Olympiad program for the state of Maine. Killarney holds a Ph.D. in Analytical / Environmental Chemistry from the University of Maine, Orono, an MPH from Boston University, and B.S. in Biology from the University of Maine, Orono.

Bill Kovarik, Ph.D., Professor of Environmental WritingKovarik has broad teaching experience that is augmented by work for environmental and green technology groups and news reporting. His professional credentials include journalism, digital media, and community information services. Kovarik has trained scientists to effectively address traditional and new media. Among his many projects is setting up small windmills for an agricultural cooperative in Virginia. He holds a Ph.D. in Public Communica-tion from the University of Maryland, M.A. in Communication from the University of South Carolina, and B.S. in Journalism from Virginia Commonwealth University.

James Spartz, (Ph.D. candidate) Assistant Professor of Environmental CommunicationsSpartz is a doctoral candidate in Mass Communications at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and anticipates completion of his terminal degree this year. He has broad experience in the field of communications, having served as a Public Affairs Specialist in the Office of Communications at the U.S. Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory, the national research and development laboratory of the U.S. Forest Service. The experience Spartz has gained in a variety of communications contexts has given him an exceptional understanding of effective sci-ence communication in public, political, and scientific contexts. His dissertation is entitled “Public Perceptions of Bioenergy and Land Use Change in Southwest Wisconsin: A Case Study Investigating Narrative Frames, Place-Attachment, and Trusted Sources of Information.” He holds an M.A. from the School of Journalism & Mass Communication, University of Wisconsin, Madison, and a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse.

ALUMNI


Brent Bibles, Associate Professor of Wildlife Biology, has published an article in The Journal of Wildlife Management. The article, “Greater Sage-Grouse Juvenile Survival in Utah,” explores the impact of a switch from necklace-type radio transmitters to dorsally mounted GPS transmitters, with particular attention paid to the mortality rates affiliated with each. The authors conclude that “we recommend the adoption of harvest management strategies that attempt to shift harvest away from juveniles and incorporate crippling rates. In addition, future survival studies on juvenile sage-grouse should use caution if implementing dorsally mounted transmitters because of the potential for experimental bias.” The article can be found at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jwmg.724/abstract.

Carrie Eaton, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Stephanie Wade, Assistant Professor of Writing / Director of Writing, are the co-authors of “Collaborative Learning Through Formative Peer Review with Technology,” which was just published online by PRIMUS: Problems, Resources, and Issues in Mathematics Undergraduate Studies, a Taylor & Francis journal. The article “describes a collaboration between a mathematician and a compositionist

who developed a sequence of collaborative writing assignments for calculus.”

Doug Fox, Professor of Sustainable Agriculture and Director of the Center for Sustainability and Global Change, presented Lessons and Results from a Community Energy Plan at the 2014 Climate Solutions Summit in Augusta, Distributism: A Third Way at Bowdoin College, and A Sustainability Science Approach to Sustainable Agriculture Education at the Maine Agriculture Trade Show. With several other faculty he enjoyed attending the Camden Conference with our students and hosting a noontime discussion group of college students with John Zavodny. In the past several months Doug has been quoted in Sierra Magazine, the Wall Street Journal and the Guardian on various sustainability issues. Doug’s capstone agriculture class completed a study at the Half Moon Field Station where they looked at the economic viability and environmental sustainability of winter greenhouse production for several cold-hardy crops.

President Stephen Mulkey and his spouse, Michele Leavitt, Special Assistant for College Outreach, Honours Program Co-Director and Instructor, collaborated on a photo / text project for the online journal

In Quire. The piece appeared on June 15 in the journal’s “Picture Postcards series.”

Tom Mullin, Associate Professor of Parks and Forest Resources, presented at the 2014 Maine Land Trust Conference on Community Based Learning and Land Trusts: ABC’s for Success. He also served on the review committee for the National Association for Intepretation’s Undergraduate and Graduate Student Scholarship Program. In January he was elected to the Advisory Committee of the Friends of Sears Island and reelected as Vice Chair of the Waldo County Trails Coalition

Judy Williams, Director of the Writing Center, was among 25 well-known and emerging poets reading at POETS/SPEAK! on April 23rd at the Bangor Public Library. The event was in celebration of National Poetry Month.

FACULTY AND STAFF HIGHLIGHTS

Faculty and Staff in the News

Employees welcome the start of a new academic year in 2014.

PEOPLES CLIMATE MARCH

NEW YORK CITY, September 21, 2014

STUDENTS IN ACTION

A contingent of 25 Unity College students participated in and represented Unity during the September 21 People’s Climate March in New York City.

ALUMNI


CLASS NOTES

ALL ABOUT ALUMNI We all have a Unity story to tell. If you are or if you know of alumni who are doing interesting things that are making a difference, please let us know.

Also, Unity’s 50th anniversary is just around the corner. You can help us celebrate by telling us your story about Unity. We’d love to hear it and pass it on.

Please send us stories, story opportunities, or ideas by email at [email protected].

1970Henry Branche owns a home-wares company that designs sink strainers and pressure washers. He is married to Peggy and they have a daughter and a set of twins.

Robert Duchatellier was managing technological development and acquisition for the Army at Fort Monmouth until they moved to Maryland. He is now focusing on green energy and transportation infrastructure. He and Michelle, who is a leisure travel consultant, travel often to Cape Cod to visit with their grandson who is 1 1/2, the son of their daughter Kezia and her husband.

Jerry Rascoll has retired as Vice President of Penn Mutual Life Insurance and as Managing Director of Colonial Bank. He lives in Florida most of the year. He gets together often with fellow classmates, Joe Polizzi, Jack Weinstein, and Charlie Miranda.

Bill and Patty Yakowicz visited campus in October and had dinner with George Fowler and Dot Quimby at Wyman Commons. Bill is Director of Grants Administration at Bergen Community College. In January their first grandchild, Helen Eowyn Kowidge, was born to their daughter.

1971John Bianchi is pretty much retired but does some part time Lube Apps for a Shell Oil distributer. He and Angela celebrated their 42nd anniversary in December, 2013. Their son Collin is in Europe playing “Progressive Metal” and Justin is in commodities.

Nick Fenin is Manager of Watch Expo in Newport Beach, California.

Howie Ginsberg is still working as a Loan Review Officer. He and Linda have three children, and four grandchildren. His youngest daughter is finishing up her master’s degree in Special Education.

Kerry Kimball is still a practicing Child Psychologist, but now limits himself to specialized psychological evaluations. He and Jeanette, who retired from teaching, sold their Buxton home and are now living at their lake home on Emden Pond. Both of their sons are married and they have four grandchildren.

Tony Lambert is a retired Verizon Wireless Engineer, and keeps in touch with Bill Childs, Jerry Rascoll (’70), and Tom (’70) and Pat (Valarosa) Blanchard.

Rick Wirth is a Private Investigator with his own firm, Craig Investigation Inc. In 2010 and 2011 he was elected Commissioner of Public Safety in Saratoga Springs, NY.

1972Rick Ceballos is Artistic Director of Bristol Best Night, his town’s New Year’s Eve celebration and he also plays in a new band, DaddyLongLegs. His younger son was married in the Colorado Rockies last summer and he also has a two-year-old grandson, Roman.

Ron St. Saviour is a professional forester and a licensed Maine Guide. He owns Southern Maine Guide Service and Lodge in Parsonfield for hunting and family vacations. He and Tammy have been married 36 years and have four children.

Chuck Wells is a Contractor in Pinehurst, North Carolina, building houses. He is also working for Fresh Market Corp.

1973Vickie (Duguay) Goodwin has retired from her teaching assistant job and now drives to Massachusetts once a week and babysits her three grandsons, an 8 year old and 4 year old twins. Steve works for Nichols Portland.

Howard “Chuck” Johnson has retired as Vice President at Pitney Bowes after 40 years. He and Gail have moved to Virginia where he continues to do consulting part-time. They have a granddaughter, Brooklynn, born to their son who lives on the west coast and their daughter is in Washington, DC.

David St. Andre retired as Postmaster of Lewiston in 2012 and does carpentry to stay busy. He and his wife Linda have five children and five grandchildren. As soon as Linda retires in June, they plan to do a lot of traveling.

1974Joe Cooper works part time at Little River Apparel in Belfast making chemical warfare suits for the military. He is the Adjutant of the Sons of the American Legion for the State of Maine, and has been State Commander.

Larry Gulmi continues working as a Landscape Contractor in Hillside, N.J. and says that the Dendrology course that he took from Marty Rosinski is still helpful today.

1975Jack Krumm has worked for the US Department of Transportation for 35 years and is now a GS-14 on loan to the United Kingdom working on joint transportation issues. He recently remarried (2011) an old

high school friend, Mary Ellen. They have a horse farm Journey’s End in Milton, N.H.Gary Seaman is in the wholesale fence and fence supply business. He shares that he is still happily married to the girl he loves.

1976Dennis Curran runs Yardbird, landscape maintenance business, eight months of the year. In the off season he bird hunts, fishes and travels. For the last four years, he has volunteered at The Global Child School in Cambodia and traveled to Laos, Vietnam, Thailand and Burma. In March he visited Machu Picchu and the Amazon.

Mike Marshall and his wife Nancy live on their 45 acre farm in Big Lake Twp. They keep busy gardening, making maple syrup, keeping honey bees, fishing, hunting and other outdoor activities.

Sayre Merritt is enjoying retirement after 20 years as a US Air Force Staff Sergeant. He enjoys spending his time with with his two sons and grandson.

1977Jean (Day) McCarthy is a manager of Send-Out cards and a full-time tutor in the Adult Education Department at a local Jacksonville, Fla college.

Alan Drew works for Northwood Builders and the Dexter Police Department. After 25 years, he retired from the Army Reserves, the last seven of which he was an instructor at West Point. He just completed his 32nd year as a soccer official. He has been married for 36 years and has two children and five grandchildren.

1978Jon Andrew is Interagency Borderlands Coordinator for the Department of the Interior, and recently helped coordinate a jaguar project in Arizona.

1973 classmates Steve Silver, Stephen and Michele Bajardi, and Bob Portner proudly wear their Unity College sweatshirts.

ALUMNI


CLASS NOTES

Jeanne (Boomhower) Coleman spent the summer putting together a collection of her photographs for the new Maine General Hospital in Augusta. She won an award at the Light, Space & Time Gallery’s international Nature Art Exhibit.

Chuck Cabaniss is a NRA certified Instructor and teaches firearms training courses in safety and marksmanship. He owns his own gun shop, is a professional investigator and still operates his aerial photography business. His son Sean is a sophomore at the University of Maine at Farmington. John Griffiths became a grandfather last December to Reagan Thomas Sears.

Scott McIntyre owns McIntyre Builders. He and his wife of 35 years celebrated the wedding of their daughter Stephanie last summer. Both their children, Stephanie and Zachary are teachers.

Eleanor Nettleton is a massage therapist and a pipe organ tuner. She and Art celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary in February. Their daughter just completed the accelerated Advanced Practice Registered Nurse program at the Columbia School of Nursing. Roger Schoen is a kitchen manager and cook for Corporate Caterers in Raleigh, NC. His first grandson, Carter David, is six months old.

1979Laura (Cowan) McKenna is a Research Specialist at East Carolina University. Sean (’82) has retired from the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries. Their daughter, Sarah is a kindergarten teacher at their local elementary school.

Dawn Perry works as a phlebotomist for the Red Cross and with her job, travels all over the country.

Doug Pinkham is still running his floral and formal wear shop, Country Greenery in Madison. He and Mary Ellen have two grandchildren.

John Ryfa retired in February after 27 years working for the federal government. 21 of those were in law enforcement as a Ranger for the Bureau of Land Management.

Craig “Tiny” Segar is in his 31st year as Animal Control Officer for Vernon, Conn. He and Terry have a daughter, Sara Ann who is 3.

Doug Shepherd owns Avian Research, and travels widely doing pre-construction research for large pipeline projects. He purchased 40 acres in Arizona and will be building a new home there for his planned retirement in five years. He, Maria and Alex love Alaska, but the winters are tough.

Fred Trasko is in his 21st year as Assistant Project Leader at Green Lake National Fish Hatchery, and Cricky is a Compliance Supervisor with the Maine DEP. They are now empty nesters: son Jordan graduated from the University of Maine with a chemistry degree and works for a biotech firm and daughter Kaylie is working on a radiography degree at Eastern Maine Community College. They both enjoy hunting, fishing and hiking and Cricky is an avid bow hunter.

1980Bill Cooling continues running Pleasant Bay Charters, but has moved from Cape Cod to Stuart, Florida. He is doing lots of fishing, kayaking, boating and motorcycling.

Mark Frulla is sales manager for the Executive Account Group for Praxair Inc. His older son graduated from the University of Connecticut and is an IT Auditor; his younger son is a junior at the University of Connecticut.

Chris Gallagher is in her 27th year as Park Manager at Bay Model Visitor Center for the Army Corps of Engineers at Sausalito, CA. She travels for Rotary International and will become Rotary District Governor this July.

She recently returned from Ethiopia, a trip sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, where she was administering polio shots to children.

Tracey Hall is Education Coordinator for the Audubon Society of Rhode Island and a licensed massage therapist. She also plays the ukulele and does art work which she sells at craft fairs.

Steve Puibello was named one of the 100 “Unsung Heroes” 2013 by POZ magazine as a HIV-Positive person fighting against AIDS.

1981Dave Petrini is substitute teaching in the Worcester public schools.

Myrna Raven works part-time as Treasurer, Registrar and Deputy Tax Collector for the Town of Knox.

Karin Sousa-Racicot is a speech editor for Gilbert Medical Transcription, and works one day a week at a children’s toy store which sells creative and imaginative toys. Dan Spinner sells and services uninterruptible power systems for Integ Systems Corp. His hobby is focused around race horses…he has three!

1982Ralph Dunn’s son Ralph Jr. is going on a service learning trip to the Dominican Republic in April with students at Buckfield High School. Bill Keogh will be featured on a PBS Art Loft special segment as a Photographer and Backcountry guide. In January he planned to go to Nicaragua to purchase and outfit an antique catamaran and sail it back home to the Florida Keys. Tim Mercer is in his 27th year as Plant Operator for the Kennebec Sanitary Treatment District. He and Carol have been married for 27 years. Their daughter Kenra is 22 and attending college.

Roland Perry is the Golf Pro and Director at Mars Hill Country Club. He spends a large part of the winter in Arizona. He is still doing comedy/magic shows. His son Shane is married with a son; son Todd is working in Portland; and his daughter Meaghan is in college.

Chris Swanson retired as Postmaster at Orrington after nearly 30 years in the postal service. Namch (Rollins) teaches middle school science and math.

Fred Walasavage received the Administrator’s Exceptional Service Award from Bonneville Power Administration, where he is an environmental protection specialist.

1983Jeremy Johnson retired from his law enforcement position, and now spends his winters in Florida.

Scott Lane received his master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of New Hampshire in June 2013, and now teaches Criminal Justice at the Concord Regional Technical Center. Previously, he had been Police Chief of Pembroke, N.H. for 27 years. He and Carol will celebrate their 25th anniversary this June. They have two sons and their first grandchild is expected in March.

1984Christina (Campbell) Trefry married Dan Trefry in July. Her daughter Sierra is 19 and a Psychology major at Westfield State College, and son Nick is a senior in high school. She now has a 12 year old step son, Nate. Christina is still teaching meditation and yoga, and working at a local funeral home.

David Gerard does custom carpentry in Homer, Alaska and is continually meeting up with Unity alums.

Jon Jenks is Professor of Wildlife and Fisheries Science at South Dakota State University. He currently has 10 graduate students working on research projects on deer, mountain lions, pronghorn, elk, bighorn sheep and bobcats. His wife Gail works at a local accounting firm. Their daughter Heather, her husband and son are in Houston where Heather works for Wells Fargo. Their son Jonathan, his wife and daughter are in Shanghai where he works for Daktronics. Their daughter Abigail, her husband and children are in Brookings, and they both work for Daktronics.

Larry Johannesman is a landscape architect for the Maine Department of Transportation. While working on the St. John Valley Scenic Byway interpretive signage project, he had a visit with Wilson Hess, President of the University of Maine at Fort Kent.

Roy Kitchener is in his 29th year of US Naval service, and is Vice Commander of the Naval Mine and Anti-Submarine Warfare Command in San Diego. He will be promoted to Rear Admiral next year, and hopes to get a position overseas. He and Sharon have four children: Kimberly is a John Andrews enjoys game day.

ALUMNI


senior at Roger Williams University, Cody is a sophomore at CAL POLY, Jake is a junior in high school and Gordon is a freshman in high school.

1985Gary Dunham works for Peoples Linen Rental in Keene, NH.

JoAnn (Hall) Meyer is a kindergarten teacher in Farmington. She and her husband, Andy have three children ages 26, 21 and 18.

Rob Watts is Vice President of Business Development at Accelerated Care Plus in East Belkin, Conn. He and Sue have been married 21 years and have two children: Robbie, a sophomore in college and Katie a junior in high school. Rob keeps in touch with Mark Hersey (’84), Steve Ouellette (’84), Tim Peterson (’83) and Pete Liebig.

1986Bryan Gorsira is a Wildlife Biologist at Manassas National Battlefield Park and has been branching into natural resource education with a track trails program. His stepson Connor is a junior in high school and daughter Lindsey is 10.

John “Beaker” Murray is retired from law enforcement and now drives a school bus. He and Christine have a daughter, Meghan age 9.

Melissa Smith works at Hildene, Robert Todd Lincoln’s estate in Manchester, Vt. doing experiential and environmental education in a historic setting. She has four children: Sadie, 25, an oncology therapist in Pittsburgh; Bridget, 22, a merchandise buyer in Boulder; Matthew who is 10 and Christopher who is 8.

1987Jeff Davenport is in his 17th year as Owner/Operator of Davenport Construction Inc. He and Heidi have just celebrated their 25th anniversary. They have three children: Jacob a graduate of the University of Rhode Island; Emily who is public relations major at University of Rhode Island, and Robin who is a sophomore at the University of Vermont. Jeff gets together every summer with Pete Wallace ‘86, Mike Lockett, Kathy Dixon-Wallace and Chris Misavage and their families for a “Unity Weekend”.

Nate Fice is Assistant District Forester for the Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources at Loyalsock State Forest. He works with Chad Gadsby (’07) and sees Bill Kocher (’95) at neighboring

World’s End State Park and goes hunting with Merlin Benner.

Doug Hofmeister is an account executive with Nation Direct Mortgage. He and Anna have four children: Nicole graduated pre-med from Liberty University and will be getting married this summer, Kyle is a junior at Liberty University, Courtney will be attending Baylor University to study pre-med, and Colby is 12.

Bill Livezey is in his 24th year as a Maine Game Warden and is now Game Warden Investigator for Northern Maine. He and Gail have four children: Amanda is married, Brooke graduates from college in May, Billy is in college in South Carolina and Morgan is a senior in high school. Monica Murphy received the Paul Harris Fellowship Award from the Unity Area Rotary Club in December. This award is given for distinguished service to their club and to the community. She is owner of CrossTrax in Unity, a deli and catering service.

Eric Nelson works at the University of Delaware Ice Arena.

1988Tim Brunemeyer is Office Manager at East Coast Flag & Flagpole and a house graphic artist.

Craig Morrocco is a New Hampshire Conservation Officer Lieutenant and will be retiring after 26 years of service. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

John Wales was named “Employee of the Year” by the Delaware Parks and Recreation Department. He is a Park Ranger Sergeant at White Clay Creek State Park.

Al Weinberg is Founder and CEO of Frontline Specialists, a company dedicated to designing, developing and delivering innovative programs and events. He is the Downtown Development Authority Director for the City of Evart, Mich. He and Jenny have three children.

Jon Woodard is Supervisor, Central Maine Region of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection Response Services Division, doing emergency oil and hazmat spill response. He has been with the DEP for 24 years. Jon and Cheryl, who teaches pre-k in Litchfield, have two children: Allison age 17 and Cameron age 14.

Other alumni in the Response Services are Division Director Peter Blanchard (’89), Glen Wall (’82), Nate Thompson (’91) and Franki (Dalton) Delaney (’08).

1989Chris Brennan is Director of the Library Services Division of Generation Fifth Applications, a company which preserves and supports library collections all over the country. She has worked in New York, Texas, Louisiana, California and Michigan. She is in her eighth season as a baseball umpire, working Babe Ruth, AAU, American Legion, and tee-ball through high school. Chris is traveling to England and Wales on her project of photographing churches and stone circles.

Bryan and Ann Chikotas’ daughter Elizabeth won her fourth consecutive cross country championship, and received a scholarship to Pennsylvania State University for this fall.

Michael Cowart is Resource Coordinator at Lakes Region Community Services in Laconia, N.H. He plays the pedal steel guitar and is a watercolorist.

Scott Davis is a Maine State Fisheries Biologist and has his own “Fish-N-Fowl” guide service.

Cindy Dick is Program Manager for the EarthScope National Office at Arizona State University. EarthScope just installed their final seismometer and it was in Maine. Cindy was at their Workshop in Acadia this summer and visited with Rhett Hutto.

Dave Rzewnicki is an Oregon State Police Officer with the Fish and Wildlife unit. His and Dee’s son Brad is 14 and very active in basketball, swimming, running, marathons and triathlons.

Tatsuhiro “Sho” Shojima runs a small internet company in California. He and his wife Hiriko have three children and his two sons are both playing junior college football.

Dan Worcester works for Heatek Energy in Phillips, and also runs Worcester Bullet Company.

1990Melissa (Graves) Sikes works for the Fairbanks Soil and Water District coordinating agriculture in the classroom projects all over Alaska. She also works on the Green Infrastructure Program and runs teacher workshops on environmental topics. Melissa is an Office Manager for the local Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. Daughters Nina and Amelia are attending the University of Alaska and Kaley has graduated.

1991Joe Benedict has a new position; he is Waterfowl Coordinator for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency in Nashville. His wife Lindsey is a singer, songwriter and vocal coach. They have a 9 year old son Joseph.

Rich Fritz writes that he has a new job. He is the Assistant Director of Residential Care of Eastview, a senior living community in Middlebury Vermont. He oversees the recreation programming for residents and provides the staff supervision and training. He just completed his Professional Certificate in Healthcare Leadership at UVM. He has three children; Jordan age 13, Ethan age 11, and Emily age 6.

Mike Boyer received the Maine Warden Service Exemplary Service Award at the annual awards banquet in April.

Craig Brown just finished his two-week Navy Reserve duty at the Summit-Betchel Scout Reserve, a national Boy Scout camp. He is a Police Officer/EMT in Atlantis, Florida.

Ted Goodell is in his 14th year as a Police Officer in Beverly, Mass. He and Eileen just celebrated their 15th anniversary and have three children: Grace age 12, Ben age 10 and Nora age 6.

Marc Hein is in his 20th year at ClearWater Labs in Newport, and is Vice President, Laboratory Manager and Senior Biologist.

Andy Wendell (’90) is working at ClearWater Labs in Newport.

Ed McCann is Senior Project Manager with Clune Construction in New York. He and his wife, AnnMarie who is an adjunct professor at Suffolk County Community College, have two daughters, Scarlett age 8 and Alanna age 5.

Whitney (Messersmith) Foskey’s virtual assistant business, Virtual Pixie is doing well. Her husband Brian received his master’s degree in human relations in June and has received honors for excellence.

Ralph Preston is a professional ski instructor. He and Virginia have three sons: Leon is also an instructor at age 13, Forrest, age 10 is in classes to be an instructor, and Tarren, age 2 has just started skiing. Virginia supervises the all-day kids program. The whole family volunteers for the Washington Alpine Club and the Gifford Pinchot Mt. Adams District National Forest Service.

CLASS NOTES

ALUMNI


CLASS NOTES

Ed Pyznar is in his 17th year as a Conservation Police Officer for Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection. He is an active Boy Scout leader. He and his wife Karen, who manages a children’s chorus through the University of Hartford, have a son Matthew who is just about to receive his Eagle Scout award. Ross Scrocca has been promoted to Forest Service Representative for the US Forest Service Timber Sales Administration, and the family has moved to Bend, Oregon. He and his wife Mary, who works for the school district, have three children Hannah, is a freshman at Oregon State, and Joshuah and Grace are in high school.

1992Lucia (Borodko) Picard is in her 25th year as Office Manager at Hidden Valley Camps in Montville. Denise Dowling is Senior Project Manager at HCL Technologies. Son Jace is 3.

Dan Menard was named Warden Supervisor of the Year at the annual Maine Warden Service awards banquet in April.

Jeff Nichols is Salmon Habitat Biologist for Alaska Fish and Game in Juneau. He and his wife Kathy have a son, Avery who is 3.

1993Glenn Annis has been promoted to Sergeant in the Maine Game Warden Service and will supervise Section Nine in Greenville. He has been a warden for 18 years.

Carleen (Cary) Borge lives in Gloucester, Mass. with her husband John and their three children: Evan, Ryan and Kaitlyn.

Matt Bruce is an Army Military Policeman back from Afghanistan. His son Ethan is a horseback rider and daughter Evelyn is in kindergarten.

Mitch Cropley is living in Connecticut working for All-Phase Enterprises as a Project Manager. He and his wife Andi have two children; Jake and Katie.

Joe Davis is Arborist Representative and local manager for Bartlett Tree Experts. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Maria (DePetta) Tur and Tony (’92) are both biologists for US Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services Field Office in Concord, N.H. They have three children: Anthony 16 years old, Natalie 15 years old and Maile 10 years old, and four dogs, three of which are beagles that Tony hunts with almost every weekend.

Tim Geremia is entering the Teacher Certification Program at Providence College for certification in science. He is working in an alternative learning program and coaches wrestling and lacrosse. He and Pam became grandparents in February when Ashley, who is a Corrections Officer, had a little girl, Emma. Timmy will graduate from high school in May and Zachary is a sophomore.

Doug McMullin is in his 8th year as Steward for the Maine Coast Heritage Trust, and he trusts land from Castine to Isle au Haut. His wife Kate is the Assistant Director at the Southwest Harbor Public Library, and their daughter Kieu is in kindergarten. Doug takes her with him as much as possible and she has been to more Maine islands than most 5-year-olds.

Karen Stinson is working on the family farm - raising steers, ducks, chickens, pigs and meat goats. She is the Livestock Superintendent at the Litchfield Fair, and is working on a youth agriculture education program.

1994Michael Chasse is director of a new project at Camden Hills Regional High School called Rising Tide. They serve students with emotional and mental health challenges. Mike has two children: Hunter age 14 and Eva age 6.

Jeff Day is a police officer in Tisbury, Mass. on Martha’s Vineyard. He started work on a master’s degree in criminal justice at Boston University this fall.

Shannon Henderson is an Automation Technician at Schumacher Equipment in Belmont, N.H.

Joya Kobu runs a business renting houses, parking lots and farms, and maintains cypress groves for lumber. He still goes fishing often.

Joyce (Rutledge) Smith is planning on moving back to New England from Florida. In the meantime, she is substitute teaching.

Dave Smith is in his 20th year as a Park Ranger at Acadia National Park. He has built his own solar greenhouse with an indoor gold fish pond, and helped a friend build a large scale commercial aquaponics greenhouse. He and his wife Natalie have a daughter, Melia who is 5 years old.

Stephen Sobczak is Camp Administrator at Hope Conference and Renewal Center. He and his wife, Erin have two children: Dylan age 4 and Quinn age 2.

Bret Stearns is Director of the Natural Resources Department for the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) Mass., part time Police Officer for the town of Chilmark and a volunteer EMT. He and Sarah have been married for fifteen years and together run an equestrian farm, Pond View Farm. Sarah manages their estate management firm. His stepson Jeffrey is 25 years old and a Bentley graduate; daughter Ava is 13 years old and a competitive equestrian rider, and son Graham, age 10, loves to hunt and fish. He also plays hockey, lacrosse and football.

1995Richard Bicknell is Supervising Ranger for the City of Palo Alto (Calif.) Baylands.

Barney Bonito is in West Virginia managing a video kayak program for Adventures on the Gorge.

Jenny DeFreitas is a beekeeper and makes and sells products from beeswax and honey.

Larry Dvorsky is Vice President of Sales for Total Tree Care in Cheshire, Conn. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Phil Farren was married in September 2012 and in December he became a grandfather to Alayna, child of his oldest daughter. He works for Eastern Plumbing and Heating in Lubec.

Kim (Kuntz) Gogan was a NOAA Teacher at Sea for the month of April. She is taking part in the Atlantic Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species and the Turtle Abundance Survey. Kim teaches Biology and Environmental Science at Newport (N.H.) High School. She and Chris have two children; Lilly Rose age 10 and CJ age 6.

Christine Lucero is Partnership Coordinator at the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. She and her husband, Mike Steen (Director of Education at the Watermen’s Museum in Yorktown, Va.) have a daughter, Zola age 4 and a chocolate lab named Barnabas.

Chuck Penney is a Soil Conservationist for the USDA National Resources Conservation Service and was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Rob St. Germain, his wife Pamela and their son, Matthew 18 months, moved to Costa Rica in April. They are expecting another son in June.

Jon Walton is a year away from completing his doctorate in Physical Therapy at Franklin Pierce University.

1996Karl Eschholz is engaged to be married to Elizabeth Whittemore. He is Hatchery Manager at Muscongus Bay Aquaculture in Bremen.

Elizabeth (Fijalek) Finn has her own jewelry making business, Beneath the Leaf. She will be showing her work at Maine art shows and at Common Ground Fair.

Joe Kibbin is a Consultant Materials Tester/Inspector working on Colorado DOT projects. He and Angie have two children: Jace 8 and Jory 5.

Ann Labonte and her husband Trent have a son, Camden born in May 2012. He has two big sisters, Marley and Teagan. Ann is the Infectious Disease Nurse for Salmon VNA and Hospice in Massachusetts.

Gary Miner is a Forester Sale Administrator for the US Forest Service stationed in the Green Mountain National Forest. He has a son in the Army who is attending Washington County Community College in Calais.

Tom Truman is a Wisconsin Conservation Warden, Field Training Officer, Tactical Firearms Instructor, and serves on the Tactical Flight Operator, Tactical Boat Operator and Underwater Remote Operating Vehicle Teams.

1997Hauns “Doc” Bassett a Master Specialist for Jobs for Maine Graduates, was at the Unity Career Fair in February. He and Kim have two children: Anders age 7 and Linnea age 5.

Josh Feldman stands in front of his graduation tree – 20 years later.

ALUMNI


Brock Clukey received the Maine Warden Service Exemplary Service award at the annual awards banquet in April. He and Jane have two daughters: Emma age 9 and Paisley age 7.

Jen (Fowler) Thompson is librarian at Lisbon High School, and loves it. She and Clint (’98) who is a Maine Marine Patrol Officer, have two sons: Kaleb age 9 and Collin age 8.

Takeshi Izawa is a 3D CAD Operator Engineer designing car parts and is a member of an Environmental Management System. He is married and living in Tokyo. He has a Vermont Casting wood stove in his home, which reminds him of his happy years at Unity.Christopher “C.J.” Walke has a new job as Farm Manager of the Peggy Rockefeller Farms in Bar Harbor for the College of the Atlantic. His wife, Korah Soll (’99) is finishing up her master’s degree in Educational Leadership at the University of Southern Maine. They have two daughters: Annabelle age 11 and Stella age 10.

1998Wayne Cronin is a Detective Sergeant with the Wells Police Department. He has a son Brandon age 9.

Matt Curtis is a detective with the Waldo County Sheriff’s Department. He and Katie have two sons, Thomas age 4 and Samuel age 2.

Paul Farrington was named Maine Game Warden of the year at the annual awards banquet in April. He has a K-9 dog, Koda. He and his wife Mandy have five children: Marina, John, Josh, Isabella and Mikayla.

Collin Landry is in his 20th year of working for SUR Construction as a Project Superintendent. He and Shelley have two daughters: Ivy age 7 and Alyse age 4.

Matt Martines marked 15 years of service in the Navy this April. He is stationed at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Wash. Matt is married to Miyuki.

Sean Recicar is Offender Reentry Program Specialist for the Burlington, Vt. Community Justice Center. Kyle Rosenberg was a featured speaker at the Bangor Garden show. He is the owner of Forest to Shore, a tree, landscape and forest service company in mid-coast Maine.

Sandi (Yaffe) White is Senior Lab Tech at the Greater Lawrence Sanitary District in North Andover, Mass. She and Josh have a new daughter Chloe, born in August, 2013. Big sister Hailey is 3 years old.

1999Jon Audet is a Transmission Linesman for Vermont Electric Power Co. He and Annie have recently built a new house on 85 acres near their family farm. They have three children: Carter age 7, Oliver age 5 and Avery age 3.

David Chiarito and Bridget have two sons, Ben, born January 1, 2013 and Zach is age 7. Dave just started his second master’s degree in Counseling in order to get his LPC license. His wife Bridget earned her master’s degree in Math and is chair of the Math Department at the local high school.

Jesse Cohen is the Community Affairs Officer for the Central Park Precinct of the New York Police Department. He and Melanie were married in 2010.

Joe Dionne is Construction Manager at A.C. Parsons Landscaping in Bernard. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February, along with his wife, Connie (Liszka) (’98). She is Manager of the Acadia Veterinary Hospital in Bar Harbor.

Dale Dixon is an attorney in Jacksonville, Fla. He and his wife Mary have a son Alexander age 9. His niece, Rachael Waugh is a freshman at Unity.

Stina (Johnson) Maksimowicz and her husband Mark have a son, Lukasz born March 15, 2013; Big sister Sadie is 10 years old.

Alvah Maloney owns his own business, Maine Kayak and is a registered Maine Guide. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Shawn McGough is in Information Security for the FBI and working on a master’s degree in Information Security at Norwich University. He and Denise have two sons ages 4 and 2 1/2.

Fred Mason is with the National Park Service in Fire Control at Acadia National Park. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Owen Montgomery is in his tenth year as a Wildlife Specialist for the USDA APHIS Wildlife Services.

Deirdre Schneider is a Legislative Analyst for the Maine Office of Policy and Legal Analysis, staffing the Joint Standing Committee on Transportation.

John Stokley is an Environmental Director for Pueblo of Tesuque in Santa Fe., N.M. He and Sarah have a son Samuel, born in July 2013.

2000Steve Betts is District Grade Crossing Coordinator and Utility Relocation Specialist for the Penn. DEP. He and Shannon have four daughters, Alexandra age 17, Gabrielle age 14, and twins Kilee and Kara age 9. He recently met up with his old friend, Joe Bonan.

Jim Buckle has moved his Buckle Farm back to Unity.

Andrew “Boots” Davenport and Echo have a second son, Finn Kenji born November 28, 2013, Thanksgiving Day. Ronan is 3 years old. Boots is Lead Firefighter on Yosemite National Park Helitek Crew.

Amber Hayden retired from the Army after ten years as an Environmental Science Officer. She was injured in Iraq. She is living in Oregon with John and 5-year-old Winter. They are raising Nigerian dwarf goats, ducks and chickens. They are expecting a second child in February. Amber’s future plans are to attend Oregon State University on the GI Bill for a master’s and doctorate degree.

Justin Preisesendorfer received the US Forest Service Bob Marshall Award for Internal Champion of Wilderness Stewardship. He is Recreation Manager/Snow Ranger at White Mountain National Forest. Last summer he had three Unity interns working in his program. He and Angie were married last fall.

Jason Provencher and Emily have a third child: daughter Tanner born January 11, 2014. Big brother Cameron is 5 years old and big sister Kenzie is 2 ½ years old. Jason is a professional civil engineer for AMEC Environment & Infrastructure in Portland.

2001Rachel Cliche is a Wildlife Biologist for the Silvio O. Conte National Fish & Wildlife Refuge in Vermont. Her husband, Sean Flint is a Wildlife Biologist at Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge in Errol, NH.

Darren Donovan just formed a new company, Ground Perfection Specialists which does land clearing and other types of vegetation management. He and Maranda have three children: Gabby age 14, Amelia age 7 and Teddy age 5.

Aimee Dorval and Tony Avila have a son Antonio born March 29, 2014. Aimee is an Administration Assistant for Public Safety and Facilities at Unity. Tony owns TA’s Automotive Services and Sales in Unity.

Leana Downs works part time in cardiology research while studying to become a medical doctor at Flinders University in South Australia. Jeremy Drake is Lead Arborist for Central Maine Power Company. He and Melissa have two children: Evan age 4 and Chloe age 1 1/2.

Ryan Fitzpatrick received the Maine Warden Service Exemplary Service Award at the annual awards banquet in April.

Leah Mitchell is a Computer Programmer for Stericycle. She has a 20 acre farm with chickens, cows, horses and a dog. She even bales her own hay. She also works part time for the Sheriff’s Department and is a member of the mounted posse team.

Hiroshi Okamoto has been working for the Shiretoko Nature Foundation that protects the biodiversity and ecosystems of Shiretoko National Park in Japan for nine years. He develops teaching materials, gives lectures, edits their magazine and does publicity. He credits his Unity life for his success.

Parker Rulison works for a children’s agency teaching life skills to children with disabilities. His wife Beth is a Vet Tech. They plan to move back to Maine to be nearer to her family.

Matt Shove was featured in an article in Bangor Daily News in January about ice climbing. He is the founder of Ragged Mountain Guides.

Amanda Swift teaches art in Washington, DC and also writes and illustrates children’s art books. She is married and has a son.

2002Michael Bernier is in his tenth year lobstering out of Birch Harbor. He has three sons.

Patrick Fiore is a Senior Guide at Captain Zipline in Salida, Colorado, leading people on zipline/ecotours across the Lost Canyon and the Aerial Adventure Park. He has started his own business called Immortal Chocolate, which sells handmade raw organic chocolate bars sweetened with Xylitol from birch trees. He uses eastern and western herbal extracts to make the different flavors.

Becky Blais and husband Phil (’03) had an addition to their family. Their daughter Elizabeth was born in December 2012: big brother Jacob welcomed her!

CLASS NOTES

ALUMNI


CLASS NOTES

Jeremy Floyd is working on a master’s degree in School Counseling at The Citadel, while working as a Special Educator in a Charleston high school. He and Melissa Zelaya will be married in Maine this summer.

Tim Fridinger is a Police Officer for Wilton, CT Police Department.

Thad Hutchinson is an Alabama Corrections Officer after two tours of duty in Iraq. He is Senior Instructor at the US Army Military Police School. He and Laurie have a daughter, Hayden who is 3 years old.

Amy MacLeod is Clerk of Court for the Sublette County (Wyo.) Circuit Court, and also Adult Facilitator for the County Gay Straight Alliance. She and Gregg Shedd, who is a Wildlife Biologist/Project Manager for Wyoming Wildlife Consultants, are living in Wyoming.

Ryan Porter is a Sergeant with the Canaan, N.H. Police Department. He and his wife Kellie have a son Bryce who is 5 years old.

Raquel (Ross) Goodrich is the Online Engagement Manager for the National Institute for Civil Discourse. Rob (’03) is with the Department of Homeland Security. They have a daughter, Kylie who is 3 ½ years old.Kerri Sands is Director of Client Services at Good Group Decisions in Brunswick and is working on an MBA in Sustainability at the University of Southern Maine.

Sarah (Stephenson) Conaway and Gary were married in 2011 and have a son Noah Robert, born December 27, 2013.

2003Bob Cartier is a Probation and Parole Officer for the Maine Department of Corrections and a Training Officer for the Waldo Volunteer Fire Department. He and Stephanie have four daughters, Taylor, Devin, Jordyn and Bailey.

Laura Cusick received a graduate diploma in Viticulture and Oenology from Lincoln University in 2013 and works at the Sherwood Estate Winery in Waipara, New Zealand. She and Matthew Mulder were married November 14, 2013.

Kristen Hewitt is finishing her Doctorate in Exercise Physiology at Springfield College and is an instructor in Exercise Science at Moorhead State University.

Morgan Holbrook is a Lab Analyst at Sanders Environmental Lab in Nokomis, Florida.

Jarod Hjort is a Fish Culture Assistant Supervisor for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife at the Enfield State Fish Hatchery.

Terry Hughes received the Maine Warden Service Exemplary Service Award at the annual awards banquet in April.

Brett Irving works at Revision Energy in Liberty.

Amy-Sue (Littlefield) Marden is owner of Marden’s Lawn and Garden Care in Morrill. She and Tim have a son Tucker who is 5 years old.

Katie (Maguire) Owen is a Chemist at Alere in Scarborough. She and Robert were married in June 2012.

Sammy (Marchesan) Charytoniuk received her master’s degree in Counseling from Adams State University and is a National Certified Counselor and Psychotherapist. She is also a Bilingual Behavior Health Therapist for Summit County, Colo.

Jasmine (Redlevske) Hammond is a Maine Forest Service Ranger in Jonesboro.

Becky Traylor works for Johnny’s Selected Seeds in Winslow. Her son Cassidy is 1 ½ years old.

Leo St. Peter owns Arbor Technologies, a tree care company in Waterville. He and Amy have three daughters: Jordan age 6, RileyAnn age 3, and Avery 19 months old.

2004Cheri Brunault is a Restoration Ecologist/Urban Forester for the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.

Alex DeLucia is Trails Volunteer Programs Supervisor and Sara (Dickenson) is Adventures Program Specialist for the Appalachian Mountain Club in Gorham, NH. They have two sons: Leo age 4 and Max age 1.

Evan Dilluvio is a Forester for the New Jersey Forest Service. He and Kara have a 6 year old son.

Patrick Hawes is a Connecticut State Trooper. He and Sandra have a daughter Briana who is 2 years old.

Jon Hewitt is a Cumberland County Deputy Sheriff and Corrections officer. He had the honor to take part in the Wreaths Across America at Arlington. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Scott Maddox is a Maine Forest Service Ranger and was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Adam Paul’s Environmental Consulting business works with Soil and Water Conservation districts of Waldo, Penobscot and Hancock counties. He is in the master’s degree of Forestry program at the University of Maine focusing on ecological and conservation forestry that alter maximum growth for maximum profit. He and his wife Autumn built a home off-the-grid on a 40 acre woodlot in Liberty.

2005Courtney Blodgett received her master’s degree in Environmental Education in 2013 from Western Washington University, and is working at a ski mountain in Montana.

Mike David is a Residential Energy Advisor for Next Step Living in Wallingford, CT.

Wesley Dean is a Maine Marine Patrol Officer, and was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Jeremy and Christy (Charters) (’04) have a son, Jack Frederick born February 18, 2014. Big sister, Emma is 3 years old. Jeremy is a Mass. Corrections Officer and Christy teaches science and coaches soccer at Dracut High School.

Lyndsey Smith is Lakeside Classroom Coordinator for Bryant Pond 4-H Camp, and she was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

David Snee guides multi-day rafting and mountain bike trips all over Colorado Plateau for Holiday River Expeditions in Utah. During the winter he works in a ski shop. He is working on a master’s degree in elementary education at Grand Canyon University.

Jeff Turcotte is a Maine Marine Patrol Officer and was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

2006Andre Dionne is Front Office Manager and fly fishing and hunting guide at the Cabins at Lopstick in Pittsburg, N.H.

Albert Hall and Aubrie have a son Brodie born in 2013. Their daughter Adelyn is 2 years old. Al is Operations Manager at Straw Hat Lawn Care in York.

Marcus Gray has been named Executive Director for the New River-Highlands Resource Conservation & Development Council and begins duties in mid-August. He will oversee the long-term and day-to-

day operations of the organization.He and Jess have a daughter Danielle who was born in 2012 and a son who was born summer 2014.

Dana Kedziora is an Emergency Veterinary Technician and is working toward certification this spring. She and Thomas Briotta have bought a house in Easthampton, Mass.

Casey Mealey is the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Maine Wilderness Lodges Programs and Recreation Manager. His picture and an interview about his work were in the January issue of Down East Magazine. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Matt Pawlikowski has a new position as Fire Engineer Operator for the US Forest Service on the Lassen National Forest based in Susanville, Calif. He and Melissa Ridgley were married in October, 2013 and they have bought a house on five acres in Janesville.

Gemma VanderHeld is a firefighter and EMT for the town of Conway, Mass. and is doing demolition work for a restoration company.

Nate Webb and Michele were married in February. He is a Customs and Border Protection Officer in Haines, Alaska.

Megan (Weber) Jennings is a phlebotomist for the Puget Sound Blood Center in Silverdale, Wash. She and Casey are expecting a son in September.

Marcus Gray and family on a hike.

ALUMNI


2007Steph (Aten) Pooler is a Park Ranger of Interpretation and Volunteer Coordinator at Prince William Forest Park, a unit of the National Park Service in Virginia. She received a master’s certification in Resource Interpretation from Stephen F. Austin State University, and is working on Emergency First Responder certification with the Park Service. She and Shawn celebrated their 6th anniversary in July.

Christine Blakesley is program assistant at Whole Children in Hadley, Mass working with children and adults with special needs. She is getting married May 31st.

Kevin Blanchette is a Patrol Trooper/Sergeant for the State of Alaska Drug Enforcement Unit in Talkeetna, Ala.

Morgan Buckingham is guiding dog sledding tours in Colorado.

Philip Catanese is Program Coordinator and Instructor at Bryant Pond 4-H Camp, and was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Dave Cocke is a ski instructor in the winter at Deer Valley Resort and a fly fishing trip guide in the summer for Park City Fly Shop in Park City, Utah.

Brian Farrell is a Police Officer in Plaistow, N.H. He breeds pythons and geckos in his spare time.

Andrew Halbruner is an inspector for the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control and Hydrology. He and Heather have a daughter, Finley who is 2 years old.

Danielle Kane is Program Manager for Northeast Fisheries Branch/Marine Resource Assessment Group in Gloucester and Boston.

Meredith (Kellogg) Josselyn is Education and Outreach Coordinator for the Maine Wolf Coalition. She was at the Unity Career Fair in February. Nick is a Lead Biologist at Clearwater Labs. They have a daughter, Abigail who is 1year old.

Matthew Schofield is an Inventory Control Specialist at WalMart and Jessica (Springstead) drives a school van. They just moved into their new home.

Nick Josselyn is working at ClearWater Labs in Newport.

Sarah Snyder just completed her PhD at the University of Nevada-Reno.

Patty Stewart was hired at Cromwell Coastal Properties in Wiscasset as a real estate agent.

2008Samantha (Chisholm) Fleming received her master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Boston University in 2014 and is a Federal Wildlife Officer at the Patuxent Research Refuge in Laurel, MD. Andrew works for an environmental consulting company dealing with contaminants.

Scott Cunfer is Shotgun Range Master for Alaska Fish and Game at Rabbit Creek Shooting Park in Anchorage.

Sarah Davis is a Wildlife Rehabilitation Technician for Hawaii Wildlife Center in Kapa’au, Hawaii.

Brittany Jenkins has been working for Outward Bound in Australia. Recently she worked for Hurricane Island Outward Bound in Maine and for Alaska Crossings in Wrangell, Ala. She spent the winter sailing, traveling and tramping around New Zealand.

Alex Johnston is a Conservation Officer for the Conn. Environmental Conservation Police. He spent last summer as a Law Enforcement Ranger at the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area outside of Spokane, Wash..

Caty Jones is Education Interpreter at the Franklin Park Zoo in Boston.

Clayton Kern received his master’s degree in Marine and Environmental Biology from Nicholls State University. He is working as a Fisheries Observer out of Gloucester, Mass.

Kya Lisum is a high school counselor in Yuma, Ariz.

Jeremy and Jamie Pelletier have a son, Nathan Wendell, born February 21, 2014. They have a daughter Baylee who is 1 year old. Jeremy processes military recruits for the Department of Defense.

Gerry Forrest Pound is pursuing his goal to earn an advanced diploma is Forestry Protection. He will be attending the University of Victoria to earn a Restoration of Natural Systems degree.

Heather (Thompson) Adam is a stay-at-home mom to Colton age 16 months and Hannah age 3 months. She is married to Mel, a Maryland DNR Police Officer.

Zachary Schmesser is an event coordinator of Bike Maine and is the President of New England Mobile Showers. He just recently became engaged to be married to Emily Horton.

Sara Trunzo is Farm Visibility Project Manager and Director of Veggies for All for the Maine Farmland Trust in Belfast.

2009KatieBrackett is Sales and Service Manager for Maine Huts and Trails in Carrabassett Valley.

Trennan “TJ” Dorval is a Wildlife Biologist for the USDA Aphis Wildlife Services in Lakewood, Colo.

Andrew Durgin is a Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department Deputy. He and Knox County Deputy Sheriff Nate Jack and Cumberland County Deputy Jon Hewitt (‘04) all took part in the annual Wreaths Across America ceremony at Arlington Cemetery.

Bradley Eklund has his own business, Entwood Crafts, making wooden puzzles and toys. He also works in a plant nursery.

Andrea Heim is an Urban Farm Supervisor for a non-profit that provides internships for the developmentally disabled.

Nate Jack is a Deputy Sheriff, DARE Officer and Field Training Officer for the Knox County Sheriff’s Office. He is also Special

Agent for the Maine Drug Enforcement

Agency. He took part in Wreaths Across America at Arlington Cemetery.

Alex Koch is teaching at the Wayfinder School in New Gloucester.

Andrew Smart is a Maine Game Warden at Clayton Lake.

Amanda Walker is Volunteer and Environmental Education Coordinator for US Fish and Wildlife Service at Chincoteague Island.

Nathan Williams is a Staff Sergeant and Recruiter in the Maine Army National Guard and was at the Unity Career Fair in February. He and his wife Sarah have a daughter, Cameron who is 1 year old.

2010Ethan Buuck received the Maine Warden Service Exemplary Service Award at their annual awards banquet in April.

Kristen (Cowan) Thiebault is teaching a biology lab at Simmons College. Brian (’12)

CLASS NOTES

Thomas Frezza and Tori Arnold’s were married in October 2013.

Zach Schmesser and Emily Horton’s engagement photo.

ALUMNI


works for Bartlett Tree Experts and is also a Crash Rescue Firefighter.

Lincoln Holt is the owner of a custom knife making business, Montana Hammer Knives in Havre, Mont.

Erik Larson is assistant professor of Geology at Shawnee State University in Portsmouth, Ohio. He received his master’s degree in Geology in 2012 and his PhD in Earth and Atmospheric Science in 2014; both from Mississippi State University. He is spending the summer teaching a Geology Field Camp in Colorado Springs for Louisiana State.

Casey Smith is Chief Operating Officer at Aroma Joe’s Espresso Coffee Bar.

Kurt Karlsson is a Kennebec County Sheriff Office Corrections Officer. He was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Dave Stillson received his master’s degree from Adelphi University in 2013. He and his wife Erin have a daughter Lilli and a son Rainier born in 2013.

Derek Wilson is a service manager for Modern Pest Service. He and Melanie have a son, Granger born in August 2013.

Amanda Wogaman is Assistant Director at The Summer Camp, and was at the Unity Career Fair in February. She is working on her master’s degree at the University of Southern Maine.

2011Jean Altomore is living in Connecticut and working for 350.org.

Kate Aucoin and Michael Church (’09) are getting married in June. Kate is working in the accounting department of Photofabrication Engineering in Milford, Mass. Mike works for a private electrical company in Worcester.

Jessica Brummel is engaged to be married to David Parsons and are planning an August wedding. They have a son, Alexander who is a 1 ½ years old. Jessica is a vet tech at New England Animal Hospital in Waterville.

Patrick Hunt is brewing beer at Shipyard Brewery. He and Amanda Wogaman (’10) live together in Portland.

Stacy Morrison is an IBM Technician for Backyard Farms in Madison.

Mike Paulsen is a Park Ranger for Washington State Parks and Recreation at Cape Disappointment.

Alicyn Ryan is in her third year of the doctoral program in Plant Medicine at the University of Florida and hopes to graduate in August 2015. She and Andrew Smart (’09) are engaged to be married.

Anthony Ryan is Field Operations Manager for NEON Inc. in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Joy Sheehan works for Princess Cruises as a Youth Counselor.

Heather Tetreault teaches in a Montessori School in Mississippi.

2012Candice Blodgett is in a pre-vet certificate program at the University of Southern Maine.

Bethany Boucher has her own company Amazing Animal Ambassadors, and travels all over New England teaching with wild animals.

Ryan Green is working for Lower East Side Ecology Center in New York City. He is coordinating urban composting.

Julie Fallon is the Agricultural Educator for The Lands at Hillside Farms. Her job is connecting people with sustainable agriculture and inspiring them to eat local and grow their own. She works with schools from pre-school to college, and also works closely with a school for children who are autistic.

Dave Hammond and Kelsey Sullivan were married in October. Dave is Maintenance Supervisor and Manager at Ararat Farms in Lincolnville, and Kelsey is a pharmacy technician at Winslow Pharmacy.

Bri (Rudinski) Benvenuti is applying to UNH Graduate School for Wildlife Conservation. She was at the Unity Career Fair in February representing the Rachel Carson National Forest.

Randi Salisbury is doing a yearlong apprenticeship with Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation in San Antonio, Texas.

Marissa Smith has completed four internships and is now doing freelance editing for Bucks County Publishing House. She is also working at a library part time.

2013Hans Axelsson worked as a Wildlife Technician for the Forest Service in New Mexico for six months after graduation, then built commercial fishing nets in Seattle, and is now working as a commercial fisherman with his family. He is planning on attending graduate school.

Matthew Bruno, along with four friends, started hiking the 2663 mile long Pacific Crest Trail in April. It should take about five months.

Robert Eckelbecker is a Fisheries Biological Science Technician for the US Forest Service in Prairie City, Ore.

Craig Geddis is a Plant Health Care Specialist for Bartlett Tree Experts in their Auburn, Mass. office. He just finished a supplementary course in their diagnostic clinic in Charlotte, NC.

Ashley Hewitt is working in the greenhouse at an organic vegetable farm planting seeds and taking care of goats, chickens, turkeys and horses.

Cody Jackman is a game warden with Vermont Fish and Wildlife, and started training at the police academy in February.

Hope Kanarvogel is working for Vermont Fish and Wildlife in the Hunter Education Program.

Kiera Kirschner is teaching Plant Science and Environmental Science/Natural Resources at Essex Aggie in Hathorne, Mass. She has also started taking courses towards a master’s degree in Education.

Holly Kocincki is taking a year off to save money for graduate school. She just became engaged to be married. Her boyfriend is in the Navy and she will be moving to California in August.

Daniel Orlando is working with US Fish & Wildlife Service on Johnston Atoll in the Central Pacific on Crazy Ant Strike Team. It is one of the most remote atolls in the world with no resupplies. It is a National Wildlife Refuge owned by the US Air Force, and was used for nuclear and missile testing and chemical storage.

Nicole Prescott is a wildlife officer for US Fish & Wildlife Service, and goes to Glynco, Ga. for the police academy in December. Amanda Robinson is working as a dog groomer at PetSmart and aerobics instructor while looking for a zoo job.

Ivonne Romero has a job with Aster Canyon, an environmental consulting firm, in Pinedale, Wyo. She is conducting wildlife, songbird and endangered plant surveys and pre-disturbance assessments. She previously worked as a technician with Utah State University on a sage grouse project in Wyoming and a Raptor Migration Monitor with HawkWatch International in Wyoming and Utah. Kelsey Tuttle is assistant director at The Incarnation Camp in Conn. She was at the Unity Career Fair in February.

Rachelanne Vander Werf is a VISTA worker for CHOC, a low-income housing nonprofit.

Michele (Wagner) and Andy Butler (’12) are married. Andy is an environmental technician for Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Michele is working as an assistant manager in a department store.

Emilee Werries works for Sweetser doing direct care for children in residential services in Plymouth.

2014Michelle Demko just returned from a 22-day wildlife conservation expedition to South Africa with a group called EcoLife.

Jennifer Michaud has a full time position as a dog trainer for upland bird dogs at Wildwind Kennels in Freedom. She is continuing to pursue professional timber sports.

Lucero Torres was recently awarded one of only four undergraduate scholarships from the National Association for Interpretation. This award will enable her to attend the National Workshop of the country’s largest professional association dedicated to the profession of natural and cultural interpretation. The 2014 workshop is in Denver Colorado. Her scholarship includes registration, transportation, accommodations, field trips, special events and access to over 120 concurrent sessions from interpreter around the globe.

Zach Wigham has received a full scholarship to Smith College’s Licensed Clinical Social Worker graduate program. His focus will be on working with veterans who are survivors of military sexual trauma and their families.

CLASS NOTES

Jessica Brummel and David Parsons’s engagement photo.

ALUMNI


CLASS NOTES

DEATHSJeffrey Bailey (’75) died November 13, 2013 in Cherryfield, Maine. He was an associate broker at Water’s Edge Realty in Milbridge, Maine. He is survived by his wife, Vickie.

Shawn Biello (’93) died April 30, 2013 after a six month battle with cancer. She is survived by her parents and her three children: Amber, Mariah and Nick.

Richie Masse (’71) died March 25, 2014 of a brain injury from 2002. He worked for his family’s pulp and lumber business. He is survived by his lifelong partner Rachel Cloutier, her three children, two sisters and five grandchildren.

Donald Mortland English Professor Emeritus died this past February. He is survived by his two daughters and their families.

Carol (Pignatare) Mosher (’97) died November 9, 2013 after a long illness. She is survived by her husband, Jack, and her two sons, Harrison age 14 and Nathaniel age 12.

Carroll Plourde died November 25, 2013. He was Athletic Director and Basketball Coach in the ‘60s and ‘70s and was responsible for creating Unity’s athletic program. He is survived by his wife, Sylvia and children and grandchildren.

Mollie Schmidt died in November. She was a very active Trustee during the ‘80s, often coming to campus to talk with students. She is survived by her children and grandchildren.

Tyler Schueler (’75) died November 24, 2013. He was president of his own company Medline Industries in Sarasota, Fla. He is survived by his wife, Deb and his daughter, Kara.

Samantha Wright (’02) died January 2014. She is survived by her husband and daughter.

Allen York (’72) died February 13, 2014. He was a logger and a campground owner in Madison, and he served for many years on the Board of Directors of the Maine Campground Owners Association. He is survived by his father, three children and five grandchildren.

George Fowler at the Pioneer BBQ hosted by Unity College, July 2014.

Marc ’73 and Laura Bane at the Pioneer BBQ hosted by Unity College, July 2014.

Jerry and Judy Trundy enjoy reuniting with Dot Quimby at the Pioneer BBQ hosted by Unity College, July 2014.

Bob Porter ’73 and Carol Lichtenbaum at the Pioneer BBQ hosted by Unity College, July 2014.

NEWS OF FORMER FACULTY AND STAFFDirk and Ulli Dunbar have a granddaughter, Mayson, daughter of Julia and Brad. Annabelle is a Humanities/Environmental Studies major at the University of Central Florida. Jeremy and Gloria are in Germany where he is in his third year in Germany’s Pro-A Soccer League. Dirk and Ulli plan to visit them in March.

Sue Gawler developed ALS three years ago, and her husband Roy who is retired is her 24/7 caregiver. Both children have moved home to support the family.

Wilson and Ellie Hess have a new granddaughter, Claretta Jane, born to Deb and Jared Harbaugh. Her sisters are Addy 5 and Maggie 3. Wilson is President of the University of Maine at Fort Kent, and Ellie is also working at the university.

Ed and Louise Hinkley spent the winter in Arizona and the summer back in Maine. Ed has coached his last high school tennis team, and is now playing with 4 tennis groups. Louise is playing in a flute choir.

Pioneer BBQ, July 2014

Celebrate 50 Years of Environmental Leadership!On September 7, 2015 Unity College will turn 50 years old and we are celebrating this great achievement. We are gathering stories, videos and photos from Unity alumni from the past five decades. To contribute, email: [email protected]

America's Environmental Collegewww.unity.edu

Educates Sustainably Empowers Students Engages the World

Unity College:

By Martha NordstromIt was not until the third generation of Feldman’s that a

college so touched their family, that three generations decided to become donors.

Ben Feldman valued his education, but was never motivated to monetarily support his own alma mater. Yet, every year he and his wife Susie make a gift to Unity College in honor of their son Joshua Feldman ’94. Joshua’s grandparents, Myron and Nettie, do the same.

They do it to honor the education Joshua received, and as a way to honor Joshua’s life’s work aligned with wilderness preservation.

Forty years ago, Joshua Feldman was born with a challenging medical condition and an extraordinarily loving family. Surgeries saved his life.

As he matured, Joshua displayed an adept intellect, excellent values, and serious social challenges. “I could read 180 pages in an hour, but I couldn’t read social cues,” said Joshua. School was painful as the world was dependent on predictable social behaviors and outcomes. However, Joshua’s love of nature and ability to succeed via hands-on learning would soon open a door at Unity College.

Joshua’s father discovered Unity College in a New York Times article. The size, personal attention, and strong emphasis on the outdoors sold him. “Nature was more Joshua’s venue than people,” said Ben. But what really clinched the deal was when Ben called and Unity’s President answered the phone.

From the start, Joshua experienced the personal small college community that has attracted many students to Unity; a place to learn and mature. Joe Saltalamachia, a classmate and now the College’s Director of Admissions, says Joshua was a person who could relate best to nature. At Unity, Joshua found his area of study, made friends, and became a big part of our community. “He was our buddy,” said Saltalamachia.

Every student has a special place at Unity. The unique quality Joshua brought to campus was his tenacity. He joined the cross country team and ran every day. “I think I inspired other students to try harder,” said Joshua. His tenacity helped his teammates take their own running seriously. For years after Joshua graduated, an annual award was given in his name to the student athlete who showed the highest level of perseverance for the sport.

Today, Joshua has a meaningful life, as the manager of the Cutthroat Brook Tree Farm; a family endeavor with a strong heritage. Joshua’s mother, Susie, has lived on the farm since she was four.

Utilizing his Unity College education, Joshua is creating a large block of contiguous forest within the farm. The land Joshua maintains has an extensive trail system, open to the public. It is both a welcoming property and a wild oasis not far from the bustle of urban life. The work challenge for Joshua is combining wildlife habitat improvement best practices with recreational use. “You don’t teach people about things by putting fences around them,” said Susie Feldman.

The Feldman’s generosity and family spirit goes back generations. Joshua’s ninety-year-old grandfather, Myron Feldman, is the true family patriarch, and can be found behind his desk at the New Jersey business founded by his own father in 1929. Myron is proud of his grandson. “Joshua had a successful education at Unity. The school helped him learn to live with other people.” Unity College gave Joshua tools for life to make a difference.

When asked why she continues to offer financial support to Unity College 20 years after her son graduated, Susie said, “Unity gave us a focus for our son and aimed him toward a successful life.”

The Feldman family is committed to keeping that opportunity alive for the future for other students who love nature and want to preserve it as stewards of the Earth..

3 Generations of Donors

The Feldman family is committed to keeping that opportunity alive for the future for other students.

90 Quaker Hill RoadUnity, Maine 04988

“Unity College is experiencing its largest enrollment in its 50 year history.” -President Stephen Mulkey

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