College of the Atlantic Much as we would like to, we can no longer prepare students for life in "tomorrow's world." We can barely conceive of tomorrow's world. With the increasing pace of social and technological change, we can hope only to pre- pare students to recognize the nature of change and to acquire the skills and attitudes which will enable them to deal courageously and responsibly with the problems associated with change. An examination of ecological problems - the interrelationship of man and environment - has been chosen as the core of the curriculum not only be- cause of the urgency of these problems (which makes them "relevant" in the narrow sense), but because their very complexities provide the means for developing habits of thought, action and feeling necessary for coping with a changing world. Problems in human ecology require perspectives difficult to acquire within the confines of traditional academic and professional specialization. Parts need to be continually related to wholes. Analysis and synthesis become alter- nating emphases in a single continuing learning experience. The aim of this kind of education is not the acquisition of a particular body of knowledge by itself, but - as Alfred North Whitehead expressed it - "the acquisition of the art of utilization of knowledge." COLLEGE OF THE ATLANTIC / BAR HARBOR, MAINE. 04609 (207) 288-5015 ACADEMIC CALENDAR, 1973-74 Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 15 & 16 Registration Monday, Sept. 17 Classes begin Friday, Nov. 30 First term ends Wednesday, Jan. 2 Classes resume Friday, March 8 Second term ends Monday, March 25 Classes resume Friday, May 31 End of third term All new students are expected to spend three consecutive terms in resi- dence. Thereafter, students who began in 1973 may spend two, three, or four terms in residence per 12-month period. The period from Monday, December 3, to Friday, December 14, will be de- voted to a comprehensive evaluation of the first term's accomplishments. Note: information regarding the 1973 outdoor orientation program and the 1974 summer term will be available shortly. 2. CONTENTS ACADEMIC CALENDAR page 2 INTRODUCTION page 5 MOUNT DESERT ISLAND page 6 THE COLLEGE COMMUNITY pages 8-10 Living Together; The Campus; Housing; Cars; Health; In- formal Curriculum; Special Supplies ARTS, CRAFTS AND ACTIVITIES page 12 GOVERANCE pages 14 & 15 ADMISSION AND FINANCIAL AID pages 16-19 Admission Policy and Proced- ures; Transfer Students; Financial Aid; College Costs and Policies EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM pages 20-25 3. Advising; Degree Require- ments; Contract System; Independent Study; Intern Program 1973-74 CURRICULUM page 26 FACULTY AND STAFF pages 48-49 TRUSTEES page 50 II II INTRODUCTION College of the Atlantic is a small, private, co-educational institution awarding the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Human Ecology. The college pro- vides an education which is both broadly based and carefully focussed. Rather than sampling from a random assortment of disciplines, students participate in an integrated curriculum organized around a central theme, the study of Human Ecology. The college began as a community effort, sponsored and organized by a group of concerned Mount Desert Island residents who wished to bring in- 5. creased intellectual diversity, environmental awareness, and economic stability to the island. After four years of planning, the college opened in September 1972 with 32 students and 6 faculty members (4 full-time; 2 part-time). The college's purpose is to study the various relationships which exist between humans and their environment, including both the natural world which supports our existence and the society and institutions which we have created. Some of the clearest examples of this interaction are in the area where people have done or threaten to do harm, both physical and aesthetic, to the natural world. Concern with current and developing problems, matched by an awareness of the forces of change, underlies the flexibility of the col- lege's programs and the possibility for redefinition and modification which exists at all levels of the college's operation. The problem-centered curriculum is designed to utilize the thought and research generated by both empirical and theoretical investigation. Offerings include detailed examinations of specific environmental problems, supple- mented by seminars covering a wide variety of related subject matter. The curriculum itself may be regarded as a working system in which all the parts complement and reinforce one another. There is no rigid department structure, and persons with different backgrounds, disciplines, and experience work to- gether. Some administrators teach; some faculty members share administra- tive responsibilities. All members of the college community - students, staff, and trustees - share the responsibility for implementing the college's goals. 2 MAINE BANGOR 1 95 MT. DESERT ISLAND PORTLAND College of the Atlantic 95 BOSTON 6. MOUNT DESERT ISLAND Mount Desert Island is a uniquely beautiful combination of forests, lakes, mountains, and ocean, about 250 miles "downeast" from Boston. Connected to the mainland by a small bridge, the island has approximately 80 miles of coastline and an area of 150 square miles. Portions of the island remain un- developed; approximately one-third is permanently protected by Acadia Na- tional Park. During the period from October to June, the island is uncrowded and quiet. The year-round population is about 8,000, largely concentrated in four towns. In the summer, the residential population doubles, and more than two million visitors flock to Bar Harbor to visit the park. The island's economy is dominated in the summer by the tourist trade, and in the winter by boat- building, fishing and lobstering, and the Jackson Laboratory, the nation's largest center for the study of mammalian genetics. With its glacial lakes, climax forests, scars of the 1947 fire, mountains, and the ever-changing interface between land and sea, the island is an outdoor laboratory of vast scope and resources. The impact of more than 2 million tourists on the island's natural resources, economy, and collective psyche offers opportunity for study (both theoretical and practical) in economics, law, political decision-making, psychology, biology and aesthetics.