COA NEWS COLLEGE OF THE ATLANTIC WINTER/SPRING 2002 BAR HARBOR, MAINE COA Awarded $360,000 Grant From FIPSE College of the Atlantic has been awarded a grant in the amount of $360,000 from the Fund for Improvement of Post Secondary Education (FIPSE), a program of the U.S. Department of Education. The grant will be used to develop a model for interdisciplinary experiential teaching that utilizes the watersheds in Hancock County and addresses the issues facing the gateway community of Acadia National Park - sprawl, pollution, over- crowding, degradation of water quality and wildlife preservation. The FIPSE grant was highly competitive; of 1,200 applications nationwide, only 110 awards were made. Awards are made only to projects that are judged to be capable of having a national impact on higher edu- cation. The grant will be paid over a period of three years to COA. Funds from the grant will be used to develop a college-community watershed curriculum for regional plan- ning, for faculty development and enrichment, and community education. This watershed-based approach to com- munity planning will involve building constituencies between COA and the Amy Scott '97, Downeast Acadia Watershed Initiative Coordinator, and Ken Cline, J.D., community, and community members Professor of Environmental Law and Policy will actually help design the courses SO Academic Dean at COA. "Our work the results of the research will be useful shed for several years through a coalition originally focused in and around Acadia of local and lake watershed associations, to them. Some classes will move off cam- National Park. With the use of GIS Acadia National Park, Frenchman Bay pus, and students will work with the peo- (Geographic Information Systems) we Conservancy, the City of Ellsworth, ple in the community to help them plan have been able to map areas on MDI as Hancock County Planning Commission, for the long term in a sustainable way. well as off island and have moved into International Paper and Penobscot "Students will be working on real proj- the bays on either side of the island," he Hydro. ects - something real that can make a dif- continued. The use of GIS will provide a ference," said Ken Cline, Professor of "Having students and communi- visual tool to teach the community about Environmental Law. ty members work together on regional the watershed. Faculty and students will issues as part of academic course work "College of the Atlantic is a pio- be developing scenarios to play out policy will provide unique opportunities for stu- neer in interdisciplinary education. We issues by looking at the watershed and its dents, faculty and stakeholders to address have taken some of the most important policies. real world needs in this area," said Micki environmental problems and used them COA has been working with Sumpter, Executive Director of the in teaching," said Rich Borden, stakeholder groups in the gateway water- Ellsworth Area Chamber of Commerce. COA Community Starts the COA News The Newsletter of Academic Year with Chilly Swim College of the Atlantic Winter/Spring 2002 EDITOR Carroll Gordon Public Affairs Manager CONTRIBUTORS Becky Buyers-Basso '81 Dorothy Wills Knapp PRESIDENT Steven K. Katona CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES John N. Kelly COA News is published twice a year and is circulated to alumni, students, parents and friends of College of the Atlantic. Nearly 40 swimmers await the start of the traditional race on a sparkling September afternoon. What began as the initiation of a new pier 11 years ago has become a tradition at College of the Atlantic. The Bar Island swim, a chilly third of a mile from COA's pier to the island, was started by environmental law professor Ken Cline, who had lived in THE COLLEGE OF Bar Harbor for a year and had never been in the ocean. He gathered a small group of THE ATLANTIC students and off they went. The swim is traditionally held the first Friday after classes VISION STATEMENT begin and has grown to include other faculty and staff. First year students hear about The faculty, students, the event long before they come to the campus, many of them unaware of the temper- trustees, staff and alumni ature of the water. A fleet of small boats watches all swimmers in the event that any- of College of the Atlantic one needs assistance. envision a world where This year many swimmers adorned themselves with bright blue (non-toxic) people value creativity, waterproof paint, sporting slogans like "bar or bust" and blue faces. Who knows, maybe intellectual achievement, it helped them stay warm. and the diversity of nature Hot chocolate and a cheering crowd awaited the swimmers as they returned and human cultures. With to the pier. Senior Bori Kiss from Hungary was the first to reach Bar Island and declared the winner. respect and compassion individuals will construct meaningful lives for themselves, gain appreciation for the relationships among all forms of life, and safeguard the heritage of future generations. VISIT THE COA WEBSITE www.coa.edu Blue blue body paint, wool hats and wetsuits COA's version of Blue Man Group. were among the items worn by the swimmers. COA News 2 WINTER/SPRING 2002