Global Campus Moretown Fall Term 2011!!!

For many this is their first time attending a Global Campus class. The environment is loose, fun, and full of banter. Many classes consist of throwing celebratory parties with cake and potlucks. For the times when we are not celebrating we start by gathering in a group common area to pass a Talking Stick and share events of the past week. We then proceed into the actual class where faculty from Global Campus get up and teach the rest of us a little something about their hobbies and lifestyles. Classes usually last from 1 - 2:30 so that there is time to fit everything in. Global Campus always welcomes new participants and looks forward to the experience of meeting new people. - By Lee Willsey Potter

I did the best job and I really love it here! - Jennifer Lovelette

Bowling. I explained about what size ball you should use in my class. I liked putting the clay on the oven with my hands. - By Roy Francis

I like Global Campus because I can share about my interests, especially cats! - By Rhonda Komulainen

I did the Race Class last year. I talked about how the cars get fixed and how they get smashed up. Then they get towed with a tow truck. Global Campus is fun! - By Neil Rauh

I love to hang out at Global Campus. - By Matt Hersey

I like it because everyone meets. I like bringing a new match box car to share each week. Friends. - By Curtis James

Global Campus is a nice place! - By Holly Hilton

I liked Finbar's Airplane class. - By Gabriel Teran

GC Randolph Reflects on their Fall Term 2011!

We learned about the Tunbridge Fair from Vicki at the Library. In Edie's Talking Books classes we switched to a new story about a chimpanzee living with a family, it is great! Rick taught us about bowling and we learned the inside of the ball is made of hard plastic. Missy showed us how to set a table with laminated placemat diagrams in her Basic Table Setting class.

The VT state butterfly is the monarch and the tree is a maple. That was from Edie and Vicki's State Symbols class. Dan gave a drumming demonstration and played along with ACDC.

Kathi, Cheryl and Joe taught us about fall leaves and how to make a collage with them. Everyone at MENIG liked Rena and Justin's class on Baseball Bingo. We learned baseball terms like infield, outfield, and innings. Jonathan taught us what VDOTU stands for in his TV show class and we learned more songs in Theme Song Trilogy.

We made a Full Value Contract that says how we should treat each other at our campus and we all signed it. Our theme is Building Community and we made a map of our community with all the connections we have, like where we live and work. We also invited guest speakers from the community to teach at our campus in the Spring Term. It's our campus!

- By Melissa Campbell, Rick Holbrook, Daniel Dunn, Edith Billings, Vicki Uphahm, Raymond, Justin Lumbra, Rena Haevers, Jonathan Fletcher, Lisa Dickinson, Marion Casarico, and Kathi Pratt

Global Campus Shiremont Makes A Meal for the Upper Valley Haven

Global Campus Shiremont, which includes participants from New Hampshire and Vermont, made a dinner of lasagna, salad, bread and desserts at the Adult Shelter on October 28, 2011. We chose the Haven for our Community Service project because they help people in need no matter what their situation is. After the meal was prepared, we shared the fruits of our labor and ate dinner with some of the residents. It felt good to help others who are less fortunate than we are.

Global Campus Shiremont participants

GC Bradford Helps Their Community!

In September, Shawn heard a radio advertisement saying that the Bradford Food Shelf was low and in need of food items. She shared the idea at her campus as part of a discussion about a fall Community Service Project. Our campus liked the idea and created a food drive to help out. We set up a collection box at Upper Valley Services. Robin set up another box at the Bradford Public Library, and Shawn arranged to have one above the Local Buzz. We collected nearly 100 non-perishable food items and delivered them to the food shelf. Valorie reported today that the food shelf is now doing well. Jeannie says our food drive was, "Pretty good!".

- By the Global Campus Bradford Core Group

Global Campus Springfield Raises $400.00 for Flood Relief

We love our neighbors and felt compelled to help those who suffered as a result of Tropical Storm Irene. We are blessed and wanted to share our blessings. We recently held a raffle and raised $400.00 which is being divided between the Springfield Family Center and Black River Good Neighbors. We also held a food drive. Thank you to everyone who donated prizes or bought raffle tickets. Water can never wash away love!

Global Campus Springfield participants

The Famous Pyramids of Egypt!

I was very excited to share my class on the Pyramids of Egypt. I had a great turnout for my class! I brought in a cardboard model of a pyramid, a poster, handouts, and little cards with images and facts on them. We attempted to mummify Andreas with paper towels, but they kept coming apart. He won't be preserved all that long. I asked the question to my students, "Can anyone guess how high the Khufu pyramid, the highest pyramid in Egypt is?" There is a new pyramid that was just discovered under the ocean off the coast of Asia.

- Robin, GC Bradford Faculty

Finbar Teaches About Airplanes and Gliders!

Global Campus Moretown was alive on friday afternoon! There were over forty people that attended Finbar's incredibly successful class on airplanes. At the farmhouse, Finbar began his class by playing a speech he had programmed into his talking device, sharing his passion for airplanes and airports. He showed a video clip of him flying a friend's Cessna out of Berlin Airport as well as two clips of weather research airplanes flying into hurricanes. He then invited us to carpool to Warren airport where we all marveled at the airplanes and gliders taking off and landing. Finbar invited Mark, from Sugarbush Soaring, to share his airplane and glider wisdom with us. It was a beautiful afternoon for a beautiful class. Fantastic!

GC Participants: Leaders in their Campus and their Communities

As Global Campus participants all over Vermont and New Hampshire grow through the process of engaging with their campus, they encourage each other to take on more responsibility and leadership. "It's our campus," we always say! Robin, a teaching faculty at GC Bradford decided that the local library would be a good place to spread the word in the community about her campus so she presented to the librarian about GC Bradford. Thanks to her efforts the campus has been invited by the library to have a display of our Fall Term Catalogs for community members to pick up, learn more about our campus, and attend our classes. Rena, a faculty participant at GC Randolph thought it would be great to offer her Baseball Bingo class at MENIG, an assisted living facility associated with Gifford Hospital in Randolph, so she went and talked to the MENIG coordinator and successfully secured both a venue and a very excited class audience there! These are just a few of the countless examples of campus participants taking charge and driving the growth and development of THEIR Global Campuses. Keep up the great work!

GC Moretown Celebrates a Year of Mud!

In the fall of 2010, Neil, a faculty member at Global Campus Moretown, decided he wanted to teach a class on how to build an outdoor oven. This idea sparked a year long adventure at our campus as Neil guided us through the process of constructing our very own outdoor oven made of cob, a mixture of clay, sand, and straw. It was a challenge for some participants who don't enjoy getting dirty, but just about everyone got their feet muddy mixing the cob and enjoyed the cool mud between their toes! We just finished our oven a few weeks ago and celebrated the process at our annual cider pressing event, baking pizzas to perfection in the beautiful oven for the community to enjoy! Neil is so proud of his oven, congratulations Neil!

GC Moretown Supports Flood Relief at their 4th Annual Cider Pressing Festival

This friday was a dynamic afternoon at the GC Moretown 4th Annual Cider Pressing Festival! There was a huge turnout for the exciting event. Everyone had their hands in something, whether it was pressing and canning cider or making artisan pizzas to slide into the piping hot cob oven. After the cider was pressed in a hand press we pasturized it and canned it into beautiful mason jars with custom labels. The quarts of cider were then offered for a donation to support flood relief efforts in our community after tropical storm Irene.

Memo from Jim and Sherry to Campus Participants

September 5, 2011

Dear Global Campus Participants,

Congratulations on the beginning of your Fall Academic Term 2011!!! You all are amazing, and we look forward to seeing in your catalog what you plan to teach and learn. We also plan to visit your campus soon.

This past week, the northeastern part of the United States, particularly Vermont and New Hampshire, was hit with a major tropical storm that created great floods and much damage to property, homes and farmland. Many of you live in the communities that were struck by this natural disaster. On behalf of Global Campuses Foundation, we wish to convey our heartfelt concern for all of you, your families, and friends during this challenging time.

As participants of Global Campuses, you have demonstrated your interest and participation in the communities you live. Many of you have taught classes about local areas including about your home town. As a campus, you have contributed to your community through your GCF Community Service Projects and Connections Conferences. This year you have a curriculum theme about “Building Community and Strengthening Connections”. You are a very strong part of your communities throughout Vermont and in New Hampshire.

We know you will support one another as we all process and experience what has taken place. This experience is part of all of our journeys, and we can look to each other to share about and listen to our stories and needs. Your creative educational ideas will most likely demonstrate ways to further contribute to your communities. Stay strong and positive in all you do. We are proud to be your colleagues.

Global Campuses Rocks!

With love from, Sherry and Jim Tewksbury, GCF

GC BRADFORD DEVELOPS THEIR CAMPUS WITH T-SHIRTS!

Global Campus Bradford recently celebrated the completion of a campus development project creating T-Shirts for their campus. During the Spring Term 2011, campus participants identified T-Shirts as a great way to spread awareness about their campus in the community. The project began with a raffle basket fundraiser to raise money for the shirts. The core group then designed the shirts and submitted the design for completion. On tuesday the core group went to pick them up and try them on! Look for them around town!

GC Randolph Presents Community Connections Conference

On Monday evening, August 22nd, Global Campus Randolph hosted a Community Connections Conference at Our Lady of the Angels Church in Randolph, VT. This conference was created with the intention of introducing our campus to the community of Randolph, sharing the creative work we are all engaged in and making new friends and connections. There was a fantastic turnout for the conference with community members, campus supporters, ambassadors from other Global Campuses, and the participants of GC Randolph in attendance.

The evening included a welcome address, an honoring of campus participants, a sharing of the GC Randolph story, many dynamic short classes presented by Global Campus teaching faculty, and a panel discussion focusing on making new connections within the community. The participants on the panel welcomed community members to attend their classes and even to teach a class based on their own passions and interests! Community members were also invited to participate with the campus as a resource person, sharing a teaching experience with one of the GC Randolph faculty. When asked how community members should participate with a campus, Shawn of GC Bradford replied, "Just treat us as who we are and not as our disability."

During the catered meal that followed the main portion of the event, many community members in attendance shared how inspired and moved they were by the campus participants and their impressive work. Congratulations to all the GC Randolph participants who created this tremendously successful conference!

GC Randolph Explores Montshire Museum!

Global Campus Randolph traveled to Montshire Museum this week to explore their current exhibits and get some inspiration for Fall Term classes!. The museum had generously mailed us free passes to get in for the day so while we were eating lunch we all signed a thank you note for the executive director. There was a lot to explore in the museum. We started out as one big group checking out the robotic exhibit and then slowly drifted into smaller pods. The robot exhibit was really neat, there was a platypus, chameleon, house fly and other animals that were robotic and you could push buttons to make different parts move or light up, reading about different facts relating to the animal. I didn’t know that the male platypus has poison injectors in his hind legs for fighting with other males! We had fun with a chameleon camouflage exhibit, trying on different ponchos to blend into a background.

Rick, Dan and I ventured outside to the water park, but the warm bath water wasn’t much of a respite from the heat. As the afternoon came to a close we spent some time in the downstairs portion of the museum having a grand time with all the different permanent exhibits. Giant bubble contraptions, air tubes with foam balls, fish and reptiles in tanks, vortex and current machines, and more. It was a full afternoon!

Meet Richard & Phyllis Forbes – So Many Ways to be GCF Supporters

The relationship began with a common neighborhood – and quickly became a consulting engagement – but without the typical large price tag. In fact, Richard was so inspired by the impact of the young Global Campuses Foundation, he offered his services for free.

That was just the beginning of what would grow into nearly ten years of involvement and support by both Richard and his wife Phyllis. Both have vast and varied experience with global organizations and education. They met while doing Peace Corp work many years ago, and both continue to focus on neglected populations, holding a fundamental belief in the value of every human being. Dr. Richard Forbes did his doctoral research while spending seven years in Trinidad and studying with a guru. He feels that his values are strongly aligned with those of Global Campuses.

Richard has a strong interest in unique methods of education for any disenfranchised groups. He found his GCF consulting time to be an “extraordinary experience”, although he was skeptical at first. He saw the profound impact on the clients, and how empowered they were by their Global Campus work. Richard was especially inspired by how engaged the participants were. They took ownership of the campus and did things the way they wanted. He saw individuals who were distant and non-participatory become engaged and totally transformed. “In nearly forty years of working with groups and organizations throughout the world, I have never before witnessed such an enthusiastic outpouring of positive energy and such uniformly positive feedback as I experienced during my time at two of the Global Campuses.”

When comparing GCF to other organizations seeking support, the Forbes are drawn to GCF because it is also rooted in the fundamental belief in the value of every human being. The Tewksbury’s belief that given the opportunity, individuals will rise up to take charge of their lives – and will grow and develop as human beings, resonates strongly with them. No matter where we start from, we should all have that opportunity, they believe.

Phyllis works with USAID, which requires that she be networked with leaders throughout the world who address urgent challenges facing societies today. The depth of her connections and the breadth of her experience make her a prime candidate as a GCF board member. Phyllis has expressed her willingness to contribute her time and knowledge, as GCF begins board development activities. She has provided connections with leaders in the area of board development, and recently hosted a wonderful introductory meeting.

At one time, Richard & Phyllis donated a Plymouth Voyager van to the Foundation. The campus participants had a critical need for more transportation options, and the Forbes’ wanted to help in the best way possible. They have made many financial contributions to GCF over the years as well – motivated by the fact that the money was put to such good use, going directly into impacting more lives through program support.

More recently, the Forbes’ have offered yet another unique contribution to GCF. They manage commercial property, and currently provide the GCF headquarter space in Randolph at a fraction of the market value of the property. This allows GCF to continue to optimize the amount of support dollars that are used for campus operations.

Richard’s recommendation to others considering a contribution to GCF: Meet some of the participants, and witness the transformation. Whether attending a certificate event at the end of the term, or a conference event, such as the one being planned for Randolph this August, you will see a model that helps people get in touch with their strengths and develop them, with transformative results.

To make a donation to GCF, please visit our website at www.globalcampuses.org

To learn more about a monthly contribution plan, please contact us at info@globalcampuses.org

GCF Site Visit to Thailand Campuses and Beyond, March-May 2011

It is always amazing to me how each site visit with the foundation’s colleagues in Thailand is surrounded by impressive, inspiring and creatively meaningful accomplishments. Examples and highlights of those accomplishments continue to demonstrate the valuable outcomes of lifelong learning and the transformative power of education.

Global Campus Chiangmai, GCC, continues to be the hub of the foundation’s efforts in S.E. Asia. With two other well-established campuses, GC San Sai and GC Nan, and two newly developed Global Campuses, GC Mae Tang and GC Sangkampang, there is much growth to report. Also, Global Campus Nan now supports four smaller satellite campuses in the rural northern mountains near the Laos border.

GCF and GC Chiangmai have strengthened their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Chiang Mai University, CMU, with a variety of activities. (1) GCF is sponsoring a contest with the Faculty of Architecture third year students to submit building and site plans for a Global Campus Complex that is being planned. This complex will be 100% Universal Design, fully accessible and environmentally green and will become the educational center for GCF’s efforts in S.E. Asia. (2) GC Chiangmai continues to work with the student club at CMU that participates with university students who experience disabilities through natural support efforts and disability awareness seminars.

Additionally, I had the pleasure of being invited by the Vice President of CMU to be a keynote speaker and a panelist for a conference of University administrators from the Chiang mai area. My presentation, “Disability Culture: Changes in Social Attitudes and the Value of Lifelong Learning for All”, introduced the conference focus of exploring disability issues and disabilities studies in higher education.

The efforts of GCF are being recognized in the region, and I was invited to travel to Chengdu, China to share about Global Campuses with colleagues at Chengdu University. It was a wonderful introductory site visit, and as an outcome we are responding to their request to pilot a Global Campus in the Chengdu area.

So, as we at GCF look to the future work for the foundation, we are inspired by the potential for further growth to advance the foundation’s mission in South East Asia and around the world. These are exciting times!

Jim Tewksbury, GCF Director of Programs

Vermont Global Campuses Give Back!

Each semester participants in the eight Global Campuses in Vermont and New Hampshire take the initiative to design and implement a community service project at their campus. Check out all the great organizations we have supported over the years!

Global Campus Newport

NEKCA food shelf, Newport (multiple years)

Red Cross - donations for tornado relief

Green-up Newport

Community Garden - community vegetable donations

Global Campus St. Johnsbury

NEKCA Food shelf, St. Johnsbury

Local Family - $450 donation for house reconstruction after fire

Green-Up Lyndonville

Springfield College - Green up and picnic table repair (multiple years)

Global Campus Hardwick

NEKCA Food shelf, Hardwick

Greensboro Bend Methodist Church - planting flowers

Green-up Greensboro Bend

Global Campus Bradford

Bradford Food Shelf (multiple years)

Collected school supplies for children in Haiti

Orange East Senior Center, Bradford – picked and donated apples (multiple years)

VT Food Bank – helped glean strawberries for the food bank

Global Campus Randolph

Donated Thanksgiving basket to local family

Green Up Randolph (multiple years)

Collected school supplies for children in Thailand

HEIFFER International – donated $500

Global Campus Moretown

AMURTEL – benefit dance for Haiti relief donated over $3000 (multiple years)

Green Up Mad River Valley (multiple years)

Global Campus Springfield

Nirikshea School, Bangalore, South India – Car wash and bake sale donated $240

Mercy Corps – fudge sale raising $250 for Japan Tsunami relief

Springfield Family Center, Springfield, VT

GCF Honored on its 10th Anniversary at the State Capitol!

Global Campuses Foundation was recently honored by the Vermont Senate and House of Representatives on the celebration of our 10th anniversary this year. Representatives from different areas of the state offered and passed a Concurrent Resolution honoring GCF and the foundations creative and dynamic work!

Here's the link to the Resolution on the State of VT Legislature's Website.

Global Campus Shiremont Completes Its First Full Term

The newest Global Campus initiative, Global Campus Shiremont, recently completed its first full term of classes. Global Campus Shiremont meets weekly in Lebanon, New Hampshire and includes participants from both Vermont and New Hampshire. Everyone has been impressed by how the campus participants have developed their campus in just a few short months. Seventeen participants were involved in either attending or teaching classes this spring! The Spring Term catalog offered a variety of classes and workshops that provided unique and interactive learning opportunities. The educational offerings included: Where Do I Come From (genealogy and family trees), Animal Anatomy & Physiology (which featured the dissection of a fetal pig in the final class), History of Germany, Pocahontas, Ready To Sew, The Childhood of Helen Keller, Dance to Anything, Disney Classics and The Love of Butterflies and Flowers (poetry). Congratulations again to the Global Campus Shiremont participants!

Global Campus Springfield Honors Two Home Providers

At the recent Global Campus Certificate Day, participants, support staff and the Global Campus Academic Coordinator honored two home providers, Lucy Tardiff and Kerry Banks, who generously donate their time and energy to the participants.

Lucy and Jean, the participant she supports, have been involved in Global Campus Springfield since it began in 2008. With a sense of humor, positive attitude and creativity, Lucy has been a wonderful resource person for Jean. Lucy constantly finds creative ways for Jean to present her topic and understands how to support Jean while she is teaching without taking over. Lucy's supportive attitude also extends to other Global Campus participants. She is quick to lend a hand when needed and always does more than what is asked of her. This term, Lucy supported Jean's interest in forming the Pyramid Pot Luck Club, based upon Jean's interest in healthy eating. Each week participants shared nutritious, easy recipes, learned about food additives and sweeteners and visited the local food cooperative.

Kerry began her participation with Global Campus while working as a support staff. She quickly grasped the Global Campus philosophy and saw potential for those participants whom she supported, helping them decide on a topic they could teach and supported them throughout the process. Now that she has become a home provider to Dennis, Kerry is continuing her commitment to ensure that the participants she supports have a successful Global Campus experience. She is an excellent resource person, assisting participants with ideas for classes, helping them with research and supporting them during their teaching experience. This term, she recognized Dennis' love of music and helped him create and teach a 6 week class about the history of American music from early banjo to disco.

GC Newport and St. Johnsbury Pilot Virtual Interactive Classes!

Global Campus Newport and Global Campus St. Johnsbury connected through interactive TV for two course offerings this spring term.

About twenty-five people from Newport and fifteen from St. Johnsbury gathered in front of the interactive TVs to experience the new phenomenon of teleconferenced classes. The groups cheered as we got connected, waving at each other and reconnecting with old friends. It was really exciting to see everyone and be able to hear what they were saying. The first few minutes of the class was devoted to smoothing out the technology. St. J had a bit of trouble moving their camera, and Newport was hard to hear, but eventually we smoothed out these bumps and began teaching.

Edna was ready to teach her class Dogs and Cats. This was Edna’s first time teaching, and she was really prepared. We put the microphone right up next to Edna to make sure St. Johnsbury could hear her class and zoomed in the camera so they could see her posters and visuals. Edna had two stacks of note cards – one about cats, one about dogs. She also had two different posters as well as drawings she had made. Her class had a great mix of interactive questions and facts. She asked the group to list some of the things their cats or dogs do that are pesky. People said their pets scratch, chew things, smell, and shed. She then told the group how to care for animals and the appropriate ways to keep a pet. Raymond commented from St. J that he had recently taught an animal class. He is teaching a second class at the Fairbanks museum, for which he has made a scavenger hunt for people to find different types of animals in the museum. There were many questions back and forth, from both campuses.

Next up, Allycia began handing out copies of her PowerPoint presentation for the group in Newport to read through. We made note that, next time, we will email class materials such as these to St. Johnsbury ahead of time so they can see the handout. Also a first time teacher, Allycia taught us the Ins and Outs of High School. Alycia had great poise. She told us some of the good times at Lake Region, and also some of the times that have been less fun. She told us about nice friends she has made and fun classes she has taken. People were pretty interested in high school stories. Sharilyn from St. J told us about her experiences and asked specific questions about what it’s like in Special Ed these days.

After feedback and questions, we spent about half an hour in discussion between the campuses. People asked questions about family connections, summer plans, classes and updated each other on their campus happenings. It was really neat to hear the exchanges and to see how excited people were to be talking to another campus. The group gave general feedback that the process of the interactive TV had been very smooth. St. J commented that they would love to offer some of their classes on interactive TV next term.

GC St. Johnsbury Presents Documentary Film, "Our Global Campus" at Green Mountain Film Festival

Global Campus St. Johnsbury screened their documentary film, Our Global Campus in the Green Mountain Film Festival, April 2, 2011.

This spring, Global Campus St. Johnsbury was honored to have their film, Our Global Campus, accepted into the Green Mountain Film Festival at Catamount Arts in St. Johnsbury, VT. Campus participants arrived early at the screening to greet community members at the door and pass around information about their Global Campus.

Global Campus St. Johnsbury had spent the fall and winter terms working with volunteer filmmaker, Scott Miller, to learn camera work and some techniques in filmmaking. Campus participants brought the cameras home to film their lives and discuss their values and goals. They spent time documenting the different classes and special events held at Global Campus St. Johnsbury.

The screening was exciting for everyone, as it was the first time many of the GC St. Johnsbury participants had viewed the film in its final version. About thirty people gathered for the screening and the room was buzzing with excitement. As the group watched the film, there was lots of laughter and praise as different people’s film footage aired on the big screen. The film highlights the process of Global Campus and then goes more in-depth into the stories of seven participants who had been very active in the filming process throughout the year at Global Campus St. Johnsbury. It was neat to see the unique styles of filming and storytelling demonstrated through the different filmmakers’ work.

After the film finished screening, about five participants and volunteer film editor, Scott Miller, sat for a panel discussion where community members asked them about the process of making the film and their opinions about the outcome. It was really neat to see this panel discussion unfold and all the questions that came from the audience. At the end of the evening, Josh and Levi were signing autographs and answering more in-depth questions for audience members.

Back in the classroom, Global Campus St. Johnsbury is still filming, taking home cameras, and thinking about what else they want to do with filmmaking and where else they want to air their film. They have screened the film at four other venues – two in St. Johnsbury, one in Newport and one in Middlebury. At each event, campus participants attended as panelists and answered questions for the community. The campus has additional screenings planned for the summer.

GC Hardwick Visits State House in Montpelier, VT

Global Campus Hardwick organized a trip to Montpelier to tour the Statehouse and the Vermont History museum this spring.

Global Campus Hardwick planned a fun, interactive day in Montpelier learning about our state government and history. We gathered on the statehouse steps for lunch and to gather our thoughts before entering into the busy statehouse. The statehouse is quite hectic over the lunch hour and it was neat to see so many people bustling around with clipboards and getting ready for meetings. We met a guide, who walked us through the history of the building and showed us the Senate, House and other important rooms.

We learned that the VT statehouse is the oldest statehouse in the US. The architecture has been preserved inside so that it still looks the way it always has. The carpets have been redone, but the other building structures are the original architecture. Our guide noted that the chandelier in the Senate room was not typical for VT style; all the images on the chandelier have to do with the ocean, including Titan, dolphins, waves and sea creatures. He wondered if there had been a sale on chandeliers…

We learned about the structure of the senate, who sits where, and where the public is allowed to sit. Although the roof looks like it was under the dome, it is only made to look round. The dome is over the center of the building. Debbie told the group that her grandfather had been a part of the crew who worked on the construction of the dome. She was very proud. Next, we moved to the House, a much larger room. We noted that the Green Mountain Boys flag, which Diane had taught us about earlier this term, was flying over some of the desks in the room. It was neat to see all the papers lying about and a PowerPoint presentation on the screen.

We left the statehouse and walked next-door to the Vermont History Museum. We spent some time in a room full of Civil War artifacts. Our guide asked us to each pick an item that we found particularly intriguing, and then share with the group what we found interesting about this object. Annie picked a quilt, which had embroidered bible phrases on the squares. Our guide told us that women quilted hand-made quilts for the soldiers so that they would be warm and feel close to home while they were fighting. We also looked at a grey coat – the coat of the Confederate Soldiers. We learned that a Vermonter had taken the coat from a dead Confederate soldier and brought it back to VT. We saw a leather shoe with a piece of shrapnel shot into the bottom of the shoe. We could only imagine how painful that injury must have been.

We made our way to a milk room and then to a video of the 1927 flood. We learned that in 1927, VT got over 12 inches of rain, which is equivalent to twelve feet of snow. On our way out of town, we stopped to look at the lampposts, which have a red line marking the high water mark of 1927. It was WAY over our heads. And the most interesting part was this storm was in November.

Dynamic Course Offerings at GC Moretown!

Participants at GC Moretown are wrapping up their course offerings for the Spring Term and wanted to take a moment to look back and reflect on all the great classes over the last several months. Congratulations to all participants for making your campus such a success this semester! We'll be celebrating next week with a certificate day celebration and barbecue, join us!

Grace, "Chile", GC Moretown Spring 2011

Neil, "Working at a Hardware Store", GC Moretown Spring 2011

Robert, "My Life Story", GC Moretown Spring 2011

GC Bradford Participants Celebrate Succesful Semester!

Teaching Faculty, Student Participants, Resource Persons, and Campus Supporters gathered this afternoon to celebrate the completion of a dynamic teaching term at Global Campus Bradford. Participants were honored with certificates. Check out some of our classes from this semester!

Scott, "Trains", GC Bradford Spring Term 2011

Valorie, "MikMaq Nation", GC Bradford Spring Term 2011

GC Randolph Greens Up Randolph and then Celebrates!

Participants at Global Campus Randolph gathered at Pleasant Street House to celebrate another dynamic semester at their campus! The afternoon began with a picnic lunch in the sun followed by a class by Joe, Kim and Cheryl. They led us through their neighborhood picking up trash and enjoying the warm weather. Joe, Kim and Cheryl walk regularly in the warm months and always pick up along the way! After their class we congratulated each other on our great classes and accomplishments this term. Participants were honored with certificates and applause! Congratulations to all on your hard work!

Global Campus Springfield Helps the Victims of the Japan Tsunami

For one of its Community Service Projects this term, Global Campus Springfield made a pledge to make and sell fudge to benefit the tsunami victims in Japan. Everyone worked very hard and we raised over $250.00. The money raised was sent to Mercy Corps, a charity chosen because of its reputation for serving under served populations around the world. Great job people!

By Hudson Lamb, GC Springfield Participant

Global Campus Participants Invited to Present at the University of Vermont

On Tuesday April 12th, Global Campus Participants responded to a teaching invitation by traveling to the University of Vermont to present about their Global Campuses at a graduate class entitled, "The Culture of Disability", taught by Professor Deborah Lisi-Baker. Scott and Shawn from GC Bradford, Grace from GC Moretown, and Hudson from GC Springfield all spoke about the classes they have taught and how Global Campus has affected their lives in a positive way. Hudson shared how teaching has given him a new light, passion and direction in life. He also spoke about the importance of inclusion, especially for children, which resonated strongly with students in the class and what they have been studying. Shawn shared about the new relationships and friendships she has developed. All the participants spoke about the challenges of teaching as well as the great rewards. Many of the students could relate to the participants teaching struggles, such as gathering materials together and doing research.

The students in the class were quite impressed by the presenters and had many questions. In response to one of the student's questions, each presenter shared a snapshot of one of their classes. Shawn passed around her scrap books from her class on her life story and shared a few of her favorite memories. Hudson presented some of his powerful poetry. Scott shared a few artifacts from his upcoming class on Romania, Bulgaria and Tranyslvania, inspired by his fathers ancestry. Grace spoke about her class on Broadway Musicals that is coming up in a few weeks.

Professor Deborah Lisi-Baker and the Global Campus Participants were very excited at the prospect of future opportunities and collaboration! Congratulations to all the presenters!

Global Campuses Foundation Releases New Video!

Global Campuses Foundation is pleased to present a short DVD production produced by Lincoln Street Inc. highlighting the dynamic experiences of participants at Global Campus Springfield. Lincoln Street is one of GCF’s partnering human service agencies in Vermont, USA. Global Campus Springfield was developed and is administered by individuals who receive a variety of services from Lincoln Street. We are very pleased that this agency felt so impressed by the Global Campus Experience that they wanted to share about Global Campus Springfield with the larger community through this production. Please enjoy this window into another vibrant Global Campus. Global Campuses Foundation would like to thank everyone at Lincoln Street Inc. for your continued positive participation with Global Campus Springfield.

Please CLICK HERE to watch the video!

GC Moretown Supports Haiti Reconstruction

Participants at Global Campus Moretown donated over $2000 to support immediate relief efforts in Haiti last winter after the earthquake devastated the small island nation. This year they did it again! Participants organized a benefit event and raised over $1000 and collected clothing and supplies to send down with Mary Jane, a Resource Person at GC Moretown, who traveled to Haiti with a local aid group based in Waitsfield called AMURTEL. Mary Jane then returned a few weeks later to give a presentation at our campus, sharing her stories and experiences in Haiti and telling us how our donations were used! Congratulations and thank you to everyone who participated in the project!

Campus to Campus Connections Conference with the Hale Street Gang

Global Campus participants from all corners of Vermont gathered at Chandler Music Hall in Randolph, VT on March 23rd for an all day Campus to Campus Connections Conference. As participants arrived they had the opportunity to browse the downstairs exhibit of the Hale Street Gang, a group of local seniors who get together each week to write down and share their life stories. The exhibit features life size black and white photographs of the seniors in the Hale Street Gang, as well as audio recordings of their stories and displays featuring their memoirs and books.

After browsing the gallery everyone gathered upstairs to hear members of the Hale Street Gang read excerpts from their memoirs and collections of stories. We were all captivated by the humorous and touching tales, some from long ago, some more recent. Dorcas Wright, a resource person for Global Campus Randolph and member of the Hale Street Gang, mentioned how touched she was to see her two passions in life coming together to meet and share each others life experiences. After a short refreshment break, Global Campus participants shared about their campuses, classes they are teaching, and stories about their own lives. Many folks also shared artwork. What a great collaboration!

In the afternoon, campus participants gathered at the Red Schoolhouse at Vermont Technical College to have lunch together. After eating, participants broke into groups with each group working together to create a fictional story based on a set of cards that sketched out the scene of a potential story. There were many laughs as we all shared our stories! The afternoon came to a close by sharing news from the various campuses and sharing a few new stories from participants who didn't have a chance to speak during the morning.

This conference was such a great success, thank you to everyone who participated!

Thailand Campuses Update

Thai Site Visit


Greetings from Chiang Mai, Thailand! It is a great honor to be visiting Global Campus Southeast Asia and some of the participants from Global Campus Chiang Mai, Global Campus San Sai and Global Campus Nan.

English Class was my first introduction to the campus. The campus meets in a house in Chiang Mai and participants sit in a circle with notebooks and looking at a white board. Around the campus I can see framed Certificates, campus flags and photographs of the campus' achievements.. The group meets weekly to practice English and is led by one of the Global Campus participants, who is fluent in English. We began class by reading some of the letters sent to Thailand by Global Campus Randolph. The class was working on their responses to these letters and asked for my help in proofreading and editing. Global Campus Randolph can look forward to letters coming soon –the letters will include pictures of GC Chiang Mai participants.

After working on the letters, I asked the group to share a bit about their interests – in English, of course! We practiced saying the phrase, "I am interested in…" and then went over some vocabulary words as they came up in discussion. The group has a diverse set of interests including farming, reading, bicycling, making jewelry, and cooking. After class, the group orders lunch together – take out from a food stall down the road. We sat around an outside table eating foods such as Pad Thai – fried noodles with egg and chili, Kao Klog Ka Pre – rice with shrimp paste, Hao Tom Ba – fish soup, or Pat See You – fried noodles with soy sauce. The noodle dishes are served with packets of chili and sugar to add more flavor to the dishes. Everything is delicious!

Many of the Global Campus Chiang Mai and San Sai participants do not come to the campus every week. In some cases, it is difficult for people to get out of their house or find transportation to the campus. To make sure all participants feel included, the group has set up a home-visit program. We spent a full day visiting participants in their homes and encouraging them to get out of the house and into the community. Ka, GCF's Regional Director in Southeast Asia, spoke with the participants about how to advocate for themselves. Many were worried that they would be a burden to their families if they went into the community, as they would have to ask others for help. Ka brought with her an informational video about how to improve accessibility in the home and the community.

On Sundays, the city of Chiang Mai is famous for its Night Market. Non, the Director of Global Campus Chiang Mai, took me to the market to walk around and explore Thai culture. The market has a section devoted specifically for people with disabilities to sell handicrafts and many of the campus participants have set up booths. Many of the GC Chiang Mai participants spend a lot of time at a place called, The House of Potentiality, which is a cooperative craft facility for people with disabilities to use. They have learned to make jewelry, metal work, leatherwork and recently soap. A few of the participants the crafts at the night market to make some extra money. I watched Khun Oo, one of the GC Chiang Mai participants make jewelry at the market. Using copper wire and beads she curls the wire around pliers to make little loops and then adds beads. Her handiwork is beautiful and very unique.

The campus has many events planned while I'm here in Thailand. It is fun to meet the campus participants and learn about Thai culture and disability culture. Every day I learn something new! Best wishes to the GCF community and I look forward to telling more stories when I return.

Amy Miller
Academic Coordinator
Global Campuses Foundation