Tag: Johnson

NVU Professor Emily Tarleton Weighs in on TikTok Supplement Trend

March 16, 2023

Dr. Emily Tarleton, NVU-Johnson assistant professor of Health Sciences and chair of the Environmental and Health Sciences department, was interviewed in recent health.com and Time Magazine articles that discussed the growing number of TikTok posts touting the use of magnesium supplements to address a wide range of health issues.

Dr. Tarleton was tapped for comment due to her multiyear research into the connections between magnesium status and chronic health conditions. The results of this work have been published in  several peer-reviewed journals. She was the lead author on “Relationship between Magnesium Intake and Chronic Pain in U.S. Adults,” published in the July 2020 issue of Nutrients and “Role of magnesium supplementation in the treatment of depression: A randomized clinical trial,” published in 2017 in PLoS One.

‘Fagbug’ to Visit Campus April 16

March 8, 2023

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‘Fagbug’ to Visit Campus April 16

Driver of once-vandalized VW Beetle to raise awareness about hates crimes, homophobia

April 7, 2015

The “Fagbug” – the name of Erin Davies’ VW Beetle, which was vandalized in a hate crime in Albany, N.Y., eight years ago – visits the Johnson State College campus for Pride Week on Thursday, April 16. The rainbow-colored car will be parked on the JSC Quad from noon to 3 p.m. Davies will tell her story and answer questions at 7 p.m. in 207 Bentley Hall.

A then-graduate student, Davies had parked her car on an Albany street in April 2007 on the 11th Annual National Day of Silence. Activists observe the day each year to recognize the silencing effect of anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) bullying and harassment in schools.

Someone scrawled “fag” and “U R Gay” on the driver’s side window and hood in reaction, she believes, to a small rainbow sticker affixed to her car. At first Davies was shocked, but then she decided to embrace what had happened by leaving the graffiti on her VW. She drove her car, now known affectionately worldwide as the “Fagbug,” on a 58-day trip around the United States and Canada. Along the way, Davies discovered other, more serious hate crimes. After a year, Erin decided to give her car a rainbow-themed makeover.

She now visits high schools, colleges, LGBT pride events and more locations to raise awareness about hate crimes and homophobia. The Fagbug’s visit to JSC highlights a week of Pride events April 13-17 including health screenings, lectures, a dance party and more.

For more information, contact Krista Swahn, Krista.Swahn@jsc.edu or 802-635-1478.

Pocket Wetland Restoration Underway on Johnson Campus

November 28, 2022

Storm water runoff from roads and steep hillsides often leads to flooding, erosion, and water quality issues downstream. In response, Professor Lisa Zinn’s Water Resources class looked for ways that runoff from the Johnson campus could be better managed, picking a pocket wetland restoration project to begin this fall.

“This project is a first step in making the campus grounds more sustainable,” Zinn said. “With climate change, the storm events are getting more frequent in Vermont, and all of the surface water running off lawns and roads is running into streams and rivers.”

This wetland area is downhill from the Campus Apartments, but the area doesn’t hold water well as regular mowing has eliminated all but grass from the site and compacted soil doesn’t allow wetland plants to grow in. The class put together a restoration plan and set out to receive approval from the NVU Physical Plant staff to alter this site. Once approval was received, the students dug in — literally!

The class dug up the sod and planted the area in eleven native species, including cardinal flower, blue flag iris, blue lobelia, boneset, and a variety of rushes. As the plants take hold, they will help provide the environment for other native wetland species to naturally populate that area.

The project will be ongoing, with signage created by the students going up in the spring and regular monitoring of the site for invasive plant species part of the effort to give this wetland the chance to establish and thrive.

“The effort will help to increase biodiversity and habitat for other species on campus, too,” Zinn said. “We can each have an impact by intentionally creating habitats that increase biodiversity. This is a visible spot on campus, and through the project we will all be able to see that it can a beautiful spot, too.”

NVU Welcomes International Students to the Johnson Campus through a Housing Partnership with Smugglers’ Notch Resort

November 22, 2022

The award-winning, family-friendly resort, Smugglers’ Notch, and Northern Vermont University (NVU) have partnered to offer cultural exchange students seasonal housing this winter. These students make up 10 percent of Smugglers’ total staff, allowing the Resort, located in Jeffersonville, Vt., to operate at full capacity while introducing the international students to local Vermont culture.

The students will arrive from Peru, Chile, and Costa Rica as part of an exchange program during what is their summer break and will live in the residence halls on the NVU Johnson campus from December 1 through March 31. While on campus, they will have access to all university amenities, including the gym, pool, dining hall, and shows in the Dibden Theater. Smugglers’ will subsidize a large portion of their housing and transportation costs.

“Smugglers’ Notch has not been immune to the ongoing housing and hiring challenges facing Vermont, and this new partnership offers us a temporary solution,” said owner Bill Stritzler. “Our objective at Smugglers’ is to provide our guests with the continued award-winning service they expect. By hosting these hard-working young people, who are eager to see the world and learn more about Vermont, it allows us to do just that.”

“NVU is excited to partner with Smugglers’ Notch and to invite these international students to our Johnson campus for what we expect will be a mutually beneficial experience — for the exchange students, for the Johnson community, and for Smugglers’ Notch,” said Michele Whitmore, NVU Johnson Executive Director and Dean of Students. “These 50-75 students will bring their cultural experiences to our campus, while NVU students and staff share the best of Vermont with them. It presents a unique educational opportunity for all of us!”

Northern Vermont University’s Performance, Arts, & Technology Program Presents The Thanksgiving Play

November 3, 2022

Just in time for Thanksgiving preparations, the NVU-Johnson Performance, Arts & Technology program will present The Thanksgiving Play, offering the community the chance to experience this acclaimed comedy before its scheduled Broadway debut. Performances will run Thursday, November 3 through Sunday, November 6 at the Dibden Theatre on the Johnson campus.

Directed by NVU faculty Laura Roald, the play was written by Larissa FastHorse, a MacArthur fellow and the first Native American playwright to have a work (The Thanksgiving Play) as one of the top ten produced plays in the country.

“The Thanksgiving Play is one of my favorite comedies,” says Roald, “because the story pushes good intentions in theatre and artistic practice to the edge of absurdity while keeping the problem of cultural erasure at the center of the laughter. The Polaris Performance Company’s production gives us a chance to laugh at ourselves without forgetting we, too, need to keep working to “do better.’”

When the play debuts on Broadway in spring 2023, Larissa FastHorse will become the first female Native American playwright to have a play produced on Broadway.

“In Larissa FastHorse’s satirical comedy The Thanksgiving Play, a troupe of really well-meaning theater artists dream of creating something revolutionary: a culturally sensitive, totally inoffensive Thanksgiving school pageant that finally gives a voice to Native Americans. Finding said Native Americans…isn’t so simple. And that’s when things start to get absurd,” as described by Playbill (11/1/22).

“This play marks the third production of the Polaris Performance Company (PPC), the performance company of NVU-Johnson’s Performance, Arts & Technology program, where we focus on new multi-disciplinary performance works that are student-driven and often devised ourselves,” said Professor and Program Chair Isaac Eddy. “PPC is a consent-based company that is designed to give students creative autonomy and the collaboration skills that are required for work in contemporary creative sectors.”

Of The Thanksgiving Play, Eddy says, “This show is important for our NVU community and surrounding communities to experience because of how topical and relevant it is. Come and join the discourse!

Performance schedule: Thursday, November 3 – Saturday, November 5, at 7 p.m.; Sunday, November 6, at 2 p.m.
Admission is free for NVU and the Vermont State University community; $10 General Admission.

NVU Faculty Awarded NIH Grant and Named VSC Faculty Fellow

June 10, 2022

Northern Vermont University Professor Dr. Gina Mireault Awarded Prestigious National Institute of Health Research Grant and Named VSC Faculty Fellow

Northern Vermont University Professor Dr. Gina Mireault was recently awarded a prestigious research grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and was named a Vermont State Colleges Systems (VSCS) Faculty Fellow for the 2022-2023 academic year.

Dr. Gina Mireault, professor of psychology and chair of the NVU-Johnson Psychology and Human Services department, received a $547,156 four-year research grant from the NIH Support for Research Excellence (SuRE) program to fund her proposed research titled, “Infants’ Understanding of Violations of Expectation: The Role of Social Agents and Repetition.”

Dr. Mireault’s research has focused on various aspects of emotional development in childhood for more than 20 years, and her current research focuses on the perception and creation of humor in infants from three to twelve months old. She has presented at major peer-reviewed conferences and her work has been cited in national and international publications.

The NIH SuRE award will fund two research studies to be carried out over four years, Mireault said, with up to 20 undergraduate students gaining hands-on research experience. “Our undergraduate students do the same work that graduate research students do at major research institutions,” Mireault said. “They will collect data, code and enter it, analyze it, and present the findings at regional and national conferences. We can’t do this work without this funding.”

“The studies will bring together what are currently two separate bodies of research: studies of surprise and studies of humor in infants,” Mireault said. This research “will investigate why it is that infants find some unexpected events surprising and some funny.”

Dr. Mireault was also named a VSCS Faculty Fellow for the 2022-2023 academic year— one of two VSCS tenured faculty recognized for outstanding accomplishments in teaching and learning through this fellowship for next year. The fellowship includes a reduction in teaching load for one semester and a small stipend to help support work on a specific project.

Dr. Mireault’s fellowship project will explore how to better integrate NVU’s Learning and Working Community educational philosophy into the psychology program at NVU, to “incorporate meaningful experiences outside of the classroom into the curriculum and reduce the cost of education at the same time,” she said. Specifically, Mireault will study how that integration occurs at four work colleges in the midwestern and southern parts of the country which offer psychology degrees and plans to tailor and/or borrow their methods as she brings them to NVU, she said.

NVU Produces Musical Hair Production on Johnson Campus

April 19, 2022

Northern Vermont University’s Performance, Arts, and Technology Program Presents the Musical Hair

The Performance, Arts, and Technology program based at Northern Vermont University’s Johnson Campus is set to celebrate the awakening of the power in youth with its spring mainstage musical performance of Hair, running Thursday, April 21 through Sunday, April 24.

“At its heart, it’s a musical about young people struggling to make their world better. It’s a different world today than in 1967 and a lot has changed, but the struggles are still very relevant,” said Co-director and NVU Faculty Laura Roald.

This show, about rebellion and Civil Rights and women’s rights and freedom of all kinds with the backdrop of the draft and the Vietnam War, was a groundbreaking musical in 1967, with a racially diverse ensemble and awesome music, said Co-director Isaac Eddy. “Doing this show now, we can honor the ways in which it was revolutionary 54 years ago, but we can also look at it from the lens of 2022, and what we haven’t yet achieved.”

The second production of the Polaris Performance Company, a collective for Performance, Arts, and Technology program-directed works, Hair was originally planned as the spring 2020 musical that was halted by COVID-19. A lot has changed in the two years that have passed, said Roald. The #MeToo movement along with attacks on BIPOC and LGBTQ+ rights have bubbled up, much as the issues of the 1960s converged and bubbled up, she said.

To recreate this story in 2022 within a predominantly white and socially aware student body required the development of a racially diverse ensemble and an unpacking of the time this story was set in.

To diversify, the directors looked beyond the PAT program to include BIPOC NVU students outside of the PAT program and to reach out to the larger Vermont community.

To unpack this time and this story written by white men, a dramaturg was enlisted for this show — a role held by NVU alum Brittney Malik ‘20, who is also performing in the show. “A dramaturg’s role is to provide context for the show: the 60s, what was happening, where this show came from, how it evolved,” said Malik. “All of the events and historical movements occurred at the same time and were boiling. How they combine and intersect is a key part of this show.”

For instance, the roles of people of color in the original musical were challenging at first read for BIPOC members of the ensemble, Malik said. “While there were Black characters in the original show, the way they were represented were as caricatures,” she said. “You could tell the roles were written by white people.”

Instances of domestic violence, language, references to drug use, and sexually charged moments all come up in this show, which led the co-directors to include an intimacy choreographer to work with the actors on how to handle challenging scenes.

“I applaud the community members and ensemble for being willing to stay with this story and to be uncomfortable,” said Malik.

At its heart, Hair is a celebration. “We’re revisiting a time of vital social action and fantastic, groovy music and celebrating the freedoms worth fighting for,” Roald said — “to love who you want, to live your life the way you design it, to fight the battles that matter to you as a young person.”

Tickets available at tickets.catamountarts.org.

Coalition of Minority Students Creates New Resource Center on NVU’s Johnson Campus

April 5, 2022

A Safe Space for Learning and Growth for NVU Community

The dedication of the Mamadou N’Diaye Resource Center brought the Northern Vermont University Johnson Campus community together to celebrate this new space for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students. Created by the Coalition of Minority Students (COMS) as a safe place for people of color in a predominantly white campus community, the resource center is named in memory of a former NVU student.

“It’s scary to be in a place where a lot of people don’t look like you,” said Devyn Thompson, COMS co-president and third-year English major from Waldorf, Md. who is also pursuing licensure in secondary education. “I want that room to provide a sense of relief. I don’t want any student of color here to feel unsupported. Seeing my goal for this resource center and in his name coming to fruition is a dream,” Thompson said.

Mamadou N’Diaye was a rising sophomore pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Media Arts who also played basketball for the Badgers. He died in a drowning accident in July of 2020 out of state. COMS began as a group for minority student-athletes after Mamadou’s death and has expanded to support all minority students on campus. The group also includes non-BIPOC students as well; these members are called “allies.”

The new center is an academic and mental health resource space that will serve as a haven for COMS members and as a place to host events open to all students, faculty, staff, and community members to educate themselves on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion principals.

Zoe Avent, a COMS member and first-year political science major from Springfield, Vt., sees the resource center “as a place for conversations about how to speak up for others, as a space for people to feel safe talking about their experiences, even if they aren’t a person of color. I want people to feel safe coming to us to talk, learn, and educate themselves and us.”

COMS members hope the resource center will be a place that “demonstrates the true definition of what inclusion looks like,” said COMS Staff Advisor Brian Slater.

Students transformed the room over February break — cleaning it, painting the walls — one black, one yellow, one splatter paint, and one in a line design, and claiming the space as their own, Thompson said. A photo of Mamadou hangs on one wall. A basketball signed by the women’s and men’s basketball teams, coaching staff, and managers in his memory sits in a protected glass case.

Priya Tamang-Suarez, a sophomore studying biology pre-med, says, “COMS gave me a safe, comfort space that I needed as a freshman, it took me out of my shell. I’m happy the resource center finally came together. It will bring students the support system they need for information related to DEI, and it’s good to have an organization for all students to learn about DEI issues — to learn about a history they don’t know,” she said. “Growth involves uncomfortable topics.”

“It’s a proud moment, watching the growth of these students,” Slater said. “I want to make sure that this isn’t a stopping point in the work.”

Thompson, who not only spearheaded this effort on campus but put many hours of work into the successful adoption of the Anti-Racism Pledge by the Vermont State Colleges System Board of Trustees, has this message for minority athletes considering NVU: “Despite this being a predominantly white university, you belong here and are supported here, your mental health and academic experience are supported here.”

“I am so pleased the Resource Center was named after this outstanding young man, and the care that went into creating it has been exemplary,” said Interim President John W. Mills. “The creation of this space is also a statement by NVU of our commitment to the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) pledge we have made in our Mission Statement.”

Resource Center for BIPOC Students to be Named for Mamadou N’Diaye

March 15, 2022

New NVU Campus Resource Center for BIPOC Students to Be Named after NVU-Johnson Student Mamadou N’Diaye

A new resource center for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) students on the Northern Vermont University Johnson Campus will be named in honor of NVU-Johnson student Mamadou N’Diaye who passed away in July of 2020.

The Coalition of Minority Students at Northern Vermont University’s Johnson campus, in collaboration with the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and the Student Government Association, is hosting a celebration of Mamadou N’Diaye’s life in conjunction with the naming of this new dedicated space in Dewey Hall (Room 149) as the Mamadou N’Diaye Resource Center on Tuesday, March 15 from noon to 1 p.m.

“I am so pleased we are naming the Resource Center after such an outstanding young man, and the care that went into creating it has been exemplary,” said Interim President John W. Mills. “The creation of this space is also a statement by NVU of our commitment to the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) pledge we have made in our Mission Statement.”

Mamadou N’Diaye, from Prince George, Maryland, was 19 years old and a rising sophomore pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Media Arts on the Johnson campus. He also played basketball for the Badgers. “He was an outstanding and kind young man, a talented artist, skilled athlete, and a good friend. Mamadou made a lasting impression at NVU where he touched the community with his warm heart, tenacious work ethic, and overall drive,” said Former NVU President Elaine C. Collins in a message to the NVU community in 2020.The Mamadou N’Diaye Resource Center is an academic and mental health resource space created by the Coalition of Minority Students (COMS) for the benefit of BIPOC students at NVU-Johnson. The room will serve as a haven for COMS members and as a center to host events open to students, faculty, staff, and community members to educate themselves with COMS members on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion principals.

The room will also serve as a space for mental health assistance with comfortable seating and computer access to telehealth therapy. NVU students have chosen specific art and media to encourage stress relief and self-help.

NVU-Johnson Wellness Suite Celebration at Homecoming

September 9, 2021

Northern Vermont University-Johnson to Celebrate New Wellness Suite at Homecoming and Family Weekend

Northern Vermont University-Johnson will celebrate the new Wellness Suite of rooms in the SHAPE (Student Health and Physical Education) Center as part of Homecoming and Family Weekend, September 10-12, 2021.

The Wellness Suite project was made possible by a lead gift from local friends and supporters, Peter and Evelyn Fuss. “We were happy to support this project because we believe in the power of higher education,” Peter said, “especially for first-generation students attending a state university, and in helping NVU to meet the goals of student-athletes and serving the community.”

The project created two new rooms in the fitness facility: one dedicated to stretching and core work and the other to group exercise classes. In addition, the ground-level area was converted from an underused racquetball court to a strength and conditioning facility. The new spaces have been named in honor and memory of alums Peter Albright ’80 and Gary Sudol ’82.

A fundraising campaign in fall 2020 received $45,000 in donations from 109 donors to equip the rooms for student and community use. Alumni, student-athletes, staff, and community members from 17 states gave gifts of all sizes; the project also received a grant from the Green Mountain Fund and a donation of equipment from Concept2. The board of directors of the university’s Athletics Hall of Fame offered a matching gift to the campaign and many alumni tapped into their networks to fundraise. The NVU-Johnson Student-Athlete Advisory Committee offered a donation to complete the campaign.

The Wellness Suite Celebration will take place at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 11. Refreshments and tours of the space will be available. For information about the full slate of Homecoming and Family Weekend activities and to register for all events, see NorthernVermont.edu/JohnsonHomecoming.

Note: All visitors to NVU campuses age 12+ must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, masks are required for all under age 12, and general masking mandates may be in place. Please see complete NVU COVID-19 guidelines at NorthernVermont.edu/COVID19.

“The Monument” Wins Award

June 4, 2021

Northern Vermont University’s Student-Created Theater Piece Receives National Award from Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

Johnson, Vt. — Northern Vermont University’s original online theater piece, “The Monument,” took home a Kennedy Center Citizen Artist Award in the national awards ceremony on Friday, May 22. This marks the second time that this piece, created by students in NVU’s Performance, Arts, and Technology program, has been recognized by the Kennedy Center — first when it was selected for presentation at the Region 1 American College Theater Festival held virtually in late January, and now as an award winner at the national level.

“This award means that the innovative work we’re doing in the Performance, Arts, and Technology program is tapping into something important nationally, as not only were we chosen to present our show regionally, but we were recognized nationally,” said Isaac Eddy, Assistant Professor and Chair of Performing Arts.

The award announcement stated: “The Kennedy Center Citizen Artist Awards recognize programs in higher education using theatrical production to promote long-term societal impact through an artistic lens, to encourage empathetic exploration of the complex cultural and physical world, and to advocate for justice on campus and throughout the world.” NVU’s “The Monument” was also recognized with two Special Achievements — in Virtual Community Engagement and Audience Development, and in Sound Design.

Kennedy Center Region 1 includes all of New England and New York State, and NVU was up against hundreds of shows from much larger schools during the selection process for the regional festival, Eddy said. The national-level award winners were chosen from the respondents’ (judges’) comments about the pieces presented in each of the regional festivals held across the country.

The Kennedy Center Awards announcement included this statement: “During these unprecedented times, we celebrate these imaginative and evocative theatre-makers and productions as being at the forefront of a revolution in artistry that ignites conversations of national importance through innovation in process, content, form, design, technology, outreach, and audience engagement.”

NVU’s entry stood out because it was presented live. Eddy sees this “as part of our purpose with the PAT program — to create live arts in a flexible way, to be aware of where we are in society and create art based on that, instead of trying to create a traditional work in a non-traditional time. We created this piece the way we did because of the pandemic,” he said. “Most of the shows presented at the Region 1 Festival in January were prerecorded, so to be able to have an interactive live experience had a lot of impact in the festival.”

The play is set in a fictional Vermont town and is based in real suffrage history with a staged Zoom select board meeting that takes place in the real problems of today. “Think of ‘The Monument’ as ‘Our Town’ set in 2020: less swooning about memories of mom’s breakfast and a lot more arguing,” Eddy said.

Students involved in co-creating the award-winning pieces were invited to submit statements to be read aloud during the awards ceremony, and two NVU students shared the following: “My one takeaway is that theater is adaptable and ever changing, and that it’s our job as artists to adapt and change with it!” said Addie White ‘23. “This performance showed me that there really is no limit to theater,” said Althena Abramowitz ‘22.

Information about The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival can be found at: https://www.kennedy-center.org/education/opportunities-for-artists/pre-professional-artist-training/kcactf/

To learn more about all of NVU’s performance degrees, visit NorthernVermont.edu/PerformanceArts.

Northern Vermont University Alum Played Role in Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine Development

June 1, 2021

When the clinical trials for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine were scheduled at Pfizer’s New Haven (Ct.) Clinical Research Unit location, Pfizer Environmental Health and Safety Manager and Industrial Hygiene Lead Chris Vollaro ’93 got to work setting the protocols to ensure the health and safety of all involved.

It was a huge job. From Pfizer employees and outside people coming into the facility, to the animals that were part of the vaccine trials, continuing on to the huge ramp-up in manufacturing that occurred at the company’s 5,300-employee Groton, Ct., global headquarters for research and development — so many health and safety decisions needed to be made and implemented every step of the way. Chris had a hand in all of it, working seven days a week to meet the demands of this critical role. “It was a pretty crazy year,” he said. “But it’s neat to be involved in something like this.”

Chris, who was an environmental science major and biology minor on the NVU-Johnson campus, has worked in the environmental health field since right after graduation. He managed the State of Vermont Health Department’s Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, and later worked with Vermont OSHA. Chris joined Pfizer (then Wyeth) in 2002, and his role expanded this year to cover all aspects of safety surrounding the testing and subsequent production of the lipid nano particle of the mRNA vaccine — the small fat particle that delivers the vaccine into the cells of the body.

Chris earned his master’s degree at a larger university, but says he “had by far a better experience at Johnson.” The employment options he had upon graduation “were directly a result of working with my professors,” he said, relationships he’s kept going over the years. “I really appreciate the lessons they taught. They encouraged us to challenge things, to not just go with what the book says. I had nothing but a good experience.”

Chris ran cross country and track during his college years, and running remains an important part of his life today. He is a member of the USATF Sound Runner Racing Club in Connecticut, and says,“Running was a lifesaver during COVID. The work was so all consuming, that it was so important to have that hour-plus a day to train where the world seemed normal.”

Associate Professor Kathleen Brinegar Interviewed on #vted Reads about New Book Exploring Middle Grades Education

April 6, 2021

Kathleen Brinegar, associate professor of Education at Northern Vermont University’s Johnson campus, was interviewed on the #vted Reads podcast in February 2021 about her 2019 book, Equity & Cultural Responsiveness in the Middle Grades (The Handbook of Research in Middle Level Education), co-edited with Lisa Harrison and Elliot Hurd. “This book came about through a long-standing desire to create a text that centers equity and cultural responsiveness in the middle grades,” Brinegar said. Listen to the conversation here.

Northern Vermont University-Johnson Athletics Completes Wellness Suite Campaign

January 29, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

CONTACT: Sylvia Plumb, Director of Marketing and Communications, 802.626.6459
Sylvia.Plumb@NorthernVermont.edu  

Northern Vermont University-Johnson Athletics Completes Wellness Suite Campaign

Johnson, Vermont — Northern Vermont University-Johnson announces the successful completion of its Wellness Suite Campaign, raising $45,000 to equip the new Wellness Suite located in the SHAPE athletics facility on the Johnson campus.

“On behalf of Northern Vermont University-Johnson Athletics, I want to thank each and every person who supported this campaign,” said Associate Dean of Athletics and Recreation Jamey Ventura. “Their gifts have allowed our institution to expand its positive impact across our community.”

The Wellness Suite project created two new rooms in the fitness facility: one dedicated to stretching and core work and the other to group exercise classes. It also converted the ground-level area from an underutilized racquetball court into a strength and conditioning facility. “With these improvements, we have been able to expand our programming for all students and community members, enhancing fitness opportunities and promoting a healthy lifestyle,” said Ventura.

The campaign, which publicly launched in November 2020, garnered donations from 109 donors from 17 states and was powered by gifts of all sizes from alumni, student-athletes, staff, community members, grant funding from the Green Mountain Fund, and a generous donation of equipment from Concept2. The board of directors of the university’s Athletics Hall of Fame offered a generous matching gift which contributed an additional $7,500 to the campaign. Many alumni also tapped into their networks to fundraise, which was instrumental in helping to meet the goal. In the final days of the campaign, the NVU-Johnson Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) reached out to the athletics department to offer a generous donation to complete the campaign.

“In the past few years, SAAC has been very successful in fundraising through concessions and hosting our monthly Kids Night Out community events,” said Annika Dyhrberg, SAAC President. “When we heard that all that was left to raise was $1,000, we were eager to finish out the campaign. I think I can speak for all of our student-athletes when I say that we are so incredibly thankful and excited for this space.”

The fundraising effort also received a boost from the decision to name the Student-Athlete Strength and Conditioning Room after alumnus and former soccer coach Peter Albright. Coach Albright has enjoyed a long career helping to shape the lives and guide the careers of players. Albright graduated from Johnson State College and began his coaching career at the college as the Head Men’s Soccer Coach and Director of Athletics. After 15 seasons, nine Conference Championships, and two National Tournament appearances, he left Vermont to become the first women’s soccer coach at the University of Richmond.

“NVU is so pleased to honor his legacy by naming the strength and conditioning room in the new Wellness Suite after Coach Peter Albright,” says Ventura.

“This campaign demonstrated that, with the support of alumni and friends, no goal or aspiration is out of reach for Northern Vermont University. Working together, we can — and will — continue to improve the student experience at NVU,” said Assistant Athletic Director for Communications Chad Copeland.

For more information on athletics at Northern Vermont University-Johnson, visit NVUBadgers.com.

Northern Vermont University’s Original Online Theater Piece Chosen for Performance at Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

January 28, 2021

January 28, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

CONTACT: Sylvia Plumb, Director of Marketing and Communications, 802.626.6459

Sylvia.Plumb@NorthernVermont.edu  

Northern Vermont University’s Original Online Theater Piece Chosen for Performance at Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

Johnson, Vermont – The original online theater piece “The Monument,” created by students in Northern Vermont University’s Performance, Arts, and Technology program, has been selected for presentation at this year’s Kennedy Center Region 1 American College Theater Festival.

“The competition for this festival is high and this is the first Northern Vermont University production to be selected. I am particularly pleased that it is an original, student-written piece that is going to the festival,” said Isaac Eddy, Assistant Professor and Chair, Performing Arts. “The Performance, Arts, and Technology program on the NVU-Johnson campus launched at the right time: we were already poised to create a new work for this new Zoom medium at a moment when most theater programs had to shoot and edit pre-recorded versions of their fall plays to stream,” Eddy said.

The play is set in a fictional Vermont town and is based in real suffrage history with a staged Zoom select board meeting that takes place in the real problems of today. 

“Think of “The Monument” as “Our Town” set in 2020: less swooning about memories of mom’s breakfast and a lot more arguing,” Eddy said.

The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival is being held the last week of January, with NVU’s “The Monument” performed live on January 31 at 2pm. Right after the show, respondents will offer feedback to Eddy and the students “to heighten the conversation with the students,” he said. “The whole Kennedy Center program is set up to nurture the theater makers of the future. To have our show be a part of this is just exciting.”

Regional festival presentations will be considered for the national festival.

About “The Monument”

In “The Monument,” the select board of Waldenburgh, Vermont hosts a harvest festival on their town green each year next to the monument of Gov. Percival W. Clement. The theme of the festival this year is the 100-year anniversary of the suffrage movement — which is particularly ironic since Governor Clement was responsible for denying women the right to vote in 1920. Due to Covid-19, the festival as a whole is cancelled. Instead, select suffrage-inspired pieces are to be performed at the town’s October Zoom meeting, along with the much-anticipated vote on a new town monument that may or may not replace the Clement statue.

In this performance, the audience is invited into this fictitious world as voting members of the town. Thanks to Zoom polling and the select board’s open floor for discussion, it is the audience who decides the fate of the Clement monument and how the story ends. 

The adaptability and multidisciplinary approach of the Performance, Arts, and Technology degree program is on display in this performance, said Eddy. Instead of trying to make the play fit Zoom, the students used the remote platform to build an immersive and participatory experience, he said.

“I’m very proud of our school and students,” Eddy said. “In the Region I category, we are up against schools with enormous resources. NVU’s program works with students to create strong performances that engage the audience in new ways with a small budget. This recognition shows we’re successful,” he said.