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S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L EG E
M AG A Z I N E
Building
Bridges
JOHNNIES CONNECT TO THE
COLLEGE AND ONE ANOTHER
PAG E 4
PAG E 6
A Re-envisioned
Relationship
An Open
Conversation
PAG E 2 6
Internships
Connect the
Lab to Life
�What,
we might ask,
is the nature
of the thing?
What is this piece you have before you?
It is not a reincarnation of The College magazine, a resource-intensive publication that the college could not continue to staff
and maintain. It is not an annual report, either; it is not meant
to give a detailed account of what the college is doing and how
resources are being spent.
What, then, is this publication all about?
This is a look at you and your fellow alumni—what you are
doing, how you are living and modeling the Program, and
how you are giving back to St. John’s in meaningful ways.
It is a look at the connections you are creating around the
world, and it is your guide to making them even stronger.
What this piece needs from you now is a name.
What captures the essence of the stories in this collection?
What options do you like and which ones do you not?
Visit sjc.edu/mag-survey
and share your thoughts.
�Dear Fellow Johnnies,
I hope this message fnds you well. Refecting on our alumni community, I recall a passage in John Donne’s Devotions Upon Emergent
Occasions, written in the same century that saw the founding of our
forebear, the King William’s School. John Donne wrote “no man
is an island,” and yet the challenges of current times seem to contradict this notion—highlighting separations of situation and, with
the pandemic, of actual distance. Despite this, we continue to fnd
bridges connecting us.
Bridges span divides and create meeting points. They aid the passage
of ideas, communities, and conversation. Bridges facilitate growth,
with movement from the familiar to the unknown, and connect challenges to opportunities. In these pages we will learn of ways alumni can serve as bridges—between the college and future students,
between new graduates and careers, between the college and the
world, between the Great Books and future generations—all while
serving as bridges to each other.
In maintaining these connections, we move beyond our individual
limitations and boundaries. Just as the Program allowed us to bridge
distant shores, eras, and cultures, our connections allow us to expand
our understanding and our community.
We have much to celebrate this past year. Through the tremendous
generosity of alumni and friends, and the commitment of staff and
faculty, St. John’s was able to traverse years of fscal austerity to
stand on higher, frmer ground. The strength of the alumni community has helped carry the college over and past many signifcant
challenges.
As the Alumni Association approaches its 200th year, and the college stands strong, I am grateful for the opportunities ahead of us.
Strengthened by the foundational beginnings we all share, alumni
have a key role in bridging across our community—so we may be more
than “entire of ourselves.” What Donne wrote in 1623 is as true today
as it was then: by virtue of the connections we foster, we are elevated.
St. John’s Forever!
Gigi Escalante (A92)
President
St. John’s College Alumni Association
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
1
�TABLE OF CONTENTS
1
4
Opening
Letter
GIGI ESCALANTE A92
14
A Re-envisioned
Relationship
Teacher Ignites
International
Interest in
St. John’s
CHRIS AAMOT SF04
ERICA BEALL A07
6
LIAM GOODACRE SF08
An Open
Conversation
18
Summer
Classics:
A Beautiful
Opacity
MARTI ACOSTA A92
LEAH LASELL SFGI04
DINO ANDERSON
2
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
A99
KENNETH WOLFE SF94
�24
28
Supporting
our Newest
Johnnies
36
Alumni Couple
Bring Their
Johnnie
Perspective
to Life
Day of Gratitude
& Reunion Weekend
38
Selected Notes
from Classmates
39
Highlights from
Alumni Week 2022
40
KIDUS KEBEDE A20
In Memoriam
CHLOE NIEDZIELSKI A25
ELI CASTRO SF94
TRACY LOCKE CASTRO SF95
41
32
26
Internships
Connect
the Lab to Life
On Reading,
Religion,
Redemption,
and Reasons
for Giving
SUSMI SHARMA SF21
MARK JORDAN SF73
Alumni Association
Honorees 2022
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
3
�A Re-envisioned
Relationship
A
nnapolis tutor Erica Beall (A07) remembers
the conficting feelings that arose in the years
immediately following her graduation from
St. John’s. “It was possible to remain engaged with
the college, but it was not always clear in what capacities we still belonged,” she says of herself and her fellow Johnnies. “We used to joke about how those four
years of intense self-discovery can lead to an ambivalent attachment: both clinging to and feeing from the
college when it’s fnally time to go.”
Now, as a member of the Alumni Relations Working
Group (ARWG), Beall is committed to helping change
that dynamic. With representation from staff, faculty, alumni, and members of the Board of Visitors and
Governors, the group advises the collegewide Offce
of Alumni Relations, and Beall describes it as “almost
like a think tank.”
“There’s room for unstructured conversations that
generate interesting ideas for how to serve, and show
appreciation for, our alumni. It’s a great mix of brass
tacks and broader refection, all with an eye to re-envisioning alumni relations in a way that’s both practical and true to the spirit of the college,” says Beall.
For Director of Alumni Relations Chris Aamot (SF04),
the ARWG serves as an invaluable source of support
and encouragement—and ensures that the alumni
voice is heard. “They are holding me accountable for
doing the best job that I can do,” he says. “It’s the most
productive relationship I could ask for.”
When Aamot looks out toward alumni, he sees a
community for whom “being a Johnnie is who they
are.” But, he adds, that sense of identity doesn’t always translate into concrete action.
4
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
From Aamot’s point of view, the primary challenge
is for St. John’s to determine how it can best support
alumni while also inspiring them to take action on behalf of the college.
This bidirectional approach to alumni relations is
a new industry standard and differs from the past
when, Aamot says, “You simply held a get-together
and hoped that happy vibes would somehow lead to
good outcomes.”
In pursuit of a more effective—and mutually benefcial—model, the Offce of Alumni Relations embarked
on a listening campaign in recent years, approaching
alumni who didn’t have histories of deep engagement
with St. John’s.
Alumni are defned by the college’s governing
document, the Polity, as any former student
who has completed one semester of the
undergraduate program or one segment of a
graduate program. It is a lifelong community
that is not bound by time or place but is united
by a common curiosity and commitment to
exploring fundamental questions together.
“We knew these alumni still loved the college,” says
Aamot. “So we asked them, ‘what can the college do
for you? What do you need?’ The universal answer
was: ‘Help us continue the life of the mind that we began at St. John’s.’”
�CHRIS AAMOT SF04
Aamot and his colleagues are dedicated to providing
Johnnies with numerous opportunities to do exactly
that, whether on campus, off campus, or virtually. He
cites Summer (and now Winter) Classics as popular
and enriching options along with the three low-residency programs of the Graduate Institute, which are
open to alumni on a degree-track or audit-only basis.
As it seeks to meet the needs of alumni, the college
also asks that alumni help meet the needs of current
and future students, through advocacy, philanthropy, and volunteerism.
Regarding the frst of these, Aamot says, “We need
our alumni to be talking about St. John’s to the people within their sphere of infuence. Our mission is
to continue the Great Conversation by bringing people of all ages to the table to read these books and explore these questions. If we have empty seats, then
nothing else matters.”
Next, says Aamot, St. John’s needs to engage more
volunteers. “That has been a longstanding challenge
for us, because we’ve always had more alumni who
want to get involved than we have been able to deploy,
but we are going to keep working to build channels for
those who raise their hand.”
The third action the college wants to encourage is
philanthropy. This particular need became especially
crucial when the college reduced tuition by one-third
in 2019. “What made that possible was an outpouring of philanthropy from alumni,” Aamot says, noting
that the college needs more participation from alumni who are willing to make small gifts, year after year.
“St. John’s tends to produce maximalists,” he notes.
“We are the people who are going to read the thou-
ERICA BEALL A07
sand-page book on the beach. But we need to remember that the little things matter. The small gifts, the little actions of advocacy, those things have real power
and can change trajectories.” Like his colleague Beall,
Aamot knows frsthand how complicated alumni feelings about St. John’s can be.
“We want it to be better than it is because we believe
in the true, the good, the beautiful—that which is the
ideal,” he says. “We believe in arete, and the college is
always going to fall short of arete. How do we reconcile
that? We adopt a calculus where we are both supporting the college as it is and helping it to become better.”
For both Aamot and Beall, that means recognizing
and celebrating that Johnnies are lifelong members
of one community—and then focusing on the ultimate
reason for the college’s continued existence.
“As a tutor, this shift has meant a greater awareness
that part of what we are doing is preparing our students to be alumni,” says Beall. “Maintaining a healthy
connection between alumni and the college helps me
keep this essential aspect of a tutor’s work concretely in view.”
This evolving relationship between the college and
alumni is not only crucial to St. John’s future but is also the right approach for the present.
“In this environment, where people are becoming
increasingly polarized, there is nothing more valuable than true collaborative inquiry into meaningful
questions,” says Aamot. “Teaching students how to do
that—to stand for their own voice and genuinely listen
to others who differ from them—there is no better education for the modern moment.”
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
5
�MARTI ACOSTA
A92
DINO ANDERSON
A99
�An Open
Conversation
MARTI ACOSTA A92
T
his spring, the college sat down for a conversation with Marti Acosta (A92) and Dino
Anderson (A99), two of the many alumni who
have positively impacted the college through their
volunteerism and advocacy. Their involvement with
the college as alumni is extensive and includes collaborating with the college on issues of concern to
alumni, including diversity and inclusion initiatives.
Marti Acosta has worked in leadership development
for more than two decades. Currently a senior moderator for Harvard Business Publishing, she has facilitated diversity and inclusion programs for global corporations including Natixis, Mars, and Intel.
Dino Anderson began his career teaching at Bowdoin
College and Columbia University. He is the chief culture offcer at Articulate in San Francisco and is a
lecturer at the Master of Liberal Arts program at
Johns Hopkins and the Stanford Graduate School of
Business.
DINO ANDERSON A99
How have you been involved with the college as
alumni thus far?
MARTI ACOSTA: I’ve been involved for many years
and volunteered in several capacities. I did a video
around how the St. John’s education develops the leadership skills that are desired in corporations around
the world. I have presented to parents of newly admitted students, and I have delivered workshops to students on topics like networking. I was on the Alumni
Association Board, and now I sit on the Board of
Visitors and Governors.
DINO ANDERSON: I am mainly involved on three
fronts: through the board Task Force on Diversity and
Inclusion; I am the director of the Alumni Association
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) working group
for the Alumni Association Board; and I participated in the One Table, Many Voices visioning process.
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
7
�Columbia University professor
Roosevelt Montás visited both
campuses to speak about the
value of the Great Books and
why they matter in our modern
and diverse world.
Did you miss the presentation?
Videos of both lectures
can be found on the college’s
YouTube channel:
youtube.com/stjohnscollege
�I know of your work on the Diversity and Inclusion
(D&I) Task Force and related work partnering with
college staff to develop a vision for One Table, Many
Voices events, like the Roosevelt Montás lecture and
visit. How would you describe this work?
ACOSTA: It’s the work of every organization to create
an environment that is supportive of everyone showing up authentically as themselves. I’m an immigrant,
and I’m also mixed-race. When I was younger, I sort of
accepted this feeling of not really ftting in anywhere
in the world, and when I went to St. John’s I found
my people. The Program, how we approach Western
thought, is by its nature intellectually inclusive. For
me the importance of being on the D&I Task Force is
to help create an environment where everyone can
fully engage in this very special education and have
their diverse voices heard, even if they don’t see all
their identities refected in the texts.
ANDERSON: It comes from an awareness that there
is an opportunity for more diverse representation
among the voices that have shaped Western civilization. The conversation is not limited to the authors on
the Program, since there are more voices that have
contributed to sustaining and expanding the big questions on the true, the good, and the beautiful.
Marti, what stood out to you from the Roosevelt
Montás visit or lecture, and how would it have spoken to you when you were a student at the college?
ACOSTA: One of the things that was really beautiful
was that Professor Montás was talking about his personal relationship with some of the works we read at
St. John’s. A crazy thing blew my mind: I asked him a
question about his defnition of freedom, and he clarifed something for me, which is that the word “liberal”
in liberal education is more closely related to “liberal”
in the sense of “liberty” than in the sense of “broad.”
I have lived in lots of different cultures and countries, and I realized that so much of the ways that we
categorize ourselves are for other people. One of the
liberties that a liberal education gave me is the ability
to question these narrow categories, approach issues
from multiple perspectives, and embrace my complexity and even my paradoxes.
How do alumni help the college understand and address important efforts like this?
ACOSTA: As alumni, we provide a larger context outside of the school. The St. John’s education requires
study and self-refection and insularity. There’s a contraction of our activity to allow for an expansion of
our minds. The alumni help people see what expansive education means in the world—what’s next after
St. John’s and how we carry that education with us—
because it’s hard to do that when you are focusing in
on the fundamental principles of a triangle or the astronomical foundations of calculus.
Dino, talk more about your role in the events related to the 70th anniversary of W. E. B. Du Bois’s visit to the college.
ANDERSON: What an exciting opportunity to have
collaborated on commemorating the visit of a seminal
Program author to the college. I was particularly excited because in grad school I did deeper research on
Du Bois’s dynamic life, writings, and pedagogy, particularly as it concerned the grounding and promise
of the American polity and preservation of the contributions of the African diaspora.
When I got involved with the task force and the
Alumni Association, I found an article with the exact
date of when Du Bois spoke at St. John’s, so I was one
of the people to voice that he made an appearance. I
think it is important to note that quite a few people
pointed out that fact. I am glad that these voices were
able to infuence the realization of this event. Sadly, I
didn’t have the opportunity to attend the all-college
seminar because of other teaching commitments, but
I was happy about working with staff and other alumni to make sure we told the story of what it meant for
Du Bois to be at the school.
What did it mean for you to experience this focus on
the Du Bois visit and speech?
ANDERSON: I recall reading the text as a senior and
not grasping the gravity and urgency of his words.
This could have been due to an immaturity on my
part, and our reading only a part of The Souls of Black
Folk—a complex work of education written in the
Bildungsroman tradition.
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
9
�Dino, take yourself back to being a student at
There’s a certain maturity you need to read that
St. John’s. How does your work with the college towork, because it’s representative of Du Bois’s lifelong
day speak to, or from, your younger self?
commitment to documenting and eradicating the social injustice and inequities that happen for Black and
other people of color. And now, seeing the exacerbaANDERSON: I’ll never forget what one tutor, Debbie
tion of race relations in the United States (and in other
Renaut Axelrod, told me when I was adamant that I
countries), we have much more context for Du Bois’s
wanted to pursue a graduate degree in philosophy and
text as a harrowing depiction of the U.S. polity and its
maybe one day come back to teach at St. John’s. (This
inability to live up to its promises.
romantic vision was not uncommon.) She told me it
It was exciting to have Du Bois’s voice be central—
was important to gain different perspectives on othnot as a reaction or a performative gesture in the
er schools of thought and approaches to philosophy.
name of diversity, but because he is in the Program
When I did go to grad school, I had the courage to put
and because these words still resonate as strongly as
the Western philosophical canon into question—from
they did in 1903, and in 1952, and now in 2022: “so
those who inherited the tradition and those who had
that they can come to know what has
their histories and thoughts contesttaken place in the past and what mised. I’m glad that I’ve had that ability to
takes have been made.”
mature and think differently, to quesIt gives me hope to see the college
tion the canon. The Program should alAlumni should
shining a light on this great thinker
ways keep its central questions alive
really be proud
and his urgent words and, through this
and always ask who is not at the table
that they are part
celebration, creating a space for diffand why?
of a community
cult conversations. I feel the college is
that is willing
How d id each of you v iew you r
trying to heal its own soul so that it can
to look at itself
St. John’s education in real time and
be a voice to help heal the American
critically—and
how do you view it now? Has your
polity’s soul.
also with
perspective changed?
compassion and
Marti, I heard you participated in a
also with praise.
video shoot that paired a student with
ANDERSON : My younger self didn’t
We deserve all
an alum up on Monte del Sol, having
have all these resources that are on
of those things.
a conversation about a great book.
the campus now. What a great and
What did you talk about?
wonderful thing to know that we can
get better. I see that commitment hapACOSTA: I was paired with a student
pening, and it makes me hopeful. My
— MARTI ACOSTA A92
who is Nepalese, a wonderful, thoughtyounger self is glad that I made the
ful Johnnie. We had a brief discussion
right decision to go to a school that is
about a passage in the Iliad, specifcally around the
committed to giving us a foundation and always lookrelationship between Achilles and Patroclus. My biging at ways it can improve.
gest problem with the video was trying to decide how
to pronounce Patroclus, because we all had different
ACOSTA: I often introduce myself to other Johnnies
ideas!
as someone who did junior year twice, not because I
There’s a thread that holds all Johnnies together,
had to but because I wanted to. My perspective about
and even though, as I said, I found my people there, I
St. John’s now is one of feeling great privilege for havfound a very diverse people: people from all over the
ing been there while also being shocked that the world
place with different backgrounds and different reladoesn’t recognize it fully for the gem that it is.
tionships to the work and different things they wantAlumni should really be proud that they are part of
ed to do with life. Being able to come back and connect
a community that is willing to look at itself critically—
with some students and seeing how amazing and how
and also with compassion and also with praise. We dediverse they are, it was fun.
serve all of those things.
“
”
10
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�The St. John’s community
marked the 70th anniversary of
W. E. B. Du Bois’s visit to the
Annapolis campus with an
all - college seminar on his 1952
lecture. Du Bois, author of The
Souls of Black Folk , is believed
to be the only Program author to
speak at St. John’s College.
�How can I
be an advocate
for the college
and its alumni?
12
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�Be an advocate for
GivingTuesday 2022.
Join us this year for GivingTuesday
to watch small gifts compound
into spectacular support for our
students and the Program.
Email development@sjc.edu to learn
how you can use your networking
or social media skills to
further support GivingTuesday as
a GiveCampus advocate.
Elect your representatives
on the Alumni
Association Board.
All alumni are members of the
St. John’s College Alumni Association,
an independent group that works
closely with the college to advocate
for St. John’s continued excellence.
The Alumni Association is governed by
a volunteer board of directors who
represent their fellow alumni and are
elected by and from the alumni body.
Visit sjc.edu/alumni/association for
more information about items on the
ballot, including the Association’s
board of directors and your elected
representative to the college’s Board
of Visitors and Governors.
Nominate outstanding
alumni for the
Award of Merit.
Each year the Alumni Association
bestows the Award of Merit on our
fellow alumni for distinguished and
meritorious service to the United
States, to their native state, to the
college, or for outstanding
achievement within a chosen feld.
The Awards Committee needs your
help to ensure that deserving alumni
are recognized and celebrated.
sjc.edu/award-merit
Submit a story idea
to elevate
extraordinary alumni.
Share your best
dorm stories.
Take a walk down memory lane
and share your best stories about
Johnnie dorm giggles, gaggles,
and maybe even a few geese to
support our upcoming campaign
for campus infrastructure and
renovations. Submit your stories
and keep an eye out to see which
fantastic tales are chosen.
sjc.edu/dorm-stories
The St. John’s Communications Offce
loves to celebrate the amazing pivots,
journeys, and achievements of our
alumni. Highlight a signifcant moment
for a peer or yourself at:
sjc.edu/submit-story
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
13
�Teacher Ignites
International Interest
in St. John’s
A
ny St. John’s alum who hapas a student and now as a teacher.
pened to peer into the classIn between, he found St. John’s,
room of high school teacher
and his encounter with the Great
Liam Goodacre (SF08) would fnd
LIAM GOODACRE SF08
Books shaped the trajectory of his
the intellectual comforts of home—
future.
and some familiar friends.
“The college was a step in a different direction for
Aristotle, Kant, Sartre, Beauvoir: all make an apme. I had no experience with the classics, but I was atpearance.
tracted to the seminar style of learning and the demoIt is not necessarily the subject matter—grounded,
cratic principles of the classroom,” he recalls, adding
though it is, in the classics—that would transport this
that he “discovered philosophy” along the way.
hypothetical Johnnie back to the seminar table; it is
“St. John’s was four great years of thinking ‘what is
the plurality of voices, united in the pursuit of underthis person trying to say? I have never thought along
standing.
these lines, and I cannot imagine coming up with this
In Liam Goodacre’s classroom, conversations
idea because it is so alien, so radically new.’”
abound.
After graduating from St. John’s, Goodacre felt he
“My teaching has evolved over the years, in terms of
could help other students to develop their own relaboth style and content, but Socratic teaching methtionship with “radical ideas.” Attracted to UWC’s comods are still very fundamental for what I do,” says
mitment to egalitarianism in education and the diverGoodacre, who teaches philosophy at the United World
sity of the student body, he joined the faculty of UWC
College Mahindra near Pune, India.
Mahindra, where he spent the frst fve years of his
The United World Colleges (UWC) constitute an inteaching career. He then taught for four years at UWC
ternational network of high schools that share a stated
Dilijan in Armenia before returning to India.
aim of uniting “people, nations, and cultures for peace
It was during his time in Dilijan that Goodacre’s
teaching methods had a profound effect on James
and a sustainable future.” Goodacre has been a part
of the UWC community for more than 12 years, frst
Law (SF25).
14
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�“I was really struck by the detail in which Liam
already have, something they can’t even imagine,”
thinks about things. We would read a sentence from
says Goodacre. “I suspect that at a lot of liberal arts
Plato, and he would stimulate a fantastic conversation
colleges, you are getting fed what you already know,
just around that,” says Law, one of two students who
or what you already believe. St. John’s will challenge
attended Goodacre’s philosophy class at UWC Dilijan
students in ways they can’t even imagine being chaland are now in their second year at St. John’s.
lenged.”
“Some teachers stand in this elevated role, but with
That desire to be challenged also manifests itself
Liam, you were on common ground. I can see now that
in Goodacre’s own approach to education. For years
he ran his class just like a St. John’s
he has taught Simone de Beauvoir’s
class.”
The Second Sex, giving students an opGoodacre says that numerous stuportunity to hear from one of history’s most infuential female philosodents will invariably ask about his educational background, giving him the
The Class of 2025
phers. Most recently, he helped UWC
is the largest in
opportunity to describe and promote
Mahindra develop a course in which
a decade, and 1 in 4
students discuss the implications of
St. John’s. “Every year there is at least
of
these
rising
slavery, both historical and contemone student who will respond enthusophomores
siastically, and we will sit down and
porary, from a multidisciplinary perlearned about
talk for a couple of hours. That student
spective.
St. John’s College
usually ends up going to St. John’s.”
Both subjects address emotionally
from
an
alum.
resonant
issues that are at the foreThis was ultimately the case for Law.
front of a global conversation—and
“I was really curious about how Liam
Goodacre is convinced these are exbecame the thinker that he is, and he
actly the kinds of conversations that
told me about the college. We would
St.
meet every week to talk.”
John’s gives people of all backLaw initially succumbed to the temptation to design
grounds and perspectives the tools to confront.
his own education and spent a year at a college where
“There is so much divide these days, and I truly behe could choose from electives—but his conversations
lieve that St. John’s approach to education can help. It
with Goodacre continued to reverberate. By the time
helps us to listen, to fnd common causes amidst all
the pandemic struck in 2020, forcing Law to leave his
of the things that pull us apart. It’s not an easy thing.
college campus in Maine, he had already decided he
But I really do think that St. John’s College, more than
wanted to be at St. John’s. With a letter of recommenmost educational systems, can help bridge divides.”
dation from Goodacre, Law applied to St. John’s and
enrolled at the Santa Fe campus in Fall 2021.
“When I came to St. John’s and had my frst seminar,
I realized ‘yes, this is what Liam was trying to emulate in his classroom.’”
ARE YOU A JOHNNIE
Law joined the largest cohort of UWC students to enIN EDUCATION?
roll at St. John’s in a decade—and entered a Santa Fe
freshman class that was the largest in 18 years. These
The college would like to thank you for all
results are especially signifcant as St. John’s, like mayou do. Complete a simple form, and
ny small colleges, prepares for a demographic cliff
St. John’s will send you a package of swag
that will see the population of college-age students
and surprises, including a Great Books
drop by an estimated 15 percent in the coming years.
poster for your classroom.
“UWC is very helpful to St. John’s because it can prosjc.edu/teacher-project
vide diversity, but you also fnd people who get what
the college is about,” Goodacre explains.
The college, in return, has a lot to offer students.
“St. John’s will give students something they don’t
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
15
�How can I
connect the
college to the
next generation
of Johnnies?
16
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�Introduce a student
to the college.
Add St. John’s to your
LinkedIn profle.
Alumni are the best advertisement for
the value of a St. John’s education.
When prospective students are
making their college decisions, they
look to see what alumni are doing in
the world. Your social media presence
on LinkedIn and other platforms can
show these future students what life
is like on the other side of college.
The Great Conversation will always
need fresh perspectives. If you know
a student who would enrich the
St. John’s community, let the
college know. The admissions team
will send you a packet of information
to share, or they can send information
directly to the student.
sjc.edu/1alum1referral
Introduce a teacher to
the Graduate Institute.
When educators experience St. John’s
discussion-based pedagogy, they are
frequently inspired to model it in their
own classrooms. Teachers can
enjoy select seminars at no cost
through the Teachers Institute or earn
a Liberal Arts Education Certifcate
in just two summers.
sjc.edu/teachers-institute
sjc.edu/liberal-arts-certifcate
Be an admissions
ambassador.
Whether they have already been
accepted to St. John’s or are still
exploring their options, students have
questions. You can offer answers.
Share your experiences with a high
school senior, answer questions from
incoming freshmen, or represent
St. John’s at your local high school.
Spark a conversation
with your Johnnie swag.
Here’s how to claim your discount:
Visit johnniestore.com
by September 30, 2022
Select “shop” from the
drop-down menu
Choose the “Alumni Magazine”
category
Stock up on alumni apparel,
auto decals, water bottles,
tote bags, and more...
Enjoy a
T
SCOUN
20% DIct items at
on sele
e
johnni
om
store.c
Interested? Reach out to
annapolis.admissions@sjc.edu or
santafe.admissions@sjc.edu
for more information.
Support student
scholarships with a
gift of any size.
Your annual gift to the Fund for
St. John’s helps break down the
fnancial barriers that stand
between a St. John’s education
and nearly two-thirds of all Johnnies.
sjc.edu/annual-fund
Submit an inspiring
review of St. John’s.
Prospective students and parents
connect with the spirit of St. John’s
through authentic testimonials from
alumni like you. Share your reflections
on the power of your St. John’s
education with the U.S. News & World
Report and other influential sites.
sjc.edu/submit-review
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
17
�Summer Classics:
A Beautiful Opacity
KENNETH WOLFE SF94
B
occaccio’s The Decameron is a collection of one
hundred stories that chronicle the whims of
fortune and vicissitudes of love. Set in 1348 in
a country villa outside of Florence, it features a group
of ten young people trading narratives while taking
refuge during the aftermath of a plague.
To be sure, the book’s theme has a particular resonance in light of our collective relationship to the
ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. But that’s not the primary reason Santa Fe tutor Ken Wolfe (SF94) chose
it as a featured text for the 2022 session of St. John’s
Summer Classics.
Although strongly associated with Santa Fe,
Summer Classics is emerging as a collegewide
program, with more tutor collaboration, online
offerings, and attendees from around the country.
18
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
LEAH LASELL SFGI04
The Decameron is also the frst major work of prose
literature produced in Italy, a country to which Wolfe
has a strong personal connection; he completed both
a master’s degree in Latin and a PhD in classics from
UC Berkeley. “I’ve had a really long-standing interest
in the Mediterranean world, not just the ancient one,”
he says. “I know Italy, and I love the food, the sound of
the language and the music—everything.”
Wolfe initially read The Decameron during spring
break of his junior year at St. John’s. “It was just on my
own,” he says. “I didn’t have a chance to have Johnniestyle discussions on the book, but I really got into it
and found it delightful.”
He began to revisit it last fall and asked Annapolis
tutor Leah Lasell (SFGI04) to join him in co-facilitating a Summer Classics seminar on the text. The two
had known each other for years and had previously
worked together on a collegewide committee.
By his own count, Wolfe has facilitated four or fve
Summer Classics seminars in the past, leading dis-
�cussions on topics ranging from Darwinian theory
to Persian poetry. For the 2022 session, he not only collaborated in person with Lasell to discuss The
Decameron but also teamed up with Annapolis tutor
Allison DeWitt for an online seminar, “Reading the
Qur’an as Literature.”
This is the frst Summer Classics experience for Lasell,
who shares Wolfe’s interest in the geographical region and culture of Boccaccio. “I have a grant to study
Galileo this year and next year, so I’ve been working
on Italian science and philosophy,” she says.
Unsurprisingly, there are a number of factors that
might draw tutors to a particular text or work of art
for Summer Classics. It could be the appeal of revisiting a Program text with a fresh group of readers or the
allure of exploring something new—including flms,
opera, paintings, or photographs. Sometimes it’s simply committing to a book that has sat for too long on
a shelf, untouched, as was the case with Lasell and
The Decameron.
Of course, the plague theme did play into the two tutors’ choice of text, too.
Says Wolfe of the pandemic, “It’s been a really diffcult time for a lot of people in terms of isolation. You
might be isolated alone, or you might be isolated with
family members, and both situations will have their
challenges.”
The Decameron can provide an antidote of sorts to
that diffculty. “It’s a really fun book,” Lasell says. “A
lot of the stories are based on pleasure. There’s sort of
an interesting interplay between what’s allowed, with
respect to the state and religion, and how people are
trying to fnd pleasure in the crevices there.”
In general, she fnds that a text that engenders fruitful discussions is one that can be approached by readers from a variety of backgrounds and experiences,
which is also the ideal profle of a Summer Classics
seminar group.
Alumni accounted for 1 in 5
Summer Classics participants in 2022.
2022 session) people with a strong personal connection to the college, Summer Classics attendees are immediately immersed in the culture and conventions
of a Great Books seminar.
“We do have a lot of repeat participants, and newcomers can learn from people who have done it in the
past,” says Wolfe. “They all bring a lot of energy and
enthusiasm and freshness to the conversations.”
The desire to connect through ideas is central to a
St. John’s education and, some would argue, a defning characteristic of our shared humanity. For Lasell,
this notion was reinforced by a story she heard on
public radio some years back.
In an interview, an Afghani man spoke of being middle-aged in a war-torn country and recalled
how groups of people would get together to read
Shakespeare.
Shakespeare remains
the most widely read author
in 32 years of Summer Classics.
“It would have been impossible to talk about war
directly and about how it affected their lives—it was
just too raw,” says Lasell. “But somehow talking about
Shakespeare gave them the opacity that they needed
to think about their life without thinking about their
life. It created this barrier.”
“When we’re reading Boccaccio, we’re talking about
post-plague Italy. It’s as if we are not talking about
ourselves at all. That allows us to talk about the things
that we might want to talk about, but maybe they are
too politically tense. Our emotions get too high when
we talk about things directly, so this allows us to talk
about them indirectly.”
“That’s what St. John’s does so well,” she adds, referring not just to Summer Classics texts but to the Great
Books overall. “It provides us not just some opacity,
but a beautiful opaque surface.”
Whether they are alumni, lifelong learners, or (as is
the case with Lasell’s mother, who registered for the
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
19
�How can I
return to the
conversations
I love?
20
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�Join fellow seekers
for a Year of Classics.
Send your mind on a
summer adventure—
or a winter one.
Spend a week (or more) among fellow
lovers of intellectual inquiry as you
delve into texts—as well as visual
and cinematic pieces—that you didn’t
have time to explore as an
undergraduate. Online options are
available, or you can attend Summer
Classics in person and make Santa Fe
your vacation destination.
sjc.edu/summer-classics
sjc.edu/winter-classics
Savor nine months of profound, rich,
and resonant readings. This
once-a-month experience is the ideal
in-person or online getaway for
anyone whose intellectual appetite
needs to be sated, from the inspired
artist to the busy executive.
sjc.edu/year-of-classics
Johnnies are welcome.
The Master of Liberal Arts degree is
now open to alumni who earned a BA
from St. John’s more than fve years
ago. Encounter the Great Books from
a new vantage point and see how the
shifting sands of time have changed
your thinking around the texts you
explored as an undergraduate.
You are entitled to
an alumni discount.
When you complete the application
for need-based fnancial aid, you
receive a 25 percent discount on your
tuition. You might also qualify for
additional scholarship assistance,
but even if you do not, you still receive
the alumni discount.
You can do it online.
Flexible options mean you don’t
have to upend your family or career.
Attend in person, online, in the
evening, or only in the summers.
The choice is yours.
Hear from
current students.
Indulge in a banquet of poetry, essays,
and other original content through
St. John’s three primary student-run
publications: Colloquy, The Gadfly,
and The Moon. You are also welcome
to submit your own content to
Colloquy, which is produced by the
Graduate Institute in Annapolis.
Recent issues are available to
read online.
colloquysjc.com
sjc.edu/gadfly
sjc.edu/moon
Discover what you
didn’t know about the
Graduate Institute.
Take in a lecture,
Johnnie-style.
Friday night lectures remain a
cherished tradition of the academic
year. If you remember what it’s like
to see familiar ideas thrust into new
light, that experience is still yours to
enjoy, free of cost.
Visit events.sjc.edu for the
schedule or watch past lectures on
the college’s YouTube channel.
youtube.com/stjohnscollege
The Eastern Classics will
rearrange your thinking.
The classic texts of the Eastern
traditions do more than enhance
those of the West; they often surprise
with a wholly different, frequently
sublime take on timeless universal
themes. Be prepared for frm ideas
to develop new contours.
sjc.edu/graduate-institute
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
21
�“
After graduating from the Graduate Institute,
I really missed St. John’s—learning through
discussion was amazing. To relive this
experience, I enrolled in the Year of Classics.
These seminars—just an hour and a half a
month—were wonderfully enriching, with
intellectual classmates and insightful tutors
who enhanced my learning experience.
For anyone seeking to expand their
intellectual horizons, I would strongly
recommend the Year of Classics as the best
way to learn and to exercise your mind.”
—CATHY FOGEL AGI11
“
St. John’s has remained my diamond test for
intellectual engagement, so when I recently
became a Johns Hopkins professor, I chose
to live in Annapolis, drawn partly by the
prospect of Friday night lectures. Anxious
that memory’s lens would be distorted by
the gauze of nostalgia, I attended my frst
lecture primed for disillusion. But experience
exceeded expectation. I arrived at eight and
had to stand, while the students had come
early, jamming the Great Hall, content to wait
and to listen, and then to stay late, eager
to ask questions. Whether you’re waxing
nostalgic or wanting intellectual inspiration,
come to a Friday night lecture. But come early.
Otherwise, you’ll have to stand.”
—DANIEL H. FOSTER SF90
22
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
“
A week of seminar tends to frame the
events in my life. It happened all through
the Graduate Institute, and it happened
again at Winter Classics. We used the Emily
Wilson translation of the Odyssey, and I
was so taken with it that I told everyone,
including an old friend from the Peace Corps.
I said: ‘Dennis, I had a week seminar on
the Odyssey. An old guy, after decades of
sleeping with goddesses, wants to go home
to see his dog, his wife, and his son, and to
kill everyone who ever crossed him. His dog
wagged his tail before anyone else recognized
him.’ Dennis replied that he really likes to get
home to see his dog too. Then in April my son’s
obituary was published. Homer came again:
‘His spirit left his body. Still alive, still seeing
the sunlight.’ You have to suffer, but you can
get home. Consolation.
Whether light-hearted or deadly serious,
Winter Classics sticks with you. Come be a
part of it again.”
—W. PETER BALLEAU AGI17
�“
“
It was August 2020, and I was sitting in the
comfort of my own home, after sanitizing
groceries in our self-imposed lockdown.
I pulled up my email and there was a notice
from St. John’s College announcing the
Eastern Classics Program would be available
online. I stared at it, dumbstruck. Finally,
after 20 years of wanting to study these texts,
a pandemic gave me the chance. We would
not sit around a physical table, but we have
been participating with each other in tiles
across the computer screen from homes
and offces all over the world. It worked
beautifully! Even Sanskrit, which I am
continuing with a special study group … yes,
online. Now you too can study practicerealization with Dogen, trek through the north
with Basho, and translate the Gīta. Enjoy!”
The Summer Classics in beautiful Santa Fe
is a return to the memories, conversations,
and friendships of your St. John’s experience.
I loved my Johnnie experience and Summer
Classics allows me to be a Johnnie all over
again. Day to day it is very hard to have
conversations on the beautiful and true with
the nicest of people—Summer Classics is a
return to the good life and is the highlight
of my summer (perhaps even my year).
I am so happy I made the decision to get
back to Santa Fe and St. John’s. If you loved
your St. John’s experience, I implore you to
get back to the high desert come July. It will
be like you never left. You will be instantly
hooked all over again!
LONG LIVE ST. JOHNS!”
—BILLY GERRISH AGI11
—PAM CARTER SFGI08
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
23
�Supporting
our Newest
Johnnies
KIDUS KEBEDE A20
W
hen Chloe Niedzielski (A25) arrived on the
Annapolis campus of St. John’s College
in August 2021, she was, like many of her
peers, concerned about ftting in, about making
friends, and about making mistakes. She felt anxious,
and she struggled—with her fears, with the weight of
her college decision, and with frustratingly unfamiliar laundry machines.
“I had so many questions,” says Niedzielski. “But I
was also given the opportunity to ask them. I wasn’t
just handed a folder and a room key and told ‘good
luck fguring it out.’”
24
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
CHLOE NIEDZIELSKI A25
Niedzielski was among 54 members of the Class of
2025 whose frst year on the Annapolis campus began
with the Pritzker Promise Bridge Program, an extended orientation experience for qualifed incoming students who would like additional preparation prior to
the start of the academic year.
The welcome she received is different from the one
that Kidus Kebede (A20) remembers.
“Transitioning into the college is tough,” says
Kebede, St. John’s frst-year student engagement coordinator, who helps oversee the bridge program in
Annapolis. “This is true of any institution, but histori-
�cally St. John’s has not had a focus on easing that trannights and long papers from peer mentors who offer
sition, particularly for students who are already at a
a candid—and uncompromising—view of Johnnie life.
disadvantage.”
“Peer mentors are specifcally instructed to repSix years ago, Kebede was a frst-year student with
resent the college as honestly as they can,” Kebede
challenges of his own. He came to St. John’s as an insays. “And that’s important, because while new stuternational student and found an education that imdents might think they are going to leave every semmediately captivated him—and an institution that took
inar with a sort of glow, that isn’t reality. There are
longer to love.
frustrating conversations, and students need to hear
“After the frst few weeks, you were mostly left to
about them.”
fend for yourself,” he recalls. “I was midway through
Luke Widenhouse (A25) participated in the 2021
my sophomore year before I fnally gained my footing.
bridge program as an incoming freshman and says
Looking back now, I feel like I wasn’t
the peer mentors offered a “no holds
necessarily set up for success.”
barred perspective” that prepared him
But that was then. Today, he says,
for the classroom more than any oththe college is taking a more proactive
er discussion he had. “It's one thing to
The Pritzker
approach to student support, spurred
hear from a member of the adminisPromise Bridge
in part by constructive feedback from
tration, but it's another thing to hear
Program
alumni.
about the version of St. John’s that
addresses one
might be different in real life than it
“Instead of waiting for students to
of the concerns
walk into offces and say, ‘I am strugis on paper, to learn what actually does
most commonly
gling,’ we are creating communicaor doesn’t work in the classroom.”
expressed by
tion bridges between students, staff,
In 2021, eight students served as
alumni and future
and faculty from day one,” Kebede expeer mentors in Annapolis; this year
alumni: the need
plains. “Students feel more connected
the campus has ten. Both Niedzielski
for a strong
to the school and to the administration
and Widenhouse, now sophomores,
infrastructure of
and not left to fend for themselves.”
are among them.
student support.
Kebede describes the Pritzker
“It wasn’t long ago that I was flled
Promise Bridge Program as a core
with questions, and now I have some
component of a collegewide effort to
answers to share with the next generhelp students succeed at St. John’s.
ation of Johnnies,” says Niedzielski. “I
Funded through a Freeing Minds campaign gift from
can help them understand that you won’t reach your
the Jay Pritzker Foundation, the bridge program is
destination all at once, but you will get closer and closmeant to address the distinctive needs of new stuer until the other side isn’t overwhelming anymore.”
dents whose backgrounds and circumstances could
Widenhouse adds, “I am passionate about this
potentially serve as obstacles to academic success. On
school and want to do my part in giving back to it.”
both campuses, eligible students include those who
Their enthusiasm is representative of what Kebede
qualify for federal Pell Grant assistance, students who
sees as a broader collegewide culture shift, one that
are the frst in their families to attend college, and incalls for more collective accountability in helping all
ternational students.
members of the St. John’s community feel connect“There are some social drawbacks and risk factors
ed to the college.
that come with being a part of these demographics,”
“Every student who signs their name in the book
Kebede explains. He says the bridge program helps
during Convocation deserves to be set up for success,
to mitigate those factors by giving participants more
because that is the core of our message, that a libertime to adjust to campus, access to a social safety net,
al arts education should be available to anyone who
and an extensive overview of available resources.
seeks it.”
“Being a part of that is fulflling.”
What it does not do, Kebede assures, is downplay
the realities of a tough course load or the demands of
the St. John’s classroom. Participants hear about long
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
25
�Internships
Connect
the Lab to Life
SUSMI SHARMA SF21
26
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�E
very summer, St. John’s students fan out across
who are pursuing majors in science, technology, enthe globe to gain valuable onsite work experigineering, and mathematics (STEM).
ence through the Hodson Internships, which
“The questions we were persistently asking were
are based in Annapolis, and the Ariel Internships, ‘why do most of us spend hours using ineffective
learning strategies like highlighting or rereading
based in Santa Fe.
Students who are interested in these summer optext?’” explains Sharma. The assistance she providportunities work with the Career Services Offce in
ed during her internship will help researchers to unAnnapolis or the Offce of Personal and Professional
derstand why students continue to rely on unproducDevelopment (OPPD) in Santa Fe to identify locations
tive strategies and how educators can promote more
and programs that align with their goals—or tap ineffective ones.
to budding interests. The right match can give stuSharma now works full time as a research assistant at the University of Minnesota’s
dents a deeper understanding of their
Department of Neuroscience, where
post-graduate choices and provide an
edge as they seek employment.
she continues to nurture her interest
The experience can also foster deepA collegewide
in the neural underpinnings of human
survey of St. John’s
er relationships between students,
behavior.
alumni shows that
alumni, and the college.
“My initial fascination with neuronearly 20 percent
When Susmi Sharma (SF21) was
science deepened after my hands-on
of graduates have
awarded an internship during her seinternship,” says Sharma. “Before I
pursued
careers
in
interned with Dr. Elliott, I was quesnior year, she sought to explore her
STEM or a related
growing interest in neuroscience and
tioning my decision to some extent: I
area, such as
psychology. Piér Quintana, assistant
did not know how or even if I could rehealthcare.
director at OPPD, introduced Sharma
ally help people by doing experiments
to Dr. Taffeta Elliott (SF97), assistant
and computational work.”
professor of psychology and education
“The internship opened my eyes,
made me see that the task of a reat the New Mexico Institute of Mining
and Technology, known locally as New Mexico Tech.
searcher is to understand the problem and then conElliott was interested in hosting a student intern in
nect the experiments to real people’s lives.”
her lab and, as an alum, was familiar with the advanAlumni who are in a position to host a summer intern
tages that St. John’s students can bring to experimenare encouraged to fnd out how a current student can ental research.
rich the workplace—and how hosting a student can en“Susmi had a great can-do approach to lab work
rich their own relationship to the college.
that might have been tedious to students who have
“Mentoring Johnnies keeps me connected to St. John’s,”
less insight about their own motivations or the value
says Elliott. “Susmi brought energy to our summer projof using empirical study to test strong claims,” says
ects, and she brought great conversations.”
Elliott. “She also had an advantage in that she understood clearly how her senior essay work on Nietzsche
was related to psychological research on self-percepYOUR GENEROSITY CAN OPEN THE
tion and metacognition.”
DOOR TO A STUDENT’S CAREER.
Sharma’s internship with Dr. Elliott involved two distinct research projects that took her into the seemingSummer internships at St. John’s are funded
entirely through philanthropic support, making
ly disparate—but perhaps not too dissimilar—brains of
them more accessible to students who depend
South African clawed frogs and college students.
on paid summer work. Reach out to
The frst study looked at how frogs use an assortdevelopment@sjc.edu to learn how you can help
ment of hormones, nonverbal cues, and vocal commore Johnnies beneft from an internship.
munication to mediate their behavior and their social decisions. The other study explored the learning
strategies that are most effective for college students
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
27
�Alumni Couple
Bring Their Johnnie
Perspective to Life
E
ELI CASTRO SF94
li Castro (SF94) and Tracy Locke (SF95) Castro
created a life and a legacy from their pursuit
of knowledge of the Great Books at St. John’s
College. Their daughters Ella and Clarissa attended
Summer Academy on both campuses. Ella just graduated from American University, and Clarissa will join
the Santa Fe freshman class this fall.
“When the parents are Johnnies, we’re always going
to be talking about books,” says Eli, a Deloitte executive. “This helps us have great conversations because
we have a common language.”
Tracy, an independent web developer, adds: “Up until middle school, we read stories out loud, including
the children’s Homer.” She remembers the girls exclaiming, “We’re on our Odyssey!” as they played.
Tracy grew up on a rural Texas cattle ranch and attended a boarding high school in Dallas, Texas, where
one of her teachers knew about the Great Books program. “I found a St. John’s brochure at a career fair
and thought, ‘I am at the beginning of my life, and I
want to know the answers to the big questions; but the
books are right there in the library.’” To help her de-
28
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
TRACY LOCKE CASTRO SF95
termine whether the college was right for her, Tracy
visited St. John’s, attended seminar, and was “amazed”
at how the conversations continued late into the night.
“It felt so authentic…the blurring of your academic life
and your personal life, hiking in the mountains together,” she says.
She and Eli became friends at St. John’s and after graduation they married and settled in Texas to
raise a family. Both say they could not have predicted their future careers. Tracy’s post-graduation journey initially led her into public health nursing and
teaching at the University of Texas at Austin. After enjoying some time as a stay-at-home mom, she is now
focused on graphic design, web design, and web development. “Our path is not straightforward,” Tracy
says. “St. John’s is an education for the whole person.
It helps you learn who you want to be, and the skills
you can get later.”
Soon after St. John’s, Eli began working toward a
PhD in economics at the University of Wisconsin, a
direction he quickly discovered was not right for him.
“This isn’t working for me; do we have any leads?” he
�asked Jennifer Chenoweth (SFGI95), who was then
it. All of us who are on the other side have fgured
head of the Career Services Offce in Annapolis. She
out a path. It’s really cloudy when you try to look forput him in touch with Aaron Rosenbaum (A89), who
ward; it’s obvious when you look backward,” he exoperated a small consulting business that worked
plains. “Anyone can share their story to help make
with government clients. One week later, Eli moved
the post-graduate journey seem a little less scary, and
to Washington, DC.
that can be impactful,” he adds.
“Absolutely, St. John’s got me that job,” says Eli, who
Eli notes that the college now offers students more
began his consulting career through that fortuitous
direct career preparation. “St. John’s summer internintroduction to a fellow Johnnie. He subsequently
ship program sets the bar in education,” he says. “And
earned an MBA from the University of Texas and in
I work with higher education all the time.”
2005 joined professional services company Deloitte,
“The world is changing, evolving, and so is St. John’s,”
where he serves as a managing director focusing on
adds Tracy. “The core of St. John’s is still there with
higher education clients.
the Great Books programs, but now
The couple says their passion for
there are many activities and caSt. John’s inspired their two daughreer preparation opportunities that
ters to take an interest in the colmake St. John’s even better,” she says.
lege, with both daughters attending
Anyone can share
“While I feel strongly that being an unSummer Academy during their high
their story to
dergraduate isn’t about getting a skill
help make the
school years.
so you can fnd a job, we do have to
post-graduate
Eli is confdent that their eldest
get jobs.”
journey seem
daughter, Ella, beneftted from her
Alumni, Eli asserts, are motivated
a little less scary,
to support current students for varSummer Academy experience even
and that can be
though she eventually chose a difious reasons, including a desire to
impactful.
ferent college. “I think discourse—
perpetuate the distinctive and transcivil discourse—matters as much
formational experience they enjoyed.
when doing a public policy degree at
“St. John’s exists in a world that is beAmerican University as it does when
coming more and more specialized,
SF94
talking about books,” he explains.
so our college is becoming more and
— ELI CASTRO
“Approaching conversations about
more unique,” he says. “The Program
ideas in a certain inclusive way—lisallows people to learn to think in a way
tening to and responding to what people are saying—
that’s diffcult to learn in other places.”
that absolutely has value. Summer Academy gives a
“If you’re the benefciary of a beautiful experience
little window into that. Clarissa loved the St. John’s
like St. John’s, you owe it to the world to make sure
conversations, and there never really was another
it exists for those who come after you,” he concludes.
choice even though she was accepted at other schools.” “That’s how it is for me.”
Eli’s dedication to St. John’s has also inspired him
to think about ways to connect the college to students
outside of his own family. He recently participated
in an online workshop in which he and fellow alumIS YOUR TEENAGER CURIOUS ABOUT
ni met with newly admitted students and addressed
THE ST. JOHN’S EXPERIENCE?
some of the most commonly asked questions: How
do employers view St. John’s? What is the relevancy
Children of alumni can enjoy a week of
Summer Academy at half the price.
to the work world? Can one get into a good graduate
Ask
them to note on the application that
school after St. John’s?
they have a parent who is an alum.
“The answers were incredibly easy,” says Eli.
sjc.edu/summer-academy
“When you head out from St. John’s, you don’t have
a direction; you’re just a college graduate,” he recalls.
“Imagine a big meadow, and there’s no path through
“
”
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
29
�How can I
help fellow
Johnnies fnd
their paths?
30
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�Share your insights
with current students.
Your experience as a professional is
one of the greatest gifts you can give
to current students and fellow alumni.
As an alumni volunteer, you can
provide support for a spectrum of
career-oriented opportunities at every
commitment level, from short
conversations about your career path
to participation in a panel or
presentation, to mentorships that
support students throughout their job
search process.
Inspire others through
a JohnnieTalk.
Riff on our annual enigmatic theme as
you move through a Pecha-Kucha
style lightning talk to share your
passion and wisdom with prospective
students, current students, and
alumni. Submit your proposal for next
year’s round of JohnnieTalks here:
sjc.edu/johnnie-talks
Visit sjc.edu/career-contacts to let
the college know how you can help.
Find a place in
your organization
for a Johnnie.
Contemplating a
career change?
The college is here for you.
St. John’s offers personalized career
coaching that is free of charge to
alumni. The college can guide you
through self-assessments, interview
prep, and strategies for negotiating an
offer—without the high cost of a
private coach.
Reach out to santafe.oppd@sjc.edu or
annapolis.careerservices@sjc.edu to
get support for your career
transition today.
Whether you are looking for remote
project help, a summer intern,
or are seeking to fll a part-time or
full-time position, the college can
connect you with Johnnies who will
help your organization thrive.
Many students are awarded funding
for their internship choices, and staff
are ready to assist if you’re looking
to create an internship that aligns with
student interest.
To learn more, connect with
santafe.oppd@sjc.edu or
annapolis.careerservices@sjc.edu or
connect with them both to elevate
opportunities outside the local
campus areas.
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
31
�On Reading, Religion,
Redemption,
and Reasons for Giving
good, I’m not going to be fipping burgers. I can go to
college.” Looking back, it is especially interesting
that when I graduated from Santa Fe, the prep school
from which I had dropped out graciously awarded
me an honorary high school diploma.
MARK JORDAN SF73
The following content has been excerpted from an
interview with Mark Jordan, R. R. Niebuhr Research
Professor at Harvard Divinity School. Please visit
sjc.edu/mark-jordan to read the full interview.
How did you fnd your way to St. John’s?
I had an intense religious conversion right before
I went to St. John’s. I landed in Annapolis as a fairly
young February freshman, ready to do work on
Christian tradition, the relation of theology to philosophy, and, especially, ethics.
Having dropped out of high school, St. John’s was
my gamble. I remember getting the admissions letter a few days before Christmas and thinking, “Oh
32
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
What stands out from your initial experience of
the Program?
One of the things St. John’s instilled in me was the
courage to follow questions wherever they lead and
not to worry about the property signs that people put
up to fence off certain areas. So I started reading and
just kept going. In high school, I’d been reading
Thomas Aquinas and I continued to do so as a frstyear student, but I also fell in love with the way Plato
is read at St John’s.
My senior paper at St. John’s was on Thomas
Aquinas and Plato. The advisor who was reading
it told me that it was interesting but two times longer than it needed to be—and he was right! I went
on to do a dissertation on the doctrine of creation
in Thomas, on how God can be read through the
creation.
Are there any memories from your time in Santa Fe
that strike you differently now?
When I was at St. John’s there was passionate discussion about how the curriculum was or was not related to the arts and literature, because among the
students and faculty there were people who wrote
�novels and poems, or people who painted and threw
pots and photographed morning light on chamisa
(my fxation at the time). How could we include those
arts within the Program?
I remember sitting one day in the dining hall in
Santa Fe and thinking, “We don’t have to include
them. They already include us!” We were surrounded by this jaw-dropping beauty, and looking back
now, I realize that part of what held me in place to do
the work was the gift of being able to read powerful
books in this theater of beauties. Trying to write
those beauties has become more and more important to me—so I take that moment in the dining hall
as a premonition.
How do you characterize your ongoing relationship
with your St. John’s education?
I’m one of those people for whom the St. John’s
curriculum was exactly right. It gave me ways of
reading and teaching and writing that I have used
for the rest of my life. I still own the copies of Plato
and Aristotle that I bought the frst day I was on campus at Annapolis. I still use them to teach. So I feel a
daily connection to the work of the college.
How did you and your husband, Bill, decide what
kind of gift to make to St. John’s?
As a college teacher, I’ve never had a lot of money
to give. That was the motive for making a bequest or
planned gift. We’re not raising children, we don’t
have family obligations, so we are free to say, “Here’s
THE MOST MEANINGFUL GIFT
YOU GIVE TO ST. JOHN’S DOESN’T
HAVE TO BE THE ONE THAT COMES
STRAIGHT FROM YOUR POCKET.
It can be the gift of your legacy, given on behalf
of the students to come. By including St. John’s
in your estate plans, you can have a tremendous
impact on the future of the college—often at little
or no cost to you today. Visit sjc.giftplans.org
to start planning your legacy.
what we’ve accumulated. When the time comes, put
it to good use.”
The college was really clear that if Bill and I wanted to designate the money for particular purposes
we could. But having spent my entire life in colleges
and universities, I know that an overly specifc gift
can rapidly become an albatross. So that’s why we
decided to give our money for whatever general purposes the college deemed important. If we didn’t
trust the college to make that discernment, we
wouldn’t be giving the money.
How do you hope your gift will support the college
in the future?
As a teacher, you learn over time that how you articulate your questions today or this semester can
change dramatically. Still, underneath, there’s a current that fows, that continues to feed you through
your teaching and writing.
I feel that about the college, too. There may be—
will almost certainly be—many changes in the articulation of the curriculum, but what I want to support
is the current underneath. If you believe that the
kind of work St. John’s does reaches deeply into human capacities or needs or pursuits, then that work
will be important as long as there are humans.
I look forward into a future that I really can’t discern. I have no idea what the college’s curriculum is
going to look like in a hundred years, but I very much
hope that St. John’s will be around to provide fundamental education.
IS ST. JOHN’S ALREADY
IN YOUR ESTATE PLANS?
Email plannedgiving@sjc.edu and let the
college know. Documenting your intentions
will ensure that your gift is used exactly as
you want it to. This important step also
allows the college to say “thank you”
through St. John’s Forever: The Legacy
Society of St. John’s College.
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
33
�How can I
support
St. John’s
with my giving?
34
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�Challenge your classmates
to make a difference.
Make the Annual Fund
a yearly priority.
Regular annual giving is the best way
to support everything you care about
at St. John’s: every student, every
tutor, every conversation, and every
need. Through monthly recurring gifts
and multi-year pledges, you can
spread your commitment over time
and make a signifcant difference at
a manageable level.
sjc.edu/annual-fund
You lived together, ate together, and learned together.
Now you can make a difference together—and you
don’t have to wait until your reunion year to do so.
November 29 marks St. John’s ffth year of participation
in GivingTuesday, the national day of giving. Challenge
the members of your graduating class to make a gift and
offer to match a certain amount when they do. If a fellow
classmate offers a challenge—step up to meet it. The results
do make a difference. During GivingTuesday 2021,
the St. John’s community collectively raised more than
$200,000 to beneft students and the Program.
Invest in the
campus experience.
Through the $25 million Pritzker
Challenge, St. John’s is preparing both
campuses for future generations of
seekers. When you make a gift
in support of campus improvements,
the Jay Pritzker Foundation will match
every $2 of your gift with another $1.
sjc.edu/pritzker-challenge
Connect your legacy
to that of the college.
The most straightforward way to
include St. John’s in your personal
legacy is by naming the college as the
benefciary of a gift from your estate.
Taking this step can be as simple as
adding one sentence to an existing
will. By combining a legacy gift with
regular support for the Annual Fund,
you can make a profound difference in
the lives of current and future
students—at a level that makes sense
for you today.
Visit sjc.giftplans.org to get started.
Find out if your
employer will
match your gift.
Your employer or your spouse’s
employer could offer a matching
gift program that will double or
even triple the value of your gift.
Check out the matching gift tool at the
website below to see if your
company participates.
sjc.edu/matching-gift
Honor your St. John’s
education with
a reunion gift.
By commemorating your milestone
reunion year with a gift to the
college, you and your classmates can
help more students beneft from a
St. John’s education.
sjc.edu/reunion-giving
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
35
�S T. J O H N ’ S
Day of Gratitude
& Reunion Weekend
AL
ANNU
IN S
A NEW
G
E
B
IO N
IT
D
A
R
T
Santa Fe Annapolis
FRI SEPTEMBER 9
& SAT SEPTEMBER 10
FRI SEPTEMBER 23
& SAT SEPTEMBER 24
This fall St. John’s begins a new tradition of uniting our most
dedicated volunteers, ambassadors, and donors with our class
reunion gatherings for a weekend of in-person celebration.
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
Learn about your impact and
let the college thank you.
Celebrate a milestone…
together.
Both campuses will host a
full day of events for alumni,
friends, and student leaders
who advance the mission of the
college through their
volunteerism, advocacy, and gifts.
This year, in conjunction with the
Day of Gratitude, St. John’s will welcome
back to campus our 10-, 25-, and 50-year
reunion classes, including those alumni
who were not able to celebrate in person
in 2020 and 2021.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEKEND
Seminars Gratitude Lunch Inaugural Freeing Minds Society Induction Ceremony
Campus Tours Dean’s Lecture Lunch with Faculty Intellectual Programming Reunion Class Dinners
Reach out to alumni@sjc.edu for more information.
36
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�St. John’s is profoundly grateful
for alumni whose gifts of time and
resources enable the college to…
KEEP TUITION REASONABLE
Through widespread support for
the Freeing Minds campaign, the
college cut tuition by one-third
in 2019, making St. John’s one of
the most affordable colleges in the
Small College Consortium. The
modest increase that takes place
in Fall 2022 is substantially below
the annual rate of infation, due in
signifcant part to the continued
generosity of alumni.
BALANCE THE BUDGET
After years of running a structural defcit that peaked at $12 million, St. John’s is now entering its
third consecutive fscal year with a
structurally balanced budget.
ATTRACT A GROWING
COMMUNITY OF SEEKERS
Alumni are sharing the message that St. John’s College offers a life-changing experience.
The Class of 2025 was the largest in a decade, and one in four of
these rising sophomores learned
about St. John’s from an alum.
EARN A POSITIVE CREDIT
RATING
S&P Global raised their outlook
for St. John’s from stable to positive—a strong vote of confdence
from a highly regarded credit rating agency. Alumni support is
one of the factors they considered
when determining that St. John’s
is a good place for an investment.
SUPPORT STUDENTS IN THEIR
CAREER GOALS
Alumni said that St. John’s must
do more to help students prepare for post-graduate life—and
then stepped forward to offer that
help. More than 2,500 alumni
have raised their hands through
sjcconnect.com and signaled their
willingness to have a conversation
about their career paths.
INVEST IN STUDENTS
The St. John’s Endowment consists
of invested gifts that yield an annual revenue stream for the college. For the past two years, that
income stream has been equivalent to $11,000 in annual support
for every Johnnie.
REDUCE OUR DEPENDENCE
ON TUITION
St. John’s new fnancial model, bolstered by the Freeing Minds
campaign, makes generosity more
important than tuition. In 2021,
philanthropy covered nearly 40
percent of the cost to deliver the
Program, removing a heavy burden from the shoulders of students.
ASSIST 90 PERCENT OF
STUDENTS WITH TUITION COSTS
St. John’s ability to keep tuition
reasonable and still provide students with more than $14 million
in additional aid is the direct result of alumni support for the college’s philanthropy-centered fnancial model.
The college thanks you for all of the
above. Your gifts, volunteerism, and
advocacy have made these results
possible in a higher education environment where they are rare.
BE A PART OF ST. JOHN’S
GIVING SOCIETIES
St. John’s two distinctive
giving societies recognize
transformative acts of generosity.
The Freeing Minds Society
honors alumni and friends who
have made an epic commitment
to St. John’s College through
cumulative lifetime giving
of $100,000 or more.
St. John’s Forever: The Legacy
Society of St. John’s College
celebrates alumni and
friends who have linked their
legacies to that of the college
through the commitment of
a future estate gift.
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
37
�S E L EC T E D N OT E S
F R O M C L A S S M AT E S
1967
In July 2021, Ronald Kephart (A)
retired from 32 years of teaching
anthropology (linguistic, cultural,
and biological) at the University of
North Florida.
1977
The pandemic gave Ellen
(Hamilton) O’Donnell (A) time and
space to reignite her art practice.
She found a wonderful teacher to
shepherd this process via a second
alma mater, School of the Art
Institute of Chicago. She’s in a
virtual art group, has a studio,
and is engaged in making again.
1982
This August, Marion (Betor)
Baumgarten (A) and Jon
Baumgarten (A) will have
been married 40 years! They
are both retired from the
federal government and reside
in the Chicago area.
Leslie (Smith) Rosen (A) and
James Hyder ’84 (A) have moved
to a seaside cottage in MA to help
take care of Leslie’s mother and to
enjoy the next steps of their life’s
journey with children and grandchildren not far away.
1987
Ele Hamburger (A) is happily living
in Seattle with her husband and
three teenagers, who constantly
keep them on their toes. She is a
partner at a small plaintiff-side civil
rights and class action law frm,
where she focuses on health care
and health coverage issues.
She would love to visit with
38
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
friends who are passing through
the Pacifc Northwest.
1992
Captain George Dolan (SF), U.S.
Navy, completed a three-year tour
as naval attaché to South Korea in
June and is now serving on the
Navy staff in the Pentagon. He welcomes inquiries from any Johnnies
considering a career in the military.
2002
Sara Abercrombie (SF) is an associate professor and department chair
in the Department of Educational
Psychology at Northern Arizona
University. She was awarded the
NAU President’s Distinguished
Teaching Fellowship in 2021, a recognition of the highest level of
teaching excellence and positive
impact at NAU and beyond.
Kate Jordan (SF) lives with partner
Jeremy and daughters Esme (4)
and Oona (1) in Oakland, CA.
Kate serves as a chief fnancial
offcer for UC Berkeley and loves
to garden.
2012
Brandon Carney (A) got married
in August 2021 and transitioned
into fnance from scientifc
research in January.
LET YOUR CLASSMATES
HEAR FROM YOU!
If your class year ends in a 3 or 8,
email alumni@sjc.edu to include your
news in the next alumni magazine.
PHOTOS ARE WELCOME!
ALUMNI
WEEK
sjc.edu/alumni-week
Memories that
take you back.
Conversations
that carry
you forward.
No travel required.
A
s St. John’s alumni, our
connections to one another are not bound by time
or place—and shouldn’t be. After
all, the texts we read and the
questions we ask transcend generations and geography.
The physical separation we
have experienced over the past
two years has given rise to more
inclusive ways of being together.
Alumni Week is one example—
and one that St. John’s began exploring even before the pandemic emerged. Through this annual
virtual gathering, alumni from
around the world can enjoy intellectual engagement and community, but with fewer barriers
to participation. Greater access
means more opportunities to
catch up with classmates and tutors, rekindle conversations, and
reconnect with the college and
one another.
�HIGHLIGHTS FROM
ALUMNI WEEK 2022
A variety of tutor and alumni-led presentations
show that the life of the mind need not
dwell solely in the classics or in the classroom.
There are treasures to be found in unexpected
places, from Tolkien’s Middle-earth to
your own comfortable kitchen.
If you missed Alumni Week 2022 this past June,
or want to relive a moment that challenged your thinking,
visit sjc.edu/alumni-week to enjoy the following highlights.
Beyond the
Classroom:
The Mystery
of Gollum
Beyond the
Classroom:
Living the
Program
Gollum is perhaps the greatest villain of The Lord of the Rings—and
maybe its most tragic hero. Who
is Gollum? Why is he so central to
the novel? Join tutors Krishnan
Venkatesh and Richard McCombs
to dive deeper into the intricate
world of J. R. R. Tolkien.
Tutors are the more senior students and role models of our
St. John’s community, but what
does it really look like to live the
Program? Take a sneak peek into the lives of beloved tutors beyond the classroom. Hear their
wisdom on balance, integration,
and following thumos on the road,
in the kitchen, and everywhere
in between.
JohnnieTalks
A game designer, a pediatric neurologist, and a tech entrepreneur
talk about life’s turning points—
what they mean, how to live them,
and how they can change everything.
Alumni
Association
Awards
Every year the Alumni Association
welcomes honorary members into
our ranks and bestows the Award
of Merit on those alumni who are
elevating the profle of the college through their lives, careers,
and contributions to the Great
Conversation. Hear their stories
and celebrate their achievements.
In Memoriam
Join your St. John’s community as
we recognize the Johnnie chairs
that now sit empty. Together we
honor those Johnnies who have
passed, leaving us with moments
and memories to cherish.
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
39
�In Memoriam
St. John’s College remembers the alumni, staff, faculty, and leadership who
passed away during the 2021-2022 academic year. Together we celebrate the
impact of their lives and legacies on our Johnnie community.
Donald S. Kaplan (Class of 1945)
Charles Coaston (SFGI76)
Clarence R. Morris (Class of 1948)
Jeffrey B. Shea (A76)
Carolyn Banks-Leeuwenburgh (Class of 1955)
Terence A. Teachout (A78)
John Joanou (Class of 1955)
Joan F. Vinson (AGI81)
Barbara D. Winiarski (Class of 1955)
Nicholas M. Ossorgin (SF85)
Nancy Eagle Lindley (Class of 1958)
Toni Wilkinson (SFGI87)
Mary Campbell Gallagher (Class of 1960)
Elizabeth Malmgren (AGI88)
Lloyd H. Byassee (Class of 1961)
Anna A. McManus (SFGI91)
Natalie Silitch (Class of 1961)
Amanda E. Richards (SF91)
Jeffrey P. Escoffer (Class of 1964)
Leo P. Kelley (SF93)
Richard E. Roderick (Class of 1966)
Raymond R. Ames (A94)
Margaret Winter (Class of 1966)
Brian C. Bowman (SFGI94)
Leslie S. Bornstein (SF68)
Michael A. Miller (A94)
Robert A. Fielding (A68)
Glenn Freitas (H04), Santa Fe Faculty Emeritus
William J. Cromartie (SF69)
Katherine L. Harper (H06)
Patricia A. Turner (SFGI69)
Tova R. LeCuyer (A14)
Richard A. Treacy (SFGI70)
Frederick C. Foote (SF15)
Anthony Vitto (A70)
Carmen Harrell (H15)
David C. Chute (A72)
Michael A. Thomas (A15)
Fred Mattis (A73)
Charles S. Trefrey (H19)
Gene F. Taylor (SFGI75)
Charlie H. McKenzie (SF21)
This listing includes those who have passed between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022.
We care deeply for all members of our college community. If you know
of fellow Johnnies who have passed away but are missing from this list, please
contact advancement@sjc.edu so we may honor those individuals.
40
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�Alumni Association
Honorees 2022
Honorees are selected each year by the Alumni
Association Board of Directors and recognized for
their pursuit of and success in leading examined lives,
as well as their steadfast commitment to the St. John’s
College community. During Alumni Week 2022,
the college and the Alumni Association honored the
following recipients of the Award of Merit, Volunteer
Service Award, and Honorary Alumni designations.
AWARD OF MERIT HONOREES
For distinguished and meritorious service to the United States,
to their native state, to St. John’s
College, or for outstanding achievement within a chosen feld.
Arturs Krišjānis Kariņš (A88) –
for extraordinary advocacy of freedom and democracy and service to
the people of Latvia as prime minister.
Kariņš is the prime minister of
Latvia. He may be the only Johnnie
alumnus to date to serve as head
of state of a sovereign nation. As
a freshman in 1984, Kariņš received an honorable mention for
the best freshman essay, an honor
he has touted throughout his adult
life. He continued his education
at the University of Pennsylvania,
earning a PhD in linguistics.
Kariņš later moved to Latvia,
where he was frst elected to
Latvia’s Parliament in 2002, and
in 2009 was elected to serve
as a member of the European
Parliament. He became prime
minister in 2019 and has led one
of the longest serving Latvian governments in modern history. As
prime minister, Kariņš has been
an outspoken advocate for freedom and democracy, arguing that
“Democracy is contagious. It is an
attractive idea because it is the
people, not autocrats, who decide
who runs the country and in which
direction to move.”
Pedro Martinez-Fraga (A84) – for
achievement in the feld of law and
international relations.
Pedro J. Martinez-Fraga is a renowned international lawyer. He is
a partner at Bryan, Cave, Leighton,
and Paisner, where he co-leads the
frm’s international arbitration
team and is a World Bank arbitrator. He served as lead U.S. counsel
on behalf of the Republic of Chile
in the case against former Chilean
president, Augusto Pinochet, and
has also worked on the prosecutions of Venezuelan president
Hugo Chávez and deposed Haitian
president Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
His writings in the felds of public and private international law
have been published in 15 coun-
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
41
�tries and fve languages, including more than 50 reviewed articles and six books. Martinez-Fraga
has lectured at more than 30 universities across the globe and is an
honorary professor of law at both
the Universidad de San Ignacio de
Loyola and the Universidad del
Pacífco in Lima, Perú.
Boaz Roth (AGI92) – for achievement in the feld of education.
Boaz has dedicated his life to
teaching in the St. John’s mode.
He is chair of the English department at Thomas Jefferson School
in St. Louis, where he has taught
English, Greek, and math for almost 30 years and coached basketball for more than 20 seasons. The
school has small, seminar-based
discussions in every discipline
and boasts that its average student will have read 80 works of
classic literature by graduation.
His school’s basketball court has
άρετή painted on its foor and a local newspaper once found it noteworthy to state that “The varsity basketball team huddles with
coach Boaz Roth, then springs
back and yells, full-throated:
‘Arete!’ This is how one cheers at
Thomas Jefferson School.”
In addition to his master’s degree
from St. John’s, where he is remembered both for his focus as
a student and his drive as a basketball player, Roth earned a BA
with a double major in philosophy
and economic theory from the
American University.
42
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
John Ruskey (SF90) – for achievement in the arts and exploration.
John Ruskey is a river guide, adventurer, canoe builder, artist, and
Bluesman. He conducts workshops
on ecological education, runs
camps for local children, and, with
his company, the Quapaw Canoe
Company, leads canoe tours on
the Mississippi River. He and fellow alumni once co-led a seminar on Mark Twain’s Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn—while traveling
on the mighty Mississippi itself.
One of his long running projects is
rivergator.org, an all-encompassing internet and print resource
providing detailed instructions
for paddling the Mississippi River
between St. Louis and the Gulf of
Mexico.
Ruskey was the frst curator of
the Delta Blues Museum; is the
co-founder and director of the
Delta Blues Education Fund; and
has written a monthly column,
“Down in the Delta,” for Blues Revue
since 1998. In 1997, he won the
Early Wright Blues Heritage Award,
presented to a non-musician for
outstanding work to preserve, promote, perpetuate, and document
blues in the Mississippi Delta.
VOLUNTEER SERVICE
AWARDS
Chelsea Adams (A12)
Adams began volunteering for
the college and the Alumni
Association soon after she graduated in 2012. Her service includes
ten years on the Alumni Giving
Council, the Alumni Leadership
Forum, the Admissions Working
Group, and the Awards Committee.
She has also volunteered with
Summer Academy, the online
Great Books Summer Seminar
Series, and at numerous college
fairs. In addition, she has served
as class chair for the Annapolis
Class of 2012. Adams is known
to both college and Alumni
Association leadership as a cheerful and tireless volunteer. Her service in all facets of alumni volunteerism is extraordinary.
Claiborne Booker (A84)
Booker has given the college and
the Alumni Association years of
cheerful and diligent service. He
was elected by the college’s alumni to the Board of Visitors and
Governors in 2011 for a three-year
term, which was extended for an
additional two years. After he completed his tenure on the board, he
immediately began four years of
service on the Alumni Association
Board from 2016-20, leading our
volunteer efforts to support annual
giving. Booker is like Aeneas, “duty-bound, and known” in the service of St. John’s.
�HONORARY ALUMNI
Michael Bechko
Mike Bechko is the network and
telephone systems coordinator
on the Santa Fe campus and joined
the college’s IT department in May,
1999. Of Bechko, it is said that “his
ready smile, great sense of humor,
incomparable dependability, and
relaxed demeanor make it possible for us to face technology’s continued stressors. Nothing rattles
Mike: as one staff member notes,
she’s never heard him yell, ‘though
there are many times when he
should have.’”
In his life outside the offce,
Bechko enjoys engaging in new
forms of exercise and approaches to well-being; and he steadfastly believes in the importance of
using one’s brain for other-thanwork activities.
Cara Sabolcik
Cara Sabolcik was a vital part
of the Greenfeld Library staff
on the Annapolis campus for 21
years, most recently serving as
the associate library director until 2021. Sabolcik was instrumental in establishing the college's
digital archives and digitized the
library's audiovisual collection. It
was Sabolcik who confrmed that
W. E. B. Du Bois gave a lecture on
the Annapolis campus, an event
which became the basis for a collegewide celebration this year.
Sabolcik’s service to St. John’s also includes various appointments
on the Staff Council and in numerous faculty, undergraduate, and
Graduate Institute study groups
through the years. In the great-
er community, Sabolcik served
as chair and vice chair of the
Maryland Interlibrary Loan Group,
thereby enabling access to books
otherwise not readily available to
St. John’s College and making the
Greenfeld Library more widely
known as a participating peer institution.
Susan Shamos
Dr. Susan Shamos is the founder
of The Centus School Counseling
Program, which places experienced counselors and social
workers in schools that otherwise
would not have enough access to
high-quality mental health services for students. Together with
her husband, Jeremy (SFGI76),
Shamos has been a supporter and
benefactor for multiple arts organizations throughout Denver and
the state of Colorado. Shamos and
Jeremy led Denver’s efforts to host
the 2008 National Performing Arts
Convention, a gathering of 5,000
U.S. and international artists and
arts professionals.
and theology, having received his
doctorate in mathematics from
the University of Texas at Austin,
as well as a PhD in systematic theology from Cambridge University.
Prior to coming to St. John’s,
Sinnett was a lecturer in mathematics at Concordia Lutheran
College, Kansas University, and
San Jacinto College. He is also a
minister of Word and Sacrament
in the Presbyterian Church, having served as minister at the First
Presbyterian Church, Stephenville,
Texas, and as a senior minister at
Clemmons Presbyterian Church
in Clemmons, North Carolina.
Sinnett had the honor of being
a visiting scholar at St. John’s
College, Cambridge, in 1997.
A beloved tutor, Sinnett was overwhelmingly chosen by the graduating Class of 2022 to be their
graduation speaker.
Notably, Shamos has participated
in Summer Classics at the college
for over three decades. She and
Jeremy are among the top 15 lifetime donors to the college, inspiring others to join them in philanthropy and enriching the college
community by gifting substantial
works of art for public spaces on
campus. Shamos has served on
the college’s Board of Visitors and
Governors since 2016.
Mark Sinnett
Mark Sinnett served as a tutor
at St. John’s College from 20002020. In this role, he drew upon
his background in mathematics
A LU M N I M AGA ZI N E
43
�How can I
stay connected
and informed?
Don’t let the alumni magazine
be your only source of
updates on the college and
your classmates.
44
S T. J O H N ’ S C O L L E G E
�Bookmark the
college website.
Read the
award-winning
Annual Report.
Recognized by the Council for
Advancement and Support
of Education, St. John’s 2021
Annual Report to Alumni and
Friends boldly claims that the
college is stronger than ever—and
delivers the evidence.
sjc.edu/annual-report
Sjc.edu isn’t just for current
and future students. Alumni can
also fnd a wealth of content,
from thought-provoking podcasts
and recorded lectures to profles
of fellow alumni.
Update your
email.
If the college does not have your
current email, you are missing out
on news, invitations, and intellectual
content from the college.
Here are three options for updating
your contact information:
1.
Fill out the enclosed envelope
and mail it back to the college
2.
Visit sjc.edu/alumni-update to
update your information online
3.
Come home
for a visit.
If you live nearby, come grab a
snack at the coffee shop, check out
a book from the library, or just stroll
around and see the campus
improvement projects that are taking
place in both Annapolis and Santa Fe.
If the passage of time has put
physical distance between you and
our two campuses, make a plan to
visit. Our frst annual Day of Gratitude
would be a great time to get
reacquainted with your once and
always home.
Scan the QR code below
Follow St. John’s
on social media.
The college has an active presence on
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter,
LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Visit sjc.edu/social-media for links to
all of these accounts and more.
Update your information
by November 14, 2022 and
be entered to win one
of six gift cards, valued up
to $500, to the St. John’s
College bookstores.
sjc.edu/alumni-update
�1160 Camino de Cruz Blanca
Santa Fe, NM 87505-4599
Non Proft Org
US Postage
PA I D
St. John’s College
�
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Alumni Magazine
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Santa Fe, NM
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Annapolis, MD
Santa Fe, NM
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St. John's College (Annapolis, Md.)--Alumni and alumnae
St. John's College (Santa Fe, N.M.)--Alumni and alumnae
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Text
ALUMNI
ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE
M AG A Z I N E
Connect With Your
Johnnie Community
Join Us for
Alumni Week 2021
Learn About the
Impact of Alumni
at St. John’s
��Letter from St. John’s College Alumni Association President
I hope this message finds you well and, like me, seeing the first rays of “the
early-born rose-fingered Dawn” of our COVID-subsiding world.
As we begin to look forward, for me, the great privilege of being a Johnnie is the
opportunity to look back on the books and ideas I encountered at the college for
guidance and inspiration. Remember when Odysseus said, “I long for home,
long for the sight of home. If any god marked me out again for shipwreck, my
tough heart can undergo it. What hardship have I not long since endured at
sea, in battle! Let the trial come.” (Homer, Odyssey 5.230-33)? We have all had
hardships and trials this year, and I hope our shared experience of the Program
continues to give you comfort and strength.
The strength demonstrated by our college community during this challenging time has indeed been inspiring.
Despite the difficulties, there were triumphs, like the college’s ability to take the Program into a virtual format
and keep the conversation going during the long pandemic. For these efforts, the Alumni Association is forever
grateful to our tutors and staff.
We are also grateful for our alumni. Thanks to your support, St. John’s has grown in financial strength. Together,
we have completed the Winiarski Family Foundation Challenge this year, securing $50 million in matching
funds toward Freeing Minds—bringing our total campaign commitments to $246 million to date and putting
St. John’s on track to double its endowment. We have watched as college leadership has worked hard in effecting
St. John’s long-term financial health and we are glad to see the college is expecting a balanced budget for next
year. I encourage you to learn more about these accomplishments by reading on in this publication and hearing
directly from the folks who are helping our community flourish into the future.
Yet, it seems that one of the most poignant lessons of the past year has been the value of perseverance. The
ability to respond adroitly to unforeseen circumstances and the grit to continue forward regardless has proven
successful for Johnnies—especially for our recent graduates who, because of their determination, now join us in
our almost 200-year-old Alumni Association.
It is in this spirit of perseverance and in celebration of our enduring love for the college and one another that
I invite you to St. John’s Alumni Week 2021, Monday, September 27 through Saturday, October 1. Although we
are not yet able to reunite in person, let us come together to honor and renew our connections while enjoying a
modern take on traditional programming, including seminar with our beloved tutors.
Until then, I leave us with a celebratory moment in the Program to reflect upon—the moment when Odysseus is
recognized by his elderly nurse from tracing the old scar on his leg: “Then joy and anguish seized her heart; her
eyes filled up with tears; her throat closed, and she whispered, with hand held out to touch his chin: Oh yes! You
are Odysseus!” (Homer, Odyssey 19:546-50).
We look forward to seeing you this fall.
St. John’s Forever!
Mark Parenti (AGI92)
President
St. John’s College Alumni Association
1
�COMMUNITY
ALUMNI
MAGAZINE
Summer 2021 | Volume I, No. 1
Vice President for Development
and Alumni Relations
Phelosha Collaros (SF00)
Director of Alumni Relations
Chris Aamot (SF04)
Associate Director of Alumni Relations
Maia Banks (A14)
Alumni Communications
Program Manager
Elise Berrocal
Alumni Transitions and
Volunteerism Program Manager
Kelsey Miller (A10)
Interim Alumni Relations Associate
Sue MacEachen
Contributing Writers
Benjamin Baum
Kerri Braly
Haley Ford (A17)
Anne Kniggendorf (SF97)
Abdullah Mirza (SF20)
Mark Parenti (AGI92)
Les Poling
Eve Tolpa
Spencer Windes (A99)
Design
Melissa Latham-Stevens (SFGI13)
Cover Illustration
Caitlin Cass (SF09)
Website
sjc.edu/alumni
Facebook
StJohnsCollegeAlumni
Instagram
@johnniealumni
About the Cover and Illustrator
Caitlin Cass (SF09) is a cartoonist, illustrator, and installation artist. She was a
2020 recipient of a National Endowment
of the Arts Artworks grant and a 2018
NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow in Fiction. Her
cartoons appear in The New Yorker and in
her self-published comic periodical, The
Great Moments in Western Civilization
Postal Constituent. When asked about
what inspired the cover design, she
shared: “My class read Virginia Woolf’s
A Room of One’s Own for our homecoming seminar and this quote stuck with
me. There’s a revolutionary aspect to it,
which I think reflects St. John’s efforts
to continue evolving.” In addition to
working on a graphic novel about women’s suffrage and civil rights history,
she is an assistant professor at the
University of Nebraska Omaha. View
her work at caitlincass.com.
2
Pritzker Promise Bridge Program Approaches
Second Year Serving Johnnies
The Pritzker Promise Bridge Program is gearing up for
its second incoming class of Johnnies this summer,
ready to prepare St. John’s newest students for the
college by helping them develop academic skills and
study habits, providing guidance and support, and
building relationships with faculty and peers prior to
their opening seminars.
Launched in summer 2020, the program seeks to
equip Pell Grant recipients and underrepresented
PRITZKER�BRIDGE
incoming students with the tools, skills, and resources
SCHOLARS�PROGRAM
they need to succeed at the college, thanks to a generous grant from The Jay Pritzker Foundation in connection with Board of Visitors and
Governors member Karen Pritzker.
The program—the first cross-campus initiative of its kind at St. John has—originated in response to feedback from Johnnies past. According to Santa Fe Dean Walter
Sterling (A93), surveys have shown that graduating seniors leave the college with
predominantly positive feelings about the Program. However, about half of graduating seniors also said they didn’t feel academically prepared when they arrived at the
college, with those numbers rising even higher for underrepresented groups. The
bridge program is specifically designed to increase retention and counter the issues
with which these students struggle.
It accomplishes this through a variety of preparatory workshops led by faculty and
staff targeted to financial aid recipients, first-generation students, and international
students alike. Topics for such sessions include learning the basics of federal and
college work study, how to manage time and money, how to find a campus job and
student employment, how to prioritize personal wellness, and other aspects of life at
the college.
For Danielle Lico, executive director of campus health and wellness in Annapolis,
the program is about engagement. “Engagement with the community, and engagement with each other—in the spirit of trying to build a ‘bridge’ intothe community for
incoming students.”
While many sessions have a pragmatic focus, others aim to introduce students to
the academic side of the college. As Caroline Randall, director of admissions in Santa
Fe, points out: Johnnies come to the college from all over the world, but few are coming
from schools with the same academic culture as St. John’s. “Some of our students
are nervous about seminar-style classes or the amount of reading expected, or about
certain subjects,” she explains. “The bridge program is the perfect answer for these
concerns.”
Entering its second year of implementation, the program is facilitated by Jennifer
Cline, coordinator of student services in Annapolis, and Nanette Phillips, student support coordinator in Santa Fe. According to Phillips, similar bridge and peer-mentoring
programs have been successfully implemented at many other colleges and universities. She points to studies demonstrating that such initiatives have been shown to
lead to better academic outcomes; she sees the St. John’s bridge program as part of
“the initial stages in what will be more robust structures for students” at St. John’s in
the future.
Faculty and staff in both Annapolis and Santa Fe share Phillips’ outlook anticipating that with each new class of Johnnies, the program will grow more nuanced and
intentional to meet the needs of its target population—a process that can only serve
to further help St. John’s students this year and in years to come.
�Update from St. John’s College
Vice President of Enrollment
Greetings, St. John’s alumni! As the college looks ahead to the new academic
year, I am happy to share with you some exciting news regarding our enrollment
to date.
This is a record-breaking year for enrollment on both campuses. St. John’s
has received more than 1,470 undergraduate applications. In Annapolis, we
continue our multi-year trend of full
freshman classes—between 140 and
150 students. In Santa Fe, we will have
more than 125 fall freshmen—the first
time in more than 10 years that the
college will enroll a class of this size.
Furthermore, the students attending
this fall are remarkably diverse. Thirteen percent of freshmen are international students from 21 countries. This
year’s domestic students are from 30
states, plus Washington, DC. Twelve
percent are the first in their families
to attend college; 21 percent are Pell
Grant recipients; and 28 percent are
students of color.
In the Graduate Institute, we are
also expecting record-breaking fall
enrollment as students apply for either the traditional on-campus degree
programs or the new low-residency program. Alumni can return to campus for
the Master of Arts in Liberal Arts in Annapolis or the Master of Arts in Eastern
Classics in Santa Fe, or can conveniently take classes for either program
online as well.
As we look toward the future, we know that Summer Academy is essential.
The Summer Academy program introduces interested high school students to
the Great Books and life at the college. This year’s sessions hosted more than
200 students, in person and online, many of whom were the children of alumni.
All this success is attributable to many new tools employed by the Admissions
Office over the course of the last year, but it is also attributable to alumni. Word
of mouth continues to be one of the largest sources of prospective student inquiries for the college, with 11 percent of our freshmen being children of Johnnies.
I invite you to take part in the excitement in Admissions by continuing to
encourage family and friends to learn more about our offerings (or inquire for
yourself). For application information, to schedule a visit, or even to register for
Summer Academy 2022, please contact us at admissions@sjc.edu or visit us at
sjc.edu/admissions. Thank you for sharing your Johnnie pride with others!
Benjamin Baum
Vice President of Enrollment
Alumni Volunteerism
Remains Strong
Despite Pandemic
Come rain, shine,
or pandemic,
JohnnieCorps
alumni volunteers
stood together in
support of the college
throughout the duration
of St. John’s 2020–21
academic year. So much so that, in the
annual Alumni Engagement Metrics
report released at the end of May 2021
by the Council for Advancement and
Support of Education (CASE), the
alumni volunteer participation rate at
St. John’s for the 2020 fiscal year
exceeded the average among other
higher education institutions globally.
While many institutions saw dramatic
drops in their volunteer rates in 2020,
St. John’s instead experienced a minor
dip—only 6/10ths of a percentage
point, to be exact—a figure illustrating
how well Johnnies adapted to a virtual
volunteer landscape.
JohnnieCorps is the college’s recently
expanded volunteer program offering
interested alumni tailored opportunities in an easy online format. Due to
the dedication of program participants,
prospective and current students
alike benefitted from alumni volunteer
support despite the COVID-19
pandemic. For this, JohnnieCorps
coordinators and the college are grateful for the continuous commitment
of its volunteers.
“Thank you to our amazing alumni
community for keeping volunteerism at
St. John’s alive and strong throughout
the height of pandemic,” says Kelsey
Miller (A10), alumni transitions and
volunteerism program manager.
“We look forward to sharing more
JohnnieCorps opportunities with you
in the new academic year.”
3
�COMMUNITY
A Welcome Banner for
First-Gen Students
“For an institution of [our] size, it’s
significant that we have designated
resources and personnel and employed
evidence-based practices that speIn recognition of its commitment to
cifically further first-gen persistence,”
improving college experiences and
Santa Fe Student Support
academic outcomes for
Coordinator Nanette Phillips
first-generation students,
says. She estimates that
St. John’s College in Santa
roughly 12 percent of JohnFe received the Center for
nie undergraduates belong
First-generation Student
to the program’s relevant
Success’s First-gen Forward
demographic. “Historically,
designation, March 2021.
public schools
The first institution in New
have tended
Mexico to receive the desigNanette Phillips
to
serve larger
nation, St. John’s is one of 157
populations
of firstFirst-gen Forward designees nationgen
students,
and
private
wide—a group that includes Carnegie
schools are often perceived
Mellon, Emory, and Wellesley, to name
as financially and culturally
just a few—with access to the center’s
inaccessible by comparison.
research and resources, including esIt’s extremely important for first-gen
tablished best practices, professional
students to know that they are going to
development, and community-building
be supported in their unique needs.”
tools.
Phillips is responsible for spearheading the college’s acceptance and
participation in the program. It was in
December 2020 that the center—an
initiative of the National Association of
Student Personnel Administrators and
the Suder Foundation—invited her to
apply for the designation on behalf of
the college. She promptly completed
it with the help of colleagues from
various departments.
Founded in 2017, First-gen Forward
is the nation’s first program
to recognize institutions
dedicated to the continued
success of first-generation
college students.
“A welcome banner” is
how Phillips characterizes
the designation—a big draw
for prospective Johnnies who “will
be looking for evidence that indicates
that a school has resources specific to
their needs.”
Johnnies Run the World
During fall 2020, St. John’s athletics in Annapolis and Santa Fe
collaborated on the launch of a global exercise initiative encouraging Johnnies to log enough miles to travel the circumference of
the earth, virtually. Aptly entitled “Johnnies Run the World,” the
exercise challenge was a great success, with a total of 24,901 miles
completed in just over five months.
A creative engagement initiative allowing Johnnies to connect
and persevere together through COVID-19, the challenge counted
any mileage-accumulating exercise, with participants like Santa
Fe alum Martha (Mackey) Pendleton (SF74) diligently tracking their
results. In the end, Pendleton achieved the third most miles among
Martha (Mackey) Pendleton
(SF74)
all alumni, faculty, and staff who participated, with 302 miles logged.
During the challenge, she regularly walked five miles at least six days a week, and at one
point was up to eight miles daily.
“I am no athlete,” says Pendleton, “but when I saw the invitation to join St. John’s faculty,
staff, students, and alumni in an endeavor to circle the globe, I thought, ‘Why not?’ It was fun
to calculate the miles I walk each day and have it count for something other than my health.”
4
�Alumni Help Shatter Expectations on GivingTuesday
Since 2012, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving has been known
in popular culture as GivingTuesday—a rallying day in which
communities gather around their favorite organizations and give
for the greater good.
This proved true for St. John’s in December 2020, when the
Johnnie community defied all expectations in support of current
and future students at the college—not only reaching its goal of
350 donors, but also outpacing previous years’ record-setting totals by midday.
Of the resulting 762 donors, 75 percent were St. John’s alumni, signifying their deep affinity and care for the college and the
Johnnie community. Rounding out the remaining 25 percent were parents, faculty, staff, friends, and even students.
Given the unprecedented nature of the year, with the country and world suffering from COVID-19 and its economic fallout,
it was impossible to predict how the day would go. Yet, by the time GivingTuesday ended, approximately $230,000 was raised,
providing crucial support for the college and its students. Donations came from 47 states in the United States, and on a global
level spanned South America, Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
The successful day, which joined so many members of the college community in the effort of making small-but-mighty
gifts, left St. John’s better positioned to face the immediate challenges presented by COVID-19 and thrive during a most
uncertain time.
Jobs for Johnnies:
Helping Alumni Take On the Workforce Two Years in a Row
May 2021 marked the start of the second cycle of Jobs for Johnnies, a program pairing recent
graduates from both campuses with alumni volunteers for career mentorship and networking.
Piloted last spring with enthusiastic support from the Board of Visitors and Governors’ Visiting
Committee, the program is jointly coordinated by Career Services in Annapolis and the Office of
Personal and Professional Development in Santa Fe.
This year’s program, which will run through end of summer, boasts 20 alumni pairs with a
host of professional interests ranging from neuroscience and information technology to communications and environmental advocacy.
According to Annapolis Director of Career Services Jaime Dunn, the goal of the program is not
solely for new graduates to secure a job, but also to connect with an alum or board member to
“receive feedback on their job search tools and learn the skills of networking and job searching
Luke Olson (A20)
that they’ll need to use throughout their professional careers.”
For example, past Jobs for Johnnies participant Luke Olson (A20) had struggled to turn his experience into a legal career. After applying for hundreds of legal-related positions around Washington, DC, Chicago, and Boston,
he was paired with Alumni Association President Mark Parenti (AGI92).
Olson says conversations with Parenti opened a new way of thinking about the paths he might take. “He understood that
I was committed to certain ideals,” Olson says. “That might be unique to the Johnnie experience, but he also balanced that
kind of Johnnie idealism with real world professional and practical experience that he had decades of.”
Together, they worked out that Olson’s ideals could be upheld in a teaching environment just as well as in a court of law.
Today, Olson teaches at a private school in Fairfax, Virginia—a position that he loves and also satisfies his personal ideals.
Like in the example of Olson and Parenti, “alumni can play an especially valuable role in showing grads how the St. John’s
experience provides a great foundation for a satisfying career in a wide variety of fields,” says Charles Bergman, director of
Personal and Professional Development.
To find out about how alumni can further support recent graduates of St. John’s, visit sjc.edu/career-success/for-employers.
5
�COMMUNITY
Tutor Zena Hitz (A95)
Wins Hiett Prize in the
Humanities
The Dallas Institute of Humanities and
Culture honored tutor Zena Hitz (A95)
with the 2020 Hiett Prize in the
Humanities award during its 16th
annual gala on November 11, 2020.
As described by the institute, Hitz
was recognized for her viewpoints on
defending the intellectual life—learning for its own sake, rather than in
service of economic or political goals—
as explored in her recent book, Lost in
Thought: The Hidden Pleasures of an
Intellectual Life.
Aimed at furthering the humanities
in the urban world, The Dallas Institute awards the Hiett Prize to those in
the early stages of a career devoted to
the humanities and whose work shows
extraordinary promise to have a
significant impact on contemporary
culture.
Hitz joined the college’s faculty
in 2015 and holds degrees from
St. John’s (BA, 1995), Cambridge
University (MPhil, 1996), and Princeton
University (PhD, 2005). Previously,
she served as assistant professor at
Auburn University and UMBC, among
other roles and distinctions.
6
Simran Thapa (SF22) and Bryn Frye-Mason (SF23)
Win Projects for Peace Fellowship
In early March 2021, students Simran Thapa (SF22) and Bryn Frye-Mason (SF23)
were awarded a Projects for Peace fellowship. Founded in 2007 by the late philanthropist Kathryn W. Davis, the initiative invites students at Davis United World
College Scholars Program partner schools—a group that includes St. John’s—to
formulate a project that promotes peace anywhere in the world.
The two Johnnies’ winning proposal, “Securing Peace in Bardiya, Nepal: Freeing
Women for Civic Engagement,” links improvements in maternal health with women’s
abilities to participate fully in their communities, simultaneously laying out a plan
for achieving both.
To implement their proposal, which involves creating medical kits that will be
delivered to five villages in Bardiya, Thapa and Frye-Mason are partnering with
the Women Security Pressure Group (WSPG), a Nepalese organization founded by
Thapa’s grandmother that works to increase literacy rates and political engagement
among women. The kits themselves, which aim to mitigate eclampsia and other risks
of pregnancy, are being designed through a collaboration with La Familia Medical
Center in Las Lunas, New Mexico, and assembled in Nepal. The project plan also
involves hiring a local WSPG chapter member to help distribute those kits and
establish a health co-op “for women to pool money to help each other buy necessities
for better health,” Thapa says.
Thapa and Frye-Mason are energized by all the support they have received,
including that provided by St. John’s. “We are both extremely excited to have the
opportunity to implement this project on the ground in Nepal. We will be working
hands-on with every aspect,” Thapa says, adding: “This project wouldn’t have
happened without our friendship.”
�Melanie Santiago-Mosier (A00) Named One
of Maryland’s Top 100 Women
In the summer of 2020, The Daily Record named Annapolis alum Melanie
Santiago-Mosier (A00) as one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women, an acknowledgement
of “outstanding achievements of women
through professional accomplishments,
community leadership, and mentoring” for her
work on state-level clean energy policies.
Santiago-Mosier currently serves as the
managing director of access and equity for Vote
Solar, where her work centers on implementing
the organization’s vision for diversity, equity,
inclusion, and justice. She is an attorney licensed
to practice law in Maryland and has worked to
advance clean energy policy for more than a
decade, leading regulatory and legislative affairs
at a number of organizations. Among other
publications, she is a co-author of Low-Income
Solar Policy Guide (lowincomesolar.org), a comprehensive tool for policymakers, community leaders, and others who are working to
make solar accessible and equitable.
Salvatore
Scibona (SF97)
Named 2021
Literature Award
Winner
The American Academy of Arts and
Letters recognized Santa Fe alum
Joan Haratani (SF79) Wins
2021 Margaret Brent Award
Each year, the American Bar Association recognizes up to five recipients of the Margaret
Brent Award, which honors “outstanding women
lawyers who have achieved professional excellence and paved the way for other women in the
legal profession.” As of April 2021, one of those
lawyers—joining the likes of former Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton—is Joan Haratani (SF79): St. John’s
Santa Fe alum and secretary of the college’s
Board of Visitors and Governors.
The Brent award is the most recent in a streak
of honors for Haratani, who will receive St. John’s
College Alumni Association’s Volunteer Service
Award during Alumni Week this fall. Over the last
two years, she has also received the global Amel Zenoune-Zouani Rights & Leadership Award and the Chambers Award for Outstanding Contribution to Diversity in the
Legal Industry.
After graduating from St. John’s in 1979, Haratani earned her JD from the UC Davis
School of Law in 1984. Currently, she is a partner with Morgan Lewis San Francisco
office, where she has worked on a variety of high-profile cases spanning state and
federal law in the commercial litigation context, including national mortgage issues.
She also facilitates relationships between the firm and its clientele, bringing in new
clients and helping maintain a strong bond with firm clients. Additionally, she is a
member of the Morgan Lewis Advisory Board as well as a board member of Asian
Americans Advancing Justice (AAJC). She has also served as a former president of
the Bar Association of San Francisco.
Salvatore Scibona (SF97) as one of
18 literature award winners at its
annual ceremony, held virtually
May 19, 2021.
The literature prizes, totaling
$600,000, honored both established and emerging writers of
fiction, non-fiction, drama, and
poetry.
Also a 2008 National Book Award
finalist, Scibona is the author of
two critically acclaimed novels,
The Volunteer (2019) and The End
(2009). He serves as the director of
the Center for Scholars and Writers
at the New York Public Library
(NYPL). As director, he cultivates
and supports the work of internationally renowned writers and
thinkers and creates programming
that enriches the broader NYPL
community. As a novelist, he
continues to write exceptional
works of fiction.
7
�ANANT VASHI (SF96)
8
�Alumnus Applies Foundational Theory
in Finance; an Easy Task After the Rigors
of the Program
Given the one-of-a-kind nature of
St. John’s, many Johnnies end up at
the college via surprisingly traditional means: they receive an admissions
mailer and grow intrigued with the
Program, for example, or they find
out about the college from a teacher
or family friend. Anant Vashi (SF96)
was not one of those Johnnies.
“I
transferred to St. John’s after one year at Georgetown
University,” he recalls. Prior to his freshman year in
Washington, DC, he had grown up in the private school
system; an “overachieving” student on what he describes as
a “myopic, career-focused path” that left him burnt out and
intellectually dissatisfied.
“I was yearning for a more expansive perspective,” Vashi
says. “I had always had a philosophical bent with a strong
interest in history and economics. I decided that if any
formal education was right for me, that it would be at a
place like St. Johns.”
To complete the paradigm shift, he applied to the Santa
Fe campus instead of nearby Annapolis; by fall, he was
seated around the seminar table.
More than two decades after graduating, the decision
to transfer has paid off in more ways than one. On an
individual level, Vashi says, “St. John’s College was a
transformative personal and intellectual experience for me,
and I would not be the person I am today had I attended
another school.” While he loved reading the works of political
philosophers like Machiavelli, Hobbes, Kant, Hegel, and Marx,
the books and classes represented the spark—not the flame.
“The real learning at St. Johns occurs through interacting
with and being challenged by your peers, whose backgrounds and attitudes can be very different than your own,”
he notes.
Furthermore, Vashi suggests that his St. John’s education
has helped him develop a kind of mindfulness that enables
him to produce high-quality work under duress, whether as
director in the transportation and logistics group at Capstone
Headwaters—the independent middle market investment
bank where he worked until January 2021—or as the vice
president of finance at Neat Capital, a Boulder, Coloradobased growth stage mortgage lender.
Stereotypically, investment banking and home financing
sound like fields for graduates with business and economics majors, not liberal arts degrees. Vashi is proof that’s not
the case. In fact, he contends, his Johnnie education has
helped him at every step of the way.
“At least to my observation, many people who go to
college go through life in a sequential way, without taking
the time to understand how it all fits together for them as a
person,” he says. “St. Johns provided me with the tools and
confidence to create an intellectual space between myself
and the world whizzing by.”
Vashi explains that the ability to create that intellectual
space—to pause, reconsider basic assumptions, adapt to
unforeseen circumstances, and ask “why”—offers a sense
of thoughtfulness and clarity
that proves immensely
“The real learning at
beneficial.
“[At Capstone HeadwaSt. Johns occurs
ters], clients repeatedly
how my abilities
through interacting with described
to step back, be measured,
appreciate other perspecand being challenged
tives, and be deliberate were
qualities that really helped
by your peers, whose
them through the transaction process,” he recalls.
backgrounds and
“Negotiating transactions
worth tens of millions of
attitudes can be very
dollars can be very tenuous
and stressful, but I believe
different than your own.” that the space that St. John’s
taught me to make [was]
critical to successful outcomes.”
Vashi now puts the same skills to use at Neat Capital, a
venture-backed mortgage lender that aims to simplify the
home financing profess. As the leader of the finance team,
Vashi relies on his experience with a variety of transactions
and corporate finance to help spur the company’s growth
within the industry.
It all sounds very nuts-and-bolts—and intense. But for
Vashi, the “intellectually rigorous” work that has defined
his career connects deeply with his time at St. John’s. “[My
job] is the real-world application of financial and economic
theory,” he explains. Putting foundational theory into practice: the practice of a true Johnnie.
9
�SHEBA DELANEY (A22)
10
�Student’s Path of Lifelong
Learning Leads to St. John’s
Sheba Delaney shares how, at 66
years old, her pursuit of the examined life brought her to the college.
L
ike most Johnnies, the last three semesters presented
Sheba Delaney (A22) with extraordinary challenges—
from the sudden transition to online learning to hybrid
classes and masked conversations.
Unlike most Johnnies, though, Delaney has a bit more
life experience to lean on during hard times: She began her
freshman year at 66 years old.
In 2017, Delaney says, “I was living in New York City, my
home for more than 40 years, spending five hours a day in
my studio, painting, and working at Trader Joe’s. The years
of raising and educating my children were almost over.”
As she emerged from several significant life changes, she
realized that the rest of her life might not play out exactly
how she’d imagined.
“Dostoevsky said the second half of life is nothing but the
habits we acquire in the first half,” she explains. “I didn’t
want that.”
So that year, Delaney traveled to Spain and walked the
500-mile El Camino de Santiago. When she got back, she
applied to St. John’s—the college she’d first heard of while
studying illustration at the Pratt Institute decades earlier.
“I never considered applying anywhere else,” she says.
“Although I’ve read widely over my lifetime, I wanted to go
through the history of Western culture in a systematic way.”
Delaney arrived at St. John’s in 2018 and immediately
encountered obstacles. She hadn’t studied basic math in
decades, let alone demonstrated a Euclidean proposition.
Despite her excitement for seminar, she was a lifelong solitary reader and found the idea of diving into conversation
somewhat intimidating. Most difficult, she says, was time
management. Referencing her “touch-and-go” first two
years at the college, Delaney says she felt exhausted and
stretched to her limit on more than one occasion.
“My lifelong work habit has been obsessive monotasking,” she explains, “which works well for an artist but isn’t
so great when you’re trying to keep up with three challenging tutorials and a massive amount of reading.”
Importantly, though, she instantly felt welcomed into the
Johnnie community, and—together with her classmates—
she’s been able to surmount such challenges, including
arduous music theory and algebra tests.
“I was one of the first people to go to the board to do a
Euclid proposition,” Delaney recalls. “I was shaking, but at
least I never had to do it for the first time again.”
Perhaps the biggest challenge emerged in March 2020,
when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the St. John’s
Program online. It was extremely difficult, Delaney says, to
transition overnight from gathering together around a table
to conversing via Zoom.
Nonetheless, the St. John’s community rallied to make
things work. Delaney, her classmates, and her tutors
persisted with tenacity and good humor, trading Johnnie
chairs and seminar tables for at-home desks and computer
screens—a testament to the Program itself. Even in times of
difficulty, the study of Great Books endures, and the conversation it elicits continues.
For Delaney, persevering through the demands of everyday life and the famously rigorous St. John’s Program is
nothing new. During her first couple of years at the college,
she reflects, “I was constantly worried that I just wasn’t
going to make it.” But the experience has been worth it—
“there has been so much to enjoy.” She calls the opportunity
to work through the Great
Books a “luxury.” Similar
“I’m able to think about
to most alumni, in spite of
initial butterflies, she adores
the things I am interest- seminar—and the ongoing
conversation that often
ed in in a much richer
spills from the classroom to
the quad and beyond. The
way and with a better
Program has even inspired
Delaney to try humorous
sense both of context
writing, and she cherishes
the Johnnie tradition of taking tutors to lunch or coffee.
and of how things are
Most of all, “Everything I’ve
learned so far is absolutely
connected.”
affecting my whole life,”
she notes. “I’m able to think
about the things I am interested in in a much richer way
and with a better sense both of context and of how things
are connected.”
After graduating, Delaney hopes to earn a master’s
degree in theological studies; having written for religious
publications in the past, she’d like to continue exploring
humanity through religion (and religion through humanity). In other words, the journey of lifelong learning she
resumed at the college has only just begun.
“At St. John’s, we engage with the slow unfolding of
human beings trying to understand themselves,” Delaney
says. “I hope that I can, in some small way, be part of that
conversation.”
11
�DAVID TOWNSEND
12
�Longtime Annapolis Tutor
Wins Prestigious Faculty Award
Tutor David Townsend joined
St. John’s College’s faculty in 1974.
democratic society. On a similar note, he rejects the idea
that the purpose of education is purely pragmatic; that any
and all learning exists only in pursuit of material gain. He
acknowledges that American society necessitates a certain
uring the course of his career at the college, he
amount of financial success, and he maintains that prosperhas become a beloved facilitator of learning and exploity isn’t something to avoid. But, he adds, “Everything that
ration—admired not just by current and former students,
we’re doing [in life] is not for the sake of more profit or more
but also by the Association of Graduate and Liberal Studies
wealth. It’s to elevate the human spirit; to think about, as Du
(AGLSP).
Bois says, the soul. That’s what the liberal arts are all about.”
At a gala held in October 2020, the association formally
Importantly, Townsend notes, a liberal arts education
honored Townsend with its annual faculty award: a recbenefits tutors and students alike. The equal exchange
ognition of superb faculty who teach and inspire students
of varying perspectives, ideas, and beliefs that seminar
both within and outside the classroom. With his dedicaaffords is transformative for everyone involved. There’s
tion to the liberal arts and his devotion to becoming what
nothing like the mind-blowStringfellow Barr called a “citizen of the world,” Townsend
ing moment when a student
“Nevertheless, there is a
certainly meets the criteria. Fittingly, he considers the reor teacher genuinely considcipient—himself—the least important part of the deal.
ers an idea that challenges,
path
to
achieve
greatThe AGLSP describes itself as “deeply committed to the
changes, or elevates their
value of interdisciplinary education in the liberal arts and
point of view. “It’s universal,”
ness,”
he
says.
“If
we
sciences.” That holistic focus on liberal arts is what makes
Townsend contends.
the faculty award meaningful to Townsend. Rather than a
Despite that universality,
move forward with
glamorous recognition of his lengthy career, he hopes the
the economic climate in the
award functions as an acknowledgement of the deeper
States causes a conhonesty, vision, integrity, United
goals of true education. “The original movement at
stant “crisis in the humanSt. John’s in the ’30s was that we had a mission not just to
ities” rhetoric that, some fear,
and effective hard work, drives students away from
be a little college, but to be emblematic of a way that a society, a community, could improve,” Townsend says.
schools like St. John’s. Partly
St. John’s can be more
“Our mission is to teach the capabilities of the liberal arts
in response to those conto give us what we aim for in life,” he adds. “So, what do we
cerns, Townsend is constantly
live for the sake of? We live for the sake of the good, the true,
than we might imagine.” searching for ways to bring
and the beautiful; not just for instrumental goals like wealth
more people to the liberal
or honor or fame. I think the liberal arts are at the heart of
arts. In addition to teaching and community education, he
what we do at St. John’s.”
has conceived of two potential master’s programs that he
Townsend’s belief in the liberal arts manifests itself
believes could broaden the appeal of the St. John’s Graduate
beyond St. John’s. He teaches adult education offerings in
Institute. The more people engaged in the liberal arts, he
both Santa Fe and Annapolis, including recently, an examreasons, the better for St. John’s.
ination of the fearless pursuit of love and intellect depicted
“The survival of St. John’s is at stake at a time when
in Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse. He has also taught libmany small colleges will fail. Nevertheless, there is a path
eral arts seminars in local prisons, Baltimore police departto achieve greatness,” he says. “If we move forward with
ments, and to the chief financial officers of PepsiCo, as well
honesty, vision, integrity, and effective hard work, St. John’s
as been involved with the Touchstones Discussion Project—
can be more than we might imagine. For St. John’s to live up
which brings the seminar model to elementary, middle, and
to its untapped potential, we must, to paraphrase Frederick
high schools across the world—for more than 30 years. With
Douglass, be true to our past, true to our present, and bind
every group of learners, the St. John’s seminar pedagogy
ourselves to be true to the future.”
proves invaluable.
“I think the method works, whether I’m teaching in a
community seminar, whether I’m doing a year of classics,”
he says. “It’s an aspect of the human soul; people are hungry for this kind of endeavor.”
Townsend suggests that the rigorous dialogue that defines
seminar provides the foundation for any functioning
D
13
�Q&A with Alumni Relations Working Group
Co-chairs: Caroline Gorman (SF11) and
Ken Resnick (SFGI19)
In the beginning of 2020, St. John’s embarked on an effort to better
understand how alumni want to engage with the college. After
months of alumni focus groups and surveys, and an audit of current
programs, a working group of the Advancement Committee of the
Board of Visitors and Governors was formed to help evaluate findings
and generate guidance on how to reinforce a strong and meaningful
connection between alumni and the college. Get to know the Alumni
Relations Working Group Co-chairs Caroline Gorman (SF11) and
Ken Resnick (SFGI19), and the significance of this work and alumni
at St. John’s, through their reflections below.
What prompted you to attend St. John’s College?
Gorman: I attended almost on a whim; I saw the old marketing materials that said, “This year, the following
teachers will be returning (then listing Program authors),” and I just knew St. John’s was the place for me.
Resnick: I moved to Santa Fe in 2014, and to be honest, did not know anything about St. John’s. I experimented
with the Summer Classics program, and then I was hooked. I enrolled in the Graduate Institute (GI) program in
2017 and graduated two years later. For me, the Great Books were an attraction—original texts, original thinking
and writing about the texts, and, most important to me, civil discourse with friends and strangers. This is what I
love about the college—I’ve not found anything else quite like it anywhere.
How has the college affected your professional pursuits?
Gorman: As a trial attorney, St. John’s has been an enormous benefit in terms of reading, writing, and analyzing.
I went into law school more accustomed to deep reading and analysis of the written word, which has helped
immeasurably. I also found that the conversational skills I gained at St. John’s are good for interviewing clients
and witnesses.
Resnick: I retired from General Electric in 2014 after serving as the general counsel for its global oil and gas business based in Florence, Italy, and currently consult in the areas of corporate governance, ethics, and compliance
programs. I also teach a course on international business ethics at Syracuse University in Florence. The GI program
has improved my critical reading skills and helped me discern some of the ethical principles that are often deeply
embedded in business decision-making, yet are rarely discussed. Helping my students understand the values they
choose when making so-called “strictly business” decisions has been a good area for classroom discussion.
What roles do you serve at the college?
Gorman: I am an alumni-elected member of the Board of Visitors and Governors and co-chair of its Alumni
Relations Working Group (ARWG).
Resnick: In addition to co-chairing the ARWG, I am a regular member of the board and serve on the Finance,
Advancement, and Trustee and Governance Committees.
What is most satisfying to you about serving on the board?
Gorman: The most satisfying part is twofold:
1. Seeing how many people, including many non-alumni who found the college later in life, deeply love the college.
14
�2. Seeing how many people are constantly working to
improve the college in every way.
Resnick: The board is a collaborative body,
and each member cares deeply about
St. John’s and its distinctive Program,
mission, and pedagogy. What this translates
into is a board that passionately desires
to be active in service to the college. The
formal meetings are the veritable “tip of the
iceberg” in terms of board activity. Between
meetings, the members are busy in committees and working groups to address various
policy issues and other matters related to
the college. I think this is the most gratifying
aspect of my board experience.
Why is the work of the
ARWG important?
Gorman: There are a number of big
objectives that the college has successfully
completed or is in the middle of—such as
the tuition decrease, eliminating the deficit,
and the Freeing Minds capital campaign.
But amid all that, the board realized it
is also time to examine how to reinforce
a meaningful connection to alumni and
strong support of the college. The college’s
Alumni Relations Office has already taken a
number of steps to critically examine itself,
and the ARWG, with representation from
the Alumni Association, discussed the issue
from all angles.
Resnick: During our benchmarking of other
small colleges, we learned that successful
alumni engagement strategies create a sort
of “virtuous circle” for the alumni and the
college in terms of volunteerism, philanthropy, and participation in alumni events.
For example, we know that alumni who
volunteer or become engaged with their college are many
times more likely to promote, donate, and express satisfaction with their relationship to the school. We want to build
our own virtuous circle at St. John’s that creates lifelong
connections among Johnnies—and between Johnnies and
the college.
How will the outcomes of the ARWG influence
the future of St. John’s?
Gorman: I hope that we’ll take what the ARWG discovered
after talking to staff, volunteers, and alumni, and find better
ways to encourage volunteers and strengthen ties between
alumni and the college.
Resnick: We hope that the results of our working group
will positively influence the culture at St. John’s for alumni
engagement. Ultimately, we will measure our progress in
terms of expanded alumni engagement and participation
in the college’s alumni communications, volunteerism,
philanthropy, and events. One positive
development from COVID-19 is the use of
technology to convene people from around
the world to engage in communal learning,
events, seminars, and such. I was a doubting
Thomas, but then I participated in several
online events and seminars and found that
the discussions and personal connections to
the other participants were rich despite our
distance. So we hope that the programming
for alumni events and communications will
include both in-person and online opportunities going forward.
What encourages you to engage
with the college?
Gorman: I love that you can approach any
Johnnie—anywhere, any time—and ask:
“What have you been reading lately?” and
an amazing conversation follows. I’ve never
found another community so free with
ideas, and that keeps me returning to the
college and alumni.
Resnick: I continue to engage with the
college because I feel like it is an endangered
species. St. John’s offers to students of all
types and ages—from all around the world—
the unique opportunity to engage directly
with some of the best thinkers, scientists,
philosophers, artists, and musicians of all
time, and discuss their works in a reasoned
and civil manner. We are slowly losing such
precious learning environments, and once
they’re gone, they’re gone. We can’t let that
happen to St. John’s.
What do you hope for the future of St. John’s?
Gorman: My hope is that St. John’s continues to be a place
where people with a deep love of learning and thinking
gather—while also providing better support for a more
diverse group of students than we traditionally have.
Resnick: I hope for the revitalization of alumni relations
at St. John’s. If you are an alum who perhaps has not been
engaged with the school recently, I would ask that you
consider getting involved in some way to support the college—through the Alumni Association, seminar offerings,
donations, volunteerism. What I have learned through my
participation in the ARWG and on the board is that alumni
support of the college, regardless of the amount of time or
money involved, is so critical to its continued success.
15
�Campaign Chair Reflects on
Success of Freeing Minds
Warren Spector (A81)
Warren Spector (A81) speaks on
on the Alumni-fueled completion
of the Winiarski Family Foundation Challenge amid year of his
40th Reunion
W
arren Spector (A81) never doubted that
St. John’s alumni would meet the Winiarski
Family Foundation Challenge, raising $50 million
toward the Freeing Minds campaign and securing
another $50 million in matching funds.
“I was confident from the beginning that
alumni would step up and meet the Challenge, I
always believed it,” says Spector, a member of the
St. John’s Board of Visitors and Governors and
campaign chair. “Our alumni base cares very deeply
about the college and wants to see it flourish, wants
to see it maintain its values.”
16
What he didn’t anticipate was just how quickly it
would happen: alumni and friends completed the
Winiarski Family Foundation Challenge in only two
and a half years, crossing the finish line this spring.
“Had this Challenge been offered five to 10 years
ago, I think it might have taken twice as long to
achieve it.”
Back then, Spector says, there was simply less
confidence in the financial stability and direction of
the college.
As recently as 2016, St. John’s structural deficit
had reached $12 million. The college was balancing
its books, but only by applying every dollar toward
operating costs, at the expense of building a base of
support for the future.
Enrollment, conversely, was declining, hampered
by a tuition price that, when combined with ancillary
expenses, put the total cost of a St. John’s education
at close to $70,000 a year.
“We needed to get our fiscal house in order, that
was a priority, but we didn’t like being so expensive
that only a few families could afford us,” says Spector.
“The more the board talked about it, the more we
realized that St. John’s needed to make a strong
statement about its values.”
By the time the Freeing Minds campaign went public
in the fall of 2018, the college had lowered tuition
by a third, approved a plan to balance the budget,
switched to a philanthropy-centered financial model,
and raised more than $100 million in support.
Those results attracted the attention of winemaker
Warren Winiarski (Class of 1952), founder of Napa,
California-based Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, and
Barbara Winiarski (Class of 1955), a member of the
first class of women at St. John’s.
Inspired by the steps the college was taking to
achieve financial stability, the Winiarski Family
Foundation issued a challenge: if alumni and friends
could raise another $50 million in cash gifts, the
Foundation would match those gifts, dollar for dollar,
with a $50 million contribution to the St. John’s
endowment.
�Barbara Winiarski (Class of 1955)
Warren Winiarski (Class of 1952)
The Winiarski Family Foundation Challenge came with
What these plans won’t include, Spector cautions, are
a stipulation: the gifts that had already been made to the
facilities that come with ultra-luxurious price tags that
campaign would be ineligible for the match, including
students inevitably have to pay. “When you make a gift
Spector’s own pledge, one of the largest in
to Freeing Minds, you are delivering a St. John’s education
St. John’s history.
at a price that is defensible. We aren’t
The Winiarski Family Foundation,
spending money on luxuries but on
“I think it goes to show
Spector explains, was adamant that the
the small classroom experience that is
Challenge would not be met through a few
being abandoned by other colleges.”
that if people see
large gifts but by thousands of supporters
It is clear to Spector that his fellow
who were willing to stretch themselves and
alumni care passionately about the
the college doing the
make gifts they would not otherwise have
values that distinguish St. John’s from
considered.
its peers, and he’s convinced their
right thing, they will
Nearly 5,000 alumni and friends
passion will drive the campaign to its
responded, offering more than 17,000
next big achievement: the $300 million
individual gifts, of which 96 percent were
campaign goal. As of June 2021, total
support it, and support
gifts of less than $5,000.
commitments to the Freeing Minds
“I think it goes to show that if people see
campaign had reached $246 million.
it enthusiastically.”
the college doing the right thing, they will
“The campaign, and all that has
support it, and support it enthusiastically,”
gone with it, highlights the difference
says Spector.
between St. John’s and other schools. Our alumni are
Now that St. John’s is no longer operating with a deficit,
excited to support that, and I think the college can be in a
Spector says the college can invest campaign gifts in the
strong position for a very long time.”
student experience—and afford to build for the future.
Of the $300 million being raised for Freeing Minds,
$225 million, or 75 percent, will go toward academic and
student support, an area that includes health and wellness
programming, career services, and improvements that
foster lively, welcoming communities.
17
�JOIN US
FOR
ALUMNI
WEEK
2021
e
Monday, September 27
through
Saturday, October 2
REGISTRATION IS OPEN NOW
THROUGH SEPTEMBER 19 AT
SJC.EDU/ALUMNI-WEEK
18
�ALUMNI WEEK
SCHEDULE AND REGISTRATION
Alumni are invited to join classmates and members of the college community for St. John’s second annual Alumni
Week—a weeklong series of your favorite Homecoming activities offered in an online format. Renew your lifelong
connection to St. John’s and experience what it means to be part of our Johnnie community by joining us this fall.
SCHEDULE
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 27
Welcome
Alumni Association Awards
Q&A with College Leaders
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28
Return to the Classroom: How to Read a Painting
and Lab Revisited
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29
JohnnieTalks
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
Breaking Barriers Panel Presentation with some of
St. John’s first women students (live event)
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 1
What Did Einstein Predict?
Annual All Alumni Meeting and Alumni Association
Election (live event)
Friday Night Lecture (live event)
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 2
Seminar (live event)
Toast and Tributes with Alumni Association Board
(live event)
All live programming will be recorded and made available post
event at sjc.edu/Alumni-Week. Alumni Week programming
subject to change. See webpage for details, or contact the Alumni
Relations Office for assistance at alumni@sjc.edu.
REGISTRATION AND PRICING
Live Events: must be registered for in advance in order to provide login credentials on the dates of programming.
Pre-recorded Activities: will be posted at sjc.edu/Alumni-Week on the date of their occurrence and are open to all
participants. To receive links to pre-recorded content via email, registration is recommended.
PRICING
Payment, along with registration, is required for participation in virtual seminars only.
Price per seminar: $50
CANCELLATION POLICIES
• Due to the limited availability of virtual seminars, spaces are nontransferable and nonrefundable.
• Seminars with fewer than five participants are subject to cancelation. If a seminar is canceled due to low
attendance, registrants may choose to transfer to an open seminar or request a refund.
19
�ALUMNI WEEK
SEMINARS
GRADUATE INSTITUTE
Class
Reading
Tutor
GI
TBD
Kenneth Wolfe (SF94)
GOLDEN YEARS
Class
Reading
Tutor
Golden
John Stuart Mill’s “The Subjection of Women”
Tom May
Class
Reading
Tutor
2016
William Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra
Hannah Hintze
2006
Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics
Peter Kalkavage
1996
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby
Walter Sterling (A93)
1991
Frederick Douglass’ “What to the Slave is the
Fourth of July;” Declaration of Independence
Chester Burke (A74)
1986
Anthology for Sophomore Language Poems
Jonathan Tuck (H14)
1981
W.E.B. Du Bois’ The Souls of Black Folk
Joan Silver (A76)
1976
Michel de Montaigne’s “Of Experience,”
“Of Cannibals”
Steven Crockett
1971
William Shakespeare’s The Tempest
Nick Maistrellis (H15)
1960s
Plato’s Symposium
Joe Macfarland (A87)
ANNAPOLIS
20
�SANTA FE
Class
Reading
Tutor
2016
James Baldwin’s “Many Thousands Gone,”
Nothing Personal
Sarah Davis
2011
Sophocles’ Antigone
Andy Kingston
2006
Emily Dickinson’s Final Harvest:
66, 87, 122, 202
Claudia Hauer
2001
Plato’s Republic: Book 2
Krishnan Venkatesh
1996
TBD
Frank Hunt (A75)
1991
William Shakespeare’s The Tempest
Nancy Buchenauer (H16)
1986
Michel Foucault’s The Order of Things:
Preface, Chapter 1 “Las Meninas”
Llyd Wells
1981
Franz Kafka’s “Josephine the Singer,
or the Mouse Folk”
Peter Pesic (H17)
1976
Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things
Don Cook (H97)
1971
Plato’s The Apology of Socrates
Michael Golluber
Class
Reading
Tutor
OPEN
Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Eternal Husband
Louis Petrich
OPEN
Euripides’ The Bacchae
Gregory Recco
OPEN
Wallace Stevens’ “Connoisseur of Chaos”
Jim Beall
OPEN
Ibn Tufayl’s Hayy Ibn Yaqzan
Brendan Boyle
OPEN
21
�ALUMNI WEEK
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION AWARDS
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION HONOREES 2021
Alumni Association honorees are selected annually by the board in recognition for their pursuit of and
successes in leading examined lives, as well as their steadfast commitment to the St. John’s College
community. Following are this year’s recipients of the Award of Merit and Honorary Alumni designations
to be commemorated during Alumni Week 2021.
AWARD OF MERIT
Robert George (A85) – for achievement in the field of journalism and
distinguished service to the college and its alumni
Robert George (A85) has served both the college and its alumni through extensive volunteer activity, including service on the Alumni Association Board and its committees,
the Board of Visitors and Governors, and volunteering as a DJ for nearly every Annapolis homecoming over the past three decades. His distinguished career in politics and
journalism, where he has quietly championed civility and served as a model for civil
discourse, displays how we hope Johnnies might contribute to society. George currently
writes editorials on education and other policy issues for Bloomberg Opinion. He was
previously a member of the editorial boards of the New York Daily News and New York
Post. He began his career in politics working for the Republican National Committee
and as senior writer and special assistant for then-Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Newt Gingrich. He was involved in election monitoring in Nigeria, reported
on slavery in Sudan, and has participated in fact-finding missions to Israel and China.
Over the course of his career, George has appeared on MSNBC, CNN, Fox News, and
many other political affairs outlets, and has written for National Review, Reason,
HuffPost, and a variety of other print and online publications.
John Sifton (A96) – for achievement in the field of human rights advocacy
John Sifton (A96) has devoted most of his career to human rights. After focusing on international humanitarian law in law school (NYU 2000), he worked for Refugees International in the Balkans, and then as a researcher and later advocate at Human Rights Watch.
In an interview last year with the college about human rights work, he described human
rights research and advocacy as “a relentless pursuit of the truth and a constant but often
unrewarding effort to bring abusers to justice.” In addition to advocacy, Sifton is a writer,
starting with a New York Times article published after 9/11 and leading up to his 2015
book, Violence All Around. Praised by The New Yorker, HuffPost, and other outlets, Violence
All Around offers insights into human rights work as well as meditations on the nature of
violence. Using his work on atrocities and war crimes as a springboard, Sifton explores
the reluctance of historians and philosophers to analyze violence itself, not just as moral
or immoral activity or as means to an end, but as a set of independent phenomena that
condition human existence. According to Sifton, few observers, perpetrators, or victims
are given an opportunity to consider these contexts. “I just don’t get the sense that a lot of
the people who work in human rights think about that.”
22
�William Fischer, PhD (SF86) – for achievement in the field of evolutionary
biology and bioinformatics
Will Fischer, PhD, (SF86) is a scientist who works at the interface of viral evolution,
vaccine development, and pandemic prevention. His work has contributed to mitigation
efforts against HIV, filovirus diseases (Ebola and Marburg), Hepatitis C, Hand, Foot, and
Mouth Disease, and COVID-19. He played a vital role in the development of the mosaic
vaccine design concept, which enables construction of vaccines for previously intractable
pathogens. Since 2005, his work at the Los Alamos National Laboratory has been focused
primarily on HIV. In 2020, he turned his attention to tracking the molecular evolution
of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. His recent work has
significantly contributed to a better understanding of SARS-CoV-2 variants, and ways to
apply this understanding to ensure continuing success with vaccines and antibody therapeutics. Fischer’s deep biological knowledge, computational skills, and ability to design
visual presentations of complex data—a skill he began to develop at the chalkboard in the
St. John’s classroom—have significantly contributed to vaccine design strategies and have
helped save lives around the globe. He is a well-rounded, deep-thinking scientist, and his
insights have benefited many issues relating to public health.
Natalie Goldberg (SFGI74) – for achievement in the field of arts and
literature
Natalie Goldberg (SFGI74) is the author of 15 books (and counting), including Writing
Down the Bones, which has sold more than one million copies, has been translated into
19 languages, and revolutionized the way we practice writing in this country. Her most
recent book, Three Simple Lines: A Writer’s Pilgrimage into the Heart and Homeland of Haiku,
has garnered wide praise—and includes a shout-out to the Santa Fe college bookstore.
Her other books include the novel Banana Rose, memoir Long Quiet Highway, and a collection of essays, The Great Spring. For more than 40 years, Goldberg has practiced Zen
Buddhism and taught seminars in writing as a practice. People from around the world
attend her life-changing workshops, and she has earned a reputation as a great teacher.
The Oprah Winfrey Show sent a film crew to spend the day with Goldberg for a segment
on spirituality that covered her writing, teaching, painting, and walking meditation.
She has been a speaker at commencement and other college events, including an event
in 2018 where she reflected on the value St. John’s College has had in her career as an
author, noting that, “[At St. John’s] you meet the mind of the author, which is really how
you learn to write. The books you love, you study the mind of the authors, they’re your
teachers. So, me and Socrates and me and Aristotle, we’re good friends … And that’s
what you need in order to write.”
23
�ALUMNI WEEK
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION AWARDS
HONORARY ALUMNI
Donlin Long, PhD
Donlin M. Long, PhD, is the head of a dedicated family of Johnnies. His wife,
Harriet (AGI93), served on the college’s Board of Visitors and Governors, his daughter
Elisabeth Long (A86) currently serves on the Alumni Association Board, and he himself
served on the St. John’s College Presidents’ Council. He is also the loving father of
two other graduates of St. John’s, Kimberly Riley (AGI87) and David Long (A90). After
completing a PhD in neuroanatomy in 1964, Long served as professor of neurosurgery
and chief neurosurgeon at the Johns Hopkins University for 27 years. He was one of
the first program directors in the nation to adopt a major interest in chronic pain and
developed an infrastructure for patient care at Johns Hopkins while advancing the
standards for pain care around the world. During his career, Long has published more
than 250 peer-reviewed articles and 100 book chapters, as well as 16 books. He was
named a distinguished professor of neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins from 2000 until his
official retirement in 2010. In addition to these accomplishments, he and Harriet have
been active members of the college community and consistent donors since 1983.
In 2019, they established the Long Family Endowment with a leadership-level
legacy commitment to the Freeing Minds campaign and are sustaining members of
the college’s Mitchell Gallery.
Mary Anne Burke
Mary Anne Burke has been a member of the St. John’s College community for more
than 14 years, beginning as a staff member of the Advancement Office before transitioning to the Student Activity Center as fitness and wellness coordinator in Santa Fe.
Burke, a known fitness and wellness buff and certified personal trainer, was nominated by current students in recognition of her extraordinary dedication, enthusiasm,
and attention to the wellbeing of the college community. To create a more inclusive
environment and to increase community engagement, Burke launched the Warrior
Women Workouts, designing a fitness program that is welcoming, non-judgmental, and
inclusive, and allows for customization by each participant. In response to the isolation
caused by the pandemic, Burke organized the “Meta-Ionnathon”—a special race event,
inviting Johnnies (including alumni) from all over the globe to log enough miles to
travel the circumference of the earth, virtually. She also brought the archery program
to the college, in which students compete locally, regionally, and nationally. Whether by
student, staff, or faculty, Burke has been described as relationship-focused, maintaining connections with former students even after graduation. As Assistant Dean Michael
Golluber notes, “Mary Anne has changed my life. Before she came, all [I] did is study
and suffer from stress and anxiety. She helped me to start moving and to remember I
had a body. I might be dead now if it weren’t for her. I know many feel the same way I do
about this.”
24
�“What is the meaning
of life? That was all—a
simple question; one
that tended to close in
on one with years, the
great revelation had
Paul and Cecie Dry
Paul and Cecie Dry’s embrace of the St. John’s College community and their commitment to the Program have resulted in their ongoing participation in classroom learning
and financial support to the college. After reading a small ad in The New Yorker, Cecie
and Paul first attended Summer Classics in Santa Fe in 1996 and have participated
almost every summer since. In 2004, they initiated and funded a twice-yearly seminar
in Annapolis led by tutors Eva Brann and Sam Kutler. Cecie attended the Executive
Seminar program in Philadelphia and studied in the Graduate Institute in Annapolis.
At Paul Dry Books, Paul has published numerous works by St. John’s tutors. The Dry
Family Foundation supports The Eva Brann Endowed Tutorship and the Southwest
Scholars Partners Program, which is designed to benefit enrollment on the Santa Fe
campus. Their engagement with the college is generational as Guillermo Bleichmar,
their son-in-law, has been a tutor at the Santa Fe campus since 2009. The Drys have
truly embraced the spirit of St. John’s College and made its health and wellbeing a
central part of their lives.
(Volunteer Service Award winners to be announced during Alumni Week 2021)
never come. The great
revelation perhaps never
did come. Instead, there
were little daily miracles,
illuminations, matches
struck unexpectedly in
the dark ...”
– VIRGINIA WOOLF,
TO THE LIGHTHOUSE
25
�COMMUNITY
PERSEVERANCE
PAYS OFF
FOR CLASS
OF 2021
26
�College Celebrates Graduates
with Poignant Commencement
Ceremonies
I
t was a strange year for Johnnies in both Santa Fe and
Annapolis: following an online fall semester, many
students returned to campus in spring, combining the
Program with similarly rigorous COVID-19 safety protocols.
Ultimately, the work paid off—in May, graduating Johnnies
celebrated their accomplishments with in-person
commencement ceremonies.
May 16 was a beautiful spring day on the back lawn of
the Annapolis campus, with socially distanced chairs, a
cordoned ceremony area, and a stage set up in view of
College Creek.
In his welcome address, Annapolis President Pano
Kanelos noted that commencement is an opportunity to look
toward the future, simultaneously pointing out the challenges of the immediate past. “We have been a community
dispersed, a polity in diaspora … we have all had to find ways
to endure the challenges we’ve faced,” he remarked.
“Without you—your voices, your presence, your minds—
there is no college,” Kanelos added. “You are strong, you are
tenacious, and we are so proud and grateful that you are
Johnnies.”
The ceremony culminated with tutor Chester Burke’s (A74)
address to the Class of 2021. As he recounted the last yearplus of college life, Burke cited the determination, humorous
missteps, and heartwarming moments he shared with the
Class of 2021, connecting the tenacity displayed by Johnnies
over the last three semesters to that of the last four years.
“Despite an ultimately inexplicable circumstance that
stretched all of us to the limit of despair,” Burke said, “each
of you graduating students … accomplished a genuine version of what it is we do. If Aristotle is right, and he usually is,
this serious and pleasurable activity is something available
to all human beings at all times; something that under the
best of circumstances is difficult to sustain but is nevertheless worth fighting for and falling towards.”
In Santa Fe, more than 40 graduating students and their
families celebrated commencement on May 22, narrowly
avoiding a rare storm later in the afternoon.
President Mark Roosevelt began by acknowledging the extreme challenge both of the St. John’s education and of the last
year. He also noted that graduating students are entering “an
increasingly fractured, deeply divided world and country.”
However, “there is reason to hope,” Roosevelt pointed out.
“You have what the world needs … A dedication to listening
that is rare—and a desire to find truth, as nuanced as it may
be, rather than a need to be right and to win.”
The Santa Fe commencement speaker was The Dallas
Morning News’ Alfredo Corchado, an award-winning journalist
and nonfiction writer. Corchado, in his speech, told a story of
personal perseverance—that of a high-school dropout who,
after emigrating from Mexico, worked as a teenage laborer in
a California farming town—through the lens of three lessons:
Surround yourself with people who believe in you; find your
purpose; and take risks.
Through those lessons, Corchado recalled the experiences
that shaped his life. First, leaving California and attending
college on a promise to his mom. Then, falling in love with
journalism. And finally, persevering until he ultimately
succeeded, earning positions at news outlets like National
Public Radio and the Wall Street Journal along the way.
Before repeating his three lessons, Corchado concluded
his speech with a tribute to the crowd of graduates:
“You are leading us into the next chapter,” he said. “I
couldn’t be more hopeful for this country because in you I
see the anger, the passion, the will, tolerance, imagination,
and drive to keep the great American experiment, once
debated in Philadelphia, going—moving us closer to a more
perfect union. The perennial journey.”
In both Annapolis and Santa Fe, the message rang true:
As they proved throughout the last year, the newly minted
St. John’s alumni have the grit, intellect, and character to
persist through any circumstances. Congratulations, Class
of 2021!
27
�DAVID SCHWARZ (A78)
Renovating the Student
Experience, Together
28
�COMMUNITY
ST. JOHN’S MAKES CAMPUS CULTURE AND SUSTAINABILITY
IMPROVEMENTS THANKS TO ALUMNI SUPPORT
T
hrough his Washington, DC-based architect firm, David
Schwarz (A78), founder of David M. Schwarz Architects,
has worked with projects as varied as the ESPN Wide World
of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida, the Texas Rangers
Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas, and the Smith Center for
the Performing Arts in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Now he is returning to the college he loves to help update a
building he remembers well: Mellon Hall.
Schwarz says that helping St. John’s build for the future
feels to him like a way of thanking the college for its part in
his success.
“What the college did for me was it taught me to think,
it taught me to speak, and it taught me to write,” Schwarz
explains. All skills necessary, he adds, to do a good job in his
chosen field.
Mellon Hall stands out among the Colonial architecture
that dominates the Annapolis campus, but the mid-century
modern building has its own historical significance: famed
architect Richard Neutra agreed to design it after visiting the
campus.
Dedicated in 1959, the sprawling building houses the
600-seat Francis Scott Key auditorium, many classrooms, the
Mitchell Gallery, and a planetarium—but has limited space
for socializing.
Schwarz hopes to change that.
“It’s not a particularly humane series of spaces. I think I
feel best about trying to fix that, which will largely be done
with warm, welcoming materials and furnishings.”
The feel of home is the goal: Schwarz says the lobby will
be furnished with soft, comfortable seating and tables in the
fashion of a living room.
St. John’s Vice President for Advancement Kelly Brown
says the project will have important social and cultural
implications for the 325-year-old Annapolis campus. “To
create a sense of community, it’s really important to have
physical spaces where students can relax and engage with
one another and with the tutors.”
Brown adds that the project will restore Neutra’s original
vision of Mellon Hall as a center of community life and the arts.
The auditorium’s large backstage space will be divided into
two parts for a dance recital studio and a black box theater.
Multi-purpose areas will be available and appropriate for
other performing arts.
The Mellon Hall project is partly funded by a $5 million grant
from the Maryland Independent College and University Association (MICUA). Every four years, schools can apply for money to
support capital improvements; the last grant St. John’s received
went toward the renovation of McDowell Hall.
The current grant, however, stipulates St. John’s raise
matching funds to support the project. To date, alumni and
friends have contributed $1.8 million to the Mellon Hall
renovation through the Freeing Minds campaign.
The renovation comes at a time when the college is looking
with enthusiasm toward the future and a return to a fully
residential experience for undergraduates.
Brown notes that while some small colleges must now
regain their former strength in the wake of the pandemic,
St. John’s, she says, is in the fortunate position of being able
to build on its strengths, with alumni-funded improvements
underway on both campuses.
In Santa Fe, sustainability initiatives aim to bring St. John’s
closer to a carbon-neutral future. The entire campus recently
converted to longer-lasting, energy-efficient LED lighting,
replacing the outdated fluorescent tube lighting that had
previously been used in almost every campus building. A
solar power project featuring ground and carport-mounted
solar panel arrays is currently in progress and expected to be
complete by spring 2022.
The college estimates that the two upgrades will save the
college $150,000 a year and reduce annual electricity usage
by 1.67 million kWh.
An anonymous alumni couple funded both projects with
a combined $3.2 million dollar gift to Freeing Minds. Those
same two donors have also given to the Annapolis campus
to renovate the Randall Hall dorm rooms and add energy
efficient air conditioning units.
“Our students need and want environmentally sustainable
campuses and gathering spaces that facilitate community
and creativity,” Brown says. “Our alumni have shown that
they are committed to making that happen.”
29
�COMMUNITY
REUNION CLASS NOTES
1971
Jay Gold (A) retired in April 2020 and began the Master of Arts
in Eastern Classics graduate program at St. John’s in August
2020. Gold writes, “It has been such fun, I may continue for
the MA in Liberal Arts.” Additionally, Gold and wife, Sabrina,
will celebrate 25 years together and 18 years of marriage in
fall 2021.
1976
Neal Allen (SF) is currently attending the college’s Eastern
Classics graduate program (2020–21). In May 2021, he
published his latest book, Shapes of Truth: Discover God
Inside You. Allen writes, “It includes a brief sophomore year
at St. John’s story that references Jon McCracken (SF76) and
Hunter Hyde (SF76).” Allen has been married for two years
and has one grandchild from four adult children.
Sheri (Rothstein) Brown (A) retired in May 2021 from a career
in early childhood education and moved to California to be
near two of her three grandchildren. Brown writes, “I stopped
to see the Santa Fe campus on our drive west, as I had never
been there.”
Mark Copper (SF) completed constructing and outfitting an
astronomical observatory near Magdalena, New Mexico,
in March 2021. Copper writes, “If you enjoyed plotting
retrograde motions, come take a look!”
Leslie Graves (A) is the CEO of Ballotpedia.org and is approaching her 40th wedding anniversary. Graves has 10 grandchildren.
Jon Hustis and Marion Condon Hustis (A) recently celebrated
the birth of their first granddaughter, Stella Marion
McQuail, with a second grandchild expected in July 2021.
They write, “We are splitting time between Dallas and
Lucknow, Ontario, Canada, and are now farming in addition
to working, caring for family, volunteering, reading, trying to
stay fit, and hanging with dogs and kids.”
Judy Kistler-Robinson (SF) retired mid-2020, at the beginning
of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kistler-Robinson writes, “Instead
of planned travel to new places and old friends, I gardened,
read, sketched my surroundings, and started teaching Tai Chi
Chih on Zoom.”
David Pex (SF) has been busy building a log cabin in the woods
near Mount Hood, Oregon, over the past year. Pex writes, “My
carpentry skills have vastly improved!”
1986
Kristen (Baumgardner) Caven (SF) authored The Reason She
Left: and other stories in 2011, a philosophical comic book
exploring cultural dualism through the character-driven narrative of a young woman trying to find her place in the world—a
project born from her propensity for sketching and illustrating
as a student at St. John’s.
30
She writes, “As a bored, unguided, and pensive high school
student, I found that I listened best in class when I was
doodling in the margins of my notebooks … In sophomore lab,
my doodles became paper-doll booklets, and I discovered the
cult of publication.”
In 2020, Caven returned to the creative process by making
a full-length animated feature for her neighborhood beer
festival, which was transformed into a worldwide virtual
Oktoberfest due to COVID-19.
Today, she continues to explore the graphic narrative as a tool
for philosophical communication and understanding across a
variety of mediums.
1991
Joan (Ross) Crist (A) is happy to be serving as a Title I aide and
Latin teacher at a school in her community.
Theresa Duncan’s (SF) role as an attorney in the fight to free
Guantánamo Bay prisoner Mohamedou Ould Slahi was made
into the feature film The Mauritanian. Released in spring 2021,
the movie stars Jodie Foster, Shailene Woodley (as Duncan),
and Tamar Rahim.
2001
David Weiskopf (SF) is living in Sacramento, California,
working in climate policy and politics, and welcomed a baby in
November 2020.
2016
Samantha Ardoin (SF) graduated in May 2021 from Naropa
University with a master’s degree in clinical mental health
counseling and a concentration in mindfulness-based
transpersonal counseling. Ardoin is now working as a psychotherapist at Queer Asterisk Therapeutic Services, offering
affordable identity-affirming mental health counseling to
queer and trans adults and youth.
Anne Horowitz (SF) recently completed her first year of
medical school.
Rebekah McLellan (SF) recently began veterinary studies at
Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine.
William Palm (SF) completed a master’s degree in special
education in spring 2020 and married partner, Isaac, in 2019.
Palm writes, “We are happily living together in Salt Lake City.”
James Spencer-Zavos (SF) is currently enrolled in an
“Umschulung,” or training program, in Berlin to become a
qualified carpenter, after which he is eligible to train to
become a “Meister,” or master carpenter.
We’d like to hear from you! Please send correspondence and
class notes to alumni@sjc.edu. Address changes and other
updates may be submitted at sjc.edu/alumni-contact.
�IN MEMORIAM
St. John’s College remembers the alumni, faculty, staff, and leadership who
have passed away during the 2020-2021 academic year, and celebrates the
impact their lives have had on our Johnnie community.
Stephen Benedict (Class of 1947)
Stephen W. Bergen (Class of 1947)
Mary S. Blomberg (Class of 1957)
Katharine Boaz, Santa Fe Faculty Emerita
Ray C. Cave (Class of 1948), Trustee Emeritus
Stefano J. Coaloa (SFGI11)
Gerald D. Cohen (SFGI90)
Sharon S. Cooper, Santa Fe Staff
Richard T. Edelman (Class of 1951)
David J. Freedman (SF76)
Peter Gardiner (A73)
Robert M. Hampton (SF73)
Alan D. Hornstein (AGI86)
H. Gerald Hoxby (Class of 1947)
Susan H. Jones (SFGI71)
Daniel “Bud” T. Kelly, Jr. (H02)
Gertrude Koch (AGI82)
Charles E. Lynch (Class of 1951)
Richard A. Malmgren (SFGI91)
Jake Martinez (SFGI70)
John W. May (SFGI94)
Gerald “Simon” V. McNabb (A88)
Jack S. Moorman (SFGI94)
Robert S. Musgrave (SF90)
Judith Penelope (Class of 1967)
Mark A. Piekarski, Santa Fe Staff
Josephine J. Poe (Class of 1957)
David T. Reiner (A02)
Mara Robinson (SFGI83)
William D. Shafer (Class of 1962)
Thomas K. Simpson (Class of 1950)
David L. Smith (A86)
Leslie E. Starr (A72)
E. Cary Stickney (A75), Santa Fe Faculty
Susan L. Swartzberg (SF70)
George Usdansky (Class of 1950)
Robert J. Wekselblatt (Class of 1963)
John F. White (Class of 1964), Annapolis Faculty
Rebecca M. Wilson (H83)
Michael C. Wood (SF80)
Patrick F. Woods (SF80)
Cary Stickney (A75),
Santa Fe Faculty
Beloved Santa
Fe tutor Cary
Stickney (A75)
died peacefully
at home on
April 7, 2021,
of cancer. He
was 66 years
old.
“Many of
us, across our
campuses and across the generations
at the college, knew and loved Cary,”
said Santa Fe Dean Walter Sterling (A93)
upon the time of Stickney’s passing. He
embodied, and improved, the spirit of our
college.”
After graduating from St. John’s in
Annapolis in 1975, Stickney joined the
Santa Fe faculty in 1980 to live out his
life’s work as a tutor. Even in his final
days, he was close to and reading
rogram books. “It was especially
meaningful to him to be involved in
reading groups at the college on [Don]
Quixote and on Plato,” said Sterling.
“He derived great consolation from these
experiences.” According to Stickney,
the great books were safe. They would
always be read somewhere in the world
by people questing for understanding.
Stickney is survived by his wife, Susan,
Santa Fe faculty emerita; his daughters
Amelia (SF14) and Sarah (A04), a tutor in
Annapolis; and his son-in-law, Jake.
This listing includes those who have passed July 1, 2020 through July 1, 2021. We care
deeply for all members of our college community. If you do not see a name listed above,
please contact advancement@sjc.edu so we may honor those individuals.
31
�ST. JOHN’S FOREVER
PLANNED GIFTS ARE A WONDERFUL WAY TO SUPPORT ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE AND ACCOMPLISH
YOUR OWN PERSONAL, FINANCIAL, ESTATE-PLANNING, AND PHILANTHROPIC GOALS. WHEN
YOU DOCUMENT YOUR BEQUEST INTENTIONS, YOU WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE LEGACY SOCIETY
OF ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE, WHICH HONORS THOSE WHO HAVE PROVIDED FOR THE COLLEGE IN
SUCH A GENEROUS WAY.
Planned giving strategies give you the opportunity to extend the impact of your
gift and receive financial benefits. Our development team can help you make
your gift to the college—whether it be a gift that can be used right away or a
vehicle that produces lifetime income for you and/or others. Examples include
designating gifts of property, life insurance policies, charitable trusts or annuities, and bequest intentions.
To learn more about how to provide for the future of St. John’s, please visit
sjc.giftplans.org. If you have already included a gift to St. John’s in your will
or living trust, please notify our office at plannedgiving@sjc.edu.
JOIN YOUR CLASS
IN GIVING BACK
Do you remember what made your St. John’s College experience
meaningful? Was it the Program, classmates, and tutors? Perhaps
it was the special moments shared around the seminar table, or
the freedom to think deeply, debate openly, and learn from one
another. Maybe it was the feeling of being part of something much
larger than you are—a community of individuals brought together
by the common pursuit of deeper understanding.
Like Elisabeth, each year more and more alumni commemorate
“I learned that when you see something you value
in the world, you need to nurture it—not just for
their St. John’s experience through philanthropy—building a strong
legacy of giving by Johnnies who care deeply for the future of the
college. Alumni give back in a myriad of ways: volunteering as a
yourself, but so others can benefit from it as well.
class chair, supporting a class endowment fund, making a gift in
The college changed me, and I want to be sure
honor of their class, and many more.
that many more students can have that same
experience, long into the future.”
– Elisabeth Long (A86), Alumni Association
Board Member and Class of 1986 Gift Leader
VISIT SJC.EDU/REUNIONGIVING TO LEARN MORE
ABOUT HOW YOU CAN COMMEMORATE YOUR ST. JOHN’S
EXPERIENCE.
�>Thank you …
… TO ALL OUR ALUMNI USERS OF SJC CONNECT, ST. JOHN’S OFFICIAL
ONLINE PLATFORM FOR CONNECTING JOHNNIES.
SIGN ON TODAY TO:
Join
interest
groups
SJCConnect
Upload and
search job
postings
Follow
activities
in your
area
Calendar
upcoming
events
COMING SOON
Even more ways
to get involved!
Check out the JohnnieCorps alumni volunteer program—powered by
SJC Connect—and learn about available virtual and in-person volunteer
opportunities. Browse and apply to openings directly from SJC Connect!
SIGN UP TODAY OR CHECK BACK IN AT SJCCONNECT.COM
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Alumni Magazine
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Annapolis, Md.
Santa Fe, NM
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Alumni Magazine, Summer 2021
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Volume 1, number 1 of the Alumni Magazine. Published in summer 2021.
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St. John's College
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Annapolis, MD
Santa Fe, NM
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2021
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St. John's College (Annapolis, Md.)--Alumni and alumnae
St. John's College (Santa Fe, N.M.)--Alumni and alumnae
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Text
UNTIL�WE�ARE�
TOGETHER�AGAIN�
Alumni
Engagement at
St. John’s College
“I’m proud to be a Johnnie. The
UNTIL�WE�
ARE�
TOGETHER� Homecoming and Alumni Engagement
AGAIN� atARESt. John's College
Program helped prepare me for
my career, and the friendships
I made as a student continue to
enrich my life. The further out
from my graduation I go, the
more I want to stay connected
with the college.”
—KATARINA WONG A88
“The Program and its
emphasis on dialogue is what
first grounded me to my
Until We Are Together Again
classmates and the college,
and is what continues to
inspire, motivate, and connect
me to St. John’s today.”
—ASHISH DHAKAL SF19
YOU
IN?
“I believe strongly in the and
Homecoming
St. John’s education and
Alumni
Engagement
mission—it’s what
connects
me to the Johnnie community
atandSt.
John's College
motivates me to stay
involved however I can.”
—BOB KASENCHAK SF95
��LETTER FROM ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD PRESIDENT
Dear Johnnies,
I hope this message finds you safe and well amid the unprecedented events we have faced
over the past several months. Yet, even in trying times, I deeply believe in hope.
When Aristotle taught us about bravery, he grounded this virtue in hope. He instructed us in
the Nicomachean Ethics that “A coward is someone with faint hope, since such a person is afraid
of everything, and a courageous person is the opposite, since confidence belongs to someone
full of hope.” Hope gives us courage and allows us to move forward. It is in this vein that the
college sends you this expanded version of our annual homecoming brochure, aptly entitled
Until We Are Together Again.
I understand that a publication cannot replace the togetherness we enjoy at homecoming. Rather—through
its alumni stories, college news, and collection of photos—it can offer us some joy and remembrance of what
it means to be part of our exceptional Johnnie community. As you turn these pages, you will learn about the
many great things happening for alumni, the strength of our community as a whole, and how we can stay
connected with one another through the Alumni Association and the college, especially through our first-ever
virtual Alumni Week to be held Monday, September 21 through Saturday, September 26, 2020.
Inspired by alumni feedback, Alumni Week promises to bring us together in community and in thought
through daily online programming that is both nostalgic and informative, until we can be together again in
person. Highlights include virtual presentations of favorite homecoming activities, engaging career talks,
updates from college leadership, and—of course—seminars with our much-loved tutors.
Albeit not what we expected initially, the year 2020 still affords us the chance to reconnect with and revisit
what is unique and meaningful about St. John’s. Our Association remains strong, as it has been since its
establishment nearly 200 years ago. And our college community is just as vibrant as when we were students
in the hills of Santa Fe and on the banks of College Creek.
Join me along with your entire Alumni Association Board by participating in Alumni Week this September.
Are you in?
We look forward to seeing you this fall. Until we are together again…
St. John’s Forever!
Mark Parenti AGI92
President
St. John’s College Alumni Association
1
�UPDATES
ALUMNI 50 YEARS APART are making a lasting environmental impact on
St. John’s College with the Class of 2019 inspiring an anonymous gift of $3.2 million
from members of the Class of 1969.
Over its long history, the college has developed many traditions within its Johnnie
community—including that of the Senior Legacy Project, where graduating seniors
adopt a class project to improve the student experience for future years.
Previous examples of this tradition include the Class of 2004’s fundraising and
installment of a functional armillary sphere on the Santa Fe campus. Predecessor
to the telescope, the sphere was fabricated using the designs of 16th-century astronomer Tycho Brahe and is the only one of its kind in the world.
Class of 2019
Inspires Alumni
to Fund Solar
Energy and
Sustainability
Initiatives
2019 Senior Legacy Committee
Members with President Mark
Roosevelt, pictured left to right:
Ashish Dhakal SF19, Oona
“Bella” Bjornstad SF19,
President Roosevelt,
Pavitra “Pavi” Antony SF19,
and Sophia Paffenroth SF19.
Stay connected with your
Johnnie community. Follow
St. John’s journey toward
sustainability and other
inspiring college news by
visiting sjc.edu/news.
2
As for the members of the Class of 2019, they chose to support an energy audit of the
Santa Fe campus to reduce the college’s carbon footprint, lower operating costs, and
encourage the installation of solar energy on site. With a 100-percent participation
rate among the 2019 class—a feat achieved only three other times in Santa Fe’s
history—the classmates were able to cover a portion of the cost of the campus energy
audit.
“The support the project received was overwhelming and more than I had hoped for,”
remarked Ashish Dhakal SF19, who served on the Senior Legacy Committee. “I think
in the end it really augmented that togetherness we felt as a class.” But their impact
didn’t stop there.
When two members of the Class of 1969 learned of the Class of 2019’s passion for
sustainability and 100-percent participation rate, they were inspired to make a gift
of their own. This spring, two anonymous donors from the Class of 1969 contributed
$2.2 million to install rooftop solar panels and an additional $1 million to convert the
entire campus to LED lighting, for a total gift of $3.2 million.
President Mark Roosevelt shared a message from the anonymous members of the
Class of 1969 with alumni from the Class of 2019. “Dear Fellow Alumni of the Class
of SF19,” the message begins. “We are so grateful to you for getting the project
started by donating the planning piece. We are proud to join you in your vision of a
sustainable campus, and we treasure this connection between our two classes, 50
years apart.”
Combined, the two class gifts are a major step toward St. John’s achieving its sustainability initiatives. By installing solar panels and LED lighting, the college is expected
to save approximately $150,000 in electricity costs annually and reduce its electricity
use by 1.67 million kWh per year.
“The donations from the Class of 1969 mean that there is hope, especially in the current climate of global crises,” Dhakal reflected. “I think it sets a significant precedent
in our Johnnie community and beyond, and proves the impact we can have when we
work together.”
�LAST DECEMBER, FEW KNEW how significant innovation, leadership, and
disruption would soon become in the landscape of American higher education.
It was then that St. John’s College received the “Four-Year College of the Year”
Dive Award from leading education news publisher Education Dive, for its forwardthinking approach to a problem that confronts many colleges across the country,
especially now during the novel coronavirus pandemic: ballooning tuition prices
that most American families cannot afford. Education Dive acknowledged St. John’s
solution—described by author Natalie Schwartz as “switching to a philanthropysupported financial model and cutting down on administrative expenses”—as a
progressive initiative designed to provide an affordable education for all students
and put the college in a secure position moving into the future.
“At the time, we believed strongly we were doing the right thing in committing to
our new financial model by launching the Freeing Minds campaign and resetting our
tuition,” said Annapolis President Panayiotis Kanelos. “What we couldn’t have anticipated was how this decision would place us in a position of strength to confront the
financial and enrollment challenges of this new era brought on by COVID-19.”
Today, the award continues to underscore the college’s momentum in these areas,
and allows St. John’s to join a storied array of institutions to have been honored by
Education Dive in past years, including the University of California system and the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
“The people and organizations that win Dive Awards are trailblazers and leaders in
their markets,” said Davide Savenije, editor-in-chief of Education Dive’s publisher
Industry Dive. “Their achievements in 2019 are shaping the future of where the latest
strategies and trends are going.”
Trailblazing
Proves
Fortuitous
for College
amid
Pandemic
Education Dive provides in-depth journalism and insight into the news and trends
shaping the education world, including policy, classroom tech, online learning, and
more. Each year, the editors of Education Dive use the Dive Awards to acknowledge
visionaries and disruptors that stand out from the rest of the field: colleges,
universities, companies, and individuals that create bold, progressive solutions for
modern-day challenges in order to bring the world of education into the future.
The thing to remember, President Mark Roosevelt said, is that St. John’s couldn’t have
done it alone.
“We forged a vision that was informed by our community’s input. We implemented
that vision and our community rallied around it,” he explained. “We’re succeeding because of them. Their courage to speak out, their generosity, their love of the
Program and college, and their desire to make this education affordable to future
generations. Through our continued resilience and perseverance we will achieve this
goal, together.”
To learn more about
St. John’s journey toward
affordability for generations
of Johnnies to come, visit
freeingminds.sjc.edu.
3
�UPDATES
COMING THIS FALL, St. John’s College will begin piloting its next generation of
volunteer engagement with a newly expanded alumni volunteer program entitled
JohnnieCorps.
Aptly named for the college’s longstanding force of alumni volunteers, JohnnieCorps— with its tailored opportunities discoverable in an easy-to-use online
format—promises to be the vehicle to take volunteerism at St. John’s to the next level.
JohnnieCorps:
A New Era of
Volunteerism
at St. John’s
“Throughout the college’s history, St. John’s has had a strong corps of alumni
volunteers who have helped fortify the institution,” said Kelsey Miller A10, the senior
alumni engagement officer leading the program’s development. “Alumni have
provided integral direction and support for everything from the Mitchell Gallery to
the Admitted Student Outreach Team, and even the Alumni Association itself.”
Building upon this Johnnie tradition of volunteerism, the college has now formalized
a way for alumni to access volunteer opportunities suited to their individual interests.
What’s more, according to Miller, is alumni have had a direct hand in shaping how
such a program operates.
“Data from two of our most recent alumni surveys show that there are many who
want to be more involved in volunteering with the college,” she explained. “Through
alumni feedback, the college has also learned what hasn’t worked for volunteers in
the past. The features of JohnnieCorps are a direct response to that input.”
In addition to its usability, JohnnieCorps primarily offers alumni aggregated volunteer opportunities by bringing together all collegewide positions in one place,
categorized by roles related to alumni’s experience, skills, and interests.
“It’s important for me to give back and share my expertise with the college,” said
Bob Kasenchak SF95, who supports outreach to accepted students, among other
volunteer activities. “Just imagine if 100 alums each gave one hour of their time what
100 hours could do to help our students,” he continued. “Getting involved through
JohnnieCorps provides an easy method to make a big impact, without taking a lot of
your time.”
Join the new movement of
volunteering at St. John’s—go to
to sjc.edu/volunteersurvey
to complete a quick five-question
survey about how you’d like to get
involved, and stay tuned for our
official launch.
Become a JohnnieCorps
volunteer today!
4
It is with consideration to alumni’s busy schedules that college departments have
scaled JohnnieCorps offerings into varying time-commitment levels. Doing so
“allows Johnnies to give back in whatever capacities they are able,” Miller said,
“whether that be in one-off, short-term, or long-term roles. We want positions that
feel sustainable amid their other responsibilities and goals.”
Lastly, and possibly most significantly given the current COVID-19 pandemic,
JohnnieCorps will provide remote and virtual opportunities, affording alumni
the option to participate from the comfort of their own homes. Alumni will also
benefit from notifications when roles matching their volunteer preferences become
available—both optimizing volunteerism at St. John’s and ensuring its success for
years to come.
�AS THE AGE-OLD ADAGE GOES, “many hands make light work”—and it’s
proven true for St. John’s College in its adoption of crowdfunding.
A fundraising practice allowing organizations to inspire contributions from a large
number of donors over a specified amount of time, crowdfunding began for St. John’s in
the fall of 2018—launched as part of the college’s #GivingTuesday campaign that year.
Typically observed the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, at the onset of the winter
holiday season, GivingTuesday strives to promote generosity between people and the
causes they care about through online monetary giving. Prior to crowdfunding,
St. John’s yielded approximately $10,000 from 50 donors on GivingTuesday 2017.
Since then, crowdfunding has generated an overwhelming philanthropic reaction—
boasting an astounding 532-donor response of nearly $126,000 in 2019 alone.
For Director of Annual Giving Mark Piekarski, “it is not the size of the gift you
make, it’s the fact that you make it. We owe our successes to donor engagement—
specifically alumni engagement,” he said. “Through its dynamic and interactive
nature, crowdfunding provides alumni a tangible way to showcase their Johnnie
pride while leveraging their social networks to benefit this cause they care about.”
Another example of this is the Temple Iglehart scoreboard challenge this past winter,
where alumni rallied to exceed a goal of $6,000 in just 12 days to purchase a replacement board for the Annapolis gymnasium. “This fundraiser is such an excellent
example of the power of the Johnnie community,” said Annapolis Athletics and
Recreation Coordinator Chris Krueger A07. “Inspired Johnnies are unstoppable!”
Crowdfunding
Epitomizes
Strength of
Johnnie
Community
Most recently, crowdfunding also played a crucial role in raising support for Johnnie
students experiencing financial hardship or difficultly in continuing their studies
remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. From it, nearly $23,000 was donated to the
college’s Student Emergency Relief Fund, which directly benefits affected students.
As the college expands its crowdfunding efforts, it does so in the hope that donors will
continue to aid future projects with the same generosity they have shown so far.
As Piekarski remarked, “we can do more by joining together. Every gift plays a vital
role in supporting students and tutors as they engage in the work of our exceptional
St. John’s education.”
Do more together! Check out
the results of our most recent
crowdfunding effort by visiting
givecampus.com/schools/StJohnsCollege.
5
�
“St. John’s has given me the freedom
to engage with various subjects and fields,
which has helped me realize my passion
for human rights.”
6
�Raised by a single mother in Ethiopia’s
capital city of Addis Ababa, Nani Detti SF20 has
held a strong interest in human rights for as
long as she can remember.
“G
rowing up hearing stories about injustices
like child marriage, I was desperate to raise
awareness for the abuses young girls and
women suffer in my country,” she explained. “Seeing the
unfair treatment my mother faced when seeking support
from the justice system only increased my desire to get
involved.” Yet, despite her experiences, Detti did not have
a suitable outlet for her concerns. That was until she
discovered St. John’s College.
In 2014, shortly after her 16th birthday, Detti’s journey
toward St. John’s began with her acceptance to an allgirls boarding school in Toronto. In order to attend, she
left behind everything familiar—her culture, family, and
friends—but one comfort remained, her love of reading.
While adapting to her new academic environment, she
immersed herself in literature, deepening her fondness
for it. In fact, it was Detti’s appreciation for books that first
connected her to the college.
“I had applied to a bunch of colleges in Canada and the
U.S., but I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to study after
high school,” she shared. While conducting some online
research, she stumbled upon St. John’s listing on a website entitled Colleges that Change Lives. “The first thing that
attracted me was the reading list,” she said. But there was
something more. According to Detti, it was the opportunity to study diverse subjects.
“St. John’s has given me the freedom to engage with
various subjects and fields,” she said, “which has helped
me realize my passion for human rights.” In her time at
the college, Detti has put that passion into action. Most
notably, she raised awareness for human rights among
her classmates by starting the Amnesty International
student chapter in Santa Fe. She also addressed student
issues of discrimination, mental health, and wellness on
campus through her leadership of the Santa Fe Johnnie
Community Board.
For her collective efforts, Detti earned the Santa Fe Council
on International Relations’ Student of the Year Award
in 2019. Among other accolades, she also received the
Kathryn W. Davis Projects for Peace Award last summer,
affording $10,000 for her “Misale (or ‘role model’) Initiative.” A project aimed at promoting mentorship between
professionals and students in Ethiopia, and reducing the
country’s unemployment rate.
“My St. John’s experience has prepared me to enter any
field of my choosing,” Detti reflected. Upon graduating
this spring, she will embark on a gap year to refine her
research skills with organizations working in international relations and development. Afterward, she plans to
pursue a graduate degree in a related field. “Government
is what I’m most interested in,” she shared. “Eventually, I
want to go back to Ethiopia and apply what I’ve learned to
make my country a more just and equitable place.”
However, Detti’s St. John’s education would not have been
possible if it weren’t for a well-timed scholarship from
the college. Due to unforeseen financial difficulties, she
found herself abruptly confronted by the need to halt
her studies and return to Ethiopia midway through her
freshman year. “It was a stressful situation,” she recalled.
“Thankfully, everyone at St. John’s rallied around me to
find a solution.” That is how Detti was named the recipient
of the Norman Levan Scholarship; a fund endowed by the
late alumnus Dr. Norman Levan SFGI74, whose bequest
benefits students in financial need.
“Everything I have accomplished as a student is because
I was able to continue my studies,” she said. “Without
St. John’s, I would not have become the strong and
ambitious young woman I am today.”
[
KNOW A STUDENT WHO’S JUST
RIGHT FOR ST. JOHN’S?
Connect them with our Admissions Office through
the college’s One Alum-One Referral program.
Visit sjc.edu/one-alum-one-referral to learn more.
7
�FEATURE Story
ALUMNUS
TRANSLATES
LOVE FOR
ST. JOHN’S
INTO
ACTION
WITH
CHARITABLE
GIVING
“I have really benefitted from St. John’s
well-rounded education and I want others
to have the same opportunity; I feel
responsible to help share that with others.”
8
�In its ancient Greek origins, the word “philanthropy” is a term meaning
“love of mankind.” In its modern usage, it is regarded as an action done to better humanity.
For alumnus Craig Sirkin A95, philanthropy means both. He has turned his love for
St. John’s College—the polity, the Program, and the campus—into the action of charitable
giving, allowing him to share the experience of St. John’s with others.
A
precocious teenager with a particular interest in
the writings of Aristotle, Sirkin first learned of
St. John’s from a recruitment mailing that piqued
his interest. “I was a big reader—always had my nose in a
book,” said Sirkin. “I had read Aristotle’s Poetics and was
interested in reading more texts like it; I wanted to learn
more about what St. John’s had to offer.”
So on a warm day in the fall of 1991, Sirkin, along with
three of his high school classmates, headed off for a
prospective weekend in Annapolis, about an hour’s drive
from his home in Washington, DC. “It was a beautiful
fall weekend in Annapolis,” Sirkin recalls. “I remember
observing my first class—I was sitting around a seminar
table in McDowell Hall with the windows wide open—and I
knew this is where I wanted to be.”
And just like that, Sirkin had found refuge among history’s
great books and renowned thinkers. “St. John’s was like
an oasis for me, in a way,” he shared. “It was different than
other programs I had originally considered, and I was
lucky to have found it.”
In the years immediately following his enrollment, Sirkin
went on to study the classics as he had hoped. He also
joined the croquet program, coordinating its participation
in the U.S. Croquet Association’s collegiate national championship and even serving as the team’s imperial wicket
his senior year. Yet, his college experience provided him
with much more than he could have anticipated during
his initial visit to campus.
[
“I learned about many more topics than I had first considered,” said Sirkin, now a large-scale computer-networking
consultant. As part of his profession, Sirkin is constantly
learning new technologies, and often must translate the
meaning of complex, technical concepts for others—a
talent he credits to his time at St. John’s. “My experiences
at St. John’s, especially the tutorials, greatly helped
prepare me for the job I’m doing today,” he attests.
“I have really benefitted from St. John’s well-rounded
education and I want others to have the same opportunity;
I feel responsible to help share that with others,” he goes
on. A St. John’s donor for the past 20 years, Sirkin has
contributed to a great number of initiatives at the college,
including the Fund for St. John’s and campus-specific
efforts, such as the Annapolis croquet program and
infrastructure improvement projects. “I’m happy to be
able to play a role in offering the St. John’s experience to
future students.”
With 2020 marking his 25th anniversary of graduating
from St. John’s, Sirkin is especially motivated to give back
this year. “I think milestones like this are a great reminder to give to the college,” he said. “They remind us about
the things we learned, the environment that nurtured us
for all those years, and most importantly the people,” he
continues.
“Those people shaped us.”
If you would like to express your meaning of philanthropy for St. John’s College like
Craig Sirkin this reunion year, please visit sjc.edu/reuniongiving to learn more.
9
�VIRTUAL LEARNING
AT ST. JOHN’S
Tutor and
her Students
Rise to the
Challenge
“Through all this, I have been most
impressed with the students’ resiliency.
Despite the challenges presented, they
have remained dedicated to the
St. John’s unique style of learning and
been heroic in a time of hardship.”
10
�When St. John’s College
made the decision this spring to send
students home and move classes online due to safety concerns related to COVID-19, tutor
Zena Hitz A95—among fellow faculty around the globe—found herself abruptly thrown into
the world of virtual instruction.
“O
nline instruction is not the norm for the
St. John’s Great Books Program,” said Hitz,
a 1995 alumna who joined the Annapolis
faculty in 2015. Since the establishment of the New
Program in 1937, classes on both campuses traditionally
have been conducted in person around the seminar table.
Undeterred, St. John’s mobilized quickly in identifying
online services and resources to help students and tutors
alike finish the spring semester remotely. In the span of a
few short weeks, Hitz transitioned to facilitating her junior
courses in language, math, and seminar primarily through
the Microsoft Teams communication and collaboration
platform.
“For me, online learning was at first like ‘emergency
learning’—like teaching with a flashlight when the power
goes out,” she described, “especially with the subject of
math, which requires an enormous amount of focus and
concentration from students.”
That’s when Hitz assembled what she termed virtual
study groups, so students could collaborate on problems
prior to class. Utilizing shared files and video chats, they
would offer descriptions to the class outlining their difficulties and questions, allowing the classmates a chance
to dig deeper into coursework and solve issues together,
almost as they would do in person.
challenges presented, they have remained dedicated to
the St. John’s unique style of learning and been heroic in
a time of hardship.”
As a graduate of the Program herself, Hitz understands
the transformative experience that is the St. John’s education. “My tutors empowered me to take responsibility
for my own learning and made me feel like my inquiries
really mattered. Watching this same thing happen for my
students, especially during this year of COVID-19, has been
unbelievably touching and wonderful to see,” she shared.
This year also marks one of celebration for the Annapolis
tutor, as she enjoys the recent publication of her first book
and commemorates her 25th Reunion with the college.
“I’m looking forward to seeing old friends during Alumni
Week this fall and celebrating all the college has to done in
shaping the people we have become,” she said.
Published by Princeton University Press in May, her
book—entitled Lost in Thought: The Hidden Pleasures of an
Intellectual Life—was supported by a research stipend she
received from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Readers of the piece are invited to rediscover the
impractical splendors of a life of learning.
A pursuit Hitz’s students will likely carry through this
unprecedented period of learning, and beyond.
“Through all this, I have been most impressed with the
students’ resiliency,” Hitz remarked. “Despite the
[
For the latest information on St. John’s fall planning for
students, faculty, and staff, visit sjc.edu/fall-plans.
11
�Alumnus
Committed
to Helping
Johnnies
Find their
Way in
Business
“As St. John’s alumni we can trace our steps
back to where we started, but as students
we don’t necessarily see the paths that
lie before us, and they are not always
straight lines. This is why it’s important
for me as a Johnnie to relay my story to
current students.”
12
�Eli Castro SF94
began his journey toward St. John’s College as a Michigan
high school junior visiting the Santa Fe campus in the summer of 1990.
D
uring his tour of the college, he instantly fell in love
with campus and the Program—so much so that
when he returned to Michigan he completed high
school early just so he could enroll at St. John’s immediately after his junior year.
“I was curious about what I saw—the discussions and how
students were respectful of the work, the people, and the
school. There were no doubts in my mind about wanting
to attend,” he said.
After graduating, Castro pursued graduate school in
Wisconsin, but realized at the time it was not for him and
instead took a consulting job through a Johnnie connection
in Washington, DC—eventually landing at Deloitte in Austin,
Texas, where he is a senior manager in the higher education consulting practice.
“I enjoy tackling thorny problems, applying different perspectives to break them down into manageable pieces,”
he shared. “The Program taught me that, and I was eager
to put my skills to use in the practical world.”
As an alumni volunteer for the college over the past five
years and counting, Castro believes that the paths we take
in life are important. His has crossed the country. From
growing up in Michigan, he took an early turn toward
St. John’s in Santa Fe, then to grad school in Wisconsin,
a redirection to consulting in DC, and now to Austin,
where he earned a MBA from The University of Texas and
lives with his wife, Tracy Locke SF95, and daughters Ella
and Clarissa.
[
“Being St. John’s alumni we can trace our steps back to
where we started, but as students we don’t necessarily
see the paths that lie before us, and they are not always
straight lines. This is why it’s important for me as a
Johnnie to relay my story to current students,” he
explained.
Through his volunteering, Castro shares his professional
experience with students to help them translate their
knowledge of the Program to practical employment in
consulting and management careers. “I want to help
students find their way in the business world,” he said.
Castro has also served as a mentor to students participating in the St. John’s Consulting Group as well as worked
directly with students to bolster their interview skills. “In
my job, I interview recent college graduates all the time,
but it’s been my time spent helping Johnnies with their
skills that has made me a better interviewer,” he attests.
With JohnnieCorps piloting this fall, it will be easier than
ever for alumni to get involved with the college. Accessible online, the volunteer program will bring together all
collegewide positions in one place categorized by roles
related to alumni’s experience and scaled according to
time-commitment levels.
“With the number of varying things Johnnies are out in
the world doing today, there is so much opportunity for
alumni to get involved with students,” said Castro. “Let’s
help them find their way.”
Want to share your professional experience to help the Johnnies of tomorrow
chart their course to career success? Contact the Career Services Office in Annapolis
and the Office of Personal and Professional Development Office in Santa Fe by
visiting sjc.edu/career-success/staff to find out how!
13
�14
�MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 THROUGH
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2020
ARE YOU IN?
Remember what made your St. John’s College experience meaningful?
IN
Was it the Program, classmates, and tutors? Perhaps it was the special
was the feeling of being part of something much larger than yourself—a
TO ENGAGE WITH THE COLLEGE AND EACH OTHER.
IN
feeling of connection.
Even in this time of physical distancing, membership in the St. John’s
College community is lifelong—once a Johnnie, always a Johnnie!
Until we can be together again in person, come celebrate your lifelong connection to the college by attending Alumni Week 2020.
COMMUNITY
CONNECT VIRTUALLY WITH CLASSMATES AND TUTORS,
AND REMEMBER THOSE WHO MADE YOUR JOHNNIE
community of individuals brought together by the common pursuit of
deeper understanding. Whatever it might be for you, what persists is the
JOIN FELLOW JOHNNIES FOR A WEEKLONG VIRTUAL
PROGRAMMING EXPERIENCE OFFERING NEW WAYS
moments shared around the seminar table, and beyond. Or the freedom
to think deeply, debate openly, and learn from one another? Maybe it
STRENGTH
EXPERIENCE SPECIAL.
IN
THOUGHT
RETURN FOR SEMINARS ON CHERISHED TEXTS AND
ENJOY FAVORITE TUTORIALS WITH ESTEEMED TUTORS.
IN
HONOR
CELEBRATE THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF ALUMNI AND
FRIENDS WITH A SPECIAL ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
AWARDS PRESENTATION AND CONVERSATION WITH
COLLEGE LEADERS.
Coordinated with consideration for alumni feedback and safety
concerns related to COVID-19, Alumni Week provides Johnnies a
virtual mode of togetherness this fall by offering favorite homecoming
activities in an online format. Join us and experience what it means to
be IN the Johnnie community.
[
REGISTRATION
OPEN JULY 15 THROUGH
SEPTEMBER 13
at sjc.edu/Alumni-Week
For questions or assistance, email the
Alumni Relations Office at alumni@sjc.edu.
15
�IN COMMUNITY: ALUMNI WEEK SCHEDULE & REGISTRATION
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21—SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2020
SCHEDULE
MONDAY
FRIDAY
Welcome
Alumni Association Awards & Conversation
with College Leaders
*Live Event
JohnnieTalks
*Pre-recorded Event
Meet the Armillary Sphere: demonstration by
Tutor Emeritus Bill Donahue
Return to Lab: demonstrations by Director of
Laboratories John Balwit
*Pre-recorded Events
Jacob Lawrence: Image and the Word Exhibit, virtual guided
tour by Mitchell Gallery Art Educator Lucinda Edinberg
*Live Event
WEDNESDAY
Alumni Association Meeting & Election
*Live Event
TUESDAY
Return to Ptolemy: planetarium demonstration by
Tutor Jim Beall
Higher Gossip by Jeremy Sheeler & Maxwell Anthony AGI15
*Pre-recorded Events
THURSDAY
Johnnies in Healthcare Career Panel
*Live Event
[
16
SATURDAY
Seminar
*Live Event; Payment Required
Toasts & Tributes with Alumni Association Board
*Live Event
All live programming will be recorded and made available post event
at sjc.edu/Alumni-Week. Alumni Week programming subject to change.
See webpage for details.
�REGISTRATION & PRICING
REGISTRATION OPEN JULY 15 THROUGH SEPTEMBER 13
AT SJC.EDU/ALUMNI-WEEK
Live Events after registration, login credentials will be provided in advance of the dates
of programming.
“…nothing prevents a man,
after recalling one thing
only—a process men call
Pre-recorded Activities will be posted at sjc.edu/Alumni-Week on the date of their occurrence
and are open to all registrants.
learning—discovering
PRICING
Payment, along with registration, is required for participation in virtual seminars only.
if he is brave and does not
Price per Seminar: $50
tire of the search, for
CANCELLATION POLICIES
searching and learning are,
Due to the limited availability of virtual seminars, spaces are nontransferable and
nonrefundable.
as a whole, recollection.”
Seminars with fewer than five participants are subject to cancelation. If a seminar is
canceled due to low attendance, registrants may choose to transfer to an open seminar or
request a refund.
everything else for himself,
~Socrates, Meno
17
�IN THOUGHT: ALUMNI WEEK SEMINARS
GRADUATE INSTITUTE
Class
Reading
Tutor
GI
William Shakespeare’s Othello
Louis Petrich
Class
Reading
Tutor
Golden
Daniel Defoe’s A Journal of the Plague Year
Chester Burke A74
Class
Reading
Tutor
2005
Plato’s Euthyphro
Michael Golluber
Franz Kafka’s Description of a Struggle
John Cornell
Euclid’s Elements, Book 1
Krishnan Venkatesh
Simone Weil’s “Human Personality”
Phil LeCuyer H17
GOLDEN YEARS
SANTA FE
2000
1995
1980
18
�ANNAPOLIS
Class
Reading
Tutor
2015
Anne Carson’s Bakkhai
Patricia Locke
2010
Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway
Jason Tipton
2005
Frederick Douglass’ “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?”
Joe Macfarland A87
1990
Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan
David Townsend
1985
Tommy Orange’s There, There
Jonathan Tuck H14
1980
Ernest Hemingway’s “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”
Deborah Axelrod A68
1975
Euripides’ The Bacchae
Michael Dink A75
1970
Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan, Chapters 13, 14, and 17;
Declaration of Independence, first two paragraphs;
U.S. Constitution Preamble
Ron Haflidson
1960
The Book of Job
Tom May
OPEN
Class
Reading
Tutor
Open
Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, Books 8 and 9
Gregory Recco
Open
Jane Austen’s Persuasion
Judith Adam
Open
William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell
David Carl
Open
Genesis
Mitchell Gallery
Open
Martin Heidegger’s The Question Concerning Technology
Brendan Boyle
Wallace Stevens’ “Peter Quince at the Clavier”
Jim Beall
Open
[
Seminars with fewer than five participants are subject to cancelation.
If you do not see a seminar listed for your class year, it is due to low class
participation. We welcome you to register for an open seminar.
19
�IN HONOR: ALUMNI ASSOCIATION HONOREES
Alumni Association honorees are selected annually by the board in recognition for their pursuit of and successes in leading examined
lives of virtue, as well as their steadfast commitment to the St. John’s College community. Following are this year’s recipients of the
Award of Merit, Volunteer Service Award, and Honorary Alumni designations to be commemorated during Alumni Week 2020.
2020 AWARD OF MERIT HONOREES
SANTA FE
Alice Ericsson SF75
A distinguished leader and innovator in the field of beauty,
cosmetic, and fragrance advertising, Alice Ericsson is well known
for creating one of the world’s most recognized taglines: “Easy,
Breezy, Beautiful, Covergirl.”
This campaign introduced a diverse group of inspiring brand
ambassadors, including Queen Latifah, Salt-N-Pepa, Ellen
DeGeneres as well as the first Coverboy, James Charles—an effort
that, literally, changed the face the beauty industry forever. She
has also helped build brands for L’Oréal, Revlon, Shiseido, and
others, and has focused on mentoring women in advertising.
Currently, Ericsson works as a creative freelancer—strategizing
and writing for clients such as Bobbi Brown, Hermès, MAC, and
GrowNYC, among others. In addition to her professional pursuits,
she is an active philanthropist with special regard for St. John’s
College. A faithful financial supporter of the college, Ericsson’s
contributions also include her longtime volunteer service to education—especially her role as a member of the Board of Directors
for the Touchstones Discussion Project over the past 10 years.
Mark Sanfilippo SFGI00
Upon graduating from St. John’s College Graduate Institute in
2000, Mark Sanfilippo began a career as a screenwriter, where he
even channeled his knowledge of western canon into some of his
scripts. Little did he know then, that eight years later he would
end up the producer of fine, artisan charcuterie recognized by
Forbes magazine as the “Best Salami in the Country.” It was an
advertisement offering employment at Pizzeria Mozza that set
this trajectory in motion.
Despite his lack of culinary experience, Sanfilippo, while on hold
for a writing project, applied to the restaurant and soon found
himself in the job of food preparation, including curing meats.
Doing so ignited his passion for the delicacy of charcuterie, which
20
first took form as a hobby in a closet of his Los Angeles apartment
to eventually a full-on business and 8,000-square-foot production facility in St. Louis.
Opened in 2008, Sanfilippo’s artisan salumeria aptly named
Salume Beddu, which translates to “beautiful” in Sicilian dialect,
specializes in Italian and European-style cured meats. Sanfilippo
asserts the acclaim Salume Beddu has garnered from Forbes and
others is due to an adherence to traditional techniques, a use of
only the best ingredients, and an intellectual approach (likely
instilled from his time at St. John’s) he takes to not just the curing
process, but to every step of production—from farm to final
product. Today, Salume Beddu distributes nationwide, and has
become a fixture in award-winning kitchens as well as family
gatherings, alike.
ANNAPOLIS
Judith Abrams A65
Working at the university level since 1987, Judith Abrams, PhD,
is professor of oncology at Wayne State University School of
Medicine and director of the biostatistics core at the Karmanos
Cancer Institute in Detroit.
In her academic work at Wayne State, Abrams collaborates with
cancer investigators, applying biostatistical methods in cancer
research projects. Her contributions in the areas of experimental design and statistical analysis have resulted in publications
in the field of oncology, especially in cancer clinical trials and
observational studies. She is a four-time winner of the Wayne
State University School of Medicine College Teaching Award,
most recently received in 2017. In her more than 20 years with
the Karmanos Cancer Institute, Abrams has been important to
the design of cancer research studies. Building on her readings
in philosophy of science at St. John’s College, she ensures that
scientific questions are framed so they can be answered precisely
and efficiently, and that analytical conclusions are accurate
and valid.
�Abrams embodies the spirit of inquiry that is so integral to the college’s Program. In addition to her bachelor’s degree from St. Johns, she holds a doctorate degree in biostatistics from the University of Michigan and two master’s
degrees—one in computer science from New York University and another in
biometry from the University of Vermont.
Kevin R. Fitzgerald AGI85
With more than 40 years’ experience in the field of education—first as a
Maryland social studies and English teacher, and now as superintendent of
the Caesar Rodney School District in Delaware—Kevin R. Fitzgerald, EdD, has
dedicated his career to equipping students with the skills needed to succeed
in a rapidly evolving world.
A leader in classroom technology integration, Fitzgerald has helped his
district become a model for equitable instruction by offering multi-level
learning modules to support students throughout the various stages of their
intellectual development. For his efforts in creating learning environments
where both students and teachers alike can thrive, Fitzgerald received the
award for Superintendent of the Year in 2018 by the National Association of
School Superintendents.
Today, Fitzgerald’s work continues as he pioneers the implementation of
immersive language programs across his district, with Caesar Rodney students having access to the most language programs throughout the state of
Delaware. Fitzgerald’s emphasis on language is rooted in his strong belief
that the study of classic literature is what best prepares students for the
future. This understanding, which demonstrates both a diversity of interpretations and shared commonalities, he owes to his studies as a graduate
student of St. John’s College.
Top to bottom:
Alice Ericsson SF75,
Mark Sanfillippo SFGI00,
Kevin R. Fitzgerald AGI85;
not pictured:
Judith Abrams A65
21
�2020 VOLUNTEER SERVICE AWARD HONOREES
SANTA FE
Elihu Dietz SF06
In recognition of his longtime role as New York alumni chapter
leader, as well as his service on the Alumni Association Board
and its Nominations Committee. His service has both increased
engagement among alumni and enhanced their connection with
the college.
Brenna Strauss SF04 and Heather Upshaw SF04
Joining awardee Annette Prapasiri SF04, in recognition of the
leadership exhibited by the alumnae team responsible for the
completion of the Class of 2004 senior gift—the installation of a
functioning armillary sphere on the Santa Fe campus. Through
their dedication, these alumnae have helped achieve the largest
class gift in St. John’s history, as well as galvanized members of
the college community in the effort.
ANNAPOLIS
Johanna Wilson A90 and Richard Smith A90
In recognition of their commitment to Johnnies through their
employment of St. John’s College alumni at their company
OpenPath Products, and their continual willingness to offer
Johnnies career guidance—as highlighted by their participation
in the hugely successful Johnnies in Tech+ panel discussion
hosted by the college in March. Both Wilson and Smith are
faithful financial supporters of St. John’s, with Wilson joining
the college’s Board of Visitors and Governors last year.
2020 HONORARY ALUMNI INDUCTEES
SANTA FE
Lise van Boxel, Tutor
The St. John’s College community experienced an enormous loss
with the death of longtime tutor Lise van Boxel in January 2020.
Regarded by her students as thoughtful, acutely intelligent, and
always open to discourse, van Boxel first joined the Santa Fe
faculty in 2001. In her nearly 20-year career at the college, she
taught across both campuses and was deeply devoted to all her
students—advising with care many senior essays each year, and
mentoring Johnnies in their studies and careers after graduation.
In return, she drew much inspiration from her students’ “earnest
desire to learn and their willingness to be vulnerable in pursuit
of genuine conversation,” as she once stated. She also had a
particular respect for military service, which led her to co-found
22
the “St. John’s Combat and Classics” podcast. The audio series
has helped service members connect to the Program by examining historical and fictional leaders featured in military-themed
literary works.
As St. John’s College classrooms continue to seek what it means
to lead an examined life, they will do so in the spirit with which
Lise van Boxel led her own life.
Van Boxel held degrees in political science—BA and PhD from the
University of Toronto, and MA from Boston College—all with an
emphasis on political philosophy. Her doctoral thesis was on the
standard of truth in Nietzsche’s philosophy.
Robert Mass, Returning Member, Board of Visitors and Governors
A dedicated champion of the college, Robert Mass joined
St. John’s College Board of Visitors and Governors in 2013. He
demonstrated great leadership, especially through his committee
service, in his role as board secretary, and as Audit and Compliance Committee chair.
Through his leadership, Mass guided St. John’s through some
of its most challenging times, including the current deficit
reduction initiatives, helping ensure the future success of the
college. He helped St. John’s prioritize student safety and wellbeing initiatives through his service on the Campus Culture
Committee. Mass has been an advocate for international student
recruitment, funding and fundraising for scholarships as well as
making personal calls to admitted students. He has also advised
and supported students in their search for finance industry
internships and post-graduation employment.
Mass’s service to the college draws on his deep legal and
compliance experience at public and private firms, including
the American Civil Liberties Union, New York County District
Attorney’s Office, and Goldman Sachs where he is a managing
director.
Lifelong learning is a commitment Mass shares with St. John’s,
as evidenced by his current pursuit of a PhD in Philosophy at
The New School in New York City. An active participant in the
Executive Seminar and Summer Classics programs for over
15 years, Mass deeply values the classroom experience at
St. John’s—an appreciation that has contributed to his ongoing
and tireless support of the college.
�ANNAPOLIS
William Pastille, Tutor
Described by his students as a clear thinker, an effective writer, and a
compassionate listener, St. John’s College tutor William Pastille first joined
the Annapolis faculty in 1986.
During his longtime career at the college, Pastille has held several important
roles, including serving as NEH chair in Ancient Thought over the past two
years. From 2001 to 2003, he directed the Graduate Institute in Annapolis
and served as assistant dean in Annapolis from 1993 to 1995. In addition
to his role in the classroom, Pastille is a participating tutor in the Annapolis
Community Seminar Program and has been editor of The St. John’s Review,
an annual publication featuring works from college faculty, for the past
13 years.
In all his duties, Pastille has shown an unwavering passion for discovering
truth through questioning—a pursuit that has deeply affected Annapolis
students and community members alike. With the close of this year’s spring
semester, he will retire from St. John’s and be named Tutor Emeritus by the
college. With this new title, Pastille will continue to embody the ideals for
which St. John’s stands, and remain a valued member of the college for years
to come.
Pastille holds a doctorate and a master’s degree in musicology from Cornell
University, as well as a bachelor’s degree in music from Brown University.
Katharine “Casey” Pingle, Chair, Mitchell Gallery Board
Casey Pingle joined the St. John’s College Mitchell Gallery Board of Advisors
in 1994, and has served as its chair for the past seven years.
In her more than 25 years of involvement with the gallery, Pingle has
provided integral oversight of the operation—from supporting fundraising
and membership efforts, to event coordination for “town and gown” events,
student receptions, and more. Her leadership with such initiatives, combined with her work as the gallery representative for the college’s Friends
Board, have helped strengthen relations between St. John’s and the greater
Annapolis community, immensely. Additionally, as a former board member and current supporter of the Caritas Society of St. John’s College, Pingle
helps the charitable community organization provide monetary support for
SJC students faced with financial hardship or emergencies.
Clockwise from top left:
Elihu Dietz SF06, Brenna Strauss SF04,
Heather Upshaw SF04, Johanna Wilson
A90 and Richard Smith A90, Lise van
Boxel, Robert Mass, William Pastille,
Katherine “Casey” Pingle
For her consistent efforts on behalf of St. John’s, Pingle is recognized as a
true advocate for the gallery and the college as a whole.
Pingle is co-owner of PMD International, Inc., a private investment bank
formed in 1987 with offices in Annapolis and London.
23
�AROUND CAMPUS: COMMENCEMENT SPOTLIGHT
>
Virtual
Programming
Pivot Yields
Poignant
Celebration
for 2020 Grads
When St. John’s College made the tough decision this spring to send students home and
move classes online due to safety concerns related to COVID-19, much of the college’s
in-person activities and events were canceled, especially Student Life programming. That
did not deter resident advisors, staff, and faculty who worked determinedly to retain as
much activity as possible for those students who remained on campus and beyond.
Creative student programming that continued through the spring included an Easterinspired egg hunt, campus-to-campus foot races (including the college’s first-ever
“Meta-Ioannathon” and virtual Johnnie 5K), an online collegewide performance of
Collegium, and most notably, virtual commencement.
Coordinated in a matter of weeks, virtual commencement brought together members
of both campuses this May—from Information Technology Services to the offices of the
Registrars, and many other departments—in a collaborative effort to provide seniors
with well-deserved and ceremonious send-offs, online.
The result—livestreamed celebrations possibly more poignant than the norm, as noted
in the special messages shared during the events by Presidents Mark Roosevelt and
Panayiotis Kanelos, deans, keynotes, and Alumni Association Board members alike.
Read on to catch the excitement of Commencement 2020!
Behind the Scenes: members of Information
Technology Services support the livestreaming
of President Roosevelt’s address as part of Santa
Fe’s Commencement Celebration May 23.
24
Dean Joe Macfarland congratulates graduates
in compilation video honoring the Class of
2020’s academic achievements.
President Kanelos addresses the Class of 2020
May 10 from McDowell Hall in Annapolis.
�>
JOIN IN CELEBRATING THE CLASS OF 2020! TO WATCH
RECORDINGS OF THE ANNAPOLIS AND SANTA FE SEND-OFFS,
VISIT SJC.EDU/COMMENCEMENTAN AND SJC.EDU/COMMENCEMENTSF, RESPECTIVELY. FOR A COMPILATION
OF VIDEO, STORY, AND PHOTO HIGHLIGHTS CREATED IN
APPRECIATION FOR THE CLASS OF 2020, VISIT
SJC.EDU/ANNAPOLIS-GRADUATE-CELEBRATION AND
SJC.EDU/SANTA-FE-GRADUATE-CELEBRATION.
Note: Both the Annapolis and Santa Fe campuses
currently remain closed to the public, with in-person
event programming postponed until further notice. For the
latest information on St. John’s fall planning for students,
faculty, and staff, visit sjc.edu/fall-plans.
“Many colleges and high schools will follow the example set
Sunday by the small liberal arts college, which has been
offering an education based on the study of great works of
Western civilization since 1937.”
~ Capital Gazette, Annapolis, MD
Santa Fe staff rally together in stuffing 120 gift boxes for this year’s grads—a congratulatory gesture to
further celebrate the college’s newest members of the alumni body.
Recognized as a pioneer among Maryland academic
institutions by the Capital Gazette, St. John’s Annapolis
campus was among the state’s first area colleges to
host a virtual commencement for its graduates in May.
25
�AROUND CAMPUS: HISTORICAL SPOTLIGHT
Faith and John Meem Library
CELEBRATES 30TH ANNIVERSARY THIS FALL!
N
ovember 10, 2020, commemorates St. John’s College 30th anniversary of the
Faith and John Meem Library. Built between 1989 and 1990, the Meem Library
was erected 26 years after the founding of the college’s Santa Fe campus where
it is located.
“It may come as a surprise to some alumni that for nearly two and a half decades
Santa Fe had no dedicated library building,” said Craig Jolly SFGI02, Meem Library
senior acquisitions and archives librarian. “When the Santa Fe campus was first
conceived in the early 1960s, a library had of course figured into the original plans,” he
continued. Yet, due to financial constraints, those plans were deferred while the campus
opened for classes in the fall of 1964.
In the time leading up to its construction, the library was scattered across many different
locations within a variety of campus buildings. From the Peterson Student Center lower
level to the Evans Science Laboratory; in the Fine Arts Building and the basement of
Weigle Hall; and other places in between.
Ultimately, the challenge of maintaining multiple library locations simultaneously,
combined with a steadily growing collection and the lack of a quiet and central study
space, drove the construction of Meem. By the mid-1980s, Presidents Edwin Delattre H85
and Michael Riccards launched a concerted fundraising effort for the project, while
a steering committee spearheaded by alumna Lisa Carey SFGI86 worked to survey
students, faculty, staff, and board members in determining the ideal library makeup for
a college like St. John’s.
Among the foremost requirements was that it have space for half the student body at any
given time—a rare accommodation among colleges and universities where the capacity
average is typically 10 to 15 percent of a given student population at one time—signaling
the centrality of books and reading to the St. John’s Program.
Groundbreaking finally occurred just before commencement on May 14, 1989, and in a
year’s time a new 24,414- square-foot library—fashioned in the distinctively Southwestern
Territorial Revival architectural style of the original campus buildings—had begun to
take shape. On October 26, 1990, President John Agresto canceled all classes for the day
so the entire campus community could participate in what he termed a “booket brigade”
(pictured top left) to move all the college’s 50,000 book and music holdings from their dispersed locations into their now permanent home. Two weeks later, on November 10, 1990,
the new building was formally dedicated for the renowned and beloved Santa Fe couple
Faith H85 and John Meem, who 26 years earlier had donated most of the 280 acres on
which the Western campus of St. John’s was built.
“Three decades later, this uniquely beautiful library with its well-stocked shelves of great
books stands as elegant testament to both our singular college and to all those visionaries
and benefactors who brought it into—and have kept it in—existence for the present generation and for all the generations of serious readers yet to come,” Jolly concluded.
26
�In Memoriam
St. John’s College remembers the alumni, faculty, staff, and leadership who have
passed away during the 2019-2020 academic year, and celebrates the poignant and
profound impact their lives have had on our Johnnie community.
Jeffrey A. Alcorn A00
Michael Maddex A69
Stephen S. Anderton Class of 1968
Matthew T. Mallory A72
Edward F. Bauer Class of 1954
Ociel G. Martínez Avilés SF13
David A. Bolduc A82
Danielle S. Matland A74
Margaret M. Booker SFGI94
Zachary D. Miller A90
Loretta E. Breese SFGI72
Maxine M. Moore SFGI73
Lois C. Carroll SFGI76
Virginia D. Clarkson, BVG Former Trustee
Charles A. Nelson Class of 1945, BVG
Trustee Emeritus
Raymond H. Coleman Class of 1952
James A. Nicholson Class of 64
Geoffrey Comber H95, Annapolis Tutor
Charles L. Olivea SFGIEC08
Kelly J. Cook A85
Michael P. O’Mahony A77
Peter J. Davies Class of 1948
William J. Rada A76
Arthur O. Davis Class of 1947
George L. Raine Class of 1960
Santino DeJohn SFGIEC95
Barry B. Reardon SF05
Edwin J. Delattre H85, Past President
Robert Schuerrman, Annapolis Staff
John A. Dito SFGI05
Worku Sharew A70
Elizabeth L. Durston SF72
Sarah W. Steel AGI87
Scott C. Evans AGI01
Allan L. Swartzberg SF69
Janet Gerety, Annapolis Staff
Lise van Boxel H20, Santa Fe Tutor
Sylvia K. Greer SFGI73
Nancy G. Wallace SFGI83
Phyllis E. Guest SFGI02
Jack Ward Class of 1963
Margot J. Hamill Class of 1949
April R. West SF93
Jonathan B. Hand, Santa Fe Tutor
Linda Wiener Elmore, Santa Fe Tutor
Barry H. Hellman A84
Jeffrey P. Winslow SF78
Sara H. Homeyer Class of 1964
Cheryl J. Wise SF73
Robert C. Kanode Class of 1939
Abner W. Wooten SF79
Barbara B. Kiebler Class of 1955
Mira B. Kofkin A90
L. D. Koontz Class of 1951
Sheela S. Lampietti Class of 1961
Raissa Landor SFGI73
Stephanie T. Lang SF1968
Edwin B. Leimkuhler AGI87
This listing memorializes those who have passed
between August 1, 2019, and July 1, 2020. We care
deeply for all members of our college community.
If you do not see a name listed above, please contact
advancement@sjc.edu so we may honor those
individuals.
�There are a
number of
St. John’s College
resources
available to
Johnnies beyond
graduation?
Because of your
alumni status and
lifelong connection with the
college, you are
invited to take
advantage of
a variety of
St. John’s
programs
and benefits.
Read on to
learn more...
CAREER SUPPORT
Gain career support through the college’s Career Services Office and
Office of Personal and Professional Development (OPPD). Available
to assist alumni—especially those who may be encountering career
challenges or reimagining their professions due to COVID-19—both
offices offer extensive resources regarding career counseling,
resume writing, networking strategies, graduate school applications,
and more—including Handshake.
>
28
DID YOU KNOW :
CAREER SUPPORT |
>
DID YOU KNOW?
ALUMNI RESOURCES & BENEFITS
One of the largest digital collections of jobs, internships, and
EDUCATIONAL
volunteer opportunities chiefly suited for college-level students
DISCOUNTS
and graduates, St. John’s
Handshake job board currently
Revisit great books and conversations by enrolling in the Graduate Instifeatures over 1,700 jobs,
tute (GI)! Alumni have always been welcome to expand their St. John’s
400 internships, and 200
experience from the West to the East by enrolling in the Master of Arts in
fellowships sourced from
Eastern Classics in Santa Fe. Now, Johnnies who are at least five years
more than 3,200 organizations
removed from their undergraduate education can apply for the Master of
over a large number of
Arts in Liberal Arts on either campus. All alumni benefit from a shortgeographical locations—and
ened application process and receive 25-percent off tuition (or more,
is accessible free of charge
depending on need). To learn more about the program and application
to Johnnies!
process visit sjc.edu/academic-programs/graduate and www.sjc.edu/
To join, visit sjc.joinhandshake.
academic-programs/graduate/combined-degrees, respectively.
com/register using your preWhat’s more, alumni are also welcome to participate in GI preceptorials
ferred email address (a college
in person or online for the 2020-2021 academic year, without enrolling
email account is not required).
in a degree program (depending on availability). For details, please
For further information about
contact Santa Fe GI Administrator Chelsey Hudson at chelsey.hudson@
alumni career services,
sjc.edu or Annapolis GI Associate Director Brandon Wasicsko at
contact Career Services
brandon.wasicsko@sjc.edu.
Program Manager Kathleen
Cady in Annapolis at
Send your student to Summer Academy—St. John’s summer program
kathleen.cady@sjc.edu or
for high school students, ages 15 to 18, modeled after the college’s
OPPD Office Manager
discussion-based method of teaching the Great Books. Children of
Mary Versace in Santa Fe
alumni receive 50-percent off one week of Summer Academy. To reat mary.versace@sjc.edu
quest information for 2021 sessions, visit sjc.edu/summer-academy
�GRADUATE INSTITUTE | SUMMER ACADEMY | NETWORK | COMMUNITY EVENTS | TRANSCRIPTS | SHOP
>
SJC CONNECT
Join SJC Connect, the St. John’s official
alumni-networking platform providing
Johnnies the opportunity to exchange with
one another in a private online space. Post
status updates, share photos, join peer
groups, follow chapter activity, calendar
upcoming events, receive college news,
upload and search job openings, and more!
To sign up, visit sjcconnect.com. Registration takes less than two minutes using your
email, LinkedIn, or Facebook accounts.
Explore fundamental questions
and enjoy open discussion of
great texts through the college’s
Community Events. Offered
across both Annapolis and Santa
Fe campuses, these events are
held annually, weekly, on weekends, and in the summer—join
as many as you wish or your
schedule allows! For updates on
future program delivery formats
(online vs. in person), as well as
registration and pricing information, visit sjc.edu/santa-fe/community and sjc.edu/annapolis/
programs.
>
Easily order official transcripts—both electronic and paper versions—
through the college’s transcript services partner the National Student
Clearinghouse (NSC) by visiting your campus’ Office of the Registrar online at sjc.edu/annapolis/offices-services/registrar or sjc.edu/santa-fe/
offices-services/registrar. For your convenience and the safety of your
personal information, electronic transcripts sent through the NSC allow
alumni to upload attachments required by recipients, as well as carry a
security feature verifying the transcripts have not been altered during
transmission. For questions about St. John’s transcript ordering procedures, email annapolis.registrar@sjc.edu or santafe.registrar@sjc.edu
PERMANENT SJC.
EDU EMAIL
Request a permanent SJC.edu email
account! As an alum, you are able to
request a St. John’s email address
from the college. Visit
sjc.edu/alumni and click the
“Permanent SJC Email” link from the
right-hand navigation to login to the
Alumni Profile Portal (different than
SJC Connect) to make your request.
If you have forgotten your portal
password, follow the prompts to create
a new one. Show your Johnnie Pride
and get your account today!
>
>
COMMUNITY EVENTS
>
TRANSCRIPTS
ONLINE STORE
Show your Johnnie Pride
with the online purchase
of branded college
apparel and other
St. John’s merchandise
by visiting the Johnnie
Store at johnniestore.
merchorders.com.
Choose from a wide
selection of coffee mugs,
wall decals, duffle bags
and more, all featuring
the St. John’s seal and
orange color palette.
29
�WHY I GIVE
TO ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE
Alumni like Sarah are the
lifeblood of the college.
Gifts of any amount provide a
firm base for financial aid,
internships, student health and
wellness programs, and books. They
allow for essential improvements
needed for campus safety and
Johnnies’ residential experience.
Gifts also go to the endowment, our
most important tool for maintaining
the long-term financial health of
the college.
To learn more about the
impact of annual giving at
St. John’s, and how you can
“ With each year that passes, I find more and more desire to engage
with my ‘self’ at its core. Many of what I would consider my best
aspects were allowed to sprout and grow during my time at
St. John’s. Giving annually is a way for me to help each class
year grow similarly, and reminds me of my appreciation for
who I continue to become with St. John’s in my life.”
30
– SARAH SHEPHERD SF05
participate like Sarah, please
visit sjc.edu/annual-fund.
�SAVE THE DATE
St. John’s College
Alumni Association Board Annual Meeting & Election
Friday, September 25, 2020
Please join your fellow Johnnies in electing this year’s
Alumni Association Board officers and at-large members, as well as one alumni
representative to the college’s Board of Visitors and Governors.
VOTE ONLINE OR BY MAIL
Ballots will be made available beginning Thursday, September 3, 2020, online at sjc.edu/alumni/association.
Paper ballots may be requested by contacting the Alumni Relations Office at alumni@sjc.edu and returned
by mail to the following address no later than Tuesday, September 22:
ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE
1160 CAMINO DE CRUZ BLANCA
ATTN: KELSEY MILLER, ALUMNI RELATIONS OFFICE
SANTA FE, NM 87505
Don’t miss this important opportunity to have your alumni voice heard. Your participation ensures
that the rich traditions of St. John’s and the Program will endure for generations to come.
“A society grows great when old men and women
plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit.”
– ANCIENT GREEK PROVERB
31
�CONSIDER A PLANNED GIFT
AND BECOME
A MEMBER OF
THE ST. JOHN’S COLLEGE
TOCQUEVILLE SOCIETY
Named for French diplomat Alexis de
of property, life insurance policies,
Tocqueville, who identified the American
charitable trusts, gift annuities, and
spirit of support for education in his 1835
bequests.
book Democracy in America, the Society
proudly welcomes donors who share in
Our development team is ready to serve as
this spirit of support.
your philanthropic advisors for planned
gifts to the college.
Become a member and help provide for
the future of St. John’s by remembering
the college in your will or other estate
plans. Examples include giving gifts
CONTACT US AT DEVELOPMENT@SJC.EDU
��1160 CAMINO DE CRUZ BLANCA
SANTA FE, NM 87505-4599
Non Profit Org
US Postage
PAID
St. John’s College
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Alumni Magazine
Description
An account of the resource
St. John's College began publishing the <em>Alumni Magazine </em>in 2020. It is not a continuation of <em>The College</em>. More details about the publication are available on the <a href="https://www.sjc.edu/alumni/alumni-magazine">Alumni Magazine</a> page of the SJC website. <br /><br />Click on <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=65&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d" title="Items in the Alumni Magazine Collection">Items in the Alumni Magazine Collection</a> to view and sort all items in the collection.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, Md.
Santa Fe, NM
Language
A language of the resource
English
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
AlumniMagazine
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
St. John's College Greenfield Library
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Page numeration
Number of pages in the original item.
36 pages
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Alumni Magazine, 2020
Description
An account of the resource
2020 issue of the Alumni Magazine.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
St. John's College
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Santa Fe, NM
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2020
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
St. John's College owns the rights to this publication.
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
text
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
pdf
Subject
The topic of the resource
St. John's College (Annapolis, Md.)--Alumni and alumnae
St. John's College (Santa Fe, N.M.)--Alumni and alumnae
Language
A language of the resource
English
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
SJCAlumniMagazine_2020
Alumni
Publication
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Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
St. John's College Greenfield Library
Title
A name given to the resource
St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
formallectureseriesannapolis
Moving Image
A series of visual representations imparting an impression of motion when shown in succession. Examples include animations, movies, television programs, videos, zoetropes, or visual output from a simulation.
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
mp4
Duration
Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.)
00:56:10
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Moments in the Liberal Education of Frederick Douglass from <em>My Bondage and My Freedom</em>
Description
An account of the resource
Video recording of a lecture delivered on August 26, 2022 by Joseph Macfarland as part of the Formal Lecture Series. First formal lecture of the academic year, previously referred to as the "Dean's Lecture", but now called the "Christopher B. Nelson Lecture".
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Macfarland, Joseph C.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2022-08-26
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
Permission has been given to make this available online.
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
moving image
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
mp4
Subject
The topic of the resource
Douglass, Frederick, 1818-1895
Education, Humanistic
Slavery--United States
Slaves--United States--Education
Language
A language of the resource
English
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LEC_Macfarland_Joseph_2022-08-26_ac
Christopher B. Nelson Lecture
Deans
Friday night lecture
Tutors
-
https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/8daf28e6162f65ee6c3f662f61c820a2.mp4
44f4029c52262d4f8ad896c43ca85095
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
St. John's College Greenfield Library
Title
A name given to the resource
St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
formallectureseriesannapolis
Moving Image
A series of visual representations imparting an impression of motion when shown in succession. Examples include animations, movies, television programs, videos, zoetropes, or visual output from a simulation.
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
mp4
Duration
Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.)
01:02:03
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Perceptual and Deliberative Imagination in Aristotle’s <em>De Anima</em>
Description
An account of the resource
Video recording of the <span>National Endowment for the Humanities lecture </span>delivered on April 22, 2022, by Annapolis tutor Jason Tipton as part of the Formal Lecture Series.<br />
<p class="x_MsoNormal"><span>Mr. Tipton describes his lecture: "Many animals, Aristotle claims, live by imagination. In an important way, we can understand that imagination is the product of the process of perception and the condition for noetic activity. It is both an end and a beginning. Imagination is proto-cognitive and supra perceptual. The task will be to disentangle imagination from perception and understanding so that we might see the proper unities that come to be."</span></p>
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Tipton, Jason A.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2022-04-22
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture available online. Make a typescript copy of my lecture available for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library."
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
moving image
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
mp4
Subject
The topic of the resource
Aristotle. De anima
Imagination (Philosophy)
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Macfarland, Joseph C.
Language
A language of the resource
English
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LEC_Tipton_Jason_2022-04-22_ac
Friday night lecture
Tutors
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PDF Text
Text
������������������
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
St. John's College Greenfield Library
Title
A name given to the resource
St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
formallectureseriesannapolis
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Original Format
The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
pdf
Page numeration
Number of pages in the original item.
18 pages
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Reading Genesis Chapter Three
Description
An account of the resource
Typescript of a lecture delivered on September 2, 2022, by William Braithwaite as part of the Formal Lecture Series.
Mr. Braithwaite offers this description: "The Garden of Eden story, about Adam and Eve, what they did and how they were punished for it, is the authoritative source for the Christian doctrine of original sin. Before St. Augustine and St. Paul appropriated it for this purpose, however, the story belonged to the Hebrew Scriptures of the ancient Israelites, and Judaism has no dogma of original sin. But even before ancient rabbis put the story in writing many centuries ago, it may, some scholars suggest, have circulated orally.
If we try to imagine who first told the story, and to whom, and with what end in mind, what would we take it to be about, and what truth might we find in it? What does the story say to those who are not Christians or Jews, whether of another faith, or even atheist or agnostic? Seeking reliable speculations on such questions is the work behind this lecture."
Creator
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Braithwaite, William T. (William Thomas)
Publisher
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St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2022-09-02
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: make a recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation at the St. John’s College Greenfield Library; make a recording of my lecture available online; make typescript copies of my lecture available for circulation and archival preservation at the St. John’s College Greenfield Library; make a copy of my typescript available online."
Type
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text
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
pdf
Subject
The topic of the resource
Bible. Genesis
Eve (Biblical figure)
David, King of Israel
Parables
Solomon, King of Israel
Language
A language of the resource
English
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LEC_Braithwaite_William_2022-09-02
Friday night lecture
Tutors
-
https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/9d616d3a535fd123c110306180d11c1b.mp4
93d3683564517a6d7a174ed2f280deae
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
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St. John's College Greenfield Library
Title
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St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
Identifier
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formallectureseriesannapolis
Moving Image
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mp4
Duration
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00:57:46
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Martin Delany, Frederick Douglass, and the Danger of Political Pessimism
Description
An account of the resource
Video recording of a lecture delivered on November 19, 2021, by Melvin Rogers as part of the Formal Lecture Series. <br />
<p class="x_MsoNormal"><span>Professor <span class="markruqqvzcf4">Rogers</span> is an Associate Professor of Political Science and the </span><span>Director of Graduate Studies of Political Science </span><span>at Brown University. His current book project is, </span><i><span>The Darkened Light of Faith: Race, Democracy, and Freedom in African American Political Thought.</span></i><span></span></p>
<p class="x_MsoNormal"><span>Professor Rogers describes his lecture: "'One of the fundamental paradoxes of black politics,' writes Barnor Hesse and Juliet Hooker, is 'the invariable futility of directing activism toward a racially governing regime historically founded on the constitutive exclusion and violation of blackness.' This paradox raises a fundamental question: How can African Americans appeal to the nation in the name of freedom and equal standing, if the ethical and political presuppositions of the polity turn on their fundamental exclusion? Although this question animates our contemporary moment, especially with the ascendancy of Afro-pessimism, this essay recovers its initial articulation as well as pessimistic response from the 19<sup>th</sup> century African American nationalist Martin Delany. And it seeks to distill from Delany’s counterpart, Frederick Douglass, an alternative vision that both resist the paradox and the political logic that gives it shape.</span></p>
Creator
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Rogers, Melvin L.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2021-11-19
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture available online. Make a typescript copy of my lecture available for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library."
Type
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moving image
Format
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mp4
Subject
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Delany, Martin Robison, 1812-1885
Douglass, Frederick, 1818-1895
Afropessimism (Philosophy)
Philosophy, Black
Contributor
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Macfarland, Joseph C.
Language
A language of the resource
English
Identifier
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LEC_Rogers_Melvin_2021-11-19_ac
-
https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/dc06c22013d18f65428a401d773c47f5.mp4
c57e3f4182d4ff5f178750deda3d92d4
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
St. John's College Greenfield Library
Title
A name given to the resource
St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
Identifier
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formallectureseriesannapolis
Moving Image
A series of visual representations imparting an impression of motion when shown in succession. Examples include animations, movies, television programs, videos, zoetropes, or visual output from a simulation.
Original Format
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mp4
Duration
Length of time involved (seconds, minutes, hours, days, class periods, etc.)
00:43:04
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Gender, Intersectionality, and Marx’s Value Theory
Description
An account of the resource
Video recording of a lecture delivered on October 29, 2021, by Sarah Vitale as part of the Formal Lecture Series. <br /><br />Dr. Vitale is Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Co-Editor of <em>Radical Philosophy Review</em> at Ball State University. <br /><br />Dr. Vitale describes her lecture: “Marxist feminists have approached the question of what comes first – patriarchy or capitalism – in many ways, but there are two main threads: dual systems theories and single systems theories. In the first, capitalism and patriarchy are two separate systems existing alongside one another, creating different oppressions. In the other view, capitalism and patriarchy are part of the same system and cannot be understood properly apart from one another. <br /><br />In my presentation, I will consider one recent attempt towards a single systems theory – the intersectional feminist approach. Intersectionality, an important contribution by Black feminists to the discourse on oppression and emancipation, diagnoses an important problem. However, I will argue that to apply the intersectional approach to the relationship between capitalism and patriarchy requires a different approach to capitalism than most intersectional feminists – and perhaps most Marxists – use. I will suggest that despite the best intentions, intersectional approaches to the question of capitalism and patriarchy end up functioning as dual systems theories depending on an ahistorical notion of gender. If we want to examine and dismantle capitalism and patriarchy, we must understand how patriarchy or the gender order in capitalism is a capitalist gender order. To do so, I suggest we look to a relatively recent turn in Marxist theory called Wertkritik or value criticism, which has also made significant contributions to the conversation about gender and capital.”
Creator
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Vitale, Sarah (Professor of philosophy)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2021-10-29
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture available online. Make a typescript copy of my lecture available for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library."
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
moving image
Format
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mp4
Subject
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Socialist feminism
Intersectionality (Sociology)
Capitalism
Patriarchy
Contributor
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Macfarland, Joseph C.
Language
A language of the resource
English
Identifier
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LEC_Vitale_Sarah_2021-10-29_ac
Friday night lecture
-
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ebb8ed2d001bcc11b163b901f2440801
PDF Text
Text
2022
CLASS OF
COMMENCEMENT
EXERCISES
Saturday | May Twenty-first
Two Thousand and Twenty-two
SANTA FE | NEW MEXICO
�For the Fifty-Fifth
Commencement of the
Santa Fe Campus
in the
Three Hundred and
Twenty-Sixth Year of
St. John’s College.
2
�PROGRAM
Academic Procession
String Duo
Welcome
Mr. Mark Roosevelt
President, St. John’s College
Announcement of Awards and Prizes
Mr. J. Walter Sterling
Dean, St. John’s College
Mr. Roosevelt
St. John’s College Small Chorus
Ecce Gratum
Carl Orff
Address to the Graduating Class
Ms. Nora Demleitner
President, St. John’s College, Annapolis
St. John’s College Small Chorus
Sicut Cervus
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Conferring of Undergraduate Degrees
Conferring of Graduate Degrees
Mr. Sterling
Mr. Roosevelt
Mr. Ned Walpin
Associate Dean for
Graduate Programs,
St. John’s College
Mr. Roosevelt
Welcoming Back Class of 2020
Mr. Sterling
Mr. Walpin
Mr. Roosevelt
Closing Remarks
Mr. Roosevelt
3
�2022 BACHELOR OF ARTS
Portia Louise Abbott
A Humanly Good Thing: Courage, Transformation, and the
Abyss in Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Albany, CA
David Ogoh Adah-Ogoh
Makurdi Nigeria
Allow Me a Minute, the Native Problem is Here to Kill Me: On
Racialized Ignorance, Deracialized Justice, and Two Dying Sons
in Alan Paton’s Cry, the Beloved Country
Madeline Charlotte Adams
Dearest Partners of Greatness: An Exploration of the
Codependent Relationship Between Macbeth and Lady
Macbeth in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth
Birmingham, MI
Shweta Agarwal
Sikkim Gangtok India
The Fur(e)y of Memory: The Art of Memory in James Joyce’s
short story “The Dead”
Sidney Ellen Ammons
YES/NO: Molly Bloom the Usurper
Reston, VA
Asa Edward Anderson
Natural Spirituality in Emily Dickinson and Its Relationship
to Christianity
Lincoln Hayes Anthony
The Hazards of Innocence: Love and Obsession in Fyodor
Dostoevsky’s The Idiot
Santa Fe, NM
Dallas, TX
Jackson Ballinger
Pleasanton, CA *
Seungyoon Bang
Seoul South, Korea
Possibilities of Human Happiness in Rousseau’s Reveries of
the Solitary Walker
Leila Io BenSlama-McKinley
Mrs. Ramsay, Guiding Light: The Little Things Mean a Lot
Santa Fe, NM
Karl Friedrich Berner
Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus: The Morality of the
Application of Knowledge & Frankenstein As a Retelling
of Paradise Lost
Snohomish, WA
Onysha Enkaye Boak
King Lear and the Unaccommodated Man
Puchong, Malaysia
Zoë Jane Brady
The Artist and the Warrior: Two Masks of Dionysian Genius
in Nietzsche’s Twilight of the Idols
4
Glenside, PA
�Peter Thompson Carrell
Don Quixote: Image, Truth, History, Fiction
Madison, IN
Alexandre C Cate
Leander, TX *
Samuel Patrick Cavnar-Johnson
Handbook for Immortals: Plotinus, Beauty, and Life in the
Sensible World
Houston, TX
Aviral Chawla
Gurugram, India
The Moral Education of the Wealth of Nations: Smith’s moral
argument for public education in a free market society
Jared Robert Conahan
Collaborative Education: A Limited Commentary on Socratic
Learning Understood Through the Characters of Book I and the
Allegory of the Cave in Plato’s Republic
Salomon Moises Miqueas Cordova
Visions of Eternity: A Feminist Reading of Job as Revealed
by William Blake
Taos, NM
Cedar Crest, NM
Charles John Dight
Karamazov Force
Mesa, AZ
Kai Soo Young Englisch
The Puzzle of Self-Trust: Reclaiming Trust is an Unknowable
Self in Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Self-Reliance
Ashton, MD
Rowan Ryan David Foxley
Expectation versus Reality in James Joyce’s Dubliners
Self-Determined Fantasy and the Worlds We Build
Arlington, WA
Skye Joaquin Franklin
Pity That Fools May Not Speak Wisely
Santa Fe, NM
Tiantong Fu
Qinhuangdao, China
Sisyphus’ Choice: Rock ‘n’ Roll in the Face of the Absurd
Jannah Dorsey Fuller
Self-Realization: Exploring the Complexities of Mixed-Race
Heritage in a Racialized World
Isabella Guarnieri
Studio City, CA
Saratoga Springs, NY *
Sidney Elizabeth Gubernick
The Fall of God: The Collision of Earthly and Divine in
Rilke’s Stories of God
David Zachary Gumberg
Los Angeles, CA
Valley Village, CA *
Han Pham Loc Ha
If He Ever Lived: What is Home to Odysseus?
Cameron Eugenia MacEntyre Hines
Middlemarch on Small Things
Hanoi, Vietnam
Aspen, CO
5
�Samuel Albert Housley
On Defining and Ruling in Plato’s Meno
Annapolis, MD
Austin James Hutchinson
A Song, Snow, and the Golden Mean: Finding Meaning
Through Music in Thomas Mann’s The Magic Mountain
Gainesville, GA
Rory Quinn Vitus Johnson
The Foundress of Nothing: Womanhood in George
Eliot’s Middlemarch
Baltimore, MD
Noah River Eziechiel Justice
Peirce’s Propensitism and the Reality of Possibilities
Cleveland, OH
Cole Thomas Robert Krueger
The Psychological Experience of Time in Mrs. Dalloway
Bend, OR
Zhansaya Kuatzhan Bolatbekkyzy
Uralsk, Kazakhstan
Our Own Nothingness Beyond Our Own Circle:
Anne Elliot’s Personal Odyssey in Jane Austen’s Persuasion
Hexuan Li
Eros and Logos in Plato’s Symposium
Shenzhen, China
Danping Long
The Death of An Ordinary Lackey: An Examination of
Smerdyakov in The Brothers Karamazov
Beijing China
Elena Clark Loomis
Reconciling Captivation and Prudence in Pride and Prejudice
Santa Fe, NM
David Campbell Lozuaway-McComsey
The Measure of Man: The Role of Sport in Ancient Greece
New Castle, NH
Yuxuan Ma
Why is Nietzsche’s Will to Power a Reflection but Not a
Solution—on Nietzsche’s On the Genealogy of Morals
Nanjing China
Kristian Lydia Marker
Fluency Beyond the Text: A Study of Reading and Rereading in
Pride and Prejudice
Miselo Matipa
The Young Man Who Did Not Know How to Live: Learning
to Live Outside the Cave in Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace
Lusaka, Zambia
Roslyn Claire McKean
The Individual and the Family in Tolstoy’s War and Peace
Portland, OR
Margaret Wilson Merritt
The Collapse of Order: Lessons about Transgression and
Knowledge of Self and Others in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night
Dylan Kathryn Newmeyer Michael
Eärendil’s Star: How Choices and Unity Allow Tolkien’s
Fellowship to Become the Light in Dark Places
6
Denver, CO
Hallowell, ME
San Francisco, CA
�David Ahlm Michalove
Issaquah, WA
Freedom and Death Beyond Modernity: On Medieval
Deconstruction as Letting Be, Unground, and Nothingness in
Meister Eckhart’s On Detachment and J82
Micalah Rae Miller
Make it Make Sense: The Voyage for Meaning in Herman
Melville’s Moby Dick
Philadelphia, PA
Sandrina Mislitchi
Correspon-Dance: Remaining Faithful to Oneself in
Becoming, Auto-Affection and Mimesis in Luce Irigaray,
The Way of Love
Chisinau, Moldova
Kate Ann Morrison
Windsor-Essex, Ontario, Canada
True Poverty in Knowing Nothing: An Exploration
of Meister Eckhart’s Poverty of Spirit and Knowing Nothing
in Sermon Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit and Treatise On Detachment
Jaxson Ray Matthew Oakley
Most Ignorant of What We’re Most Assured: The Struggle
With Ambiguity and Image in Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure
Philomena Zelie Eleanor Palmer-Kamprath
The Development of the Independent Self-Consciousness
in Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit
Yi Pan
Making the Presumptuous Leap: Why does Jonathan Swift
want Gulliver to mislead us in Gulliver’s Travels?
Grove, OK
Coeur D’Alene, ID
Jiashan, China
Sion Park
Seoul, South Korea
The Essence in Humanity in Comparison to the Sainthood
in Albert Camus’ The Plague
Yookyung Park
The Awakening: A Childlike Maturity
Burlington, MA
Sid Vergilius Pasquino
“This Place is Not a Place of Honor…”: An Investigation into
Lovecraftian Horror as a Commentary on Science
Tessel Kate Peterson
A Drama of Flesh and Spirit: Failures of Self in Simone
de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex
Madeleine Joy Pugsley
“No One is Someone”: Writing as Immortal Selfhood in
Three Stories by Borges
Denver, CO
Antwerp, Belgium
Valley Village, CA
Alana Caroline Ross
Greenbrier, TN
Living is An Art to Be Good At: Mrs. Ramsay As the Wise Fool,
the Wise Fool As the Hero In Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse
7
�Eliot Rugh
Santa Monica, CA
The Tyranny and the Freedom of The General Will: On the
intricacies of the general will in Jean Jacques Rousseau’s
On the Social Contract
Anthony G Schuster III
Spectatorship in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing
Saint Louis, MO
Misgana Worku Sharew
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
You Took the Best So Why Not Take The Rest: Self-alienation
in James Baldwin’s Another Country
Julia Siminitus
Life and Opposition in Albert Camus’ The Plague; A Case for
Poor and Terrible Love
Starksboro, VT
Caedmon Miles Sixbey
The Meaning of Reality
Hampton, VA
George Bernard Stengren
James Joyce’s Ulysses: Stephen Dedalus’ Transformation
Towards a Parable of the Plums
Santa Fe, NM
Katherine Swift
Gender Matters
Tucson, AZ
Timothy Scott Sykes
A Decorous Man, a Sickly Modern: Rehabilitating Life in
Tolstoy’s Death of Ivan Ilych
Stevensville, MD
Aayush Thapa
Kathmandu, Nepal
Is Man the Measure of All Things? Protagoras’ Relativism
in Plato’s Theaetetus
Simran Thapa
From Citizens to Jurors: An Exploration of Hegelian
Dialectics in Aeschylus’ Orestia
Kathmandu, Nepal
Yerel Tornez
Los Angeles, CA
What is the Meaning of Windows? An Exploration into the
meaning behind windows as a symbol used for showing the
seeking of purpose in life while failing to do so in Albert
Camus’ The Plague
Heliotrope K Vaughn
Escaping Society’s Cage in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening
Dallas, TX
Vincent Versace
Making Capon of Church and State: The Collapse of
Traditional Honor in William Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part I
Santa Fe, NM
Daniel Isaiah Vigil
Calculating Ascension: An Exploration of the Rise of King
Henry the Fifth as Portrayed in Shakespeare’s Henriad
Las Vegas, NM
8
�Natalie Grace Walker
(ENTER RICHARD ALONE)
Garner, NC
Meiying Wang
Rieux and Tarrou: The Philosophers of Two Different Kinds
of Plague in Camus’ The Plague
Beijing, China
Dezso Raphael Kish Wyner
Auburndale, MA
The Use and Advantage of Unhistory in Life: Or, How I
Learned to Stop Remembering and Love the Illusion of Boundaries
Christopher Young Jr.
The Beginning of the Human Era As Told in the Hebrew
Creation Accounts: A Linguistic and Conceptual Analysis of
Genesis Chapters One and Two
Esmatullah Zeerak
“Hurrah for Karamazov!”: A Genealogy of Active Love
Santa Fe, NM
Kabul, Afghanistan
*Upon satisfactory completion of degree requirements
Requirements Completed – joining Class of 2022
Joseph F. De León Flores
(Class of 2013)
On the concept of Imaginary Number in Descartes’s
The Geometry: A short study of the structural development
of Descartes’s Concept of Imaginary Number from Antiquity to
The Geometry
El Paso, TX
Remy Maelen
New York, NY
(Class of 2009)
Meaning in Motion: An Embodied Reading of Nietzsche’s Gay Science
9
�2022 MASTER OF ARTS IN LIBERAL ARTS
SPRING 2022 AND DECEMBER 2021
Isabel Susanna Ballan
Bronx, NY
Constance Marie Martin
Seattle, WA (Dec 2021)
Brittany Jene Hagar
Minot, ND
Samuel McGee
Salem, OR
Cameron Michael Mulvey
Louisville, KY
James Douglas Ray
Hinton, OK
James Reis
Pacific Grove, CA
Amanda Dannáe Romero
Santa Fe, NM
Justin David Spain
Hopkins, MN
Richard Gregory Stone
Juneau, AK
William James Tierney II
Tucson, AZ
Andrew Paul Ward
Denton, TX (Dec 2021)
William Peregrine Yate
Sea Cliff, NY (unable to attend)
Catherine Ann Zakoian
Boulder, CO
2022 MASTER OF ARTS IN EASTERN CLASSICS
Patrick Jordan Anderson
Chester, NJ (unable to attend)
Robert Lasker Sobel
Santa Fe, NM
MASTER’S ESSAY
Samuel McGee
The Limit of Logos: On Speech, Silence, and
Mysticism in Augustine’s Confessions
James Reis
The Gods in Plato’s Republic
Cameron M Mulvey
Stability of the Poetic Sign in
David Jones’s Anathemata
10
�WELCOMING BACK OUR
CLASS OF 2020 MEMBERS
Claire Sophia Motsinger
BACHELOR OF ARTS
Patrick Alexander Murray
Hewan Adamu Admasu
Lyla Makale’a Rosen
Shannon James Lynch Albritton
Douglas John-Roland Spurlock
Massimiliano Caruso
John Henry Stuart
Niko Angell-Gargiulo
Gregory Alexander Syssoyev
Emily Marie Axelberg
Rachel Janine Taylor
Matthew Jordan Beck
William Hunter Winkel Thompson
Leah Houschka Caminite
Cleo Ulatowski
Isabella Robin Copeland
Noah Miller Waldron
Nani Ordofa Detti
Emily Jean Wieser
Billie Fabrikant
Bridget Young Wu
Israel Gallegos
Huayanni Yang
Elizabeth Joy Grayson
Brandon Alexander Young
Nikolas Kane Hopson
Chifunda Kakusa
MASTER OF ARTS
Thato Sesana Kgalema
Nicole Olivia Corbo
William Redpath Kupets
Kelsey Jean Hennegen
Hyukhee Kwon
James Charles William Jennings
Hao Luo
Devin Martin Ketch
Sadie Hope Macdonald
Luis Fernando Melgar Arias
11
�AWARDS AND PRIZES
To the members of the Senior Class who have written the best senior essay,
the Richard D. Weigle Prize:
Is Man the Measure of All Things? Protagoras’ Relativism
Class of 2022
In Plato’s Theaetetus
Aayush Thapa
(ENTER RICHARD ALONE)
Natalie Grace Walker
Faculty Awards for Sustained Academic Excellence
Class of 2022
Portia Louise Abbott
Madeleine Joy Pugsley
Aayush Thapa
Natalie Grace Walker
For his Freshman annual essay
Ajax: Man Before Fire
Class of 2025
Paul Randolph Darnall
For his first semester January Freshman essay
The Meaning of Violence in the Odyssey
For his Sophomore enabling essay
Grieving in Augustine’s Confessions
Honorable Mention:
Flour and Faeries in the Wife of Bath’s Tale
For his Junior annual essay
How to Love the Dread of Nature
Honorable Mention:
The Grounds for Pure Mathematics in Kant’s
Critique of Pure Reason
For their undergraduate essay other than annual
Children at Play: Good-Natured Seriousness in
Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling
On Knowledge and Cause in the Natural Science:
Claude Bernard’s Conception of Knowledge
12
Class of 2025
Balaram Das Briant
Class of 2024
Vy V. Vo
Class of 2024
Tatum Megarity
Class of 2023
Noah Francis Mihelic
Class of 2023
Elsie Jang
Class of 2022
Portia Louise Abbott
Class of 2025
Avery Peter Lin
�
Honorable Mention:
The Weaving of Humanism in Cervantes’ Don Quixote
Class of 2023
Anh Hoang Van Do
Becoming Heroic: Analysis of the Main Theme in the First
Movement of Beethoven’s Eroica
Class of 2024
Marc Andrew Wissman
For her Graduate Institute Liberal Arts fall 2022 preceptorial essay
To Articulate the Inarticulable: An Exploration of the Magnitude
of Music in Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man
GILA
Amanda Dannáe Romero
For his solution to the set freshman-sophomore level mathematical problem
Class of 2024
Marc Andrew Wissman
For his solution to the set junior-senior level mathematical problem
Class of 2022
Aviral Chawla
For his original math proof
Honorable Mention:
An Alternate Proof of Newton’s Expression of Centripetal Class of 2022
Force for the Ellipse
Aayush Thapa
For her original fiction
Friend Request
Class of 2023
Chinazor Ozichi Ike-Njoku
For their Greek translations, the William A. Darkey Translation Prize
(Sophocles, Electra, lines 86-120)
Class of 2023
John Richard McCombs
Class of 2022
Aayush Thapa
For her French translation, the William A. Darkey Translation Prize
(“La Rameur” by Paul Valéry)
Class of 2022
Seungyoon Bang
To a student from the Freshman, Sophomore, or Junior class in recognition
of originality of thought, the Philip Lecuyer Endowed Scholarship:
Class of 2024
Samuel Lucien Roy
13
�To deserving students to help with the continuation of work at St. John’s College
through the cultivation of the liberal arts of Thinking—that is, aiming for and
acquiring knowledge; and of Friendship— that is, sharing inquiry and thought
joyfully and for its own sake, the Robert Neidorf Memorial Scholarship
Class of 2024
Isabella Maria Lopez-Powers
Michael Johannes Brönner
To members of the Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior classes in recognition of
academic achievement and constructive service to the college community, the
St. John’s Community Scholarship provided by faculty, staff and students
Class of 2025
Sanyum Dalal
Class of 2024
Lillian Leah Dumas
Class of 2023
Elsie Jang
To members of the Senior Class for excellence in public speaking, the
Senator Millard E. Tydings Memorial Prize
Class of 2022
David Campbell Lozuaway-McComsey
Miselo Matipa
To a member of the Senior Class who has been an outstanding leader in a class,
the Don Cook Student Leadership Award
Class of 2022
Simran Thapa
To members of the Senior Class who have excelled in service to the college,
the Dean’s Award for College Service
Class of 2022
Aviral Chawla
Elena Clark Loomis
Roslyn Claire McKean
Misgana Worku Sharew
To the students who have most contributed to the academic support of
their peers, the Assistant Dean’s Award
Class of 2023
Joseph Donald Megill
Taylor Robert Aidan Strongheart
Class of 2022
Madeleine Joy Pugsley
14
�To a member of the Senior Class who has demonstrated achievement
in the Arts and Literature, the Walter S. Baird Prize:
For her series of art works: Reflex, Sky, Self
Class of 2022
Zoë Jane Brady
To a member of the Senior Class who has demonstrated achievement
in Mathematics and Science, the Walter S. Baird Prize:
For her project: Isolation and Study of a Mutant
Strain of E. Coli-B
Class of 2022
Dylan Kathryn Newmeyer Michael
Recipients of the Projects for Peace Grant Award, from the Davis United World
College Scholars Program and the Davis Foundation, for their proposals:
The Youth Peace Collective: Building Bridges from
the U.S. to Israel-Palestine
Class of 2024
Elena Ann Hochheiser
Securing Peace in Bardiya, Nepal: Freeing Women for
Civic Engagement (Awarded in 2021)
Class of 2023
Bryn Frye-Mason
Class of 2022
Simran Thapa
STUDENT LIFE AWARDS
To the senior who, by her consistent modeling of exemplary leadership, spirit, and
integrity, has made an outstanding contribution to the St. John’s community, an
award offered by the Office of Student Life:
Class of 2022
Kate Ann Morrison
To the senior who, by his leadership, dedication, hard work, and good will, has made
an outstanding contribution to the St. John’s campus community, an award offered
by the Student Events Team:
Class of 2022
Alexandre C. Cate
STUDENT ACTIVITY AWARDS
To the seniors who, by their leadership, enthusiasm, and devotion to the development
of the St. John’s Community have made an outstanding contribution to the St. John’s
College Intramural Program, an award offered by the Student Activities Organization:
Class of 2022
Samuel Albert Housley
David Campbell Lozuaway-McComsey
15
�The seal of St. John’s
College shows seven open
books representing the
seven traditional liberal arts—
the trivium of grammar,
rhetoric, and logic; and
the quadrivium of arithmetic,
geometry, astronomy, and
music. The balance, or scale,
in the center represents
modern science. Encircling
the symbols is a Latin
inscription, which means:
“I make free adults out
of children by means
of books and a balance.”
�
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Santa Fe Commencement Programs and Addresses
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St. John's College Meem Library
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paper
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16 pages
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Santa Fe Commencement Program, Spring 2022
Description
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Program for the fifty-fifth commencement of the Santa Fe campus in the three hundred and twenty-sixth year of St. John's College.
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St. John's College
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St. John's College
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Santa Fe, NM
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2022-05-21
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text
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pdf
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English
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SF Commencement Program 2022-05-21
Commencement
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Santa Fe Commencement Programs and Addresses
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St. John's College Meem Library
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12 pages
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Santa Fe Commencement Program, Spring 2021
Description
An account of the resource
Program for the fifty-fourth commencement of the Santa Fe campus in the three hundred and twenty-fifth year of St. John's College.
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St. John's College
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St. John's College
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Santa Fe, NM
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2021-05-22
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text
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pdf
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Commencement (St. John's College, Santa Fe, NM)
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English
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SF Commencement Program 2021-05-22
Commencement
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PDF Text
Text
2020
CLASS OF
COMMENCEMENT
EXERCISES
Hewan Adamu Admasu
Saturday | May Twenty-third
Two Thousand and Twenty
SANTA FE | NEW MEXICO
�For the Fifty-Third
Commencement of the
Santa Fe Campus
in the
Three Hundred and
Twenty-Fourth Year of
St. John’s College.
2
�PROGRAM
Welcome
Mr. Mark Roosevelt
President, St. John’s College
Announcement of Awards and Prizes
Mr. J. Walter Sterling
Dean, St. John’s College
Address to the Graduating Class
U.S. Senator Tom Udall
St. John’s College Virtual Chorus
Sicut Cervus
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Conferring of Undergraduate Degrees
Conferring of Graduate Degrees
Mr. Sterling
Mr. Roosevelt
Mr. David McDonald
Associate Dean for
Graduate Programs,
St. John’s College
Mr. Roosevelt
Welcome—Alumni Association Board
Mark G. Parenti (AGI92),
President, St. John’s College Alumni
Association and the Association’s directors
and officers welcome the Class of 2020
to the St. John’s College Alumni Association
Closing Remarks
Mr. Roosevelt
Champagne Toast to the Class of 2020
Mr. Sterling
Mr. McDonald
3
�BACHELOR OF ARTS
Hewan Adamu Admasu
Addis Ababa, Ethiopa
To Free, or not to Free? That is the Question: An Examination
of Huck’s Dilemma in Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Shannon James Lynch Albritton
A Prince’s Most Vital Resource: The Significance of
Self-Knowledge in Machiavelli’s The Prince
East Meredith, NY
Kemo Joaquin Alvarez
Describing Fiction: An Analysis of Ernest Hemingway’s
A Moveable Feast
Spokane, WA
Niko Angell-Gargiulo
It Does Not Satisfy the Appetite: An Approach to Mis-fitting
in Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man is Hard to Find”
Hannah Ann
“Here is one room; there another”: An Inquiry into the
Love of Life in Mrs. Dalloway
Seattle, WA
Suwon, South Korea
Kwadwo Dwomo Asiedu
Mampong Ashanti, Ghana
Greatness as a Signpost on the Road to Immortality:
A Study of Plutarch’s Life of Julius Caesar
Emily Marie Axelberg
“All the world’s a stage…” Acting Well as Living Well in
Shakespeare’s Hamlet
South Bend, IN
Zachary Thomas Baier
New Orleans, LA
Eros and its Hopes: On Socrates’ Speech in Plato’s Symposium
Matthew Jordan Beck
Virginia Beach, VA
On the Aesthetic Experience in Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace
Lauren Isabelle Bouchereau
The Construction of Race and the Dignity of White Trash:
The Artifice of the Nigger
Tarzana, CA
Leah Houschka Caminite
Weingarten, Germany
Evidence and Respect: Shakespeare’s Terms of a Merry War
Kyle Matthew Canterbury
Twin Genealogies: Pindar’s “Nemean 6”
4
Flint, MI
�Alexandra Asimina Cartharis
On The Generous Spirituality of Walt Whitman’s
“Song of Myself”
Zakynthos, Greece
Isabella Robin Copeland
Teiresias’ Perplexing Prophecy: An Exploration of the Planting
of the Oar in Homer’s Odyssey
Nani Ordofa Detti
Brotherhood in Nikolai Gogol’s The Overcoat
Julian, CA
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Billie Fabrikant
But the Past was not Dead; a Search for Moral Blossoms in
the Literature and Legacy of Nathaniel Hawthorne
New York, NY
Celia Violet Fearon
Finding a “never-failing principle of joy” in Wordsworth’s
“Two-Part Prelude of 1799”
Palm Springs, CA
Cameron Flores
Alienation, Society, and The Self in The Dispossessed
by Ursula K. LeGuin
New York, NY
Georgia Rose Foster-Cooper
Achieving the Unattainable: Elizabeth’s Journey to
Happiness and Love through Humility and Respect in
Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice
Santa Fe, NM
Emmett Logan Freeman
Baltimore, MD
Written in the Hearts of Men: On Fundamental Law and
Rights in Joseph de Maistre’s “Essay on the Generative Principle
of Political Constitutions”
Israel Gallegos
On the Origin of American Government: Why did the
Founding Fathers Decide on a Republican Government?
Santa Fe, NM
Natalie Louise Gammill
The Bible’s Solution to the Human Problem: An Examination
of Paul’s Letter to the Romans Regarding How the Biblical
Teachings of Law, Faith, and the Person of Jesus Address the
Problems of Sin and Death
Tempe, AZ
Elizabeth Joy Grayson
A Word, A Cape, A Promise: The Metaphysics of Socrates’ Death
Denver, CO
Grace Teresa Griffin
Shaky Ground: on Richard II and Identity
5
Wheaton, IL
�William Douglas Harmon
What We Owe One Another: an Exploration of Money and
Society in Crime and Punishment
Sanibel, FL
Nikolas Kane Hopson
Spring Valley Lake, CA
Eased with Being Nothing: An Inquiry into the
Decentralization of Unity within William Shakespeare’s
King Richard the Second, and Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations
Abraham Mason Barnes Hudak
Prince Andre and Pierre: An Examination of Idealism and
the Life Force in War and Peace
Sebastian Fernando Huerta
The Price of Freedom in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Tucson, AZ
Pembroke Pines, FL
Kaitlyn Marie Josephson
The Misunderstood Women of Winesburg: An Examination
of Thoughtful Books and Lives in Sherwood Anderson’s
Winesburg, Ohio
Salix, PA
Chifunda Kakusa
Chingola, Zambia
Virtue and Prudence in Machiavelli’s The Prince: A Portrait
of the Successful Man
Thato Sesana Kgalema
Johannesburg, South Africa
If Not a Womb Then What Are We? An Analysis of
the Rehabilitation of the Sin of Eve, Seen Through
the Development of Women in Genesis
Bobin Kim
As You Like It: What Is Love and Marriage?
Daegu, South Korea
William Redpath Kupets
The Individual’s Invasion of Reality: The Externalization
of Self and Modification of the World in “Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis
Tertius” By Jorge Luis Borges
Hyukhee Kwon
Imitation of the Sun: Legitimacy in Shakespeare’s
Henry IV, Part 1
James Robert Law
The Timeline and Significance of Wordsworth’s
Development as a Poet in the First-Part of the
“Two-Part Prelude of 1799”
6
Wilmette, IL
Seoul, South Korea
Liverpool, United Kingdom
�Xiaoxin Liu
Freedom in Friendship, and Friendship in Freedom:
A Comparison of Theory to Theater in Plato’s Lysis
Hao Luo
Above the Stoia: A Discussion about the Religiosity
of Stoicism in the Discourses of Epictetus
Zhengzhou, China
Kunming Yunnan, China
Sadie Hope Macdonald
Space And Time in Minkowski’s Mathematics:
“The Far-Reaching Consequences of The Metamorphoses
of Our Concept of Nature.”
Luis Fernando Melgar Arias
Erosophy: The Doctrines of Love and Wisdom in
Dante’s Commedia
Baltimore, MD
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Abdullah Hussain Mirza
Emotional Tears in the Fabric of Rationality: On the
Interconnectedness of Thumos and Logos in Aristotle’s
Art of Rhetoric
South Bend, IN
William Perkins Mombello
King Love
Newburyport, MA
Mario Alberto Moreno
Stockton, CA
Most Human and Most Our Own: The Embodiment of Language
in Montaigne’s “Of Experience”
Claire Sophia Motsinger
Proof that it’s Impossible to Live: The Unstable Soul in
Franz Kafka’s “Description of a Struggle”
Crestone, Colorado
Patrick Alexander Murray
Grammar and The New Philosopher in Beyond Good and Evil
New York, NY
Adrian Nez
The Inward Turn: Why Subjectivity is the Foundation of
the Objective Sciences
Flagstaff, AZ
Daniel Thanh Nguyen
The Opening to the Asolute: an Analysis of the Introduction
of Hegel’s The Phenomenology of Spirit
Portland, OR
John Jay Pritzker
Is Ontology Real?: On Schopenhauer’s The World as Will
and Representation
Kentfield, CA
7
�Jesse Joe Reeves
Mapleton, OR
Reading the Book of Nature with Goethe: Or How to Fall in Love With a Plant
Lyla Makale’a Rosen
A Mortally Intolerable Truth: Living with the Infinite in
Melville’s Moby Dick
Kailua, HI
Cristian Sanz-Laria
Real Funny: Jane Austen’s Philosophy of Irony in Pride & Prejudice
Katy, TX
Emma Boke Marwa Seba
Nairobi, Kenya
A Language of Nature: The Relationship between Nature and
Mathematics in Newton’s Principia
Benjamin Walker Sharp
“The Gift of Ilúvatar”: A Study of Freedom and Bondage in
Tolkein’s The Silmarillion
Oak Point, TX
Cody Lee Snyder
Virginia Beach, VA
Transcendent Narratives: An Odyssey of Brothers and Betrayal
Douglas John-Roland Spurlock
Self-discovery in Adolescence, Themes of Identity in
Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
New River, AZ
John Henry Stuart
Radiant Strangers: Grace and Necessity in The Iliad
Grass Valley, CA
James Hugh Svoboda*
Philadelphia, PA
Gregory Alexander Syssoyev
Who Speaks in this Passion’s Praises? Aesthetic Inquiry
in Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling
Carolina Itzel Tavarez Hinojos
The Sanctity and Power of Words in Euripides’ Medea
St. George, UT
Santa Fe, NM
Rachel Janine Taylor
Albuquerque, NM
The Nature of Knowledge: An Exploration into Enlightenment
and Isolation in Frankenstein
Bikash Thakur
The Meaning of Knowing a Person in Melville’s Bartleby,
The Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street
Minn Thant
Life and Death: Di Lampedusa’s Ode to Lost Sicily in
The Leopard
8
Janakpur, Nepal
Yangon, Myanmar
�William Hunter Winkel Thompson
Group Waves: Understanding the Indeterminacy of Identity
in Virginia Woolf’s The Waves
Denver, CO
Thobias Oscar Joachim Tinnerholm
Copenhagen, Denmark
The Paragon of Animals: Wordcraft and Apprehension
in Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Giorgi Ukleba
Madness of Greatness in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Cleo Ulatowski
Share this Space with Me: Virginia Woolf’s Vision of
Relational and Environmental Belonging
Tbilisi, Georgia
Santa Fe, NM
Noah Miller Waldron
Greenbelt, MD
The Narration of a Life: Identity and Time in Oedipus Tyrannus
Sarah Kaitlynn Ward
On Articulation and Affection in Shakespeare’s As You Like It
Emily Jean Wieser
From Fossils to Finches: An Exploration of Darwin’s
Education in The Voyage of the Beagle
Austin, TX
Durango, CO
Samuel Manire Willard
Sussex County, DE
~νιν: The Wrath and the Glory of Achilles in Homer’s Iliad
μη
Bridget Young Wu
Receiving Poetry Back from Exile: Poetry as a Friend to
Philosophy in Book X of Plato’s Republic
Qianyuan Xu
Faust, A Tragedy: What Kind of Life is Faust’s?
Shanghai, China
Qingdao, China
Huayanni Yang
Chongqing, China
Showing vs. Telling: Plato’s Double Framing of the Theatetus
Brandon Alexander Young
San Antonio, TX
If we Must Live Together, then How? An Examination on the
Power of Philosophy in Jean Jacques Rousseau’s Origin of Inequality
Zhengping Zhang
Reason’s Self-knowledge: What Kind of Knowledge is
Transcendental Philosophy in Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason?
*Upon satisfactory completion of degree requirements
9
Jinan, China
�MASTER OF ARTS IN LIBERAL ARTS
Christopher James Allison
American Fork, UT
Patrick Jordan Anderson
Chester, NJ
Joshua Allyn Baker
Enterprise, AL
Patrick James Burley
Chester, VA
Janet Susan Cedar
Santa Fe, NM
Nicole Olivia Corbo
Bourne, MA
Samiya Haque
Dhaka, Bangladesh
Sarah Jessica Jackson
Portales, NM
James Charles William Jennings
Broadway, England
Shahrane Karim
Dallas, TX
Devin Martin Ketch
Torrance, CA
Philippa Alice Scott
Timaru, New Zealand
Jacob G.A.P. Turnbull
Tularosa, NM
Kelsey Jean Hennegen
Huntington Beach, CA
MASTER OF ARTS IN EASTERN CLASSICS
Vivian Lizbeth Garcia
Los Angeles, CA
David Ryan Conway
Corning, NY
10
�MASTER’S ESSAY
Kelsey Jean Hennegen
The Sickness unto Life: Learning the Convalescent’s
Life-Affirmation in Nietzsche’s The Gay Science
Huntington Beach, CA
David Ryan Conway
Corning, NY
Dicing With Dharma: Yudhisthira as Gambler in The Mahabharata
11
�AWARDS AND PRIZES
To the members of the Senior Class who have written the best senior essays,
the Richard D. Weigle Prize:
Receiving Poetry Back from Exile: Poetry as a Friend to Philosphy
In Book X of Plato’s Republic
Class of 2020
Bridget Young Wu
Honorable Mention:
Proof that It’s Impossible to Live: The Unstable Soul in Franz Kafka’s
“Description of a Struggle”
Class of 2020
Claire Sophia Motsinger
Faculty Awards for Sustained Academic Excellence
For his Freshman annual essay
Honorable Mention
On the Nature and Practice of Divine Virtue as
Presented in Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics
Class of 2020
Claire Sophia Motsinger
Bridget Young Wu
Class of 2023
Noah Francis Mihelic
For his Sophomore enabling essay
Providence, Overflow and the Limits of Speculative Reason
Class of 2022
Aayush Thapa
For his Junior annual essay
Kant’s Theory of Experience
Class of 2021
Karl von der Luft
Honorable Mention:
On the Possibility of Freedom as More than Mere Presupposition
in Kant’s Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals
Class of 2021
Harry A. Choee
For her Undergraduate essay other than annual
Shame in the Profound and Wearing Masks in
Beyond Good and Evil
12
Class of 2020
Emily Jean Wieser
�For his Graduate Institute Liberal Arts fall 2019 preceptorial essay:
Nietzsche, On the Genealogy of Depth GILA
Justin David Spain
For his Graduate Institute Liberal Arts spring 2020 tutorial essay
Some Reflections on Reading Book I of Euclid GILA
Patrick Jordan Anderson
For his original music composition:
Twilight Concerto for piano and string orchestra
Class of 2022
Christopher Young
Honorable Mention:
I Made My Song a Coat to Wear GILA
Hannah Sara Loomis
For their solutions to the set freshman-sophomore level mathematical problem:
Honorable mentions:
Class of 2022
JungSun Kim
Class of 2023
Minjun Lee
For her original fiction
The Tie
Class of 2023
Chinazor Ozichi Ike-Njoku
For his Greek translation, the William A. Darkey Translation Prize
(Sophocles, Antigone, lines 332-375)
Class of 2021
Karl von der Luft
Honorable Mention:
Class of 2022
Aayush Thapa
For their French translations, the William A. Darkey Translation Prize:
(“Les Cloches” and “Automne Malade” by Apollinaire)
Honorable mentions:
Class of 2020
Hao Luo
Class of 2021
Anjelo Luis Reyes
13
�To a deserving student to help with the continuation of work at St. John’s College
through the cultivation of the liberal arts of Thinking – that is, aiming for and
acquiring knowledge; and of Friendship – that is, sharing inquiry and thought
joyfully and for its own sake, the Robert Neidorf Memorial Scholarship:
Class of 2021
Cameron MacEntyre Hines
Class of 2022
Elena Clark Loomis
To members of the Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior classes in recognition of
academic achievement and constructive service to the college community, the
St. John’s Community Scholarship provided by faculty, staff and students:
Rising Senior
Class of 2021
Aviral Chawla
Rising Juniors
Class of 2022
Onysha Enkaye Boak
Christopher Campbell
To members of the Senior Class for excellence in public speaking,
the Senator Millard E. Tydings Memorial Prize:
Class of 2020
Emily Marie Axelberg
Thato Sesana Kgalema
William Perkins Mombello
To a member of the Senior Class who has been an outstanding leader in his class,
the Don Cook Student Leadership Award:
Class of 2020
Mario Alberto Moreno
To members of the Senior Class who have excelled in service to the college,
the Dean’s Award for College Service:
Class of 2020
William Hunter Winkel Thompson
Shannon James Lynch Albritton
To the student who has most contributed to the academic support of
their peers, the Assistant Dean’s Award:
Class of 2020
Lauren Isabelle Bouchereau
Niko Angell-Gargiulo
14
�To a member of the Senior Class who has demonstrated achievement in the Arts and
Literature, the Walter S. Baird Prize:
For her personal narrative “Almost an Island”
Class of 2020
Bridget Young Wu
STUDENT ACTIVITY AWARDS
To the senior who, by his leadership, professionalism, hard work, and good will,
has made an outstanding contribution to the St. John’s Activities Center, an award
offered by the Student Activities Organization:
Class of 2020
Luis Fernando Melgar Arias
To the senior who, by her leadership, enthusiasm, and devotion to the development
of the St. John’s Community has made an outstanding contribution to the St. John’s
College Outdoor Program, an award offered by the Student Activities Organization:
Class of 2020
Emily Jean Wieser
STUDENT LIFE AWARDS
To the senior who, by his consistent modeling of exemplary leadership, spirit, and
integrity, has made an outstanding contribution to the St. John’s community, an award
offered by the Office of Student Life:
Class of 2020
Abdullah Hussain Mirza
To the senior who, by her consistent modeling of exemplary leadership, spirit, and
integrity, has made an outstanding contribution to the St. John’s community, an award
offered by the Office of Student Life:
Class of 2020
Lauren Isabelle Bouchereau
15
�The seal of St. John’s
College shows seven open
books representing the
seven traditional liberal arts—
the trivium of grammar,
rhetoric, and logic; and
the quadrivium of arithmetic,
geometry, astronomy, and
music. The balance, or scale,
in the center represents
modern science. Encircling
the symbols is a Latin
inscription, which means:
“I make free adults out
of children by means
of books and a balance.”
�17
�18
���
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Santa Fe Commencement Programs and Addresses
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
St. John's College Meem Library
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Original Format
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paper
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20 pages
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Title
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Santa Fe Commencement Program, Spring 2020
Description
An account of the resource
Program for the fifty-third commencement of the Santa Fe campus in the three hundred and twenty-fourth year of St. John's College.
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St. John's College
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St. John's College
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Santa Fe, NM
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2020-05-23
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text
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pdf
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Commencement (St. John's College, Santa Fe, NM)
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English
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SF Commencement Program 2020-05-23
Commencement
-
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Speeches, presentations, and other lectures
Description
An account of the resource
Speeches, presentations, and other lectures given at St. John's College. These include convocation addresses delivered in both Annapolis, MD and Santa Fe, NM.<br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Speeches, presentations, and other lectures" href="http://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=15">Items in the Speeches, presentations, and other lectures Collection</a></strong> to <span>view and sort all items in the collection.</span>
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St. John's College Greenfield Library
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speechespresentationsotherlectures
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00:30:32
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The Enduring Relevance of Thucydides’ <em>Peloponnesian War</em>
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Video recording of a lecture delivered on April 6, 2022, by Jeffrey R. Macris as part of the LCDR Erik S. Kristensen Lecture Series. <br /><br />Twenty-four centuries ago the ancient Greek world erupted in a fratricidal war that pitted Athens and its allies versus Sparta and theirs. Exiled by his Athenian peers, the general Thucydides penned a history of the Peloponnesian War that drew upon eyewitness accounts and objective evidence. His quest to seek an objective truth, free from bias or national hyperbole, has earned for him the title of “father of scientific history.” Dr. Macris’ lecture, entitled “The Enduring Relevance of Thucydides’ <em>Peloponnesian War</em>,” explores why students of history, international affairs, and war still debate and find meaning in his work today. <br /><br />Dr. Macris is the Deputy Director of the Naval Academy’ Stockdale Center. Previously he was a Presidential Visiting Fellow at Yale University as well as a professor in the Naval Academy’s History Department where he earned the 2016 Military Professor of the Year Award. He has published several academic articles as well as two books on the Great Powers of the Middle East. <br /><br />The lecture is part of a joint lectures series between St. John's College and the U.S. Naval Academy to honor the memory of Lieutenant Commander Erik S. Kristensen. An alumnus of the United States Naval Academy and the St. John's College Graduate Institute, Kristensen, a Navy SEAL, was killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan in 2005. This lecture series aims to create even greater ties between the two schools, as well as to educate the public about civil-military relations and the place of the liberal arts in the education of naval and military professionals.
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Macris, Jeffrey R.
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St. John's College
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Annapolis, MD
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2022-04-06
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A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John’s College permission to make a recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation at the St. John’s College Greenfield Library. To make a recording of my lecture available online."
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moving image
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mp4
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Thucydides. History of the Peloponnesian War--Influence
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Macfarland, Joseph C.
Language
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English
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LEC_Macris_Jeffrey_2022-04-06
Kristensen lecture series
U.S. Naval Academy
-
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5c17fe83adad9e63be30a19715786f28
Dublin Core
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Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
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St. John's College Greenfield Library
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St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
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formallectureseriesannapolis
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Zoom video conference
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00:37:59
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Reading and Teaching the Constitution
Description
An account of the resource
Video recording of a lecture delivered on June 29, 2022, by Steve Steinbach as part of the Graduate Institute Summer Lecture Series. <br /><br />Mr. Steinbach was a partner at a law firm in Washington, D.C. before leaving the legal profession for teaching. He is now the chair of the History department at Sidwell Friends, and is the author of <em>With Liberty and Justice for All?: The Constitution in the Classroom</em>. <br /><br />Mr. Steinbach describes his talk: "Is the Constitution of the United States a 'great book' in the St. John’s tradition? How might the document be read, taught, and understood intelligently, whether in the nation’s classrooms or our wider civic discourse? The lecture will explore the Constitution’s continuing relevance by focusing in part on two critical 'constitutional moments' from the past: the Alien and Sedition Acts controversy and the Dred Scott case."
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Steinbach, Steven A.
Publisher
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St. John's College
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Annapolis, MD
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2022-06-29
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An email has been received from the lecturer giving permission to record the lecture and make it available online.
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moving image
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mp4
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Education, Humanistic
Alien and Sedition laws, 1798
Scott, Dred, 1809-1858
Constitutional law
Contributor
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Langston, Emily
Language
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English
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Steinbach_Steve_2022-06-29access
Graduate Institute
Summer lecture series
-
https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/aa011b7993207e6293c473b9ef6b85a9.mp4
efb11d8f9962485fbfdc4bb50957330c
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
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St. John's College Greenfield Library
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St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
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formallectureseriesannapolis
Moving Image
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Zoom video conference
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00:36:49
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It’s Just Talking: Legal Advocacy and the Vital Role of Listening
Description
An account of the resource
Video recording of a lecture delivered on July 6, 2022, by Gabriela Quercia Kahrl as part of the Graduate Institute Summer Lecture Series.
Ms. Kahrl is the Associate Director of the Chacon Center for Immigrant Justice at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law.
As part of the partnership between the Annapolis Graduate Institute and the Carey School of Law, Ms. Kahrl speaks about liberal education and the role of listening in legal advocacy, reflecting on the nature of conversations, oral advocacy as a kind of conversation, and why and how listening is a vital legal skill. Her lecture draws from texts/authors, including Simone Weil, the Bible, and Plato, and includes examples of legal practice.
Creator
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Kahrl, Gabriela Quercia
Publisher
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St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Date
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2022-07-06
Rights
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An email has been received from the lecturer giving permission to record the lecture and make it available online.
Type
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moving image
Format
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mp4
Subject
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Education, Humanistic
Communication in law
Conversation
Legal assistance to immigrants
Contributor
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Langston, Emily
Language
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English
Identifier
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Kharl_Gabreila_2022-07-06access
Graduate Institute
Summer lecture series
-
https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/707a3e4ec855bfe32c2e4fb498ab3a30.pdf
e5a5689d2c2db688076f1bf96ca5905d
PDF Text
Text
St. John’s College
Vol. XLIII, Issue 12
Annapolis, Maryland
May 23, 2022
�CONTENTS
From the Editor’s Desk:
Dear polity,
Logos
Chris Krueger Interview
Making Memory at Marathon
e Bug Club
SJC Club Re ections
Sailing Trivia
Graduation Pictures
3
6
8
10
14
16
Symposium
ings United and Unities
18
Polis
Polity as Polyphony
Chess Club
Robert Morris Inn Review
To Veto, or Not to Veto
Senior's Last Words
Program Contest Results
22
24
25
28
30
36
THE STRUCTURE
Logos typically holds news reports and narratives of immediate relevance to the Polity. e
purpose here is to develop a shared reservoir
of information relating to campus life and the
community.
Symposium offers the opportunity for our readers to thoughtfully consider contrasting opinions regarding a particular topic.
Polis serves as a platform for elevating voices
in our community. Here we nd letters to the
editor, columns, cartoons, and submitted pieces.
THE COVER
Photo of Mr. MacFarland at Marathon, taken by
Meliha Anthony '25
2
G
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23, 2022
e marathon has been run and the time for rest is at hand!
In this end of the year issue, we look back at the course that
we’ve run, the legacy of Chris Krueger, the opinion pieces
that have warranted reply, and the accomplishments of our
various clubs and activities. We also enjoy several lasts: the
last of restaurant reviews, the last of the senior’s words, and
the nal results of the last Gad y contest.
It's been a pleasure to be your campus newsmagazine
through this year, and our staff looks forward to being so for
you again next year.
Enjoy your summers, and be ready to run again come
August!
Sincerely,
Craig Koch
THE STAFF
Bibhu Chapagain
Catherine Elizabeth Greer
Connor Shin
Cooper Ussery
Craig Koch
El’ad Nichols-Kaufman
Isaac Vail
Josephine Dowd
Liz Dowdy
Luke Briner
Lysithia Page
Meliha Anthony
M. Elwell
Michael Jeramaz
Nat Martin
Rose Zhang
Zara Brandt
SUBMISSIONS
Alicia Bravo
Joseph Richard
Brandon Garcia
Louis Rosenberg
Caleb Duttion
Madelyn Minor
Cassie Desmond
Michael Jeramaz
Daniel Han
Noah Jones
Dante Perotto
Rei Osmani
Elsa Risgin
Rose Zhang
Gen DeMajistre
Sheba Delaney
George Kalandadze
Tom Ni
James Beckwith
Tuyết-Nhi Nghiêm
Jonah Donis
Will Payne
Joseph Padgett
�Making Memory at the Marathon
A Farewell to Heroes
by El'ad Nichols-Kaufman '25, photos by Meliha Anthony '25
I
t is appropriate that we, as students of the past and scholars
of the present, end our perennial intramural pursuit of
athletic arete, excellence, in what may loosely be called a
Marathon. I do not mean this in the sense of the common
conception of the myth of Marathon: Pheidippides never
ran from Athens to Marathon. ere was no shout of “Joy,
we win!” ere was no dramatic death before the archons
of Athens. e myth of the marathon materialized from
writings of Lucian and Plutarch centuries a er the battle of
Marathon or the legendary run of Pheidippides passed into
the misty mires of the marches of memory, obscured by the
clouds of forgetfulness.
e truth, or at very least the version of the happening in
Herodotus’ History, is rather different, and perhaps seems
superior in its suitability to the style of farewell that this
year’s Marathon entailed. Before the break of battle, with
the fate of Greece still in the balance, Pheidippides bid his
rs farewell to his city’s citizen soldiers setting off to their
own efforts for the polity, and ran from Athens to Sparta,
an even further length than those marvelous 26 miles
to Marathon of myth, in just a day and a half, to spur the
restive Lacedaemonians into action.
e Spartans were
moved by his message, and with his mission completed, he
bid them his second farewell and ran back to Athens, but
was met along the way by the god Pan, primordial prince of
pasture and woodland. e god challenged the Athenians
impiety: “Why do they not worship him, when he has
helped Athens so much?” With this warning in mind,
he bid a third farewell to Pan and proceeded homeward,
hopping across Hellas to Attica. Upon arrival at Athens, he
shared the message of Pan, and the pious polity proceeded
to build a shrine to the god of the wild.
As sportspeople, we do not push ourselves to death, as
in the supposed rst running of the Marathon, for a cause
already won. We push ourselves to victory, whether it be
against the Persians or for the will of god, or for honor
and fame, or for pious love and passion, and if it requires
speed or endurance beyond human capability, only then
do we undertake the superhuman task set before us. is
passion for victory is what Mr. Macfarland, our noble Dean
and Guardian (in more ways than one), addressed in his
lecture. In the end, we need an arbitrator to reconcile the
fundamental pretext of sport, which in Macfarland’s words
is: “that you de ne the goal as simply as possible, so that
the prize can go, without ambiguity, to the one who is best
at that single action,” and the passions of sport, that “let
our bodies show themselves forth—the passions of love,
shame, fear, spirit, anger,” all for victory. What makes our
sports different from the crisis of chaotic con ict is the
presence of this judge, “our Aeneas,” who in a divine role
helps our city stay strong with its own competition by
balancing these passions and pursuit of the best. In our
case, the third farewell, from the god Pan, comes rst, as
our judging divinity, Chris Krueger, was given a noble
salute. It is difficult to overstate Kruegers’ contribution to
the competitive college athletics of our polity, and far more
capable hands than mine have written his praises, so I will
not attempt any further here.
If we, a Polity of Pheidippides, have begun with the
legendary third farewell, it is only appropriate that we
proceed to the second. Unlike Pan, whose farewell is a
nal one, the Spartans do not disappear from the text, but
their future presence is precipitated by a noble goal, the
glorious goal of gaining glory in defense of Greek liberty.
Our dispersal of honor and glory need not await the end
of a Spartan superstition about the moon: the heroes
who receive college blazers may participate directly in the
ultimate contest of the marathon. At this marathon, our
most committed athletes attained their goal, and stood
as examples to the rest of us Johnnies who seek athletic
excellence, and provided us our own reason for pursuing the
passion of sport. is is the last game of the year, so it is a
temporary farewell of sorts, but this recognition of athletic
achievement motivates us to eagerly await the next season.
Chris Krueger prepares to present a deserving student with an intramural blazer
G
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23, 2022
3
�A er blazers were awarded to Aidel Townsley, Ian
Howell, So a Martin, and Peter Boersema, the race itself,
the great run, took place. Each of our intramural teams had
to run 30 laps of approximately a third of a mile, alternating
runners each lap. Students and tutors alike raced around the
winding course across the expansive lawns of back campus.
For over an hour and a half, the teams traced this track time
and time again, until all thirty laps were completed. Rather
ironically, considering their conspicuous absence from the
battle of Marathon, the Spartans nished 29 laps rst, only
about 20 seconds before the Druids, with the Hustlers,
Guardians and Greenwaves giving equally spirited attempts.
e atmosphere at the end was generally celebratory- all the
teams, regardless of placement in the race had a full year
of victories to rejoice in, but before they could break off to
celebrate individually, one nal farewell was called for.
e rst farewell of Pheidippides was to his fellow citizens
setting out on their own quests, striking their own paths.
is, in turn, was the last farewell of our marathon. Our
seniors, our beloved leaders and elders of our community,
must take leave of us, and we take leave of them. On the
nal, 30th lap, all of the seniors set out together, departing
from the cheering crowd on one last wandering walk. Of
all the farewells that naturally come with the end of the
year, this most constant and most certain is yet the most
bittersweet. In setting out on this walk, they are bringing
to an end one world, their world as students, and student
athletes, at St. John’s, and opening another larger, more
wonderful and frightening world of possibilities.
Participants engage in group stretching before the
race begins
Intramural captains and Mr. MacFarland finish the
first lap of the race in leisure
Christopher Ford distinguishes himself
4
G
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23, 2022
Cynthia Wu shows off her newly acquired blazer
�The Legacy and Achievement of Chris Krueger
An interview with Chris Krueger
by Craig Koch '23
participants had been doing quite a
bit of the work to get games running,
to referee games, and get club team
practices running.
is seemed too
burdensome given how demanding
the academic program is and how
complicated it can be to play your
peers over and over again and then
go have to live so closely together.
Moreover, it seemed to me that the
students had disagreements about
direction and tone of the program and
You are now a well-loved staple these disagreements were holding the
of the college, but how was it when program back.
you rst arrived as Athletic Director
During your time here, how has
in 2016? What was the state of the the Athletic program changed? Are
Athletic Program like then?
there any changes, additions, or new
When I returned to the college in initiatives that you enacted and are
2016 to run the athletic program, the especially proud of ?
people participating in the program
Bryce Jacobsen, athletic director
were as passionate and engaged as any and tutor from 1958-1986, said that
Johnnies I have known. In that way, nothing generates excitement like
it was the same as now, but beyond a close race, and when I returned, I
that important and encouraging tried to tune the program a bit more
observation, my other immediate toward an emphasis on competition.
impression was that there were far fewer I didn’t necessarily want people to
people participating than I expected focus on winning as the only—or
would have interest in the program. even as the primary—aim, but it did
For context, in 2015-2016 (the year seem important that there be a venue
before I returned), 205 people enrolled for pushing oneself and one’s peers to
that year had participated in some work as hard as possible to improve.
aspect of the structured programing Competition encourages that.
during their time at the college. As of
I think that it is easy for many
today, 342 students who are currently people to shy away from trying as hard
enrolled have participated in some as they can—maybe because it can
aspect of the program while they have seem self-important or silly, or maybe
been enrolled, including over 260 this because it can feel futile or scary—but
year alone. is is important because I believe that competition can lead
so many Johnnies over the years have to many rare and wonderful things.
said some variation of “If it weren’t for
e most signi cant of these things
the athletic program, I wouldn’t have is that competition o en yields great
stayed here.”
bonds of friendship, which is always a
ese numbers don’t really paint kind of growth. It’s also simply fun for
a picture, though. When I arrived, most people to compete, and I tried to
students told me that the student emphasize the fun, or at least whimsy,
of the program, too. Competition
doesn’t have to mean training or
aggression, necessarily, and early in
my time here I tried to encourage the
program toward a competitive balance
that served as many people as possible.
As for changes that I am most
proud of, I will take an easy way out.
I know that some of my decisions are
occasionally controversial, and it is
undeniable that under my leadership
we haven’t always been balanced
perfectly. But one thing I think
no one would argue with is that
while I have been here the physical
infrastructure of the athletic program
has been dramatically improved.
Some examples are that the court
was refurbished (a project 20 years
overdue), there are two new crew shells
and a new coach’s boat, there is a ton
(maybe literally) of new equipment
in the weight room and cardio room,
we have vastly improved volleyball
systems, and we have nice new soccer
goals. And that’s not even the whole
list. Obviously, this is a team effort
from college leadership—especially
the treasurer, the assistant dean, and
the entire B&G crew. I can’t possibly
say enough how absolutely essential
their support has been generally and
especially with regard to these physical
improvements.
Oh. Also Stringfellow Ball.
Stringfellow Ball forever.
Intramural captains and gym
assistants do a lot to ensure that
the athletic activities of St. John’s
are well-attended homes for
exercise, healthy competition, and
socialization. What has the host
of captains, gym assistants, and
athletic participants who have
passed through the College under
G
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23, 2022
5
�your guidance meant to you?
What a hard question. e students
here are all inspiring. I am so grateful to
have gotten to work so closely with so
many exceptional people. How much
people care about what they do here is
really rare. You’re right to note that the
gym assistants, boathouse stewards,
and the captains are especially
signi cant to me. So many people give
so much of their time and their heart
to the athletic program—the captains
especially—and I feel so honored and
humbled by their willingness to not
only have me along for the ride, but
also to trust me (sometimes) to guide a
program that means so much to them.
St. John’s is o en quite bookish and
can sometimes be so to such an extent
that there is hardly anything le in
student’s lives but books, dust, and
vague ideas. How have you understood
the role of athletics and exercise within
such an institution? What role do
you take athletics to have in liberal
education?
Broadly speaking, I just think
physical activity is good for people.
For one thing, our bodies can be so
demanding and distracting, and it is
useful to tire them out and quiet them
down—especially when we want to be
thoughtful, attentive, and maybe even
studious. at’s not the whole story or
role of athletics at St. John’s, though.
I have o en thought of our athletic
program as Seminar’s Long-Lab.
rough athletics, we can test out
what has been discussed in class—we
can explore in practice what we have
been thinking about virtue and justice
and truth, and we can wrestle in realtime with tyranny and explore the
essence of friendship.
True liberal education seems to
me to require a kind of depth- nding
exploration of the way humans
interact in the physical world. We
need to know how far we can go with
the ideas we have and systems we use.
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I think athletics generally, and team
sports in particular, provide a terri c
microcosm in which to explore the
scope of human freedom.
One of the great things about
intramurals is the opportunity for
glory. Are there any feats—either
your own or others—that stand out
to you as especially glorious during
your time here?
Every day in our athletic program
someone overcomes something. ey
hit a personal record in their deadli ,
or they row their fastest 2k on an erg.
Or maybe they score their rst basket
of their rst goal, or they go on a threeball run or execute their rst cap-size
recovery. Maybe they make a crucial
tackle in Reasonball, or maybe they
win their rst bout on the fencing strip
or just hit that pesky golf ball reliably.
Maybe they lose their temper and foul
someone and apologize and maybe
they are forgiven. Every single time
someone overcomes, it is delightful
and glorious. e greatest and most
glorious feat is when someone does the
hard work of being better.
Are there any parts of the Athletic
program that you’re especially going
to miss or that you would like the
community to pay special care to
maintaining in your absence?
is is another really hard question.
I will miss most the raw energy and the
deep, serious care. I hardly ever have
a conversation with someone who
doesn’t care deeply about our shared
project. It is continually astounding
how much people care. And this isn’t
just true about the athletic program. It
is true about the college.
As for special care…I will share what
may be my most controversial opinion
about St. John’s. Here it is: the academic
program is not, in itself, what really
makes St. John’s special. I think what
really makes St. John’s exceptional is
how careful and coherent the college
is and how the curriculum permeates
23, 2022
the life of the college. is happens
largely because of how seriously the
students and tutors take their time
together, how much time the students
and tutors spend together, and of
course because everyone reads the
same books, but it also happens more
generally because of the things we
choose to engage in as a community
outside of the classroom and that fact
that so many of these things could
“scale up” easily to involve everyone at
the college. It seems to be an essential
aspect of the college that so much of
what happens here is intended for the
entire community and that so much
of what happens relates back to the
academic program.
Of course, what I just said is also
one reason it can be really hard to
be here: the life of this college is rich
and complicated and challenging
and sometimes infuriating because
the scope of what we do together is
so broad, and we all arrive here with
different experiences and perspectives.
ere can be so much pressure. In this
context, one critically important thing
about the athletic program is that it
brings the community together in new
ways, and it provides a way to blow off
some steam, but not via something
that is quite rightly thought of as a
divergence or distraction from the
essential life and work of college.
I guess what I mean to say is this:
I hope care is taken that the college
remains coherent, that people
continue to share their lives with each
other freely and deeply despite the
difficulty and imperfection of doing
so, and that the community continues
to choose not to let St. John’s become
like everywhere else.
I believe I can speak for the
community at large in saying that you
will be dearly missed. Before parting,
though, I wanted to ask you if you had
any last words or advice that you’d like
to leave in the minds and hearts of
�those reading this interview. Do you
have any such words?
anks so much. I will miss being
here and sharing so much of my life
with all the wonderful people here.
But I am reticent to offer advice so
broadly and without knowing who is
reading this.
I’ll share a story. When I was in
freshman chorus, toward the end of the
spring semester, one of my classmates
was reading Aristotle instead of
singing. I mean he was clearly and
de nitively not even pretending to
sing. His head was down, and was
emphatically mouthing the words to
himself because there was so much
noise and distraction in the room. It
wasn’t even the seminar reading. e
tutor noticed this classmate of mine
wasn’t singing, and the tutor slammed
the lectern with a st—in time with
the beat, of course—and pointed the
baton at the student. As if casting a
spell, while the rest of us kept singing,
the tutor shook the baton at the
reading student and bellowed, their
voice rising over the whole chorus:
“SING, DAMN IT!”
I think that’s great advice. Just sing,
damn it.
Ok, I’ll take that advice. Here’s a
kind of extended corollary to that
tutor’s exhortation: take advantage
of the opportunities before you, and
don’t let a little disharmony stop you.
e Polity,
on Chris Krueger:
Simply "Best Boss Ever". I gained a lot of self-esteem
and con dence from him. He always encouraged me to
participate in athletic events where I overcame some of my
fear. As my boss, he was slow to anger. I'm pretty sure he's
an anointed saint in disguise. I will miss him very much
and words will never explain how much I adore him.
—John Sori
I just wanted to say that I really enjoyed all the
interactions I had with Chris Krueger. He brought a
great attitude to intramurals and really made me feel like
we were playing to have fun. His casual attitude and fun
humor really broke through my nervousness to participate
when I went to play intramurals for the rst time.
—Gabriel Fernandez-Ramsey
Chris has been such an incredible mentor to me,
especially during our planning of the Annapolis Cup. We
all know that he has his thoughts about croquet, but he
worked tirelessly to make sure students could experience
this event. We have had conversations about how I can
be an effective leader and I know his advice comes from a
place of genuine interest. He is always open to chat during
my Gym Assistant shi s and offers fresh perspectives
(they're very much needed when I get in my head about
stupid things). I think Chris sees the value of student
leadership in a way that other admin gures o en do
not. He involves students in the planning, execution, and
re ection stages of projects. He makes you feel like your
voice matters. He makes it known that he cares.
—Mia Kobylski
Chris threads the leadership needle perfectly. He is
authoritative, prepared, and assertive without sacri cing
an ounce of casual friendliness. It's a tough line to walk,
and a skill that proves essential in keeping intramurals as
open and unintimidating as possible, while providing a
space for challenging and competitive athletics.
—Max MersmannJones
Chris always had the answers to any questions I had
for him, and his calm and patient demeanor really helped
me settle into both intramurals as well as working as a
gym assistant. When I rst started refereeing, I viewed it
as a painful chore, but with Chris’s guidance, it became
something I looked forward to. He will be greatly missed
by the polity and we are lucky to have been able to
get to know him during his time here.
—Oscar Miller
Which brings me, nally, to the secret and real subject
of my speech: the loyal prince who presides over our games,
our Aeneas on the elds and in the temple [Iglehart]. For
everyone who knows him knows that he has, truly, a pious
love for our community, for all of us here. For we, too, in
the heat of the moment, driven by love of victory or fear of
shame, driven by inexplicably strong friendships with our
teammates, and by deep, if temporary, antipathy for our
opponents—especially the Hustlers—we, too, are liable
to confuse bad luck with injustice, or good luck with the
blessing of the gods; we, too, discover unseen strengths in
ourselves and, at the same time, become foolishly forgetful
of our frailties. For which I, for one, am enormously
grateful for Chris’s considerate, compassionate leadership
for the last six years. It is no exaggeration to say that all of
the championships, all of the laurels, which you, we, have
striven for, and occasionally won, are truly his.
—Mr. Macfarland from his "On e Body" Lecture
Chris Krueger is the last good Johnnie
—Devin VanGorden
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7
�Creepy? Crawly? Cool!
SJCA's New Bug Club Provides a Space for the Entomologically Curious
by Zara Brandt '25, photos by Louis Rosenberg '25
L
ouis Rosenberg (A25) has been
fascinated by insects since he was
a child.
“I’ve always been a bug person. I
used to catch carpenter bees…and
pet them in my hands. I would catch
millipedes and pill bugs,” he said.
“ ey’re just so cool.”
Shortly before winter break of 2023,
Rosenberg approached his classmate
Tabby Rutledge (A25) about forming
an insect farming club at St. John’s.
His idea was met with enthusiasm, and
the Bug Club convened for the rst
time in early February. Currently, he
says, over two dozen Johnnies receive
regular Bug Club emails, and meetings
have a consistent turnout of ve to ten
people.
Club meetings involve caring for
and observing the insects, as well as
insect-related activities which have
ranged from cra s to bug pinning.
Rosenberg described a recent
symmetrical painting project.
“We would paint on half of a sheet
of paper, so you would fold it in half,
and then when you open it up it would
be sort of mirrored on the other side.
Which works really well with bugs,
because they’re symmetrical,” he
explained.
e club is currently raising
two species: Halloween Hissing
Cockroaches and silkworms. ough
the community of bug breeders is
tight-knit and supportive of hobbyists
like the Bug Club, the niche interest
in insect breeding can make insects
difficult to source. Rosenberg
purchased the Bug Club’s insects from
sellers on Facebook and Ebay. He
believes that there ought to be more
acceptance and interest in insects,
which are both inherently interesting
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and valuable to science.
“ ere is something really neat
about the animals that people hate,”
Rosenberg said. “And there’s not
really a good reason…it’s just the sort
of ingrained, ‘those things are gross.’
But they’re not, they’re really cool,
and useful…a lot of insects are valuable
pollinators, or they help out in the
ecosystem.”
Rosenberg was happy to share
information about the Bug Club’s
current insects. e Halloween Hissing
Cockroach—a
ightless, striped
insect, one of about twenty hissing
cockroaches native to Madagascar—
probably creates its distinctive hissing
sound as a defense mechanism and as
part of the bug’s mating ritual.
“ ere are a few theories…it's a way
of being scary to predators,” he said.
“ ey have different spiracles, (what
they expel the air from to make the
hissing sound)... if you block [one set
of them], the female doesn’t mate with
the male cockroach.”
e variety of silkworm which the
23, 2022
club is raising is bombyx mori, a highly
domesticated species with its origin in
the traditional silk industry of China.
e species has been cultivated by
humans for so long that it has lost its
ability to y, a fact which Rosenberg
nds uniquely fascinating.
“I like to tell people they’re really
screwed-up bugs... You know we don’t
think of bugs as something that can
be domesticated, but these really are
domesticated…to the point that they
can’t even y anymore,” Rosenberg
said.
John Hollowed (A25), who has
been a member of the club since its
inception, emphasized the historical
and economic importance of
silkworms.
“Caring for insects has been a
part of society for a long time. at's
why silkworms have been such an
important choice,” he said. “Silk has
shaped so much culture and impacted
trading.”
Hollowed indicated that part of
the value of raising silkworms lies
in developing understanding of the
resources and effort that goes into the
production of silk.
“People o en overlook how much
work goes into acquiring silk, they just
know it’s expensive,” he said. “Getting
to work with silkworms, you really
see that it's an insane amount of time
that goes into acquiring a very small
amount of silk.”
e silkworms require regular
care as they are growing, and they’re
nicky eaters: Hollowed explained
that the silkworms can only survive
on mulberry leaves. Members of the
Bug Club can sign up to be part of
the bug care schedule, and they check
on the insects twice a day in rotation
�according to their availability.
“A lot of [the work] is going to be
continually feeding… And this whole
time we’ve been keeping track of the
number of molts, because they molt
a certain number of times before
they spin [their cocoons],” Hollowed
explained. He added, half-seriously,
“harvesting the silk…is going to be an
absolute nightmare.”
e traditional method of silk
production involves boiling the
silkworm cocoons with the caterpillars
still inside them, and unspooling the
cocoons in a single strand. But the club
plans to harvest the silk once the moths
have hatched. is will compromise
the quality of the silk since the moths
excrete enzymes which damage their
cocoons in order to hatch.
“With the piece-silk method, you
have to spin it, so it’s less strong and
generally less so as well because it’s
lots of little pieces,” he said. “We are
considering doing the normal silk
[harvesting] method in the future, but
we want to let these silkworms breed,
so that we don’t have to keep buying
eggs.”
Rosenberg plans to continue
expanding the Bug Club in the Fall of
2022. He hopes to do more outdoor
insect-trapping, including mothtrapping using food bait and lights, to
observe wild insect behavior.
“We also are planning to branch
out, and get…a lot of interesting beetles
and mantids,” Rosenberg added. “So
it just depends on what the club as a
whole plans to do. But we’re de nitely
planning to sustain our current
colonies, and hopefully branch out to
new ones.”
Hollowed admits that Bug Club
isn’t for those who fear insects or
don’t have any particular interest in
interacting with them.
“But if you enjoy looking at insects,
and remark every time you see anything
interesting outside,” he added, “we’ve
got interesting bugs, and there will
continue to be more interesting bugs
that you can care for, and…watch.”
Rosenberg extends a wholehearted
invitation for members of the Polity
to join the Bug Club, or at least drop
by and look at the cockroaches and
silkworms, housed in Mellon 210.
“We’re very fun, it’s very chill and
low commitment,” he said. “If you
don’t sign up to care for the bugs, it’s
no pressure and you can still stop by
any time. ”
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9
�St. John's Club Summaries
Report writer in order of apperance: Elias Christian, Conor Flynn, Alayna Raymond (x2), John Teague, Troy Brown, Your Imperial
Wickets (Mia Kobylski), Conor Flynn, Craig Koch (x2), and Peter Boersema (photo by Tim Mewmaw)
Energia
his year Energeia, the long-time on-campus literature
and arts magazine, produced two issues as usual – one
for each semester. With a general focus on generating more
awareness for Energeia this year a er the break in campus
culture during the online era, we made an effort to be loud
about who we are and actively engaged with the Polity. e
year saw the emergence of a Twitter and Instagram presence
(in conjunction with the rise of SJC Twitter Campus) for
Energeia, as well as many ever-present signs and posters
that urge submissions. We hosted one open mic, one
holiday jazz release party (courtesy of a partnership with
the Jazz Coalition), and one sticker contest, as well as a
Shakespeare read-along and a rolling call for audio-visual
submissions for our Instagram (while we work on a website
and a reliable archiving process.) We also produced two
sets of our popular stickers, again one for each semester.
Between essay writing periods, the COVID-19 outbreak,
and budgeting difficulties, we were not able to host as many
events as we would have liked in the second semester, but we
are con dent that Energeia is very much alive in the Polity
as a force for platforming poets and artists in as many ways
as we can. We hope that it will continue to grow its presence
on the Annapolis campus and to develop as a trusted venue
for creative expression, whether through our issues or our
events, in years to come.
T
Food Recovery Network
W
e have worked within the student body and local
community to build infrastructure for the systematic
and team-based recovery of food surpluses—both from
campus and local venues—resulting in the distribution of
over 1,500 pounds of surplus to Johnnies and people in the
Annapolis community!
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23, 2022
Project Polity
P
roject Polity had been somewhat dormant over the past
two years due to the pandemic. Aidel and myself had
reached out to the previous club archons separately over
the summer with the hope of bringing it back into campus
life. In doing that, we were able to revive the club and
run an incredibly successful canned food drive led by our
dear intramural captains. We also had a steady turnout for
tutoring at the Stanton Center, where we helped children
with the homework and building academic skills. ere are
many other events that we weren’t able to accomplish this
year, but we will certainly be pursuing next year (reach out
to me if you have particular service projects you’d like to
do!)
Our club slogan is ‘ e Program in Practice’. It is our
belief that when one receives a liberal education, and are
consequently impressed with the notions of what it means
to be a good person, we ought to be practicing these ideas.
We serve each other in the classroom through listening and
considering objects of virtue, friendship, and happiness. By
helping the greater community, we can share these ideas
beyond ourselves. A liberal education is not a solitary one;
it requires community. Project Polity is meant to be a vessel
through which students can practice the human good and
share in a greater sense of community. Please consider
coming out to tutoring and volunteering next year.
“Compassion and love give meaning to our activities and
make them constructive” — e 14th Dalai Lama
�Student Jazz Coalition
T
KWP
K
WP has experienced enormous success during this
school year. Despite the lack of an auditorium, we were
able to put on six different productions with incredible
polity involvement and reception. ere are many talented
and passionate espians on this campus that help imbue
meaning, humor, and beauty into the art of theater. Special
thanks needs to be extended to graduating senior Ellie
Laabs, whose dedication to this cra has inspired so many
students. She has been an impressive archon for this club,
maintaining its health over the pandemic, directing many
successful shows, and keeping the love of theater alive
and well. It has been an honor and privilege to learn from
and work with her as well as everyone else involved in our
productions.
As a nal means of commemorating our work, here is a
list of our productions, along with their talented directors.
he Student Jazz Coalition rose from the dead this year.
As last year and the year prior’s graduation proved
devastating to the continuation of club, the Coalition had
to be refounded almost from scratch in the Fall semester,
and what a time we’ve had. A er a month of preparation,
our rst performance was at Collegium, where we played
“On the Sunny Side of the Street” and “Chim Chim Cheree” for the Polity. As archon, one of my favorite memories
was an audience member’s exclamation that “wow, jazz is
awesome!” e Coalition has always been an important
access point for the Polity’s experience of an incredibly
large and sophisticated genre of music.
Second semester came around with big plans. Since
the beginning of the Coalition’s renewed life, I’ve had a
conception of a “Jazz Lounge” a er lecture, a way for me to
share with the Polity the genre of music I love as a way for
them to relax and wind down a er a tough week of class.
We wound up putting on two of these wildly successful
events. ere was massive attendance and we played for
hours. Looking out on the crowd, I could tell everyone
was having a lot of fun. Other than that, we played at the
Croquet Waltz, at Lola’s, and during Admitted Student’s
weekend.
As the most senior members of the Coalition are
Sophomores, this group has a long time to achieve any longterm goals we set out for. Expect more lounges, waltzes, and
live sessions in the future! Here’s a running playlist of every
song the Coalition has played so far:
Exit the King by Eugène Ionesco
Directed by Joseph Richard
Our Town by orton Wilder
Directed by Ellie Laabs and Birdi Mueller
Pride and Prejudice adapted by Jon Jory
Directed by Alayna Raymond
Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind
Directed by Wyatt Sweeney
Antigone by Sophocles
Directed by Enkh-Od Batzorig, Ann Burke, and Levan
Kiladze
Almost, Maine by John Cariani
Directed by Benjamin Kay, Natalie Kreppner, Ian
Howell, Jordan Kammeyer, Birdi Mueller, Allegra Hall,
Aviel Honey, Nick Rabalais, and Ellie Laabs
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11
�Christian Fellowship
A
welcoming and open space where Johnnies can gather
in faith, mutual support, dialogue, and encouragement
in areas of student life, mental health, and in a life of selfgiving and service.
Athletic Tournaments
R
Juggling Club
J
uggling club meets every week to practice and perform
juggling, all skill levels are welcome from expert to
absolute beginning. We have also gone to juggling-related
events off campus and we hope to do more of this in the
future.
ay Matsumoto helped to host two tournaments
this year with an experienced and less-experienced
bracket for each tournament. e sports were ping pong
and basketball and each event drew over 40 participants.
Albert Yang took the ping pong crown in the experienced
division, defeating Craig Koch 3-2 a er a reset of the
bracket. Hannah Beversluis won the honor of rst in the
less experienced bracket. In the 2v2 tournament, Craig
Koch and Mike Mayo took victory in the A-team bracket
a er going down 8-0 in the nals and Jacob Lees and Brock
Neese took victory in the B. e events were a joy, and
they were a good opportunity for Johnnies to ex their
competitive selves.
Croquet
2
021-2022 was a building year for the team. We went
from only having four members at the end of last year to
about een. e fresh talent shown by the underclassmen
secures a bright future for this game on campus. Having the
Annapolis Cup return in any way possible was the main
goal. Although the trophy went to Navy, every player gave
it their all on the court. We hope that the Cup will draw
more interest in the club and keep the tradition alive a er
its hiatus. Our lone senior, Connor Shin, showed incredible
leadership and spirit. He will truly be missed by all on the
team.
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23, 2022
A-team 2v2 Champions,
Craig Koch and Mike Mayo
Ping Pong
Champion, Albert
Yang
�covering campus activities (especially Friday night lecture),
and a dedication to making the paper bi-weekly so that
it can serve as a reliable home for announcements and
communications.
I’m very excited for e Gad y’s future, and I look
forward to sharing it with all of you.
The Gadfly
T
he Gad y has had a very successful year. e paper has
consistently featured interviews, reporting, serious
re ection, tenuous opinion, photography, poetry, ction
and artwork. ough we were not able to release as frequently
as we would have liked to, the issues were consistently wellreceived and read throughout the college community. We
were able to publish 12 issues in print during this year,
and, since we print about 200 copies each time, that means
that we’ve published and distributed around 2400 copies.
O entimes, these copies can be spotted on the desks and
tables of Johnnies throughout the land, and such a sight, to
me at least, is always a welcome and warming one.
A new feature of the Gad y this year was the addition
of regular columns and contests that rely on submissions
from the polity for their life. Songs Sung, Songs Lo ed,
started by myself (Craig Koch) and Nate Talbutt, was the
longest running of these and saw 9 articles through to
publication by 9 different authors. e Black Box, a column
for all things lm, television, or otherwise inside of a black
box, saw an inaugural submission by Ranger Kasdorf that
inspires con dence for the future of the column. And Mx.
Anthon, in the last issue, announced the beginning of a
new column (What Does is Mean?) that aims to bring
the Gad y back to its roots as a home of communication
by offering translations and poetry that the community
can read and reply to. And, on the side of the contests, we
saw two contests through to the end, awarding $150 in
gi cards and receiving an impressive array of talented and
thoughtful submissions. e hope is that opportunities like
these help to make the Gad y common and exciting in a
way that it is not if it is always the same people writing their
same things.
A few ideas I have planned for the year ahead are these:
the addition of intramural correspondents, the addition of a
dedicated editor and designer for each section of the paper,
a continuation of tutor spotlight, a greater commitment to
Crew
T
his year’s crew seasons, as with so many things this
year, were in some ways gratifying and in some ways
frustrating. Returning to the boathouse in the fall for the
rst time since 2019, there were only a handful of veteran
rowers, and none with experience as coxswains. e team
was blessed, however, with an unusually large crop of novices.
Although the work was not always easy, it was a great deal
of fun to watch their improvement. Unfortunately, due to
a convergence of factors, we weren’t able to compete in any
regattas.
We returned in the spring with a smaller group of rowers,
who had the opportunity to learn sculling and try out some
smaller boats. We also enjoyed holding the Ritter Cup, an
intramural regatta on College Creek. e team and I are
looking forward to next fall, when we’ll likely be able to
compete in some regattas against other schools and clubs.
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13
�Sailing Trivia
Madelyn Minor and Jonah
1. What does FJ stand for?
A) Fast Jumper
B) Facetious Jester
C) Flying Junior
D) Fraudulent Juvenile
2. Which is NOT a position you can hold on an FJ?
A) Helm – In charge of the tiller, the main sheet, navigation, and strategy;
sits in the back; may or may not be skippering (barking orders).
B) Crew – In charge of jib sheets, centerboard, hiking, wing on wing,
watching the helm’s blindspots, bailing, and other odd jobs.
C) Second Crew – In charge of staying out of the way, and sometimes the
music.
D) Powder Monkey – In charge of the artillery. Probably a hostage.
Expendable.
3. When you ___, you turn the stern of your boat across the wind. (Choose
all that apply)
A) Jibe
B) Gybe
C) Jybe
D) Gibe
4. Maximum speed of any displacement monohull – commonly called its
hull speed – is governed by which simple formula?
Hull speed in knots equals…
A) 1.34 x the weight of passengers and cargo in pounds
B) Centerboard length in feet x squared mast height
C) 1.34 x the square root of the boat’s length at its waterline in feet
D) Moon phase x skipper’s zodiac
5. Why is the horizontal spar attached to the mast called the boom?
(Choose all that apply)
A) It was named a er Charles Boom
B) It's derived from the Latin bombus
C) Back in the 1600's, sailors smuggled gunpowder across the Atlantic in
their booms
D) Boom goes boom (you go splash)
6. Which colleges have hosted the regattas SJC competed at this year?
A) William and Mary, University of Delaware, Washington College
B) Princeton, Navy, Loyola
C) University of Hawaii, Columbia, ueen’s University
D) Virginia Tech, University of Pennsylvania, and the last one we hosted
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23, 2022
�7. What kind of “look Mom, no hands!” sailing is actually doable (and
fun!)
A) Boomless Sailing
B) Rudderless Sailing
C) Sail-less Sailing
D) Sailor-less Sailing
8. Which is the correct response to your boat capsizing?
A) Make like Dumbo and roll that baby back to the docks
B) Contemplate the nature of perfectly circular rotation. If nothing is
being displaced, is it still a type of motion?
C) Repent
D) Climb over the gunnel as it heels until you’re standing on the
centerboard in fully-capsized position; use your weight to pull the boat back
upright, scooping your partner up into the boat in the process; as it rights,
climb back over the gunnel and aunt your perfect absence of moisture to
your drowned rat of a partner
9. Which is NOT a creature the SJC sailing team faces when sailing in the
Severn?
A) Navy boats
B) Disarmingly beautiful sunsets
C) Herons
D) Boredom
10. ree of these are generally advised against during a regatta. Which of
them should you totally do?
A) Do penalty spins around your least favorite team
B) Steal your opponents’ wind
C) Port-tack the eet
D) Feed the seagulls
11. What does the sailing team do when the weather’s too bad for sailing?
A) Sail anyways!
B) Chalktalk in the Boathouse!
C) Hiking tournaments!
D) Walk-the-plank tournaments!
12. Red Right Returning is used to remember what?
A) at you keep red markers on starboard when entering a channel from
an open body of water
B) at gingers are always correct, so take back what you said about them
C) Which color is the opposite of green, which direction is the opposite
of le , and what Penelope thinks Odysseus has been taking his sweet time
doing, husbands amiright
D) Nothing. I made it up
Answers located on the back cover of this issue!
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�Things United and Unities
uke riner
P
roposition VI of Proclus’ Elements of eology1 attempts
to prove that “Every multitude consists either of things
united, or of unities”:
in no respect whatsoever in e One, then such a multitude
would necessarily possess no oneness, no unity of its own.
But a multitude entirely divorced from self-unity by its
non-participation in e One, and thus being “in every
It is evident that each of things many will not be itrespect indeterminate,” will be either pure nothingness or
self multitude alone, and, again, that each part of this
pure manyness; it must be either one or the other, since it
will not be multitude alone. But if it is not multitude
is again prevented from any middle ground, being barred
alone, it is either united or unities. And if indeed it
from any sort of de ned or determinate quantity or limit to
partakes of e One it is united; but if it consists of
itself. If it had a certain limit to itself, some clear quantity,
things of which that which is primarily united consists,
then it would, for that very reason, have to be participating
it will be unities. For if e One itself exists, there is
in some respect in e One, which the multitude we are
also that which primarily participates of it, and which
entertaining does not. But neither of these possibilities—
is primarily united. But this consists of unities: for if it
pure manyness or pure nothingness—can be right. For “if
consists of things united, again, things united consist
each is many, each will consist of in nities without limit,”
of certain things, and this will be the case to in nity.
since a limitation implies a determinateness to quality and
It is necessary, however, that what is primarily united
being, which comes only through participation in e One.
should consist of unities. And thus we have discovered
But this would mean that each and every multitude in the
what we proposed at rst, [viz. that every multitude
world would be in nite, extending inde nitely throughout
consists either of things united, or of unities.]
the entire universe and beyond. But this is absurd, since
the multitudes in the world in every case possess a certain
Let’s break this proposition down, so that we might limit and dimension. Likewise, any multitude being a pure
better understand the point being made. First and foremost, nothingness is obviously absurd, since it would contradict
what is the distinction between the “things many” and its own existence ceasing to anything at all. us it is
“multitude” he sets out with?
necessary to admit that all multitudes participate in e
Since Proclus begins by positing the “things many” and One to a certain yet not perfect degree, since that which
only then proceeds to clarify that such things do not belong participates perfectly in
e One is not a multiplicity
solely to multitude alone, it is evident at the outset that at all, but is in fact simply e One Itself. is is, in fact,
things such as these are constituted partially by multitude, what Proclus proves explicitly in his second proposition,
and are thus a whole of which multitude is only a single affirming that everything “which participates in e One
part. Proclus explains this nature precisely in the very is alike one and not one.” Hence Proclus’ assertion at the
rst proposition of the Elements, enunciating that “every
notes
multitude partakes in some respect of e One.” is is (1) Translation by Peterson.
itself evident by the fact that all things can be understood (2) As Proclus goes on to prove explicitly in EoT props. XXI-XXIII.
as a one, that is, as a single, comprehensible being or entity,
due to their participation in e One, just as things which
possess the quality of beauty do so by their participation in
the Beauty that presupposes and presides over each and all of
them2. If, then, there was some multitude that participated
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�outset of proposition VI that “each of the things many will
not be itself multitude alone.” If by “things many” he simply
means those beings which possess some multitude—which
is every being that is not simply e One—then clearly
each of those things must also participate to some degree in
e One, and thus will not be only multitudinous.
We thus proceed to the other distinction which the main
body of the proposition is constituted by. When Proclus
argues that “every multitude consists either of things united
or of unities,” how are we to understand the one as opposed
to the other, so that we can suppose all multitudes to consist
either in the one or the other?
All beings are made determinate by virtue of their
participation in e One (props. I, III), and “if indeed
it partakes of e One it is united” (prop. VI). But since
they each derive their particular oneness and thus their
determinacy from e One, then necessarily the multitude
that they also possess along with their oneness—since
they participate in e One only partially—can only be
constituted by other things in the same way participant
in e One. For if the constituents were not participants
in the same way, then they would participate perfectly in
e One, or in other words simply be e One; but this is
impossible, since e One cannot make up the multitude
of something else. Or otherwise they would be nothing
at all, since they would not be e One nor a participant
in It; but this is also impossible, since nothingness cannot
constitute any existent thing. us, every determinate thing
has its multitude constituted by things of the same nature
as itself. Take, for instance, a tree: the tree is understood as
a thing, that is, as a single, determinate being possessing its
own identity and distinctness from other things, by virtue
of its participation in e One. But while this is the case,
we are simultaneously able to analyze the tree and divide it
into different parts such as the branches, leaves, and trunk,
and understand the tree to be constituted by each of these
parts. e multitude of the tree, then, consists in things
united, insofar as each of the parts we know the tree to be
divisible into are understood primarily in their identity as
constituents. But we can think of these parts in a different
way; instead of thinking of them simply as constituents
of the whole, we can also think of them individually as
their own determinate thing, that is, as their own unities.
is is the meaning of our claim that the multitude of a
determinate thing is made up of other determinate things;
our very ability to recognize the branches and leaves and
trunk of the tree as distinct and unique things in themselves
is proof of this fact.
We have, then, three distinct modes or levels by which
we can conceive of each determinate thing. ere is, rst,
the thing’s primary identity, which it attains by virtue of its
participation in e One. Second, there is the multitude
underlying and constituting the thing, which the central
identity of the thing may be dissolved into. ird, there
Cotton Panel, ca. 1800, artist unkown
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�is the determinate identity of each part of the multitude
that the rst thing is in that way constituted by. In this way
the primary thing can be thought of either as consisting in
“things united” or in “unities.” If we conceive of the primary
thing simply, then its constituent multitude will simply be
things united in it; however, if we consider each part of
the constituent multitude in themselves, then we realize
them to be just as determinate as the primary thing, and
thus unities in themselves. To use our earlier example, there
is rst the tree itself, then the branches, leaves, trunk, and
so on, and nally there are each of those parts taken in
themselves as their own unities.
Plotinus concurs with this view of the relationship
between unity and being at the outset of his tractate “On
e Good, or e One” (VI.9.1)3:
It is in virtue of unity that beings are beings. is is
equally true of things whose existence is primal and
of all that are in any degree to be numbered among
beings. What could exist at all except as one thing?
Deprived of unity, a thing ceases to be what it is called:
no army unless as a unity; a chorus, a ock, must be
one thing. Even house and ship demand unity, one
house, one ship; unity gone, neither remains thus
even continuous magnitudes [which] could not exist
without an inherent unity; break them apart and their
very being is altered in the measure of the breach of
unity.
divided in the same way into things united, which can be in
turn thought of as their own unities, and so on ad in nitum.
While a branch of the tree can be isolated as its own unity
independent of its part as constituting the tree, the branch
can also be divided up in the same way.
But since each thing can be divided to an in nite degree,
then it seems that the thing would in a sense be constituted
by a kind of in nity, at least in potentiality and within its
multitude. But if it’s true that “there is no being constituted
of in nities without limit” (prop. I), then how can this be
possible?
We need to be careful here and clarify distinction
between indeterminate and thus in nite multitude, which
Proclus has clearly admitted to being absurd, and the
potentially in nite extension or division of determinate
beings into other determinate beings. As opposed to the
former absurdity, this latter idea is founded precisely in the
determinate being which things nd in and through their
participation in e One. It is of course true that we can
endlessly repeat the three levels of unity, since all beings
contain a degree of multitude, and the things united in this
multitude are themselves unities, are themselves beings;
but, by that same token, we are never, in this inde nite
delving into the unities of unities, conceiving of anything
indeterminate, or, in other words, anything which does not
participate in e One, this participation giving all things
their determinacy and unity. For the primary multitude is
itself a being by virtue of its unitary identity, and the things
united to make up that primary being are themselves unities
and thereby beings. us, no matter how much we divide
beings into their individual constituents, we will always
be conceiving of things which are both multitudes and
participants in e One, which is precisely the composition
of every being. erefore, the sort of in nity which comes
from our division of unities into things united into other
unities is not the sort which Proclus nds to be absurd,
since that absurdity is only found in nonparticipant rather
than participant multitudes.
In order to be a being at all, it is necessary to possess a
self-concentrated unity which aggregates all constituents
into a single identity; if there was not this centrality, then
there would be no one being, but only an indeterminate
multitude. is is, as Plotinus emphasizes, just as true for
things which we commonly understand as more explicitly
an aggregation of multitude as for anything else. Since all
things can be divided into the diversity of their multitudes,
since all things must, by participating in e One, possess
such a multitude along with their primary oneness, then it
doesn’t matter whether we’re talking about an army, or a
ock of birds, or a tree.
But what is also clear from this formulation is that these
three “levels” we have established are inde nitely repeatable.
notes
We know that this must be the case by virtue of what
has been established concerning the impossibility of an (3) Translation by Mackenna.
indeterminate multitude. Since all things having multitude
can be understood as unities in and of themselves, or as
a part of a greater multitude with the same determinate
nature, then every being can be divided into unities. And
each of those unities can be subsequently themselves be
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�Head Against the Light (The Artist's Sister)
by Umberto Boccioni
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�Polity As Polyphony
Luke Briner
W
hen I re ect on the incredible wealth of educating
and edifying experiences I’ve been fortunate enough
to have over the course of my sophomore year, the idea that
has impressed itself most continually and intensely upon me
is that of concord, of the beauty and marvelous goodness
which can arise from the effective organization of parts in
relation to the whole. is idea is rendered most plainly
and most wonderfully in the singing that I’ve done in my
music tutorial, as well as in the St. John’s Chorus. When we
get together to sing, I feel that I am giving myself—or at
least my voice—to a display of order which brings forth a
majesty of beauty far exceeding anything which I would be
capable of on my own, and yet one which I am deeply and
irrevocably intertwined. Despite the fact that I am only a
single voice out of many, and that my voice is, as a citizen
of a musical polity, strictly required to obey the letter of
the score’s law in lockstep with its fellow citizens, this act
of conformity feels not oppressive but supremely liberating.
I am contributing in such a way to the performance of the
piece as a whole that I am, at the same time, basking in its
very wholeness, witnessing, spellbound, a living, breathing
organism of beauty, not from without, but from within, as
one of its own organs.
is is already signi cant enough. But what really
compels me about this sort of concord is precisely the fact
that we observe it not merely in music as such, but in a great
many parts of life, and in virtually every aspect of our life at
St. John’s in particular. e model of our entire education
is predicated clearly upon this exact principle. What is
seminar, what are any of our classes, except for an intellectual
polyphony, with every participant their own melody line
set with the task of aligning itself not only with each of its
fellow lines individually, but with the accumulated whole?
e majesty of polyphony is necessarily founded upon
the amiable relations of each line to all of its fellows, with
every such relation giving miraculous rise to an entirely new
hypostasis of sound greater than the mere sum of its parts,
with each such hypostasis itself entering into friendship in
the same way with every other giving rise to the supreme
glory of musical experience as a whole. Likewise, a good St.
John’s student understands themselves to be fundamentally
subordinate to the goals and well-being of the discussion
as a whole, and accordingly endeavors to contribute to
that discussion in a way that’s fruitful not merely for
themselves, but for the entire class. e insight which the
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class produces communally through the earnest but selfeffacing contribution of each of its members is the great and
unique fruit of our educational model; and, most crucially,
our tasting of that fruit is simultaneous with our effort to
cultivate it.
We observe the same phenomenon at play in our polity
as a whole. e polity is an organism which is continually
produced and sustained by the effort of each of its members
individually and by the subsidiary groups constituted by
them, and which is made beautiful by the effective harmony
of all such parts with all others. One person devotes
themselves to administration and politics; another writes
industriously for the pleasure and education of the polity;
another enlivens and colors campus life by theater, music,
and art; and another gives themselves to supporting and
serving the community. Each one of these, and each group
or club or scene they are members of, are organs of the one
great organism, are melodic lines which, however beautiful
they might be on their own, realize their highest potential
as a unique participant in and contributor to the polyphony
of our whole Polity. Each giving up to the whole what gi s
they might have, and receiving from the font of that whole
exceedingly more—this is, as Plato so rightly concluded,
the essential condition of Justice, and for the polity just
as much for the song. is thought continues to move me
every time I really sit with it.
Now someone might raise the objection here that I
shouldn’t so rmly subordinate the part to the whole and
the individual to the community, and, moreover, that I
shouldn’t ascribe beauty to the whole in itself but rather
to the parts themselves which constitute that whole.
Zuckerkandl notes, a er all, that polyphony is characterized
primarily by “emphasis on ‘the many within the one’” ( e
Sense of Music, p. 139), not the other way around, and it is
the Many which gives rise to beauty, not the One; therefore,
each part, each individual, shouldn’t feel so strictly yoked to
the whole and the community, and should focus far more
on themselves; this, they might say, is what it really means
to think polyphonically.
But while the foundations of this way of thinking
are fundamentally correct, it nevertheless misses the
more crucial point that the many is only beautiful when
it is comprehended as a One. Polyphony is, naturally,
characterized primarily by “the many in the one” rather
than “the one in the many,” but this doesn’t do anything
�to alter the fact that we can only appreciate a polyphony
as a single thing, regardless of the multitude it might
contain within itself. Even if the melodies are legion and
all exceptionally beautiful, we appreciate them all only
when we hear them as a whole, and only when each of them
agree with each other sufficiently to give rise to a whole
that is beautiful. is is a necessary move if we wish to
bring about the greatest beauty, since it is the consonance
between the parts which is always more beautiful than each
part on their own. It’s therefore necessary for all parts to
conform strictly to the whole, and for the well-being of
that whole to be their active goal and priority. Moreover,
it is precisely this fact that leads Zuckerkandl in the same
chapter to note how melodies must conform to a rigorous
set of rules in order to control the dissonance that could
occur between them, even as they maintain some of their
own freedom and uniqueness. Likewise, our good consists
most completely not in our own individual good but in the
good of the whole, and to reject the strict regulation which
is necessary to maintain that whole would be to degenerate
from polyphony to cacophony and from polity to anarchy.
With this point especially in mind, it should be obvious
that I have so far been talking only in terms of the ideal,
and that our own actual Polity o en falls appallingly short
of that ideal. ere are many students who, even in their
second year, display an almost incomprehensible inability
to not be burdens to the group discussion; people whine
like spoiled children over the most basic Covid prevention
measures; and, just below the surface, there is a disgusting
underbelly of gossip, drug abuse, sexism, racism, and sexual
assault, which has made me, if no one else, extremely angry,
and hesitant, if not ashamed, to actually be with most of
my peers.
e situation is made all the more frustrating by the fact
that we have actively chosen this disharmonious ugliness,
have actively chosen to stain our polity and thereby each
of us as individuals; all that’s necessary for us to change our
course and achieve the great consonance of which we are
capable is to recognize our duty to each other, to modify
and improve our behavior and attitudes accordingly, and to
accept and respect the rules which would help everyone live
safer and happier lives here. It is, in fact, precisely this kind
of resolution which the freedom of our minds as students
of the liberal arts actually consists in, rather than in myopic
egotism or in simply reading a lot of very nice books and
learning how to talk pretty—the purpose of studying the
liberal arts is to learn to become an excellent human being,
not a shameless, self-absorbed sophist.
But the cause of that frustration can also be the source
of our hope: we are fundamentally free to recognize these
truths, and to improve ourselves and thereby our whole
community. If a liberal education is not capable of granting
us the ability to do this if we commit ourselves to it, then
no form of education can. Let us, then, recognize our duty
to the whole and the supreme beauty which can be found in
our absorption in it; let us work to make our polity a more
beautiful polyphony.
Singing Angels by Jan van Eyck
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�Chess Club
Michael Jeramaz
2
021 was an exciting year for chess fans, as the long-awaited
world championship match between champion Magnus
Carlsen and challenger Ian Nepomniachtchi nally took
place in Dubai. Proof of the event’s sensational popularity
is the record breaking viewership it garnered on multiple
streaming platforms. Chess clubs and bars alike were packed
around the world, with fans playing along at home while
rooting for their favorite player. I fondly remember the
electricity of this time, and my eagerness was vented during
my participation at chess club. Beginning only last semester,
chess club is a young but consistently popular club. Raking
in an average of eight to ten people, the club was populated
by players of varying levels. Some people had never played
chess before, while others had a more extensive background.
e environment was relaxed, as it took place in the evening
a er a long week of classes. Playing was typically free form
with some games being competitive while others were more
casual. More experienced players sometimes took time to
teach beginners, and these lessons proved educational for
everyone involved. e culture of chess club was one of
openness and inclusion. People would spontaneously join
and leave the club whenever they pleased. At the same time,
the club established consistent participation with the same
people by the end of the semester. We ended the year with
pizza and drinks and played a game on a Mega board chess
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set. Players of differing skill levels were partnered together,
leading to an imbalanced game with many twists and turns.
A er a few hours, with both teams holding a winning
advantage at some point, the game concluded hilariously
in a draw, marking an ironic albeit satisfying conclusion to
chess club’s inauguration. Club founder, Daniel Han, has
this to say about his experience as archon: “Next year, I
hope chess club will have more lessons without losing its
relaxed environment and will be able to organize an allschool tournament. I was proud to have started this club
because people had talked about doing this since the time I
was a freshman, but it never came to fruition until this year.
I am deeply grateful for the support and encouragement
that people at chess club have given me. Without their
consistent participation and help, chess club wouldn’t have
been possible. I can leave the college having shared a game
that I love and am happy to know that this club will continue
and be le in great hands a er I graduate.” Despite being
1400 years old, the game of chess is in the midst of a massive
popularity boom, moving the game from an intimidating
monolith of intellectualism to a game which can be enjoyed
casually by a wider audience. e club’s goal is to emphasize
the game’s approachability while maintaining the epic
struggles and wonders which have captivated and drawn so
many players to chess.
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�One Journey ends, and another begins, at
the Robert Morris Inn
Connor Shin
W
hether I like it or not, this is my nal restaurant
review for e Gad y. I knew that for my nal
article, it’d have to be something special, and I’m happy
to report that the hour-long drive to a sleepy Maryland
port town was totally worth it. e trip itself could take
up an entire article in its own right, with me and my two
roommates encountering an old ghter jet in a random
municipal airport off Route 50, literal hordes of adorable
rabbits hopping around picturesque waterfront houses in
Oxford, a chance conversation with the ex-virologist owner
of a beautifully-restored Volkswagen Karmann Ghia, and
one of the most gorgeous sunsets you can nd anywhere
on the Eastern Shore. Lest I get swept up in sentimentality,
I should mention the actual destination of my ambitious
expedition: the Robert Morris Inn, the oldest full-service
inn in the country.
I’ll try not to get sidetracked with the rich history of
this 312-year-old establishment, but the fact that the likes
of author James Michener, George Washington (yes, that
George Washington), and the Founding Father who lent his
name to this inn have stayed here should tell you that this
place has some serious pedigree. You’ll be eating the food of
Chef Mark Salter, whose experience runs the gauntlet of a
ve-star hotel in Switzerland, the Scottish Salon Culinaire,
the James Beard Foundation, and everything in-between.
Stepping into the inn’s tavern is akin to walking out of a
time machine; the walls and ceiling are lined with thick
mahogany wood, which makes entering during a bright day
quite jarring, as your eyes will need a few seconds to adjust
to the drastic change in light level. You’re greeted with the
warm, welcoming scent that old, wood and brick buildings
seem to always possess, as well as the sight of a spotless 18th
century dining room that wouldn’t look out of place in a
John Trumbull painting. It’s worth trying to reserve a seat
during off-hours, but not just so that you can take the time
to appreciate the beauty of this traditional tavern in relative
peace. Not only does this place ll up pretty quickly, but
the restaurant appears to only possess a few servers for the
entire dining room; while they all are friendly, competent,
and eager to please, it appeared as though they struggled
at times to deal with the sheer number of tables that
became full during the dinner rush, to the point where my
companions sometimes had to ask multiple times over the
Robert Morris Inn
14 North Morris Street, Oxford, MD
410-226-5111
www.robertmorrisinn.com
Open for inside and outside dining SundaySaturday at 7:30 AM-11:00 PM.
Prices: Small dishes $6 to $18, main dishes
$9 to $42, desserts $10.
course of half an hour for small requests like re lls and extra
sauce.
Besides the occasional lapse in service, I can safely say that
my comrades and I had the time of our lives. Since this was
going to be a one-time experience, we settled on ordering
a smorgasbord of dishes to share. In total, we ordered
the mixed green salad ($15) and spiced blue cat sh taco
($17) appetizers, the sh’n’chips ($25), Sri Lankan spiced
Scottish salmon ($32), and Robert Morris Inn jumbo
lump crab cake ($39) entrées, and the apple and blackberry
crumble, sticky toffee pudding, and Smith Island cake (all
$10) desserts. Before this banquet was laid out before us,
we were already blown away by the simplest of starters: a
free basket of bread accompanied by a smattering of butter
is something you’ll get at any restaurant worth its salt, but
this bread in particular was dangerously tasty, with the
tiniest hint of sweetness in the crust and a gentle warmth
that permeated every slice. Shamefully, we were tempted
enough to breach a cardinal sin of a multiple-course dinner,
and emptied the bread basket in mere minutes. Only by the
grace of God were we able to nish the rest of our dishes
without feeling more stuffed than a anksgiving turkey.
Our two appetizers quickly arrived a er our display
of carb-related gluttony, with the salad conveniently
portioned out on multiple plates in advance. e salad itself
contained many ingredients that I’d normally try to avoid,
namely asparagus, dried cherries, toasted walnuts, and
crumbled goat cheese. Somehow, perhaps with the aid of
a subtle lemon-thyme vinaigrette, I found myself unable to
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�avoid polishing my plate of this refreshing, perfectly-mixed
salad. e tacos, too, were a resounding hit, with one of my
colleagues stating that these were “the best sh tacos [she’s]
ever had”. is was actually my very rst time eating cat sh,
and the spice of the sh’s seasoning was evenly balancedout with the smart application of cotija cheese and sliced
avocado. e sh itself was aky, tender, and very meaty for
a white sh, with not a hint of shiness that plagued the last
seafood tacos that my unfortunate friend was subjected to.
For a centuries-old institution, this unorthodox addition to
their menu is a must-try item.
I’m happy to report that the entrées, too, were universally
well-received. e beer-battered cod arrived neatly arrayed
on a bed of buttered garden peas and hot shoestring fries,
all of which complimented each other perfectly with the
addition of some much-needed tartar sauce. e batter
didn’t overwhelm the naturally-mild cod in the slightest,
but added a slight maltiness and crunch that characterizes
top-notch fried sh. e peas, too, were cooked to just
the right consistency, as was the generous serving of fries.
When my Sri Lankan-style salmon arrived, my palate was
both surprised and blown away by the unique avors that
I haven’t experienced anywhere else. A colorful painter’s
palette of cauli ower mint purée and cilantro crema
added complex layers of sweetness and umami avor to
my buttery-smooth piece of top-quality salmon, and the
accompanying sides of spicy vegetable pakora and crunchy
cucumber ribbons provided the perfect palate cleansers for
this excellent example of an o -overlooked cuisine. Perhaps
most importantly, Chef Salter knows his Maryland recipes
just as well as a true Old Line State native, if his he y 8
oz. crab cake is anything to go by. With the unconventional
accouterments of a spring vegetable hash drizzled with
lemon butter sauce, and a tangy tomato-chili jam in lieu
of boring cocktail sauce, it’s no wonder he managed to beat
the famed chef Eric Rippert at a crab cook-off at New York’s
Le Bernardin. Even without these delicious additions, the
crab cake itself can rival the best that Annapolis has to offer;
if you want a crab cake with plenty of plump, sweet meat,
held together with the merest fraction of seasoned ller,
then you really can’t go wrong with this particular dish.
Just when my friends and I were basking in the relaxing
a erglow of a lling, tasty meal, our homemade desserts
arrived like clockwork. First up was the apple and blackberry
crumble, with a pecan streusel topping and a scoop of vanilla
ice cream on the side. e chunks of fruit within were sweet,
crisp, and not too runny, while the streusel added a layer of
nuttiness and crunch that contrasted nicely with the so
interior of the dessert. Gathering a bit of fruit, a chunk of
streusel, and a dollop of ice cream into one spoonful might
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take a bit of effort, but is absolutely worth it for the full
experience. Unlike the metaphorical crumbling Smith
Island cake from my fever dream of a Bad y article, the
Robert Morris Inn’s rendition of this pancake-like yellow
cake, with pencil-thin lines of decadent chocolate fudge
running across its length, maintained a satisfying rigidity
throughout, even while three voracious diners ate chunk
a er chunk out of it. With a generous dollop of sweet
Chantilly cream on the side, this meticulously-cut wedge
of cake appeared to have come straight out of the well-worn
pages of an old waterman’s cookbook; it was almost a shame
devouring this picture-perfect example of Maryland’s state
dessert. By the time we reached the sticky toffee pudding,
our little group was skeptical that we’d be able to nish the
entire thing. Indeed, the sweet smell emanating from this
caloric nightmare of moist sponge cake, toffee, butterscotch
sauce, and vanilla ice cream was almost enough to get us
to throw in the towel; yet at the same time, it beckoned us
to take one bite, then another, then another. If anything,
the toffee pudding was gone even more quickly than either
of its accompanying desserts; maybe the fact that it’s one
of Chef Salter’s signature dishes has something to do with
its addictive and satisfying nature. In the end, myself and
my two roommates le the Robert Morris Inn even more
happy than when we entered; no small feat, considering
how much fun we had just reaching this colonial oasis on
the serene shores of the Chesapeake.
Normally, I’d end the article with a nal word on whether
this restaurant is worth your time and money, but I think
I’ve made my position on the Robert Morris Inn pretty clear
already. is very well could be the last restaurant review I
write for a while, so I’d like to give a formal farewell while I
have your attention.
For my rst three years at St. John’s, I never read a single
issue of e Gad y. Come senior year, and I still had no idea
that I would ever spend sleepless nights deliberating upon
proper adjectives to describe a tasty pickle, or the right way
to convey my disgust for a disastrous risotto. When I nally
caved to peer pressure, took the leap, and started to put my
culinary critiques to paper, I never expected to receive so
much support from the Polity for my restaurant ramblings,
whether it’s from classmates conveying their appreciation
for a particular joke, or faculty members tracking me down
between classes to request a review of their favorite hangout
spot. is whole experience has been quite eye-opening
for me, since I didn’t think that I had the chops to write
anything that people would actually care about. Over the
course of writing articles this year, I’ve experienced the
best that Annapolis restaurateurs have to offer, some of the
worst misses and disappointments, as well as whatever the
�hell my dining hall “review” was. is summer, I’ve decided
to take my culinary interest one step further, by working
in the kitchen of a small hotel in the south of France to see
whether this career path is something worth pursuing. I’d
be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about my future, but I’m
also pretty damn excited, too. My only regret is that I don’t
have more time to write about all the restaurants I haven’t
yet had the chance to critique, but I suppose that’s a good
metaphor for life itself… or something cliché like that.
Before I sign off, I’ve got a favor to ask of all of you
who will be coming back next year: don’t let these reviews
die. I’ve been thinking for a while about whether I should
pass the torch to a particular Johnnie, but I believe that
every single one of you has plenty to say about the food that
you enjoy and hate on a regular basis. Whether just one of
you decides to take the time to write about your favorite
restaurants, or if a dozen of you want to rag on some
infamous local spots, I’ll be content that, against all odds,
I managed to actually start something worthwhile at this
college.
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27
�To Veto, or Not to Veto, That Is The Question
Tom Ni
W
hat are the duties of the President? In accordance with the Charter and
Polity of St. John’s College, the Student Polity established for itself a
government representative of all polity members. As our instrument of governance,
the Delegate Council accept the responsibilities delegated by the College. Elected
by the entire Student Polity as Chairman of the Delegate Council, the President has
been entrusted with the authority to ensure the ful llment of those responsibilities.
Among those responsibilities are two: the management of funds available to the
Student Polity, and the sanctioning of all student clubs, organizations, committees,
and activities, and their regulations. Unlike Delegates who represent only certain
constituents, namely their class, my duty is to the entire Student Polity. is
principle is the foundation that anchors all my decisions.
I strive to support all student organizations to ful ll their essential functions.
However, there is a multitude of factors that needs to be considered in the
appropriation of funding. Part of the Orthodox Christian Fellowship’s late budget
in question is an item titled simply “Charity.” e Archon later explained the
request was intended to purchase both food and supplies that will be distributed
to Annapolitans in need as care packages. is is undoubtedly a noble proposal.
However, given there’s only just a month le before the semester ends, the Archon
did not detail a plan that is satisfactory. Several delegates and I did not have the
con dence in the effective implementation of the proposal.
e item also raised bigger questions concerning the essence of DC funding and
charity. An action’s potentiality to achieve good does not necessitate its realization.
ere are many ways DC funding could be appropriated to bene t the Polity. I
can approve purchases or funding for certain overdue renovations on campus that
will undeniably bene t everyone. But is it my duty to approve them? Shall they
take precedence over requests that ful ll essential club functions? Should I approve
funding for individual clubs to donate in their name? What about a donation
from DC representing the entire Student Polity? What classi es as charity? How
money is spent is just as important as what the money is spent for. ere are a lot
more nuances to endeavors aiming to achieve certain good. ey all differ, and this
complicates the appropriation of funding for them.
I believe there is a difference between charity and service. Service requires
an active effort driven by morality. Service to others, especially to the wider
community, is commendable and should be encouraged. I believed that it would be
more appropriate and rewarding to have a fundraiser or food drive it this instance
instead of requesting funding to purchase everything. I stated on record that I
would approve essential purchases needed to help OCF organize such projects, and
I will personally support them. However, some failed to see the necessity to make
such a distinction.
Some continued to debate for the original proposal and cited other passed
budgets. Budgets are reviewed individually on their own merit, and the amounts of
other passed budgets that are completely different in nature shall have no relevancy
here. I rarely vote as I preside over the meetings and decide the results of voice votes.
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�Almost all budgets are passed unanimously, and had delegates disapproved of the
other budgets, where were the Nays? Is the necessity to approve this particular item
grounded in duty or self-righteousness? e council should remain objective away
from passions. A er considering all the factors, I concluded it’s not appropriate
to approve the item and voiced my official objection before the vote. Many other
delegates concurred. is was the rst vote of the year that required a division of
the house, and the item did not reach a 2/3 majority. e item only had the simple
majority required to pass to the President for the opportunity for a veto, at which
point I exercised my right to reject the proposal.
It would have been much easier—and much more popular—for me to conform
to the pressure of the DC. Why should I even veto spending that is not from my own
money? How could I not have known the misrepresentation about me that would
spread among the polity? ere is nothing for me to gain but misunderstanding. But
I would dishonor my Oath of Office if I yielded to such fear. e most vocal voices
on DC do not necessarily represent the majority of the polity nor understand our
duties. I make myself accessible to all constituent classes to the best of my ability.
I have instituted an office hour that the Herald will help address DC matters. I do
not take the authority entrusted by the Student Polity, especially the power of veto,
lightly.
e proposal would likely set a precedent. Given there’re still many questions
regarding charity that weren’t adequately addressed, and this late submission did
not present a viable plan, it was my duty to veto the item. I ask my peers to have
faith that I will always, a er much deliberation, carry out my duties in the best
interest of the Polity.
I commend Mr. Nichols-Kaufman’s effort in voicing his opinion and bringing
attention to the issue of service. However, it is very disappointing that students are
nally interested in service and care about what their student government does, only
a er a sensational headline and news of my controversial decision. e controversy
seems to have brought a decidedly personal element: some students have begun to
speculate and question my character, believing that I am against service projects.
Most elections were uncontested, and no one ran for the SCI Secretary and Junior
Rep positions this semester. How many students have devoted some time to serving
the polity? Issues that received the most attention this past year were underage
alcohol policy, smoking policy, and donuts. Indeed, I would hope that a er all
the readings about virtues, we would have a better understanding of morality and
service.
One need only look and will nd that our polity does not lack public servants
or opportunities to serve. Mr. Flynn runs food drives collecting le over food and
bringing them to those in need. Talents like Ms. Bates and Ms. Taylor donated the
proceeds from the sale of their artifacts at the Ukrainian Festival. e a erschool
tutoring program at the Stanton Community Center under the leadership of
Ms. Townsley and Ms. Raymond. May these students be inspirations to all of us.
However, our enthusiasm for service cannot exist only when it receives attention.
We must remain steadfast in our commitment at all times. e reward for service
should be in the virtue of service itself. I look forward to supporting all projects that
abide by this principle. Project Polity is a DC chartered organization speci cally
established to engage the Polity in meaningful service to both SJC and the greater
Annapolis community. It manages various volunteer projects and provides support
and guidance to new initiates. I would like to encourage all members of the polity
to partake in its projects.
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29
�Senior's
Annotating Phaedrus
Caleb Dutton
My written words embarrass me,
My simple mind with whom I plea:
You must refrain from markings plain,
For Socrates shuns summary.
My bold black pen made heavy stain,
Tempted by margins nigh the main
Columns of speech and argument,
Whose condensed thoughts I scratched in vain.
is reaction shows improvement.
Four years removed, I know I meant
To blaze a path straight through that book;
Now so discourse in the indent.
One lesson from this school I took:
To ask, not state, why my soul shook.
May questions come where e’er you look,
May questions come where e’er you look.
New York Jazz
George Kalandadze
Monk was laying down his elbow-chords in the corner.
We could taste love and oak on our lips —
e light was dim, and the outside
Tickled in the 32nd bar.
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�Last Words
A home can be anywhere.
Alicia Bravo
H
umans seek stability in any environment. If we feel safe
enough in that stability, we start to make a home.
Even the most desolate, rocky, barren crag of cracked land, at
the edge of a cliff, can start to feel like home if you live there long
enough.
And the people you bond with in that wretched, shitty place
become that much more integral to your survival. You eventually
begin to consider them family.
I would go so far as to say that I consider St. John’s my family.
e analogy that comes to mind of my experience at St. John’s,
with the people in my class in particular, is that we are on board
a submarine during WWII. We aren’t even midshipman - we just
somehow ended up here and decided to fuck around and nd out
what exactly is going on. e submarine is archaic, the equipment
is faulty, there’s leaks everywhere, and we’re 20,000 leagues under
the sea. We’re trapped in this tiny metal tube with no way out for
months - and yet, we have each other. Even when someone says,
“hey, someone just shit in the control room”, we think to ourselves,
“well, that’s just how it is in a submarine sometimes.”
I love this school. I love the people I have met here, even if we
haven’t gotten particularly close. I love being able to sit on the quad
and chat with anyone. I love the people I have had the fortune to
grow close with - I love them ercely, wildly, unabashedly. I love
what the program itself has given me - con dence, the ability to
express my opinions without the anxiety that someone will not
care what I say, an appreciation for the pursuit of knowledge and an
appreciation for beauty in things that before I would’ve considered
unimportant. I feel more comfortable and more “myself ” here, at
this college, than I have anywhere else.
Has it irrevocably messed up my brain? Probably. Would I go
back in time to myself, freshman year, scared out of their mind and
riddled with the intrusive thoughts that I don’t belong here and I
never will, and tell them not to come here?
Absolutely not.
To make a long story short St. John’s for mother fucking ever, bitch.
θα μου λείψεις <3
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31
�Ode to a Dying Highlighter
Sheba Delaney
O thou good and faithful servant
In your guise of garish pink,
How lightly bore your burden
Of emphasizing ink.
As plodding mind moved wearily
rough seas of deepest text,
You always helped me ascertain,
Just what I might say next.
rough years of conversation
At this very chatty school
You've proved your worth in helping me
To sound like less a fool.
And now you draw your nal line
Of faded, weakened hue,
I'll not forget your constant help
And what I owe to you.
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�“I will always remember the time Mr.
Braithwaite took my freshman math
class stargazing. We stood in front of
the ptolemy stone and watched the sky
for most of the night. A few of us even
managed to stay up and watch the sun
rise; after which, Mr. Braithwaite took us
to breakfast at Chick n’ Ruth’s.”
"If I can graduate, anyone can"
"Albania rocks"
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33
�"I am slain"
"I will miss the people and this place a great deal"
“Hey just so you know for future reference Alaska’s abbreviation is AK
and Arkansas’ is AR. Keep your head up, Annapolis.”
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�"You people have stood in my way long enough!
I'm going to clown college."—Homer
“Ask me about my attendance”
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35
�Program Contest Results
1. Joseph Padgett
Aria on Newton's Principia III.6
e full score of Mr. Padgett's aria is included on pages 38 and 39
of this issue, and the QR code to the le can be used to listen to a
recording performed by Birdi Mueller and Rose Zhang!
2. Brandon Garcia
Ballade of the Duel at Alton, Illinois
Ballade of the Duel at Alton, Illinois
Between MM. Lincoln and Douglas
(Being also an Homage to Cyrano de Bergerac)
36
Lightly I toss my stovepipe away,
Calmly upon the public let fall
A silence impressed by ordered array—
en start the address, and to work withal!
A Carthusian in the churchly hall,
A Cicero now, arrived from Rome!
I dally awhile with you, jackal,
en, as I nish my point, strike home.
Oh, for more time! You are pale and gray—
You stutter, you cower, you cringe, you bawl!
Ha!—and I parry your last essay:
So can the turn of a phrase forestall
Truth with its honey, deceit with its gall;
us does the turn of my musing roam
Free, for a time, till the clocks recall,
en, as I nish my point, strike home!
Where shall I carve my turkey? Nay,
Better for you to have shunned this brawl!
Here, in your thought, where sophistries lay?
Your grammar, worn like a mismatched shawl?
Hark, how my words ring musical!
Mark how my tongue oats, light as the foam,
Ready to drive you back to the wall,
en, as I nish my point, strike home!
Refrain
Sir, pray that God, Who is Lord of all,
Strengthen your soul, for your time has come!
Beaten at length, your mind is asprawl—
en, as I nish my point...strike home!
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�3. Cassie Desmond
Meno's Missing
ing
3. Rose Zhang
Crime and Punishment
Honorable Mention
Honorable mention goes to Tuyết-Nhi Nghiêm's poem, Hektor's Helmet,
included in full on the back cover of the issue to preserve spacing as much
as possible.
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37
�38
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39
�Hektor's Helmet
Tuyết-Nhi Nghiêm
Noble Prince Hektor of Troy
man-slaying,
horse-taming,
helmet-shining
Prince Hektor,
reaches for his infant son before he goes to die,
and he cannot hold his child.
Not with the violence of the battle eld.
Cannot look at his baby with his mighty crimson horsehair plume,
Cannot hold him close with the skull crushing arms of a warrior,
Cannot pray for his son's future with the voice that roars commands outside
the walls of Troy.
To coddle this precious child,
Our great soldier must set his bronze helmet, bright with sunlight, in the dirt,
He must laugh a golden laugh with his wife,
So that his face is handsome and not savage.
en, only then, can our noble Prince Hektor,
wife-loving,
child-tossing,
family-protecting
Prince Hektor,
Kiss this child's clean cheeks.
For the arms that swing an infant up high must be those of a father
and not a killer.
I weep for the tenderness of this moment.
I wonder at the power of it,
A father washing the war off of himself before he walks to his child.
How would our lives have been different,
Had our fathers healed their wounds before having us,
before holding us?
THE STUDENT
NEWSPAPER
OF
ST. JOHN’S
COLLEGE
Founded in 1980, the Gad y
is the student newsmagazine
distributed to over 600 students, faculty, staff, and alumna of the Annapolis campus.
Opinions expressed within are the responsibility of
the author(s).
e Gad y
reserves the right to accept,
reject, and edit submissions
in any way necessary to
publish a professional, informative, and thought provoking
newsmagazine.
Submissions sent to the
Gad y should either be
in Google Docs or JPEG
format.
e deadline for
submissions is the Friday prior to publication.
For more information,
contact us via email at
sjca .g adfly@gmail.com
6 0 COLLEGE AVENUE
ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND 21401
1C. 2D. 3AB. 4C. 5BD. 6A. 7B. 8D. 9D. 10B. 11B. 12A.
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�
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The Gadfly, Vol. XLIII, Issue 12
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Gadfly
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Text
Looking in Freshman Lab III – Looking into The Constitution of Bodies:
How does the supposition of particles help us to see? 1
LAVOISIER’S PROGRAM FOR GENERATING SEQUENCES OF EXPERIMENTS LEADING TO FACTS AND
IDEAS, BASED ON MEASURING WEIGHTS (1789)
In his “Preliminary Discourse” 2 Lavoisier lays out guidelines for how to arrive at knowledge in
the physical sciences in general and in chemistry in particular. Students should follow the same course
as “nature follows in the formation of a child’s ideas … [T]heir ideas ought to be only the consequence,
the immediate continuation (suite) of an experiment or observation” (0.6). According to Lavoisier the
child’s first ideas, engendered by its sensations of its needs, are of objects appropriate for satisfying
those needs. Insensibly over time, as a result of a sequence (suite) of such sensations and observations
of suitable objects, the child generates a succession “of ideas, all bound to one another.” As with the
child so in chemistry, if one were “an attentive observer,” one “could, up to a certain point, even find
again” in the sequence of sensations, observations, and analyses “the thread and the linking
(enchaînement) of those ideas, bound to one another, which constitute the totality of what we know” in
chemistry (0.5). 3
In accord with this account, we might say that Lavoisier will aim to show us a sequence of
sensations and observations of experiments and a corresponding sequence of ideas, which he generated
from them. In his case following “the course that nature follows” appears to consist: i) in linking “the
facts and the truths of chemistry in the order most appropriate for facilitating the insight (intelligence)
A Wednesday Afternoon Lecture, delivered at St. John’s College, Annapolis, on April 13th, 2022.
For all translations from the first chapters of Lavoisier, Antoine Lavoisier, Oxygen, Acids, and Water, H. Fisher, ed., C. Burke and M. Holtzman,
trls. (Santa Fe: Green Lion Press, 2019) was consulted and often followed word for word. The references in parentheses are to chapter and
paragraph number in that translation.
3
Dans notre première enfance nos idées viennent de nos befoins; la sensation de nos besoins fait naître l'idée des objets propres à les satisfaire,
& insenfiblement par une suite de senfations, d'observations & d'analyses, il se forme une génération sucçessive d'idées toutes liées les unes aux
autres, dont un observateur attentif peut même jusqu à un certain point y retrouver le fil & l'enchaînement, & qui constituent l'ensemble de ce
que nous savons.
1
2
1
�of beginners” and ii) in ensuring that the consequent ideas “derive immediately from the facts” and
“from experiments and observations.” This arrangement would be “the natural linking of experiences
and observations” “from the known to the unknown” (0.5, .6, .8, .10, .11).
As with the child our “sensations give birth to ideas” and ‘’ideas ought to be only what … follows
immediately an experiment or observation” (0.6). Then we are not led “to draw conclusions which by
no means derive immediately from the facts,” (0.8). By presenting the facts and ideas in this way,
Lavoisier will enable us, if we are attentive, to find for ourselves the thread binding those ideas to one
another. In coming to see this connection, we should be in a situation somewhat like that of Goethe’s
reader—mentioned in the first lecture on looking in Freshman Laboratory—who can follow similarity
through its transitions, by holding in her imagination a temporal sequence of appearances, until she can
derive them from one another.
Based upon our experience in the lab up to this point, the interpretation of “derive immediately
from the facts” is that our awareness of an experiment, whether we performed it or read Lavoisier’s
account of it, gives birth to an idea in us. The experiment suddenly “makes sense” to us. But it wouldn’t
have done so absent the foreknowledge we had acquired through experience. In this respect there is an
analogy with Euclid’s sequence of propositions. A given proposition at the place where it is enunciated
appears to derive immediately from the preceding propositions in the sense that given our familiarity
with the earlier ones, in some cases, insight into the truth of the later one may be born in us as we read
it. 4
Following Lavoisier’s course involves, first, describing all the equipment used in each experiment
and telling the step-by-step story of what was done and what occurred throughout. That story includes
both observations and notes of the qualities of the substances involved in the experiment and of the
The analogy could be extended to include Euclid’s postulates. Just as Euclid needs to request that we admit them, if we are to have the
sequence of insights generated by his propositions, so Lavoisier has to ask that we admit his “principle” “that, in every operation, there is an
equal quantity of matter before and after the operation” (see below), as a condition for the possibility of ideas being born in us immediately in
response to his experiments.
4
2
�weights of all of those substances. Other relevant quantities, such as temperature, pressure, and volume
of gases must also be recorded. 5 In addition, one experiment, even if repeated several times, would not
be sufficient:
Chemistry furnishes two means for determining the nature of the constituent parts of bodies: composition and
decomposition. When, for example, water and … alcohol… are combined, creating … eau-de-vie, we are entitled
to conclude therefrom that eau-de-vie is composed of alcohol and water. But the same conclusion can be reached
through decomposition, and we ought to be fully satisfied in chemistry only as far as we have been able to bring
together both kinds of proof (3.3).
Much of Lavoisier’s focus will be on concluding—from experiments in which he observes and
measures especially the weights of the substances before and after the experiment—to a fact that a
particular substance, having weight W, has been composed from two (or more) other substances, having
respective weights w1 and w2. For instance, after his first description of a pair of decompositionrecomposition experiments, Lavoisier writes that it “does not give us exact ideas about the proportion”
of the weights of the component substances (3.14). So, he goes on to perform a further experiment in
the same series, as a result of which one can determine that the one substance “diminishes by an
amount in weight exactly equal to that by which [the other] is increased” (3.25).
In the course of describing the next set of experiments, having noted that “since nothing with
weight passes through the glass,” Lavoisier writes, “we are entitled to conclude from them that the
weight of whatever substance has resulted from this combination … had to be the same as the sum of
the weights” of the substances that were there before the combination (5.7).
He only later 6 states the “principle” upon which he bases this claim: “Nothing is created, …; we may
posit in principle (poser en principe) that, in every” experiment, “there is an equal quantity of matter
before and after” the experiment, “and that there are only changes, modifications” of matter. 7 He is
In their papers at the end of Equilibrium and Measurement, Marotte and Gay-Lussac reported having done this.
Antoine Lavoisier, Oxygen, Acids, and Water, H. Fisher, ed., C. Burke and M. Holtzman, trls. (Santa Fe: Green Lion Press, 2019), p. 57, note to
5.7.
7 Traité Élémentaire de Chimie, T. 1er (Paris : Cuchet, Libraire, 1789), Ch. 13.
5
6
3
�positing this principle underneath his feet, as it were, like a foundation on which to stand, in order to be
able to investigate. A student 8 put it this way: “you have to find a foundation—which does not shift
around as much as what you are trying to see—on which to discover something new amid what is
shifting.” In this respect Lavoisier seems to be illustrating the following words of Socrates to Glaucon: “a
soul … is forced to seek on the basis of sup-positions (ἐξ ὑποθέσεων)” (Rep 510b). At a minimum
Lavoisier has recognized that such a sup-posit-ion is a necessary condition for being able to learn
anything from chemical experiments by keeping tally of the weights involved in them.
In spite of the support provided by the principle, however, just after having concluded to the
sameness of weights before and after the above experiment, Lavoisier goes on to write that “no matter
how conclusive this experiment may have been, it was not yet sufficiently rigorous,” due to the fact that
it was “not possible to verify the weight” of the resultant compound. “We can only conclude to it by
way of calculation, in supposing it equal to the weights of” the ingredient substances. “But however
evident this conclusion may be, in chemistry and physics it is never allowable to suppose something that
can be determined through direct experiments” (5.9). So, as long as all the weights involved in an
experiment are determinable by some experiment, he does not rely on what he can conclude by
standing on the principle he has posited. For physical scientists have “often supposed instead of
concluding,” and “these suppositions, from one age to the next, … acquire the weight of authority” (0.9).
We might say that when he concludes, Lavoisier encloses together all that he’s observed,
measured, and noted throughout an experiment, in order to come to a fact, which would be the
conclusion, or end, of the experiment. The act of concluding would then be a shift from taking
“composition” as meaning the process of putting (poser) two substances together (com) during an
experiment to viewing it as signifying the qualitative and quantitative make-up, or composition, of the
outcome of an experiment.
8
Katherine Bates in Freshman Lab class, 2020.
4
�For instance, from having made (ayant fait) a certain weight of white flakes out of a given
weight of oxygen and another of phosphorous, one is entitled to conclude to the fact (fait, factum) that
a certain weight of white flakes is made (est fait) of a given weight of oxygen and another of
phosphorous. A decomposition experiment of unmaking the white flakes would allow concluding to the
fact from an un-making. On this literal understanding of “fact,” it would not be correct to say it’s a fact
that a given substance is elementary, since no making or unmaking has shown that to be the case.
However, in view of the principle, such an enclosing-together is possible only if the “walls” of
the “enclosing room” let nothing come in or out, at least in the course of the experiment. That is, we
would have to suppose something which could not be determined through direct experiments, namely,
that “the great walls of the capacious world” are closed, in the sense that they cannot, “suddenly torn
asunder, have burst apart” 9 and have allowed material substances to pass through them in either
direction.
An example of particular ideas that derive immediately from a sequence of facts, each like the
one in the above example of white flakes, might be the idea that this kind of white flakes, which is found
to have various acidic properties (5.18), is a compound substance, or, to take another case, the idea that
water is a compound substance, composed of hydrogen and oxygen, approximately in the ratio of 1g :
5.2555g (8.12). In Lavoisier’s usage such ideas are “consequences” that we “draw” (0.8). An example of
a general idea would then be compound substance.
Perhaps, in the case of compound substance, it is as if we now not only were looking at these
white flakes and remembering them as the concluding frame of a “film strip” of the just performed
composition experiment, but also were seeing, as such a frame of a generalized film strip, any substance
for which such a sequence of experiments had revealed that instances of it were made of two or more
component substances.
9
Lucretius, De rerum naturae, VI.122-23: divolsa repente maxima dissiluisse capacis moenia mundi.
5
�We may take Lavoisier’s figures along with the accompanying text as a musical score in two
different ways. In one way they tell us how to “play” each experiment in our imaginations, picturing the
equipment, the ingredient substances, the sequence of steps and events, and the outcome. We may
write down his numbers for height of mercury, volume of a container, and weights of substances and
then do the calculations. Finally, based upon trust in his report and in his results, we may see that the
burning of phosphorus, which we had considered an alteration of one substance, can be analyzed as the
composition of one substance from two others.
Moreover, we may also see that having kept track of the change in volume and of the weights of
the substances we can conclude to the fact that, for example, 45 gr of phosphorus and 69.375 gr of
oxygen composed to make 114.375 gr of white flakes (5.7). Furthermore, based upon trust that Lavoisier
has done many repetitions of this experiment, we can draw the consequence that such white flakes are
composed of phosphorous and oxygen, roughly in the ratio 1 : 1.54 by weight. So, we now have the idea
of such white flakes as a substance composed of two other substances in this weight ratio.
In the other way of taking the musical score, we “play” Lavoisier’s score in our laboratory, with
equipment similar to his. Here we trust only what we observe, that is, see and measure. Thus—it is
hoped—we arrive at the same conclusion, consequence, and idea, but upon a different basis. In either
way through his “score” Lavoisier has given any human being access to the facts and ideas he has
generated. In that sense these latter are objective.
We also recognize that in addition to the resultant general insight that, in some cases, at least,
apparent alteration might be analyzable as the composition or decomposition of substances, Lavoisier
must have relied, in advance, upon three supplementary insights: 1) that this analysis could be most
productively carried out by keeping track of the weights of the substances involved, 2) that a condition
for the possibility of this keeping-track is the supposition of the principle that, in every operation, there
is an equal quantity of matter before and after the operation, and 3) that another condition for the
6
�possibility of this keeping-track is the supposition that the vessels used in the experiments are
impermeable to the passage of the substances involved.
One way to imagine the generation of these insights would be as follows. Suppose we had left a
piece of moistened steel wool in a jar with a top on it. When we return after several days, we notice not
only the rusting of the steel wool but also a sensation of air being sucked into the jar as we unscrew the
top. It would seem as if something had happened to the air, a reduction in amount, simultaneously with
the rusting. Perhaps we could repeat this experience on a larger scale, using a bell jar, inverted over
mercury, weighing some dry steel wool, before and after the period of several days, etc. If when we
calculated we found a significant reduction in the amount of air and a significant increase in the weight
of the steel wool, we might think that the rusting might be a combining of the steel wool with
something in the air. We could then go on to figure out how much of a reduction by weight the air
underwent and compare that with the weight gain of the steel wool (cp. CB 6). 10 We could note along
the way that our calculations would not be valid, unless we had made Lavoisier’s suppositions.
INTERLUDE: GAY-LUSSAC’S RECOLLECTION OF IDEALLY EXACT LIMIT-NUMBERS (1808)
Before returning to Lavoisier, we shall glance at a paper 11 by Gay-Lussac, which is read about a
week after Lavoisier is finished. Gay-Lussac generally proceeds in accord with the course recommended
by Lavoisier, of beginning with observations and experiments, concluding from them to facts, and
deriving ideas immediately from the latter. He did, however, introduce a new feature. The students
sometimes claim that Gay-Lussac introduced mathematics into Lavoisier-style chemistry. What are they
thinking of?
Gay-Lussac began by noting a contrast between the behavior of gases, on the one hand, and, on
the other, that of liquids and solids, which had been revealed by the experimental work of Edme
The Constitution of Bodies (Annapolis, MD: St. John’s College, Printed Spring 2021), p. 6. Future references to this manual will be noted “CB,”
followed by the page number.
11 “Memoire on the Combination of Gaseous Substances with Each Other” (1808), CB 37-42, translation modified in places.
10
7
�Mariotte. Mariotte showed that the same reduction in pressure, say, by 2/3, applied to volumes of any
two different gases, say, hydrogen and oxygen, would produce the same expansion of an increase by 2/3
in each of the two volumes, so that for an expansible container of a gas at any given fixed temperature
the product of the pressure-number and the volume-number remains the same, as its pressure and
volume vary. In contrast, as Gay-Lussac noted, “the same compression applied to all solid or liquid
substances would produce a diminution of volume differing in each case” (CB 37).
Thus, while the variations in volume of liquids and solids, with changes in pressure, “have
hitherto presented no regular law,” independent of the nature of the liquid or solid in question, the laws
of the variations in volume of gases are “equal and independent of the nature of each gas.” This
recognition probably led Gay-Lussac to the intuition that he could see something new by simultaneously
narrowing his gaze to experiments involving only ingredient gases and shifting his focus from Lavoisier’s
weight-experiments to volume-experiments. He writes that it is his intention to show thereby that gases
“combine amongst themselves in very simple ratios” (CB 37).
Gay-Lussac thinks that the cause of this key difference between liquids and solids, on the one
hand, and gases, on the other, is that the particles of the former are drawn close to each other by an
attractive force, which is not present in the case of gases (CB 37). Imagining the particular attractions
between particles makes for a complicated picture when we look at volumes of solids and liquids. In
addition, it is a picture which we cannot actually see because we don’t know anything about the smallscale details of the attractions which would allow us to predict any determinate experimental outcome.
So, in effect, Gay-Lussac “hears” attractions between particles as “noise.” That noise is silenced when he
listens only to gases and their volumes. Then, Gay-Lussac “listens” to the regularity Mariotte had found
to be independent of the natures of particular gases.
Gay-Lussac presents the facts from which his idea arose. He performed an experiment with a
colleague in which they found an “exact ratio of 100 of oxygen gas to 200 of hydrogen gas for the
8
�[volume] proportion of water.” This result led him to suspect “that the other gases might also combine
in simple ratios” by volume. In the next four experiments he performed, Gay-Lussac found that in two
of them the volume ratios of the combining substances were 100 : 100 and, in the other two, 100 : 200
(CB 38-39).
He goes on to offer “some fresh proofs, after which he states:
Thus it appears evident to me that gases always combine in the simplest proportions when they act on one
another; and we have seen in reality in all the preceding examples that the ratio of combination is 1 to 1, 1 to 2,
or 1 to 3 (CB 41).
He adds that when the result of the combination of two gases is a gas, its volume is also in a very simple
whole-number ratio with that of each of the components (CB 41; cp. Avogadro, CB 43).
Analogous to Archimedes in his first treatise, Gay-Lussac has found a way to see ideal-exact
limit-formations—in his case, to see, in chemical experiments, the unit and assemblages of units
(ἀριθμοί). When he looked at the ingredient and resultant gas volumes in his and others’ experiments,
“the thought occurred to him of another thing”—a unit or two units or three units—a thing not found in
his sensory experience, something as if he knew it “from before.” Socrates would have said that GayLussac “is recollecting that of which he grasped the thought” (Ph 72e-73cd). For instance, Gay-Lussac
saw the volumes of nitrogen gas and oxygen gas that combined to form nitric acid gas as “reaching
after” the One and the Two, respectively, but “in a condition of falling short” of them (Ph 74c-75b; italics
added). Edmund Husserl would have claimed that the unit volumes that Gay-Lussac saw were examples
of ideally exact limit-formations, like those encountered in Lecture II. 12
The last three of Gay-Lussac’s proofs are based upon the results of experiments performed by
Davy, in which the weights of the combining substances and of the resultant substances were given. In
order to “hear” the corresponding volumes, Gay-Lussac must reduce the weight ratios in each case to
volume ratios. He reverses Lavoisier’s procedure (see, for example, Lavoisier 3.25) for translating a
Husserl, op. cit., pp. 22-23; The Crisis of European Sciences and Transcendental Phenomenology: An Introduction to Phenomenological
Philosophy, tr. D. Carr (Northwestern: 1970), pp. 25-26.
12
9
�measured diminution in volume into the corresponding diminution in weight. Gay-Lussac divides the
observed weights by the known densities of the gases in order to determine the volume ratios of the
experiments.
For instance, Gay-Lussac then heard, or, to shift metaphors, saw, the volumes of nitrogen gas
and oxygen gas that combined to form three nitrogen compounds as “reaching after” the One and the
Two, respectively, but “in a condition of falling short” of them (Ph 74c-75b; italics added)—like a chalk
mark reaching after the Straight. For the actual experimental results for these three compounds were
that the nitrogen volume was to the oxygen volume as - 2 : 0.99 and 1 : 1.089 and 1 : 2.047, respectively.
Gay-Lussac comments:
The first and the last of these [ratios] differ only slightly from [2 to 1], and [1 to 2]; it is only the second which
diverges somewhat from [1 to 1]. The difference, however, is not very great, and is such as we might expect in
experiments of this sort; and I have assured myself that it is actually nil (CB40). 13
This assurance suggests that hearing, or seeing, ideal-exact volume-units can allow us to correct
values arrived at by measuring weights. In an application of his new approach—without having to
perform any experiments, but simply by viewing a weight-experiment, through the lens of volume—
Gay-Lussac corrected the accepted density of carbonic acid gas.
Cruickshanks had experimentally determined its value to be 0.9569. When Gay-Lussac looked at
the volume results of an experiment by Berthollet, in which 200 carbonic oxide + 100 oxygen → 200
carbonic acid, he concluded that the relation of the densities is dcoxide = dcacid - ½doxy. Since the latter two
densities had been well established 14 by many experiments as 1.5196 and 1.1036, respectively, GayLussac saw that the density of carbonic oxide gas had to be .9678. The elimination of weight-noise—
“Reducing these proportions to volumes we find—
Nitrogen Oxygen
Nitrous oxide
100
49.5
Nitrous gas
100
108.9
Nitric acid
100
204.7
The first and the last of these proportions differ only slightly from 100 to 50, and 100 to 200; it is only the second which diverges
somewhat from 100 to 100.”
14 CB 41, n. 17.
13
10
�each experiment involving a particular kind of chemical reaction yields slightly different weight
relations—allowed Gay-Lussac to hear the ideal-exact sound of the volume, by which he could correct,
in the second decimal place, the previous value, which depended on weight-experiments.
In his experiments Lavoisier was measuring magnitudes, as dealt with by Euclid in Book V of The
Elements. Now Gay-Lussac is counting numbers, which Euclid treated in Book VII. Gay-Lussac has, thus,
opened the realm of chemistry to include the discrete as well as the continuous. This new seeing of units
and numbers of units in chemistry may be what the students glimpsed when they said that Gay-Lussac
had introduced mathematics into chemistry.
LAVOISIER AND THE ROLE OF IMAGINATION (1789)
We return to Lavoisier in order to consider the role of imagination in chemistry. In accord with
his aim to rely on what we observe and conclude when we perform experiments involving weighing,
Lavoisier wanted to avoid being led astray by the imagination. With respect to the things we want to
come to know, he presents “imagining them” as an alternative to his program of “observing them”
(0.41). Moreover, Lavoisier specifically warns us of the dangers of the imagination, “which constantly
tends to carry us beyond the true … [and] invite[s] us to draw consequences which by no means derive
immediately from the facts” (0.8). Especially “in the case of things that can be neither seen nor felt, it is
of the utmost importance to guard against the deviations of the imagination, which always tends to soar
beyond the true and which has considerable difficulty in confining itself within the narrow circle that the
facts draw around it” (1.10). Thus, what we imagine, in that it leads to consequences not immediately
derivable from the facts, stands squarely opposed to ideas, which do so derive by insight.
For instance, while Lavoisier spoke of particles, he did not go on to imagine what they might be
like in detail. “Lavoisier’s ‘particles’ are simply small portions of a substance, not necessarily either the
11
�smallest possible portions or even of uniform size.” 15 He drew no consequences from any suppositions
about the nature of the assumed particulate nature of matter.
Nevertheless, under certain conditions, he does draw tentative consequences, in an interesting
way, from imagining the behavior of particles, namely, their separation by warmth (1.1):
It is understandable that since they are … continually invited (sollicitées) by warmth (chaleur) to separate from one
another, the particles of bodies would have no connection among themselves and that there would be no solid
body if they were not held back by another force that would tend to bring them together and, as it were, to link
them to one another….
And so the particles of bodies can be considered as obeying two forces, one repulsive and one attractive,
between which they are in equilibrium (1.3 & .4; italics added).
This imagined picture—which involves considering-as—does not seem to acquire the status of a
consequence that Lavoisier would or could legitimately draw. On the one hand, he imagines “a real,
material substance, an exceedingly subtle fluid that insinuates itself throughout the particles of bodies
and separates them.” Yet the grounds for speaking of it are that the phenomena of bodies’ changing
state as they are warmed up or cooled down are “difficult to understand … without admitting that they
are the effects” of such an imagined substance. So, that substance would appear to be a supposition of
a different kind than his sup-position of the principle mentioned above as a foundation for the chemist
to stand on. He states: “Even supposing that the existence of this fluid were an hypothesis, we shall see
in what follows that it explains the phenomena of Nature quite felicitously” (1.7). “Explaining” must be
distinguished from concluding or drawing a consequence. The hypothesis of a subtle fluid would help us
to imagine a picture of what might be going on “beneath” or “inside” those things we can actually see
and measure in the lab.
“Since the sensation that we call warmth is the effect of the accumulation of” this imagined
substance, “whatever it may be,” Lavoisier names it, as being the cause of warmth (Lat. calor), “caloric.”
Yet in the same paragraph, he assures us that
15
Lavoisier, Op. cit., p. 13, note to 1.1.
12
�rigorously speaking we are not even obliged to suppose that caloric is real matter; it suffices … that it be a
repulsive cause of any sort that separates the particles of matter, and so we may view its effects in an abstract
and mathematical way (1.8).
Lavoisier seems to be inviting us to fantasize anything whatsoever as long as it helps us to imagine what
could be happening when bodies change state with changing temperature. Ultimately, whatever we
imagine will have to agree with any empirically established mathematical functions that express change
of matter as a function of temperature, as well as with the ideal gas law, which we have already
encountered in Ch. VI of Measurement and Equilibrium. 16
While the above account “determines the idea that we ought to attach to the word ‘caloric,’”
Lavoisier wishes to “give correct ideas of the manner in which caloric acts on bodies” (1.10). In the
course of doing that, he reports that caloric “plays in some way the role of solvent” in the case of every
gas, in that it “tends to separate” the particles of all bodies, opposing their attraction (1.28 & 1.30).
Since, in dealing with abstract things, we should not over-rely on the help of sensible
comparisons, Lavoisier offers several ways in which we may form a picture of these opposing
tendencies: “we picture (figure) to ourselves,” now a vessel filled with little lead balls into which a very
fine powder … has been poured,” now pieces of different kinds of wood, submerged in water (1.31-.34).
This use of the imagination to picture sensible comparisons clearly does not risk carrying us beyond
what is true.
These comparisons may call to mind that earlier in the lab Theophrastus, Aristotle, and Harvey
analogized the working of plant parts or animal organs to that of products of art. In those cases, though,
we could actually look at the part in question and see the similarity in it, somewhat as we can see a
particular expression in a face. However, the substance that Lavoisier is looking at in his imagination
bears no visible trace of anything expressive of lead balls or pieces of wood. We are imagining them
alongside or inside the phenomena we are looking at in the lab. Putting it that way is suggestive of the
16
Measurement and Equilibrium (Annapolis: St. John’s College, printed Fall 2020), pp. 128-30.
13
�transparencies that Archimedes and Pascal used to bring about an essential seeing in the lab. In the case
of Lavoisier, however, what we fantasize allows us to picture what could be happening below the level
of appearances that could account for them.
Lavoisier’s final discussion of caloric in Ch. I is based on the twin suppositions of the existence of
particles of matter and of particles of caloric. Having stated that caloric is both an elastic fluid and the
cause of the elasticity of bodies, Lavoisier poses the Socratic question, “what is elasticity”? It is the
property that “the particles of a body have of moving away from one another when they have been
forced to draw near,” a “tendency … that manifests itself even at very great distances.” That air can be
highly compressed presupposes that particles of air are already quite far from each other. But we know
from experiments that they tend to move even further away from each other. The only way to explain
that effect is by “supposing that the particles make an effort in every direction to separate” (1.44).
There may, in fact, be such a real repulsion between the particles of elastic fluids, since it would
be consistent with the phenomena, but Lavoisier thinks that such “a repulsive force … is difficult to
conceive” (1.45). Trying out another supposition leads him, finally, to the thought that
the separation of the particles of bodies by caloric is due to a combination of different attractive forces, and it is
the result of these forces that we seek to express … when we say that caloric communicates a repulsive force to
the particles of bodies. (1.46)
At the very least we may say that Lavoisier’s imagining of caloric did not lead him to cling to a
fixed supposition of what is going on “behind” or “inside” the things we can see with our eyes. He is
flexible in the ways in which he imagines the supposed action of caloric. He keeps his eye,
simultaneously, both on the phenomena and on the supposed separation of gas particles with increasing
warmth. He encourages us to play around with different suppositions, without mistaking any of them for
“the true” picture.
14
�DALTON’S SUPPOSITION OF ULTIMATE PARTICLES, OR ATOMS, AND MAKING USE OF THEM (1808)
(NOTE: The terminology used in the discussion of Dalton and his followers will be a translation
into a more modern terminology, established by Cannizzaro, 17 in which “atom” refers to a single
hitherto un-cutable, or in-divisible particle, which may or may not be attached to other particles by
attraction. And “molecule” refers to a separate particle, one not joined to other particles by attraction; it
may consist of one atom or of many.)
Dalton’s first great insight is that “we have hitherto made no use of” the pre-supposition that
each material thing is made up of a great number of atoms. There are two different uses that Dalton has
in mind, first, using experiments to make the particle picture more determinate and, second, using the
particle picture to propose and correct experiments.
First, chemists have not “inferred” from their experimental determination of the relative weights
of the ingredient and resultant substances to “the relative weights of the ultimate particles or atoms of
the [different kinds of] bodies” involved (CB 20-21). If they had done so, they could have seen i) how
many atoms of each kind of elementary substance were in molecules of various compounds, ii) the
relative weights of different elements in those compound molecules, and iii) the relative molecular
weights of the various compounds (CB 21).
The second use that chemists have not made of atoms is dependent on the first. For since the
chemists had no accurate, determinate atomic-molecular picture, they had no way of using particles “to
assist and to guide future investigations, and to correct their results” (CB 21). His claim is analogous to
saying that until he worked out the mathematics of the motions of heavenly bodies, Ptolemy could not
predict the date of a solar eclipse.
17 “The conception of [Avogadro and Ampère] contains nothing contradictory to known facts, provided that we distinguish, as they did,
molecules from atoms; provided that we do not confuse the criteria by which the number and the weight of the former are compared, with the
criteria which serve to deduce the weight of the latter; provided that, finally, we have not fixed in our minds the prejudice that whilst the
molecules of compound substances may consist of different numbers of atoms, the molecules of the various simple substances must all contain
either one atom, or at least an equal number of atoms” (CB 53).
15
�Dalton’s second great insight was that it was impossible to make any use of the presupposition of
atoms as long as chemists were thinking of molecules of, say, water, as being of diverse weights. Just as
Lavoisier could not make any real use of experiments, unless he sup-posed that there is an equal
quantity of matter before and after each experiment, so, too, experiments won’t be able to show
anything about the relative atomic makeup of substances’ molecules, unless we sup-pose 18 that
the ultimate particles of all homogeneous bodies are perfectly alike in weight, figure, &c. In other words, every
particle of water is like every other particle of water; every particle of hydrogen is like every other particle of
hydrogen, &c.... (CB 21).
We might say that Dalton has introduced into the world of presupposed, imaginary atoms the
supposition of ideally exact atoms. So, all ingredient and resultant substances will now be seen, at the
same time, in a double vision--both as weights, continuous magnitudes, in the lab and as atom-units of
different kinds, discrete multitudes, in the particle world. In this respect his seeing is like that of Euclid
and of Archimedes’ first treatise. The difference, though, lies in that things—in particular, things in the
material world—are thought of as “reaching for” and “falling short of” (Phdo 75ab) the exact limitformations of Euclid and Archimedes, whereas Dalton thinks of atoms as (tiny, invisible) things that
make up the actual material world. Thus, Dalton is not led to think of his homogeneous particles by what
he sees in the lab, in the way that Cebes might be led to think of Simmias by a picture of him or by a face
glimpsed in a crowd. Dalton isn’t viewing the substance in the lab as an image (εἰκών) of a number of
atom-units. He might, while looking at the particular substance, be supposing a huge number of
identical molecule-units. But the substance could not be said to image them. Moreover, at least so far,
the number of identical molecule-units would also be quite indeterminate.
18 Dalton’s word is “conclude.” The grounds for his conclusion are that “from what is known, we have no reason to apprehend a diversity in
these particulars” and that “it is scarcely possible to conceive how the aggregates of dissimilar particles should be so uniformly the same.” For
it is not conceivable to Dalton that, due to the great number of atoms in any body weighable in the lab, it could be impossible for chemists to
distinguish between the sameness of all atoms of each element and a distribution of the specific gravity of each element that is represented
graphically in the shape of a bell-curve.
16
�How well does Dalton execute his program and use his supposition of homogeneity? He shows
how chemists could go about determining the atomic makeup of molecules and relative atomic weights
of elementary substances and relative molecular weights of compound substances. First, in order to
guide chemists in deducing such “conclusions” from experimental “facts already well ascertained,” he
proposes “general rules” like the following:
1st. When only one combination of two bodies can be obtained, it must be presumed to be a binary one, unless
some cause appear to the contrary.
2d. When two combinations are observed, they must be presumed to be a binary and a ternary. (CB 22)
The first two pairs of conclusions that he goes on to mention are “1st. That water is a binary
compound of hydrogen and oxygen, and the relative weights of the two elementary atoms are as 1 : 7,
nearly” and “2d. That ammonia is a binary compound of hydrogen and [nitrogen], and the relative
weights of the two [elementary] atoms are as 1 : 5, nearly…” (CB 22). He accompanies his statement of
the conclusions with “arbitrary … signs chosen to represent” the atoms and their composites, as shown
in Figures 1a & b PLATE IV (CB 24-25).
PLATE IV. This plate contains the arbitrary marks or signs chosen to represent the
several chemical elements or ultimate particles.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
Fig.
Hydrog., its rel. weight 1
Azote, 5
Carbone or charcoal, 5
Oxygen, 7
Phosphorus, 9
Sulphur, 13
Magnesia, 20
Lime, 23
Soda, 28
Potash, 42
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Fig.
Strontites,46
Barytes, 68
Iron, 38
Zinc, 56
Copper, 56
Lead, 95
Silver, 100
Platina, 100
Gold, 140
Mercury, 67
An atom of water or steam, composed of 1 of oxygen and 1 of
hydrogen, retained in physical contact by a strong affinity, and
supposed to be surrounded by a common atmosphere of heat, its
8
relative weight = ............................................ …………………
An atom of ammonia, composed of 1 of azote and 1 of hydrogen =
6
An atom of nitrous gas, composed of 1 of azote and 1 of oxygen =
12
An atom of olefiant gas, composed of 1 of carbone and 1 of hydrogen = 6
An atom of carbonic oxide composed of 1 of carbone and 1 of oxygen =
12
Figure 1a
17
�Figure 1b
Hence—given Lavoisier’s principle and the results of his and other chemists’ composition and
decomposition experiments, in which the weights of the bodies involved were ascertained—if we
presuppose atoms and suppose them to be homogeneous in Dalton’s sense and apply his heuristic
general rules, then both the relative weights of many atoms and the numbers of them in the molecules
of various compound bodies do follow as “conclusions.” In this way Dalton’s vision resembles that of
Ptolemy. 19
The manual directs our attention to a conclusion that follows directly from Dalton’s supposition,
without any need to apply his “general rules” to particular experiments. There was a debate, 15 years
This is true, provided Ptolemy’s mathematical apparatus be interpreted simultaneously as showing that for which the motions of the
heavenly bodies reach while falling short of it and that which enables the astronomer to say in advance where a given body will be in the sky on
a given date. But there is a difference between the two visions, unless Ptolemy be interpreted as considering his cycles and epicycles to be
invisible material bodies.
19
18
�after Lavoisier’s Treatise, between the chemists Berthollet and Proust as to whether or not substances
react and combine in definite and fixed weight ratios. For example, if 2 gm of substance A reacts with 16
gm of substance B, then 2½ gm of A will react with 20 gm of B, and so on, so that the ratio of the weight
of A to the weight of B is 1 : 8 in every case (CB 33). Lavoisier had pre-supposed that this was so, but
Berthollet claimed to have demonstrated experimentally that compositions of two substances occur “in
all ratios, up to [an] extreme value which … varies with the temperature.” Proust, though, claimed to
have found “fixed ratios” in his experiments (CB 104). 20
On the basis of Dalton’s supposition, Proust must be correct. For if every molecule of water is
made of the same number of homogeneous oxygen atoms and of the same number of homogeneous
hydrogen atoms, then in a given amount of water, say, one million molecules, the weight ratio of oxygen
to hydrogen must be the ratio –
(atomic weight of oxygen)(number of oxygen atoms per water molecule)(1,000,000) :
(atomic weight of hydrogen)(number of hydrogen atoms per water molecule)(1,000,000).
Whether or not Dalton’s “general rules” are “adopted as guides,” the ratios always have to be the same,
on the basis of his supposition. So, in imitation of Gay-Lussac’s correction of Cruikshank’s experimental
determination of the density of carbonic oxide gas (CB 41), Dalton could correct Berthollet’s empirical
claim. This might be like telling an astronomer, who reported having seen an eclipse of the moon
between 10:05 PM and 2:44 AM on a given night, that she must have fallen asleep for an hour and ten
minutes, because it had actually begun earlier, according to our mathematical calculations.
20 The manual adds a second necessary conclusion that follows directly from Dalton’s supposition of homogeneity, without reference to his
general rules, namely, the Law of Multiple Combining Proportions: “From Dalton’s doctrine of atoms it follows that whenever two elements
unite in more than one [ratio] there will be small whole number ratios among the [weights] of the first element that combine with a fixed
[weight] of the second—whole number ratios because the various [weights] of the first element that combine with a fixed [weight] of the
second must always represent whole numbers of atoms; and small because according to Dalton the most prevalent combinations may be
presumed to be those between the least numbers of atoms” (CB 30).
19
�AVOGADRO’S “ONLY ADMISSIBLE” HYPOTHESIS ABOUT SIMPLE GASES (1811)
Avogadro saw that in order to use particles, as Dalton wished to do, chemists needed to
eliminate Dalton’s guesswork, that is, his arbitrary, general rules, as heuristic “guides” (CB 22) to
determine the relative number of particles in compounds (CB 46). Avogadro’s key insight is that it is
necessary to provide “Dalton’s system … with a new means of precision through” connecting it with
Gay-Lussac’s discovery of small whole-number ratios of ideal-exact unit-volumes of gases (CB49). Then,
still looking through the Daltonian lens, Avogadro will be able to see the particles more clearly.
To review where we are at this point: we are supposing that all atoms of any given element are
identical, that all molecules of any given compound are identical, and that at STP all boxes of any given
gas contain the same number of molecules. The density of most gases have been determined by
experiment, as described above. Finally, as Gay-Lussac had shown, gases combine in very simple wholenumber ratios by volume. 21
Avogadro, with all of that in mind, realizes that “viewing” Daltonian particles “through” GayLussacian boxes gives him a way to bring the Daltonian picture into better focus. It makes particles, as it
were, into learnables (μαθήματα), about which one can learn, apart from doing experiments. He sees an
apparent necessity in the relationship between “the relative number of particles which combine and …
the number of composite particles which result,” on the one hand, and, on the other, “the ratios of the
quantities of substances in compounds.” 22 Avogadro believes that introducing a mathematics of
numbers of particles and boxes will enable him “to confirm or rectify” Dalton’s results (CB46).
This insight immediately leads him to another: “It must then be admitted (Il faut donc admettre)
that very simple ratios [or relations] also exist between the volumes of gaseous substances and the
21 “The combinations of gases always form in very simple ratios (rapports) by volume, and that when the result of the combination is a gas, its
volume is also in a very simple ratio with that of [each of] its components” (CB 43).
22
“The ratios of the quantities of substances in compounds would appear to be able to depend only on the relative number of particles which
combine, and on the number of composite particles which result” (CB 43; italics added). Avogadro’s word “quantities” may cover both weights
and volumes. If quantities—weights or volumes—of two gases combine to form a third, the ratios of the first to the second to the resultant
“would seem to be able to depend only on the relative number of particles” in the first, the second, and the resultant volumes, respectively.
20
�numbers of simple or compound particles which form them” (CB 43; italics added). Getting milage out of
the simplicity of the relationship between lab experiments involving boxes of gases and pictures of the
numbers of atoms or molecules composing gases would be easiest if it turned out that, for all gases at
STP, the number of particles per box were identically the same. For then the weight ratio of two boxes,
or equivalently, the densities of two gases, would at once also show the relative weights of the two
gases in the compound molecule. In a way, the boxes would be acting like magnifying glasses, or lenses.
In order to see that, consider Figure 2. Suppose that it turned out that for every gas there were
DALTON’s supposed molecules
1 imagined molecule of oxygen
⃝
1 imagined molecule of hydrogen
AVOGADRO’s lens to ‘see’ weight
of Dalton molecules in Gay-Lussac
boxes
1 box of 100 imagined molecules of
oxygen
GAY-LUSSAC’s unit boxes of gases
weighed in the lab
1 box of 100 imagined molecules of
hydrogen
1 actual box of oxygen
1 actual box of oxygen
ﬦ
Weight of 1 oxygen molecule
-----------------------------------Weight of 1 hydrogen molecule
=
1/100 of weight of 100 oxygen
molecules
-----------------------------------=
1/100 of weight of 100 hydrogen
molecules
Weight of 1 box of oxygen
-----------------------------------Weight of 1 box of hydrogen
Figure 2
exactly 100 molecules of it in one Gay-Lussac box. Then the experimentally determined weight ratio of a
box of oxygen to a box of hydrogen (see left column) would have to be the same as the supposed weight
ratio of one oxygen molecule to one hydrogen molecule (see right column), because the lens shows that
the former ratio is the same as the ratio of the weight of 100 oxygen molecules to 100 hydrogen
molecules.
21
�But could Avogadro learn the relative numbers of particles per box of two different ingredient
gases that result in a compound gas? He claims that the hypothesis just stated in the previous
paragraph, “which presents itself first in this connection,” is not only the first to present itself and the
simplest but also “the hypothesis … which even appears to be the only admissible one” (CB 43).
How could he have learned that no other hypothesis could be admitted? Avogadro devotes
most of the rest of the first paragraph to hypotheses about the possible distances of gas particles from
each other. 23 But he summarizes these speculations by stating that “in our present ignorance of the
manner in which this attraction of the particles … is exerted, there is nothing to decide us a priori” for or
against any one of these hypotheses.
However, he concludes that “the hypothesis we have just proposed relies on that simplicity of
ratio between the volumes of gases in the combinations, which would appear to be unable to be
explained otherwise” (CB 44; italics added). In other words, the necessity of the simple relationship
between experimental boxes and numbers of particles—itself, the necessary result of bringing GayLussac and Dalton together—forces him to reject any hypothesis other than the simplest one. 24
Dalton’s first “object” had been to make “use of” the presupposition of particles, in order to
determine the relative weights of particles and the composition of composite particles (CB 20-21).
Avogadro can claim that relying on his new lens, or hypothesis, he was able to “see,” in all volume
experiments involving gases, the relative numbers of ingredient and resultant molecules involved, and
so, also, their molecular weights. In this way his first hypothesis makes the supposed, invisible realm
distinctly and determinately visible.
23 If you think of gas molecules as floating freely, unattracted by each other, then there is no reason to think that two boxes of different gases
would contain different numbers of particles.
24 In order to see that Avogadro’s hypothesis is the only way to arrive at this simplicity, one would have to work through all the known
experimental results involving gases, while trying out different numbers of molecules per box. For each trial the supposed molecular
composition of each gas would have to remain the same in all reactions. In doing this Avogadro seems to have seen that the simple relations
follow only from one hypothesis about the relation between number of molecules per box, namely, that a box of any gas contains the same
number of molecules.
22
�CANNIZZARO’S DETERMINATION OF A TABLE OF MOLECULAR AND ATOMIC WEIGHTS (1858)
Avogadro’s hypothesis lets us “see” the relative molecular weights of gases, “even before their
composition is known,” since the molecular weights have to be proportional to the experimentally
determined densities of the gases, as we’ve just seen. Cannizzaro’s first insight is that instead of focusing
on particular reactions and particular compounds “it is useful” (giova) to view all the elementary and
compound gases together and, in particular, “to refer” the molecular weights (or, densities) of all gases
to that of the lightest gas (CB 56), namely, hydrogen.
He sets up a ratio scale of relative molecular weights. Since it is a scale of relative, not actual,
weights, the weight-number to assign to the smallest molecule is completely arbitrary. With later
considerations in mind, he assigns to hydrogen the weight-number 2 on the scale, rather, than 1. All
other molecular weights will be determined by their ratios to that of hydrogen = 2. Then looking at unit
volumes through Avogadro’s lens, Cannizzaro can make a table of the molecular weights of all gases,
relative to this unit.
For instance, in order to determine the relative molecular weight of any gas, all he has to do is
look up the density—that is, the weight per box—at the same temperature and pressure, of hydrogen
and of the gas in question. Since
(molecular weight of gas x)/(molecular weight of hydrogen, viz., 2 = (density of gas x)/(density of hydrogen),
he has only to multiply the density of gas x by the density of hydrogen gas and then to multiply that by
2. And he has determined the molecular weight of the gas.
Cannizzaro list the molecular weights of some gases in the right-hand column of Figure 3 (CB
56).
23
�Names of Substances
Hydrogen
Oxygen, ordinary
Oxygen, electrised
Sulphur below 1000°
Sulphur* above 1000°
Chlorine
Bromine
Arsenic
Mercury
Water
Hydrochloric Acid
Acetic Acid
weights of the molecules referred to
the weight of a whole molecule of
Hydrogen taken as unity.
1
16
64
96
32
35.5
80
150
100
9
18.25
30
weights of the molecules referred to the
weight of half a molecule of Hydrogen
taken as unity.
2
32
128
192
64
71
160
300
200
18
36.50†
60
Figure 3
Cannizzaro’s second insight is that we must clearly distinguish between the criteria used just
now to arrive at the weights of all the gas molecules from those that yield the weights of the atoms and
the numbers of them in the molecules (CB 53). Avogadro—in the course of using his “lens” for looking
through equal boxes, at same temperature and pressure, in order to see molecular weights—had been
forced, in considering the composition of water, to recognize that a molecule of elementary oxygen
contains two oxygen atoms.
To see this let’s suppose, again, that there are 100 molecules of any gas in one box. In the
composition experiment, one box of oxygen combined with two boxes of hydrogen to form two boxes,
that is, 200 molecules, of water. If the oxygen molecule consisted of only one oxygen atom, there’d be
only 100 oxygen atoms available for forming 200 water molecules—not enough!
So, Avogadro “supposes” that the molecules “of any simple gas whatever,” like oxygen, are “not
formed of one single” atom, “but result from a certain number of these molecule joined together in a
single one” (CB 45). He also supposed that for instance, if oxygen and hydrogen molecules were,
respectively, O2 and H2, then one atom from each box of oxygen and of hydrogen would have to join to
compose one compound molecule; so, there would be 200 water molecules of the composition H2O,
since there are two boxes (200 molecules, or 400 atoms) of hydrogen and only one box (100 molecules,
or 200 atoms) of oxygen.
24
�But if oxygen and hydrogen molecules were, respectively, O4 and H2, then two atoms of oxygen
would have to join with one hydrogen atom from each box of hydrogen to compose one compound
water molecule. So, there would be 200 water molecules of H2O2. In either case the number of water
molecules “becomes … exactly what is necessary to satisfy the volume of the resulting gas” (CB 45), 25
that is, two boxes of water. Perhaps it is the principle of simplicity, reminiscent of Dalton, that decides
him in favor of H2O.
In order to determine molecular formulas in a more systematic and reliable way, Cannizzaro
considers in one view all of the elements that can be produced in gaseous form. In agreement with the
argument of Proust and the conclusion from Dalton’s supposition, he begins with fixed, determinate,
experimental ratios between the weights of the two component substances in a given compound.
Then the weight of the molecule is divided into parts proportional to the numbers expressing the [experimentally
determined] relative weights of the components, and so we have the [weights] of [the components] contained in
the molecule of the compound, referred to the same unit as that to which we refer the weights of all the molecules
[namely, hydrogen = 2] (CB 57).
This method allows him to construct the following table, shown in Figure 4 (CB 58):
Name of Substance
Hydrogen
Oxygen, ordinary
Oxygen, electrised
Sulphur below 1000°
Sulphur above 1000° (?)
Phosphorus
Chlorine
Bromine
Iodine
Nitrogen
Arsenic
Mercury
Hydrochloric Acid
Hydrobromic Acid
Hydriodic Acid
Water
Ammonia
Arseniuretted Hyd.
Phosphuretted Hyd.
[molecular
wt (H’s = 2)]
2
32
128
192
64
124
71
160
254
28
300
200
36.5
81
128
18
17
78
34
[weights of the molecule’s components]
2
32
128
192
64
124
71
160
254
28
300
200
35.5
80
127
16
14
75
31
Hydrogen
Oxygen
”
Sulphur
”
Phosphorus
Chlorine
Bromine
Iodine
Nitrogen
Arsenic
Mercury
Chlorine
Bromine
Iodine
Oxygen
Nitrogen
Arsenic
Phosphorus
1 Hydrogen
1 ”
1 ”
2 ”
3 ”
3 ”
3 ”
25 “When particles of another substance unite with the former to form a compound particle, the whole [compound] particle which should result
is divided into two or several parts (or separate particles) [each]composed of half, quarter, etc., the number of elementary particles going to
form the constituent particle of the first substance, combined with half, quarter, etc., of the number of constituent particles of the second
substance, which should combine with the whole particle (or, what comes to the same thing, [combined] with a number equal to this [last
number] of half-particles, quarter-particles, etc., of the second substance); so that the number of separate particles of the compound becomes
double, quadruple, etc., what it would have been if there had been no dividing, and exactly what is necessary to satisfy the volume of the
resulting gas” (CB 45).
25
�Calomel
Corrosive Sublimate
Arsenic Trichloride
Protochloride of Phosphorus
Perchloride of Iron
Protoxide of Nitrogen
Binoxide of Nitrogen
235.5
271
181.5
138.5
325
44
30
35.5
71
106.5
106.5
213
16
16
Figure 4
Chlorine
”
”
”
”
Oxygen
”
200 Mercury
200 ”
75 Arsenic
32 Phorphorus
112 Iron
28 Nitrogen
14 ”
In order to understand Cannizzaro’s procedure, let’s suppose that the relative weight ratio for
producing 100g of arseniuretted hydrogen has been found by experiment to be weight of arsenic : weight of hydrogen :: 96.15g : 3.85g.
Cannizzaro would divide the relative molecular weight, 78, of arseniuretted hydrogen into two numbers,
a, representing how much of the 78 is due to arsenic, and h, representing how much of the 78 is due to
hydrogen. So,
78 = a + h.
But also, since the 78 is to be divided in the same proportion as the 100, he knows that
96.15g : 3.85g :: a : h.
Solving these two simultaneously 26 tells him that the breakdown of the molecular weight of
arseniuretted hydrogen into the weights of its component elements has to be 75 parts from arsenic
atoms and 3 from hydrogen atoms.
At this very moment Cannizzaro says the following to his students (CB 59):
‘Compare … the various quantities of the same element contained in the molecule of the free substance and in
those of all its different compounds, and you will not be able to escape the following law: The various quantities
of the same element contained in different molecules are all integral multiples of one and the same quantity, which,
always being integral, ought rightly be called [the atomic weights relative to that of hydrogen as 1] (CB 59,
underlining added). 27
For instance, if we look for chlorine in the right column of Figure 4, we see that the number it
has been found to have is 35.5 or twice that, or triple that. So, 35.5 must be chorine’s relative atomic
weight; and its molecule must be diatomic; and, for instance, there must be three chlorine atoms in
26
27
If a + h = 78 and a/h = 96.15/3.85 = 25, then (78 – h)/h = 25. So, 78 – h = 25h, and 78 = 26h. Or h = 3 and a = 75.
His actual words are: “ought rightly be called atom.”
26
�protochloride of phosphorus (molecular weight = 138.5). A similar search for phosphorus tells us that its
relative atomic weight must be 32 and that there must be one phosphorus atom in a molecule of
protochloride of phosphorus. It is easy to see that we can now “express all chemical reactions by means
of the same numerical values [that is, these relative atomic weights] and integral coefficients” of them
(CB 60). That is, we can write reliable, accurate chemical formulas for such compounds. For the present
example of protochloride of phosphorus, the chemical formula must be PCl3. 28
MENDELEEV’S CONSTRUCTION OF THE PERIODIC TABLE (1870-71)
Mendeleev points to his fundamental insight right at the beginning of the excerpt in the manual.
In order to make the “inadequacy” of current atomic doctrine in chemistry “disappear,” he will “put at
the foundation of the study of the main [physico-chemical] properties of the elements their [relative]
atomic weights,” which Cannizzaro had worked out, less than 10 years before Mendeleev set to work.
Mendeleev’s bringing two previously separate realms into relationship may remind us of Avogadro’s
advancing to a new insight by bringing into relationship Gay-Lussac’s perception of small whole numbers
of boxes of gases and Dalton’s supposed ideal-exact atoms. Mendeleev indicates several steps by which
he came to his insight.
Chemists had long recognized certain “natural groups” of elements based on their physicochemical properties. For instance, lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, and cesium had been referred
to as alkali metals; they are good conductors of heat and electricity, are highly malleable and ductile,
have very low boiling and melting points and shiny surfaces, and are distinguished from other metals by
their lower densities and softness. Beryllium, magnesium, calcium, strontium, and barium were known
as alkaline earths; they are solid, hard, dense, and usually shiny, are less reactive than metals, are often
insoluble in water, and are found in the earth crust. Fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine are non-
28
It is, of course, clear to Cannizzaro that the numbers may have to change as future empirical discoveries are made.
27
�metallic, have relatively low melting and boiling points and generate salts (ἅλς) when they react
chemically with metals; they had been grouped together as halogens. Other natural groupings were
“analogues to sulfur,” including oxygen, selenium, and tellurium; as well as analogues to nitrogen,
including phosphorous, arsenic, antimony, and bismuth (CB 81).
Initially the elements were put in groups due to their similarities with respect to these
properties. Then some chemists noticed among pairs or triples of elements of high atomic weight,
analogues to pairs or triples of elements of much lower atomic weights. This noticing of analogues “gave
the first impetus to compare the different properties of the elements with their atomic weights” (CB 81).
For example, the physico-chemical properties of cesium (w 29 = 133) and barium (w = 137) were
analogous to those of potassium (w = 39) and calcium (w = 40). With respect to such properties, they are
proportional, in the sense that
K : Cs (among alkali metals) :: Ca : Ba (among alkaline earths).
In other words, within the natural group of alkali metals, the ways in which K differs from Cs, in its
physico-chemical properties, is analogous to the ways in which Ca differs from Ba, in those properties,
within the group of alkaline earths.
Such analogies led to the insight that the way a given physico-chemical property alters, as we
consider, one after the other, the elements of increasing atomic weight within one natural group, may
often occur in parallel with corresponding changes in other natural groups. That insight, in turn, led to
“thinking of classifying all the elements according to their atomic weights,” as determined by
Cannizzaro, in order to see what might be revealed. Mendeleev reports that when we do this “we find
an astonishing simplicity of relationship” (CB 82).
29
The letter “w” will stand for relative atomic weight, according to Mendeleev’s figures.
28
�His illustration of that simplicity is the arrangement, shown in Figure 5, in two horizontal rows of
all the elements of relative atomic weight between 7 and 36, “in arithmetical order according to their
atomic weights.” He looks in two different ways at these rows.
Li=7
Be=9.4 B=11
C=12 N=14 O=16 F=19.
Na=23 Mg=24 Al=27.3 Si=28 P=31 S=32 Cl=35.5.
Figure 5
First, when he looks at a row by itself and attends, one by one, to the different physical and
chemical properties, he notices “that the character of the elements changes regularly and gradually
with increasing magnitude of the atomic weights” (CB 82; italics added). For instance, the
characteristics—whether qualitative or quantitative—of the elements in the row change from left
to right in the following ways:
i) from being basic to being acidic;
ii) from metals, through semi-metals, to non-metals;
iii) from being good conductors of heat and electricity to being insulators;
iv) from being lustrous and shiny to being dull;
v) from a boiling point of 1330°C rising in the middle and then falling to -188°C;
vi) again rising, from a melting point of -180°C, to a maximum and then falling to -187°C;
vii) density, too, rises to a high point and then falls, as shown in Figure 9;
viii) a graph of the relative atomic volumes [that is, the relative atomic weight (weight per atom)
divided by its density (weight per unit volume) = relative volume per atom] would be U-shaped
ix) and, finally, a graph of the volatility would also be U-shaped (CB 83-84). (See Figure 6 for viii and ix.)
Na
Mg
Al
Si
P
S
Cl
vii) Density:
0.97 1.75 2.67 2.49 1.84
2.06 1.33
viii) At Vol:
24
16
14
10
11
16
27
Figure 6
Second, when we compare the patterns of change, from left to right, along the top row with
29
�those along the bottom row, we find that “the character of the elements changes … in the same
way in both series, so that the corresponding members of them are analogues.” In this example,
the patterns of change are the same for all nine characteristics listed above. Thus, lithium and
sodium, the respective members of each series that are highest in basic character, metallic
character, luster, and conductivity are the leftmost ones, are also at the beginning of rising curves
of the graphs of melting and boiling points and density, and so on (CB 82).
Finally, Mendeleev stresses the importance of the forms of the compounds that are formed—in
order along each of the two rows—with oxygen and with hydrogen. The forms of these compounds
present regularities that are familiar to chemists from their experimental work. As we look from the
beginning of either row, “the corresponding elements in the two series have the same kind of
compounds” with oxygen: That is, two atoms of the given element combine with the following numbers
of oxygen atoms—1, 2, 3, … respectively, a uniformly increasing sequence of whole numbers, as the
atomic weight of the element increases. For instance:
The seven elements of the second series give the following higher oxides capable of forming salts:—
Na2O,
Mg2O2, Al2O3,
or MgO,
Si2O4,
P2O5,
or SiO2,
S2O6, Cl2O7,
or SO3.
Thus, the seven members of the above [second] series correspond in the same sequence to the seven generally
known forms of oxidation (CB 83).
Moreover, beginning with the righthand member in either row and moving left, a similar pairing
of compounds with hydrogen occurs—hydorfluoric acid (HF) and hydrochloric acid (HCl) are 1 : 1; water
(H2O) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) are 2 : 1, and so on, up to 4 : 1..
Mendeleev states: “This regularity proves that the above comparison of elements presents
natural series in which it is impossible (нельзя) to assume any intermediate members” (CB 82-83;
italics added). The arranging of the elements in the order of increasing relative atomic weight has led
Mendeleev to see a new necessity, or rather impossibility, such as we might find in mathematics.
He goes on to present such pairings for all the elements. That he can do so “indicates a close
30
�dependence of the properties of the elements on their atomic weights.” As we have seen from his
example and as he goes on to show, all the individual relationships of the dependence of physicochemical properties on atomic weight are “periodic.” “First, the properties of elements change with
increasing atomic weight; then, they repeat themselves in a new series of elements, a new period,
with the same regularity as” in the series we just went through in detail (CB 84). Mendeleev is using
“period,” in the sense familiar to us from Ptolemy. Just as a heavenly body has different positions over
time and returns to its starting point, after completing one period, and then begins a repetition, a new
period, so a given physico-chemical property has different values as we consider, in turn, elements of
increasing atomic weight along one row, and returns to a value near its starting value, after completing
one period, and then begins a repetition, a new period, at the first element of the next row.
Once Mendeleev had thought to arrange all the elements in the order determined by their
atomic weights, these repetitive patterns suddenly became visible to him, as a picture of wave-like
motions. His experience might be analogous to suddenly seeing something appear in Figure 7.
Figure 7
31
�Mendeleev next goes on to show how he found the complete periodic dependence of the
physico-chemical properties on the relative atomic weights (CB 85ff). He lined the elements up in rows,
like the ones we’ve considered. Table II, in Figure 8, shows all the elements in eight columns—
Figure 8
the eight natural groups—and twelve rows. Rows 2, and 3 are the two complete series we’ve already
considered. However, the remaining elements revealed their periodicity only when Mendeleev lined
them up below one another in longer rows, in the following way:
Row 4 (group I-VII) + Group VIII + Row 5
above
Row 6 (group I-VII) + Group VIII + Row 7
above
Row 8 (group I-VII) + Group VIII + Row 9
above
Row 10 (group I-VII) + Group VIII + Row 11
Thus, one circuit begins with K and Ca’s properties and ends only with those of Se and Br; a new circuit
begins with Rb and Sr’s properties and ends with those of Te and I. And so on.
32
�Mendeleev concludes by returning to what Dalton saw as the second use that chemists had not
made of particles—using them “to assist and to guide future investigations, and to correct their results”
(CB 21). Perhaps Mendeleev thought that by his time it was not particles, but relative atomic weights
that still had not been made use of. He says that in order for a law, like his periodic law, to acquire
scientific importance its logical consequences have be useful, in the sense that they “explain the as yet
unexplained, give indications of hitherto unknown phenomena, and [allow] one to make predictions
that are accessible to experimental verification” (CB 89).
He does all that in the rest of his article. For instance, the element indium had been discovered
in 1867 and assigned the relative atomic weight of 75.6. Mendeleev saw that there was no open slot in
the periodic table for an element of relative atomic weight 75.6. But by comparing its compounds with
those of other elements, Mendeleev saw that indium would have to be placed in an open slot in in
Group III, row 7, with atomic weight about 113 (CB 91-92).
Moreover, Mendeleev investigated the empty slot in Group IV, row 5. He saw that there had to
exist an element of relative atomic weight “about 72” in that slot. Based on the known physico-chemical
properties of the elements in the slots around the empty one, he predicted the properties that the yetto-be-discovered element would have to possess. About 15 years later the element germanium (Ge), of
relative atomic weight about 72.5 and possessing those properties, was discovered (CB 93-95). Perhaps
chemists experienced this discovery as somewhat like reading a novel, coming away with a very precise
sense of the main character, and then meeting someone at a party who strikes us as perfectly fitting the
fictional portrait. It might seem as if we knew him “from before.” Would Socrates say that we are
“recollecting,” but in some to-be-determined different sense (Ph 72e-73cd)?
What do we make of Dalton’s seeing supposed particles—not actual chalk marks on the
blackboard or lines drawn on paper—as ideal-exact limit-entities, in the realm of μαθήματα, of objects
of study leading to insightful learning? Do they eventually lead to acts of insight into the actual material
33
�world, in the way that Archimedes’ learn-ables about weight or Ptolemy’s about motion do? How does
the way in which they allow us to see more in the world compare with the way Archimedes’
transparencies refine our vision?
Do Mendeleev’s successes in making use of the supposed particles and of their relative atomic
weights show that atoms and molecules are not merely supposed but also actually existing entities in
the material world?
34
�
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Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
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Looking in Freshman Lab III – Looking into The Constitution of Bodies:
How Does the Supposition of Particles Help Us to See?
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Typescript of a lecture delivered on April 13, 2022, by Annapolis tutor Robert Druecker as part of the Formal Lecture Series. The lecture is the third in a three-part series on Freshman Lab.
Druecker describes his lecture: "This is a lecture specifically for first-year students. It will tell a story of how the presupposition that particles exist is used and made precise by a succession of chemists, from Lavoisier through Mendeleev. Does it enable us to see anything new in the phenomena we encounter in the laboratory? How does its contribution to seeing compare with that of Archimedes’ and Pascal’s mathematical approaches to weights and fluids?”
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Druecker, Robert
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St. John's College
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Annapolis, MD
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2022-04-13
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A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture available online. Make a typescript copy of my lecture available for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make a copy of my typescript available online"
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Chemistry--Study and teaching
Lavoisier, Antoine Laurent, 1743-1794
Chemistry--Experiments
Mendeleyev, Dmitry Ivanovich, 1834-1907
Cannizzaro, Stanislao, 1826-1910
Avogadro, Amedeo, 1776-1856
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<p><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7629">Looking in Freshman Lab part I (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7350">Looking in Freshman Lab part I (video)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7628">Looking in Freshman Lab part II (typescript)</a></p>
<p><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7627">Looking in Freshman Lab part II (video)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7682" title="Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)">Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)</a><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>
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English
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Druecker_Robert_2022-04-13
Tutors
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https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/d04082d50b80ac869f37d0adc6760e0c.pdf
2f1fa11ad333f88b69b8d4bbe9c940bf
PDF Text
Text
Looking in Freshman Lab – A Path to Experiencing the Blossoming of Things? A Two-part Lecture1
Robert Druecker
The spirit of this lecture—most especially of Part Two—is one of spreading seeds on rich soil.
Part One has three sections. Section One explains the visual thinking of Leonardo da Vinci and
the living movement that Chinese ink painters aimed to infuse into their paintings. Section Two could
be called “Theophrastus’s λόγος pours forth much.” Section Three shows how Goethe’s intuitive looking
discloses the formation and transformation of the leaf. Part Two walks along the path connecting the
approaches of Part One to the blossoming of things.
PART ONE
Section i: Visual Thinking and Living Movement
Before they actually go into the courtyard to look at and sketch magnolia trees, the students
read about a way of looking which they can immediately put into practice. The botanist and philosopher
Agnes Arber introduces them to an approach known as pure morphology. In it, rather than aiming to
analyze the shape or appearance of a plant in terms of function, she looks at form contemplatively, “not
only in itself, but in its nexus of relations.” Looking contemplatively requires engaging “in a “process of
mental visualization,” or “visual thinking,” making use of both “the bodily eye and … the mind's eye.”2
The morphologist must always begin her flights of thought by taking off from, and must always
end them by returning to, “the solid ground” of the visual appearances, thereby “chastening … the mind
through the discipline of the eye.” For there are “many subtleties, seizable by the eye,” that are
routinely eliminated in arriving at the mental concept (Arber, 1964).
Arber points out that this solid ground is not always easily accessible to the eye of the
morphologist. For one’s perception “depends upon preparedness of mind.” She herself had
1
�been familiar with the flowering plant Queen Anne's lace3 (see figure 1) for decades. Then one day she
Figure 1 – Queen Anne’s Lace
finally noticed that “the pattern of its growth is such that the main axis almost invariably terminates in a
reduced inflorescence.”4 Henceforth, whenever she observed the Queen Anne's lace, it “was found to
show this salient feature so strikingly as to leave” her “bewildered and humiliated at having been totally
blind to it year after year” (Arber, 1964).
The morphologist makes use of two media—words and drawings. With respect to the first, her
aim is to describe precisely. That is, she describes what the plant looks like, in a way that allows us to
form a distinct mental image of it. We can put the plant object into various mental categories we have
of known things and of familiar appearances. The better the fit in this placement, “the better described
the object becomes.”5 As a result we are able to read the description as a musical score and play, in our
imaginations, the melody of precisely this plant.
The morphologist’s second medium is visual expression. “‘The pen and the pencil are the two
principal means [she] can use for the depiction of beings’, and ‘of the two … the pencil’” is better able to
depict. Hence, “artistic power and morphological insight” are, in a certain way, correlated. For there is
much in all of a plant’s detailed visible characteristics “which cannot be expressed in words, but … can
2
�be portrayed by the artist.” Our visual thinking can then use these visible traits to interpret the
appearance.6 The preeminent botanist of the 19th century, Julius von Sachs, used to tell “the students in
his laboratory that ‘What one has not drawn, one has not seen’” (Arber, 1964).
Finally, according to Arber, “one of the factors which …. cramps the biologist's visual thinking” is
her tendency to see a thing from a human standpoint, instead of “as it is in and for itself.” Many of the
plant’s subtleties are on offer to the eye-and-mind if it “becomes one with what it sees, thus breaking
down the rigid subject-object antithesis.” Arber is here referring to a mental state in which she is not
conscious of herself as, so to speak, standing over against the plant. A Freshman Lab student said7 that
when we see what we see in our own way, we have a better sense of its individual tendency. Then it’s
as if we were touching it in our drawing. “Then it’s already inside me, in the way a character in a short
story I’m writing is inside me.” We might say that there is an individuality coming from two sources, the
individual thing and the individual looker.
This state of being-one-with is “prior” to the state of duality; it is a “self-identification with the
living thing.” Arber refers here to “Chinese and Japanese artists, who often identify themselves, as it
were, with a bird or a flower, thus revealing its individual character with an intuitive insight” (Arber,
1964). When these artists expressed that distinctiveness on paper, the drawing was said to exhibit
“living movement,”8 that is,
the transfusion into the work of the felt nature of the thing to be painted [or drawn] by the artist. At the moment
of painting, the artist must feel the very nature of the subject, which he transfers into the work, so that it can
affect all who see it with the same sensations he experienced when painting it. So, when painting a tree, feel the
strength of a tree shooting through the branches or, when painting a flower, the grace with which a flower expands
or bows its blossoms.9
In this quotation the repeated mention of feeling refers to a sensing that is both pre-conceptual and
prior to I-versus-object perception.10
Indeed, “the primary quality of all perception” is our feeling of dynamic properties, like “the
aggressive outward pointing of the triangle, the dissonant clash of the hues, the onrush of the
movement.” In applying the phrase living movement to drawings, we may seem to be speaking
3
�metaphorically. If so then the phrase “directed tension” may better capture what the viewer actually
experiences,11 namely, qualities like “compactness, striving, twisting, expanding, yielding,” in all sensory
modalities.12
The students’ looking can become sensitive to such dynamic effects visually received, but perhaps
not consciously registered in the moment. A lab student said that she could sense the energy of the
leaves of a tree, as if they were falling like drops from a fountain.13 They could sense those effects
“prior” to consciously registering the tree as object. When people become habituated to see what is
familiar, they become less spontaneously responsive to directed tensions.14
A good way to become (re-)sensitized to living movement is to practice gesture drawing in the
way outlined by Kimon Nicolaides in The Natural Way to Draw.15 He tells us that we are “to seek the
actual impulse of the gesture” in whatever we are drawing. We are not to confuse this impulse with
emotion. For instance, when we call a certain tree a “weeping willow,” we do not mean that it is sad,
because it “looks like a sad person.” Rather we are, first, responsive to “the shape, direction, and
flexibility of the branches,” which “convey passive hanging.” Subsequently we may notice a similarity
with “the … similar state of mind and body that we call sadness.”16 (See figures 2 and 3)
Figure 2 – Weeping Willow
4
�Figure 3 – White Pine (for contrast)
So, when the students are drawing the magnolias in the courtyard, they bear in mind-and-eye
Nicolaides’s advice that
a tree does not grow from the top down but from the bottom up. Start then at the bottom, and in a loose, easy,
tentative manner allow your pencil to move upward as you can feel that the tree moved up—upward and out
along the branches. Let your pencil follow the sense of movement through to the leaves. Do they spread like
bursts of flame from a skyrocket or do they fall down, dropping like water? As the tree reaches upward, it moves
out from its core into a three-dimensional form. (Nicolaides, p. 30; italics added)
We are to draw rapidly and continuously and to let our pencil swing around the paper, impelled only by
the felt sense of the living movement, without taking our pencil off the paper. “YOU SHOULD DRAW,
NOT WHAT THE THING LOOKS LIKE, NOT EVEN WHAT IT IS, BUT WHAT IT IS DOING. Feel how the figure
lifts or droops—pushes forward here—pulls back there—pushes out here—drops down easily there”
(Nicolaides, pp. 14-15).
While gesture is only one of many aspects of drawing that Nicolaides had his students practice,
if that aspect has not been felt and incorporated into the final drawing, the latter will lack aliveness.
Thus, in addition to conveying, in their drawings and descriptions, precisely how the magnolia appears
to their perception, the students express the active impulse which they felt “prior” to their objectperceptions.
Here are two examples of gesture drawings of a life model by his students (see figure 4).
5
�Figure 4 – Student Gesture Drawings
Section ii: Theophrastus’s λόγος pours forth much
Having begun, in the first class, by attending to looking—to our state of mind as looker and to
our way of looking, we now, with Theophrastus’s Inquiry Concerning Plants, turn to the looked-at.
Instead of looking contemplatively with an open gaze and with sensitivity to living movement, we are
invited to attend to certain determinate features of plants, to their differences with respect to a) parts,
to b) ways of responding to changes in their surroundings, to c) ways of coming-into-being, and to d)
ways of life (i.1).
Because we spend only five classes on plants, our reading centers on a) the parts of plants. The
fact that in order actually to see evidence relevant to the other three we’d need to be observing the
plants over a longer period of time raises a question for the students about how well they could come to
know a tree or a plant by looking closely and drawing over a short two-week period. One17 suggested
that our task is to tell the story of the tree, a story that would be composed of sub-stories of its various
parts, which were like characters in a novel. Yet in the lab we have only a short time to become
acquainted with it and with its characters.
Another student suggested that you can’t have a clear sense of how the tree trees, unless you
study the parts it uses to tree. A second said that looking very attentively at some one part might, in a
way, convey a sense of the whole. A third18 proposed that the key might lie in attaining a certain level of
6
�intimacy with the tree in her sessions of looking and drawing. It may have been helpful that the first
drawing exercise19 asked them to experience their drawing of the plant part as if it were a chance,
intimate, personal chat with a neighbor they hadn’t really known before. After it they’d have a deeper
sense for what that neighbor is like. One student20 said that she could later reawaken that moment of
close contact with the tree when she came to draw the whole.
Theophrastus points out that several factors make it difficult to determine precisely what is to
count as a part and what not. We notice that some portions of a plant, like flowers and leaves last only
to the end of the year, and, in addition, that new sprouts21 keep springing up. Thus, if these are included
as parts, the number of parts would be indeterminate. But we must include them since it is “when
[plants] are sprouting and blooming and bearing fruit that they not only seem but also are more
beautiful and more complete (τελότερος)” (i.2). They are complete in the sense that they are at their
peak, or end-state (τέλος).
It is striking that plants are at their high point when they are in motion, becoming more
themselves, growing twigs, leaves, blossoms, or fruit. For animals, as we shall see, differ fundamentally
from plants in that they are at their high point when they are keeping themselves—that is, their parts
and the capabilities of those parts to perform particular actions—at the very point at which they have
already arrived, that is, precisely when they are not still moving toward their end-state.
This difference should serve as a warning to us—in dealing with the difficulty of delimiting parts
and in viewing plants in general—not unthinkingly to rely on animal analogues. For instance, while it is
true that leaves are like certain animal parts, such as, horns, feathers, hair, in being cast off, on the other
hand, only plants, and not animals, are “capable of sprouting (βλαστητικόν) everywhere” (i.3-4). So,
too, the fact that during growth animals’ limbs emerge only in determinate places and that they have
limits of growth and maintain those limits means that we must be careful in speaking of the “limbs” of
trees.
7
�Theophrastus makes recommendations about what to focus on when we are looking at the
external parts of plants, that is, when we are doing morphology and inquiring about “μορφή as a
whole.” In spite of the fundamental difference, just mentioned, between plants and animals, he
recommends that in addition to noting which parts belong to all plants and which are proper only to one
or to several and which parts are similar to which other parts, he tells us to take note of which plant
parts have analogues among animals (i.4-5). The reasons for his last recommendation are: first, animals
are “more complete” than plants, in the sense that their activity is complete, and not on the way toward
becoming complete. The sprouting of plants, on the other hand, “seems to be a certain activity but an
incomplete one (ἀτελὴς)” (Aristotle, Physics 201b32)22; second, that we are more familiar with animals
(ii.3-5), partly because being animals ourselves we know them “from the inside.”
So, we can sometimes recognize a part of a plant more easily by seeing its similarity to a more
complete or more familiar part of an animal. We may even learn from looking for an animal analogue
and not finding one. For instance, a mouth and intestines belong to animals generally. But when we
seek for an analogue in the case of plants, we realize that there is none to be found. Then we
understand that, compared with animals, the plant is so “diverse and elaborate (ποικίλον)” that it “is
hard to speak about as a whole” (i.10-11).
Theophrastus next tells us what we are aiming at in noting differences among the parts of
plants. We look for them because “from them, in the case of each plant, the morphe as a whole
becomes altogether manifest.” In general there are three or four such differences: plants may have
some parts, such as leaves, but not others, like fruit; their parts may be dissimilar in color, in figure, in
proximity, in texture, and so on, or may be unequal in size; and they may be arranged in a different
order, as when the fruit is below rather than above the leaves (i.6-8).
Theophrastus then says that after enumerating the differences among the parts we are to focus
on each part by itself. We should begin by attending to those parts that are “greatest and common to
8
�most” plants, even though not all plants have all of them. The four parts to study first are roots,
stems—or, in the case of trees, trunks—branches, and twigs, that is, shoots coming from branches (i.911).
In addition to these four parts, there are other sorts of parts—first, parts of these four, such as
bark, wood, and core; second, impermanent parts, like flowers and leaves, mentioned above; and,
finally, things like sap, fiber, veins, and flesh which are “prior” to the others and which are common to
all the parts. Theophrastus says that these last are the initiator-rulers (ἀρχαί) of the other parts, which
come forth and appear to us as we draw. “Indeed, it is rather the case that [the plant’s] way of being
what it is (οὐσία) and [its] whole origination (of sprouts) (ϕύσις) is in these” latter parts (i.11-12; ii.1).
Perhaps they are the initial sources of “the impulse of the gesture” that Nicolaides asks us to seek.
In Theophrastus’s view we do well to begin our lab by observing the magnolia trees in the
courtyard. For the four parts with which we ought to begin our observation happen to “belong most of
all to trees, and the division into parts is more proper to them” than to any other plant. Moreover, the
variety of differences with respect to parts that we notice among trees will “indicate clearly” the
differences of the parts “of each of the other plants as well.” We’ll be able to discern differences in
color, in figure, in proximity, or in order of arrangement most easily in trees. So, it is a good approach to
refer the other plants to trees (i.11-12; ii.1; cf. i.6-8).
From another point of view, too, we do well by studying the magnolias first. For our
understanding becomes clearer if we divide according to the looks (εἴδη) of the plants. Most plants
exhibit one of the following four looks—tree, shrub, small shrub, or herb (iii.1). It is true that some
plants change their look from one to another of these, as well as that others “become quite different
and depart from their [mode of] origination (of sprouts).” Nevertheless, provided we don’t become
overly precise in marking the looks off from one another, we ought to divide with respect to the four
just mentioned. The reason is that something in their origination of sprouts is common to all four of
9
�them. So, it is reasonable to think that what’s responsible for their differences is also common to all of
them (iii.2, 5, 6).
Theophrastus makes the following more general observation: “The plant is a thing pouring forth
much (πολύχουν)” (i.10; cp. ii.3). According to our manual the progressive participle, πολύχουν,
emphasizes that a plant’s sprouting or blooming is “never finished, unlike the corresponding activity of
animals.” It seems that the “much” of a plant that is poured forth is or becomes its various parts.
Perhaps, Theophrastus’s idea is that if our looking were not oriented by the many helpful distinctions he
makes, we’d look at a plant and have only a global sense of the energy of water being shot up by a
fountain and then falling down.
With his guidance, though, and his foregrounding of differences of parts and of sprouting, or
budding, blooming and bearing fruit, what we see may be likened to a fountain having different-sized
and -shaped openings, putting forth water to different heights at different pressures. The water from
various openings may come forth in different colors. From some the water may gradually shoot higher
and higher; from others it may suddenly turn off. We’d miss much of this variety if we had not read
Theophrastus.
As we attempt to follow Theophrastus, how does our observation of the magnolias differ from
what it was like on the first day? Then, it seemed, we were invited, first, to begin by being open to
whatever came forth spontaneously from our sensory experiencing. Second, we were also initiated into
a state of mind prior to words, in which we aimed to sense and to express the plant’s doing; we avoided
slipping into the attitude of being a mere observer, over-against objects.
Theophrastus’s λόγος may have both benefits and drawbacks for us. On the one hand, it offers
us new perspectives. When we view plants from those standpoints, we find that new aspects disclose
themselves to our gaze. Instead of puzzling over some feature of the plant, we may now feel, “That’s it.
I’ve got it.” Or his λόγος may open our eyes to a part that is right in front of us, so that we don’t have to
10
�wait fifty years, as Arber did, before seeing it. Or, again, the disconnected pieces that we are looking at
may suddenly come together, like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Moreover, additional layers of meaning
are added when we see the likeness of a tree-part to a more familiar and determinate animal-part.
Finally, our attending to similarities and differences between parts embeds them in a web of
relationships. In ways like these our tree comes to make more sense to us. This additional sense may,
in turn, lead us to say something new about it; and that may lead us to a fresh seeing, and so on.
On the other hand, the direction that Theophrastus’s λόγος gives to our gaze may come to
prescribe what we look for in a way that closes us off from other possibilities and more fresh
discoveries. We might “lock onto” the distinctions we’ve learned from Theophrastus in a way that our
“tracking” of them prevents us from noticing other “targets” on our radar screen. There is also a risk of
not noticing the impulses of living movement, which we had sensed on the first day. We might become
like someone who only notices and responds to the meaning of what a friend says, and is oblivious to
the speaker’s tone of voice, physiognomy, and gestural accompaniments. In such an event our drawings
and descriptions of parts and of their interrelationships would seem “dried up,” withered, lacking
aliveness.23
Both approaches, the impulse-approach and the logos-approach, go beyond ordinary
experiencing and awaken or enliven us to what is new. The aliveness of the first lies in our sensing the
impulse of the tree’s gesture, in our feeling “the strength of a tree, shooting through the branches.”
What is enlivening about the second is illustrated when the vague becomes sharp, as in “Ah, so that’s
it!” or when isolated fragments suddenly fit together into a whole. It’s like what occurs when we’ve
been observing a face and then “suddenly notice its similarity to another”; a new aspect of the face
lights up (Aufleuchten) for us in an instant.24 Experiencing either of these two kinds of aliveness feels
like a bud’s bursting into flower.
We die to either approach to aliveness when we become content to drift smoothly, carried
11
�along by familiar concepts—interrupted neither by a sudden sense of striving or twisting nor by an
unexpected connection between familiar things popping into mind. In the same way forming an opinion
(δοξάζειν)25 is enlivening; holding onto an opinion (δόξα) is not (cf. Theat. 189e-190a).
Moreover, both approaches to aliveness are characterized by their temporal priority to the
everyday, but in different senses. The priority exemplified by the impulse-approach is that of the split
second when a tree is just coming into focus but I have not yet “registered” it as a tree.26 One can train
oneself to stay in touch with that pre-conceptual awareness beyond the first fraction of a second. In the
logos-approach the priority is usually of very long duration. It has taken centuries for the language to
acquire the relevant individual meanings and the web of family relationships (συγγενοῦς) among them.
The experience of drawing them up now has the feel of “recollecting” (ἀναμνησθῆναι) a name you
“already knew before” but had long ago forgotten (Meno, 81cd).
Ideally we could experience the benefits of both approaches, while avoiding the downside of
either. As a student27 suggested, we could aim to alternate back and forth between them: Now we look
“through” the Theophrastian λόγος; now we sense the leaves spreading like bursts of flame or dripping
like water. Our encounter with the unique individuality of the plant incites us to endeavor to grasp and
articulate it on the level of logos. We seek to understand it through moving back and forth between
sensing the particular and comprehending it together with others and distinguishing it from others.
It might be possible, though, to be, somehow, experiencing in both ways together at the same
time and yet not quite in either of them.28 The Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting hints at this
possibility in a colorful formulation: We are inspired by the madness of a wild dog (kuang),29 and
simultaneously our mind is opened wide (大) to the oneness (一) of the Heaven (tiān).30
Finally, before leaving Theophrastus let us revisit a word, ϕύσις, that occurs right at the
beginning of his treatise (i.1), and which we have been translating as origination (of sprouts). The
transitive verb from which it is derived, “ϕύω,” means: I. bring or put forth (as, leaves or shoots);
12
�engender, or generate (as, offspring); (in reference to parts of oneself) grow (as, a beard); II. (in present,
seemingly intransitive) put forth shoots. The middle voice φύομαι means grow, wax, spring up or forth,
especially of the vegetable world.31 According to Theophrastus our task includes grasping the plant’s
mode of origination of sprouts, including buds and shoots—stems and their appendages, leaves,
flowers, fruits.
Aristotle’s account of ϕύσις in the Physics (192b12ff)32 will help us to refine our thinking about
it. Animals as well as plants have ϕύσις. Both—primordially (πρώτως)—have within themselves the
originator of and ruler over (ἀρχὴν) their moving (κινεῖσθαι) and their remaining-at-rest (ἠρεμεῖν). This
inner originator-ruler may be understood, Aristotle says, as a switch-over impulse (ὁρμὴν33 …
μεταβολῆς; perhaps, Umschalt-Impuls), an impulse that originates a “shifting of gears” from motion
(κινήσεως) to stand-still (στάσεως) or vice versa.
It is important to note that—as evidenced by the verb μεταβάλλω,34 from which μεταβολή
(switch-over) is derived—the switch-over at issue here has two features, which distinguish it from a
process or motion. First, it is a shift between alternative positions, as in turning the earth upside down
or turning about to face the rear. Second, it is quick and sudden, as if it took no time at all and as if it
were not gradually led up to by what preceded it. So, ϕύσις here is the source not of a process or
motion but of an instantaneous shift or change-over, as in flipping a light switch on or off.
This impulse may be what Nicolaides proposed that the draftsperson aim to sense and to
express through the body-mind’s intuitive sensing: “seek the actual impulse of the gesture,” whether of
the model’s pose or of the magnolia. If we looked more closely, it might even be possible to detect a
sequence of switch-overs in what had appeared to be a smooth growth process. In that case growing
would turn out to be a series of tiny growth-spurts, with pauses in between.35
In summary, the plant’s ϕύσις impels it to change over instantly from inactivity at a particular
place and time to putting forth (ϕύειν) leaves, shoots, flowers, or fruit, or, conversely, from sprouting,
13
�blossoming, fruiting to inactivity there and then. The plant’s individual acts of putting-forth, its ϕύειν,
then, are manifestations of the inner originator-ruler. It is the latter that is the plant’s ϕύσις.
Let’s now skip a few weeks ahead in the lab to the activities of unicellular animals, in order to
see how the switch-over impulse might show up in them, too. We study animals like amoebae with
some help from the theoretical biologist Jakob von Uexküll. We notice that when faced with tasks like
escaping a predator, feeding on a prey, or digesting what it has consumed, the amoebae’s protoplasm
has the power, in each situation, to form the structure the animal needs in order to perform the given
task and, afterwards, to un-form that structure again.
For instance, in eating and digesting, a compartment enclosed by a membrane, known as "a
vacuole … first becomes the mouth, then the stomach, then the intestine, and finally the anus.” “We see
the organs appear one after the other in a fixed temporal sequence; and each [organ], when its
performance is finished, disappears again.” Here the immediate “effect of the impulse” (Impulsfolge) of
the switch-over is to form the first organ the amoeba needs in order to exercise that organ’s function.36
The next switch-over is to exercise that function. Then it forms the second organ needed, and so on, in a
sequence of bursts of formation and un-formation or of action and cessation of action. Each forming or
using of an organ is, in one way, analogous to an act of sprouting by the magnolia.
We might say of either the plant or the amoeba that what it has at the ready is a complex power
with respect to its actions. This power enables it to display, in the appropriate ways as required from
moment to moment, the relevant features of the complex activity which comprises its way of being
what it is (οὐσία).
However, the plants’ part-making origination of sprouts and the amoebae’s organ-forming
origination of metaphorical sprouts also differ significantly. A plant’s switch-over to budding, blooming,
or fruiting is an initiation of a production. What it is producing is a part of itself, which will endure for at
14
�least long enough to become an object of study for Theophrastus. As producing itself, a plant’s switchovers are engaged in its continual process of coming-to-be.
In the case of the amoeba, the sequence of its “sproutings,” that is, its switch-overs to shaping,
to using, and to un-shaping organs, leaves it right where it began. That is, nothing like a sprout, twig, or
flower, or additional length persists; it comes to have no new part or augmented part. It is now what it
has been. It was already in a complete state, and its turnings-on and -off have served to maintain itself
in that same state of completeness. They are change-overs to or from actions, which hold, or keep, it in
its pre-existing state of completeness.
We might compare the plant, the amoeba, and the adult multi-cellular animal as follows. “The
urge towards self-maintenance … in the flowering plants … is expressed in repetitive branching.”37 The
branches that the plant puts forth become co-constitutive of it, by accretion. So, in one sense it remains
the same plant; in another sense it is always impelling itself to switch over to motion and to put forth
another sprout, thus becoming different. The impulse in the amoeba expresses itself in a temporary
“branching” and “unbranching,” so that it does not become altered or increased relative to what it was.
The adult multicellular animal’s maintaining itself leads it merely to move its “branches” around relative
to itself.
As we later read in the lab excerpt from Aristotle’s On the Soul (II.1), there are, in the case of
adult animals, two sorts of holding themselves (-έχεια) in their end-state of completeness (ἐντελ-). The
first one is an activity of keeping themselves in an active state of readiness, so that they are able to turn
on or off, at a moment’s notice, any one or several of their activities of the second sort. Moreover, each
of those latter activities—like sensing and chasing prey; sensing and fleeing from predators, etc.—makes
its contribution to maintaining the animal in its adult condition. In these examples they provide needed
nourishment and offer escape from death at the hands of predators.
So, the amoeba stays at its peak because it preserves its power to turn on and off, as needed, its
15
�working at its various jobs of self-maintenance, a working that includes a “just-in-time” production of
the tool needed to work at the respective job. As was just illustrated, the first and the second sorts of
staying-itself are each a being-at-work, or activity, or a set of several of them. This combining of action
and self-maintenance is nicely captured in Joe Sachs’s translation of “ἐντελέχεια” as being-at-workstaying-complete.38
What is true of amoebae also holds for adult multicellular animals, with the one major
difference that the organs of the latter are persisting parts of the adult animal. Generally there is not
even a momentary making or unmaking of an organ. The existing organs are simply switched over from
performing one action to performing another or from action to rest and back or into simultaneous
action—as in lying on the ground, then noticing and following with the eyes a potential prey moving
across the field, and then rising and running in pursuit. We might say that the animal had been “idling”39
and had then shifted into first “gear,” then into second, third, or fourth “gears.” The animal’s watching
and running are the analogues of the plant’s sprouting and flowering.
Section iii: Goethe’s Intuitive Looking and the Transformation of the Leaf
Our next author, Goethe, seeks to combine in a fresh way the impulse- and logos-approaches
that we discerned in the readings and practica of the first three laboratories. As suggested by the title
of his major work on plants, The Metamorphosis of Plants,40 he reconceptualizes Arber’s pure
morphology in two-steps.
First, as Goethe explains in introducing his aim,41 morphology is literally an account (λόγος) of a
structured shape, or form (μορφή; Gestalt), which, in assuming “that a connected thing is … fixed,”
abstracts “from what is mobile.” But when he gazes intuitively at the shapes of plants and their parts,
Goethe sees that “nothing in them is … at rest …—everything is fluctuating in continual motion.” What
he actually experiences as the referent of the expression “μορφή” is something “that is held steady only
16
�for an instant” in his experience. So, he replaces “Gestalt,” or “μορφή” with “formation” (Bildung),
which would be “μόρφωσις” in Greek. The word “formation” can refer to “both what has been brought
forth and what is being brought forth.” If he had stopped here, he would have written a work of
morphosis-ology, The Morphosis of Plants, illustrating the impulse-approach.
However, in Goethe’s intuitive vision “what has been formed is immediately again being
transformed,” that is, metamorphosized. What does this mean? In gazing intuitively at a tree or at
another plant, Goethe sees that while it “really does appear to us as an individual,” it actually “consists
of nothing but particular single things.” Furthermore, these single things: i) are similar (ähnlich) in
appearance, ii) are identical (gleich) in Idea (Idee), and iii) are alike (gleichen) to the whole plant or tree
(Aim 55-57; italics added).
Goethe’s intuitive gazing might be compared to viewing a ballet from three different viewpoints.
First, when I focus on several individual dancers, I notice that their movements, when not identical, are
similar to each other. Second, I am able to intuit in each of them the source (Idee) from which the
whole ballet first sprang up in the mind of the choreographer. Third, when I step back and take in the
flow of the whole dance, I can see how the movements of the individual dancers are like the larger
movement of the entire ballet. In viewing the ballet of the plant in this way, Goethe claims to be
recognizing “living formations as such,” that is, as alive and as moving on to their next formation. He is
also grasping the “outward, visible, tangible” dancers “in interrelation,” that is, as forming the ballet as a
whole. And he is shedding “light on these [dancers] as hints of the interior” (Aim, 55) Idea, whence the
ballet originated and which it expresses.
The name Goethe chose for that which stands for what is the same in Idea and tendency was
“leaf.” Here is a way to experience, right now, what he might have had in mind. Look at the sketch of
the two leaves below (figure 5) for a short period of time, with the question in mind, What are some
possible relationships between them?
17
�Figure 5 – Two Leaves
Now, after that pause, look at the next sketch (figure 6).
Figure 6 – Nine Leaves
18
�It shows leaves taken from the common buttercup, ordered from the bottom of stem, at the lowest left,
to top of the stem, displayed at the bottom right.42 Looking at the two leaves from the first figure, we
can intuit little kinship between them. When we look, in succession, at the nine formations in the
second figure, we see them as if "held steady for only an instant,” in their temporal sequence. The two
leaves from the first figure now make sense to us as successive moves in a dance of development.
Goethe has, in a way, developed into “moving pictures,” that is, into movies projected in the
imagination, Theophrastus’s image of “pouring forth much” and his accounts of differences and
similarities of parts. That is why Goethe says that “if we wish to look at nature in a way that is alive and
intuitive, we ourselves must remain as mobile and flexible as nature and follow the example she gives”
(Aim, 56). Through the mobile imagining of such a film, he is able to “make intuitive (anschaulich) to
us,” the “inner identity of the different plant parts,” “despite the greatest deviation of their outer form”
(## 60, 67). Thereby we may accompany, in our imaginations, “the outer form of the plant through all
its transformations,” while, at the same time, keeping a mental gaze on the inner identity—as we have
just experienced when we looked at the wheel of the nine schematic shapes of the buttercup leaf.
Viewed from a different perspective, Goethe’s emphasis on an underlying sameness throughout
the sequence of appearances might lead us to see that, in his moving pictures, the Same, while
remaining itself, is generating likenesses or images (εἰκόνες) of itself and of each other. Φύσις, as the
source of formation and transformation, could then be said itself to have “within itself the possibility of
acting as the source of repetition.” It would “have a primal character of ‘image-ability,’ a character
which makes possible all ‘difference’”—in the sequence of appearances as the plant is growing—as well
as making possible “all ‘recognition’”—of similarity, as in the above example of the nine leaves.43
Goethe’s view of the leaf as playing the key role was later revised.44 The shoot, or the unity of
the stem-and-leaf complex, came to be seen as the source of the plant’s dance. Later botanists thought
it obvious that “each branch shoot echoes the characters of the parent shoot.”45 The lab students, too,
19
�seemed to see the centrality of the shoot, two classes before they had even read Goethe. One46
proposed that each part of the tree began by coming forth as a shoot and then differentiating itself and
distinguishing itself as it grew. For another47 the shoot was like the tree or plant coming forth to say,
“Here I am,” making its identity known.
In the Metamorphosis Goethe shows that the flowering plant continually moves through the
following six-step cycle: expanding “from the seed to the fullest development of the stem leaf”;
contracting to the sepals of the calyx; expanding to the petals of the corolla; contracting to the style and
stamen; expanding to the fruit; and, finally, returning to seed by a contraction (#73). In effect the
sequence is bud - expansive shooting forth – bud – contractive shooting forth – bud - expansive shooting
forth – bud – contractive shooting forth, etc. The “motion” is not circular but rather like a graph of
waves moving around a circle, contracting and expanding alternately.
Let’s look at the second of the six transitions. When it occurs rapidly: “the stem, suddenly
lengthened and refined, shoots up from the node of the last fully developed [stem] leaf and collects
several leaves around the axis at its end.” Goethe suggests that, in examples like figures 7 and 8,48
Figure 7 - Cornflower with urn-shaped calyx beneath corolla
20
�Figure 8 - ‘Thai Delight’ Bougainvillea with leaflike bracts collected around the tubular flowers
since the stem leaves “still fully retain their shape, we can rely on the mere appearance.” For “we see
unaltered stem leaves moved closer together, in a kind of calyx right under the flower.” Goethe’s
intuitive looking discloses that the “the same organs which so far can be seen developed as stem
leaves,” now “often in a very altered shape,” are “collected around a common center,” as the leaves of a
calyx (## 31, 32, 34; italics added).
If the transition to the calyx should occur slowly, “as the stem leaves come together gradually,
alter, and gently steal over, as it were, into the calyx,” as in figure 9. Or the edges of the clustered
Figure 9 – Stem leaves and calyx of the sunflower
21
�and modified stem leaves may grow together, making them even less recognizable, as in figure 10.49
Figure 10 – Calyx of pot marigold
Goethe’s conclusion from such observations is that in forming the calyx, nature—instead of producing
several “leaves and nodes successively and at a distance from one another”—joins them “together
around a central point” (## 35, 36, 38).
Following this contraction of leaves in the formation of a calyx, the next transition is produced
by an expansion of the leaves, that is, the sepals, in the formation of the petals of a corolla. However,
the petals are so different in appearance from the sepals that we couldn’t recognize that they originated
from the sepals, “were we not able to eavesdrop on nature in several abnormal cases.” Here are three
of the examples of eavesdropping which Goethe mentions. In the first (figure 11) the color of some of
Figure 11 – Calyx and corolla of coreopsis displaying both green and more refined golden sepals
22
�the sepals is not green, as usual, but anticipates the gold of the petals. Sometimes (figure 12) even
Figure 12: Bee balm showing advancing coloration in stem leaves and a second flower emerging from within the first.
the stem leaves already show some of the purple of the petals. Finally, we can see “that stem leaves
transition into petals” in the abnormal case of a tulip (figure 13)50 where half of one petal is green
Figure 13 – Transition from stem leaf to petal in the tulip
and still attached to the stem, like a sepal, and the other half is colored like the other petals and raised
up as part of the corolla. It looks as though nature had skipped over the calyx in rushing ahead to the
corolla (## 40-44).
The six steps in the circular wave motion mentioned above are the steps in “progressive
metamorphosis,” which, “through transformation of one shape into another, climbs up, as it were, on a
23
�mental ladder, to that pinnacle of nature, propagation through two genders” (#6). The contraction in the sixth
step of the spiral staircase Goethe sees in his mind’s eye as “a mental junction (geistige Anastomosis)”
of pollen and ovule. He believes that this mental junction has, “at least for an instant, … brought the
concepts of growth and reproduction closer together” (#63). As he puts it more fully later:
as the plant … sprouts, … a propagation is taking place, but a propagation that differs from that of flower and
fruit, which takes place all at once, in that it is successive and appears as a sequence of individual
developments. This sprouting force that expresses itself gradually is in the most precise way akin to the force
that suddenly develops a large propagation (#113).
Hence, Goethe can call “sprouting a successive propagation, but flowering and fruiting a simultaneous
propagation” (#114). In the case of both sorts of propagation, there is “the development of innumerable
identical individuals,” whether from a bud or from a mother plant (Aim 57). So, we can view “flowers
that develop from the buds … as whole plants that are standing on the parental plant, just as the
[parental plant] is standing on the earth” (#95).
24
�PART II
Section i: GOETHE AND CHINESE PAINTING
Goethe’s constant endeavor to “make intuitive to us” the “inner identity of the different plant
parts,” in spite of their great outer diversity, helps us to “derive” all the transformations of “the outer
form of the plant” (# 84). It may be that in performing this derivation we become, as it were, identified
with the origination of the shooting-forth, so that in our imagination we pulsate rhythmically with it, in
its switch-overs from ON to OFF and back.
For Goethe making intuitive the inner identity and deriving the appearances requires a training in
a new way of looking and in a new way of using “the power of imagination and the understanding.” It
gradually will become easy for us to look at the appearances next to “each other in both a forward and a
backward direction.” We’ll be able to “say that a stamen is a contracted petal or, with equal
justification, that a petal is a stamen in a state of expansion; that a sepal is a contracted stem leaf … or
that a stem leaf is a sepal expanded” (#120)—as depicted here in Goethe’s drawing (figure 14).51
Figure 14 – Successive transformation of petal into stamen in white water lily
After the Metamorphosis we read some reflections by Goethe on his way of looking.52 Some
observers of nature, on the basis of isolated, single experiences, try to come up with an idea, hypothesis,
or theory (Experiment, 16). To them he says that while experiences may appear isolated, in reality they
interconnect both with each other and with the whole. In order to allow the interconnection to appear,
25
�we must multiply and diversify the initial experience, by arranging for a series of closely related
experiences. Then we can survey and see them all as revealing “a higher sort” of experience. What we
then see is, in reality “only a single experience” viewed from many different viewpoints or composed of
many facets (Experiment, 17-18). Instead of thinking of a box of slides as separate photos, he sees them
the “frames” of a film, and, hence, as presenting a single, temporally spread-out entity.
Goethe calls the object of this deeper view “the pure phenomenon.” When he looks at a
sequence of experiences in this way, what seemed to be wavering in the isolated experiences becomes
stable. What appeared merely accidental is eliminated, and what looked too complicated becomes
untangled (Experience, 24-25).
Goethe uses the word “idea” in two different ways. On the one hand, a scientist may think up
and formulate an idea in advance, and state it as an hypothesis to be confirmed by subsequent
experiments. On the other hand, Goethe himself holds his mind and his senses in a state of
“attunement” and “attentiveness as sharp as it is calm.” He is then able to see the pure phenomenon
displaying “itself in a continuous sequence of appearances.” He experiences it as a living idea. As
Goethe puts it—in language reminiscent of Nicolaides’s account of drawing a tree—he is experiencing
nature herself “as alive and active, striving from the whole to the parts” (Experience, 24; Fortunate, 54142).
It was in this way that Goethe experienced the idea of the metamorphosis of plants, blossoming
in himself (Significant, 39). Once he described the metamorphosis of plants to his friend, Schiller, and
made a schematic sketch of it. When Schiller responded, “That is not an experience. That is an idea,”
Goethe was taken aback and somewhat annoyed and said, “Then I may rejoice that I have ideas without
knowing it, and can even see them with my own eyes" (Fortunate, 540-41).”
This mental participating in nature’s productions is what he has been calling “intuitive looking”
(Power, 31). In it our “power of thinking is active in an objective way” (Significant, 37). Goethe
26
�understands objective thinking to mean that when he looks at a plant in his mental “film” what he is
looking at then “belongs to” him, so that he can produce it again in his mind (Polarity, 863). Such
belonging echoes what my student said, in the first class, about the tree being inside her, in the way a
character in a short story she’s writing is inside her. Goethe can generate the appearances “under
thousands of circumstances, their uniformity and mutability [being] looked at with an intuitive gaze …;
their determinateness … recognized and determined again by the human mind” (Experience, 25).
This objective thinking is the ultimate ground of Goethe’s ability to derive plant forms. It is “a
pregnant point from which much may be derived” (Significant, 40). Perhaps in looking at his mental film
of the appearances of a plant, Goethe participates in its unique switch-over impulse, in such a way that
he can generate those appearances and their modifications in his mind. The pregnant point of objective
thinking would be the point where the aliveness of the bud’s bursting-into-flower meets and is one with
the aliveness of our sensing the flower’s impulse (impulse-approach). Or, since objective thinking is not
limited to the study of plants, the pregnant point could also be where the lighting-up of one face’s
similarity to another meets and is one with our noticing the new aspect of the face (logos-approach).
What has Goethe shown us about how we can look in a different way? First, he emphasizes
that we need to be focused on two aspects of a plant—on its continual shifts over time and on the
interconnectedness of its parts. Second, by arranging our experiences of the plant in the proper
sequence, we can see the pure phenomenon revealing itself in and through them. Third, if we become
objectively one with the pure phenomenon, our mind will derive countless varieties of the plant’s
appearances.
In this way of looking, we hold ourselves back from imposing our preconceptions and from
projecting our hypotheses. We are participating mentally, in a way, in the plant’s origination of sprouts.
We are experiencing ϕύσις “as alive and active.” Goethe’s “pregnant point” is the source of
experiencing the immediate trans-formation of what has just been formed. Nicolaides’s advice, “to seek
27
�the actual impulse” of the tree, which appears to be static, changes the drawer’s looking into this
Goethean mode of “objective thinking.” In what is motionless to the ordinary gaze, Nicolaides has us
sense a lifting or drooping, a pushing or pulling, just as Goethe invites us to see an expansion or
contraction—what was called “living movement” at the beginning of Part One of the lecture.
“Living movement” is a translation of the second half of the First Canon of Chinese painting,
which, according to Sze’s The Tao of Painting, reads as follows: “Circulation of Ch’i makes living
movement.”53 In a later version it was changed slightly to: “Rhythmic reverberation of ch’i makes living
movement.”54 This canon of painting may be interpreted more broadly as a standard of what
constitutes alive drawing, or, more generally, alive looking, seeing, and thinking. Of the two parts of the
First Canon, the key is the first: “circulation of the Ch’i.” For the alive moving follows from it. “This
concept of the Ch’i in action governs all the principles and every work of art, down to each brushstroke.”
While the Ch’i is what brings forth and “permeates life and its movement,” it is not to be
identified with that life and movement; they emerge from it. In the same way, when the wind in
“stirring the leaves produces a rustle,” the rustling is of the foliage, not of the wind. Thus, living
movement is the rustling of the things, the stirring of the forms in the painting, and the motions of the
painter’s hand-and-arm (cp. Sze, 42, 54-55), all of which are brought forth and permeated by the
circulation or reverberation of the Ch’i (Sze, 52)
Chinese painters aimed to render the ch’i that resides in each form (Sze, 34). The forms of a
painting would be lifeless if they did not manifest something of that ch’i, which is moving and
transforming the depicted things. The painters recognized that “when one succeeds in conveying the
ch’i of each form, the result is an expression of the Ch’i that pervades the universe” (Sze, 35). In our
terms, to produce such a result, the painter must penetrate into the secret of the inner switch-over
impulse.
In Goethe’s formulation of such penetration, we transcend mere looking-at and pass over into
28
�intuitive looking, participating in nature’s productions. Intuitive looking allowed Goethe to see nature
herself “as alive and active,” as in the metamorphosis of plants. In the same way “Ch’i … has to be
grasped through intuition,” that is, by looking “in a certain way” (Sze, 52-53), so as to call forth the
receptivity and responsiveness of the heart-mind (hsin; Sze 35).
For Goethe the metamorphosis of plants was a succession of alternating expansions and
contractions. In Chinese painting what is important in nature’s perpetual motion is the constant
interaction of “the rising, floating, expanding, and active qualities of the Ch’i,” known as yáng, and “the
sinking, settling, shrinking, and passive qualities,” known as yīn. The painter sees “the cycle of growth,
bloom, and decay of a flower” as illustrating the operation of the yīn and yáng, so that the resulting
“painting of a flower at a given stage of development depicts either a yang or yin aspect of it” (Sze, 41,
54-55, 41). Goethe seems to have a more regular sense of the alternation of yang and yīn. Perhaps he
would prefer the second version of the First Canon, which speaks of rhythmic reverberation of ch’i.
Here is a passage—echoing Goethe’s account of his intuitive looking—that describes the
Chinese painter’s participation in one of nature’s formations:
In observing the way a bud opens into full flower, eventually to shed its petals, and the conditions under which
this process takes place, the painter is exploring an aspect of [ϕύσις]. He is able to understand [ϕύσις] when he
is thoroughly familiar with every stage of the process, can see it [namely, the bud opening, then shedding petals,
etc.] at each stage of the process and as a whole as analogous to other manifestations of the way of [ϕύσις]
around him, including himself, and can through his heart and mind55 become aware of the same pattern of
movement beyond his own limited horizon, on the scale … of the whole universe (Sze, 41).56
In this description one has only to replace “painter” with “observer of nature,” in order to have a good
account of Goethe’s “objective thinking.” In the painter’s way of observing, too, we are “accustoming
ourselves to hold the appearances against each other in both a forward and a backward direction.”
Moreover, just as the painter’s seeing the way of ϕύσις includes seeing it in himself and in the
whole universe, so, too, was Goethe himself transformed by his observation of nature: “[I and my]
brothers and sisters … think: ‘in every place/ We are in the Interior [of Nature].’”
29
�To myself a thousand times I say:
“All things she gives, gladly and lavishly;
Nature has neither kernel nor shell,
She is everything at once.
Examine chiefly only yourself,
Whether you are kernel or shell.” (Allerdings)
When we draw the impulse or when we look intuitively, how are we experiencing in a way
different from our everyday experiencing? When we participate in the formations of ϕύσις, as we draw,
look, see, or think, how are we experiencing?
Drawing-looking-describing is an action that aims to manifest outwardly what is appearing,
precisely in the way it is appearing to us. Taking our cue from Arber and Nicolaides, from Goethe and
the Chinese painters, we might compare ourselves to a musical instrument on which the plant is playing
its melody, when we are drawing, painting, or describing it. If we are in a state of calm attention and
flexible responsiveness to the plant’s “playing,” we are a well-tuned instrument. Our drawing or our
precise description is then the melody that the plant is playing.
Section ii: ΦϓΣΙΣ AND BEING
Drawings and descriptions aren’t the only kinds of melodies that may come forth from us in
response to the appearances of a plant. We might, instead, come up with a metaphor or write a poem.
The conclusion to this lecture borrows from the philosopher Paul Ricoeur’s reflections on the way of
experiencing that is proper to metaphorizing. His ideas, which are in part inspired by Aristotle, will
deepen our understanding of Goethe’s and of the Chinese painters’ way of experiencing.
In the discussion to follow, “intuitive looking” will be used to refer equally to Arber’s visual
thinking, Nicolaides’s gesture drawing, Goethe’s intuitive looking or objective thinking, and the looking
of the Chinese painters. The above characterization of intuitive looking as alive means that it presents
“all things ‘as in act.’” Intuitive looking allows “every latent capacity for action” in each thing to appear
as at work (ἐνέργειᾳ), “every dormant potentiality of existence [to] appear … as in bloom (éclose),” or,
30
�according to an alternative translation, as a new life emerging, like a chick, from the cracked shell of an
egg.57 In allowing human beings to experience things in this way, intuitive looking has an “ontological
function,” that is, a role to play in regard to the Being of beings. Intuitive looking allows the Being of
things to be manifested in such a way that it is made available for others to encounter, too.
The intuitive looker has an insight which is like a “glance … of genius.” Think of an instant in
which fresh aspects of things are, as it were, “in the process of being born” for you. In this instant you
would be experiencing things before conceptualizing them. That is, this insight would occur in “a preconceptual mode” (MV248-49/230-31, 253/236). The new aspects arising from, in, and to the intuitive
looking constitute an instance of genuine origination, or “sprouting.” As the Chinese painter shares in
nature’s production, so here, too, the one looking intuitively participates in the sprouting of novelty in
what is being looked at. Moreover, the resulting expression of the insight allows us to participate in the
“emergence” of those novel aspects, too.
This seeing of new aspects is a two-sided seeing. It is partly active thinking and partly receptive
sensing. In the case of Arber’s visual thinking and Goethe’s intuitive looking, the active part is a
thought—a fresh cognition, which arises spontaneously, due to the advance preparation of the
experience(s) by the observer. In the case of Nicolaides and the Chinese painters, the active part is the
body-mind’s moving the pencil or brush over the paper, as if their receptive looking called forth,
spontaneously, arm-hand motions that expressed what they were receiving. They are engaged in
“thinking in movement.”58 In either case the intuitive looking both “escapes any voluntary control”—
that is, either you see it or you don’t—and involves “doing something” (MV270/252).
When we are looking at things in the fraction of a second before taking them in their familiar
sense, we are, as it were, joining them in their coming-into-being (γένεσις) as they are sprouting
(φυομένων).59 The person looking sees things springing up, as if for the first time. Seeing them in this
way is what is meant by “seeing all things in act,” or “seeing them as natural bloomings, or hatchings
31
�(éclosions).” This mode of seeing and of subsequent showing of what is seen is alive, is “alive
experience” (MV391-92/364-65). In Goethe’s terms we are experiencing the things not as static shapes
but rather as formations.
To see in this way would be to see act—in the sense of being-active-staying-in-its-state-ofcompletion—and to see power—in a sense that would include the ability to produce different kinds of
motion or rest—as together, as simultaneous. An intuitive looker would then be seeing, first, “power as
act,” that is, would be seeing as a finished thing what is still only potentially that thing. A person gazing
intuitively would, second, be seeing “act as power,” or seeing “every achieved form as a promise of
novelty” (MV, 391-92/364).
Like the two paths we saw in Part One, that of the impulse-approach and that of the logosapproach, power and act are not mutually exclusive alternatives. Perhaps it is because one’s
heart-mind has penetrated to the inner switch-over impulse at the “pregnant point” that one sees
rest in a production of motion and motion in a resting. This could be one way of taking that to
which the Eleatic Stranger was referring when he said that it is “as if Rest and Motion were
embraced by” Being.60
One who is seeing in this way is reaching ϕύσις “in the primary sense.”61 “Comings-into-being
and sproutings (φύεσθαι)” are the rustling of the things in the wind of ϕύσις. They are not ϕύσις itself.
For, in Aristotle’s words, it is rather “the way of being what they are (οὐσία) of things that have an
originator of and ruler over motion within themselves precisely as themselves.” This originator-ruler
may be in them in either of two ways—as a power-to-do or as a holding-itself-in-its-end-state (Met.
1015a14-15, 18-19). In being able to experience the wind in the rustling of the trees, the intuitive
looker, upon seeing a thing as simply at work staying itself, can also see it as having capabilities to
become some new thing. Alternatively, when such a looker sees something in motion or as having the
potential to move, she can also see it as already having arrived at its goal. These ways of seeing are
32
�familiar from Goethe’s considering the appearances next to each other in both a forward and a
backward direction.
In order to assist in resuscitating this sense of ϕύσις, we “moderns” must look for places “where
appearing signifies ‘the coming-into-being of the things that are sprouting.’” One such place is where
we have begun the Lab, where intuitive gazing at plants shows us “the blooming, or hatching (éclosion),
of appearing” (MV392/365). We can then look at actions, makings, and motions metaphorically as
particular species of sproutings, bloomings, or hatchings. This may reawaken in us the boundlessness of
the original sense of ϕύσις, which is responsible for the “rustlings” of actions, makings, and motions.
Thus, it might be possible for St. John’s students to be in a position to connect what is being said
in the following passage to some of their own experiences in Freshman Lab. They’ll have something
toward which they can be looking off (ἀποβλέπειν) in trying to make sense of it.
Now what does the word ϕύσις say? It says that which is spontaneously blossoming on its own (das von sich aus
Aufgehende) (e.g., the blossoming (Aufgehen) of a rose), the unfolding that is opening itself up, the entering-intoappearance in such unfolding, and holding itself and persisting (Verbleiben) in appearance, in short, the rulingworking holding-sway (Walten) that is blossoming-abiding (-verweilende)….
Φύσις as blossoming can be experienced everywhere, e.g., …, in the growth of plants, in the emergence of
animal and human from the womb. But ϕύσις, the holding-sway that is blossoming, is not synonymous with these
processes, which we today still count as part of “nature.” … Φύσις is Being itself, by virtue of which beings first
become and remain observable.62
As we students of the early part of Freshman Lab listen to this passage written by the
philosopher Martin Heidegger, we are able to recognize its kinship with our experience so far in the lab.
We might add that blossoming brings to our minds the sudden putting-forth of shoots and the switchover impulse that is the originator-ruler of moving and of standing still. We also recognize in it the
plant’s staying itself in a way, while at the same time becoming other.
Looking ahead to the next section of the lab, on animals, we might wonder whether we’ll
encounter some new feature, which foreshadows what we’ll soon meet in seminar—the idea that there
is something—or rather not some thing—the Good itself, which might even transcend Being as
blossoming.
33
�1
A two-part lecture delivered on September 11-12, 2020.
Agnes Arber, The Mind and the Eye (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1964), pp. 115-21, 124-26. (Translations of quotations
sometimes added or modified; italics occasionally added.)
3 The Queen Anne's lace flower resembles lace and often has a solitary purple dot in the center. Each flower cluster is made up of numerous
tiny white flowers.
4 a cluster of flowers arranged on the shoot of seed plants.
5 Jacob Klein, “On Precision,” lecture St. John’s College.
6 Agnes Arber, The Natural Philosophy of Plant Form (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1950), pp. 210-11; quotation from P. Turpin,
1820.
7 Ms. Younji Youn, on August 31, 2020.
8 Sei do (sheng 生 + dòng 動).
9 Henry Bowie, On the Laws of Japanese Painting (NY: Dover, 1911), pp. 77-78; italics added.
10 “Feeling” here is to be taken in the same sense as “Empfinden,” which Erwin Straus characterized beautifully and distinguishes from I-versusobject perception (Wahrnehmung), in Vom Sinn der Sinne: Ein Beitrag zur Grundlegung der Psychologie (Berlin: Springer, 1936).
11 Experiencing directed tensions corresponds to Whitehead’s perceiving sensa in the mode of causal efficacy, which is prior to perceiving
objects in presentations (Vorstellungen), clothed with sense data, in space. See A. N. Whitehead, Process and Reality, revised edition (NY: The
Free Press, 1979), pp. 58 et passim.
12 Rudolf Arnheim, Art and Visual Perception (Berkeley: U of CA Press), 412-13, 416, 437, 444-45, 449. The phrase “directed tension” was
proposed by Wassily Kandinsky in Punkt und Linie zur Fläche.
13 Ms. Kelly Kane, on August 31, 2020.
14
“The dynamics is an integral part of what an observer sees as long as his natural sensory responsiveness has not been repressed by an
education geared to the static” (ib.).
15 Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1941, pp. 14-18 and 30.
16 Arnheim, op. cit., p. 454.
17
Mr. Frederic Duch Clerici, on September 3, 2020.
18 The three students are Mr. Roman Paul Wlodkowski, Mr. Henry David Hills, and Ms. Younji Youn, respectively, on September 3, 2020.
19
Suggested to me by my friend, the artist, Betsy Kopmar.
20
Ms. Songeun Jang, on September 3, 2020.
21 Note on terminology: Sprout will mean (v.) to begin to give off shoots or buds; (n.) young plant growth, such as a bud or shoot. Shoots will
mean the new fresh plant growth of both stems and their appendages, the leaves and lateral buds, flowering stems and flower buds. Bud will
mean an undeveloped or embryonic shoot, normally occurring either in the axil of a leaf (= axillary bud) or at the tip of a stem (= terminal bud).
22 What is responsible for this seeming incompleteness of activity is the fact that the potential of which the sprouting is an activity is itself
incomplete (201b33).
23 As the DC-based painter Paul Reuther has said, when paintings give evidence of mastery of shape, line, value, and composition and yet lack
life it is often due to their not having a gestural foundation, as taught by Nicolaides (private communication).
24 Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosophical Investigations (NY: The Macmillan Company, 1953), tr. G. E. M. Anscombe, modified, Part II, section xi, pp.
193-94.
25 Included in forming an opinion are all of the lively transformations of thought that follow in its wake.
26
Henepola Gunaratana, Mindfulness in Plain English (Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1991), pp. 149-50.
27 Mr. Adam Miller Powers, on September 7, 2020.
28 In Japanese this state of self-world interrelationship is known as jishu zammai (自主 三味). It is, perhaps, somehow both self-less absorption
(三味) and agency (主) by the self (自); and yet it is neither the one nor the other. It will be explored in a later lecture.
29 狂, the left side of which originally represented a wild dog.
30 天, where the upper horizontal line originally represented the Heaven, below which stands a human being, with arms stretched out wide.
31 Henry George Liddell; Robert Scott [1940], A Greek-English Lexicon; Machine readable text (Trustees of Tufts University, Oxford).
32 ταῦτα γὰρ εἶναι καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα φύσει φαμέν. πάντα δὲ τὰ ῥηθέντα φαίνεται διαφέροντα πρὸς τὰ μὴ φύσει συνεστῶτα. τὰ μὲν γὰρ φύσει
ὄντα πάντα φαίνεται ἔχοντα ἐν ἑαυτοῖς ἀρχὴν κινήσεως καὶ στάσεως—τὰ μὲν κατὰ τόπον, τὰ δὲ κατ᾿ αὔξησιν καὶ φθίσιν, τὰ δὲ κατ᾿
ἀλλοίωσιν—κλίνη δὲ καὶ ἱμάτιον καὶ εἴ τι τοιοῦτον ἄλλο γένος ἐστίν, ᾗ μὲν τετύχηκε τῆς κατηγορίας ἑκάστης καὶ καθ᾿ ὅσον ἐστὶν ἀπὸ τέχνης,
οὐδεμίαν ὁρμὴν ἔχει μεταβολῆς ἔμφυτον, ᾗ δὲ συμβέβηκεν αὐτοῖς εἶναι λιθίνοις ἢ γηΐνοις ἢ μικτοῖς, ἐκ τούτων ἔχει καὶ κατὰ τοσοῦτον, ὡς
οὔσης τῆς φύσεως ἀρχῆς τινος καὶ αἰτίας τοῦ κινεῖσθαι καὶ ἠρεμεῖν ἐν ᾧ ὑπάρχει πρώτως …. Ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἕκαστον τῶν
ποιουμένων· οὐδὲν γὰρ αὐτῶν ἔχει τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ τῆς ποιήσεως, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν ἐν ἄλλοις καὶ ἔξωθεν, οἷον οἰκία καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν
χειροκμήτων ἕκαστον, τὰ δ' ἐν αὑτοῖς μὲν ἀλλ' οὐ καθ' αὑτά, ὅσα κατὰ συμβεβηκὸς αἴτια γένοιτ' ἂν αὑτοῖς.
33 A rapid motion forwards, onrush, onset, assault; II impulse to do a thing, effort; III setting oneself in motion, start on a march, etc. in Liddell
and Scott, op. cit.
34 The verb μεταβάλλω means: I throw into a different position, turn quickly or suddenly, turn, i.e. plough, the earth; II turn about (Liddell and
Scott, op. cit.).
35 This possibility will be explored in Senior Laboratory.
36 J. von Uexküll, Theoretische Biologie (Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, 1973), p.148.
37 The quotation from Agnes Arber, The Natural Philosophy of Plant Form (Cambridge University Press, 1950), p. 78, continues: “The plant in
endeavouring ‘to persevere in its own being’, repeats that being time after time, each daughter shoot or root becoming, in its turn a parent
shoot or root.” We see here the being-at-work-staying-itself of the potential, precisely as potential, which is the definition of motion (Aristotle,
Physics, Book III ). She also mentions there an interesting proposal by Baruch de Spinoza, who after having identified “‘the effort (conatus) by
which each thing endeavours (conatur) to persevere in its own being (esse)’” with life, stated that that conatus “‘is nothing but the actual
essence of the thing itself’ (Ethices, pars III, Prop. vii).”
2
34
�38
Aristotle, Metaphysics, Book 9, Chapter 3, 1047a30-31, trl. Joe Sachs (Santa Fe: Green Lion, 1999): “And the phrase being-at-work … is
designed to converge in meaning with being-at-work-staying-complete.”
39 The comparison of the soul as the first staying-complete to the idling of a car is due to Seth Benardete, in a course on the De Anima at the
New School for Social Research. Included in idling are the activities going on within the body that allow animals to maintain their structures and
to be ready and able to respond to changes in their environments. The fact that these are known as metabolic activities may be taken as a sign
that they are initiated and ruled over (ἀρχή) by onsets (ὁρμαί) of a switch-on or a switch-off (μεταβολῆς). The latter two expressions are, of
course, suggestive for those familiar with genetic regulatory mechanisms.
40 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, The Metamorphosis of Plants, introduction and photography by Gordon L. Miller (Cambridge, Massachusetts:
The MIT Press, 2009), translation modified; hereafter cited by paragraph number preceded by “#.”
41 “The Aim Introduced” (1807) in J. W. von Goethe, Werke, Bd. XIII, pp. 55-59; J. W. von Goethe, Scientific Studies (NY: Suhrkamp, 1983), ed.
and trl., Douglas Miller (translation modified), pp. 55-56, italics added; hereafter referred to as “Aim.
42 The two figures are from R. Brady, “The Idea in Nature” in Goethe’s Way of Science: A Phenomenology of Nature, eds. D Seamon & A. Zajonc
(Albany: SUNY Press, 1998), pp. 94 and 107.]
43 The language in this paragraph is taken from Jacob Klein’s Greek Mathematical Thought and the Origin of Algebra, trl. Eva Brann (The M.I.T
Press, 1968), p. 82 (cited below as GMT). In context that which has “within itself the possibility of acting as the source of repetition” and has “a
primal character of ‘image-ability,’ … which makes possible … all ‘recognition’” is being itself. This possibility and primal character is “the effect
of … the ‘indeterminate dyad.’” Thus, when, following Goethe, we look at the formation and trans-formation and see that each leaf shape in
the sequence of shapes “is originally ‘alienated’ from itself, is not only ‘itself’ but also ‘another’ than ‘itself,’” we are witnessing an instance of
the indeterminate dyad at work (GMT 82; cp. 95-96). Goethe’s way of looking at plants might, in this way, plant a first seed in the students’
minds of what it could mean to say that being is ϕύσις.
44
Goethe himself implied that the word “leaf” was only a temporary makeshift. He wrote that “we would obviously need a general term by
which we could designate this organ that metamorphosed into such different shapes, and with which we could compare all the appearances of
its shape” (# 120). And, in any case, it should be clear that this difference in the ultimate unit does not alter the accuracy of Goethe’s mobile,
flexible tracking of the fluctuation in the plant’s putting-forth, in its gestural impulse of formation and trans-formation. A plant’s inner truth
would be its unique “gesture” of self-formation.
45 In The Natural Philosophy of Plant Form (Cambridge University Press, 1950), pp. 70-71, Agnes Arber reports the following: In 1875 the
botanist Julius von Sachs wrote: “‘The expressions Stem and Leaf denote only certain relationships of the parts of a whole—the Shoot.’”
Arber’s own view is that “we need … a synthetic standpoint combining the advantages of .… the conception of the shoot as the ultimate unit,
and the opposed conception of the leaf and stem as each being ultimate units.”
46
Mr. Frederic Duch Clerici, on September 3, 2020.
47 Mr. Adam Miller Powers, on September 3, 2020.
48 Figures 7 and 8 are Images 10 and 11, respectively, on pp. 26-27 of Goethe, The Metamorphosis of Plants, op. cit.
49 Figures 9 and 10 are Images 12 and 13, respectively, in ibid., pp. 28-29.
50
Figures 11-13 are Images 14, 16, and 17, respectively, in ibid., pp. 32 and 34-35.
51 Figure 14 is Figure 6 in ibid., p. 44.
52 These short works will be cited by title; the page references are to J. W. von Goethe, Werke, Bd. XIII; the translation was based in significant
part on that of Douglas Miller, found in J. W. von Goethe, Scientific Studies, op. cit.
53
氣運生動 (qì yùn shēng dòng), formulated by Xie He around 500 C.E. The following graphs and translations and the considerations in the text
about the first canon are mostly based on Mai-Mai Sze’s The Tao of Painting, Volume 1 (Princeton University Press, 1956), pp. 33ff: 氣 qì: vapor,
breath; air, manner, influence; Breath of Heaven, Spirit, Vital Force, vivifying principle. 運 yùn: turn, revolve; a circuit. 韻 yùn: beautiful sound,
rhythm, reverberation. Hence, 氣韻 qì yùn = (of literature, art) distinct style, flavor, spirit, character. 生 shēng (pictograph of a plant sprouting):
to be born; to give birth; to produce; life; to grow. 動dòng: (trans.) to move, stir, arouse, touch; to set into action; to displace—by some sort of
power, force, strength (力 li). Hence, shēng dòng = vivid, lively; living movement, alive power of moving (trans.).
54 : 氣韻生動 (qì yùn shēng dòng), which means ‘Ch’i reverberation (turning/bending back) [or uttering sounds (radical 180) that are round like
a cauldron (phonetic)] [is or makes] living movement, or alive power of moving’ (Sze, 49). However, while “circulation,” as “in the vast circuit of
the heavens and the cycles of the seasons” may suggest rhythmic motion, the movement of the Ch’i is not subject to “the limitations of a
measured beat…. Rhythm is only one aspect of the total action of the Ch’i.”
55 心 hsin.
56
In this passage “[ϕύσις]” replaces “the Tao” (道 = the head, or leader, seeing everywhere, is taking an initial step along the way).
57 Paul Ricoeur. La Métaphor vive (Paris: Éditions du Seuil, 1975), p. 61; The Rule of Metaphor, trls. R. Czerny et al. (Ny: Routledge, 1977), p.48;
translation modified; hereafter cited in the text as “MV61/48.” The above quotations by Ricoeur are from Aristotle, Poetics, 1448a24 and
1411b25, respectively. As Ricoeur notes, the “as” in this and subsequent passages derives ultimately from Wittgenstein, Philosophical
Investigations, Part II, section xi.
58 Maxine Sheets-Johnston, The Primacy of Movement (John Benjamins, 2011), Chapter 12 “Thinking in movement.” In particular she shows
how dance improvisation is a “paradigm of thinking in movement” (p. 420).
59 I have altered Ricoeur’s translation of Aristotle, Met. 1014b17-18. Here is the whole relevant passage: “In a sense ϕύσις means [a] the
coming-into-being of the things that are sprouting (φυομένων), as if one were to pronounce the upsilon in ϕύσις long; but in a sense it means
[b] the thing present within forth from which the thing shooting forth, is first shooting forth (φύεται). Again, it is [c] the [source] whence the
first motion in each of the beings that are by ϕύσις is present within it precisely as itself…. [e] The primary and authoritative meaning of ϕύσις
is the way of being what they are of things that have in themselves, precisely as themselves, a ruling source of motion … and [a] the comingsinto-being and [b] shooting forth (φύεσθαι) are called ϕύσις by virtue of being motions from this [ϕύσις in the primary sense]. And [e] [ϕύσις
in] this [primary sense] is [c] the ruling source of motion of beings that are by ϕύσις, in being present within [them] in some way, whether in
the way of power-for or in the way of holding-itself-in-its-end-state-of completion” (Met. 1014b15-20; 1015a14-15, 18-19).
60 Cp. Soph 247de: Str: “I say, then, that whatever possesses any sort of power—whether for making anything at all, of whatever nature, other
than it is or for being affected even the least bit by the meagerest thing, even if only once—… is in its very being (ὄντως ἐῖναι). For I set down
35
�as a boundary marking off the beings that it is nothing else but power”; and 250b: Str: “Then do you posit in the soul being as some third thing
beyond [Motion and Rest] as if Rest and Motion were embraced by it? And is it through taking them together and looking away toward the
community of their way of being that you say that both of them are?” The translations generally follow that by E. Brann, P. Kalkavage, and E.
Salem (Newburyport: Focus Philosophical Library, 1996).
61 Aristotle, Metaphysics, Δ, 1015a18-19, based on the Sachs translation, with changes, here and in the following quotations.
62 Martin Heidegger, Einfūhrung in die Metaphysik (Tūbingen: Max Niemeyer Verlag, 1953), p. 11; Introduction to Metaphysics (New Haven: Yale
University, 2000), trls. G. Fried and R. Polt, p. 15; translation modified.
36
�
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Looking in Freshman Lab I: A Path to Experiencing the Blossoming of Things? A Two-Part Lecture
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Typescript of two lectures delivered by Robert Druecker, Annapolis tutor on September 11 and 12, 2020 as part of the Formal Lecture Series. The lectures are the first in a three-part series on Freshman Lab.
Mr. Druecker describes the lectures: "Part One gives a sense both of what students at the beginning of Freshman Laboratory read about looking at plants and of how they look at trees and other plants. Part Two considers one 'Big Picture' that they might paint, if they follow the guiding thread of the impulse-to-sprout, encountered in those first few classes."
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Druecker, Robert
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St. John's College
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Annapolis, MD
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2020-09-11
2020-09-12
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A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: make an audiovisual recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation at the St. John's College Greenfield Library; make typescript copies of my lecture available for archival preservation at the St. John's College Greenfield Library."
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text
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pdf
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Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von, 1749-1832. Versuch die Metamorphose der Pflanzen zu erklären
Arber, Agnes, 1879-1960
Nicolaïdes, Kimon, 1892-1938
Ink painting, Chinese
Buds
Flowers
Morphology
Magnolias
Relation
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<p><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7627" title="Part II"></a><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7350">Looking in Freshman Lab part I (video)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7627" title="Part II">Looking in Freshman Lab part II (video)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7628">Looking in Freshman Lab part II (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7630">Looking in Freshman Lab part III (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7682" title="Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)">Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)</a></p>
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English
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Druecker_Robert_2020-09-11
Friday night lecture
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Looking in Freshman Lab II How measuring, weighing, and counterbalancing
can inspire us to see things in new ways
This is the second in a series of lectures 1 for freshman on ways of looking encountered in the
first year of laboratory. In the second segment of the class, the students are invited to consider various
ways of mathematizing the world. 2 They may come to see certain phenomena as μαθήματα, that is, as
objects of study that can be used to learn through insight. While these phenomena are also investigated
empirically, the lecture will explore whether they can be viewed in ways that lead to insight. 3
The lecture will be limited to the ways in which the characteristics of length and heaviness and
different sorts of equilibrium can lead the students to new ways of looking and seeing with the mind’s
eye.
PART ONE
The first exercise performed in the second segment of the lab is measuring the quantity length.
We measure the length of a table by laying out, end to end, a strip of cardboard—our standard unit
length—as many times as it will fit on the table, say, seven. Then, unless we are very lucky, so that it
happens to fit exactly seven times, we claim that the table is between seven and eight units long.
In order to measure the table more exactly, we make a new unit by dividing our first unit in half.
Then we may say, for example, that the table is between 15 and 16 new units long. Continuing the
process of bisecting, at some point—due to the thickness of the pencil mark or to the limitations of our
vision—we find ourselves, perhaps, after four bisections, unable to perform a further one. At that point
we might determine that the table was longer than 123 and shorter than 124 of the last standard unit.
We’d go on to say that the ratio of two lengths, that of the table to that of the last standard unit, is
somewhat greater than the ratio of the numbers 4 123 to 1 and is somewhat less than the ratio of the
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�numbers 124 to 1. We claim we have measured the length of our table on “a ratio scale,” in that we
have determined “the ratio between a measured magnitude and the standard magnitude as … equal or
nearly equal [to the] ratio between two numbers” (E&M, p. 5). 5
We are asked (E&M, p. 5) think about whether any of the “practical limitations to achieving …
exactitude … in the exercise … might be overcome.” Let’s take this question as an invitation to imagine,
in a way proposed by the philosopher Edmund Husserl, 6 a series of practical refinements to our standard
and the corresponding improvements in our ability to measure length exactly.
We begin with our last cardboard standard, sharpen the pencil we used to make it, and make an
improved standard. Next if we think we can do better, we may sharpen the pencil more. Or we may
come across a different tool for making even finer marks that can be made closer together. And so on.
We imagine that as “technology progresses” we are able to distinguish separate lines that are ever
closer together. Perhaps a machine is invented that can draw lines .1 mm apart. We might be able to
view them under a microscope and see that the edge of the table falls between two of them. As we
imagine “the ideal of perfection …pushed further and further,” we never get to the point of thinking that
no further improvement could ever be conceived.
We can imagine repeated experiences of moving, in the "again and again” (im Immer wieder),
toward a more perfect standard. 7 If we think of this perfecting process as carried to its ideal limit, we
may think of an ideally exact limit-standard of length. That standard would be “like [an] invariant and
never attainable pole…, which” we’d approach, but never reach, as ever more perfect standards were
produced. 8
Our imagining of this progress and our thinking of this standard appear to have led us to what
Socrates, in conversation with Simmias, called recollecting. He spoke of recollection as a potential
accompaniment to our recognition of a thing we are sensing—an accompaniment that would take place
whenever someone “not only recognized (γνῷ) that thing but also thought (ἐννοήσῃ) of another thing,
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�the knowledge of which isn’t the same” as the recognition of that thing. When we recognize a set of
marks on the cardboard, we think – short, parallel, straight-line segments, equidistant from each other.
As Socrates might have said: from these (apparently) equal distances and this (apparently) straight edge,
we think of the Equidistant Itself and the Straight Itself. From our perception of the equidistant marks
along the edge of the cardboard standard, we think that they “both are reaching after the [Equidistant
and the Straight] … and are in a condition of falling short of [them].” Socrates would say that “that of
which [we] grasped the thought (ἔννοιαν) was recollected.” It was not found in our sensing of the marks
on the cardboard. Rather it felt as if we knew it from “sometime before” (πρότερόν ποτε; as in a priori).
This kind of experience is what we call “learning through insight” (Phdo 72e-75b), as opposed to merely
making empirical observations, interpreting them, and learning through experience.
Recollection is a two-in-one experience—like visually recognizing something in a crowded room
as a face—or as a lyre—and, at the same time, thinking of it as Simmias’s face—or thinking of the boy
who is always playing that lyre. When, for the first time, someone recollected an ideal limit to the
perfecting process described above, it might have been experienced as a thought that suddenly fell into
her or his mind (in German: ein Einfall). The experience of recollecting may have shared certain features
with Wittgenstein’s description of the experience of suddenly “noticing an aspect”: “I’m considering a
face, suddenly I notice its likeness to another. I see that it has not altered; and yet I see it differently.” 9
As Socrates pointed out, however, an additional feature characterizes the recollection-experience. For a
key part of the way I see the “face” “differently” in recollecting is that I see it as wanting to be of the
same sort as the ideal-exact limit-standard—like Socrates’ pair of equal sticks, wanting to be of the same
sort as the Equal itself—but as falling short of it.
We are also asked (E&M, p. 5) to consider a second question: whether, given any table, we could
always subdivide the standard enough times, so that the length of that table would “turn out to be an
exact multiple of the subdivided standard.” Whereas the first question led us to recollection, involving a
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�a two-in-one experience—recognizing a piece of cardboard with pencil marks on it and simultaneously,
together with that, thinking of an ideally sharp standard for length—this second question leads us to a
single seeing, or, perhaps better, a fantasizing. For it raises the possibility that the things in the world of
our experience might themselves actually be—rather than reach after being—ideally exact. If that were
the case, it would then be theoretically possible to express the length of every particular rectangular
table exactly as a ratio of whole numbers. We might then be thought to have accomplished a rationalization of the world.
At the end of Ch. I, we turn from length to the characteristic of heaviness, or weight. The first
two questions posed are: how would it be possible to determine that two weights are “virtually
indistinguishable” and how could we arrange different instances of heavy bodies “in a linear series,”
from lightest to heaviest. If we were able to do both, then we‘d claim that we could measure heaviness
on an ordinal scale (M&E, p. 4).
In order to experience what it means concretely to measure heaviness on an ordinal scale, we
use a device called a “substitution balance.” Here is a picture of one:
A
Weight
Counterweight
Figure 1
This instrument consists of a straight wooden beam that rests on a knife-edge called the fulcrum; from each end of
the beam a plastic pan is suspended…. the arms of the beam are not equal…. The beam is free to swing within the
limits established by the two bumpers (M&E 8).
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�We place an object A in the weight pan on the right and enough clay in the counterweight pan on the
left, so that the beam comes to rest somewhere in between the two bumpers. Then we mark the
pointer’s position.
In order to determine experimentally that two bodies, A and B, are equally heavy, [we] carefully
remove A from the “weight” pan, “without disturbing the counterweight, and substitute B in its place….
If B causes the pointer to rest exactly where A did, then A and B are equal in their … weight; and if not,
not” (M&E 9).
Students find this balance and this experimental definition of equality of weight to be “counterintuitive.” It is especially puzzling to them to read: “No inferences whatever may be drawn, by means of
the balance, as to the comparison of the ‘weight’ and the ‘counterweight.’” Why can’t we say that the
sinking of the counterweight would show that it is heavier than the weight?
In response, after having tentatively considered A and B to be equally heavy, whenever B causes
the pointer to rest exactly where A did, the students formulated the following insight: It makes sense
because “whether A or B is in the weight pan seems to make no difference to anything at all, since
everything is the same either way. B leaves the pointer in the same position as A did.” As one student
said: Weighing using the substitution procedure “challenged my presuppositions” about what equality
of weight really means.
It was as though working with the method of substitution played an analogous role, for the
students, to the one Socrates plays for the slave boy in the Meno. The students, too, at the beginning,
without knowing, “suppose [they] know” how to determine equal weights; then they become aware
that they “don’t know” and are “perplexed” by the procedure proposed; and at the end they arrive at
“true opinions” about it (Meno 82e, 84ab, 85c).
After that each lab team is given an identical metal cylinder, called a baros, to use as unit
standard weight for making two pieces of clay, each equal in heaviness to one baros. By repeated
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�halving they go on to construct a ratio scale for measuring weight and use it to assign weight-numbers
to various bodies, in a way very similar to their assignment of length-numbers to the edge of the table.
A student asked: “What’s the point of spending even more time with such primitive equipment,
like the substitution balance?” A possible response arises out of the fact that in performing the barosexercise many of the weighing teams ended up not using the method of substitution. Instead, they
reverted to their initial “knowledge” that the two weights at opposite ends of a horizontal beam are
equal. Perhaps, then, the student’s earlier realization of having had his presuppositions challenged may
have been like the slave boy’s true opinions, which had merely been “stirred up in him, like a dream”
(Meno 85c). It may be that his realization didn’t “stay put” but rather ran away (97d-98a), or, through
the lens of a different metaphor, flew up to mix in with and fly around with his previous opinions (cp.
Theat 197cff) about what weighing is.
Socrates says to Meno that in order for true opinions to “stay put” they must be tied up “with a
giving-an-account of what is responsible” (αἰτίας λογισμῷ)—a tying-up process that they’ve also agreed
to call “recollection” (Meno 97d-98a). Perhaps it’s a recollection-process that makes use of recollected
things, like a Square, in this case. Socrates had said earlier that in order for one to go beyond having true
opinions “stirred up … like a dream” and to come “himself to draw up [knowledge] again out of himself
(ἀναλαβὼν αὐτὸς ἐξ αὑτοῦ),” one needs to be asked “these same questions many times in different
ways” (Meno 85cd). Perhaps by thinking out afresh, each time, our responses to those questions about
the relations among the parts of a recollected Square, we become able to recollect them, too, and to
articulate them, eventually, with assurance.
After the baros-exercise, in discussion the students realized the mistake they’d made. Did their
questioning and the rethinking of the exercise lead them, at this point, genuinely to draw up again out
of themselves and to formulate an account of what is truly responsible for showing equality of weights?
Or not? They may have only been remembering that they were supposed to follow the recipe for the
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�substitution procedure and had merely forgotten to do so. This latter suggestion is reinforced by the fact
that in an exercise three weeks later that again required a weighing using the substitution balance, no
one in the class actually used the counterweight.
PART TWO
Chapter II, dealing with equilibrium, revisits the balance from a different point of view. A
suitable balance allows us to go beyond measuring the heaviness of a single body to determining a
certain relationship among two bodies and two distances.
The students perform simple practical exercises in the lab and study a treatise on equilibrium by
Archimedes. How are we to think about the exercises in relation to the treatise? Does the latter provide
hypotheses, which the students test with the aim of learning, through their experience of the former,
what does happen? Or could Archimedes, be, as it were, the Euclid of weights-in-equilibrium? If so he’d
be offering us a way to learn through insight into what must happen when bodies are counterbalanced
on a true Balance.
At the beginning of the new chapter, we perform five simple exercises, in order to gain a sense
of how heavy bodies behave when suspended from a point. Then, in our imagination, we take a second
look at those experiments, in order to seek out the essence of the bodies’ behavior.
We, first, make a number of pinholes around the edge of a piece of cardboard as shown in
Figure 2, and suspend it from each in turn. After the cardboard comes to rest, we draw a vertical line
through each pinhole.
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�A
B
C
D
A'
Figure 2
The lines drawn come very close to passing through a single point, which we call the cardboard’s center
of weight (M&E, p. 13). The name is apt in the sense that the cardboard shape “behaves as if all of its
weight were concentrated at or near” this point.
Second, we confirm this claim by, sticking “the head of a pin through this center” and then
balancing “the cardboard, in a horizontal position, on this pinhead.”
Third, when we “insert the pin through the center of weight and hold the pin horizontal,” the
cardboard remains at rest in any orientation in its vertical plane. This rest position is neutral, in the
sense that the cardboard has no preferred orientation; it does not rotate out of any position in which it
is placed. In comparison, the rest positions observed in our first set of experiments, where the center of
weight rotated until it came to rest vertically below the point of suspension, are stable. For even a small
displacement leads to oscillation and, ultimately, to a return to the initial position.
Fourth, if we were very careful, we could bring the cardboard to rest—at least for a short time—
with its center of weight vertically above a pinhole through which the horizontal pin was inserted. It
would then be in an unstable rest position. For if our hand trembled ever so slightly, the cardboard
would swing around in its vertical plane and come to rest in a stable rest position.
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�Finally, what is even more puzzling, when the center of weight is not even on the piece of
cardboard, as in the case of the odd shape depicted in Figure 3, the lines drawn intersect at a point that
is not located on the cardboard.
Generalizing from these empirical observations, we claim that all heavy
bodies have a center of weight in the above sense and have the three kinds of
A
A'
rest position, which depend upon the relation of their points of suspension to
their center of weight.
Figure 3
Could we say that, beyond such a generalization, these few exercises have led us, whenever we
recognize a heavy body, to think, in addition, of a point that behaves as that body’s center of weight?
Would our experiences support the claim that the center of weight did not come from our empirical
observations of bodies in the lab? Rather it occurred to us in our observation of them in the lab. If so
our simple exercises with the pieces of cardboard would, perhaps, have allowed us to recollect the
center of weight, so that it felt as if we knew it from “sometime before” (Phdo 72e-73d).
In thinking of the center of weight, we seem to be looking “through” the body with a sort of Xray vision. Only the body’s center of weight and the point of suspension, its “bones,” show up as white
on the X-ray. The other parts of the body, its “soft tissues”, appear black. If the two bones were given,
then we could see in the mind’s eye—without our having to do further experiments 10—that the actual
amount of the weight and its disposition throughout the body would be irrelevant to the way the body
behaves when suspended. X-ray vision, thus, would allow us to separate something essential in the
situation of a suspended body from what is merely accidental.
We turn now to Archimedes’ treatise “The Centers of Weight of Planes” (M&E, pp. 14ff). Figure
4 is the second figure in the treatise. It depicts two magnitudes, A̲ and B̲ , 11 of equal weight and
9
�A
D
C
B
Figure 4
having centers of weight, 12 A and B, respectively. The previous figures, of the substitution balance and of
the cardboard cutouts, were schematic depictions of physical objects. How are we to interpret
Archimedes’ figures? In what new ways do they invite us to look at material things?
He clearly shares two ways of looking with Euclid. First, his vision is abs-tractive in Aristotle’s
sense. He, too, sees the “things that result from drawing [trahere] [something] away [abs-]” (τὰ ἐξ
ἀφαιρέσεως), namely, things that our mental removal of other sensible characteristics—like “hardness
and its opposite, and also hotness and coldness, and other pairs of contrary perceptible attributes,”
“leaves behind.” 13
If we look for bodies that have typical shapes, like oval, roundish, or oblong, our looking ignores,
or has “stripped off” all characteristics—including heaviness—except shape. If, instead, we were
preparing to look at bodies with Archimedes’ vision, we’d perform almost the same stripping-off.
However, in addition to shape we’d leave behind weight—a characteristic that does not, like shape,
manifest itself fully to the eye.
Second, Archimedes shares with Euclid—and with our previous consideration of the limitstandard of length—a vision of ideally exact limit-formations. For instance, in the Archimedean Figure 5
below, as we do with Euclid’s figures, we take it as imaging an ideally exact straight line, on which there
are three ideally exact points, 14 as indicated. But, in addition, we shall take the respective sizes of the
two rectangles as indicating an exact relationship between the weight of A̲ and that of B̲ .
10
�A
C
B
Figure 5
In particular, if we take the straight line AB in Figure 5 as representing a beam and C as
representing the tip of a fulcrum, then we’ll say that the figure images an ideally exact limit-balance. The
treatise will show us what must happen when we weigh heavy bodies on such an ideally exact limitbalance.
Furthermore, while Archimedes’ rectangular figures are, like Euclid’s, intended to be imagesand-likenesses (εἰκόνες) of exact shapes, in this lecture we shall focus on them only as indices of relative
amounts of heaviness. That is, we shall neglect the shapes of the two rectangles A and B as shapes and
attend only to their sizes, which will be taken to indicate the relative weights of the two represented
bodies.
We shall interpret not only Archimedes’ figures of weights but also bodies in the laboratory as
indices of relative amounts of weight. Many of the relevant features of indices are borrowed, with some
modification, from C. S. Peirce’s treatment of the index. 15 The connection of likeness between the
recognized object and the thought of the Thing itself, in the experience of recollection, is replaced, in
the case of an index, by a direct, factual, non-arbitrary space-time connection between the index and
the indicated thing. Here are some examples—many of which are experienced by animals—of indices
and what each points to: rock – hardness; frost – coldness; dark clouds - impending rain; (for a fish in the
sea) direction of greater light - warmer water; limping gait – physically impaired animal; scowling human
facial expression - displeasure or concern; particular way of pronouncing a word - particular geographic
place or social group. 16
11
�As can be seen from those examples, the “naturalness” of the connection between pointer and
pointed-to may involve innate knowing in some cases, in others, learning through experience 17 (neither
through teaching nor through insight)—including the experience of “artificial” correlations, such as,
between a beep from the oven and the cookies’ readiness to be taken out or between a red traffic light
and the urgency of stopping the car. Rather than “seeing” what is being pointed to, we may feel an urge
to, “hear” an invitation to, or tend to make an inference to it—for instance, at the sights of smoke or
footprints, at the sounds of thunder or of the doorbell ringing, or at the tastes of flavors. Thus, the
correlation need not be perfect, in order for a thing to act as an index.
Our earlier experiences both with weighing on the substitution balance and with suspending
pieces of cardboard from pins through holes, as well as our everyday experiences of lifting bodies and
our childhood play on seesaws, all contributed to our having learned through experience, or
associatively, the connections between, on the one hand, Archimedes’ rectangles or the bodies we work
with in the laboratory and, on the other hand, the weights that they indicate. Contrary to mathematical
symbols, these rectangles and those bodies indicate the relative amounts of heaviness in an inherent
way; bigger means heavier, in some rough sense. But it is a way that is in between being an image-andlikeness—it does not resemble its signified object, in this case, heaviness—and being arbitrarily assigned
to signify heaviness. Whereas recollection was a two-in-one experience, indication is an experience of
duality, but of a “naturally” connected duality.
There is a meaningful connection between magnitude of size and magnitude of weight, but the
relationship between the size of the rectangle and the magnitude of the weight has to be stipulated if
there is to be an exact account. If we sup-pose that inherent connection, then Archimedes may lead us
to recollect Equilibrium Itself. So, for instance, the ratio of the sizes of the rectangles A and B in Figure 5
is taken to indicate the exact ratio of the weight of body A̲ to that of body B̲ . 18 Our X-ray vision then
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�shows us that the weight of any body at all could be indicated by the same rectangle A, provided its
center of weight were at A and its weight were equal to that of A̲ .
For the first time in the measurement segment, we are using things that we have recollected in
order to arrive at further insights into relationships within what has been recollected. This is a third way
in which Archimedes is following the Euclid’s way of seeing; he shows how a sequence of conclusions
can be generated from the ideal-exact limit-formations. For as the arithmeticians do based on “the odd
and the even” and as the geometers do based on “the geometrical shapes, the three kinds of angles,”
etc., Archimedes “is forced to seek on the basis of sup-positions (ἐξ ὑποθέσεων), proceeding not to a
beginning but to an end.” The conclusions about the equilibrium of weights are “in agreement with that
from which [he] set [his] inquiry in motion” (Rep. 510bd; Sachs trl., modified). In that way Archimedes
engages us in learning through insight.
The first part of Archimedes’ title is “On the Equilibrium of Planes.” In some of the postulates
and propositions, 19 we read: to be in equilibrium, or, equivalently, to sink, or incline, equally, and ii) to
sink, or incline, toward 20—which latter seems to be a specification of not to be in equilibrium.
Archimedes does not follow Euclid’s procedure by stating precisely what it is for weights to be “in
equilibrium” or, for that matter, for a point to be “held fixed” or to be “the center of weight.” 21 Perhaps
for the first two of these expressions, he relies on the reader’s everyday experiences with things like
seesaws; for the third he may be counting on the reader’s having played around with suspending objects
from strings, just as we did in the earlier exercises. Or one might adopt a view introduced in the last
century 22 and claim that Archimedes defines these phrases implicitly. Then the statements in which he
uses them would aim to specify, without ambiguity, how they are to be interpreted in terms of other,
familiar terms.
He also often 23 mentions equal or unequal weights at certain or equal or unequal distances,
before making explicit, in Prop. 4, that each weight is taken to be “at” its center of weight and that each
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�distance is from a body’s center of weight to what the manual calls “a pivot”—what was referred to
earlier as the “point of suspension” of the cardboard or the “fulcrum” of the substitution balance.
Whereas length and weight are characteristics of individual bodies, being-in-equilibrium
specifies a relationship among five entities. For the setting-out of the above figure, involving bodies A̲
and B̲ , they would be—the two weights, A and B, their respective centers of weight A and B, and the
pivot point C, 24 on the rigid, straight, weightless beam ACB.
The first postulate of the treatise states “that equal weights at equal distances are in
equilibrium, and that equal weights at unequal distances are not in equilibrium but incline toward the
weight which is at the greater distance.” The insight expressed here is of a kind familiar from Euclid.
Recalling what the students had said in relation to the substitution balance, we see that if we exchanged
the two equal weights with each other, it could make no difference to anything at all. Everything would
be the same either way.
In addition to the X-ray vision involved in seeing centers of weight, Archimedes introduces a few
other ways of looking. Prop. 4 mentions “the magnitude composed from both magnitudes.” 25 When we
first glance at Figure 6 below, we see two separate bodies, A̲ and B̲ , of weights A and B, respectively,
and their respective centers of weight, A and B.
A
D
C
B
Figure 6
Then, in a second, compositional looking, we see “the magnitude composed from both magnitudes,”
that is, we imagine A̲ and B̲ as composing two parts of a single body, say, A̲ /B̲ , in which they are joined
by a rigid, straight, weightless beam, AB.
In this way we are thinking of A̲ and B̲ as forming a shape reminiscent of the odd cardboard
14
�shape from the beginning of Ch. II, shown again in Figure 7. We then imagine
A
A'
molding that cardboard (illustrated on the left side of Figure 8)—simultaneously
shrinking and straightening its central portion into a straight line and shaping the
two end portions into congruent rectangles—all the while still viewing it as one
object, so that we end up with the shape on the right side of Figure 8.
Figure 7
Figure 8
Another way of looking is the reverse of the above, namely, decompositional looking. Just as we
can compose, so we can decompose. We can view a single body as two separate ones.
Archimedes sometimes accompanies compositional or decompositional viewing with a third
mode of looking. In the proof of Prop. 4, he shifts from viewing a point as the center of weight of a
composite body A̲ /B̲ to seeing that same point as a pivot about which the two bodies A̲ and B̲ , into
which A̲ /B̲ is considered to be decomposed, are in equilibrium. 26
In these ways Archimedes is inviting us to shift back and forth, at will, between ways of looking.
First, like seeing Figure 9 now as a duck and now as a rabbit, we can consider a figure as depicting either
15
�Figure 9
two separate bodies A̲ and B̲ or one composite body A̲ /B̲ . Second, like seeing Figure 10 now as an old
Figure 10
woman and now as a young one, we can consider a particular point as either a center of weight or a
pivot point for equilibrium. Whereas, for a viewer who actually does see them, the shifts back and forth
between seeing the duck or the rabbit or between seeing the young or the old woman—each of which is
a genuine seeing—are involuntary, for us the shifts Archimedes prescribes are voluntary; and each of
them might be more a viewing-as or even only a thinking-of. 27
In Prop. 6, in a virtuoso display of all of his ways of looking, Archimedes shows us that what the
students had unthinkingly assumed in working with the substitution balance, namely, the so-called “Law
of the Lever”—that “bodies will be in equilibrium at distances from the pivot which are reciprocally
proportional to the weights of those bodies” (M&E 20)—must be true of an ideally exact limit-balance.
Figure 11 shows two bodies A̲ and B̲ that are given as having commensurable weights, A and B,
16
�Figure 11
and as having their centers of weight on a straight-line beam at points E and D, respectively. Their
weights are also given as having the following relationship to their respective distances from a point C,
located on ED between E and D – C�D� : E�C� :: A : B. What is to be shown is that A̲ and B̲ are in equilibrium
about point C.
The givens permit us to carry out the proof by assigning particular numbers to the distances and
weights. In Figure 12 C�D� is shown as 5 units long and E�C� as 3 units, where each unit is labeled N� .
Figure 12
Moreover, in the construction E�C� has been extended to the left by 5 N� and C�D� to the right by 3 N� , as
pictured. In Figure 13 A̲ is shown divided into 10 equal unit weights Z̲, and B̲ into 6, respectively.
Figure 13
17
�Then in Figure 14 the centers of weight of the 10 Z̲ are shown as having been placed at the
���� and those of the 6 Z̲ at the midpoints of the remaining N� on
midpoints of the 10 N� on the left end of LK
����.
the right end of LK
Figure 14
Now Archimedes simply has us look at these 16 Z̲, successively, in different ways and in relation
to the given weights A̲ and B̲ :
As we look at the 16 equal weights Z̲, each at the midpoint of an equal length N� , we see
����, five pairs of Z̲s situated symmetrically about point E, respectively;
i)
on the left end of LK
����, three pairs of Z̲s situated symmetrically about point D, respectively;
ii)
on the right end of LK
����
iii)
on the whole of LK, eight pairs of Z̲s situated symmetrically about point C, respectively.
Hence, we see, by the first postulate, that each pair must be in equilibrium about the point about which it is
symmetrically situated.
By shifting from duck to rabbit, we consider each of these pairs of Z̲s (ducks) as a composite weight
(rabbits). By simultaneously shifting from old woman to young woman, we see that for each composite of two
weights, the point of equilibrium (old woman) of the pairs in question—E for i), D for ii), and C for iii)—is its center
of weight (young woman).
By again shifting from duck to rabbit, we consider each of the three sets of pairs of composite weights
(ducks)— i) the five pairs on the left (from L to H), ii) the three pairs on the right (from H to K), and iii) the eight
pairs on the whole (from L to K)—as itself a composite weight (rabbits). So—by an analogue to Euclid’s first
common notion: Composites of weights having the same center of weight also have that center of weight—we see
that E is the center of weight of i) the composite of the 10 Z̲s, D of ii) the composite of the 6 Z̲s, and C of iii) the
composite of the 16 Z̲s.
By X-ray vision we then see that
i)
the composite of the 10 Z̲s is the same as A̲ as originally given, since both have the same center
of weight E and same total weight.
ii)
the composite of the 6 Z̲s is the same as B̲ as given, since both have the same center of weight D
and same total weight.
So [by a common notion: Composites of pairs of weights (the first pair is the composite of the 10 Z̲s and the
composite of the 6 Z̲s; the second pair is A̲ and B̲ ) having the same respective centers of weight (E for the first
member of each pair and D for the second) and pairwise equal in weight are equal and have the same center of
weight.], we see that the center of weight of the composite weight A̲ /B̲ is also C, the center of weight of the
composite of the 16 Z̲s, that is, of the composite of the 10 Z̲s and of the 6 Z̲s
18
�Finally, by shifting back from rabbit to duck, we consider the composite weight A̲ /B̲ (rabbit) as two
separate weights A̲ and B̲ (duck). And simultaneously, by shifting back from young woman to old woman, we
consider C, the center of weight (young woman) of the composite weight A̲ /B̲ , as a pivot point for equilibrium (old
woman). So, we see that: “therefore if A̲ be situated at E and B̲ be situated at D, they will be in equilibrium about
the point C.” QED
Given two bodies on a beam that counterbalance each other in the lab, we consider them, first,
as counterbalancing on an Archimedean true Balance. That is, as we perceive the lab situation, there
occurs to us, in recollection, the thought of two ideal-exact centers of weight and an ideal-exact pivot
point on the true Balance. On the basis of our sup-position based on the experienced “natural”
connection to ideal-exact weights and of his suppositions about the μαθήματα, Archimedes’ Prop. 6 may
have enabled us to learn through insight (μαθεῖν), precisely which relationships among those five
entities associated with the two given weights are necessary, in order for them to be seen as a complex
image-and-likeness (εἰκών) of what Socrates could call Equilibrium Itself—that at which our actual
counterbalancing in the lab can be thought of as aiming, while still falling short. If so then we now
expect that the closer our laboratory equipment comes to imaging an ideally exact limit-balance, the
more exactly our experiments will manifest the Law of the Lever.
PART THREE
At the beginning of Chapter III of the manual, we again take up the Archimedean approach to
looking at situations of counterbalancing. But now, first of all, Archimedes has stretched the meaning of
being-in-equilibrium to refer to two portions of a body of water pressing down upon certain “parts” of
the water below them, instead of referring to two solid bodies on a beam about a pivot. His treatise On
Floating Bodies shows us how to consider this pressing-down as analogous to weights’ tending to push
downward on a beam and, thereby, to incline it to sink.
Second, he offers us a way of looking different from the X-ray vison and the compositional or
decompositional looking familiar from the earlier treatise. We shall use this way of looking, in order to
19
�see, or imagine, certain things into given laboratory situations, almost as if we were looking at the latter
through a PowerPoint transparency, placed over the actual things in the lab. For instance, as we look at
a piece of wood floating in a bucket of water, we’ll be able to use our imagination and see that a portion
of it must be below the surface of the water and why it must be so. It might be as if the “giving-anaccount of what is responsible” (αἰτίας λογισμῷ), which Socrates and Meno agreed to call “recollection”
(Meno 97d-98a), were transformed into an imagining of what is responsible.
In the previous treatise Archimedes had us look at his figures with a voluntary considering-as,
analogous to the involuntary seeing of a figure as a duck or as a rabbit. As a result of that treatise, we
were able to consider both drawings of his figures and certain beam and pivot arrangements in the lab
as imaging the true Balance. However, the multiple shifts in looking required to see the truth of Prop. 6
are so elaborate that we are not in a position to execute them while we look at a given beam and pivot
arrangement in the lab. That is, we can only “apply” Prop. 6, as when we refer to the Law of the Lever;
we cannot “see” it immediately in the given beam and pivot arrangement.
In his second treatise Archimedes offers a recipe for looking that shifts what we can
immediately see as true of a given object in a pail of water in the laboratory—without relying on the
mediation of the statement of a proposition, which we remember having proven.
This new way of looking is introduced in Prop. 2, where Archimedes shows that “the surface of
any liquid 28 which remains motionless,” such as the water in a bucket, “will have the form of a sphere
which has the same center as the earth.” In this and the next few propositions, the treatise depicts the
given liquid as a portion of a sphere, which is to represent an earth-size ball of liquid. If the given liquid
were water in a bucket, we’d be imagining a ball of water the size of the earth and a tiny portion of it,
which coincided with the water in our bucket.
20
�Archimedes justifies this way of imagining by showing that if we supposed that the surface of
the water in the bucket did not coincide with the surface of a sphere, then we’d be led to contradict
ourselves. Figures 15 and 16 are two versions of a schematic picture of what we’d see under this
Figure 15
Figure 16
supposition.
21
�If the surface ABLCD 29 of the water (colored blue) in the bucket, did not coincide with the
surface of a sphere centered at the center K of the earth, then we could describe some other sphere, an
outline of which is partially pictured in pink, as ZBECH, centered at the center K of the earth, passing
through point B on the surface ABLCD of the water in the bucket. As shown, the sphere ZBECH would
also pass through two other points, one (Z) above the water in the bucket and one (E) in the water. In
this way the supposed spherical surface would be above the surface of the water in the bucket from Z to
B and below the surface of the water from B to E.
In order to allow us to see the contradiction that would be lurking here, Archimedes has us look
at two things, which we have imagined into the figures above: first, the two thin pyramids of water ABK
and BLK; second, an imagined smaller sphere—part of which is shown as XOP–whose center is also K,
and which cuts through the water in the bucket and intersects the pyramids in XOP. Then he allows the
small spherical slice KXOP to play a role analogous to that of the beam-and-pivot in his previous treatise.
He has asked for (postulated) only one thing of us in this treatise—that we assume that a liquid,
like water, is such that
if its parts lie evenly and are continuous, that part which is pressed the less is thrust out by that which is pressed
the more; and each of its parts is pressed by the liquid which is vertically above it, if the liquid is not enclosed in
anything and is not pressed by anything else (M&E, p. 25).
In the above two figures, the pyramidal slice of water represented by ABK, which is inside the
corresponding portion of the sphere (ZBK), is smaller than the slice BLK, which encompasses the
corresponding portion of the sphere (BLK), congruent to ZBK. Hence, we can see that the part above OP
is being pressed more by the water above it than is the part above XO by the water above it. Therefore,
when applied to this situation, the postulate requires that the part XO be thrust out by the part OP,
which means that the water has to be in motion—a contradiction of the given motionlessness of the
water. Therefore, the supposition that the surface of the water in the bucket did not coincide with the
surface of a sphere is necessarily false. QED
22
�Archimedes goes on to show how imagining an object and a bucket as placed within and near
the surface of an earth-size ball of water could lead to other discoveries. In the next proposition he
supplies the fourth ingredient in his recipe for looking, namely, a shape imagined as being mentally
outlined within one of the two pyramids in the liquid and as equal and similar to the shape of (the
immersed part of) a given object.
Say, we look at a heavy piece of wood—which happens to be exactly as heavy as the same
volume of water—being slowly lowered into the bucket, until it remains at rest exactly where it happens
to be when released. Suppose that this remaining-at-rest happened before the wood had been
completely immersed in the water, as depicted in Figure 17, and that at the instant when the lowering
stopped all motion ceased in the bucket.
Now imagine looking at this piece of wood through a transparency of an earth-sized globe of
water, positioned so as to intersect with a plane through the center of the earth in the blue hemi-sphere
KALBCMRYND and having “the form of a sphere which has the same center as the earth” (Prop. 2,
enunciation). In what follows what is pictured is always the intersection with that same plane
Figure 17
23
�through the center of the earth. The brown figures BEZC and BHTC represent, respectively, the parts of
the wood above and below the surface of the water.
Then imagine over the transparency of the globe of water another transparency with two
adjacent pyramids, “equal and similar to” and “continuous with” each other and each “having for its
base a parallelogram [lying] on the surface of the liquid, and its vertex the center of the earth” (Prop. 3,
proof). The left pyramid, KXLBCMO, is shown containing the submerged part, BCTH, of the wood.
In the right pyramid, KOMRYNP, we imagine a third transparency, showing “a magnitude [RYSG]
… cut [out] from the liquid, equal and similar to the [submerged] part of the” wood, outlined in pink and
in the same relative position, in relation to the right pyramid, as is the submerged part of the wood, in
relation to the left pyramid.
Finally, we imagine, over the other three transparencies, a fourth one (outlined in green in
Figure 17) containing the surface, XOP, of a portion of a smaller sphere cutting through the bucket,
below both the wood and the cutout, and also centered at the center K of the earth.
Having superimposed such a detailed set of transparencies, we look at the one having the two
pyramids. It is clear that each would contain two pairs of portions of things pressing-down equally—
namely, the submerged wood HBCT and, seen through the third transparency, the congruent cut-out
SRYG, respectively; and the remaining pyramidal portions XLBHTCMO and OMRSGYNP pressing
equally—on the left and right “parts,” XO and OP, respectively, of the surface of the smaller sphere,
shown on the fourth transparency. But it is also clear that the portion of the wood protruding above the
water, BEZC, would be pressing on XO without being paired with anything additional pressing on OP. So,
we see that OP would be “that part which is pressed the less.” Thus, by the postulate OP would be
thrust out by XO, so that there would be motion in the water—a contradiction of the supposition that
the water remain motionless. Therefore, the piece of wood could not have come to rest before it was
completely immersed in the water. QED
24
�Here Archimedes has employed all the ingredients in his recipe for looking, namely, the four
transparencies through which we look at the actual object in the bucket. They show, respectively:
a) a spherical earth-sized globe of water, centered at the center of the earth, a small portion of the
surface of which coincides with the surface of the water in the bucket,
b) two equal and similar, adjacent pyramids of water, cut from the globe, continuous with each
other, and having vertices at the center of the earth, in the left of which is the immersed (part of) the
object,
c) in the right pyramid, a cutout of water equal and similar and similarly placed to the immersed
part of the object, and
d) a spherical surface, with center also at the center of the earth, and which cuts through the water
in the bucket, near its bottom.
In contrast to the components of the figures in the first treatise—beam, pivot, and weights—these
ingredients are mental additions to the things actually visible in the laboratory and to what a
representation of them would show. The objects on the transparencies are neither images-andlikenesses nor indices of the bodies in the lab.
As we are looking we add them mentally to any given object-in-bucket situation in the lab that
we wish to understand, such as those to which the next few propositions in the treatise might refer—for
instance, a piece of wood taped to a piece of metal that stays wherever it is released in the water, some
wood floating partly above the surface of the water, or a metal block that comes to rest at the bottom
of the bucket.
Imagining the first transparency containing the globe of water and imagining the other
transparencies laid over it will allow us to see clearly, in various situations in the lab, whether or not,
with the specified givens, the left or right “part” would be being pressed more. For all we need do is look
at matching pairs of congruent shapes in the left and right pyramids and look for anything else that
might be pressing down on either of the two arcs that does not have a match on the other side. This is
the second step in cooking with the recipe. We think about what we see through the transparencies, in
the bucket of water. We can see in the mind’s eye whether or not there is equal pressing right and left.
In the final step we may consult the postulate and see with insight whether or not, based on it, either
“part” must be “thrust out.”
25
�When we first looked at the wood and bucket of water, we did not have anything like an earthsized globe of water or pyramids in mind. In the first step Archimedes’ recipe leads us to look at the
bucket while imagining the transparencies overlaid onto the actual bucket. So, in using this treatise, in
addition to recognizing the wood and bucket of water, we are thinking and imagining all that is in the
four transparencies.
We might say that one who is following Archimedes’ recipe “sees a thing according to an
interpretation,” 30 or, rather, several interpretations, as instructed by Archimedes. Each transparency
might be like a textbook illustration, which would always be accompanied by an interpretation. We can
imagine each transparency as superimposed over the sight of the bucket. That will enable us to think of
the transparency’s figure as being “in” the bucket. We may then view that figure as ingredient in the
bucket. Perhaps, also, we might see it in this way.
In the second step we think about what we have thought and imagined onto the wood and
bucket of water. By viewing the latter through the transparency, we can see in the mind’s eye whether
or not there is equal pressing right and left, and if not, we likewise see, in the third step, that the
postulate requires there to be motion and that the supposition of motionlessness has been
contradicted.
Is it the case that familiarity with Archimedes’ recipe for looking is a recipe for essential seeing,
that is, for seeing what is essential in certain situations? Does it enable an imagining-and-thinking that,
in turn, allows something essential to be seen and a truth to be recollected?
As noted near the beginning of the lecture, the experience of recollection is a two-in-one
experience, like that of visually recognizing something as a face and simultaneously having a thought of
it as Simmias’s face. It is seeing a straight line on the blackboard as an image-and-likeness (εἰκών) of the
Straight Itself. When we follow Archimedes’ recipe, our experience seems rather to be a dual one of
recognizing the water, the bucket, the objects, and, separately, of imagining-and-thinking. However, it is
26
�a dual one in which the correlation is due entirely to Archimedes’ instructions; we have had no
experiences of pyramids of water, cut from the globe, or of cutouts of water from which we could have
learned, associatively, to connect them to an object in a bucket of water. As opposed to the “naturally,”
or inherently, connected duality of index and indicated, this duality is externally superimposed. 31 We
“lay” the figures from the transparencies over the figure of the bucket of water on paper or over our
sight of it in the lab. 32
A Friday Night Lecture, delivered at St. John’s College, Annapolis, on February 25th and 26th, 2022; revised, April 17, 2022.
This kind of mathematization is independent of the “new mathematics” of Viète’s algebra and Descartes’s analytic geometry. So, no
equations are involved.
3
All page references to the manual are to a revised version, entitled MEASUREMENT AND EQUILIBRIUM: Archimedes’ and Pascal’s Ways of
Looking at Weight, Water, and Air, edited especially for a Graduate Institute Preceptorial offered in Santa Fe in the summer of 2021.
I would like to thank all of the members of my Freshman Laboratory classes in the last several years and, especially, the participants
in the Graduate Institute Preceptorial in Santa Fe in the summer of 2021: Isabel Ballan, Bill Blais, Patricia Burk-Travis, Nicolae Federspiel-Otelea,
Hugh Himwich, and Susan Olmsted,.
4 In calling 1 a number, we are diverging from the strict sense of “number” as an assemblage of units.
5
The way our table stands (σχέσις; Euclid, Elements, Bk. V, Df. 3) relative to the length of our new smallest unit is nearly the same as the way
the number 123 units or 124 units stands relative to one unit.
6 This approach was proposed by the phenomenological philosopher Edmund Husserl in “Die Frage nach dem Ursprung der Geometrie als
intentionalhistorisches Problem.” See The Crisis of European Sciences and Transcendental Phenomenology: An Introduction to
Phenomenological Philosophy, tr. D. Carr (Northwestern: 1970), trl. modified/Die Krisis der europäischen Wissenschaften und die
transzendentale Phänomenologie (Haag: Martinus Nijhoff, 1962), pp. 353-78/365-86. The quotations in the following two paragraphs are from
this work.
7
“From the praxis of perfecting, of freely pressing toward the horizons of conceivable perfecting in the ‘again and again’ [im ‘Immer wieder’],
limit-shapes become sketched out, toward which, as invariant and never attainable poles, the particular series of perfectings is progressing”
(Husserl, ib., 26/23).
8 Our imagining of this progress and our thinking of this standard leads us to view the standard in the way we may have looked at a chalk line on
the blackboard in the Freshman Mathematics Tutorial. We’d have seen it as imaging a line that matches Euclid’s definition of straight line—
perfectly sharp, without thickness or waviness or fuzziness. All the shapes referred to by Euclid were ideally sharp in this sense. Whenever we
look at a drawing of one of them, what we are invited to think of is characterized by ideal sharpness. (We could perhaps arrive at an “ideal
visual acuity” in the same way.)
9 The example is borrowed from Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosophical Investigations (NY: Macmillan, 1953), tr. G. E. M. Anscombe, p. 193.
10 Nevertheless, the manual later (M&E, p. 19) proposes an exercise in which, simultaneously, the cardboard is replaced with a meter stick and
an axis through a hole drilled at the 50 cm. mark substitutes for a pin through a potential center of weight of the cardboard. By adding or
removing small amounts of clay as needed, the students are able to bring the meter stick into the three different kinds of rest position. In what
way, if any, does this exercise deepen our insight into the center of weight or of the possible rest positions?
11
Here and throughout the treatment of Archimedes, the manual’s symbols are changed.
12 “Center of weight” is mentioned in some of the postulates (4, 5, 7) and in several propositions (e.g., 4 and 5) and proofs (e.g., of 6 and 7).
13 The translations of Aristotle generally follow those of Joe Sachs, in Aristotle’ Metaphysics (Green Lion Press, 1999), K.3, 1061a29-b4. See also
Sachs’s note on p. xlix.
14 The points A and B represent, of course, the two centers of weight, at which the two bodies A̲ and B̲ are thought of as suspended.
15 Cf. C. S. Peirce, Collected Papers of Charles Sanders Peirce (8 Vols.). (1931–58). Ed. Charles Hartshorne, Paul Weiss & Arthur W Burks.
(Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press), 4.447: “The kind of representamen termed an index. … is a real thing or fact which is a sign of its
object by virtue of being connected with it as a matter of fact and by also forcibly intruding upon the mind, quite regardless of its being
interpreted as a sign. It may simply serve to identify its object and assure us of its existence and presence. But very often the nature of the
factual connexion of the index with its object is such as to excite in consciousness an image of some features of the object, and in that way
affords evidence from which positive assurance as to truth of fact may be drawn. A photograph, for example, not only excites an image, has an
appearance, but, owing to its optical connexion with the object, is evidence that that appearance corresponds to a reality. … An icon has such
being as belongs to past experience. It exists only as an image in the mind. An index has the being of present experience.”
16 Most of these examples, as well as some in the next paragraph, are taken from
https://legacy.cs.indiana.edu/~port/teach/103/sign.symbol.short.html.
1
2
27
�17 A special case of learning through experience is getting the hang of seeing photos as photos, and not as mere patterns on paper. This kind of
learning through experience is relevant to the image-and-likeness, rather than to the index.
18 Using three different symbols involving the letter “A,” we may say: “Body A̲ , having center of weight at point A, and of weight indicated by
rectangle A…” The same rectangle is taken both to represent a body and to indicate the amount of that body’s weight.
19 See Postulates 1-3 and 6 and Propositions 1-4.
20
The manual points out (14, n. 1) that the Greek word for being-in-equilibrium (ἰσορροπεῖν) could also be translated inclining-downwardequally. The manual has already sometimes used “downward tendency” as equivalent to “weight” (M&E, p.9). Perhaps we are to imagine that
two bodies, each tending or striving to move downward, are joined by a weightless beam-and-pivot arrangement and are each endeavoring, in
a struggle against one another, to incline the beam downward on its side of the pivot, and, in the case of equilibrium, are doing so with equal
effectiveness. When one of the two wins the contest, the beam will come to sink, or incline, toward (ῥέπειν ἐπί) the side on which the winner is
located.
21 For instance, Prop. 3 claims that “two weights [A̲ and B̲ in the above figure] will be in equilibrium” with each other. Prop. 4 takes A to “be the
center of weight of magnitude A̲ ” and proposes that D be “held fixed.”
22 Padoa, A., “Essai d’une théorie algébrique des nombres entiers,” Bibliothèque du Congrès international de philosophie (1900) 3.
23 For example, Posts. 1, 2, and 6; Props. 1, 2, and 3.
24 If, inspired by Archimedes, we look at two weights in the lab, with the question of their being in equilibrium in mind, we can consider them as
if they were situated at the ends of an ideal-exact straight-line, imaged by a seesaw on a playground, and ask: About which pivot point on the
seesaw will neither side sink down. This Archimedean looking could be called seesaw vision. We, as it were, see an ideal-exact seesaw into the
given actual situation—imagining the weights’ centers of weight at its opposite ends and indicating their amounts by the sizes of the respective
rectangles.
25 Or: “of both taken together.” See T.L. Heath, The Works of Archimedes (NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1912), p.191; underlining added.
26
If D is “the center of weight of a magnitude [A̲ /B̲] composed” of two magnitudes [A̲ and B̲ ], then the composite magnitude “will be in
equilibrium “if D is held fixed”—the manual’s footnote adds: “that is, as a pivot.”
When we first arrived at the notion of a center of weight as a point on the piece of cardboard, at the beginning of Ch. II, we stuck a
pin horizontally through it and showed that it was then also in a neutral rest position after any rotation about that point. That is, from a point’s
being the center of weight of a body, it followed that the body would be in (neutral) equilibrium about that point. Archimedes appears to be in
agreement with this suggestion that being a center of weight is the more fundamental notion and that being in equilibrium about a point
follows from it. Thus, it makes sense for the manual to have introduced the former before the latter. It is easy to see the truth of the converse
of Archimedes’ assumption, namely, that if equal weights are in equilibrium about a point, then that point is the center of weight of the weight
composed of the two equal weights.
27
In one paragraph Wittgenstein asks the reader to consider, as an example of “the danger of wanting to make fine distinctions,” the aspects of
a triangle”—such as, seeing it “as a triangular hole, as a solid, as a geometrical drawing; as standing on its base, as hanging from its apex; as a
mountain, as a wedge, as an arrow or pointer.” In the next paragraph he gives the response of an interlocutor: “‘You can in doing so think now
of this, now of that, can view (ansehen) it now as this, now as that, and then you will see it now in this way, now in that way.’” Wittgenstein
immediately points out that it would be an error for the interlocutor to think that there is some way to make the this or that more determinate,
by spelling out further what you are thinking of or that as which you are viewing it or the way in which you are seeing it: “— In which way? There
is as a matter of fact no further determination.” See Wittgenstein, op. cit., translation modified and underlining added, p. 200.
28 “The Greek word is derived from the adjective ὑγρός, which means ‘moist’ or ‘wet’” (M&E, p 25n).
29 In what follows we often speak of three-dimensional shapes, like spheres or pyramids. But, for convenience, all of the labels are of the
shapes’ intersections with a plane passing through the sheet of paper, or the computer screen, as the case may be.
30 This example is borrowed from Wittgenstein, op. cit., p. 200, but used in a different sense.
31 In that respect it is like Peirce’s “symbol.” See Peirce, op. cit., quoted above.
32 The above analysis of Archimedes’ second treatise would also apply to Pascal’s Treatise on the Equilibrium of Liquids. Pascal uses one
transparency. The figure on it is one or another version of VI, VII, or VIII in Figure 18 below.
Figure 18
The box may be imagined to be filled with a weightless liquid (M & E 41: “without counting the weight of the water”). The large weights on the
right are each of 100 pounds, resting on a piston, over the right-hand aperture; the small one in VII is 1 pound. The ratios of the right aperture
to left aperture are 1 : 100. The heights of the liquids are all the same. The weight of the liquid in the large tube in VIII is 100 pounds; that of the
liquid in the narrow tubes in VI and VIII is 1 pound. This Pascal box-and-tubes transparency may be laid over situations like those in IX, X, XI, and
XII in Figure 19—representing vessels partially submerged in a river, and containing mercury or copper or cork, in part—in order to see what
28
�Figure 19
must happen. In laying it over, we must mold the narrow tubes of the vessel and of the Pascal-transparency, so that they are exactly
superimposed; and, similarly, for the vessel’s wide opening and the Pascal-transparency’s wide tube, and so on, as suggested by Figure 20.
Figure 20
=
Figure 21 may suggest a way of relating the Pascal transparency to those of Archimedes.
Figure 21
29
�
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Looking in Freshman Lab II – How Measuring, Weighing, and Counterbalancing Can Inspire Us to See Things in New Ways
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An account of the resource
Typescript of two lectures delivered on February 25 and 26, 2022, by Annapolis tutor Robert Druecker as part of the Formal Lecture Series. The lectures are the second in a three-part series on Freshman Lab.
Druecker describes his lectures: "This will be the second in a series of lectures for freshman on ways of looking they encounter in Freshman Laboratory. In the second segment of the class, the students are invited, in various ways, to consider the mathematization of nature. They may come to see certain phenomena as μαθήματα, that is, as objects of study leading to acts of insight. While they also investigate these phenomena empirically, our question in the lecture will be whether they can be viewed in ways that lead to insight. The phenomena considered at the beginning— the characteristics of length and heaviness and various sorts of equilibrium—may introduce the students to some new ways of looking. The lecture will highlight those ways. Questions: Are they new in your experience? Are they helpful in learning from your studies in the lab?”
Creator
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Druecker, Robert
Publisher
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St. John's College
Coverage
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Annapolis, MD
Date
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2022-02-25
2022-02-26
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A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture available online. Make a typescript copy of my lecture available for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make a copy of my typescript available online"
Type
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text
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pdf
Subject
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Physical measurements
Physics--Study and teaching
Equilibrium
Physics--Experiments
Archimedes. De corporibus fluitantibus
Leonardo, da Vinci, 1452-1519. Trattato della pittura
Relation
A related resource
<p><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7629">Looking in Freshman Lab part I (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7350">Looking in Freshman Lab part I (video)</a></p>
<p><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7627">Looking in Freshman Lab part II (video)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7630">Looking in Freshman Lab part III (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7682" title="Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)">Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)</a></p>
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English
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Druecker_Robert_2022-02-25-26
Friday night lecture
Tutors
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https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/959daaa42167cbcea0e0f4e7b04b461e.mp4
dc5cfe9ca062a9f18c99be75b1648b07
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Description
An account of the resource
Items in this collection are part of a series of lectures given every year at St. John's College. During the Fall and Spring semesters, lectures are given on Friday nights. Items include audio and video recordings and typescripts.<br /><br />For more information, and a schedule of upcoming lectures, please visit the <strong><a href="http://www.sjc.edu/programs-and-events/annapolis/formal-lecture-series/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. John's College website</a></strong>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Formal Lecture Series" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?collection=5&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate&sort_dir=d">Items in the St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.<br /><br />A growing number of lecture recordings are also available on the St. John's College (Annapolis) Lectures podcast. Visit <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/st-johns-college-annapolis-lectures/id1695157772">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6GDsIRqC8SWZ28AY72BsYM?si=f2ecfa9e247a456f" title="Spotify">Spotify</a> to listen and subscribe.
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St. John's College Greenfield Library
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St. John's College Formal Lecture Series—Annapolis
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formallectureseriesannapolis
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Zoom video conference
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00:53:07
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
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Looking in Freshman Lab II – Measurement and Equilibrium: How Measuring, Weighing, and Counterbalancing Can Inspire Us to Look at Things Differently
Description
An account of the resource
Video recording of a lecture delivered on February 25, 2022, by Annapolis tutor Robert Druecker as part of the Formal Lecture Series. The lecture is the second in a three-part series on Freshman Lab.
Druecker describes his lecture: "This will be the second in a series of lectures for freshman on ways of looking they encounter in Freshman Laboratory. In the second segment of the class, the students are invited, in various ways, to consider the mathematization of nature. They may come to see certain phenomena as μαθήματα, that is, as objects of study leading to acts of insight. While they also investigate these phenomena empirically, our question in the lecture will be whether they can be viewed in ways that lead to insight. The phenomena considered at the beginning— the characteristics of length and heaviness and various sorts of equilibrium—may introduce the students to some new ways of looking. The lecture will highlight those ways. Questions: Are they new in your experience? Are they helpful in learning from your studies in the lab?”
Creator
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Druecker, Robert
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
St. John's College
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Annapolis, MD
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2022-02-25
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
A signed permission form has been received stating: "I hereby grant St. John's College permission to: Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture, and retain copies for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make an audiovisual recording of my lecture available online. Make a typescript copy of my lecture available for circulation and archival preservation in the St. John's College Greenfield Library. Make a copy of my typescript available online"
Type
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moving image
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
mp4
Subject
The topic of the resource
Physical measurements
Physics--Study and teaching
Equilibrium
Physics--Experiments
Archimedes. De corporibus fluitantibus
Leonardo, da Vinci, 1452-1519. Trattato della pittura
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Druecker_Robert_2022-02-25-26access
Relation
A related resource
<a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7629">Looking in Freshman Lab part I (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7350">Looking in Freshman Lab part I (video)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7628">Looking in Freshman Lab part II (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7630">Looking in Freshman Lab part III (typescript)</a><br /><br /><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7682" title="Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)">Looking in Freshman Lab part III (video)</a>
Language
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English
Identifier
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Druecker_Robert_2022-02-25-26access
Friday night lecture
Tutors
-
https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/sjcdigitalarchives/original/67566cbb3a8fc5b644110ae04873abdd.pdf
1e7bfa2a1e376cccdddedc643a03141f
PDF Text
Text
ST JOHN'S
College
ANNAPO LIS • SANTA FE
CHA RTE R AND POL ITY OFTHE COL LEG E
ANNA POLIS, MARYL AND
SANTA FE, NEW MEXIC O
Amend ed and Restate d
as of April 2004
1696
1784
FOUNDE D AS KING WILLIA M'S SCHOOL ,
CHARTE RED AS ST. JOHN'S CoLLEG E,
��Since this Polity can be amended between printings, the current official Polity is kept in the offices of the
Presidents of St. John's College.
HISTORY
St. John's College was founded in 1696 as King William's School in accordance with a Petitionary Act for freeschools of the General Assembly of the Colony of Maryland. Following the Revolutionary War, the General
Assembly of the new State of Maryland granted a Charter to St. John's College pursuant to and as a part of
Chapter 37 of the Laws of Maryland of 1784. This Charter was subsequently amended by the General Assembly
through Resolution No. 41 of 1832.
The Visitors and Governors of St. John's College in 1950 revised the Charter to eliminate extraneous and
obsolete matter and to make certain other amendments consistent with present requirements and conditions. It
was the opinion of the Attorney General of Maryland that the original Charter of the College was subject to the
general Corporation Laws of Maryland and might accordingly be amended by the Visitors and Governors,
pursuant to these laws, without legislative action by the General Assembly. Subsequent amendments were made
in 1961, in 1963, in 1965, in 1970, and in 1975.
When the decision was reached to establish a second St. John's College in Santa Fe, New Mexico, amendments
were made to the Charter to authorize branches or extensions of the College. The Charter was then filed with
the Corporations Commission of the State ofNew Mexico as a foreign corporation. The College was thus
empowered to grant degrees in New Mexico under the provisions of its Maryland Charter.
A Polity for the College was first suggested at a faculty meeting in 1943 by the Dean. A faculty committee was
elected and drafted a Polity, which was then promulgated by the President. In April 1949 the Faculty elected a
committee to revise the Polity. The resulting document was approved by the Faculty on April 9, 1950, and was
adopted by the Board of Visitors and Governors on July 8, 1950. Subsequent quinquennial reviews were made
by elected faculty committees, and desired amendments were recommended by the Faculty to the Board of
Visitors and Governors. The Polity was thus amended at regular meetings of the Board held on May 14, 1955;
May 21, 1960; May 15, 1965; June 6, 1970; April 19, 1975; January 16, 1982; April 19, 1986; and October 19,
1991. Other amendments were adopted by the Board at regular meetings on February 22 and December 9, 1961;
February 23 and September 28, 1963; October 3, 1970; February 18, 1972; October 25, 1975; January 24, 1976;
November 6, 1982; July 21, 1984; April 20, 1985; October 25, 1986; April 11, 1987; October 19, 1991; July 18,
1992; April 17, 1993; April 22, 1995; April 19, 1996; April 24, 1999, and November 6, 1999; January 27, 2001;
April 26, 2003; and April 24, 2004.
�CHARTER OF ST. JOHN'S COLLEGE
WHEREAS, institutions for the liberal education of youth in the principles of virtue, knowledge and useful
literature are of the highest benefit to society, in order to train up and perpetuate a succession of able and honest
men for discharging the various offices and duties of life, both civil and religious, with usefulness and
reputation, and such institutions of learning have accordingly been promoted and encouraged by the wisest and
best regulated States; And whereas, it appears to this General Assembly that many public spirited individuals,
from an earnest desire to promote the founding a college or seminary of learning on the Western Shore of this
State have subscribed and procured subscriptions to a considerable amount, and there is reason to believe that
very large additions will be obtained to the same throughout the different counties of the said Shore, if they
were made capable in law to receive and apply the same towards founding and carrying on a college or general
seminary of learning with such salutary plan and with such legislative assistance and direction as the General
Assembly might think fit, and this General Assembly, highly approving those generous exertions of individuals,
are desirous to embrace the present favorable occasion of peace and prosperity for making lasting provision for
the encouragement and advancement of all useful knowledge and literature through every part of this State;
BE IT ENACTED:
II. That a college or general seminary oflearning by the name of "St. John's College" be established on the said
Western Shore upon the following fundamental and inviolable principles; namely, first, the said college shall be
founded and maintained forever upon a most liberal plan for the benefit of youth of every religious
denomination, who shall be freely admitted to equal privileges and advantages of education and to all the
literary honors of the college, according to their merit without requiring or enforcing any religious or civil test,
or urging their attendance upon any particular religious worship or service other than what they have been
educated in or have the consent and approbation of their parents or guardians to attend; nor shall any preference
be given in the choice of a Principal, Vice-Principal or other Professor, Master or Tutor in said college on
account of his particular religious profession, having regard solely to his moral character and literary abilities
and other necessary qualifications to fill the place for which he shall be chosen.
IV. That the governing body or board of said College shall consist of not more than forty-nine nor less than
thirteen Visitors and Governors, to be chosen and to hold office in such manner as the said Visitors and
Governors may determine and prescribe by their fundamental ordinances; provided, however, that the
Governors of the States of Maryland and New Mexico shall act ex officio as two of the total number of Visitors
and Governors of said college during their respective terms in said offices; and that the said Visitors and
Governors and their successors duly chosen shall be and are hereby declared to be one community, corporation
and body politic to have continuance forever by the name of
ST. JOHN'S COLLEGE
and by the same name they shall have perpetual succession.
VII . That if the City of Annapolis should be fixed upon as a proper place for establishing the said intended
college, this General Assembly give and grant, and upon that condition do hereby give and grant to the Visitors
and Governors of the said College by the name of "The Visitors and Governors of Saint John's College in the
State of Maryland," and their successors all that four acres within the City of Annapolis purchased for the use
by the public and conveyed on the 2nd day of October, 1744, by Stephen Bordley, Esq., to Thos. Bladen, Esq.,
then Governor, to have and to hold the said four acres of land with the appurtenances to the said Visitors and
Governors and their successors for the only use, benefit and behoof of the said college and seminary of
universal learning forever.
VIII . That the said Visitors and Governors and their successors by the same name shall be able and capable in
law to purchase, have and enjoy to them and their successors in fee, or for any other less estate or estates, any
lands, tenements, rents, annuities, pensions or other hereditaments by the gift, grant, bargain, sale, alienation,
enfeoffment, release, confirmation, or devise of any person or persons, bodies politic or corporate capable to
2
�make the same, and such lands, tenements, rents, annuities, pensions or other hereditaments or any less estates,
rights or interests of or in the same at their pleasure to grant, alien, sell and transfer in such manner and form as
they shall think meet and convenient for the furtherance of the said college; And also that they may take and
receive any sum or sums of money, and any kind, manner or portion of goods and chattels that shall be given,
sold or bequeathed to them by any person or persons, bodies politic or corporate capable to make a gift, sale or
bequest thereof and employ the same towards erecting, setting up and maintaining the said college in such
manner as they shall judge most necessary and convenient for the instruction, improvement and education of
and sciences, which
youth in the vernacular and learned languages, and generally in any kind of literature arts
the service of the ir
for
men
they shall think proper to be taught for training up good, useful and accomplished
country, in church and state.
IX. That the said Visitors and Governors and their successors by the name aforesaid shall be able in law to sue
and be sued, plead and be irnpleadable in any court or courts, before any judge, judges, or justices within this
State and elsewhere in all and all manner of suits, complaints, pleas, causes, matters and demands of whatsoever
kind, nature or form they be and all and every other matter and thing therein to do in as full and effectual a
manner as any other person or persons, bodies politic or corporate within this State or any of the Uruted States
of America in like cases may or can do.
X. That the said Visitors and Governors and their successors shall have full power and authority to have, make
and use one common and public seal and likewise one privy seal with such devices and inscriptions as they
shall think proper, and to ascertain, fix and regulate the uses of both seals, by their own laws and the same seals
or either of them to change, break, alter and renew at their pleasure.
XI. That the said Visitors and Governors and their successors from time to time and at all times hereafter,
forever, shall have full power and authority to constitute and appoint in such manner as they shall think best and
most convenient, a principal, a vice-principal of the said college and professors with proper tutors and assistants
for instructing the students and scholars of the said seminary in all the liberal arts and sciences, and in the
ancient and modem tongues and languages; and the said principal, vice-principal and professors so constituted
and appointed from time to time shall be known and distinguished forever as one learned body or faculty by the
name of "The Principal, Vice-Principal and Professors of St. John's College"; and by that name shall be capable
of exercising such powers and authorities as the Visitors and Governors of the said college and their successors
shall by their ordinances think necessary to delegate to them for the instruction, discipline and government of
the said seminary and of all the students, scholars, ministers and servants belonging to the same.
XIV. That a majority of the said Visitors and Governors for the time being and duly assembled at any meeting
upon due notice given to the whole body of Visitors and Governors shall have full power and authority to make
fundamental ordinances for the government of the said college and the instruction of youth as aforesaid, and by
these ordinances to appoint such a number of their own body not less than seven, as they may think proper for
transacting all general and necessary business of the said seminary and making temporary rules for the
government of the same; and also by the said fundamental ordinances to delegate to the principal, vice-principal
and professors such powers and authorities as they may think best for the standing government of the said
seminary and of the execution of the ordinances and rules of the same; provided always that they be not
repugnant to the form of government of any law of this State.
sealed with the public or greater seal of the said corporation or college and delivered to the graduates as
honorable and perpetual testimonials of such admission; which diplomas, if thought necessary for doing greater
honor to such graduates, shall also be signed with the names of the different professors or as many of them as
can conveniently sign the same; provided always that no student or students within the said college shall ever be
admitted to any such degree or degrees, or have their name inserted in any mandate for a degree, until such
student or students have been first duly examined, and thought worthy of the same.
XVI. That the ordinances which shall be from time to time made by the Visitors and Governors of the said
college and their successors with an account of their other proceedings and of the management of the estate and
moneys committed to their trust, shall when required be laid before the General Assembly for their inspection
and examination, but in case at any time hereafter through oversight, or otherwise through misapprehension and
mistaken constructions of the powers, liberties and franchises in this Charter or Act of Incorporation granted, or
intended to be granted, any ordinance should be made by the said corporation of Visitors and Governors or any
matters done and transacted by the corporation contrary to the tenor hereof, it is enacted that although such
ordinances, acts and doings shall in themselves be null and void, yet they shall not, however, in any courts of
law, or by the General Assembly, be deemed, taken, interpreted or adjudged into an avoidance or forfeiture of
this Charter and Act of lncorporation,but the same shall be and remain unhurt, inviolate and entire unto the said
corporation of Visitors and Governors in perpetual succession; and all their acts conformable to the powers, true
intent and meaning hereof shall be and remain in full force and validity, the nullity and avoidance of such illegal
acts to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding.
XVII. That this Charter and Act of Incorporation and every part thereof shall be good and available in all things
in the law according to the true intent and meaning thereof, and shall be construed, reputed and adjudged in all
cases most favorably on the behalf and for the best benefit and behoof of the said Visitors and Governors and
their successors, so as most effectually to answer the valuable end of this Act oflncorporation towards the
general advancement and promotion of useful knowledge, science and virtue.
XVIII. That the College may establish and operate one or more branches in one or more states of the United
States.
In the Polity as hereinafter set forth the nouns "alumnus" and "alumni" and "man" and "men," either alone or in
compounds such as "chairman" and "chairmen," and the pronouns "he," "him," and "his," are to be taken as
referring to persons whether male or female .
XV. And for animating and encouraging the students of said college to a laudable diligence, industry and
progress in useful literature and science, be it enacted that the said Visitors and Governors and their successors
shall by a written mandate under their privy seal and the hand of someone of the Visitors and Governors to be
chosen annually as their President, according to the ordinance to be made for that purpose, have full power and
authority to direct the principal, vice-principal and professors to hold public commencements either on stated
annual days, or occasionally as the future ordinances of the said seminary may direct and at such
commencements to admit any of the students in the said college or any other persons meriting the same (whose
names shall be severally inserted in the same mandate) to any degree or degrees in any of the faculties, arts and
sciences and liberal professions to which persons are usually admitted in other colleges or universities in
America or Europe; And it is hereby enacted that the principal, or in the case of his death or absence, the viceprincipal, and in case of the death or absence of both, the senior professor who may be present, shall make out
and sign with his name diplomas or certificates of the admission to such degree or degrees, which shall be
3
4
�Polity of St. John's College
Preamble
Education is the making of men and women out of children by bringing them into the world of inherited
customs, intellectual traditions, and spiritual ties. Institutions of learning are set up for this pwpose. Beyond
this they should also seek to develop the moral and intellectual powers of their students to enable them to fulfill
best their freely chosen tasks and thus to take their own responsible part in shaping the future. St. John's
College is a community of learning committed to holding these ends constantly in sight and to seeking the best
means of attaining them.
St. John's College strives to illuminate the common heritage of humanity in a persisting study of the great
docum ents in which that heritage can be found. It is concerned with the unity of knowledge, an understanding of
the great issues, and the moral foundations on which men and women may conduct their lives. To provide
proper conditions for the pursuit of these ends, we, the Board of Visitors and Governors, after consultation with
the Faculty, do ordain and establish this Polity for St. John's College.
Article I
THE COLLEGE
(1) St. John's College is by its Charter a legal entity, carrying on its functions from its campuses in Annapolis,
Maryland, and in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Under the Charter of the College, all power, authority, and
responsibility pertaining to the College are vested in the Visitors and Governors.
(2) The College consists of the following: The Board of Visitors and Governors, the Faculty, the Graduate and
Undergraduate Students, the Alunmi and the Staff, and other members who may be named from time to
time by the Board of Visitors and Governors.
(3) Under the Charter, "the said Visitors and Governors, and their successors, from time to time, and at all
times hereafter, forever, shall have full power and authority to constitute and appoint, in such manner as
they shall think best and most convenient, a principal and vice-principal of the said College, and professors,
with proper tutors and assistants, for instructing the students and scholars of the said seminary in all the
liberal arts and sciences, and in the ancient and modern tongues and languages; and the said
principal, vice-principal, and professors, so constituted and appointed from time to time shall be known and
distinguished forever as one learned body or faculty, by the name of'The Principal, Vice-Principal, and
Professors of St. John's College;' and by that name shall be capable of exercising such powers and
authorities as the Visitors and Governors of the said college and their successors shall by their ordinances
think necessary to delegate to them for the instruction, discipline, and government of the said seminary and
of all the students, scholars, ministers and servants belonging to the same."
(a) The "principal" shall be the Presidents. When 'President' is used in this Polity it shall mean:
(i) with respect to membership on the Board of Visitors and Governors, in the Faculty, on committees
of the Board, and sitting ex officio with the Instruction Committee, and for presentation of, and
response to, the Statement of Educational Policy and Program (Article V (l)(c)), the President of
the Annapolis campus and the President of the Santa Fe campus;
(ii) with respect to membership on committees or sitting ex officio with committees, and actions or
procedures relating to one campus, the President of that campus;
5
�(iii) with respect to actions under Article II (12)(b) or actions or proceduresinvolving the entire
College under Article X (l)(a)(i) and Article X (l)(a)(m), either President.
(b) The "vice-principal" shall be the Dean who is serving as the Chair of the Instruction Committee.
(c) There shall be a Dean of St. John's College in Annapolis and a Dean of St. John's College in Santa Fe.
(d) The "professors, tutors and assistants" shall bear the title Tutor or Tutor Emeritus. Tutors who have
completed their tenure appointments shall be Tutors Emeriti.
(e) There shall be Vice-Presidents for College Advancement and Treasurers.
(f) There shall be Associate members of the Faculty, hereinafter called Associates, who shall be on either
campus, as the offices may be deemed necessary, t11e Registrar, the Librarian, the Director Athletics,
the Director of Student Activities, the Director of Admissions, the Director of Alumm Activities, the
Director of Financial Aid, and the Director of Career Services.
(g) The "one learned body or faculty," composed of the President, the Deans, the other Tutors, the Tutors
Emeriti, the Vice-Presidents for College Advancement, the Treasurers, and the Associates, shall bear
the title the Faculty of St. John's College.
(h) All who have formally matriculated, are at the present enrolled, and are in good standing shall be
called Students of St. John's College.
(i) The Directors and the Tutors of the Graduate Institute shall be called the Faculty of the Graduate
Institute.
(j) All who have been awarded a degree by the College shall be called Alumni. In addition, all who have
completed at least one semester of undergraduate study or at least one segment of Graduate Institute
study, but who are not currently enrolled, shall be called Alumni either a) in the case of
undergraduate students, when the class with which they matriculated has graduated, orb) m the case of
Graduate Institute students, at the end of three full sessions of the Graduate Institute after the one m
which they last enrolled. All who have been designated as honorary members of the Alumni
Association of St. John's College shall be called Alumni. All who have ever been Alumni shall
continue to be.
(k) The Staff shall consist of all persons appointed by the President who are not members of the Faculty of
St. John's College or the Faculty of the Graduate Institute.
(1) There shall be no discrimination at St. John's College in appointments, conditions of employment,
admissions, educational policy, financial aid programs, athletics, or other activities, on the basis of
race, religion, age, sex, national origin, color, disability and/or handicap, sexual orientation, or other
characteristic protected by any applicable federal, state or local law.
Article II
VISITORS AND GOVERNORS
(1) Qualifications for Membership. Persons shall be eligible for membership on the Board of Visitors and
Governors who are concerned for the maintenance, progress, and vitality of St. John's College's educational
program and who are willing and able to discharge the responsibilities of trusteeship with devotion and
energy.
(2) Members. The Board of Visitors and Governors shall consist of not more than sixty members, comprising
the Presidents, the Deans, the Governors of Maryland and New Mexico, ex officio, and fifty-four members,
6
of whom forty-five shall be elected by the entire Board and nine shall be elected by the Alumni of the
College, in the manner and for the terms hereinafter provided. In recognition of meritorious service to the
College, Visitors Emeriti may be elected to the Board who may attend all meetings of the Board, with voice
in deliberation, but without vote. Retired members of the Board who have served six (6) terms on the Board
as members in good standing shall be designated as Honorary Board Members upon election by the Board.
Honorary Board Members will receive minutes of the Plenary Sessions of the Board, may, as a guest,
attend the Plenary Sessions of all regular meetings of the Board, and may be asked to assist on Board
Committees.
(3) Elections by the Board. At each annual meeting, the Board shall elect a class ofno more than fifteen
members for a term of three years, to succeed those members whose term expires at the conclusion of said
meeting. Those members elected shall begin their term at the meeting next following their election. The
procedure for nomination and election shall be as follows:
There shall be a Nominating Committee of seven members of the Board appointed by the Chair. The Chair
and the Presidents shall sit with the committee, ex officio, when nominations to Board membership are
being considered. The ominating Committee shall recommend to each member of the Board in writing,
not later than thirty days prior to the annual meeting at which the election is to be held, at least one
candidate for each of the places to be filled by such election, including each position as an officer of the
Board. Additional nominations may be made in writing, addressed to the Chair, signed by at least five
members of the Board, prior to the date above provided for the report of the Nominating Committee, and
any such additional nominations shall be reported to the Board by the Committee at the time of its report.
Voting on nominations at annual meetings may be by ballot, each member present to vote for fifteen of the
said nominees. In case the balloting results in a tie for one or more positions, the Board shall determine the
procedure to resolve the tie. No nominee for member or officer of the Board shall be deemed elected who
has not received the affirmative votes of at least a majority of the members present at the meeting.
If there should be fewer than fifteen members in any class prior to the end of the term for such class, any
vacancy may be filled pursuant to the procedure provided above for regular elections, except that the
election may take place at any regular meeting. A member elected to fill any such vacancy shall hold office
for the remainder of the term of the class in which such vacancy occurred.
(4) Elections by the Alumni. Each year in the spring, three alumni shall be elected to membership for a term of
three years, in such manner that there shall be nine members of the Board elected by the alumni, consisting
of three classes of three members each. Outgoing members so elected shall continue to serve until their
successors are elected.
Such elections shall be conducted in accordance with the By-laws of the Alumni Association of St. John's
College. In the event that for any reason there should be fewer than three members so elected in any class
prior to the end of the term of that class, the vacancy shall be filled by the Alumni Association of St. John's
College. Newly elected alumni shall begin their term at the meeting next following the annual meeting of
the Board.
(5) Faculty Representation at Board Meetings. Three members of the Faculty shall be elected by the Faculty on
each campus to attend all regular sessions of the Board on the campus to which they belong, with voice in
deliberation, but without vote.
(6) Student Representation at Board Meetings. Two students shall be elected by the Students on each campus
to attend all regular sessions of the Board on the campus to which they belong, with voice in deliberation,
but without vote.
(7) Graduate Institute Director Representation at Board Meetings. Each Director of the Graduate Institute may
attend all regular sessions of the Board on such Director's campus, with voice in deliberation, but without
vote.
7
�(8) Graduate Institute Student Representation at Board Meetings. A student of the Graduate Institute shall be
elected by the Students of the Graduate Institute on each campus to attend all regular sessions of the Board
on such student's campus, with voice in deliberation, but without vote.
for the transaction of business. The Executive Committee shall determine the compensation of the Vice
Presidents and Treasurers, upon receiving the recommendations of the Compensation Review
Committee. The Executive Committee shall recommend to the Board the compensation of the
Presidents, upon receiving the recommendations of the Compensation Review Committee.
(9) Alumni Association Representation at Board Meetings. The President of the Alumni Association shall be
invited to attend all regular sessions of the Board, with voice in deliberation, but without vote.
b)
(IO) Staff Representation at Board Meetings. The Staff on each campus shall be invited to send two
representatives to all regular sessions of the Board at that campus, with voice in dehberat10n, but without
vote.
(c) Nominating Committee. There shall be a nominating Committee for membership of the Board and for
officers of the Board as provided in Article II(3).
Presidential Search Committee. There shall be a Presidential Search Committee to recommend the
appointment of a President as provided in Article IV(2).
(I!) Reelection. A member of the Board elected by the Board or by the Alumni may be elected for not more
(d) Visiting Committee. There shall be a Visiting Committee, including a Chair, appointed by the Chair of
the Board. The Visiting Committee shall meet at least once annually with the Instruction Committee on
each campus. The Visiting Committee shall discuss the Statement of Educational Policy and Program
of the Chair of the Instruction Committee and become acquainted with the aims of the College and
how they are being realized.
(12) Meetings of the Board.
(k) Finance Committee. There shall be a Finance Committee consisting of the Chair, the Presidents, and
the Treasurers of the College, ex officio, and such additional members as may be appointed by the
Chair of the Board. The Chair of the Board shall appoint one of the members to be the Chair of the
Committee.
than two consecutive terms, but may, after a second consecutive term, be reelected to membership at the
annual meeting in the year following the expiration of the member's second term. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, in extraordinary circumstances, the Nominating Committee may recommend the reelection of
the Chair of the Board for up to two additional consecutive terms.
(a) Regular meetings of the Board shall be held quarterly in either Annapolis or Santa Fe. The spring
meeting shall be called the annual meeting. The time and place of regular meetingsshall
determined
by the Chair, in consultation with the President, and notice of regular meetings shall be given not less
than fifteen days prior to such meetings.
be
(b) Special meetings of the Board may be called by the President, the Chair, the Executive Committee, or
any ten members of the Board, not less than seven days after the dispatch of_wntten, faxed, or e-mail
notice of the time, place, and purposes of the meeting. Such notice may be dispensed with 1fwa1ved in
writing by all members of the Board either before or after the meeting.
( c) Any business may be conducted at a regular meeting without specific notice of such business ( except
that which is required by law or as provided herein as to elections and amendments), but no business
shall be conducted at any special meeting unless notice of such business has been given, or has been
waived as above provided.
(d) One third of the members of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
(e) The Board in regular session is open to elected and ex officio members, to Visitors Emeriti, to
Honorary Board Members as guests, to Associates invited by the President, and to official
representatives of the Faculty, Students, Graduate Institute, Alumni Association and Staff. Attendance
at Executive sessions shall be limited to voting members and Visitors Emeriti. Public sessions shall be
open without restriction. The Chair of the Board, in consultation with the President, shall determine
whether any meeting or portion of a meeting shall be in regular, executive, or public session.
(13) Officers of the Board. At each annual meeting the Board shall elect a Chair, two Vice-Chairs, and a
Secretary, to hold office until the next annual meeting or until their successors are elected. Vacancies in any
such offices may be filled at any regular meeting, or any special meeting called for that purpose . Such
officers shall perform the customary duties of such offices, and such other duties as the Board may from
time to time direct.
(14) Committees of the Board.
The Finance Committee shall have the following powers and duties:
(i) The Finance Committee shall, after consultation with the Investment Committee, make
recommendations to the Board concerning the appropriate policies for annual or periodic
expenditures from each of the college's endowments.
(ii) The Finance Committee shall review the proposed annual budgets of the College prior to their
presentation for approval by the Board and shall make recommendations to the Board with respect
to the budgets at the meeting at which they are presented.
(iii) The Finance Committee shall study, and periodically advise the Board with respect to, the
financial business policies and practices of the College, and shall make such special studies and
reports as the Board may from time to time request.
(f) Audit Committee. There shall be an Audit Committee, including a Chair, appointed by the Chair of the
Board. The Treasurers shall serve as non-voting Staff to the committee.
(i) The Committee shall review in detail the annual report of the independent auditors and discuss
audit findings with the auditors, unattended by employees of the College.
(ii) The Committee shall meet with representatives of the independent auditors to the next audit to
discuss scope and procedures and any other matters requiring special attention.
(iii) The Committee shall discuss with College personnel any corrective action required as a result of
the audit report.
(iv) The Committee shall recommend to the Board the appointment or reappointment of independent
auditors to conduct the audit for the next fiscal year.
(a) Executive Committee. The Chair, the Vice-Chairs, the Secretary, the Presidents, the Deans, and four
other members chosen annually by the Board at the annual meeting shall comprise the Executive
Committee of the Board. In intervals between meetings of the Board, the Executive Committee may
act for the Board, except in those matters expressly delegated to some other committee, person, or
persons. Seven members of the Executive Committee present at a meeting shall constitute a quorum
(g) Compensation Review Committee. There shall be a Compensation Review Committee, including a
Chair, appointed by the Chair of the Board.
8
9
(v) The Committee shall report to the Board annually on its review of the audit and shall bring to the
attention of the Board any matters related thereto requiring Board action.
�(i) The Committee shall recommend to the Board policies for direct and indirect compensation of
Tutors, Associate members of the Faculty, other Faculty members, and Staff at the College. It
shall annually review the compensation policies and performance with respect to them and report
the findings of this review to the Board.
(ii) The Committee shall recommend to the Executive Committee the compensation of the Presidents,
Vice-Presidents for College Advancement, and Treasurers of the College
(iii) In matters of policy and compensation, the Committee shall consult with the Presidents and the
Chair of the Finance Committee.
(h) Polity Review Committee. There shall be a Polity Review Committee appointed by the Chair every
fifth year. The Chair of the Board shall appoint one of the members to be Chair of the Committee. The
Committee shall receive the report of the Faculty Committee and after appropriate study shall make
recommendations to the Board for consideration at the annual meeting when the final review of the
Polity is consummated. The respective Chairs of the Board and Faculty Review Committees shall
make such arrangements as they deem appropriate for joint consultation prior to and after the adoption
of the report by the Faculty.
(i)
Investment Committee. There shall be an Investment Committee consisting of at least one member of
the Finance Committee (appointed by the Chair of the Board), the Treasurers of the college, ex officio,
and such additional members as may be appointed by the Chair. The Chair of the Board shall appoint
one of the members to be Chair of the Committee. The Investment Committee shall have the following
powers and duties:
(i) The Investment Committee shall have full power to direct the investment and reinvestment of all
funds of the College, including endowment and restricted funds, and the proper officers of the
Board and the College are authorized to carry out all written directions, signed by the Chair of the
Committee, with respect to such investments and reinvestments. The Committee shall report at
each regular meeting any action taken hereunder since the previous meeting.
(ii) The Committee shall advise the Finance Committee on the question of the appropriate endowment
spending policies for the College, and shall consult with the Finance Committee on any matter that
it judges may affect the financial condition of the College that may need action by the Finance
Committee.
(j)
(k)
Buildings and Grounds Committee. There shall be a Buildings and Grounds Committee appointed by
the Chair of the Board. The Committee shall meet with the Treasurers on each campus and review
issues and plans relating to the maintenance and development of the campuses. Two members shall
be named, by the Chair of the Board, to serve as Chairs of the subcommittees for each campus, with
one to be designated as Chair of the full Committee.
Development Committee. There shall be a Development Committee consisting of the Vice
Presidents for College Advancement, ex officio, and such additional members as may be appointed
by the Chair of the Board, who shall appoint one member to be Chair of the Committee. The
Development Committee shall have the following powers and duties:
i.
ii.
111.
1v.
The Committee shall review all policies and programs for fund- raising on each campus and
report on same.
The Committee shall advise the Board with respect to the need for capital campaigns or other
special fund-raising projects.
The Committee shall be responsible for seeking contributions to the Annual Campaigns from
each Board Member.
At the discretion of the Chair of the Board, the Committee may be suspended during the
pendency of a capital campaign.
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(1) Alumni Relations Committee. There shall be an Alumni Relations Committee consisting of the
President of the Alumni Association, the Vice Presidents for College Advancement, ex officio, and
such additional members as may be appointed by the Chair of the Board. The Chair of the Board shall
appoint one of the Alumni-elected Board members to serve as Chair of the Committee. The
Committee shall review all policies and programs for alumni and report on same.
(m) Other Committees. The Chair may appoint such other standing or special committees of the Board as
the Chair deems desirable or which the Board may request.
(n) Former members of the Board and Visitors Emeriti may be appointed by and at the discretion of the
Chair to serve on committees.
(o) Except for the Presidential Search Committee and the Polity Review Committee, committee
appointments shall be made annually. Members of the Committees serve until their successors have
been appointed.
(p) Any member of the Board may, without invitation, attend any Board committee meeting, except those
of the Presidential Search, ominating and Executive Committees, but without vote .
(q) Whenever a Capital Campaign is in progress, its Chair shall be an ex-officio voting member of the
Finance and Executive Committees.
(15) Execution of Contracts, Transfer of Securities, Etc. All contracts of$50,000 or more, notes, deeds, leases,
mortgages, releases, bonds for security or indemnity, negotiable instruments, stock certificates, transfers,
and powers, and like papers and documents on behalf of the College or the Endowment Funds shall be
executed by two persons, of whom one shall be the President, the Chair, or a Vice-Chair, and of whom the
other shall be the Secretary of the Board or the Treasurer of the campus concerned.
( 16) Signing of checks, drafts, etc. All checks, drafts, acceptances, and similar orders for the payment of money
on behalf of the College may be signed by the same persons authorized to execute contracts, etc., pursuant
to Section (15) hereof, but may also be signed by such persons, and in such manner, as the Board may
from time to time direct by appropriate resolution.
( 17) The College shall indemnify, to the full extent permitted by law, any current or former member of the
Board or officer of the College or any person who, while a member of the Board or an officer of the
College, may have served at the College's request as a director, officer, partner or trustee of another entity,
against any judgments, penalties, fines , settlements and reasonable expenses actually and necessarily
incurred by him or her in connection with the defense of any action, suit or proceeding to which he or she
is made a party by reason of being or having been such member of the Board or officer of the College.
Article III
THE FACULTY
The Visitors and Governors by these ordinances hereby delegate to the Faculty of St. John's College the
President, the Deans, the other Tutors, the Tutors Emeriti, the Vice-Presidents for College Advancement, the
Treasurers, and the Associates "powers and authorities" for the "instruction, discipline, and government" of the
College.
11
�Article IV
THE FACULTY: THE PRESIDENT
(1) There shall be a President for the Annapolis campus and a President for the Santa Fe campus, each
appointed as provided in Article IV (2). There is delegated to each President by the Visitors and Governors
executive responsibility and authority for the instruction, discipline, and government of the President's
campus, and the President, in turn, may delegate such authority. In the interest of the orderly conduct of
business and of maintaining and promoting the unity of the College, the Presidents shall regularly consult
and communicate with each other and, as appropriate, with other College officials, on matters of common
concern.
(2) The President shall be appointed by the Board of Visitors and Governors on the recommendation of a
Committee composed of five members of the Board of Visitors and Governors appointed by the Chair of
the Board, at least one of whom is an alumnus, the Deans, and one Tutor having tenure from each campus
elected by the Faculty on that campus. This Committee shall be known as the Presidential Search
Committee. It shall consult with the continuing President in a regular and timely fashion. Prior to making
its final recommendation, it shall, on both campuses, consult with all other appropriate persons and shall
arrange for the final candidates to meet with the Faculty and the Instruction Committee.
(3) The President shall concurrently be a Tutor, but the provisions of Article VI need not apply.
(4) The President and persons to whom the President delegates authority shall consult with the Deans, other
appropriate persons, and appropriate Faculty committees in matters of policy, initiation of programs, and
setting of priorities affecting the general welfare of the College.
(5) There shall be a Financial Committee on each campus consisting of the President as Chair, the Dean and
Treasurer of the campus, and other members the President may appoint. It will review proposed budgets
prior to their being presented to the Finance Committee of the Board. It will also meet prior to Board
meetings to review performance in the fiscal year to date and emerging budgetary strengths and
weaknesses.
(6) The President shall appoint, or delegate the power to appoint, other committees as may be necessary for the
carrying out of the duties of the President or other duties for which no provision is made under Article IX.
(7) If in the judgment of the Board of Visitors and Governors, the College is facing a financial exigency at
either or both of its campuses which could call for a reduction in the number of Faculty positions, both
Presidents shall immediately advise the Faculty of the nature and extent of the financial difficulty and
consult with them concerning the best way to address the situation. The Faculty may then make a formal
recommendation to the Presidents on ways to meet the problem, or, if the Faculty fails so to act, the Deans
and the Instruction Committee shall propose a plan to the Presidents. The Presidents shall jointly then
determine a plan which specifies a preferred course of action to be taken. All necessary steps must be taken
in timely fashion as prescribed by the Board. Nothing herein provided shall limit the power of the Board to
act otherwise in the event of need to reduce or eliminate Faculty positions.
Article V
THE FACULTY: THE CHAIR OF THE INSTRUCTION COMMITTEE AND THE DEANS
( 1) The Chair of the Instruction Committee.
(a) There is delegated to the Chair of the Instruction Committee responsibility and authority for the
organization of the program of instruction in the liberal arts that is followed by the Tutors and the
Students.
12
(b) The Deans shall serve alternately, for a term of one year, as Chair of the Instruction Committee.
(c) Each year the Chair of the Instruction Committee shall, after consultation with the Instruction
Committee on the Chair's campus, and after discussion with the Instruction Committee of the College,
submit a Statement of Educational Policy and Program to the Faculty as a whole for discussion. The
President shall present the Statement, together with an account of the Faculty discussion of it and the
President's response to it, as a report to the Board of Visitors and Governors for its consideration.
(d) The Chair of the Instruction Committee shall, as such chair or the Chair of the Board of Visitors and
Governors may deem appropriate, report to the Board on instructional matters, and shall respond to
such questions as the Board, through its Chair, may ask.
(2) The Deans.
(a) There is delegated to the Deans on their respective campuses responsibility and authority for the
supervision of the program of instruction and for the general welfare of the students and for whatever
government of the students be necessary for the greatest possible attainment of aims of the program.
Each Dean shall be the Chair of the Instruction Committee on such Dean's campus. In carrying out his
duties, each Dean shall consult regularly with the President and with the Instruction Committee and the
other appropriate Faculty committees on that campus.
(b) The Deans shall be appointed for terms of five years from among the Tutors by the Visitors and
Governors on the recommendation of the President after consultation with a special committee of
seven, four from the campus for which the Dean is being chosen and three from the other campus,
selected from among themselves by the Tutors having tenure.
(c) A Dean shall be appointed from among the tutors who have themselves been appointed in accord with
Article VI(3). If non-tenured, the appointee shall acquire tenure upon becoming Dean, in which case
the provisions of Article VI(3)(a) regarding reappointment schedules shall not apply.
(d) To assist them in carrying out their duties, the Deans shall recommend one or more Tutors to be
appointed by the President with the title of Assistant Dean.
(e) During the absence of the President from either campus, the Dean on that campus shall if necessary
exercise the President's prerogative of final decision.
(f) During the absence of either Dean from the campus a Tutor with tenure named by the Dean shall act
for the Dean.
(g) The Dean on each campus shall appoint such committees as may be necessary for the carrying out of
duties of the Dean and duties for which no other provision is made.
Article VI
THE FACULTY: THE TUTORS
( 1) The primary responsibilities of the Tutors are to teach and to make themselves as competent as
possible in all parts of the St. John's Program.
(2) The Tutors shall have authority to recommend to the Visitors and Governors candidates for degrees of their
respective campuses.
(3) Appointment and Reappointment of Tutors. Tutors shall be appointed by the Visitors and Governors upon
recommendation of the President in accordance with the recommendation of the Dean and the Instruction
13
�Committee on that campus where the Tutors so appointed shall teach.
(a) The schedule ofregular appointment of Tutors on each campus shall be either (i)(A) or (i)(B) below, to
be decided by the President in accordance with the recommendation of the Dean and the Instruction
Committee on that campus where the Tutors so appointed shall teach:
(i)(A)
(i)(B)
New Tutors shall be appointed for one year unless they are appointed at mid-year, in which
case the initial appointment shall be for a year and a half. First reappointments shall be for
one year. Second and third reappointments shall be for two and three years respectively.
New Tutors shall be appointed for two years unless they are appointed at mid-year, in which
case the initial appointment shall be for a year and a half. First and second reappointments
shall be for two and three years respectively.
(ii) A Tutor who has completed a three-year appointment must either be given a tenure appointment or
not be reappointed as Tutor. A Tutor may, however, be given a tenure appointment as early as the
conclusion of the first year of a three-year appointment. Procedures leading to a recommendation
for an early tenure appointment shall be initiated by the Dean and Instruction Committee, but not
without the consent of the appointee, and shall not prejudice subsequent consideration for a tenure
appointment. Tenure appointments shall not continue beyond retirement. Tutors Emeriti shall
retain their privileges and responsibilities in voting at Faculty meetings.
(iii) Before making recommendations to the President on tenure appointments the Dean on each
campus shall consult with the Instruction Committee on that campus, after seeking the advice of
the Tutors on that campus.
(iv) A Tutor, to be recommended for a tenure appointment, must have served full-time at the campus
where the recommendation is to be made for the two years immediately preceding the year in
which that recommendation is made, the provisions of (ii) above notwithstanding. In ordinary
cases, these two years of service will be the second year of a two-year appointment and the first
year of a three-year appointment. These requirements may be waived by the President on the
recommendation of the Dean and Instruction Committee on that campus.
(b) A non-tenure appointment as Tutor establishes the possibility, but not the presumption, of its renewal
and the granting of a tenure appointment. Procedures for considering non-tenure appointments differ
from those for considering tenure appointments. Satisfaction of appointment criteria admits of degree.
With each successive reappointment, the criteria are applied more rigorously. For a tenure appointment
the application is especially strict.
(c) For the purpose of temporary transfer between campuses, special appointments of one or two years
may be granted to a Tutor in addition to his or her regular appointments. The Tutor may ask that such
an appointment be counted as a regular appointment for the purpose of (a) above. In the case of a
permanent transfer a Tutor may ask that years of service at the other campus be counted toward
tenure according to the provisions of(a) above. Nevertheless, the provisions of(3) (a)(iv) prevail.
(d) Special one-year appointments and reappointments may be given to Tutors who intend to teach on a
part-time basis only. Such a Tutor may subsequently apply for and receive a regular appointment.
Special part-time appointments may then be counted on a fractional basis toward eligibility for tenure,
subject to the provisions of (3)(a)(iv). In establishing eligibility for sabbatical leave, special part-time
appointments shall be computed proportionately.
(e) Visiting Tutors may be appointed for a term or a year.
4) Notification.
(a) A Tutor under consideration for a non-tenure appointment to begin in a certain calendar year shall be
notified by the President no later than December 15th of the preceding calendar year whether
reappointment will be recommended to the Board of Visitors and Governors. If the Tutor is
reappointed, the President shall notify him or her by March 1st of the calendar year in which the new
appointment is to begin.
(b) A Tutor under consideration for a tenure appointment to begin in a certain calendar year shall be
notified by the President no later than May 31st of the preceding calendar year whether the
appointment will be recommended to the Board of Visitors and Governors. If the Tutor is appointed,
the President shall notify him or her by July 31st of that same preceding year.
(5) A Tutor may apply to the Instruction Committee of the College not later than January 15th for a transfer of
campus for the next academic year. Transfers shall require approval of both Deans after consultation with
their Instruction Committees.
(6) (a)
A Tutor's appointment may be terminated by the Board of Visitors and Governors for one of the
following reasons only:
(i) failure or inability to perform teaching duties in a satisfactory manner, or
(ii) moral turpitude.
The President shall make such a recommendation to the Board of Visitors and Governors only with the
concurrence of the Dean and the Instruction Committee of the campus concerned. Before the
President makes such a recommendation, he or she shall advise the Tutor affected, and the Tutor
shall have the right to be heard by the Instruction Committee or, at the Tutor's option, by another
committee to be designated by the President for this purpose.
(b) Either Dean, with the approval of the Instruction Committee on the campus concerned, may
recommend to the President that in the interest of instruction a Tutor be temporarily relieved of duties
in whole or in part at any time. When such action is taken, the Tutor's salary shall be continued for the
remainder of the current academic year.
(7) The sabbatical leave program is designed to provide Tutors with an opportunity for study, rest, and renewal
of spirit, in anticipation of future teaching. It is the objective of the program to grant all applications for
sabbatical leave meeting the conditions for eligibility set out in (a) of this section. It is understood that
Tutors on such leave will not undertake full-time remunerative employment elsewhere and will return to
the College.
(a) Eligibility for sabbatical leave shall be upon the following conditions:
(i) A Tutor who has received a tenure appointment may apply for a full year of sabbatical leave at full
salary, to be taken upon completion of the equivalent of seven full years of service to the College
since his or her original appointment, or the equivalent of six full years of service since any
previous sabbatical leave.
(ii) Such a Tutor may apply for an earlier sabbatical leave of a full year at partial salary, or a partial
year at full salary. The fractional salary or fractional year shall be determined by the number of
years of teaching completed in relation to the prescribed total for either an initial or a subsequent
sabbatical leave, as the case may be. In no case shall a Tutor be paid more than the Tutor's regular
salary.
(iii) Upon completion of sabbatical leave, a Tutor is expected to return to the College for at least two
more years.
14
15
�(b) If, in the judgment of the President, financial or academic needs at a campus should require that fewer
sabbatical leaves be granted there in a given year than there are qualified applicants, and if the number
that can be granted there should be smaller than one-sixth of the number of Tutors at that campus
having tenure and not on full-time leave under the provisions of section (8) below, the President shall
so notify the Board of Visitors and Governors and seek its approval for delaying a sabbatical leave for
one or more of the applicants.
(c) If in a year there are more qualified applicants for sabbatical leave at any one campus than there are
leaves to be granted at that campus, then those members shall have precedence who meet the following
conditions in the order set forth:
(i) Those who have served for the greater number of years since their first appointment as Tutor or
since their last sabbatical leave, whichever is more recent;
(ii) Those whose service has been continuous throughout those years;
(iii) Those whose last sabbatical leave was postponed because of the financial or academic needs of the
College;
(iv) Those who have seniority of appointment.
When there is a conflict of precedence, the Dean and the Instruction Committee on the campus
concerned shall be consulted.
(d) A Tutor eligible for sabbatical leave shall make application to the President before November 1st for
leave to begin the following July 1st, and shall be informed of the action upon the application not later
than January 1st.
(8) The President, with the concurrence of the Dean after consultation with the Instruction Committee on the
campus concerned, may grant leaves of absence to Tutors for a period of one year or less. At that time it
shall be determined whether the leave shall be counted as service to the College with respect to eligibility
for sabbatical leave and, if so, how. The decision with respect to a request for leave of absence shall be
made in the light of the requirements both of the applicant Tutor and of the whole College.
(a) Leave of absence may be renewed upon request but not more than twice in succession except in
extraordinary circumstances.
Article VII
THE FACULTY: THE VICE-PRESIDENTS FOR COLLEGE ADVANCEMENT AND THE
TREASURERS
(1) The Vice-Presidents for College Advancement shall be responsible to the President for the supervision and
development of all programs in fund-raising, public relations, and alumni relations on their respective
campuses.
(2) The Vice-President for College Advancement on each campus shall be appointed by the Board of Visitors
and Governors on the recommendation of the President made after consultation with the Dean on that
campus and a committee constituted by resolution of the Faculty on that campus.
(3) The Treasurers shall have charge, on their respective campuses, under the supervision of the President, of
all funds and property, and shall have authority to carry out fiscal and property transactions, and to receive
and disburse funds, subject to the provisions of this Polity and other directions and arrangements pursuant
thereto.
(4) The Treasurer on each campus shall be appointed by the Board of Visitors and Governors on the
recommendation of the President made after consultation with the Dean on that campus and a committee
constituted by resolution of the Faculty on that campus.
(5) The Vice-Presidents for College Advancement and Treasurers may be appointed Tutors under the
provisions of Article VI(3)(d).
Article VIII
THE FACULTY: THE ASSOCIATES
{l) Associate members of the Faculty on each campus shall be appointed by the Board of Visitors and
Governors on the recommendation of the President in consultation with the Dean of that campus. The
President shall have ultimate executive authority over the Associates.
(2) Associates may be appointed Tutors under the provisions of Article VI (3)(d).
(b) A request for a leave of absence shall be submitted to the President as early as possible in the academic
year before the year in which the leave is to be taken, but not later than January 15th of that year.
Requests for leaves of absence may be withdrawn at any time prior to April 1st of the year in which the
request is submitted. Requests for leaves of absence for the second semester must be submitted no later
than October 15th.
(4) The Associates' Council may establish such committees as it deems appropriate.
(c) Tutors on sabbatical leave or leave of absence remain members of the Faculty with the right of full
participation in Faculty meetings and all other College exercises.
(5) There shall be the following Associates, as deemed necessary by the President on each campus, with the
powers and responsibilities provided.
(3) The Associates on either campus may establish for themselves an Associates' Council for the purpose of
considering College matters of concern to them and communicating with other members of the College,
(a) The Registrars. The Registrars shall be responsible to the Deans on their respective campuses. They
shall prepare and supervise the registration of students and shall be responsible for the academic
records and schedules of students.
(b) The Librarians. The Librarians shall be responsible to the Deans on their respective campuses for the
operation of the library. Appointments of professional members of the Library Staff shall be made
upon the recommendation of the Librarian·to the Dean on each campus.
16
17
�( c) The Directors of Student Activities and the Directors of Athletics. The Directors of Student Activities
and the Directors of Athletics shall be responsible to the Deans on their respective campuses for
devising and directing programs of recreational activities.
(d) The Directors of Admissions. The Directors of Admissions shall be responsible to the Deans on their
respective campuses for the annual enrollment of qualified freshmen.
(e) The Directors of Alumni Activities. The Directors of Alumni Activities shall be responsible to the
Vice-Presidents for College Advancement. Their primary duty is to enable the College and the Alumni
Association to be of service to alumni.
(f) The Directors of Financial Aid. The Directors of Financial Aid shall be responsible to the Deans on
their respective campuses for the administration of financial aid programs.
(g) The Directors of Career Services. The Directors of Career Services shall be responsible to the Deans
on their respective campuses for helping and counseling students with respect to graduate and
professional schools and careers.
(h) Persons designated Associates under the provisions of Article I(3)(f) or of Article VII(3)(k) ofthis
Polity as amended through April 20, 1985, whose offices are not specifically named in this Article,
shall continue to be Associates until the expiration of their appointments to those offices.
Article IX
THE FACULTY: FACULTY COMMITTEES
(1) The Instruction Committee
(a) The Instruction Committee shares with its Chairs responsibility for the program of instruction of the
College. It shall consist of twelve Tutors in addition to the Deans. The Presidents shall sit with the
Committee ex officio. Six of the Tutors shall be elected from each campus of the College. The
Instruction Committee shall meet annually. On each campus the members of the Instruction Committee
and the Dean as Chair constitute the Instruction Committee of the College on that campus. The
President sits ex officio with the Instruction Committee on each campus.
(b) Each of the members of the Instruction Committee shall serve for a term of three years, and the terms
shall be arranged in such a way that each year the terms of two members at each campus shall expire.
Terms begin and end the day following commencement exercises. Annually, and separately at each
campus, the President with the Dean on his campus, after consulting with the Instruction Committee
and seeking the advice of the other Tutors on that campus, shall at the last regular Faculty meeting
on that campus nominate four Tutors of whom two shall be elected by the Tutors to membership on the
Instruction Committee. The Faculty shall be informed of the names of the nominees prior to the
meeting at which the election occurs. At the expiration of the three-year term a member of the
Instruction Committee shall for one year be ineligible for reelection.
(c) If for any reason a member of the Instruction Committee is unable to serve for a part of his or her term,
another Tutor shall be chosen to serve for that part of the term. For this purpose the President and the
Dean, in consultation with the Instruction Committee on the campus where the vacancy occurs, shall
nominate two Tutors of whom the Tutors shall elect one in a regular Faculty meeting.
( d) If the Instruction Committee resigns with the Deans on a matter of confidence and the resignations are
accepted, the President, in consultation with the new Deans and after seeking the advice of the other
Tutors, shall nominate nine Tutors for the six vacancies on each campus in such a manner that two out
of each three nominees shall be elected by the Tutors for each of the three classes to fill the unexpired
terms.
18
(2) The Tutors' Compensation Committee
(a) There shall be a Tutors' Compensation Committee of six Tutors, three to be elected by the Tutors on
each campus, and the chair shall annually alternate between campuses. The Committee shall advise the
President concerning Tutors' compensation and related matters; it shall make annual reviews of the
College's statement of Tutors' salaries and other compensation of Tutors and report to the Tutors and
the President recommendations consequent upon the review.
(b) Members of the Committee shall be elected annually on each campus for terms of three years in such a
manner that the term of one member on each campus terminates each year. The Tutors' Compensation
Committee on each campus shall provide the Tutors on that campus with two nominations for each
vacancy on the Committee on that campus. Additional nominations may be made at the Faculty
meeting when election shall be made.
(3) The Library Committees. The President, in consultation with the Librarian and the Dean, shall appoint
three Tutors on each campus to serve as a Library Committee. The President, the Dean, and the Librarian
shall themselves be ex officio members of the Committee, and the Librarian shall serve as Chair. It
shall be the duty of the Library Committees to assist the Librarians in making the Libraries serve the ends
of the College and its program; it shall be their duty to advise the Librarians in regard to Library policy and
acquisitions. The Managers of the Bookstores may be invited to sit with the Committees.
(4) The Campus Planning Committees. The Faculty on each campus shall elect five of its members as a
Campus Planning Committee. Two members shall be elected to the Committee annually except in every
third year, when one member shall be chosen. The President, the Dean, one of the Assistant Deans, and the
Treasurer on each campus shall sit ex officio with the Committee on that campus. It shall be the duty of the
respective committees to advise the President on the construction of new buildings, the renovation of old
buildings, landscaping of grounds, and all matters relating to the maintenance and development of the
campus.
(5) The Prize Committees. Every three years the President shall appoint Tutors on each campus to supervise
the awarding of prizes on the respective campuses. The Committees shall have full authority to decide what
prizes shall be awarded and to name the recipients of the prizes.
(6) The Fellowship Committees. On each campus there shall be a Fellowship Committee appointed by the
President. It shall be the duty of this Committee to inform students of fellowships for which they may be
eligible, to assist them in applying for fellowships, and to act on behalf of the College in any matter
relating to application for fellowships.
(7) Other Committees. The Faculty on each campus shall have authority to elect, or to request the President to
appoint, additional committees that may from time to time become necessary.
Article X
THE FACULTY: FACULTY PROCEDURE
( 1) Procedure for Instructional Proposals.
(a)(i)
Any proposal concerning matters of instruction that may affect the College as a whole shall
originate with the Dean and the Instruction Committee on either campus. A decision as to whether
a proposal is college-wide or campus-specific shall be made by the Deans and Instruction
Committee of the College. They shall make this decision after notifying the Faculty on both
campuses and inviting their comment.
19
�Written statements of college-wide instructional proposals shall be distributed to the Faculty at
least two weeks before the Faculty meeting at which they are to be presented; the proposal shall be
presented to the whole Faculty by the Chair of the Instruction Committee, either in person or
through the other Dean. If, after full discussion of any proposal so presented, there be no objection
on the part of any Tutor, the measure stands approved and becomes effective as of the date
specified therefore. If, after full discussion, a Tutor objects to the proposal and holds to the
objection, the proposal shall be submitted to vote of the Tutors at special Faculty meetings called
by the Presidents within a month. Any objections that have been made and held to and submitted
in writing shall be transmitted immediately in writing to the whole faculty._Any objections
have been made and held to but not submitted in writing shall be reported immediately m wr1tmg
to the whole Faculty. If, after discussion, any objection has been made and held to, the Presidents,
in calling special Faculty meetings, shall report the statement of the Chair oft_he Instruction
and
the Dean on the other campus as to whether it be a matter of confidence; and m submitting the
proposal to vote, the Chair of the Instruction Committee and the Dean on the other campus shall,
at the special Faculty meetings, repeat their statement as to whether it be a matter of confidence.
The vote may then be taken and tallied by the Presidents in such a fashion that the_Tutors shall
have recorded their decision acting as a whole. If the proposal be one that the Chair of the
Instruction Committee and the other Dean have declared a matter of confidence and if it be
defeated by majority vote, the Deans and the Instruction Committee shall immediately resign. Ifit
be passed by majority vote, it shall become effective as of the date specified therefore. For the
confidence procedure a quorum shall consist of three-fourths of all resident Tutors on each
campus.
(ii) Any instructional proposal that has been deemed campus-specific shall be subj_ect to the
procedure set forth above, except that, if an objection is made and held to on either campus,
voting shall proceed only on the campus were the proposal is intended to be put into effect.
Any objections that have been made and held to and submitted in writing on the other campus
shall be transmitted immediately to the voting Faculty. Any objections that have been made
and held to but not submitted in writing shall be reported immediately in writing to the voting
Faculty. If the confidence procedure is invoked, it shall be only by the Dean on the voting
campus, and it shall affect the Dean and the Instruction Committee only on that campus.
(iii) The President may refuse to accept the resignation of the Deans or the Instruction Committee,
any or all of them, whenever in the judgment of the President such resignation would be
detrimental to the proper functioning of the College; provided, however, that if any six or
more Tutors shall petition the Visitors and Governors, the latter shall review the President's
decision within four weeks, during which time the Deans and the Instruction Committee shall
continue in office.
(iv) In the event that the proposal be defeated and the resignations be accepted, the President shall
proceed to the choice of new Deans in accordance with the provisions of Article V (2)(b).
(b) Upon either a petition of not less than one-tenth of the Tutors on either campus or a request from the
President, the Dean and Instruction Committee on that campus shall consider any recommendation
concerning instruction and shall report to the Faculty within one year their proposal concerning it.
They shall decide whether their proposal is a college-wide or campus-specific proposal, and the
procedure of Article X(l) shall apply.
(b) Special meetings of the Faculty may be called upon due notice by the President alone or at the request
of five Faculty members.
(c) Due notice shall be construed to mean no less than three days notice, except in cases of emergency.
(d) A quorum shall consist of a majority of the Faculty in residence except as otherwise provided.
(e) Only Tutors may vote on instructional matters. All Faculty members may vote on all other matters not
specifically restricted in the Polity.
(3) The Secretary of the Faculty. At the last regular meeting of an academic year the Faculty on each campus
shall elect one of its members, then in at least his or her third year at the College, as Secretary. The
Secretary shall assist in the preparation and circulation of the agenda for Faculty meetings, shall keep the
minutes of such meetings, and shall collect and circulate reports of Faculty committees.
Article XI
THE SCHOLARS-IN-RESIDENCE AND THE ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE
The Scholars-in-Residence and the Artists-in-Residence shall be appointed from time to time by the Board of
Visitors and Governors on the recommendation of the President after consultation with the Dean and the
Instruction Committee on the campus where the Scholars and Artists shall reside.
Article XII
THE STUDENTS
( 1) The primary responsibilities of the Students are to study and to make themselves as competent as possible
in all parts of the St. John's Program. Their advice and service shall be sought by the Faculty in such
matters and in such ways as may best serve the general welfare of the College.
(2) The Students of St. John's College shall constitute the Student Polity of St. John's College in Annapolis and
in Santa Fe.
(3) The Student Polity in Annapolis or Santa Fe may establish for itself a government which is representative
of all polity members. The Dean on each campus may delegate to the Student governn1ent a share of the
responsibility for the general welfare of the Students and whatever government of the Students may be
necessary for the greatest possible attainment of the aims of the program. The duties of the Student
Government may include:
(a) the management of funds available to the Student Polity;
(b) the sanctioning of all student clubs, organizations, and activities, and their regulation, if necessary;
(c) the representation of the Students of St. John's College to the community outside the College;
(d) the establishment and maintenance of formal channels of communication between the Students and
the Faculty; and
(2) Faculty Meetings.
(a) Regular monthly meetings of the Faculty shall be called upon due notice by the President; except that
in the period comprising the months of December and January only one regular meeting need be
called. The President or, in his absence, the Dean, shall preside. In the absence of the President and the
Dean, the Faculty shall elect one of its members to preside.
20
(e) any other duties agreed upon by the Students and the Dean.
21
�Article XIV
Article XIII
THE GRADUATE INSTITUTE
THE ALUMNI
( l) The Directors.
(1) Alumni shall be life-long members of the College, since St. John's College is a community not limited by
geographical location or fixed periods of time.
(a) There shall be a Director of the Graduate Institute on each campus to whom shall be delegated
responsibility and authority, under the Chair of the Instruction Committee, for the organization and
supervision on his or her campus of the graduate program of instruction in the liberal arts and for
matters concerning the general welfare of the students. Concerning matters that affect the Graduate
Institute as a whole the Director shall, in consultation with the other Director, be responsible to the
Chairman of the Instruction Committee. Concerning matters limited to the Director's campus he or she
shall be responsible to the Dean on that campus.
(b) The Directors shall be appointed for terms of three years from among the Tutors by the Board of
Visitors and Governors on the recommendation of the President, after consultation with the Deans and
a special committee consisting of four members, two from each campus, selected from among
themselves by the Tutors having tenure. The Directors shall be Tutors of the Graduate Institute.
(c) Every three years, after consultation with the other Director and the Committee for the Graduate
Institute on such Director's campus, one of the Directors shall submit a Statement of Educational
Policy and Program for the Graduate Institute to the Instruction Committee for discussion at its joint
meeting. The Director may, thereafter , revise the Statement and the Statement then shall be submitted
to the Faculty as a whole for discussion.
(2) The Faculty of the Graduate Institute.
(a) Each Director, after consultation with the Committee for the Graduate Institute on that campus, and in
accordance with the recommendation of the Instruction Committee on the same campus, shall
recommend to the President Tutors of the Graduate Institute for summer appointment to teach in the
Graduate Institute for one session.
(2) The Alumni Association is the formal means by which Alumni participate in the life of the College.
Through the election of alumni members of the Board of Visitors and Governors, Alumni share in the
direction of that life. In these and other ways, Alumni shall be given the opportunity to serve the College.
(3) The College shall cooperate with the Alumni Association to enable Alumni to assist in providing services
such as recruiting and interviewing prospective students, placing graduates in appropriate employment, and
advising students concerning careers and admission to graduate and professional schools.
(4) The College, in cooperation with the Alumni Association, shall provide seminars and other appropriate
educational activities in Annapolis, in Santa Fe, and in other places.
Article XV
( l) Members of the Staff assist with the administration and maintenance of the College, performing duties
necessary to its well-being. They are subject to appropriate Staff rules and regulations.
(2) Members of the Staff on either campus may establish for themselves a Staff Council for the purpose of
better communication and understanding of College policies as a benefit to the College as a whole. The
Staff Council shall seek to establish and maintain formal channels of communication among the whole
Staff and between the Staff and the appropriate College Officers. The Treasurer on each campus shall
review Staff employment regulations with the Staff Council and discuss with them any changes proposed.
(3) The Staff Council may establish such committees as it deems appropriate.
(b) During the summer term the Tutors of the Graduate Institute on each campus shall have the authority
to recommend to the Board of Visitors and Governors candidates for degrees.
Article XVI
AMENDMENTS AND REVIEW
(3) Committees for the Graduate Institute.
(a) On each campus the Committee for the Graduate Institute shares with the Director on the same campus
responsibility for carrying out the program of instruction of the Graduate Institute and for the general
welfare of the students.
(b) Each Committee shall consist of three Tutors who have experience in the Institute, in addition to the
Director, who shall serve as Chair.
(c) Members of each Committee shall be appointed by the Director with the concurrence of the Dean on
the same campus after consultation with the Committee for the Graduate Institute on that campus.
(4) Proposals concerning matters of instruction or policy shall originate with one of the Directors, after
consultation with the other Director and with the Committee for the Graduate Institute, and shall be
submitted to the Dean on the originating campus for handling in accordance with Article X(l)(a)(i) .
(1) Amendments to this Polity may be proposed by a majority of the Polity Review Committee, or by a petition
submitted by not fewer than ten percent of the members of the Board, or by the Faculty as provided for in
section (2) and (3) below. Written notice of a proposed amendment must be provided to the Board and to
the Faculty not less than 30 days prior to the date of the Board meeting at which the amendment is to be
considered. The Faculty shall have the right to inform the Board in writing of its recommendation with
respect to the proposed amendment by the time of that meeting. This Polity may be amended by a twothirds vote of those members voting at any regular or special meeting of the Board, provided that the votes
ofno fewer than one-third of the members of the entire Board eligible to vote are in favor of such
amendment.
(2) Amendments may be proposed at any regular meeting of either the Faculty in Annapolis or the Faculty in
Santa Fe upon petition of not less than ten percent of the members on either campus. No such proposal
shall be acted upon earlier than the next regular meeting of the Faculty, whether in Annapolis or in Santa
Fe. A two-thirds vote of the entire Faculty in residence, including at least a simple majority vote of the
Faculty in residence on each of the campuses, shall be required for approval and the amendment shall not
become effective unless approved by the Board in the manner set forth in Section (1) above.
(3) Every five years this Polity shall be reviewed by a committee of six, three to be elected by the Faculty on
each campus. The report of the Committee shall be submitted to one regular Faculty meeting and voted
22
23
�upon at the next regular Faculty meeting. A two-thirds vote of the entire Faculty in residence, including at
least a simple majority vote of the Faculty in residence on each of the campuses, shall be required for
approval of any proposed amendments.
Whatever action is thus recommended by the Faculty shall be submitted to the Board for final decision in
the manner set forth in Section (1) above.
Article XVII
COMPLIANCE WITH LAW
No provision of this Polity shall be construed to contravene any applicable federal or state law. If any provision
is determined to contravene any such law, that provision shall be deemed not a part of this Polity, and this
Polity's remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.
Article XVIII
MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
There shall be a Management Committee for the college composed of the Presidents and Deans of both
campuses. The Chair of the Management Committee will report to and be appointed annually by the Board of
Visitors and Governors. With the advice of the Committee, and in a collegial manner, the Chair shall exercise
executive authority over the College as a whole with respect to:
(1) college-wide strategic planning, including defining the processes for strategic thinking, leading
conversations regarding strategic decisions, and presentation of and planning for the strategic goals of
the college and their accomplishment;
(2) college-wide advancement, including capital campaigns, external relations and publications, common
college-wide donor information and databases, oversight and implementation of ongoing development
initiatives, and oversight of alumni relations efforts, including the work of the Alumni Relations
directors and that portion of the work of Career Services directors pertaining to alumni;
(3) budgeting and resource planning, including approval of campus-specific budgets, preparation of
college-wide budgets, oversight and implementation of a college-wide information management
system, and oversight and implementation of consistent accounting, audit, and financial reporting
processes;
(4) approval and monitoring of admissions and financial aid policies for both campuses; and
(5) such other matters as may be assigned to the Chair from time to time.
The Management Committee shall not have executive authority over instructional matters assigned to the
Instruction Committee and its Chair under Articles V and IX(l) of the Polity.
24
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Charter and Polity of the College
Description
An account of the resource
Revised and amended editions of the St. John's College Charter and Polity.<br /><br />The College's first Charter and Polity was published as the <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/3768">September 1950</a> issue of the <em><a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/collections/show/37">Bulletin of St. John's College in Annapolis</a></em>. Revised and amended versions were published as individual issues of the <em>Bulletin</em> in <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/3746">1951</a>, <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7844">1960</a>, <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7845">1963</a>, and <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7846">1965</a>. <br /><br />The Charter and Polity was published as a separate document in <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7850">1955</a> and again from <a href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/show/7851">1970</a> forward. The most recent version of the Charter and Polity is also available on the College's <a href="https://www.sjc.edu/about/leadership/board-visitors-governors/charter-polity">website</a>. <br /><br />Click on <strong><a title="Items in the Charter and Polity of the College Collection" href="https://digitalarchives.sjc.edu/items/browse?tags=Charter+and+Polity&sort_field=Dublin+Core%2CDate">Items in the Charter and Polity of the College Collection</a></strong> to view and sort all items in the collection.
Creator
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St. John's College
Publisher
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St. John's College
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St. John's College Greenfield Library
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PDF
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16 pages
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Charter and Polity of the College, 2004
Description
An account of the resource
Charter and Polity of the College, amended and restated April 2004.
Creator
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St. John's College
Publisher
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St. John's College
Coverage
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Annapolis, MD
Santa Fe, NM
Date
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2004-04
Type
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text
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PDF
Subject
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St. John's College (Annapolis, Md.)
Legal instruments
Language
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English
Identifier
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Charter_and_Polity_2004
Charter and Polity