December 9, 2022 Upon Reflection Each autumn, we wonder when the first leaf will turn: first one, then a few—and, overnight, a panorama of reds, yellows, and oranges! The campus canopy is constantly adapting. In my comings and goings along The Avenue, I note its enchanting display of the seasons, and I often imagine how our founders thought of this tree-lined Avenue as an example for our students. The word “resilience” feels appropriate: the trees bend (mostly) without breaking, and they experience change, rebirth, and loss every year. December 1, 2022 Madrigal Dinners: Celebrating 50 Years of Holiday Cheer For 50 years Saint Mary’s College has put on the Classic Christmas Madrigal Dinner. This cherished tradition never fails to put guests and performers in the holiday spirit. The Christmas Madrigal Dinner is an intimate dinner-theater event held in Rice Commons, where singers, dancers, actors, and musicians perform right in front of audiences. Rice Commons is transformed to a renaissance style banquet hall, complete with a roaring fire, candles, spruce, pine, wreaths, and holiday decor to whisk the community away into a story of the Christmastide. November 28, 2022 Saint Mary’s College Receives Physics Grant President Katie Conboy announced a five-year, $498,900 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation to establish the Clare Boothe Luce Assistant Professorship in Physics. The grant will be used to hire an early-career female assistant professor in physics, adding a tenure track line that builds on the growing strength of STEM education at Saint Mary's. November 15, 2022 NPR Editor Courtney Jamieson Dorning ’90 Returns to SMC Saint Mary’s College welcomed alumna Courtney Jamieson Dorning ’90 back to campus as the 2022 Shannon Scholar. As the senior editor for NPR’s All Things Considered, Dorning is responsible for newsmaker interviews, but while on campus, she was on the other side of the interviews. November 8, 2022 Legally Blonde Opens at Saint Mary’s Legally Blonde The Musical hits the O’Laughlin Auditorium stage this November with a dedicated cast of 50 students. A musical of this size and caliber is a coordinated effort between the Music, Theater, and Dance programs at Saint Mary’s College under the direction of Mark Abram-Copenhaver, professor of Theatre. Putting a large-scale production together requires the creativity of dancers, singers, actors, set designers, and costume designers. Not only is this a learning opportunity for student performers, it is an exciting gift for the greater community to be entertained by this production. November 8, 2022 Strengthening Our Culture of Belonging In her monthly letter to the community, President Conboy reflects further on the word "belonging", and the ongoing commitment to it at SMC. "We need to acknowledge the strength of diverse ideas and the force of differences that are already inside the college... Whatever our differences, we have all chosen Saint Mary’s. We all belong under this roof." November 7, 2022 Celebrating First-Generation Students This week, Saint Mary’s celebrates its first-generation students, faculty, and staff through a series of events, timed to coincide with First Generation College Celebration Day on November 8. Christin Kloski ’15, assistant director of the Office for Student Equity, has helped coordinate the week, and plans to engage the more than 400 undergraduate students at the College. October 26, 2022 Farmer Joins College’s Sustainable Farm As 160 chickens enjoyed their morning feed, Matthew Insley beamed with excitement while talking about the future of the Sustainable Farm at Saint Mary’s. The farm, unveiled in 2020, sits on a five-acre plot on the northern edge of campus, and growing toward is meeting its full potential with the arrival of its newest farmer. October 25, 2022 NPR's Courtney Dorning '90 To Meet With Students Courtney Jamieson Dorning ’90 will be at Saint Mary’s November 14 and 15 as part of the Shannon Executive Scholars Program. Dorning has been a senior editor for NPR's All Things Considered since November 2018. In that role, she's the lead editor for the daily show. Dorning is responsible for newsmaker interviews, lead news segments and the small, quirky features that are a hallmark of the network's flagship afternoon magazine program.