2012: Shimer College year in review

This year has had its twist and its turns, but finally it deposits us here -- with just enough time for a quick backward glance.

Here are a few of the top forms of Shimer-related awesomeness that come to mind from the past year (not a comprehensive list):

- Awesome new Shimer College video, now over 4,000 views:



- Awesome new Shimer Colege viewbook:

- Awesome new Shimer College president. (Some representative forms of awesomeness: 1, 2, 3, 4.)

- Awesome new/old Director of Admissions!

 - Lots of awesome articles about Laurie Spiegel ('67), prompted first by her music's appearance in the Hunger Games movie and then by the expanded reissue of her Expanding Universe album. Rounding up all this coverage needs a separate blog post (hopefully forthcoming), but here a three pieces picked more or less at random: Slate, Pitchfork, New Yorker. 

- An astounding amount of historical material from Shimer's first decades has been made available online, (mostly) courtesy of NIU, for example:

• every known issue of the Oread (1869-1895),  
• every surviving issue of the Seminary Bell (1859-1862). 

- Most photos in the Shimer College Flickr stream are now licensed CC-BY, allowing them to be freely reused (e.g. on Wikipedia) as long as Shimer is credited. (If you haven't tangled with copyright issues in the digital age, it's easy to miss how much awesome is wrapped up in that development.)

Of course, the most awesome thing of all is that Shimer's extremely high baseline level of awesomeness has made it through yet another year intact.

So, then.... if, like me, you approve of the above developments (or any fraction thereof), I hope you'll join me in making a year-end donation to Shimer College.

Belated Month in Review: January 2011

Still trying, and generally failing, to catch up. Sheesh. When did Shimer become so active online?

Adrian Nelson, participating in the Oxford study abroad program, recounted her visit to Poland over Christmas break:

While some of it was devoted to recovery time from the previous semester, as well as working on - le gasp - a thesis and other break projects, I finally got a chance to see some of the continent. I might not have, but a family invitation to spend Christmas in Poland gave me the perfect opportunity.

Alexandra Rosenberg, meanwhile, posted her memories of Montaigne scholarship competitions past:

I didn't win the Montaigne, but I earned something invaluable during the competition: the decision to go to Shimer. It is one of the best ideas I've ever had and cannot imagine being happy without receiving the education I am today.

Sara Hall, back from Oxford, reflected on how to cure the dreariness of winter:

Little things like lime green pants to help cure the winter dreariness of Chicago, and bring a smile to a stranger's face, if even for a moment. These are just as important as getting that Kierkegaard reading done and successfully contributing an interesting idea to the class discussion.

And reflecting further on the Shimer-in-Oxford experience, Sara agreed with fellow student Jesus Aviña that "it was kinda like boot camp":

It was an experience I wouldn't trade for anything. As I told my family, I went to Hogwarts, and I came back a wizard. A very happy, much more confident, and much less anxious wizard, ready to face the future and see what adventures it holds.

Shimerian-in-Haiti Steven Werlin reported on Jackson at School and invited us Meet Eileen, and described the End Game:

As we look to further expansion in the coming year, we'll need to apply what our experience has taught us. We need to get more disciplined, more focused during the selection and enrollment process. We can't let our need to hurry push us to cut corners, miss steps, or spread ourselves too thin. Haitians say "two prese p ap fè jou a ouvri." That means that too much hurrying doesn't make the sun rise. It's wisdom worth bearing in mind.

Belated Month in Review: December 2010

OK, I'm a day late (actually 60+ days late) and a dollar short, but here is a roundup of interesting Shimer-related things from the month of December 2010.

Postings on Blog.shimer

December saw two postings from Shimer's study abroad program at Oxford University. Shimer-in-Oxford's worthy guide, Stuart Patterson, reported on the End of Term:

I realize I haven’t said much yet about the range of subjects folks are studying here. So I want to pay tribute to everyone’s hard work this term with just a list of some of the tutorials that they’ve undertaken over the last few months - the list isn’t exhaustive, though it might exhaust you just reading it: “Christian Mysticism,” “Druidism and Paganism,” “History and Practice of Observational Astronomy,” “Early Writing Systems,” “Chinese Literature,” “Feminism,” Proust,” “Philosophy of Mind,” “French Lyric Poetry,” “Psychology of Religion” and “Classical Guitar” to name, literally, a few. Next term promises just as rich a harvest of ideas, with “Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit,” “Government and Politics of the U.S.,” and “History of Consciousness through Material Studies” a few of the courses we have planned.

Shimerian-in-Oxford Adrian Nelson reported on The Fine City of Bath and a Stone Henge:



Dinah Gumns presented the written portion of her writing week project, Moves & Mobiles, reflecting on the impact of the Shimer experience:

The decision to go back to school had more intense consequences than quitting a job or two and racking up more student loans; I was engulfed with creative energy. As this year pushed on, it has only become stronger. I have introverted greatly. I have found that I am in my head 80% of the time. As I bike to work I try to wrap my mind around the previous day's Sociology reading. I laugh at the similarity of drivers throwing temper tantrums to the tantrums of chimpanzees. My people-watching skills are now verging on creepy. I do math problems in my head for fun; this is the most surprising, really. I am astounding myself daily.

Shimer also held a chess tournament.

Fearless first-year Shimer video blogger Dorian Electra posted on "Euclidean Aerobics":

October's Over

The end of a month seems like a good time for another roundup post. Here's what's been going on in the past month, as far as your humble narrator is aware. (Previous summary here.)

The past month
- Top news: Seven members of Lindsay's wrecking crew left the Board of Trustees, conveniently matching the number of new alum members who joined in late September. The pro-Shimer majority is, thus, now quite solid.
- Shimer Days were held with great success.

A good number of Shimer faculty have been heard from, in print and on the blogs:
- Eileen Buchanan and Jim Donovan were published in Substance, Judgment and Education, a volume of papers from the Association for Core Texts conference in 2006. Both papers deal with Shimer's curricular development in response to the "Great Books, Great Art" NEH grant which ran from 2005 to 2007. Eileen's paper is titled "Michelangelo and the Copernican Revolution," although it begins "in reality, this paper is about neither Michelangelo nor the Copernican Revolution." Jim's paper is on "Teaching Scientists to See: A Possible Bridge Between C.P. Snow’s Two Cultures."

- Dave Shiner was quoted in a Pope Center article on whether tenure is necessary.
- Dave also talked with legendary Shimer professor John Hirschfield.
- Stuart Patterson checked in from Shimer-in-Oxford.
- Steven Werlin posted two articles about his work with Haitian microfinance agency Fonkoze: "Walking with Elie" and "Scaling Up".

Other blogospheric happenings:
- Mohini Lal shared her story as an early entrant.
- Noah Lebien shared his story as a transfer student.
- Shimer-in-Oxford student Adrian Nelson reported on Oxford academics and other matters:

- Shimer-at-Shimer student Michael Doherty interpreted Jean-Paul Sartre on stress management:



NB: No new materials have been added to the public case file for Lindsay v. Shimer College since early September. The case appears to be in a holding pattern.

Next month
- Eugene Baldwin, "Made in Illinois: Archaeology of the First Americans", November 5, 7 PM in Cinderella Lounge at Shimer (3424 S State)
- Orange Horse: November 13, 7 PM in Cinderella Lounge
- Life After Shimer Reading Group: The Pioneers by James Fenimore Cooper, November 14, 11 AM at the home of Jack Sigel in Evanston
- Assembly: November 14, 4 PM in Cinderella Lounge
- Buffy Ellsworth, "Of Men, Mice and Foxes", November 19, 7 PM in Cinderella Lounge

In closing
Two things come to mind:
1. Dang, there's a lot going on at Shimer.
2. It's always a good day to donate to Shimer.

September song

Here's another little old roundup (most recent previous roundup here). Things have been pretty quiet in the external community, as far as I'm aware, so this is mostly limited to news from inside the bubble.

Recent happenings:

• As already noted on this very blog, the Board has added SEVEN NEW ALUM TRUSTEES!!!, each and every one of whom is an awesome human being. If this makes you feel good about the future of Shimer -- and it should -- please consider making a little financial vote of confidence in their honor.
  
• On that note, the Advancement Office has rolled out some new ways of donating to Shimer. For instance, you can donate your beat-up old car to Shimer. (Or your motorcycle. Or your steamroller, apparently -- if you happen to have an extra one lying around. Not sure about tanks.)
  
• Shimer-in-Oxford has checked in with a video blog by Adrian Nelson and richly illustrated reports from Stuart Patterson and Robert Carpenter. You may remember Robert as the Weekend students' intrepid representative on the Board this past year.
• First-year student Mohini Lal has posted some reflections on Shimer's smallness and vastness.
  
• The mills of the law grind exceeding slow, and Lindsay v. Shimer College continues to plod its ponderous way through Cook County Circuit Court. (No, not that Lindsay v. Shimer, and definitely not this one; this one.) The most recent event on the e-docket is a "stay of execution," a familiar theme in Shimer history. There is currently a lag of more than 15 days between the public case file and the actual motions filed in court; thus, it would seem that the only people who know exactly what has been stayed are those who were present in the courtroom. Still, you can view the case file up through 9/3/2010 here, or in a more organized format here. The motion to dismiss, by Shimer's counsel, is highly recommended for connoisseurs of the legal smackdown.
• The Shimer-Student-Union listserv, much-used in the recent crisis, has shown unexpected signs of life.
  

Upcoming events:

• Something called "Shimer Days" is happening soon (10/11 - 10/16), with all kinds of Shimer-y goings on. Of particular note, there is an open house for prospective students on Columbus Day, 10/11/2010.
• Further on the Admissions front, any prospective students who complete their applications before 10/15 will not only get an answer by Thanksgiving, but will also get their book fee waived for the first year. So if you know somebody who is or might be applying, you might want to give that somebody a nudge... (Incidentally, this page is a good one to watch for updates admissionary.)
  
• Shimer Days also marks the beginning of the fall lecture series, with a panel discussion on Shimer history led by Eileen Buchanan on 10/15.
  
• Something called "Life after Shimer Reading Group" is happening just after Shimer Days, on SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY 10/17 in Evanston. The reading is Charles Brockden Brown's Wieland.
• The next Assembly meeting will be November 14, 2010, at 4 PM in the Cinderella Lounge at Shimer.
  

Summer summary

I've been remiss in updating this blog about various events in and around Shimer. Selected recent events are summarized below.

(This seems like a good time to note that any interested Shimerian is welcome to post here; just ask me or SaraDevil for posting rights if you don't have them already. )

The latest in hot trustee-on-trustee action:

• A few weeks after his unceremonious removal, Tom Lindsay filed suit against the College and numerous individual trustees, making accusations which I will not befoul this blog by repeating. Tom was joined in the lawsuit by his puppeteer, Patrick Parker. The suit is now wending its way through the Chancery Division of the Cook County Circuit Court. At this point it seems unlikely that the wrecking crew has anything resembling a case. It's not entirely clear what they are playing at, though one likely possibility is that they're angling for a large cash settlement.
  
• In its most recent meeting, the Board of Trustees changed its bylaws to permit board members to be added and removed by a simple majority vote, thus depriving the rump Lindsay-Parker faction of its pernicious veto over student and faculty representatives. Thank you, Trustees!
  

In news of the internal community:

• The College beat its alumni fundraising target for the past fiscal year. Kudos to Don Moon, Aaron Garland and Noah Kippley-Ogman! Thanks must also go to noted money-bomber Nate Lefebvre and many other alums who dug deep to support the college.
  
• Shimer also exceeded the enrollment target for the coming semester. Kudos to Amy Pritts and Cassie Sherman! And to 38 brilliant young souls who made the right choice.
  
• The Admissions crew has been putting out some very interesting student video blogs.
• Shimer-in-Oxford has begun, under the capable leadership of Stuart Patterson.

In news of the external community:

• Over the summer, former Shimer President Don Moon toured the country and met with alum groups in cities including New York, Washington and Seattle.

• New members have joined the Alumni Association board, including 90s alums Erik Badger, Beth Matthews and Sarah Delezen.
• Thanks to the yeoman efforts of alum Chris Vaughan, the Shimer College article on Wikipedia has gained Featured status -- no easy task.
• Alum Ron Rothbart has posted a number of Mt Carroll and otherwise Shimerical photographs on the Shimer College Flickr stream. If you also have photos to share, please consider sharing them there.
  
• Two alum reading groups have been meeting regularly in the Chicago area, thanks to the efforts of Bill Arnold and Jack Sigel. A good time has been had by all. The next such group will meet on Wednesday, 9/29, at 6:30 PM in the Infinity classroom at Shimer. The text is Roberto Bolaño's By Night in Chile. (Note: date recently changed)