The
Coastal Institute IGERT Project: The Year in Review*
- Ronan’s
firebreathing extravaganza, after which he reeked of lighter fluid (ah,
now we know why there was always that faint smell of the hardware store
during meetings!)…and thank goodness for the no smoking policy!
- Jim
defending phragmites on aesthetic grounds
- That
dreaded see-saw thing during the ropes course that we couldn’t figure out,
and finally, in desperation literally throwing any willing fellow on top
of it.
- Another
exercise in problem solving - how many CIIP faculty and fellows does it
take to figure out how the Tassimo coffee machine works? And do you get
3 credits or 6 credits for that?
- Jason’s
amazing acuity with all things mechanical, though that Tassimo remained
a puzzle even to him
- Candace’s
Zen-like capacity to ask a single question that it would take the rest of
us an hour to answer
- Steph
ever expanding op-ed piece into a full length journal article
- The
marvelous speaker introductions made by all the fellows, as well as the
speakers themselves.
- Many
of us concluding that we need to take a speed reading course to keep up
with the readings for the fall class (Judith excepted, of course)
- Abby’s
fearless and guiding plunge into the world of op-eds and triathlons
- Judith’s
idea for technology transfer to educate our video addicted kids: Fecal
Gameboy!
- Wondering
if NSF would cut our funds if we lost our entire first cohort to hypothermia
in the Galilee parking lot.
- Karen’s
memorable collection of our personal reflections on water
- The
post-it note exercise as the giant brain cluster
- Cathy’s
ability to understand and dissect the long and complex pieces of legislation
pertaining to water when many of us began to glaze over…and contrary to
her low key demeanor, her complete devotion to all things football
- Techno
excitement generated by our new Polycom equipment
- Art
and Cheryl needing to be separated during class for talking out of turn
and generally making trouble
- Watching
CIIP fellow enthusiasm for gourmet cookies wane as the year unfolded.
- Deb’s
cheerful and creative approach to all the challenges we threw at her
- The
day we had 8 dozen pastries because both Cheryl and Judith both went to
Sweetcakes that morning.
- Erika’s
selfless and stellar service as the CIIP fellow rep…balanced by her slightly
sadistic idea that we all needed to be taught a thing or two on the ropes
course
- During
one of our more challenging meetings, Pete’s observation…ah, the CIIP IGERT…like
a day at the dentist
- In
response to water quality monitoring issues, Judith’s confession that the
only sampling SHE does is at Godiva.
- Faculty
and staff who are the most fun people I know to work with and are also some
of the best in their fields.
- And
finally, seven remarkable and unique CIIP fellows who have demonstrated
humor and grace under all kinds of stress, have pushed themselves farther
than even they imagined they could go and gained skills and wisdom and experience
before our eyes. We can’t wait to see what happens next year!
* Compiled by Q Kellogg,
with input from the IGERT faculty