Most mornings Sai Chavali '11 wakes up with a lengthy to-do list. But before heading off to breakfast or an economics lecture, the junior makes every effort to complete one important task: prayer. “It's a place to collect myself before I go about my day,” said Chavali. “It brings a lot of calmness and a lot of concentration. It keeps me grounded.” Chavali, a practicing Hindu from Bangalore, India, sits at his desk, places his palms together at chest height, closes his eyes, and begins his 10-minute prayer by invoking God's name. “I feel more awake after doing it,” he said. “The prayers help me think every day about doing things right.”

In the face of what can at times be an overwhelming whirlwind of classes, exams, papers, and social life, many Colby students find resolve in the form of faith. Some, like Chavali, practice alone, collecting themselves through prayer, self-reflection, or meditation outside of organized religion. For these students religion is primarily about personal discovery.

Others are drawn to the sense of community provided by Colby's religious groups. Whether due to a sense of heritage or the comfort and joy of practicing with others, students come together at Colby to share their own experiences in faith. In college, where the religious path can be difficult due to distance from home, others' perceptions of belief, and reconciling faith and school, a community eases concerns that might arise for students of faith. “One of the things I find about religion is that it's highly personal but at the same time highlighted and enhanced by communication with other people,” said Brendan Shea '11.

Shea is a member of the Newman Council, the student-run Catholic group on campus. Members help with Mass every Sunday afternoon in Lorimer Chapel before going to dinner with the Catholic chaplains, Father Daniel Baillargeon and Brother Rex Anthony Norris, affectionately known as Father Dan and Brother Rex. At these dinners members can talk about faith, schoolwork, or whatever is on their mind, but ultimately the meals provide a fresh starting point for the week. “It really puts things in perspective to step back and say, ‘Think of where we just came from in a worship service and church,'” said Shea.

Students make challah as part of Pugh Palooza, a multicultural celebration. Photo by Hannah Shapiro '12.

For Newman Council member Julianne Kowalski '11, who left a close group of religious friends at home, the council also provides diverse viewpoints on religious issues, which she says strengthen her friendships within the group as well as her own faith. “I enjoy it for those different personalities,” she said. “You can be surrounded by people who believe the same thing but don't act the same way. And they're not just religious friends, they're my friends.” In a recent poll 100 Colby students were asked what religion offers them. Most said “a sense of community.” That beat out philosophical questions about the origin of the world, the meaning of life, or the fate of the soul.

The Colby Muslim Group, Colby Christian Fellowship, C.I.R.C.L.E. (Collective for Insight, Refuge, and the Celebration of Life Experience), and Colby Hillel (the Jewish group) also provide forums where the benefits of a community founded on faith emerge. “We come together to share different backgrounds and learn from each other,” said Daniel Adams '08, the volunteer Protestant chaplain. “Sometimes we'll talk about things you might not have thought of yet.”

Through these groups students can engage with their nonreligious friends at Colby as well as the community beyond Mayflower Hill. Members of the Newman Council, for instance, teach CCD (Cofraternity of Christian Doctrine) to middle school children at St. Francis de Sales Church in Waterville and volunteer at the local food pantry. Colby Hillel hosts a Passover seder for Jewish students on campus, and the Colby Muslim Society puts on its annual Eid dinner at the end of Ramadan, an event that attracts students, staff, and faculty of different beliefs. “I look forward to that so much, because it's just kind of celebrating your religion,” said Aqsa Mahmood '11, president of the Muslim Society. “And having your non-Muslim friends there to celebrate with you means a lot.”

Amidst howling winds and a soggy mist ominously turning into rain, Peter Johansson '10 couldn't have been happier. “Nine-thirty!” Johansson shouted into the abyss as he stood on Baxter Peak at the summit of Mount Katahdin. “Nine-thirty in the morning!”

With Johansson, nine other Colby students sported granite-eating grins and high-fived at the top of Maine's tallest mountain. Soaked, but nonetheless stoked, the group-which took the boulder-filled Cathedral Trail to the summit in a mere three-and-a-half hours-reveled in the moment as part of the Colby Outing Club's annual trip to Katahdin.

More than 80 students headed to Baxter State Park, almost three hours north of Waterville, on this October weekend. After camping out Friday night and waking at 3:30 to make the 5 a.m. opening of the park, groups with names like “The Hunt for Red Katahdin,” “Mt. Katahdin: 5267 feet vs. your 2,” and “Katahdin: The Breakfast of Champions” spread out over the park's many trails, all taking different approaches to the pile of rocks on Baxter Peak, with its last pebble resting at exactly 5,280 feet.

Not all groups made it to the top-alas, high winds, rain, lots of wet rock, and low visibility don't mix quite like raisins, peanuts, and M&Ms-but all had an adventure. “We came, we saw, we conquered,” said Chris Scharff '11, resting post-hike in a lean-to at the Chimney Pond campground, about halfway up the mountain.

Still, the adventure wasn't quite over, for on the way down four members of Scharff's group posed as part of the Outing Club's “Naked in Nature” photography tradition, much to the amusement of other visitors to the park. “I don't see naked asses every day, so this is a real treat for me,” said passing hiker Doug Comstock. “You never know what you're going to see up here.”

At the third annual Colby Alumni Networking Weekend this fall, students of color and graduates in the Alumni of Color Network shared thoughts on being in the minority at Colby and established connections that could be helpful in the future.

The Career Center organized workshops, lectures, and panels and provided the opportunity for the groups to meet informally. One panel included 10 alumni of color and 10 ALANA (African-American, Latino/a, Native American, Asian-American) students who talked about the good and not-so-good of being a minority student at Colby.

While some students and alumni talked about challenges, alumni shared ways in which they were able to make the most of their Colby experience and were enthusiastic about what they got out of it. A Colby education provided alumni with limitless possibilities, taking them just about anywhere, they said.

The discussions were candid and honest. As students shared their experiences, alumni offered reflections and guidance. Mindy Pinto '02 said that, despite the ups and downs in her social experience at Colby, ultimately she had “good friendships with good people.”

The alumni panelists collectively expressed that they had struggled to feel a sense of belonging in the Colby community. This session, though, allowed current students to use the experiences of others to avoid some of the same challenges. “Use this opportunity as a way to get outside of your individual bubble,” said Jacquelyn Lindsey Wynn '75.

After all, that's what college is all about.

Students packed Foss dining hall for Harry Potter night, which was so popular that it is likely to become an annual event. Photo by Hannah Shapiro '12

Students seeking a little magical reprieve from their studies transformed one of the Colby dining halls into The Great Hall from the Harry Potter books and movies, resplendent with house colors, flickering cauldrons, suits of armor, and medieval paintings. Just days before Halloween, the dining hall was packed with more than 600 students-50 percent more than on an average night. Cameras flashed and students chattered excitedly-and got on the phone to gloat to friends from home.

Posters publicizing the dinner went up a week earlier, and by that night students were abuzz with anticipation. They weren't disappointed. After picking a house out of a hat at the entrance, students sat at their respective house tables and feasted on the likes of Gillyweed Soup, Hippogriff Pot Pie, and Steamed Forbidden Forest Tubers, followed by desserts including pumpkin bread and treacle tart. A newly formed Quidditch team circulated a sign-up sheet to recruit more members.
The magic was contagious-even the dining hall staff got into the spirit. Manager Terry Landry dressed up as Dumbledore and encouraged competition by offering a $25 gift certificate for the staff member with the most original costume.

“This should be a Colby tradition,” said Fiona Masland '12 as she finished her Hippogriff Pot Pie. There was general agreement from her friends.

It turns out Colby students have much to look forward to. “We just threw all the decorations in a box so we could pull them out next year,” said organizer Nick Cunkelman '11.

Butterbeer, anyone?

Hola Colby!

I am in sunny Spain enjoying the beautiful weather in Barcelona. The city is amazing, full of beautiful architecture and really cool sights. This is a picture of my favorite place in the city, Park Guell. Park Guell was designed by Antoni Gaudi, the most famous architect in Spain. As you can see, he used a lot of colors and mosaic tiling in his designs.

Besos,
Sarah Kirker '11

Why study disease? “The global death rate is still one-hundred percent,” he said.
Epidemiologists, he said, describe disease, investigate outbreaks, and design and implement interventions. Disease isn't randomly distributed across the population. Risk factors target more-susceptible groups. Therefore, treatment on a patient-by-patient basis is less efficient than intervention or a long-lasting treatment for the group as a whole. Epidemiology and public health should work together, Scott said.

Don't doctors do the same thing? No, Scott said. The goals of medicine and the goals of public health are different. Medicine assesses a patient's health and provides a one-time treatment regimen. Public health, on the other hand, with information provided by epidemiology, assesses disease across a population and how it can be prevented or managed in different groups. Policies are then developed to treat the entire population and to assure services that are available to everyone.

This spring Scott will offer a course titled Topics in Epidemiology. Students expressed interest not only in enrolling but in researching organizations he discussed in his talk-local and national disease surveillance initiatives and the World Health Organization-in hopes of learning about trends and recent disease outbreaks.

And if you have an iPhone, check out the new iC app, which makes photos, videos, and more available on your phone.

Hundreds turned out to hear him talk about his success in Northern Ireland and his current work in the Middle East, which at the time was under scrutiny. “There is no such thing as a conflict that can't be ended,” he said. “They're created and conducted by human beings, and they can be ended by human beings. No matter how old the conflict, no matter how hateful or hurtful, peace can prevail.”

During his time in Northern Ireland, which ultimately led to the Good Friday peace agreement, Mitchell learned that peace can be achieved no matter the circumstances. “It can happen and it did happen in Northern Ireland… and it must happen in the Middle East,” he said.

While past talks have failed to create long-lasting consensus, Mitchell stressed that he is not going to give up on peacekeeping efforts between Israelis and Palestinians. “There has to be an endless supply of perseverance, determination, and patience, no matter how bleak the outlook,” he said. “The search for peace is too important not to continue.”

Although it may seem as if peace in the Middle East is impossible, Mitchell thinks otherwise. “The conflict has gone on for so long, has had such destructive effects, and has created such an atmosphere of mutual hostility and mistrust that many have come to regard it as inevitable and unchangeable,” he said. “But… the pursuit of peace is so important that it demands our maximum effort, no matter the difficulties, no matter the setbacks.”

The lecture was the fourth in the Senator George J. Mitchell International Lecture series, which was established by Mitchell's close friends and family in Waterville, where he was raised. His father worked as a janitor at Colby. Mitchell says he feels blessed to be in the position he is in and to be able to help people the way he does.