Bard Center for Civic Engagement Hosts Breakfast to Honor Community Partners
Angela Armstrong, vice principal of Kingston High School, with Harry Johnson '17,
cofounder of Brothers at Bard, at the Bard CCE Community Partner Breakfast.
On Friday, May 10, the Center for Civic Engagement at Bard College welcomed more than 50 community partners to a Thank You Breakfast. Local organizers, school administrators, business owners, and legislators gathered at the historic Blithewood Manor for a catered buffet. Bard CCE Outreach Coordinator Sarah DeVeer ‘17 welcomed attendees by name and ushered them through the building’s dramatic foyer. Deputy Director Erin Canaan called everyone to attention as she introduced Bard College President Leon Botstein.
President Botstein thanked the guests for their commitment to Bard and to civic engagement. He talked about the role a college plays in a community, what he called the mutually beneficial “Towns and Gowns” relationship. Bard continues to prioritize investing in its students, empowering them to realize their ideas and commit to civic action in the Hudson Valley and beyond. Per its institutional mission, Botstein said, Bard is and will continue to be a private college in the public interest.
The Center for Civic Engagement works to manifest Bard’s mission. CCE Director Jonathan Becker described how, in 2011, he witnessed the uprisings in Cairo’s Tahrir Square while writing the proposal for the creation of an institute at Bard that would inspire civic engagement in the classroom, the community, and the world.
The breakfast honored three collaborators for their work with Bard: Kathleen Gavin of the Astor Home for Children; Angela Armstrong, vice principal of Kingston High School; and Historic Red Hook, the certificate for which was accepted by Red Hook town historian Emily Majer.
Bard students have long been volunteering with the Astor Home for Children, in Rhinebeck, where they support mental health services for children who have experienced trauma. Trustee Leader Scholar students lead activities at Astor every week—everything from pottery to science experiments—and act as mentors and positive role models for the children.
Collaborations between Bard and Historic Red Hook have been numerous over the years. Most recently, Bard is working with Historic Red Hook and several other local entities on a series of events around Memorial Day Weekend: Toward an Ethical Imagination: Gilsonfest. Gilsonfest celebrates the life of Montgomery Place gardener Alexander Gilson, an African American slave, who after being freed stayed on as head gardener and eventually opened his own nursery business. The series includes an exhibition in Red Hook, commemorative signage at Montgomery Place, and lectures, all in conjunction with coursework and engagement activities at Bard.
Angela Armstrong works with Dariel Vasquez ‘17 and Harry Johnson ‘17 as part of their Brothers at Bard mentorship program at Kingston High School. Vasquez and Johnson started BAB as a Trustee Leader Scholar project addressing the need to support young men of color as they pursue their educations and careers. After a successful run on campus, Brothers at Bard took the program to Kingston, where Armstrong continues to help them as they guide young men of color through the academic and social rigors of high school. Now employed at Bard and fully funded to expand BAB even further, Vasquez and Johnson each spoke with great affection as they honored Armstrong for her collaboration and presented her with a certificate from Bard.
Post Date: 05-14-2019
President Botstein thanked the guests for their commitment to Bard and to civic engagement. He talked about the role a college plays in a community, what he called the mutually beneficial “Towns and Gowns” relationship. Bard continues to prioritize investing in its students, empowering them to realize their ideas and commit to civic action in the Hudson Valley and beyond. Per its institutional mission, Botstein said, Bard is and will continue to be a private college in the public interest.
The Center for Civic Engagement works to manifest Bard’s mission. CCE Director Jonathan Becker described how, in 2011, he witnessed the uprisings in Cairo’s Tahrir Square while writing the proposal for the creation of an institute at Bard that would inspire civic engagement in the classroom, the community, and the world.
The breakfast honored three collaborators for their work with Bard: Kathleen Gavin of the Astor Home for Children; Angela Armstrong, vice principal of Kingston High School; and Historic Red Hook, the certificate for which was accepted by Red Hook town historian Emily Majer.
Bard students have long been volunteering with the Astor Home for Children, in Rhinebeck, where they support mental health services for children who have experienced trauma. Trustee Leader Scholar students lead activities at Astor every week—everything from pottery to science experiments—and act as mentors and positive role models for the children.
Collaborations between Bard and Historic Red Hook have been numerous over the years. Most recently, Bard is working with Historic Red Hook and several other local entities on a series of events around Memorial Day Weekend: Toward an Ethical Imagination: Gilsonfest. Gilsonfest celebrates the life of Montgomery Place gardener Alexander Gilson, an African American slave, who after being freed stayed on as head gardener and eventually opened his own nursery business. The series includes an exhibition in Red Hook, commemorative signage at Montgomery Place, and lectures, all in conjunction with coursework and engagement activities at Bard.
Angela Armstrong works with Dariel Vasquez ‘17 and Harry Johnson ‘17 as part of their Brothers at Bard mentorship program at Kingston High School. Vasquez and Johnson started BAB as a Trustee Leader Scholar project addressing the need to support young men of color as they pursue their educations and careers. After a successful run on campus, Brothers at Bard took the program to Kingston, where Armstrong continues to help them as they guide young men of color through the academic and social rigors of high school. Now employed at Bard and fully funded to expand BAB even further, Vasquez and Johnson each spoke with great affection as they honored Armstrong for her collaboration and presented her with a certificate from Bard.
Post Date: 05-14-2019