Catherine Elliott ’12 is a ceramicist who creates bowls that are both beautiful and usable. She forms her vessels on a kick wheel, one at a time.

A double major in studio art and politics, Elliott witnessed different approaches to ceramics work during the winter of 2011, when she lived and worked with an organization of potters in China. Case in point: The “Dragon Kiln,” a giant installation that she photographed on a hill just outside of Jingdezhen, the porcelain capital of China.

The “Dragon Kiln” is a giant installation that Catherine Elliott ’12 photographed on a hill just outside of Jingdezhen, the porcelain capital of China.

Elliott’s photograph above, as well as the two below, were included in the 2012 Barlow Off-Campus Study Photography Exhibition. This photo also depicts the kiln’s tenders, who, she explains, “spend hours crouched at the side of the kiln, feeding the flames.” (Perhaps the proximity to the heat has something to do with their choice of watermelon as refreshment.)

Winning Smile

The child nearest photographer Jenna Burke ‘13 in the photo is Emmanuel — “a favorite of mine and a star on the soccer field,” says Burke, who met Emmanuel and his playmates during her stay in Rhotia, Tanzania, with a fall 2011 School for Field Studies program that also took her to Kenya.

The child nearest photographer Jenna Burke ’13 in the photo above is Emmanuel — “a favorite of mine and a star on the soccer field,” says Burke, who met Emmanuel and his playmates during her stay in Rhotia, Tanzania, with a fall 2011 School for Field Studies program that also took her to Kenya. The program incorporated community service that entailed frequent sessions volunteering in primary schools. The sessions weren’t all work, as the visitors often went
“just to play with the kids,” Burke says.

Keyless Entry

Visiting Paris during the winter 2011 semester under the auspices of the Center for University Programs Abroad, photographer Olivia DaDalt ‘12 was captivated by this scene (below).

Olivia DaDalt ‘12 photographed this scene at the Pont de l’Archevêché, one of at least three Parisian bridges where romantic couples like to attach so-called love locks.

The Pont de l’Archevêché is one of at least three Parisian bridges where romantic couples like to attach so-called love locks, or love padlocks, to symbolize their undying love. Writing their names on the locks, the lovers fix them to the bridge fencing and toss the keys into the Seine. (Perhaps more jaded couples favor combination locks.) In the background of DaDalt’s image is Notre Dame Cathedral.

World Facts

The first Bates student to pursue abroad study headed to Tokyo in 1956–57.

An alumni career tip for success in the work world: “Have a bias towards saying yes.”

Sixty percent of Bates students will study abroad during their college time.

Joining an honored tradition, Sen. Ed Muskie ’36 once read George Washington’s inaugural speech on the Senate floor.

Major Destinations

Study-abroad countries attracting the most Bates students in 2010–11:

Italy 33
United Kingdom 31
Denmark 28
France 24
Spain 16
Australia 11
Chile 11
Argentina 10
South Africa 9
Greece 8

Source: Off-Campus Study Program 2011 Annual Report. The lists represent JSA and JYA students who studied abroad in 2010-11.

World Quote

“Italy is perennially the top destination for [for off-campus study] for its appeal to art majors, quality programs, no requirement for prior language study, central Europe location and appeal to parents.” — Steve Sawyer, director of Off-Campus Study

Tuned In to Spencer

Viewers in 17 countries watched the livestream of the announcement of Clayton Spencer as president-elect in December 2012. Photograph by Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College.

Viewers in 17 countries watched the webcast of the announcement of President-elect Clayton Spencer:

• Burundi
• Canada
• Cyprus
• Denmark
• Finland
• France
• Georgia
• Germany
• India
• Israel
• Japan
• Malaysia
• Netherlands
• Peru
• Sweden
• United Kingdom
• United States

Tiarra Abell ’12, a double major in Spanish and anthropology, is spending her December break in Ecuador doing research.

As the end of the semester approaches, Bates students are looking forward to a break from late nights in the library and a chance to spend the holidays with friends and family. But for senior Tiarra Abell of Louisville, Ky., winter break is a time to get some real work done.

At 4 a.m. Dec. 10, just hours after her last class of the semester, Abell began her journey back to Ecuador, where she spent her junior semester.

“A reality is coming true that I never imagined,” Abell said. “Although I didn’t want it to, I expected my time in Ecuador to end. But within just six months I’m able to go back!”

Along with 11 other seniors, Abell received a Barlow Thesis Research Grant. Established by David Barlow ’79, the grant’s goal is to enhance the study-abroad experience.

“I really like the Barlow thesis grant program, as it helps link the study abroad experience to the student’s academic program at Bates,” said Stephen Sawyer, director of off-campus study. “It allows students to return to their study-abroad country and interact with that setting in a more targeted way, building on their first experience.”

A double major in Spanish and anthropology, Abell is writing two senior theses, both investigating the lives of the Afro-Choteño community in Chota, a rural village with a population of 800. While living with a host family in Chota last spring, Abell was struck by the warmth and generosity of the Afro-Choteños despite the poverty in which they live.

“That was the first time in my life that I have experienced extreme poverty, in its real form,” said Abell. “The way they accepted me into their culture because I looked like them was very powerful to me. Just because I am black and I was doing well, they were very proud of me, as if I was one of their own.”

The timing for the return visit could not be better. After witnessing Easter in Chota, Abell was inspired to write her Spanish thesis on the role of faith in the lives of the devoutly Catholic Afro-Choteños. Abell hopes that spending Christmas in Chota will allow her to gather valuable interviews and photographs for her thesis.

After Bates, Abell plans to pursue a career in medicine. While in Chota, she volunteered at the local health clinic. She will return to the clinic to gather more field notes for her anthropology thesis on the economic and racial inequalities affecting medical treatment in Chota.

“This is a great opportunity,” she said. “Now I not only have volunteer experience in the medical field, but I have it in another culture.”

Most of her time will be spent in Chota, but Abell will visit Quito and Otavalo to gather books and articles that are not available in the United States on the Afro-Choteños. During this time she plans to meet Carla Guerron, the author of one of her primary sources, El Color de la Panela (“The Color of Brown Sugar”).

Abell will miss spending the holidays with her family in Louisville. “This is the first Christmas I have missed with my family, but being able to share and give back to people who don’t have nearly as much—who can’t even conceptualize the amount of things I have—brings me back to the true meaning of Christmas that my parents and family instilled in me.”

While home for Thanksgiving, Abell added, “my best friend’s sister gave me a big bag full of toys to give to the kids in Chota knowing that they would go to good use.”

– Erica Long ’12

Ian Bleakney ’91, a science teacher and department chair at Merritt College High School, a small public high school, in Oakland, Calif., was recently awarded the 2001 Barlow Alumni Travel Grant from Bates. The grant will fund Bleakney’s travels to India this summer where he will study teaching strategies and administrative methods in the city of Pune.Bleakney hopes to learn about Indian public science education and, on a broader level, how Indian administrators are able to run their schools effectively with relatively little money and few resources from their government.

Noting that Indian students consistently outscore his U.S. students in both science and math on standardized tests despite conditions of extreme poverty and scarce resources in most Indian communities, Bleakney hopes the Indian educational model will provide ideas for educators in this country, especially those who teach in low-income areas.

Bleakney became a teacher, he says, by committing himself to the national teacher corps known as Teach for America. He has been teaching some of this country’s  least privileged children since 1994. Bleakney also studied teaching pedagogy in Mexico under the Fulbright Teacher Exchange program. He plans to return to his teaching in Oakland in the fall.

Recalling their own transformative study-abroad experiences, David ’79 and Ann Barlow of Wellesley, Mass., in 2000 made a $1.5 million gift to create the David S. and Ann M. Barlow Endowment for Study Abroad. In addition to the Barlow Alumni Travel Grant, other initiatives include the Barlow Fellows Program, for students and faculty advisers planning study abroad; internships and senior thesis research relating to travel abroad; faculty travel to sites frequently by Bates students; and opportunities for students to share their experiences with the college community and with local teachers and schoolchildren.