The Morris K. Udall Foundation recently announced the award of a $5,000 scholarship to Williams College junior Julia Sendor for "her dedicated commitment to impacting environmental research and public policy on a national and international scale." She was one of 80 students nationwide to win the award.
Sendor, a native of Chapel Hill, N.C., has always been a nature lover, choosing to attend Williams College, located in Williamstown, Mass., in part, "because of the snowy mountains and maple syrup." Her experiences working with the Williamstown Rural Lands Foundation during the summer of 2005 really cultivated this love into a passion for environmental studies.
"As I learned not only about plants and animals, but also the history, politics, and people of the northern Berkshire environment of Williamstown, I realized how rich and all-encompassing 'environmental studies' is – and how all the interconnections between people and land could keep me fascinated for a lifetime of studying," Sendor said.
In 2005, the Williams College Center for Environmental Studies awarded her a fellowship to study local food systems in her home community by investigating and working with a local organic farm, a grocery cooperative, and a farmers' market.
On campus, she is secretary of the Outing Club and an active member of the Campus Environmental Advisory Committee, Students for Social Justice, and the gospel choir.
Sendor intends to pursue a career in environmental studies after her graduation in 2008, hoping to combine her interest in sustainable agriculture, land rights, and writing on a local and global level.
The Udall Foundation also awarded an honorable mention to the late Katherine Craig '08. Craig, of Cumberland, Maine, was an active member of the environmental studies community and a varsity Nordic skier.
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Williamstown Charter Review Panel OKs Fix to Address 'Separation of Powers' Concern
By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Charter Review Committee on Wednesday voted unanimously to endorse an amended version of the compliance provision it drafted to be added to the Town Charter.
The committee accepted language designed to meet concerns raised by the Planning Board about separation of powers under the charter.
The committee's original compliance language — Article 32 on the annual town meeting warrant — would have made the Select Board responsible for determining a remedy if any other town board or committee violated the charter.
The Planning Board objected to that notion, pointing out that it would give one elected body in town some authority over another.
On Wednesday, Charter Review Committee co-Chairs Andrew Hogeland and Jeffrey Johnson, both members of the Select Board, brought their colleagues amended language that, in essence, gives authority to enforce charter compliance by a board to its appointing authority.
For example, the Select Board would have authority to determine a remedy if, say, the Community Preservation Committee somehow violated the charter. And the voters, who elect the Planning Board, would have ultimate say if that body violates the charter.
In reality, the charter says very little about what town boards and committees — other than the Select Board — can or cannot do, and the powers of bodies like the Planning Board are regulated by state law.
The Charter Review Committee on Wednesday voted unanimously to endorse an amended version of the compliance provision it drafted to be added to the Town Charter. click for more
Developer David Traggorth asked the trustees to make the contribution from its coffers to help unlock an additional $5.4 million in state funds for the planned 54-unit apartment building at the south end of the Cable Mills site.
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The donors, who wish to remain anonymous, say the gift reflects their desire to not only support Williams but also President Maud S. Mandel's strategic vision and plan for the college.
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Neighbors of a proposed subdivision off Summer Street last week asked the Planning Board to take a critical look at the project, which the residents say is out of scale to the neighborhood. click for more