Archive for November, 2012

Living and Learning

November 28th, 2012 by kmmalone
Students in the Montserrat seminar “Reacting to the Colonial Past,” taught by Mary Conley, associate professor of history, participate in a month-long role-playing conference to decide the future of Indian state after World War II and British willingness to cede the country.  The class meets in a new seminar space in Hanselman Hall, the dormitory in which the students all live.

First-year Students Learn about Philosophy of Food by Making Bread

November 21st, 2012 by csteuer

Students mix the dough as dietitian Kathy Egan pours in a sour dough starter.  

Students knead the dough. 

The class prepares to oil the dough. 

Egan gets the dough ready for the oven. 

Finished product!

Right before Thanksgiving break, Andrea Borghini, assistant professor of philosophy, teamed up with Holy Cross Dining’s Dietitian Kathy Egan and Chef George McHugh, for a hands-on seminar about bread making. 

The first-year students, who are all part of the Montserrat Natural World Cluster, got to mix, roll, and knead bread, as part of a seminar about the philosophy of food, titled “I Am, Therefore I Eat.” The course explores how specific dietetic decisions reflect a detailed and comprehensive image of a person or a community.

Prof. Borghini says this is the first time the class has cooked together.  “I chose bread making because it represents family or a group of people and brings a community together,” he shares.

Hunger Banquet Raises Awareness of Food Disparities Across the Globe

November 19th, 2012 by kmmalone

Montserrat’s Global Society cluster held a Hunger Banquet on Thursday, Nov. 5 to raise awareness of disparities in food access locally and globally. More than 200 students and faculty participated in the lottery-styled meal that highlighted hunger and homelessness across the globe.

Fifteen percent of attendees enjoyed three-course meals served by wait staff, representing the proportion of the world’s population able to afford a nutritious daily diet; 35 percent received a healthy supply of beans and rice; representing those living on the edge of poverty; and a third group, comprised of 50 percent of participants, was given only ½ cup of rice and water, representing the majority of the world’s population that struggles daily to find food, water and shelter.

During the banquet, Liz Sheehan Castro of the Worcester County Food Bank; John Perkins of the Heifer Project; Drew Rapa ’14, co-chair of the College’s Oxfam chapter; and Michaela Johnson ’13, SPUD intern coordinator of hunger and homeless projects, spoke about local and global food challenges.

Holy Cross Counseling Center Receives Donation

November 6th, 2012 by csteuer

Holy Cross’ Counseling Center Peer Educators program (COPE) has recently been awarded a $2,000 gift to help facilitate a stronger connection between the center and students on the Hill. The General Federation of Women’s Clubs, Massachusetts (GFWC) made the donation to bolster COPE’s outreach programming, which is designed to increase student awareness of mental health issues and to reduce the stigma associated with seeking help.

From left to right are: Samir Nomani ’15, Sean Coyle ’15, Sarah Erickson (coordinator of COPE), Paul Galvinhill (director of the counseling center), and T Jablanski (former director of GFWC of Massachusetts).