From the President

I have been traveling a great deal this season seeing ‘Roos all over the country, meeting with donors and foundations, and joining Larry for some of his shows and presentations.

In Holland I was able to visit the Van Gogh Museum. For a long time I didn’t understand why Van Gogh was considered an artistic master; the reproductions of his work didn’t inspire me. It wasn’t until I saw his pictures in person that I really grasped his genius. Van Gogh uses color so intensely that his paintings are almost too much to take in.

On this trip I saw one of his loveliest pieces up close for the first time: Blossoming Almond Tree. The color tones almost knocked me over. There is no way a photograph of the painting can capture its depth. I feel the same way about the chance to meet alumni and friends of the College in person. Especially in this day of mediated e-communication, there is something uniquely special about meeting face to face. I hope that you will join us for the next Austin college alumni event in your area. And I hope you will come to campus to see us soon. The colors here also are too beautiful to be left to photographs and memories!

As the campus grounds have begun to come to life with the arrival of a beautiful spring, we at Austin College are reminded to “Think Green.” The environmental awareness campaign launched last spring renewed a long-held College commitment to environmentally sound practices and encouraging sustainability, recycling, and intelligent consumer choices.

This online-only magazine is an effort toward sound environmental practices. We can’t do away with all paper, and we do not plan to stop printing an Austin College Magazine that you can linger over and share with your friends. But, we can do that less frequently and still provide news of campus happenings and faculty, student, and alumni updates to you through resources like this one.

Throughout April the campus community has many opportunities to Think Green. Student, faculty, and guests will share environment-related research, and the College will host a second GreenServe April 17—combining our strong emphasis on service with a commitment to the environment—with volunteer groups working in environment-themed service at 15 sites in the area.

Several students will get back to nature with an overnight campout at the McCarley Woods Preserve, one of the College’s five nature preserves, with a search for owls after dark. Students and faculty continue their long-term prairie restoration project at Sneed Research Center and are working to restore a native post-oak savannah habitat at the Buckner Biological Preserve.

Of course, these are just a few of the many things are happening on campus this spring. We all are involved in a flurry of activity as we near the end of another term and soon will celebrate new beginnings with the Class of 2011.

I know that the spring also is extremely busy for many of you and I wish you well in all your activities. Remember to come back to campus soon to experience the colors for yourself!

Gratefully,

Marjorie Hass, President
Austin College