Kyle Gipson ’13, a native of Austin, Texas, is a sociology major and student assistant to the associate dean of student affairs/director of multicultural affairs. In his first year, he was a founder of the Multiracial Students Colloquium, which focuses on biracial and related issues. He also is part of the Neighborhood for Social Activism in the Village residence halls, which brings in speakers on various topics, and part of the campus-wide Media and Difference Project. What drew me to Bard was that it’s academically rigorous and socially liberal. It’s very gay friendly, very open-minded, which is important to me. It’s unusual to find a campus as tolerant as Bard, but with such high intellectual standards. That’s a good combination. First-Year Seminar helped me find my academic interest. I had planned to be a literature major, but in First-Year Seminar I noticed I was drawn to readings in the social sciences, and that I was extrapolating sociological themes from the readings. Since this is a small college, it’s easy to develop leadership skills because it’s not overwhelming to try to initiate something, like a new club. Another advantage of Bard’s size is that you get a lot more one-on-one time with professors. You get the chance to be influenced and guided. That helps you to shine and make your intellectual adventure your own.
Thea Piltzecker ’11 majored in literature with a concentration in human rights. She came to Bard thinking she would study creative writing and international relations or Latin American studies. “I didn’t have the vocabulary for human rights,” she says. “I discovered it here. At Bard literature can be a path to human rights, and human rights can be a way of framing literature.” At Bard there’s a joint focus on academic and artistic pursuits. Students and faculty are committed to both, which makes for fascinating people, conversations, and classes. My human rights concentration has led to a lot of interesting courses—on immigration, for example. I did an internship with the Hungarian Human Rights Foundation in New York City, and a summer grant allowed me to go to the mountains of Bulgaria to study folk songs as a means of cultural resistance to the Turks. People here are engaged, and you can find engagement in whatever interests you. I became part of the Trustee Leader Scholar Program from my first week, and this shaped my experience at Bard. It’s more than community service; it’s leadership, which prepares you for life after Bard. I was also a Peer Counselor for three years. And I was a student representative on the College’s Educational Policies Committee, which oversees the tenure process. At Bard, student opinions are part of faculty committee procedure.
Student Profiles 33