of huge piles of snow, we install rails, build jumps and organize a day-long competition, with t-shirts, lift tickets and other prizes,” Carty says. “We’ll have music and some hot chocolate for skiers and riders.”
Professor Lawson constructed camera obscura with ETA class
President James Birge says he doesn’t mind having his scenic vista replaced by a student terrain park for a few months. “On the contrary, I look forward to seeing that part of campus take on a new life as a gathering point and center of activity in winter,” he says. “It’s great to see our very talented students enjoying our beautiful campus and having so much fun taking part in the skiing and riding events, and their classmates who turn out to watch and cheer them on.” Franklin Pierce University’s 1200-acre lakeside campus is perfect for outdoor recreation, year-round. Winter activities include ice skating, cross-country skiing, snow shoeing and other activities … but some of the sports organized by Carty are somewhat atypical. One of the students’ favorites: “When the lake freezes solid, we organize snow-kiting and participants are pulled along the ice on skis or a snow board using the power of wind and a very large kite,” he explains. The University’s weekly winter outdoor adventure program, open to all students, organizes weekend activities—and transportation to them using the University’s shuttle vans—across New England. “Everyone seems to have a great time, and just about everyone’s asleep during the van ride back to campus.” Carty, who has a degree in outdoor recreation also organizes a series of on-campus activities for students during the winter months. “My job is to keep students active,” he says, “and to provide some ideas and guidance to help them tap their ideas and channel their energy in a fun and positive way.” This includes an annual up-all-night event, dubbed “The Cure for Cabin Fever,” which takes place in February. The event utilizes the University’s 72,000-square foot air frame facility for a different warm-weather theme each year. The brightly illuminated building was transformed into a beach paradise from 8 p.m. until 2 a.m. “We used a tropical theme,” Carty says, “trucking in tons of sand for a beach, setting up palm trees, mechanical sharks, beach volleyball and other fun summer-style activities… even some tropical animals from New England Reptile Distributors,” he says. “The students love it!”
Associate Professor of Theater Arts Robert Lawson worked on an unusual project with his experiencing the arts class. They researched what a camera obscura is and how to construct one. The camera obscura was built on Tuesdays and Thursdays during Lawson’s hour and fifteen minute long class period. The project started with some basic research beginning with the eye and how it works. The class then put some information together about what the term “obscura” means. They researched the histories of film and photography and finally learned how to construct the camera. Check out the camera obscura on the Web at: www.pierceobscura.net
Introducing the next ‘Barbara Walters’: Arikka Knights! It’s no wonder to anyone who knows Arikka Knights ’08, with her pleasant personality and successful background in public speaking, that she would win the title of Miss Maine this past June and go on to compete in the Miss America Pageant in January 2011. But this accomplishment did come as a surprise to the 2008 Fitzwater Medallion winning Knights. “I went in thinking, ‘whatever happens, happens,’” she said. However, it didn’t shock her many Pierce friends and large family. “Arikka is one of the most amazing people I have ever met,” says friend and fellow Pierce alumna, Michaela Sullivan. “She is so talented, so nice, so educated, so passionate and caring.”
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