The power of five

During my time at Hampshire, I was able to take classes at all five colleges!

Mount Holyoke’s education advisor Sarah Frenette was very supportive and helped me find all the education classes I needed.

I also worked closely with UMass Education Professor Darrell Earnest who helped me pursue an independent study on morale and the moral work of teaching.

When Max Solomon Frye 20F transferred to Hampshire, he planned to study education to become a teacher and began by taking practical classes that would prepare him for licensure exams and classroom placement. “But I started questioning if classroom teaching was for me,” he says. “So, I designed a field of study focused on the cross-section of education, sociology, psychology, human development, and childhood studies.”

Frye’s interdisciplinary Division III culminated in a program aimed at teaching people how to work with kids in settings like summer camps and babysitting in homes, as well as in school. His model includes both “the practical skills of childcare as well as larger conceptual ideas that often aren’t covered in other programs, including needs-based conflict management and navigating social power dynamics between youth and adults.”

THE FIVE COLLEGE CONSORTIUM ENABLES OUR STUDENTS TO ENJOY:

> Expanded course options: more than 7,000 from which to choose taught by over 2,000 faculty members.

> One of the largest library collections in the country: 28 libraries with more than NINE MILLION books.

> More than 900 student organizations and activities and some 3,400 events each year open to all.

> A free bus system connects the FIVE COLLEGES and THREE towns, day and night.

> Recruiting by almost 500 companies.

> 30,000+ potential friends to make.