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Mercersbu rg magazi n e wi nter 2010–2011
Carroll
thewinners Since 2007, the names of four faculty members have been drawn each spring to receive a $7,500 stipend for international travel. The only requirements for winners are that the travel must occur outside the United States and that the winners share their experiences with the school community in a meaningful way upon their return—whether through a presentation, an essay, or even a photography exhibition. The program is made possible through the generosity of Board of Regents member Pierce Lord ’98. For more information, see the winter 2008–2009 issue of Mercersburg; read it online at issuu.com/mercersburg.
dispersion combined with a colonial influence leans toward the often nebulous, yet somehow definitive classification of what is Irish. Yeats embodied this in poems such as “Easter, 1916” (about the Easter Uprising) and plays like Cathleen ni Hoolihan (about Irish nationalism). These works, however, are just a part of a much larger canon of Irish literature that expresses and defines Irish culture. On my trip, I learned of the Aran Islands off the western coast of Ireland, which are best known for their isolation and their wool sweaters. This isolation has made the islands one of the last bastions of the Irish language. Though there is a movement in the country to revive the speaking of the Irish language, the islanders never stopped speaking the tongue. The only way in or out is by ferry, which is a fitting way to visit this place on the very western edge of Europe. As the saying goes, “Once you take the ferry to the Aran Islands, the next stop is Boston!” Humorous as it is, there is a great truth to it. Once I arrived at the island of Inishmore, I rented a bike for the day, and rode to the furthest extremes that I could while still allowing myself time to get back for the evening ferry. As I gazed across this land, I saw a rugged terrain and the stone fences that have become a popular image for Ireland. I thought about the hard labor that went
2007 David Bell Gretchan Frederick Trini Hoffman Tom Thorne
United Kingdom, France, Germany Ireland Thailand Italy
2008 Mark Cubit Eric Hicks John McAfee Richard Rotz
Colombia United Kingdom, France, Denmark, Sweden Indonesia Greece
2009 Mark Flowers David Grady David Holzwarth ’78 Heather Prescott
France France Italy Spain, France, Switzerland
2010 Marshall Carroll Pete Gunkelman Cindy Jones Alysia Oakley
Ireland, United Kingdom (Northern Ireland) Costa Rica (summer 2011) China Brazil
into extracting stones from the earth and constructing the fences so that little plots of land could be farmed or appropriated for grazing. I looked around and could not see a single person. I saw an old graveyard, plush green grass, and, in the far distance, some sheep. I took a deep breath, looked off to the ocean in the west, and, as I exhaled, it all somehow made sense. In coming to Ireland, I hoped to find myself; to define myself in a more concrete way by learning more about my heritage. In coming, I found something I did not expect—comfort. Ireland fit like a glove, a home I always had, though it was a place I had never been. I am grateful to Pierce Lord ’98 for this opportunity and want to be sure to
share my experience with my students and truly bring it back to Mercersburg. In that vein, Associate Academic Dean Matthew Kearney and I are scheduled to travel to Ireland with a group of students over Spring Break in March, and I hope the school will offer a term course in Irish literature and history next academic year. Carroll, a graduate of The Lawrenceville School and Rutgers University, has served on the Mercersburg faculty since 2007. He teaches history and holds the Marjorie McCrae McCulloh Chair for Library Director, and was one of four faculty winners of a random drawing for a travel grant in spring 2010.