2023 Spring Transitions

A publication for the Prescott College Community

Connecting The Past, Present, & Future

Isn’t this the perfect title for a Prescott College magazine, our lives and the environment today.

Education is a journey, not a destination. Prescott College has long been on a back road gravel washboard, pot holes as big as our car journey. Yet we keep pushing forward because that is our culture and it is who we are - survivors. Through all the stumbles, we have transitioned at the same time kept our values and culture strong. We may look different today, but we are still the same quirky family. I wanted to bring back the Transitions magazine as I truly believe that today our Prescott family of alumni, parents, faculty and staff need each other. We need to share our stories, our journeys, our lessons, our grit. While our monthly ecos newsletter gives us that sense of community, I wanted Transitions to give us a sense of connection to the past, present and future boat that we are on together. Happy journey, Jane Ratzlaff

ALUMNI UPDATES

Kait Boyle ‘18

These days I wear the hat of a professional backcountry mountain biker and trails and climate advocate. I have retired from ultra endurance racing following a traumatic car accident in 2018 and have pivoted towards backcountry oriented adventure riding and racing. I’m an ambassador for Protect Our Winters; this past year my teammate and former colleague at Prescott College, Kurt Refsnider, and I produced a short film and went on a speaking tour for climate action for mountain bikers leading up to the midterm elections. Additionally, I lead the community education and advocacy efforts for Bikepacking Roots, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that Kurt and I founded in 2017 and I’m serving on the boards of Mountain Bike the Tetons and the Arizona Trail Association. Beyond my work I’m living in the Teton Valley, Idaho with my fiance and our dog, Hank where we love the balance of seasons in the mountains.

Ross Rodgers ‘09

Ross is co-founder of Vibrant Earth Seeds ( VibrantEarthSeeds.com ). He grew up in Colorado and started saving seeds at age 8, when he collected the Morning Glories growing up his family’s fence. During a small scale agriculture class Ross reignited his passion for bio-dynamics and then had the pleasure of learning under Tim Crews and renowned seed breeder John Navazio. After Prescott he became Assistant Seedsman at Turtle Tree Biodynamic Seed Initiative in Copake, NY, where he met Avalon. After returning to Colorado, Ross initiated seed libraries along the Front Range through his nonprofit Restore Colorado: Seeds for the People. Throughout his life he has been fortunate to meet and share seeds with many farmers throughout the Southwest including Hopi and Pueblo farmers. We welcome Prescott students to come learn from us and share in the rich seed heritage of the desert-mountain southwest.

I am a river conservationist, hydrologist, river guide, environmental planner and speaker. I am excited to do my PBS premiere at Prescott College and engage with today’s students. I have been a guest co-host for several episodes of the Emmy Award-winning PBS program In the Americas with David Yetman. My love for rivers was inspired by over 15 years of guiding whitewater expeditions.

FACULTY SABBATICAL:

I have been active with Prescott College for 30+ years, as a graduate, a faculty member and as a board trustee. I have witnessed the incredible work and impact Prescott College graduates have had in our world and am curious as to how the college influenced and shaped their paths. In addition, I have been in discussions about the desire to rebuild relationships with our alumni. My sabbatical will be spent reaching out to alumni for conversations about their paths, reflections, stories and desires for future engagement. I hope to connect with many of you. Looking forward to seeing your smiling faces!

I have lived in Prescott off and on for three decades now. I have been working as an Investment Manager for the past 15 years and recently purchased a portion of the firm that is one of the oldest and largest wealth management firms in Arizona. In my spare time I adore spending time with my ten year old daughter and hitting the trails as often as I can. Feel free to contact me at john@cambiumwls.com.

Send Us Your Updates!

We love to hear about what our Alumni are up to and the impact your making in your communities.

Tillie Klearman Walton ‘07

Julie Munro ‘85

John Farmer ‘92

ALUMNI UPDATES

After graduating from Prescott College in the early 90’s, Eric formed a riparian restoration business in Arizona while teaching as an adjunct at PC. His love for rivers led him down many waterways and along these waterways he found abandoned, old homesteads. Here he also found orchards, and specifically heirloom apples. These heirlooms and the pursuant wines he made from them opened a whole new world that fused science and art for him. Eric and his family settled into Page Springs (Cornville) and he planted his own vineyards and founded a winery dedicated to crafting wines that expressed the landscape of his true home, the central Arizona highlands. His winery, Page Springs Cellars, is now in its 19th year. Page Springs Cellars is a green business: It generates all its electricity on site, processes and reuses all its wastewater and has a composting program that reclaims virtually all the business’s solid waste from ranging from the winery to the kitchen. PageSpringsCellars.com

I always tell people I came to Maine from Prescott by boat. The real answer is that when I left Prescott College, I worked for a season as an instructor for the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School, but then never left. In fact, I worked for HIOBS for about ten years which really (and unwittingly) influences the work I do now as an artist and a painter.

I am a research social scientist in the UArizona Southwest Center and a Kellogg Endowed Chair in Southwestern Borderlands Food and Water Security. Today I am the project principal investigator for a 4.7 million USDA award to supply climate smart food production.

Eric Glomski ‘92

Cooper Dragonette ‘93

Gary Nabhan ‘73

Brad Dimock ‘75

I just finished off fifty years working on the river in Grand Canyon. I’ve dropped back to few trips a year. I spend most of my free time now building boats in my Flagstaff boatshop— Grand Canyon Dories or their offspring. I do a fair amount of teaching boatbuilding, mostly at Woodenboat School in Maine. Trying half-heartedly to slow down and act my age, but with limited success.

Doug Chabot ‘86

After leaving college I embraced a seasonal lifestyle of snow work and a climbing guide. I have been avalanche forecasting for the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center in Montana since 1995, and the Director since 2000. I also have traveled to Central Asia almost every year since 2000, either on climbing expeditions, for my Pakistan nonprofit Iqra Fund (which educates girls), or working with a disaster-relief nonprofit to forecast avalanches in Tajikistan, Afghanistan or Pakistan.

Sarena Stern ‘07

The mountains called me home a few years ago and I moved back to Idaho! I am a private chef in Sun Valley, Idaho living in Hailey. I also have a small mail-order business where I sell Panettone (Sirena Inez Panettone). Being back in the mountains and reconnecting with a place and people I love (so many Prescott grads up here!) has been great! Lots of hiking, skiing and just all around adventures!

Roger F. Harris ‘22

Roger F. Harris, MA, has been included in Marquis Who’s Who. With more than 15 years of excellence to his credit in community activism and organization, Mr. Harris has found success as a leader in advocacy. In this capacity, he serves as an associate state director, advocacy for AARP Florida.

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

BRIAN LILLA

Award-winning filmmaker and Prescott College alum Brian Lilla is many things: dad, husband, outdoor enthusiast, skater, photographer, and, fortunately, a storyteller. With humorous nostalgia, he is quick to detail his time at Prescott College. Having transferred into PC for his second year of college, he embarked on Wilderness Leadership in Tonto Canyon. He shared his genuine joy of experiencing life-altering adventures and the community that made them possible. “To be with students and faculty who were just fired up! I look back on that 3-week period and it was a game-changer in shaping who I am.”

In fact, Lilla has so many stories of his time at Prescott (climbing, avalanche tracking, escaping flash floods, “eating sh*t” on the rapids) that it is easy to sit back and listen. This is a man who took advantage of every opportunity that presented itself and made lifelong friends along the way. To hear Lilla talk about the relationships he formed at Prescott, you understand how PC impacted his future. “One of the skill sets I took away from Prescott College was interpersonal communications. That moment of being able to listen to people, especially about the hard things. That’s what I do now in filmmaking.” On October 8, 2022

1 https://childrenofthevinemovie.com/

Lilla came back to Prescott College to share yet another story: his newest documentary, Children of the Vine. Centered on the farming industry’s use of the herbicide Roundup, “Children Of The Vine [peels] back the curtain on the flawed regulatory practices that are causing more harm than good to public health while also revealing the scary science behind toxic farming practices.” A perfect tie-in as the closing event to PC’s annual Harvest Fest, the film screening was attended by students, faculty, and staff. Following the film, Lilla engaged in a question and answer session with an enthusiastic audience. Current students were able to speak with Lilla directly to learn more about his motivation, process, and ways that his Prescott College experience had shaped him. To learn more about this film visit Childrenofthevinemovie.com.

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

I love how Prescott allows you to customize your degree. I am doing a double major with two emphases right now–Adventure Education with an emphasis in Wilderness Leadership, and Psychology with an emphasis in Arts Therapy. I was really drawn to Prescott’s Bachelor of Arts with an emphasis in Art Therapy because I could not find it offered at any other college in the United States.

I found out about Prescott College through my high school in California. I was interested in Prescott because of the psychology and advanced master’s program for becoming a therapist. Also, the adventure education field enticed me, especially the backpacking orientation trip.

Touring the college in person was also a major reason why I chose to go to Prescott College. I really enjoyed seeing how the campus was laid out–everything is close together, I could easily get from class to class and go to my dorm without struggling to be late for events. I really like the dorms because they have a nice clean feel, are spacious, have plenty of closet space, and are [LEED Certified] Platinum. The Cafe and Library area seemed very cool as well. I chose Prescott College because I want to live in a place that makes me feel at home and at ease.

The teachers are passionate about what they do, which pushes students to want to learn and be motivated in moving up in their education. The staff is super kind and knowledgeable in their fields of passion. The Success Coaches have made the transition from high school to college way less stressful. I have bonded with my peers through Wilderness Orientation and just being at the dorms. There are always student activities happening outside of class, which helps form more friendships at Prescott. The community at Prescott College has such friendly and welcoming energy. I appreciate how everyone is so supportive and kind to each other.

“Tests and quizzes for me are a challenge so being able to learn in a more experiential environment was another reason for choosing Prescott College.“

ZAYLA YOUNG

Prescott College Celebrates Inauguration of 18th President

By Carla Snook, Marketing and Communications Strategist

Dr. Barbara Jean Morris was officially installed as the 18th President of the Prescott College on May 6, 2022 at an inauguration celebration held outdoors on the Prescott College campus with students, faculty, staff, alumni, Trustees, friends, and family in attendance.

“Today we celebrate a new era at Prescott College, as we recognize and honor our history—and embrace the future with energy and optimism. I know that I speak for everyone here—the Board of Trustees, administration and faculty—when I say that we are all re-committing to studentcentered, transparent and transformative work as we forge a path to our future with our new President, Dr. Barbara Morris,” Chair

of the Board of Trustees Lynne Nemeth said before officially installing Morris as President. Morris, with her family in attendance, spoke about how her parents’ passion for each other and their family, for the community in which they live, for educational opportunity and for service and paying it forward laid the foundation for her resilience and values and she now calls Prescott College home.

“Prescott College, since its founding in 1966, has been dedicated to making communities better through experiential and collaborative education. Fundamentally, the core belief that has endured is that education can both inspire and transform, producing leaders needed to solve the world’s growing environmental and social problems,” Morris said. “I understand the value of lifelong learning. I am proud of our faculty for being unconventional, asking the big questions; essentially, what do our students need to know, why do they need to know it, and how are we ensuring that they get it? Relevancy and innovation in our curriculum and pedagogies stand at the forefront of what we do to set the example in tailoring learning across all delivery methods. It is important

that we are recognized as a leader in creating opportunities for students to affect positive change in education, the environment, and society.”

Reflecting on the College’s mission, values, traditions and culture reinforces her priorities of creating interdisciplinary experiential and diverse learning environments that inspire future leaders to create a healthy, just, and sustainable world.

Prescott College’s 18th president, Dr. Barbara Morris (Cherokee/Comanche), comes to the College after serving as the associate vice provost and associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at the State University of New York (SUNY) System. With her bachelor’s degree from San Diego State and her advanced degrees from the University of California Santa Barbara, Dr. Morris has taught courses on American foreign policy; gender, power, and public policy; and, political activism. Prescott College is proud to welcome Dr. Morris.

NEW MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES

Throughout the spring of 2022, President Barbara Morris engaged the Prescott College community in focus groups, workshops, and hack-a-thons to define the Mission, Vision, and Values of the College. During these events, participants explored what it means to be Prescott College: our stories, values, traditions, and aspirations. From these sessions, emerged a succinct, comprehensive Mission Statement and core set of Values that support President Morris’ Vision for the future of Prescott College.

Mission: Together we create interdisciplinary, experiential, and diverse learning environments that inspire future leaders to create a healthy, just, and sustainable world.

Vision:

Prescott College will be recognized as the leader in experiential and collaborative education, creating opportunities for students to effect positive change in education, the environment, and society.

Our Values:

Inclusive Community

Experiential And Field-Based Learning

Culture Of Creativity

Justice

Individualized Education

Regenerative Sustainability

Photo By Randy Davidson

Prescott College Receives STARS Silver Rating for Sustainability Achievements

Prescott College has earned a 2022 STARS Silver rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). STARS, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System measures and encourages sustainability in all aspects of higher education.

“The submission of our STARS report is built upon a decade of effort from many members of our community who have contributed to Prescott College’s sustainability leadership in higher education—a vision that has been rejuvenated under new leadership,” says Sustainability Coordinator, Zach Czuprynski, who led the completion of the STARS report. With more than 900 participants in 40 countries, AASHE’s STARS program is the most widely recognized framework in the

world for publicly reporting comprehensive information related to a college or university’s sustainability performance. Participants report achievements in five overall areas: 1) academics 2) engagement, 3) operations, 4) planning and administration, and 5) innovation and leadership.

“STARS was developed by the campus sustainability community to provide high standards for recognizing campus sustainability efforts,” said AASHE Executive Director Meghan Fay Zahniser. “Prescott College has demonstrated a substantial commitment to sustainability by achieving a STARS Silver Rating and is to be congratulated for their efforts.”

For more information about the STARS program, visit stars.aashe.org.

Community- Based Orientation:

By Carla Snook, Marketing and Communications Strategist

Each fall and spring, all new resident undergraduate Prescott College students enroll in our unique Orientation programming to begin the distinctive journey of developing relationships with their new home, community, and academic career. For over 50 years, new students at Prescott College have built transformative connections to the college, their environment, and each other while on Orientation. Orientation, the first class resident undergraduate students take, gives students the opportunity to build foundational communities that help to sustain them throughout their academic journey at Prescott College. This year’s 4-credit hour Orientation took place from August 21-September 15.

For many Prescott Alumni and students, Orientation starts with a 3-week, wilderness expedition with staff and faculty guides and

plenty of land and water-based adventure. But, more recently, Prescott College expanded its Orientation offerings to include a Community-Based program in a nonexpeditionary in-town/city format. This fall, Community-Based Orientation consisted of an exploration of community through the multifaceted project of Food Justice. Students engaged in a range of experiential and classroom-based activities to investigate such topics as food systems, food insecurity, school and community gardens, agroecology, and nutrition. Coursework aids students in learning how to analyze the relationships between community and the environment, while cultivating a sense of place and indepth introduction to the philosophies and practices of Prescott College.

Kicking off a Prescott Education with Community and Connection

ANNE STERLING DORMAN

At the same time, she stayed active with her undergraduate alma mater as board of trustee, donor, student advocate and alumni host. Anne has helped Prescott College navigate many challenges with a stead fast approach of, “What’s the issue, let’s get it solved.”

Former trustee colleague, Dave Meeks commented:

Anne graduated from Prescott College in 1974 and went on to obtain a masters as well as her CPA at San Diego State University. She established a very successful CPA practice in San Francisco. In addition, she was a sought after Consulting CFO for venture backed startout and guided more than 130 companies including Automattic now Wordpress, Keep Safe Software, Bandcamp and Turo. Further, she has served on multiple boards and foundations most notably Horizons Foundation, Startup and the National Center For Lesbian Rights. Matt Mullenweg of Word Press shared this about Anne.

I don’t know how we would have made it through the early years of Automattic without Anne -- she helped us navigate funding, HR, acquisitions, and more as we grew from an idea and a dream to a real company having a real impact on the web.

Anne has been unswervingly generous to Prescott College over many years. She has shared her time, energy, passion, and money as a student, alumna, and Board member. There has never been a time when Anne has not stepped up to an opportunity or challenge to make a difference in the future of the College. It is entirely fitting to name the Manzanita Building in honor of Anne’s commitment to deliver quality and relevance to the Prescott College student experience. As if that wasn’t enough, in 1987 Anne became a mother. Her daughter Elizabeth Dorman is now a very successful Concert Pianist playing with multiple symphonies and music festivals around the world. In November 2022, Elizabeth had her first child and Anne became a grandmother. In 2017, Anne married Annette Tracy. When Anne’s Prescott College board term ended in 2020 due to health issues, Annette was appointed to the Board of Trustees to continue

Anne’s impact at Prescott College. Therefore, when the campus master plan was presented making Manzanita Hall once again the student heart of the College, Annette and Anne made a commitment to help. Their gift funded the remodel of the building.

The Anne Sterling Dorman Center at Manzanita Hall is currently a work in progress with the goal of a dedication ceremony in May, 2023.

A Master Plan For A Sustainable Campus

By

How do we create a campus that places students in the center? How do we make campus more comfortable for students? How do we create more vibrancy on campus? Should administration be in the center of campus? How many faculty and staff are on campus? Who are they, where are they located? How are current classrooms used? Right size? Right quantity? These are the questions that Prescott College Vice President of Finance and Chief Operating Officer, Michele Peterson, sought to answer in her quest to create a more student-centric Prescott College main campus. By partnering with faculty members Tony Brown (Director of ECOSA Institute) and Peter Sherman Environmental Studies Faculty, the Space Planning Committee formed a plan. In January 2022, Tony Brown engaged his Psychology of Space class to study the campus. Peter Sherman worked collaboratively with the course. Conducting several surveys of faculty and staff. The resulting plan was based upon the primary answer to the questions above.

Among these renovations include many exterior projects suggested and designed by students in Tony Brown’s Psychology of Space class. We are so appreciative of the community support we have received to this point. Email at jane.ratzlaff@prescott.edu. to view the FULL Facilities Master Plan.

“We can create more vibrancy by concentrating student-centric functions on the south part of campus. Administrative functions should be moved to the north section of campus.”

Michele Peterson, Vice President of Finance & COO

This conclusion allowed the committee to think about the campus in three zones: The Learning Zone, The Activities Zone, and the Administrative Zone. While there is some overlap of functions between the Learning and the Administrative Zones, the focus of each zone should convey the importance of students and the student experience.

BE AN Ambassador

Scan the QR code to let us know how you want to engage

Alumni play such a key role in the future of Prescott College. Invaluable recruiters, connectors, mentorsand a pool of risk takers, survivors, and wisdom.

Happy 2023!

I hope you enjoyed this Transitions Magazine. We are sending out the magazine electronically and in hard copy. If you prefer one over the other, please let me know. I hope you will consider re-engaging in the college through recruitment help, career services, advisory committees for programs, guest speakers, alumni events and financial support. We all have something to contribute and I invite you to consider what role you could play. Our standard return envelope is included in this magazine as an easy way to send back your thoughts on ways you would consider engaging. Or maybe you have a campus or PC adventure photo you would like to share. Just note it on the form or send me a note. You can also reach out via email at jane.ratzlaff@prescott.edu.

I look forward to hearing from you. Best wishes for a healthy, happy, and productive year.

Ask us about our new raft fleet and how you can name one of the new boats and claim two spots on this or an upcoming alumni river trip. Cost: $5,000

For more information contact: Kristine Preziosi kpreziosi@prescott.edu

SAN JUAN

3 Days and 2 Nights on the with a star studded crew

June 2nd- June 5th 2023

Sand Island to Mexican Hat

All Inclusive

San Juan River Trip

Immerse yourself in the Southwest with PC Alum as we raft, hike, share stories and cocktails on the beach.

Register by April 1st to get the Early Bird Special $750*

Travel to Prescott is not included in the price.

To register Contact Julie Munro jmunro@prescott.edu