This Friday, our board of trustees approved a plan to reopen our schools for in-person programming this fall. “Health and safety is paramount at Chewonki,” says Keith Crowley, Vice President for Education Partnerships and Risk Management. “Families expect us to provide the best care for their children and we take that trust very seriously.” The plan outlines programmatic changes and other precautions that will allow Maine Coast Semester and the Chewonki Elementary and Middle School to operate on Read More
Education
Chewonki Debuts Rooarring New Exhibit in NYC
This past weekend, thousands of visitors at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City had the chance to interact with a brand-new Chewonki exhibit exploring the “three bears” (black, brown, and polar) as part of a larger series of Arctic-themed displays.Chewonki educators Jessica Woodend and Kyle Wonser captivated guests, large and small, with their extensive knowledge of bear facts, while families compared the size of their hands and feet to bear paws. “The coolest thing about Read More
Sawing Off the Limb on Which It Perches
In the American Museum of Natural History’s Hall of Biodiversity, there is a sign bearing the words of biologist Paul Ehrlich: “IN PUSHING OTHER SPECIES TO EXTINCTION, HUMANITY IS BUSY SAWING OFF THE LIMB ON WHICH IT PERCHES.” Writer Elizabeth Kolbert references this sign in her book The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History. Copies of the book are scattered across the tables as ten Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki students begin their Environmental Issues class. Teaching Fellow Drew Read More
Finding Your Place, and Yourself, on the Penobscot River
Thinking back to when I first arrived at Chewonki, I am amazed at how much I have learned in such a short time. We’ve only been here for five weeks, but already I feel like a new person. Chewonki has taught me to truly appreciate the natural world around me. It no longer feels strange to be told to go sit in the woods and observe for an hour-- it feels normal. It’s shocking how little I knew about my surroundings before I arrived. I feel a much stronger connection to the land I live on and my Read More