A HUGE congratulations to Semester 64 students, who graduated last Friday in a virtual ceremony. Semester 64 will go down in Chewonki history as one of the most resilient groups to ever set foot on campus. They have shown dedication, creativity, and grit in the face of immense challenge, maintaining a strongly-bonded learning community through two months of remote education. We are so proud of them. When Semester 64 left for spring break in early March, few could have predicted the profound Read More

My great-aunt taught me how to knit when I was younger, but I’d long since forgotten. She’s the crafty type, with a whole room dedicated to all things art – it can get quite messy. She taught me how to arm-knit, cross-stitch, you name it. Even before I came to Maine Coast Semester, I had seen that knitting is the thing to do at Chewonki. I was super excited to re-learn and can remember watching closely as Leyla, whose bed was next to mine in Gordy, knit her chunky salt-and-pepper hat. I was Read More

One foot in front of the other, quietly padding through the forest. The chickadees and cardinals call through the canopy as the snow drifts through the air landing on my face. Our laughter carries through the trees and up into the sky, carefree and purely joyful. We talk for hours wandering over the land we have come to call home. The eastern hemlocks and red spruce frame the path as we run with joy over Chewonki Neck. Although our time at Chewonki was shortened, there was no shortage of Read More

When I heard the news that Maine Coast Semester was going virtual, I was afraid we would lose the experiential learning that makes a Chewonki education so valuable. I had a sinking realization that the integral parts of our semester school experience would vanish in a virtual setting. I wondered, how can we possibly transfer our curriculum involving the natural world to the Zoom classroom? How will we be able to continue to grow as a community when we’re all scattered across the country? Read More

Dear Semester 64, Allison here! Yes, the same Allison who wore shorts and a duck onesie to dinner because she needed to do laundry. And yes, the same Allison who insisted on doing almost every polar bear swim possible, even if she regretted it afterwards. I’m here to tell you that you are not alone. And if this statement confuses you, I invite you to read on.  Upon receiving the email from Susan, telling us the news that we will not be returning to campus this semester, I cried. I’m not Read More