A Reflection on the Last Four Years
Our four-year students graduating on May 17 joined the Castleton Community in 2010 and have experienced exponential growth, significant transformation, and numerous milestones during the past four years at Castleton.
Seeing an increase in student population, the college campus facilities have also progressed accordingly. From new residence halls, dining hall renovations and a new campus food provider to the largest open-air pavilion in the state, the Castleton Pavilion, Castleton has truly proven to be a college on the move.
Off-campus expansion has also made great strides, as the college introduced the Polling Institute and Castleton Downtown Gallery, both of which are located in Downtown Rutland.
As the college continues to grow, Castleton has made becoming a green campus a top priority. With the addition of refillable water bottle stations, wind turbines, two LEED certified buildings, and several solar panel arrays, Castleton has quickly become a leader in sustainability through the green campus initiative.
While positive transformation has been a prominent factor for our small college, so too has been unfortunate events of destruction.
In the fall of 2011 Castleton, along with many parts of Vermont, was rocked by a storm for the history books, Tropical Storm Irene. Despite the thousands of dollars worth of damage to campus, hundreds of Castleton students, faculty and staff came together to assist our campus and other local areas effected by the storm, shoveling mud, loading water damaged possessions into dumpsters, and helping to rebuild communities in need.
In addition the community engagement, cosmetic updates and increased environmental awareness, Castleton noted a more historical milestone, celebrating the college’s 225 birthday.
The many years of success were highlighted by the release of a new publication, Big Heart: The Journey to Castleton’s Two Hundred and Twenty-fifth Birthday, analyzing Castleton’s transformation from 1787 to 2012.
Though the past four years have also been filled with crowd-pleasing theater productions, electrifying musical performances and countless athletic victories, it is the Castleton students who have made the past four years a memorable experience.
Congratulations Class of 2014 and best of luck to you in all your future endeavors!