GPA Updates Log

Graduation Pledge Alliance - 1st Update for 2006-2007

Hello Graduation Pledgers, 

Hope everything is going well as the new academic year gets under way.  My name is Zach Burton and I am the new Graduation Pledge Alliance co-coordinator. I have been working closely with co-coordinator Neil Wollman here at Manchester, and am very much looking forward to the coming year of Pledge activity. 

 

There are some exciting things happening with the Pledge, allow me to note a few developments in particular:

 

·        The new website (www.e-xplore.org) is still under construction.  For those of you who don’t know about e-xplore, it is a website designed as a resource for those wanting to work and live in a socially-responsible way.  Hopefully, if all goes according to schedule, it should be fully up and running by this spring semester.  In the meantime, feel free to visit the site and see what it looks like.

·        Discussions are still occurring concerning a twenty-year anniversary celebration of the Pledge.  The celebration/conference is scheduled to be held at Humboldt State University in California (where the Pledge was started 20 years ago), and we’ll keep you posted as new developments arise.

·        One of our goals this year is to conduct research into Pledge success and activity.  We will be in contact with well-known researches to see how best to go about this project.  The most important aspect of this research will be to conduct a sort of “where are they now?” survey.  Essentially, we would like to hear from past signers of the Pledge concerning ways in which their commitment to social and environmental responsibility has affected their career paths.  We would really appreciate any stories or testimonials any of you could send our way from Graduation Pledge signers who are now in the workforce.

·        Finally, we would like schools to feel free to nominate a student at your school to serve as a member of the advisory board.  Also, feel free to nominate any faculty members you feel could help. 

 

In closing, Matt Nicodemus (Pledge founder at Humboldt State University) is pushing for some type of involvement with “Focus the Nation,” a combined effort by over a thousand schools to raise awareness about climate change.  For more information, you can go to http://www.focusthenation.org/index.html, or contact Jeremy Osborn at Middlebury College (josborn@middlebury.edu). 

 

Well, that’s about it for now.  As always, we are on the lookout for new schools, new media, and personal stories about the Pledge to strengthen the program.  Feel free to get in contact with us if you think you have any good ideas, and also feel free to try to recruit other schools if you think they might be receptive to the Pledge.

 

Welcome back to school, and good luck.  Remember, if you want to make a strong showing at commencement, it is imperative that you begin planning for it THIS SEMESTER.  That way, the spring semester can be devoted to implementing Pledge plans.  Let’s make this year great.  On behalf of Neil,

 

 

Zachary Paul Burton

Co-coordinator

The Graduation Pledge Alliance

Manchester College

 

zpburton@gmail.com

 

(317) 412-3006