Al Gore, 45th vice president of the U.S., and author of An Inconvenient Truth, told Hamilton’s Class of 2011 that the climate crisis is “the most serious challenge that our civilization has ever faced,” and that while the grassroots movement in support of solving the climate crisis is the most powerful in the history of the world, “it will be the generation of you in this graduating class that will really bring about change.” Gore also addressed the political state of our democracy and how decisions made on false assumptions have led to major national challenges.

Six students  presented posters at the 55th Annual Biophysical Society Meeting that took place in March in Baltimore.  Matthew Baxter ’11, Daryl Berke ’11, Alex Dao ’12, Jason McGavin’12, Nathan Schneck ’11 and William Wieczorek ’11  presented work as part of sessions on “Membrane Active Peptides” and "Interfacial Protein-Lipid Interactions.”

Twenty-six candidates for graduation were elected to the Epsilon chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest honor society, on May 19.

In a weakened school system that faces continual budget cuts, co-curricular field trips are usually among the first programs that schools discontinue. In Washington, D.C., this rings especially true, as an increasing number of middle schools are deciding to drop field trips from their curriculum.

Many people agree that climate change is a serious and immediate threat facing the planet, but far fewer offer the initiative, dedication and hard work that it takes to enact change. Yet this is exactly how Yinghan Ding ’12, recipient of a 2011 Levitt Research Fellowship Grant, plans to spend his summer, alongside Lecturer in Economics Margaret Morgan-Davie. Ding will conduct research on climate finance support in developing countries.

Nicholas Perry ’11 has been awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to Malaysia. Perry is a world politics and Russian studies major.

Martin Cain ’13 recently had his first publication in Welter, an annual international literary journal based out of the University of Baltimore.  The journal published his poem "Committal Spiders," which he wrote during the fall semester. Cain is a creative writing major.

Caty Taborda ’11 and Visiting Assistant Professor of Africana Studies Crystal Leigh Endsley led a workshop titled “Inside Out: Beauty Where It Counts” at the second annual D.R.A.M.A. Queens Leadership Summit in Philadelphia.

Steven Pet ’12, received the Robert G. Bottoms Award for Best Analytical Essay at the Fourth Annual Undergraduate Ethics Symposium held April 7-9 at The Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University.

Many Hamilton students take advantage of their junior year to spend a semester studying overseas. Affiliated programs with Hamilton provide myriad opportunities in every corner of the globe, so students have the freedom to choose a study abroad program specifically catered to their interests. For Gabe Hage ’12, a semester at the University of Sydney in Sydney, Australia, was a perfect fit—Hage is an Ultimate Frisbee fanatic and is dividing his time in Sydney between his studies, travel and his favorite sport.