Center for Environment & Society

Kelsey Hallowell '12

Kelsey's passion for the environment has been enhanced by what she has learned and where she has gone while working with CES.

Chesapeake Semester

Colchester Farm

CES Intern

Kelsey Hallowell '12 has worked with the Center for Environment & Society since her freshman year. She is an Environmental Studies major with a minor in Anthropology and a concentration in Chesapeake Bay Regional Studies. Kelsey began working with the CES as a recycling assistant collecting and sorting campus recycling. Her sophomore year she created "Give 'n Go",a collection program during move out for items students no longer want, need, or have room to fit in their car for the ride home. During the last few years we have accumulated electronics, bedding, school supplies, clothing, kitchen items, and food to donate to Women In Need, Nearly New, Empty Hangers, and the local food pantry in Chestertown. "I believe it is important to keep working, useable items out of dumpsters and landfills and rather redistributed to people who will “re-use” them."

During Kelsey's sophomore year she took part in the first "Chesapeake Semester." "Alongside 8 other students, I was given the opportunity to travel and learn about the Chesapeake Bay. We met with historians, large and small-scale farmers, policymakers, developers, watermen, artists, and foraged for our own food while camping. During this semester, I developed a passion of local foods. It was an important semester for us all, to get out of the classroom and really experience the instability of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed."

Kelsey also interned at Colchester Farm: Community Supported Agriculture as the education intern. At Colchester she assisted with harvesting and preparations for the weekly pick-ups. In addition she coordinated adult cooking classes with local chefs, utilizing as many local products as possible. She co-directed a children’s camp that was based on the farm, which included trips out to the field, cooking activities, art activities, and other recreational games. Lastly, she assisted with coordinating ‘Tribute to Local Taste,” a dinner that showcased various chefs dishes that utilized local ingredients.

What's Next?

During the summer of '2010 Kelsey created a proposal for a Community Garden and College Farm. Her dream is for Washington College to continue to move into an environmentally friendly direction, by decreasing their dependence on non-environmentally friendly food producers. She hopes to create a garden run by students to grow healthy, fresh produce for the dining hall. Additionally, she wants to construct small garden plots to rent out to members of the Chester community, so that they too can also have access to cheap, fresh produce.

I hope I can continue my education, and passion for the environment through my experiences at Washington College, as well Center for Environment & Society.