A Chance to Grow 1976
Channel: Middlebury Special Collections
Date: 2023-03-21

"Middlebury College in the seventies was certainly, as the title suggests, a place to grow. Not only were students growing fantastic mustaches and sideburns – they were germinating ideas, developing relationships with faculty, and burgeoning into inspiring leaders who have transformed the world into a better place. 
Filmed in 1976, this twenty minute documentary depicts Middlebury through the lens of five students: a literature major, a geology student, political science majors, and a French major. 

The English major, Scott Blanchard, class of 1977, was so inspired by his work with Professor Robert Pack that went on to earn his MA and PhD from Columbia and is now himself an English professor at Misericordia University. 

Leslie Klein '76, the kayak racer and Biology/Geology double major continued her studies at the University of Kentucky in Exercise Physiology and became the managing director of the US Cycling Olympic Committee, and is now the director of Athlete Career and Education at the US Olympic Committee. 

The first Political Science major, Mario Cooper '77, continued his work in politics after Middlebury's winter term, earning a law degree from Georgetown University, and championing the AIDS, civil rights, and gay rights movements. He devoted his life to improving policy around AIDS and the black community, chairing the AIDS Action Counsel, leading the national campaign Leading to Life to increase AIDS awareness, and working tirelessly as an advocate and activist until his death in 2015. 

The other Political Science major, Jill Cowperthwaite '76, took Professor David Rosenberg's advice to work in DC and in health: after working as a legislative assistant in the US House of Representatives, she became the director of marketing and external relations at the University of Colorado Medical Campus Center for Regenerative Medicine. 

Finally, French major Tom Ernst '76, developed his interest in language study as an undergraduate and Russian and Chinese student at the Middlebury Language Schools. He received an MA and PhD from Indiana University and has taught in the Linguistics departments at Rutgers and the University of Massachusetts."