Glossary

24-Hour Play: Usually put on in the first seven weeks of fall term, this annual event is organized by students and then cast, written, directed, designed, lit, performed, and struck all within 24 hours.

Alabama: The parking lot closest to First Street.

Barn: The Barn once housed cows and now houses classrooms and administrative offices for Student Life, the Dean’s Office, the Office of the President, Financial Aid, Field Work Term, Business, etc. Many faculty members have offices here, too, mostly on the second floor.

bennington.edu: The College website is home to the curriculum, dining hall menu, events calendar, and much more. Additional helpful resources and services are being added all the time.

BFP: Bennington Free Press, the student-run newspaper.

Bonfires: Held at the brush pile beyond the End of the World, most notably in the early fall to welcome incoming students and mark the beginning of the school year.

Bowl-a-Rama: Bennington Lanes, the local bowling alley, is rented out for students to bowl at midnight once a term.

PAC: Program Activity Council, made up of selected representatives who plan social events for students. Anyone is welcome to come to meetings and share ideas.

Cage: The video editing room in VAPA.

Campus Safety: The Campus Safety officers are good people to know. Great things Campus Safety can do for you: let you into your room when you’re locked out (they’ll joke with you that there is a $5 fee for this service), let you check out a key to various spaces on campus, and assist you in an emergency (dial 210, not 911, when you have an emergency situation on campus).

CAPA: The Center for the Advancement of Public Action. New building being constructed behind VAPA. Will open 2010–11.

Career Assistant: Student staff in the FWT Office who have the skills to help you find a job and a place to live each winter.

Carriage Barn: Today, the Carriage Barn is most often used for music concerts and lectures, but at one time the Carriage Barn was used as an art gallery. In 1952, Jackson Pollack had his first retrospective outside of NYC here.

College Week: The weekly print calendar Student Life produces and places on all the dining hall tables to advertise events, upcoming deadlines, and helpful information.

COLTs: Community Outreach Leadership Team. Four to six students who plan service events and volunteer programs for students.

Costume Shop: Located on the ground floor of VAPA at the end of the photo hallway, the costume shop rents out clothing for performances and projects.

Commons: If Bennington College had a town square, then the Commons building would be it. Meals and mailboxes make it a hub, as the dining malls and post office are both located here.

Cricket Hill: The white farmhouse adjacent to the Barn that serves as the Admissions Office.

Dickinson Reading Room: On the first floor of Dickinson, this space is used for talks, meetings, and colloquia. Science and non-science students are welcome to study here or visit the aquarium.

Dinging: If you have an event announcement, you’re welcome to ding in the dining hall. Take a glass and tap a knife against it (not too hard or you’ll break the glass!) and announce the event to people in each of the dining rooms. Dinging can be as dramatic or as simple as you’d like; practice this dying art with care.

Downcaf: Downstairs Café. A small but beloved performance space on campus, this space was recently revamped with a new sound and lighting system, as well as a flat-screen TV with DirecTV access.

End of the World: The end of Commons Lawn, where there’s a stone wall and a great view.

First Street: The residential campus is made up of three “streets.” First Street is home to six Colonial-style student houses—Swan, Wooley, Stokes, Franklin, Canfield, and Dewey—and faces Commons Lawn.

FWT: Field Work Term, your nonresidential term (January-February).

House Chair: There are two House Chairs for every house. This position is similar to that of a resident advisor at a larger college. However, the role of a House Chair is not to enforce discipline as much as foster healthy community living.

Interfaith Community Room: A space in Commons reserved for all types of meditative activities. Students can reserve the space for meetings or other gatherings by speaking to the Office of Student Life and having their names added to a key list. There is also a library with books that can be checked out.

Jennings: Most music and recording classes take place in Jennings. A grand, limestone mansion, Jennings was the homestead for the family that gave the land that would become the Bennington College campus.

Key list: Some spaces and facilities on campus have key lists that allow approved students access even when the space is closed or unmonitored.

Kinoteca: Theatre for video screenings in VAPA with movie-theatre style seating.

Lake Paran: A charming little lake in North Bennington that’s a 15 minute walk from campus.

Midnight Breakfast: Twice a year, at the end of term, students are summoned at midnight by sirens as fire trucks alert the campus that the term is almost over. Students flock to the dining hall, where they’re served eggs, bacon, donuts, and other breakfast treats by their teachers and staff.

Mrs. Jennings: The woman who used to live in the Jennings mansion (which is now the music building); rumor has it that she died in the house and her ghost haunts it.

Mt. Anthony: The mountain you see at the End of the World.

Napkin notes: Feedback, questions, or suggestions about the dining hall can be written on napkins and pinned to a bulletin board. Notes then receive attached feedback.

North Bennington: Bennington’s smaller, quainter cousin. Home to the Townhouse, Kevin at Mike’s Place, Powers Market, and the Bennington Variety Store.

Observatory: The small gray building behind the New Houses. Used for star-gazing when there are astronomy classes.

Ohio: The parking lot closest to 2nd Street.

Peer Mentors: As a first-year student, you’re assigned a Peer Mentor. You meet with him or her and a group of other first-years during orientation and the first seven weeks of fall term to learn the academic ropes at Bennington.

Pioneers (1): Bennington’s coed soccer team. Games are played with nearby Marlboro College, SIT, Simon’s Rock, Hampshire College, and the Buxton School.

Pioneers (2): Our older alumni who attended the school in its inaugural years.

POD: The computer center in VAPA. Computers here are outfitted with digital imaging and video software, but not word processing programs. There is also a color printer that will print high quality color images for a small fee.

Rec Barn: The Meyer Recreation Barn/Fitness Center is located near the maintenance building. You’ll find a climbing wall, weights, yoga classes, and exercise machines here.

Rollerama: Greenwall (a huge performance space in VAPA) is reserved for this roller-skating extravaganza twice a year. PAC provides the roller skates and candy.

SEA: Student Endowment for the Arts. A board of students who review applications from and award grant money to students for independent art and performance projects.

Second Street: The residential campus is made up of three “streets.” Second Street is home to six Colonial-style student houses—Booth, Kilpatrick, Welling, Bingham, McCullough, Leigh—and faces Commons Lawn.

Secret Garden: If you walk down the path past the new houses toward the Carriage Barn, you’ll pass the secret garden on your way. It’s on the left, enclosed by a brick wall with black doors.

SEPC/SEPC rep: Student Educational Policies Committee. Each discipline has two elected student representatives who act as liaisons between faculty and students. Midterm and final meetings are also facilitated in every class by an elected member of the class (can be anyone in good academic standing). Being a class rep is a great way to get involved and get to know faculty.

Snack Bar: Located in the Student Center, it’s the closest place to eat when the dining hall isn’t open and features a large menu ranging from traditional pub food (nachos, burgers, jalapeno poppers, etc.) to panini made with local ingredients. Staff members are often up for a challenge, and are great about making concoctions that people come up with.

Silo: The art/lit magazine (now including a CD and DVD) that is produced and designed by students. Anyone can submit work to Silo. Work is selected by student panels in one of four categories: art, literature, music, and video/performance. Work is compiled in a publication that is distributed for free at the end of each year.

Student Center: Opened in the fall of 2006, the Student Center is one of the best performance spaces on campus. The majority of bands are hosted here, as well as a weekly Wii and Karaoke night and occasionally movies or large TV events such as the Oscars or the Superbowl. The Student Center also houses the snack bar and the campus bar (for those over 21 only), as well as pool tables, comfy couches, and great places to study or hang out.

Student Council: The student governance group for non-academic issues on campus.

Student Organizations: Want to start a group on campus? Speak to the Office of Student Life to learn how to make it official, to get funding and advertising help, and for any other questions you might have. There are many student groups on campus, ranging from cooking to boffing to martial arts and much more.

Study Breaks: Like manna from heaven, free food is brought to an advertised location during a few nights toward the end of term. Punctuality is key, though; it runs out fast.

Third Street: The residential campus is made up of three “streets.” Third Street is the newest on the block, with three 1970s-era houses—Fels, Sawtell, and Noyes—and three contemporary houses—Perkins, Merck, and Paris-Borden.

Tishman: This lecture hall is used primarily for guest speakers, film screenings, and other mediated classes.

Town House: Welling Town House. The student co-op house in North Bennington.

Treehouse: Across from the secret garden there are two fields. Walk to the end of the first one and into the trees to the side. Look up for the large wooden platform. Then climb on up to the treehouse.

UpCaf: Upstairs Café. Study/lounge space above the Downcaf. The BFP and radio station both have their offices there. There are comfy couches and chairs for reading or hanging out, and is one of the few spaces on campus with DirecTV and a DVD player.

Van: If you don’t have a car and need a ride into town, you can take the van. This is an excellent, free alternative to a cab, even if you have to wait for a few minutes.

VAPA: Visual and Performing Arts Center.

WBEN: The Triangle: Bennington’s online campus radio station, which features student and staff DJs, interviews with bands, talk shows and BSPN – Bennington’s own sports radio show.