Communities Anna Knecht
Co-founded the Women's Resource Center
On transferring to Marlboro
When I was in high school I thought there was no way I could be happy at a school as small as Marlboro. My high school graduating class only had 50 kids, and I was the punk who didn't fit in anywhere. I was the only vegan and I was interested in social activism and radical approaches to feminism. I was looking for a community I could fit into and thought a bigger school would provide that. I ended up at a state art school that I couldn't get into the dynamics of. Then I went to a liberal arts university for a semester but it was too stuffy and uninspired for me. I was getting hung up on technical problems trying to get into other schools, and Marlboro was the only one that seemed interested in having me.
I toured the campus with my family in the spring. I got to see the farm, which I was really interested in. I was certainly intimidated thinking about the workload but also so excited about the academic freedom. It was one of the first places where I found people in academics who cared about the work they were doing.
On academics
I was really interested in finding and practicing feminist social action. Having a Gender Studies major can be problematic, but not having one at Marlboro has also been frustrating. I've had to navigate courses and pick up what I could while getting to know faculty who could do tutorials with me.
I've felt much more connected here than at other schools, where my professors didn't know each other, and I didn't know how to link-up my work. It really helps to be able to sit down with all the people I'm working with and talk about things in a broader framework.
My Plan will consist of one paper about woman's voice and the creation and limitations of gendered space, a second paper about gender performance and performance subversion, and a photography exhibit about issues of gender and representation.
On social life
Marlboro has definitely given me some great times. There are excellent dance parties; we have some exceptional dancers on this hill. I lived in Marlboro North my first semester and then in Whittemore House, which was great. This year I moved to Brattleboro. I have a car but I choose to never drive it. Getting here is easy. I wake up early enough to catch the Moover or I can always catch a ride with someone. It's great to feel like a real person and live in town and make friends off the hill. People have a great time here and are really content but I would encourage people to go down and check out Brattleboro. There are great people and really good things happening there.
On community life
I think this college is really more of a community then any place I've been, but we need to realize that it's a business as well and that we all don't have equal votes in everything. It's not utopia but it's sure better than a lot of other schools. I was on the Environmental Quality Committee and I'm on the Farm Committee and I'm on the Committee on Faculty, which is a lot of work but it really gives me great insight into the inner workings of the school.
On founding the Women's Resource Center
A group of students who had recently transferred here helped initiate a discussion focused on gender equality and the realities of sexual violence. Marlboro is not exempt from the same patriarchal concerns that infiltrate other campus cultures. A trustee was kind enough to contribute some money to help us establish the space. We had a lot of support from faculty and staff but the WRC is organized, staffed, and directed by students. It may have been the fastest creation ever at Marlboro: we are notorious debaters.
Advice for prospective transfers
Being a transfer student is pretty much the same as any other kind of student. You've got to want to work. You've got to really care about your work. You should try to care about the community you're working in. I'm really glad that I was able to come here with a bigger perspective. I could just dive in and know where I was and know what I wanted to do.
A successful Marlboro student is one who applies critical analysis to their work as well as the environment they are in. Also, jokes are good.