Becoming the national leader in experiential ... - Keuka College

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Charles Berch Students (from left) Liz Koepsell, Missy Burngasser and Matt LaRocca completed Field Periods in Penn Yan at the Yates County Humane Society in January. By Tanya Cornell-Kestler ’01 THE THE REA REA DEA
By L L the time Matt LaRocca began his senior year at Keuka College, he had assembled an impressive resume. The biochemistry major had completed three Field Period internships, including one in a hospital microbiology lab and another conducting research in a biochemistry lab at the New York State Chiropractic College. He had the kind of “real-world” experience that impresses ‘ employers and admissions folks at the best graduate schools. But Field Periods are about more than just building a resume, as LaRocca discovered this past January at the Yates County Humane Society in Penn Yan. The goal of the animal shelter is to find good homes for dogs and cats abandoned, abused or neglected.Working with dogs that had been abused, LaRocca turned their hostility into trust and affection. The ultimate thrill came when a family who recently suffered a tragedy adopted one of his “favorite” dogs. “It’s hard to describe the feeling you get when you see a family that lost a child light up when they meet a dog for the first time,” explained LaRocca. A National Vision After extensive discussions regarding where Keuka should focus its strategic direction in the new few years, the Strategic Planning Committee unveiled a new vision for the College early last year. “Our vision is to be the national leader in experiential education,” said College President Joseph G. Burke.“It is a great educational concept and I do believe we are on the leading edge of experiential education in the United States.” Burke is confident the College can move I hear and I forget; I see and I remember; I do and I understand. — Ancient Chinese proverb from the leading edge of experiential education to the top of the heap in part because experiential education has been “part of the Keuka College fabric since Rev. Dr. George Harvey Ball founded the institution in 1890.” Ball built Keuka College on four cornerstones: academic excellence, social responsibility, accessibility and the practical application of learning. The latter cornerstone was reinforced in the early 1900s when a basket factory was erected on campus.Writes Philip Africa in his book Keuka College:A History: ’ “…[the factory] was a child of necessity and a mother of hope…the ever-present need for funds had, as we have seen, been a compelling incentive to seek a merger with other denominations.” However, Ball, Keuka’s first president and president and treasurer of the Keuka Park Basket Co., saw educational advantages in the factory as well. The College Record of 1905 informed prospective students of the newly created work opportunity:“Industrial opportunities are specially emphasized… By uniting renumerative industry with their course of study they [students] are not spoiled but enabled… Africa again:“… the primary purpose of the basket factory was to mold character and provide employment for students...” Keuka’s commitment to experiential education was solidified during World War II.The late Edith Estey ’33 is credited with creating the Field Period program in 1942 and served as its director until 1978. Not a One-Shot Deal Internships are common to all colleges, but what sets Keuka’s Field Period apart is that it provides students an opportunity to take classroom theory and apply it to the real world not just when they are about to graduate, but every year they attend Keuka. Students spend 140 hours each year outside the classroom in a Field Period,
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