It took more than a little bit of rain to stop C of I freshman Wyatt Smith from getting into the water during this year’s McCall Wilderness Experience.
Tanner Van Tassell of Bishop, California had a choice to make as he approached the time to commit to a college — would he stay in his native state, or would he pursue his education outside the state?
In the end, part of what convinced the incoming freshman to come to The College of Idaho was continuing the legacy of his parents, Randy and Chris Van Tassell, who attended the College together in the late 1960s — meeting in Hayman Hall, the very dormitory they were now helping to move their son into on Friday, Aug. 24.
In 1975, Marie Osborn would ride into the Salmon River Emergency Clinic in Stanley, Idaho on the back of a snowmobile. Inspired to open the clinic three years earlier in 1972 to fill the need for medical services in outback Idaho, she became known to the population in Stanley for both her love of the outdoors and her commitment to providing 24/7 emergency care. Starting with Marie’s son, Dr. John Osborn ‘79, the clinic has played host to two interns from The College of Idaho each year for the past several decades – a legacy that has become one of the College’s best known internship opportunities among students pursuing careers in the medical field.
Nearly two dozen female undergraduates, representing six Idaho colleges and universities, recently spent a week in Boise attending NEW Leadership Idaho. This program is a political “bootcamp” designed to encourage more women to become leaders in their community and to run for political office. Boise State hosted the residential workshop, with students living on campus and attending a minimum of 10 hours a day in workshops then returning to the dorms for independent and group work.
For graduating College of Idaho senior Lisanda Masilela, the morning of May 19, 2018 felt like a normal morning. The psychology major and international student from Swaziland was set to receive her diploma in a matter of hours, and yet it wasn’t until she found herself in her cap and gown that she began to take in what she was about to accomplish.
“It didn’t feel like anything this morning,” Masilela said. “But when I started walking in with everyone else, I just thought ‘Here we go.’ That’s when I knew. I saw [President] Jim [Everett] standing up there with my diploma and I got so focused.”
Masilela was one of over 200 C of I students in the Class of 2018 to earn their degrees on Saturday, the 127th class to be honored since the College’s founding in 1891. As “Pomp and Circumstance” rang across the Morrison Quadrangle, the students marched alongside their peers, waving to friends and family as they passed through the center of the Quad and lined up in front of the steps of Boone Hall.
Since 2006, The College of Idaho’s Student Philanthropy Council has done its part to improve the Treasure Valley community via grant funding and investment earnings from the Seagraves Family Foundation. This year’s council has continued the 12-year tradition of giving, distributing $13,000 in funding to 13 local charitable organizations this month.
Following one of the council’s highest giving years to date in 2017, this year’s council supplied an even greater amount of funding this year, choosing 13 organizations to receive $1,000 each from a record 27 grant applications overall — double the number of applications the council usually receives each year.
According to statistics gathered by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, 75 percent of those affected by lifelong mental illnesses develop their conditions by the age of 24. It’s an especially resonant statistic on high school and college campuses, where the stress and pressure of studying and success can contribute to the development of anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues among students.
A group of six business students in The College of Idaho’s Enactus club — Hannah Dalsoglio, Ryan Elsberry, Kennedy Alvaro, Matt McLaughlin, Shawn Zhang and Monique Lopez — wanted to help bring greater attention to these issues and improve them, to demystify the stigmas and the struggles associated with discussions on mental illness. They wanted to provide more than just a new product — they wanted to start a social movement.
The College of Idaho will honor the graduating Class of 2018 during its annual Commencement ceremony, which will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 19 in the Morrison Quadrangle on the C of I’s campus.
The College of Idaho’s alumni magazine, Quest, has officially published its Spring 2018 issue, which is now being sent to the College’s mailing list and is available to read for free online on the College’s Quest Magazine page.
When C of I biology and art double major Quin McLaughlin’s name was called as the 1st Place winner for poster presentation in the Marine and Aquatic Biology category at the 43rd Annual West Coast Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference earlier this month, she was so surprised by the recognition that she lost her shoes en route to accepting her award.
“I was just so shocked and excited that I had won,” McLaughlin said. “That day, I was just glad that people who saw my poster were excited about my research. It was nice seeing that excitement from other people, and I’m glad people think it’s as cool as I do.”
