The Introduction To College Of The Atlantic | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Politics and Activism

The Introduction To College Of The Atlantic

A glimpse into our small community.

30
The Introduction To College Of The Atlantic
Kimberly Lopez Castellanos

The sun is shining, I'm back to bike riding, and the tourists are arriving.

I don't think many of you know where we are located, so let me give you an idea.

We are on an island, off the coast of Maine where most cellphone carriers lose service after crossing the bridge that connects us to the mainland. The campus is based in a town with about 5,000 year-round residents. The population skyrockets in the summer because this "village" survives off the tourist season.

The summer is a hustling, bustling village in which every day, two cruise ships anchor nearby. Getting onto Main St. is such a hassle. Going in to get a bagel at Morning Glory will inevitably turn into a 30-minute wait because the line goes out the front door.

Despite this rush, winters are pretty solitary. I can't complain about this year, but last year it snowed, non-stop, for 7 months. There are about 5 stores open during these months. In order to feel somewhat part of the outside world, one would have to drive to the next town, which is about 30 minutes away. Unfortunately, not many of us have one of those machines with four wheels that travel long distances without feeling exhausted.

We all study Human Ecology (spoiler alert: it's not only about science). The technical term is that we all study the relationship between humans and their surrounding environment, whether that's artists, biologists, humanitarians, anthropologists, economists, physicists, etc. Did I mention there are only 350 of us? And every trimester, a third of the student body is away, either studying abroad, doing their senior projects or fulfilling their internship requirements.

DON'T GET ME WRONG. This place is pretty amazing. We live in the middle of a National Park! My house is on a hill with a trail ... literally in my back yard. Our campus has a pier and a beach! There is an island you can walk to during low tide.

The education is pretty unconventional. The professors here always encourage us to apply the theoretical knowledge to something we are passionate about. The discussions in class are always so enriching that I can easily apply them to real world situations. The goal is not to have a high GPA, but to benefit the most from what the class has to offer.

There are a limited amount of schools in which you can call your professor by their first name, have some brunch and dogsit for them. The relationships between the students and the professors are what help me get through these classes. I am not just another seat filler in the classroom. They care about my academic and professional career and are willing to sit down with me for an hour to talk about anything!

So yes, sometimes I may appear to be out of the loop in pop culture. However, you will see that many of us try our very best to be updated with the current events through social media, news sites, and other online platforms. I think the reason many of us are writing here is to reach a wider audience and to be involved in such a big community. I, personally, hope to reconnect with the outside world by telling them about ours.


Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
ross geller
YouTube

As college students, we are all familiar with the horror show that is course registration week. Whether you are an incoming freshman or selecting classes for your last semester, I am certain that you can relate to how traumatic this can be.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

Bonus points if it is more than two.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends

Whether you're commuting or dorming, your first year of college is a huge adjustment. The transition from living with parents to being on my own was an experience I couldn't have even imagined- both a good and a bad thing. Here's a personal archive of a few of the things I learned after going away for the first time.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

Economic Benefits of Higher Wages

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

300855
Illistrated image of people crowded with banners to support a cause
StableDiffusion

Raising the minimum wage to a livable wage would not only benefit workers and their families, it would also have positive impacts on the economy and society. Studies have shown that by increasing the minimum wage, poverty and inequality can be reduced by enabling workers to meet their basic needs and reducing income disparities.

I come from a low-income family. A family, like many others in the United States, which has lived paycheck to paycheck. My family and other families in my community have been trying to make ends meet by living on the minimum wage. We are proof that it doesn't work.

Keep Reading...Show less
blank paper
Allena Tapia

As an English Major in college, I have a lot of writing and especially creative writing pieces that I work on throughout the semester and sometimes, I'll find it hard to get the motivation to type a few pages and the thought process that goes behind it. These are eleven thoughts that I have as a writer while writing my stories.

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate

Every college student knows and understands the struggle of forcing themselves to continue to care about school. Between the piles of homework, the hours of studying and the painfully long lectures, the desire to dropout is something that is constantly weighing on each and every one of us, but the glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel helps to keep us motivated. While we are somehow managing to stay enrolled and (semi) alert, that does not mean that our inner-demons aren't telling us otherwise, and who is better to explain inner-demons than the beloved April Ludgate herself? Because of her dark-spirit and lack of filter, April has successfully been able to describe the emotional roller-coaster that is college on at least 13 different occasions and here they are.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments