Last year, I outlined the “Top Students to Watch in 2007-2008.” And I’m continuing the tradition with this year’s list of student power players of Middlebury College for this upcoming year. Unlike the rankings, this list of movers and shakers in our small community is very unscientific.
Pooja Shahani ‘09: Winner of last year’s Roger S. and Mary Vail Baldwin Prize, Pooja is about hard-working and positive as they come. Last year, she organized the very first year of the MCAB Speaker Committee which put on a slimmed-down-in-quantity but bulked-up-in-quality slate of symposia. This upcoming year, Pooja will be the Manager of Peer Writing Tutors. While she tends to stay modest in her goals, anything is possible when you have a rockstar like Pooja on your side.
Bobby Joe Smith ‘09: Despite winning his SGA President seat by the slimmest of margins, Bobby has it all going for him. He hopes to carry a sudden surge of student interest in the SGA over into the next year, in the face of the general norm of apathy for student government. He’s already enlisted A-lister Hiba Fakhoury ‘09, of AskHiba! fame. Chances are Bobby can build a strong coalition which has good connections with the administration.
Sam Lazarus ‘09: Fresh off a stint in China, Sam (we hope) can still talk the talk (in English) and get things done musically on campus. He represents the Middlebury Musicians Guild (MMG) and he’ll be working with Hank Rosen ‘09, Patch Culbertson ‘08.5, and Megan Mishler ‘11 of MCAB to arrange the Midd music scene from the Grille to Kenyon. See if he can build a strong team to steer clear of the music controversy that plagued last year’s MCAB and pack the Midd schedule with a mix of student and big-name bands. Update: We almost forgot to mention Sam’s role as a 1800 Society Student Scholar. What’s that, you say? He authors a special blog so that college donors can see their money at work, shaping the delicate lives of today’s youth. Trust me, it’s a big deal.
Jimmy Wong ‘09: He appears anywhere and everywhere on the Middlebury entertainment circuit. A band, theater appearances, improv, acappella, radio, and the list goes on. And Jimmy’s Middlebury media empire won’t stop any time soon. His creativity and daring means that he’s bound to come up with something incredibly innovative for the ‘08-’09 school year. And yes, check out his handsome facebook profile picture. Put your bets on Jimmy for a movie-star year.
There you have it. This year’s top five four students. MiddBlog wants to know: what other students will be moving and shaking Middlebury next year?
