Carleton students have a wide range of experiences with the Arboretum. Although there are countless activities for students to choose from when exploring the Arb, many students have a hard time incorporating the Arb into their routine.
While there are some Arb-related activities that students are involved in, Cathy Duan ’25 feels that the Arb isn’t “incorporated much with culture” on campus. She wishes that the Carleton had more events in the Arb and made it “more talked about, instead of just a cool thing we have.”
Many students have enjoyed classes that utilized the Arb as a space for learning. Eko Manson ’23 pointed out that “it’s hard to make time to go into the Arb every day, even though I want to,” so they appreciate “having designated class time where you go into the Arb.”
It is common for STEM classes to utilize the Arb as a place of research, but Angelina Pius ’24 expressed that humanities majors are “a big part of the student body that’s missing out on having academics involved in the Arb.” She wishes that classes would go outside more, if only to have discussions and enjoy feeling the ground beneath them.
Out of the students I interviewed, the amount of times they visited the Arb per week was dependent on how busy they were, as well as the classes they were taking. For example, Grace Prince ’25 walks in the Arb twice a week as part of an assignment for her Environmental Memoirs class. Maya Shook ’25 went almost every day last fall but now goes only for her archaeology class. Cathy Duan has only visited the Arb once this term, despite being on the Arb Crew last spring.
With the term coming to a close, I encourage everyone to take a walk in the Arb, alone or with a friend. In the future, I hope that more Carleton professors will incorporate the Arb into their teaching, as many students would appreciate and benefit from learning outside.
–Ella Daniels-Koch ’25 for the Cole Student Naturalists
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