Always striving, not always relaxing
The glass doors of the Calvin Coolidge library swing open and Catherine Burke rushes in. The busy accounting student wears a ruffled purple dress and carries a blue lunchbox, shoulder bag and backpack. She drops her bags and begins talking as fast as she came in.
“I just went swimming and my haircap was cutting off my circulation,” she declared quickly. “Scuze me for my state of craziness.”
Some students need a little bit of everything, striving to move forward, to challenge themselves and succeed.
Burke treats her education like work. She’s up early, drives the hour to school, hits the books, and when she leaves she knows the drill for tomorrow: Rinse. Wash. Repeat.
“It sounds like I’m such a drag, such a boring isolated person and I’m not, I have a schedule to keep to,” Burke insists.
Incidentally her schedule forces her to treat her friends like appointments, penciling them in when she has the time.
There’s rarely opportunity for her to lose herself in a movie and blur out everything else. But she’ll never stop working, even when admitting to getting burnt out.
“I want to do a lot of big things,” she admitted.
More Stories
Music and us
Students reflect on the power of a song. Students in an Intro to Media and Communication class were studying the evolution of radio and recorded music and were asked to write about a song that had a truly special meaning to them. ‘My hero’ Cranberry juice and ginger ale fill the shelves of our refrigerator. […]
Mentor award stolen
The VTSU Castleton Mentorship Program used to be booming with many mentors who would go out to Castleton Elementary School for one hour a week to help mentor students and lend a helping hand to them. In 2014, the Mentorship Program received a Community Partnership award for the amazing work it has done with Castleton […]
VTSU blooms in spring weather
Spirits are high on the VTSU Castleton campus as temperatures reach into the 60s. Students are now walking to class in shorts and t-shirts and Max the cat has been spotted sunbathing outside of Leavenworth Hall. “Oh happy Spring,” a professor said while whistling out of the Fine Arts Center as the sun lit up […]
Success Starts at Academic Support
One resource typically stigmatized as a place for “struggling students” is a ticket to success for several of the school’s top performers at Vermont State University. Academic Support, a space located in the lower level of Babcock Hall, provides students with academic advising, access to tutoring, and workshops, which helps a multitude of students get […]
Unified hoops, high fives, and good vibes at VTSU
On March 13th, The Student Athlete Advisory (SAAC) and College Steps hosted a unified basketball game here at Castleton University. The game brought together the Castleton Community to watch and cheer on their fellow athletes and classmates. The crowd was in an uproar. The stands were filled with chanting as the game intensified. Not […]
Krusted Gold enters Rutland’s thrift scene
Down on Merchant’s Row in Rutland you’ll find several thrift stores. Wedged between Bougie on a Budget and Camille’s a new vintage spot has opened up by the name of Krusted Gold. Entering the store, you’ll be met with an old arcade game, the register and a friendly face named Alex Wade, the co-executive director […]