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Cacique Update

Cacique Update May 17, 2011

by Caciques Hailey and Nathan

Today was a Tuesday, but this Tuesday was different from most Tuesdays, the reason being was because William Trubridge, the world record free diver had chosen The Island School as his next destination on his tour of The Bahamas. As the runners enjoyed a typical long morning run, the swimmers went with Mr. Trubridge to Cathedral rock where they learned to free dive, as run track had done the day before. After a good breakfast, which consisted of hash and grits, the students divided up and headed to either Human Ecology or Art class to set up for the Art show, which was happening in the Boys Dorm Common Room. Continue reading →

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Second Nature

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With the rest of the patch team on kayak and down island rotations, Aidan and I were the only two in research class last week. Although it was only been the two of us, we were able to get a lot of surveying done. As we spend our field time snorkeling and surveying, both Aidan and I have realized improvement in our skills. Fish ID and free diving among the patch reefs have become second nature to us. Continue reading →

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“Call to Plungers” The Inspirational Speeches of a Boy’s Dorm Head

Enjoy these two speeches written and performed (quite powerfully) by Boy’s Dorm Head Aldis Gamble.  Thanks to his powerful evocations, boys dorm has achieved unparalleled levels of cleanliness and order.  Only a true leader could call to action the fight against the tyranny of dorm funk, with the force and magnitude of Aldis.

Written April 10th delivered April 11th at morning circle:

“Friends, students, dorm men, lend me your ears. I speak to you now at a defining and momentous time in our semester, a moment of great peril, but also a moment of great opportunity. We stand now on the brink of a war. The first skirmishes have already been fought, and it brings me great sorrow to tell you that we have lost these skirmishes. But, I tell you now, even as we have suffered casualties, we have not lost this war. There is still a chance to win. A challenge has been issued by our adversaries. They have called on us to do battle tomorrow, on Tuesday, April 12th in the Year of Our Lord 2011 in the Boy’s Dorm. So let this now be a call to arms, or rather to brooms, to mops, and to all cleaning weapons. Come, join me in defending our home against the terrible invaders that threaten to invade: the dirt, the grime, the stank. Continue reading →

Cacique Update

Cacique Update May 15, 2011

by Caciques Nick Manning and Izza Drury

When I write about The Island School, it no longer feels like I’m documenting an experience, but like I’m describing my home. The lethargic pace of a Sunday, an uncommon feeling around here, is like a deep breath during a busy schedule. We visit our usual spots around the Cape, and get the chance to enjoy each other’s company without the ominous, foreboding horizon of a deadline. With nothing to do, we are almost the most productive because we focus on each other, and although the day may not be so eventful, it is these memories that will stick with us. With a week full of parents and chaos, we enjoy the calm before the storm, even with all our excitement.

Cacique Update

Cacique Update May 13, 2011

M-Morning Exercise hit us hard with Bizzaro Tracks. Swim Track ran the loop, Run Track Swam to the Triangle before sprinting at Water Polo.

A-After works outs, chocolate chip pancakes greeted us warmly in the Dinning Hall with a guest appearance from Granola.

Y-Yesterday’s homework proved helpful in class.  Math made connections as we calculated our latitude.  Continue reading →

Cacique Update

Cacique Update May 12, 2011

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by CaciquesKelly Duggan and Arben Ukperaj

Although yesterday was a normal day of classes, we learned something unique in literature class. As we were sitting there wondering what we were going to talk about, David Miller showed us how Omeros could relate to our lives here at The Island School and also, our lives in general. In the chapters we’ve read recently, Walcott took a break from the story and revealed some of himself to the reader. Then he completed this journey and went back to the story of Omeros. This related to our kayaking journeys as we took a three week break from our regular class schedule. I remember standing around our 6:30 am circle waiting for everyone to depart. Continue reading →

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The Space to Lead

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This morning I am thinking about space.  I am thinking about space and proximity and power.  Last week I returned from a Down Island Trip, a three day road trip around Eleuthera supported by the Histories Department looking at tourism and development.  I was one of the four staff members that accompanied K1, the very first of S11’s students to embark on the epic voyage of 8-Day Kayak.  They returned from their 8-Days and in a matter of less than a day, were back in their Island School uniforms being shuttled around in vans and Harknessing on command.  This transition back from kayak to land proved difficult for some, inspired frustration and even resentment from others.  Tension grew between students and faculty.  On our last night, in a circle, under the stars, camping in a grassy field adjacent to Preacher’s Cave, students gave voice to their frustration. Continue reading →

Cape Eleuthera Institute, News, research

It is official, Gobies clean brood stock cobia!

What an exciting Monday morning for aquaculture! We now have 3 goby breeding pairs that have all laid eggs this week. Our most recent pair needed to be separated from the two other resident gobies, so we decided to experiment. It has been relayed by word of mouth that gobies will clean parasites off the cobia. Nothing is ever that easy at CEI, so we needed to see it to believe it.

Nine thirty this morning, Marie and I decided to take the leap of faith and place the 2 gobies into the brood stock cobia tank. No one knew what to expect. Would the gobies like their new home? Would the cobia know to stay still so the gobies could clean them? How long would it take until we would observe the gobies actually cleaning the cobia?

Continue reading →

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Introducing: Jon on Blog Chores

by Jon Vredenburg

The feel on campus is completely different now. The eight days spent on the sapphire waters, three days of venturing down island, and eight days of rigorous work broke the pattern of classes we had built into over the course of the semester. With our human ecology projects decided and talk of finals week becoming increasingly common, I realize the end is near. I am honored to have been chosen to edit the cacique blogs for the next two weeks. To me, this is another 30 minutes every day to reflect on the previous day of The Island School experience.