Alexis Grillo, Author at Chewonki

With Every Dip of My Paddle

Board and Trustees, Camp Chewonki Leadership Expeditions, Foundation / By Alexis Grillo

Fly fishing for landlocked salmon at Chewonki’s Big Eddy Campground on the West Branch of the Penobscot River. Fly fishing for brook trout on a remote pond near Big Pleasant Lake in the Allagash Region. Paddling the St. John River when a late spring storm dropped a foot of snow on our group. Canoeing the St. Croix and the Allagash. These are just a few memories I’ve made with Gordon “Gordy” Hall, III, an avid outdoorsman, Chewonki’s longest-serving trustee, and my dear friend. I will deeply miss Gordy, who died on October 9, 2022, at age 92.

For Her Love of Lemurs

Foundation, Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki, Staff News / By Alexis Grillo

Traveling back and forth to a remote research outpost on another continent, climbing tall trees to send texts and emails, recording and observing countless hours of behavioral data, and collecting hundreds of poop samples for genetic analysis – these are just a few of the ways Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki science faculty, Chloe Chen-Kraus, has pursued her love of lemurs.

Remembering Ingrid Albee

Foundation / By Alexis Grillo

It’s with a heavy heart that we share the news of Ingrid Albee’s passing on Saturday, October 8, 2022

Majora Inspiration

Alumni & Friends, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Foundation, Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki / By Alexis Grillo

Last week we were thrilled to host acclaimed Social-Entrepreneur, Peabody Award-winning broadcaster, and MacArthur Genius, Majora Carter, as part of our Friday Night Speaker Series.

What We Did On Our Summer Vacation

Chewonki Elementary and Middle School, Foundation, Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki, Staff News / By Alexis Grillo

Faculty are back! Chewonki summers are our busiest season; our staff nearly doubles, and we host hundreds of kids and teens for camp and expeditions. But, summer vibes are just the opposite for much of our faculty, who have three months off to refresh, recharge, and adventure. So we caught up with a few in between move-ins and orientation meetings to ask them how they spent their precious summer months:

Photos: Willard Morgan’s Send-off Celebration

Alumni & Friends, Board and Trustees, Foundation, President's Office, Staff News / By Alexis Grillo

On Tuesday, August 23rd, nearly 100 current and former staff members, alums, and friends joined us on campus to celebrate Willard Morgan’s eighteen years at Chewonki and welcome Nancy Kennedy into the role of Acting President. Read: After 18 Years at Chewonki, Willard Morgan Stepping Down as President, Nancy Kennedy Named Acting President Fifty-six years …

Photos: Willard Morgan’s Send-off Celebration Read More »

Forrest Nonconformist: Alumn Rethinks Reforestation

Alumni & Friends, Foundation, Sustainability / By Alexis Grillo

“If you wanted to reforest the Chewonki Farm, you wouldn’t plant trees. You would simply stop mowing. We have all these promising carbon-offset programs, but they are disconnected from reality.” -Forrest Fleischman

Since his early days as a Chewonki camper, student, and staffer in the 1990s and 2000s, Forrest Fleischman has become a leading expert in forest policy and governance. An associate professor in the Department of Forest Resources at the University of Minnesota, Fleischman’s work examines the intersection of scientific knowledge, government expertise, and civic engagement in policy-making and implementation and the outcomes of resulting policies [1]. His ideas have been featured by ProPublica, the BBC, NPR, Science News, and many others.

Squishing Deeper into our Epic Mud Rove Tradition

Alumni & Friends, Foundation, Staff News / By Alexis Grillo

Last month we published an article about our epic Mud Rove tradition, and we were excited to hear from several alumni & friends remembering their mud roves in Montsweag Brook. And a few folks told us there was more to the story…

Our Epic Mud Rove Tradition

Camp Chewonki, Foundation, Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki / By Alexis Grillo

The tide is out, the sky is blue, and a large group of Chewonki participants is gathered at our Waterfront. They toe the line where dry land transitions into squishy brown clay. Some faces tremble with anticipation, others look timidly across the mud expanse, and nearly everyone’s nose twitches (the mud flats produce a strong marine scent).

Alumna BLOOMs with Bigelow Labs

Alumni & Friends, Foundation, Maine Coast Semester at Chewonki / By Alexis Grillo

Congratulations to Maine Coast Semester 67 Alumna, Sophia Kovacs (Morse High School, Bath, ME), who recently completed Bigelow Laboratory’s Keller BLOOM Program. BLOOM (Bigelow Laboratory Orders of Magnitude) is a week-long ocean science-intensive that invites high school juniors to work side-by-side with Bigelow’s marine biologists.