Kingston Fellowship: Our Year in Review

From learning to bake bread to exploring the the principles of entrepreneurship, each day of the 2022-23 Kingston Fellowship was truly an adventure!

Our year together began at our Oikos residency with three weeks of hands-on learning at Hawthorne Valley Biodynamic Farm. We then retuned to our homebase in Kingston, exploring our Place through community-based projects, skill-shares, and our Service Study program. Our cohort completed the year with a plethora of new experiences & skills, ready to take on the next phase of life with clear next steps in place! <3

Read more about the 2022-2023 Fellowship year below!

OIKOS Residency ✧

AUGUST - sEPTEMBER

*Full days at the farm; harvesting veggies, learning about food systems, & planting seeds for the fall

*Regenerative Agriculture series w/ Betsy Brennan

*Cooking challenge! Who could make the best meal with only farm fresh veg!?

*Explored nearby swim spots & natures hikes

*Nights spent by the fire, chatting & stargazing ˗ˏˋ★

KNOW Trimester ○

sEPTEMBER - DECEMBER

*Service Study Program- Gained new professional skills at local orgs & businesses all around Kingston <3

*Entrepreneurship in the New Economy w/ Dr.Mindy Kole

*Design + Build series w/ Mark Ressl - Learned design process, practiced w/ power tools, & created individual projects

*Trip to NYC to visit exhibits at The Met & go ice skating at Rockefeller Center!

LOVE Trimester ♡

dECEMBER - MARCH

*Place Story research projects; exploring how we define PLACE

*Snowy outdoor team-building activities at our Frost Valley Winter Retreat

*Cooking Workshops w/ Natalie Marshall - Bagels, Sourdough, & more!

*Civic Design & Site Curation explorations w/ KAN Landscape - Culminating in community green space project presentation at the Kingston City Hall.

*Exploring local economies and local businesses w/ Tina Dierna

SERVE Trimester ✿

mARCH - jUNE

*Volunteer projects at Saugerties Lighthouse, Mohonk Perserve, & People’s Place

*Photography & Self Portraiture workshop series w/ Jess Giacobbe

*How-To Workshops: Goal mapping, resume creation, & portfolio building

*Access Kingston - Examined accessibility in Kingston & installed ramps across the city.

*Graduation celebration with our friends, family, and community!

 

OIKOS: Picking tomatoes in the greenhouse at Hawthorne Valley

KNOW: Turning our ideas into reality in our Design+Build series

LOVE: Navigating the snow at the Frost Valley winter retreat

SERVE: Graduation Celebration for the 2023 Kingston Cohort <3

Cohort + Team + Collaborators

 
 

KINGSTON FELLOWSHIP COHORT ‘23:

SHAYLA VALENTINE || ANNYSHE DAVIS

REYLYNN BAEZ || ELIANA VANVALKENBURGH

KONNOR STELLA || ILI SKOKO

*Every ‘23 Kingston Fellow pursued placement in college and vocational work upon graduating. Following their hearts forward towards careers that matter to them and their Places <3

 

GUEST EDUCATORS + COLLABORATORS:

DR. MINDY KOLE || ENTREPRENEURIAL TRAINING

KAN LANDSCAPE || CIVIC DESIGN & LANDSCAPE DESIGN

MICAH BLUMENTHAL || MINDFULNESS

AJA SCHMELTZ || HERBALISM

TINA DIERNA || LIFE COACHING + SOCIAL WORK

TRUST UP || NEW ECONOMY & COLLECTIVE COORDINATION


 


KINGSTON FELLOWSHIP TEAM:

MARK RESSL | Design Build & CURRICULUM STEWARD

RONNETTE PARKER | FELLOWSHIP & COMMUNITY STEWARD

natalie marshall | Food program manager

betsy brennan | Regenerative Agriculture Steward

Mary Grace Campbell | Storytelling & Coordination assistant

Laura Depasquale | Development intern