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As Fallcoming Weekend approaches, Hamilton alumni have begun to trickle back to campus. Among the first to return were Dr. Michael Kelberman ’80, Karen McDonnell ’91, Alysia Mihalakos ’01, Allison Demas ’07 and James Liebow ’13. On Sept. 26, these five alumni addressed public health in America during a panel discussion led by Professor of Biology Herm Lehman.

The Hamilton community welcomed Verlyn Klinkenborg to the Hill on Sept. 19 as part of the Fall 2013 Reading Series. As an esteemed author, Klinkenborg has published hundreds of pieces of non-fiction and has served as a member of The New York Times editorial board since 1997. He is known for his work concerning rural life, which is largely impacted by his upbringing on his family’s Iowa farm.

On the occasion of 226th anniversary of the signing of the Constitution, Professor of Government Rob Martin spoke on the political landscape surrounding the Constitution and its influence on American democracy.

On September 10, Hamilton College, the United States of America, and the world turned their eyes toward Syria. While President Obama addressed the topic on national TV, Hamilton History Professor Shoshana Keller, Visiting Instructor of Critical Languages Mireille Koukjian, and former U.S. Ambassador Edward Walker, Jr. ’62 hosted a panel discussion: What’s Going on in Syria.

“I still don’t believe it happened.” These words were a soft confession from Utican Helen Sperling, a Polish Jew and 93-year-old Holocaust survivor. A captivated audience sat in the College Chapel on April 9 waiting to hear Sperling’s story.

Look at campus e-mail on any given day during Hamilton’s academic year and chances are there’s a service opportunity seeking volunteers. The people behind these numerous events are the Community Outreach and Opportunities Program (COOP) Senior Fellows – Danielle Lashley, Ramya Ramnath and Amy Soenksen. They coordinate volunteer requests with local non-profits, plan events and organize volunteers.

As February drew to a close, Hamilton welcomed a variety of prestigious authors in celebration of International Writers Week (Feb. 26 – March 2). A book fair, held in the Taylor Science Center on March 2, showcased works suggested by faculty, as well as pieces from the authors who gave presentations. The featured writers were A. S. Byatt, Kamila Shamsie ’94 and Ishion Hutchinson.

Maggie Bertram, Active Minds speaker and former anorexia nervosa patient, came to the Hill on Feb. 26 to share an intimate and eye-opening story of her diagnosis and subsequent battle with eating disorders. Her presentation was one of the events sponsored by the college as part of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week (NEDAW).

In a culture where eReaders and tablets become increasingly popular and bookstores continue to go out of business, the age of printed material may soon be coming to an end. While many succumb to the convenience of modern technology, self-proclaimed book enthusiast Aaron Jaffe, an English professor at the University of Louisville, stands in stark opposition to this digitalization of texts.

Seamlessly and loquaciously describing his experiences as an embedded combat advisor, Hamilton alumnus Matt Zeller ’04 returned to the Hill on Feb. 7 to present a sobering yet inspirational recounting of his service in Afghanistan and the lessons he learned there.