Williamstown - The 281 women and 256 men who make up the Williams College Class of 2009 officially begin their first day of classes on Sept. 8, when the college opens for the 2005-06 academic year.
The traditional introductory First Days took place the week of August 30. Incoming first-year students explored the college and its resources, were introduced to academic departments and their advisors, and took placement exams and the mandatory swimming test. In between the formal events, they moved in and made friends. Kimberly Tremblay, assistant to the dean, coordinated this year's First Days activities.
As part of First Days, incoming students chose to participate in a number of mid-orientation programs, designed to give students an opportunity to pursue a variety of individual interests, including community service in the area, diversity and cross-cultural interests, arts and culture in the Berkshires, and exploration of the hills, mountains, and streams of Western Massachusetts.
"The Class of 2009 is representative of the most academically qualified young people in higher education today. We are pleased they chose Williams College," said David C. Johnson, associate dean of the college and dean of first-year students. "During First Days and its opportunities to meet members of the class, it's clear this group of young people is talented, lively, and enterprising. With classes beginning, I look forward to their involvement in and contribution to the Williams community."
The incoming class represents high schools in 41 states, with the greatest number of students coming from New York, Massachusetts, California, Connecticut, and New Jersey. Twenty-one foreign countries - from Botswana to Zimbabwe – are represented.
Factors cited by students who elect to come to Williams are academic reputation, size of the college, personal attention, attractiveness of the campus, academic facilities, and extracurricular opportunities.
By all standard measures of academic talent, including test scores and academic performance in school, this year's entering class is extremely impressive. SATs for the cohort averaged 716 verbal and 709 math. Seventy-two matriculating students scored perfect 800s in math and 59 students in verbal.
Areas of academic interest remained much the same as those of the Class of 2008. Biology led the way, followed by English, political science, economics, and mathematics.
A record number of 5,822 students applied for the Class of 2009. Admission decisions are made regardless of a student's financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated need of all who are admitted. Two hundred sixty-nine students in the Class of 2009 will receive aid (49 percent).
In addition to the Class of 2009, other new academic additions include 15 new tenure track faculty and many new courses, including Non-fiction and Experimental Film; Introduction to Urban Studies: Shaping and Living the City; The United States and the Middle East; The Idea of Democracy, Psychology of Self-Esteem; and an Integrative Bioinformatics, Genomics, and Proteomics Lab.
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Former Harry's Supermarket Under Construction for Restaurant
Late last month, the Conservation Commission greenlit some tree pruning on the property. New windows and a new door can be seen in the front of the building.
"It's a substantial renovation that's currently underway here," Brent White of White Engineering said, speaking on behalf of the applicant and owner, Huajie Zhu.
A fire gutted the longtime Wahconah Street supermarket in 2023, and the following year, Zhu purchased the property for $460,000 two years ago to build a restaurant with hibachi in the existing footprint of the more than 100-year-old building.
White explained that the project has been ongoing for over a year, and the Community Development Board granted the property a waiver to reduce the minimum required number of parking spaces so that additional spaces aren't needed.
He noted that, looking at the site plan, there is very little room to do so. A mirror will be installed near the sharp turn on Bel Air Avenue to alleviate traffic concerns.
Pruning will be done on trees in the southeast corner of the existing paved parking lot, as a number of branches are hanging over. The new owners also intend to patch, sealcoat, and re-stripe the parking lot.
A fire tore through the building less than an hour after the supermarket closed for the day three years ago. An automatic sprinkler system is required for the new use.
Cassidy Flynn scattered five hits in a complete-game effort in the circle as Lenox upset top-seeded Hoosac Valley, 3-2, in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament. click for more
Brayden Durant struck out seven and walked one in a complete-game effort on the mound Saturday to pitch the Drury baseball team to a 6-0 win over Keefe Tech in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament at Joe Wolfe Field. click for more
Jason Codey struck out 13, walked two and allowed just an infield single as the Generals earned a 7-1 win over Wahconah to claim their third straight regional title. click for more
Gracelyn Wright struck out eight, and Genevieve Lagess went 3-for-5 with four runs batted in as the Hurricanes beat Monson, 17-3, to claim their first Western Mass title in four years. click for more
For the boys, Ward Bianchi helped lead the way with a win in the shot put and a second place in the javelin as the Mounties finished 16 points ahead of runner-up Pittsfield (pending the results of the pole vault, which were unavailable at 11 p.m. Friday night). click for more
