2011 Voice of the Rivers
Brevard College's Voice of the Rivers Team Follows Virginia’s Historic
Rappahannock River to the Chesapeake Bay
A group of Brevard College students and professors will leave Sunday for a kayak adventure of a life time.
The College’s Voice of the Rivers (VOR) team, which consists of two faculty members and 13 students, will embark on a nearly 200-mile kayak expedition that will follow the Rappahannock River from the Blue Ridge Mountains near Front Royal, Va. to the Chesapeake Bay at Deltaville, Va.
An important river in American history, the Rappahannock was the site of early colonial settlements as well as important Civil War skirmishes, including the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Battle of Rappahannock Station.
The historic river will serve as a focal point for the VOR team’s academic studies as the group learns about medical practices of the 1800s and examines the role of leadership over the course of its 19-day trip. Students will study standard medical practices used during the Civil War as well as explore the importance of native plants in Appalachian medical practices. They will also study the major theoretical approaches to leadership and, through examination of current issues and historical events, learn about leadership’s role in shaping the Rappahannock River watershed’s natural and human environment.
The VOR team also plans to visit several historic battlefield sites and museums as well as speak with conservation groups as the group makes its way to the bay.
VOR students— whose majors include Art, Education, Religious Studies, Environmental Science, Health Science, Psychology, Business and Organizational Leadership and Wilderness Leadership and Experiential Education —are also required to post daily journal entries, photos and videos of their travels and experiences online using Facebook, blogs and the Brevard College Web site (www.brevard.edu/VOR).
This year’s student expedition members include: Tyler Biggs of Durham, N.C.; Michael Colpitts of Chapel Hill, N.C.; Clair Dillman of West Union, S.C.; Olivia Fawcett of Beaufort, S.C.; Liza Fortenberry of Charlotte, N.C.; Audrey Hamilton of Cincinnati, Ohio; Payne Hendrick of Mansfield, Ga.; Willis Kallay of Macon, Ga.; Christina Nelson of Matthews, N.C.; and Kaitlyn Wood of Raleigh, N.C.
Team leaders are Brevard College Assistant Professor of Wilderness Leadership and Experiential Education John Buford and Associate Professor of Exercise Science and Physiology Resa Chandler.
Three Brevard College Wilderness and Experiential Education majors: Kim Williams of Melbourne Beach, Fla. (a member of the 2009 VOR); Austin Bunn of Gaston, S.C. (a member of the 2010 VOR) and Emily Webb of Hendersonville, N.C. are assisting with the trip.
Since its inaugural 1997 expedition from Brevard, N.C. to the Gulf of Mexico, the Voice of the Rivers program at Brevard College has offered students and faculty an opportunity to paddle and study a variety of ecologically and culturally significant rivers.
The VOR experience—which combines academics with outdoor exploration—is designed to educate the public and raise awareness of activities that threaten rivers; bring attention to organizations and groups poised to address those threats; and foster a sense of stewardship and community activity among the students who participate.
Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina, Brevard College offers a range of distinctive baccalaureate degree programs. The VOR program embodies the College’s commitment to a liberal arts education that is interdisciplinary and experiential. Past VOR expeditions include trips down the Tennessee, Ohio and Mississippi rivers; the Green River; the Rio Santa Cruz, Rio Limay and Rio Negro rivers in Patagonia, Argentina; the Savannah River; and the Catawba-Wateree and Yadkin-Pee Dee watersheds.