Mission Driven

The mission and vision of Sterling College are strongly linked to its history and the critical environmental challenges facing humanity in the 21st century.

Motto

Working Hands. Working Minds.

 

MISSION STATEMENT

To advance ecological thinking and action through affordable experiential learning that prepares people to be knowledgeable, skilled, and responsible leaders in the communities in which they live.

 

VISION STATEMENT

Sterling uses education as a force to address critical ecological problems caused by unlimited growth and consumption that is destroying the planet as we have known it, such as:

  • Fossil fuel dependence and rapid climate change.
  • Destruction of biodiversity and loss of wild places.
  • Promotion of harmful agricultural practices that threaten human and natural communities.
  • Persistence of structural oppression that impacts human and ecological wellbeing.
  • Deterioration of civil society through estrangement from community, nature, and place.

 

Our vision is informed and guided by five competencies gained through learning assessed by our faculty:

  • Achieve a sophisticated understanding of, and personal engagement with, ecological systems.
  • Understand societies and cultures as dynamic and complex systems of relationships and interdependencies.
  • Use research and creative endeavor to explore concepts, experiences, and artifacts.
  • Articulate ideas and share information clearly, using a diversity of approaches.
  • Demonstrate effective, knowledgeable, skilled, and responsible leadership in community.

 

Brief History

The history of Sterling is one of change and innovation. Attuned to the times, it adapted and evolved; this characteristic is part of our institutional DNA. Today, Sterling is a leading voice for the liberal arts and environmental stewardship.

Founded in 1958, first as a traditional boarding school for boys, Sterling has embraced for over fifty years the value of small classes, hard work, and the College’s beautiful rural location as inspiration for its pioneering place in the landscape of American education.

Sterling was among the early initiatives in the United States to combine academic study and practical training in an effort to prepare environmental stewards in agriculture, conservation, and outdoor education. Through its “Grassroots Project,” Sterling was one of the first colleges in the nation to look at the relationship between conservation and agriculture. What we see as advocacy for “sustainability” and “local food” in contemporary media has been the underlying purpose at Sterling College for three decades.

“At the core of all Sterling programs is the concern for the relationship between man [sic] and his [sic] environment. No more critical issue faces society today, and it has become very clear that neither the narrow technician nor the uninformed idealist can reach a solution alone. Sterling provides a comprehensive bridge between thought and deed as its students confront questions that affect the future of us all.”

—Sterling College publication, 1978

Did you know that Sterling was founded all the way back in 1958?

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

See the Sterling timeline!

  • “I was drawn to Sterling because of the work program. I know that at the end of four years I will walk away from Sterling with a résumé full of work and life experiences that any employer would find of interest. Returning to a sense of place, community, and local resilience is the next step in the environmental movement. Sterling is at the forefront of this movement; a college education here trains you to be a leader through engaged practice in community living.”

     

    Allyson Makuch ‘15

  • “Sterling College reinforced my love of hard labor and taught me to see the world with an ecologist’s eye and a naturalist’s heart.”

    color photo of man casting a fishing pole on a beautiful summer day

    Ben Matthews ’09

    B.A. Ecology. Matthew is a fish biologist for Trout Unlimited, a cold-water fisheries conservation organization.

  • “This small college is one of the most important places in this country. Any institution can announce its ideals; great ones live them out–in the curriculum, on the campus, and in the portfolio.”

    Bill McKibben

    Bill McKibben

    honorary Sterling alumnus, environmental activist, and author of The End of Nature, Deep Economy, and Oil and Honey

  • “At Sterling, there’s a real history of being able to see where you’ve been, where you are now, and where you’re going. Sterling is a really experiential place. Here, you can get a feel for the kind of world you want to live in, and what kind of world we can create.”

    Brighde Moffat ’15

    Brighde Moffat ’15

    Cultural Geography self-designed major

  • “In order to be stewards of the land, we need to understand our historical and current relationships to the natural world and each other. Sterling College courses and our community provide us with opportunities to explore these relationships, uncover the complexities of our natural world and society, and discuss the many environmental issues that we face today.”

    Farley Brown

    Farley Brown '85

    Faculty in Ecology

  • “I wouldn’t have gone to college if it weren’t for Sterling. I thought college was a sham. But here you can do your own thing and take as much initiative as you want. If you put your time in and give it a whirl, you can have an amazing experience. The people who do are top in their field where they work.”

    Dan Pittenger ’10

    B.A. Conservation Biology. Pittenger went on to earna master’s degree in Hydrology and Water Resources Science from Central Washington University. He works as a wetland ecologist in Fairbanks, Alaska.

  • “Students are able to get so much out of a course of study because of the small class sizes. With a group of five, you can all crouch around a log and minutely examine decomposition in action.”

    Laura Spence

    Laura Spence, Ph.D.

    faculty in Ecology, is a plant ecologist whose research interests focus on the interaction between plant communities and aspects of global change such as climate change and invasive species. Her research has taken her to the forests of New Zealand and the steppes of Mongolia.

  • “There is so much wildness here, from our setting to people who are having wild, inspired ideas everyday. There is room to roam here physically and intellectually.”

    Lou Lepping ’16

    Lou Lepping ’16

    Restoration Ecology self-designed major

  • “Sterling values strong environmental ties to the land. The value of environmental ethics is taught side by side with the courses. It’s really the college’s commitment to climate and social justice issues.”

    Nathan Welleford ’16

    B.A. Outdoor Education, minor in Climate Justice[lsp1]. . Currently works as the Event Coordinator for Kentucky for Kentucky, a company promoting the people and products of the state. He received Sterling College’s Climate Justice Scholarship for glacial research he conducted in Wyoming’s Wind River Range

  • “A feeling that almost brings tears to my eyes is when we were crossing the Common and everyone was there cheering us on and welcoming us home. That sense of community and love is why I am happy to be at Sterling. That feeling is what brings me hope and happiness and I hope to carry that motivation with me for the rest of my time at Sterling and with my future life expeditions.”

    Sterling College Sustainable Food Systems Gallery

    Sophie Shillue ’18

    Expedition, Core Curriculum, Community

  • Working with draft horses is exhilarating, physically exhausting, and one heck of a challenge. Yet, despite the challenge, I find this type of work very rewarding, and a humbling endeavor.

    Spencer Mast

    Class of 2017

  • The most valuable of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it has to be done, whether you like it or not.

    aldous huxley

    English writer, novelist, philosopher and a prominent member of the Huxley family.

Dig In!

Over Fifty Years of Dunbar Dining Hall

At the very center of Sterling College’s rich and varied dining experience is the Dunbar Dining Hall. In Dunbar, students gather thrice daily to savor the inventive creations of our…

View more

Divestment without Drama

When Sterling College President Matthew Derr asked the Board of Trustees last fall to consider divesting the College’s endowment of its fossil fuel stocks, I’m afraid our response would have…

View more

Far From Home: Part II

Introduction: My name is Anushka Saraswat. Originally from India, but having lived in Cameroon and Senegal, Sterling College here in the United States is my fourth destination, but not the…

View more