Cater Society of Junior Fellows
The Libby & Douglass Cater Society of Junior Fellows is the College’s flagship academic enrichment program.
A Companionship of Learning
“The Society rewards creativity, initiative, and intellectual curiosity with competitive grants to support self-directed undergraduate research and scholarship anywhere in the world. The intent is to bring together the best and brightest in what founder Douglass Cater called ‘a companionship of learning.’”
-Dr. Aaron Lampman, Curator of the Libby & Douglass Cater Society
With a recommended grade point average of 3.6 or better, membership in the Cater Society is offered to students who achieve distinction among the school’s top scholars. At Society meetings—open to the entire student body and to faculty and staff—Junior Fellows who have completed their independent projects funded by the Society give short presentations about their experiences. The Cater Society of Junior Fellows also sponsors several social events throughout the year.
Junior Fellows grants are highly competitive. To receive project funding, applicants are expected to prepare well-crafted proposals for consideration by the Junior Fellows Advisory Council, comprising the Provost and Dean of the College, the Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs, the Chairs of the three Divisions (or their designates), the Curator, and the Student President and Vice President of the Society.
For more information, e-mail Curator Dr. Aaron%20Lampman.
Oh, the Places They Go
Cater Fellows know no geographical or intellectual bounds. Here’s just a sampling of destinations and studies supported by the Libby & Douglass Cater Society of Junior Fellows.
During her Cater project, “Accounting Principles Abroad: Brexit’s Impact,” Gabriella Winsky ’17 and friends recreated the Beatles’ famous Abbey Road album cover. Winsky traveled to London, Dublin, and Amsterdam.
Recent Stories
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From lichens growing on Maine granite to bacteria growing on the Mars rover, Picabo French ’19 spent her summer exploring biology with methods and purpose as diverse as her subjects.
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Madison Kaye ’19 spent four weeks in French Guiana conducting faunal analysis and excavating a house in what used to be a slave quarter.
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With one of her Cater Society grants, anthropology major Shannon Lawn ’18 explored the Irish landscape.
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A double major in music performance and business management, Michael DeMaio ’18 has traveled to five countries as a Cater Fellow. -
Combining her love of history and music, Heidi Butler ’18 will spend part of the summer studying how American hymns reflected the tumultuous times in America in and around the Civil War.
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Supported by a grant from the Cater Society of Junior Fellows, history major Sarah Graff ’18 has digitized a collection of letters from World War II soldiers — all former students at Washington College.
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Patrick Ginther ’17 finds questions, answers, and connections in the enormous and ever-changing puzzle that is the field of biochemistry.
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Traveling on the Cuba Experience class over winter break, Rachel Brown ’16 used a Cater Society grant to develop a unique project with the help of three local Havana women.
- A Seabound Summer
Working as a NOAA intern, Erika Koontz '17 helped map a national marine sanctuary and gained deeper insight into the relationship between research and resource management.