To mark Earth Day, which is celebrated around the world on April 22, Naugatuck Valley Community College forged a new tradition. Equipped with rakes, clippers and even a pair of waders, students, faculty, staff and retirees cleaned out the pond along the Shakespeare Garden before adjourning to the Zinser Rose Garden to turn on the fountain for the season and enjoy lunch.

“This is a brand new tradition and we’re going to do this every year for Earth Day,” said NVCC President Daisy Cocco De Filippis, Ph.D. She praised members of the Student Government Association (SGA) who spearheaded the event. “This is a really wonderful do-gooder group,” she said. President De Filippis shared the poem In Praise of Earth by Native American poet Joy Harjo.

“It’s wonderful that students took time out of their busy schedules to cerebrate Earth Day and beautify the campus,” said Director of Student Activities Karen Blake. To add to the fun, the student who unearthed the most outlandish item while cleaning was awarded a prize. That item turned out to be a statuette of a lion.

“The students have been coming out to help us clean up the pond in the front of the Student Center,” said Dean of Student Services Sarah Gager. “It’s a place that’s very special to the students. It’s a very quiet area where they can relax during the course of the semester, go out and study and really engage with what the campus has to offer.”

“It’s a legacy we leave behind,” said SGA President Iralis De Jesus. “This is for the students who come after us… they’ll have something beautiful on campus for them to study around and enjoy.”

In previous years, NVCC students cleaned the Glacier Ridge Trail which encompasses the western part of campus, but Joe Faryniarz, professor of Biological Sciences at NVCC, says they wanted to focus on a smaller area, such as the pond, where students could see the impact of their work.

“The advantage of Earth Day and getting students out here is an opportunity for them to commune with nature, but also to give back and help make their environment a little better,” said Faryniarz. “They’re very busy inside learning, but there’s the other part of their world as well—the outside environment.”