The Mary Jean Simpson Award is presented to the senior female student who best exemplifies the qualities of character, leadership and scholarship. One of the two recipients of this year’s award is Hale Sommer (she/her pronouns).
An international student from Beijing, Hale describes her first year at UVM as an exercise in acclimating to college life in the United States. It didn’t take long for her to find her bearings.
“I would say the catalyzing experience would be my involvement with the Rubenstein Stewards, which is a group of undergraduates that provide resume and cover letter mentorship to students, as well as planning community building events within the school,” she said.
An environmental studies major in the Rubenstein School of Natural Resources, Hale participated in admitted student visit days and tours, which gave her opportunities to connect with staff and faculty in the school.
In the fall of her junior year, Hale was appointed as a teaching assistant for the first-year course Environmental Studies. She began conducting research in her second semester as a research assistant to Professor Adrian Ivakhiv and participated in Professor Brendan Fisher's research lab, which investigates connections between conservation, development, natural resource economics and human behavior.
She also became deeply involved in local politics. volunteering for the campaign of Vermont state senator Kesha Ram ‘08. She started as an intern and ended up as campaign communications director.
The pandemic significantly changed many aspects of Hale’s life, including her research activities and campaign work. In Brendan Fisher's lab, her focus switched to investigating how people’s relationship to natural areas changed after the onset of COVID-19. Her research was funded through the Ian Worley Award, given to a student or faculty member whose inspired ideas lead to innovative paths in pursuing environmental goals.
Intrigued by her investigations into sense of place, she was accepted to the accelerated master’s program in natural resources. Her master’s thesis is on migrant workers in Vermont's agricultural industry
She is also working with Burlington City official and UVM student Skyler Nash ’21 in his newly founded non-profit Next Generation Justice, a foundation that aims to expand the capacity of the state's attorneys offices in Vermont and advocate for the reform of the criminal justice system.