Cat Cutillo
(She/Her)
Articles by Cat Cutillo
Down The Line: All the biggest and best shows, gigs & events ahead in Santa Cruz County
Quick Take Team BOLO (Be On The Lookout) is gathering and curating all of Santa Cruz County’s biggest and best happenings from now until forever — or at least until the latest gigs are officially announced. The late Todd Snider was a big favorite of local audiences, having played in Santa Cruz County countless times since his big breakout 30 years ago. Snider, who died Nov. 14, will be the subject of a tribute show Jan.
Labor of love: Why a worker at the Aptos Goodwill greets donors with costumes, jokes and puns Original
Quick Take "He’s one of the reasons I like to come here all the time to deliver things because he’s always got the latest jokes and we all need to laugh these days," one regular donor at the Goodwill in Aptos says of Daniel Ambrose, who's welcoming visitors for a final Christmas before he retires next year. Daniel Ambrose has been the frontman at the Aptos Goodwill Central Coast donation center for the past seven years.
When More Is More
Braden Dwinell sat at the front of class queuing up short, animated clips and music samples to show his First-Year Seminar students how trains have long been a metaphor for death. He’s co-teaching a course called Dungeons & Dragons twice a week at Saint Michael’s College. The class aims to help students write a fantasy-based novella. “We’re having really meaningful discussions,” Dwinell said.
Study abroad student sees through a new lens
Isabella “Bella” Cronin ’25 said she remembers sitting in her Whitefield, New Hampshire, classroom in middle school when she first learned about the Syrian refugee crisis. Now, a junior at Saint Michael’s College, she reflected to that moment again as she explained what it was like to see the Za’atari Refugee Camp in person, the world’s largest camp for Syrian refugees. Cronin returned to St. Mike’s campus this semester after studying abroad in Amman, Jordan, through SIT Study Abroad.
Study abroad experience in Tanzania takes one student to new heights
Many people fly a flag at the top of Mount Kilimanjaro to celebrate climbing their way to 19,341 feet, but Jackson Sargent ’24 might be the very first person to ever fly his Saint Michael’s College sweatshirt on the peak of Africa’s highest mountain. The St. Mike’s senior completed a semester-long study abroad program in Tanzania in fall 2023 studying wildlife conservation and political ecology.
St. Mike’s celebrates 32nd annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Convocation week
This year, Saint Michael’s College devoted an entire week to Martin Luther King, Jr., and his vision of a Beloved Community during its 32nd annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Convocation and Celebration. January 15 was filled with speakers, workshops, and a community art mural letter blocked with King’s message “The Fierce Urgency of Now,” which was this year’s theme. Students from Winooski High School and Rock Point School in Burlington attended events on January 15, which ran all day long.
Trailblazer alum uses running psychotherapy to help clients
Saint Michael’s alum, Beth Connolly ’04, Psy.D., believes in treating the mind and the body at the same time. She has built a running psychotherapy private practice in Hampton, New Hampshire, called This is My Happy Pace, which combines movement with talk therapy. Despite the cold temperatures, she sees an uptick in clients during December and January.
St. Mike’s alum Tina Friml ’16 talks about her debut on the Tonight Show
Tina Friml ’16 just reached another pinnacle. Last month, the comedian performed on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, unleashing six minutes of standup that captured her life as a disabled person, her Vermont roots, and her childhood love of the rapper Drake’s role on the television show Degrassi. “You never feel 100% ready,” Friml said in a recent phone interview about the milestone. “It was one of those moments where you climb over a mountain, and you look back and say ‘I just did that.
Yamuna Turco ’25 to compete in Miss America
A familiar face within the Saint Michael’s community will grace the stage alongside competitors for Miss America in January. Yamuna Turco ’25, who was crowned Miss Vermont 2023, will compete for the Miss America 2024 title in Orlando, Florida right after the new year. The competition begins Jan. 6 and lasts until the finals on Jan. 14. “It’s huge. I’m kind of in disbelief. It comes and hits me in waves,” Turco said.
Dynamic Duo: professors offer a double-dose of education
Longtime Saint Michael’s professors Karen Popovich and John Devlin combined the forces of their different academic disciplines to offer students a double-dose of education. Popovich is a Professor of Business Administration and Accounting while Devlin is a Professor Fine Arts/Theatre, Resident Designer and Technical Director. The duo reimagined a required Business core course called BU 214 Management.
Targeted News Service
Saint Michael's College: Yamuna Turco '25 to Compete in Miss America December 14, 2023 COLCHESTER, Vermont, Dec. 14 -- Saint Michael's College issued the following news: By Cat Cutillo, Social Media and Community Content Specialist A familiar face within the Saint Michael's community will grace the stage alongside competitors for Miss America in January. Yamuna Turco '25, who was crowned Miss Vermont 2023, will compete for the Miss America 2024 title in Orlando, Florida right after the new year.
A fundraising event to prevent ‘period poverty’ will be held on campus in January
Emma Anderson ’25 started the nonprofit Not A Luxury Inc. in 2020 while she was still in high school. Three years later, the organization has donated 23,000 menstrual products to date throughout Vermont and is championing a movement to help people overcome period poverty. On January 27, Anderson’s nonprofit is hosting a fundraising event in the Roy Room at Saint Michael’s to continue making progress on this issue.
History from the heart: Saint Michael’s scholar uses personal history to fuel research, teaching
After her mother’s passing, Dr. Jolivette Anderson-Douoning and her sister went back to their mother’s home in Shreveport, Louisiana, to clean it out. The duo worked at different paces to try and separate the donations and trash from the memorabilia they would keep, the now-Saint Michael’s Edmundite scholar in residence recently recalled. Her sister moved quickly, dragging items to the curb for trash collection while Anderson-Douoning wanted to spend more time sifting through things.
Students create connection through grief
On Nov. 15, around 120 students stopped by Alliot around dinnertime to decorate a quilt square and reflect on grief. The project, called The Connection Quilt, was part of Global F.A.R.M., a campus initiative to celebrate the diverse cultures of the Saint Michael’s community through Food, Art, Ritual and Music.
Professor shares stories of resilience in Nepal
Krista Billingsley, Director of Criminology and Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Criminology, presented on Monday as part of the social science seminar series. Billingsley conducted field work in Nepal over 14 months primarily in 2016. After she became a professor at Saint Michael’s, she helped create a follow-up collaborative film project in Nepal that was focused on victim-led, truth-telling.
Elections analyst visits campus and predicts ‘Biden versus Trump 2.0’
A Senior Elections Analyst at FiveThirtyEight says the 2024 Presidential Election will basically be a repeat of the 2020 election when it comes to the candidates on the ballot. That’s the message that political analyst Geoffrey Skelley delivered to members of the Saint Michael’s community who attended an event co-hosted by departments of History, Political Science and International Relations, and Digital Media and Communications.
A conversation on Dr. King’s Beloved Community awakens ‘treasures from the deep’
Saint Michael’s community members gathered in Purposeful Learning on Nov. 8 to hear Student Success Advisor Vernita Weller’s speak about the connection between spirituality and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Beloved Community”— a global vision rooted in agape love, in which all people can share in the wealth on earth. The conversation was part of the “Spiritual Exploration Series.” “My definition of spirituality is to function in love,” Weller said at the beginning of the event.
MMU students plant ‘a sense of place’ in the Natural Area
Trevien Stanger, Instructor of Environmental Studies and Science at Saint Michael’s College, led 22 students from Mount Mansfield Union (MMU) High School in Jericho into the Saint Michael’s Natural Area on October 31 to plant trees. A second group from MMU of about the same size is scheduled to visit on November 7. The 10th graders were part of the high school’s Biology class taught by instructors Sandy Alexander and Mark Keffer.
Alum returns to share her career in higher ed’s Institutional Research
Dr. Kaiti Tuthill ’11 says her experience as a student at Saint Michael’s laid the groundwork for a successful career in higher education. Tuthill came back to campus for a Mathematics and Statistics Colloquium on October 27 as the guest speaker. Tuthill now works as the Director of Assessment and Accreditation at Boston College’s Lynch School of Education and Human Development. She graduated from St. Mike’s with a double major in Mathematics and Economics and a minor in English.
Art activist makes the invisible visible at Saint Michael’s College
A small memorial of a large handmade cross surrounded by several smaller crosses now stands in the middle of Saint Michael’s campus as a reminder of migrants who died while fleeing their countries and trekking across the southern U.S. border – and the humanity that often gets forgotten when telling their stories.
Student panel shares field-based study abroad experiences
Four Saint Michael’s students who participated in semester-long study abroad programs that focused on field-based research came together for a panel discussion on October 16 to share their experiences. Saint Michael’s College offers study abroad programs in five categories: intensive language, university liberal studies, community-engaged learning, international internships, and field-based research.
New art exhibit invites viewers to wrap themselves in weather
McCarthy Art Gallery’s latest exhibit “We Are The Weather” opened on Oct. 19 exhibiting the creations of Seattle-based artist Vaughn Bell, who often works in the public art sector to create collaborative projects that frequently focus on our watershed and ecology. For the exhibit, Bell created blankets resembling large-scale atmospheric weather maps, which she hand-painted onto flannel and sewed.
Cinderella opens Nov. 1 as ‘the perfect fit’ for a fall musical
Saint Michael’s College presents the musical “Cinderella” for its fall theater production which runs from November 1 until November 4 at McCarthy Arts Center Theater. All performances begin at 7 p.m., are free, and are open to the public. Peter Harrigan, Professor of Fine Arts/Theater at Saint Michael’s, is the musical’s Director and Costume Designer. John Paul Devlin, Professor of Fine Arts/ Theatre is the Scenery and Lighting Designer.
Three new members inducted into math honors society
The twenty-second Pi Mu Epsilon Lecture and Induction Ceremony took place on Friday, October 20 at Saint Michael’s. Amir Barghi, Associate Professor of Mathematics and Statistics, welcomed dozens of audience members in Cheray 101. First, Professor Barghi invited Camille Gallagher ’24, President of the Saint Michael’s chapter, to introduce this year’s speaker, Dr. Cornelia Mihaila, who is the Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Saint Michael’s College.
Environmental Science students remove invasive species to get to the root of the problem
Students taking the Environmental Science 107 class at Saint Michael’s took an immersive trip into the Woodside Natural Area in Winooski this week to partner with the Winooski Valley Park District and help remove invasive species such as common buckthorn, honeysuckle and multiflora rose. The team of 16 students split into groups to upend the invasive species by the roots using tools like shovels, weed wrenches and saws.
Alum who works for the U.S. Department of State visits campus to share opportunities
Michelle Kayser ’08 has her dream job, and she wants to help other Saint Michael’s students find their way down a similar path. Kayser visited campus Oct. 10 to share information about fellowships, internships and careers with the U.S. Department of State where she’s been employed for 13 years. During her career with the State Department, Kayser has served in many roles and lived all around the world in places like Switzerland, the Central African Republic and Argentina.
Revolutionary War re-enactors bring history to life on Saint Michael’s campus
Watch a short video from the day. (Video by Cat Cutillo) The past came to life on Saint Michael’s campus on Oct. 5 when a group of Revolutionary War re-enactors set up camp to help the college community time-travel to 250 years ago. Campus community members and visitors stopped by to talk to the re-enactors who portrayed Patriot soldiers and early Americans through clothing, militia drilling, food, herbalist practices, lifestyle and materials.
‘Blessing of the Animals’ brings fur-friends to Campus
Fr. Michael Carter was on the front steps of the Chapel of Saint Michael the Archangel before anyone else arrived for the annual “Blessing of the Animals” on Oct. 4 — a tradition to honor the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi. A scattering of golden leaves lined the campus pathways and crunched under paws and feet as people and their pets started to approach the chapel steps. It looked like autumn but felt like summer with temperatures in the 80s during a rare stretch of fall heat.
Open House and Alumni and Family Weekend drew hundreds of visitors
Saint Michael’s College hosted its fall Open House on Sept. 23. This coincided with Alumni and Family Weekend, which was held from Sept. 22-24. The events drew hundreds of visitors to campus. Open House kicked off with welcome remarks in McCarthy Recital Hall and a student panel who answered audience questions. Visitors were able to take a campus tour with one of Saint Michael’s tour guides and attend the academic and involvement fair in Dion.
Freeman Fellows gather to encourage international internships
A panel of eight students who participated in this past summer’s annual Global Citizenship International Internship Program, supported by a generous grant from the Freeman Foundation, recently shared stories and answered questions about their experiences. The international internship scholarship program supports intercultural understanding between the United States and Asia.
New peer-led relationship violence support group offered at Saint Michael’s College
Last year, Jenna Walker ’24, found herself in unchartered territory when she needed support from the Title IX office at Saint Michael’s College. Her experience was positive, but it was missing one thing: a peer to offer her support. Now, Walker is working to provide that missing link for students who may be navigating the Title IX process in the future.
European foreign policy experts visit Saint Michael’s for dynamic discussion
Six foreign policy experts from Greece, Poland, Spain, Denmark, Germany and Norway met students and faculty on campus last week, hosted by the Center for Global Engagement, to discuss foreign policy issues of concern in Europe and the U.S. The visitors came to Vermont through the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program, hosted by the Vermont Council on World Affairs.
MOVE helps one alum save a life six years later
Maggie McKeon ’19 said the College’s community service organization originally made her want to become a student at Saint Michael’s College, so she joined as soon as she could during her first year on campus. But, McKeon said she could never have predicted the organization MOVE, which stands for Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts, would plant a seed that six years later would help her save a life. “I knew from the get-go I wanted to be involved,” McKeon said.
“Pride For All” packs week with accessible activities and ways to celebrate
Pride Week was packed with vibrant participation from the Saint Michael’s College community both on and off campus. College LGBTQIA+ club Common Ground, the Student Disability Advocacy Alliance (SDAA), and the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) worked together to create an unforgettable week of “Pride For All.” On Thurs. Sept. 7, comedian Tina Friml ’16 performed in Dion and shared her experiences of life with cerebral palsy.
“Sophomore Selebration” helps link Purposeful Learning experience through students’ second year
The Office of Purposeful Learning has launched a full menu of new fall programming with events geared specifically towards second-year students. Purposeful Learning kicked off one of its first events of the semester, the “Sophomore Selebration,” on September 7.
Vermont Visionaries: Greer Sargeant, Postmodern Doula
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo A few days after Aisha Mueller gave birth to her second child, a familiar feeling of anxiety crept up on her. She recognized the unwelcome emotions she had experienced during her first pregnancy and in the months after the child's birth. She said she felt like she was drowning. "With my first, my mental health was really stretched, to put it lightly," she said.
Turning Trash Into Art for an Earth Day Lesson
What do you make of a pile of debris that includes old tennis balls, empty beer cans, crushed plastic foam, sodden socks, discarded masks and a gargantuan collection of plastic containers? On a sunny Earth Day on the Church Street Marketplace, the answer was: You build a trash monster. All you need is the help of a Lake Champlain cleanup crew and a handful of small children wielding tongs to artfully place the disgusting throwaways.
Battle of the 'Bots: A Robotics Tournament Powers Up a Passion for STEM
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo On Saturday, February 11, the gym at Champlain Valley Union High School in Hinesburg was the site of a state championship tournament for a 21st-century sport: robotics. The annual Vermont FIRST Tech Challenge State Championship drew 19 teams from around the state. Each had designed and built a remote-controlled robot that could pick up plastic cones and place them in various spots on a 12-foot-square playing field — including on poles of different heights.
Adventurous Spirits: Flyin Ryan Foundation helps kids and adults find their North Star
click to enlarge Courtesy Griffin Larson Throughout much of elementary and middle school, 17-year-old Griffin Larson kept a sticky note on his bedroom desk. It was a list: “Work hard, be dedicated to what you are passionate about, take opportunities, benefit yourself while benefiting others, have fun…” At the top, he’d written, “My core values.” “I used to keep them on me but in the last couple of years I don’t. They’re so familiar now that they’re always in the back of my mind,” Griffin said.
Meeting of the Minds: Teens Invited to Neuroscience Competition
click to enlarge Courtesy Neuroscience is not a class that most high schoolers have on their schedules, but every year teens from around the world participate in a neuroscience competition called Brain Bee. The 2023 Vermont contest — a free, all-day event that also includes educational components — is scheduled for February 11 at the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine. It’s open to students ages 13 through 19. The registration deadline is January 18.
Vermont Visionaries: BJ Robertson
BJ Robertson launched Blueprint Basketball to give kids a chance to play during their schools' off-season, and to help improve their game both on and off the court. Meet this Vermont Visionary.
Vermont Visionaries: BJ Robertson, Blueprint Basketball
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo In an effort to give kids a chance to play basketball during their schools' off-season, BJ Robertson created a multifaceted program that includes camps, clinics, personalized training and 36 Amateur Athletic Union teams. Blueprint Basketball began in 2019 and serves up to 300 kids a year. Players in kindergarten through 12th grade come to Chittenden County from across Vermont and even from New York to participate.
New Outerwear Company Hootie Hoo Beckons Kids Outside
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo When Xiaonan "Claire" Zhu started her own children's outerwear company last year — dubbed Hootie Hoo — she set out to create clothing that was highly waterproof and breathable. And then she applied parental wisdom. In addition to adding the standard hand and ski-lift-pass pockets to the jackets, she put a pocket on each of the lower legs of the bib snow pants.
Conquering the Corn Maze at Sam Mazza's
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo Getting lost is all part of the experience at Sam Mazza’s corn maze, where three and a half miles of paths are carved into eight acres of corn behind Mazza’s Farm Market in Colchester. Open daily from Labor Day through Halloween, this year’s maze is divided into two separate labyrinths, an .8-mile maze and a 2.7-mile maze. It’s all dedicated to Gary Bombard, who died in January.
All Brains Belong VT Offers Customized Vaccination Clinics
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo Bins of colorful fidget and sensory toys were the first things most people saw when they walked up to the All Brains Belong VT vaccination clinic on the Statehouse lawn last month. Josie and Eleanor Leeper, 6 and 3, sat down on the grass with their mom, Eliza, pulling out the things they wanted to play with while they got their COVID-19 shots. They would get to choose the exact setting for their shot.
Sexting Education Program Aims to Keep Kids Digitally Safe Original
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo A new program designed to empower and protect middle and high school students from digital risks like sexting will be available for free in up to 10 schools or youth-serving organizations in Chittenden, Windham and Windsor counties this school year. Project SELFIE (Safe Expression online For Internet Empowerment) was developed by Prevent Child Abuse Vermont and will be distributed on a first-come-first-served basis.
Vermont Visionaries: Nick Patch
BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Kids VT is publishing a monthly multimedia storytelling series on role models and people who inspire kids in their communities. It's called Vermont Visionaries. Nick Patch is one of those people. He created a youth boat-building program nearly three decades ago at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, and it has rippled into much more. In this Vermont Visionaries, Kids VT Columnist Cat Cutillo introduces you to Patch and shows you how his programs have made a splash with kids.
Fluffy the Floating Cloud Bank Goes to Burning Man
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo On Saturday, Fluffy the Floating Cloud Bank will leave Charlotte’s Earthkeep Farmcommon, where it was brought to life by more than 100 Vermonters, and make its way to Nevada for this year’s Burning Man. The 40-foot-long, 8-foot-wide bus is covered in 70 cloud forms that are intricately woven with 14,000 LED colored lights that respond to music and sound.
Vermont Visionaries: Nick Patch, Longtime Boatbuilding Instructor
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo Nick Patch stood at the helm of an open-air workshop at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in July and surveyed 10 sea kayaks, all in skeletal form. Campers, ages 13 to 17, used handsaws, epoxy and clamps as they constructed the boats. Two days earlier, the crafts were just piles of wood. Now they looked like kayaks.
For the Love of Little League: Fans Flock to Tournament Games
click to enlarge Cat Cutillo It was a Thursday morning at Schifilliti Park in Burlington and Chuck Schifilliti was telling the story of how his father, Charlie, co-founded the baseball park and North Burlington Little League in the 1950s. The steady ping of bats hitting balls in the background punctuated his sentences as he talked. “My father was from Brooklyn. He loved baseball and he wanted his three boys — I have two other brothers — he wanted everybody to play baseball,” said Schifilliti, 68.
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