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People Profiles
Erin Smart
- Hometown: Seattle, WA
- Major: Geography, Natural Resource Management
Why Western?
I knew that I wanted to attend a university in Washington, and I had heard many great things about Western from friends, so I came up to visit, and fell in love with the school, and Bellingham.
Beyond Expectations
Western has exceeded my expectations in many ways, from the outstanding professors and courses over the years, to the great community and home I have found in Bellingham.
Life-Changing Experience
When I was 17, I graduated high school a year early through Running Start, saved up money from my job, and left with my brother who worked as a mountain guide in La Grave, France. The 5 months over there changed my life, and I fell in love with the small village of La Grave. I took many photos while I was there, and knew from the locals that the snows were diminishing, and the glaciers shrinking. I went back for a week trip the next year, and knew that I needed to go back for another season.
A Dream Come True
Fall quarter I was in Intro to Huxley with Professor Andy Bach, and he was telling us about Huxley's 498 classes, and how you can be as creative as you want -- from an independent study, to foreign study, to internship to get credit. And it dawned on me that I could create a project in La Grave. Andy Bach was especially helpful in guiding me through this project, and if it weren't for him, it probably never would have happened.
Not the Typical Classroom
Last winter I was able to take the quarter off and travel back to this small village in the French Alps. I skied every day, and collected and completed the research for a project on the disappearing glaciers and snows of La Grave, France, which I was then able to present at Scholars Week last spring.
Outside the Classroom
My greatest interests outside of the classroom are skiing, mountain and road biking, climbing, swimming, surfing-both wind and wave, wilderness medicine, cooking, photography, and always having fun while looking at the big picture.
The Perfect Fit
One of my favorite memories of Western was finding and getting accepted to Huxley. I was interested in so many fields my first two years at Western, that I could not make a choice about a major, until I found Huxley, and discovered they had the perfect program for my interests.
Life in Bellingham
The thing I like most about Bellingham is how close together everything is that I need or like to do. The farthest I have to travel is a little over an hour to get to Mt. Baker, and everything else, mountain biking, windsurfing, climbing, school, is a short bike ride or walk away.
After Western
I have recently become interested in wilderness medicine through some courses I have been taking outside of Huxley, and I think I am going to continue with those after I graduate, starting with Wilderness EMT. After that, I am interested in taking some guiding courses, mainly the ski guiding courses, and then maybe heading up to Alaska to try and find some work as a Heli ski guide for a while. The one thing I do know for sure, is whatever I find myself doing in the future, it will be outdoors.