[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.66″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” text_font_size=”22″ border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Para-Pillars<\/strong><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.66″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” text_font_size=”18″ border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Emily Hoar<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.66″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Jeff Barber\u2019s \u201cPara-Pillars\u201d memorializes thirty years of St. Olaf\u2019s Paracollege, which provided innovative, individualized, interdisciplinary learning. The sculptor, class of 1978, is himself an alumnus of the \u201ccollege within a college\u201d system.<\/p>\n \u201cPara-Pillars\u201d consists of three stone columns and a slab placed in the ground to represent the corners of a triangle. The first column of granite supports a standing figure cast in bronze. Another corner\u2014two sandstone columns from the college\u2019s old Ytterboe Hall\u2014supports a reclining figure, also in bronze. The third corner of empty plinth encourages interaction, inviting people to enter the triangle to experience its dynamic relationships.<\/p>\n The St. Olaf Paracollege began in 1969 and offered students an alternate means for obtaining a bachelor\u2019s degree.<\/p>\n \u201c[For students at the time] the watchword was relevance,\u201d said Associate Professor of Religion David Booth, who tutored in the Paracollege from 1985 to 2000. \u201cThey didn\u2019t want an education that would reproduce their parents’ boring lives. They wanted to know the truth about reality so they could bring about peace and liberation.\u201d<\/p>\n With a curriculum centered on the student, he or she designed a unique major. The Paracollege was phased out starting in 1998; it was replaced by the Center for Integrative Studies, which continues to integrate Paracollege innovations into the core curriculum.<\/p>\n The sculpture was dedicated in 2000 during commencement and reunion weekend. Thirty-one students graduated from the Paracollege in its final year. At the dedication of the sculpture, DeAne Lagerquist, the Paracollege\u2019s last senior tutor, cited a Max DePree quotation: \u201cHave the courage to commit to other people\u2019s wild ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I read this advice,\u201d Lagerquist said, \u201cI recognize it as a key element in the genius of the Paracollege. . . . Over three decades of students have committed themselves to the wild ideas that education is not contained in disciplinary boxes, nor is it separated from living. Tutors have committed themselves to all manner of wild ideas proposed for tutorials or senior projects.\u201d<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_gallery _builder_version=”3.0.66″ show_title_and_caption=”on” show_pagination=”on” gallery_ids=”538,536,535,534,533,532,531,530,529,528″ fullwidth=”off” orientation=”landscape” zoom_icon_color=”#1eaa98″ hover_overlay_color=”rgba(255,255,255,0.9)” background_layout=”light” border_style=”solid” auto=”off” \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”1_4″][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_audio _builder_version=”3.0.66″ title=”To Run With Velvet Scissors” artist_name=”David Wee” audio=”https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1052\/2017\/08\/Poem_To_Run_With_Velvet_Scissors.mp3″ background_layout=”dark” border_style=”solid” \/][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_4″][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" [et_pb_section bb_built=\"1\"][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=\"4_4\"][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"3.0.66\" background_layout=\"light\" text_orientation=\"left\" text_font_size=\"22\" border_style=\"solid\"]<\/p> Para-Pillars<\/strong><\/p> [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"3.0.66\" background_layout=\"light\" text_orientation=\"left\" text_font_size=\"18\" border_style=\"solid\"]<\/p> Emily Hoar<\/em><\/p> [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=\"3.0.66\" background_layout=\"light\" text_orientation=\"left\" border_style=\"solid\"]<\/p> Jeff Barber\u2019s \u201cPara-Pillars\u201d memorializes thirty years of St. Olaf\u2019s Paracollege, which provided innovative, individualized, interdisciplinary learning. The sculptor, class of 1978, is himself an alumnus of the \u201ccollege within a college\u201d system.<\/p> \u201cPara-Pillars\u201d consists of three stone columns and a slab placed in the ground to represent the corners of a triangle. The first column of granite supports a standing figure cast in bronze. Another corner\u2014two sandstone columns from the college\u2019s old Ytterboe Hall\u2014supports a reclining figure, also in bronze. The third corner of empty plinth encourages interaction, inviting people to enter the triangle to experience its dynamic relationships.<\/p> The St. Olaf Paracollege began in 1969 and offered students an alternate means for obtaining a bachelor\u2019s degree.<\/p> \u201c[For students at the time] the watchword was relevance,\u201d said Associate Professor of Religion David Booth, who tutored in the Paracollege from 1985 to 2000. \u201cThey didn\u2019t want an education that would reproduce their parents' boring lives. They wanted to know the truth about reality so they could bring about peace and liberation.\u201d<\/p> With a curriculum centered on the student, he or she designed a unique major. The Paracollege was phased out starting in 1998; it was replaced by the Center for Integrative Studies, which continues to integrate Paracollege innovations into the core curriculum.<\/p> The sculpture was dedicated in 2000 during commencement and reunion weekend. Thirty-one students graduated from the Paracollege in its final year. At the dedication of the sculpture, DeAne Lagerquist, the Paracollege\u2019s last senior tutor, cited a Max DePree quotation: \u201cHave the courage to commit to other people\u2019s wild ideas.\u201d<\/p> \u201cWhen I read this advice,\u201d Lagerquist said, \u201cI recognize it as a key element in the genius of the Paracollege. . . . Over three decades of students have committed themselves to the wild ideas that education is not contained in disciplinary boxes, nor is it separated from living. Tutors have committed themselves to all manner of wild ideas proposed for tutorials or senior projects.\u201d<\/p> [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-518","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-st-olaf-college"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1052\/2017\/08\/Jane_Burnett_at_the_Para-Pillar_Dedication.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1712"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=518"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":643,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518\/revisions\/643"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=518"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=518"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/nfldhist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=518"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}