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College Spotlight:
Ben's busy studying business
By REBECCA WELLS
Even as a little boy, Ben Ander-
son was business-minded: He ran
a leinonade stand. During junior
high and high school he sold Na-
tive American-style dream catch-
ers, pouches and jewelry at local
bazaars and through a classified
ad in The Journal with his compa-
'ny, Big Chief Indian Goods. Later
he operated his own landscaping
business.
"Everything I did was business-
oriented :in one way or another,"
he remembers.
He's just completed his first
year towards a degree in business
at The Evergreen State College.
Ironically, breaking his leg in an
accident last summer, which left
him temporarily unable to contin-
ue landscaping, spurred him on to
enrolling in college. That's when
the better professional opportu-
nities available through a college
education began to really appeal
to him. Even before then, when all
he had was a business license, he
realized that running a company
without an education in the field
can be a nightmare.
"If you're going to go into busi-
ness, you have to do a lot of plan-
ning," he explains.
A CLOSE FRIEND encour-
aged Ben to attend college, so he
enrolled at Evergreen, a school
he had actually considered go-
ing to right after high school. In
fact his classmates in high school
voted him "most likely to become
a Greener.
Ben is the son of Tom Anderson
and Mary Duncan. His thther had
attended Evergreen in the 1990s
for job retraining and the college's
beautiful campus and liberal atmo-
sphere had always attracted Ben.
He appreciates how the school pro-
vides recycling bins all over cam-
pus and even collects food scraps
in the cafeteria tbr use as compost.
Being a strong advocate tbr recy-
cling and environmental preser-
vation, he had initially thought
about taking environmental stud-
ies at Evergreen.
When he started having trouble
with the heavy scientific empha-
sis in environmental studies, one
of his classmates suggested pur-
suing more business classes. He
did and just tll in love with the
program. Evergreen's business
offerings have expanded since he
began looking at the college a few
years ago and some of the new thc-
ulty in the department have really
impressed him. One professor did
his graduate studies at Stanford
University.
"To say 'business' at Evergreen
is just so trying-to-conform-to-so-
ciety," Ben points out in reference
to the college's open, flexible, well-
rounded approach to academics.
"You can take a program as seri-
ous as you want or as relaxed as
you want."
SO FAR, HIS classwork has
involved a page or two of writing,
200 pages of reading, and quizzes
each week, while students in other
classes haven't had any of these
assignments. One of his favorite
classes so far has been a program
course called the Ethical Entre-
preneur which explored non-gov-
ernmental organizations, market-
ing and business planning. Learfi-
ing about grassroots organizations
benefiting social causes with fl'ee
BEHIND THE front desk in the office of Mason County
Literacy is Ben Anderson, who is employed there through
work-study. He is currently studying business at The
Evergreen State College.
services and programs such as mi-
cro-loans intrigues him, too. He's
also taken an American studies
class anti pre-business, which in-
volved a lot of research tbllowed by
a mock presentation to investors.
Having the ability to stop by
a protbssor's office or call fac-
ulty directly is something he re-
ally values about Evergreen when
compared to larger universities
where professors are more aloof.
And while some of his friends are
in classrooms packed with more
than 500 students taught often by
graduate students, he hasn't had a
class with more than 20 students
per professor yet. Evergreen limits
class sizes to 23 students per pro-
fessor, he says.
"I like to be able to raise my
hand, ask questions," he says.
He is able to personally talk
with faculty on a first-name basis
and tutors are also readily avail-
able to provide academic assis-
tance. "That's the biggest thing
that I like about Evergreen," Ben
continues. "I don't have to just
wait in line. I'm not just another
number."
MOST OF THE professors
he's encountered on campus have
doctorate degrees and purposely
chose to work at Evergreen for
various reasons. Among them is
the fact that they have less pres-
sure to publish work and are more
encouraged to focus on teaching,
he says. He describes the profes-
sors he's met as: "Just absolutely
brilliant."
Eventually, Ben himself would
like to continue on to Evergreen's
graduate school and possibly earn
a master's degree in public admin-
istration or maybe environmental
studies as well.
Something else he learned was
the sense of community surround-
ing Evergreen: People at the col-
lege understand why he endorses
shopping locally and buying organ-
ic, environmentally friendly prod-
ucts. This supportive, community
feeling extends into Shelton and
it gives him the chance to get to
know store clerks, bus drivers and
people on the street. He even runs
into old high-school classmates.
Not only is Ben living in Shel-
ton, he's also very involved in two
community service organizations
based in the city: Mason County
Literacy and SOCK, Save Our
County's Kids. Since he qualified
for work-study in February, he
has been working as an adminis-
trative assistant and tutor in the
office of the literacy organization
in downtown Shelton.
RIGHT NOW HE'S working
lHllIIlllIlllllIlil[lllllll[iIlllllIlllllllll
Ma,,;om 6otu VFW Poxt 1634 awtd Eke, ,,,
Mrs. A{icJJe¢ter, reft M 'i Fi4[er I
• for to be., w;eg
Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
(25 + Years Experience)
General Dentistry
full service practice
Restorative care (Crowns, Bridges, Fillings)
Extractions • Full & Partial Dentures
Repairs * Relines
Most Insurances Accepted
S. Peters, DPD C. Ngo, DDS
Page 16 - Shetton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, August 23, 2007
on updating the Microsoft Access
database in the office, his goal be-
ing to have the tbrms and applica-
tions match. This will help the of-
fice more accurately keep track of
the status of participants. It will
also allow staff to simply print out
a list of participant addresses, in-
stead of writing them out by hand.
"I enjoy technology and making
things easier," Ben says.
He's also using technological
skills he learned through an eBay
course he took at Olympic College
to manage a direct-sales account
for Mason County Literacy. He
can research product values and
then sell in-kind donations to ben-
efit the organization. "That's just
fun, because I love on-line selling.
I love Craig's List," he says.
He has also come across a few
summer side jobs over Craig's List,
an on-line bargain site. Once the
school year begins again this fall,
Ben plans to keep working part
time in the office. Meanwhile, he's
also working part time for Save
Our County's Kids, a local youth
organization. Originally he had
wanted to help with the organiza-
tion's regular day programs, but
since this conflicted with his work
schedule, he's working on the Fri-
day Nights @ SOCK program.
He has experience working with
children at Camp Bishop during
the summer of 1997, followed by
jobs-lbr-youth programs with the
Shelton chapter of the Boys and
Girls Club in the summers of 1998
and 1999. "I enjoy
youth and I felt com
back to my community,
I was born and raised,"
plains.
NOW THAT HE'S in
20s, Ben qualifies t'or
cial aid which has paid his!
up to this point. Trying to t$
vantage of all of the oppo
open to him at the mome
also enrolled in Students
vice. This is a part-time P
of AmeriCorps for college
versity students to provide
in their communities. By
in 900 hours of service,
pants can earn a scholarS"
$2,362.50. '!
He spends quite a bit
at the college bike shop, w,lla ,
works on his own bike an
others work on theirs.
Aside from service contri 17.
for this scholarship progra
also looking into helping t0.][T,
a student-run cafe call|tEl$
Flaming Eggplant, whieiU
feature Earth-fl'iendly me !1
an
is already involved in i
launch a project called th a
for Entrepreneurship thr!!
business department. A
is now considering offering q[h
16-credit contract to help Pla, 1"
program. 4!
"That's where you can re
your concentrated area ofs'b 't'
Evergreen, where you write
own course with faculty's sUlP aq
Ben notes.
r-
Alpine Way is just the place! You live
our own private apartment with your .,,,
furniture and possessions around you. v]-
can come and go as you please and
involved with the residents and activities
Alpine as much as.you want- the choice 1
yours. If you need help, we have nurses
other staff on duty 24 hours a day.
R ETI R EM ENT APARTM ENTS,
ASSISTED LIVING AND
ALZHEIMER'S SPECIAL CARE
For a complete tour and complimentary 1 : ,:
O Beth Johnston, R.N., manager
(360) 426-2600
900 West Alpine Way • Sheltort
College Spotlight:
Ben's busy studying business
By REBECCA WELLS
Even as a little boy, Ben Ander-
son was business-minded: He ran
a leinonade stand. During junior
high and high school he sold Na-
tive American-style dream catch-
ers, pouches and jewelry at local
bazaars and through a classified
ad in The Journal with his compa-
'ny, Big Chief Indian Goods. Later
he operated his own landscaping
business.
"Everything I did was business-
oriented :in one way or another,"
he remembers.
He's just completed his first
year towards a degree in business
at The Evergreen State College.
Ironically, breaking his leg in an
accident last summer, which left
him temporarily unable to contin-
ue landscaping, spurred him on to
enrolling in college. That's when
the better professional opportu-
nities available through a college
education began to really appeal
to him. Even before then, when all
he had was a business license, he
realized that running a company
without an education in the field
can be a nightmare.
"If you're going to go into busi-
ness, you have to do a lot of plan-
ning," he explains.
A CLOSE FRIEND encour-
aged Ben to attend college, so he
enrolled at Evergreen, a school
he had actually considered go-
ing to right after high school. In
fact his classmates in high school
voted him "most likely to become
a Greener.
Ben is the son of Tom Anderson
and Mary Duncan. His thther had
attended Evergreen in the 1990s
for job retraining and the college's
beautiful campus and liberal atmo-
sphere had always attracted Ben.
He appreciates how the school pro-
vides recycling bins all over cam-
pus and even collects food scraps
in the cafeteria tbr use as compost.
Being a strong advocate tbr recy-
cling and environmental preser-
vation, he had initially thought
about taking environmental stud-
ies at Evergreen.
When he started having trouble
with the heavy scientific empha-
sis in environmental studies, one
of his classmates suggested pur-
suing more business classes. He
did and just tll in love with the
program. Evergreen's business
offerings have expanded since he
began looking at the college a few
years ago and some of the new thc-
ulty in the department have really
impressed him. One professor did
his graduate studies at Stanford
University.
"To say 'business' at Evergreen
is just so trying-to-conform-to-so-
ciety," Ben points out in reference
to the college's open, flexible, well-
rounded approach to academics.
"You can take a program as seri-
ous as you want or as relaxed as
you want."
SO FAR, HIS classwork has
involved a page or two of writing,
200 pages of reading, and quizzes
each week, while students in other
classes haven't had any of these
assignments. One of his favorite
classes so far has been a program
course called the Ethical Entre-
preneur which explored non-gov-
ernmental organizations, market-
ing and business planning. Learfi-
ing about grassroots organizations
benefiting social causes with fl'ee
BEHIND THE front desk in the office of Mason County
Literacy is Ben Anderson, who is employed there through
work-study. He is currently studying business at The
Evergreen State College.
services and programs such as mi-
cro-loans intrigues him, too. He's
also taken an American studies
class anti pre-business, which in-
volved a lot of research tbllowed by
a mock presentation to investors.
Having the ability to stop by
a protbssor's office or call fac-
ulty directly is something he re-
ally values about Evergreen when
compared to larger universities
where professors are more aloof.
And while some of his friends are
in classrooms packed with more
than 500 students taught often by
graduate students, he hasn't had a
class with more than 20 students
per professor yet. Evergreen limits
class sizes to 23 students per pro-
fessor, he says.
"I like to be able to raise my
hand, ask questions," he says.
He is able to personally talk
with faculty on a first-name basis
and tutors are also readily avail-
able to provide academic assis-
tance. "That's the biggest thing
that I like about Evergreen," Ben
continues. "I don't have to just
wait in line. I'm not just another
number."
MOST OF THE professors
he's encountered on campus have
doctorate degrees and purposely
chose to work at Evergreen for
various reasons. Among them is
the fact that they have less pres-
sure to publish work and are more
encouraged to focus on teaching,
he says. He describes the profes-
sors he's met as: "Just absolutely
brilliant."
Eventually, Ben himself would
like to continue on to Evergreen's
graduate school and possibly earn
a master's degree in public admin-
istration or maybe environmental
studies as well.
Something else he learned was
the sense of community surround-
ing Evergreen: People at the col-
lege understand why he endorses
shopping locally and buying organ-
ic, environmentally friendly prod-
ucts. This supportive, community
feeling extends into Shelton and
it gives him the chance to get to
know store clerks, bus drivers and
people on the street. He even runs
into old high-school classmates.
Not only is Ben living in Shel-
ton, he's also very involved in two
community service organizations
based in the city: Mason County
Literacy and SOCK, Save Our
County's Kids. Since he qualified
for work-study in February, he
has been working as an adminis-
trative assistant and tutor in the
office of the literacy organization
in downtown Shelton.
RIGHT NOW HE'S working
lHllIIlllIlllllIlil[lllllll[iIlllllIlllllllll
Ma,,;om 6otu VFW Poxt 1634 awtd Eke, ,,,
Mrs. A{icJJe¢ter, reft M 'i Fi4[er I
• for to be., w;eg
Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
(25 + Years Experience)
General Dentistry
full service practice
Restorative care (Crowns, Bridges, Fillings)
Extractions • Full & Partial Dentures
Repairs * Relines
Most Insurances Accepted
S. Peters, DPD C. Ngo, DDS
Page 16 - Shetton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, August 23, 2007
on updating the Microsoft Access
database in the office, his goal be-
ing to have the tbrms and applica-
tions match. This will help the of-
fice more accurately keep track of
the status of participants. It will
also allow staff to simply print out
a list of participant addresses, in-
stead of writing them out by hand.
"I enjoy technology and making
things easier," Ben says.
He's also using technological
skills he learned through an eBay
course he took at Olympic College
to manage a direct-sales account
for Mason County Literacy. He
can research product values and
then sell in-kind donations to ben-
efit the organization. "That's just
fun, because I love on-line selling.
I love Craig's List," he says.
He has also come across a few
summer side jobs over Craig's List,
an on-line bargain site. Once the
school year begins again this fall,
Ben plans to keep working part
time in the office. Meanwhile, he's
also working part time for Save
Our County's Kids, a local youth
organization. Originally he had
wanted to help with the organiza-
tion's regular day programs, but
since this conflicted with his work
schedule, he's working on the Fri-
day Nights @ SOCK program.
He has experience working with
children at Camp Bishop during
the summer of 1997, followed by
jobs-lbr-youth programs with the
Shelton chapter of the Boys and
Girls Club in the summers of 1998
and 1999. "I enjoy
youth and I felt com
back to my community,
I was born and raised,"
plains.
NOW THAT HE'S in
20s, Ben qualifies t'or
cial aid which has paid his!
up to this point. Trying to t$
vantage of all of the oppo
open to him at the mome
also enrolled in Students
vice. This is a part-time P
of AmeriCorps for college
versity students to provide
in their communities. By
in 900 hours of service,
pants can earn a scholarS"
$2,362.50. '!
He spends quite a bit
at the college bike shop, w,lla ,
works on his own bike an
others work on theirs.
Aside from service contri 17.
for this scholarship progra
also looking into helping t0.][T,
a student-run cafe call|tEl$
Flaming Eggplant, whieiU
feature Earth-fl'iendly me !1
an
is already involved in i
launch a project called th a
for Entrepreneurship thr!!
business department. A
is now considering offering q[h
16-credit contract to help Pla, 1"
program. 4!
"That's where you can re
your concentrated area ofs'b 't'
Evergreen, where you write
own course with faculty's sUlP aq
Ben notes.
r-
Alpine Way is just the place! You live
our own private apartment with your .,,,
furniture and possessions around you. v]-
can come and go as you please and
involved with the residents and activities
Alpine as much as.you want- the choice 1
yours. If you need help, we have nurses
other staff on duty 24 hours a day.
R ETI R EM ENT APARTM ENTS,
ASSISTED LIVING AND
ALZHEIMER'S SPECIAL CARE
For a complete tour and complimentary 1 : ,:
O Beth Johnston, R.N., manager
(360) 426-2600
900 West Alpine Way • Sheltort