Ever wonder what Saint Anselm College’s faculty members are doing during “summer vacation?” From Israel to Alberta, they are embarked upon projects and activities that fuel their academic interests and inspire their classroom teaching. They’re also checking a few things off their “bucket lists,” just for fun.

Here are a few of their projects

Mary Kate Donais (chemistry) joins David George (classics) and a team of Saint Anselm students on the college’s archaeological dig in Italy, where she analyzes the makeup of metallic artifacts from Etruscan and Roman times. Learn more about the dig on Digumbria.com.

Jay Pitocchelli (biology) is in the Rocky Mountains continuing his research on the MacGillivray’s Warbler. Learn more about Professor Pitocchelli's research on MacGillivray's and Mourning Warbler's blog.

Joseph Spoerl (philosophy) is a fellow in the Shusterman Summer institute for Israel Studies, expanding his knowledge of Israeli history and culture at Brandeis University and in Israel and the West Bank.

Beth Salerno (history) is writing the story of an antislavery activist born in Concord, N.H.

Gary Bouchard (English) will speak at a national conference of Benedictine colleges and universities, and teach a Substantially Catholic workshop for high school teachers in San Francisco.

David Guerra (physics), with former student Deana Del Vecchio ’13, is working on a computerized forest mapping project in the Saint Anselm physics lab.

Elizabeth Fouts (modern languages) is making whole grain pasta. (Not part of her academic curriculum, but she’s fulfilling a long-held dream of attending organic cooking school in Italy.)

Katherine Hoffman (fine arts) will make a trip to France to continue research on her latest book project, which focuses on two female French photographers who were influenced by Alfred Stieglitz.

As the spring sports season winds down, several Saint Anselm teams are advancing to postseason play, with several victories recorded over the weekend. Men's and women's lacrosse have clinched championship bids, as has the Hawks softball team.

Men’s Lax Earns NE-10 Championship Bid With 9-4 Victory Over Saint Rose

• Game recap, April 27

Junior Jake Mallinson registered a game-high four points, senior goalkeeper Jonathon O'Reilly stopped 16 shots and the offense closed out the game with eight unanswered goals to lift the Saint Anselm College men's lacrosse team past the College of Saint Rose, 9-4, Saturday afternoon at Grappone Stadium on Senior Day. The win clinches the Hawks' second straight Northeast-10 Championship berth.

The Hawks win for the third time in five contests to improve to 5-9 on the season, including 5-6 in Northeast-10 play, while the Golden Knights drop to 4-11, 4-7 NE-10. Saint Anselm has earned the sixth seed in next week's tournament and will hit the road to take on third-seeded Le Moyne College on Tuesday, April 30 at 1 p.m.

Seniors O'Reilly, James Brine, Daniel Sullivan, Ryan McQuaid and Kyle Murphy were all honored in a ceremony prior to the game.

Women’s Lax Clinches NE-10 Championship Berth with 18-6 Win at So. Conn.

• Game recap, April 26

Sophomore Marissa Daly tallied a game-high five points to lead the Saint Anselm College women's lacrosse team to an 18-6 victory against Southern Connecticut State University on Friday evening at Jess Dow Field that cemented its first Northeast-10 Championship berth since 2006.

The Hawks post their first double-digit win season in program history as they improve to 10-6 overall and 7-5 in Northeast-10 play. The Owls finish their season at 3-13, 1-11 NE-10. Saint Anselm, which has earned the sixth seed in next week's tournament, will make its fifth NE-10 Championship appearance and the first in seven years when it travels to take on third-seeded Stonehill College on Wednesday, May 1 at W.B. Mason Stadium. The Hawks will be looking for their first ever NE-10 Championship win.

These stories were originally posted to www.saintanselmhawks.com, the online home of Saint Anselm athletics. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking the Hawks on Facebook and following them on Twitter @STAHawks.

Softball Punches Ticket to NE-10 Championships with Stonehill Split

• Game recap, April 27

Nicole Boucher homered in her first at bat and Pattie Turner hit an RBI single in the fifth inning to help the Saint Anselm College softball team to a 3-2 win over Stonehill College on Saturday afternoon at the South Athletic Field. The Hawks dropped the first game of the doubleheader, 7-1.

With the split, Saint Anselm improves to 21-20 overall and 16-12 in the Northeast-10 conference, while the Skyhawks move to 24-23-1 overall and 16-11-1 in league play. After today's games, the Hawks have clinched the No. 3 seed in the Northeast Division and will play No. 4 Stonehill College in the opening round of the Northeast-10 Championship.

Dalton Pitches Softball Past Stonehill on Senior Day, 3-2

• Game recap, April 28

In her first start of the season, senior Shannon Dalton went six innings and did not allow an earned run as the Saint Anselm College softball team closed out its regular season with a 3-2 victory against Stonehill College on Sunday afternoon at South Athletic Field on Senior Day.

The Hawks improve to 22-20 on the season and wrap up their Northeast-10 slate at 17-12, including 14-7 in the Northeast Division. Stonehill drops to 24-24-1, 16-12-1 NE-10, 11-9-1 NE-10 NE. Third-seeded Saint Anselm will make its first Northeast-10 Championship appearance since 2008 when it plays host to No. 4 Stonehill in the first round Tuesday, April 30 at 3 p.m

Dalton and Lauren Galavotti were honored in a ceremony prior to the game.

While many are looking forward to this summer as time of relaxation and a break from academics, Dr. Katherine Bentz of the Fine Arts Department at Saint Anselm College is looking forward to the much anticipated season for an entirely different reason. From August 2013 through June 2014, Dr. Bentz will be in Florence, Italy as a Fellow of the Villa I Tatti, the Harvard University Center for Renaissance Studies.

The fellowship will support a sabbatical year focused on researching and writing for her book, The Cardinal's Garden: Patrons, Landscape, and Viewers in Sixteenth-Century Rome. Dr. Bentz will be one of fifteen Fellows at the Villa I Tatti in the upcoming year.

Dr. Bentz specializes in the painting, sculpture, and architecture of early modern Europe (15-17th centuries), and in Italian art and architecture in particular.

"At the heart of my research are questions about the ways in which works of art and architecture created meaning for those who viewed and experienced them. In other words, I ask why and how meaning is produced for viewers, rather than just what and where they viewed works of art," says Dr. Bentz.

As a Rush H. Kress Fellow, Dr. Bentz will be living in an apartment provided to her by the Villa I Tatti, which overlooks the beautiful city of Florence. She will attend workshops, colloquia, and seminars with an interdisciplinary group of scholars from all over the world who are interested in Italian Renaissance culture.

While at the Villa I Tatti, Dr. Bentz will focus primarily on researching and writing her book. "Such a fellowship provides a real gift–time to just sit, think and write,” said Dr. Bentz.

With an abundance of resources available “within walking distance," Dr. Bentz will visit various archives, libraries, and art museums in the Villa and around Florence to expand her research on the gardens built by Cardinals in Rome during the period of church reform in the later sixteenth century.

Dr. Bentz will examine the social motives behind the building of these gardens as well as the viewer's experience and reception of these spaces. In addition to all the work she will be conducting, she added, "I'm sure I'll also spend plenty of time enjoying great food!"

“It’s really a competitive fellowship, and it is just a great honor to be chosen,” said Dr. Bentz.

“In the field of Italian Renaissance art, culture, and history, the Villa I Tatti Fellowship is really one of the most prestigious postdoctoral fellowships available.”

Dr. Bentz is greatly looking forward to the unique opportunities that the fellowship will bring.

With a crowd of several hundred Anselmians gathered in the Carr Center, the sixth annual Sr. Pauline Lucier Relay for Life kicked off Friday evening. 774 participants on 50 teams had raised $45,422 by the time Peg Bourque, Associate Vice President of Finance/Asst Treasure of the Treasurer's Office led the first lap of a 13-hour marathon walk to honor cancer survivors and remember loved ones lost while raising money to help fuel the world's largest walk to end cancer.

A beloved member of the Saint Anselm College community, Sr. Pauline lost her battle with cancer shortly after being made aware that the college would name the Relay in her honor. This year's walk was the first with no current students having been fortunate enough to encounter Sr. Pauline Lucier, C.S.C. in her life's ministry. Father Mathias Durette, O.S.B. and Dean of Students Alicia Finn offered poignant remembrances and reflections to a captivated crowd as the walk commenced.

The event would conclude at 7 a.m. Saturday with the announcement that $56,672 had been raised, topping the goal of $55,000 set by an ambitious organizing committee chaired by Jimmy Doogan and Devon Langin, both of the class of 2013.

Groups of college service societies, sports teams, student clubs, faculty, staff and friends of the college joined in the procession after survivors completed their first lap around the Carr Center. Bourque, as grand marshal would lead more than twenty survivors including students family members, college administrators and faculty.

Later in the evening, a half hour of silent walking in a darkened Carr Center during Luminaria would serve as a poignant reminder of the wide reach of cancer across the Anselmian community as glowing bags ringed the track with names of loved ones affected by cancer.

In a new addition to the night's events, dozens of students would donate at least eight inches of their hair in a public ponytail clipping ceremony as part of the 'Pantene Beautiful Lengths' campaign to provide free real-hair wigs for those fighting cancer. One at a time, donors introduced themselves, and offered a person or reason for whom their donation was in honor of before a friend would clip between eight and 12 inches of hair for donation.

Throughout the night, walkers would continuously circle the track to celebrate, remember and fight back. Each hour, a service society would sponsor an event at the main stage, ranging from a talent show to a dance-off. In what is becoming an Anselmian tradition, walkers rushed to the open floor to "wobble" as the eponymous song blasted through speakers around midnight.

Event Photos

MOBILE USERS: Click here to view the 2013 Relay photo gallery.

For many Anselmians, spring break is not an escape to a tropical beach or a retreat at home to recharge after a busy start to the winter semester. Although our students may not be preoccupied with classes and day-to-day routines, this week has offered many an opportunity to delve into service, visit Panama on a study-tour program, present at conferences and put athletic talents on display. In case you've missed anything, we've compiled a roundup, and offered links to the numerous blogs and stories that have caught our attention this week.

Service & Solidarity

For the 23rd year in a row, 102 Saint Anselm students are spending their spring break on volunteer service trips to nine sites across the United States as part of Saint Anselm College's Service and Solidarity Missions program.

Beginning Friday, March 1, students left campus for Detroit, Mich., Houston, Texas, Orland, Maine, Manchester, N.H., Ridgley, Md., Aberdeen, Miss., Philadelphia, Penn., Vanceburg, Ky., and Phoenix, Ariz. Each group is staying with a different organization, spending their time in service and solidarity with those less fortunate. Students are repairing homes, serving food, painting and cleaning, and doing whatever is necessary to support their site.

Our Michigan contingent caught the attention of the Port Huron, MI newspaper, The Times Herald on Monday with an article – "Spring break fixups; College kids lend a hand to Habitat" – and video highlighting the efforts of the group at the Croswell home of a local veteran.

In Philadelphia, our students spent a day with Saint Anselm alum, Dan McVay '96 who shared the following reflection.

"I worked with the Philly group today at Temple Hospital. They participated in a program called Cradle to Grave which brings young people into the depths of the hospital to learn the realities of gun violence. It was an emotional day for all the participants as they heard about young people who had lost their lives in Philadelphia and from the parents of some of these victims. They also met a young lady who survived her gun shot wound but was confined to a wheelchair, having lost her right leg and had limited use of her hands. The tour ended when we came up to the trauma bay shortly after a gun shot victim had been brought into the ER. The victim had been shot multiple times in the East Falls section of the city and died while the group was in the hospital."

Throughout the week, participants learn about Catholic social teaching while also living and working with those most in need. Each trip is lead by two Saint Anselm students. The groups return to campus at the end of spring break, on Saturday, March 9.

BLOG: Participants are submitting posts to the Service & Solidarity blog, and using #SACSBA on Twitter to share their experiences. Visit the blog to share in their experience.

READ MORE: "Students Spend Spring Break In Service."

"Discovering Business Abroad"

Fourteen Saint Anselm students are studying Panama's economy and culture first-hand during a weeklong study-tour as part of the spring semester business course, Discovering Business Abroad: Developing Markets. The group is traveling Feb. 28 to March 10 accompanied by adjunct economics and business professor Marieke Martin. Throughout the week, students are examining the political and economic dynamics of Panama, coupling a semester of classroom learning with on the ground, real-world experience

The trip itinerary includes a variety of cultural and business experiences with a heavy focus on company visits and international commerce. During their 10-day tour, they explore the Panama Canal, Panama's stock exchange and national bank, and a coffee plantation and production facility, as well as visit companies including Autoridad Maritima (Panama's coast guard), Bern Hotels and Resorts (real estate company), and El Rey Supermarket.

BLOG: Lauren Martin '14 is submitting blog posts to the Study Abroad blog from Panama. Follow along at blogs.anselm.edu/studyabroad

READ MORE: "Students Study International Business in Panama."

Psychology Majors Present at Eastern Conference

Fourteen Saint Anselm psychology students and one recent graduate have been selected to present their research at the Eastern Psychological Association (EPA) Conference in New York City March 1-4. The students, along with four faculty members, will spend four days at the conference with scholars from other colleges along the east coast.

Selection is very competitive, according to Professor Elizabeth Ossoff, Ph.D., chair of the psychology department. Each student submits a short and long abstract regarding an experimental study with significant findings.

This year, approximately 28% of the graduating psychology department seniors will be presenting in the conference. This means that one out of four of the psychology seniors are producing work which has been peer-reviewed alongside faculty and graduate student submissions. Professors Maria McKenna, Loretta Brady, Paul Finn, Kathleen Flannery, and Elizabeth Ossoff have helped students with their research throughout the year.

READ MORE: "Psychology Majors Take the Stage at Eastern Conference."

Athletics

Men's Basketball

Sophomore Roy Mabrey scored a team-high 15 points to lead four Hawks in double figures, but the ninth-ranked and top-seeded Saint Anselm College men's basketball team was knocked off by fourth-seeded Franklin Pierce University, 71-68, in a Northeast-10 Championship semifinal Wednesday evening at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium. The Hawks, who lose for just the second time in their last 13 games – with both losses now coming against Franklin Pierce – drop to 23-5 on the season and miss out on their 11^th title game appearance.

SAINT ANSELM ATHLETICS: "#9 Men’s Basketball Toppled By Franklin Pierce, 71-68, In NE-10 Semifinal."

The Hawks will now wait for the NCAA Tournament Selection Show to see where they will be seeded in the East Regional, which gets underway Saturday, March 16. The Selection Show takes place Sunday, March 10 at 10:30 p.m.

Men's & Women's Skiing

Saint Anselm skiers are spending their break in Sun Valley, Idaho, as both the men's and women's team has qualified to take part in the USCSA National Championships.

The men's skiing team ended their participation in the USCSA Regional Championships with a pair of fifth places finishes. With their performance, the team qualified for nationals for the first time in men's skiing program history at Saint Anselm. The women's team qualified for the USCSA Nationals for the second time in the programs history.

The Hawks' women combined for a fifth place finish out of eighteen teams who competed in the giant slalom competition.

• Caitlin Forbes 8
• Monica Redente 12

The men secured a sixth place finish out of nineteen competing teams in the GS.

• Ben Roy 18
• Eric Brandolini 22
• Justin Redente 23

The women's slalom concluded Thursday with Forbes placing 3rd and Redente securing 11th. The team combined for fifth place in the slalom. The men's team skied to a 14th place finish on the slalom course.

SAINT ANSELM ATHLETICS: Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department at saintanselmhawks.com

Spring Teams Compete

Sophomore Mike Hayden went 3-for-6 and drove in four runs, while senior James Farrington allowed just one run over seven innings, to lead the Saint Anselm College baseball team to its first win of the season, 13-5, against Assumption College in the opener of its spring break trip to Florida at Rollins College's Alfond Stadium.

The Saint Anselm College golf team traveled to Thistle Golf Club in Sunset Beach, N.C. to take place in the Thistle Shootout against Providence College on Monday, March 4 and Tuesday, March 5 during spring break.

Hawks softball opened its season on a spring break trip to Clermont, Fla.

Men's lacrosse opened the season at home on the turf at Grappone Stadium, while women's lacrosse traveled to New York for a pair of games in the Empire State.

Mike Richard set the tone with an early goal and was named the Championship Most Valuable Player as the top-seeded Saint Anselm College men's ice hockey team captured its fourth straight Northeast-10 Championship with a 5-2 win against second-seeded Franklin Pierce University on Saturday afternoon at Thomas F. Sullivan Arena.

The Hawks won their fourth consecutive conference title for the first time in program history, wrapping up their season at 16-8-3.

The Hawks jumped out to a 1-0 lead 4:56 into the contest when Tim King slid a quick pass from the far side of the right circle to the slot for Richard, who let go of a wrister that beat Franklin Pierce goaltender Dave O'Brien gloveside. Evan Gogonis also earned an assist on the play.

Men's hockey captains (L-R) Tucker Mullin, Tim King and Greg Crovo with Saint Anselm Athletics Team IMPACT teammate Benjamin Roy accept the NE-10 trophy.

Saint Anselm doubled its lead at the 10:25 mark of the opening period as Joe Tebano skated into the zone and sent a shot from the top of the left circle that deflected off a defender's stick and wobbled under the glove arm of O'Brien.

Franklin Pierce put one in the net with 7:43 remaining in the first after Matt Lopes dropped the puck back at the near side of the right circle for Matt Batis, whose hard wrister beat Saint Anselm goaltender Nick Dries to make it 2-1. Kyle Craig was also credited with an assist on the play.

Johnny Daniels nearly gave the Hawks their two-goal lead back with 44.7 seconds left in the period on a wrister from the left circle, but O'Brien made a sprawling glove save to his left to deny the attempt.

The Hawks wound up pushing their lead to 3-1 3:07 into the second period when Greg Merrill ripped a shot from the middle of the slot that found the back of the net after a feed from the right endline by John Hyslip.

Saint Anselm extended its advantage to 4-1 at the 12:16 mark of the middle stanza after Bryan Luther cleaned up a loose puck following a flurry of activity in front of the Franklin Pierce net. After a pair of shots from Alex Pascal and Tebano were stopped by O'Brien, Luther came in at the right doorstep and jammed the puck in past the diving goaltender.

The Ravens trimmed their deficit to 4-2 at the 8:23 mark of the third period when Anthony Chighiso's pass from the right endline was quickly swept in past Dries on the doorstep by Michael Carr. Roscoe Sweeney also picked up an assist on the sequence.

The Hawks all but iced it with 5:16 to go when a one-timer from the slot by Bryan Sullivan found the top right corner of the net after a pretty feed from the left endline by Eric Czapka.

Gogonis and Merrill also joined Richard on the All-Championship Team.

Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).

Dries wrapped up his season at 10-2-0 overall after making 19 saves, including 10 in the second period. O'Brien stopped 41 shots, including 19 in the middle stanza.

Saint Anselm held a 46-21 advantage in shots, including 21-10 in the second. The Hawks' penalty kill also held the Ravens to just 1-for-9 on the power play.

This marked the final game for seniors Tucker Mullin, Tyler Savage, Andrew Kacz, Richard, King, Gogonis, Hyslip and Luther.