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UVM Junior Chosen For Beinecke Graduate Fellowship

photo provided Strolling in the summer sun at the Breadloaf Campus of Middlebury College, Alexandria Hall mixes her love of words, art, music and brings them together for an exciting future

Tuesday May 20, 2014

By Cookie Steponaitis

University of Vermont junior and poet Alexandria Hall was recently awarded a 2014 Beinecke Scholarship which is one of the most competitive and prestigious graduate fellowships in the United States.  Alex was selected for her promise in humanities, fine arts and social sciences and is one of only twenty Beinecke fellows nationwide and earned $34,000 in funding to pursue her graduate studies. Hall is planning on applying for a Fulbright English teaching assistant in Austria or Germany after graduating next year and is well on her way to pursuing her plan for a MDA and PhD.       
The passion for reading, music and writing songs and poetry began at a young age for Alex. “It never seemed a question,” stated Alex Hall. “I just kind of always knew that was what I wanted to do.” For Hall the words artist and poet are as unique as the individual and the passion for the aesthetic qualities of language as well as a desire to express and communicate something. Central to her success is not only an internal drive to succeed but a year she spent in Ecuador learning Spanish and making connections with her perceptions around words and their distinct connotations, sounds and textures. Hall is a musician and songwriter as well and not only took a year off from college to tour the country but also performed her own electro-pop solos under the name of Toothache. Recently releasing a music video ‘Matador’ Hall admits that while music will not be her main focus for the immediate future she will never stop because it is simply a part of who she is.
    Hall was lauded by her UVM professor Huck Ben Gutman in a letter of support for the Beinecke Award. “She takes charge of, and responsibility for, her education and she pushes herself to deeper knowledge and ever-greater understanding.” Alex shared with the Voice that it is more than just being stubborn and disciplined. “I meant it more in the way of marching to the beat of my own drum; in that way I'm stubborn but I don't see myself as naturally disciplined. I admire and strive toward discipline because my daily life is actually pretty chaotic and in order to tackle even the smallest to-do list I have to put a lot of effort into staying organized and on-track. I think really great writing can come out of any condition but I find that personally I'm most satisfied with my art when I am most disciplined. I also think that writing requires a lot of flexibility and openness to feedback in order to learn and grow. There should be a balance.”
    While looking back at her own life and early education VUHS graduate and Addison County resident Hall points to her grandfather, her third grade teacher and a high school English teacher for encouraging her to pursue her own path. Speaking to teenagers today she shared, “Don’t be afraid to ask for help and take no prisoners. Determination is the key.”     While Hall also shared she finds time to waste watching videos of cute sloths and puppies on line, her future is not only taking off in a myriad of directions but like the artist she is Hall feels that pursing dreams in the way you see fit and not worrying about keeping up with conventional is a path best traveled. The Valley Voice congratulates Alexandria Hall and wishes her a future where her passions, command of the written word and love of language the world over continues to grow and offer us glimpses into the poet she is now and like one of her idols Henry David Thoreau, she continues to walk the path, “however measured or far away, following a different drummer.”

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