The Burlington City and Lake Semester is an immersive, place-based program for high school students in Burlington, Vermont. The program is a partnership between the Burlington School District and Shelburne Farms, with staff drawn from both organizations.

Our Team

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Dov Stucker is a co-founder and Lead Teacher of BCL. He taught Social Studies at BHS from 2011-2021, including School Innovation Seminar, a course that engaged students in the complex work of school redesign. Before returning to the classroom, Dov worked for nine years coordinating community-based learning and service-learning projects in Burlington and the French West Indies. He and his family spent the Fall of 2023 six hours east of here, somewhere between Amsterdam and Lesotho.

• Favorite Food: Anything with a flaky crust
• Current Playlist: Citizen Deep, Anaïs Mitchell, Willie Nelson, Balmorhea, Cocteau Twins
• Craziest Roadtrip: Bandiagara to Djenné, Mali
• Best of Burlington: Birdwatching at dawn

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Christie Beveridge is BCL’s Place-Based Learning Coordinator. She has been an educator since 2001, when she taught English and lead outdoor excursions at the White Mountain School in Bethlehem, New Hampshire. Since then, she has taught literature and writing at the middle, high school, and community college level in California, Massachusetts, and Vermont. In all of her teaching roles, she prioritizes student-led discussions, critical thinking, and place-based, experiential learning. When not working with students, she enjoys running, yoga, reading, seeing live music, and skiing of all kinds. She lives in the South End with her hound mix, Sir Toby. 

• Favorite place she has traveled to: Selkirk Mountains in British Columbia  
• Current book she can’t stop recommending: God of the Woods by Liz Moore 
• Current favorite podcasts: 60 Songs that Explain the 90s, Vibe Check, Offline 
• Best of Burlington: The Vermont City Marathon in May! It’s always such a fun and inspiring day, when the whole city emerges from winter hibernation to take part and cheer runners on. 

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Cate MacDonald is BCL’s Place-Based Education Fellow. She recently graduated from the University of Vermont, where she studied Geography, Global Studies, and Food Systems—lenses of understanding the world that shape her approach to teaching. Cate has taught leadership development, outdoor education, and about food systems in a variety of outdoor settings, from mountain ranges across the U.S. to local Vermont farms. She has also worked in city planning in Burlington and is passionate about advocating for clean, accessible transportation and food access. When she’s not working with students, Cate can be found running, biking, and swimming across Vermont.

• Favorite place she has traveled to: Volcán Acatenango, Guatemala
• Fun fact: Cate is a Wilderness First Responder
• What she’s listening to: Florence + the Machine, Lauryn Hill, Bleachers, Jon Batiste
• Best of Burlington: The Waterfront bike path and seeking out live music
  

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