Conway alum Anne Capra Madocks (class of 2000) has joined Conway’s faculty for the Winter Term as the Distinguished Planning Teaching Fellow working with students on their studio projects.
This past fall Anne left her job as a land use and environmental planner with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission to pursue life on the farm: Wyoming Valley Farm in neighboring Ashfield. Seeking a new adventure, Anne’s husband John purchased the long abandoned farm in 2011. Making the move to Ashfield and breathing new life into the old farm was a dream come true for Anne, who was an organic farmer prior to enrolling at Conway. After much hard work, the fields have been reclaimed and the barns restored and solidly supported for the next few decades. Preparations are underway to raise grass fed beef cattle along with a few pigs, chickens and honeybees. The vegetable garden has been laid out and the first crop of garlic planted. Her family is also actively managing ninety acres of forest for both timber and wildlife habitat.
The seasonal farming lifestyle allowed Anne to come back to Conway as a teacher. She will bring a planner’s eye to the students’ winter term projects, which are the largest-scale of the year, completed in groups of 2-3. The six projects Anne will advise include:
- A food security plan for Springfield, MA
- A greenspace and greenway plan for a former parking lot in Keene, NH
- A “green streets” guidebook for Holyoke, MA
- A “placemaking ideabook” for the Innovation District of Holyoke, MA
- A regional rail trail plan in southern Connecticut
- An Open Space and Recreation Plan update for Leicester, MA
Anne is excited to work and learn alongside the Class of 2014!