Home to 562 students, Wonnacott is, officially, “your first home base, a neighborhood within the larger “city” of Middlebury College”. But no way is Wonnacott just your typical neighborhood of students who happen to live next to each other. Wonnacott is a commons full of great and diverse characters and personalities, full of heart and soul and noble dreams and aspirations. Wonnacott’s mantra is a
down to earth spirit of camaraderie and friendship, full of kindness, caring, hardwork, and laidback fun. Good food is a big part of Wonnacott life, from the weekly fondue Fridays and homemade Sunday/Wednesday Snacks nights, to the homemade cookies Brenda brings to the office every day for Wonnnacotters to enjoy, to Wonnacott family style dinners in Atwater Dining Hall, to Wonnacott volunteer Community Suppers/Charter House dinners, to the annual gingerbread-house-making party, to food-centered excursions such as apple picking and touring a maple sugaring operation. If you’re lucky enough to be a Wonnacotter, then you know what a great group of people make up our community. Wonnacotters begin their Middlebury career living in the South and 1st/3rd floor Center sections of Battell Hall, the largest, coolest, awesomest, happiest, most fun first year dorm (Battell is shared with Cook Commons, who are in the North and 2nd floor Center sections). Yes, the rooms are all doubles and smaller than any other dorm on campus, and yes, Battell has worn out rugs, chipped paint, and walls as thin as paper, but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger – and high density living has its upside, a strong community and always something going on in the hallways and lounges. There are four common-use kitchens in the dorm (3 of which are on the Wonnacott side) and the basement has two study areas, a TV lounge with bean bags, and large game room/lounge with a piano and ping pong table. A frequent regret from graduating seniors who didn’t live in Battell their freshman year is that they never had “the Battell experience” – living in tight quarters but being surrounded by so many potential friendships and so much energy. Battell is a dorm you just have to embrace – love it for what it is, and be proud of living there. If Wonnacotters aren’t as pampered freshman year in Battell compared to other commons’ first year dorms, sophomore year more than makes up for it. Gifford Hall, centrally located next to Mead Chapel and right across from Proctor Dining Hall, is Wonnacott’s sophomore dorm and is a terrific living experience. About half of the rooms are in 4-person suites with a kitchen and a bathroom, that Wonnacotters can apply into as groups at the end of their first year. Most of the other rooms are singles, with a few doubles as well. There is a small TV lounge on every floor, as well as a communal kitchen on the 2nd and 4th floors. There is also a very large lounge on the 2nd floor, called the Gifford Annex, with a piano, ping pong table, and many comfortable chairs and couches. The basement is home to a full communal kitchen, a study area, and a lounge with a small home theater setup. Gifford Basement is also home to the popular Gamut Room, a student-run café open most nights, a great place to grab a bite to eat. With the 4/2 system, after sophomore year Wonnacotters can elect to live in any upperclassmen dorm, regardless of its commons affiliation. The upperclassmen dorms affiliated with Wonnacott however are Painter, Starr, The Mill, 637 College Street, Homer Harris, Turner House, the Japanese House, the Q***r Studies House, and 33 Adirondack.
