One of the wonderful aspects of Vassar is its location—and not just because it's only 1.5 hours away from New York City. The Hudson Valley, designated a National Heritage Area by Congress in 1966, is full of historic and cultural attractions.
One of my favorites in the the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, on the same grounds as the FDR Museum and the president's former home. The Roosevelt estate is only 20 minutes from Vassar, and well worth the trip. Students will love the immaculately kept gardens and the spacious picnic grounds; history buffs will love just about everything else. You can read my full review of the estate on The Miscellany News Guide to Poughkeepsie.
Recently, the Museum opened its exhibit entitled, "Action and Action Now: FDR’s First 100 Days." The exhibit is fantastic, and details the foundations of the New Deal. Many analogies have been made between the nation inherited by FDR in the throes of the Great Depression and the nation that Barack Obama is about to inherit, struggling with a global financial crisis. Though this exhibit in Hyde Park doesn't draw the comparison directly, it certainly poses the question implicitly: is our situation today so different from the one faced 80 years ago? This question has recently been posed by many scholars and political pundits.
The exhibit has been generating rave reviews, and rightfully so. Go check it out the FDR estate when you visit Vassar!
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