Student Profile: Ben King
With a double major in political science and environmental studies at Alma College, Cheboygan junior Ben King could teach the Lorax a thing or two.
“I really enjoy learning about the interactions between mankind and the environment,” he says. “While advocacy and environmental altruism greatly benefit the environment, I feel that laws are ultimately what offer the greatest protection. You can often find me reading legal cases and writing about them.”
After Alma, King hopes to attend law school and study environmental law. Until then, he says he stays busy exploring his Alma environment and enjoying the small size of it.
“I like seeing a face that I recognize every time I turn the corner,” he says. “Because Alma is such a small community, I am still able to get outside and experience nature in a way similar to when I am at home. There are very few places I am happier to be at than the Fred Meijer Trail, cruising on my bicycle through the woods and fields of corn.”
Rivaling for King’s happiness is his involvement in many student organizations, including Students in Free Enterprise, the Multicultural Student Union, the College Democrats, and the Jazz Band. Among his other favorite activities are his on-campus jobs working in the library and writing for the Almanian, he says.
“My dad is a librarian, so working in the library has always felt like a natural fit,” he says. “And writing for the paper since my freshman year has always given me the inside scoop on happenings here in Alma. Through interviews and articles I have written, it has also allowed me to get know faculty, staff and students that I would normally not get the chance to.”
