Stuart Allison, Watson Bartlett Professor of Biology & Conservation and director of Green Oaks, joined the Knox community 28 years ago. He has found Green Oaks to be an excellent laboratory for research and ideas, and an even better place to work with students. He sees the new Knight Living & Learning Center, which houses students who participate in Green Oaks Term, as the culmination of many years of dreaming and planning. It has provided the students and Allison with the perfect base from which to study, live, and grow at Green Oaks.
Welcome to the Knight Living and Learning Center.
Music Instruments
From its beginnings in 2002, the Green Oaks Term (GOT) has always included student musicians. Campfire sing-a-longs are a key part of the Green Oaks experience. The 2025 Oakies (GOT students) included even more musicians than usual and brought a large collection of instruments (including a sousaphone!) with them. I can’t imagine the GOT without music by the campfire.
Makeshift Bookshelf
A key part of the GOT experience is student exploration of the literature about nature and living in nature. We have a large collection of books that move from the Seymour Library to Green Oaks for every GOT. Our first year in the Knight Center was an experiment in how to live there. When we moved in, we didn’t have enough bookshelf space, so we stored the books in a cupboard.
Green Oaks Treasures
The Oakies are inveterate collectors. As they walk around Green Oaks they pick up interesting rocks, bones, pieces of old pottery, feathers, seeds, sticks, and anything else that catches their eyes, and bring them back to the Knight Center. The window ledges serve as excellent places to display their treasures.
Kitchen Table
The kitchen table is the heart of the Knight Center. Every night the Oakies gather for a communal meal and share stories about the events of the day. Breakfast and lunch are more informal, but throughout the day you can always f ind people gathered around the table, relaxing, regaling each other with stories, building a community.
White Board Location Tracker
If the kitchen is the heart of the Knight Center, the white board is the nerve center. One side has a calendar of scheduled activities and the other side has a place for each Oakie to write down where they are going and what they are doing if they leave the Knight Center. That way we always have a good idea of what everyone is up to.