|
President Carol T. Christ is holding small-group
conversations with students, faculty and staff about positioning Smith most successfully
for the future. Here's a summary of one of the discussions.
President Christ opened the tea with an introduction
to the strategic planning process. She explained the numerous outcomes of the last
such process, which included the Campus Center, the Olin Fitness Center, the Kahn
Institute, the Poetry Center, the Brown Fine Arts Center, the Picker Engineering
Program, and Praxis, among others. She explained that it is time to begin the process
again, and delineated some core questions to explore:
The president further explained that, through similar
conversations with alumnae, some strengths identified included the arts, the sciences
and engineering, international study, and a commitment to environmental science and
sustainability. She also said that, through these conversations, key capacities have
emerged, including writing, public speaking, and quantitative reasoning, the ability
to analyze data, and feel at ease with numbers. An additional theme emerging in alumnae
conversations is civil discourse; students should develop the capacity to present
a point of view with confidence and be able to talk about complex and controversial
issues.
President Christ then opened up the conversation to students.
The first topic that emerged was expanding study abroad options for engineering students.
Study abroad is often difficult for engineering and science majors because of the
demands of their coursework. The president responded that the college is currently
exploring programs in India and Europe. She affirmed that engineering is an international
discipline and the college recognizes that students need to develop cultural capacity.
The
topic then switched to juniors who stay at Smith rather than go abroad. Responding
to a student’s observation that there is some stigma attached to choosing to
stay on campus, the president explained that Dean of the College Maureen Mahoney has
created a Junior Year Task Force to look at this very issue. She asked students to
suggest ways to make junior year on campus a more meaningful experience; responses
included special individual projects and faculty/student opportunities just for juniors.
President Christ noted that research opportunities and capstone projects for seniors
have come up in conversations with alumnae and faculty, and that alumnae have indicated
that preparation for the workplace needs to begin in the junior year. She asked students
what they thought of capstone projects. Many students responded favorably. An engineering
student felt the Design Clinic, the capstone experience in that major, was fantastic.
Another felt it would be good preparation for graduate school. Another asked if it
would eliminate the senior thesis. The president indicated she didn’t think
so, but that this is an idea that is very preliminary in its form and many questions
like that need to be explored.
The conversation returned to the topic of study abroad.
A student thought that non-academic opportunities abroad would be helpful, and a good
alternative to a semester or year away. Another student added that many classes used
to have opportunities to go abroad over Interterm as part of the course, but those
opportunities have declined. The president mentioned that she observed Mount Holyoke
students teaching a women’s
leadership course during a recent trip to a conference in Dubai. She felt this was
an excellent opportunity for students.
A student asked President Christ why there are
so few Smith JYA programs. The president responded that there is no plan to create
new programs, though the idea of forming consortia programs is being explored. Observing
that many excellent ideas about JYA had been raised, a student asked whether the college’s
budget could allow them to be explored. The president explained that Smith has very
solid resources but still must face hard choices. She added that the current planning
process is designed to establish the priorities; fundraising will follow to fund those
initiatives. She added that the greatest impact on budgets for the study abroad programs
has come from the weakened dollar.
The conversation then shifted to housing. One student
felt that a religious house would be good. She felt that students who are religious
can feel isolated, and don’t
have a lot of community. The president asked the group generally for their reactions
to themed housing. Several students thought this was a great idea. One mentioned that
with the dining reconfiguration some houses struggle to foster a sense of community.
Apartments, co-ops, suites and theme houses might help to address this issue. Another
said she would love to live in a Spanish language house.
Another prominent topic was
academic opportunities and majors. A student voiced support for an international relations
major and a Middle Eastern studies major. Another student suggested that sign language
should be added to the language department offerings. Another urged “balance” in teaching subjects such as history. She believed
that “standard history” is lost in the trend towards the “new world.” She
felt that a whole generation may miss out on some aspects, including European history.
Another student suggested that students should be able to make course recommendations
and that if there is enough interest, the topic should be taught.
The president then
turned the conversation to a topic that has come up frequently in her conversations
with alumnae: work-life balance, and the management of multiple commitments in one’s life. She asked the students whether these were issues
of concern to them. One student indicated that she always thought she’d “climb
the career ladder” but is now more inclined to seek a career that will allow
her to have more flexibility with her time. President Christ told the group that the
college has been given a donation to fund “Women’s Narratives of Success,” a
program designed to allow students and alumnae to explore these issues. Many students
expressed strong support for such an initiative.
Other topics were raised briefly as
well, including merit-based scholarships for current students; an annual Five College
dance on campus; greater composting of food waste, and conversion of waste food into
fuel.
In closing the program President Christ thanked the students
for their time and valuable feedback.
|
