Last week, Keene State College hosted it’s Eighth Biennial Symposium, focusing on the concept of “Evolving Commons,” although many students did not understand the purpose behind these conferences or what a commons even represented.
According to the KSC website, “Finding Your Place in the Evolving Commons is about understanding, locating and taking responsibility for our places in the public spaces we set aside for the care and cultivation of the resources, public and private, that we share in partnership with others. The commons refers to this space, recognizing that its reality is often rooted in but not limited to physical locality and literal presence.”
Therefore, throughout the week, students were able to write on a chalkboard outside the Media Arts Center geared toward the event while answering the question, “What do we owe each other?” A few responses were highly inappropriate and reflected poorly on the students’ knowledge of the events. Once again, our reputation has been questioned. One side of the chalkboard read, “I love meth.” How can we regain our good reputation when such a comment greeted all who stepped foot on the college campus, especially when the concept of a commons includes every one of us as students, faculty and guests?
Brittany Murphy / Opinions Editor: The sign in front of the Media Arts Center, where students answer the question “What do we owe each other?” in chalk responses.
Many important and influential people attended and presented during the symposium. The first event included keynote speaker, Deputy Superintendent Colm Lydon of the City of Boston Police Department. Few people attended and nearly none of them were students. The Equinox finds that this contradicts the Boston pride reaction shown last April over the marathon bombing and last week over a baseball game.
While many students were at fault for the low turnout, we agree that the events could have been better promoted through classes and on campus. We should all be aware of what is happening on the KSC campus, especially since the planning for the week of symposium conferences started two years ago.
More importantly, the college spent a great deal of money planning and executing each conference activity. Students are paying the bill here, however many are not taking advantage of what the college is offering them. Planned events should be more successful with the students on campus.
Participation is the key in spreading the knowledge from these events. Themes such as the conflict in Syria to the New Hampshire Death Penalty to an Ethiopian Music Workshop all tied back to the main purpose of understanding and taking responsibility for our places and ideas.
The message behind The Evolving Commons needs to be heard. As a KSC commons—a space we all gather—we have the responsibility to talk about these issues and ideas that concern us. Although it may be easier to ignore, it is crucial to start understanding the world that exists in front of us.
Above all, college-aged students hold a great deal of strength in stating what we believe is right and wrong. Our voices need to be heard, but first we must begin discussing ideas with those around us. The overall purpose of the symposium was to find our place in the evolving commons.
Just as this campus evolves, we must evolve. This evolvement starts with changing our reputation, and then we need to share, create and explore these resources that the college has given us.