By Garrick Hoffman
Liberal Arts Major
When SMCC President Ron Cantor announced what was dubbed the “Community Cafe,” students, faculty and staff alike immediately acknowledged that this was a unique opportunity and input on the state of SMCC and its future.for them to share their insights, criticisms,
“ The Community Café is a gathering of friends & colleagues– students, faculty, staff and dedicated community members talking about student success,” Cantor said. “Imagine the entire college community in productive conversation, free from distraction. We are talking about creating SMCC’s future. …While a few things might be beyond our control, it’s up to us to shape SMCC’s next three years. We will think outside the box. There are no sacred cows. NO bad ideas…just us building on 68 years of success in ways that rise to the challenges of the next three.”
On Friday, February 13, the Community Café took place, with almost every seat being filled inside the HUB gymnasium. Over a hundred individuals attended, and the atmosphere of the room was both spirited and lively. Each table sat four different individuals in their respective roles: student, faculty staff, and community member.
The event was structured in such a way that resembled a round-robin: each group conversed at their table for a half hour, after which three of the attendees would disperse and “cross-pollinate” to other tables to form new groups. Each individual at the table was empowered to contribute to a discussion, ultimately in an attempt to answer two principal questions: “What does student engagement look like to you?” and, “Given your current role at SMCC (student, faculty, staff, community member), how do you feel you can contribute to student success?”
The responses were placed on small and large sticky notes, with the small notes placed in a “Suggestions” envelope and the large notes placed on blank, elongated banners posted on the gym bleachers for everyone to view. Upon completion of the five table discussions (including an introduction and two rounds for both of the questions), the attendees were given the opportunity to stand up and speak about their experience that day.
In a response to the event, President Cantor remarked, “Wow! What a wonderful, important day for SMCC. Congratulations and thank you for being such an important part of it all. While this afternoon’s Community Café is still fresh in our minds I would appreciate any feedback or insights you might share. In keeping with our guidelines, let’s continue to be open and honest.”
The Community Café proved to be a constructive and significant day for SMCC, allowing all the demographics to attend a day-long discussion for SMCC and its future. As President Cantor stresses, we need pragmatic solutions, and in interest of fairness, transparency, and empowerment, we need these solutions and insights from the bottom up rather than from the top down. The Community Café gave us that opportunity.