Workshop Reflections

Friday's workshop was a good start towards opening up a campus discussion about class and class issues. It was interesting to hear from some of the more established administrators in one of my discussion groups about how Bryn Mawr used to be. I knew from the other day that class used to be very apparent on campus, but hearing it about it from someone who was involved in distributing the list of students on financial aid enhanced my awareness. I am very appreciative of the changes around campus. It is possible to argue that the changes make discussions about class taboo and uncomfortable and that it does no good to sweep these topics under the rug. I am of the opinion, however, that there is a difference between openly discussing class and announcing a student's financial situation. It is possible to have the free-flowing and inclusive discourse without the extremes, and workshops such as this are how to achieve that balance. The next step is to augment the group in the workshop and to include some experiential activities, not just a few brave souls commenting and discussing with the rest of the group watching.