[Alumni-chat] Re: Student trustees

[Laura Fathauer]

--- Sistersara at aol.com wrote:

> a lot of stuff that has been removed in the reply

I continued thinking about your response on the way in to work
this morning, since I was mildly shocked that an Antioch Grad
would have such a position in regards to the Antioch Governance
structure. Isn't the Antioch College education all about the
tri-partite model? Isn't one of the pillars of that model active
participation in community? Are the trustees not stakeholders in
the community?

I realize that Antioch College has recently emphasized the other
two 'pillars' of co-op and classroom education. Antioch College
was a leader in co-op, but as recent NYTimes articles indicate,
other institutions have adopted such programs.

What still sets Antioch College out from those other programs?
Its no longer simply the fact that we have co-op; these days its
our unique blend of Co-op with a liberal arts eduction, AND with
active community participation.

I think Antioch College could again be ground-breaking in an
educational field- this time in integrating more fully the
community participation component into the education. 

While its been said that the Antioch University governance
structure has paralleled whats happening in the country, there
are other things in this country that have happened that haven't
been so dismal. If you look at construction, we seem to be
moving more towards community-based development. Shopping malls
used to be built with very few benches and clocks, designed to
get people into the stores and keep them from congregating in
the hallways. Now 'town center' type commercial areas are being
developed, with central squares, seating, and reasons to bring
people to the area for more then just shopping. Some developers
also look to integrate business with residential and commercial,
instead of 'districts' that only serve a single need. Local
communities as well seem to be standing up to city hall and
developers.

I'm very specific when I mention the pillars of an Antioch
COLLEGE education. From what I know of the satellite campuses,
their primary model is classroom education for people currently
in the workforce. I don't know how much active community
participation goes on at the satellite campuses. I think a case
could be made that anyone wishing to use the name "Antioch" for
their educational program would have to petition to show how
their program satisfies the ideals of the tri-partite Antioch
College education. Call it our own mini-internal-accreditation.
:)

Cheers
-laura




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