'Engaged' students examine urban problems
Kay Holstien (l.) and Corrie Mixon edit a documentary on homelessness in the city of Richmond for their urban crisis class. BY JOAN TUPPONCE
Kay Holstien, ’08, wears her “We came to Richmond to get engaged” T-shirt with pride. As a resident of the Civic Engagement House in fall 2006, Holstien submitted the catchy slogan to her housemates when they decided to create a house T-shirt.
“We had put in a ton of effort on our projects, and we bonded a lot, so we felt like a T-shirt would give us a way to show that,” Holstien explains. “I really liked the fact that it emphasizes that we came to U of R to be involved in our community on campus and in the community surrounding us in the city of Richmond.”
The Civic Engagement House is a living and learning program that fosters interaction between students and the community. Students—sophomores, juniors and seniors—who live in the Atlantic House (the program will relocate to Lakeview in the fall) participate in a variety of activities that teach them about the Richmond community and social issues that are prevalent in all communities.
The majority of students in Civic Engagement House also take Dr. Amy Howard’s “Urban Crisis in Modern America” history class. Howard also is director of the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement. “The students who live in the house get to bond as a community,” Howard says. “You get deeper into the issues in class sooner because the students are comfortable with one another.”
As part of their coursework, students create documentaries that concentrate on specific social issues. Holstien’s film focused on homelessness.
“It was heartbreaking,” she says. “I always felt sympathetic to a degree toward the homeless people I saw, but I never realized just how easy it is to start sliding down the path to losing your home and your job. It only takes one disease without insurance, one fire, one debilitating injury to lead to a life on the streets.”
One of the most painful realizations, she adds, was hearing people in the film say they wanted to be looked in the eye and treated as human beings. “I’ve walked by homeless people looking down before, but I don’t anymore,” Holstien says. “I truly have never done a project that was so emotionally exhausting and so infinitely rewarding.”
Currently, there are 14 students living in the house. “My hope for the future is that all the students that live together will take the class together,” Howard says. “The house is a great educational model where teaching is enriched because of the continuing discussions about class content out of class. It takes intellectual dialogue and inquiry to the next level.”
Christie Lencsak, ’09, a current house resident and member of Howard’s class, wanted the dual experience because of the focus on community involvement. “As a member of the WILL program, activism and improving not only the campus community but also the community in the city of Richmond is a crucial element and one of the main reasons why I joined,” she says. “Everyone who participated in the class and lived in the house was from such diverse backgrounds, which made conversations within and outside the classroom interesting and dynamic.”
The learning model can be transformative for students. “It’s a holistic and integrated approach to their intellectual and personal development,” Howard says.
Students in the house have the opportunity to learn firsthand about urban issues when they tour 10 different Richmond neighborhoods. The tour is led by Dr. John Moeser, visiting fellow at the CCE and an expert in urban studies and planning. The tour “helps provide framework and context for learning about urban issues and provides a starting point for their documentaries,” Howard says.
Student documentaries cover a gamut of issues, from urban environmental justice to Latinos in Richmond; from homelessness to affordable housing. “It’s a way for them to share their knowledge with others,” Howard says.
Jill Eisenberg, ’09, who lived in the house in 2006–07, worked on the affordable housing documentary. “Although the hours were exhausting, completing that documentary was very rewarding because I learned how to conduct field research on a very complex, emotional issue that is not just history, but an unresolved issue going on today and every day,” Eisenberg says.
Each completed documentary has a campus premiere. “We also distribute the films in the community as an educational tool. We partner in the project with the Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology,” says Howard.
Warren Newton, ’10, a current house resident, worked on the “Latinos in Richmond” documentary. “I met people in Richmond’s Latino community and people who volunteer and dedicate much of their time to helping these immigrants,” Newton says. “It was a great experience, very rewarding.”
Howard’s students appreciate the passion and dedication that their professor puts into the program.
“I can’t imagine a better equipped professor or one who cares more about her students and her community,” Holstien says. “She’s an inspiration. Her hard work and enthusiasm motivate me to want to reach out.”