Filed under:
On Friday, August 5, Sarah Lawrence President Cristle Collins Judd spoke at the 2022 Community Summer Celebration Luncheon, sponsored by the College’s Anita L. Stafford Office of Community Partnerships and Engagement, and recalled a thought-provoking question on the application for a $1.5 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation:
“If Sarah Lawrence was no longer around, what would not your students and faculty say, but what would your neighbors say?”
This was a fitting question to ponder as Judd spoke to an audience of faculty, staff, students, and representatives from local organizations. The robust turnout for a summer Friday afternoon reflected the College’s deep commitment and dedication to its community partners—and that the feeling is mutual. Community-based work is an integral part of SLC’s mission to foster educational experiences that allow students to thrive in an ever-evolving and complex world.
The event showcased the work of 11 students who participated in the College’s Community Leadership Internship Program (CLIP). The 10-week program places students in local community organizations during the summer to allow both students and the organizations the chance to do deeper work.
Mara Gross, who recently retired as the Director of the Office of Community Partnerships, has been a driving force in developing, expanding, and strengthening the College’s community involvement. Gross was in attendance to reconnect with students and community partners who had become good friends, and also to be honored with a recognition for her substantial contributions to this work.
For her, the essential tasks of creating meaningful and effective programs always included “making connections between institutions and their local neighborhoods, developing relationships across cultural and socioeconomic boundaries, and encouraging time for people to think about the meaning of their own experience.”
Nelson Rodriguez, the new Director for the Office of Community Partnerships, hopes to build upon the strong foundations Gross has cultivated. “Mara’s been doing this for 11 years and I really want to honor the work that she's done,” he said. “She took me around my first couple days here and the love she received from these folks she's worked with for so long was just amazing to see. They really all cared deeply for her, and you could see that she cares deeply for this community.”
“I'm very excited that Nelson was hired,” Gross said. “His ideas and excitement are infectious. In the history of the program, we haven't brought all the partners back together at the end of the summer, but Nelson wanted to do that with this luncheon. The agencies get to see each other and their staff can talk and network with each other. The students get to share their work and learning which is wonderful for all to hear.”
As part of CLIP, Sarah Lawrence students participate in 30-hour per week internships while enjoying additional opportunities to reflect upon their experiences and learn more about the communities in which these agencies operate. Students participate in Friday Leadership Workshops, which recently included a tour of Yonkers led by Linwood Lewis (psychology), trips to Greyston Bakery (a certified B Corporation dedicated to inclusive employment practices) and Untermeyer Garden, and a panel discussion with local leaders on grassroots organizing.
Of the CLIP opportunities, Rodriquez said, “It’s a paid internship but the students don’t do it for the money. They do it for the work, and so we wanted to showcase their work to a larger audience, on campus and in the Yonkers community.”
Brooklyn Clark ’22, CLIP’s program coordinator and a former CLIP intern, introduced this summer’s interns, who each then presented their experiences and learnings. They grew crops with and for local communities and learned about climate change. They gave history tours of Untermyer Gardens and learned about conservancy efforts. They produced podcasts, interviewing local seniors on the music that shaped their lives.
ArtsWestchester intern Rachel Saruski ’23 worked on a community art project—a massive quilt that wove together fabrics from various community members. Though she had no prior sewing experience, she quickly learned from another volunteer, then led several community sewing dates herself. Saruski said, “I’ve never seen a place like that where people from adults to teenagers to children come together for the community.”
Lillian Silver ’22 reflected, “Interning at CURB (Sarah Lawrence’s Center for the Urban River at Beczak) was one of my most rewarding experiences at Sarah Lawrence. I’m so grateful for having a small part in extending environmental education to so many community groups. CURB understands that the best way to make progress is to make environmental education available to everyone.”
Jamie Lenehan ’23 worked on a science barge on the Hudson River with Groundwork Hudson Valley. She had previously spent so little time in Yonkers, she recalled, despite its proximity to campus. “I thought, I can't graduate without having spent time in Yonkers,” she said. “The more I thought about it, the more involved I wanted to be.”
For Mary Robison, of the Riverfront branch of the Yonkers Public Library, who oversaw the CLIP interns, the College’s community work enables Sarah Lawrence to be more “involved with and ‘embedded’ in the community.”
“Our patrons often have limited connections with institutions of higher education,” she reflected, “and through these programs, they learn more about the work Sarah Lawrence is doing in Yonkers, about their own community, and about resources available through other community partners.”
So, what would Sarah Lawrence’s neighbors say if it were to mysteriously vanish from the landscape? Robison’s enthusiasm for the deep and continuing partnerships between the College and its communities speaks volumes.
At its luncheon on August 5, the Office of Community Partnerships presented three awards:
- The Community Connection Award, for the community organization that encompasses true partnership between Sarah Lawrence College and the community at large, awarded to the Yonkers Public Library and accepted by Jesse Montero, Director, and Shauna Porteus, Deputy Director
- The Campus Advocate Award, for an SLC faculty or staff member who creates avenues of success for the Office of Community Partnerships and Engagement, students, and all involved, which was awarded to Melissa Frazier (Russian, literature, and outgoing Associate Dean of the College)
- And the Mara Gross Guardian Award, for an individual who goes above and beyond to support all members and organizations involved with Sarah Lawrence College and the communities served. The inaugural award was presented to its namesake, Mara Gross, who recently retired from her position as Director of the Office of Community Partnerships.
Congratulations to all those recognized!