Problem
Town & Gown Relations
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In a college town, the relations between “town and gown” are those between the residents of the town and the students and faculty associated with the school, who in the past wore academic gowns. Most of these relations were not of good report and this stands true regarding the University of South Carolina, neighboring communities, and the city. There have been many complaints surrounding student behavior and conduct after nights in Five Points and other areas. These behaviors include public urination, hearing intoxicated students in neighborhoods at night, and not adhering to COVID-19 social distancing guidelines. Many students don’t know the rules of the city and the majority of students are exposed to the city through the university only. The city does not integrate itself well to offer a chance to define itself to the many students it houses. Resulting in, a holistic healthy relationship never existing. Students should not only have a deepened relationship with their university, but also the city where it is located. There are obvious disconnects between students, the university, neighboring communities, and the city of Columbia. The recent events at the university have belittled the power of the student's voice. I would personally say it means nothing, why is that? Because the student's voice doesn't talk about money or tainted politics. The university has not empowered students to speak out against problematic events or issues, we have empowered ourselves. The money that student's pay in tuition and fees are for the development of character, leadership that brings about social change, and cultivation of passions and interest. Students are here to not only be educated on subjects but to be educated on the opportunities of life. Without students, there is no university.
The school has many committees and boards with officials placed into roles simply for titles and associations. But they don't include students, the population they serve, to the degree that they should be included. We have defined student conduct from the university, but regardless students don't see Five Points as the university, defining Five Points themselves because a definition was never provided. How can we expect students to respect the city when they do not know whom to respect or what about it to respect. They don't know the business owners, the city officials, the rich history that Columbia holds. It has been defined more as just the city where students attend school not the city where they cultivated their lives holistically. University students don't stay in Columbia, because they don't have a meaningful relationship with it. City organizations and groups do not see students as potential members, but volunteers. Those who do decide to stay in Columbia are soon after met with organizations that consist of the same people across the board. They portray openness to individuals joining but their nature seeks exclusiveness, creating barriers to an individual's growth. Healthier relationships need to be made and broken bonds need to be mended.
Solution
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Collaboration
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The university and the city must collaborate, I believe that it is the only way both will excel in a manner that exceeds their expectations. The university and City of Columbia, while different have common goals, both, associated with youth retention. The university values youth retention through the freshman experience that leads to increased freshmen retention rates. Increased retention, of course, means more prospective students and more revenue. The city also has the goal of youth retention, as attracting and retaining young talent while they are cultivated in the city. Similar to the university, more young people means more revenue and opportunities for innovation in the city. Through this, we discover a shared common goal. We are looking to establish skills that create open-mindedness, effective communication, a level of self-awareness, and organization.
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Relationships
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Creating a course, COLA 198, at the university that merges key concepts and goals of UNIV 101 while engaging with neighboring communities and the city of Columbia. With a goal of establishing a foundation where relationships can begin to develop and influence positive interactions and leadership development. Offering students the opportunity to simultaneously build a relationship with the university and the city through the course.​ This is also an opportunity for members of different groups to develop and redefine relationships with one another so that they can better serve and collaborate with one another. Relationships are based on honesty and trust, it is important that during this process space is created where everyone can confidently exude this.
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Leadership Development
The Leadership Development Process is not just for students but for stakeholders as well. Everyone is a leader in their own right. It is important that all individuals have the opportunity to grow as they try and grow the entities they belong to. This is a process of empowerment that we want all participants to experience. Everyone is given a voice and the ability to communicate in a way that allows for confidence in oneself to exist and be valued.
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Detailed Plan
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There must be an establishment of a committee or board that represents the diversity of individuals and stakeholders. This should include, but not be limited to, university officials, city officials, members of organizations, neighboring community members, and students. The role of the committee is to make sure that everyone is on the same page in accordance with the group's values, beliefs, and goals.
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Collaboration isn't an easy process and takes skills that are often hard to harness, without truly knowing and acknowledging yourself. An education process of the Social Change Model will be taught to the committee or board members so they become more self-aware individually and as a group. During this education process, they will work together applying methods of the Social Change Model to find solutions to a hypothetical problem.
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After the education process, they will begin the application of the Social Change Model to the current problem. They will establish group goals and create subcommittees based on them, effectively and efficiently working together. They will evaluate each other as they work together to distinguish important aspects of the COLA 198 course.
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This course should be taught by qualified UNIV 101 educators. The classroom experience should promote engagement, discovery, and innovation. Community members, business owners, organizational leaders, and city officials should be frequently involved throughout the class. They should be involved in the manner of presenting presentations to classes and through city engagement and exploration.
Freshman/Sophomore – Introduce students to Carolina and Columbia
Junior/Senior – Open organization membership deepening roots in Columbia. In order to create well-rounded students who: value the culture of Carolina and Columbia, promote cultural competence, promote diversity and inclusion, and the history of Carolina and Columbia. Visits from organizations/school resources will create more opportunities for application and further engagement with the City of Columbia.
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Evaluation
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The evaluation process will be given through surveys that capture the opinions of individuals involved. For university students, it will be given through course evaluations, which will happen during and after the course. For neighboring communities, surveys should be distributed through Home Owner's Associations. For the City of Columbia, surveys should be distributed amongst business owners and city officials in areas of safety, community development, and economic development. Surveys should also be distributed to local organizations.
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