Save the Office for the Common Good

To the s aint m ary’s administration, b oard of Trustees and community: o n m arch 8, s aint m ary’s vice president of mission Julianne Wallace emailed s aint m ary’s students, staff and faculty detailing changes to the d ivision of m ission. As written in the email, the c enter for the s tudy for s pirituality and the c enter for Faith, Action and m inistry will act as branches for the m ission d ivision. o ne of the major changes announced is the expungement of the o ffice for the c ommon Good ( oc G). As the student leaders in this office, we unanimously raise our voices in opposition to this change and its implications on the future of community outreach at s aint m ary’s.

The m arch 8 email was the first form of communication we received regarding the reorganization of the d ivision of m ission. It was not until m arch 24 — over two weeks later — that we had an in-person explanation from the administration about the details of this transition. We have been told that these decisions were “student-driven,” yet we were not asked for input during the decision-making process.

At s aint m ary’s c ollege, the oc G serves as a bridge between s aint m ary’s students, staff, faculty and the broader s outh b end and m ichiana areas. It was previously known as the o ffice for c ivic and s ocial e ngagement. o ur programs include b eyond the b elle, a day time teachers‘ aide and an after-school tutoring program; Food Waste Fighters, a food recovery and composting program out of n oble Family d ining h all; the s ustainable Farm, a functioning farm on s aint m ary’s property that promotes ecological justice and grows its own produce and smc votes, a nonpartisan campaign to increase voter registration, participation and civic engagement on our campus. We also organize and lead s ervice s aturdays and e xplore the b end programming which allow the s aint m ary’s community to get involved in and enjoy the broader s outh b end community.

This is just a glimpse as to all the programs and opportunities the oc G offers s aint m ary’s students, staff and faculty.

The email we received on m arch 8 from Julianne Wallace writes that the “reorganization will bring all of our programs in line with best practices and unify the work of our student-facing offices.”

This unification would bring together programs from the oc G and s ustainable Farm with c ampus m inistry. As it currently exists, the oc G serves an important role in providing all smc students with service and outreach opportunities regardless of their faith affiliations. The oc G does not focus solely on faith-based work, which has allowed us to create a space for students who are not religious to serve the community. o ur programs are non-exclusive. To associate all community programming and volunteer opportunities with faith has the potential to alienate the 38% of s aint m ary’s students who do not identify as c atholic. In direct alignment with the mission of s aint m ary’s c ollege, the oc G welcomes students from all walks of life. oc G programming does not owe its success to its hierarchical leadership. m any students who have participated in our programs are unaware of our official titles, designated roles or even office name. o ur office is known for its resourcefulness and, as Julianne Wallace praised in our m arch 24 meeting, “radical hospitality.” As student leaders, we simply followed r ebekah’s and m aria’s examples. It has been our focus on building interpersonal relationships that directly contribute to the success of our programming.

Although we, as student leaders for the oc G, were hired through federal workstudy to work for specific programs, our office operates with a strong sense of collaboration. n one of us have worked solely for the programs we were hired to do. o ur well-rounded experiences, broad understanding of community service and teamwork skills can be attributed to the community we have built within the oc G. We are better students, better citizens and better people because of our involvement in the oc G, and, in particular, with the mentorship of our directors r ebekah Go and m aria Gonzalez- d iaz.

The s aint m ary’s community thrives in large part due to our close-knit community. m any may not know the name of our office but are familiar with the faces within it. r ebekah Go, director of the oc G, and m aria Gonzalez- d iaz, assistant director of the oc G, are an integral part of the success of our programs. Under this new organization, both will be demoted with decreases in salary and a higher number of expected hours worked. We believe this to be a slight to the hard work and dedication both r ebekah and m aria have done for the s aint m ary’s community. These changes are based neither in justice nor meritocracy.

As students at s aint m ary’s c ollege, each of us is receiving an education and social experience that emphasizes c atholic social teaching and the c ollege’s values of inclusivity and service. We have developed into citizens who will speak out against injustices and stand for what is right. We stand with the oc G and ask that administration honor the dedication r ebekah and m aria have proven to the s aint m ary’s community.

All 12 student leaders employed by the o ffice have signed and contributed to this statement.

Libbey Detcher, senior Jeanett Ochoa , junior Emily Rusch, senior Yajali Rodriguez , senior Valentina Rubio, sophomore Catherine Reynoso, sophomore Suzanne Rivas, senior Delia Lopez , senior Anahy Torres-Vega , senior Jacquelyn A Junco, senior Galilea Falcon, senior Dakota Freel, junior march 27