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The Spectator
Enhancing Town-Gown Relations: Students Need to Regard Clinton with Hometown Pride
by Tracey Ogagba '12Opinion Writer
November 06, 2009
When sitting at home on a mundane weekend, late night options seem few and far between. Sometimes it is hard to believe that an entire town rests at the bottom of the Hill, past the Village Tavern. More often than not, we forget, or don't notice, the strong ties Hamilton has always had with its neighboring communities and the mutual benefits that come with them. All students should understand how nice it is to be a part of something that exists beyond the Hamilton bubble.
If a student never once takes a moment to take note of the College's surrounding areas, Hamilton will begin to seem like an extremely small space. Many of us have friends who, by some strange twist of fate, have never tasted the joys of a Cider Mill doughnut. It is strangely easy for us to forget the wide variety of people and places that exist not far down the Hill.
Campus groups such as the COOP, HAVOC, Project Shine and The Young People's Project work at the heart of these neighboring communities and provide students with a working knowledge of unique cultures, peoples and stories. The COOP and HAVOC facilitate a variety of service projects in these communities, while students involved in Project Shine work directly with Utica's refugee population. The Young People's Project brings student volunteers to Utica middle school classrooms, where they teach math literacy. Getting to know such a variety of people can make the familiarity of everyday campus life feel less constraining.
Those who live in Clinton and other surrounding communities also value the College's town-gown relationship. Both sides can learn much from one another. As off-campus merchants build stronger ties to the campus through the acceptance of the Hill Card, students should take advantage of this spirit and look at the many ways Hamilton students can connect to lives and communities off campus, as well as work together to further strengthen this bond.