Warren Wilson’s Sense of Community V. COVID-19 and Social Identity
David Cristancho | December 2, 2021
Ruby Jane Moser
Anala St. Germain and Nijah Colston walking on the path to Sunderland.
Ever since Warren Wilson College (WWC) was founded, the word “community” was essentially used to describe the school’s mission and intention. Throughout the years, WWC has been known as a place where students can grow both individually and interpersonally. Whether a member of the college as a student, faculty or staff, Warren Wilson is meant to welcome people despite their background, race, ethnicity, gender and religion, while giving more attention to what people can bring to the school in terms of knowledge, curiosity and new ideas.
However, the notion of a college that invites everyone to live peacefully together and create meaningful relationships has been challenged in recent years by students feeling that the school’s sense of community has declined. Whether caused by the pandemic or differences in social identity, this shift in community has made it difficult for students to actively participate in interpersonal growth.
“I think it (sense of community at WWC) has changed a lot,” said Milena Buchanan, social work major and resident assistant (RA) of EcoDorm. “In my freshman year, especially before COVID, there was that sense because we were actually able to go out and do things, and I think that the pandemic affected our ability to do that … It (the pandemic) has definitely affected my feelings towards it (sense of community). There’s a lot more barriers between it.”
Assistant Director of Student Activities, Hope Hairston, supported the idea that the pandemic has affected the sense of community at Warren Wilson.
“Before COVID, the vibe in the school was different because you were able to go off campus, you got to do things like attending winter formal, homecoming, work day and experience all these things that I honestly think our community is lacking,” said Hairston.
Trying to build community amid a pandemic has been definitely challenging, according to Jonathan Gonzales, director of Student Activities.
“From what I’ve heard and seen, there definitely is a need and a want for community,” said Gonzales.
However, he mentioned that due to the pandemic, there are still some students who are trying to be cautious and do not want to be indoors with more people. Therefore, Student Activities are trying to implement safety measures that allow students to build community while taking care of their well-being.
When asked about whether she felt Warren Wilson had a strong sense of community, Emmie Barnes, biology major and chemistry minor, shared some thoughts.
“Yes, but I also think it depends on your ethnicity or race,” Barnes said. “Usually the affinity groups have a sense of community, but it also kind of excludes you from the rest of Warren Wilson if you’re different.”
She mentioned that, being a member of the Indigenous community, she has felt that some people try to make it seem as if they accepted her; however, they do not actually. This is what she called “White Savior Complex.”
“Whether this is done consciously or unconsciously,” wrote Colleen Murphy, writer and editor at Health. “People with this complex have the underlying belief that they know best or that they have skills that BIPOC people don't have.”
Barnes feels that there is an ongoing issue in the school due to this complex, which makes it hard for students to actively engage in the community. She shared that BIPOC students have had many challenges when trying to be involved in the community due to the lack of support from the school.
“It’s hard to feel a sense of community when no one wants to participate in that community,” said Barnes. “It is really stressful and frustrating trying to take on Warren Wilson’s problems without any resolve or any steps forward. It seems like everytime we try to push something they just sweep us underneath the road.”
Gonzales touched on the work that they are doing through the Student Activities department. He mentioned that they are working on creating on-campus activities that are inclusive for all students no matter their background.
“We’re doing interviews right now for our crew and one of the questions (for candidates) is how do you create an inclusive environment for diverse identities on campus, because what we’re trying to get is students who have an approach to programming with a lens of inclusion of all people, including BIPOC folks,” Gonzales said.
Madeline Wadley ’12, associate director of Community Engagement (CE), shared that she understands where students come from with the idea that the sense of community has declined. She attributes much of that feeling to COVID-19 and the fact that everyone is still coming back from being isolated. However, she praises students for recognizing and talking about the importance of bringing back a sense of community to the school.
Wadley also shared how, through the CE program at WWC, students can build community, and what the Center for Experiential Learning (CEL) is doing on-campus to help bring back the sense of community as well.
“There’s a spirit of teamwork that happens when you are serving together in the community, and even though most of our work in the community engagement office encourages students to get off campus and go elsewhere,” Wadley said. “When you are doing that service with your peers and other students, that in itself creates community on campus as well.”
One thing the CEL is doing to create community is holding fireside chats that happen every other week. There, students come together as a community to talk about community service, the work program and international relations. Their goal with this program is to create a safe space where everyone is welcome and can share their thoughts.
Wadley also mentioned that students at Warren Wilson learn about social justice, which implies advocating for a more equitable and just society for everyone.
“If we’re not applying what we’re learning in some way that is advancing our society, what are we really doing? What is the actual benefit?” Wadley said. “(My) hope is that this community engagement program really helps pave the way for students to do that effectively.”
There’s no right or wrong answer for how to bring back the sense of community that Warren Wilson might have lost due to the pandemic or differences in social identity. In fact, Sami Weinstein, creative writing major, shared her thoughts on the idea that trying to understand Warren Wilson’s community goes beyond seeing it as one whole, big community.
“We’re a community made of smaller communities,” Weinstein said. “Everyone has their own pot here and they become your family, and from that pot you meet more and more people until we are in this big Wilson bubble of a community.”
She went on to describe the community as very complex but mostly loving, and even though it feels difficult to be in it at times, an important aspect of it is that everyone tries, to the best of their ability, to care and be there for each other.
Wadley called WWC far from perfect; therefore, working towards bringing that sense of community back might take some time. However, according to Hairston, it is everyone’s responsibility to think of what their position is and how they can help build community while being at Wilson.
So the question is: where does Warren Wilson’s community go from here?
