Members 1998/99

Chris Barber

Eric Brittain

Greg Brodsky

Olivia Debree

Nikki Diaz

Brian Edwards-Tiekert

Mina Halpern

Adriana Jones

Christina Kishimoto

Evan Leonard

Cari Macdermott

Frank Marsilli

Sara Mason

Scott Mayerowitz

Roger Smith

Jenn Tomasello

Michael Whaley

Argus Wespeak 

Nov 10, 1998
"Form a Tighter Community"

CLN Partners

Student Services
WESLEAD
WESUNITY

 

 
Community Learning
Network
Cln Online Forum (password required)

The Community Learning Network is a group of students and administrators that has been meeting since September 1998 to look critically at Wesleyan as an institution and as a community, and to work toward change in the way community members communicate, make decisions, and take action.

CLN focuses on building the conditions and skills needed for community-wide learning to take place. A fundamental premise, informed by participatory politics and organizational learning, is that a community cannot improve the way it functions unless significant effort and opportunity are made in the areas of reflection and experiential learning. To this end, CLN undertakes projects that facilitate communication and reflection, skill building, and the collaborative production and sharing of knowledge.

Two projects CLN is currently working on:

-A project to use technology (the Internet, Email, Voicernail, and Television) to help community members share information and ideas. This will probably take the form of list-serves and Internet databases and newsgroups.

-A project to create the space and skills for consistent and effective dialogue among students, faculty, and administrators in the busy schedules of Wesleyan community members.

Guiding Ideas
Community Learning Network 1999

Throughout the year, CLN generated many different goals. Here is a summary of most of them in the words of people who generated them. Many of us differ in where we place priority. However, we all seemed to agree on our vision and values.

Vision

The Wesleyan community is alive. It is a place in which students, faculty, and staff, if they desire, can be active, informed, create change, and continually learn from their efforts in classes, in research, in the community, and in the world.

Goals

  • Develop collaborative leadership theories and skills for interested people in the community.
  • Develop community awareness and sense of history and continuity.

    An ongoing attention to this community's specific problems and needs
    Be aware of the "life cycle" of Wesleyan activists.
    An ongoing attention to the highest aspirations of community members.
    Continually asking ourselves: "what will draw us forth as a community?"

  • Physical space for community activities.
  • Material and technological resources to improve communication and knowledge sharing, including a centralized, easy to use and to access, scheduling, publicizing, and information retrieval system.
  • Staff, financial, and institutional support for this center and its activities.
  • Improved bodies and channels of governance on campus (bodies such as the WSA and the various committees, and channels such as President Bennet's office hours or Dean drop in hours).   Improved so that they are more beneficial to all members of the community, are better known, more efficient, more effective, and more meaningful for all who participate.
  • Increased overall participation (for those who wish to participate) in decisions which affect the Wesleyan community.
  • Increased support for student leaders on campus.
  • Graduate students with proven leadership and organizational skills.
  • Understand both leadership and followship theories and practices.
  • Increase communication and knowledge sharing between graduates working for change and students, faculty, and staff working for change.
  • Work specifically to overcome the divides between different groups on campus (studentsadministrators, different identity groups among students, faculty-administrators, facultystudents ...) which limit the possibility of open and honest communication.

CLN Values

What we try to practice in our work, and hope to extend to the rest of the community.

  • Practicing what we preach
  • Learning from experience
  • Running meetings effectively and efficiently
  • Reviewing and changing practices, policies, and rules when necessary
  • Maximum participation of all members