Discussion of social justice issues came onto Eastern Nazarene College’s campus by way of topics such as hunger and food insecurity, sexual misconduct, the LGBTQ community, and racial injustices with the help of Larry Bollinger.
These conversation topics are those considered most relevant to Eastern’s campus. This was a time where students, faculty, and staff had the chance to discuss these critical issues and hopefully establish ongoing conversations.
Prior to the event, Larry Bollinger expressed hope that this day would bring the entire campus together to start the discussion, saying, “The day would not be complete without students. It’s all for them.” He says that if it turns out to be just faculty and staff talking about these topics, then we have “missed the mark.” Drawing attention to “root causes” of human need is why ENC is having a social justice day, states Bollinger.
Bringing social justice to our campus is not a new idea, however. Bollinger says, “faculty and staff have wanted to integrate social justice [for] three to five years.” This plan is in ENC’s mission statement, but there is some lag between having a plan and actually executing it.
This week was ENC’s first official social justice week. The events included the social justice chapel and seminars led by various faculty and staff on chosen topics. Bollinger hopes these conversations will continue to happen on campus and that social justice week will become an annual event for the institution.