Interviews compiled by Shea Burns. Fairfield University cut the ribbon on Thursday, Sept. 12, unveiling the new Center for Social Justice and Impact, the Center for Arts & Minds, the Marketing & Communications and Advancement offices, all located in downtown Fairfield. Throughout the early morning event, attendees offered reactions to the University’s newest addition in downtown Fairfield.
To portray the significance of these new offices, Fairfield University’s Special Assistant to the President for Arts and Culture, Dr. Philip Elisasoph, looks at the university’s past and its “remarkable growth.” “We’ve seen such remarkable growth of the university and obviously of its stature and reputation,” he states, perhaps referencing Fairfield’s decreasing acceptance rate, now sitting at 33%.
“The inauguration, the ribbon-cutting today, opening this facility symbolizes such positive growth for the institution that we are even now building our footprint in the town so that more and more, Fairfield and Fairfield University exist in a synchronistic way,” Dr. Elisasoph states.
In addition to signifying an increase in the University’s growth and reputation, State Senator Tony Hwang references the practical significance of the move into downtown Fairfield.
“I think it moves the campus into the center of town where commerce and community can interact, share ideas, share information, I think just literally being able to walk out the front door and be an integral part of Fairfield is such a powerful and symbolic gesture but it’s also one that is practical,” he states.
Senator Hwang is particularly fond of the “special sense of quality, community and opportunity for so many people to be able to explore this broader community evident at Fairfield University.”
He then speaks about Fairfield University’s recognition on a larger scale. He references the growing reputation of Fairfield around the state and country: “I think for me as a state senator going around the state and even in the country, the ability to meet people and the excitement of having people say ‘you live in Fairfield. I know Fairfield University.’”
In addition to referencing the growth in recognition for the university, Senator Hwang mentions Dr. Siegal’s speech that included data points about the economic impact Fairfield University has in the town.
“When Dr Siegal talked about nearly a billion dollars of economic impact, you don’t see it in dollars and cents and taxes but you feel it in the activism, the engagement and sense of community of the students,” Hwang says about what he believes to be the true impact of Fairfield University.
In a Facebook post, Fairfield describes their addition to the center of town as “an embodiment of a commitment to enriching the town’s cultural landscape and economy.” In other posts, Fairfield residents express mixed opinions. For example, on a move-in day post, resident Matt Siemers comments “Stay on campus.”
After SantaCon last year, residents attended a town hall to express their outrage with the town and Fairfield University, demanding that action be taken, stating that “Someone is going to die.”
At the ribbon cutting, The Mirror asked attendees if they believed the university moved its offices into town in an attempt to create better relations between Fairfield residents and college students.
Dr. Elisasoph responded with a broad statement, referencing the duty of all colleges and universities to be tolerant and appreciate the community’s needs. “What I’m saying is there are 4,500 colleges and universities and every one of them has a special relationship with the college students who are there and everyone has to learn how to be tolerant and appreciate the needs and desires of the community,” he states.
He continues by speaking directly about the beach residents and the environmental impacts of the parties. “We are, part of our great attraction, blessed to have a wonderful beach community. And I think more and more of our students are going to have to learn how to cohabitate in that beach space because everyone knows that it’s a precious resource especially for us,” he adds.
Mark Barnhart, Director of Community and Economic Development for the Town of Fairfield also weighs in on the tense relations between Fairfield residents and college students living at the beach, commenting “It’s an ongoing issue.”
Barnhart believes that Fairfield University students on the beach may always be a source of tension, “but through communication, working collaboratively on these subjects, we can hopefully chart a course to a better future.”
Senator Hwang points out the role that the University plays in the conflict. “I think the university has an important role in teaching these values and principles that are beyond books and classrooms. To articulate the sense of responsibility, the sense of civic-mindedness that you can still enjoy and partake in the experience, but at the same time you need to be cognizant and respectful of the community and of the privilege that we have,” he believes.
He then brings the conversation back to the unveiling of Fairfield University’s new off-campus offices. “I think that this kind of an entity off the campus setting […] provides that kind of connection, where what you do off campus is an integral part of being part of a community, so you pay attention, you protect it, you nurture it and you respect it. It’s a powerful opportunity for these students and an opportunity for the community to know these students as well instead of just the narrative that sometimes gets out,” he adds.
Recently, the town of Fairfield hired a Milford Law Firm to help them legally prepare for this year’s SantaCon. First Selectman Bill Gerber hired the law firm Hurwitz Sagarin Slossberg & Knuff to act as legal counsel in order to be “cognizant of the legal landscape regarding the Town, the University and landlord responsibilities for beach area events and activities.”
Senator Hwang ends the conversation by recalling a memory that he shares with Fairfield students who lived on the beach during a time of disaster: “My first memory of a crisis was [Hurricane] Sandy and the beach area was just absolutely devastated.”
What Senator Hwang remembers during that catastrophe is “the hundreds of university students [who] came out to help clean up, move sand and help the neighbors in the area.”
Senator Hwang then speaks with an audience of Fairfield residents in mind: “Maybe sometimes we should remind the neighbors that [Fairfield University students] are an integral part of the community.”
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