enriches community
John Micek
For a More Just and Humane World
Can you imagine knocking on the door of a house in your neighborhood and finding out that the family living there has never before seen a computer?
Asking them if they have a "PC" brings a response of bewilderment, confusion and embarrassment. I must admit as a senior here at Notre Dame from the Silicon Valley it is hard for me to imagine anyone in my neighborhood who could possibly fit this bill. Up until a year ago I would not have believed that someone in my neighborhood would have never seen a computer or understood what a PC was. Sadly, if you answered "no" to the first question you, as I, are unaware of the neighborhood surrounding our home here at Notre Dame.
Until last year I did not know that the area extending away from our campus toward and including Molly McGuire's, Lafayette and St. Joseph Medical Center was called the Northeast Neighborhood.
I did not know that there was a diverse community of persons with the challenges of a neighborhood so close to the "Notre Dame bubble." Many in the neighborhood do not have computers.
It was then that I learned about certain students, staff and faculty members of the Center for Social Concerns who were working with an initiative of the President's Office and residents of the Northeast Neighborhood to create a center in the old Goodwill Building. They hoped to partner in a way to "strengthen interaction between the Northeast Neighborhood and Notre Dame by building trust through partnerships that stimulate community revitalization" (excerpt from the Community Learning Center Mission Statement).
Sadly, many in this neighborhood have in the past felt neglected and some abused by the powerful institution of Notre Dame. Why, many ask, has the University, a place of such education and philanthropy, not given and shared more with its neighbors? This, a sentiment long fostered in the generations of some families within the Northeast Neighborhood, is now being addressed structurally and through programs. The University is extending itself into the area in the form of a major revitalization program. One part of this program is the development of the Community Learning Center.
I think that we all understand the importance of our education in our own lives but this Center offers us a chance to enrich our education and experience within a neighborhood of which we are fortunate to be a part.
The Community Learning Center will be a place of mutuality where students and neighbors alike will engage in shared learning. I must stress that the time you will spend in this Center will in no way be a one-way flow of information and learning. This two-way street, if you may, is why this opportunity should strike at the hearts of the entire Notre Dame community. Students, staff and faculty can both give and receive from this unique and beautiful Center.
Today members of the University and residents of the Northeast Neighborhood are coming together for the grand opening of the Community Learning Center. This celebration from 4 to 7 p.m. is the culmination of a wonderful instance of collaboration amongst the Northeast Neighborhood, Notre Dame and community partners.
The Center houses a new computer cluster, exercise equipment and classes, health screening through St. Joseph Medical Center, a library, tutoring, piano lessons and more. Located next to Molly McGuire's on Eddy Street, the Center is less than four blocks from campus, a spot ideal for any student to drop in and expand their outlook on the richness of our neighborhood.
I recently visited the CLC in its initial days of operation. I'm filled with joy and great hope about the future of this collaboration in the Northeast Neighborhood. In the future after my Notre Dame undergraduate years I look forward to returning to this neighborhood to witness how these written goals will come to life beyond this first month.
The following is a summary of the goals of the Community Learning Center:
1. To create a neighborhood setting that will house an array of community programs and activities and will serve as a place of gathering, welcoming and interaction for all.
2. To establish educational programs beginning with a computer initiative that develops skills, encourages new efforts in communication and community building and provides new opportunities for teaching and learning across generations and within families.
3. To provide space and support for cooperative programs with local health care agencies, businesses, schools, faith-based group and community organizations that enhance the quality of life of the neighborhood by providing increased access to health care, employment and business opportunities, new community-based learning resources and faith-based initiatives that encourage the revitalization of each person's God-given dignity and worth.
4. To foster an enhanced sense of citizenship and commitment to community revitalization among all the Center's partners and participants.
The Center for Social Concerns' column appears every other Wednesday. This week's column was written by John Micek. Micek, a senior and a Center for Social Concerns student intern this past summer, was, along with many ND students, faculty, staff, Northeast Neighborhood residents and various community agency representatives, involved in the initial stages of the CLC's development.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Viewpoint Stories for Wednesday, February 21, 2001
