Finding My Place in a Classic City
- Miles Daniel
- Dec 12, 2016
- 4 min read
At first glance, Athens, GA doesn't look like much more than your typical college town. It seems like campus takes up the majority of the space and you will hear people say "Athens is UGA." But even though there is quite a bit more to Athens than just the University of Georgia, its worth noting that UGA and Athens go way back...to the 18th century.
In class this week we did a Athens/UGA timeline project where we got a chance to research history on the university and Athens. (Here's a link to the timeline we created, assembled by one of my wonderful instructors, Joan Collier). UGA boasts being the oldest public university in America having been chartered in 1785. Its success plays a large part in the success of the city around it. Even though UGA wouldn't really pick up steam until later in the 1800s, it played an integral part in training the men (only white men at that point) who would in turn shape the south east as young America grew. However, UGA's history, like most of American history, was not without its dark spots. Women weren't admitted as regular students until 1918, nearly 133 years after the university was chartered. For some context, just down the road in Macon, Georgia, women had been earning bachelor's degrees since 1840 (USNews). Furthermore, it was 7 years after Brown v. Board of Education declared the segregation of schools unconstitutional in 1954 that the first Black students attended UGA. In many ways, UGA embodies a typical "southern" identity: institutional prejudices, old money, and tradition still hold much of the power here. There are 3 buildings (to my knowledge) named after Senator Richard B. Russell, a "leader of Southern opposition to the Civil Rights Movement" (Wikipedia). Despite this, his name still adorns buildings, and pictures of him are hung in lobbies with honor. But in other ways, I have seen how UGA has worked to create safe and intentional spaces for people of marginalized identities to have a voice and to belong.
It's a strange dynamic to be in a place where hate and oppression are so engrained and easily overlooked, yet real work is being done to support the oppressed. If anything, learning about UGA's history has been a lesson for me as a student affairs professional to always think critically about the social and political context of the institutions I work at so that I can prevent myself from being socialized into pre-existing power structures that perpetuate oppression. Every school, in every state, is going to have these oppressive structures in its past, present, and future. What matters is how they have named it, addressed it, and worked towards combatting it. This may be the single most important thing for me to consider as I choose a work place and define my practice. I must work to recognize injustice and be a change agent where oppressive structures exist.
With that being said, I still feel like I'm very much figuring out UGA. I expected to be swept up in the excitement of SEC football and passion of Georgia tradition, but thus far that hasn't been the case. I miss Baylor a lot and I long to go back and visit. I spend a lot of time comparing the two in my head, and I think much of my lackluster experience with UGA comes down to institution type. Before coming here, I had one idea of how college was, and it was a place that was very student focused and such a caring community. UGA, certainly has both of those things in some areas, but I don't feel like they are truly at the core of what the institution stands on. I have a lot more discovery to do here. I know that there are great things about UGA, because I've heard so many people talk about how they have connected with this place, but I haven't found my connection just yet.
Athens, on the other hand, is a blast! There is so much creativity and fun to be found here. Do you like going out with friends? Well there are some world class bars where you can do just that. How about karaoke? One of my favorite pass times so far with my friends have been our Thursday night karaoke outings. Is nature your thing? Well good because between the state botanical gardens, and numerous state parks and mountain ranges within driving distance, you can have it all. Having been born and raised in Texas, it's nice to live in a place that actually has a fall...and fall weather that starts in October. My only regret is that I have been so busy between work and school that I haven't made much time to get out and explore, which I'm hoping will change when my exploring buddy moves in this January :)
All in all, I'm glad I'm here. I know that I am in a wonderful program, and I am immensely blessed to be learning and living for almost no cost. I have made some wonderful friends who I can not only have fun with, but who challenge me and teach me new things. With 3.5 semesters to go, I look forward to continuing to learn more about UGA and to exploring Athens and the south east. I know I'll find my connection to UGA, even if it is simply the wonderful people, lessons, and experiences I encounter here.
Below are some of my favorite things/experiences here thus far!
Comments