On a campus as closely-knit and self-contained as Whitman’s, getting out can make all the difference. For many students, getting off campus and making a difference is a rewarding way to counteract the Whitman bubble effect and foster ties with the Walla Walla community.
With 60-plus non-profit organizations within a two mile radius of Whitman College, there are myriad ways for students to get involved in Walla Walla. Annual events mark each month from September through April and student interns with the Community Service Office lead five on-going community service programs; the Whitman Mentor Program, Adopt-A-Grandparent, the Story Time Project, the Youth Adventure Program and Spring Break Service Trips. This month’s Spring Service Day, presented in joint with Walla Walla University and Walla Walla Community College, will occur on Sunday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Whitman is a small school in a small town and it follows that the relationship between the college and community is complicated, though the nature of that relationship often depends on “who you ask, and when you ask,” according to Lina Menard, the current community service coordinator and a 2005 Whitman graduate who fell in love with Walla Walla during her years as a student.
Born and raised in Walla Walla, Paxton Gehling’s involvement in Whitman music programs helped form his positive perception of the college, but he says many locals feel differently about the relationship between the two communities.
“A lot of locals don’t really interact with the campus at all and sort of resent it,” he said. Incarnations of that unease certainly crop up, but the tension goes both ways.
“There are stereotypes on both sides,” said Menard. Getting involved and forming relationships with community members is an ideal way to integrate what can feel like two separate worlds. “It’s by getting to know each other that we can break down those barriers,” she said.
We’ve gone out of our way to cultivate a tightly-knit community that thrives on its own, but it can be a little too easy to remain insulated and isolated while going to school here. At least one-third of Whitman students volunteer annually and many find it helps keep them balanced.
“[Volunteering is a good way to] take a break from everything on campus,” said sophomore Madeline Jacobson, who spends a little time each week visiting with her adoptive grandmother. Getting away from classes, campus events and our ever-present fellow students can be cathartic and remind students of the many perspectives outside the figurative walls of Whitman’s campus.
Whether Whitties are taking time away from class and campus to read aloud and socialize with the youngest in Walla Walla or the oldest, leading at-risk youth on outdoor adventures or spending spring break on a service trip, community involvement helps blend the Whitman microcosm into the broader Walla Walla community and strengthen what can sometimes be a tenuous relationship between permanent residents and migratory college students.
