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Residential Computing Connection |
 Committees/Programs Overview
Building Relationships. Building Academic Success. Building Cultural Identity. SMART Program Overview The Office of Residence Life’s SMART Program (Students of Color Mentoring, Aiding, Retaining, and Teaching) is a peer mentoring program designed to offer support to first year students of color living in the residence halls at Bowling Green State University. SMART’s ultimate goals are to assist first year students of color with their transition to BGSU, to increase the number of students who return to the University for their second year, and to provide a forum for discussion of the residential experience in order to make it as positive and rewarding as possible. To achieve these goals, SMART consists of four core components:
Who are the SMART Mentors? The SMART Mentors are upper classmen student leaders who live in the residence halls. Each mentor is assigned a group of first-year students. The mentors help their mentees make the transition from high school to college by offering resources and guidance, as well as motivating them to feel comfortable navigating BGSU’s campus. The mentors go through on-going training to equip them with the knowledge and skills to give their mentees appropriate resources. Mentors provide:
The SMART Experience Below are some of the past activities and programs that the SMART Program has coordinated:
SMART Creed As a SMART Mentee, I will strive to achieve academic excellence, participate in SMART sponsored events, and make an earnest
effort to get to know other students in my residence hall community.
Mission and Overview A-PLUS stands for Actively Promoting Learning and Undergraduate Success. Our committee serves the Resident Advisors and SMART Mentors in their efforts to promote, recognize and foster academic success in our BG community. We accomplish such efforts through the following ways:
This year, the A+ committee members act as a liaison to their individual staffs for disseminating information and gathering insight and feedback for the committee to consider. Each member has a specific role within the team to provide synergy and progress towards our goals and outcomes. At the same time, we, as leaders of this committee, should strive to be Academic role models ourselves and share our Intellectual and Spiritual Growth by contributing to make this a Falcon A+wesome year for everyone! Social Justice Task Force University Diversity Statement Diversity at BGSU signifies a fully-inclusive and accessible lifelong learning community where the whole array of human differences, particularly race, culture & ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation, are well-represented and highly valued in its membership and curriculum. What is SJTF? The SJTF is a committee within the Office of Residence Life that provides diverse educational opportunities that promote awareness and equity of underrepresented populations for the Residence Life staff and residents through Social Justice Training programs for staff and residents, sponsoring, developing, and implementing various social justice programs, and being a resource for information regarding campus-wide events, training opportunities, and multi-cultural holidays. We also serve as a resource for diversity related programming for Resident Advisors and SMART (Students of Color Mentoring, Aiding, Retaining, and Teaching Program) staff through literature, videos, and pre-developed activities and bulletin boards. Each year, the SJTF is comprised of full time Residence Life staff, graduate assistants, Resident Advisors, and SMART staff members. This group meets weekly and is committed to providing equity based educational programs to promote and foster a positive learning community at Bowling Green State University. As social justice is included in the vision of Bowling Green State University and as ambassadors of the campus community, the Social Justice Task Force commits to striving to promote an atmosphere of such, with a commitment to the core values, thus empowering Residence Life staff and residents to be change agents in their community. Major Annual Programs Silent Solidarity Silent Solidarity is a diversity program that originated in Kohl Hall in 2000 and had more than 100 participants that year. The goal of the program is to raise awareness among participants, as well as the surrounding campus community, of the many “voices” in our society that have been silenced due to ignorance and prejudice. Each year, students are given a name tag with a different “label” representing a group of people that have been silenced in our society. These tags include groups such as gay men, lesbian women, African Americans, Hispanics, people with disabilities, elderly people, victims of sexual violence, people with sexually transmitted diseases, religious groups, and many other silenced individuals. Participants are asked to not speak from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. For at least one day, students, faculty and staff were able to put them in the shoes of another to understand the powerlessness that these identity groups face being silenced in our society. Taste of February The Taste of February started in the Quads residence halls as a program that celebrated African American History and Culture through dinner and performances. Today the program has grown to be open to the entire BGSU population and is co-sponsored by various offices and student organizations, including VISION, the Black Student Union, Latino Student Union, Hall Councils, SMART Program, and the Center for Multicultural and Academic Initiatives. Our hope is that we can bring together all cultures in one event and share the love we have for each other’s differences, each other’s beliefs, and realize that we are all humans, through performances. The Fifth Annual Taste of February showcased a variety of art forms as they relate to the influence of and influence to the African/African-American culture. The performances celebrated the roles of African American people and educated as to the history of the African experience in the featured art forms. Social Justice Week Each spring, the SJTF sponsors programming related to issues of diversity and social justice for the campus community. At least one program is held during each day of the week. This past year saw programs such as the Holocaust Museum, White Privilege, Diversity Awareness Scavenger Hunt, and more. Programs are typically held in collaboration with groups such as the Honors Diversity Committee, Office of Disability Services, and BGSU Faculty and Staff. |
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