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| Sergio Jara-Arroyos and Macy Olivas, Class of 2013 and co-leaders of SFER |
Just kidding (kind of) -- but seriously, you're missing out.
Sergio Jara is one of the most influential students at Whitworth. In the past three and a half years that he's been here, Sergio has been very active in student leadership and involved in enacting change within the community.
Other than his time as a Cultural Diversity Advocate and Resident Assistant, he's a co-leader of the Students for Educational Reform with fellow senior Macy Olivas. He also works in the Intercultural Student Center on Tuesdays and Thursdays -- all the more reason to come visit the ISC!
Lucky you, I got a chance to sit with him and write down a few of the amazing things we talked about this afternoon. A senior at Whitworth, Sergio pointed out the differences he has witnessed since freshman year, and also the different work that students are doing to have made such a change on campus possible.
"One thing I have heard a lot from former Whitworth students has been, 'There's something different about your class,'" Sergio said, referring to the graduating class of 2013. "They tell me that we don't just talk about possible solutions, we actually make it happen.
"In the past there has been a lot of 'what we need to do,' and this class is more about 'what we do.' I think that's something we'll leave Whitworth with -- pushing progressive thought."
Sergio mentioned that, since freshman year, there have been times when he felt uncomfortable on campus -- but now that's changed. "It's interesting to see how issues seen on campus would have turned out differently if they had happened our freshman year," he remarked, referring to the student body and administration's responses to the recent student bullying that had occurred a couple months ago after some students in the homosexual community came out at an event meant to encourage LGBT students to be comfortable in their own skin at a Christian university.
The event had been a large success and opened doors to conversations that students were not participating in before; however, there were a couple instances where openly gay students experienced threats and harassment for their sexual identity. The Whitworth administration was quick to sanction such action and seek information on identity of the individuals responsible for the atrocious actions. The administration also brought together several faculty members and student representatives to speak about what can be done to prevent such bullying from occurring again in the future.
The Whitworth student body as a whole were united in their disapproval for the behavior of these individuals as well. Facebook statuses and posters on campus fought back against the message that the bullies were sending. Student newspaper "The Whitworthian" interviewed several students on campus asking their opinions on the subject, and not a single respondent condoned the bullying or discrimination against the homosexual community.
This was exactly what Sergio was referring to when he said that Whitworth has changed a lot in four years. "The problem wasn't swept under the rug. It took four years to make that happen, but it's happening. We're making the transition [to a more open and accepting community]."
Sergio attributed this change to the help of administration and encouragement of student involvement in implementing such change. But mostly, Sergio believes it is because students are taking a stand. "One thing I've noticed in our class -- and now also the younger classes -- is that students are taking back ownership and using their student voice."
Sergio said, "The student voice is crucial. We have a huge leeway on administration and faculty." Looking to fellow leader of SFER Macy Olivas, Sergio said, "Macy Olivas is my hero. She's one of many different, key individuals on campus who are passionate about a topic and have been willing to follow through with that."
Macy's work with SFER has brought about a greater recognition for the issue of educational reform to Whitworth students. SFER, according to Sergio, promotes the cause of educational reform because "the civil rights of our lifetime is education."
Beyond the cause that students like he and Macy fight for, Sergio said that the greatest change they hope to bring about on campus is the idea that "advocating is a life-style."
"It's not just something you do on the weekends," he said. "It's a daily-basis thing. How do you fight for a cause without getting burn out?"
His solution? Work-shops.
"Work-shops are more geared toward the lifestyle. Not just educating and throwing information at people," he said, "but asking them, 'How can we implement what we know?'"
There are several opportunities for the future that Sergio pointed out.
First: will the underclassmen take the legacy of the senior class further?
This "pushing progressive thought" movement that the Class of 2013 is notorious for -- what's next? Already Sergio (and I) see the underclassmen stepping up to the challenge. Sergio said that he is excited to see what the Classes of 2014, 2015, and 2016 have to offer for the Whitworth community in the coming years.
Second: Collaborating among various student clubs and organizations.
This act of collaboration is already being seen with SFER's alliances with International Justice Mission and the Business Club, to name a couple. "We club leaders all want the same thing: social justice," Sergio said. "But the ways we see to get there are all different, based on our roots." So, this is one of the ways that SFER -- and Sergio -- hope to see change further implemented. "We should come together and help each other reach the same goal."
"We all want a better world and a better future," he said. "So why not?"
To contact the writer of this article, e-mail Rosie Brown at whitworth.iscblogger@gmail.com.
