In an email to all club leadership on campus in early March, Berberoglu introduced the initiative and asked that clubs work with her to ensure inclusive meeting times.
“Many commuters feel like they cannot make friends outside of commuters and feel slightly ostracized by clubs and other residents,” said Berberoglu in the email. “To tackle this issue in the spring 2018 semester, I would like to push all extracurriculars to have inclusive meetings times for commuters at least once a month.”
To promote this goal, Berberoglu is working to arrange a town hall meeting with all club leaders to discuss how clubs can become more inclusive. She also said she hopes to incentivize clubs by granting student lounge advertisements to events which cater to the commuter population, as well as stamping them as commuter-friendly.
According to Berberoglu, commuters often feel separated from the campus culture due to the tendency to emphasize residents over commuters in on-campus events.
“Clubs meet at 9 p.m., and when their class ends at 1 p.m., commuters don’t usually have the luxury of waiting on campus for that long,” said Berberoglu, in an interview with The Fordham Ram.
According to Berberoglu, clubs could help bridge this gap, granting commuters the opportunity to become more involved in college life.
“Extracurriculars are the easiest way to make commuters feel like they attend a college,” said Berberoglu.
Berberoglu said that while responses from club leadership have been slow, some of the reactions she has received have been enthusiastic.
Kevin McSorley, GSB ’20, musical director of the B-Sides, said that while his group currently has three commuter performers, difficulties in scheduling can arise.
“We try to be mindful of our commuters, but logistically it can be hard sometimes,” said McSorley.
Annalee Mueller, FCRH ‘20, treasurer of the Fordham Psychology Club, agreed that the differing schedules of commuters and residents can can be challenging.
As she drafted the initiative, Berberoglu said she drew from both her own experience as a commuter and the wider commuter population on campus. She surveyed commuters in the student lounge in McGinley in order to gain an understanding of the scope of commuter concerns. In doing so, she found that a sense of disconnect between commuters and campus culture is widespread.
“I was hoping it was just me,” said Berberoglu. “But as I spoke to others, I realized it was not a problem exclusive to people who are quiet or who have parents that might be strict. It’s a commuter issue.”
Other commuters have also addressed their difficulty forming friendships on campus.
Victoria Becker, FCRH ‘20, commuter student, said that the opportunity to be involved in clubs would help commuters form relationships outside of commuter circles.
“Clubs are a great way to make new friends with the same interests, and it would help commuters make more friends who live on campus,” said Becker. “There are commuter events to foster friendships between commuters, but clubs would assist in making friends who are not.”
While surveying the student lounge, Berberoglu stated that she encountered commuters who felt they had never been able to integrate into campus life.
“I spoke to seniors who had never been able to attend a single club or event on campus,” said Berberoglu. “They were never able to make friends with residents.”
McSorley spoke positively of the contributions of commuters in the B-Sides and said he hopes this initiative would grant other clubs the opportunity to experience the same diversity of perspectives.
“I would love if clubs could be more accessible to commuters,” McSorley said. “That would not only open up clubs to new people, but it would allow clubs to grow and gain new ideas.”
Tags: commuter accommodation, Hannah Gonzalez, USG
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