To the Faculty and Administration at Hunter College,
I write to you on behalf of the MFA Studio Art student body.
We are deeply concerned about the current political situation in America. We are worried about the impact the Trump administration will have on our community, our education and futures. We feel that it is time to come together to foster community, to organize ourselves, to plan actions, to stand up for our beliefs.
Last Friday, Hunter faculty and students gathered to share individual concerns and fears, and hear the ideas of others. We offered one another our support and began to conceive strategies that might help to shape the future. This meeting felt so necessary. We have incredible potential, not only here in the Hunter community, but also across CUNY and in other art departments across the city at Pratt, Parsons, etc. No doubt many students there are having the same conversations we are. We want to connect with these peers and get organized. We also want to invite people to talk to us who have relevant experience of protest and other actions, following the example of Carrie Moyer, who has kindly suggested she could talk to us about the activist group Act Up.
To continue this work, we need a communal meeting place which is accessible at any time, and large enough for the whole constituency of the program. For this purpose, we write to ask you for the use of the second floor space, currently used as the second floor gallery, during the spring semester. If there is any budget available, we would request a few sofas, a bookshelf and a notice board; if there is no budget for this purpose, we will find donations with which to furnish the space.
We very much hope that you will seriously consider our proposal.
Best wishes,
Ben Browne
Dan Fig
Rebecca Baldwin
Nicola Probert
Hannah Schutzengel
Jazmine Hayes
Katy McCarthy
Liz Naiden
Michelle Hernandez
Mikey Estes
Clara Chapin
Hannah Beerman
Patrick Costello
Patrick Mohundro
T. Eliott Mansa
Jessi Li
Russell Perkins
Rachel Hillery
Frederick Greis
Eri King
Becky Rosen
Eugina Song
Evan Bellantone
Lindsay Burke
Michelle O'Connell
Wai Ying Zhao
10 Comments
This would be so helpful for everyone in the program. Thanks for doing this.
We really need this space to stay organized. Everything feels so crazy right now and having a place to gather is huge.
YES. Please let us use the gallery area. Its been completely empty for weeks anyway!
Ease of access to the space for community members is also essential. Taking over the flatbread space for meetings and organizing would be great!
So glad someone is finally asking for this. We need to be able to actually meet up without jumping through hoops to book a room.
Wow almost 100!
Yes please
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To the Faculty and Administration at Hunter College,
I write to you on behalf of the MFA Studio Art student body.
We are deeply concerned about the current political situation in America. We are worried about the impact the Trump administration will have on our community, our education and futures. We feel that it is time to come together to foster community, to organize ourselves, to plan actions, to stand up for our beliefs.
Last Friday, Hunter faculty and students gathered to share individual concerns and fears, and hear the ideas of others. We offered one another our support and began to conceive strategies that might help to shape the future. This meeting felt so necessary. We have incredible potential, not only here in the Hunter community, but also across CUNY and in other art departments across the city at Pratt, Parsons, etc. No doubt many students there are having the same conversations we are. We want to connect with these peers and get organized. We also want to invite people to talk to us who have relevant experience of protest and other actions, following the example of Carrie Moyer, who has kindly suggested she could talk to us about the activist group Act Up.
To continue this work, we need a communal meeting place which is accessible at any time, and large enough for the whole constituency of the program. For this purpose, we write to ask you for the use of the second floor space, currently used as the second floor gallery, during the spring semester. If there is any budget available, we would request a few sofas, a bookshelf and a notice board; if there is no budget for this purpose, we will find donations with which to furnish the space.
We very much hope that you will seriously consider our proposal.
Best wishes,
Ben Browne
Dan Fig
Rebecca Baldwin
Nicola Probert
Hannah Schutzengel
Jazmine Hayes
Katy McCarthy
Liz Naiden
Michelle Hernandez
Mikey Estes
Clara Chapin
Hannah Beerman
Patrick Costello
Patrick Mohundro
T. Eliott Mansa
Jessi Li
Russell Perkins
Rachel Hillery
Frederick Greis
Eri King
Becky Rosen
Eugina Song
Evan Bellantone
Lindsay Burke
Michelle O'Connell
Wai Ying Zhao
10 Comments
I would also like to suggest that between meetings, this space be available to the MFA students as a (quiet) reading/study space. Something important that our building has been missing.
This would be so helpful for everyone in the program. Thanks for doing this.
We really need this space to stay organized. Everything feels so crazy right now and having a place to gather is huge.
YES. Please let us use the gallery area. Its been completely empty for weeks anyway!
Ease of access to the space for community members is also essential. Taking over the flatbread space for meetings and organizing would be great!
So glad someone is finally asking for this. We need to be able to actually meet up without jumping through hoops to book a room.
Wow almost 100!
Yes please
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I would also like to suggest that between meetings, this space be available to the MFA students as a (quiet) reading/study space. Something important that our building has been missing.