Administrators from higher education institutions across the region attended a town-gown roundtable at the College of the Holy Cross on June 7 to share and discuss promising practices in building relationships among neighbors, city and college officials, students, parents and property owners. The event was sponsored by Holy Cross and the Colleges of Worcester Consortium.
Paul Irish, assistant to the vice president for Student Affairs at Holy Cross, initiated the event. Irish is a key liaison between students living off campus and the College’s closest neighbors. He convenes regular meetings of the Holy Cross Community Alliance and also participates in the work of the College Hill Civic Association. He hopes the event, the first of its kind in central Massachusetts, becomes an annual gathering of institutions in the central and western parts of the state and beyond.
“One of the great things about working in higher education is the willingness of colleagues to share their challenges and successes,” Irish said.
Held in the College’s Hogan Campus Center Ballroom, the meeting attracted 80 participants from 21 colleges and universities in the region, as well as members of the College Hill Civic Association. Mark Bilotta, the chief executive officer of the Colleges of Worcester Consortium, welcomed the group and introduced Worcester Mayor Joseph C. O'Brien who spoke about the important collaborations and vibrancy that colleges and universities bring to a city.
Presenters and panelists included representatives from Boston College, Holy Cross, Salve Regina University, and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
In addition to Irish, representatives from Holy Cross included Jacqueline D. Peterson, vice president for Student Affairs and dean of students, and Rev. Paul Harman, S.J., special assistant to the president.
Guest presenter Richard Campbell, an attorney and founder of Campbell Campbell Edwards & Conroy, spoke on social host liability, the legal term for the criminal and civil responsibility of a person who furnishes liquor to a guest.
Other topics at the round-table meeting included:
- “Campus and Community Coalitions: Maintaining Momentum in Changing Times”
- “Campus and Community Teams: Using an Environmental Management Model to Build and Sustain Town-Gown Relations”
- “Reducing Off-Campus Student Offenses Through Community Collaboration: A Nine Year Study”
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