By: Rilla Haverdink
Samford freshmen are expressing different opinions about Common Ground, the new, one-credit-hour class designed to promote new students’ academic success and understanding of vocation.
Freshman Grant Stubbs’ class is scheduled from 8 to 8:55 a.m. every Thursday.
“Common Ground is… forcing you into having the college experience,” he said.
Freshman Aniya Horton has finished the class. Her section met twice a week until fall break.
“To me, Common Ground was a guide,” she said.
Dr. Angela Ferguson is the Director of the Common Ground Curriculum.
“In a lot of ways, it’s a bit of an extended orientation,” said Ferguson.
Along with informing students about campus resources, like the Writing Center and Career Development Center, Common Ground requires students to attend the first convocation and complete class readings.
Ferguson called it an expansion of Foundations 101, which is still offered, but unlike Common Ground, is not required.
“Consider Your Calling” by Gordon T. Smith is one of the texts Common Ground is built on. Other required readings include selections from Martin Luther King, Jr., Simone Weil and Dr. S. Jonathan Bass’s “From Every Stormy Wind that Blows: The Idea of Howard College and the Origins of Samford University.” College Rules! by Sherrie Nist-Olejnik and Jodi Patrick Holschuh is also required.
Students must complete three photo essay assignments, each called a “Samford Journey.” The first Samford Journey requires students to attend five university events, locate three favorite places (a study spot, eating option, and place where they relax) and locate seven on-campus resources, taking a photo at each.
“I’m… someone that’s going to force myself to do a bunch of social stuff,” said Stubbs. “So, I don’t see myself needing the additional things that Common Ground ,gets us to do.”
According to Ferguson, that is one of Common Ground’s purposes: to assess the extent to which students are engaging with what Samford offers.
“How can we, as a university, evaluate to what extent students [are] getting plugged in?” said Ferguson.
“Part of what assignments do is they also give us a way to kind of check in on how those types of things are going.”
New students either have Common Ground for a full semester, like Stubbs, or half a semester, like Horton. The half-semester class meets either during the A-term (until fall break) or the B-term (beginning after fall break).
“It was a little outrageous, with the presentations and one-page essays every week on top of all the other classes,” said Horton, whose class was during the A-term.
Nick Madsen, executive director of campus recreation, teaches a full-semester section.
“I feel like an instructor that’s a lot for me to get from them from one credit too, but I don’t know. And I know the university has so many parameters they have to accommodate, too.”
Common Ground contributes one credit hour to Samford Commons, which is a total of 40 credit hours.
“I think most other classes in core curriculum, are allowing me to obtain a different level of intellect,” said Stubbs. “However, I think in Common Ground, I’m just trying to check off a box because I have to.”
Horton said she would hate to have the class during the B-term.
“Coming into college,” said Horton, “I did not know anything, so its kind of has been very much of a lifesaver for me. Maybe other people knew more, but I didn’t.”
Stubbs’ and Horton’s experiences are different. Ferguson said the course accounts for these differences.
“We need to create something that’s going to welcome all students in and help all students get connected,” Ferguson said.
Ferguson is conducting evaluations with Common Ground students and faculty.
She has received feedback on the Samford Journey assignments, that those in the semester-long course “struggled with it, because some of the stuff relates back to early in the semester, and they might not still have those pictures.”
For those in the A- or B-term, she has heard that it is overwhelming. “It’s just like, ‘Oh wow, I’ve got to go ahead and get these pictures.’”
Ferguson oversees the course evaluations also.
“I’m willing to make changes going forward based on that feedback.”
Samford Commons will be offered in the spring so that all students, including spring transfer students, can take the required course.
Want the Crimson delivered to your inbox each week? Subscribe below!
