Coming soon: Air Conditioning – and more!

Much-needed renovations to Clement Hall will begin shortly after Commencement thanks to a $1 million grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program and generous donors who helped raise $3.8 million. The renovations include the reconfiguration of existing restrooms for ADA compliance; better access and design standards; window replacements; the addition of HVAC with energy controls; state-of-the-art audio visual equipment; and acoustical improvement.

The college community gathered on May 2 to join in blessing the coming work. “Thank you to all the donors and to Governor Tom Wolf for the RACP Grant,” said Sister Carol Jean Vale, SSJ, Ph.D., president. “We offer a prayer of blessing to protect the work here and all who labor, that no harm will come to them … and that we finish on time and under budget.”

Seussical the Musical Draws a Crowd

CHC’s spring musical, Seussical the Musical, offered sing-along-fun for all ages in mid-April. Students and alums put on three performances, drawing a full house each time. The beloved characters of Dr. Seuss and situations instigated by the wily Cat-in-the-Hat came to life on the stage, offering laughter and life lessons.

What is Foreign Policy?

The students in the spring semester American Foreign Policy class taught by Jacqueline C. Reich, Ph.D., associate professor of political science, simulated participation in a National Security Council meeting in which they worked through a clash between the United States and China in the South China Sea. The facts in the case were all based on a real-life experience.

The students read about the national security process and what their roles would be within it. They read about and discussed events actually happening in the South China Sea, and learned some salient information about China, such as the fact that the Chinese developed their National Security Council only three years ago, giving them much less experience with negotiations such as this.

Among other things, the students learned that foreign policy must be consistent with the following elements to be successful:  Maintaining peace and security, securing economic prosperity, improving the quality of American lives and upholding human rights. Through the following exercise, in which the 15 students were assigned roles to play, they learned how U.S. decision-makers respond to a foreign policy crisis.

“This hands-on simulation engages the students in a real-life scenario,” says Reich, who has led this class three times before. “They got real-time updates and briefings and shared data with each other. They had to coordinate information and develop allies to support one another.”

Students Lobby for Funding

Jeffrey Carroll, Ph.D., assistant professor of political science joined a delegation of students to observe Student Aid Advocacy Day at the State Capitol in Harrisburg in April. Imani Boggs, Jamahl Hargust, Johnatan Perez-Zamudio, Jenna-Kim Lewis, JamesOwen Cutts and Andrew Zauzig were the student representatives who led the charge for the call for the increase of PHEAA funding. The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency—the institution that provides grants for students to attend college.

The students had a busy day. They provided information to the staff of State Rep. Chris Rabb, who said he would be happy to visit CHC; provided information to the staff of State Sen. Art Haywood, who has visited campus several times; met with the chief of staff for Sen. Sharif Street, Tracy Hardy; met with State Rep. Jordan Harris, who is committed to raising PHEAA funding; and met with State Rep. David Zimmerman.

The event was sponsored by the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.

Debating Pros and Cons

Six criminal justice majors participated in the 5th Annual Intercollegiate Criminal justice Debate in April hosted by West Chester University. Students Max Estevez, Annie Abbot, Camila Guevara, Victoria Fuller, Matt Pedrick and David Navas competed against six regional universities including Villanova, West Chester, Delaware State, Arcadia, Rowan, Penn State (Berks County) and Drexel.  Under the leadership of Lauren Barrow, Ph.D., associate professor of criminal justice, students worked for one month to research the issue: “Should felons lose their right to vote?” They also prepared arguments, both pro and con, and practiced public speaking.  Despite being the first time in many years that CHC has participated in a debate competition, the college’s teams won two of their six rounds (against Villanova and West Chester) and tied in one (against Delaware State). 

CHC Goes Green for Earth Week

All across campus, students, faculty and staff got in the swing of caring for the Earth during the third week of April – Earth Week. Whether walking, biking or taking mass transit to campus instead of driving, planting trees, recycling old electronic equipment or taking part in Meatless Monday, CHC’s mission was realized all week.

Observing Asian Pacific American Heritage

Kudos to:

Ryan Murphy, Ph.D., director of service-learning, has published an article in a recent issue of the journal American Catholic Studies titled “The Hidden, Unconventional Missionary Spirit of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Philadelphia.” (The article may be downloaded in PDF form by clicking on the name of the journal.)

Murphy also has received a research travel grant from the Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism at the University of Notre Dame. The grant will allow him to visit the archives at the university to continue his research on women religious.