Author: Sam Byrne
Since Occidental’s founding in 1887, the surrounding town of Eagle Rock has grown into a well-populated Los Angeles neighborhood, a far cry from its pastoral roots. With the growth of both Eagle Rock and the College, the administration has reached out to the greater community in hopes of establishing a respectful, interactive relationship with Eagle Rock residents. Although the College has established many community involvement programs that employ students as tutors, educators and mentors, there remains a significant disconnect between Occidental and its surrounding residential area. If the administration is serious about strengthening a mutually respectful relationship with the Eagle Rock community, policies that result in students congregating in off-campus housing on the weekends must be reworked.
Despite the significant divide between the College and the community, which results from a predominately off-campus student social culture, Occidental boasts an impressive history of promoting community outreach initiatives throughout Eagle Rock and neighboring areas.The College currently offers six major programs that reach out to the larger community, including the Community Literacy Center, which provides one-on-one tutoring for illiterate members of the greater Los Angeles area, and Upward Bound, a program that helps over 100 low-income, first generation high school students attend college. In his two years at Occidental, President Veitch has continued to place outreach initiatives at the top of the agenda. Last February, President Veitch met with a reporter from the Eagle Rock Patch to discuss his plans to improve relations between the College and its surrounding area. “We want to create an overlay for the community that makes sense for them, as well as us…we want to keep them close to us,” Veitch said.
While the idea of maintaining a close bond with the greater community is a sensible start to strengthening relations, students have overstepped boundaries of good judgment within the residential community and subsequently angered residents. Since students are only allowed to engage in substance-free and quiet activities on campus, many students consequently filter into Eagle Rock each weekend in search of a less supervised environment. Unfortunately, the influx of students inevitably disrupting the respectful balance between the College and the immediate neighborhood. While it is understood that not every student prefers a more boisterous social atmosphere on weekends, the majority of students favor environments where they can surround themselves with other students.
In prohibiting the majority of the student population from conducting this typical college behavior on campus, the College is forcing its students upon the Eagle Rock community, creating tension between students and residents. This “us versus them” mentality is perpetuated when the residential community in turn resents the student population as people who have invaded their domestic space and disrespected their community, viewing students as entitled and uncaring.
On the other hand, Occidental was established before the surrounding area became predominantly residential and those who purchased homes in Eagle Rock did so with the knowledge that they would be near a college.
A consequence of this social dynamic is evident from the several party-related noise complaints to Campus Safety and the Los Angeles Police Department this semester from frustrated residents. If the College were to embrace an on-campus social culture that includes greater tolerance for moderate alcohol consumption and high decibel gatherings, then some of these conflicts would disappear. Embracing students’ desire to blow off some steam at the end of the week, and allowing them to do it on campus, will stem the flow of students into the Eagle Rock neighborhood on weekends.
Occidental’s outreach initiatives are undeniably effective in aiding the youth in the immediate area; however, in order to fortify the relationship between the greater community and Occidental, the College cannot rely merely on these nurturing programs. The administration needs to recognize that college students are constructing their own paths to responsible adulthood during their time at Occidental, and social experimentation is unavoidably part of this maturation process.
These behaviors need to be allowed to take place within the parameters of the campus so that students do not come into conflict with the Eagle Rock residents and do not risk their personal safety.
Some patience and understanding on both ends, along with some rethinking about the College’s on-campus policies, could go a long way toward merging the Occidental and Eagle Rock communities into a supportive and communal environment.
Sam Byrne is an undeclared sophomore. She can be reached at sbyrne@oxy.edu
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