Here’s a little information from my interview with our newest campus celebrity, Berol Dewdney!
Berol Dewdney: I am currently a Womens, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Major…but I am hoping to double with American Studies or Sociology! I grew up in southern Vermont in a small town called Putney. When my parents got divorced my Dad moved to Boston and my mom stayed in Vermont, and I went to highschool outside of Boston, so I must give a shout out to bean town – though I’ll always be Vermonter at heart!
HerCampus Colby: What are your interests both on and off campus?
BD: Though academics were at the core of my high school and are at the heart of my college experience, I sincerely believe that I learn the most from the extra-curriculars I participate in. I also believe it is how I contribute most to my school community. As a student-athlete, I compete on the Women’s Cross Country team in the fall (was elected co-captain for next season), and then run Indoor Track and Outdoor Track in the winter and spring. I am aslo taking a very active role in the re-activation of the women’s group on campus, am on the Student Advisory Board of the Goldfarb Center, mentor a local girls group, and am a member of The Bridge. I know this sounds corny, but the complete truth is that I want to make the world at large a better place for everyone – at Colby and beyond. I am a people person and intend on devoting myself to helping people!
HCC: So Berol, tell us a little about your experience with Colby Cross Country and Track? How is the team looking for the spring season?
BD: Anyone who knows me knows I love running like crazy! I love competing and pushing myself, but I think what I like most about it all is being part of a team – I adore being part of something bigger than myself, and one of things I think is so special about our team (and the thing which has made us so much stronger) is that we not only train together but we race together and for each other. Running can be selfish, but our team (both cross country and track) have learned to run selflessly. We had an impressive fall season, coming in fifth in New Englands. We were so close to going to nationals as a team, and the fire is in our bellies for next year! I can’t want for spring track…running in the warmth, sunshine, and trails and much better than the drab and frigid winter months! However, I looked for to the spring season not for the weather specifically but for my event; I love the steeplechase more than I love chocolate, and that is saying something! I was recovering from mono at the end of last winter and into the early spring, so I am excited to see how far I can go this season when I am more healthy!
HCC: We are all very curious about your newly appointed title as the Gender and Sexual Diversity Resource Officer. Can you tell us about it?
BD: I’ll admit I didn’t love Colby in the start. Just like any place, it isn’t perfect. We are not a haven of diversity and acceptance, but I believe we can be. Further, we must fully commit ourselves to be such because it is the right thing to do for every individual at this school, and because it is a matter of survival for Colby as a dynamic institution. Colby needs to join the twenty-first century, and become a place of comfort and safety for each student, no matter their orientation or issue. I have made a commitment to give myself fully to the positive change this campus is brewing. Frankly, I came to truly love Colby just at the end of this past semester, and because of this affection I will not give up the fight for making Colby a better place so that, as a strong community, we can in turn make positive change in the world at large.
HCC: This position is new to the Colby community, can you explain why Colby decided to incorporate this into the student body?
BD: We have made good head way on addressing some gender and sexual diversity issues, but there is much more we need to do to change Colby’s social narrative in regards to LGBTQ equality and sexism. Further, similar positions do exist at other schools, like Bowdoin and Connecticut College, and most all other nescacs and schools of Colby’s ilk have adult professionals and staff hired to provide resources and infrastructure to their respective campuses.
HCC: So what exactly will you be doing for us as the Gender and Sexual Diversity Resource Officer? What are your personal hopes for the position?
BD: This semester I intend on fully committing myself to being a resource to all aspects of the community. I am advocate, and articulator, and a connector. I’ll work closely with students and student groups, parts of the administration, on programming and education/outreach, as well as developing a road map for the future – or rather, a game plan for continuing the positive change we have began. Essentially, we want to make Colby an accepting and open place for all community members. Frankly a whole lot needs to change, from LGBTQ equality and acceptance, to sexual harassment and the inherent sexism that exists on this Campus. We not only need to address issues of privilege and inequality on a political level of policy, but perhaps more importantly need to change aspects of Colby’s social culture. For example we need to embrace LGBTQ and multicultural issues as a CAMPUS, and also change the way it feels for a girl when she walk through the halls of the apartments on Saturday night. As a community we must unite around the Precepts of the college – our shared values. In other words, Colby needs to practice what is preaches. We can say we are this or that on an admissions flyer, but when it comes down to it, we need to step up and truly live our dreams – and we definitely can. The values we strive to share must be articulated and visible, not just in the Pugh Center, but everywhere. Colby is a remarkable place, and the recent spark of energy for positive change is unstoppable. This may sounds corny, but we need to pair our goodness and knowledge so that we are not living for ourselves but for each other, and striving to make not only Colby but the world at large a better place. Plain and simple: the time for Colby to step up is now. Not because we want to, but because it is a matter of survival.
HCC: Thank you so much to Berol for taking part in Her Campus Colby as the campus celebrity! To close out the interview, how do you think the college will benefit as a whole from incorporating a Gender and Sexual Diversity Resource Officer?
BD: I tend to believe that we all want similar things at Colby – we all want our school to be a true, open, and selfless community. The issue is all of these wants and hopes are coming from different parts of the college (the students, the faculty, the administration, etc), are being articulated in various ways, and are thus not being heard to the extent that they should be. Further, though there is a huge lack of resource and infrastructure in respect to supporting gender and sexual diversity on campus, the resources available are at times hard to get to. So, I hope to be a point person – I want to connect people to each other and then connect them in turn to resources. The only way we will be able to step up as a community is if we engage in real dialogue. I plan to create more venues in which the community can have an honest conversation about how we intend to more forward.