The past few months have been a difficult time for our institution as folks continue to do work on behalf of our students and each other while coping with a lot of uncertainty, fear, anger, and grief. In light of this, we would like to invite you to an experiment in community support.

Due to their success, we will continue to hold these offerings as long as needed. Here’s what to expect: You are invited to an experiment in peer-facilitated community support. The primary purpose of this session is to unpack and sit with our emotions regarding the cuts and restructuring, rather than attempting to fix or repress them. The aim will be to validate and compassionately hold each others’ experiences as peers in community so that we can feel empowered by knowing that we aren’t going through this process alone. It will be a small group session (maximum 10 participants) in order to allow for vulnerable sharing and so that everyone has a voice.

NOTE: Sessions are open to ALL members of the college community.

Facilitators: Diane Gilliland (Academic & Career Preparation faculty), and Bijan Ahmadi (Economics faculty)

Is this session right for you? Each member of our Circle is asked to commit to the following agreements, which help maintain a safe container. Consider if you feel comfortable with the following:  

• I agree to keep confidential everything shared and discussed within this circle and to ask to set discussion boundaries if there are things that I am not comfortable sharing with the broader group.
• I agree to co-create a ‘container,’ where we practice providing and receiving unconditional positive regard and encourage diversity.
• I agree to practice listening compassionately, and to share from a place of “I want to hear” rather than “I want to fix”.
• I agree to share air time, to not dominate a conversation and I will intend to include everyone.
• I agree that if challenging thoughts or emotions arise for me within this group, that I will seek the proper help to process them.
• I understand that while we may engage in vulnerable or emotional discussions, this session is not a form of therapy and I agree to seek professional support if needed.
• I agree to reach out to the facilitators if I am struggling with anything that has arisen from the group or if I am concerned about the well-being of another group member.