The
Committee of 150:
A renewal project in the spirit of our
Sesquicentennial Celebration
- By Bianca Sopoci-Belknap ’05
Until just recently, Kelly Hall’s sound system was not functional and the auditorium VCR for watching movies was broken. Many of the Communication Department’s systems were in need of service. All across campus - in the Science Building, the Theatre, and the Glen Helen Building - electrical equipment was broken down. For the campus as a whole, the problem was silent but enormous; it would take a professional electrician weeks to get all the equipment into working order. The College does not have that kind of funding available. After all, experts cost money, right?
Fortunately, the answer to that question is no. The sound and video systems
across campus received thorough attention and were put back in working
order last fall, courtesy of Gene Gerrior, Professional Electrician/Audio
Technician and Committee of 150 volunteer. Gene, although not an alum,
drove from California to help Antioch. Working with Antioch students,
faculty, staff, and local alumni, Gene spent two weeks using his years
of training to refurbish Antioch’s crumbling audio and video equipment,
rendering it good-as-new and ready for use. The project cost very little
- the professional time and labor was donated and the materials cheap.
Now Kelly Hall can easily host speakers and bands as well as show movies,
the Communication Department has an abundance of newly-soldered cables,
and the Glen can hold conferences without the previous fear of blowing
out mis-wired equipment. Gene did not limit himself to repairing what
was broken. The music department had wanted for some time to improve their
facilities by running cables into the offices of John Reinhart and Bev
Logan, wiring them for recording. Gene made quick work of the project
with the help of the music department’s co-op. Gene’s
visit is one example of the projects that the Committee of 150 is seeking
to actualize in 2003-04, Antioch’s sesquicentennial anniversary
year.
Already the program has completed a dozen or so projects during its trial term last fall and many more projects are currently under way. By coordinating referred volunteer professionals to work with staff and students on clearly defined tasks, the Committee of 150 seeks to harness the “human and social capital” present in friends and alumni of the College. The priority remains to raise funds for the College’s needs. Yet money is just one means to an end, and through a bit of organizing, and the goodwill of the larger Antioch community, it is possible to realize many of our goals through the donation of professional services.
While the most visible results of the Committee of 150 will be the improvements to college facilities and operations, the most long-ranging effect will be the reinvigorated relationships between students, alumni, Yellow Springs residents and friends of the College.
To learn more, contact Bianca Sopoci-Belknap ’05, Project Manager and co-op student, at (937) 769-1152 or at bsopoci@antioch-college.ed
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