Raise your hand in class. Go to your professors’ office hours. Join a club. Get support if you feel overwhelmed. Start a conversation with a person who looks different from you.
These were just some of the recommendations offered to students by speakers at Hunter College’s convocation September 3, which was part orientation, part pep rally — and all encompassing.
Students also heard from student representatives about student government and clubs and enjoyed a lively concert by Hawkapella, Hunter’s acapella group.
President Nancy Cantor emphasized the diversity of the Class of 2029 and said that having a student body that weaves together so many geographies, languages, faiths, personal identities, talents, and interests give Hunter a “diversity bonus” leading to greater achievements and outcomes.
The around 3,300-member class ranges in age from 16 to 64. Most students come from New York City, with Queens predominant at 34% and Brooklyn right behind with 29%. Students hailed from 685 high schools, with Midwood High sending the most students. The class includes transfer students from 199 colleges (although two-thirds come from other CUNY colleges). Most students are the first in their family to go to college. The top declared fields of study mirrored those of recent graduates: psychology was first, followed by computer science, biology and human biology, nursing, and social work.
Cantor likened the heterogeneity to a “potluck supper” — an idea mooted by Eboo Patel, the founder and CEO of a non-profit organization called Interfaith America, in a lecture at Hunter last year.
“The best metaphor for our democracy is a potluck supper, each bringing our own favorite dishes, rather than the age-old idea of a melting pot,” she said. “What will make your experience at Hunter special will be the opportunity to take part in so many different learning experiences, both in your classes and in the time that you spend outside of formal classes engaging with peers in our many organizations and in our New York City community. So, welcome, my friends, to Hunter’s potluck supper!”
Provost Manoj Pardasani quoted the late Malcolm X on how education is a passport to the future, because tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.
“What you’re doing today is investing in your future with Hunter College as your partner,” Pardasani said. “At Hunter College, we don't only prepare you for the job market or for graduate school; we want you to grow into critical thinkers, problem solvers, advocates, and social-justice warriors. We want you to be the change makers and leaders, both in college and in the external world.”
VJ Ramjattan ’10, the executive director of the New York City Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, spoke on behalf of alumni, describing his days as a first-generation college student as daunting.
“Who do I ask if my parents don't know what my education is. Who do I turn to?” he recounted.
Happily, however, things turned out well.
“I found a community, a real community, that showed me that education isn't just about knowledge; it’s about transformation,” he said.
The faculty speaker was alumnus and English Professor Michael Thomas, author of the acclaimed novel Man Gone Down and the recent memoir The Broken King, which deal with the experiences of Black men in America.
“I’m here to tell you, artists disturb the peace,” he said, counseling them to think deeply and dislodge complacency from their own thinking and that of society.
“I like to tell my students that a liberal arts education is the liberation from the self.”
