FAAD-tastic Open mic

STORY BY WILLIAM DIXON

Sheridan arts students gathered round their deans last Tuesday in the MacDonald-Heaslip Hall to discuss concerns and aspirations for their programs.

Faculty of Arts, Animation and Design dean Ronni Rosenberg, was accompanied with a panel of associate deans: Donna Braggins, Illustration and Photography, Sandy McKean, Film, Television, and Journalism, Angela Stukator, Animation and Game Design, Heather Whitton, Material Arts and Design, and Michael Rubinoff, Visual and Performing Arts. Ronni and her panel opened things up with what was already being done for students. One item was looking at opening a store run by students to sell their creations to the public. Another was trying to find more places for students to hang out and congregate.

“That’s the one thing we’ve actually acted on,” said Rosenberg, whose staff has already worked to make “The Pit,” a student common area for Art Fundamental students and other creative visual programs. The Pit is open to students all hours of the night, and Rosenberg is looking to make more common areas for other programs.

The students started standing up, one after another to voice their ideas. An Illustration student wanted to see more light tables along the hallway in A-Wing. Some have been out of order for ages, and are in need of repair, he said.

A Technical Theatre student wondered if there’s any better way for Sheridan to showcase student work. He’s worried that his work isn’t getting out far enough into the industry to make networking easier. He doesn’t feel the year-end presentation is enough to reach potential employers.

A Game Design student was concerned about the textbooks they’re reading for classes. She said they contain sexist material. “They had a section in a textbook about girl gamers,” she said. “It’s one of the most offensive things I’ve ever read.” Concern about the material certainly reached the panel of deans. They promised it would be something they would discuss in another faculty meeting.

Other students raised concerns about Sheridan’s rebranding, wondering why money needed to go towards the new “S” outside the SCAET Building when hallways running underneath B Wing could be using it for repairs. “I totally 100,000 per cent agree with you that students are the first priority. Education is our mission,” said Rosenberg, “But from the larger Sheridan community perspective, the whole drive to become a university is a pretty big thing… the whole re-branding is part of the strategy.”

Attendees also addressed Sheridan’s emails about current issues on campus. They complained that the emails downplayed their subjects. They felt the messages were vague and uninformative, without any follow up or closure about what any kind of resolution was put in place.

Afterward, students began filing out of the theatre, while some took some extra time to chat with Rosenberg and to follow up. “We’re going to follow up on every single one,” assured Rosenberg, “and my task is to figure out how to get the word back to the students… we need to make sure students know that we’re listening to them.”

While the event was a success, Tristan Goethel, a Technical Theatre student, was a little apprehensive. “Saying something is different than doing something.” He’s not completely sold that the light tables in A Wing are going to be fixed soon. But he was glad that overall, some real good points were made.

Follow @SheridanFAAD to find out more about the progress on concerns raised.