Common Ground has cancelled its Spring retreat.
The four-day student retreat, which centers on discussions of race, socioeconomic status, gender and sexuality, began in 2003 and is held twice a year, once in the Fall and once in the Spring. Although many have praised the program for drawing attention to important issues and allowing students an opportunity to share their opinions and stories, it has received criticism for its methods and selective application process.
“There are some parts of the retreat that have remained unchanged in the past several years—artifacts of an older framework that no longer effectively meets students’ needs,” wrote junior Emily Chen, co-director of Common Ground, in an email. “We have heard valid criticisms of our curriculum and want to own that our approach is imperfect.”
Common Ground is in the process of assembling a student advisory council that will help review and restructure the program’s curriculum, Chen wrote. The council will be made up of participants from previous years’ retreats.
Based on the work of the student advisory council as well as feedback from the student body, Chen explained that she expects the program to be ready to hold its 2016 Fall retreat.
“This was a difficult decision because the retreat holds a special place in our hearts, and we know that it brings great value to many participants every semester,” Chen wrote.
One priority for the restructuring is to better train the facilitators who lead large-group and small-group discussions, wrote junior Robert Vann, co-director for Common Ground, in an email. He added that other priorities will include improving post-retreat support for participants, establishing a more inclusive space for all members of the Duke community and designing a new curriculum that “promotes healing and mutual recognition.”
In an email to previous Common Ground participants, Chen and Vann acknowledged a number of criticisms that have followed the program in past years, including the criticisms that the program exploits the experiences of minority groups and that it does not provide an adequately welcoming space.
The program’s small size has been another point of contention. Common Ground selects 56 applicants for each retreat from applicant pools upward of 200 in number.
“Social justice work sometimes requires the humble recognition that we aren’t actually equipped to serve a given community,” Chen wrote.
The program is advised by J’nai Adams, program coordinator for the Center for Multicultural Affairs, and Tyrone Jean, assistant director of the Center for Multicultural Affairs. Adams and Jean did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication.
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