COMMON THREADS OF ALLEN COUNTY
The 2001 Allen County Common Threads project was led by The Lion and Lamb Peace Arts Center of Bluffton College. The goal was to begin a dialogue on the topics of "trust among leaders" and "respecting differences."
The Exhibit
The exhibit, which took place Sept. 28 through Nov. 1, at the Grace Albrecht Gallery, Sauder Visual Art Center, featured 14 community projects from Europe and six from Allen County that exemplified the Common Threads process to community building. The Allen County projects were selected by a 30-member steering committee because they demonstrated an approach to “respecting differences” or “trust among leaders.” These issues were determined to be critical to community development in Allen County.
“The idea behind the exhibit was to shine the light on existing projects,” said Judy Gilbert, former special assistant to the president. “Many groups in Allen County were already using the Common Threads process to address issues, and we wanted to spotlight those initiatives.”
Each Allen County project told a special story and was created by groups of diverse individuals who teamed up for a common cause or to reach a greater understanding of their similarities and differences. For example, a project by the Lima Girl Scouts of Appleseed Ridge brought together girls from the inner city, the suburbs and rural villages who explored the experience of friendships among diverse people. The mixed-media installation created by the group will be permanently installed at the Appleseed Ridge offices.
“I want all the girls to think of themselves as larger than life, to understand they can accomplish anything, regardless of their background,” said Jenita Landrum-Bittles, an artist from Columbus who guided the Girl Scouts project. “To achieve this goal we are always crossing bridges from differences to similarities. Through the process of making art, the girls also learn patience and how to get along.”
The “Talking Walls” project, also featured at the exhibit, was an outcome of a spring workshop for teachers at The Lion and Lamb Peace Arts Center. Six workshop attendees were Bluffton College students working on their master’s degree in education. The course focused on books such as Margy Burns Knight’s Talking Walls, which encourages readers to view common objects from multicultural perspectives.
“Children (and adults) who have not been exposed to other perspectives can believe there is only one right way to view things and this can often lead to conflict,” said Holdeman. The teachers were required to create their own projects that would enable their students to “see” with someone else’s eyes.
Terry Schnipke, a BC graduate student and 7th grade English teacher from Columbus Grove, Ohio, had his students read poetry from around the world. The students researched the country from which the poem originated and learned about its culture.
“The students were often surprised to see how activities such as dancing, playing with dolls, and having pets could be so different in other parts of the world,” he said. “Some students were able to relate to the poem in a special way. One student whose father runs a dairy delivery business found a poem about dairy delivery in Taiwan.”
The conference
The Common Threads project continued on Oct. 30, with a one-day conference at Bluffton College for Allen County educators, elected officials and civic and community leaders. The conference explored the Common Threads approach and the themes of “respecting differences” and “trust among leaders.” Ford Motor Company: Lima Engine Plant generously underwrote the conference.
The keynote speakers for the one-day conference were Jennifer Williams, executive director of the Centre for Creative Communities in London, England, the organization that spearheaded the European Common Threads program, and William Cleveland, director of the Study of Art and Community in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The coursework connection
Many BC professors found ways to incorporate Common Threads into their course materials. Seniors taking the required class Christian Values in Global Community during the spring and fall 2001 semesters conducted research to support the project.
“This class is about our call to be part of the progressive community,” said Dan Wessner, assistant professor of history and international studies. “Students must examine serious, ethic questions with the lens of social science theory.”
In the spring students interviewed more than 50 community leaders in Allen County to find out if they were aware of the Common Threads program in Europe and to determine whether or not they would be receptive to a similar program in Allen County. The results from this research were used in planning the exhibit and the Oct. 30 conference.
“The research project gave the students confidence,” said Wessner. “By interacting with community leaders, they began to realize that they could be a part of the community dialogue about important issues.”
Students in the fall semester class continued the research project by actively participating in the Oct. 30 conference to gather additional data. They also conducted follow-up interviews with the community leaders to determine the success of entire project. The students were required to bring together their individual research findings and complete a final report.
“Common Threads is about coming together, and I think each project has certainly met that objective,” said Holdeman. Common Threads will continue in 2002 with additional programs planned by the Council for the Arts of Greater Lima.
