Hey there, welcome to the Howard Thurman Center for Common Ground.
Come on in.
So the Howard Thurman Center for Common Ground is essentially the campus living
room for Boston University, the social space, but we've been working a little bit
differently during covid and that's what we're gonna be talking about today.
So the Howard Thurman Center for
Common Ground has been an essential part of Boston University for many years.
But we moved to this huge space about a year ago.
We've got a lot of rooms that we utilize for different programs.
But since the pandemic has started, it's changed up a bit.
For example.
The gathering space right here used to hold our program called Tea Time,
but we've since closed it to the public.
And over here is our event space with a stage, screens, so
that we can screen our events, but it's also doubling as a classroom.
Now, the schedule for the Howard Thurman Center is set up from Monday to Friday and
in the morning from 9:00 to 11:30 we let folks come in here and study.
But then we clean up and start recess from noon to one.
Recess is held by multiple clubs across campus.
We've got charcoal, the minority connection initiative,
BU sustainability coming in here.
Tell us a little bit more about what they do, and playing games with the folks.
[SOUND] Next time hopefully I'll get it.
And recess really kicks off what the original purpose for
what the space is, which is to be a social space.
Hey y'all how's it hanging?
I'm doing well.
All right, I'll catch you later.
Sounds good.
And here's a staircase.
Everything about the Howard Thurman Center was built very intentionally.
So the staircase serves not only to connect downstairs and upstairs, but
to be a place for people to connect with each other.
Now, we've got a lot of events that we hold here at the Howard Thurman Center for
Common Ground.
But they've changed up a little bit in the way that they work.
I'm gonna bring you upstairs so
that Archelle can tell you a little bit more about that.
[MUSIC]
Hey, Archelle, how's it going?
>> Hey Carmen.
>> Good to see you again.
How are you?
Well, how are you?
>> Good, good. Well, I'll take it from here.
>> All right, sounds good.
>> Cool.
Awesome.
Well, hello everybody.
Welcome to the upstairs of that Howard Thurman Center for Common Ground.
Over here we have the common space, which is usually where coffee and
conversation is held.
From 3 to 5 pm on Fridays, but
because of COVID we've transitioned to an online model.
And this space is now used for classes and sometimes clubs and organizations meet
here but if you're looking to check out coffee and conversation.
Check out the HTC's website, and every Friday from 3 to 5 you can talk about,
something going on in the world music, politics, art everything you name it,
we've talked about the bachelor in the recent weeks.
So make sure you check out coffee and conversation 3 to 5 pm on Fridays.
And over here, we have one of my favorite parts about the Howard Thurman Center, and
that's charcoal magazine.
I'm the editor in chief this year.
But let me tell you about Charcoal,
it's a magazine publication dedicated to student artist of color and their work.
Over here we have galleries of images that we use and all of our issues,
all of the content is created by student artist of color who go here to
Boston University and it's absolutely amazing.
Make sure you come out to the HTC upstairs.
Check out these pictures.
If you want to get involved with charcoal.
We're only shout away on our Instagram.
Now I'm gonna take you guys to one of my personal favorite rooms
on this whole campus.
And this is the HTC's listening room.
It's a place if you need quiet time you need a space to just meditate and
think and reflect.
This is the room that you come into beautiful moss walls.
So calm, so quiet.
And one of the really cool things about this listening room is on
the outside of it.
You can grab a meditation, and it has words from Dr.
Thurman that will probably inspire you and calm you and relax you.
And I think that's the best part about this is you can take this with you into
the space, you can take it with you as you leave the HTC.
I picked up one that says trust.
And I think that's most important thing.
We got to trust each other and trust the process.
Right here we have Sherry.
She's one of the professional staff here.
Here we have Miss Kennedy, who's one of my mentors and
favorite people here on campus.
[MUSIC] Everybody here at
the Howard Thurman Center is here for you.
We're here for conversation.
We're here for the BU community.
And when I say that this is the spot on campus where you come to find your people
to enrich your soul, I really mean it this is the spot on campus I call my home and
I hope that this video helped you figure out where you can find your home
here on campus, and I really hope you start off at the Howard Thurman Center.
It's been great talking with you guys today.
I hope you have a good one.
[MUSIC]