Ebony Guidry

Town and Gown

10/12/15

1. What are some of the major issues between Town and Gown? Can they be resolved? If not, who
should take the loss?
The underline issue in the town and gown relationship can be summed up in one word, priority.
Colleges main priority is uplifting the community through education. It is their responsibility to
keep the doors open at an affordable price. However, the towns main priority is staying afloat
and providing safe and efficient services to taxpaying citizens. In an attempt to complete their
respective task, many relationships become tattered on the basis of taxes, housing, governance,
behavior, and much more.
Once the town gets a negative perception of the school it hosts, the support begins to dwindle.
One example of a Town and Gown disagreement I noticed, in a small town, is the communitys
disapproval of co-ed dorms. The college is trying to make money by filling beds, but the town
wants to preserve its Christian culture. I believe town and gown issues can be resolved with
compromise and understanding from both sides.

2. Based on your reading, do you agree with the Fair Share tax placed on Pittsburgh Colleges? Why
or Why not?
No, I do not agree with the idea to tax Colleges. The argument that the college utilizes city
services and should pay their share is fair. However, if colleges bring in a substantial amount of
revenue each year from homecomings, sports games, students that graduate and stay, etc.,
these things should be taken into account. Also, if the college is forced to pay a tax, it could
affect its enrollment. Colleges will have to raise tuition and fees to cover the cost of the extra
expense. Subsequently, I think communities would be doing more harm to require colleges pay
a tax. I believe an awesome compromise would be asking the college to contribute a certain
amount of revenue, deduct the extra revenue they bring in during the year, and ask them to pay
the difference.

3. If tasked with strengthening the community-university relationship in your area, what would be
an innovative program you would implement?
As I pondered ideas for implantation, I could not think of one better than the idea discussed in
our reading. Utilizing students as free labor while they gain experience and college credit is an
awesome idea. This would be the perfect program to implement. It answers two issues
discussed about the Town and Gown relationship: 1. Colleges earning their keep 2. colleges
ability to be a part of the town instead of isolating themselves. Students taking an active
interest in the well-being of the town shows that they are invested in the advancement of the
towns people. It also builds a positive relationship between businesses and the college. In a
previous position, the students in the dormitory had a negative reputation in the town. I
implemented a yearly holiday food drive. Students have to completely clean out their rooms
during breaks. Instead of throwing their nonperishable items away. We collected them and
donated them to a family in need. We published the article in the local paper and it began to
show a different side of the students that lived in the dorms.
Ebony Guidry
Town and Gown
10/12/15

4. What are some of the suggested tools to improve the town and gown relationship? Do you
agree with them, why or Why not?
The seven most important tools suggested for building a strong relationship between Town and
Gown are as follows: Funding, communication, synergy, measurable outcomes, visibility, and
dissemination of findings, organizational Compatibility and simplicity. I think the top three are
communication, measurable outcomes, and visibility. Communication is the most important
aspect of any partnership. Each party should be able to articulate what they expect from the
partnership. After articulating the desired outcomes, the outcomes should be able to be
measured for accountability and process tracking. Lastly, everything done should be visible. The
reputation of a college can be built or destroyed via word of mouth. Everything accomplished by
the partnership should be visible to gain the trust and respect of the community.

5. Why is collegiate and community involvement detrimental to the survival the college?
The college cannot survive without the approval of the town. Money is poured into the school
through the community. If the community is not supportive of the vision, the school cannot
survive. Towns people provide internships and other resources that aid in the education of the
colleges students. If the community, as a whole, does not agree with the governance of the
college they will pull their support. My previous employer and my Alma Mater have both had
buildings, and money for new buildings, donating to them from their host towns. When people
agree with your movement, they will support. If they do not, it will be difficult to advance your
agenda within their community. A positive relationship must be maintained between the towns
and colleges leaders to produce a harmonic environment, conducing for producing qualified
working citizens.