A Culture of Caring

pieces that may be more controversial, unnerving, occasionally even raw. Audience’s experiences would be sheltered and incomplete without exposure to contemporary plays that raise troublesome questions—even in controversial ways. … Freedom of expression allows the Theatre Department to put on this play, but it also protects the rights of … people to protest this play.”

Playwright Tony Kushner contacted Gilbertson and told him that this letter was among the finest statements by an administrator on behalf of his work. Nonetheless, the situation remained tense during the play’s two-week run. Ultimately, the protests galvanized the students and made them determined to go on with the show. As protestors gathered outside the Malcolm Field Theatre for Performing Arts on opening night, police officers guarded the entrances and the usual number of ushers working was doubled. The situation never became violent, and the cast and crew took it all in stride. Ticket sales increased by 33 percent over usual levels during the play’s limited run. Roberts recalled that the experience taught his students the degree to which “theater is a mirror to society” and reflected the contentious, yet often respectful manner, in which people debated important cultural and political issues.

During a university holiday party that December, Roberts and theatre student Caleb Knudson chatted with Gilbertson. When the topic of the spring’s fireworks arose, Knudson commented that he wished the department would put on Kushner’s sequel, “Angels in America, Part II: Perestroika.” Roberts remembered a long pause while Gilbertson eyed him and Knudson carefully before responding, “Wait until I retire.”53

A Culture of Caring

SVSU fosters experiences inside and out of the classroom that help students develop leadership.

During 2010-2011, more than 3,300 students volunteered for some form of civic engagement through the Office of Student Life. More than 1,200 students participated in academic internships. Such activity comes through sponsored programs, such as Christmas in July of the 1990s when students helped renovate homes in Saginaw, or the Alternative Breaks opportunities, offered after 2004, that encourage students to devote their spring breaks to learning more about a social issues in another part of the country.54

The Student Association began The Battle of the Valleys charity fundraising competition with football rival Grand Valley State University in 2003. In November 2012, SVSU students won their fifth consecutive Battle, outraising competitors at GVSU by nearly 30 to 1. In 2011, the Battle and the Relay for Life together raised more than $90,000 for charity.55 In the 10 years of the competition, SVSU students have raised almost $275,000 for such charities as Special Olympics of Michigan, Great Lakes Bay Miracle League and Salvation Army of Saginaw County, to name a few.

Concern for the community extends well beyond the borders of the Great Lakes Bay Region.

After Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast in 2005, nursing students expressed to instructors a desire to do something—anything—to help. Ava Lewis, professor of nursing, responded by organizing a seven-day trip for more than a dozen students and volun-

In the 10 years of the Battle of the Valleys competition, SVSU students have raised almost $275,000 for such charities as the Salvation Army of Saginaw County, which in 2010 received a check for $40,088.

teers. The group delivered supplies to schools and shelters. The experience was rewarding but did not come without heartache.

Everywhere the students looked, they saw buildings destroyed, families devastated and lives shattered. Lewis recalls that working with the children who couldn’t sleep due to post-traumatic stress syndrome was the worst. “One little boy really sticks out in my memory,” Lewis remembered. “He talked about the hurricane, and the water coming into the house and how his daddy put him on his shoulders. When they were walking out, the water covered his daddy’s head.” When he returned to campus, Scott Schlaud, a member of the contingent, said, “This has changed my life and opened my eyes to the many ways a nurse can help people’s quality of life.”56

Alternative Breaks is a student-run, student-led program that offers SVSU students an “alternative” to the traditional holiday and spring breaks. Students learn about an important social issue and then travel the country, or sometimes other countries, to provide service related to a particular issue. Started in 2004, this program has gained in popularity each succeeding year.

Roberts Fellows, funded by endowments the SVSU Foundation administers, began in 1999 and became among the most successful outlets for outstanding students interested in understanding global affairs. The program honors Donna Roberts, who was a member of the Board of Control and the SVSU Foundation Board of Directors. Fellows are pictured with distinguished Civil War historian Allen Guelzo, who visited in 2013.