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In November, 2003, Professor William Cunningham of the Theatre & Speech Communication Department premiered an original work in honor of the 150th anniversary of Salem State College.
During the play, we met students, parents, faculty and staff of Salem State College. We journeyed through time -- back 150 years to when we were the Salem Normal School. We traveled back to when Horace Mann, Massachusetts's Secretary of Education, called for a public education system staffed by "trained" teachers. We met a young woman who passed her entrance exams in reading, spelling, defining, grammar and geography. Because she promised to become a public benefactor, her tuition is free, but her choices are limited. We jumped time to meet pairs of students from the 1960s up to present day. These students have more choices in careers and in lifestyles, but their education now comes at a cost.
The challenges of being a student at a public college vary from frustratingly comic ... trying to park...trying to explain a late paper...trying to convince a computer that you do, indeed, exist... to human circumstances both good and bad...non-traditional students...single moms...parents who are involved in a student's life and those who aren't…to life altering events…failure…change of major …discovering new interests and talents…and the triumph of graduation.
"Course Work" presented students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends of the College with a shared past. In the course of the play, we met the Dean of Discipline…the clock tower that didn't work…the flooded parking lots.
The juxtaposition of time combined with the unity of place helped us discover the eternal struggles we face together. There are always budget crises. There are always social injustices. There is always a battle between public interest and private interest. And there are always students who lack financial resources, who are disenfranchised, yet who still dream of a better life. It is these students and the people who work on their behalf to whom "Course Work" is dedicated. We have stayed the course and done the work for 150 years. If we continue to face our conflicts and fight our battles, there will always be a Salem State College.
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