Community Building and Wellness

community

Community Building

Community building is instrumental to develop relationships and to build collaborations. It can serve as the foundation for faculty to learn from one another and to join forces in future projects. These community building offerings provide a relaxed, non-judgmental environment, in which participants can freely share their opinions and learn different points of view and experiences. Below is a brief description of some of these offerings.

The Faculty & Staff Singers Group

Spring 2018, the Faculty Commons offered a special community-building opportunity for Faculty, the BC Faculty and Staff Singers group! They met every other Friday with Aimee Hong, our own Bellevue College Class Voice and Concert Choir Instructor. Aimee led a group of 9 faculty members to prepare for two concert performances at the end of the quarter. This is a great opportunity for faculty to get together and explore a musical way of engaging in community. This activity has been well attended even during the COVID-19 pandemic. We will continue for the 2023-2024 academic year dividing our time between online and in-person practices. Everyone is welcome.

Language and Community

This literature reading group for faculty in any and all disciplines meets once a month for an hour to discuss short stories, poetry and essays that are chosen by group members. Some writers discussed in the past include Amy Hempel, Lydia Davis, Grace Paley, Ocean Vuong, Beidao, and Cesar Vallejo. Literature offers nuanced ways for understanding human complexities and differences. Through literary discussions, we gain insights into ourselves, our students, and the world at large.

Unpacking Current Events

Does it seem like what we read in the daily news is more complex than ever? A new oil pipeline is not just a new pipeline. A hurricane is much more than a storm. An NFL player takes a knee…not in the end zone. When is it #FakeNews? We need to make sense of these complex and incredibly important events of our times so we can in turn better support our students also grappling with these topics. Fortunately for us, our Bellevue College faculty comprises extraordinary experts, thinkers, and educators in their disciplines. Our series, “Unpacking Current Events,” allows us to hear from our colleagues as they lead us in unraveling these events through the lens of a scholar/practitioner in the field. In 2017-2018, we discussed: NFL Protests, The Effects of Hurricane Katrina, Fake News and Nature of Conservancy in the US Virgin Islands.

Wellness Activities

At the Faculty Commons, we believe in providing a holistic approach to support BC faculty. Not only do we offer support to their teaching, but we also offer regular workshops that promote wellness. Our goal is to embrace faculty so they can flourish in our classrooms and in our community.  We work closely with the BC Wellness Center and guest facilitators to offer workshops in a private setting.  Some of these workshops are facilitated by our own fitness faculty. We welcome suggestions and proposals for wellness activities. These vary from quarter to quarter. Please check the Current Events Catalog for more details.

Last Updated August 14, 2023