James May
A new on-campus group is leading the charge to develop and expand the relationship between the student body and College of Wooster hourly wage employees.
Headed by Cullen Dolson ’16 and Kristen Estabrook ’16, the group Heart Work is drawing the attention of students to work done by College staff.
“We want to raise awareness of what the staff does for us so that we might be more responsible for our actions,” explained Dolson.
“The club was inspired by Professor [Charles] Kammer and his class called The Life and Thought of Gandhi,” said Estabrook. “For a final paper addressing any social injustice, Cullen and I wrote an essay about the lack of living wages for hourly workers on the Wooster campus.”
The group, still in its infancy, wants to take up initiatives such as cooking for staff or Staff Appreciation Day in order to further their vision for improved relationships between these two facets of the campus community. Referring to Kammer’s Just Work class, Dolson remarked, “We want to find ways to bring this [mentality] to other students who do not already think this way.”
“We’re still in the process of brainstorming how we can make this happen,” said Estabrook. “We’re thinking of hanging posters to raise awareness, or organizing events that would cause hourly workers and students to come together.”
Though not asking for funding for the upcoming year, Heart Work hopes to be recognized as an official student group in the future and is tentatively planning to begin their first project by early April.
In the meantime, both Estabrook and Dolson expressed their sincere desire that anybody interested in their mission participate in the group. Heart Work is currently in the process of brainstorming, planning and scheduling through their Facebook page, which they encourage students to join.
They welcome to new members and new suggestions for how to proceed in achieving their goals.