Franklin’s University and Giving Day took place on Wednesday, April 19, 2023. The theme of wellness and the promotion of mental health permeated the sunny campus as students, faculty, staff, and donors meandered from one event to another. At the morning graduating seniors’ meeting, the senior class learned about Graduating Student Week and voted for their commencement speaker. The Majors Fair at the Grotto was a busy event that allowed students to explore majors (and minors) and meet with students and faculty in all the Divisions. At midday, the menu at the Sustainability Lunch, curated by the Green Office and Food Service, offered new meatless options, encouraging all who attended to strive consciously toward sustainability even when making meal choices.
The Lugano Dance Project Workshop called “Equilibrium” was held in the afternoon on the President’s Lawn, and it was well attended by over twenty-five students and faculty, who joined the first movement session with choreographer Maria Bonzanigo of Compagnia Finzi-Pasca. With such beautiful weather working to their advantage, the dancers progressed from individual phrases to pairs to small groups, dancing from free to more structured motifs. The students reported that it was a rare opportunity to interact with each other outside and to challenge themselves to communicate with body language only. The result was that the inaugural cohort of dancers completed the day’s exercises with the beginning of a choreographic piece to be continued on May 18 and 19.
The Community Listening Session with the President and the President’s Cabinet Team Members was held in the afternoon with twenty-five to thirty attendees. Students shared their concerns and ideas for improvements. At the meeting’s conclusion, the President’s Cabinet shared that they are currently working hard to address concerns and find ways to incorporate positive change into the fabric of Franklin.
The concluding highlight of University and Giving Day was the visit by Iranian filmmaker and artist Sarvnaz Alembeigi and the screening of her film 1001 Nights Apart (Iran, 2022). The film follows Alambeigi's failed attempts to unite the generation of Iranian ballet dancers who had built a thriving ballet company in pre-revolutionary Iran with a current generation of contemporary dancers forced to go underground to practice their art in today's Iran, where dance is forbidden. A portrait of Iranian society emerges in which art can no longer fill its vital function of public reflection, political expression, and protest, and whose collective memory has been ruptured. The event marks Franklin’s solidarity with the women, girls, and protesters in Iran.
By day’s end, significant contributions toward student and community advancement were made, and thanks to the generous giving of our donors, University and Giving Day was a monumental success!
Gallery
