By Melanie Ellis
Photos by Melanie Ellis
There will be a time in our lives where we find ourselves isolated from other people. Whether it be because we’re shy or quiet, or we even consider ourselves anti-social, it can be hard to interact with others! However, if you find yourself comfortable with a group of people who can relate to you, it is easier to be more open and less conservative. Sustained Dialogue, a Cuyahoga Community College organization on the Eastern Campus, is known to help people express how they feel. Sustained Dialogue began 4 years ago at Tri-C. Its main purpose is to help students break out of their shells and share their experiences and beliefs. They also discuss important issues in the world, such as politics, religion, race, gender among an entire scope of other topics. Tyler Olson, the program coordinator of the Global Issues Resource Center, is also the director of Sustained Dialogue. Olson explained the concept of Sustained Dialogue and how it can help benefit people in the long run. “We were looking to bring an organization or a concept that would allow students to engage with some of the important issues on campus
–Not only is it a beautiful opportunity to share their values, beliefs and experiences, but they pick an issue that they have seen on campus and come up with a plan to address that issue and hopefully make some type of change.” One of the students involved in the program, Kareemah Hairston, also gave some insight on how the program has helped her. “For me, I wanted to push myself to be a little bit more social and meet students,” she said. “I also know that it’s kind of hard to be involved in things that are significant on campus, and I knew that Sustained Dialogue was a really great platform to be able to be with a really cool community.” The program will start in a few weeks. They hope to recruit new people and get the message out about their organization. Looking to join? Stop by the Liberal Arts Building, Room 246 today!
