Students come to campus to learn and pursue their degrees but many are left craving interaction. Wellness Manager Beth McPartlin knows this had this in mind when creating the “Table Talk Dinner Series.” The event was a four-week series that began on Sept. 23rd, ended on Oct. 14th, and ran from 5 to 6:30 p.m.
It was held in the Health and Recreation Center, room M2012, and aimed to bring students together to make friends and create connections. Food, games, conversations, and free notebooks were given out.
Sodexo, the food service used at Harper, provided a different meal choice at each gathering. Harper Wellness and the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI) sponsored the events.
McPartlin explained that the dinner series was created to help students reach short-term goals such as making friends and learning to find common ground with peers.
“Especially in the political climate that we’re in, I think sometimes it gets really difficult to meet individuals or to have civil discourse,” McPartlin said. “The table talk series was built out of a variety of different reasons… ultimately a long-term goal is peeling back the layers and allowing students to meet other students who might have differences in opinion and background.”
McPartlin explains that the series has two sections. The first part was an introductory meeting where students could learn about what the series had to offer. The second session was specifically held for first-generation college students to give them extra support they might not have at home.
She found that the University of Chicago does something similar to the Table Talk Dinner Series and connected with a representative. McPartlin described how this conversation helped her learn the benefits students gain from forming connections during events like the dinner series.
“I would love for students to create a sense of belonging, whatever that means for them,’’ said Mcparltlin. “I want to create that belonging so they don’t feel isolated because, at the core, we are all the same.”
McPartlin wants to create an atmosphere where students can feel confident and comfortable. She went on to say that even though she recognizes that students can meet friends on their own, there is an aspect of vulnerability and timidity that wouldn’t be felt in groups.
Students such as cousins Ryin Payden and Anjanae Tyree attended multiple Table Talk Dinner events.
Payden and Tyree, who are both freshmen, started later in the semester and craved new friends. They agree that they had a hard time meeting new people. Payden recalls feeling lonely on the first day of the event as everyone was older than her.
She slowly started to meet more people and brought Tyree with her so she could also make friends. Payden ended up enjoying the fact that there were all different ages, as it gave her a variety of people to talk to. Before the event, Tyree thought that the format would be like a lecture and that there would not be time to interact; she was happy this was not the case.
“I like that we are able to break off and do our own thing,” said Tyree. “Instead of being bored and sitting and not talking. I like that he mixes up the tables every time so we can meet new people.”
Payden explained that games available are meant to make students meet new people and push them out of their comfort zone. There were cards with different conversation starters such as “Where do you see yourself ten years from now” which Payden said got people talking and conversations going.
Payden and Tyree enjoyed the different types of food at each event. McPartlin explained that having food along with the conversations was intentional and while it was there to eat and enjoy, there was a greater purpose to the food being served.
“If you think about your own life, a lot of those happy but also difficult conversations are over food,” said McPartlin. “Food is what brings us together so that was one of the ideas behind the dinner series… food brings us together no matter the cultural background.”
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