Higher education often plays the role of a class gateway. With the addition of the all-grant financial aid program to its already generous financial aid packages, Williams College is reputed as an institution that takes pride in its affordability. However, the overall mobility index (measuring the likelihood that a student at an institution would move up two or more income quintiles) of Williams College students is among the lowest of elite schools. Meanwhile, low-income students on campus are forced to constantly either perform the normative Williams experience or exist in a sphere of hypervisible othering. So what gives? Our event aims to spark a conversation about the ongoing issues of class that exist on our campus. We hope to provide a platform for financial aid students from various backgrounds, generating a better understanding of what it means to be low income, institutionally and socially. Our event will consist of a panel of speakers who will share their experiences with class at Williams, followed by smaller breakout sessions designed to facilitate discussion among the participants.
Liz Kim, Caroline Tosolini, Diana Gonzalez-Castillo, Laurel Swanson, Jennifer Philistin, Pat Klugman, Chelsea Zhang
2– 3:30 p.m.
Griffin Hall 3