October 27, 2016

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (PURDUE) -- Imagine you’re Poseidon and you can control water, what would you do with the Wabash? If you were the mayor, how would you change your town?

This month, an Honors College class will take these types of prompting questions to Bauer Family Resources to get area children thinking creatively about their community.

The students of HONR 299: Homegrown want to empower youngsters to find their voice, develop their imagination and consider their own unique role in the story of Lafayette. The college students will serve the Greater Lafayette community with six storytelling workshops. The sessions are designed with kids, ages 7-10, in mind. By the end, each participant will know how to tap into their inner-author. They will also have a chance to share their best work during a special reading on Dec. 8.

“This is an important moment, where two parts of the community that normally don’t see each other, are coming together and engaging,” said Professor Adam Watkins of the Honors College. “I think that’s really significant. We will all leave with a greater sense of civic identity by thinking through ‘place’ as something that connects us all.”

Service plays an important role in Watkins’ course. His students will use their experiences at Bauer, creative writing and ethnographic field work to explore how a hometown shapes one’s values and sense of self. Watkins hopes the college students will gain broader insight into the way location impacts individual and community identities, by watching the kids at Bauer use stories to define their home.

“It becomes a form of research for my students,” Watkins added.

For Bauer, it’s a valuable partnership. The non-profit is dedicated to giving children and families hope for a successful future while strengthening their community connections.

“I’m happy our class has an opportunity to share the gift of creative writing with these kids in a fun, interactive way,” Honors College student Ryan O’Connell said.

Student McKayla Shloemer is also excited to share her love of writing with the children at Bauer.

“By interacting with the youth and helping them realize their creative potential, I hope to help them invest in their futures and contribute to a positive outcome for their lives,” she said.

The creative writing workshops will continue every Tuesday through Nov. 22 from 3:00-4:15 p.m. at the Bauer Community Center on 330 Fountain Street, Lafayette, IN.

Contact: Lindsay Perrault, Honors College communications manager,
(765) 427-1923, lindsayperrault@purdue.edu