In the days following the September 11 terrorist attacks, as the
campus tried to sort through its fears and grief, students, faculty
and staff gravitated to what former Chancellor Bob Dynes often called “the
soul of the campus”: the UCSD Cross-Cultural Center (CCC).
The CCC—or “the Cross,” as regulars call it—turns
10 this spring. It opened its 4,700-square-foot headquarters on May
26, 1995, and the facility hasn’t changed much in a decade.
From the outside, it resembles a maintenance building. Inside, well-worn
furniture is mixed in with posters, books and a dazzling wall mural
(pictured left) painted by CCC interns. But students of all stripes
feel at home there, and such proximity melts barriers and dispels
stereotypes.
“The ‘Cross’ in ‘Cross-Cultural’ is
really a verb—we’re crossing ALL cultures,” says
Center Director Edwina Welch. “I remember one time when the
Muslim Students Association was meeting upstairs, and Hillel had
an art
exhibition in the gallery, and MEChA had brought in a guest speaker.
Normally, these three groups wouldn’t come into contact,
but this space brought them together. That’s a big part of
our mission: we invite every student to take advantage of this
campus
resource and become engaged in cross-cultural activities.”
It also empowers students to speak up on issues that matter to
them. Gabriela Sandoval, ’97, one of the activists who pressured
UCSD to open the Center, and
is now an assistant professor of sociology at UC Santa Cruz, recalls
that “when the announcement was made that the administration
said ‘yes,’ we were all stunned. I learned one of the
most valuable lessons from that simple ‘yes.’ I learned
that organizing requires a long-term goal.”
The CCC has become what Welch
calls “a nexus where people gather when they have issues” on
such topics as the conflict between free speech and respect for human
dignity. It has been a hub for multicultural celebrations, like Black
History Month and the Cesar Chavez holiday. And it has demonstrated
how a single unit can build campus community spirit.
Dylan de Kervor, ’02, who
now works for the National League of Cities believes that this
community spirit helped make the CCC
a focal point of her university
education. “The Cross provided a space where I could learn
from my peers,” says de Kervor,. “Some of the most amazing
conversations and learning opportunities from my time at UCSD took
place within the walls of the Cross.”
The Cross will observe the landmark birthday with a May 26 celebration
that will be “like a family reunion,” says Welch. “When
alumni come back to
campus, the first place many of them visit is the Cross-Cultural
Center, so we’ll be inviting a lot of old friends.” If you are interested in the reunion
go to: http://ccc.ucsd.edu.
—Kate
Callen
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