It may be hard to read someone else’s mind, but it’s certain that they are “always thinking”—especially if they are Albion students.
As part of the college’s new “Albion: Always Thinking” branding campaign, set to be launched during the week of April 20-24, students, faculty and staff will be encouraged to participate in a series of video-recorded interviews called “Meet the Minds.”
“We are asking people to talk about issues or causes that are personally important to them, or about experiences they’ve had at Albion that may have changed their lives and caused them to think in new ways,” said Sarah Briggs, associate vice president for communications. “We want to show that Albion students, faculty and staff are engaged in the world around them, and that a diversity of opinions about important issues exists on our campus.”
According to Briggs, the interviews will be held in an RV parked in the Admission Office parking area on April 21 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. The choice of an RV is based on a model that National Public Radio uses for its “StoryCorps” project, in which NPR interviewers drive an Airstream trailer around the country and gather thousands of stories from ordinary citizens.
Briggs said they hoped to utilize the interviews on the college’s Web site, which will be upgraded to reflect the new branding campaign.
“They will provide some fresh perspectives on the Albion experience and offer more dynamic content for users,” Briggs said. “And we think the campus community can just have some fun with this process too—it’s something we haven’t tried before.”
Questions that may be asked include “Name an issue you are passionate about and explain how learning about this issue has helped you think differently about the world,” and “Describe an experience you’ve had at Albion and how that challenged you to think in a way you never had before,” according to Briggs.
A series of prototype interviews will be shot on April 14 to provide a model for the real interviews on April 21, Briggs said.
Pat McCombs, Brook Park, Ohio sophomore, said he participated in one of the prototype interviews to spread the word about Albion.
“You know, I’m a big advocate of just spreading the word about where I go to school and representing it also,” McCombs said. “I think it’s just a good opportunity for me to tell people what I think Albion’s all about. “
McComb added that he thought the interviews would benefit both new and prospective students.
“First of all, I think it gives students interviewed a chance to think about what they’ve done in the past and what their experiences are all about,” McComb said. “Other students and students who are (considering the school) can see what it’s all about.”
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