Finding Common Ground: Greencastle, DePauw navigate town-gown relations

This summer, while students were shopping for dorm items and textbooks, President Brian Casey and Greencastle Mayor Sue Murray were discussing University relations with the community that in 1837 raised $25,000 to convince the Methodist Church to establish a school here.For Greencastle resident and communication professor Jeff McCall, Casey's actions are a step in the right direction.

"Dr. Casey is well on the path because he has made a concerted effort to get to know what's going on in the community," McCall said.

A strained relationship?

McCall, who has lived in the community for 23 years, said that negative perceptions of University-Greencastle relations are "exaggerated."

"I think the relationship is better than people give it credit," McCall said. "That's not to say there aren't some strains from time to time, but the people I know in Greencastle recognize that the University is a key player in the community's success."

President Emeritus Robert Bottoms, who served as the University's president for 22 years, said he believes that the community and DePauw have maintained a "healthy" relationship.

Not everyone sees the relationship as positive, however. English Professor Gregory Schwipps called the current relationship a "missed opportunity," and placed blame for problems on both DePauw and Greencastle.

"I think that there's a lot of potential for some very rich interaction that both sides often ignore," Schwipps said.

"I agree that I don't think things are strained now," he added. "The problem is no one would categorize them as good either."

History of problems

McCall said publicized events of conflict and history have contributed to strains in the relationship.

"Part of it is just history," McCall says. "There have also been some well-known instances where people didn't get along very well or students caused a commotion, or students' names end up in the newspaper."

McCall also said that he thought those kinds of problems arise between universities and their surrounding communities.

"I think those things have attention called to them and people get disappointed," he said.

Bottoms said that there have been times of tense relations, but agreed with McCall that the problems are typical for any college town.

"Have there been times of strain? Of course," Bottoms said. "I'm really not aware of any university where there aren't some bad situations."

Bottoms cited construction, the closing of College Street in front of the academic quadrangle and geographic expansion of the University as sources.

McCall said the University has not always taken Greencastle into account when making judgments.

"I think there have been times when the University hasn't used very good judgment in its dealings with the community," McCall said.

Schwipps attributes the state of relations to the lack of interaction between students and the surrounding off-campus area.

Schwipps also said he would like to see more Greencastle residents come to campus for cultural events.

"I talk to townspeople and they say 'Oh, those are DePauw things. They aren't for us,'" Schwipps said. "Well, they are for you."

McCall said both sides need to accept each other.

"We are in Greencastle," McCall said. "The University's not going to move, and everybody ought to make the best of the circumstance."

A mutually beneficial relationship

McCall suggested that DePauw should view its surrounding community as an asset.

"I think the University can benefit from Greencastle by telling students when they come here that they'll be relatively safe, that there are opportunities to be involved in the community, that Greencastle citizens are welcome and friendly," McCall said.

Sally Reasoner, sophomore and Civic Fellows president, agreed with McCall about the small-town environment.

"Greencastle is a very welcoming community and offers a great home away from home for all of DePauw students," she said via e-mail.

Schwipps, who teaches the first-year seminar "Writing Creative Nonfiction: A Sense of Place" leads writing activities that take students into the community. He challenges his students to "discover" Greencastle.

"Nobody in this room needs to point out what Greencastle doesn't have," Schwipps said. "It's all been said before. Everybody who's gone to school at DePauw has noticed what's not in Greencastle. ... So I tell them, 'Your goal this semester is to discover what is here, who is here, who are these people, what makes them tick?'"

Leslie Hanson, a Greencastle resident since 1986 and co-owner of Bright Futures in downtown Greencastle, said via e-mail that the relationship has improved.

Hanson said she is seeing more and more students in the community and said that this increased presence will help the relationship between the school and Greencastle.

"DePauw students are more visible in the community: volunteering in the schools, helping at community events, etc." Hanson said. "The more the Greencastle and DePauw community interact the better we get to know and understand each other."

Murray said, however, that the relationship is "a work in progress."

McCall said the community can benefit from the students economically and that having the University here raises the standard of living.

To continue to improve relations, McCall suggested that students need to be neighborly and have more lines of communication opened up.

Casey said he would also like to see students support Greencastle economically.

"I want the students out there just for the economics of it all," Casey said. "I've got to find ways that will draw students to the town and students to go to those things."