Social Action Groups that address multiple issues

Students for Social Action

Mission Statement

Students for Social Action (SSA) is a group of Dickinsonians who work to promote awareness of social issues and to develop progressive plans for change. The group works to advance social justice, environmental protection, and peaceful solutions to conflicts. This group has about 15 members. To find out more about this club, please visit their home page.

Events

The group sponsors a FairWares market to promote fair trade, and works together with other campus organizations, like EarthNow, Women's Center, and Spectrum. They also write letters to Congressmen, organize protests, and sponsor panel discussions led by faculty. According to group member Manuel Saralegui, next semester the group plans on having an activist round-table where "all the activist organizations get together to provide mutual support and dialogue". Some projects in the past have included the promotion of fair trade products in the Underground, a Clean Energy Now campaign, and a donation drive to assist migrant farm workers in Adams County.

Effectiveness

On a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the most effective, the group rated its perceived effectiveness with a 1.5.

Problems/Dilemmas

The main problem and/or dilemma Students for Social Action faces is that they cannot get many members in the group, and the receptiveness of the student body is bad; the group has trouble getting Dickinson students involved in their causes.

UMOJA

Mission Statements

As an active member, Shawn Nannan believes UMOJA's mission statement to be inadequate. In fact, he believes that this group has transformed for the better within the past couple of years due to improved leadership and student's interest in the club. Given this, Nannan says that "they have gone above and beyond to fulfill the mission as stated". The club's official mission is this: UMOJA- (ooh-MOE-jah) means Unite, the concept in which this organization is based on. The House of Umoja is an organization that was founded by seven women who sought to createa a space where students of different ethnicities, race, socio-economic backgrounds and religions could speak freely about pressing issues. It was created for the purpose of establishing and maintaining unity among the Dickinson students and the Carlisle community at large. This organization works in affiliation with Dickinson College and it is open to any student who is willing to dedicate themselves to upholding the integrity of the organization and advancing Umoja's goals. This and other information about the club can be found on their website here The club works on a volunteer basis with the Carlisle community and also sponsors and coordinates events on campus that further their mission.

Problems/Dilemmas

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