multi-cultural sfuirent acllon committee serving community, each other The Multi-Cultural Student Action Committee, founded in 1999, was formed to help all students, especially minority and foreign, connect to Harding's social pipeline. Due to the growth of MSAC this year, the committee considered changing meeting locations because the conference room they met inbecame too crowded. However, for the year, the group continued to meet in the Student Association conference room. "We had just a handful of members in the beginning, but now we have students sitting all over the room, in every available place," Butch Gardner, director of Minority Student Services and First Year Experience, said. "They have also [become] better at planning, and they have a sense of direction and seem to know where they are going." The older members, who watched the group grow over the years, appreciated the direction the committee has taken since its inception. "We are trying to focus on getting more of the student body involved and cormected to all cultures, as well as get more faculty members to help us out," senior Lonnie Smith said. The committee needed new ways to open doors for expansion, so they brainstormed to find ways to reach out to the diverse Harding family. "We had an expanSion in ideas - ideas to push out and get involved with the other groups on campus - to open up forums, [which would] address student and teacher problems with cultural differences," senior Sharhi Scraders, vice president, said. Gardner said the committee served Harding because it gave many minority students a sense of belonging. "The committee helps in the retention of minority students because they aren't usually as involved in social clubs, and the committee opens up an alternative that also promotes diversity," Gardner said. Through service projects and other activities, MSAC helped students develop spiritually. Members participated in FaU Fest, a carnival for under-privileged children in Kensett, and aChristmas project for children in low-income housing. The committee also organized social functions including a potluck dinner and a trip to the Halloween com maze in Newport, Ark. They also planned activities for Black History Month in order to spread awareness of the history of black culture in America, including Gospel Explosion weekend Feb. 1921, which featured gospel music groups. MSAC also sponsored a candlelight devotional Jan. 19 for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. - Justin Bronson 208 /I organizations Senior Renada Robinson, Multi-Cultural Student Action Commit– tee president, talks with junior Cairey Tai, senior Shahri Scraders and sophomore Rachel Donald at the committee's weekly meeting Nov. 16. MSAC worked throughout the semester to promote diversity on campus and in the community. (Photo by Renee Lewis)
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