The Tufts Timmy Foundation hosted a gala at Goddard Chapel last night, offering students the chance to interact with professors outside of the classroom while raising money for a Guatemalan non-profit.
Many faculty members helped organize and participated in the show, which included an improvisational skit starring computer science Lecturer Benjamin Hescott and Mary Glaser, a senior lecturer in the math department.
The Tufts female a cappella group the Jackson Jills and the Tufts Dance Collective treated about 40 students and professors to performances as they mingled over food. Admittance was contingent upon a donation of $5.
Organizers also sold $1 raffle tickets for lunches with faculty members. Winners of the raffle had the opportunity to dine with Assistant Professor of Psychology Sam Sommers, Associate Professor of Mathematics Kim Ruane or University Professor Sol Gittleman.
The event raised slightly over $300, and all proceeds will go towards the community health center of Asociación Pop Wuj, the Tufts Timmy Foundation's international partner organization.
The Timmy Foundation is a national non-profit based in Indianapolis, Ind. that promotes sustainable health initiatives among target communities in Guatemala and Ecuador. According to junior Holly Stewart, director of advocacy for the Tufts group, the university's chapter is one of the few outside of the Midwest.
Asociación Pop Wuj works with traditionally underserved indigenous communities surrounding the Guatemalan city of Xela. The organization includes a school and health care center for local populations.
The Tufts Timmy Foundation sends students and medical professionals to Xela every winter to work with the local community.
Last night's Gala was part of a broader fundraising effort by the Tufts Timmy Foundation to support Pop Wuj beyond the annual trip. "Our goal is to raise $10,000 to subsidize Pop Wuj's projects all year long," Stewart said.
The event was based on the premise that students would jump at the chance to interact with their professors and was the brainchild of Tufts Timmy Foundation member Katie Vogel, a senior.
"This was a new, think-outside-of-the-box type of fundraiser," Stewart said. "Tufts students love their professors, but it's not always easy to get to know them in an informal setting, so that was part of the appeal."
Many students who were present echoed this sentiment, citing the chance to get up-close and personal with professors as the reason for their attendance.
"I'm here to support a good cause and hang out with my professors," senior Mary Sullivan said last night.
Sophomore Allister McGuire said that the faculty-centric fundraiser stood out. "I think that the inclusion of Tufts professors adds something that other organizations don't always have," he said. "It makes the university seem smaller when professors are accessible to students outside of an academic setting, so it's a cool way to get people's attention and draw interest."
Stewart was pleased with professors' active participation in the event. "Professors were very receptive," Stewart said. "Honestly, they want to get to know their students, as well."
Lecturer Peter Der Manuelian in the classics department said that he participated because he appreciated the rare chance to meet students.
"It's a great opportunity to bring students and teachers together. I like to get to know my students better," he said. "I currently teach a class of 125 people, so the opportunities are few and far between, and this is for a good cause."
University Chaplain David O'Leary expressed enthusiasm that such an event was able to take place in Goddard Chapel.
"It shows that Goddard Chapel can be a meeting place as it was meant to be," O'Leary said. "Tufts Timmy Foundation's work in South America is important and great, but this also shows that students want to interact with their professors informally, so hopefully this leads to something greater."
Hescott, of the computer science department, said he came on board with the fundraiser upon finding out about the Tufts Timmy Foundation's work from one of his students. "I wrote a recommendation for one of my students to travel to Guatemala," he said. "I asked her about it and what they're doing and it seemed pretty important."
In the event's opening speech, Vogel expressed her appreciation for the support of all the students and faculty present. "You are helping us help our friends in Guatemala and getting to know each other, which I think is the most important of all," she said.
Junior Amanda Schulte appreciated the chance to mingle with faculty in an informal setting. "I think it's really good to have such open access to the professors and have an open dialogue about what's really important in students' lives," she said.
Stewart was pleased that the event raised awareness for the foundation.
"The event was very successful. I think that the professors really enjoyed being with the students in an informal setting just as much as students enjoyed it," she said. "There was a lot of dialogue about the Timmy Foundation and what we do, so that was really important and good."
