Fairfield University as a Utopian Project

In Ghana, wealth and labor went hand in hand. In order to obtain wealth, one has to work for it (107). This is similar to the accumulation of wealth at Fairfield University. In order to receive federal aid from the government to pay for their education, the student has to participate in something called a work study. A work study allows students to receive financial aid from the government when they work for a department on campus. Additionally, in Ghana, as mentioned in Africa must Unite, there needs to be a basis of common policies in order to make sure the country is developing exactly how they want it to (218). This does not take away from the freedom each individual state has, but it makes sure that every policy is the same, especially when it comes to the economy, defense, and foreign and diplomatic relations (218). This is similar to Fairfield in the way that I have experienced specific calculus classes. For example, each calculus professor has to cover the same material, have the same number of exams, and meet for three hours and twenty minutes every week. However, it is up to the professor how they would like to teach certain concepts, how much homework they would like to give out, and what their quiz policy is. In this case, the personal decision of each professor is similar to how each state in Africa has their own freedom and can make their own decisions based on what they think will be best for the people living in that place. The guidelines that each state must follow is similar to the guidelines each calculus teacher must follow.

The Black Panther’s chose their name because they want the same characteristics black panthers have (4). Black panthers do not strike first and when they are being attacked, they back away (4). It is only when the attacker continues to strike that they strike back (4). The Black Panther Party wanted to strike only when being attacked multiple times. The Black Panther Party wanted to ensure that they were not the ones who were being the aggressors. This is similar in the way Fairfield University picked its mascot. Fairfield’s mascot is a stag, and it was chosen because stags are very agile and can jump high and run fast. Fairfield wants all athletes to have those qualities. Additionally, Martin Luther King Jr. believed that protesting against unjust actions should be done in a nonviolent and peaceful way (6). For example, instead of causing a riot over segregation on public transportation, it is better to boycott that form of transportation altogether (6). The reason behind this is that Dr. King believed that it would make the opposing group feel bad for the suffering of black people and change the acts that have been done to them (6). At Fairfield University, a Black Lives Matter flag was taken down from outside the health center located behind Jogues Hall. A group of students got together to organize a march to support the BLM movement. This was the student's way to peacefully protect the justice that occurred. They took similar action to Martin Luther King Jr. by standing up for what is right in a peaceful way; a way that brings attention to the matter.

In the Looking Backward text, it explained how the money and wealth system works in “new Boston”. In this utopian society, everything anyone needs comes from one source (10). Ten different departments are in charge of making everything and sending it to a warehouse where the people in this society do their shopping (22). Every member of this society gets a credit card, which was a new term at the time, and it has a certain amount of money on it every year (22). There are no limitations on what can be bought, as long as one does not go over budget. This idea connects to how the dining hall on Fairfield’s campus works. Students get a card that contains a certain amount of meal swipes and dining dollars loaded onto it. The amount of money and swipes resets every semester, very similar to how the new Bostonian’s credit card system works. It does not matter what type of food you get at the Tully, which is the dining hall, as long as you do not run out of swipes and dining dollars before the end of the semester. The society explained in Looking Backward has a system where those who are irresponsible with their money can have a weekly or monthly allowance (10). This basically means that people are given a certain amount of money per week or month, so they do not go over budget (10). This is similar to the difference in Fairfield University’s meal plan between upperclassmen and underclassmen. The underclassmen are given fourteen meal swipes per week so they can budget their swipes correctly and to ensure they will not run out at the end of the semester. Upperclassmen are given all of their meal swipes for the entire semester all at once. It is up to them to decide how and when they would like to use them. This proves that Fairfield University administrations believe upperclassmen are more mature and will use their meal plan accordingly. 

My interview with Dr. Freudzon ended with the conclusion that Fairfield University is a utopian Project. When we discussed the utopian project in Ghana, she did not think it was a desirable society due to the focus on self and self-government. It is also not desirable because a lot of time, money, and effort was spent on the dam project that turned out to be unsuccessful. She agrees with the notion of narrowing a group’s focus to one project as long as it is guaranteed to be successful. In regard to the Black Panther’s utopia project, she believes it is a very desirable project, and one very similar to Fairfield University’s goal of diversity and inclusion. The end goals of the Black Panther Party and Fairfield are very similar. The Black Panthers are just on a different path than Fairfield is to reach the same goal. The new Boston utopian project is seen as desirable in Dr. Freudzon’s eyes. She agrees with the notion that everyone should be given the same tools so everyone can succeed. Equality and equity are very important in education and they are outlined in that utopian project. She views Fairfield University as a utopian project because it has a lot in common with other utopian projects. It also has the end goal of being a perfect University where every student has an ideal experience and outcome.

The country described in Herland is clean, has well-built roads with attractive architecture (7). This is very similar to Fairfield University. Fairfield spends a lot of time and money making sure the campus is looking perfect for potential donors, faculty, and students. Fairfield also makes sure the buildings are up to date with a beautiful exterior for the same reason. Every year, they pick a building to either renovate or build up from scratch. Another connection between Herland and Fairfield University is the factor of intelligence. The females in Herland all have the same level of intelligence because they all received the same education (17). I feel this is similar to Fairfield University because every single student with the same major receives the same education and has the same level of knowledge in certain areas. This is also the case for the student body as a whole. Fairfield wants all of their students to succeed so they make everyone take a course in each of the main areas of study, so every student is well rounded. Every student graduates from Fairfield with basic knowledge in each of the core fields of study, which is exactly the goal of the education system in Herland.

Randism is the philosophy that love should be treated like a business deal (7) and that the only people that can be ruled over are criminals (11). Fairfield University is not like a utopian project in the respect of Randism. At Fairfield University, we are taught to show each other love and kindness, even if you are not shown any. Love is something that has many levels, none of which is similar to a business deal. In regard to the idea of who has power and who is in charge, Fairfield University has a very different viewpoint. There is a power hierarchy at Fairfield where students are on the bottom and the president of the school is at the top. Students are getting ruled over even if they have done nothing wrong, so in this respect, Fairfield University is not similar to the Randism utopian project due to the differences.

This passage is very interesting because it is basically saying that we would not be where or who we are today without the failure of these utopia projects while also saying in order to keep moving towards the future, we need hope for an ideal future. I completely agree with the notion of hoping for a better future. There is a lot wrong with the world today and a lot of suffering is experienced, so the hope for a better tomorrow keeps people living through today. Knowing the future will be a utopia will also keep people working to make things better for themselves, which is a very positive thing. As for the success of today relating to the failure of past utopia projects, I think it depends on the project and the current group of people you are talking about today. Some people today are still poor, hungry, dirty, afraid, and sick.

Text 1: 

• There is major animosity between black people and police in California (3)
• Black people in America did not have the same feeling of safety and privilege as white people (3)
• The police treated black people the same in California as they did in Mississippi (3)
• Black panther is the symbol for an organization that teaches self-defense (4)
  • They choose a black panther because they do not strike first, but when attacked they will back up but if they attacker continues, the panther will strike (4)
• Anyone could carry a firearm except those who were convicted of a crime (5)
• The Black panthers are going to carry a firearm and follow the police at a far distance and then protect anyone who the police are going to harm (5)
• If something happened, they would get out of their car and show their firearms and were ready to defend (6)
  • If the police would fire, so would the black panthers (7)
• There were 30 all together and most of the 30 had a weapon (8)
• The police officers try to take away the black panther's guns (11)
• They were bold, courageous, and arrogant (12)
• People are traveling from across the country to join the black panther party (13)
• The black panthers fought white supremacy and capitalism (13)
• Every city across the country wanted a chapter of the black panther club (14)
• Cleaver was a literary star who joined the black panthers giving credibility to the black panthers from black people and left white people (16)
  • He was an uncontrollable personality (17)
• Children who did notate breakfast did not do as well in school (27)
  • So, a program was created that serves breakfast to children by the black panthers (28)
• 20,000 meals a week (28)

Text 2:

• Black people are not free until they can determine their own destiny (1)
• The federal government is responsible for giving everyone a job or income and if a white person does not give a black person a job, his business should be taken from him (1)
• Forty acres of land and two mules were promised to black people once slavery was abolished but they never received either (1)
• The Germans killed 6 million jews, racists Americans have killed over 20 million black people (1) 
• They want land to build cooperatives so that they can build a community (1)
• True history should be taught in schools (1)
• Black men should not have to fight in the military to defend a country that did not defend them (1)
• All black people should be released from jail because they received an unfair trial (1)
• All black people who are brought to trial should have a jury of all black people (2)
• An all-white jury has no understanding of an average reasoning black man (2)
• Each member of the Black Panther Party must know the rules verbatim and by heart (2)
• When arrested, Black Panther Members will only give their name, address, and will say nothing at all (3)
• Political education classes are mandatory for every general member (3)
• Do not take a single needle or piece of thread from the poor and oppressed masses (4)
• Turn in everything captured from the attacking enemy (4)

Text 3:  (0:00-34:25)

• Ordinary man in America is better off than in any other area of the world, he has more freedom and protection (1)
  • Equal opportunities for all (2)
• A black soldier who came back from fighting in Vietnam says that life it the same, he still has to fight for his life because of discrimination (3)
• America will always be okay unless black people lose their minds because they will always hold America together. They don’t know anything about Africa, America is their home (5)
• A boycott is the most passive act anyone can commit (6)
• King believed that non-violence would achieve the gains for black people in the United States. King also believed when you are not being violent, you are showing your opponent you're suffering, and they will hopefully feel bad for you (6)
• In order for nonviolence to work, your opponent must have a conscience, and the United States has none (6)
• Power was missing from the equation, and you can gain power from your words (8)
• Black people were always the first to be laid off (12)
• “I was born in jail” (12)
• Talib Kweli trying to fly to California after 9/11 but the FBI, CIA, and TSA intercepted him and brought him to the back room to question about the Carmicheal speech he was listening to, even though it was written 40 years prior (14)
• MLK Jr started to take a stronger position in social justice, and he was shot after that.
  • He was the first to speak out against the war in Vietnam (16)
  • Connection between militarism and racism (16)
• King had a target because he was tampering with the playground of the wealthy (18)
• Fighting fire with fire was important but Dr. King did not do that, however he did open the flood gates to a movement (21)
• “As long as a white man does it, a black man can have no feelings” Malcom X (22)
• Everything that makes money is owned by someone who isn't black (23)
• People were taught to not question the government (26)
• Greed is very prominent in the US (26)
• Black Panther party in San Francisco want to try to defend black people, but they don't want a lot of violence (28)
•  The black panthers are the most military group in America (30)
• There are too many blank panthers in jail, they are going to have to start killing some of them (31)
• Free breakfast and free healthcare are produced by the black panthers (32)
• Black panthers are teaching the community to arm themselves (33)
• The black panthers also help their community with legal defense and with landlords (34)

• Text 1:
  • Decolonization 
  • There was a first wave in Asia from 1946-1954 and it spread to the Philippines (USA), India (UK), Palestinian, Burma/Myanmar (UK), North & South Korea (Japan), Indonesia (Dutch), North & South Vietnam (France) (minute 3)
  • All of these countries gained independence from the countries listed in ()  
  • Second wave in Africa between 1957-1964 (Minute 5)
  • Most of this happened during 1960.
  • Non-alignment is movement in response to the cold war.
  • Evolution towards independence 
  • Sukarno- founding president of Indonesia (6:15)
  • Nehru -founding prime minister of India (6:17)
  • Nasser -Kicked the British out (6:31)
  • Nkrumah- Ghana (6:35)
  • All of these leaders wrote the communique which declared the principles of the Asian-African Conference in Bandung (6:45)
  • Declared its full support of self-determination of people and nations as set forth in the Charter of the United Nations (7)
  • Double reference to the United States (7:05)
  • Result is the non-alignment movement, not aligned of the cold war and take the best of capitalism and communism (8)
  • Not communist, its nationalist (8:30)
  • China declares that they are not legend with the Soviet Union but says that are communists but they want to lead a different world movement (9:18)
  • China’s Principles of Foreign Aid (9:40)
  • China never attaches any conditions or asks for any privileges when seeking aid.
  • In providing technical assistance, China shall see to it that the personnel of the recipient country fully master such techniques.
  • Similar to Stalin’s five-year plan (10:05)

• Text 2:
  • There was a “supreme and sustained effort” to stop colonial rule in the country and now everyone can take a break (107)
  • The government called for a consolidation the nationalist victory, which appears to be a new task (107)
  • The convention people’s party in Ghana has to entice the devotion and sacrifice that is needed to hold the program of development (107)
  • Ghana’s slogan changed from “self-government now” to “serve Ghana now” (107)
  • Importance switched from independence to collectivism.
  • No wealth without labor (107)
  • People are working hard for themselves and children rather than the former colonial power (107)
  • This would cause dignity to increase on the national and individual side which would in turn cause a greater standard of living (107)
  • Countries that are under colonial rule have very restricted economic links with other countries (108)
  • Political independence is the goal (108)
  • “The domestic economy must be planned to promote the interests of its own nation” (108)
  • Only 5% of Ghana’s import trade was controlled by Ghana (108)
  • Reducing economic vulnerability can be done by lessening the dependence on the mono-crop farming (108)
  • Diversifying exports are important when escaping colonization (108)
  • More marketing procedures are being used and implemented (109)
  • Independence has brought the people of Ghana the ability arranges “national life” based on what the people want (109)
  • Cocoa and the fishing industry are two exports that Ghana has a strong hold on (110)
  • The first development plan emphasizes communications, public worlds, education, and general services. This allowed for the industrialization to continue to come to fruition (111)
  • There was concern with building factories because when a factory was built, it would drive up the price of the material that the factory produced, doing a disservice to the community (112)
  • When Ghana was under colonial administration, many services existed like postal, electricity and water sources, telegraphic and rail communication, but they were all publicly owned and administered (112)
  • When airlines are independent, they can bring in revenue to the people who make the products as well as enhance their skills and experience (114)
  • Industrial growth will take a very long time and a lot of power from the people, but it will be worth it (117) 
  • Natural wealth in Africa is greater than any other continent (216)
  • While Africa is striving towards unity, the neo-colonialists are form communities based on the old colonizers (217)
  • All forms of government are secular and have common trade policies and economics policies (217)
  • Independent African states are exposed to imperialism and neo-colonialism, which brings its own set of dangers (218)
  • “There needs to be a common political basis for the integration of policies in economic planning, defense, and foreign and diplomatic relations” This does not change the power that each individual state has, it’s just to make sure the continent develops orderly and securely (218)
  • Unification of Africa should have three objectives:
  • Overall economic planning on a continental basis (218)
  • It would benefit the use of resources for all people (218-219)
  • Unified military and defense strategy (219)
  • Keep more places safer (219)
  • Costs much less (220)
  • Adopt a unified foreign policy and diplomacy to give political direction for protection and economic development (220)

• Text 3:
  • A dam was planned on being used as the main source of electricity to turn Ghana into an industrialized state (2)
  • There were problems that arose with the dam solution, and they were political and economical (2)
  • United states of Africa wants to become like united states of America (3)
  • “Africa is a place in the world the that we have ruled but never settled (3)
  • In 1951, there was the first election and 1 million people voted. The vote was to decide if they wanted to be self-governed now or in the future (4)
  • The conventions peoples party if ruled by Kwame Nkrumah, who spent election day in jail (4)
  • He spent 10 years in America as student. 
  • He was the first black man prime minister. 
  • He believed you need power (5)
  • Aluminum can be extracted from the dam (6)
  • Can be used for economic development of the country (6)
  • Used an exhibition to show the idea of using the dam to gain development (7)
  • Nkrumah wanted to join forces with the British (8)
  • Britain tried to invade Egypt, but they were fought off, this marked the decline of British colonialism (9)
  • They were also running out of money.
  • The British government pulled out of the scheme with Nkrumah (10)
  • Ghana was the first African country to be free (10)
  • Freedom does not just mean independence, it means industrialization (11)
  • America funded the dam project (14)
  • Nkrumah gave the idea to Kaiser that they could put an aluminum plant in Ghana and that would bring in money to Ghana so they could fund the dam plan and bring in electricity (16)
  • However, Ghana’s bauxite would not make useful aluminum (18)
  • Electricity was the key to industrialization (19)
  • Nkrumah accepted all of kaisers requests (23)
  • The dam was used as a hostage in the cold war (24)
  • The US gave Nkrumah more money for the dam and by doing this, they will have more leverage on his policies (26)
  • Called foreign aid (26)
  • Wanted to counter the communist advances (26)
  • Corruption of government and government people as well foreign ideas (28)
  • Many countries tried to sell Ghana useless things to corrupt their economical government and Ghana started to slide into debt (29)
  • The dam was finished and there was a massive celebration, and everyone was euphoric (32)
  • Nkrumah could not produce the Ghana he promised (36)
  • Nkrumah caused major debt and the invasion of major corruption (38)
  • He built so many buildings that were unnecessary.
  • The dam was successful but the industrialization that was supposed to follow was not (39)
  • Kaiser had an aluminum company that flourished and hired many people from Ghana, this brought foreign aid into the country (40)
  • Dam was shut down due to the low level of water, the people of Ghana got to choose if they wanted to open it. This led to leverage over Kaiser because they needed the dam to run their smelter (44)
  • Kaiser had to pay more for the electricity of the dam (44)

Intro Video (13:45-18:15)

• Lyman Tower Sargent read about all utopias and said that the 19th century produced 3x as many utopias a every century put together (14)
  • 300 utopias and over half of them were written after 1888 (14)
  • Success in 1888 because of the success of Looking Backwards by Edwards Bellamy (14)
  • Best-selling novels of the 19th centuries (14)
• Boston became an ideal place (15)
• Everyone had to write about Utopias (16)
• There were utopias written about women as well (16)
• Fatal flaw of Utopias is that they are too talkative (18)

Text 1 (parts 1-7):

• When West fell asleep, it was May 30th, 1887, which is when there was a widespread of industrial and social troubles and all of the social classes were dissatisfied with the inequalities of society. Basically, everyone was miserable (1)
• Bostonians ask a lot of questions (2)
• The biggest problem going on in 1887 was strikes because of  labor unions (2)
• Labor unions and strikes were not a problem when the companies were not huge and the employee could easily become the boss, causing there to be no difference between classes. Because there was no difference between the classes, there was no need for a union or strikes (2)
• There is no violence. There is no more possibility of opposing it by force than by argument (4)
• The most violent arguers against the large private monopolies were forced to recognize how invaluable and indispensable bad been their office in educating the people up to the point of assuming control of their own business (4)
• There was a consolidation of the industries of the country under national control (4)
  • This caused a much larger revenue than when the companies were separate and smaller (4)
• There is no war now and the government has no war powers. The government protects every citizen against hunger, cold, and nakedness, and provides all mental and physical needs (5)
• There are no parties or politicians, and the words demagoguery and corruptions are words of the past (5)
• People have not changed but the conditions of human life have changed which correlates to the change of human actions (5)
• People who misuse their power will not make any money for themselves (5)
• The solution to the labor problem is that labor is organized under one direction (5)
• Basically, applied the principle of universal military to labor (everyone has to work) (5)
• Parents and teachers watch people from early years for indications of special aptitudes in children (7)
• Everyone must have a little knowledge in every industry so when they go to their specialty, they know a little bit about everything, making them more knowledgeable (7)
• The demand for jobs is equal to the amount of space open. If one job is showing a higher demand and the other is showing lower, they try to figure out something to make them both attractive (7)
• Frequent occupation changes are not encouraged or even permitted, but people can change their occupation once or twice (8)
• There is no buying or selling (9)
• Everything they buy comes from one source and they get what they need through a credit card that has all of their money on it. They get a certain amount of money each year to use. They also can't buy or exchange anything with neighbors. People who are reckless spenders are given a weekly or monthly allowance (10) 
• There is no such thing as wages, and it is required that each person provides the same efforts (12)
• There is no poverty nor is there any more fear of poverty (13)
• No resident was more than 5 or 10 minutes away from the story (14)
• To make a purchase, press a button where a clerk will come out and take your order. The clerk will make two copies, one for you and one to put in a tube (15)
• Next, the paper will be sent to a warehouse where the item is read and sent to your house (16)
• The ranking system is not meant to discourage anyone, since grades and classes are numerically equal (18)
• When a man becomes an officer, his rating is only based on the work of his men rather than his own work (19)
• No matter what your ranking is, the working hours are the same, the vacation days are the same, and the retirement year is the same (19)
• “The right of a man to dine at the nation’s table depends on the fact that he is a man, and not on the amount of health and strength he may have, so as long as he does his best” (20)
• Able to tell the number of every material consumed annually by the nation (22)
• The productive and constructive industry is divided into 10 departments (22)
•  President is picked from the 10 greatest officers (24)
• And the president is the head of the 10 great departments that make everything (24)
• The army is not allowed to vote for the president (25)
• Everything they buy comes from one source and they get what they need through a credit card that has all of their money on it. They get a certain amount of money each year to use. They also can't buy or exchange anything with neighbors. People who are reckless spenders are given a weekly or monthly allowance (10) 

Interview done with Dr. Susan Freudzon, biomedical engineering professor

• Do you know what a utopian project is?

• To my understanding a Utopia is the opposite of dystopia where everything goes wrong and is a failure, so a Utopia Project must be where everything goes right and is perfect.

• A Utopia project is a plan or attempt at a Utopia rather than the actual thing. So basically, it is when a place or a group of people try to make their society a Utopia.

• In Ghana, the top priority at the time was to hold the program of self development (107). What do you think Fairfield’s top priority is at this time? Do you think it should remain the highest priority?

• I think Fairfield’s top priority is getting money to keep making the university better for the students. I think this is important because it is ensuring that our students are at the best University possible. 

• I agree, raising money to make Fairfield University is important. I just think that Fairfield University has to do better with checking in with students regarding what they want and need, rather than just doing whatever will make the University appear to be better. 

• Ghana’s slogan changed from “self-government now” to serve Ghana now” (107). What would you say Fairfield’s slogan is? Do you think serving Fairfield should be the population’s goal?

• Fairfield’s logo is “Per Fidem Ad Plenam Veritatem”, which translates to “Through Faith to Full Truth”. I think Fairfield should be serving the greater surrounding areas. In the school of engineering, we do something called suSTEMability where we go to surrounding elementary schools to teach kids about STEM. 

• I agree that Fairfield University should be serving those who need help. Most of our population is very blessed and we should give out gifts to those who need help. Fairfield and Bridgeport have the largest wealth gap between two neighboring towns in the whole country, and I think we should do something about it.

• There was a project going on in Ghana where a dam was being built to bring industrialization into the country through the electricity from the movement of water (19), however it failed and the people of Ghana had to figure out if they wanted to keep putting money into the project (44). Is there any project going on at Fairfield to your knowledge that was supposed to bring in a lot of wealth and positive changes but continues to lose Fairfield money?

• I think Fairfield’s most recent development is the Leo D. Mahoney Arena. I think it should be a generally important priority because it will bring in a lot of  people to campus. However, in order to make sure it stays a success and all of the money, a lot of events need to be held there. It is losing money because there have not been many events held there, it is not making as much money as it should. 

• The arena was a lot of work and money to build, but since it was paid for by donors, it is not losing the money brought in through students tuition. I agree with the fact that not many events have been held in the arena so far.

• Based on what we have discussed about Ghana, do you think their Utopian project is desirable? And if so, do you think it is possible to implement at Fairfield University?

• I do not think their Utopian project is desirable. They seem very focused on self-government but their one main project did not work. I do not think Fairfield University is similar to Ghana in that way.

• There is a group called the black panthers whose sole job is to fight racial injustices. One of their main beliefs is that black people are not free until they can determine their own destiny (1). Do you feel free as a faculty member of this university?

• I feel very free. I can make any changes to my curriculum as I would like because I am the only professor who teaches the classes I teach and if there is a class that interests me or my students, I can do so. 

• I find this interesting, because I wonder if that is the same in all departments and schools at Fairfield University. 

• According to the Black Panthers, greed is very prominent in the US (26). Do you see greed at Fairfield University?

• I do not see greed because I usually interact with people on a professional level. 

• I feel like in the areas I see greed on campus is in non-academic settings, and I view it more as entitlement rather than greed. 

• The Black Panthers are teaching the community how to protect themselves; they are also providing free breakfast and free healthcare to their black community. What do you think of Fairfield University's healthcare and food system?

• From my understanding, as long as you have insurance you can be treated from the health center. I think the food system is very in favor of the students. When I take my kids to the tully, they can eat as much food as they want and I think that is super convenient for students because they can go to the cafeteria and get as much food as they want.  

• Yes, as long as you have health insurance you can get checked out for a number of things, but some prescriptions cost money. I think our dining hall is very good in the sense that you can stay there all day with one swipe, but I think the amount it costs to have a meal plan is not inclusive to students from all different backgrounds. 

• Based on what we have discussed about the Black Panthers, do you think their Utopian project is desirable? And if so, do you think it is possible to implement at Fairfield University?

• I think Black Panther's Utopia Project is desirable. They make sure the under-represented groups in society are taken care of. I also think it is possible to implement this project into our society because it will ensure that all students are given what they need to thrive at Fairfield University. 

• I studied a Utopian Project that portrayed Boston in the future. The government protects every citizen to male sure they are not hungry, cold, or naked. They also provide for all physical and mental needs (5). Do you see Fairfield taking care of all of its students?

• I feel like it’s hard for me to see if Fairfield is caring for all of my students, especially since some of my students do not live on campus. From what I know, Fairfield provides every student with what they need. 

• I feel like students are at a stage in their life where they have to learn how to take care of themselves, so while yes everything we need is mostly provided for us, it is our job to search it out. 

• In the future of Boston, everyone works and everyone is led by one person under one direction (5). Does Fairfield do this and would you see a benefit to it if they do not already?

• Not every student works but I think they need to. In order to get a job, you need prior work experience to show basic skills employers are looking for so I think it builds life skills. 

• I agree with the fact that it is good for the resume, but some students do not have time to get a job, their job is being a full-time student. Personally, I have two jobs on campus because I need to in order to pay for my tuition.  

• Boston of the future has a ranking system, but it is not meant to discourage anyone (18). How do you feel about grading students and how do you grade students?

• I feel that I am very lenient and fair when it comes to grading. I tell my students exactly what I am looking for and I never try to trick them, but I feel grades are important in the sense that it keeps some students in check and motivated. 

• I think you are a fair, but tough grader. I think it is very possible to do well in your class, you just have to put in the effort. I also think it is very good how you do not judge students over their grades and use it as a sign of their worth as a person.  

• Based on what we have discussed about new Boston, do you think their Utopian project is desirable? And if so, do you think it is possible to implement at Fairfield University?

• I think new Boston is desirable because of the fact that everyone is treated equally and everyone is given the same tools to succeed. I think it is possible to implement but very difficult because not everyone wants or needs the same thing. I also feel like it could take the creativity out of education. 

• Based on everything discussed, do you think Fairfield University is a Utopian Project?

• I never thought of Fairfield as a Utopian project until now. I would say Fairfield is a Utopia project because it has a lot in common with other Utopia projects.