ORU Student Finds "Home" on Campus

To close out his annual Environmental Science Lab course, Dr. John Korstad has his students write a short paper about “Sense of Place”. Their objective: to take an observational stroll around various areas of the ORU campus and reflect on what they see, how it might compare to other campuses, and what they appreciate about what they notice.

Because the students have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and have been learning virtually since spring break, Korstad opened up the parameters of this year’s assignment to allow students to observe and write about their home areas as well.

One student, senior Alyssa Harris of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, blended the two in her paper, writing about both ORU and her hometown. In a sense, both places are “home” to her.

Her paper is reprinted below.

Alyssa Harris
EVR 250L
Professor Korstad
April 23rd, 2020

Weekly Reflection: Sense of Place

Due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, I have been secluded to my hometown and home place instead of the ORU campus. However, I’ve been able to take walks and drives around town and on my block while keeping a social distance of six feet apart. According to the Sense of Place PDF in our Dropbox, a sense of place is one’s connection to a place based on personal experience. The article includes many views and facts of experience regarding sense of place.

Under the umbrella of personal experience, our sense of place can be determined largely by the following: cultural beliefs and practices, the place’s personality, geographic attachment, history with the place, our community attachment, and biological, spiritual, ideological, narrative, commodified, and dependent attachments to the place. For my home place, I can say that all of these apply concerning my attachment.

Regarding my experience at ORU, I would say some, but not all of these attachments create a sense of place for me at ORU. The culture of ORU was what I was looking for in a college when transferring, and the longer I’ve been here, the more I’ve realized how much I respect and agree with ORU’s beliefs regarding Christian leadership in a secular world. The place exudes peace and a sense of imaginative wonder to me. I’ve never felt scared or out of place. Spiritually, the Lord has used so many people to communicate His love and affection for me. There is a freedom to love the Lord and each other with devotion and discipline.

Historically before I came to ORU, I had heard crazy stories about Oral Roberts and was unsure of ORU’s reputation. But I realized after coming just how silly and misinformed those rumors were. Oral Roberts was only the idea of a man I never knew, but I admired and respected him. His bold faith and ability to lead encouraged me to pursue my own God-given strengths. I’m thankful for his leadership and for the rich history of ORU’s campus. Every healing, professional breakthrough, and socially/culturally controversial issue has been submitted to the Lord, asking for His will to be done. I will always feel connected to the campus and am honored to be a part of its history as an alumna of ORU.

ORU’s campus is definitely much different from any other campus I have attended. I went to a community college in Arkansas my freshman year. It was small, and while there was some greenery, the campus was located right by a main interstate highway so the traffic was busy and loud. My sophomore year I attended a private, Christian college in a more rural part of Springdale, Arkansas. While there was much more greenery and nature, the campus was also small, stressful, and secluded. Even though it was small, there were places on campus that were dimly lit and dangerous, as well as other issues.

So when I got to ORU, I truly believed God had given me this campus and these people to make up for lost time. The campus is gorgeous, green, well-watered and maintained, professional, and friendly. I never felt scared or concerned for my safety anywhere on campus. And the horticulture of campus created such a beautiful, peaceful environment for learning and spiritual growth.

The reason I’m so attracted to those qualities in a campus is mostly because of my home and hometown. My backyard is green with lots of open space, mountains, and a river. I enjoy long walks and being out in nature. I also appreciate the freedom to walk without fear. Peaceful. Home is peaceful and so is campus!

I didn’t have a history with the campus prior to coming. But I made my own memories. With each passing year, faces on campus became more familiar and soon it became easy to call “home.” There were so many times I wished I could bring all the people I loved from home and have them on campus at ORU. Life would just be perfect that way. But that would be the only thing I would change. Not because I feel as if I missed out on an experience, but for the joy of sharing the experience together.

The growth and healing I found at ORU and on ORU’s campus are largely attributed to the people I met over time. But the peace and joy I found on campus originates from my favorite qualities of being home and finding home on campus.

 

[NOTE: this paper has been edited slightly for context and space considerations, and has been reprinted here with Ms. Harris’s permission.]