Where Are They Now?: Emerson UnCommon Winners

Emerson UnCommon

In Fall 2014, the Emerson community came together to assist in strategic planning by playing Emerson UnCommon, an online game created by the Emerson Engagement Lab. Almost 1,000 Emersonians participated in the game by completing “missions” each week and sharing their experiences on the Emerson campus to win gold coins. The coins were then donated to “causes” that were created by the players. The top three causes were awarded with $1,000 to make their dreams come true. Those causes were (1) Therapy Dogs, Iwasaki Library; (2) Student Immigrant Movement, Elma Lewis Center; and (3) Emerson College History Online, Iwasaki Library.

Here is an update on the winning causes:

Therapy Dogs
The top Emerson UnCommon cause, now known as the Cirque de De-Stress, continues to run every semester. The sixth iteration of this event took place on April 21 in the Iwasaki Library with more than 300 student attendees. In addition to therapy dogs, the Cirque offers chair massages, arts and crafts, and snacks. Student feedback from the event demonstrates what a positive impact a seemingly small initiative can have.

Student Immigrant Movement
In January 2015, the Student Immigrant Movement launched its legislative campaign “Education Equity” to fight for in-state tuition and state financial aid for undocumented students in Massachusetts. The group used the award funds to cover expenses for the campaign’s actions and meetings.

ECHO
The Emerson College History Online (ECHO) interactive timeline was created by the Emerson College Archives and Special Collections. The project aimed to update the very short history of milestones that were listed on the College website with a media-rich, interactive, and publicly available timeline that better reflects the creative nature of Emerson. The project was a success and is freely accessible online. The timeline is an ongoing project and new events are added on occasion, including events up to today. The success of ECHO has led to several other digital projects by the College Archives. To find out more about the digital materials available, visit emerson.edu/library/archives/digital-collections.

Rosalie Gartner (Archives)