English majors mingle over tea

In an ongoing effort to bring faculty and students closer together, the English Undergraduate Advisory Board sponsored a tea and coffee hour yesterday afternoon in Bennett Hall. Approximately 30 students and 10 faculty members attended the event, entitled "The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul." Students and faculty members drank tea, coffee and soda and munched on brownies and cookies while mingling with English professors and other English majors. "This is a positive step in moving education beyond the classroom and into a social setting," English UAB member Max Federbush explained. "Students and faculty can interact here without the pressures of classrooms and grades." Federbush, a College senior and one of the organizers of the gathering, said the English UAB is attempting to build undergraduate and faculty communication. "We're happy that some faculty turned out," he added. "The faculty who came were very excited about it." English Professor David DeLaura said these events are the "model for the future" because they incorporate "education, communication and networking." DeLaura, former English Department chairperson, added that the program is "mutually beneficial" for faculty and students. According to Federbush, the events are designed to create a sense of community in the English Department between faculty and students. "UAB tries to have events like this -- they make Penn a smaller place," he said. And College junior Christy Goralink said the tea time helps students develop relationships with faculty that are not possible in a classroom. "This is a great opportunity to meet professors outside of office hours," explained Goralink, an English UAB member. "It's a chance to talk about something outside of class." College junior Alex Edelman, an English UAB member, constructed a World Wide Web home page for the coffee hour. The site was linked to the English UAB home page and explained the motivation for events such as the "Tea Time." "We hope to make your University experience more complete by continuing education beyond the walls of the classroom," the home page said. Edelman, who was responsible for publicizing the event, said he was pleased with its outcome. "We can never hope to have everyone come to every event," he said. "It's more important that majors know these things exist."