On Feb. 26, at  Elizabethtown College’s  High Library held a talk titled “Research and Recording BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) Student History at Elizabethtown College.” The talk featured junior history and political science major and Young Center’s Ziegler Fellow Jordyn Dutko and sophomore legal studies major and student archivist Kalen Tendo, who had both done work on the history of the college.  

The talk began with an introduction of the students and library archivist Rachel Grove Rohrbaugh.

Both students got involved with the project at different times but had the same interest in the topic. 

Tendo first began the project due to the opportunity from Darcey Mills, director of Student Opportunity, Access and Engagement, who invited him to participate in the Summer Creative Arts and Research Program (SCARP) at Etown in the Summer of 2024. From there, Tendo connected with Rohrbaugh. Rohrbaugh continued to do this research with him past that summer and the two are still collecting participants this semester. 

Dutko became involved in this research last spring after taking part in a class as a part of her public heritage studies minor. Since Dutko founded the club Showing Up For Racial Justice (SURJ) on campus, it fit her passions and interests. Dutko then went through the archives in Fall 2024. 

Following introductions, Rohrbaugh read out Etown’s land acknowledgement, which acknowledges that Etown is located on the Susquehannock people’s ancestral homeland, and each of the researchers presented their findings. 

During Dutko’s section, she highlighted a multitude of alumni including Domingo Dikit, the first BIPOC student to attend Etown. Then, she acknowledged past BIPOC faculty and staff. Dutko surprised the audience by informing them Etown hired the first woman of color (WOC) faculty member, Min Liu, in 2000, despite the fact that both white women and BIPOC men were hired well before then. That highlighted a gap in hiring equality that long existed at the Etown. 

During Tendo’s section, he gave snippets of the interviews he and Rohrbaugh had been conducting during SCARP. They have had nine so far and plan to continue to recruit past BIPOC students to understand their experiences. 

While not everyone had a negative experience during their time on campus, David Jackon ‘73 noted in his interview with Tendo and Rohrbaugh that “my time there was a nightmare. It was my first exposure to racism. It was abundant, constant, consistent and never-ending.” 

Jackson went on to try to get the 18 demands recognized by the college, though they were not and were seen as threats, and eventually graduated from Etown. 

The wider community in Etown also had flaws as Etown for a long time was a Sundown Town, meaning it was not safe for any member of the Black community after the sun went down. Furthermore, Albert Granger ‘83 reported to Tendo and Rohrbaugh witnessing a Ku Klux Klan (KKK) member who had a booth at the farmers market in Etown. Granger even bought a sign from that member. 

For Tendo, this felt like the right time to present the research for a variety of reasons. 

“It was an opportunity to engage the broader community with the history of the campus. I wanted to highlight both the racist past of the school and show that the campus as a whole was not just racist,” Tendo said. “The history is more complex; There were hateful moments, such as students being called racial slurs and referred to as monkeys, but there were also heartwarming moments, like white students showing up to support Black student cultural events and participating in major protests. I wanted to share these highs and lows of Elizabethtown’s history to teach people about the spectrum the school has been on.” 

Following the talk and during the questions section, Tendo emphasized that white Etown students need to attend more events run by the identity-based groups on campus in order to create a stronger community for BIPOC students. 

“My biggest hope is that the campus can reflect on its past as a means of influencing the present,” Tendo said. “There were ‘Black Weekends’ on campus in the past, but the current campus community doesn’t participate in those events. Cultural groups used to perform on campus, and influential speakers would come to empower and educate students. I believe such activities are important to improve the overall campus culture. Over 100 years ago, students strived for a safe community, and we’re still working towards that today. My hope is that as more information comes out, we could potentially turn this research into a class to educate students, ensuring these lessons are ingrained in the school’s culture. As it is imperative for the growth of our campus to become more welcoming, students need to attend these events. That is what makes the campus more inclusive.” 

Dutko also wants to see more change on the institutional level. 

“I think they could be doing more outreach, like, choose more diverse groups. and maybe do a little bit more to help them feel like more of a person because the retention rates still aren’t good, for people of color, and that’s really a shame. So, I think they could really be doing more to address that,” Dutko said. 

For those wanting more information on the in-depth research that Dutko and Tendo conducted, the exhibit will be in the High Library’s IDEA lab until May 16. Alongside the research being presented, the exhibit features a number of books to engage in learning about racial justice and the experience of BIPOC people.