Assignment 1.3 FORUM JH (you can read and respond to other people's work)

Emersen Rabuse

CITY185 - Urban Culture and Society

Hurley

Assignment 1.3

I’d like to preface this map with a note that all future assignments will be surrounding that of Mount Kisco, NY - not Bryn Mawr. 

It’s easy to forget that Bryn Mawr College is not necessarily a public space - after all, this land is owned by a private institution; however, the paths behind Pembroke West and throughout campus are popular with neighborhood visitors who will walk their dogs or sightsee. This has changed greatly because of COVID, as buildings like the Old Library (once unlocked) are now unavailable for public viewing. Even those who live at Bryn Mawr College have newfound limited access to the interior of dormitories (only those who live in Pembroke West can use their keycards to enter, buildings are operating at limited capacity so several rooms are empty). Technically, all roads through campus (N Merion Ave, Yarrow St, etc.) are public, and students will often park their vehicles or order food deliveries to be dropped off in these spaces, as members of the general public aren’t supposed to stray from these roads due to the coronavirus. 

Living in the “Bryn Mawr Bubble” makes the division between this private campus and public roads even more obvious -- the roads near Pembroke West once bustled with students going on and off campus into the towns of Bryn Mawr, Haverford, and Ardmore; however, because of the coronavirus, Bryn Mawr’s campus is now far more isolated. Though Bryn Mawr College is a 20 minute walk from stores, students may only go into town for essential outings, greatly limiting Bryn Mawr College’s outreach into local communities. 

As for the neighborhood surrounding Bryn Mawr, it’s a traditional suburban community: idyllic homes, large driveways and lawns, and a plethora of public roads. Bryn Mawr is not the most walkable area, especially surrounding campus, as there are a lack of sidewalks available on several of the neighborhood roads. There are also shorter tunnels which prevent public transportation, such as the Blue Bus, from entering the commercial part of town at several points (though it is still possible with some rerouting). Bryn Mawr College is not necessarily in the middle of town: it is in a subgroup of several universities and private schools which are a walkable distance (less than a mile) outside of the town of Bryn Mawr. 

The difference in population demographics at Bryn Mawr College in comparison to the town of Bryn Mawr should also be noted -- Bryn Mawr College’s demographics publicly available online indicate a population which is 35.9% white, 21.7% non-residents, 12.9% asian, 9.9% latinx, and 5.7% African American.^[1] The town of Bryn Mawr itself is 65.3% white, 13.2% African American, 14.7% Asian, and 3.3% latinx.^[2] At a first glance, these demographics seem starkly different, with Bryn Mawr College only having half as many people in its demographic identifying as white; however, it is important to note that discrepancies between these data sets are to be expected: Bryn Mawr College is a subgroup of the town of Bryn Mawr itself, and the town does not identify how many of its residents are immigrants/living in Bryn Mawr temporarily for their education.