Gryphon Spotlight Homepage

BRONXVILLE, N.Y.—Part of the vision of Sarah Lawrence College is to foster students who are engaged in their communities and want to make a mark on their world. In his first year at the College, SLC men's basketball player Graham Gilleran (San Francisco, Calif./Archbishop Riordan) has exemplified this standard, putting his time to use on campus and in the neighborhood.

On the basketball court, Gilleran knows a thing or two about what it means to be a team player. The rookie center has averaged 12.6 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, stellar numbers for a player at any level.

After scoring 20 points against SUNYIT on Jan. 11, Gilleran became just the second Gryphon to tally that many points against a varsity opponent. This season, he also totaled the second-most blocks in the history of the Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. On top of that, he has dished out the team's second-most assists, evidence that he's willing to give up the ball to help a teammate succeed.

"Graham is one of our most dynamic players," reflects men's basketball Head Coach Chris Ehmer. "The physical and mental toughness that he possesses have elevated our team this year."

Off the court, Gilleran's selflessness has connected him with a volunteer opportunity that has taken him directly into a Yonkers community center. Each week, the San Francisco native carves time from his busy schedule to serve as a tutor in math and English, sharing in the lives of local children.

Located just a few miles from campus, Iglesia Memorial de San Andrés is an Episcopalian church serving the neighborhood's Latino community. Every weekday, the church offers a secular after-school program for elementary school students to receive help with their homework.

The primary teaching objective of the San Andrés program is to assist students with literacy—a general term the agency defines to include math and reading competencies as well as life experiences such as visiting museums and playing sports.

While Gilleran initially began volunteering as part of his Poverty in America class, instructed by Dr. Kim Ferguson, he has continued to remain active in the program.

Gilleran describes the opportunity as both enjoyable and rewarding. "Working with the students is a lot of fun," he says. "Helping kids with their English makes me feel like I'm helping with their future. Most of the children attend big public schools where they don't get a lot of individual attention, but with the after-school program, they can get the help they need."

Gilleran's commitment to the community is not altogether unique on the Sarah Lawrence College campus. SLC Director of Community Partnerships and Service Learning Mara Gross has helped to organize dozens of community-based opportunities for SLC students. From service-learning courses to one-day projects, many students participate in some kind of volunteer work during their Sarah Lawrence career.

In all, nearly two dozen SLC students volunteer regularly in some form at San Andrés. In addition to community-based courses, other students participate in Saturday enrichment programs, in health and science programming and in reading programs with San Andrés.

Gross notes that the benefits of the San Andrés program stem from the strong relationships the students and the youth develop, a point often reiterated by the director and vicar of the church, Rev. Yamily Bass-Choate.

Explains Gross, "The relationships students form with the students at San Andres are key. Those relationships develop out of mutual exchanges of laughter, learning, and growth. It takes time to create those relationships. It takes work. It's a lot of responsibility."

To stay involved, Gilleran's time-management skills have been put to the test. He has had to coordinate his volunteer schedule with the demands of basketball practices and games, all while negotiating the challenges of a full course load. Gilleran also represents the men's basketball team on SLC's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, which meets weekly to discuss campus issues specific to student-athletes.

According to Gross, the feedback from the program has been positive. "San Andrés appreciates the work of Sarah Lawrence students, as it allows the children to gain more individualized attention on reading and math. The homework also facilitates the connections around little shared experiences that build relationships that open up windows into different ways of understanding the world and therefore being in the world."

All of the community work opportunities on campus serve to support the College's mission to produce worldly graduates.

"On a lot of levels, students become more aware of the complexities of the world," reflects Gross. "Students learn who they are in relationship to the people they are working with—people whose lives can be very different than their own."

Gilleran revealed that he plans to remain involved with the program as long as his schedule permits. "I hope to keep volunteering beyond this academic year. I enjoy doing it, and I hope to continue working with this or another tutoring program."

Says Ehmer, "Graham has been a true leader on the team this year. He always has a positive attitude, and his teammates look to him in tough situations. Graham is a role-model, and I look forward to watching him develop in the coming seasons."

Sarah Lawrence men's basketball concludes its regular season on Friday, Feb. 28, when the Gryphons host Cooper Union at Campbell Sports Center at 8 p.m.

For more information about SLC Community Partnerships and Service Learning, be sure to check out the office's homepage.