By Olive Treadwell and Tamia Turner
When most people hear the phrase “Night at the Museum,” they may think of the 2006 movie by Shawn Levy where a security guard at the Natural History Museum witnesses the exhibits come to life upon the building’s closure. However, Macaulay students may have a different association with that phrase.
On Tuesday, October 21, Macaulay Honors College’s Class of 2029 participated in the annual event known as “Night at the Museum.” During this evening, Macaulay freshmen have exclusive access to one floor of the Brooklyn Museum, located in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. From 6-9 PM, students get a one-of-a-kind experience having the museum to themselves while they socialize and enjoy the presented works.
To kick off the night, students gathered in the Gerald Cantor Auditorium of the museum to hear opening remarks from Dean Dara Byrne and Provost Roblin Meeks. After that, all 500+ scholars were free to walk around the museum together and socialize. During their visit, students chose one of the pieces of art they saw to review and reflect on as a group. These reviews allowed for open-minded and healthy debates about the significance of each piece.
“Most people were walking through the floor and actually talking about the art, and generally it was just really great to see young individuals partaking in pieces of history,” said Rianne Rodeo, the freshman Macaulay Scholars Council representative of Brooklyn College. “I enjoyed walking around with people I know and laughing with each other as we took silly pictures with the art.”
The freshmen also completed a solo reflection on the artwork around the museum, tracing their meanings back to their personal lives and majors. Despite the diverse majors the class of 2029 are pursuing, everyone was able to find a piece of art that they could relate back to their studies in some way.
“We treated Night at the Museum as more of a social event than an assignment,” said sophomore Nour Sulaiman. “You explore, both within yourself and socially with others, too.”
The museum served as a learning opportunity for students, as they searched for something unique that would resonate with them long after the night had ended.
“Night at the Museum” has been an ongoing Macaulay tradition for over 10 years, and serves a valuable purpose for freshmen among all 8 campuses who are still adjusting and settling into college life.
“It gets all of the students together in the same place at one time, and that’s very hard to do when you have 8 campuses, 5 boroughs, and 2000 students,” said Provost Roblin Meeks. “It kind of builds an early Macaulay identity; since Macaulay is all about experiential learning, you’re able to go out and do something and you’re not just sitting in a classroom.”
Macaulay freshmen are currently taking “The Arts in NYC,” the first of four honors seminars, which are unique, 3-credit courses that encourage hands-on learning and bring the diversity of New York City into the classroom. This seminar immerses students in various forms of art such as theatrical and musical performances, visual art showcases, etc. Additionally, it teaches scholars how to approach these art forms from an analytical and observant perspective. “Night at the Museum” serves as a culmination of the learning done by freshmen in these seminars so far.
“What we really want the seminars to do is get students to think about what makes New York the city that it is, and what would make New York a better city for everybody,” Provost Meeks said. “The cultural institutions are one of the finest things New York offers, so having students come in allows them to see they belong in these spaces, and understand what these kinds of spaces are all about.”
As the class of 2029 continues into their first year, they will hopefully be left with a growing sense of community and anticipation to volunteer at next year’s occurrence of Night at the Museum.
