Understanding "Town and Gown"
The union of “town” and “gown” is the understanding of the community surrounding a college campus in association with the students and atmosphere of the campus as a whole. The relationship between “town” and “gown” is highly relevant to all college campuses in that their interactions with surrounding neighborhoods, towns and cities defines the narrative of student life off campus.
The Hut, at Santa Clara University’s campus, has a unique relation to “town” and “gown” in that the city of Santa Clara has evolved around the 70-year-old establishment. Creating a space in which a community of both students and citizens can gather in order to unite over the sharing of food and drink creates an atmosphere of acceptance and unity. The Hut serves as a bridge between the “town” of Santa Clara and the “gown” of SCU.
The relationship to “town” and “gown” is not exclusive to SCU or The Hut. However, places inhibiting the consumption of alcohol create a unique bond between patrons both students and otherwise, creating a joint understanding of place and space taken up by both scholars and civilians.
The idea of college campuses having an open design pattern, essentially allowing the outside world in rather than secluding itself from the surrounding community, is uniquely American. The founders of Harvard University believed that the campus should be an “integral part of the town that surrounded it,” (Gumprecht, 73). The idea of collective identity is shared through the togetherness and bonding of places that not only allow, but invite both the community and the students, faculty and staff of nearby universities.
The idea of “town” and “gown” is applicable to campuses across the United States, utilizing unsuspecting restaurants, bars, and establishments to create unity through community.