Response to Ellen Cushman's "The Rhetorician as an Agent of Social Change"

The first thing that struck me about Cushman's article is the voice. After three months or so of the rather stiff, traditional academic tone of the readings, it's nice to have a bit of a break. That being said, by the end of the piece I was about sick of the voice. I’m not sure what exactly was irritating to me, but after a while Cushman didn’t strike me as very professional sounding. Ah, well. Minor issue I suppose.

It was good to read about the issue of division between school and community. Her example sounds a bit more extreme than the tension we may see around this area, but I think the separation between educational institutions and community is something that schools should address. If one must exist within the community, good ties to it are certainly necessary. Though the situation of secondary is a little bit different (mostly in that they are, theoretically, part of the community as a whole), some of the same division occurs. Through improved communication and volunteering, who knows? Perhaps the educational world (and its surrounding community) will be a little bit brighter place to be.