Galloway, N.J.- Story Space, the brainchild of the Office of Student Development, hosted its first session, aptly titled “New Beginnings,” on Sept. 6 in the Campus Center.

Some were emotionally charged and raw, while others remained lighthearted and authentic, but the effect was the same throughout: an instant connection between the participants and the audience.

“What I learned from my experience attending several Story Space events over the two years I was in grad school is that it helped bring people from all walks of life together,” Thakkar said. “Everyone who attended Story Space (in Floyd) had the opportunity to learn about the experiences of others who are different from them and the personal experiences that they share with others. After personally experiencing the benefits of Story Space and realizing how it can positively impact a larger community, I couldn’t resist but start the Story Space series at Stockton.”

A Beginning of New Beginnings 

The first session brought out an intimate crowd of students and staff who were all interested in this new program and curious about how it will develop.

Storytellers had up to seven minutes to share their stories about the new chapters of their lives, and the story listeners’ only job, according to Thakkar, was to give them undivided attention.

“For this program to work, we don’t need just storytellers,” Thakkar said. “We also need people who are willing to listen, learn, and when appropriate, support those who share their stories and experiences.”

Student Esmeralda Rivera from Vineland, N.J., was able to do both. As students talked about topics such as moving here from abroad, performing music for audiences after the COVID-19 pandemic and working on improving one’s self-confidence, Rivera listened attentively, clapped after every story, and offered advice to a student struggling to find a major for themselves.

Rivera, who found this program from the posters around campus and after perusing the events calendar, said she was glad to attend.

“I loved hearing their stories, especially her’s!” Rivera said, referring to a student who recently moved here from Lebanon. “I’ve never met someone from another country other than the U.S.A. and Guatemala. Learning about other cultures is so interesting.”

As a Literature major, Rivera has experience in telling stories, and it showed: the room was enthralled as she talked about the recent passing of her father, moving back to the U.S. after living in Guatemala for nearly 13 years, and how happy she is to be at a university where she can study creative writing, a concentration that was previously unavailable to her.

“I was studying to be an English teacher because they didn’t have Literature there (at San Carlos University, as a major),” Rivera said. “That was the second-best option for me, and I got good grades for it, but I wasn’t passionate about it. But now, I had three courses today related to my major, and I was like, ‘Wow!’ because it’s everything I love now.”

Future Story Spaces