Over the past few months, there has been a wave of confusion that has fallen over the campus. In the wake of the layoffs that occurred at the beginning of the summer, it is still unclear to some, if not most, as to what the College’s next move will be.

The President of the College and his staff have given a consistent response to questions posed by both students and staff that “the college is in a very strong position” and “the administration as a whole is focused on keeping costs as low as possible for Saint Anselm students while providing a strong work environment for employees.”

During this period of shock, upset, and confusion, the Union Leader reported on many of the Hilltop happenings as they occurred.

On May 26, the Union Leader released a report on the elimination of Saint Anselm College staff members “amid financial difficulties.” Not two months later, on July 19, the Union Leader reported on the sudden departure of CFO Eric Norman from the College.

Although another two months have passed, there is still much to be desired in terms of transparency between students, staff, and administration.

Not long after the layoffs, a student-run group called the “SACStudents4Change” created a petition: Call For Greater Transparency and Communication at Saint Anselm College. Since the school year has begun, the group created another petition with regards to the budget cuts made to the Health Services counseling department.

However, a statement made by Maura Marshall confirms that “the Student Affairs Administration worked diligently to come up with a plan to sustain the high quality medical and counseling care that we provide for our students.”

These instances of confusion that have overtaken the campus this fall have been appropriately coined as “hawkward.” These moments are not exclusively related to the layoffs nor the students’ reactions to them.

Other “hawkward” moments include the Saint Anselm women’s softball team making history, becoming the first ever Saint Anselm athletics program to reach a national championship, yet not many students were seen supporting their classmates at the games.

In case you missed any of these “hawkward” moments, take a look at the table and join the discussion.