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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
OPINION
WEDNESDAY, JULY 14, 2004
Students should appreciate college education
College, a new world for all of us. College, pinnacle of learning about not only our majors, but of life in general. College, a place where we meet those that we would not normally otherwise meet. College, the life experience.
These are my views on life at the University of Kansas. Now granted I have only just finished my freshman year and I have (God willing everything goes as planed) three more years left of allnighters and time to burn out.
I feel lucky to wake up every morning and know that I have a place to better my education as well as myself. I had hoped that others would share this vision with me.
Recently, I have noticed a disturbing trend among KU students in general. There is a lack of motivation to appreciate what has been given to us. This lack of appreciation has come to a spearhead about students complaining about college life. I intend to address this issue to the best of my ability to disprove how most of these ungrateful students are wrong.
First off, college is a place where you meet people. Usually you begin to meet people in living arrangements. Be it living in a residence hall, sharing an apartment or living in a house, you must learn to coexist with others. Sure, you might have moved in with your best friend, but you might have overlooked that they enjoyed
taking half-hour long showers and now utility bills are going sky high. Maybe your roommate in the dorm is a little odd, insisting that you call her a long, multicolonant name. These experiences are what make college life.
It is a time to develop your conflict skills and learn to deal with problems without having to run to mommy and daddy for help.
Instead of a student taking the initiative to go and resolve a problem over billing, tuition or housing, they get mom and dad to call. Do they think that their parents are going to get a different answer then they would? You are an adult now and are expected to act as one. Your parents will not always be there to fight your battles for you.
perspective
Unfortunately, many parents pressure their children to go to college. If four to six more years of schooling do not sound appealing to you, the classified section is in the middle of the paper. Get yourself a job and support yourself. Take advantage of your choice to come to the University.
Lance Watson opinion@hansan.com
Secondly, I find it incredibly amusing how many college students feel that they were forced to come to school. I myself was given this choice after high school. This should go the same for anyone here. No one forced you to come to college. No one said that once you graduated from high school, you must sign up for college immediately.
Finally, and by far most irritating in my opinion, are those that complain about how they feel they are just a number to the University. I am the student ID number assigned to me.
This didn't bother me because I realize that I am a small wheel in a much larger machine. This misconception was quick-dispelled by my encounters with all of different offices on campus. The university has a litany of counseling, ing and planning offices that are at students' disposal. All a student need is ask. And yet, they feel they are a ber. As hundreds work to make sure the University will be comfortable conducive to their learning style, they they are just that number as I did.
Now this is my fundamental problem here: If the University treats you like a number, why are you given free advising
sessions to make sure that you are on the right track for classes? Why are the residence halls staffed with well trained people to make sure that you are taken care of and safe? If you are just a number, why would the University put money into a counseling service that you can turn to in times of depression or anxiety. Wouldn't the heartless institution that you paint the University of Kansas to be not provide you with all of these? Wouldn't a cold, calculating state school take your money, give you the finger and wish you good luck? That is why the University is so incredible. It cares so much for its students and pumps money into services that make sure to try to keep the students in as long as possible.
So in closing, I want you to think very hard. How many times have you said "I hate this place"? How many times have you gotten angry and felt that you were pressured into coming here? How many times have you felt you were just a number to this heartless place? And then, I want you to grab a newspaper and look at the classifieds again. Aren't many good jobs are there? Think about that the next time you want to complain about getting a higher education.
Watson is a New Orleans sophomore in human development and family life and sociology.