Stop the presses…Ohio University’s a party school. Only this time, The Princeton Review has named our little haven by the Hocking the top one in the whole nation.
Ohio University administrators have again reacted with “disappointment.” There’s an email in my inbox from VP of Student Affairs Kent Smith telling me this is an unscientific study, quotes from Dean Lombardi saying, “there’s no validity to it.”
So, my question is, why does it matter?
Dr. Smith says there are party scenes on every campus, which is true. Ohio just happens to have some of the biggest ones, the Halloween festivities and the spring fests. Administrators have done a good job making these safer, instituting new policies with stricter consequences for irresponsible behavior. Athens is an Appalachian town with 20-something bars and not much else entertainment-wise around it. Does anyone really expect the majority of 18-22 year olds to sit around and play Scrabble or watch a movie every weekend? There’s no more weekly Friday night comedy act at Front Room and movies at Baker aren’t even free anymore.
Dr. Smith’s email says there have been a 49% decrease in alcohol-related violations and an 8% decrease in self-reported high-risk drinking. Ohio University students that are drinking are doing it safer. Administrators will obviously never embrace the notion of being a party school nor should they. But what’s so wrong with college-aged students partying if they’re doing it safely and getting good grades?
When you leave college you do it with a degree and four of the most whirlwind years of your life. A degree is what you seek to attain but along the way you learn so much more about yourself, about people, about the world. College helped me grow up, be more social and if it took going to a “party school” to do that, then I’m glad I went to one.
College is about memories and I can tell you I’ll have awesome memories from the nights spent hanging out with some of my best friends at a bar or fest but also of ones with friends in the study lounge writing papers well into the morning or doing hardcore studying for tests. Ohio’s such a great place because people know how to have fun but also know when to study. The ones that don’t understand that don’t usually make it to year two or even quarter two.
I know that from being an RA, where I had many different residents. I saw the ones who went out most nights, never studied and ended up on academic probation. I also saw the majority who did their work, partied on weekends and balanced their school lives very well with their social lives. In fact, I can’t help but think the ones who refused to go out and thumbed their noses at those who did are the ones who are really missing out. Honestly, goody two-shoes who sit and dismiss anyone who takes a sip of alcohol as “trouble” are just as disturbing as people who sometimes over-indulge. That’s coming from someone who used to be the former.
Dr. Smith says my degree is now “devalued.” Somehow, I disagree with that. I hope a prospective employer will be wise enough to realize that just because The Princeton Review’s “unscientific rankings,” as administrators call them, will not discount my experience or education from a top journalism school. And frankly, I probably wouldn’t want to work for someone if they were judging me based on that and not my qualifications and experience anyway. Maybe some more people will actually know that Ohio University is not Ohio State now, because, living in New York, I can tell you there are plenty of people that do not know that, let alone that fact that Ohio’s a big party school.
Administrators need to stop worrying about what a stupid list says. Yeah, it will work students into a fervor but are the parties gonna be any crazier now that we’re number one? Doubtful. Students didn’t even burn any furniture at Palmer Fest this year and the ranking went up.
Nowhere in the email from Dr. Smith was there made mention of the fact that Ohio University is also ranked: #11 most beautiful campus, #6 best athletic facilities, #12 best newspaper and #19 for most accessible professors. No focus on the positive rankings the university earned, only an overreaction to the #1 ranking, telling me “don’t be surprised when potential employers bring it up in a job interview.” Most potential employers have not even brought up my GPA, let alone a party school reputation in any interview I’ve done in my job search.
Ohio University is an incredible place both to learn and have a good time. Administrators telling me that my degree is somehow now devalued is even more disheartening than these rankings that many probably laugh at and say “oh, those college kids.” I understand they need to send the right message to worried parents, most of whom probably have no idea what their children are really doing anyway. But in doing that they’re also sending a bad message to the students with whom they so badly want to relate.
Very well said!!! Where did you learn to write like that???
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