I don’t oft complain about the life around me: I created it, I choose to make differences and I can essentially be the laziest mo-fo on the planet, if I so desire. I’ve come to recognize on many, many, nay, several
occasions, the amount of complaint-ism (is there a better word?) that occurs on the campus of Cleveland State University.
When I enrolled last summer, I was GEEKED (again, better word?) about my program. I loved, loved LOVED my classes, my professors, my fancy-labeled communications degree… and here I am three semesters involved and I am disenchanted. I’m certain any university student experiences a sophomoric slump that entails a bit of deflated enthusiasm (I’m a senior), but I hear on a daily — a DAILY — basis at least ten to twenty educated 20-somethings that are nothing close to resembling a long-term love affair with CSU. And sadly, I have become one of them. The negativity has become contagious. And it’s stirred up quite a bit of rage and anxiety in the endless question: “Now what?”
Consistent commentary from student lounge areas: “Why do I have to take this class?” “My counselor has no idea what she’s doing!” “I am about to graduate and had no idea I needed THAT class.” “Nobody ever told me that REQUIRED course for graduation is only offered once a year!” and of course, the ubiquitous, “I can’t wait to get out of Cleveland!” and “There are no jobs here!” (Sorry, whatever “Monster-job reports” that have recently been released — your jobs online are BULLSHIT. I cannot take one more “work in sports” or “marketing” position that is brandished in my direction. THIS is the basis of your inflated statistical results? There are 1,003 postings for essentially the same door-to-door sales/money-making/life-exhausting scheme. Take your results and shove ‘em, Monster. “Work in Sports” does not a Cleveland job market make).
These situations in quotations I had completely brushed aside in my quest for my communications degree, but have found out the hard way that all the above were true. (And my freakin’ counselor attempted to convince me I’d be better off if I changed my major to German — GERMAN! I’m a public relations/communications major… and yet, I’m more marketable if I choose a foreign language for a new career path — which, mind you, would extend my CSU degree plan an extra year-or-so… oh, and I haven’t spoken German in TEN YEARS! “But maybe if you just sat in a class, you’d see how easily it all came back to you!” Have you even paid attention to when I graduated high school?) *deep breath*
I was casually trolling through the UC and heard two students just straight out bitching about their professors that semester — name dropping, course slapping — at any time that (or any) professor could have popped around the corner to over hear said conversation. Look, I realize that school is difficult and stressful, and people are apt to complain about anything in which they cannot hold themselves accountable. We, as students, have course and instructor evaluations, yet how effective are they? Who pays attention, who reads them, who vilifies a student’s rant that this course is absolute bullshit that it’s required and the teacher has zero direction or consisentancy in managing syllabus material? And no other prof teaches the course? Who’s changing majors to not have to do a retake? (again, *deep breath*) Yes, it’s THAT bad.
I went to Notre Dame College and HATED the program (but loved the school), but nobody would have known it. It’s the perfect college for nursing and teaching majors — an unfortunate $12,000 mistake I learned after the fact. I just went for a year, then transferred out. I did a year at Tri-C — LOVED it. I received my associate’s degree from Lakeland — LOVED it (and I intend to donate to their alumni fund).
I truly am all about making the most of any college experience, and believe me, I’m involved in more extra-curricular activities than is humane for somebody that already has 16 credit hours, has a full time career, devotes part-time status to freelance projects and maintains a healthy social life. All about the piece of paper? Or life experience? My friends that graduated from THE Ohio State University have such a sense of pride and accomplishment about the legacy they acquired by that “piece of paper.”
How do we instill and tie those emotions and pride to Cleveland State?
Shit, or just Cleveland?
And godammit, the Euclid Corridor Project alone is enough to promote a semester off!|
