I’ve been at Mississippi State University for five years.
We’re all taught to believe four years is the magic number. As a student you’re expected to show up, take your basics and electives, move up to upper-level courses and then graduate.
But I didn’t take that path, and many MSU students like me haven’t either. Last year communication professor Hank Flick told our class, “You need five years to understand college.”
At the time I didn’t know what he meant, but with weeks left to graduate, after being here since fall 2005, I think I have a better idea.
I love Mississippi State. There was a time when I never thought I could say that, but it’s true.
I love MSU because of the people, and because of the landscape and area, which I’ve only recently begun to realize are beautiful and a great atmosphere to learn in. Lastly, I love what I’ve learned about the world and life, despite being here in college, a place many urgently say isn’t the real world at all.
But with that love for Mississippi State comes expectations, some of which have yet to be met. As an editor at The Reflector, I’ve been given an unbelievable opportunity to be a part of our school and see it both inside and outside. But all of the wonderful opportunities MSU students have are not without a caveat; the price is much higher than the tuition paid.
Every one of us bears the responsibility to use these opportunities to their fullest potential. I don’t mean by thinking positive thoughts and waiting to be actualized; this takes effort.
We all have an obligation to actively participate in our education &mdash inside and outside the classroom. Some come to college to learn a skill, but you have a chance for more.
As students we have an obligation to speak up. Every four years, another cycle of students will come through these doors that look just like you, talk just like you and act the same way you do &mdash but that doesn’t have to be the rule.
Join a club and do things. Tell the dean when your professor isn’t teaching adequately and if he or she is doing an excellent job. If you don’t like the food on campus, don’t just eat it and complain &mdash tell somebody, hopefully somebody important. If you think Starkville isn’t addressing the needs of the students &mdash the absolute lifeblood of this small Mississippi town &mdash you have to do something about it.
It’s easy to get into the habit of life, even at a university. But if you can find the value of interrupting that habit with things you’re passionate about, you and everyone around you will benefit in a huge way.
In hindsight, I was flippant about my participation on campus, but now my only regret is that I didn’t meet more people, say more things and make more happen.
Like many, I’ve seen professors, presidents and football coaches come and go, but there’s only one group that remains &mdash you, the students.
I hate that it took five years to understand what it means to be part of this community, but I am eternally grateful for the people I’ve met and grown to love, the knowledge I can’t believe I’ve lived without and the absolute certainty you have the potential to do anything.
Put down your iPhone, turn off the TV, close the book you’re buried in and make things happen.
Kyle Wrather is the editor in chief of The Reflector. He can be contacted at [email protected].