Frostburg: We are the 99%

On November 29, 2011 Professor Elesha Ruminski’s organizational communication class held a public rally on Frostburg’s campus. The morning rain left the ground damp, the air thick, and the sky cloudy, but students still were enthusiastic about this event. A large number of students, some with signs in hand, met at the echo circle right outside of the Dunkle Hall building at 12:30pm. My role in this event was as a student of the class and as an observer. I listened to faculty, students, and members of the community speak and voice their opinions on different issues from student loans, to whether college is the right choice for everyone.

At the event, one of the topics addressed was student loans. Upon entering college student loans are a reality that most students face. College is expensive and many families cannot afford to pay the full tuition for their children. Consequently, students have to take out federal and or private loans to finance their education. Some of these loans come with high interest rates and strict payment plans, which make it difficult for students to pay the loans off in a reasonable amount of time. “I have student loan debt that I won’t be able to pay off anytime soon.” said professor Ruminski. Her comment lead to a discussion on whether college loans should have to be paid back at all and students had different views when it came to this subject. “I think that strict re-payment plans are necessary for college students, because if we didn’t have to pay back our loans that would just lead to a generation of laziness. Everyone would take out student loans without hesitation.” said John Adams, a senior at FSU.

Another issue addressed was the how many college students attend college for four to six years and when they graduate they can’t find jobs in their fields! “We spend all these years and thousands of dollars to graduate from colleges and then we become managers of food and retail stores.” said Bryan Knox, a junior at FSU. This is very discouraging to think about for me and for almost every student at the rally. If we cannot be guaranteed jobs in the fields we major or minor in what is the purpose of attending college in the first place?

When the topic of attending college was addressed it turned into a very controversial subject. Some students thought that it is necessary to attend college and some thought that college is forced on students by family and society. When students graduate from high school they are faced with the choice to either immediately start working or have the option of attending college. Attend college and then you will be able to find a better paying job is usually what we are told, but is it really the best decision? In my opinion, attending college in today’s economy guarantees you nothing but an over sized piece of paper with your name on it. Students can graduate from high school and sometimes find better jobs than many college graduates. Overall, this was a very interesting rally and I think students should hold more events on campus. There’s strength in numbers, so the more students that participate in these rallies and voice their opinions the better. Who knows what kinds of changes or impacts we can make for our futures if we stand together and fight for what we believe in.