CHEERS to the increased diversity on campus. Fairfield is certainly making more of an effort to diversify the student body. Programs such as the Student Diversity Grant and organizations such as AHANA are designed not to single out minority students, but as ways to promote awareness to different cultures and racial backgrounds. Creating new forums to discuss diversity can only bring new ideas and suggestions to the administration’s attention. As is the same with any far reaching and ambitious initiative, there is still more work to be done. With time, some of these ideas may translate into formidable plans that can be implemented to create a more diverse and accepting atmosphere.
BOOS to the recent changes in Facebook that abandoned all notions of exclusivity and opened the online social network’s doors to anyone who has a valid e-mail address. Initially, Facebook was vastly popular with students because it was specifically and solely targeted to college students. MySpace and other similar sites never required college e-mail addresses and subsequently attracted a different clientele. Now that Facebook’s niche has been discarded, the site has lost its unique appeal and forced many users to adopt a heightened concern about exactly who this online network is connecting them to.
CHEERS to the men’s basketball schedule, which was formally released last Friday. There are three games on the schedule – those against UConn, Georgetown and Boston College – that could end up as some of the most lopsided losses in school history. But in addition to preparing the Stags for MAAC play, the games against the aforementioned Big East and ACC powerhouses will get fans excited about the team, and bring publicity to the university. Our only complaint is that the game against Georgetown, a potential national championship contender, is on the day before Thanksgiving, thus making it almost impossible for students to attend. Hopefully some students will delay Thanksgiving break by a few hours and cheer on the team, no matter what the outcome of the game turns out to be.
BOOS to the nonexistence of a concrete, public plan to remedy the University’s housing shortage. The problem of crowded and uncomfortable on-campus living arrangements has become blatantly obvious, yet no solid solution seems to be in the works. Because housing affects so much of the everyday life of students, the lack of a plan constitutes borderline neglect to students’ lives outside of the classroom. How is Fairfield supposed to be a students “home away from home” if they forced to co-habitate with more roommates than conventional standards of comfort and utility would allow?
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