When I was a pre-frosh, the name Fairfield University seemed so prestigious, so comforting and so accommodating. And I was so wrong.
I think my problems with Fairfield University can be broken down into two major categories: the administration and the administration.
I decided to write this column because of an event that occurred on the morning of March 2. Public Safety vehicles circled the townhouses with megaphones, obnoxiously ordering everyone who was parallel parked to move their cars. This racket began around 9:30 a.m. and continued for the next hour. What seems like a small inconvenience is exactly what is wrong with this university: no respect for its students.
Please, hear me out.
I heard about the snow storm on www.weather.com a week ago. Is it too much work to send out an e-mail a day prior to the snowfall? We have better things to do than wait around for the university to communicate to us via megaphone. I intern twice a week, work diligently as an editor of The Mirror and am trying to keep my GPA high for my last semester. Should I apologize for wanting to sleep late on my day off?
While discussing this with a roommate, he recalled the time a Public Safety officer had his car towed after the same officer told him to park in that spot. Or how about the time a neighbor of mine locked herself out of her house accidentally, having left the oven on? She spent the next 20 minutes arguing on the phone with Public Safety so that the three-block wouldn’t burn to the ground. It was literally a “Public Safety” issue, and they had to be compelled to take action.
But if a freshman in Regis is caught with a single beer, we’d better call eight ambulances.
Living as a senior in the townhouses continually haunts me as the year goes by. What was so valued and fought for junior year (and the reason I spent three straight years living in the socially isolating and inhibiting Kostka) has now turned into another way we can be used as puppets in Fairfield’s totalitarian play.
Residence Life and Housing called us about two weeks ago at 3:45 p.m. on a Friday afternoon and told us that our entire house needed to be prepared for a new roommate who was arriving the following morning. In light of the extremely short notice, two of my housemates talked to Residence Life to ask a few questions. Residence Life staff then told each of them completely different stories, from “he has a key and is moving in tomorrow” to “he doesn’t have his key yet, and this is temporary.” And yes, they talked to the same person.
When we called Housing (why did we even bother?), everyone was suddenly “at a meeting.” At 4:10 p.m. on a Friday? Uh huh. We also confirmed our beliefs when we found a certain department head wandering about campus. I don’t appreciate feeling ignored, but most importantly, I hate being lied to. The handling of the situation was nothing short of unprofessional.
I don’t understand why the administration sometimes refuses to talk to students, or better yet, listen to them. Instead, we are at the bottom of a long to-do list, as if we are a hassle to the ever-so-prominent and mighty administration heads.
I don’t mean to bash the entire school. Fairfield University is a great place for two main reasons: the faculty and the students. I have had some wonderful professors who have exceedingly contributed to my academic career and well-being. As far as academics are concerned, score one for Fairfield.
And what about the people I’ve met? I wouldn’t change them for the world. The students at this institution are the foundation of the Fairfield experience. Yet, the administration fails to act unless we literally have our “helicopter parents” call up and complain for us. Our parents only call because your “gatekeeper” of a secretary will not let us near her office.
The fact is, this is a service industry. We pay for a service here and if that service is not being provided competently, i.e. 9:30 wake-up calls from Public Safety, the administration will hear about it until we are happy, whether it be from us or our parents.
Please note that the above issues only scratch the surface of the administration’s relationship with the students. The latest student versus Fairfield court case, regardless of whether the verdict was right or wrong, made me somewhat hopeful for the school’s future.
To the underclassmen: Just because Fairfield is a private institution does not mean it can do whatever it wants. Don’t be passive on issues you feel strongly about.
To the administration: I challenge you to be more professional and to properly serve this university in the way it deserves.
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