It’s halfway through the week before school starts. You’re about to be a first-year at Guilford College. All you heard from your parents all summer was not to do drugs, be careful about sex, don’t party too much, don’t party too hard, and be careful about bad situations. And, oh yeah, don’t get bad grades or get kicked out. So you get to school and you hear the same things again, only this time in lecture form from administrators and the like.Well, that’s what it was like for me and probably the majority of the other first-years because of CHAOS and other freshman required events. Also, given that we have had drug and sex education, along with common knowledge, the majority of the concepts being drilled into our heads are just plain worthless. Everything we were taught about Guilford’s rules at CHAOS and other meetings were a waste of time; considering we already have a handbook and honestly if we don’t read it that’s our problem and license enough to get kicked out. As well, it is not a hospitable feeling to know that the administration is already waiting for you to fail and already thinking of you as a troublemaker.
“I feel the meetings are pointless because they negatively affect our schedules,” said Wes Good, a first-year. One in four college first-years drop out before the end of their first-year. Instead of attending CHAOS and going to required assemblies, first-years should have time to get to know others, focus on their studies, and get acquainted with campus.
“CHAOS helps you get acclimated with the school,” said Kelsey Albert, another first-year. “It’s helpful because you learn the fastest possible way to get from point A to point B.” To the school’s credit, CHAOS was helpful in small ways, such as getting students to know each other and letting the students get use to their new dorms, but it also had pointless meetings about subjects every first-year should already know about.
Another issue I have with these assemblies is that, I feel that the school is making a bigger deal out of weed than any of the hard drugs out there. I know weed is a problem on campus, but they hardly mentioned other drugs. You can overdose from cocaine or heroin, but you cannot overdose on pot. I feel like that should be discussed because even though marijuana is more common, the side effects of these other drugs are more severe.
Also, to the school’s credit, Opening Convocation was not as much of a bore as the rest of the assemblies have been. While I had pretty much zoned off in the “Todd and Amy assembly” on rape and one or two of the drug and alcohol lectures, I feel like there was quite a few high points.
“We welcome you to this community as students, as friends, as part of our community,” said Vital Akimana, president of the Community Senate. This and many other quotes by Vital made everyone feel more welcome and wanted, something that I feel none of the other assemblies have done. Opening Convocation made me feel like part of a community, not a future trouble maker. Every other assembly was not just warding us off from doing bad but also made us feel like we were already being blamed. There is good and bad in every situation and with the bad, the first-years have all gained a greater understanding of the school because of CHAOS, but not because of what was “taught” to us, but because of the extra time we have had here. The first-years have learned more about the school through hands-on than through meetings and requirements.