College Attendence

Ajit Vakharia

College is a time where students are introduced to an independent based around their own plans. Students can decide when they want to eat, when they want to go to sleep, when they want to wake up, and even when they want to go to class, but many classes are preventing the latter from happening because of required attendance towards students grades. When a student enters college, they are now independent individuals capable of making their own decisions such as whether if they want to attend class or not, and teachers should not mandate attendance for this reason. According to Mark Clayton, one in three college students will not graduate. The new attendance policies coming up all over colleges in America are hoping to bring this statistic up, but the fact of the matter is that college students are on the verge of being adults and should realize how important classes are, and if a student after the realization of the importance of classes still skips, hopefully they are doing something productive to get ahead in other classes. There are many students in college the pay their own bills and live by themselves, and no adult wants to be treated like an elementary school student and made to keep a set warm if they could do just as good if not better by not showing up to class. Professors are not parents and do not need to be looking after students to see if they are in class and participating; their job is to teach to the best of their ability and prepare today’s students who are motivated to become tomorrow’s leaders in whatever field they may pursue. On top of that, different students have different learning styles, and for some students lecture may not be the best way for that particular student to understand the material to the best of their ability, and when these students enter the work force in few years, roll is not going to be taken. They are going to be expected to show up and finish their work, and if they are not able to do that then they may be let go, and if students are not given the option now, they will never learn.

Colleges Go Green

Jinhyun Kim

According to the article "At Colleges, the Environment is Hot" by Elia Powers, many colleges have been giving a lot of efforts and thoughts on environmentally friendly buildings and sustainable landscapes on their campus. Each campus has different strategy to outstand in this unseen competition of going green. Such as, New York University plans to purchase 118 kilowatt hours of wind power. The University of California at Berkeley tries to reduce the greenhouse gas emission. Harvard University is putting in place toilet handles to conserve water, and some others are planning about making green roof of buildings which puts soil and vegetation on top of the buildings so it can reduce energy costs and waste of rain. Many of Georgia Tech students would be able to recall what was written on environmentally preferable paper towel dispenser in the restrooms and kitchens in residence halls, which says, “Paper without trees”.

In order for colleges to go green, they will need first, to collect project proposals. They will have to choose a best-fit for their colleges and spend a lot of money and time. It will cost a lot of money to change a whole structure of building or to build a new one with the new methods. It will also require a long time to plan, carry out, and see the outcome of eco-friendly efficiency. Since there are great amount of colleges with huge campuses like a city within a city, if going green becomes a trend, we will be able to see a big difference made by our generation, after some time.

Online courses

Subin Lee



While the criticism for online courses in higher education institution increases, researchers recognize online courses as an innovative form of schooling with a great potential. Particularly, online courses provide fair opportunities for everyone to be educated in any situation and by embracing with the technology present online courses are building the base for the future advanced online educational system.

Online or e-learning courses are growing rapidly; according to Billie Wahlstrom, a vice provost on technology issue the University of Minnesota-Twin cities, “In the five years, the acceleration has been amazing.”

Perhaps, the best reason for getting popularities by students would be the flexibility of online courses. Students can have class in anywhere and at anytime. It is often the case that students miss the lecture, quizzes, or tests due to inevitable situations. With online courses, students can easily access to class if they have internet.

Online courses allow professors to judge students fairly, because they usually make the class participation as a high percentage of the class grade. In opposition to the traditional classes, where only few students participate or dominate the class activities due to time constraints, online courses let shy students due to their physical presence to be active in text, since their face is unseen. Moreover, while traditional courses have limited number of students in one lecture, online courses can have as many students as the computer server can hold.

Lastly, according to Jane Hancock of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities’ continuing education program “It’s important for students to realize that lots of options are available.” This is just start of the possible future education program. Technology is developing rapidly, correspondingly online courses is expanding as well.

Motivation to Succeed: Paying your own way through college

Cherish Weiler

While many parents pay for their child’s college expenses, few recognize the benefits of allowing students to take on the financial responsibilities that come with a college education. Parents nowadays try to provide their child with a financial cushion, eliminating any financial stress and allowing the student to focus on school work. However, students who do not receive parental help and instead are forced to pay their way through college are more responsible and more motivated to succeed. The stress that comes with bearing the financial burden of college expenses can have a positive effect by encouraging students to succeed in school.

Many parents feel obligated to pay for their child’s higher education. Perhaps their college education was paid for in full and they want to do the same for their child. Or maybe parents worked and paid for their college education and feel their child should not burdened with loans and resulting debt. Regardless of the reason, parents are not obligated to pay for their child’s college education and are doing to them a disfavor by failing to prepare them for real-life responsibilities. When students receive a free ride in college, they are more likely to retake classes and not focus on their studies. As David Mitchell says, “Many people I have known failed to invest sufficient effort in their college educations because they have not had a stake in it.” He goes on to explain that the students who worked through college, holding jobs to pay for tuition and other expenses, performed better in their studies and were more successful upon graduation. Students who pay for college understand that every time they miss a class or fail a class, they are losing money they earned themselves. This alone motivates them to attend classes and earn top grades that can help them qualify for scholarships and other financial aid. While a free college education is a gift many students want, the reality is that holding a job through college drives students to succeed not only in their academics but in life after college. As Yuwanda Black summarizes, “A college degree is less about a degree than a sense of dedication, a drive, a purpose, a sense of achievement.”


College Academics:
Holding Down A Job In College

The Freshman 15

Cessie Ryder

Many freshman college students tend to gain weight in their first semester or year of college. The media has given this weight gain epidemic the title, “freshman 15.” Though it is somewhat of a myth and most students do not actually gain a full 15 pounds, many put on an average of 5 to 7 pounds. College involves many grand scale transitions and lifestyle changes that a new freshman must adapt to like decreased exercise, a wide variety of cafeteria food to choose from, staying up and eating late at night, and even excessive consumption of alcohol. Lifestyle changes such as these seem to be the main cause of the “freshman 15” in freshman college students.



The solution to the “freshman 15” seems simple enough, eat healthy and exercise, but in reality it is not so easy. I have only been in college for about a month and have found myself making unhealthy eating decisions because I have so much more freedom to make my own choices and I do not have my parents telling me what I should or should not eat. According to the lead researcher of the Eating Behaviors study, Sherrie Delinsky, “College is a critical time for people to create good or not good eating habits.” There are many ways for college students to create good eating habits and fight off the “freshman 15.” One way is to set certain times for meals and snacks so you do not eat too late at night. Make sure you eat fruits and vegetables with every meal and do not go back for seconds in the dining halls. An exercise plan is also a good way to stay fit and keep the pounds off. It takes some willpower and practice, but if you get into good habits early on in college, you can keep the “freshman 15” off and be on your way to a healthy life.

Using the SAT as a Standard for College Admissions

Ajit Vakharia

Since its introduction in 1901, the SAT was used as a test to level the playing field for students applying to college from all over America, whether that be from secondary schools in wealthy areas known for having excelling students or poor schools from the mid west now known for not having as many excelling students. Although the SAT was first implemented to give all students a fair chance when applying to colleges, today, the SAT test benefits wealthier people and does not help predict the success a student will have in a particular college.

The SAT was first used to help colleges decide if students that applied would be successful at their college, and the SAT at first did that such as helping Charles Murray from a small town in Iowa get into Harvard University in the 1970s. Today, the test only helps wealthier people more than the less fortunate which neglects everything the test was made for. First, the test costs forty dollars to take, and students are allowed to take the exam as many times as they want until they get a score they are pleased with. This allows wealthier people to take the test a lot more times a lot easier than people who have financial troubles and can only take the test a limited number of times giving wealthier students an advantage. If a students really wants to succeed on the SAT, they usually enlist in the help of a tutor to show them all the "tricks," and good tutors usually charge a lot of money; once again giving wealthier students and advantage over less wealthy people or even the middle class. According to Charles Murray, the SAT does not do a good job predicting a students success in college compared to secondary school GPA and coursework.

The SAT needs to be abolished not because it is a bad test but because it does not do what it was first intended to do: level the field for all students applying to college. Wealthier students gain a significant advantage over middle class and lower class students. If colleges just used GPA and coursework done in high school to determine whether students would be a good match for their college, they would have a more diverse student population of different economic levels and parts of the country.

The Over-Bearing Parent... How Should Professors View Them?

Joel Kirby

Many in the academic world, teachers and students alike, have probably at some point in time heard the term “Helicopter parent”. This term is somewhat of a stereotype and generally refers to a parent that is over-bearing or too involved in their child’s academic life. These types of parents exist in all levels of academia, including elementary schools, high schools, and universities. It is not that uncommon or alarming for parents to be over-bearing in elementary, middle, or even high schools to a degree, but at the college level, these types of parents are often negatively viewed by professors.

At the University level, this is of course understandable. Professors usually have a well respected degree, and the last thing they want is to be pestered by a student’s parent. In the eyes of many professors, the student is responsible for completing the work, and the parent should support the student, but not interfere with the professor’s teachings. However, as explored by Pamela R. Mathews in the “Inside Higher Education” publication, professors should reexamine the helicopter parent’s negative connotation, and realize the positive benefits that can come from a parent’s involvement in their child’s college education.

It is important to distinguish between the productive, helpful aspects of an involved parent and the unproductive actions of an over-bearing parent. In my opinion, parents should not pester professors in unhelpful ways. For example, if a student fails to complete homework assigned online for a particular class, when it was announced in the class syllabus, a parent should not demand that their student be given extra time or resources. However, professors should realize the benefits of a concerned parent keeping tabs on their child. For example, say a student is slacking off in a class, but is not telling his parents so. The parents could contact the professor and find out that the student is actually performing poorly. A more serious example would involve a student giving his parents signs that he’s mentally unstable. By the parents asking the professor if he or she has noticed anything with the student, the student could receive treatment as needed. Collegiate academia should recognize the good will of the concerned, involved parent, and not negatively regard such parents.