As we embark on a new journey, a certain fear eludes our hope-derived confidence. The safe haven of home has disappeared in place of lengthy essays, a new social scene and too many extracurricular activities to count. Worries of the unknown accumulate, no matter how miniscule. The worries of a future career, next semester’s workload and hints of a difficult professor are all balanced out by the worries of what to buy for the dorm, what to pack for sporadic Texas weather and the endless battle between Macs and PCs.
Often, in this struggle, we lose track of what makes us, us. Our niche in high school – captain of the football team, science fair enthusiast or star pianist – can still be utilized. Sports teach leadership and formulaic thought, science fosters groundbreaking research and patience, and music soothes the soul and entertains billions.
Thus, college, at its best, is an opportunity to expand our horizons and develop different perspectives. The intellectual and cultural diversity at SMU is unparalleled across most of the nation. We should seize the chance to become well-rounded people.
This is the time to step out of our comfort zones to truly prosper as educated adults that have civic virtue. The Class of 2015 should become not only students that walk across the stage together, but also friends that have created a community.
Excelling in the classroom only meets half our burden. As we look ahead, there is no better ambition than meeting all our peers and learning their stories. Tolerance breeds understanding; as future decision-makers, we all could develop an appreciation for the other side of the conflict. The tools for that goal may be as easy as walking across the hall.
American novelist, Ralph Ellison, said it best when he stated, “Education is all a matter of building bridges.”
For a class touted for its historical significance, it is our duty to carry SMU into the next century with a bold vision. When we received our acceptance letters, most of us knew SMU was the school for us. It has the traditions, culture and ‘killer’ mascot needed to call itself an elite university. As the torch is handed to us, we should not fret.
Some of our fears are already unwarranted. SMU graduates do very well on the full-time job market, consistently outpacing the national averages for employment and average salary in almost every discipline. That means that the extracurricular choices and options at SMU are equitable to the merit of the classroom.
With little fear, we can move towards the politically abused term: hope. But, our hope is different from the hope sold at the ballot box. We single handedly control what kind of individuals we will become in four years. It is our choice if we want to accept the challenges of academic achievement, diversity and livelihood. There is no doubt that we will deliver as the lessons of our past and decisions in the present allow us to carry the torch of our alma mater to great places.
Rahfin Faruk is an incoming freshman at SMU. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].
