From The Theatre Majors At Youngstown State, To President Tressel

Dear President Tressel,

When you put a bear in a cage and turn it to face it's darkest fear, does it run and hide, or does it put up a front and fight?

When you put a group of hard working, talented, musical theatre majors with ambition in their eyes, in a cage, what do you expect them to do?

Of course, these aren't questions for me to answer, but if I wanted you to have an answer, it would be, we would do what we were taught to do. Fight. Of course with respect, but in order to get respect, you must earn respect. I'm sure you understand where I'm coming from.

As theatre majors, we've come to understand that other majors around us, don't accept us, and make us nothing, but for that to be something that happens within our own building is almost heartbreaking. To feel like we have people within our own building who find our major a "hobby" and don't give us the respect we deserve is sad.

Each musical theatre is determined for greatness, has a fire within them to learn more, to grow more, and a sad story that made them who they were today. Each one of us has a reason for doing what we do and working hard to do it. Now each of these theatre majors has something else in their eyes. A fight. Not only did you let the most beloved professor in the building leave the fighting and failing, you never gave us the trip we rightfully deserve.

Everyone's major within this building is to perform, so when we are given the chance we jump on it and each time, it's a new learning experience. So when you take the performance aspect of a trip away from a group of performing kids, it seems almost not right. It's almost like you take us as fools.

I'll give you an example of a learning experience from the last trip. Mia Colon is one of the most prepared and hard working students I've ever met. While leaving for last year's trip, her music was ready, she was prepared... till she got there. The atmosphere changed, the people around her, weren't American. She had to adapt to those around her, meaning she needed to relearn.

Now if you were to ask me, so you can't get that at YSU? My answer would be a little giggle and then I'd say, of course not. Over their each of those students were with people from other countries, they were learning new things from them all, they were traveling, making memories and leaving better than they were yesterday.

Sir, with all due respect, we don't give you and this campus thousands of dollars to tell us where we can and can't go and what we can and can't do. We give it to you in trust that you'll know what's best to teach us, we give it to you so that in return you help us get where we need to go and SUPPORT us. We give this money to you, for the exact reason of this trip we are being given a no too. We give professors jobs because they know how to teach us the best. So let them teach us. Let us study and perform.

Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. Those were the words we were left with and expect that to happen. You haven't just rattled our cages, you woke us up hungry and determined.