Welcome back
Sign in to comment to your favorite stories, participate in your community and interact with your friends
or
LOG IN WITH FACEBOOKNo account? Create one
Ken Lundberg
That completely changed the night I attended the funeral of a friend.
It was the first time I had experienced death in such close proximity to myself. Her death was sudden and affected me for many ways I couldn't understand at the time, so I was extremely low that night.
The ceremony was beautiful and emotional but I spent most of it in a daze, which I was aware of as we sent her off holding thin white candles equipped with little paper skirts so the wax didn't drip on our hands.
I started to panic through the sobs because I couldn't handle the finality of the situation. I suddenly absolutely needed something to remember her by.
There it was in my hand, the little paper slip decorated with candle wax.
The next day I tacked it onto the cork board I had never found adequate use for before. It became the first in a collection devoted to my last year in high school and all of the most memorable moments there.
Oddly enough, I figured then it would be the last one—something special to commemorate a special era. So when I went off to college and lived in a dorm, I didn't think of its absence.
However, when I moved into my first apartment, I really wanted my own personal touch in my own official first place. I added the cork board more for that than any other reason.
Over time though, things just started to appear there. There wasn't anything specific to get the collection going like in high school, but I ended the year with a full Memory Board and a whole set of rules for what that entails.
1. Once something goes on there, it can't be taken off.
2. The items can't be selected for the board by someone else. Gifts end up on there, but I've got the final say.
3. The majority of the items need to be disposable.
4. When it's time to take it down, everyone who had a hand in an item on the board gets a thanks from me, whether or not they're in my life anymore.
All of these are totally essential to the essence of the board. Usually, they end up being things that I've found, given casually or are small enough to fit. This has been anything from receipts and business cards to crafts and Halloween costume accessories. The purpose of this is specifically so I don't get too hung up on the item itself.
The whole point of these memory boards is just so that I can still be reminded of the good, important moments when life seems mostly bad. Mental health can so often cloud my sense of reality, so these memory boards have become a sweet and easy way to keep myself tethered.
Now, I can sit back and reflect on the last four years, the people that made them happen, achievements I earned, fun nights that were had, and high and low points that serve as a timeline for the whole school year and the summer.
Although I need to change my timeline now to match calendar years rather than school years, the Memory Board has become a vessel of self-care, creativity, pride, nostalgia, and gratitude, and I can't wait for the ones in years to come.
Sophomore Year, 2015-2016
Junior Year, 2016-2017
Senior Year, 2017-2018
Emilia Rodriguez-Vera
1. You're only going to community college because you're not as intelligent as your other peers
This one grinds my gears the most. I do have to admit, I did not have the best grades in high school and I would have probably never gotten into schools like UC Berkeley or UCLA back then. I lacked the plethora of AP classes my other peers took and was not involved very much in my academics. I got accepted into a few random universities that I applied to back in high school so my intelligence level had little to do with why I decided to go to community college. Community college gave me the opportunity to become the better student I wish I could have been in high school and showed me that I do have the capability to be as smart as those I went to high school with.
2. Community college does not offer any help nor good services to those attending that would be offered at a four-year institution
Each community college is different but the like most educational institutions, the staff and faculty are there to help their colleagues and their students. They want students to succeed in their educational journey and provide their office hours and contact information just like university professors do. They have academic advising counselors to guide students to ensure that they are taking the correct courses in order to transfer and plan our time at the community college. They have a great number of resources for internships, jobs, transfer guidance, etc. My community college had a health center which provided students with basic needs such as cough drops, asprin, Bandaids to flu shots, pregnancy tests, STD tests/condoms, psychological help, nutritional help, and so much more.
3. You're only going to community college because you can't afford a four year institution
To some, this might be a reality but there are those who attend a four-year university, cannot afford it and get loans or receive substantial financial help from grants and/or scholarships. There are VARIOUS reasons on why someone chooses to go to community college and the financial aspect is an important one for many but not for all. There are people who can afford to go to a university but choose to do community college instead. There is so much economic diversity at community colleges just like at regular universities, not everyone is low income.
4. A degree from a community college is not worth anything
It may not be AS valuable as a Bachelor's degree but it definitely shows that you worked to obtain a college degree (or multiple degrees if you're anything like me) before finishing your undergraduate program. In some careers, they might not mean anything but they look good on resumes and hype you up especially when applying for internships and jobs that are competitive among people with the same Bachelors as you.
5. Community college is an easy ride compared to a university
College is not for everyone, not even for those who actually attend college. Course loads are rigorous and there is so much to learn in a short amount of time. To some people, it can be a breeze but to most, it takes a lot of work and effort in order to do well in college leveled academics. Community college is not easier than universities as a lot of courses have to be similar to those general education courses offered at universities.
6. Professors who teach at community colleges are under qualified compared to those at universities
Surprisingly, many community college professors also teach or have taught at universities. It is really neat to have those professors since you get a taste of what taking their course at a university would be like but paying a LOT less for it. Even if they have not taught at universities, it does not mean they're bad professors compared to those who do teach at those institutions. I've been lucky with most of the professors I have had in community college and hope to get great ones just like them at my university.
7. You're not getting the full college experience that you would at a university if you go to a community college
Community colleges are primarily filled with commuter students so there is no on-campus housing available like there are at universities nor does Greek life exist. Although those are mainly available at a university, you can still get a full college experience. If you move out from home into an apartment, you can say you're on you're own. As for Greek life, there are Greek honors societies for community colleges (such as Phi Theta Kappa, which I was a part of) rather than fraternities and sororities. Community colleges offer so many events for students such as club rush to join clubs and other organizations, athletics, performing arts, and so much more!
Lone Star College - Montg
However practical they may be, they still carry a stigma for being an unselective, last-resort option for pursuing higher education. Prospective students typically shy away from this relatively debt-free option, citing a desire to enjoy a vibrant campus life away from the monotony of their hometowns and the watchful eyes of their parents 3/5 of the year.
Not you, though. No. Being the individual you are, you stayed. While your friends got the hell out of dodge, you signed up for classes at your local junior college after high school graduation. Or maybe you took a gap year first, while some of your friends were switching out of their dream majors because of a few lousy weed-out classes. Either way, this is where you are at, and as a community college student, these are some truths you know all too well.
1. Friends are hard to find.
The great thing about community colleges is that they are perfect for people with their own life already in place. I.e. real adults. People with kids, established careers, and mortgages. Very few people are in your same walk of life. This makes finding friends that are similar to you so much more difficult. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, though.
2. You need everyone around you to understand how competent you are.
The reason you aren't at your dream school has nothing to do with your intelligence or admission status, and everything to do with pragmatics. You have your reasons.
3. You are thankful for the small class sizes and professors who actually care about your success.
Lecture halls and weed-out classes? No thanks!
4. You feel a little isolated.
Your friends are out at bars, living it up in greek life, geographically removed from any responsibilities other than making it to their 9 AM that calls for an iClicker. Meanwhile, you are at home, cantankerously reminding your siblings to leave the toilet seat down (rest assured, you aren't missing out on dorm life).
6. People are helpful.
Everyone really cares about your success at a junior college. They want you to thrive in your environment, so much so that they make sure you know exactly what your resources are, i.e. the writing help center, library, free printing, the gym, and student services, and how to utilize them.
5. A word about siblings.
Because your weird schedule may leave you at home more frequently during the day than their high school selves, they automatically assume you aren't busy. Don't worry, once they find themselves in your position, they will realize there's nothing lax about teaching yourself an entire semester's worth of microbiology because your teacher has an accent and reads off the slides verbatim.
6. Your parents treat you like a pseudo-adult.
You can start complaining when you pay rent.
7. You still have all the responsibilities you had in high school.
Pick Johnny up from football practice, clean your room, and turn the damn lights off when you leave a room.
8. You don't look to bars and nightlife to cut loose the way your pals at Universities.
It gets a little weird when you come home and your parents are less than amused by the drunken debauchery that occurred between you and your buddies. Or even weirder, when you spend the night somewhere else. That stuff only flies in college towns.
9. Did I mention that you (probably) live with your parents?
Year-round?
10. You yearn to be at the four-year university of your dreams.
Campus life, (semi)independence, and friends your age.
11. But then you remember tuition rates.
You laugh and revel in your lack of student debt.
This is an opinion piece based on the experience of a young community college student. I am aware my views may not accurately represent the experience of students over 18-22, who may not be dependent on their parents, and who lead well-established, independent lives with careers and other adult responsibilities while simultaneously seeking higher education. Hats off to you. And thank you, because your perspective and participation in the classroom and in student life alongside us newbies give us a sense of direction and guidance that we aren't otherwise exposed to.
