It doesn't always have to be about money

March 24, 2005
By Keith Claussen
Online Editor

Around the first week of March, the spring graduating class here at SAU, received letters in the mail informing us of the “Senior Challenge 2005.” The included pamphlet included brief explanations of what it was, mainly calling it an “SAU tradition.”

The letter stated that they were taking donations from the senior class. Even as little as $25 would help the cause.

We have not even received our diploma or our final bill for tuition and fees, and they are already asking me to donate money? Where does the money go?

In all fairness, the letter did address the tuition issue and somewhat how the money would be used. Considering the loans and the cost of books was the reason for asking for “just” $25.

As for what the money would be used for, the best reason that I saw is that is an “SAU Tradition” to participate. Gathering from the included pamphlet was a note that the money would be placed in a special account for some gift, yet to be determined.

It’s not that the university asked for money as the central issue, but more towards the timing and mindset of the people they are asking.

First off, the letter came around a similar time another notice from SAU came in the mail informing me of the fees associated with spring commencement. Understandably, if you are going to participate in the ceremony, you need a cap and gown, purchased by the students.

The part that I necessarily don’t understand is that I need to pay another $35 on my student account for them to give me the diploma I have been paying for and earned the last three and a half years.

Second of all, who decides the “class gift” for us? Some of the gifts in years past have been clocks and benches scattered throughout the campus. That’s fine, but what do we do about some of the other things that need to be taken care of? Just about every department needs to replace aging equipment, or update resources to help students, or even fix various problems on the buildings themselves.

The “Senior Challenge” should be something more that just donating money for a clock or park bench. To me, a more thoughtful gift to “give back” to SAU would be to donate a few hours of your time to help complete an outstanding project here on campus or in the community. I have never gotten a letter like that. I would be a nice change of pace to ask for something different than just money all of the time.

Twenty-five dollars itself may not seem like a lot of money, but it’s the $25 that you spent in gas, lunch at the Rogalski Center, graduation fees, or needed supplies to complete a class project. At the end of the week, all of those expenses add up.

So, I in turn challenge SAU to work on eliminating the things that make students not want to give back to the university. I have not met one senior yet that has, or will pledge, money. The attitude I have seen more often than not is, “I want my degree so I can run out the door as fast as possible.” It’s not just President Rogalski, or just the faculty and staff, or just the students that make SAU a great place to learn and live. It’s all of us.

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