PAGE 2 — THE DECREE — OCTOBER 19,1990
The Decree
OFFICIALSTUDENTNEWSPAPER OF
NORTH CAROUNA WESLEYAN COlUEGE
Co-Editors — John Pemell and Dhana Chesson
Staff— Mark Brett, John Fentress, Teresa Pitfe;
The Decree is located tn the Student UnioHir North CaroUna
Wesleyan College^ Wesleyan College Station, Rocky Mount,
NC 27801. Policy fe determined by the Editorial Bcmrd of The
Decree. Re-poblicatiion of any matter hertln without the ex
press consent of the Editorial Board Is strictly forbidd«n. The
Decree Is composed and printed by Ripley Newspapers of
Spring Hope.
Opinions published do not necessarily reflect those of
North Carolina Wesleyan College.
Concert fees don't
honor liberal arts
On the back of the NCWC
Wind Ensemble’s program
on Oct. 15 there was the fol
lowing statement:
“PVA (Performing and
Visual Arts Department) will
be charging a small admis
sion fee for all public per
formances in order to gener
ate enough revenue to cover
the rising coste of music and
other essentials. We are
aware that NCWC students
already pay a substantial ac
tivities fee to SGA, but SGA
does not support our pro
gram. Your SGA fee covers
the costs of bring rock bands,
comedians, and other enter
tainment to campus.
“We fully intend to keep
admission prices as low as
possible to encourage atten
dance and a limited number
of complimentary tickets will
be available to NCWC stu
dents who would be faced
with financial hardship be
cause of our admission
price.”
We are disturbed by this
practice of charging students
for attending fine arts events.
In the past, students didn’t
have to pay for the admis
sions to fine arts events other
than theater productions.
Why is this no longer the
case” This suggests either a
shift in the college’s priori
ties or a lack of funds.
If it is a shift in priorities,
we wonder about Wesleyan’s
commitment to a liberal arts
education. If it is a lack of
funds, we wonder what other
costs students will have to
bear this academic year. WiU
we have to pay for poetry
readings or entrance into the
library? Are they selling tick
ets to Founder’s Day? At
present, the cost for tuition,
fees, room, and board, is
$9,800. Isn’t that enough?
The college prides itself on
its commitment to the liberal
arts. Is charging students to
attend programs enhancing a
liberal arts education?
NO JOB-"?
NO HOPE?
HO FUTURE ?
ourr wowviN'/ twres
CPS
Age lays professor low
Get off Dr. Steve's back
By DR. STEVE FEREBEE
, My back has been hurting for
the last couple of weeks. When
ever your normal routine is inter
rupted, the mundane details of
everyday life becOTie throbbing
obstacles or they become what
they should have been all along
— disposable.
Turning over in bed or getting
out of a chair takes on entirely
new significance. But nursing a
large houseplant by carrying it
outside every week to hose it off
doesn’t seem so necessary.
I am also intrigued by how
stubbornly we try to ignore po
tential infirmity. It must be part
of the American work ethic that
even though my back “is killing
me” (an interesting description),
I still do what I know will make
it worse — including sitting for
hours in my office over student
papers or mowing the grass or
sitting at my computer writing Dr.
Steve columns. It took three
Dr. Steve
weeks before I would admit to
myself I had better avoid all ac
tivity.
You ever tried to avoid all ac
tivity? Who carries out the gar
bage? Who cleans the toilet? Who
brings in the newspaper? Who
plants the spring bulbs? Who
reaches into the back of the re-
fiigerator for the yogurt?
I make bargains with my pain.
If you’ll just let me get this one
task done or get through this one
social event, I promise I’ll do an
extra half an hour with the heat
ing pad. Usually, of course, the
muscle continues to cramp, warn
ing me that I’m hurt, that I should
be lying flat on the floor.
By far the weirdest part of
having a painful back is how
people, when they see me hob
bling around campus, delight in
telling me their horror stories
about their backs or necks or
knees. Traction tales, drug de
bacles, regular recurrences—I’ve
heard more intimate details about
suffering survivors than I’ve ever
wanted to hear.
Am I supposed to feel better
when I hear that someone else
tried to ignore a bad back and
ended up under the knife?
People don’t even look at me
when they tell me these stories.
They gaze somewhat wistfully
into their own pasts, gloating that
they managed to live through their
ordeal (maybe there’s a rhedal-
awarding ceremony?). They like
to describe the sounds chiroprac
tors make as they twist the spine,
the snap-crackle-pop of the
backbone’s life-long attempt to
agree with gravity and bend.
They even like to describe how
(Continued on Page 3)
Student came to play, stayed to learn
By MICHAEL S. WALSH
People often ask me:
Why did I come to Wesleyan?
What does Wesleyan have to
offer me?
Why have I stayed at
Wesleyan?
The main reason I came to
Wesleyan was to play soccer and
to be with a good friend of mine,
Mike Bauier. Injuries havestopped
me from playing soccer, but Mike
and I are still the best of friends.
With soccer gone, I had to look for
other outlets.
As a first semester freshman, I
had no idea of what Wesleyan had
to offer me, but that was because I
really wasn’t looking. Daisy
Thorp, my advisor at Uiat time,
gave me the confidence to pursue
extra activities. In fact, it was in
my LSS class, about two years
ago today, that Daisy asked me to
be an usher at opening convoca
tion.
It was after that, that I became
slowly aware that Wesleyan had a
wealth of interesting and challeng
ing opportunities. I found myself
interested in and eventually in
volved with SGA. I pledged a local
fraternity which has now gone
national, a Delta Sigma Phi, and
have since become president of
that fraternity. I decided to work
in the Admissions Office and apply
for a position as an Orientation
Leader. And all throughout I have
participated in the Honor’s Pro
gram which has been a valuable
part of my education.
My decision to get involved
added something to my life I had
not yet experienced. My involve-
».ient with the social,political, and
educational areas of the college
has given me the responsibility
and confidence I need to achieve
the goals I set for myself.
There are many clubs and or
ganizations of which any one of
you could become a part. All of
these groups are open to anyone
who considers joining. However,
what you must first look for is
what the organization has to offer
(Continued on Page 3)