October 31,2008
opinion 7
Seniors should be more selective with applications,
make room for peers who know dream destinations
IRY mi mTNFY RKOWN
Features Editor
As the first quarter draws to
a close, one subject seems to
press on seniors' minds: college
admissions. Although the stress
caused by selecting a university
is often unbearable, I am tired
of hearing from my peers who
are applying to seven or more
colleges; this practice is unfair,
misrepresentative, and only in
creases the stress for those stu
dents who have one school in
mind and yearn to be
accepted there.
According to most college
advisors, seniors should apply
to five or six colleges: one to two
as reach-schools; two "middle
of the road" universities, and
two fall-back schools. Students
who apply to more are wasting
their time and money.
"Some students apply to 10,
12, even 15 schools, thinking it
increases their options. A fee
is attached to each application,
though, so this can get expen
sive. And it may just delay the
process of narrowing your
choices," according to "Choos
ing Your Future," an online
website devoted to guiding
students through the college
selection process.
I consider this practice very
unfair. First, applying to numer
ous schools often eliminates
spots from people who sin
cerely hope to attend that
school. Seniors who have their
hearts set on a certain institution
may find themselves on the
waiting list because they lost
their admission acceptance let
ter to a student who applied to
the university as one of their
numerous backup schools.
Interestingly enough, I have
observed that most of my peers
who have- over two back-up
schools are not the average stu
dents with the lesser chance of
gaining admission into college,
but rather the IB students who
boast high grades and greater
chances. These particular se
niors often like to complain
and share their worries, but
many more students have le
gitimate concerns regarding
admission because they lack
high SAT scores and perhaps
do not carry high GPAs; there
fore, the top 20 percent do not
need four back-up schools.
I do understand that many
of my peers apply to a myriad
of schools because they are
uncertain of what they want
to major in or where they ac
tually want to live away from
home. Even so, applying to
numerous colleges will not
make this decision any easier.
After all, they will still have
to make decisions once they
are accepted to schools offer
ing a plethora of course stud
ies in a variety of locations.
Applying to so many colleges
only intensifies the decision
making process.
What also armoys me is
hearing of students applying
to more than one school for
early admission. Early admis
sion is designed for the stu
dent who knows exactly what
college or university he or she
wants to attend, but because
so many colleges do not make
their early admission selec
tions binding, some seniors
are applying to more than
one. Again, this practice is
unfair for students who actu
ally use the early admission
option for its intended pur
pose; they may not gain ad
mission since their peers are
applying here, there, and ev
erywhere for a guaranteed ac
ceptance letter by October.
Applying to an excessive
number of colleges leads to
other misconceptions as well.
Every year at the Senior
Awards ceremony, students
who received scholarships,
including those they plan not
to accept, walk across the
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stage as a speaker announces
the amount of scholarship
money they earned. While
earning hundreds of thousands
of dollars is certainly a great ac
complishment, the system is
also very misrepresentative.
Students to whom universi
ties or colleges award large
sums do deserve recognition,
but what the audience may not
realize is how many different
learning institutions provided
the total.
If a student receives a schol
arship from one school, he or
she is likely to earn money from
similar schools. When this stu
dent begins to apply to numer
ous colleges, their scholarship
amount accumulates. In con
trast, a student might only ap
ply to a few schools, and even
if he or she receives scholar
ships, the sum of $50,000 seems
minimal in the company of
classmates. While such an
amount is a great accomplish
ment, it does not impress an
audience when compared to
the student who received
$400,000 from more schools.
What makes the circum
stances so misleading is that the
second student, if he or she had
applied to more schools, prob
ably would have boasted a
more impressible total, too.
Because a student knows where
he or she wants to attend and
gains acceptance with a schol
arship, the announcement
in his or her honor seems
less spectacular.
I urge my fellow seniors to
cut down their lists of potential
colleges. Not only are these se
niors creating problems for
other students applying to the
same colleges, but they are
causing problems for them
selves as well. Every senior
who deserves a college educa
tion will earn one.
Traditions fade as few cuiprits ruin fun
for students seeking to show their spirit
■RYCOIIRTNFYRROWN
Features Editor
Recently I was confronted by
our School Resource Officer,
Marc Ridgill. He and the faculty
are concerned about the behav
ior and misconduct at Grimsley's
home football games.
Apparently, students have
been sneaking small 1.7
fluid ounce bottles of
liquor, commonly known as
"airplane bottles" or "mini
bottles," into Jamieson Stadium.
This violation of the law and
school rules has jeopardized
the spirit and privacy of
the students.
After threatening to bring a
portable breathalyzer in the
stadium for every game, he
bid fair warning to any stu
dents smelling and appearing
to be under the influence
of alcohol.
"I plan to stop any stu
dents who smell like liquor,
have trouble with coordina
tion, or have dilated pupils."
were RidgilTs words. The con
sequences stated were "If a
student under suspicion is
asked to blow [into a
breathalyzer], and he doesn't.
I'll personally call his parents
to come get 'em out of here. If
he does, and it's over the legal
limit, he's going downtown [to
the police station] with
me. And I can guarantee he
isn't going to walk at
graduation either."
As a senior and a friend to
my fellow students, I feel re
sponsible to inform you of his
requests. I understand his de
mands and will abide by them,
but a different restriction stated
is what bothers me most, and
moreover, convinced me to
write this letter to the editor.
A tradition has been termi
nated at Grimsley. Students are
prohibited from standing on
the white wall surrounding the
inner perimeter of the stadium.
This mandate, thanks to many
complaints from parents at
tending the games, is because
of students under suspicion of
being intoxicated. In my fourth
and final year at Grimsley, I
have seen every senior class (up
until ours) utilize the wall for
its vertical leverage. Seniors
who are appointed to "get the
crowd hype," or commence
school spirit chants, stand on
the wall in order to project their
voices over a mass of talking
people, but this tradition will
no longer be practiced.
After failing to adhere to this
new rule, 1 have been told on
numerous occasions to "Get off
or get out!" I do not believe that
the administration fully under
stands seniors' roles in football
games, or any school events,
for that matter. I hope this
action is not the start of
more traditions to become
extinct at Grimsley.
Students, seniors especially,
have decreased attendance to
football games following our
match against Northern
Durham. This rule, strictly en
forced by Officer Ridgill and
Athletic Director Lewis
Newman is a detriment to the
crowd's spirit and possibly a
namely cause to the team's
overall performance.