The Daily Collegian

Issue date: 9/2/08 Section: Editorial / Opinion

In contrast, UMass students come from all different socioeconomic backgrounds, one of the truly great virtues of state institutions and an indication of America's healthy social mobility.

The fact that your parent is a diplomat or truck driver does not hinder your ability to do well in grade school, be accepted to this University and flourish academically.

The fact that your parent does not have connections with the federal government does not mean that you won't have educational opportunities at UMass, or at any other American university for that matter.

Yet by no means do these differences cloud the similarities both student bodies hold. Even though they do not do it as often as students at UMass or other American universities - AUC students do drink and party.

I remember one anecdote from a friend who explained how she and some of her friends had drank, toilet-papered a house and to her dismay, had been caught by her parents.

If there ever were a universal principle applicable to the behavior of college students of all different ethnicities and religions, this is it: we are very smart, but sometimes we are also very dumb.

AUC students loved American pop music. In particular, they were fond of overly sentimental tunes, such as Celine Dion and the whole Titanic soundtrack (all male readers, join me as I shake my head in disgust). They also enjoyed hip-hop and R&B.

But the most important difference between the two student bodies is that AUC students did not study in an environment which fostered a free flow of information.

For example, at a school considered to be the most prestigious in the Middle East, and one which is funded by USAid, I rarely heard professors or students praise the American government or military, much less Israel. Both countries undoubtedly deserve to be criticized for some of their actions, but they also deserve to be commended for other actions.

Yet even though I heard criticism leveled at both countries daily, rarely did I see a professor or full-time AUC student challenge the common assumption held there that the American government is evil and its soldiers are terrorists.

This lack of debate reflected largely on professors' dictation of class discussion and selection of course readings skewed toward one political perspective. To be sure, UMass suffers from a politically-correct, intellectual environment also, but it is nothing in comparison to what I experienced overseas.

So to incoming freshmen and returning upperclassmen, cherish the opportunity to study at UMass. And of course, count your blessings that you can eat at Pita Pit. I got sick of shawermas after a while.

Greg Collins is a Collegian columnist. He can be reached at gcollins@student.umass.edu.

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