Lack of Involvement at SXU

By Ifeanyi Onwumah

As a commuter, it is very difficult for me to participate in activities outside the classroom because of the amount of time I need to invest in travelling. That problem aside, I try as much as possible to attend all sorts of events on campus because I strongly believe that a well-rounded education goes far beyond what you learn in the classroom. When I do attend events, I am ALWAYS shocked at the level of attendance and participation by students as it disparages the event and the knowledge that is being imparted. I understand that SXU is considered a small school but the crowds that show up to its events are no representation of its student body. In fact, most of the attendees of the on-campus events that are open to all are adults and older – citizens that live in the surrounding community.

With this in mind, I understand that a majority of SXU’s student body is constituted of commuters such as me who have time constraints on how long they can remain on campus but this still isn’t the main problem. There is also a significant amount of resident students who live on campus or the surrounding apartments provided by the school. These students are very capable of attending these events.

I applaud the school for the quality of events that it hosts and their relevance to a college student and life in general. What sways me the wrong way is the disconnection between the students and the relevant information and advertising of these events. Whenever I talk to my fellow students about the events on campus they always seem surprised that such an event was held. This is because there isn’t enough advertisement and publicity given to these events to draw attention to them. I am certain of this because as interested as I am in getting involved on campus, it is very difficult for me to learn about what is going on. I almost always find out about events from my boss on campus or just the day of the event. I don’t believe that putting posters on the billboards by the stairs is enough to draw attention. Most students don’t stop to look at them when they are trying to get to their classes…I know I don’t!

All the blame isn’t on the advertisement of these events though; a lot of students are aware of these events and still choose not to attend. Not because they think the events are boring but because they let themselves get too caught up with their classroom work that they forget that there is life on campus outside of the classroom. I know this because I was one of those students my freshman year. I always procrastinated and waited till the last minute to do my work and when you are in college, work can pile up very easily. Due to this I find myself very busy for hours on end and then I am unable to do anything else for hours on end besides schoolwork.

The school needs to do more to get the students involved especially commuters and those students who can need to get involved with on campus events more often. I strongly believe that these events are a substantial part of an enriched college experience that any college student would benefit from.

Ifeanyi Onwumah is a sophomore philosophy major from South Holland. He participates in several campus clubs. Consideration for the student bloggers is provided by Saint Xavier University.