Choices Tricky During and After College
By Alex Jakle
Staff Writer

College is an odd time. On the one hand, students are finally free from the chains of oppression inherent to living at home, but for the most part, they are still dependent on their parents for financial support. Students can pick their own courses and make their own social decisions, but are still beholden to the administration’s guidelines governing those choices. In this semester in particular, with all the changes it brought, the question has been raised more than ever: how much sway does the administration really have over students, and how free are we really?

It is clear that the administration can require us to follow any academic deadlines they set forth. While it is a nice gesture to give students a say in restructuring the distribution requirements, it is also obvious that we will meet any course of action they set out for us (at least those of us who want to graduate). There are certain areas in which we have no choice, at least not a good one; we acknowledge, on some level, that we are perhaps not the best judges of what our education should entail. I appreciate the encouragement, nay, insistence, of the administration that we try new things. It seems indicative of the fact that the College knows we are a bit lost most of the time, and by forcing us to look for an interest we can carry through to graduation, they make it seem as if we have done all the searching. It is an interesting mix of independence and reliance, to be sure.

Social freedom is a bit of a different issue: whatever rules and guidelines they set forth are merely suggestions. For example, no one expected that the decree banning hard alcohol on South Campus would effectively end its usage. I still see huge amounts of it consumed on South Campus dorms every weekend. In this aspect, it seems the only real change has been what detractors of the policy feared: more closeted consumption. All the policy can do is strengthen the penalties for being caught, which can be interpreted as merely a cloaked suggestion that we direct our appetites toward other alcoholic alternatives. The fact remains, however, that whatever they outlaw, you can still do safely in the privacy of your own room so long as the door is shut and there are no complaints made. If you’re a physics major who wants to take only art classes next semester, they can stop you; your advisor can simply not sign your registration sheet. On the other hand, if you want to shoot heroin in the quiet of your room, there is nothing anyone can do to stop you.

I raise these questions because it seems that there has been an inordinate amount of change this semester. A new president has been inaugurated, a new alcohol policy set forth and a review of our academic requirements begun. However, how much has it really affected us? Social behavior seems little different: the changes in the academic policy will not affect me, and to be completely honest, I have yet to notice any changes because President Stanley has stepped down. It may be that these changes will be felt in the future, but I doubt it. Although President Oxtoby has announced his plans to whip us into shape, enhance our arts program and break the Pomona “bubble,” (all admirable goals) there will be loopholes for those who do not want to accept these guidelines, just as there are loopholes for those who don’t really want to fulfill those PAC’s (Animals in Extreme Environments...please). The changes will start and finish with student body desires.

In a way, it is not so different than the real world. There will be certain guidelines that those of us who get real jobs will have to follow if we want to keep them, and we all have to pay taxes if we do not want to go to jail. On the other hand, marijuana is outlawed; and yet if you want to use it in the privacy of your own home, it is pretty easy to get away with. Perhaps the social training we receive here is more realistic than we give it credit for. True, many choices are made for you, but in just as many instances, the choice is yours. Choose wisely.