In college and in life, defy convention and do what makes you happy

Coming to college, some people want to change their identity. Some want to fit in and party and forget about high school. I was definitely one of those people! High school was great, I had a lot of friends and I was invited to all the parties. But, I too wanted to forget about all the drama from the constant gossip at my all girls high school. The writer of this article wanted to change her image from a band geek to a sorority chick. By her senior year she realized that You don’t come to college to reinvent yourself; you come to college to gain confidence in who you already are,"(Elser).

I completely agree with the writer. I thought that coming to college would change me and I could forget about my past. She said: "I was determined to take advantage of my new blank slate and I didn’t want any stereotypes to hold me back. I was going to be the normal college student who went to the football games to watch, not perform during the half-time show," (Elser). She may have had a blank slate like the entire 2014 freshman class but the sad thing is that you cant run from the past. I still think about the dramatic fights with my best friends and the stupid mistakes. It follows you all the way to college. At some point your true self will come out! Change can be good because you can become a better person but its okay to embrace where you came from. Your past makes you who you have become.

The fact that she didnt drink in high school helped her stay away from alcohol at the "number one party school". She said: "And while I am making myself seem like the biggest loser ever I will tell you that I have, however, ordered late-night Pokey Stix; slept through a night game; danced on top of a frat table; won at beer pong; lost at beer pong; pulled all-nighters; done a keg stand; and become addicted to coffee," (Elser).  She was still "sooo state" regardless of the fact that she remained a geek through college! She said that she watches Harry Potter and still loves being a nerd regardless of the Penn State or college atmosphere. I think its important to remember where you came from and embrace it. You can still be who you are and have a great college experience.





http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2011/04/19/in_college_and_in_life_defy_convention_and_do_what_makes_you_happy.aspx

Tour group educates on college suicides

Last Friday my friends and I walked through the commons, like we do everyday, to grab dinner and chat with classmates. We walked right by the glass study room of East and saw hundreds of backpacks on the floor. I thought that color backpacks belonged to students who were being given a tour to Penn State like we see daily all over campus.I was wrong. These backpacks did not belong to interested High Schoolers or perspective students. In fact, they stood for something completely different. Theses 1,100 represented "the 1,100 college student lives lost to suicide each year," (Glossner).


On April 4, the Daily Collegian posted an article pertaining to this event that raised awareness about the number of suicides that occur each year throughout colleges. "In the second of 14 campus stops across the country, Send Silence Packing, a campaign by Active Minds Inc., collects and displays backpacks in memory of the college students who have committed suicide," (Glossner). Among the backpacks were personal stories about individual suicides. Some of these back packs were the actual student's that they carried their college books in for class just like we do each day.

Students passing through East Halls on Friday were invited to walk through the aisles of backpacks and read the stories each one had to tell. I wish that I would have stopped to learn more about how prevalent suicide is among college students today. It alarming to me to think about how many students take their lives. A statistic that they had taped to one of the glass windows read, "67% of students who have suicidal thoughts tell a friend first. LISTEN." I hope that if any of my friends have ever debated about suicide or if the thought ever came to mind, that they would share their thoughts with me. I don't think I could ever forgive myself if I had a chance to help someone going through this and failed.


http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2011/04/04/Send_Silence_packing.aspx