Hey, West Chester, Anyone who was around on campus last year AND read the Quad [ho ho ho, selective audience], probably read our previous Editor-in-Chief’s editorial on cigarette remnants being scattered disrespectfully all over campus. After mulling over some thoughts on my walk over to The Quad office this morning, I’ve got to expand upon that subject.
The town of West Chester is a beautiful community – the city proper is one of the main reasons I personally chose to continue my education here. However, every weekend, it becomes a complete mess. After becoming an off-campus student this year, living in the borough has shown me why West Chester has a slight reputation for being a “party school.”
Sometimes, I act like an old lady and need to go to bed early on weekends, but oftentimes outside activity keeps me up well past 1 a.m. I couldn’t reveal any names if I wanted to, but last night I was stuck listening to a group of kids yelling at the top of their lungs how much they loved pizza for a half-hour, wonderfully soundtracked by a hip-hop beat that traveled around me like the sounds in the House of Leaves.
Now, I’m not saying that of-age students can’t drink, but there’s a respectful, responsible way to do so. And I won’t be so naive to believe that there is no underage drinking on this campus or in the borough, but responsibility is again the key issue for these individuals.
The second issue I’m going to mention is littering. It doesn’t seem to matter the day, but there is rarely a journey around the campus or surrounding streets where one cannot find a piece of trash. The campus provides multiple cigarette receptacles and both WCU and West Chester provide plenty of trash and recycling bins. From the way it looks Sunday mornings, you’d imagine the Associated Press had just announced that aluminum foil and plastic wrappers were biodegradable.
Back when I was a senior in high school, I started a small project where myself and friends would pick up one piece of trash per day in our surroundings (and in four years, I’ve only missed three days). I’m starting to think about recruiting a few squadrons of volunteers to try and tackle the West Chester area. I wonder what this campus could look like if even a few people would start throwing away one piece of litter every now and then….
I know I won’t sway very much of the population, but the borough is just that – the borough. Students living among the streets next to campus, and people who stay up and drink til 3 a.m. because there are no classes the next day are not the only residents of the area. There are people with children who walk among the trash and broken glass bottles on the streets, and homes that are unintentionally vandalized. The residents of this town have created a beautiful place for us to attend college, with countless resources just blocks from many student dorms and apartments. I hope, for the seemingly small amount of WCU students and residents who don’t partake in this kind of reckless activity, that even one mind becomes more conscious of their actions in their community.
Keep it classy, WC.
peace to you,
TjT