On Low-class Education, And Low-class Fans
At every college & university, there are always supporters who go through great lengths to invite opposing fans to join them, to show them proper collegial hospitality. With that, the host institution spends a great deal of money promoting games, so that teams and fans will visit, boost attendance, improve sports programs, and thereby gather support for the college overall.
In tandem, the city, county and state governments sink a lot of money, attention, and effort to improve local colleges, at least partially so that tourists- which in this case means the opponents- will visit and put money into local coffers and the tax base.
Finally, former students and others at each instituion donate from their pockets, to promote their college as a font of school and community pride, for everyone involved, for the prestige of serving as leaders in various academic, intellectual, and civic fields.
And after all that, when opposing schools visit, there will always be some students and fans who insult these people. Curse them. Make obscene gestures at them.
And perhaps most vulgar, they “Boo”. After all of that effort, attempting to show off the institution and the town, attempting to prove what higher education is all about, and working to prove what a civilized and warm college and community they are, when the opponents walk through the tailgating, and worse– when the opposing teams take the field– the crowd boos them.
These are what college education is all about? These are your students, your alumni? These are the smartest and best of your community? These is your source of leadership? This is the quality of your college degree?
Somewhere, people need to learn that “big time” and “low class” are not synonyms.
But happens everywhere, all across the country. It’s not a secret, everyone recognizes it. But they do nothing anything about it.
It is intolerable. Where are the administrators, the elected student officials, the alumni groups, the coaches and athletics personnel? It is time for to them all to step up, and do what a is expected of higher education:
Produce alumni and students who know better.
Last 5 posts by Joseph N. Abraham, M.D.
- Home Schooling vs. Institutional Education - March 18th, 2008
- The Power of Today's Students - March 10th, 2008
- Education And American Democracy - February 17th, 2008
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