When all is said and done, will Meramec students have the last laugh?
By: Rory Sullivan
-Staff Writer-
Students who attend STLCC-Meramec have all gotten that look. You know the one. It’s that look on people’s faces when a student tells someone that they go to Meramec. Yes, Meramec is a community college, but students should not have to feel ashamed for attending school here.
It seems like so many people only know how to ask two questions: “What’s your name?” and, “Where do you go to school?” The answer to the second question is usually met with either an “oh,” or some condescending remark like “I’m going to take summer classes there. It’s going to be so easy.” Titles such as University of South County (USC) and Meramec in Town (MIT) have painted Meramec as some sort of last resort for stupid people.
People go to Meramec for numerous reasons. Financial troubles, undecided career aspirations, or hopes of furthering one’s education are just a few of them. For someone who doesn’t have a lot of money, Meramec is a great option.
At many four-year schools, students can expect to pay tens of thousands of dollars. At Meramec, the cost is a mere fraction of most four-year schools. Students who have undeclared majors and pay tens of thousands of dollars to attend four-year institutions are literally throwing their money away. In times of economic hardships, parents should be trying to save money while still giving their children the best opportunities they can. For the most part, students all over the country take the same basic general education courses anyway, so why not save the money?
Students at Meramec are not being deprived of a quality education either. The professors are qualified, and sometimes even teach at other four-year institutions. So if a professor teaches a writing class at both Webster and Meramec, students who attend school at Webster are paying more money for the exact same class. So maybe there aren’t any frat parties or many sports teams (especially now), but that doesn’t have anything to do with what Meramec has to offer as far as education goes.
Yes, some people go to Meramec because they did poorly in high school or partied too hard at a four-year college, but they should not feel ashamed either.
The fact is that Meramec is a place where countless college students have found their footing. Meramec has been a turning point in so many lives, and even a wakeup call for others.
As students here, we’ve been given the rare opportunity to just start over. Ask almost anyone who has gone to Meramec in the past and they will pour on the praises. That’s because they have had the time to see that their decision to attend Meramec was one that benefited them past graduation.
Those who are fortunate enough to know what career they would like to pursue and have the money to go to a four-year college that specializes in their career field should, by all means, go to that school. These people are not as common as they seem.
Those who don’t know what career they want to pursue and have the money are far more common, and they can go and waste their money. It may not be terribly exciting to stay in town for college, but when the college years are over, students have moved into the real world, and the debt has piled up, who will be the stupid ones?
