I’m in my fourth year as a columnist, so I’ve been asking students what they think are the biggest issues on campus for a while now. And the responses I’ve gotten most consistently? Low school spirit. Lack of community. GW doesn’t have a football team.
It’s a tough issue to tackle, but on the opinions page, in conversation with friends and across campus, people are trying to turn around this so-called lack of University affinity. They’re trying to invigorate campus with a sense of identity reminiscent of big state schools, while simultaneously touting everything that makes GW, well, GW.
But so often, those two goals have been in sharp contrast, to the point of falling flat or feeling contrived.
I’ve found that GW is a school that prioritizes the micro over the macro. People nationwide are told through the University’s rebranding campaign that GW produces great leaders, a message that speaks to the ambitions of individual students here.
Students measure their pride in achievements in student organizations – or even more alienating, in collecting internships – and not in the University as a whole. We don’t lack school spirit – it's just more localized.
Both my parents and my older sister went to big, sports-focused state schools, so I grew up around people who experienced a very different college community than I have. Their identity first belonged to their college, and everything else, from majors to student organizations, followed far behind.
And whether we’re looking at our family members or our high school friends who go to larger schools, at some point or another we’ve all found ourselves asking, “What makes GW different?”
When I ask students why they believe school spirit is low on campus, the responses range from “the University is too bureaucratic” to “everyone just wants to talk about politics” to “J Street is not all-you-can-eat” and “there's no football team.”
But changing any of those things wouldn’t really fix our school pride problem. And solving the puzzle that is GW’s lack of community goes much deeper than being more welcoming to non-politics students – the University already is. And as for starting a football team again, well, that'd be a terrible idea.
In fact, it often seems as though students simply love to hate on GW.
Last year, GW was recognized in a Unigo survey as one of the top 10 colleges with the happiest students in the country, a sign that spirit here might be high. But the ensuing shock expressed across Facebook and Twitter seemed to call into question that survey’s authority. As someone who has genuine pride in her school, I found it disheartening to see this recognition being fiercely attacked by so many of my fellow students.
But the message the University puts out, and the one students quickly adopt, seems to portray each student as a traveler on an individual journey to political stardom, investment banking glory or the theatrical role of a lifetime. GW is a place where students carve out their identities individually or in small groups and do not have to latch onto less personal communities, like the greater University.
Indeed, not everyone feels this way. I have tremendous respect for the community members who show up to every basketball game, talk about "raising high" and attempt to promote a sense of spirit in others.
But there aren’t enough of them to say that the culture here is one of strong school pride.
Maybe GW just isn’t a place where buff and blue pulses through our veins. Maybe we need to stop thinking there is only one way we show school identity. GW is a place to grow as individuals. Maybe it’s time we embrace that.
–The writer, a senior majoring in journalism, is a Hatchet senior columnist.
I think this article perfectly describes GWU. While many bemoan the fact that they go here and there’s no school pride, I think GW is simply a different college experience, one that is not for everyone. Since you’re in DC, you are able to engage with internships, jobs, and networking opportunities that many – myself included – thrive on. You build your career and yourself as a person. Personally, I loved spending my weekends in Eastern Market and Bethesda as opposed to pep rallies. Obviously this does not apply to everyone, but many appreciate it.
You can find just a few of the answers to why GWU does not have the college experience of unifying all kinds of people to feel they are part of something greater right in other articles in this issue of the hatchet.
See below today Hatchet stories showing the LACK of Communication and transparency at GWU. GWU administration is not part of the college but puts themselves above everyone. Why the Parody of King Hugo now. He is only acting out what really exists at GWU. Pompous anal retentive 4 yr old very outdated males enforcing their will on a large amount of people via exploitation, intimidation.
This is the #1 of why GWU can not come together to Unify. Every inch of GWU is controlled by 4 men at the top the last 25+ yrs. This does not include President Knapp, Provost Lerman or Dean Peter Konwerski . They all take Orders from these overseer males. Even though they stepped out ( retired ) of their roles as Pres and VP they are still on campus running things along with the very long time chair of trustees and long time treasurer of GWU
No College has 20+ depts. that are for student health and welfare controlled by one man as SASS was by Robert Chernak. This is no secret. That Mr Chernak only had a handful working for him that A) were not professionally educated to be in position doing B) Reason why is that they were easily manipulated to be controlled to carry out his wishes.
What ever happened to Asst Dean Tara Pereira? She was the FACE of GWU for a long time. Then Poof.. she gone and now the Face is provost Lerman.. But he is only just another pawn. He has no authority. Just does what told.
If leadership at a college is as diseased as GWU has proven to be there is no way students or professors can ignite a positive college experience as all are constant rowing up stream to fight back to the dogma enforced.
I do believe GWU will prove to be unique in this extreme patriarchal “divide and conquer” approach to running a college to keep all in line with what ever it is they in their fantasy of ” Big Man on Campus” feel they own etc is reason so many students feel zero cohesiveness and inclusion at GWU.
Every issue of the Hatchet carries stories on how much the administration work against the students.. Marvin center is a sorry excuse for a college Union. The administration does not want to give the students space ( much less healthy food ) to meet to form groups. Mind boggling is the Lack of anyone in administration caring about or participating in as hands on the offices for students in Marvin center now..
You cannot have college spirit when the college administration views the students and the parents as the enemy. Demand high price $ on false imaging and then treat those paying the $$ with intimidation and ridicule does not make PRIDE but Fear. It creates the behaviors of need to escape not participate.
Stephen Covey was famous for his leadership. He said there is “Unity in Diversity”.
https://www.stephencovey.com/
GWU has incredible power in it’s diversity but the leadership at GWU refuses to let or help bring this Unity into reality as then they cannot enforce their manifesto that uses students and parents $$ to create something that is Not a college but a corporation with a big agenda.
Question is why ? Who is really controlling and using GWU and for what ? Investigation into this is where you will find the answers to the confusion of thinking you going to college but find once there it does not meet that experience.
http://www.gwhatchet.com/2013/03/07/staff-editorial-students-shouldnt-be-left-in-the-dark/
http://www.gwhatchet.com/2013/03/07/few-faculty-aware-of-care-network/
I’m glad the hatchet is addressing issues such as this. While I disagree with many of statements and assumptions made, I agree with the commentor above me and the author that GW might need different metrics to measure spirit or “the experience.”
I believe that GW’s students could rank within the top 10 happiest student bodies, I do not think it reflects upon the university at all. To borrow an idiom from statistics, correlation does not imply causation. I think GW students are great, smart, motivated, happy and love living in DC. I think it has absolutely nothing to do with the GW administration, faculty, and maybe not even the community. I, and perhaps others, thrived and were very happy in spite of GW not because of it.
Excellent article. It does a great job of clearly articulating exactly what makes GW great. Instead of priding ourselves in relatively meaningless athletic accomplishments or rituals, we build ourselves with individual pursuits, like internships, orgs, and specific courses of study. I’m also fairly certain that these real world experiences are much more valuable in the long run than blind infatuation to an alma mater.
This is precisely why I chose GW over other state schools, and have constantly been surprised at the complaints about the school. I knew full well going in that I would not be having a “typical” college experience, because that is not what I wanted. A problem may be that the structure of the university itself does not accommodate this sufficiently, but I think the recent attempt to provide small cash grants to students doing off campus internships is a good start. And since sports aren’t really our thing, more community events centered around popular courses of study might be nice bonding opportunities.