Why can’t we have a day to celebrate being a part of the St. John’s family?
The spring carnival is fun and it’s a start, but the day should hold greater meaning. Comparable schools to St. John’s, like Georgetown, take the last Friday before finals to have an entire day to celebrate being a part of the University’s community.
Here, we have a carnival from 12p.m. – 4 p.m. with long lines and some popcorn. (No disrespect to the Student Programming Board, who do as good a job as possible with it and with budget constraints).
Why is the carnival only four hours long during a time frame where a majority of students are in class? Maybe it’s time St. John’s backed away from the commuter mindset that defined the University until the turn of the century. Thousands of students live on or near campus and would greatly appreciate a campus that caters to them on a schedule that doesn’t resemble a 9-5.
It would’ve been nice to see an even larger portion of the St. John’s community at the carnival past 4 p.m.
At ‘Georgetown Day,’ students have class, but the festival takes place throughout the entire day, giving every student a chance to celebrate with their fellow classmates. Here, a large portion of students were forced to merely hear stories of the carnival as they were stuck in class during the four hours it was made available to the undergraduate population.
What we want to see at St. John’s is an entire day filled with the joy that we all witnessed and experienced last weeks for those four hours the carnival lasted.
It may seem like the Torch is constantly trying to bring down the University, but the truth is, we just want to make this college experience better and more enjoyable for everyone. Probably one of the easiest ways of doing this would be to take a day for St. John’s to celebrate St. John’s. A festival throughout the entire campus added onto the already existing carnival would be a great start, but it shouldn’t end there.
This ‘St. John’s Day’ should be spread throughout the entire campus. Here at the Torch, we’re thinking that only actual rides should be placed on the Great Lawn, while the games and food could be placed at other points on campus, as It would bring a festive atmosphere to the entire university rather than just one portion of it.
Yes, we’re aware that seniors are invited for an extra day of the carnival the Saturday following the undergraduate one, but shouldn’t the entire student population be granted more than four hours of rest, relaxation and fun?
We’re going to go bold here. Take away our study day, the day where really nothing gets accomplished, and give us St. John’s Day.
You can get more organizations involved. Some possibilities could be live musical performances from students – both individuals and the choirs/bands on campus. Maybe a giant picnic on the residence hall quads? What about a bouncy castle outside Carnesecca? The possibilities are really endless. For us college students, this experience doesn’t last forever (as we can see with our predecessors writing their final columns), so why not have something that we’ll really think back on and smile while we have the chance?
