I am writing to address Kelly Meehan's article "'Senior Week' events not open to all seniors" appearing in April 25th's Observer. As a current fifth-year senior, I found several aspects of this article very puzzling. First, if the Senior Class Council insists that students can only celebrate senior week the year that they graduate, then how come not one of the fifth-year students I know, including myself, has been invited to participate in this year's senior week? Second, and more important, Anna Skoien is quoted as saying that "Regardless of if [a student] entered as the Class of 2006, the University's policy is if [a student] does not graduate in May they cannot participate in Senior Week." Not only is this a terrible policy, but it also seems to be a recently invented one.
Despite being a "non-graduating senior" last year, I was invited to all of last year's senior week activities, attended several of them, and was allowed to remain in my dorm for that week. I also knew fourth-year architecture students, both last year and the year before, who were able to do the same. This seemed natural to me; I consider myself a member of the class of 2005, I appeared in the 2005 yearbook, and I plan on attending reunions with the class of 2005. The students who graduated last year were my roommates, my lab partners, those random people I still remember from Frosh-O, and my best friends. Every fifth-year student I have talked to - whether architecture, dual-degree, double major or just taking his time - agrees that the class they entered with is the class that they identify with.
So why the sudden appearance of this restricting "University policy?" I would encourage the Senior Class Council to stand up for those fourth-year architecture students and other non-graduating seniors, and in the meantime don't forget about the fifth-year students either. Let all seniors celebrate four great years with their friends on senior week.
Stephen SchwallseniorOff CampusApril
