Hi, my fellow Saints. I desperately need an outlet and I believe most of us do. The frustrations are way too damn high, and someone has to start answering our questions. Please read along if you are concerned about the state of this college. If you are not, move on.

It is no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected all colleges across the U.S. Throughout New York State alone colleges such as Daemen University, Elmira College, Excelsior University, Hilbert College, Keuka College, LeMoyne College, State University of New York, SUNY Oneonta, Utica University, Wells College, and Cazenovia College, have either closed their doors, merged, or are in a dire financial position. We are not naïve, and we shall not be passive anymore. Are the rumors that we are in debt true? And what does that even mean? I, like most of my circle, am pissed about Titus being canceled for the second time in a row (third if you count spring of ‘21), and I do not even love Titus that much. However, the decisions that have led to this cancelation are just a slippery slope to an abyss that I do not want to slide into during my final spring of college. So many things have gone awry, and we have been patient. Well, I for one, am not being patient anymore. I need answers.

Why are the advertised dining hours on the dining services website so different from what we see on the ground? Ever gone to the Pub on Sunday morning only for it to be closed, when the dining services proudly advertise that it should be open? Why is Grab and Go outage so normalized? Let’s focus on Titus. Yeah, everyone says it is an excuse for white kids to get drunk and ski down the mountain on SLU’s dime. Don’t be fooled. It is not only white kids who love to ski. Every outdoor lover wants to be on that mountain. Titus is more than a party. It’s a cultural symbol. When significant cultural symbols get trampled upon, it is only natural for the populace to panic. I am panicking as I write this paper. I hope you are as you read along. Everyone—the OC, Student Activities, Thelmo, Vilas—is pointing fingers at someone else. None of them will accept the blame, and I smell manure all over them. First, the OC, the guardians of an important SLU tradition, did not see this calamity coming…what? There are about 20 of them in that house. What were they busy doing? Last year, I wrote a news article defending the OC on that cancellation—it was some story about the national bus driver shortage, and it made sense at the time. Lately, I think incompetence makes much more sense. Come on OC, what do you plan all year long? Then, there’s Thelmo. I will say, I voted in the last election, and I regret my vote. The Thelmo executive board has gone rogue and does not represent me anymore. They are beyond saving, and we need a referendum to replace the entire leadership because they have allowed themselves to be pushed around by the big shots in Vilas. Thelmo is supposed to represent us, but they are acting against us, making themselves enemy number one. Be mad. Do something.

Lastly, we have our President, Kate Morris, who is a welcome addition to the SLU community, and I will be the first to admit that. Female and experienced, that’s the direction we want this school to go in. However, never think of President Morris as a loving, caring mother. Rather, think of her as a manager of a hotel that we all will be patrons of for four years. She has a balance sheet to close, not interests to satisfy. We need her to be ruthless for SLU to function. However, when the decisions of her office blow the roof off of our heads, we need to respond in an appropriate manner. So, what do I want to see? Not much. I want to know, one, will I graduate in May? Two, will Titus ever go back to the mountain? Three, what is the plan to elevate the college climate to pre-pandemic levels or better? And four, can I have a town hall meeting with all the stakeholders on Titus in particular, and have everyone say what their role was in this mess? Finally, Saints, get mad. This is not what we signed up for. Do something. Punch a wall, be visible in your anger, insult someone abusing an office we trusted them to hold on our behalf, sit in somewhere until someone responds to your questions and gives you some assurance. Whatever happens, we are all behind you.