As you are reading this article, you may not be aware that history was made this past weekend. That’s right, history right here at RPI. For the first time in the 10-year history of the women’s basketball team, we have made the NCAA playoffs. This is a huge accomplishment for the team, the coaches, and the athletic department as a whole. Wait, it gets better. Our team is seeded No. 1 in the playoffs and as a result will host the first round in our very own Robison Gymnasium (Armory for us laymen). The game is tonight at 7 pm and promises to be an exciting, history-making event. Unfortunately, the NCAA requires the home teams to charge admission to playoff games, so there is a $3 admission charge. So, be sure to bring all of your friends and your three dollars to the Armory tonight to cheer on our history makers. Good luck ladies!
Now for another update ... there is now a public access printer in the Union! It is located in the Student Government Suite on the top floor of the Union, Room 3120. Its address on the network is ru3120lw. So now you can print in the most wired building on campus.
On to the meat of my column. You may have noticed some of the signs around campus indicating that GM Week is fast approaching. In my book, GM Week brings two things. First, it brings a second chance to party for a week to those who were unlucky enough to stay here for spring break. This is a very good thing. This year, like every other year I have been here, I will not be one of those poor souls that is forced to stay in Troy while all of my friends are off soaking up some sun. However, this does not mean that I will not take full advantage of the opportunity to have a "Spring Break II" as a GM Week mug of old touted.
The second and more important thing (depending on who you ask) that GM week brings is elections. It is a chance for students to get involved and make a difference in their campus community and change RPI for the better. I have spent almost a year as President of the Union now and I couldn’t trade all of the knowledge, insight, skills, and joy that I have gained for anything. It is a very unique experience representing your peers and one that can be very rewarding. I have made a difference at RPI, even if it is things that most people don’t notice or things that are attributed to others. The point is simple: get involved. Don’t leave it up to the other guy and then complain when things don’t happen the way you want. Don’t sit on your butt and then tell everyone you know how terrible the parking problem is here. Don’t tell your parents how you think the Rathskellar is horrible, then when given the chance by the PU to do something about it just sit idle and not reply to his open calls for ideas.
When I was a freshman, I remember an older, wiser college veteran telling me, "Everything you do, or don’t do, over the next four years will determine who you are when you leave." "You can get a job or lose a job, make some friends or lose some friends, and you can make a difference or you can come and go without anyone realizing it." I took that to heart and as a result here I am four years later. I would like to think I have touched a lot of people on this campus and that I will not simply come and go. I also know I have the best group of friends on campus. This all came to me because I had the guts to reach out and take that step—the extra one that many people do not.
So, this GM Week, take that step and do something to help yourself and your peers. However, don’t forget to help yourself to a week of fun and partying too!
