On the night before my first day of college, I lay awake in bed, my stomach twisting with anticipation and my eyes reading the popcorn constellations in my ceiling, looking for a sign of how the next day — and the next four years — would unfold.
My outfit was picked out and laying on the chair. My brand-new Toshiba laptop, my first laptop (rest in peace, old friend) and my high school graduation gift, was powered off and carefully tucked into my bag. My class schedule was printed, and my books, all purchased from the ASU Bookstore (a rookie mistake — always buy them used online), were neatly stacked on my nightstand. One of them was a copy of Emily Brontë's "Wuthering Heights," a required reading for my English 200 class. I wanted to be an English teacher after I graduated, and I had started reading the novel mid-way through the summer, but my diligence had tapered off because I couldn't understand why there were so many characters named Catherine.
It's been nearly four years since that night. I'm a student teacher at my alma mater high school, and I'm reading "Wuthering Heights," now a favorite of mine, with a senior Humanities class. The students might not have their Catherines straight yet, but they will.
I will graduate with a bachelor's degree in secondary English education in less than a month.
My family has always valued education. My parents told me they would never be disappointed in my grades as long as I did my best. I've wanted to be a teacher practically since I was born, except when I was 4 and wanted to be a paleontologist.
Now I'm on the edge of being a teacher after spending 17 years being a student, and while those years have seen some tears shed, I can't say I haven't enjoyed them — especially the college ones. There are times I think about my students, all upperclassmen, many of whom are college bound and all of whom have senioritis (even the juniors), and want to get excited for their future.
Yet, I also know that many do not have the same opportunities that I have enjoyed.
It was a troubling realization that not everyone cares about education in the same way my family does. I was one of the final graduating high school classes eligible for a full-tuition scholarship to an in-state university through the Arizona Regents High Honors Endorsement. Starting with the high school class of 2013, the award amount was slashed to 25 percent of Arizona resident tuition. That's less than $3,000 per year, compared to the $9,208 I've received every year since fall 2011.
More recently, the Arizona Legislature cut $99 million from Arizona universities. It also completely defunded both the Maricopa and Pima Community College Districts, two of the largest community college districts in the state. ASU alone has more than $243 million in deferred maintenance, and its buildings are crumbling as a result. The Noble Library on the Tempe campus flooded in early March and will not reopen until fall 2015, leaving science and engineering students without a place to study for the better half of this semester. The State Press reported in late April that asbestos was discovered in Tower Center A and exists in dozens of other ASU facilities.
The value of higher education does not and should not end with me and all the other students who will be graduating in May. It is already a rarity to see a college student graduate without a cent of debt, as I will due in large part to a scholarship that was gutted two years ago. The average amount of student loan debt in the U.S. for the class of 2014 was $33,000.
I'll admit, I felt a sense of relief knowing that I wouldn't have to deal with an extra $320 fee next year like the rest of the in-state ASU undergrad students, or worse, a 4 percent tuition increase if I were an out-of-state undergrad student or 11.6 percent increase if I were an international undergrad. But that isn't fair, and it shouldn't be the mindset I or any other graduating student should take.
There are brilliant high school students gearing up to attend college, and I would know because I work with them in the classroom every weekday, and I plan to do that for the rest of my professional life. They deserve the same opportunities we've had; they deserve better opportunities. We cannot stop fighting for affordable higher education after we receive our diploma in the mail.
My college experience has been invaluable. This is where I met my best friend. This is where I fell in love for the first time. This is where I had the chance to work with some of the most talented young journalists in my four-year tenure with The State Press. This is where I read the glorious masterpiece that is "Wuthering Heights" (I have to talk it up in case any of those senior Humanities students read this). This is where I learned how to be an educator, and I want to leave the door open for the students who will come after me.
Reach the copy chief at cblodget@asu.edu or follow @CarlyHopeB on Twitter.
Editor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.
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