A ‘jazzy’ atmosphere

On a quaint campus in the middle of nowhere lies a small catholic college. This college campus houses about one thousand students and provides a place of escape and quiet to study. Can I get a Grande double shot mocha latte with a shot of vanilla and extra whipped cream?? Can I get a cafe latte with a bit of caramel please? Or maybe One of those smoothies with a lot of whipped cream. These are just some of the requests that one would hear thrown around the bustling workspace known to those of the Cabrini College Campus and its visitors as Jazzman’s. Aquaint little shop of sorts, whipping up the latest (as well as the priciest to most) in meal exchange, goodies, sandwiches, coffee’s and smoothies made available to the average college student. From mocha double shot espressos to the famed Santa Fe sandwiches and Club Wraps, the selection is one that is preferred to that of the café. Seems like a great place right? To be surrounded with happy go lucky students and fac- ulty early in the morning, dealing with the gripes of everyday college with smiles plastered on their faces as well as those whose days are not going the best. To be bombarded by demands of never before heard combinations of hyperactive caffeine laden concoctions, sandwiches, bagels, treats and the anonymous extra pickle request. How about working there?

Well I work there and let me say things look a lot easier from the outsiders perspective. It’s a nice place to work and enjoy the company of your fellow man after class or during a break in classes. But to actually see what goes into the making of running a shop and the coming and going of employees is sad.

I honestly do not particularly care to work in a food based environment. Anyone who has worked in a fast food shop of any sort will know exactly what I am referring to. No more is necessary to say. All in all, everyone has bad days as well as good ones. Working in public service one has to be disciplined and realize that although we may too be having a bad day, tongues must be held until break or you country’s children are learning to lead or being led into apathy and conformity with textbooks, worksheets and even prayer that could all very well have no sufficient meaning or substance without time spent on allowing the student to grow with new knowledge instead of on top of it.

Maybe humanities should be stressed more than, but not more in a standardized form that includes status quos and test scores, but in a form that is presented existentially allowing room for uniqueness and individualism. I think that more creative classes, such as theater and poetry, could prove to be a significant part of learning because students, through art and literature, can adopt morals and values. I do realize that the Internet could be such a useful tool in assisting such a mission and I don’t dispute that.

What I am disputing is the danger in trying to bring the world so close together with communicative technology and marketing that monotony will become paramount and the human soul in all of its creativity will start to become extinct. Sound far-fetched? Sure it does, but someone tell me in which direction the educational curriculums in our country’s grammar schools are sending the kids.

Someone reassure us all as future and aspiring leaders that those at our heels are learning the kind of empathy that will teach them to respect each other’s opinions and differences instead of learning how to scorn each other for them aggressively and ruthlessly, like in Columbine.

Whichever way American children are taught, I think that schools are fundamental tools in shaping an entire county, and that is why they should be challenged. Every grant should be considered and questioned. I’m not particularly sure what purpose every school has or every teacher. I would like to think that purposes would include hopes at enhancing and stimulating the individual minds of America’s youth and finding as much brilliance as possible as well as emphasis on compassion and interpersonal skills that build confidence along with technology and all that it has to offer.

In closing and in my personal opinion, I think that a separation of schooling and state could and ideally should be looked into and considered by those who plan on making a difference in the schooling system and by those who dare to really lead because as our world continues to evolve so should we as a society of people free to do what we choose.