Swine Flu on Campus: Should I Be Afraid?

Shane Le Master

Last week, I found myself at the campus health center getting a copy of my medical transcripts. Prior to this, I heard rumors about the large number of students infected with the H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu. Never having been one to get worked up over these things, I didn’t bother giving into the emerging swine flu hysteria. But during that visit to the Health Services building, I experienced a close run-in with the swine flu that changed all my opinions and concerns surrounding the matter. Within five short minutes, at least three students urgently came in to see the doctor concerning their previously diagnosed cases of swine flu. From then on, my mind inevitably fixated on the swine flu epidemic which was now very real and very much an immediate concern to me. Just how widespread is this disease on my campus? And should I be concerned?

I did some research to inform myself on the current state of the H1N1 epidemic at Georgia Tech. On the web, there was no shortage of articles detailing the matter on the Tech campus. CBS, NBC, and Channel 2 all have articles posted saying that the swine flu cases at Georgia Tech were all scientifically confirmed and that they were numbering near 100. With lab tests and numbers like these, it is hard to dispute the findings reported by the local media. Scientific American posted an article discussing the swine flu on Georgia Tech's campus, indicating that the risk factor for students here has grown large enough to even attract the interest of parties outside of the local area. The Center for Disease Control has a map (shown below) indicating that Georgia has the most widespread swine flu proliferation in the continental United States. It is no wonder that Georgia Tech, in the center of Georgia’s main city, has been hit so hard by the virus. In addition to personal experience, from just seeing the scope of information from so many reputable sources, the swine flu undoubtedly has hold of the Georgia Tech campus. All things considered, students on campus should be afraid.

Are Colleges Really Trying to Weed Students Out?

Shane Le Master

In the text American Higher Education, author Christopher Lucas comments on the criticism surrounding the “inability of American universities to graduate more than 50 percent of those admitted to pursue a degree.” This statistic reminded me of a common belief among my peers that colleges try to "weed students out" by trying to make them fail and/or drop out. Are the colleges really trying to do this, or is the low percentage of graduates the fault of the students themselves?

Georgia Tech alone has a multitude of free resources available to any students who are struggling in their classes. The Freshman Experience gives freshmen a leg up in their starting year with free tutoring in the basement of every dorm building. The Math Lab on campus has professors and TA’s in there four days a week to offer all students free help in math. Another amazing resource is the OMED study sessions and tutoring, available in many different subjects. These resources, which are just few of the ones that I know about, are clearly advertised around campus. At Georgia Tech, the argument that the school is trying to "weed students out" is completely defunct in the face of all the multiple resources it organizes to help its students succeed. And if Georgia Tech were looked upon as a typical American college, then nationwide, the high percentages of students not receiving their degrees is pretty hard to arguably blame on the academic institutions. As the old saying goes, "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink." In the end, whether or not a students gets his or her degree is completely up to him or her.