Opinion > May 1, 2008

By Jeff Merski | Senior columnist

Wow. My last column to ever appear in the hallowed pages of the Old Gold & Black. I’ll admit that I didn’t think this day would come (although I knew when it did, I would procrastinate in writing this column, which is exactly what I did).

So, I figured it’s only fitting that my last column is my own personal reflection of Wake Forest. I’ve seen a lot of this school – both the good and the bad. So, let’s get the bad out of the way first.

There have been some disappointing changes to the university during my tenure here. The first issue is the whole ARAMARK debacle that started my freshman year. I’ve written too many times on this wonderful topic, so if you want the full depth of my thoughts, go to our Web site and type in my name under the search function.

Nonetheless, the fact remains that the meal service has remained quite poor and this is a situation that I’d like to see improved. We’re a major university – let’s get a few more quality dining options in place and let’s up the quality of the food. A facility as nice as the Pit should have its food quality match the decor of the cafeteria.

Another disappointing issue – increasing class sizes. When I applied to college, only one school out of the eight or nine that I applied to had an undergraduate enrollment of more than 10,000 students. Needless to say, I was attracted to the idea of a smaller campus.

Due to the small size of this university, I’ve been able to get to know my professors as well as get to know my classmates.

In many entry-level classes at many large universities, the professor will not get to know his students, due to the sheer amount of students.

At this university, most of my entry-level professors knew my name. I never had a teaching assistant lead any of my classes at this university (only labs). For my upper-level classes, I got to know my professors even better.

However, with increasing class sizes, I fear that this will become less common in the future.

I’ve already noticed a sizeable increase in class sizes over the past four years. If the administration is going to continue increasing incoming classes, then this special part of the university could be in jeopardy.

If the university is going to increase enrollment, then two things must be done.

New classrooms will need to be built – there are very few classrooms open during the day, and the classrooms that are occupied are packed. In order to simply accommodate new students, then physical space is needed.

In addition to that, more professors are needed to accommodate this growth. The student-teacher relationship is something that a lot of students at this university value, and to adversely affect this relationship would most likely (and rightfully should be) met with howls of protests by students, faculty and alumni.

Additionally, in regards to faculty, let’s get their pay up to a level they deserve. If we want to truly be a prestigious national institution, then we need to pay our faculty in order to recruit the best teachers and subsequently retain them. Quality instruction comes from quality teachers – if the professors are not getting the pay from this university that other top universities are offering, then this university loses in the long run.

And this doesn’t even include other ideas such as trying to bring a Starbucks on campus against the concerns of several students losing Campus Grounds, increasing costs such as tuition and parking, the archway debacle and the Interfaith Arch, which just simply looks out of place. Plus, there’s the new university logo that looks like we’re a bank, not a place of higher learning (plus, where’s the letter “F” in the logo?).

But, let’s look at some of the positives that this university offers. I briefly mentioned relationships earlier in this column. And that is a great thing about this university.

While incoming freshmen might complain about the roommate selection process for their first year at the university, this process is really beneficial. I was out of my comfort zone at first, but I was able to meet a group of guys that I am still friends with to this day (so much so that over half of us live on the third floor of Polo Residence Hall together and a good number of those that don’t live there are in our apartments very frequently). Without this experience from freshman year, I can safely say that my entire college career would be dramatically different.

Let me talk about athletics briefly too. From what I’ve heard from friends at larger schools, athletes are sheltered away from the regular student body. However, at this school, athletes are part of the student body. They’re in your classes, live in the dorms with everyone and are part of the campus community – not a separate entity.

This helps bring the whole community together. When a team has a big win and the Quad is rolled (and no, it’s not the Hearn Plaza), the entire team shows up and they celebrate with the students. And it must mean a bit more to the athletes since it’s not just the students they are celebrating with, but these students are the classmates, hallmates and friends of the players.

And of course there’s the great academics at this school. I think it’s fair to say that everyone at this school is stimulated in the classroom and that any accomplishments are earned and well-deserved.

So, is Wake the perfect school? No, but I think it’s safe to say that no school is the perfect school.

There are plenty of flaws that can be fixed at this school (and I’ve only scratched the surface of them). However, there is plenty at this school that does have its benefits, and while we might complain about the day-to-day life of tests, papers and homework, the big picture is much brighter and where this university really shines.

Jeff Merksi is a senior political science major from North Andover, Mass.