No More Open Door Policy

November 26, 2013 at 10:01 am · Filed under Uncategorized

There is one thing I’ve noticed about sophomores: they don’t seem to want or need any more friends.  Last year, I really enjoyed living in the often poked-fun-at Norsworthy.  It was old, and we weren’t placed with a majority of the other freshmen.  But it was my home, we were all a closely-knit bunch, and I believe that when I’m super old (like 30!), I will always remember that Nors was what made my transition to TCNJ amazing.

However, I am a commuter now, so between classes I often visit friends in their dorms.  But as I walk through the halls of the sophomore year buildings, I notice that all the doors are closed.  The Open Door Policy does not exist once you reach sophomore year.  It makes me realize that people are not taking advantage of what they have: the opportunity to meet new people.  We all may have selected our friends during Welcome Week and built those bonds over the course of our first year at college, but why not make more friends?  What’s wrong with getting to know your neighbors?

People I know who live in the sophomore dorms are even aware of this transition.  I hear them complaining about how it’s too quiet on the floor, or how their neighbors do not even know their names.  And yet no one puts in any effort to create a hospitable and friendly environment by bringing in the Open Door Policy again, or even participating in any floor programs and activities.

Commuting does not give me too great of a chance to meet people outside classes and the occasional club.  As someone who knows what it’s like to have made so many close friends from simply leaving my door open freshman year and then suddenly changing to a very minimalistic manner of meeting new people, I believe that sophomores should really take advantage of this chance to make friends.  Leave your door open.  Knock on your neighbor’s door.  Actually talk to people.  I can’t do some of these things because I do not live on campus now, but I can’t help but feel that people who can do these things and choose not to are missing out on meeting some great people.

Hey there!  My name is Adrienne Barsoum, and I am a sophomore Accounting major with a potential Communications minor.  I commute to school from Hamilton, a twenty-minute drive, rather short yet highly inconvenient for someone such as myself who prefers to stay in one place.  I enjoy reading books of any genre during the not-so-frequent free time I possess, and though I am currently working three jobs I always leave aside time to have fun and venture out to try new things.

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