Thursday Night Aftermath

On any Friday morning, a typical scene at Plymouth includes students grudgingly going to an 8am class, or getting a bagel from Margie at the Sidewalk Cafe. There is another scene that is also quite common, in the form of trash and desecration of the campus.

Many have noticed how after a Thursday, Friday or Saturday night, there is an increase of trash on campus. This includes anything from free-floating trash, to knocked over trash bins and the occasional upturned stone seats.

"I think it's very sad that the campus gets vandalized after a night of partying," said Jeannette LaPlant, a junior. "We should be respectful of the campus property, considering how much we pay to be here." 

While the main part of campus around the HUB and Mary Lyon Hall seems to get a large amount of trash and property damage, some areas appear largely unaffected. Bob Feeny, the residence director of Belknap Hall, explained. "We occasionally have some trash near the residence hall, but overall, things are pretty quiet around this part of campus."

While Feeny is currently an RD, he has previous experience with Plymouth, as he was a CA before graduating in 2010. "I believe that overall things are quieter now than when I was a CA a few years back. However, it doesn't mean that people aren't doing silly things to campus property. We have all seen the overturned stonework after a night of partying."

Another thing that Feeny noticed was the increase of large groups moving across campus, especially on a Thursday or Friday night. "I think that many people travel like that, because they are trying to meet new people. However, traveling in a group like that contributes to an almost mob like mentality. When you have that, people tend to do some really ridiculous things, including destroying random things."

While it is impossible to say what makes some students act in such ways, Feeny believes that students need to be aware of how their actions affect campus. "Many students do not realize how good we have it here at Plymouth. At other schools, the damage would remain there for a very long time before it was even addressed. There are still people who have to clean up the mess the next day, in the form of Physical Plant staff."

 "The culture amongst the students needs to change. Unless students make a concerted effort to say that overturning chairs or trash is not cool, people will still continue to do it," said Feeny.

LaPlant agreed, and gave a little bit of advice to those who would consider taking part in such activities. "We are all adults, we should act like them."