The Number One Party School

Penn State was determined to be the number one party school in country in 2009 by the Princeton Review. Journalists took a second look at this statement, and decided to investigate this situation. They wanted to figure out why it is the "the number one party school", and what this really means for the university itself. The issue discussed in this report is of course, the drinking problem. This is something that happens every single night here at Penn State, but it is so difficult to stop. Administration constantly tries to stop this problem because it is an illegal activity for most students and is dangerous when drinking in excess. Every single week, hundreds of students are given underage drinking citations, D.U.I.'s, and many are even taken to the hospital due to their binge drinking. This issue is increasing as newer generations take over, and they discuss the wrongs about this so called "culture" that the students live by. They are drinking and partying at all times that they possibly can. This affects the many people that do not drink on campus because they have to put up with the rowdy drunk kids that stroll the streets. For example, Alex, the driver for Canyon's, was punched in the face and had his car beaten up by belligerent drunk students. He never drank in his life, and just came to college for a good education, but still had to put up with these kids. It not only affects the people that do not drink, but the residents of the town as well. The residents have their property violated and damaged as kids walk by constantly. Some kids may urinate on their flowers and some may just cause disturbances for people attempting to sleep. The writer does a great job in using quotes for this particular investigative report because they get both sides of the story. They interview with the students that partake in the binge drinking, and then the residents and students that do not. When looking at the interviews of the drunk students, we get to understand that the things they say about the stupid things they do is true. The interview with the officer allowed us to gain so much more information about things that go on because he has to put up with the same catastrophes every week. After the writer discussed the deaths that occur through so much drinking just because we are labeled the number one party school, the writer tries to get the point across about how wrong it is to do this. There are many things that can go wrong when participating in an illegal activity, and many have already been experienced by universities. Students need to understand that drinking may be fun at times, but they always need to think about the long term by thinking before they do something stupid.

I personally really enjoyed this report because it allowed me to learn so much more about my university. I could also relate to many of the things because I have experienced or witnessed them throughout all the times I have visited here and me living here currently. The part that really worked for me was that they are reasonable with the facts of life. When Graham Spanier said kids that want to come here for drinking, he got boo'ed and was hated. This is exactly what happens with college students if you mess with something they like, they revolt. The fact is when an occurrence happens in which other kids can learn from, that is how they will change. The death of the student that fell of the wall changed views of many students, and they began to start walking home in groups. This is where I think this report is best because by listening to the truth behind everything, they can submit to change in the way that the please.