The English language needs your help. Despite having over 200,000 words, English has no single term that succinctly describes a person who illegally crosses a border.
Thus we're stuck with terms like "illegal immigrant," "illegal alien," or "undocumented immigrant," all of which prompt protests from some quarter. Shortening it to single words like "illegal" and "undocumented" doesn't help, and phrases like "people who entered the country illegally" are just plain unwieldy.
Sadly, the search for a proper term has become intertwined with politics, and many people are less interested in clear communication than in using words to manipulate the policy debate. That just makes the problem worse.
So let's set aside the politics, and consider this only as a linguistic problem.
Consider the fact that we have simple, clear words to describe most types of criminals. For example: "jaywalker," "trespasser,""counterfeiter," "arsonist," "kidnapper," "thief," "robber," "rapist," "perjurer," "embezzler," "murderer," and "vandal." Those are all good, unambiguous words that describe a particular type of criminal.
(To be sure, you should use caution if applying those labels to particular people. It's one thing to talk in general about, say, "thieves" in your community, but if you're calling a specific person a thief, you better be sure you're right.)
Still, for all the fluidity of the English language, not all types of criminals can be described in a single word. There is, for example, "drunk driver," "reckless driver" and "drug dealer." Note how both words are important: Simply saying "driver" or "reckless" is not enough.
And -- to get back to our point -- there's no single word to describe people who illegally enter a country. Even the two-word phrases aren't very good.
"Undocumented immigrant" is a clunky euphemism that makes it sound like the person lost his or her wallet. Besides, it's just not accurate -- all people are documented in some fashion, and illegal immigrants are specifically documented by the Border Patrol and immigration courts once they're caught or give themselves up. Some people in the country illegally even have drivers licenses and bank accounts.
I like "illegal immigrant" and "unauthorized immigrant" better as they are clearer and more accurate. But the need to use "illegal" or "unauthorized" just shows how far we are from having a good term. After all, we don't need to say "illegal murderers" or "unauthorized rapists."
We need a new word to describe people who cross the border illegally. I've churned over various ideas in my minds but none seem that good: "Crossers"? "Borderjumpers"? "Illegrants"? I don't think so.
There is room in English for a better term if we can all agree on it. Even terms that sound awkward at first can become accepted over time. Got an idea? Submit it in the comments below.
Tuesday, June 11, 2019
Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Book review: "The Long Haul" by Finn Murphy
I'm a sucker for stories about working people.
While others may seek out novels about wizards, vampires, or war and peace, or deep-thinking treatises on politics or social issues, to me some of the best stories come from some of the most ordinary places.
I'm fascinated by the fact that we're surrounded every day by people who do different jobs that we do, but we rarely get a look at what their lives are really like.
That's one of the reasons I find books like "The Long Haul: A Trucker's Tales of Life on the Road" (2017) intriguing. In this book, author Finn Murphy takes us inside the world of a "bedbugger" -- a long-distance mover.
The other reason I like "The Long Haul"is that it's just plain fun to read. The book is filled with so many good stories I have trouble picking my favorites.
There was his disastrous first day as mover -- so bad he offered to quit right there and then (his boss refused his offer). There's the story of moving a baby grand piano when things go awry. There's a tense story of driving his truck backwards up a muddy, narrow and winding mountain road in the rain -- the only way he could deliver his cargo.
There are stories of various "shippers" -- those are the people who hire the movers, like you and me -- who are arrogant, rude, strange or friendly (included one attractive wife who was very friendly).
I love how Murphy finds joy in practical things. For instance, he rhapsodizes about the beauty of a well-packed truck constructed of carefully built "tiers" of household goods:
"A well-built tier is a beautiful thing to see and lots of fun to make. It's basically a real-life, giant Tetris game with profound physical exertion incorporated into the mix. When I'm loading I go into a sort of trance because I'm totally focused on visualizing everything in the house and mentally building tiers. This is one of the sweet spots where -- as anyone who has done repetitive manual labor understands -- the single-minded focus, concentration, and hard physical work combine to form a sort of temporary nirvana."
If you also like books about the working people, I would recommend "Rivethead" by Ben Hamper, the story of life at an auto assembly plant. Also, I liked this article about the life of a woman "cable guy."
While others may seek out novels about wizards, vampires, or war and peace, or deep-thinking treatises on politics or social issues, to me some of the best stories come from some of the most ordinary places.
I'm fascinated by the fact that we're surrounded every day by people who do different jobs that we do, but we rarely get a look at what their lives are really like.
 |
| Finn Murphy, right, author and truck driver |
That's one of the reasons I find books like "The Long Haul: A Trucker's Tales of Life on the Road" (2017) intriguing. In this book, author Finn Murphy takes us inside the world of a "bedbugger" -- a long-distance mover.
The other reason I like "The Long Haul"is that it's just plain fun to read. The book is filled with so many good stories I have trouble picking my favorites.
There was his disastrous first day as mover -- so bad he offered to quit right there and then (his boss refused his offer). There's the story of moving a baby grand piano when things go awry. There's a tense story of driving his truck backwards up a muddy, narrow and winding mountain road in the rain -- the only way he could deliver his cargo.
There are stories of various "shippers" -- those are the people who hire the movers, like you and me -- who are arrogant, rude, strange or friendly (included one attractive wife who was very friendly).
I love how Murphy finds joy in practical things. For instance, he rhapsodizes about the beauty of a well-packed truck constructed of carefully built "tiers" of household goods:
"A well-built tier is a beautiful thing to see and lots of fun to make. It's basically a real-life, giant Tetris game with profound physical exertion incorporated into the mix. When I'm loading I go into a sort of trance because I'm totally focused on visualizing everything in the house and mentally building tiers. This is one of the sweet spots where -- as anyone who has done repetitive manual labor understands -- the single-minded focus, concentration, and hard physical work combine to form a sort of temporary nirvana."
If you also like books about the working people, I would recommend "Rivethead" by Ben Hamper, the story of life at an auto assembly plant. Also, I liked this article about the life of a woman "cable guy."
Thursday, May 9, 2019
A parent's impression of Fresno State University
Of the seven college tours I've done in the past two years with my kids, my least favorite was the one at Fresno State University.
But don't take that too harshly. Fresno State wasn't terrible, or anything like that, just ordinary. And there were a couple issues on the day we visited that weren't really the school's fault.
For one, there was the heat. It was around 95 on the afternoon we visited the campus, the kind of temperature that will suck the cheerfulness out of almost anyone and make the most eager prospective college students want to run away to the nearest air-conditioned room.
Then there was the odd group from Bakersfield College. My son and I arrived early for our campus tour because we planned ahead, knew when it started and didn't want to miss it. Every college tour I've been on has started almost exactly on time, and I had every reason to believe this one would be the same.
But in this case we were kept waiting in a nearly empty meeting room for 10 minutes. Eventually a representative told us we were waiting for a group of transfer students from Bakersfield College to arrive.
The group finally arrived and the tour began. Throughout the tour, the Bakersfield College giggled and laughed among themselves, sometimes even when the guide was talking. Then, halfway through the tour, the Bakersfield group announced they had to leave. I was left puzzled by a group of transfer students who had come a long way for a seemingly important visit, but arrived late, didn't seem to take it seriously, and left early.
Fresno State can't be blamed for that group's behavior but they might work a bit on training and preparing their tour guides. The young woman who led our tour was very nice, but she wasn't nearly as enthusiastic or as well-informed as our guides elsewhere.
Fresno State is probably a fine school for many people, but the only thing we saw on the tour that struck me as particularly special was the Recharge Zone.
In the basement of the student union building was a storefront featuring a darkened interior, the "Recharge Zone" sign outside and two large round spheres inside. What are they? Napping pods. Yes -- make a reservation, pay a fee and climb inside for a nap.
That sounded like a really nice option on a hot day in Fresno.
But don't take that too harshly. Fresno State wasn't terrible, or anything like that, just ordinary. And there were a couple issues on the day we visited that weren't really the school's fault.
For one, there was the heat. It was around 95 on the afternoon we visited the campus, the kind of temperature that will suck the cheerfulness out of almost anyone and make the most eager prospective college students want to run away to the nearest air-conditioned room.
Then there was the odd group from Bakersfield College. My son and I arrived early for our campus tour because we planned ahead, knew when it started and didn't want to miss it. Every college tour I've been on has started almost exactly on time, and I had every reason to believe this one would be the same.
But in this case we were kept waiting in a nearly empty meeting room for 10 minutes. Eventually a representative told us we were waiting for a group of transfer students from Bakersfield College to arrive.
The group finally arrived and the tour began. Throughout the tour, the Bakersfield College giggled and laughed among themselves, sometimes even when the guide was talking. Then, halfway through the tour, the Bakersfield group announced they had to leave. I was left puzzled by a group of transfer students who had come a long way for a seemingly important visit, but arrived late, didn't seem to take it seriously, and left early.
Fresno State is probably a fine school for many people, but the only thing we saw on the tour that struck me as particularly special was the Recharge Zone.
In the basement of the student union building was a storefront featuring a darkened interior, the "Recharge Zone" sign outside and two large round spheres inside. What are they? Napping pods. Yes -- make a reservation, pay a fee and climb inside for a nap.
That sounded like a really nice option on a hot day in Fresno.
Friday, May 3, 2019
A parent's impression of UC Merced
The University of California at Merced, which opened in 2005, is the youngest campus in the UC system. Like the adolescent it is, UC Merced is a bit awkward and its identity is still in the formative stages. But get ready: This youngster is having a BIG growth spurt.
My son and I visited UC Merced recently, walking around the campus and taking an official tour. It seemed considerably different than many of the other campuses we have recently visited.
If you're not familiar with UC Merced, it's not surprising. Not only is it quite new, to get there takes a lot of effort. First, you drive to the middle of nowhere. Then you go a little further. The campus lies outside the small city of Merced, past the farms that surround the city, on an isolated patch of rolling grasslands.
Even at the age 14, in many ways UC Merced seems as if it just opened. Around the campus, the trees are small, as if recently planted. Parking for commuter students is in a temporary lot that requires a long walk to the classrooms. The parking lot we were supposed to use for our tour was a small, poorly marked gravel rectangle that we missed on our first pass.
Currently, the campus has an awkward layout, requiring all arriving students to funnel into campus along one road and across a single bridge.
But big changes are afoot. The campus is in the midst of a major expansion that is adding new classrooms, dorms, a soccer stadium, competition swimming pool and more. One of the first things you see as you approach the campus are large construction cranes.
Part of the expansion has been completed, and the rest is supposed to be done by the end of 2020. Existing buildings that are new and modern will be supplemented by buildings that are even newer.
The expansion, which will ultimately double the size of the campus, addresses key weaknesses. The current student recreation center, fairly weak by college standards, will be replaced by a new facility. The temporary student parking lot will be replaced by a more central parking.
For now, UC Merced, with just 7,500 students, has a feeling of almost a community college, though it does have dorms. Our guide explained that new students are welcomed on their first day by a cheering tunnel of faculty and upperclassmen. The school embraces its farmland location with events like the music festival they've dubbed Cow-chella.
Still, like a teenager, the character of UC Merced is fast-evolving. In a couple years, I suspect it will have a much different feel.
My son and I visited UC Merced recently, walking around the campus and taking an official tour. It seemed considerably different than many of the other campuses we have recently visited.
If you're not familiar with UC Merced, it's not surprising. Not only is it quite new, to get there takes a lot of effort. First, you drive to the middle of nowhere. Then you go a little further. The campus lies outside the small city of Merced, past the farms that surround the city, on an isolated patch of rolling grasslands.
 |
| The "Beginnings" sculptures at UC Merced |
Even at the age 14, in many ways UC Merced seems as if it just opened. Around the campus, the trees are small, as if recently planted. Parking for commuter students is in a temporary lot that requires a long walk to the classrooms. The parking lot we were supposed to use for our tour was a small, poorly marked gravel rectangle that we missed on our first pass.
Currently, the campus has an awkward layout, requiring all arriving students to funnel into campus along one road and across a single bridge.
But big changes are afoot. The campus is in the midst of a major expansion that is adding new classrooms, dorms, a soccer stadium, competition swimming pool and more. One of the first things you see as you approach the campus are large construction cranes.
Part of the expansion has been completed, and the rest is supposed to be done by the end of 2020. Existing buildings that are new and modern will be supplemented by buildings that are even newer.
The expansion, which will ultimately double the size of the campus, addresses key weaknesses. The current student recreation center, fairly weak by college standards, will be replaced by a new facility. The temporary student parking lot will be replaced by a more central parking.
For now, UC Merced, with just 7,500 students, has a feeling of almost a community college, though it does have dorms. Our guide explained that new students are welcomed on their first day by a cheering tunnel of faculty and upperclassmen. The school embraces its farmland location with events like the music festival they've dubbed Cow-chella.
Still, like a teenager, the character of UC Merced is fast-evolving. In a couple years, I suspect it will have a much different feel.
A parent's impression of San Jose State
It's 3 a.m. and your laptop breaks. What do you do?
If you're a student at San Jose State University, you head to the school library, where you can rent a laptop -- from a vending machine. At 3 a.m., or anytime.
I toured San Jose State recently with my high school junior son, who is considering attending there, It's an attractive campus spread over a flat rectangular plot in downtown San Jose. Perhaps the school has run out of room to expand laterally because this "ivory tower" literally has a lot of towers.
Many of the buildings rise up 4, 5, 6 floors and more, especially the dorms, one of which I swear looks, from the outside, like a high-rise Marriott.
The large and fairly new King library at one corner of the campus is unusual in that it is both a university and public library. For the public, it closes at 9 p.m., but for students it stays open 24 hours (all-nighter, anyone?).
Our guide, Anna, said the library features a rotating bookshelf and a "trap door" in the elevator but unfortunately we couldn't find either when we went inside. We did, however, find the laptop vending machine on the fourth floor.
Just days before our visit, San Jose State had opened a gigantic new student recreation center that had been years in the making. I've seen three of these shiny showpieces at other campuses (Sonoma State, San Francisco State, and Cal Poly Pomona). This one was similar to the others -- climbing walls at the entrance, multiple basketball courts, lots of exercise equipment -- but on an even larger scale. It also featured a large "party pool" at the back, which was quite hopping on the hot Tuesday afternoon we were visiting.
One of the features of the new gym is that, if you forget your ID card or just don't feel like carrying it, you can use your handprint to gain entrance. That's the theory anyway. When we visited, the handprint system didn't seem to be working that well, and there was a long line of students waiting to get in.
Perhaps they should call on some engineering students for help. San Jose State has a large and well-regarded engineering school. It is unique among the majors at the college, Anna said, in that engineering students spend most of their classes together right from the start. This can make a tighter social group of friends and study partners.
Anna was a fun guide, pointing out at one point that the Central Classroom building is called that because it's, um, in the center of campus and contains classrooms. (You might think that's obvious, but at San Francisco State our guide noted that the Science Building contains almost no science classes.)
Describing why the campus's historic bell doesn't ring anymore, Anna said, "They remodeled the building -- and by 'remodeled' I mean, it burned down."
Unlike SF State -- where students are told not to bring cars to campus -- Anna said they're actually "encouraged" at San Jose State. About 7,000 of the 33,000 students live on campus. Freshmen are required to do so.
Anna mentioned that the campus does offer some partnerships with the many nearby Silicon Valley businesses -- maybe that's where the laptop vending machine came from.
If you're a student at San Jose State University, you head to the school library, where you can rent a laptop -- from a vending machine. At 3 a.m., or anytime.
I toured San Jose State recently with my high school junior son, who is considering attending there, It's an attractive campus spread over a flat rectangular plot in downtown San Jose. Perhaps the school has run out of room to expand laterally because this "ivory tower" literally has a lot of towers.
Many of the buildings rise up 4, 5, 6 floors and more, especially the dorms, one of which I swear looks, from the outside, like a high-rise Marriott.
The large and fairly new King library at one corner of the campus is unusual in that it is both a university and public library. For the public, it closes at 9 p.m., but for students it stays open 24 hours (all-nighter, anyone?).
 |
| Laptop vending machine |
Just days before our visit, San Jose State had opened a gigantic new student recreation center that had been years in the making. I've seen three of these shiny showpieces at other campuses (Sonoma State, San Francisco State, and Cal Poly Pomona). This one was similar to the others -- climbing walls at the entrance, multiple basketball courts, lots of exercise equipment -- but on an even larger scale. It also featured a large "party pool" at the back, which was quite hopping on the hot Tuesday afternoon we were visiting.
One of the features of the new gym is that, if you forget your ID card or just don't feel like carrying it, you can use your handprint to gain entrance. That's the theory anyway. When we visited, the handprint system didn't seem to be working that well, and there was a long line of students waiting to get in.
Perhaps they should call on some engineering students for help. San Jose State has a large and well-regarded engineering school. It is unique among the majors at the college, Anna said, in that engineering students spend most of their classes together right from the start. This can make a tighter social group of friends and study partners.
Anna was a fun guide, pointing out at one point that the Central Classroom building is called that because it's, um, in the center of campus and contains classrooms. (You might think that's obvious, but at San Francisco State our guide noted that the Science Building contains almost no science classes.)
Describing why the campus's historic bell doesn't ring anymore, Anna said, "They remodeled the building -- and by 'remodeled' I mean, it burned down."
Unlike SF State -- where students are told not to bring cars to campus -- Anna said they're actually "encouraged" at San Jose State. About 7,000 of the 33,000 students live on campus. Freshmen are required to do so.
Anna mentioned that the campus does offer some partnerships with the many nearby Silicon Valley businesses -- maybe that's where the laptop vending machine came from.
Sunday, April 28, 2019
A parent's impression of San Francisco State
Would you like to go to a college that has puppies and free massages? If so, San Francisco State might be for you. Just beware of parking tickets and tsunamis.
I've toured S.F. State twice, once in 2018 with my daughter, and again in 2019 with my son. While these visits didn't give me a full picture of the university, I did leave with some strong impressions.
San Francisco State is an urban campus on the west side of San Francisco. There is a large mall immediately to the north and heavily trafficked Highway One on its eastern boundary.
On both my visits, the campus was filled with students hurriedly coming and going. San Francisco State is not so much a tranquil venue of intellectual thought as a buzzing hub of learning for busy students.
The campus is compact, and to create space many of the buildings are tall. But it has surprises. You might not expect to find a soccer stadium tucked into the tight confines of the campus, but if you wander behind the tall buildings and look behind some trees, there it is.
Our 2019 guide, Victor, was fun and entertaining and noted that on certain days of the week the school brings in puppies as "therapy" for stressed students (sometimes it's kittens, or even piglets). Wednesdays are "Free Massage Day" -- for everyone, not just students.
Unfortunately, we were there on a Tuesday, so we missed out on the free massages. But we did get something else. Just as our tour was about to end, a loud horn sounded over the whole campus. It was alarming, honestly, but Victor explained that it was a test of the tsunami warning system that sounds every Tuesday at noon.
Speaking of warnings, Victor was emphatic that students should not even think about bringing a car to campus. Parking is hard-to-find, expensive and aggravating. Parking officers, Victor explained, will literally wait as the last five minutes on your meter runs out and then give you a ticket. You might think that once you get that ticket you won't get any more that day. But you'd be wrong. Victor said officers will ticket you again and again -- one person he knew got seven tickets in one day in one spot.
Rather than drive, take the bus. The school's One Card ID includes a free pass for all San Francisco buses and discounts for the BART train system.
Another positive: A modern and expansive student recreation center, complete with a rock wall, multiple gyms, workout classes, and plenty of exercise equipment.
We didn't get to see any of the dorms on our tours. Victor suggested that some of the rooms are very small, but if you're willing to pay more you might do better.
You can't really learn much about academics on a campus tour, even two of them, so be sure to look around elsewhere to find out about that.
I've toured S.F. State twice, once in 2018 with my daughter, and again in 2019 with my son. While these visits didn't give me a full picture of the university, I did leave with some strong impressions.
San Francisco State is an urban campus on the west side of San Francisco. There is a large mall immediately to the north and heavily trafficked Highway One on its eastern boundary.
On both my visits, the campus was filled with students hurriedly coming and going. San Francisco State is not so much a tranquil venue of intellectual thought as a buzzing hub of learning for busy students.
 |
| A view of San Francisco State from the top of the Student Union |
The campus is compact, and to create space many of the buildings are tall. But it has surprises. You might not expect to find a soccer stadium tucked into the tight confines of the campus, but if you wander behind the tall buildings and look behind some trees, there it is.
Our 2019 guide, Victor, was fun and entertaining and noted that on certain days of the week the school brings in puppies as "therapy" for stressed students (sometimes it's kittens, or even piglets). Wednesdays are "Free Massage Day" -- for everyone, not just students.
Unfortunately, we were there on a Tuesday, so we missed out on the free massages. But we did get something else. Just as our tour was about to end, a loud horn sounded over the whole campus. It was alarming, honestly, but Victor explained that it was a test of the tsunami warning system that sounds every Tuesday at noon.
Speaking of warnings, Victor was emphatic that students should not even think about bringing a car to campus. Parking is hard-to-find, expensive and aggravating. Parking officers, Victor explained, will literally wait as the last five minutes on your meter runs out and then give you a ticket. You might think that once you get that ticket you won't get any more that day. But you'd be wrong. Victor said officers will ticket you again and again -- one person he knew got seven tickets in one day in one spot.
Rather than drive, take the bus. The school's One Card ID includes a free pass for all San Francisco buses and discounts for the BART train system.
Another positive: A modern and expansive student recreation center, complete with a rock wall, multiple gyms, workout classes, and plenty of exercise equipment.
We didn't get to see any of the dorms on our tours. Victor suggested that some of the rooms are very small, but if you're willing to pay more you might do better.
You can't really learn much about academics on a campus tour, even two of them, so be sure to look around elsewhere to find out about that.
A parent's impressions of Sonoma State University
I've visited Sonoma State University twice with each of my children, got official tours both times and also strolled the campus on our own.
The visits didn't go perfectly -- there was the rain and the undercooked pasta. after all -- but I still found a lot to like about this college about an hour north of San Francisco.
The mostly flat, Sonoma campus is a pretty, pleasant place to be. Groves of tall, evergreen trees are sprinkled throughout the campus. The grass is green, the lawns tidy. While the overall acreage is not great compared to other colleges, the campus still seems spacious.
An unrelenting downpour fell on my first visit to campus in 2018, so my daughter and I didn't explore much. But the next year, my son and I arrived on a warm day and wandered around a bit. Behind the classroom buildings there is a small man-made lake that supposedly has fish (we found it a little dirty), and some short paths through the woods.
The buildings are fairly modern -- though the campus first opened in 1961, it went through a major renovation starting in 2001. We did find one building, Stevenson Hall, that seemed a little older, as evidenced by the ivy running up the side. That won't last -- the building is scheduled for a complete renovation, our guide said.
Almost everyone we encountered on campus was nice. One sophomore girl, unprompted, happily stepped in to take some pictures of my son and I by a fountain.
Most colleges do not offer a view of dorm rooms as part of their regular campus tours, but SSU does, likely because this is one of their strengths. I don't even want to call them "dorms," because the housing is all more like apartments.
On both my visits, we were shown a four-person suite that featured two double-occupancy bedrooms, a shared living room, and bath area with separate shower and toilet rooms (so one person showering doesn't tie up the whole bathroom). No need to stumble down a long hallway in your bathrobe to a bathroom shared by 15 or 20 people.
The "show" rooms were dressed up in brightly colored furnishings from Bed, Bath and Beyond. Still, looking beyond that bling, you could see the rooms were bigger than you would expect. Some of the freshman dorm rooms even come with small kitchens
The rooms for older students were supposed to be even nicer (though we didn't see them); some include floor warmers for cold winter days.
There are two outdoor pools by the dorms and, during my second visit, plenty of students were in the pool on a Monday afternoon enjoying the warm weather, talking and laughing. The phrase "party pool" came to mind.
And for students living on campus, laundry is completely FREE.
Still, there was the pasta. On my second visit, my son and I sat down for a lunch at the main campus eatery. Digging into the pasta we found about one out of every six pieces of pasta hard and chewy. Ugh. And my son didn't like his marinara sauce either.
Also, our guide said there was a "frozen mountain lion" on display in the basement of the science building. But when we later went to look for it, we couldn't find it.
OK, no campus is perfect. But SSU does have a shiny modern student recreation center with climbing walls, three gyms and plenty of workout equipment. Students can "check out" camping gear for their own outings, or sign on to an arranged trip.
You might note that this article doesn't have much about academics. That's partly because that's hard to "see" on a tour of campus, and also because our guides didn't spend much time on it. You'll need to do your own research.
The visits didn't go perfectly -- there was the rain and the undercooked pasta. after all -- but I still found a lot to like about this college about an hour north of San Francisco.
The mostly flat, Sonoma campus is a pretty, pleasant place to be. Groves of tall, evergreen trees are sprinkled throughout the campus. The grass is green, the lawns tidy. While the overall acreage is not great compared to other colleges, the campus still seems spacious.
An unrelenting downpour fell on my first visit to campus in 2018, so my daughter and I didn't explore much. But the next year, my son and I arrived on a warm day and wandered around a bit. Behind the classroom buildings there is a small man-made lake that supposedly has fish (we found it a little dirty), and some short paths through the woods.
The buildings are fairly modern -- though the campus first opened in 1961, it went through a major renovation starting in 2001. We did find one building, Stevenson Hall, that seemed a little older, as evidenced by the ivy running up the side. That won't last -- the building is scheduled for a complete renovation, our guide said.
 |
| Ivy on Stevenson Hall |
Almost everyone we encountered on campus was nice. One sophomore girl, unprompted, happily stepped in to take some pictures of my son and I by a fountain.
Most colleges do not offer a view of dorm rooms as part of their regular campus tours, but SSU does, likely because this is one of their strengths. I don't even want to call them "dorms," because the housing is all more like apartments.
On both my visits, we were shown a four-person suite that featured two double-occupancy bedrooms, a shared living room, and bath area with separate shower and toilet rooms (so one person showering doesn't tie up the whole bathroom). No need to stumble down a long hallway in your bathrobe to a bathroom shared by 15 or 20 people.
The "show" rooms were dressed up in brightly colored furnishings from Bed, Bath and Beyond. Still, looking beyond that bling, you could see the rooms were bigger than you would expect. Some of the freshman dorm rooms even come with small kitchens
The rooms for older students were supposed to be even nicer (though we didn't see them); some include floor warmers for cold winter days.
There are two outdoor pools by the dorms and, during my second visit, plenty of students were in the pool on a Monday afternoon enjoying the warm weather, talking and laughing. The phrase "party pool" came to mind.
And for students living on campus, laundry is completely FREE.
Still, there was the pasta. On my second visit, my son and I sat down for a lunch at the main campus eatery. Digging into the pasta we found about one out of every six pieces of pasta hard and chewy. Ugh. And my son didn't like his marinara sauce either.
Also, our guide said there was a "frozen mountain lion" on display in the basement of the science building. But when we later went to look for it, we couldn't find it.
OK, no campus is perfect. But SSU does have a shiny modern student recreation center with climbing walls, three gyms and plenty of workout equipment. Students can "check out" camping gear for their own outings, or sign on to an arranged trip.
You might note that this article doesn't have much about academics. That's partly because that's hard to "see" on a tour of campus, and also because our guides didn't spend much time on it. You'll need to do your own research.
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