As the end of the year approaches, it is apparent around campus that WILD is back in a major way. The freshman class is buzzing with the excitement of their first full on WILD experience, and the seniors are hoping for that final WILD that they can remember for years to come.

One thing is for sure: everyone on campus should be excited for a great event and a great way to end the year with friends. WILD is one of the defining events of campus life at Washington University and is undeniably a unique one as well. I always hear students talking about how coming to WILD as a prospective student really made an impression on them and helped to convince them that Washington University really is a special place. It is with this in mind that we must examine what this event means to the community of WU.

WILD is not Team 31′s event. It is not the administration’s event. It is the students’ event. It is an event to bring the community together, and therefore as a community we must take ownership of it.

On a day when the student body comes together to celebrate the end of the year, it is important that we also work together to make sure that the event is a safe one and that everyone has a great time. One thing that struck me about Wash U when I first came here was how well students look after each other. Everywhere on campus I see students making sure that their friends, while having a great time, are responsible and safe. By looking out for each other at WILD, we can make the event that much better and safe at the same time. WILD is an event to take pride in-something that is a privilege for all of us. I know many students at other schools who are jealous of this event because-although they may have concerts and big parties, it is hard to find anything that captures the same spirit that WILD has.

It is important that we hold as part of this spirit the responsibility that comes with ownership of the event. The music, games, food, and the partying are all important facets of WILD, but they come second to what the event really means. WILD is really a place for all of us to hang out, for all of us to have fun as a student body. To preserve this spirit everyone should take the same pride in the event, in the school, and in each other. Besides looking out for one another, pride in this event involves respecting the campus and those people that are there to help you. It also includes taking responsibility for yourself and your own actions.

Being on Team 31 has made me realize how easy it is to take an event like WILD for granted. However, by not taking responsibility for each other as students in a community we risk losing the privilege of having WILD at all. It seems difficult sometimes to balance fun and responsibility, but I know that WU students are capable of doing it. By merely being accepted into this university, we as students have proven that we have the ability to strike this balance, which is the key to maintaining WILD as a privilege in this community. It will take everybody’s effort to keep this event running safely and smoothly.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, April 18th, 2002 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Opinions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.