Rexburg, ID is a superb place. The mountains, the farms, the Mormons everywhere you look, and not to mention BYU-Idaho right in its heart, all make this town the best ever. There are only about 22,000 people living there, but the small-town feel is one of its best characteristics. You know people everywhere you go and they all have one thing in common: they live in the most dense population of LDS people in the world and in the most dense population of Conservative Repulicans in the nation. It's true. They've done studies. The residents take pride in their unity of purpose and direction and even of the little closed-on-Sundays Wal-mart. There is so much to be proud of.
Just down the hill from the newly dedicated temple sits Madison High School: the jewel of all secondary education. From nation renowned choirs, orchestras, and dance teams, to the current 5A State Boys Basketball Champs, to an extremly high average GPA, this institution demands the highest of quality in all aspects of academic and extracurricular activity. It's no wonder that its graduates go on to do great things in the world. (Almost like a mini BYU.)
All in all, little Rexburg may only have two main roads, but it's population affects big things!
Monday, September 22, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
Opposite View Point: My MOST Favorite Thing About BYU
Ok so it's BYU. Heaven on Earth. On the whole, we can do no wrong! Of course we make a few mistakes here and there, but they are obviously attributed to the influences of the devil and therefore, we are all unaccountable. This is the Holy Land and we should be allowed a little pride... or A LOT of pride. Silly little errors can pass through the system undectected because, after all, who is it really hurting? Not the people who work here!
Take One Stop for example: it's this ingenious system for handling all kinds of student accounts at the same time. Because it's a multi-tasking establishment, those who work behind the desks have a great excuse to be under-trained and lacking large resources of data. But as long as they smile and tell the naive freshman that everything is ok, the system works. The question of a possible mistake can therefore be quickly dismissed as paranoia and the student can be on their way. WHEW! That was a bullet dodged! The "customer service" representative can then say a quick, silent prayer that the HUGE accounting error on the books will be fixed by Heavenly Father through his "mysterious ways." That is, after all, the Christ-like thing to do!
Take One Stop for example: it's this ingenious system for handling all kinds of student accounts at the same time. Because it's a multi-tasking establishment, those who work behind the desks have a great excuse to be under-trained and lacking large resources of data. But as long as they smile and tell the naive freshman that everything is ok, the system works. The question of a possible mistake can therefore be quickly dismissed as paranoia and the student can be on their way. WHEW! That was a bullet dodged! The "customer service" representative can then say a quick, silent prayer that the HUGE accounting error on the books will be fixed by Heavenly Father through his "mysterious ways." That is, after all, the Christ-like thing to do!
Saturday, September 6, 2008
My Least Favorite Part of BYU
BYU is a very unique place. There are innumerable benefits to attending school at a place like this, but try as we might, it's not quite Zion here yet. It is important to remember that though this is a church school, it is still run by people, and people make mistakes. It seems that it is difficult for people to admit that these mistakes could ever exist at this "heaven on Earth" university, and that is my least favorite part of attending school here.
I had a more than frustrating ordeal with a particular administrative office on campus that lasted from this last February, all the way until last week. The issue would have easily been resolved in just minutes if one person in that office would've admitted that they had made the mistake. Instead, I had to deal with months of worry and stress, dozens of dead-end phone calls and emails, and even a 13 hour round-trip visit to see the administrators myself. I can't count the number of times I was told that everything was just fine and that all I needed to do was wait. This was not the case as a huge programming error was discovered in my account that could've cost me nearly $8,000. Even then, it was difficult to get anyone to take responsibility for the issue.
Maybe it was just a freak accident, maybe I'm the only one who's had this experience, and maybe I'm all wrong about the quality of the student services available, but probably not. I believe that people just need to recognize that there is possibility for error at "the Lord's University" and that they need to take responsibility for their actions. I do believe in and laud the ideals and concepts of BYU, but I will no longer take them for granted.
I had a more than frustrating ordeal with a particular administrative office on campus that lasted from this last February, all the way until last week. The issue would have easily been resolved in just minutes if one person in that office would've admitted that they had made the mistake. Instead, I had to deal with months of worry and stress, dozens of dead-end phone calls and emails, and even a 13 hour round-trip visit to see the administrators myself. I can't count the number of times I was told that everything was just fine and that all I needed to do was wait. This was not the case as a huge programming error was discovered in my account that could've cost me nearly $8,000. Even then, it was difficult to get anyone to take responsibility for the issue.
Maybe it was just a freak accident, maybe I'm the only one who's had this experience, and maybe I'm all wrong about the quality of the student services available, but probably not. I believe that people just need to recognize that there is possibility for error at "the Lord's University" and that they need to take responsibility for their actions. I do believe in and laud the ideals and concepts of BYU, but I will no longer take them for granted.
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