Augsburg College - Augsburgian Yearbook (Minneapolis, MN)

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Commuters Speak Ted Markgren (Jr.. Bloomington): I have found that I have developed other interests outside of school so I don't feel a need to get involved. Brian Rokke (Sr.. Minneapolis): Things are happening with resident students that are not publicized at all. Elizabeth Everson (So.. Minneapolis): I feel foreign being on campus after class hours. In commuting you don't feel as if you belong as much. Scott Johnson (Fr.. Minneapolis): It's not actually harder to get involved but you don't. When you're done with your obligations you just leave: you don't hang around. Susan Hanson (Fr.. Bloomington): If you're involved, you're involved. Commuter: A iot of times there is a need for the commuter to find a new group of friends at col- lege as the old friends from high school split apart and go their separate ways. Resident: In a way I can see why commuters don't want to stick around. What is there for them to do? Resident: Perhaps there's a possibility of a sharing system between commuters and residents in which a resident can go home with a commuter when he wants to get away from the school atmosphere, and a commuter can stay with a resident whenever he needs to. perhaps for a certain night activity that would get over kind of late. Resident: There were very few commuters that ran for office in Student Government. On the Stu- dent Council there is a Men’s Off Campus and a Women's Off Campus to meet the needs of the commuter and to make sure every segment is rep- resented. Resident: As far as participation goes, there are many resident students who are unwilling to be- come involved at school. Resident: Some resident students have a hard time getting to know people, too. There are a lot of re- sidents who go home every weekend. Resident: Actually it’s easier for residents to get to know each other because they're living together. They see each other all the time. Resident: You can't help but get to know them. Resident: Students who live at Augsburg are ex- posed to a wide range of different people. I feel that there's a lot of fear of the other person, not wanting to get close to someone, and not wanting Residents Speak Paul Sandness (So.): You're always with friends and there's always someone around to talk to. Mike Thomsen (Fr.): I get my work done at school: at home there's too much to do. Mark Brodin (Jr.): The resident student has an advantage as he is exposed to a valuable college experience, social interaction, that the commuter doesn't have access to. Jeff Dahl (Jr.): Living on campus is lots of fun. I wouldn't like commuting because I'd have to get up too early.

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that the commuter is at a disadvantage as far as par- ticipation goes. Some commuters, however, are rather indifferent about the whole thing, and yet others feel they are missing out on something. Many students prefer commuting especially because it helps financially. Jane Friendshuh. who has com- muted previously and is now a resident student, claims it's a good experience to both commute and to live at school. She feels that commuting not only helps financially, but one is able to keep home contacts, be- come more familiar with the city, and meet a lot of new people. Nancy Sandve also cites the advantages of commuting: At first I would have wanted to live on campus, but not now because I've realized the advan- tages. If I lived at school I wouldn't ever be able to get away from the school atmosphere. My purpose in com- muting to Augsburg was to go to a small private col- lege so that I could live at home and get a better educa- tion. I gain more out of a small school setting. On the other hand, the majority of residents enjoy living at the college and would never want to commute. The commuting student and the residing student share much of the same world at Augsburg, yet they live in seperate worlds. When they merge socially or otherwise how do they relate to each other? The follow- ing is a part of a discussion in which commuters and residents openly discuss the relationship between the two groups. Resident: People throughout the dorm think that both commuters and residents are at a loss. A lot of residents who are exposed only to certain peo- ple on their floor have no opportunity to meet commuters, who generally go home right after classes. In that respect there's no relationship be- tween commutersand residents: they're in two dif- ferent worlds. Residents are exposed to just the people on their immediate floors and therefore are missing out on potential friends in the com- muter segment. Commuter: Commuters should make a special effort to get over to the college for things other than classes. Usually he just goes to class, gets the academic bit over with, and then goes home. Resident: The only way to get to know commuters is to sit around in the Lounge or the Chinwag and just go up to them and start talking. Through one commuter you can meet many others. Commuter: One thing that really helped me at the beginning of the year was the CBS groups. In these groups, advised by two upperclassmen, freshman are able to get together and get to know each other, which is a good start for the year. Resident: It's easier for residents to get to know people. Commuters have to try a little harder to get to know people. Resident: Of course commuters have a problem a lot of times with transportation, have their own group of friends at home, and use Augsburg only as a center for scholastic achievement. Resident: I go home every week-end and I don't have a problem in getting to know people. Commuter: Yes. but you're here all the time ex- cept for weekends. Commuters tend to go to classesand then home immediately. LEFT: The Lounge provides a pleasant place to stop and talk between classes. TOP: Resident students carve a pumpkin tor Halloween. ABOVE: Students play 500 in the Chinwag.

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to really get to know each other except in a small group situation. Small tightly knit groups of peo- ple don't know other people outside of their group- they don't want to. I think this problem can only be licked when we start to break up these groups. There's a lot of nice people around here, both com- muters and residents. Faces faces from all over the United States and from different parts of the world. Hundreds of people encountering for the purpose of furthering their edu- cation: each diverse in their way of thinking. The com- muting student and the residing student live in separate worlds, but in the world that they share and in their relationships with one another there is much to learn and there is much to celebrate. LEFT: Early morning is a hard time for Jon Nelson. TOP: A commuter student. Lynn Anderson, studies at home. RIGHT: A student uses time between classes to study in the lounge. ABOVE: The parking lot is filled with cars during class hours. 29