This is my fifth and last year at SIU. I have spent nine semesters of walking to classes, loosely obeying attendance policies and having a just-getting-by attitude. I’ve noticed that this is a prevalent disease about the campus — apathy.

How many students do you see dedicated to the classes’ subjects?

How many students do you see who bring passion and excitement to the classroom?

Not many. This is apathy.

Why do we have this disease, and how did we get it?

For me, it started in high school, although it is really the result of the whole education process.

For more than 12 years, we study all of our “basic subjects” to the degree determined by our standardized ontological state. Kids favor particular subjects. However, those favoritisms can change or stay the same as they grow. Depending on the subjects they enjoy, those students will most likely pick a college major that focuses on those favoritisms.

This all sounds fine, right?

Let’s go back some years and look at another educational method. In some cultures and civilizations, you would be taken early on in life to be an apprentice under a master. In some cases it would be your father, and you’d be forced to take on his profession.

Let’s say you were an apprentice to a blacksmith. You would no doubt be in the forge the day you start. You’d start off with simple hands-on tasks at a very young age.

The profession’s knowledge comes with the hands-on practices. The older you get, the more you can do. The deeper your relationship is with your master, the more of a master you become in your profession.

When archaeologists dug to find the ancient city of Troy, they uncovered weapons and helmets that had craftsmanship incapable of being reproduced today.

What would this look like today?

How sweet would it be if you as a film major could be an apprentice to someone who works with your favorite director, or even the director himself?

I’d be pumped, passionate, and I would feel like I’m doing a lot more than just jumping through hoops arranged by college classes.

I grew up building things with Legos. I excelled in high school mathematics and physical science. I was a computer and electrical engineer for two years before my cognitive dissonance was great enough for me to make a change.

I’ve been looking for an enemy bigger than my apathy, not a contemporary trade to become slave to.

Let’s burn up our apathy with passion, folks.

Jared Kingry

senior from Omaha, Neb. 

studying philosophy