#1 Party School: PSU

For this blog entry we had to listen to a broadcast entitled #1 Party School and give our reaction to it. This interactive broadcast puts the listener in the shoes of a person on an average night in one of the biggest party schools in the nation, Penn State University. Penn State year in and year out is always at the top of the list of the biggest party schools in the nation. In 2008 according to the Princeton Review we were not just one of the biggest party schools, we were the number one party school of every single college in the entire United States. The purpose of this broadcast was to investigate the meaning of this title and the exact reasons why we have captured it. The five minutes or so of the broadcast is a conversation between two Penn State students sitting on their off-campus house porch on a friday night listening and watching the number one party school pass on by. In the span of a half hour the two students see several alcoholic involved incidents. They observe things such as a group of girls trying pee on their front lawn and guys walking around with an uprooted stop sign. Are these really the things that give is this very prestigious title. I really would hope that aspects such as a great football team or the best frat parties would have led us to optioning this title but that is not the case. In the words of Graham Spanier "You know the reason we're the number one party school?...its because the students vote on it...its not like someone came in and did an assessment." Many people, especially students, I don't think would view Penn State being the number one party school as an issue. I believe that much of Penn State's prosperity has to do with having the reputation of being one of the most fun schools to go to in the country. There are several aspects that go into the Princeton Review's decision of what college is the number one party school. 120,000 students across the country are asked three simple questions. How big is the influence of beer,liquor, marijuana and other drugs at your university? How big is frat life at your University? How much do you study on an average day? Since I'm only a freshman I am still only beginning to understand to what extent Penn State compares to other colleges for each one of these questions. The two people who made this broadcast do a very good job at getting sounds bites of a wide range of people at Penn State. They tend to focus in on the people who are representing PSU at the biggest party school in the nation. They interview several intoxicating students who speak freely about how they feel about Penn State and if they think we deserve to be considered the number one party school. Although the student body takes pride in this title I think that the school in general has tried to crack down on what makes us one of the most fun colleges in the world. I have spoken to many upperclassman about this topic and they have told me that in just two short years Penn State is not what it once was. There is now less hazing in fraternities, the police has become stricter on the student body and we are even beginning to study on a daily basis. I hope that in the coming years we retake our spot on top of the list of the top party schools in the country but sadly I don't think that day will come.

When beginning any type of writing assignment you are attempting to accomplish some sort of goal. Over the course of my academic career I have had countless writing assignments. With each new essay, novel, or journal entry that I am assigned to I am faced with a new rhetorical situation. Whether it be providing the argument for why democracy is right or explaining why I am the correct person to be chosen to attend Penn State, when diving into a writing assignment there is always some point the writer is trying to prove. In today's society it's not just essays where we are faced with rhetoric. Through the use of social media such as Facebook and Myspace and other modern forms of communication like instant messaging and texting, our generation is faced with a situation where we can express ourselves in a public light on a daily basis. With each wall post or text message that I write there is a some type of goal that I am trying to accomplish. Before sending a text or posting on someone's wall their is always a mental process that takes place. For the most part when I post something on Facebook it is in response to someone else writing on my wall. I don't want to just write any old thing. I hope to truly entertain the person I am writing towards and all of the "mutual friends" that may take the time to see what I have written. Over the course of my life I have developed my own personal writing style. My writing style has some good qualities but also some negative aspects to it. One of the aspects of my writing that I would consider a strength is my ability to be descriptive with the style of writing that I choose. I try to write in a specific way so that my writing is easy and enjoyable to read. When writing a story I feel as if I do a good job at allowing the reader to picture the event I am writing about. One of the people that I truly look up to, both in life and in writing ability is James Taylor. Ever since I was a little kid I have been listening to this incredible artist. James Taylor does an unbeilavable job at making his songs into intricate stories that paint a vivid picture. One of my favorites is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EoNd_maBbY, a song called Sweet Baby James. With each consecutive line I picture the same thing in my head as I did since I was a little kid. My personal writing style does have some negative qualities to it. One of the ways I hope to improve my writing is my vocabulary. With a wider range of vacabulary I feel as if it is easier to write a captivating and interesting story. One of the people that opened my eyes to the potential of language is the master, William Shakespeare. The first play I read by Shakespeare was Romeo & Juliet. I found his style of writing so incredibly poetic and descriptive, and after finishing Romeo & Juliet I moved onto his other plays such as Hamlet and Macbeth. Over the course of the semester in English 015, I hope to continue to grow as a writer and improve on several aspects of my writing.