I’ve done my time at FSU. And I’ve really tried to do it - multiple on campus jobs, clubs, events, academics. I’ve pushed myself.
Since my freshman year, I have become increasingly aware of this University’s quiet mediocrity. We have problems on campus, and they are not being addressed or fixed. We have racist incidents regularly on campus. We have domestic violence in the dorms. We have white students that use the n-word. We have a police force that silences victims. We have cameras that don’t work. We have professors who don’t care to teach. We have no school spirit. We have staff stretched so thin they can’t produce anything. We have problems. And we have a shrinking student body, that is becoming largely commuter, so FSU has no money to deal with anything. We have top down, systemic issues, rooted in our policies, that are teaching us to accept mediocrity.
And the cherry on top is FSU’s empty claims of inclusion and excellence in education.
We have so much work to do as a community.
As for my part in all this, I have been trying to change one small thing in my four years. I have been fighting for sexual assault and violence to be handled appropriately since my first day on campus, when I experienced sexual assault. Time and time again, doors are closed in front of me, all in the name of, “There is nothing else we can do.” But that’s not the truth. People with passion know there is always something to do. The work doesn’t stop.
Here’s the thing though - I’m a fighter. And even after being assaulted my first day on campus, I chose to stick around. I stuck around because I had a few friends who had my back and held my head up for me. I have been fighting an uphill battle on every front and planting seeds - waiting for something to bloom. I just wish I could see something bloom before I graduate.
If you have it in you, please keep planting seeds. It’s the only way we will ever see change - even if we’re not the ones that get to witness it.
Sincerely,
Kathryn Washburn
Class of 2023
B.S. Computer Science