MSU and kindergarten

Definitely from "Old Collection"- cut out of the campus newspaper (The State News) at Michigan State. This was written by a 1991 graduate.

Of MSU and kindergarten

by Cammie Pohl

   In a book published a few years ago, the author, Robert Fulghum, affirms that he learned everything he really needed to know in kindergarten. Lessons like "Don't hit," "Play fair," "Don't take things that are not yours," and "Warm cookies and milk are good for you. True, we may gather many values, skills, habits and dreams during our early years, but what if we stopped there? What about all the ideas, information and abilities we have made our own since? What if we were to be suddenly shorn of what we have learned in the last few years at MSU? I, for one, would be bereft. Missing would be the knowledge that I need to follow my career. The first thing I learned at MSU was that I had chosen the wrong field of study - and for the wrong reasons. I then followed my heart and went against advice from both family and friends and chose journalism, but was a lot happier. Then I learned a degree alone would not get me a job. I realized hard work, dedication and self-motivation would lead me on a path to my career. I realized the value of experience to be gained through internships. The internships in which I participated taught me what books and lectures could not. These programs gave me an added insight on what would be expected of me as a new member in my field.

As a student at MSU, I benefitted from my professors' wealth of knowledge. Those teaching in my major shared advice and anecdotes which added to my understanding of the business. 

Missing would be the friendships that have enriched my life. Friends such as Spiro, who was one of my first and best friends I made here at MSU.

He helped me change from a very naive freshman into someone who better understands myself and others, as well as the world around me. A friend who coached me through the early days here, which were so terrifying, and then cheered for my achievements.

I would not have had the opportunity to live with a house full of men. Their practical jokes kept me on my toes, laughing and light at heart - even when I was totally stressed out - not to mention their insight on the more baffling sex.

I wouldn't have lived with my two crazy roommates those first two years. Through our experiences and misadventures, I established my system of values and beliefs I have continued to carry with me. I surely would not have met Tom, my fiance, someone who loves the person I have become while attending MSU. Missing would be the confidence I have gained as I met the challenges that come with pursuing a university degree. I gained confidence as I grew into an adult by making my own decisions and finding I could live with them and learn from them, even though some were wrong. I gained confidence every time I was able to deal with a person with ideas different than my own. And every time I learned another building on campus, or when I finally figured out how to use the library, I gained a little more confidence in myself and my ability to be an independent adult. But most of all, I would have missed the opportunity to experience the world of diversity as it is epitomized on the MSU campus, and to see this diversity at work to the advantage of all. There has been the opportunity to share ideas with students from East Lansing and the East Indies; to sit in class where opinions are aired reflecting London, Ontario, and London, England; to ponder and question philosophies utterly foreign to me, and find that I may not accept the beliefs, but I do not reject the believer. 

No, I did not learn everything I need to know in kindergarten. Nor have I learned it since. As we graduate and leave behind our University, we will find there is still much we need to know if we are to succeed in our professional and personal lives. But I feel ready to meet those challenges, prepared by my years of schooling from kindergarten on - and particularly my years at MSU. May you share my confidence that there is a special place out there waiting for us, because we are graduates of MSU.