Story here by Christian Diaz, news editor for The Warren Wilson Echo newspaper:
A week ago, I passed as a University of North Carolina Asheville (UNCA) student at their annual scholarship banquet. After pretending to feel indignant for being excluded from their guest list I was given a table where I sat with corporate defense lawyers who had donated money to UNCA, UNCA’s Director of Development and three other students.Incognito, I heard a conversation about our college.When I told these folks that I wished I had gone to Warren Wilson, they told me that at least at UNCA I don’t have to work in the dirt.Perhaps it’s human nature to oversimplify, but what I tend to encounter when I’m out engaging the “real” world are people who think Warren Wilson is nothing but a farm school, or sometimes a day-care center for hippies. Although partially true, it’s unfortunate that we have such a bite-sized reputation. This place, this life, is so much more.These misinformed, generalized ideas of Warren Wilson are benign, or so I thought until rumors started spreading about the disastrous effect our reputation as a college is having on graduates.
7 Comments
I am very disappointed to see this individual highlighted here. The misperception of Warren Wilson aside, where does this student get the gall to crash a scholarship luncheon? The scholarship luncheon is an outlet to recognize and celebrate student efforts and build relationships with donors. The UNCA students work hard to earn their scholarships and to keep them. These gifts are vital to the university and its students, especially following a year of tough budget cuts. This student's disregard for their peers is just as frustrating as the misperception of WWC.
Don't forget to thank him for setting such a fine example for WWC by lying about his identity and stealing a meal. We can only hope that the fertile ground of Warren Wilson cultivated the ethics that caused him to apologize to those whom he misled, and to make restitution for his theft.
As a student of both WWC and UNCA, it is the "dig in the dirt" bit that upsets me. Not to go all Wendell Berry on you, but there is distinct honor and a sense of accomplishment from creating something from scratch, either alone or in a group, that I got from Wilson and many of my fellows at UNCA will never know. Wilson teaches you how to work hard to achieve, both in academics and in actual, real work that you can see the product of.
Sorry to reply to my own comment, but I just read the remainder of the article linked from this site and the author does address many of my points that I brought up.
Wish this site had included more than the first few lines of the story! The article goes on to mention the many WWC grads who have made the most of their time at the college and gone on to successful careers.
Apologies to Christian Diaz.
I've made this comment (unsolicited, mind you) many times: when I meet a really special person in Asheville, there is a 90% chance they are a Warren Wilson graduate. I'd be proud to send my children there.
Yes, WWC has always had a bit of a speckled reputation amongst the greater community, but I'd say I meet just as many people who think that Warren Wilson is a wonderful and unique place ("I wish I had known about it when I was looking at schools!" or "I hope my child considers it as a possibility in a few years!") as those who think that it's a college full of hippy wastoids.
As far as the "disastrous effect" it is having on graduates – I think perhaps you are playing the victim card a bit heavily here. I see people everyday who were my classmates who are now teachers or lawyers, gardeners or business owners, working as artists or in non-profits.
When I lived on the West Coast, I was constantly having to explain our little school in job interviews to people who had never heard of us. At least in Asheville people recognize that Warren Wilson graduates have already developed a work ethic and have marketable skills.
Do some people associate negative stereotypes with our little hippy college in the woods? Certainly. Is it based somewhat in reality? Sure. Do you choose to let your future be determined by these stereotypes? If so, your defensive nature will just reinforce what a handful of people already assume.
Prove them wrong. Or, just don't listen to them.
Class of 2001
Maybe next time don't be so incognito. If you're proud enough of your college, then speak up when it comes up in conversation. Perhaps you'd have heard those UNCA folks say nice things as well.