Cairo Association of Teachers - Newsletter

CAT Tracks for July 30, 2008 PARTY POOPERS

The good ol' days...slip sliding away!

Bummer...

What reason will high school graduates have to continue their education?

Top party reputation going away at SIUC

By Scott Fitzgerald, The Southern

CARBONDALE - Top-20 lists of universities and colleges abound this time of year.

There's one list just released, however, that could be considered a gem or an embarr-assment depending on your taste.

It's the Princeton Review's annual top party schools, and Southern Illinois University Carbondale is not ranked among the top 20 in the country.

While this may be a relief to administrators who have for so long tried to shirk the image, a 23-year-old armed with a MySpace page titled "SI Drunks" is trying to revive the university's party image.

"SIU used to be one of Playboy's Top 10 party schools and, well, something happened and it dropped off. We are here to start a revolution to get that back," the 23-year-old writes, inviting people to join his site, which is offered as a "one stop party hookup."

Larry Dietz, vice chancellor for student affairs at SIUC, knows what the "SI Drunks" subject is talking about.

Having attended SIUC as an undergraduate from 1966-70, Dietz experienced some of SIUC's party heyday. It included student unrest, the turning of Illinois Avenue - "The Strip" - into a hub of party activity that was highlighted with a Halloween extravaganza, and the general open or liberal attitudes associated with Carbondale and SIUC.

"At that time, the Halloween party was more of a family-oriented event," Dietz said, noting that a popular place for students to gather and mill about was a spillway at Crab Orchard Lake that was later shut down or banned by state authorities because it was deemed hazardous or unsafe.

"The 1960s were much different times," Dietz said, remembering SIUC's lofty standing in Playboy magazine's top party school list at the time.

Although SIUC does not crack the top 20 party list anymore, it doesn't mean students don't have fun here, Dietz said.

"Some institutions are thought of as academically strong and very boring. We are academically strong and our students have fun here. You learn a lot out of that process. We prepare them for a career and help them move on with their lives," Dietz said.

One aspect often overlooked when students and alums speak about fun at the university is the friendships established that carry on through life.

Dietz said friendships he established with other SIUC students when he attended school as an undergraduate remain strong and active today.

"Creating friendships doesn't necessarily mean a party. It's whatever happens that creates that bonding," Dietz said.