YU is a great place

To the Editors:

YU is a great place, and before I am soundly beaten for that statement by my fellow students, let me explain.  For all the complaining and bitterness towards this school we so often vent, even in these hallowed pages, we are all still here.  Why?  The answer is because it is the only school to have both a Jewish and secular aspects of Jewish life intertwined (or we didn’t get into Columbia, but most of us probably fall into the former category).  So why are we so angry at this school?  I personally believe it is because the problems this school has are so easy to fix.  From social to structural problems, I have not seen a single problem in YU that could not be fixed with a little administrative acumen or endowment money (I am sure $10 million could be better spent bettering the students lives than in getting us a pretty garden).  YU could finally be a place that every student could enjoy and every donor could be truly proud to have helped build. 

But this call isn’t only going out to the administration and donors, it’s going out to my fellow students.  We need to get involved, we need to speak out against what we want changed, not only to our friends but to the administration and, if need be, the donors themselves.  Let them know that their money is not going to where it will help the students or enhance the college.  Lastly, we need effective student leadership, instead of another event.  Please actually help us change something for the better. 

Joshua Pollack
YC ‘04