Welcome to UT new and returning Vols, and welcome to my column.
While I began writing regular columns for the Beacon this summer, the writing style is still new to me. Having been a news writer for the past few years, it is a novel experience to suddenly be writing about myself and my opinions rather than about a lab explosion on the Hill or why tuition keeps going up.
As such, I wondered how to decide on a theme that could interest both my colleagues on campus and be more than just my personal reflections.
So I decided to look into UT’s history. For me, understanding the past has always been critical to having a better grasp of what’s going on today.
For example, our football team’s losing streak from 2010 to 2013 is even more noteworthy when you realize it was the first time we had four consecutive losing seasons since our streak from 1909 to 1912. In that case, history gives us context for what UT football should have been like under some (thankfully) now departed football coaches.
Fun fact: this fall also marks the 90th anniversary of Gen. Robert R. Neyland’s first arrival at UT as a football coach.
But don’t fret. I have no desire to turn this column into a history class. Remembering the past not only helps us appreciate our heritage, but also teaches us how to interpret the events of today.
But, you may still ask, what can we possibly learn from events that happened decades before our parents were even born?
In the Sept. 12, 1925 issue of the Orange and White (The Daily Beacon’s predecessor), the editors gave a special welcome to the women moving into the then-new Sophronia Strong Hall dormitory, saying the new building would be “modern in every particular.”
Now, if there’s anything UT students love to complain about, it’s the lack of parking spaces and ongoing construction; however, looking 90 years into the past suggests that some of these complaints are anything but new.
In all likelihood, students that took classes at UT in the summer of 1925 also bemoaned the construction of Strong Hall as it was being built, just as students that took classes in the summer of 2015 complained about the hulking, gray monolith arising from the same spot.
Rather, what is more interesting is the fact that it took 90 years for the original Strong Hall to be replaced. According to a News Sentinel article, UT asked for state funds to replace the structure once the dorm closed to residents in 2008, but was denied, likely as a result of the financial crisis and consequential state budget crunch.
If UT had had its way, the new Strong Hall would likely be open by now and already in use. But, as anyone who has driven on Cumberland Avenue in the past several months can tell you, that is not the case. And while many of our complaints about the eyesore of construction may be valid, we need to also realize that other factors, such as the state of Tennessee not giving UT the money it asked for, should make us rethink how we vent.
Yes, we have lots of construction right now, but we need to realize that part of the reason UT is on a building spree is that the administration is wisely taking advantage of the country’s record low interest rates, allowing us to finance new buildings at a much lower cost.
It’s common for us to jump to knee-jerk, emotional reactions to problems around campus, especially when ongoing construction and lack of parking spaces turn what should have been a 15-minute commute to campus on the first day of class into 40 minutes (cough, cough).
Sometimes we have to look beyond our own inconveniences and see the bigger picture. The issues we complain about are not always new and not always easy to solve. But when we look into the past, sometimes we can get a bit of context.
McCord Pagan is a fifth-year senior in journalism and electronic media. He can be reached at [email protected].
