School spirit plays an important role in your time as a student. It allows you to indulge in the culture and traditions of your university. I believe that is significant for you to help out your school’s athletics and even school organizations.
As a college student you must realize that you are now a representative of your university, whether you are a part of something or not. School spirit isn’t just in the bleachers and pep rallies; it’s also in your academics.
Being a scholar is a major way to give your university a good name. With 69 percent of students making it past their freshman year, Grambling State University has freshman retention rates similar to the national average of 69.4 percent.
Focusing on your grades is what will allow you to graduate. The more students graduate, the higher our graduation rate rises. Imagine if we all focused on school as much as we worry about parties, social networks or “netflix and chill”.
That’s the only school spirit that’s going to stop this great HBCU from being shut down.
Grambling specifically is the type of school where, as the motto says, “everybody is somebody.” In other words, you will always have a role to play. Whether you are an SGA president, or simply the chick with the purple dreads.
The students on this campus are so closely bonded, our community becomes a part of our spirit. So when we cheer on our football, volleyball or basketball teams, it’s not only because we love our school, it’s because we love each other. This is one of the rare traits that our school has, the fact that we all have some type of appreciation of one another makes our school spirit different from others.
Your love for your university is also expressed when you do extracurricular activities or join organizations. Now you are actually putting work toward your campus.
I strongly encourage all students to join at least one organization or club, or even be part of a well-known social group. Grambling is a community where you can network and build experience toward your degrees through the activities and events held on campus. And if you join any organizations that are nationally recognized, then you automatically promote your school.
We can also work as a community to make our school function more progressively. Grambling is in a small city, in a sometimes “not so friendly toward skin color” area.
Since 1901 we have depended on the support from our own people. Luckily since then we have become more integrated, but it doesn’t stop there. If we indulge more in our culture, in tradition, we create an atmosphere that cannot be replicated. This will attract more students and even raise the interest in our school.
We have always been known for doing great historical things at this school. From having football legends like Eddie G. Robinson to the band playing at the first Super Bowl. From creating one of the most well known football classics in SWAC history, the Bayou Classic, to having musical geniuses such as E-40 and Erykah Badu attend the school. What school can say that the former president of the United States, Bill Clinton, played the saxophone with the marching band? Grambling!
If we continue to show class, have pride and display character, our success as a student body and university will have no limits. We just have to remember the long beautiful legacy that comes with this school.
Be mindful of how far we have come as an HBCU and how much further we can go by giving love and support back to our campus. When I come back to Grambling as an alumnus I want to be able to see how much progress my school has made.
I know in 10 or 15 years there will be a change over time. School spirit determines if that change is good.
Nobel Michael is a senior mass communication major from Lancaster, California.