We have all felt the pains of pinching pennies in this current economy, but perhaps none feel it more than students currently in college. With budgets becoming tighter and student loans at an extreme low, many of us in college are certainly more aware of finances, and many of those not enrolled may start to think of college as impossible. In a recent CNN story, an independent firm sponsored an event in which people video taped themselves singing about their dream career; the grand prize – free tuition to a local technical degree program. Some of our own share their opinions.

If Juniata were to host an event of this nature, would that be a good idea? What traditional event would be best?

Grace Canfield ’10, Littleton, N.H.: “I think that would be a really good idea to provide a fun competition that offered students free tuition as a prize. I think an event such as Juniata Idol would be a very good way to offer scholarships to students, and it would be an incentive that might make people audition who wouldn’t otherwise— like me!”

Kristen Murray ’09, Cresson, Pa.: “No, I do not feel as though Juniata should make an effort to create a competition like this because it is not fair on an overall basis. The grand prize is amazing; however, for it including so much, I feel the competition should be fair to all. On the other hand, a fun tradition to have a competition about would be either Mountain Day or the Mr. Juniata Pageant.”

Eric Martin ’09, Huntingdon, Pa.: “Regardless of the state of the economy, I would agree with the idea of making an event at Juniata a competition with the grand prize being paid tuition. However, there are not many traditional Juniata events that would be fair to everyone in a competitive atmosphere. The one event that I could come up with for the competition would be the Bailey Oratorical. I chose the Bailey because I feel as though it is one of Juniata’s more academically oriented traditions that would enhance the knowledge and skills of its entrants. Another option would be the Liberal Arts Symposium.”

Chris Holton ’09, Jacobus, Pa.: “No, I don’t think it is a good idea to award paid tuition to college for someone singing about his or her dream career. However, a traditional JC event that would make a good competition for this could be the Bailey Oratorical. This could be a good competition because it allows students to choose an issue that they feel is important and give a presentation on it.”

Brandon Wolfe ’10, Perkasie, Pa.: “I think that a competition of this nature would not only benefit student involvement in Juniata, but it would also provide more artistic output from the students themselves. Juniata College’s tradition of “All Class Night” would be the perfect event. As of now, there are few students who care about this tradition. However, if this competition were added to the night, more people would know about the event–making it more likely that people would, in fact, show up. Students would make videos, invite friends, and have a good laugh.”

Christopher Bender ’10, Juniata Online Journalist