The Depot #9

By OLAYENI OLADIPO ‘19

Hey, Team! Welcome to ‘The Depot,’ a storage facility for the topics of our time: the victories and defeats, the reliefs and worries, and the mindsets in the space of Milton Academy. Today, I present a deposit with the Class of 2020 in mind. As the school year steadily comes to a close and juniors begin their college craze, now is an opportune time to shed some wisdom concerning your profile as a college applicant. First, let me present the words of Ariane DesRosiers ‘19, as she inspired this deposit.

“Idk if you’ve touched on this yet but I really wonder if people feel the same way [as I] about how college kind of disillusions everybody. All the inherent worth in your passions and interests (clubs, arts, hobbies) are suddenly discounted or seen only as tools that you’re supposed to use to compete with others… I don’t know but it’s really disheartening to me at least. [Suddenly,] I just can’t find the same motivation to do all the same work for the environment anymore because I’m… drowning in the worry that if I do it, it’ll be like I’m just doing it for college. You know?” - Ariane DesRosiers 19

Ariane feared to exhibit the same extent of passion in her extracurricular activities because she worried that others would view her efforts as disingenuous. Read that sentence again. The passion of an avid environmentalist was tainted by the worry that others would view college as the only motivation for her enthusiasm. How does this situation come to exist?

The sentiment behind Ariane’s words blooms from all of the negative aspects of the college process. Traditionally, many people enter high school with aims to participate in clubs and sports all for the sake of college. For these students, passion is rarely the driving force behind their endeavors; instead, college and the prospect of a “perfect student profile” moves them. While high school is the typical precursor to college, that fact does not mean that college must rule our high school experience.

Ariane says herself that there is an “inherent worth in your passions and interests,” and I agree that we must respect that inherent worth and fight against all urges to misplace someone’s motivations. If, as a community, we can avoid the practice of living for college and assuming others do the same, then people can more freely pursue their passions without fear of judgement.

Ariane’s story is a heartbreaker and a reminder that we need to do better. So, Class of 2020 and underclassmen who have even more time to right this wrong, be passionate, and let yourself rule your endeavors. I’m no admissions officer, but I’m 95% sure that colleges wish to find students that exhibit pure, untainted passion.

The takeaways of this deposit are enumerated here. Firstly, do not let college rule your high school experience. Live for you, and let yourself and your values be the main motivations for how you live your life. Secondly, do not assume that those who show commitment to a long list of extracurricular activities or even just one activity are doing so for the sake of college. I like to think that Milton students have some depth, and you should too!

See you next time at ‘The Depot’!

Do you want a concern, opinion, or question of yours to be sorted, stored, valued, and remembered? Make a deposit to ‘The Depot’ today. Email olayeni_oladipo19@milton.edu and note whether you request anonymity. You can also drop off your letter in the TMP Office in Warren 304.