Enspired by another post at the Oregon Blog: I enrolled at Lewis and Clark College in 1987, and was friends with some of the debate nerds. It was a crucial time in the world (fall of the Berlin wall and all that) and LC reflected that. Between 1987 and 1992 LC underwent a dramatic change in culture, educational goals, and political make up. We endured divestment from South Africa, divestment from same sex bathrooms, Political protests against Gulf War I (including a shanty town, symbolic graveyard, and the attack and abuse of protestors by fellow students), the rise of the Campus Republicans, the establishment of the Internet and World Wide Web, having the light shown on date rape, to a security department that could and would track your movements from dorm to dorm. It was a fun fun time. The recently departed President Mooney was hired on to fund raise pure and simple and to steer the college toward a strong role in international circles and scientific advances. The arts and humanities were deliberately left behind. Mooney oversaw the largest hike in tuition and the largest growth in administrative positions. Those professors and administrators who were not on board with the new philosophy were kindly shown the door, and if they wouldn't leave, had life made very difficult for them. Due largely to the increased costs, more students were transferring out of LC to two year and public colleges than were transferring in. Dorm rooms sat empty as those that remained fled the campus. And yet, that was just the beginning of the every mounting cost of higher education (and the process of learning to think critically about the world) that we still see today. As an Alum, I am still asked every year to donate to the school, but I can't bring myself to do so. LC is not the same institution I applied to and enrolled in. Any learning I took with me from the school came not from the classroom, but from the activities I found myself involved in. Student Gov't, Student Publications, Political Protests, Discussion Groups, etc... I can even point to the one instance that changed my life forever. I was a freshmen (sorry, first year student) just walking through The Templeton Center when the Student Body President (Kelly ??? I think) grabbed me by the shoulder and asked, "Do you support divestment from South Africa?" When I nodded my head affirmatively, she directed me to one of the meetings rooms and told me. "Stand here and don't leave. We're going to prevent the Board of Trustees from meeting unless they agree to divest." Then she left to recruit more students and I was hooked by activism.