"Incoming and graduating students are a good investment.

Something I’ve learned here in Grand Forks is you meet a lot of UND students, and some become your friends. But UND is a turning wheel, students come and go — round and round throughout the years. I see some of the students, especially those from Fort Berthold, from time to time. They change. When they begin their career, they take on the responsibilities of their roles in our communities and seem to evolve from students to adults. A few weeks ago, one of my nephews returned home to White Shield, N.D., for a visit. He was one of those students who had a real good time at UND, if you get my drift. After we said our hellos and how are you, he said, now that he’s a teacher, he really felt sorry for those who taught him in years past. We smiled. He is doing great things and maybe his experiences — positive and negative — helped him to be a better teacher, who knows.

College students are amazing when you think about it. They learn in classes such as chemistry, literature, philosophy — the thousands and thousands of words — from teachers from the past and all over the world who speak to them from books so heavy they need ointment for their backs to carry them. They listen to professors hash information over and over they’ll test on one day during that semester.

So, I wonder sometimes about their carelessness, maybe bravery, when crossing University Avenue on the campus at UND. If you’ve ever driven that course through the university during a class break, it will take years off your life. Some of the students seem to have no fear. They walk right out into the street, nose in a book or ear buds and iPods blaring in their heads. Few stop, look and listen like they were taught in grade school."

Get the Story:
Dorreen Yellow Bird: College kids: You've gotta love' em (The Grand Forks Herald 8/9)
pwpwd

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