By Jeremy Richards, Staff Writer
Back in my freshman year, I truthfully didn’t really understand why there were so many guest speakers.
Most of them were people that I have never heard of.
Sure, they did talk about things that I was interested in at the time, but I didn’t feel invested in those lectures because I couldn’t relate to them.
But overtime, I’ve grown to appreciate the guest speakers more.
They seem genuinely interested in talking with the students at Susquehanna. And these lectures offer insightful advice that can have a fundamental effect on their minds.
Some of them still resonate in my mind today. And I do remember the overall message of those lectures when the topic appealed to me.
And I can tell that many of the other students do find value in these lectures.
However, I also think that we can be more ambitious with this.
I think we should bring more recognizable celebrities to be guest speakers.
It may have a greater impact on Susquehanna students because we know these people more.
And having them give students life-changing advice would do a lot for their self-confidence and enable them to be more invested in the lectures, so they can remember what was said to them.
I’m not saying that we should aim for mainly A-list celebrities.
As a matter of fact, I think Susquehanna should settle for more underrated celebrities.
Whether it’s Dave Chappelle or Sarah Stiles, I think students can benefit from listening to celebrities that are undervalued but students will still recognize and appreciate.
And it would fit Susquehanna’s identity, because we live in an underrated college. It’ll get Susquehanna students to be more invested in the guest lectures and appreciate the less notable guest speakers.
It’ll help Susquehanna University get more overall recognition, but not an insane amount of press coverage.
We shouldn’t invite celebrities that either won’t bring anything insightful or divide the campus with negativity.
But we should invite celebrities who will use their lectures to help students.
There are multiple factors to consider with this, including the school budget, the timing of the lectures and the overall interest in certain celebrities.
But I think this can go a long way in getting students more invested in these lectures.
There is nothing wrong with the guest lectures, but I do think that they can be improved by getting more recognizable celebrities onto campus.