350
That's the amount of students our college has, but I am pretty sure there are plenty of schools whose student body is much smaller. Because of the size and lack of funds, colleges like ours do not have the opportunities to initiate many programs of our own. However, those that we do establish and encounter through outside affiliations are much more appreciated. We make sure to take full advantage of them, especially if we are passionate about the material we are able to provide, whether those opportunities are building schools in our home countries, initiating businesses with people whose cultures we admire or simply writing weekly articles on a national platform.
By being selected as a community for Odyssey, colleges like COA are able to talk about so many topics that might not be covered by larger schools. We try to avoid mainstream ideas by researching and taking into consideration different perspectives. We do not take this as a small responsibility.
When the content Creators from my community are far too busy with school work or their job, they tell me they prefer not to write a piece than write a piece with so little content. They enjoy writing the more informative pieces because they believe their work should be their best. They feel proud of their work when it contains issues that are rarely talked about; or are talked about, but with a different narrative.
Attending a small college allows us to get into deeper conversations with professors and peers that inspire such rich pieces. Unfortunately, because of our size and other commitments, not many have time to write weekly. But when these content Creators do write, the information they provide might be something not many know about, like the truth of entitlement, the truth about depression and the truth about hate crimes. By allowing these small communities to continue to prosper, Odyssey is fulfilling their mission statement. So please do not think that numbers are all that matter.
And, thank you to the managing editors who give us the opportunities to write, that believe in our content Creators' potential and that continue to root for us underdogs.
