Video editing can be a fickle thing. It is used to take a moment captured in time and cast into an attractive format. It is a process to attract the interest of the viewer, without really putting a lot of thought into why it is being depicted in this way.
The editors also have the power of deletion. Specific phrases or actions, deemed as unnecessary or not cohesive to a policy or an agenda, can be subtracted. This subtraction can be either deceptively or innocently intended. Often, it is the former.
It depends on the memories of those who witnessed the event determine if such deletion occurred. It is opinions, of informed ones, that decide how it was intended.
This author was struck by such a moment of deletion. This instance involved a long-held tradition at Wabash College in the Chapel Talk.
The first presentation of the year was held last Thursday morning at the same time as all the others. And as has come about in my four years as a student, President Hess has been the first to take to the lectern in the campus' most sacred spot so that he may share a few words.
How does this connect with my take on media editors? In the Sphinx Club president's introduction, key phrases that I heard live were edited out in the video.
This article is meant to involve some reader initiative, and time to think about what President Hess said. Below is a recording of his Talk. Listen to it, and you may find yourself quietly questioning, "What does this really have to do with Wabash College?":
Chapel Talks have almost certainly been construed by many outsides of campus as "drinking the Kool-Aid" about our College. I admit that as a Rhyne, I came in with the same joking attitude, knowing just how rooted they were in the Wabash student experience.
However, I quickly found that some of these Talks were centered around maturity and spoke to practical behavior. Many of the Talks that I have heard have not all been lip service to Wabash, but they have been an inspiration to be better Men, in all things.
Relatively robotic and impersonal in its delivery, President Hess' Talk infused populist rhetoric about how Wabash is a "city on the hill", and how we are maintaining our stance as a liberal arts college for men.
Let me be very clear about intentions: this is not intended to be a rag on President Hess' abilities as a committed educator or even as a businessman; he has demonstrated his expertise quite starkly in his leadership.
But the question I want to pose in relation to that observation is this: does President Hess, and the direction of his administration, really understand what makes Wabash unique, effectual, and relevant? My cynicism says that they do not completely "get it" yet.
It is a finding of this senior that good young men come to Wabash because they want to excel into becoming a more rounded individual; to become more mature. The Gentleman's Rule takes this expectation into account by assigning responsibility and demanding humility to the student. It is a code that will permeate for the rest of his life, in whatever he may do.
Many come for the Brotherhood. There is something about the comradery that we espouse as essential to our relationships that we build on and off campus. Sometimes this bond can be complicated by competition, but we come back around to support and respect each other. We will see an example of this when we converge to celebrate Luke Borinstein's life by painting the most sacred place on campus, the senior bench.
Preserving and improving Wabash College is about more than extending the reach of the C.I.B.E. into the center of Crawfordsville. It is about more than spending "x" number of dollars on new student housing to attract more students to the fold. It is about more than enlargement and focusing on trends.
Wabash demands something higher than the "big school" mentality. Preserving the curriculum, the element of close relationships, and our robust alumni connection is everything to our survival, in an environment that encroaches not just single-sex education, but the liberal arts in general.
I have some hope in President Hess and his leadership in the years to come, even though I have labeled his current ambitions as out-of-touch.
His elaboration on the "Three R's" - Responsibility, Resilience, and Reflection - tells me that he understands the means to the ends of the Wabash education.
He understands that the Wabash Man understands responsibility when he is given the freedom to make choices, and to learn from them. He has found that Resilience is an unshakable product of the "Wabash Always Fights" culture that our Brotherhood reflects. He sees Reflection as a mirror for us to think about connections and, through our education, live humanely for others who come from broad backgrounds.
The light does indeed shine on the leaders. It shines not just on President Hess, but on student leaders, faculty, the C.I.B.E. and Career Services, and others who take their charge in supporting our greatest assets. All do their part to mold these young men into Gentlemen and responsible Citizens.
