Overheard in the Honors Dorm…

Mike calls out the pretentiousness and smugness of an "Honors Dorm," highlighting the irony of such collegiate labels, given the proportion of notorious partyers among the "honors" students who clearly weren't there for academic prestige. Reflecting on the various cohorts out there with prestigious-sounding names, he argues that while rewarding achievement and providing academic challenges are important, the exclusionary labels often feel unnecessary and audacious.

Seeing an old friend pop up from his undergraduate days at Wright State University in Dayton — it just unlocked this whole vault of memories - specifically, memories of the 6th floor in WSU’s Honors Dorm - Honors 6 West.

And looking back, can we just talk about how ridiculous it is to name a dormitory the “Honors Dorm”? I mean, really? Talk about pretentious. It’s like they couldn't even find a historical figure or a donor to name it after, so they just slapped 'Honors' on the side of the building and called it a day. It feels so exclusive, like some kind of ‘members only’ club for the supposedly smart kids.

But the funny thing is, it wasn't even just honors kids living there. That was the real joke. There were plenty of non-honors kids mixed in, and honestly? If you stood us all up in a lineup, you could pick out the non-honors folks in a heartbeat! They were shamelessly the life of the party, right there in the middle of all that purported academic rigor.

It makes me think about these labels we carry. I remember being in a program called the “Martin Essex School for the Gifted.” I’m not even kidding - 'School for the Gifted.' - It’s so audacious! I’m flattered to be invited into the club, sure, but there’s an amusing irony in being ‘honored’ by a title that sounds so smug.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I believe in rewarding achievement. We need a way to measure performance and hand out scholarships. But does it have to be so... elitist? Can we challenge bright students with AP classes and accelerated programs without all this exclusion and elitism?

So, here’s to the memories of Honors 6 West - to the nights we spent locked in our rooms fearfully studying for exams, and to the nights we spent just being regular people, ignoring the labels on the door. It was a good time. Let’s dive into those stories — the ones that didn’t make it into the ‘honors’ brochure.