Excuses Excuses Excuses

Excuses Excuses Excuses
By Moriah Pratt and Tara Parenteau

‘My dog ate my homework’ just didn’t make the list.

College students have very difficult lives trying to balance academics and their social schedules while being away from home. The social lives of students sometimes interfere with the academic lives and require some sort of explanation or excuse. While most of these excuses at least sound legitimate, some are just plain lame.

The general excuses are being sick, or over sleeping, which are very common things for students in college.

“I had to miss two days of classes because I had tonsillitis,” said Miranda Machia, sophomore education major. “It was mostly because of my field experience class, they didn’t want me around the younger kids while I was so sick.”

Of course there are more difficult situations that make students miss class as well. Machia also missed classes because her father was in the hospital. Katie Whitney, sophomore nursing major, had to return home because her dog had died.

"His best friends unlce died, and he had to be there for his friend," said Professor David Buck Beliles on a former student. Professor John Deleo once had a student miss class because their mother was having a baby.

Living in Vermont can also cause a lot of excuses for students who drive. Winter in Vermont can be very dangerous and create many road hazards. Commuters and students who choose to go home on the weekends can get caught up in storms or are snowed in. Professor Pauline Dwyer once had a student claim their car broke down, which sounds legit for a commuter, but not when this particular student lived on campus.

“I missed class because my car hit a patch of ice on the highway and I slid into the median,” said Tom Guidoboni, a sophomore here at Lyndon State. Professor Charlotte Albright on the other hand, had a very committed student. Albright said she had a former student come to class late even after being in an accident. And for those of you planning on using the old, "My alarm clock didn't go off," to Albright, she will simply smile and say, "It doesn't set itself."

With all of today’s technology, homework is becoming more and more computer based. While this is more convenient, it leaves more room for errors. Many students are unlucky and end up with computer malfunctions ranging from emails not sending to hard drive crashes.