CHASE HARRISON
harrisonce@lopers.unk.edu

Now that we have passed the fall semester’s halfway mark, there are many things as both students and staff that need to be kept in mind. In spite of holidays coming up, illness waiting around every corner and energy levels bottoming out, this is a time to say focus and motivated.

Post-midterm tends to leave us all in a sort of trance; between lectures, labs, personal studies and other work outside the classroom, ambitions tend to be at an all time low when fall comes into full swing. Along with this, trying to readjust to schedules after fall break is no simple task. 

I’m not trying to deter your progress by bringing up the difficulties that likely accompany you this time of year. I would like this to print as a message to everyone on campus and in the community that we are all alongside one another — as a reminder that we are not only in each other’s presence, but struggling together, progressing together and learning together. 

“The Antelope” strives to remain as objective as possible, but I’m grateful for this opportunity to speak on behalf of our team in ways we typically cannot. Although it likely appears that we are simply here to relay any news, it doesn’t mean we do not care about what happens in Kearney, especially here at UNK. And this time of year is a cause for our concern. 

As October comes to its close one can witness or experience many things, again, like the struggle to keep up with workloads or the energy required to be so active. It is a hard time to be on top of everything, and though it isn’t a majority of the case, it is proven time and time again that college students don’t always seek out the most positive outlets. 

With Nebraska’s cold setting in, there is the presence of an unspoken ultimatum amidst college-age students: either become a shut-in due to summer’s end, or go out to party as much as possible before winter hinders it. The extremes of either of these mindsets can be unnerving. Postponing your studies, your work, your progress — be it due to certain anxieties, depression, or alcohol consumption —can simply result in too much to catch up on. If there is a problem and it is not confronted, it can affect your life and those of others drastically. 

For any number of reasons, late October and the time that follows into Christmas break proves to be the same time we witness and experience theses extremes. 

I did not plan on writing this editorial in the form of a PSA, but each time I began writing something else my mind wandered only to this — what terrible news might we need to report this fall?

Concerns regarding both alcohol consumption and mental health in college students is something we have relayed in previous issues and is something we will continue to do, as it is not simply “newsworthy” — it is a crucial element of functionality that has effects right here at home. 

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health’s 2015 survey, 38 percent of college students had binge drank within the last month of their response, and according to the American Psychological Association over one-third of first-year college students are affected by mental illness (namely anxiety and depression). The second ratio also holds true into later adulthood. 

As my fellow editors and I prepare to leave for the National College Media Convention this weekend, we are excited. We are excited to share a piece of Kearney and of UNK with so many others, and to boast of you all. Still, I can’t help but be concerned about what news we may come back to, or may have to hear from so many miles away. 

This is not a PSA, and it is not a soap-box speech. It is a simple plea that you all keep in mind the safety and health of yourselves and your fellow community members over Halloween weekend, and on through the holiday season. We’ll be back with the “good news” from D.C. in a few short days, and hope you will all be waiting with the same.