One thought on “University Utopia: The False Narrative of Fiscal Support — Ella Fontaine, Carter Lee, Al Staples, Bea Gerber, and Rory Cararra”
We chose to focus on the false narrative of colleges as utopias where applying and getting in are the only battle students face. In our film, we specifically examined the financial burdens placed on students during college, the lengths students are forced to go to meet these unreasonable financial demands, how work and meeting these financial needs impact their ability to thrive and focus in classes, and how their expectations of college have been shifted because of their financial needs.
While financial aid packages may cover some of the costs of college, they leave out textbooks, necessary amounts of quality food, the costs of having a car which many students need to get to work, therapy and other mental health services the school does not adequately provide, and so much more. We asked students to reflect on their social lives, something that has proven to not be optional but critical to healthy life, especially post-pandemic, and the ways colleges refuse to provide enough support to foster a truly full and healthy life.
We aimed to peel back the facade of a perfect institution to show that colleges often make accessing resources very difficult or rely heavily on student-led initiatives instead of providing quality services from the start. It should not be the burden of students in need to make change, but we asked students what they believe could make the college experience easier, and what they wish colleges, and specifically Clark, would do to change their college experiences. Every student deserves the chance to focus on their school work, to socialize with their friends, have food security, and not have to make difficult decisions about their financial priorities and time commitments. Students deserve to be students, and to be properly supported by the institutions that lured them there.
We hope this film sheds light on this issue and counters the narrative of colleges as a perfect world. Those in institutions of higher education know this is far from the truth, and we hope this film can highlight some of these incongruencies.
We chose to focus on the false narrative of colleges as utopias where applying and getting in are the only battle students face. In our film, we specifically examined the financial burdens placed on students during college, the lengths students are forced to go to meet these unreasonable financial demands, how work and meeting these financial needs impact their ability to thrive and focus in classes, and how their expectations of college have been shifted because of their financial needs.
While financial aid packages may cover some of the costs of college, they leave out textbooks, necessary amounts of quality food, the costs of having a car which many students need to get to work, therapy and other mental health services the school does not adequately provide, and so much more. We asked students to reflect on their social lives, something that has proven to not be optional but critical to healthy life, especially post-pandemic, and the ways colleges refuse to provide enough support to foster a truly full and healthy life.
We aimed to peel back the facade of a perfect institution to show that colleges often make accessing resources very difficult or rely heavily on student-led initiatives instead of providing quality services from the start. It should not be the burden of students in need to make change, but we asked students what they believe could make the college experience easier, and what they wish colleges, and specifically Clark, would do to change their college experiences. Every student deserves the chance to focus on their school work, to socialize with their friends, have food security, and not have to make difficult decisions about their financial priorities and time commitments. Students deserve to be students, and to be properly supported by the institutions that lured them there.
We hope this film sheds light on this issue and counters the narrative of colleges as a perfect world. Those in institutions of higher education know this is far from the truth, and we hope this film can highlight some of these incongruencies.