Which was why I was extremely surprised one night when I drove to campus and saw a great big, tacky LED sign smack dab in front of Memorial Hall.
Last year, a huge project started to make a beautiful entryway to campus. I was pleased when I came back to campus last semester to see a wonderful, elegant entryway that had been put up during the summer. It made our campus look a little classier, and made up for the lack of a proper entryway. How long could that possibly last though?
Apparently not long because just two weeks ago, up went the Daktronics sign, which cost around $22,000.
The sign advertises anything and everything on campus in the brightest, most annoying, not to mention tackiest fashion.
The sign often displays a “Welcome to Chadron State College” slogan when it’s not advertising something like signing up for classes.
First off, we already have the classy entryway that I previously mentioned welcoming people to Chadron State College.
Second, if a student hasn’t already seen the seven hundred sign-up-for-classes posters, that student probably is not going to notice yet another advertisement for early registration.
The screen can also measure temperature, and display the date. So now, not only do we have the tacky sign, we also seem like a bank, except without the flashes of easy credit or mortgage rates.
The new sign seen in front of Memorial Hall —Photo by T.J. Thomson
Finally, the screen supports animations. This is so exciting, because I’ve always wanted to be distracted by annoying flashy animations when I could be enjoying the beautiful landscaping around this area instead! Not to mention how great it is that there are all these bright, agitating lights to distract drivers.
I have nothing against technology on campus. Currently, Student Senate is looking at ways to get plasma screens in all the dorm buildings to advertise events. Online platforms for classes have so far been fairly helpful to me. I’m all for using smartphones, tablets, whatever. But I’m certainly not a fan of this gaudy sign that makes me feel like the school I attend is a casino rather than a place of learning.
Slowly, this sign is going to become less noticeable, even for people like me who hate it passionately. Unfortunately, though, it’s not going away, despite my disappointed rantings about it.
However, I do hope that the next time our school’s Board of trustees has the chance to make our school a little less tasteful and a little more garish, they decide not to take it.
Until then, welcome to Casino College.
