First Week of Classes = Survived!

By Cameron Rusin

Hi friends!

I’m chilling in my dorm on a Friday night, which sounds a little sad, but it also means that I’m done with my first week of classes! I don’t have too much to say, but I would like to share what I’m taking with you guys, so here goes! Also, as you’ll be able to tell, I had a pretty bad registration spot so even though I’m an intended biochem major I’m mostly taking pretty random humanities classes…

1. General Chemistry: This is basically your average intro to chem class but with a few special twists. It covers all of the same material as chem 1, but because it is only for people who passed the AP test, it moves faster and apparently delves deeper into things. It also only has 40 people in it, which is nice. This class also has an extra lecture in which faculty and outside people come in to talk about their research, which seems like a good opportunity. This is the class that I’m most worried about, but I’ve been told that the small class and the really sweet professor makes it worth it. I also get an extra .5 credit for taking it and another .5 credit if I stick with it for both semesters, so I’ll try to hang in there.
2. Spanish 2: I unfortunately only tested into Spanish 2, so I need to take 5 semesters in 4 years. I’m not going to lie, this is probably my least favorite class. The professor only speaks Spanish, which might be a good thing, but many people in my class are already getting lost. I’m doing okay, but we’re also doing things that I already know so I haven’t really had to understand much of what’s been going on. The worst part is definitely the online portion of the class which is lots of tedious exercises on the computer (I also had to pay a pretty penny for the damn online access code…).
3. Here starts the classes I’m taking because I couldn’t get into any music/bio classes! Intro to sociology: I’m actually very excited for this class. As I was desperately looking for backups because of my enrollment time I kept on finding interesting classes that had SOC 0001 as a prerequisite, so I decided that this class would be a fine and productive backup. I’m not sure if I would ever major in sociology (but also who knows. I’m taking more sociology than biochem this semester) but I am very interested in this subject area. I also am getting really good vibes from my professor! He’s the kind of guy who walks around the room talking, with the occasional break for jumping onto his desk or engaging us students in conversation. He’s also pretty woke which is fun. However, this is my largest class, with 75 students, but it really doesn’t feel that large.
4. Making Social Change Happen: Now this is going to be an interesting class. I enrolled because it fit in my schedule and I am interested in social change, but I didn’t know what to expect. So far, the 15 of us (mostly peace and justice seniors) in the class, plus the professor who we call by her first name, sit in a circle and talk about the social change that needs to be happening now, specifically in this Trump era. Our main reading of the semester will be No is Not Enough by Naomi Klein, which was written this year after Trump was elected. I’m excited for this class, partially because of the subject matter and possible light workload, but also because of the people who are in it. It’s mostly seniors who are very activist-y but also very supportive of the younger ones in the class, plus a couple of freshmen who seem like a good, wholesome bunch.

So those are my classes! This week has been pretty chill because I don't have any music, recitations, or labs, but once those will add around 10 more hours to my class schedule next week... I also hope to be taking Wind Ensemble for .5 credit, but I don’t audition until Monday and there is a chance that I don’t get in… I’d also like to add that last night I watched Moana for the first time with around 12 people from my hall. It wasn’t life changing, but I appreciated both the story and the beautiful island animations.

Talk to y’all soon!