Allowing priority registration for athletes wrong, unfair

Nov. 3, 2014

Megan Lunsford
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Our society values brawn over brains.

I’ve spent a substantial chunk of my life in school. A large portion of that time was spent avoiding athletics by hiding behind the bleachers.

I watched other kids religiously practicing day and night for their prestigious sports scholarships that would grant them a full, free ride to any college of their choice.

Instead, I spent nights cramming for exams, typing essays and collecting letters of recommendation that would determine my admission into college. I envied those who could go to college because they were good at sports. I also resented them.

Everyone just seemed to like the athletes more, while the nerds and intellectually inclined individuals were tossed aside as jokes. I worked just as hard as the athletes, why was it such a struggle to compete with them for collegiate success?

With registration for the spring 2015 semester creeping closer, I have found myself spending late nights frantically piecing together classes that will hopefully fit into my already busy schedule.

While several factors are used to determine the relative priority of registration, one particular way frustrates me: whether you are an athlete or not. My qualms concerning the divide between athletics and academics had been unearthed once again.

Most schools seem to work in a similarly dysfunctional manner, often pushing academics to the side and bringing athleticism into the spotlight.

I don’t understand why athletes receive priority. I get it that an athlete’s schedule can be tight, with daily practices and games piling up over the weeks, but they aren’t the only students who have complicated schedules.

Some would say that giving athletes priority in registering is fair since they have limited time slots for classes due to their free time being spent at practice. But it really isn’t fair at all.

I know plenty of theater majors, for example, who would love priority in registration. They have rehearsal times and performances that often get in the way of possible class time.

So why don’t they get priority in registration?

I’ll admit my bias and come to terms with the fact that I will always hold a strange jealousy against athletes. What can you expect from a girl who hid behind the bleachers in high school?

But athletes aren’t more important than the rest of us. It’s a scholarly struggle, one I wish would one day swing in my direction.