Don't Forget Lessons of Semester

This semester, we all have been forced to accept the fact that events outside the sphere of our daily lives can and will impact us.

The events of Sept. 11 have shown us that the issues we read about in the paper or hear about on the news -- be it international policy or tuition increases at UNC -- really can affect our everyday lives.

Although I would not pretend to compare the significance of the Sept. 11 attacks to the campus issues covered in The Daily Tar Heel, the point remains: Keep an eye on your surroundings, and realize that your life does not exist in isolation of the the events unfolding around you.

And the ability of policy decisions to affect us does not conveniently end when the semester adjourns.

Members of a campus community -- students in particular -- have the luxury of being able to compartmentalize their lives neatly into four-month, semester-long segments.

Each January and August brings a relatively clean slate. Each December and May, you can sit back and take stock of where you have been, where you are going and what you hope to accomplish along the way.

For many students, Winter Break offers a pleasant timeout from the stresses of work and class -- a time to catch up on all the things that fell by the wayside during the rush of the semester.

But while students are studying for finals, shopping for gifts or getting drunk off eggnog at their Uncle Morty's annual holiday party, University policymakers will be here on the Hill -- and hard at work.

After classes end today, discussions will continue on two issues that could impact students' lives dramatically: tuition and night parking.

Both issues have been allocated a significant amount of space in this semester's issues of the DTH.

And although the DTH ends its regular publication schedule today, these issues will not stand still.

A committee will meet Tuesday to begin crafting tuition increase proposals that the Board of Trustees is expected to consider in January.

On Wednesday, the Transportation and Parking Advisory Committee -- which is considering imposing fees for night parking on campus -- also will hold a meeting.

So even though the next few days are going to be jam-packed with exams and the next few weeks will bring a much-needed reprieve to many, don't forget to stay informed about issues that could affect your life and the University's mission.

Don't forget what this semester has taught us.

Otherwise, we might all regret it in January.

Editor Katie Hunter can be reached at krhunter@email.unc.edu.