A Changing Reputation for the Parting Pirates
Will East Carolina University always be known as “Easy U?” Many alumni might think so but do the students of ECU think their reputation of being a party school still stands.
The thought of ECU being a party school started in the 1980’s when a major magazine published the school as one of ten in a list of top United States “party schools.” At that time East Carolina was a small school in a little town with little to do other that well, party.
Decades later a well known magazine by the name of “Play Boy” published its 3rd ranking of top party schools and East Carolina appeared within the top 20. Along with its ranking in partying East Carolina also appeared in “Play Boy’s” list of hottest coeds. But, does “Easy U” really do more partying than the rest?
Senior Brittany Mathieu once thought the reputation was well deserved. Mathieu relayed stories of her freshman year in 2004 when every night was a night to go out. “We would get done with class and immediately plan that night’s activities, and this happened every day.”
She continued to explain how the agenda worked with her heavy freshman course load. “We wouldn’t care if we had class at 8 a.m. the next morning; every night was a chance to go out. Then we would wake up and stumble out the door to make it to class on time.”
“It wasn’t the fact of not caring about class,” she explained, “It was just what everyone did.”
Another senior remembers her freshman days as being quite similar. Angela Ciciriello from New York talks about applying for colleges and going on her junior year trips to visit her top choices. “Before I even enrolled at ECU I had heard about its reputation. I decided on ECU when I came to visit and saw that MTV’S Campus Invasion was sponsoring a concert hosted by East Carolina, featuring my favorite rapper.”
Both agreed that now as they journey through their last year, the downtown seen has dropped off, and school not only for them but seemingly the whole campus, has become more important.
With East Carolina’s application requirements getting harder and test score averages increasing year to year ECU has become what many say, equal to or harder than other states schools in North Carolina. According to the admissions office on the East Carolina Campus, the 2007 freshman had on average a 3.4 grade point when applying for admission along with an SAT and ACT score above average. Also reported
Freshman Virginia Jones can remember visiting her older cousin Matt while he attended East Carolina. “I could have come in the middle of the week and the streets were still crowded at 2:30 in the morning. Now since I am hear it’s hard not to get wrapped up in school because homework is all my friends do. I hate to think what it will be like by the time I graduate.”
According to the admissions office, application numbers are reportedly increasing every year, along with the number of excepted students. It seems most are copping with the studious atmosphere now seen at East Carolina. Although some were proud to uphold the party reputation for East Carolina, a majority of students are relieved that their hard academic work is finally paying off. Surrounding schools are now catching wave to the academic standard ECU now stands for.
Maybe a balanced between partying and academics is what “Easy U” needed to change the stereotype many believed it fit.
Filed under: Hard News