Dillard: But I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night

By: Webb Dillard

Posted: 10/25/07

Certainly you recognize the tagline from the Holiday Inn Express commercials.

They show some boob doing different professions and claim that because he stayed at a Holiday Inn, he is capable of doing one of the random professions used in the spots.

Obviously, it is all in humor. Because who in their right mind would fly a helicopter without formal flight training, right?

Apparently, it is an acceptable practice to hire a person to teach in a field in which they do not even have a bachelor's. The communication department at JSU is guilty of this offense, especially on the video side.

The hiring of TV 24 personnel to fill in gaps in the teaching staff is not exactly what I call higher learning.

Ponder this-the person(s) may or may not know how to use some of the tools of the trade they are supposed to be teaching. For example, if someone is teaching a television production class, they should be teaching the class how to edit without relying on TV services and other students to do it.

Somebody remind me why I am paying over $500 for this specific class-a class in my chosen major, a class that is supposed to ready me for my career-when I'm learning nothing useful from my professor.

Let me give you a personal example.

I worked construction for a number of years. I started working construction with my uncle when I was 13. I worked with concrete, framing, drywall, painting, window installation, roofing and a little electrical.

Can I do most of those tasks fairly well? Yes, I think so. Do I know building codes? No. Would I call myself a contractor, an expert at these trades? No.

Here is the million-dollar question, kiddies-would you commit an enormous amount of money and let me be responsible for building your house based on my limited background?

You'd probably say not just no, but hell no.

When people spend money-either hard-earned or borrowed-they expect that the quality of service they receive to match their financial commitment to the situation.

People go into debt for a lot of different reasons in this world. But as a homeowner and a student with loans, the debt better be worth it. You better get your money's worth.

Getting the most out of my college education is very important to me. It is important to my wife and child as well.

Students pay way too much for an education to only be left expecting more.

And when we pay as much as we do for higher education, at the very least we should be ready for our subsequent careers.

Anything less is a waste of our time.

And our money.

A father of one, Webb Dillard is a senior communications student at JSU. He contributes opinion articles to The Chanticleer.