By D.M. Smith

In a recent blog post, President Cantor talked about taking accountability asking, to whom and to what must we be accountable? He listed several entities, including us. I’ve also been thinking a lot about a quote from Maya Angelou, I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

These two thoughts made me think about writing one final piece for The Beacon. The last article that I wrote (upon request) was omitted from the issue. Whether it was censorship or editing due to space is unknown; the reason was never shared. The article spoke out against a writer who was voicing unpopular views without any counterbalancing points. It wasn’t a request to suppress the other writer, rather an effort to keep our campus communication fair and balanced. This was not to be. The reason the article was never published was never shared and it dulled me on wanting to be part of this paper.

Once again, I find myself in a similar situation. I am a former member of the Yo-Yo Club. It was an association that made me proud – an honorable club that promoted it on developing strong skills and building relationships. We have won awards and achievements, notable for being a small club within a much larger organization. It has been rewarding to remain a part of the club, even if in a lesser role as new leadership formed and went in a different direction.

The first sense of dis-ease arrived when the club experienced a rather sizable turnover of participants. Yo-Yo-ing is tougher than you may think and interest can wane. But this was more than what we’d seen before. I was asked to step in and help finish a few of the strings that had yet to be fully connected for an upcoming competition. Not a problem – glad to help out.

The next sense that something was amiss was when the banker advised that the budget for the string competition was being cut. While the banker could have ordered strings earlier and saved money, that opportunity was lost. Not all Yo-Yos would receive new strings for the competition. The decision came down to raising funds or cutting Yo-Yos. Fully expecting to be a cut Yo-Yo, the manner in which was done was less than honorable and somewhat dishonest.

I received a letter, outlining the tough decision that had been made and how the decision had been made on my lack of performance, as per an agreed upon contract. The letter was signed by four leader Yo-Yos. The letter came as a bit of a surprise to me as I’d never signed – nor been asked to sign – a contract of participation. I was being held accountable to a standard that hadn’t been communicated, or agreed upon. When asked about the decision, three out of the four Yo-Yos directed the blame to other Yo-Yos.  No one took individual accountability for the decision. The fourth Yo-Yo provided no comment.

While the decision to make the cut is understandable, the manner in which it was done was NOT one to be proud of. It left me, and the others in a position of unanswered questions and diminished belief in the honor of the Yo-Yo Club. The ends did not justify the means. What was done and how it was done may eventually be forgotten, but how it felt may not.

Which is better – receiving no reason for being cut or an inaccurate, possibly dishonest one? Having experienced both, I still don’t have the answer. It feels like I’m running out of cheeks to turn. Then I look back to President Cantor’s blog and consider his advice: We can explain why it’s impossible to do things better—or we can look to where accountability is abundant and follow that lead toward progress.  These times require the best of every one of us.