Students Enraged by Elderly Students’ Chatter
By Christopher

Nobody would deny that Nassau Community College has a diverse student body. Nearly every group under the sun is represented here on campus, and that includes senior citizens. According to the Nassau Community College Fact Sheet for 2001, “The college has the largest senior citizen auditor enrollment in the SUNY community colleges.” Some students, however, are not so happy about the large number of senior citizens roaming the campus.
A plethora of students have voiced their annoyance with their elder classmates on several different occasions. All of the complaints, however, have been about the same thing; and that is the tendency of the senior students to chatter during class.
One student, Michael Afren, defined this chatter as, “talking throughout the class and parroting many of the things the professor says.” When pressed for an example, he said, “Well, say the professor asks us who led the Solidarity movement. The old people will either all kind of mumble to themselves ‘Walesa’ or if nobody answers, when the professor says ‘Walesa’ they all like rub their chins and say ‘Ahh yes Walesa, I remember him.’”
Several elder students have spoken up in their own defense. John Vikoski, age 67, said, “Well there’s nothing wrong with letting the teacher know that you knew the answer. Have you seen these kids? They all sit there like they’ve died! In my day we would have our knuckles rapped for behavior like theirs.”
The tensions have caused a debate to take place on the floor of the Academic Senate. On the one side are the Senior Citizen Council (SCC), and its supporters; while on the other side is a group of students who feel seniors should have their own classes.
Professor Jean Garnat, a supporter of the SCC, feels, “If we segregate the younger students from the older ones, they will both be losing out on an important part of their education. Here at Nassau we strive for that diversity you can only get when you have old people and young people together.”
The SCC’s supporters also include students, like Maryanne Hardt, who said, “The senior citizens have every right to be in that class. Plus, they’re really cute, and the more they talk in class, the less I have to.”
Afren remains unconvinced, however, responding, “How does having old people in my class make me get a better education? If anything, I think it is suffering because they’re always chattering and its so distracting, not to mention annoying.”
There is good news yet in this battle of the ages. Both sides appear to be very close to a compromise that would allow the senior citizens to stay in class without distracting other students. The conditions of the compromise are that the senior citizens will not be allowed to speak in class unless they raise their hands. They will also have to nod their heads in agreement rather than voice said agreement. On the other hand, the younger students will now be required to speak more in class, so that the burden does not fall only on the shoulders of the seniors.
Vikoski is happy to hear of the compromise in the works, but he admits he was never worried anyway. “If they told me I wasn’t allowed in class, I would have taken my belt off and told ‘em to make me get out!”