A Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor,

       As a member of ESWA (Eastern Service Workers Association), I am often in the Atlantic

City area providing assistance to underprivileged families.  I see the rough, impoverished, and

crime-riddled conditions of AC firsthand.  I just recently became aware of Stockton University’s

plan to expand into AC, and I think that would be a colossal mistake.  Think about it: should a

child go to school for 4+ years at a university in the middle of a city where drunks parade the

streets at all hours of the day and strip clubs exist on just about every block?  The answer is

obvious: nix the SU-AC plan, for the sake of the students.

       I tried very hard to see why a college campus in the middle of a dilapidated city the NY

Times calls a “symbol of big bets gone bad” would be a good decision, but I still have yet to

understand. The poverty rate in AC is up to almost to 60%, the unemployment rate is up to

15.4%, and the city is even rated #2 most violent place in the entire Garden State! A tired, high-

crime neighborhood is not an ideal setting to lodge young, vulnerable kids that just moved out of

their parents’ houses.

       According to the Press of Atlantic City, this past Sunday, January 18th, a man was

arrested for attempting to force himself into the house of two women with a handgun in Atlantic

City. Handgun arrests are very common in AC, which is worrisome. This poses the potential for

a life-threatening situation on a college campus, or just the potential to conjure a feeling of

uneasiness or discomfort in school. Either would be detrimental to a student’s mental health. I

think the dangerous environment of AC alone is a justifiable enough reason not to build a

campus there.

Kat Wentzell

Author's Note

I wrote this letter to address my concern with my school's decision to expand into AC. It was published in my school newspaper.

Reviews

[Writer at last! Sky ~]

i think you made a point in the letter very clear. They must think twice before make a move.

[The Iron Horseman]

Is there a point to this? What's next - the electricity bill?
Well written, but not exactly a story.

[Kat Wentzell]

I didn't know what else to call this.
The meaning behind my letter was my opinion on my school's plan to expand into a crime-riddled area. I stated why it would be a bad idea.

[The Iron Horseman]

Well, you made that point very clearly, and your writing was very good. I would just suggest categorizing it as non-fiction. I hope that your school board gets the message!

[Kat Wentzell]

Thank you very much for your feedback :-)