Parking battlefield distressing for first-time commuter

While it is my third year as a student at Seton Hall, it is my first being a commuter. Although I grew up about 30 minutes away, I am glad that I decided to get the college experience by living in a dorm my first two years. Now, however, I have entered into a whole new world at SHU - a sort of cult if you will - the commut­ers.

Now, like most people, my im­mediate issue with the thought of commuting was parking. As much as I hoped to drive right onto cam­pus the first week of classes and see a brand-new parking deck or miraculously empty lots, my first day of class consisted of driving around for a half hour praying that someone would head to his or her car to leave.

Many other students suffer the same parking lot anxiety that I do, which leads me to a simple ques­tion: Why is this still an issue?

It would be lofty for me to sug­gest that the University provide adequate spaces for each student and faculty member on campus, because although that would be beyond ideal, it is simply not prac­tical.

I understand that there will be times when parking is tough and you have to arrive for class a little bit early or accept the fact that get­ting a spot right outside Fahy Hall is not going to happen.

But to get emails at the begin­ning of the semester urging stu­dents to arrive on campus before or after peak parking time, from around 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., seems completely unrealistic and unfair. The thought of scheduling classes around parking is just ridiculous.

I already battled to snag the last spot in several of my classes, and there is no way I could have scheduled my classes around peak parking hours.

However, when it comes down to it, parking at SHU probably is not going to change by the time I graduate, or even in the foresee­able future.

While complain­ing may be a great way to relieve some stress, in re­ality it really is not going to do any­thing.

I do appreciate Seton Hall work­ing with the Village of South Or­ange to allow students to park on South Orange Avenue during peak hours, and I believe that this deci­sion was a step in the right direc­tion.

So, Seton Hall commuters, I urge you to embrace the daily drive-around-in-circles parade we participate in. And in your quest to find the perfect spot, or really any spot for the matter, may the odds be ever in your favor. See you on the battlefield. Happy hunger games.

Alexandra D'Aluisio is a junior journalism major from Scotch Plains, NJ. She can be reached at Alexandra.daluisio@student.shu.edu.