Spring has sprung once again, and a little earlier than usual at that. The multitudes of students camped out on the lawns between Huden and the campus center are an indication of the impending warm weather and all of the functions that come along with it.

One of these functions is of course the aptly-named spring weekend, which is a nice harmless bunch of fun activities geared towards students enjoying the nice weather. Another upcoming event that more students seem to be revving up for is the Scorpion Bowl, the biggest rugby event of the year. These two happen to be scheduled for the same weekend this year; isn’t that convenient?

Well, yes and no. Another fun fact is that this weekend also happens to be the weekend of April 20^th. I know that many of us like to think that Castleton is the exemplar of outstanding resident life and that no one would take part in that 4/20 nonsense, but unfortunately that’s not the case. I’ve heard more people talk about their 4/20 plans more in the past month than any academic talk I’ve heard from the same individuals in my three years here.

Let’s have a brief recap: Scorpion Bowl, 4/20, and spring weekend are all on the same weekend. Sounds like a big bad substance abuse festival, but it’s ultimately harmless because it’s contained, right?

Fun fact: the campus open house happens to be during that same weekend. That adds an interesting dimension now: not only will most of campus be walking around under the control of something not their judgment, but prospective students and their families will be encouraged to be sharing the same space. This is oftentimes the only impression of a campus that parents and potential students will get.

Here’s a direct quote from the Castleton web site: “An Open House is a chance to visit and discover for yourself what makes Castleton a truly special place to live and learn.” Can you imagine coming to an open house with your family and discovering how special campus is on the 4/20-Scorpion Bowl extravaganza weekend? It would be an amusing thought if it wasn’t founded in reality. That’s what many families will be experiencing this year.

The point is that this seems to be a lapse in judgment of pretty large proportion; I understand sometimes scheduling forbids certain events from taking place at certain times, but something as glaring as this should not happen. Some may enjoy the life of ignorant bliss created by pretending that college students don’t care for 4/20 and don’t get belligerently drunk to watch rugby, but that is ultimately detrimental to the incoming college community.