During my sophomore year, Franklin & Marshall began Common Hour as a time for the entire community to come together. Common Hour educates and enlightens all of its attendees about a particular topic or issue and brings us together in a manner not quite academic, not quite social, but wholly thought-provoking and stimulating in nature. I have made Common Hour a large part of my time here at F&M, missing only a few (even this semester when I have a class before and after). This post is not about why people should go to Common Hour, but rather the lack of decorum that I have observed week in and week out.

I am writing on a Thursday and just went to a surprisingly interesting Common Hour featuring a photographer who compiled a book of American Service Veterans’ Military tattoos. At the start of Common Hour there is a moderate level of chatter amongst the audience, but it usually dies down within a few seconds once the Common Hour chair begins to introduce the week’s speaker. This week people kept talking and kept talking. It took a couple of minutes before all of the people in the audience were completely silent and gave the speaker the respect he deserved.

The week before spring break the Common Hour speaker was James Widdoes P ’12 and after an interesting talk and question & answer session we had about 10 minutes left in Common Hour. Students were still lining up to ask questions, but others were already beginning to file out of Mayser. Numerous groups of students stood up, disrupted those in the bleachers around them, and caught the notice of our speaker on their way out.

Students need to realize the level of disrespect that these sort of actions carry. Nobody is forcing people to go to Common Hour (with the exception of a few professors) and I cannot comprehend when someone would voluntarily go to an event and then make such a public display of disrespect towards the speaker at the event. I am one who should have a good a reason as any to want to leave early, as I have a class before and after, but I have never done so. Why you may ask? First of all, the redesigned schedule leaves 10 minutes before and after Common Hour to ensure that students and faculty have ample time to get to class (you can get anywhere on campus in 10 minutes from Mayser). The real reason why I do not leave early is because one who does so is, quite simply, telling the speaker that his/her talk, interests, and time are less important.

Common Hour may be someone’s first glimpse of F&M and they see students talking over the person at the microphone and leaving the talk at their own convenience. This is not how I want my school to be represented and I expect more of my fellow students. Go to Common Hour. Learn about something new and interesting. Listen to someone with different views than your own. And, for everyone’s sake, keep you mouth shut, pay attention, and wait until the talk is over to give the speaker the applause and recognition he/she deserves.