media.www.ncatregister.com/media/storage/paper277/news/2008/02/13/News/Finding.Love.In.Aggieland-3207775.shtmlFinding Love in Aggieland
Leroy Mikell and Ashley Reid
Issue date: 2/13/08 Section: NewsPeople often hear stories of men and women graduating from high school, getting accepted to a college, meeting the one they love, graduating, and then going on to live happily ever after.
Sometimes there is a large number of bitter students fed up with love and cursing everything related to love and matrimony. The question is: which one of these scenarios is more likely to occur within the confines of Aggieland?
Men and women on campus were asked to complete a short survey to shed a little light on where we stand on the subject of love. The data, collected randomly from over 100 students, says that three quarters of women believe that love is harder to find because of men and 53 percent of the men agree.
Matthew Harden, a freshman engineering major, knows what he is looking for. He says that women in college are smart and he does want to find the right one for him but it can be hard to put a definition on true love.
"I think love is a lot of things," said Harden. "It's all those funny feelings in your heart that you can't explain."
Harden added that A&T is a good place to find a wife but he has a couple years before he starts searching.
According to over 90 percent of students polled, love is something they do wish to find in Aggieland. Only 10 percent are totally uninterested in love, and the bitter faces you see on a daily basis belong to people who have been hurt or are joining the ranks of those who don't care.
This means love in Aggieland may not be a lost cause. A lot of the problem may just stem from people wanting all the love without sacrificing 100 percent involvement.
Totney Griar, a freshmen industrial engineer major, says she doesn't need much to be in love. She said simple and traditional things go a long way and believes there are good men on campus, but she just has not run into one of them yet.
"I want a phone call and a text maybe everyday," said Griar.
Dating does not seem to be a problem because 92 percent of students polled are in fact dating but close to half are not dating other A&T students.
Instead, A&T is farming out its best and brightest to men and women on other school campuses. It may be the women that are going elsewhere for their love interests because a little less than half of them are happy with the quality of men on campus.
92 percent of the men like the selection of ladies but they may not be into them for undisclosed reasons.
Bree Pelham, a civil engineer major, said she believes in love but there are many challenges to face along the way. She believes it is possible to find love on campus because she is in a happy relationship herself.
"Course workloads are normally heavy and conflicting schedules take away from time you get to spend together," said Pelham.
We found that 48 percent of men on campus believe they can find that perfect somebody here on campus compared to 43 percent of women asked the same question.
Many of our former students have made matrimony and marital life work with other Aggies. Semaj Marsh connected with his wife, Fachon Davis, during his time here at A&T.
They met at a sporting event, had a casual conversation, exchanged numbers, and kept in touch. Marsh said that all the things they have in common make their relationship stronger. He stressed that marriages may work because of shared experiences.
"Everybody had to go to the café, and everyone had to go to the Union and we both have an HBCU education."
Marsh said he thinks it is still possible to make the same kind of love connections in Aggieland today.
"You just have to be serious and appreciate the opportunities you have. If you aren't focused when you meet the right girl you may regret it."
Marsh is the creator of bluedeathvalley.com, a A&T fan site dedicated to covering Aggie athletics, he and his wife Fachon are happily married and are new parents of a 10-month-old son.
Marsh didn't want to brag too much, so he offered a couple ideas for great dates and making sure the love is not lost.
"Be creative, remember your anniversaries and go back to those places and the place you met."
He also said you can't go wrong with ramen and a movie in the dorms because it's a great chance to get to know someone.
The statistics show a lot of room for love here on campus. Close to 80 percent are ready to be in love and 92 percent plan on being in love in the future.The definition of love is always changing, but as long as a good number of our students continue to work on it, the numbers show love will stand strong in Aggieland.