Do you Have School Spirit?

If you take a good look around the Fresno City College campus, what do you see?

How many people dressed in T-shirts or hats or other clothing with the FCC logo do you see?

Probably too few to notice. When it comes to representing FCC, most students fail to show school pride.

When was the last time you spoke with a student who asserts they are at FCC because that is where they want to be?

“I’m here to do my General Ed.”

“I’m waiting to transfer to State.”

“I’m here to get some classes out of the way.”

Our students never claim they are here because they chose to be here.

One of the exceptions, Alyssa Ysais, a student on campus, was seen sporting a Fresno City College T-shirt while waiting for her class. She said she likes to support her college and show off that she is in college.

“A lot of people like to make fun of it,” she said. “I had worn my first shirt and they said ‘oh, you attend Fresno City College?’ in a tone that sounded disgusted.”

Irvin Amaya, a civil engineering major, said that even if FCC gave out free shirts, she would still be wary of wearing it on campus.

“I would wear it outside of campus, but not on campus,” Amaya said.

Compared to four-year colleges such as Fresno State, FCC students seem shy to show they love their school.

Even on the FCC campus, you would notice a lot more students wearing Fresno State T-shirts or their old high school shirts, than clothing bearing FCC insignia.

Ranging in price from $17.99 to $39.99, depending on the apparel, Fresno City College shirts cost as much as a regular shirt for Fresno State, according to information on both institutions’ websites.

Last fall, the FCC bookstore sold about 2,100 pieces of apparel, according to Janet Santillan, a staff member at the bookstore, not including “program clothing such as nursing, police academy, rad technology, etc.”

The Fresno City College bookstore also has sales once a month on shirts that can be as low as $5.99. In addition to the sales, the bookstore organizes special events where they will raffle off amazing gifts.

During Student Appreciation Week, the FCC bookstore “gave away a 42’ soundbar and a couple of movie packages,” Santillan said.

The bookstore plans all types of deals and specials in the future, and students should take advantage of cheap affordable merchandise at the bookstore.

Showing pride in the college one attends should not be embarrassing, but a privilege, and being humble in the small steps in life, regardless of if it is a city college or an Ivy League college brings successes.

“FCC has many merits,” said Erica Barton-Muller, a philosophy instructor, “one of which being its focus on providing education to individuals who may not be able to afford or otherwise have access to University education.”

With its beautiful architecture and academic and career options to students and teachers, FCC offers a lot to be proud of.

Let us show our pride in the institution that offers so much to us by wearing FCC merchandise now.