The semester is drawing to a close, and it is time to reflect on our times together … while we’re all still here. Some students are probably looking forward to three weeks of relaxation after trying to cram a semester’s worth of work into Dead Week, but others will be saying permanent good-byes as they head back home to get jobs at the local fast food joint.

And plenty will be leaving. According to ISU’s Fact Book, we lose at least two out of every 10 freshmen by the end of their first year at ISU. That’s about 1000 students.

In the same report, incoming freshmen indicated how they occupied their time during their last year of high school: socializing with friends (78 percent), working for pay (71 percent), and exercising or sports (53 percent). Only a third indicated they spent six hours or more studying.

No wonder college is so challenging. If a college-bound senior can pass every high school class with less than an hour of study each, then college must seem like rocket science.

I have watched students doze through lectures as if their mere presence in the room would guarantee that those tidbits of learning would accumulate in their brains. But there are so many distractions, you say.

It all gets down to priorities. If you came here to party, you can at least go home with some wonderful memories of drunken nights and nauseous mornings. The rest of us had a different experience.

Not that I didn’t do my fair share of playing this semester, but I also spent long hours locked in my dorm room with only a computer beep for conversation.

The best times were in my classes where I worked with so many talented writers and dedicated professors. I studied for hours on end, but I also met and talked with both Gary Soto and Bharati Mukharjee, two writers I have admired for years.

At the Memorial Union, I heard several speakers on a wide range of social/political topics.

At the Maintenance Shop, I saw several blues shows, including Tinsley Ellis, which rivaled “club” shows I’ve seen in L.A. and Chicago for three times the price.

And at Stephens Auditorium, I heard Bill Cosby and Gloria Steinem (free), and I saw West Side Story and the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Symphony (thanks to student discount prices).

I also discovered what great services are available here at ISU. The Student Health Center has been wonderful both before and after my knee surgery, from Dr. Fritzsche (who always comments on my last column or two whenever I run into her) to the many nurses and assistants who keep the place running smoothly.

Even the people in X-ray and the Lab have had occasion to make me laugh when I came in for my pre-op procedures.

I’m not into needles (or any other medical procedures, actually), but the Student Health Center always makes me feel like my health and well-being is important to them. It must be true, or why would Dr. Fritzsche have time to call me personally to tell me the results of my tests?

And then there is the Lied Recreation Center. In addition to the Sports medicine and Physical Therapy people, there is a wonderful collection of equipment in the upstairs workout room.

And it’s free to students, which is really amazing considering how expensive it is to join a gym. And this gym is clean and uncrowded with well-maintained equipment.

I’ve heard the Memorial Union has all kinds of diversions for students, too, but I haven’t had time to explore the possibilities yet.

I do have to make time for studying, after all.

I’m just kind of sorry for the students who wasted their time drinking and partying all night, taking advantage of being away from home instead of enjoying all that ISU has to offer.

They are not only going to lose out on a great education, but they are also going to miss out on all the stimulating activities that go along with living in a college town.

For some reason, though, most people only speak up to complain and I think there are too many great things going on around here to sit silently.

Let me be the first to say it: I can hardly wait for next semester to begin! So much to look forward to! Most of all, I’m looking forward to classes.

I guess I’m just one of those strange people who loves going to school, but I could do this forever.

Tell me I’m not the only one. Send your emails now, proclaim your passion for learning, shout out your gratitude for the special people who made your semester a good one.

You don’t have to grovel or glamorize anything. It’s just a great time to say thanks to people who may not even think you noticed their efforts to serve you — from the custodian who vacuums your floors to the prof who ignored your nap habit in class and gave you an A anyway.

And, while I’m on that subject, thanks for reading my column all semester. I appreciated your comments.

I hope to see all of you back again next semester.

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Kata Alvidrez is a graduate student in English from Los Angeles.