Introducing! The Class of 2025!

fashion, lessons learned, social justice, Teaching and Education, technology 4 Minutes

The Mindset List, aka the “always/never” list, is a compilation of key points about incoming college students. Created at Beloit College in 1998 to reflect the world view of entering first year students—and to help faculty understand incoming classes—the list started with the members of the class of 2002, born in 1980. In 2019, the list moved to Marist, becoming the Marist Mindset List. The list is widely considered a cultural touchstone. (Marist College)

Without further ado, let me introduce you to the class of 2025:

1. Starting a poetry renaissance

Incoming students were inspired by Amanda Gorman’s reading of her poem, “The Hill We Climb” at the Presidential Inauguration to rediscover the power of poetry in their own lives, and on their own terms. I think the poetry renaissance started when Brad Osbourne joined WordPress.

2. Bringing awareness to veteran college students

Although less than 5% of the Class of 2025 will be veterans, most colleges and universities are focusing more campus resources on supporting student veterans on campus. Villanova was ranked #5 in U.S. News & World Report’s 2019 list of Best Online MBA Programs for Veterans, which highlights the best programs that help veterans reduce the cost of school. (Villanova University)

3. Adapting to a virtual college experience

Incoming students and their professors are among the first to adjust to a new reality of digital learning, which has changed the face of higher education for years to come. Hopefully, we can merge the best of the old and new ways of teaching.

4. Enduring an unprecedented public health crisis on campus

Depending on where their college or university is located, students in the class of 2025 are experiencing vast differences in COVID-19 regulations on campus, leading to a disparity in educational quality. I found an interesting story in this week’s Wall Street Journal about the University of Texas at Austin, where they do not require surveillance testing, masking, or vaccines. (https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-policies-ignite-battle-at-ut-austin-11631179800?st=j2j9qa13skjfm7v&reflink=desktopwebshare_twitterWSJ) At Villanova, all students, faculty and staff who will be on campus are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. In addition, starting earlier this week, all faculty, staff, and students—regardless of vaccination status—are required to wear masks when inside classrooms and any public campus building including dining halls (except while eating or drinking) that is open to the public. Students, faculty, and staff who are unvaccinated are required to participate in twice-weekly surveillance testing throughout the academic year. In addition, in coordination with the new mask mandate, surveillance testing will be expanded to include a randomized sample of community members, regardless of vaccination status. It will be interesting to watch if there are differences in out comes between the two campuses. (Villanova University)

5. Redefining arts and culture

Incoming students are expressing themselves creatively and patronizing the arts through non-fungible tokens (NFT). What are NFTs? Non-fungible tokens are the provenance of digital assets bought and sold on the cryptocurrency blockchain. Still have no idea? Join the crowd…

6. Building Gen Z e-commerce

Gen Z (those between the ages of 10 and 24 years old) is hungry for innovative shopping experiences using behavioral capabilities to empower and engage with them rather than exploit and alienate them.They are driving the shift from the Internet of Things to an “Internet of Behavior.” Internet of Behavior, also known as IoB, refers to the behavioral data analysis gathered from the Internet of Things and other sources and then attempts to make effective use of. This data is amassed through wearable technologies, individual online activities, household electrical devices, which can provide valuable information about the behavior and interest of users. With the help of both IoT and IoB, it has become possible now to track, gather, combine and interpret massive data generated via various online activities and personal behavior, including social media behaviors and commercial transactions. (Tech Funnel)

7. Demanding justice and sustainability in globalized fashion

First-year students are demanding fashion brands that offer dignity and justice to employees throughout the global value chain, as retail sales lag from the ongoing pandemic. I am sure we will start to hear more about which companies are doing this, from the companies themselves.

8. Eroding the death penalty

Incoming students are less likely to support the death penalty in America than earlier generations. The Class of 2025 is more diverse in thought and demographics than previous cohorts. I certainly hope the death penalty is outlawed throughout the U.S. Currently, 55% of Americans favor the death penalty for convicted murderers. (Gallup)

9. Witnessing the first U.S. state to decriminalize drugs

Incoming students now live in a country where Oregon decriminalized drug use, drug possession, and low-level drug sales, as Portugal did 20 years ago. These policies have shown that using a public health approach reduces drug overdose, HIV infections, and decreases incarceration for drug-related offenses. I hope the rest of the states, and federal government, follow suit.

10. Experiencing a re-emergence of White Supremacy in America

Incoming students live in an era where a primary threat of terrorism to Americans comes from domestic white supremacists, rather than from abroad. This is the first incoming college class in United States history to have witnessed the confederate flag displayed in the Capitol. A sad state of affairs, for sure. This needs to be nipped in the bud.

So another interesting list from the Mindset team at Marist College.

I wish the Class of 2025 much happiness, joy, and growth, over the next four years.

*image from Marist College

Published by Jim Borden

A 60-something guy trying to figure out the world, and his place in it. Happily married for 40-plus years, three wonderful sons. Accounting teacher, fitness enthusiast, blogger, reader.

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30 thoughts on “Introducing! The Class of 2025!”

  1. Things seem to be quite different with every generation.

    With regards to #10, I feel a little confused. Help me understand: Where are all these terrorist attacks, being committed in America by white supremacists? I know we have a KKK in America, as well as some whack-o neo-Nazis and other extremists. But what specific terrorist attacks have they been committing? I know that now and then some nut attacks a member of a minority group, but these seem to be lone acts committed by mentally unstable people. Where are the organized terrorist attacks occurring? What buildings have been blown up? What hostages have been taken? Why is there all this talk about terrorist attacks by white supremacists, when nothing actually seems to be happening?

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    1. I didn’t see the word attack used, just the word threat. I think it is important to keep tabs on any fringe group that poses a threat, and I think this group does pose a threat, for the instances you site.

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      1. So there are white supremacist groups that are making lots of threats, but not actually carrying out attacks? I haven’t heard about that, but if true then it sounds like their bark is worse than their bite. Personally, I think this has been overblown for political reasons, and nobody has anything to worry about. It’s just another boogie man designed to get everyone worked up. I’m not buying it.

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      3. It’s my impression that was a sting operation, and the idiots who were arrested were inspired and encouraged by undercover FBI agents. Also, I understand their motivation was to promote the Bill of Rights over so-called “tyranny,” and had nothing to do with white supremacy.

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    2. People forget these things so easily. If I may, you might recall the nine African-Americans in Charleston, SC killed in a bible study class when the white supremacist they invited to join them pulled out a pistol and shot them all dead. In Charlottesville, a white supremacist killed a woman when he drove his car, jihadi style, into a crowd.

      According to the Washington Post: “Since 2015, right-wing extremists have been involved in 267 plots or attacks and 91 fatalities, the data shows. At the same time, attacks and plots ascribed to far-left views accounted for 66 incidents leading to 19 deaths.”

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2021/domestic-terrorism-data/

      Our society pushes the right wing, white supremecist threats and crimes into the background so easily.

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      1. Those are two pretty good examples. But I would note that those examples are of attacks from lone actors, rather than by groups like the KKK. I’m more interested in hearing about attacks planned by terrorist groups.

        There was a time in our history when we had terrorist groups like the Weather Underground, Symbionese Liberation Army, and Manson Family, that conspired to commit attacks. When I hear that domestic terrorism is a big threat these days, I think of domestic terror groups, not lone, individual nut cases.

        Also, extreme right wing does not necessarily mean white supremacist. There are also anti-abortionists who go to the extreme of violence, and other extreme right wingers who are against various other things, and act violently. I suspect that extreme right-wing white supremacists comprise only a small minority of those who are extreme right wing to the point of violence.

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      3. I have no doubt that white supremacist groups are out there. Their numbers may be growing, and that’s unfortunate. But what actual terrorist attacks have they been committing?

        My idea of a terrorist attack is when an organized group plants a bomb or commits some other act of violence against innocent members of the general public. They then release a statement claiming responsibility, along with some sort of political message promoting their cause. So what white supremacist groups have been doing this, lately? And when, and where?

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    1. there are some exceptions to the vaccination requirement, for medical or religious reasons. At this point, 95% of our community is vaccinated. The unvaccianted have to be tested regularly, while the vaccianted are tested randomly. And we do have to wear masks when indoors…

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  4. #1 – I agree that #1 has to do with brad o., it’s been proven time and again.

    #4 – what is surveillance testing? or is it just another name for what I’m familiar with?

    #6 – if someone tracked my wearable trends, it might be quite boring and they would drop me from their follow list

    so interesting –

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    1. surveillance testing inludes regular covid testing of the people not vaccinated (a small number of people have exemptions) as well as random testing of those vaccinated.

      and if someone tracked me, there is a good chance they would find me at Dunkin’…

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  5. Jim, you are too kind to insinuate my work has led to a poetry renaissance, but until I am invited to read at a Presidential Inauguration, I must believe that there are others bearing the weight of this renewal. But as happy as the first revelation makes me, the last leaves me quite sad. Great post, Jim!

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  6. Well, it’s good to know where they are starting. I hope someone is following up – maybe the comparison between the two universities. I checked out your friend’s poetry. Very nice. Easy to like. Do you think you could take all this information and weave it into a poem as a guest post on my blog?

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  7. The class of 2025 faces some interesting challenges, Jim. It will be interesting to see if Villenova does better than the University of Texas. I really hope it does…I was also a bit confused by your point 4 but read your explanation to Tandy.

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  8. Plenty of food for thought from this post. I appreciate how you were able to weave some current applications and facts into the survey results. One thing is sure, the Class of 2025 needs to be flexible in some ways, yet a firm approach should not be imploded.

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