Parting Words by Samantha Noll

As a child, I roamed the not so wild forests overturning stones or sitting quietly by old oak trees patiently waiting for deer, foxes, and other wildlife to appear. I wanted to see what was hidden from me so that I could understand life’s mysteries a little better each day. I had so many questions that no one seemed to answer adequately and I realized that it was up to me to find out for myself. So, I went exploring.

Now, you’re probably wondering why I am telling you this. Well, my time at West Chester University was akin to these early childhood wanderings. It took me a long time to find my way to the philosophy department at WCU. As a wide eyed first year student, I could not decide upon a path of study so I set out upon an exploratory expedition of sorts—taking classes from many different disciplines. Gradually, I found myself drawn to the philosophy department and it was there that I finally found what I was looking for: a discipline that actually encourages you to question and explore. While many other programs at WCU were interesting, I found that the philosophy department is unique in that it gives you the tools to find out things for yourself. The philosophy program at WCU teaches you how to apply logical reasoning to a problem and how to critique even the questions that you ask. Each course provides new ways of seeing things and gives you new questions to consider. Here you are not trained to be a technician, but you are given the tools to actively inquire so that you can go exploring on your own.

Now that I am graduating from the philosophy department at WCU, I would just like to give my heartfelt thanks to all the professors who gave me the tools that I will need to climb my mountains. Specifically, I would like to thank Dr. Joan Woolfrey, Dr. Helen Schroepfer, Dr. Ruth Porritt, Dr. Frank Hoffman, and Dr. Dan Forbes. It has been a pleasure taking your classes. In addition, I would like to remind my fellow philosophy students that it’s a big world out there. We’ve been given the tools to thrive, now let’s go climb some mountains. Let’s touch the sky.