Anywhere a person goes in life, the importance of making a good first impression is paramount when beginning a new relationship.

Whether trying to get a date, make a friend or get a job, first impressions matter.

For the students, faculty and staff of Missouri Southern, these beginning weeks are the first impressions that could determine not only how the University personnel view us, but how we as students view the University.

As a transferring junior, here are some of the first impressions I have made about the University and the people that live, work and study here, both good and bad.

While the campus is somewhat large it is not so large that a person feels overwhelmed. No matter where you stand outside it is pretty easy to see across the campus and there is one main road that everything is located near.

If you have a 9 a.m. class, get to the parking lot early or you will end up parking further away than you may really want too.

In general, the faculty and staff are friendly and willing to help their students. For example, I eat in the dining hall every day, and every day the lady at the cashier desk is friendly and smiling. While this may seem insignificant, it says a great deal about a business if the employees that work for them are happy.

Sadly, not every impression here at Southern has been positive and the main source of this negativity is on the dorm side of the campus.

Maybe I’m just old-fashioned, but I don’t understand the need to yell, cuss and continue to act like high school students.

It’s a safe assumption to say everyone here is probably over 18 and thus technically an adult. In four years you will leave this campus and enter the world of responsibility; You may as well get a jump on it now.

Another major thorn in my side is the treatment of female students as they walk around in the dorm parking lots.

I have seen several ladies crying or angry because of guys in the parking lots yelling crude and explicit remarks to them as they pass.

Some may justify the way these men act by saying that’s just how young men act, but what sort of college experience does that give to the women submitted to their banter?

Others are sure to come away with their own first impressions and there are sure to be a variety of them.

We are all trying to make it through these college years to reach some sort of dream or ambition, wouldn’t it be better to help each other leave a good lasting impression?