by Alex Mette
How long have you been at Antioch?
Coming up on ten years.
Did you grow up in the area?
No, I moved here when I was thirteen.
From where?
Reston, Virginia.
How did you like growing up half here and half in Virginia? My formative years, that’s why I’m a weirdo now I guess.
I moved here when I was in high school, most people get crazy so…
So you were involved with Antioch through Yellow Springs for a good part of your life.
Oh yeah, I partied here.
Any stories about coming to Antioch?
No I can’t go there. It was always fun, it used to be that they had a big thing about townies coming to campus so we got chased off. People I knew stopped coming around because it was such a hassle.
Was there a reason that happened?
Well they always blame townies, everything happens because of townies. Students would actively kick you out; they’d call security on you.
Do you think your perception of Antioch has changed since you when were coming here and trying to party and getting kicked off campus versus now when you work here and spend a lot of time here?
Definitely. I think that marks when I stopped partying in the Dance Space: when I had to start cleaning up the next day.
How do you feel about what’s been going on with Antioch and not having a secure job future?
You really don’t know. You hear the ebb and flow of people, some people say it’s going to stay open, some people assure you. But you never know, really this place has been in trouble before and has always pulled itself out but this does look a little grimmer than before, it worries me.
So you’ve seen Antioch in some hard times before?
Oh yeah, when I first started working here they were talking about how this place might close, I’m in the union so the union folks are always worried about the college losing what they have and the college going down. You have to admit to yourself that there is a problem here, there’s something going on, something that needs to be fixed. A change is needed.
When you first got here and you were hearing all the same things, were you less attached to the place then? Do you think it affects you more now?
I definitely have more racked up in the place. When I first worked here it was a job, I wasn’t going to school or anything. It was a job to pay the mortgage. Since I’ve been here, I have kids now, I go to school at McGregor, my wife goes to school here, and so I have a lot wrapped up in the place now. I’m more vested for sure.
Is there anything you think that Antioch students and/or faculty could do to make your job easier?
Just thinking about things in your area that you see that would make things easier. You pretty much know, you see the mess and where it comes from. You guys are here more than me. You see what you do.
So it’s a mentality?
Entitlement is a big problem around here. I guess that’s everywhere. I pretty much take as good a care of it as you guys do. If I see that you don’t really give a crap about it I’ll spend less time worrying about it but if I see there’s effort I’ll spend more time worrying about what it looks like
What is your least favorite part of your job and what is your favorite part?
The least is actually hard, because I really like my job, I mean I don’t like what I do per se but you cant really beat the freedom of this job. I like the people; I like being able to talk to folks, meet new folks.