I have been living on campus for nearly four years now.

While I admit that there are a lot of things I wish I would have done between my first year and now, I have immensely enjoyed the experiences I’ve had. I have (at least to some degree) participated in a lot of events on campus over the course of these four years; and while I’ve met a variety of students at each of them, I’ve noticed that one group seems to be lacking.

Like everyone else, they attend class, complete their homework and have even joined a club or two. There’s just one minor difference—they don’t live on (or near) campus. Who are they? Commuter students.

Ever since the day I took my first college tour years ago, I have been convinced that living on campus, at least during your freshman year, was the only way to get the “college experience.” After talking to a variety of commuter students—from other colleges as well as St. Thomas—I’ve learned that, in most cases, their daily schedule consists of three elements: class, homework and whatever they do away from school. Because of this, it seems to me that there isn’t as much of an opportunity for them to get involved in goings-on around campus.

An acquaintance of mine, who has commuted to campus since he was a freshman, says one of the more frustrating drawbacks of commuting is the fact that he didn’t have many opportunities to participate in life on campus due to most events occurring at night.

Unfortunately, this happens to be the case for many of the events hosted by STAR, Campus Life and even residence halls. That’s all well and good for those of us who live here, because you don’t have to risk missing a class, and more people on campus have a chance to attend. The downside, however, is that the commuters have, more often than not, left campus a long time ago.

Let’s face it; we have not yet made a meteoric scientific breakthrough that allows us to teleport, and gas prices, bus tickets and cabs aren’t necessarily dirt cheap; so in their place, I could see why another possibly long trip wouldn’t be worth the trouble.

To their credit, Off Campus Student Services does a lot to try and encourage involvement in campus life, particularly where freshmen are concerned. A few of their programs even pair first-year commuter students with each other, student workers and even residence hall floors in an effort to keep them engaged in campus life.

Unfortunately, Commuter Services is only one of many organizations here on campus, and therefore can only do so much to combat these inconveniences. However, I don’t think it is too much to ask for a little more from other organizations.

For instance, what if STAR or the Residence Hall Association planned an occasional event during Convocation Hour or early evenings? Yes, there are free food opportunities that occasionally take place during the day; but they just aren’t the same as concerts, games and intramural sporting events held at night and on weekends. I understand a lot of students will likely be engaged in their daily tasks (be it class, homework, meetings or jobs) but there are still on and off-campus students that would show up.

It all boils down to this: I believe in equal opportunity for everyone. While I understand there will always be benefits to living on or near campus, not everyone has the option to experience that.

I don’t think that being a commuter should set you apart from the rest of the crowd. All of us at St. Thomas coexist in the same vibrant community, and it shouldn’t cost you room and board to participate.

Nick Cocchiarella can be reached at cocc7831@stthomas.edu