Litter free in 2003
By Sarah Beirute, Kerstin Goldsby, Rebecca Boller and Donnie Dennis

An empty Starbucks cup left in a classroom, a used paper towel fallen from the bathroom trash can, a flyer dropped and left on the ground. . .One piece of trash left behind by one person, multiplied by a campus of students, can result in a trash heap.

Students, faculty and staff at ORU acknowledge the littering of the campus as a combination of negligence and disrespect. Although they may not admit to having littered, many theorize as to what people's motives are in littering the campus.

"I think littering on campus shows carelessness, laziness and a lack of respect," senior Elisa Bark said. "I see it as a passive rebellion. It is kind of an unconscious thing…people know what is expected of them, but they do it anyway."

Bark felt that littering was both a matter of immaturity as well as a reflection of deeper issues. "If you respect something you take care of it. I think that it's a combination of issues. . .people who have a problem with authority or are unhappy to be here will find a way to rebel. However, some people, believe it or not, just don't know better. Either they haven't been taught, or they've been taught the wrong way by example."

RA Kati Helzer concurs. "I think littering exhibits a lack of ownership of the University."

One of the biggest ways students are disrespectful of ORU is at the end of the year, Moriah Wilson, head RA of Susie Vinson Hall said. "Any time there is a time crunch is when disrespect becomes a problem. Students leave trash in the hallways, behind the doors and outside the dorms," Wilson said.

Laura Holland, professor of drama, recalled a story that Oral Roberts told while he was serving as President of ORU. Roberts would stay in many hotel rooms as he traveled around the country and always happened to leave the room a bit messy. Once, while on his way to leave, he overheard a maid say, "Why do you have to make my life such a mess?" This comment was such a rude awakening that he has always been conscientious of his cleanliness since. This is the primary reason why clean room check was implemented, Holland said.

She went on to state that the reason she believes people on this campus litter is due to a lack of respect as well as having a lot and not appreciating it. "They do not realize that they are making work for someone else. Christians often make fun of environmentalists, but taking care of where we live is a biblical mandate which includes not littering."

A member of the GC housekeeping staff, Robert Johnson, said he hasn't noticed a problem with trash except around the trash cans. He also stated that there are ways students have been disrespectful such as vandalism. "They break a window and then come back and give me a hassle about cleaning it up. That is when I feel disrespected."

Cleaning has been a duty assigned to janitorial staff, but ORU students say it is just as much a personal responsibility. "Some people just have poor manners. They've never been taught the way to act. But I pick it [trash] up, because I have respect for the institution and the maintenance workers. I don't want the University or the maintenance workers to feel like the students don't care. It makes a bad name for all of us," senior John Kowalik said.

The issue is one that has also been preached from the pulpit. "Cindy Mills talked about how she was walking around campus. God told her to pick up trash. She kept walking, and God asked her how can she be faithful in the big things if she wasn't faithful in the small things like gum wrappers," junior Beth Pitts said. "That really stuck with me because now when I see trash I remember her message about being faithful in the little things, and I usually pick it up."

The reasoning behind uncleanness has little to do with pride, Pitts said, and more to do with apathy and laziness. "We live in a society that doesn't have respect for other people. People are pretty egocentric; they don't see the ramifications of their actions."

Many students said they pick up garbage out of respect for the University. "What bothers me is when people walk past trash and don't pick it up. I want my kids to go here someday. . . I feel that it is my responsibility to make this place better because I know that I will be held accountable for it later," Helzer said.

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