Now here was a university I was prepared to dislike.  With much bad publicity as a party school, and widely reported problems with drugs and drink in the Greek system, I was already prejudiced before even walking onto the campus.  

However, we were lucky to have a current student from my own kids’ high school available take us on a tour (Thank you, Eric!).  He walked us through the campus, showing us the place where almost 25,000 students are immersed in higher education.  The campus was very clean, considerably cleaner than most other California public universities and notably cleaner than UC Berkeley.  It was very diverse with almost every culture, age group, and personal style represented.

SDSU was one of the prettier campuses with a distinct mixture of traditional California adobe

 and ultra modern architecture that somehow all seems to go together. 

The very modern library is mostly underground, but the architecture makes effective use of natural lighting. 

As an in-city school there was a plethora of eateries and off-campus housing surrounding the perimeter of the school.

As we were leaving we walked by a number of student run organizations. The Jewish Student Union caught my eye, partially because at every other table there was one lonely student just hanging out.  At the Jewish Student Union there are 4 students all speaking animatedly (note to students: a smile and enthusiastic body language goes a long, long way in getting other to talk to you – including recruiting new members).

Our little group stopped to talk to the students grouped around the desk and walked away very impressed by their engagement at the school in both academics and extracurricular activities.  One young women specifically brought attention to her path. She’s a sophomore, majoring in education: elementary studies and explained to us about her internships, working with primary school students.  Listening to the passion in her voice, I was reminded not to judge a school by its notorious headlines or the gossip in College Confidential, but to look at the school on its own merits and to have each student see it for themselves – the good and the bad. 

Does SDSU deserve its reputation as a party school?  I can't say for sure, but I can say there are serious students studying with intensity and that whether any school is a party school is fully dependent on the student.