Twitter, the social online networking service where users can tweet Facebook-like statuses up to 140 characters, has gained a solid circle of account owners at the Oxford College of Emory University. The entire University also utilizes twitter, using separate accounts for different departments and interests. In early December, a new twitter page attracted a small base of followers from the Oxford population. Its self-explanatory username—AnOxfordProblem (https://twitter.com/#!/AnOxfordProblem)—provided much intrigue to college students, as it proclaims campus predicaments in a humorous manner. The account has almost 50 followers and nearly 100 tweets and self-expresses in its description, “Some problems we all know exist at Oxford College.” AnOxfordProblem publicly urges for other students to share Oxford tribulations on their personal account pages by addressing @AnOxfordProblem and hashtagging #AnOxfordProblem. The account controller subsequently retweets these posts, so that these concerns also appear on its twitter page. However, only about a half a dozen have responded, probably because these tweet duplicates clearly tie back to the initial authors’ accounts, which often reveal individual identities.
Common problems, many that could apply to any college, mentioned include the Internet, issues adjusting to the new tobacco ban, negative effects of a small campus, horrible dining food, and confusion with the Oxford name. Although the account’s tweets are composed in a casual, tongue in cheek way, many of its points are legitimate. Just last week, Karla Fields, Manager of Infrastructure Technology at Oxford College of Emory University, sent a mass e-mail recognizing “intermittent wireless connectivity problems campus wide. The University Technology Service (UTS) engineers are working to resolve the problem. They do not have an estimated time for a resolution.” Lastly, every Oxford student can relate to the confusion the outside world has between the Oxford College of Emory University and Oxford University in the United Kingdom.
Some members of the Oxford community fear that the currently anonymous and harmless AnOxfordProblem will transition into a Gossip Girl-like figure, especially since cyber bullying has unfortunately grown in popularity. These worries have been assuaged by the lack of response to AnOxfordProblem’s reinforcement of the rumored herpes epidemic on campus from the notorious ‘Controversial Topics’ Conference and blasts revealing low grade point average students not present on the honor or merit lists declared on the official Oxford College website. Thankfully, no specific names have been disclosed, and perhaps these posts will encourage students to take necessary precautions against STDs and study more.
The Oxford College of Emory University Student Government Association has taken an active role in addressing major complaints, like the cuisine at the College. The Food Committee, chaired by Sophomore Senator Sam Jean-Baptiste, has worked hard with Lil’s Dining Hall to restructure its food variety and layout to provide more pastas, sandwiches, and vegan options, as requested by Oxford students via random survey. Although progress has been made, students look forward to more improvements in dining services and across the entire campus soon. Hopefully, more Oxford leaders can also discover AnOxfordProblem and create an appropriate solution for each one.