Acknowledgement

While not yet "official" (in that I have not received the letter), I am clear that my academic performance this quarter has placed me on the Dean's list at NewSchool of Architecture & Design again. I have been wondering if that designation is worth anything any more. And the fact that I have made that list three times in an academic year now places me on the "President's List." Other than the ability to place a "cum laude" (or better?) on the resume when looking for a job, I wonder if it matters to anyone? In fact, I really wonder if it even matters to the people who will review that resume (????).

I have decided that it matters to me; in a way that may be different from what one might assume. I decided when returning to school to study architecture that it was not the quality of the faculty, nor the reputation of the institution, nor the challenge of the various parts of the curriculum that I would encounter that would be my gauge of success. In fact it was to be something completely internal. For I wanted to satisfy my longstanding hunger for knowledge about the whys and wherefores of design. Learning these things was more important to me than the accolades, the grades, the embarrassments of experimentation which I would encounter.

I have long ago decided that I needed to study architecture for myself. In fact, who in their right mind would actually pursue a career in architecture? We are the lowest paid among the professions, and carry high liability insurance costs for large dollar value projects with possible defaults and risks yet unknown. And the grueling educational requirements and three years of internship requirements are not all that dissimilar to our "professional peers" (the M.D. and the J.D.). Still we are compensated at about half the rate of these other professions. Why bother?

Well, it is quite something to actually see a project come out of the ground and know that it is your handiwork; this I know. Then there is the simple joy of figuring out the solution and solving the architectonic dilemma for the particular project. And there is some benefit in leaving a legacy that is greater than yourself; I suppose. It is another thing entirely to realise that you have made a significant contribution to the well-being of mankind (or some small unit of mankind). I suppose these items in some way compensate for the challenges architects face in the arena of compensation and value for work exchanged. But I digress....

The acknowledgement I was considering when I titled this post was the acknowledgement of my superiors at school; acknowledging the work I have accomplished. One way in which that acknowledgement matters is in the scholarship arena (and I refer here to the funds for education, rather than the abstract notion of study). I am grateful to have received acknowledgement of my academic progress in the form of scholarship funds. Now in addition to paying for school, I have to figure out how to pay taxes on the scholarship income!!! It strikes me as a pitiful situation when scholarship funds are taxed as income (income I never actually see, nor can touch in any other circumstance).

Though I must admit; this is another situation where I hear the words of my mother who said: "you needn't feel sorry for people who complain about paying taxes." So I will take the acknowledgement and appreciate it for what it is worth (significantly reduced though it may be due to the taxes required). Can anybody do something about this? But again, I digress...

The subject of this blog post, titled "Acknowledgement," is really the realization I had, early in my first quarter, that one makes one's own education. I am learning what is required to get an A in course requirements because I am working to master the overall material at hand. I suppose it is the combination of a longstanding desire, and knowing where it is that I am going. I am not subject to the distractions of youth; distractions I know very well (as they kept me from my stated goal some thirty-five years ago). Regardless of the instructor's skill, the subjective nature of the review, or the complexity of the subject, I have a burning desire to know the information and understand its application. And this is really the reason I am acknowledged in this setting.

Thirty years ago, I was naive and thought that the acknowledgement was all there was. And I pursued the acknowledgement to the detriment of learning. I would ace a test and then immediately forget the material only to realize some years later that my high-school and early college education resided solely in short-term memory. It was of little use beyond garnering that acknowledgement. Today, I am learning how to apply the information and place it, hopefully, in much higher regard... and hopefully in long-term memory. And this I am doing because I want to learn; more than merely excel.