To the Point:

Happy New Year!

By Lizzy

Hi! It’s me again, Lizzy, I’m back. I want to say Happy New Year. Look, I can say it in French too!

Bonne Année!

I couldn’t write Bill’s column last New Year’s because I was even busier than Bill. What with pre-school classes, ballet and French lessons, I just didn’t have the time. I’m more organized this year, though. Besides, I’m not taking French anymore. I already took one French course. If that’s what SUNY’s trustees think is good enough for SUNY, well, I guess it’s good enough for me too.

I got my first allowance. I think somebody should tell SUNY’s trustees about allowances. Bill says that they haven’t asked for any money for SUNY for next year. They never waited this long before, he said. Don’t the trustees know about allowances? Bill says they do. They just didn’t bother to ask for one this year. My advice to the trustees is to ask for money all the time. That’s what I do with Mom and Dad and they usually give me something. I’m almost five now but I learned a long time ago that it doesn’t hurt to ask. Any little kid will tell you that.

What’s wrong with these trustees?

I asked Bill how it would work if the trustees didn’t ask the governor for money. He said something about the “Division of Bludget.” I saw this cartoon with Scrooge McDuck. He has piles of money. I think he works for the Division of Bludget. The Division of Bludget would just tell SUNY how much it’s getting. Bill said it wouldn’t be much. That’s awful. So I asked him, what’s a trustee? Bill said a SUNY trustee is supposed to make sure the University carries out its mission. So I asked him, what’s the mission? Bill said the mission was a great one. He told me that SUNY was founded to provide a good education at a reasonable price to anybody who qualifies. I don’t know how you can do that if you don’t have money. And if you don’t ask for money, how will you get it?

These trustees confuse me. Doesn’t it cost money to do the things SUNY does? My friend’s big brother and sister go to SUNY. Almost everybody goes to SUNY. If SUNY doesn’t get some money, where will they go? My friend is smart. Her dad drives a bus. He doesn’t have enough money for a high-priced private college. If she doesn’t go to SUNY, she’ll never have the chance to show everybody how smart she is. Is this what the trustees want? That’s vile. Vile is another new word I learned today. So today I learned two new words, vile and trustee.

I was so happy about my two new words that I told Bill the trustees are vile. He said that’s impossible. He said that trustees can’t be vile. He said this is true by definition. Once they’ve broken the “trust,” he says, they are only holding the title of “trustee.” They’re not real trustees. Bill is something! He likes to philosophize. He told me about a philosopher named Play Dough. I have Play Dough. That’s gooey stuff. But I know what Bill’s trying to say. I get it! He’s really saying the trustees are playing a game, just like my dad does. My dad sometimes pretends he’s Willie Mays. He says Willie Mays is the greatest ballplayer who ever lived. My dad pretends to run faster than his baseball cap, but he really can’t. He’s just playing make believe. Sometimes dad thinks he’s very funny. He calls himself a comedian and tells jokes. Comedian, that’s another new word. Vile, trustee and comedian.

So the trustees are just pretend trustees. I’m worried. SUNY is a real university, isn’t it?

Something is wrong. I want this silly game to end. It’s not funny. Shouldn’t a real university have real trustees?