Submitted by Jonathan Hyun

Be You. Be Orange

I asked some students as to what they thought “Being Orange” meant and was provided with these responses. I wanted to find a unique and creative way to visually represent some of the main words that the students came up.

Be Orange, what does that even mean? I asked some OSU students and found that being orange means being faithful, being outdoors, being a beaver, etc.  There wasn’t one specific answer but rather a bunch of opinions to what being Orange really means.

One of the responses was that being Orange meant to be faithful. This can be viewed as being faithful in your academic work, your social life, and even your community. It can be having a strong belief that the time you put into your school work will reward you with a certain grade or that your belief/attitude toward work will allow you to achieve greater success.  Everyone has some kind of belief towards something whether it is academics or sports. However, we all share the same belief in the OSU community that our actions in the community are for the good. We all support the Beavers and OSU while at the same time supporting our individual goals. Your goal could be to lose 10lbs this year or to get all A’s, the size of your goal doesn’t matter. We’re all connected by our faith and belief in our community and we should continue to support our community and support our individual goals and beliefs.

Another one of the responses was that being Orange was to be responsible. Being responsible doesn’t just mean that you’re responsible for just yourself but also for your community. Being responsible could be doing your homework on time or showing up to work on time because you’re responsible for your own actions and the outcomes of those actions. Everyone is responsible for their actions whether they’re a student, teacher, faculty, or even an employee. As members of the Oregon State community, we also have a responsibility to our community and to represent it the best we can. We have a responsibility to the other members in our community to treat them with respect. Similar to the TED talk video we watched in class, it all starts with “15 volts”, one small action can have a domino effect which can drastically improve our community. If we all took the time to commit one small positive act then we can make the Corvallis community an even better place to live.

However, I believe there is no definite answer of what being orange means and there will never be. There is no right or wrong answer to what being orange is, it can mean being active to one person and mean being responsible to another. Being orange is to be yourself and how you represent yourself within the OSU community.

From our ethics spotting experiment, something simple as picking up trash or holding open the door for a stranger exemplifies your character and addition to the OSU community whether those actions are small or large.  Those actions define your character and how you represent yourself to other members in the community. Being Orange shouldn’t be based on gpa, gender, or anything else but rather be based on the uniqueness of an individual.

Everybody within the OSU community has already contributed to “Being Orange” just by being part of the OSU community. Everybody comes from different backgrounds and provides different experience which is what being orange is all about. With respect to diversity, being orange glorifies the uniqueness that everybody brings to the OSU community. Each individual brings something different to the table and OSU gladly accepts what everyone has to offer. The uniqueness of the individual doesn’t have to be a giant gesture or action but can start with “15 volts” or something small and still contribute.

I don’t believe that in order to be considered “Orange”, one has to have the best gpa and graduate in the top of their field but rather be focused on what they can offer. Some people may not have realized what they have to offer but something small as saying thank you can be considered as being orange. Their actions within the OSU community are what makes them “Orange” and what makes them unique. There can be many different interpretations as to what “Being Orange” means but my belief is that “Being Orange” is to be you.