Santa Clara University

The best student comment on "A Recycling Dilemma" wins a $100 Amazon gift certificate.  Entries must be received by midnight, Sunday, Dec. 11.  Finalists are selected by "likes," so click the Facebook icon above to let your friends know about The Big Q contest.  If you want to follow the comments as they come in and be informed about the winner, you can subscribe to the blog with the RSS button or by email at the bottom of the right-hand column.

One Friday night, Steve and his housemates threw a huge party at their place for a good friend's birthday. After many hours of fun, all the guests went home, leaving bottles, cups, food wrappers, and party favors everywhere throughout the house and backyard. The next morning, when Steve came downstairs, he found that his housemates had put all the garbage into five large trash bags and were about to put them all in the dumpster. However, Steve knew a majority of the contents were recyclable, and his friends had just been too lazy to sort it.

Should Steve stop his friends and make them go through the trash for the recyclable materials, even though it may take an extra 30 minutes? Or should he just let them throw it all in the dumpster and be done with it?

Here are some helpful resources:

 A Framework for Ethical Decision Making

http://www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/decision/framework.html

Recycling Basics

http://www.wm.com/customer-service/residential-recycling-faq.jsp

Is Recycling Worth the Trouble, Cost?

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=91824&page=1

Don't forget to like us on Facebook

www.facebook.com/mybigq

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Best student comment on "Sexting" wins a $100 Amazon gift certificate.  Comments must be posted by midnight Nov. 20.

Mary and her boyfriend of two years, both freshmen in college, have decided to continue dating even though they go to different universities. Unfortunately, after a couple of months apart, they have found it difficult to maintain the intimacy and passion they once shared.

In an attempt to improve the situation, her boyfriend has suggested they send naked pictures to one another. At first, Mary is a little offended that her boyfriend would make such a request; however, the more she considers it, the more she thinks it might be a good idea.

She’s over 18. She’s been dating the boy for a while. Why shouldn’t she?

Here are some resources:

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making

Room for Debate: What's Wrong With Adult Sexting? (New York Times)

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Contest extended:  Best student comment on "Should College Athletes Be Paid?" wins a $100 gift certificate.  Comments must be received by midnight Nov. 6.

Jordan’s family never expected to be able to pay for their son to go to college, but because Jordan received a full ride scholarship to play football at a big university, he has now been given an opportunity his family never hoped for.

However, because his scholarship only covers tuition—and Jordan doesn’t have the time between classes and practices to get a job—he often isn’t able to afford social outings with friends like tickets to the movies or dinner in the city. In fact, he can rarely afford flights home to see his family, too. Still, he enjoys his sociology major and is looking forward to a career as a teacher after college.

Meanwhile, the university itself is making millions of dollars off of the ticket sales, concessions, and memorabilia that Jordan’s athletic talents have helped stimulate. In fact, the value of Jordan’s scholarship is probably just a tiny fraction of the value that he, as a star running back, generates among the university’s rabid fan base. Thus, is it really fair that he doesn’t receive some form of monetary compensation in addition to his scholarship?

Here are some resources:

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making

The Shame of College Sports

Should College Athletes Be Paid? Why They Already Are

Photo by Parker Michael Knight available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial License.

Best student comment on "Long Distance Love" wins a $50 gift certificate.  Comments must be received by midnight Oct. 23.

When Thomas went to college, he left his girlfriend, Angela, back home, 500 miles away. Thomas promised Angela he would remain faithful to her even as he was exploring college life. However, Thomas isn’t sure if being faithful means he’s just not supposed to have sex with other girls.

He has had his eye on a few freshman girls in this dorm. Would it be okay for Thomas to fool around with them as long as he wasn’t having sex? If his girlfriend never specified what faithful meant, is it really all that wrong to do it?

Here are some useful resources: 

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making

Advice for Long Distance Relationships

Surviving a Long Distance Relationship

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Best student comment on "The Drinking Age" wins a $50 gift certificate.  Comments must be received by midnight Oct. 9. 

David was always a responsible young adult in high school. He worked hard for good grades. He participated in a number of extra curricular activities. He never drank or did drugs. It was his desire to attend a prestigious college that motivated all of this, and he didn’t want to do anything that would jeopardize his chance at admittance.

Even still, David’s friends would occasionally ask him why he didn’t party with them, and he always had the same response: It wasn’t a moral abstention, but a legal one. People under the age of 21 aren’t allowed to drink, and he didn’t want to do something he could wait a few years to experience.

However, now that David’s 18-years-old and in college, he finds himself with a different opinion. He no longer has to worry about getting into his university. He finds himself less concerned with the dangers of high school drinking. He gives more consideration to the idea that he can vote and go to war, yet he’s not allowed to consume alcohol.

David doesn’t intend to do anything dangerous when drinking, just have a couple beers when he goes out with his new friends. He’s in a relatively safe environment. He plans to drink responsibly. Is there really a problem?

You may find these resources helpful:

Drinking Age Pro-Con

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making

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Best student answer to Emily's problem wins a $50 gift certificate.  Comments must be received by midnight Sunday, Oct. 1.  Rules

At the beginning of her Freshman year, Emily is a bit surprised to find a notification for a friend request along with a message. It's from John, a guy she met at Orientation who lives in the neighboring dorm. His message is brief: "Hey Emily! Good meeting you at Orientation. Looking forward to seeing more of you! John."

Emily hadn't spent too much time with John since they weren't in the same orientation group. During the few interactions they did have, though, he came off as a bit creepy. He kept popping up wherever Emily went and acting over-friendly. He's definitely not someone she is hoping to get to know better.

Emily feels kind of odd confirming, but she doesn't want to seem snobby and unfriendly by refusing something as simple as a Facebook friend request. Should she and John become Facebook friends?

Here are some useful resoources:

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making

Anatomy of a Facebook Stalker

The "Only If We're Off-line Friends" Rule

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Juliana was a good student in high school. She wasn't valedictorian, but she got mostly As and Bs. Her parents thought they had to sit on her to get her assignments done, but she thought they worried too much. After all, she did get into the college of her choice and was starting her freshman year at school.

Juliana was looking forward to the independence of the college environment. There was only one hitch: her parents were insisting that she allow them to see her grades. Because she was 18, by law, she was an adult. But by her parents' law, she was either going to make her records accessible or they weren't going to pay for school.

Was it right for them to invade her privacy like this?

Here are some useful resources:

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making 

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

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Best Student Comment Wins a $50 Amazon gift card. Responses must be received by midnight, September 12, 2011

Mike is new to the Bike Club on campus and the first meeting just finished. As members start shuffling out of the room, Mike notices no one picks up the trash. Mike starts to gather plates, cups, and napkins and throw them away.

The president of the Bike Club, Tom, says, “Oh, the cleaners will get that.” Do students have a responsibility to clean up after themselves? Or is it not that important since the University pays people to clean?

Here are some resources you may find useful:

 A Framework for Ethical Decision Making 

Staff Perspective on College Behavior 

Civility at Rutgers

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Best student comment wins a $50 Amazon Gift Certificate. Responses must be received by midnight September 11, 2011

Isaac moved off campus his sophomore year into an apartment with his friend Jason. Isaac and Jason met in their dorm during freshman year. Isaac always thought Jason seemed like a really cool guy until he discovered that Jason was into cocaine. Not only was Jason a user; he also distributed cocaine to others on campus. Isaac doesn’t want to rat Jason out because they’re friends, but Isaac doesn’t want to run the risk of being kicked out of his apartment, or worse, going to jail.

Should Isaac confront Jason and tell him that he knows he has been using and selling cocaine? Should Isaac tell a school counselor? the police?

 Here are some resources you may find useful:

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making 

Signs of Drug Use

College Drug Use 

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  Best student comment wins a $50 Amazon Gift Certificate. Responses must be received by midnight September 4, 2011

Katherine entered college with a very high standard for herself regarding sex. She is proud of her choice to remain a virgin until marriage. Now she has met the most amazing guy during the fall term of her freshman year. Max, her boyfriend, believes physical affection and even sex are important ways of showing how much two people care for each other. He has pressed Katherine to express their growing romance sexually, but so far she has said no.

Should Katherine revise her beliefs about sex because someone she respects and wants to have a deep relationship with believes differently? His views are probably the mainstream views among their friends, she realizes.

Should Max keep pressing her for sex? Is his bringing it up often a legitimate part of his wanting to express his love for her? Or do his frequent suggestions show a lack of respect for her beliefs?

Some resources you may find useful:

A Framework for Ethical Decision Making 

More College Hookups, but More Virgins Too

10 Truly Shocking Stats on STDs and College Students

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