While it may seem like Bucknell’s student body is very New England and Tri-State area dominant, with the vast majority of students hailing from states such as Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, Bucknellians actually represent a wide range of geographical backgrounds. Bucknell’s geographic diversity, although it may not be overwhelming at first glance, is one of the best aspects of this campus. There is a reason colleges like to boast that they have students from all fifty states and several foreign nations on campus tours to prospective students; geographic diversity brings a variety of outlooks and backgrounds to a class, widening everyone’s global perspective and awareness.
While geographic diversity is important and helps us learn more about the world outside of our own community, many of us are guilty of making snap judgments about people based off of where they grew up. It is easy to assume that girl in the Vineyard Vines shirt is from Connecticut, and the girl with the Snooki poof is from New Jersey, but how can you know for sure?
Being from Seattle, Washington, I get my fair share of odd questions about home, because apparently many Bucknellians have never visited the Evergreen State. These range from semi-understandable (“Does everyone drink Starbucks every day?”) to totally insane (“Do you have Netflix on the west coast?”). I am not kidding you – someone asked me that. And no, I do not get checkups from the cast of Grey’s Anatomy at Seattle Grace Hospital. Furthermore, people repeatedly tell me about how I don’t seem like I’m from Seattle. The perceptions we garner from the mass media definitely aren’t always real or realistic.
Seattleites have a reputation for being eco-friendly from head to toe—beginning with ceaseless coffee consumption and ending in Tevas—and tech-saavy due to our proximity from Silicon Valley. And no, Macklemore isn’t the only artist played on their iPods. This stereotypical mold, one that transcends state borders and creeps into unknown minds, is not as cookie-cutter as those snowman cookies your mom is prepping for Christmas. I have found that people are often surprised when I don’t bear my toes in Tevas or bleed Sumatra roast; simply, when I don’t fit the Seattle mold.
Since I have been subject to stereotypes from my hometown, I assumed others may have faced similar issues. We are all guilty of occasionally making assumptions about our fellow peers, so I asked a variety of Bucknell students about their own experiences with geographical stereotypes.
The Northeast
Not all of those tiny states are identical. Although a majority of these Northeast states often get lumped together, each state, city, town and even neighborhood has its distinct characteristics. Just because someone is from NYC doesn’t mean they are living as if he or she is Nate Archibald or Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl. Although the Northeast is generally assumed to be full of prep school kids who “summer” in Nantucket, it is important to recognize that we cannot jump to conclusions when someone says they’re from “just outside of Boston”.
Boston, MA – Monica Driscoll
“When people hear I’m from Boston they usually assume I have a townie accent and I have intense road rage and like to swear like a truck driver. But really I talk like everybody else and I would not say I’m rough around the edges at all. And unfortunately I don’t care that much about sports. Oops.”
Morristown, NJ – Maddy Endres
“When people hear I’m from New Jersey, they usually ask me why my state is so disgusting. As far as fitting the stereotype? Well, am I a Guido? I’ll let you answer that one.”
Annina Ruggirello – Philadelphia, PA
“People assume I’m loud and eat Philly Cheesesteaks, but other than that they don’t usually have very strong opinions of people from Philly.”
Lauren Safko – Wilton, CT
“People usually ask me if I know this person or this person because a majority of the people here are from towns immediately surrounding me. I usually know all the people or at least have heard of them, so I would say Connecticut stereotypes are true to a certain extent.”
The West Coast
Since they are a minority here, west-coasters often get grouped together. However, it is important to recognize that each person has a different story. Overall, the west coast is assumed to be a “chill” and “laid back” place where the notion of “preppy” is non-existent. Californians are believed to be either surfers or beach-goers, while Washingtonians are seen as hikers or rain-lovers.
Los Angeles, CA – Trevor Price
“I’d say that people usually assume that I see a celebrity every day, that I go to the beach year-round, that I surf or skate, that I’m super laid back. The only aspects that are true are that I’m laid back and I go to the beach when it’s warm and the weathers nice.”
Los Angeles, CA – Abu Iyob
“People usually assume that we can’t handle the cold, they assume we are easy going, and they assume we either skate or surf. Also, Compton. For the most part I am what people expect a kid from California to be. I can’t handle the cold, I would say I’m easy going although I do not surf.”
Seattle, WA – Mclean Doran
“I feel like a lot of people tend to assume that we are hippies or hipsters that drink a lot of coffee and are really into the whole ‘saving the planet’ mantra with recycling and food composting.”
Seattle, WA – Maddie Brown
“I think I am very much of a pacific north westerner, and I think I fit the Seattle stereotype pretty well. I love my Birkenstocks and socks dearly, I refuse to use an umbrella, I love the rain and the evergreen trees, I would say I’m pretty outdoorsy and I consider myself pretty liberal.”
The South
East coast versus west coast is one thing, but what about north versus south? We all know it’s warmer down there, but is it really filled with cowboys and farms? Maybe not. Texans might be expected to have massive blonde hair and love Nascar, while those from New Orleans wear Mardi Gras beads year round and only eat jambalaya. Florida is assumed to be an entirely different breed of the South, filled with old people, Disney World, and golf courses… but do these assumptions reflect reality?
Dallas, TX – Shannon O’Connor
“Everyone assumes I’ll be super Southern so they always ask why I don’t have a stronger accent and why I’m all the way up at Bucknell. I don’t ride horses or wear cowboy boots on a regular basis so I’m probably not what a lot of people would expect a girl from Texas to be like, but I definitely do follow some of the stereotypes!”
Orlando, FL – Manuela Herrera
“People ask me about Disney and the beaches and if it really never snows or gets cold there. I don’t match what people expect in the aspect that they think everyone from Orlando has annual passes to Disney. But I do match it in that I’m tan and go to the beach a lot and not being used to the cold at all”
We’ve all heard of these stereotypes, but we also know that generalizing people is wrong.
“But stereotypes aren’t true!”
Ok, maybe not always. Across the board, it seems like most Bucknellians can appreciate where they came from and can even laugh at the ridiculous stereotypes that are associated with their hometown. Regardless of where we come from, the important thing to remember is that we all chose to be at Bucknell for the same reasons. Being Bucknellians is what ultimately bonds us together. Although we are not from the same backgrounds, Bucknell is a culture in and of itself that allows us to look past where we were born. We are all hard-working, involved and motivated students who care about our education and future, and isn’t that what matters in college?
But just to be clear, I’m still allowed to binge-watch Grey’s Anatomy to my heart’s content. I mean, I am from Seattle, and that’s what we do there, right?