After the terrorist attacks that made Sept. 11, 2001 one of the scariest days in the history of the United States, the country’s citizens dealt with it in many different ways.

Professors on this campus obviously had to deal with their personal emotions of Tuesday morning’s events, but also had a decision to make about their classes that day.

Most classes Tuesday included discussions about the events or a television tuned into the news.

Aside from the emotional hurdles that students and professors had to overcome was the historical significance of the event. Students at this university are seeking a liberal arts education, and there is nothing more important to creating well-rounded individuals than the discussion of a moment in history.

It is for these reasons that it was a more than appropriate use of class time to speak of the events; in many cases, professors simply asked students about their opinions of the event. It would be inappropriate, unhealthy and downright disrespectful to completely ignore the events of that morning.

There is no lecture or PowerPoint presentation that is so important that it should supercede discussing something so emotionally taxing on almost everyone in America.

Professors obviously had the opportunity to cancel class on Tuesday if they didn’t feel comfortable enough discussing the events in class.

But when they made the decision to hold class they should also have made the decision to create an environment where students could discuss the event.

Professors that neglected to even mention the event on Tuesday need to rethink the importance of the attacks and, conversely, the insignificance of prepared lectures last Tuesday.