Being this is the first installment of my weekly column, I was hoping to write about a light-hearted and good-natured topic. However, an incident occurred Tuesday morning that changed the focus of my opening editorial.

I was running late to a class in Brewer Hall and approached three men clearing snow from an awning. As I came to the doorway in which one of the men was standing, I politely said, “Pardon me.” He turned to one of his fellow groundskeepers, laughed, then turned back to me and snapped, “I’m trying to work here.” Being the mild-mannered person I am I shyly muttered, “sorry,” and quietly slipped through the door.

I couldn’t concentrate in class following the event, as I was too busy thinking about why these men had been so unjustifiably mean to me. I always make an effort to treat everyone I encounter with respect, and know the value and importance of “the golden rule.” While it’s uncommon for me to complain about such a seemingly minute incident, there are underlying issues that such an event reveals. Various reasons for the spite in the man’s voice ran through my head, including age discrimination and socio-economic conflict.

It is important to point out that this was not an isolated incident of grounds crew being mean to students, nor do I mean for the complaint to be spread across the board. The majority of university staff is incredibly friendly, and I have learned a lot by chatting with groundskeepers, janitors and Davies staff members. However, after sharing my story with friends, almost everyone had a similar experience on campus.

The man that yelled at me was probably not rude because of my age. One of his co-workers looked to be in his early 20s, and he was laughing right along with the rude janitor. So, the only logical conclusion for the unwarranted rudeness was the men have a problem with us as college students.

I often think about the socio-economic discrepancies that exist between professors and students as well as students and university staff. As a Catholic, maybe I’m just prone to guilt. But I’ve often felt bad for having the opportunity to further my education when others aren’t financially able, like when I’m standing outside and a janitor twice my age comes by to take out the trash beside me.

Not taking into consideration those who choose not to enroll in post-secondary education, some who were never given the possibility hold a grudge against those of us that were. The common belief that anybody can go to college if they work hard enough is simply not true in some cases. Also, the societal structure in which people grow up has a lot to do with whether they pursue a degree or not.

I know what it’s like to work at a job that you hate. Hopefully, those staff members that are unkind to students don’t hate their jobs, because my peers and I have a lot of respect for what they contribute to the university. But I have worked jobs that I felt were below me. It’s demeaning and awful but sometimes, as I have personally witnessed, it’s financially necessary.

As a first-generation college student, I have great respect for those who don’t attend post-secondary schooling. Some of the smartest people I know did not pursue an academic degree. However, I think it’s important for those of us that attend a university to be grateful and realize that we are privileged to be here.

On the same token, the university would not function without the hard work of the custodial, grounds keeping and other staffs. However, the university wouldn’t exist without students who work very hard and pay a lot of money to learn here.

We all can work on building mutually beneficial relationships. Students, take a minute to talk to the university staff, many of whom have interesting and relevant stories of life experience. And to the maintenance staff member who yelled at me, realize that your hard work is appreciated and next time treat me as you would want to be treated.

Pelleymounter is a senior print journalism and political science major and editorial editor of The Spectator. Pelley’s Perspective is a weekly column that runs every Thursday.