It is unfortunately not uncommon to hear Marshall University students complain about Huntington being a stagnant, boring city. So many students on campus are quick to say that there is nothing to do, nowhere to go, but they say these things without venturing past the first two blocks of Fourth Avenue. If college students would just look around and see the rapidly developing city that surrounds their campus-minded bubble, they would see that there is an exciting energy that is just waiting for them to engage. There are buildings and lots of opportunity. In so many ways, Huntington is like a freshman city. It’s a town that is starting fresh, struggling to cope with its own past and difficult present, but that has every opportunity ahead of it. College students can relate to this town.

There is no question that Marshall’s campus is central to the Huntington community. The university acts as the living heartbeat of the city, and when the heart is healthy, it pours out and affects every part of the body. If Marshall is the heart, then its students are the lifeblood. For the city to continue to grow, Marshall students need to understand that their engagement is essential.

In a recent editorial featured in the Herald-Dispatch, Huntington Regional Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Bill Bissett wrote this: “From a new vibrancy in downtown Huntington to the development of new businesses throughout our region, a new optimism and excitement is occurring.”

University students should be foaming at the mouth over the abounding opportunities in this area for them to be entrepreneurial, creative leaders. There are so many things students can bring to the table, but in order for them to do this, they are going to have to show up at the table first. It is more important than ever for Marshall students to get plugged into the community around them, to contribute and be a part of the vibrancy and optimism surging through the downtown area. This is the time for students to take ownership of their community, and in order to do this, it is going to require an investment of both time and money.

“Since we are all literally in this community together, let’s support the investment and growth that is occurring in our area,” Bissett wrote. “With the right support, the Huntington area can continue to grow and prosper.”

College is a time of opportunity and optimism, a rush of potential married to skill and intellect. Huntington’s current culture is a direct parallel to this college-like energy. Let’s all be in this together.