Wall of Rejection elicits mixed reactions from admin, students
For the month of March, Gunn鈥檚 annual Wall of Rejection set up shop on the side of the P-building, providing a place for seniors to hang up and ridicule college rejection letters. The wall, set up by Gunn鈥檚 Student Executive Council (SEC), boasted rejections from universities across the country (and sometimes even outside of it), with colorful and humorous comments accompanying each 鈥淚 regret to inform you.鈥� The wall was taken down at the end of March after most colleges had finished sending out decisions.聽
A staple of the college admissions season at Gunn, the Wall of Rejection is intended to help seniors feel less daunted and isolated by the experience of rejection by creating a supportive space. According to senior class president Steve Cho, it鈥檚 meant to benefit both those who hang up letters and those who read them. 鈥淸From the] perspective of a person who鈥檚 hanging [a letter] up, you want to relieve the stress by sharing your inner thoughts to others,鈥� he said. 鈥淸From the] audience鈥檚 perspective, it鈥檚 a way to know that they鈥檙e not the only one who鈥檚 going through this stuff.鈥�
Senior Aditya Mittal affirmed Cho鈥檚 opinion after hanging his rejection letter on the wall. 鈥淚t was a way of getting closure,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just owning my rejection, like 鈥業 don鈥檛 need to sit in it and be sad about all this.鈥欌�澛�
It was a way of getting closure. It鈥檚 just owning my rejection, like 鈥業 don鈥檛 need to sit in it and be sad about all this. — Senior Aditya Mittal
Indeed, the wall could be beneficial to students鈥� mental health, according to Wellness Outreach Director Rossana Castillo. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an amazing way for people to experience that solidarity with other folks and normalize the experience of getting rejected,鈥� she said.聽
However, some school administrators and staff members, such as Principal Wendy Stratton, expressed concerns about the wall this year, due in part to unfamiliarity with its informal, satirical nature. 鈥淔or my part, [the main issue was] not knowing the context and the history of it and just not having been on campus last year and seen it as a tradition,鈥� Stratton said. 鈥淣ot knowing the context when I saw it, I [thought]鈥榃ow, what’s that?鈥� And part of me thought, 鈥楬mm, red flag.鈥欌��
SEC Visual Media Commissioner Vincent Boling acknowledged that the wall is a deviation from SEC鈥檚 transparent, straightforward messaging. 鈥淐ompared to pretty much everything else that SEC does, [the wall] is the one really satirical thing that we do,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here was definitely somewhat of a disconnect. There was concern from admin that SEC didn鈥檛 get it all, and then Ms. Stratton was really confused when we weren鈥檛 understanding her concern.鈥�
This lack of context prompted staff members, including Stratton, to talk to SEC about the wall. 鈥淚 [wanted] to check-in to make sure, 鈥榃hat do other people think? Are there different points of view?鈥欌�� she said.
After conversing with Stratton, SEC members decided it would be a good idea to clarify the purpose of the wall for students and staff alike. 鈥淸Principal Stratton] is definitely right, that we need to acknowledge the fact that the tone of [the wall] is different from everything else we do,鈥� Boling said. 鈥淚 actually suggested that we put flowers all over it or pretty it up to make it more clear that this is very clearly satirical.鈥澛�
SEC finally decided to put an explanatory poster next to the wall to clarify its meaning and purpose. However, according to Boling, they were reluctant to make the poster too official. 鈥淲e were careful about that because you don鈥檛 want to push it too far,鈥� he said. 鈥淏y making it no longer satirical and a pure thing, people think it鈥檚 taking the soul out of it, or making it more bland. Obviously, you can鈥檛 please everybody.鈥�
The Wall of Rejection is a good starting point for this other approach to mental health and validation for students鈥攖he idea of聽 鈥業t’s okay to fail.鈥� — SEC Visual Media Commissioner Vincent Boling
Despite the addition of the poster, some still voiced concerns regarding the wall鈥檚 overall emphasis on college. According to counselor David Leftwich, the wall amplifies the stress surrounding the college application process. 鈥淭here鈥檚 this real heightened level of stress around these ideas,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really fair to question whether that wall adds to that or whether that wall takes away from it.鈥�
Though the wall may not be perfect, students like Boling find it to be a source of comfort. 鈥淢y first reaction [to the wall] was not, 鈥極h, that鈥檚 terrifying,鈥欌�� he said. 鈥淚t was, 鈥極h, cool. There is a mutual agreement that even if we are freaking out half the time about college, we could, at the end of the day, just say that this sucks.鈥欌�澛�
Whether this approach鈥攚allowing in collective sorrow and trying to make light of the situation鈥攊s the 鈥渂est鈥� way to deal with rejection is up for debate, but according to Boling, the wall provides a window into discussions about students鈥� unhealthy perception of and aversion to failure. 鈥淭he Wall of Rejection is a good starting point for this other approach to mental health and validation for students鈥攖he idea of聽 鈥業t’s okay to fail,鈥欌�� he said. 鈥淚 want this conversation to keep opening up and I hope that SEC can play with this idea a little bit more in the future.鈥�
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