Name, school: Nick Serpe, CC

Claim to fame: I’ve thrown my hat in a fair number of campus rings, in about this order: Amnesty International, COOP, Responsible Endowments Coalition, the Current.

Where are you going? I’m moving to Brooklyn’s fairer shores, but I’ll be working back Manhattan-side at Dissent magazine.

Three things you learned at Columbia:

  1. Yes, the wonders of the City lie just beyond our gates. It’s true, that some come to Columbia for the metropolis. But for what it’s worth, there are also great friendships and communities to be found on our campus, in our dorms. I’m excited that I’ll be staying in New York after graduation–but I don’t regret making Columbia my home while I was here.
  2. I once heard a wise person say, in more or less these words, “Most of you get into a school like this because you’re well-rounded, but the aim is to get some dents.” I came to school wanting to be everything and to do everything, but I’m glad to have found passions worth having.
  3. Beware of the fruit punch in the orange Gatorade cooler.

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: I’m an old-fashioned humanist. I think each and every one of us matters, and under those conditions I suppose I’m justified, too.

Any war stories from the War on Fun? Don’t let them (the “Man”) tell you what you can or can’t be. Everyone who’s trying to keep your party down, they can’t touch you. You have the power, you have the party, you are a partisan for the cause of Fun! Attica! Attica! Attica!

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? I was a vegan during my high-school years, and I still had a great time.

Any advice for the Class of 2014? Don’t listen to anyone’s advice. And do your homework.

Any regrets? A great number.