SHORT NEWS-PIECE: SOTU 2011

Obama urges Americans to unite in the fight for the future.

By Estefania Souza

In an hour-long State of the Union Address, President Barack Obama encouraged members of both political parties to work together to maintain and maximize America’s super power status. The main concern he expressed was the advancement of the United States over the rest of the world through innovation, education, job creation, and debt reduction.

Obama said he believes that the key to success in the future lies in breaking the barrier between political parties and restructuring the government. He promised to make more jobs available to the citizens of the United States and to give everyone the chance to receive a proper education.

He stated his willingness to work with new ideas so as “to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world.” According to Obama, barriers must be broken, and the United States should take advantage of its diversity to move forward as a country.

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SHORT INTERVIEW: ANNIE ROPEIK

Annie Ropeik, a 20-year-old Boston University junior from Silver Spring, Maryland, sits calmly answering questions about her choices. The curly-haired undergrad decided to come to B.U. after a process of elimination. Out of the three schools she got accepted to—Maryland College Park, American University, and Boston University—she claims her choice was almost clear-cut. “I wanted a city [and] I wanted out of D.C.,” she says.
Born and raised in the suburbs outside Washington, Ropeik attended B.U. for four semesters, but was later forced to stay home due to a spinal injury. Sitting on a swivel chair with her cane perched carefully on the desk behind her, Ropeik explains her story. Last August, “a random stranger” stabbed her in the back, nicking one spinal cord and causing her to lose movement in her left leg. “It’s a lot of physical therapy,” she says about her life now.
Even though recovery was something that made Ropeik appreciate her hometown more, she was still happy to return to Boston. “I love Boston…[it has] a really cool culture,” she says of the diverse city.
Although an aspiring journalist, Ropeik has declared Classics and Philosophy majors. “I have a minor in Journalism,” she explains, but she “is not planning on finishing it. I am using it to take COM classes.”