As Bob Dylan once said, “The times they are a-changin’.” Yet, I wonder if the world around us looks different day to day because we are changing too. I vividly remember coming to UVM more than two years ago thinking to myself, “I finally made it! I can’t believe I am old enough to be in college!” I closed my eyes and held on for the ride. Somehow two years have come and gone, and here we are today. The question that I pose is; where will we be tomorrow? What will the next two years bring to us, and our surroundings? As a junior, my future has been on my mind a lot. One of the biggest questions is: where will I go? I am from Vermont and have been in love with this state since the day I was born, but there is very little opportunity for people who are interested in professions besides maple sugaring and cow farming. Of course this is an exaggeration, but nevertheless employment choices are limited in Vermont today. Many students here at UVM are planning on Vermont after their graduation, but who will stay? Vermont’s population is very small and is beginning to grow very old, which means someone has to take their place or this state will shrink. Whether you are a Vermonter or an out-of-stater, we are all here in Vermont right now, this is our common ground. Thus we must have some interest in this state’s wellbeing and our role in it. This is why my friends and I on the Student Government Association have put together the Next Generation Forum. This discussion will take place on Nov. 15 in the Sugar Maple ballroom on the fourth floor in the Davis Center at 6:15 p.m. The four panelists coming to speak are people with some of the answers to the questions that quite a few people have. I urge all to come. Don’t close your eyes and let these times a-change. Open your eyes and see what is going on around you, and see the state we call home, Vermont.Respectfully, Mandy FrankClass of 2009