Today, as of 4:20 pm, 527 Wharton freshman have just gotten their lives back.

This could mean only one thing …

… the end of the Management 100 experience for the class of 2011 … and the 25 seniors of the class of 2008.

There are few classes at Penn which evoke such strong emotions. Just mention the word “Management” to an upperclassman and you can tell the story of their entire first semester in just one facial expression.

As much as I lovingly poke fun at it, no other college at Penn has anything quite like what Wharton has: a truly unifying experience for the entire class to share. While the room of 18-year-olds rejoiced, for myself and the rest of the senior TAs, it was a bittersweet moment as we watched our illustrious careers come to an end.

Never again will I have the opportunity to cram 11 people into a tiny study room meant for 6. It will no longer be socially acceptable to schedule meetings starting at “when everyone gets there” until “whenever we can’t stay awake”. As I’m checking my Blackberry from a cubicle next year, I’ll never get to see email chains so long that the subject line ceased being relevant 10 replies ago.

Each year you think you’ve seen it all, only to come back and be reminded that it’s all right to not have all the answers. You feel proud coaching the brightest undergraduates in the nation, only look back and realize that they’ve taught you more than you taught them.

Ask the 25 graduating TAs what’s the one thing they’ll miss most, and you’ll get 26 different answers. Is it because we’re bad at making decisions? Possibly. Is it because we refuse to conform? Quite potentially. Or is it because we are the most dedicated staff on the planet working for under $7.50 an hour?

Most definitely.

Here’s to the graduating class of MGMT 100 TAs, the dedicated staff of professors, the approximately 1500 freshmen who’ve inspired us over the past 3 years, the countless student leaders who came before, the ones we leave behind, and the ones to follow.

And of course to Senge. We can’t forget about Senge.

Thanks for the memories.

Tags: MGMT100, Wharton

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