New Year’s Eve is my favorite holiday for a few reasons. Everyone recognizes the importance of New Year’s Eve. It is the end of the accepted calendar year, a fact that no one can disagree with. It is not a holiday centered on religion, and it does not separate society by specific cultures.

There are multiple traditions throughout the celebration of the holiday, but for one night, every region of the world is celebrating the end of a year past and welcoming a new year to come.

Besides the celebration that goes hand-in-hand with New Year’s Eve, the ideals and spirit behind the holiday fill many with hope and excitement, not only for the night, but for the year to come. The New Year offers a chance to start anew.

The symbolic passing into a new year encourages many to vow to form new, healthier habits, list hopeful goals and make promises of change. As I passed through my New Year’s Eve celebration, few conversations were void of questions about my New Year’s resolutions. I had a few, as I truly consider the New Year the perfect opportunity to initiate lifestyle changes.

This conversation, though, led me to think about the changes I would like to see made, not only by myself, but also around me in 2012. This University did not escape my list, and I eventually created a mental note for the Capstone community.

Many say that the most important rule in creating resolutions or goals is to make sure they are achievable. So, with that in mind, I created a list of New Year’s resolutions for the University of Alabama that I believe can be achieved through the use of this Opinions page.

1) Initiate and allow dialogue about a range of topics that affect students and creates further discussion.  Through letters to the editor, guest columns and web comments, different opinions have a chance to be heard. Discussion on this page will not only lead to others to think about these issues, but it will hopefully push them to take a stance. If you want something to be heard, use this page as a stage to voice your opinion.

2) Increase student involvement in conversations about where the University of Alabama is heading. If our University is to be a school that is for the students, the opinions of the students who attend this University should be considered. If issues are openly discussed, they become difficult to ignore. Pass on articles you think should be discussed, raise issues, submit opinions and start conversations on campus.

3) A more open-minded and understanding student body. It is perhaps cliché, but we cannot deny it is an area of necessary concern. This past year, we witnessed faculty and student disagreements, racial incidents and rifts throughout the student body, leaving numerous improvements that need to be made.

To improve, one must make changes. What better time to initiate goals than the start of the new year? This page should be a tool for students to not necessarily create an arena for debate, but as an opportunity to share opinions, while at the same time, considering new ones and introducing new ideas of change and improvement.

SoRelle Wyckoff is the opinions editor of the Crimson White.