Articles Regarding Higher Education

WWU in the News
Aug. 25, 2008
WWU in the News
Top Stories
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WWU welcomes new freshman
WWU gets record enrollment
WWU: meeting students needs
Private Colleges and University Lists
William Woods offering classes in Blue Spring
Best of Missouri Hands Exhibit
WWU cohosts Victim Services Academy, Hosts ASL workshop
Legal drinking age sparks debate
Pro-gay Mormons take fight to Internet
Ashlee Daly, working at Perche Creek Golf Course
Lisa Lehnen releases CD
Missouri Watercolor Society exhibit
Caitlin Wentworth opens shop
MCF scholarship grant
Hillsboro student earns scholarships
Graduation
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Graduate & Adult Studies
Page 35-36
Alumni Recognition
Page 37-40
Articles Regarding Higher Education
Page 41-74
Posted: Friday, Aug 22, 2008 - 09:13:59 am CDT
WWU welcomes freshmen
Top Photo: William Woods University senior Kristin
Garnett of Jefferson City speaks to the incoming
freshman class during the Ivy Chain Ceremony at
the school on Wednesday.
Rain forced the ceremony into Cutlip Auditorium
from Senior Lake for the first time in 15 years.
Bottom Photo: Members of the incoming freshman
class at William Woods University listen to
speakers during the Ivy Chain Ceremony in Cutlip
Auditorium on Wednesday.
According to WWU Director of University Relations
Mary Ann Beahon this year's freshman class
includes 325 members.
Justin Kelley/Fulton Sun photos
William Woods Gets Record Enrollment
FULTON - At William Woods University, there's a traditional ceremony that doesn't celebrate its' graduates.
Instead, Kate Engemann, director of recruitment at William Woods University said this special event "symbolizes
entrance into the community of William Woods."
For incoming students, it marks the beginning of their college experience.
"The families break their ties and the students stay on campus," Engemann said. The ceremony brings mixed
emotions for parents and students alike.
Cynthia Swafford, a parent of an incoming freshman said she's "excited, proud, but scared to death. He's our first
one to go away to college."
As students enter William Woods, they are breaking away from home and meeting fellow classmates. For some
it's a slow start, while others are anxious to dive right in.
Michael Stradford, an incoming student at William Woods said he's "kind of nervous, but anxious all the same. I'm
getting away from home finally."
One incoming student, Molly Feldt said starting college for the first time isn't a big deal for her.
"There's a lot of kids but I'm used to it because I went to a really big high school so there's less than half in my
class now," she said.
William Woods University's class of 2010 is made up of 325 students. It's the largest class the university has ever
had with an increase of 20 percent from the previous school year.
The university's admissions department says the increase in students is due to its' successful recruting team.
The university has a total of 3500 students.
Posted by: Juana Summers
Reported by: Erika Navarrete
Published: Wednesday, August 20, 2008 at 10:05 PM
Last Updated: Thursday, August 21, 2008 at 9:02 AM
August 21, 2008
Art Exhibits
Region
Fulton: Cox Gallery Gladys Woods Kemper Center for the Arts at William Woods University, 200 W.
12th, 573-642-2251. Hours: 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. Free. Displaying through Sept. 14 work
by Susan Lumsden and Jan Bennicoff, of the Ozarks.
WWU to sponsor Victim Services Academy
Thu Aug 21, 2008, 12:33 PM CDT
FULTON, MO – More than 90 people involved in crime victim assistance are registered for the Missouri
Victim Services Academy, to be held at the Lake of the Ozarks in late August.
The Missouri Victim Services Academy is a state-wide, three-day victim advocate educational program
designed and implemented by victim service professionals from across the state.
The academy is sponsored by the Missouri Crime Victim Services Unit (MoCVSU) of Department of Public
Safety, in partnership with William Woods University department of social work and the Missouri Office of
Prosecution Services.
“The academy has been a work in progress for many years and has been a successful collaboration
involving many agencies that provide direct services, educational institutions and the social work
profession,” said Elizabeth Wilson, director of the social work department at William Woods.
Through grant funding provided by the Office for Victims of Crime, the first Missouri State Victim
Assistance Academy was held in 2004 at the University of Missouri, where George Garner, WWU associate
professor of social work; Wilson, and other affiliated professionals served as core faculty members.
Over the years, several of core faculty members continued to meet to discuss ways to further the valuable
experience provided by the State Victim Assistance Academy model.
“The first academy was so successful that we wanted to provide the opportunity for all victim advocates in
the state to attend an affordable and comprehensive training,” Wilson said.
Funding for the academy is the largest barrier faced by the organizing agencies, Wilson explained. This
goal was achieved as the result of the work of the Missouri Department of Public Safety, Crime Victims
Services Unit Advisory Committee.
Through discussions initiated by Marc Peoples, director of the Missouri Crime Victims Services Unit, and
Kathy Tofall, Missouri’s representative to the National Victim Assistance Academy, the advisory committee
recognized the need for core education for crime victim advocates.
An opportunity to partner with Missouri Office of Prosecution Services at the state prosecutor’s annual fall
conference presented a viable option to fill this need. Establishing an academic partnership with the
William Woods department of social work and advocate leaders across the state, the Missouri Victim
Services Academy was reborn.
“The Missouri Office of Prosecution Services has always offered a victim advocate training track at that
conference,” said Wilson, “and this year we are providing the academy as the advocate training track, which
has increased the ability to reach a larger number of advocates. Our hope is that this becomes an annual
service.”
With curriculum support from the National Victim Assistance Academy, the Missouri Victim Services
Academy is designed to provide crime victim advocates with core concepts of victim assistance and the
application of skills crucial to their positions.
Advocates who have been in the field for three years or less are the target audience for the academy. Senior
social work students from William Woods will have the opportunity to attend the training at the
department’s expense.
“I believe in providing as many professional experiences and exposure for our students while they are in our
program,” Wilson said. “The students will have the chance to hear professionals from many disciplines and
learn from real cases from around Missouri. The students will also be assisting in the curriculum evaluation
component of the academy.”
The three-day program begins Aug. 27 with Mary Young, Missouri NOVA (National Organization for
Victim Assistance) crisis response state coordinator, and Wilson discussing victim trauma.
The second day will start with a panel demonstration on victims’ rights and the criminal justice system,
moderated by Kathy Tofall of the St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Victim Services Unit.
Panelists include Dwight Scroggins, Buchanan County prosecuting attorney; Jennifer Miller, Kansas City
Police Department law enforcement victim advocate; Amy Romesburg, Stone County prosecutor-based
victim advocate, and Jessica Decker, St. Louis City Family Court juvenile crime victim advocate.
The afternoon features several speakers:
Marc Peoples, director of the Missouri Crime Victims Services Unit, will speak on notification and
technology
Kay Crockett and Donna Hudson, Missouri Department of Corrections Victims Services, will describe their
services
Susan Sudduth, director of Missouri Crime Victims’ Compensation, will speak on compensation and
restitution
Decker will provide an overview victim advocacy in the juvenile court
The final day will include presentations on direct services and advocacy. Tofall will speak on best practices
in case management, and Leigh Voltmer, executive director of the Shelter in Columbia, will discuss
communication and listening skills.
In the afternoon, Laura Zahnd of the Missouri Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, Young,
Voltmer, Wilson and Tofall will facilitate a discussion of parallel justice, collaboration and resources to
meet the victim’s needs outside the criminal justice system.
The final session will feature Wilson speaking about the effects of job stress—burnout/care for the
caregiver.
“Oftentimes professionals in the helping field will begin to take on similar stress reactions as the people
that they are helping,” Wilson said. “To ensure longevity in the field, it is critical to learn self care
techniques, network with other professionals, and prevent burnout to continue to provide the best service to
the victims of crime in Missouri.”
For more information, contact Wilson at [email protected] or (573) 592-4271.
Posted: Friday, Aug 22, 2008 - 09:14:04 am CDT
Legal drinking age sparks local debate
By CHRIS WALLER
The Fulton Sun
In 1984 the national minimum drinking age act changed the legal age to consume alcoholic beverages from
18 to 21.
Now, a push to repeal that law has come from an unlikely source.
College presidents from more than 100 universities across the United States including Ohio State, Duke and
Syracuse have signed a statement called the Amethyst Initiative which calls for reconsideration of current
laws surrounding the drinking age.
The statement makes the argument that 21 is not working.
“A culture of dangerous, clandestine “binge-drinking” - often conducted off-campus - has developed,” the
statement reads. “Alcohol education that mandates abstinence as the only legal option has not resulted in
significant constructive behavioral change among our students.”
As the number of college administrators who have signed the document continues to rise, neither
Westminster College nor William Woods University - which are both wet campuses - appear on the list.
John Cummerford, Dean of Students at Westminster College, said while administration is glad to see a
revitalization of the legal-age debate, President George Forsythe has not signed the initiative.
“We are very happy that the Amethyst Initiative is starting the conversation,” Cummerford said. “We
certainly will be participating in the debate, but we are joining the conversation without picking a side yet.
“We talked about it and at this point we feel we need to find out more information before we sign it. There
seems to be a lot of conflicting data, and since they have changed the law we have not had a good review in
order to weigh the pros and cons of it.”
Cummerford agreed that binge drinking was a serious issue, but said Westminster was not sure if lowering
the drinking age would solve the problem.
“There is no doubt it is happening at Westminster and any other college in the country,” he said. “We have
to create an environment to prevent that or if we can't, we need to make the students as safe as possible.
“The Amethyst Initiative - the letter they are signing - is just a little too strong for our taste because it says
we need to start a conversation about lowering the drinking age. We agree with the conversation, but we're
not sure about the commitment to lowering it.”
William Woods University has not developed an official stance on the matter yet.
Barbara Scott Dawdy, Vice President Chief Marketing Officer for William Woods, said the administration
wants to find out more information from the student body before making a statement.
“We have been talking with students and staff and want to listen to their thoughts on it,” she said. “We are
still having a discussion on the issue.”
Brandon Tiefenauer is the manager of Tif's Ugly Mug, a local bar that college students in Fulton frequent.
Standing behind the bar, he explained his feelings on the issue.
“Of the college students who are here now only 30 percent are of drinking age and if it changes, every
college student who came here would be able to drink and that would boost business,” he said. “If they
change the age though, I don't know if it would increase the rates of drunk driving or raise the crime rate.”
Tiefenauer did think that lowering the drinking age would reduce the dangers of binge drinking for those
between the ages of 18 and 21.
“A lot of freshman and sophomores who drink don't know their limits,” he said. “If they were to start
drinking in a place like this it would be better because everyone that works here knows and watches for telltale signs that someone is drinking too much and we can cut them off.
“Not to say at parties they don't watch for that, but we have more at stake, we could lose our license or face
a lawsuit if something happens so we watch a lot closer.”
orlandosentinel.com/services/newspaper/printedition/sunday/orl08aug24,0,4808706.story
OrlandoSentinel.com
Pro-gay Mormons take fight to Internet
Jennifer Dobner
The Associated Press
August 24, 2008
SALT LAKE CITY--Prompted by their church's support for a California initiative to ban
gay marriage in the state, some Mormons are voicing their opposition to the proposed ban
on the Internet -- saying in cyberspace what they might not be able to express in church
buildings.
"We need a place where people can have a discussion and get information," said Laura
Compton, a contributor at MormonsforMarriage.com, adding that people need to know
the information is "not coming from an anti-Mormon place."
MormonsforMarriage is one of a handful of Web sites to spring up since June, when top
Mormon leaders distributed a letter to be read from California pulpits to call the faith's
750,000-plus members there to contribute money and time to help pass Proposition 8.
The Nov. 4 ballot initiative would amend California's constitution to recognize marriage
as between only a man and a woman. A Supreme Court ruling in May legalized marriage
for gay people, making it the second state to allow gay marriage, after Massachusetts.
"When I heard and saw the letter that the church leaders had read in sacrament meetings,
I was appalled," said Carolyn Ball, a lesbian excommunicated in 2002 for refusing to
choose the church over her partner. "So I said, 'That's it.' I want Mormons to know that
there are gay people in their congregations, every Sunday."
Ball, who taught at the church-owned Brigham Young University and its Missionary
Training Center, recalls two failed marriages to men and a series of humiliating
conversations with local church leaders.
"I really just want people to try and understand and see the pain they are causing gay
members of the church who are struggling," said Ball, 44, who teaches at William
Woods University in Fulton, Mo.
Besides personal stories and comments, most of the pro-gay-marriage sites include
statements that outline the principles that have fostered their support of gay unions.
Mormons are taught that gay sex is a sin, but celibate gays can stay active in the church.
Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel
OUR TOWN
Story and photo by DON SHRUBSHELL of the Tribune's staff
Published Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Ashlee Daly, 18, has her work cut out for her every time she shows up for work at Perche Creek Golf Course.
The recent Hickman High School graduate began working for the 19-hole, par-3 course as a sophomore. Her duties
included picking up golf balls, working the batting cages, washing golf balls and checking the miniature golf area.
Ashlee begins mowing at 7 a.m., starting on the rough areas next to the fairways. That takes about 3½ hours. She
then moves to the fairways and other areas surrounding the course before mowing the greens, which she mows
four or five times a week. The total mowing time is about 10 hours a week.
As the only girl among several teenagers who work on the course, Ashlee takes a lot of kidding. She lets it roll off
her back and returns the fire when a few co-workers pretend to gang up on her.
Recent heavy rain has killed some of the grass on the fairways, and crew members are rearranging sod to keep the
course looking good.
"During the hot days, I’ll have to check greens and just make sure they’re not hot or anything like that and make
sure they don’t burn," Ashlee says.
Even with automatic sprinkler heads covering the course, Ashlee waters the greens and other high areas.
One of the occupational hazards of golf course tending is being hit with golf balls. Ashlee drives a machine with a
protective cage that picks up balls.
"It’s loud when you get hit," she says. "Other than that, it’s not too bad."
Still, Ashlee says she likes her job because it’s outdoors, involves golf and gives her a lot of responsibility. "If you
don’t check one green, in 10 minutes it can burn, and then in order for that one spot to heal, it could take you a year
or more," she says.
Ashlee’s interest in high school sports led her to seek a degree in sports management.
She played basketball as a freshman and sophomore and then started playing golf, which she continued to play
through her senior year. She was awarded a five-year golf scholarship and will attend William Woods University
this fall.
This weekly photo column explores the people, places and relationships that make living in Columbia a unique and
interesting experience. Our subjects’ thoughts and backgrounds are included to shed light on their community
impact and reveal something about their character. If you have a suggestion for Our Town, contact the Tribune’s
photo department at 815-1770 or [email protected].
Art out of the box
A big watercolor show at the Columbia Art League grows in imagination,
entries, even canvas size
By LYNN ISRAEL of the Tribune's staff
Published Sunday, August 24, 2008
Photos courtesy The Columbia Art League
A watercolor scene of two sailboats in a harbor painted by Ricky Holtman.
Diana Moxon found herself literally boxed in last week. The Columbia Art League executive
director — always a bundle of energy — was circling around dozens of large and larger boxes
containing art for the Missouri Watercolor Society Members’ Invitational show when a UPS driver
walked in carrying more art work to be uncrated and hung at the new CAL gallery at 207 S. Ninth
St.
“
Oooh, I don’t know where we
are going to hang all this,”
said Moxon as she signed
for the delivery and then held
up large pieces while eyeing
even larger pieces, including
an irresistible, vibrant portrait
by Paul Jackson.
“This year we have seen a
lot larger works, which
presents a challenge with
the wall space,” Moxon said
with a laugh. “The pro is we
have an incredible body of
work here from across the
country that is phenomenal.
… The con side is I am
probably going to have to
triple-hang everything to get
it in.”
She added, “As a visitor,
there is going to be a lot to
see.”
Images courtesy The Columbia Art League
Nick King photo
Above, A painting by Richard H. Dutton on display at the Columbia Art
League. Below, Columbia watercolorist Kate Gray, center, helps Columbia
Art League’s Diana Moxon, left, and Jennifer Perlow decide how to hang
paintings for the upcoming Missouri Watercolor Society Members’
Invitational show at the Columbia Art League.
The pending crisis was
averted, or maybe
converted, when dozens of
volunteers and CAL staff —
including Jennifer Perlow
and Amy Meyer — flocked to
the gallery last Sunday and
helped hang the show in the
modern, bright and airy new
CAL gallery space.
Images courtesy The Columbia Art League
Above, a watercolor painting titled “Nap No. 2” by Kate
Gray, winner of the 2006 show. Below, a watercolor
painting by Loran Creech.
Other pieces were hung in the Missouri
Theatre Center for the Arts lobby near CAL’s
wooden doors that invite folks to stroll in and
check out the paintings.
The show, hung on custom-made and
movable display walls, presents 116 pieces
of art — including landscapes and portraits,
as well as real and imagined subjects —
from around Missouri and the nation. Last
year’s event saw 107 entries.
Always a high-quality show, rules require the
nonjuried submissions to have been completed in the last 12 months, so most have never been
seen by the public. Moxon said it presents a major opportunity for Columbia’s art lovers to view
and purchase
fresh paintings.
“They wouldn’t get to see this level of work without traveling around the country, so given the
price of gas, you only have to come downtown,” she said. “It’s a chance to see really fine- quality
— national quality — award-winning work in our own town.”
This show also provides a boon for artists wanting to compare their work to and compete with
peers, some of them top-notch watercolorists.
George “Papa” Tutt of Fulton, who serves as executive director of the not-for-profit Missouri
Watercolor Society, or MoWC, said the show is “geared for all levels,” from longtime
professionals to those artists just getting their brushes wet for the first time.
“It gives them a chance to show with the old pros, so to speak,” Tutt said of the latter group. “It’s a
real mixture of ability. I will tell you it will be a darn good show.”
Tutt said the advantage to artists of belonging to MoWC is the organization promotes education
and competition.
“What we try to do is encourage these artists to get into the big circuit,” he said. “We want to take
them out of the little towns and make big names of them. … We want them to push their art to
another level.”
It’s a challenge, he said.
“One of the things we try to teach people is that art has a big ‘A’ to it, but there’s also another side
called the business of art, and it is a business, believe me,” Tutt said. “It’s a very tough business.”
Moxon described the show as an educational showcase for both viewers and participants.
“For the artists, I think, it’s a continual learning experience,” Moxon said. “It’s watercolor and
mixed media, and it’s not always traditional watercolor. I mean, look at Paul Jackson ... There’s a
lot more to watercolor than people imagine there is.”
Sixty percent of the art in the show is the creation of Missouri artists from towns such as Carthage
or Cape Girardeau. Art also was shipped in from California, Texas, New York, Florida and
elsewhere because the society has an enthusiastic membership outside Missouri’s borders.
“It’s a big national show, and it’s always great to expand our boundaries beyond the local
community, and what’s great about the watercolor show is it really is a combination of both,”
Moxon said. “We have a lot of fantastic watercolor artists here in Columbia: Kate Gray, Jerry
Berneche and Jerry Thompson, so we have a chance to combine all of that local talent with work
that’s coming from really around the country.”
Representing about a quarter of MoWC membership, the show includes watercolor paintings as
well as water-based media, such as water-based acrylics, even crayon, but Tutt — who enjoys a
national reputation — reserves special praise for pure watercolor work.
“We like to think it’s kind of the queen of the painting media,” said Tutt, who retired in 1997 after
serving 27 years as the chairman of the Department of Art and 25 years as the head of the
Division of Fine Arts for both William Woods University and Westminster College.
“It’s very difficult to do and much harder to do than oil painting. … When you succeed at making a
good watercolor, you have accomplished something.”
Artist Kate Gray said she loves watercolor work for many reasons.
“I think it is special because it is so pure; it’s so sensuous and romantic,” Gray said. “It’s a soul
within itself, and you just get to guide it, and if there’s really a great painting in there, you’ll see …
it has heart.”
The show’s judge is always last year’s winner, and Gray, who selected last year’s winner, went
into the 2007 judging with a list of such things as subject matter and technical ability, but she also
sought something more.
“Did it surprise me, did I want to go back and know more about it,” Gray said. “I think when you
get to the point of picking a piece like that, it has to move you.”
This year’s judge, Jerry Berneche, won in 2007 with his compelling and enigmatic portrait of a
woman titled “Wallflower.”
“He has a very different way of seeing the world. Instead of doing just a portrait, he gives
everything a twist,” Moxon said about Berneche, a professor of art at the University of Missouri.
“He takes watercolor to a new dimension.”
Now that the show is up, the worries are gone, but the excitement is building.
Gray, who helped with the show last weekend and entered a piece, said she saw some paintings
she describes as “rock star stuff” — they are that good.
And for Moxon, hanging the show wasn’t all toil and trouble.
“It’s like Christmas,” she said about unwrapping the artwork. “It’s exciting to see the work come
in.”
Posted: Wednesday, Aug 20, 2008 - 10:27:47 am CDT
New store brings taste of New England to Fulton
By KATHERINE CUMMINS
The Fulton Sun
Any time Caitlin Wentworth gets homesick, all she has to do is walk into the new store she and her father,
Reuben Wentworth, are opening in downtown Fulton, RCW Gifts of New England and Equestrian Sports, to get
an instant taste of home.
“They're bringing the two areas together and introducing New England to Missouri,” said RCW representative
Chris Racine. “We're also going to try to introduce Missouri to New England and bring some things back from
Missouri.
“We're kind of introducing both areas to each
other.”
Reuben Wentworth said the decision to buy the
property at 517 and 519 Court St. came about
because the Alton, N.H. native simply missed his
daughter.
“It started about 2 1/2 years ago with my daughter
going to William Woods (University),”
Wentworth said. “She met a young man in Kingdom
City, and she decided she wanted to stay here.”
A businessman himself - he owns a lumber
business and multiple properties back in Alton Wentworth said establishing a store in Fulton would
give him an excuse to come check on his only child. Maple Syrup is among the traditional New England
products that will be sold at RCW Gifts of New England
“I hope to make a big run every three months with and Equestrian Sports, located on Court Street in
downtown Fulton. (Justin Kelley/Fulton Sun photo)
new products ... and see my daughter,” he said.
Wentworth, who noted he has made the drive from New Hampshire many times over the past couple years,
said he tried to get a feel for what area residents wanted when deciding what direction the business should
take.
“We looked around to see what the city might need that might be different,” he said. “We're offering all sorts
of different gifts for all different incomes.”
Racine said that all of the New England gifts at RCW - an acronym for Reuben and Caitlin Wentworth - will
actually be made in New England.
“We'll have anything from pictures and paintings, gift cards, chocolates, candy to items made of horse shoes,”
she said. “We have such a variety of local New England artisans here - it's going to be spiffy.”
In addition to the gifts section, Racine said RCW also is an equestrian tack shop - a nod to Caitlin Wentworth's
interest in riding.
RCW Gifts of New England and Equestrian Sports opens its doors Friday, and Wentworth said he has a special
treat for those attending the grand opening.
“Friday we're going to have homemade blueberry pie made from native Maine blueberries,” he said, noting
there also will be packages of the blueberries for sale.
Racine said they are banking on the store's unique name to draw in curious customers.
“We're going to have so many unique items - we're hoping people will be enticed and interested to see what's
this about New England?” she said. “We've commented so many times on how helpful and friendly the
community here is.
“We just want to meet our downtown Fulton neighbors and welcome everyone to our store.”
“I've really enjoyed the community, and hopefully they'll accept us,” Wentworth agreed. “I feel we can offer a
good-quality product, and I would love to have them come down and try us out to see if they like us - I'm
looking for a great turnout.”
Reuben Wentworth unpacks boxes in his new store
RCW Gifts of New England and Equestrian Sports on
Tuesday. The store will open on Friday. (Justin
Patrick earns master’s degree
Hannibal Courier-Post
Posted Aug 20, 2008 @ 09:06 PM
Bowling Green, MO —
Sherri L. Patrick of Louisiana received her master of business administration degree from
William Woods University in Fulton on Aug. 1.
She also holds degrees from Virginia Western University in Roanoke, Va., and HannibalLaGrange College in Hannibal.
She is employed as records officer at the Women’s Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and
Correctional Center (WERDCC) in Vandalia and is the wife of Don Patrick.
Posted: Sunday, Aug 24, 2008 - 09:14:36 am CDT
Westminster trainer earns national honor
By RYAN BOLAND
The Fulton Sun
Westminster College's Lora Stelzer recently was named the NCAA Division III assistant athletic
trainer of the year by the National Athletic Trainers' Association.
Stelzer's selection was based on her work at Westminster and a recommendation from Josh
Thompson, the school's head athletic trainer. The honor was announced at the recent NATA
convention in St. Louis.
Stelzer joined Westminster's athletic staff in the summer of 2004. She is a member of a
training staff that serves more than 250 student-athletes on 16 teams.
Stelzer, who also serves as a senior women's administrator at Westminster, received her
undergraduate degree from California State-Sacramento and her graduate degree from
William Woods University.
She lives in Columbia with her husband, Curtis, and their son, Rooney.
Articles Regarding Higher Education
Aug. 25, 2008
Posted: Thursday, Aug 21, 2008 - 09:23:44 am CDT
Westminster's growth spurt continues
By ROGER MEISSEN
The Fulton Sun
Next week, more students than ever will begin pouring back onto Westminster College's campus.
Its class numbers have swelled, increasing for the past nine years.
This year is no exception, with 310 freshman entering compared to last year's 268 students.
However, the college does not plan to grow indefinitely.
“We don't want to get so large that we lose the sense of being a college that offers high quality, a lot of
student service and really works closely with students to be successful,” said George Wolf, Vice President
and Dean of Enrollment Services. “We definitely have a growth plan as part of our strategy and hope to
grow to a 1,050 total student population as an optimal size.”
Current numbers are not far from that total - now ranging between 970-980 that will attend the college
this school year. Those gains have come both from a 13 percent increase in freshman class size and also
higher transfer student numbers.
“I think generally in higher education, the trend is for students to possibly transfer,” Wolf said. “Many
start closer to home in community colleges, junior colleges for a couple years and then finish up
somewhere else. We've been open to that in
both of those groups and we've seen
significant increases.”
But larger enrollment won't mean bigger
classes. The college plans to maintain a 14:1
student to faculty ratio, which translates into
maximum class sizes of less than 25 students.
“We really pride ourselves on strong
preparation,” Wolf said. “We would lose sight
of that if we had classes that had more than
20-25 students at the most.
“Then you sort of lose some of that intimacy.”
Maintaining that ratio means other growth will
be necessary. Westminster will need new
teachers and buildings - like the new North Hall
freshman dorm - to accommodate for the
expansion.
The new North Dorm on the Westminster College
Campus is among the improvements made around
campus over the summer. (Justin Kelley/Fulton Sun
photo)
“We'll have to add faculty, but we also have to take into consideration the facilities that we have,” Wolf
said. “We don't want to overcrowd students into the facilities so that's another reason why we're looking
at more of a limited, controlled growth up to 1,050.”
The growth has also been possible because of rising retention rates in older students, which indicates
quality hasn't been affected by more students, Wolf said.
“One of the important things is that through the growth we've maintained pretty high academic quality in
our new classes. Retention rates have been increasing,” he said. “I think with our freshman to sophomore
retention rate we anticipate being between 83-85 percent once we get the students all into campus
housing.
“That's one of the other reasons we've been able to grow.”
Posted: Sunday, Aug 17, 2008 - 11:00:36 am CDT
Westminster ranked in top American schools
By ROGER MEISSEN
The Fulton Sun
Westminster College is gaining some national attention.
In a new list, it was named one of the 50 Best American Schools where it gets a ray of the limelight as
number 39.
Westminster is the only Missouri school ranked in the top 50.
“I'm fond of saying our graduates are our credentials, and this shows how successful they are,” Westminster
President Barney Forsythe said. “For a college like ours to do well in a rating like that reflects a passion for our
mission and a commitment to students that our faculty and staff show every day.”
Rankings for this new survey are based on a combination of student evaluations of courses and instructors,
how many of the school's alumni make the list of notable people on Who's Who in America, and factors
highlighting cost and graduation rates in four years.
Forsythe sees this survey as a balance between other ways of ranking colleges, utilized by U.S. News and
World Report and The Princeton Review - where Westminster also ranked as one of the “Best in the Midwest.”
“U.S. News and World Report relies 25 percent on inputs, resources and reputation, and 25 percent of their
rankings is based on ratings by other presidents, chief academic officers and enrollment offices,” Forsythe
said. “The Princeton Review is based almost solely on student input.
“What I think Forbes is trying to do is sort of strike a balance between student input on educational process
and taking a look at outcome measures and affordability. It's sort of a value measure.”
These sorts of rankings act as a starting point for many high school students and their parents who search for
the right fit in a college every year as they wade through a plethora of schooling options. Forbes - who
publishes its namesake business magazine - has jumped into the fray to provide another of those starting
points.
“What's really remarkable about the Forbes ratings is they are getting at things that are really important in
society,” Forsythe said. “It's an attempt to get a handle on higher education options for students, and help
students and family members in their college decisions. Quite frankly, it's an inexact science.”
This endorsement of sorts gives exposure to smaller colleges like Westminster who sometimes remain hidden
to the broader audience of prospective students.
“Several years ago Westminster was rated by the Washington Post as one of the best hidden gems in
America,” Forsythe said. “I think what the Forbes thing does is confirm the gem aspect and will, hopefully,
help us not be hidden any more.
“Rankings come and go as they will, but we spend most of our time ensuring we do our best to make a
difference in young people's lives.”
The complete list of America's Best Colleges 2008 can be found at www.forbes.com/colleges.
Westminster fares well in ranking of top U.S. colleges
By ABRAHAM MAHSHIE of the Tribune’s staff
Published Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Westminster College isn’t a "hidden gem" anymore. A new Forbes magazine college ranking puts the Fulton liberal arts
school at No. 39, ahead of stalwarts such as the University of Pennsylvania, Cornell and Dartmouth.
"That’s pretty cool, isn’t it?" Barney Forsythe, president of Westminster College, said by phone this morning. "In all
candor, I think what we’re seeing with Forbes is an attempt to respond to some of the criticism of other national ranking
systems."
Posted at www.forbes.com ahead of the print edition, the Forbes magazine story begins, "Competition is good," and the
new ranking certainly draws different names into the mix. Small liberal arts colleges such as Westminster fill the top ranks.
Only one school with an enrollment more than 10,000 - the University of Virginia - made the top 50 of 569 ranked schools.
The Forbes methodology is very different from that of the best-known and, at times, controversial college ranking by U.S.
News & World Report.
Ohio University economist Richard Vedder and the Center for College Affordability and Productivity, who are identified as
mostly students, teamed up to draw the lines.
The result: 25 percent of the criteria are drawn from evaluations of courses and instructors found on
RateMyProfessors.com, and 25 percent are a function of how many of the school’s alumni are listed on Who’s Who in
America. The other half are based on the average student debt at graduation, the percentage of students graduating in
four years, and the number of students or faculty who won nationally competitive awards. All criteria are adjusted for
enrollment.
"I think rankings are always significant," said Charles McClain, former Missouri higher education commissioner and the
current interim president of Fairmont State University in West Virginia. "Everyone in higher education tends to have a
backlash against rankings, but I notice that whenever an institution is ranked by one of these surveys or one of these
organizations, they’re always quick to use it in their promotional material."
Westminster’s Web site lists the Forbes ranking at the top of its latest news, followed by a story about the "Best
Midwestern College" ranking by The Princeton Review.
Forsythe praised Forbes for entering the college ranking debate and considering criteria that get at the heart of what he
said Westminster does best: quality instruction.
"I would say that the real strong suit is the personal attention and the quality of instruction," he said, explaining that
Westminster enriches the student experience by creating an active learning environment that integrates internships, study
abroad and an international community. Westminster’s student body is 13 percent international students, and enrollment
this fall is a record high of about 980.
Among the schools Westminster beats out are large research universities such as the University of Missouri, which boasts
world-renowned faculty and is ranked 264th.
Although the Forbes survey takes into account faculty recognition, smaller schools and personal attention seem to win
out.
Other Missouri schools making the list are: Washington University in St. Louis, 146; William Jewell College, 249;
Rockhurst University, 298; Drury University, 304; Truman State University, 445; Missouri State University, 471; Saint
Louis University, 473; Missouri University of Science and Technology, 517; and the University of Missouri-Kansas City,
539.
"What is says nationally is that yes, it’s important to have the highest quality faculty that have national reputations, but
what is important at the end of the day is the individual attention that faculty give students," Forsythe said.
"We were identified several years ago as a ‘hidden gem in higher education,’ and I like to say the Forbes ranking along
with other recognition emphasizes the gem, and I hope that this recognition makes us hidden no longer."
College chiefs press for lower drinking age
The Associated Press
Published Thursday, August 21, 2008
College presidents from about 100 of the nation’s best-known universities, including Duke,
Dartmouth and Ohio State, are calling on lawmakers to consider lowering the drinking age from
21 to 18, saying current laws actually encourage dangerous binge drinking on campus.
The movement called the Amethyst Initiative began quietly recruiting presidents more than a year
ago to provoke national debate about the drinking age.
"This is a law that is routinely evaded," said John McCardell, former president of Middlebury
College in Vermont, who started the organization. "It is a law that the people at whom it is
directed believe is unjust and unfair and discriminatory."
Other prominent schools in the group include Syracuse, Tufts, Colgate, Kenyon and Morehouse.
But even before the presidents begin the public phase of their efforts, which might include
publishing newspaper ads in the coming weeks, they already face sharp criticism.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving says lowering the drinking age would lead to more fatal car
crashes. It accuses the presidents of misrepresenting science and looking for an easy way out of
an inconvenient problem. MADD officials are even urging parents to think carefully about the
safety of colleges whose presidents have signed on. "It’s very clear the 21-year-old drinking age
will not be enforced at those campuses," said Laura Dean-Mooney, national president of MADD.
Both sides agree alcohol abuse by college students is a huge problem.
Research has found more than 40 percent of college students reported at least one symptom of
alcohol abuse or dependence. One study estimated more than 500,000 full-time students at fouryear colleges suffer injuries each year related to drinking, and about 1,700 die in such accidents.
A recent Associated Press analysis of federal records found that 157 college-age people, 18 to
23, drank themselves to death from 1999 through 2005.
McCardell’s group takes its name from ancient Greece, where the purple gemstone amethyst was
widely believed to ward off drunkenness if used in drinking vessels and jewelry. He said college
students will drink no matter what but do so more dangerously when it’s illegal.
The statement the presidents have signed avoids calling explicitly for a younger drinking age.
Rather, it seeks "an informed and dispassionate debate" over the issue and the federal highway
law that made 21 the de facto national drinking age by denying money to any state that bucks the
trend.
But the statement makes clear the signers think the current law is not working, citing a "culture of
dangerous, clandestine binge-drinking," and noting that while adults younger than 21 can vote
and enlist in the military, they "are told they are not mature enough to have a beer." Furthermore,
"by choosing to use fake IDs, students make ethical compromises that erode respect for the law."
But other college administrators sharply disagree that lowering the drinking age would help.
University of Miami President Donna Shalala, who served as secretary of health and human
services under President Bill Clinton, declined to sign.
"I remember college campuses when we had 18-year-old drinking ages, and I honestly believe
we’ve made some progress," Shalala said. "To just shift it back down to the high schools makes
no sense at all."
Debate draws reaction at Mid-Missouri schools
By ABRAHAM MAHSHIE of the Tribune’s staff
Published Thursday, August 21, 2008
An initiative among university leaders across the country that aims to encourage debate about whether to
lower the drinking age has just breached the front offices in Mid-Missouri, where school leaders’ reaction
ranges from non-committal to total rejection.
"I haven’t signed it, and I haven’t decided," Barney Forsythe, president
of Westminster College in Fulton, said of the so-called Amethyst
Initiative signed by 100 university leaders across the country. Forsythe
identified two main issues with drinking on campus: underage drinking
and excessive drinking, which he considered the "fundamental
problem."
Related Article
• AP: College chiefs press
for lower drinking age
"I’m still not sure if at the end of the day," lowering the drinking age from 21 to 18 "prevents excessive
drinking," he said.
Amy Gipson, spokeswoman for Stephens College President Wendy Libby, said the school is discussing the
initiative, but evaluating a student’s maturity level is difficult.
"Are college students at less risk for binge drinking or drunk driving with the limit at 18 or 21? I don’t know,"
she said. "There’s data on both sides that we need to examine more carefully. … Keeping the discussion
going is important."
Gerald Brouder, president of Columbia College, said his position was based on "the maturity factor."
"I favor retaining the age of 21 as the minimum age for the legal consumption of alcohol of any type," he
said. "While a general statement, it is more likely that the 21-year-old will exhibit a greater degree of
personal responsibility than the 18-year-old."
He added, "Lowering the drinking age may exacerbate binge drinking rather than mitigate or prevent it."
Evelyn Jorgenson, president of Moberly Area Community College, rejected the initiative, saying age was
not a factor in binge drinking.
"Peer pressure and the naïve, youthful perception of invincibility causes binge drinking; lowering the
drinking age is not the solution," she said. "I personally would not support the initiative."
University of Missouri Chancellor Brady Deaton declined to comment. His office said he needed to further
study the data. Fayette’s Central Methodist University said the initiative was moot on its campus because
the school does not allow any drinking on campus.
August 22, 2008
2 Withdraw From Petition to Rethink
Drinking Age
By SHAILA DEWAN
ATLANTA — Two college presidents, both in Georgia, have withdrawn their names from
a petition to reconsider the legal drinking age after it drew blistering criticism this week
from Mothers Against Drunk Driving, safety experts, transportation officials and
politicians.
But 15 more from across the country have signed on, the organizers said Thursday.
All told, 123 presidents from colleges including Dartmouth, Duke, Ohio State and Tufts
are supporting the petition, which says that raising the drinking age to 21 has fostered a
culture of clandestine binge drinking and that students’ use of fake identification has
eroded their respect for the law.
“Twenty-one is not working,” the statement reads.
But critics have accused the presidents of misleading the public, shirking their
responsibility to enforce the law and trying to dodge the problem of student drinking.
The Governors Highway Safety Association has promised to hold at its national meeting
next month “a workshop to help highway safety agencies counter any effort in their
states to lower the drinking age.”
Kendall Blanchard, the president of Georgia Southwestern State University in Americus,
said he had pulled his name off the list in part because critics had misunderstood the
petition’s intent. “It was clear to me that they didn’t see this as a dialogue; they saw this
as some kind of effort on our part to turn our schools into party schools,” he said.
The other president who withdrew from the petition was Robert M. Franklin of
Morehouse College in Atlanta.
Many critics said they objected to the suggestion that studies did not conclusively show a
benefit to raising the drinking age, particularly the reduction of alcohol-related traffic
deaths among young drivers.
“Why would you take the one thing that has been tried in the last 30 years that has been
shown to be most successful and throw that out the window and say, ‘I have a better
idea?’ ” said Alexander C. Wagenaar, an epidemiologist at the College of Medicine at the
University of Florida.
But college presidents say they are fighting a losing battle with binge drinking and
alcohol poisoning.
“Many of our university presidents are doing as good a job as they can at enforcing the
drinking age,” said John M. McCardell Jr., the former president of Middlebury College in
Vermont and a leader of the petition effort, which began last month. “They’re doing all
the right things, and what is the result? Well, young people are moving beyond the view
of the college officials and often beyond the boundaries of the college campuses, and
campus officials have no authority there.”
S. Georgia Nugent, the president of Kenyon College in Ohio, who signed the petition,
said, “I think there’s a direct connection between this law and this pattern of secret, fast
consumption of high-octane alcohol. It’s much more dangerous than the traditional great
big, loud keg party because it happens quietly, out of view.”
Mr. McCardell is the founder of Choose Responsibility, an organization that advocates
lowering the drinking age, but the petition drive, called the Amethyst Initiative after the
gemstone that the Greeks believed would ward off intoxication, calls only for
“dispassionate public debate” of the issue. The drinking age has been 21 across the
country since 1988.
In a written statement that Mr. McCardell called “intimidation bordering on bullying,”
Laura Dean-Mooney, the president of MADD, asked the public to call the signers and
demand that they remove themselves from the list.
“As the mother of a daughter who is close to entering college, it is deeply disappointing
to me that many of our education leaders would support an initiative without doing their
homework on the underlying research and science,” Ms. Dean-Mooney said in the
statement. “Parents should think twice before sending their teens to these colleges or any
others that have waved the white flag on under-age and binge drinking policies.”
College presidents should focus on changing the culture on campus, Ms. Dean-Mooney
said. She cited efforts like requiring alcohol education, scheduling more Friday classes to
cut down on Thursday night parties, fighting marketing efforts like drink specials and
ladies’ nights near campuses and coordinating with local law enforcement agencies.
But students said they were not getting drunk in bars.
“From freshman year on, I hardly ever went out on the weekends without having four or
five shots of vodka beforehand,” said Diane Bash, a senior at Ohio State University.
“You’ve got to preload before you get to a bar because you can’t drink once you go in. I
definitely drink a lot less now that I’m 21, and so do all my friends.”
Despite such tales of excess, experts said there was little hard evidence that binge
drinking became more prevalent after the drinking age was raised to 21. One of the most
comprehensive studies shows that heavy drinking among college students, defined as
five or more drinks in a row, peaked in 1984.
Other studies by Henry Wechsler, a retired professor at the Harvard School of Public
Health, show that binge drinking remained steady, with about 44 percent of college
students doing it, from 1993 to 2001.
The controversy shines a light on the culture gap between college students and their
nonstudent peers, who drink less.
Chuck Hurley, the chief executive of MADD, acknowledged that widespread drinking on
campus fostered a distinct set of problems. “The drinking age is working far better in
blue-collar America, or community college America, than in Ivy League America,” he
said.
Aug. 19
Will Colleges Friend Facebook?
As colleges have worked over the years to solidify their Web 2.0 presence and reach out to students where they’re
most likely to congregate online, there’s often a glaring omission from their overall Internet strategies: social
networks. That’s not so much an oversight as a hesitation, with many institutions still debating whether to adopt
social networking capabilities of their own or grit their teeth and take the plunge into Facebook, with all the
messiness and potential privacy concerns that would imply.
A new start-up company believes colleges’ wariness about joining the Facebook fray — despite the advantages they
could theoretically reap from keeping tabs on alumni, soliciting donations and marketing to would-be applicants —
leaves an opening in the market for an application that would combine the ubiquity of the social networking site
with the privacy and authentication sought by institutions.
The result, Schools, upends the traditional application framework. Rather than make it available to anyone with a
Facebook account, the service is based on partnerships with individual colleges that pay to allow their students
access. The colleges then provide the company, Inigral, with constantly updated data feeds that allow the
application to stay current with courses, clubs and other activities that students can join.
The application eases colleges’ privacy worries by adding an extra layer of authentication, usually using official
student IDs or e-mail addresses, and adhering to any federal privacy restrictions.
The model, what the blog TechCrunch called “one of the first enterprise apps on Facebook,” attempts to avoid the
pitfalls of other attempts to bring community features for colleges students back to Facebook, which last year
abandoned a popular feature allowing users to display courses they’re enrolled in after the site broadened beyond its
initial campus-only focus. Since then, several applications built on the social network’s developer platform (such as
Courses 2.0) have sought to restore the functionality, but none has achieved a significantly wide user base among
many campuses.
Inigral initially began its foray into educational social networking by developing a Courses application, which it has
mainly shelved to focus on Schools. Beyond the basic functionality of allowing students to display to their
classmates what courses they’re taking, they can join dorms or student groups — synced with colleges’ official data
— and say which sports teams they play on. They can decide who can see what (for example, only true Facebook
friends can see many details), including comments on how they’re doing in various classes, but stay assured that all
classmates within the application have been verified as real.
In contrast to other applications that try to bring college classroom functionality to the social network, said Michael
Staton, Inigral’s co-founder and a former high school teacher, Schools builds on the original campus success of
Facebook, which replicated students’ real-life relationships. Facebook, he said, has shown itself as a place “where
you can predict, accelerate and solidify your personal relationships.” Without that connection, he said, it was
difficult to achieve a “critical mass” of users on each campus to make using such an application worthwhile for
students.
“We think there is a lot of value, and universities are starting to realize this, in having students feel more connected
to each other and to campus life,” Staton said. Rather than compete with course management systems, some of
which are also migrating onto Facebook or inspiring independently designed applications, Inigral is attempting to
encompass the college experience as a whole.
Some high-powered investors — including the Founders Fund, one of the original backers of Facebook — are
betting that he’s onto something. But it will take a handful of campuses signing on before others resign themselves
to the idea of branching out onto the site, if they do at all.
“We wanted to find a school that was ready for Facebook,” said Staton, who predicted with “90 percent” certainty
that three institutions would sign on to the service for this fall. One of those, which is already in a private beta
testing phase and is set to deploy the application over the fall semester, is Abilene Christian University, which has
already gained publicity by handing out free iPhones to its incoming freshman class and being one of the earlier
adopters of Google’s Apps for Education program.
“It’s something that we’ve been looking at for a long time,” said Kevin Christian, the university’s director of
strategic partnerships, of Facebook. “The higher ed community broadly has been trying to understand how best to
utilize social networking as a tool to affect [our] campuses in a positive way.”
The university, he said, is finding it can have the benefits of “living within the Facebook world” without ignoring
“prudent concern to retain Facebook as a true social networking site.” Much as the university is planning to do with
its new army of iPhones, Christian said some faculty members were planning on making use of the newly adopted
technology in their classrooms.
What those uses will be is unclear. With the applications, students will be able to play a “name game” to learn
classmates’ names, Staton said — an idea that he suggested would also be useful to faculty members at the
beginning of the semester. There would also be a campus news feed, and features that current Facebook users would
find familiar, such as the ability to give gifts (like a cup of coffee) to frazzled classmates.
Time will tell whether universities warm up to the idea of social network connectivity, managed remotely by an
enterprise service, much as many have now signed on to outsourced Web-based e-mail applications run by Google
and Microsoft.
Next spring, the company plans on rolling out a “bigger beta” of its application, Staton said, before doing a major
launch in fall 2009. Beyond a core set of “really, really affordable” features, the company is planning on adding on
extra functionality at a premium cost. (Staton wouldn’t elaborate on the company’s plans.)
Campuses might ask, “’How much time and resources is this going take from us?’ Our answer is, none,” Staton
said.
The original story and user comments can be viewed online at
http://insidehighered.com/news/2008/08/19/facebook.
Is college still worth the price?
Costs are soaring twice as fast as inflation, even as
salaries for graduates are falling. Time to examine the
old belief that college is worth whatever you can pay.
By Penelope Wang, Money Magazine senior writer
Last Updated: August 22, 2008: 2:44 PM EDT
(Money Magazine) -- In May, more than 20,000 spectators gathered under blue skies at
Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn. to hear Democratic presidential candidate
Barack Obama deliver the commencement address.
After recalling his days as a low-paid community organizer, Obama urged the graduates
to consider careers in public service. "I ask you to seek these opportunities when you
leave here," Obama declared. "The future of this country - your future - depends on it."
His message was received with enthusiastic applause.
Calls to "give back" always seem to resonate at elite schools like Wesleyan, a picture
postcard of academic abundance on its 360-acre wooded campus, complete with state-ofthe-art film center, 7,500-square-foot fitness facility, skating rink, 11-building arts
complex and a new $47 million student center offering everything from Mongolian grill
entrées to organically grown coffee.
As for actually entering a career in public service, Graduate, good luck with that. Given
the steep price tag for a Wesleyan degree ($200,000 for four years) and the substantial
amount you may have borrowed to pay those bills ($21,500 for the average student, with
some families carrying loans of $50,000 or more), choosing a profession that often pays
less than $30,000 a year might be, well, let's just say a bit of a financial challenge.
For more than two decades, colleges and universities across the country have been
jacking up tuition at a faster rate than costs have risen on any other major product or
service - four times faster than the overall inflation rate and faster even than increases in
the price of gasoline or health care (see the chart to the right). The result: After adjusting
for financial aid, the amount families pay for college has skyrocketed 439% since 1982.
Granted, the fact that college costs are spiraling wildly out of control is not exactly a
news flash. The real eye-opener is why.
College finance experts point to a record number of applicants in recent years as the baby
boomlet comes of age (many of the more selective schools reported double-digit
increases for 2008); that trend, coupled with growing demand for degrees (undergraduate
enrollment has jumped more than 20% over the past decade), puts heavy upward pressure
on prices. Dwindling support for higher education from cash-strapped federal and state
governments doesn't help the situation.
Normal supply and demand can't begin to explain cost increases of this magnitude,
though. If the usual rules applied, tuition would eventually stop rising because families
would cut back enrollment, especially at the most expensive private schools, just as they
curtailed consumption of gas once prices hit $4 a gallon.
Colleges would then be forced to cut costs or entrepreneurs would flood the market with
lower-cost alternatives. But for the most part - all those invitations you see to get your
degree online notwithstanding - that hasn't happened.
Instead, prices for college have begun to follow their own peculiar logic. In the absence
of any objective measure of the value of an education, price becomes the default
yardstick. The more expensive a college is, the better the education it presumably
provides. (After all, if other families were willing to pay this much to send their kids
here, it must be worth it.)
And the better the education is presumed to be, the higher the price the college can
charge. In that respect, it's like home values during the housing boom or dotcom stocks
during the late-'90s tech frenzy: Prices go up on sheer momentum.
But families don't shell out money for college in the belief that their investment will
someday bring them riches, as they did with real estate and tech stocks. Rather, the
perceived payoff is that going to a brand-name school will one day make their children
richer.
Even if the financial value of a degree is hard to measure, however, one thing's for sure:
It's not infinite. Already a backlash is brewing in Congress about the spending and
pricing policies of the wealthiest schools, and some parents may soon join in.
Says Charles Miller, who chaired the U.S. Department of Education's Commission on the
Future of Higher Education: "If college costs continue to escalate at this rate, you may
reach a point where the investment simply isn't worth it."
The critical question for you to ask: When it comes to college, will you and your child get
what you think you're paying for? Here are the facts. You decide.
Send feedback to Money Magazine
By Penelope Wang, Money Magazine senior writer
Last Updated: August 22, 2008: 2:44 PM EDT
If colleges were spending most of their money on initiatives that improve the quality of
of inflation as a necessary evil. But spending on palatial dorms, state-of-the-art fitness
centers and a panoply of gourmet dining options? Maybe not.
Yet that's precisely what many schools are doing to attract students - engaging in a luxury
arms race, fueled by the wealth of such elite institutions as Harvard and Yale.
Sure, they're also putting funds into cutting class sizes and hiring top professors. But
they're spending even more on building Hogwarts-style dorms with mahogany casement
windows of leaded glass (Princeton's newest $136 million student residence); installing
35-foot climbing walls and hot tubs big enough for 15 people (Boston University);
providing multiple eateries with varied cuisines and massive fitness and recreation
centers (too many schools to name).
"There's a lot of competition from other colleges," says Steven Knapp, president of
George Washington University. "In today's consumer culture, parents and students expect
a certain level of comfort - and they compare the amenities."
The goal of all this collegiate bling is to entice more people to apply. Not just because the
school gets a bigger pool of qualified students to choose from but also because the more
students who apply, the more it can ultimately reject. That lowers its acceptance rate and
makes it appear more selective in the critical U.S. News & World Report college ranking
system.
"The rankings are a measure of wealth, exclusivity and fame, not quality," says Kevin
Carey, research manager at the nonprofit Education Sector. "Still, they've become a de
facto standard for parents, students and the colleges themselves."
The rankings generate a lot of criticism, and nearly 70 colleges refuse to participate.
Many more try to work the system to their advantage by spending in ways that will boost
their standing - say, offering more merit aid to attract top students.
Here's the rub: More merit aid means less money for need-based aid - which means many
families end up paying more, unless their child is one of the lucky few to earn a
scholarship.
The appearance of misguided spending by colleges has prompted some lawmakers to
question whether wealthy schools still deserve their tax-exempt status. After all, they
argue, the colleges are spending only a small fraction of their endowments on the public
good - often less than 5%, which is the mandatory payout for private foundations.
The implied threat caused a minor panic attack in academe and prompted many wealthy
colleges to announce plans to raise their spending on financial aid. Harvard, the nation's
richest university with a $35 billion endowment, now guarantees that families earning up
to $60,000 will pay nothing and those earning $180,000 or less will pay no more than
10% of their income.
Yale ($23 billion) promises that families earning $120,000 or less will pay no more than
10% of their income. Many other highly selective colleges, including Wesleyan, have
followed the Ivy League leaders. Says Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), a leading voice on
the issue of college affordability: "The quick response by the schools is admitting that
something's not right."
The improved aid for the fortunate few, however - less than 1% of students attend Ivy
League schools - may result in higher costs for everyone else. Public colleges and less
wealthy private ones are now under intense pressure to compete, yet few can afford to
match the largesse of the rich schools.
At the University of California-Berkeley, for example, a family earning more than
$90,000 would get little or no aid, so they'd have to pay the total cost of nearly $25,000.
At Harvard they'd now pay less than $9,000.
"That puts middle-class families at a huge disadvantage in our system," says Berkeley
chancellor Robert Birgeneau. "Many colleges may have to raise fees to funnel more
money into financial aid or risk losing many of the best middle-class students."
The high sticker price is actually part of many colleges' marketing strategy. For as
counterintuitive as it seems, schools have often found that raising tuition attracts more
applicants because families tend to equate high price with quality. Marketers call it the
Chivas Regal effect.
In 2000, for example, Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pa. boosted tuition and fees by
17.6%. The following year the school received nearly 200 more applications than the
year before, and within eight years the freshman class had grown 56%.
Hendrix College in Conway, Ark. had a similar experience in 2005 when it hiked its
tuition rate by 29% to $22,000. The college in effect gave back much of the increase as
financial aid or merit scholarships to 99% of the students; still, it seemed that tuition was
as high as at places like the University of Richmond. Since then the number of incoming
freshmen has increased by nearly 40%.
Says Hendrix College president Timothy Cloyd: "We are competing with schools that
charge more, so it was hard to convince people that we were as good as our rivals when
we charged so much less."
The outlet for students who can't play this game has always been public colleges, which
80% of undergraduates attend. But as states struggle to meet the growing cost of
Medicaid and federal requirements for elementary and high school education, less money
is available for colleges.
Twenty years ago, nearly 75% of state university general funds came from state
appropriations vs. 63% today. And in the current economic downturn, which is reducing
tax revenue in many states, college officials worry, rightly, about additional cutbacks.
Public colleges have been making up the shortfall by raising tuition at an even faster clip
than private schools -31% compared with 14% over the past five years. Last year alone,
Illinois public colleges raised rates 12%, while in Colorado costs jumped 16%.
And prices at some flagship public universities are starting to look more like what you'd
pay at a private institution. At the University of Michigan, for instance, in-state freshmen
now pay nearly $20,000, and out-of-state first-year students pay almost $42,000 $10,000 more than the $32,000 cost of the average private institution, although still less
than the $50,000 or so charged by top private schools.
Colleges could help ease the pressure by adopting cost-containment practices that are
standard in private business. But most schools are nonprofits. And without the pressure to
produce earnings, they have little incentive to slash expenses or improve productivity.
Says Ron Ehrenberg, an economics professor at Cornell University and author of
"Tuition Rising": "For nonprofits the goal is to raise all the money you can, then spend
it."
Then too, teaching is an inherently labor-intensive process that isn't conducive to
economies of scale. "It's not like automating a factory - one professor can only grade so
many papers and teach so many classes," says Vassar College president Catharine Hill.
"If you were to double the class size, the quality would go down."
Classroom instruction is just one part of a college's budget, however, and not even the
biggest part. In a study of spending at nearly 2,000 public and private schools over 18
years, researchers for the Delta Cost Project found that the percentage of operating
expenses going to classroom instruction (mainly professor salaries and benefits)
accounted for 34% to 44% of spending - and those percentages actually fell over the
period reviewed.
By contrast, an increasing amount was being spent on such items as faculty research and
recruiting. "We see indications that institutions are spending more money in areas that
may not fit in with the public priority of preparing more graduates," says Jane Wellman,
the project's executive director.
That ought to leave plenty of room to cut costs without sacrificing quality. Brit Kirwan,
chancellor of the University System of Maryland, has kept tuition level for three years
with moves such as centralizing purchasing and increasing faculty teaching hours.
Meanwhile, 20 private colleges and universities in Wisconsin have banded together to
consolidate administrative functions, saving $16 million over the past three years.
These schools are largely the exception, though. Most colleges don't approach costcutting in a systematic way. The American Association of State Colleges and Universities
has found that more than three-quarters of schools fail to devote significant resources to
identifying and carrying out cost-containment measures and 60% do not regularly
quantify results.
Send feedback to Money Magazine
By Penelope Wang, Money Magazine senior writer
Last Updated: August 22, 2008: 2:44 PM EDT
Runaway college costs are a matter of growing concern in Washington. In addition to
pushing wealthy schools to spend more of their endowments, Congress recently passed
legislation that requires greater disclosure about pricing and encourages states to maintain
steady funding for public colleges by promising to withhold federal grants if they don't.
But in the end, no matter what lawmakers do, college costs will continue to defy gravity
as long as we parents are willing to pay ever-higher prices to give our kids a head start in
life. We assume that an expensive college will provide a superior education (there's that
"high price equals better quality" bias) and an inside track to a high-paying job after
graduation.
After all, at a brand-name school, your child will hang out with the scions of senators,
hedge fund managers and captains of industry, and those connections can only help,
right?
Well, maybe not. Says Ohio University economics professor Richard Vedder, author of
"Going Broke by Degree": "There's virtually no data that allow families to evaluate the
quality of [an elite college's] educational offerings or the outcomes of its graduates."
In theory you could quantify the added value you get from going to a highly selective
school - which, in turn, would help determine what a reasonable tuition premium would
be - by comparing the salaries earned by its graduates with those of workers who
attended less selective schools.
Colleges, however, don't hand out that information. And some independent studies
suggest the value is less than people think. Take a well-known 1999 paper by Princeton
economist Alan Krueger and researcher Stacy Berg Dale at the Andrew W. Mellon
Foundation.
The study compared the salaries of graduates who earned degrees from top-tier colleges
with those of graduates who were accepted by these schools but chose to attend less
selective institutions.
The research found that the two groups of students ended up with similar incomes. It
appears that bright students excel no matter where they get their degree. The one
exception: Low-income students did benefit from attending the most selective colleges in their case, the impact of social networking seemed to pay off.
In today's fast-changing economy, however, the value of those old-boy networks may be
eroding. According to a 2004 University of Pennsylvania study, prestigious degrees aren't
as valuable at major corporations as they were a generation ago.
The study looked at the top executives at Fortune 100 companies in 1980 and 2001.
During that time the percentage of top guns with Ivy League undergraduate degrees
dropped by nearly a third, from 14% to 10%, while the percentage who attended other
highly ranked schools, such as Williams or Notre Dame, fell from 54% to 42%.
Meanwhile, public university graduates soared to nearly 50% from 32%. Meritocracy in
corporate America is a good thing, but it doesn't support the notion that whatever you pay
for an elite education is worth it.
Given the steep price tag on the Ivies and similar schools and the uncertainty of the
payoff, families need to do a harder-nosed evaluation when determining which college is
right for their child. When you compare the best private and public undergraduate
programs, says Vedder, you'll find that private schools rarely confer an unbeatable
advantage.
If a student is considering engineering, for example, Cooper Union (where tuition is free
to all) and the University of California at Berkeley have top-ranked programs. For
economics, the University of Texas-Austin, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and
UCLA are highly regarded.
There are, of course, situations where the expensive degree may trump the less costly
alternative. Maybe Deluxe U. offers the most comprehensive courses in astrophysics or
Korean literature. Perhaps a dream employer routinely recruits there and not at other
schools. Or perhaps your child simply falls in love with the storied tree-lined campus and
fieldstone halls.
Then you'll face some tough decisions. Just keep this in mind if opting for Deluxe U. will
force your family to borrow heavily: After decades of steady increases, the median salary
for workers with a bachelor's degree fell 4.6% from 2001 to 2006. (College grads still
earn far more than workers with only a high school diploma, though, as the chart on page
1 shows.)
Meanwhile, salaries rose 4.3% for workers with professional degrees and shot up 9.4%
for those with doctorates. So you don't want the debt from getting that B.A. to make grad
school unaffordable.
Mind you, some borrowing can actually be a good thing, giving students a built-in
investment in their education. But today many kids leave school with unprecedented
amounts of debt - $20,000 on average, up from $9,000 a decade ago - and one in 10
private college students borrows over $40,000.
Moreover, that figure doesn't include parent loans, home-equity loans and credit-card
debt. "It remains to be seen whether this kind of borrowing is economically sound or just
a form of faith-based financing," says Barmak Nassirian, associate executive director of
the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers.
One chilling sign: Among students who graduate from four-year schools with more than
$15,000 in debt, the default rate is nearly 20%.
As a rule of thumb, financial advisers recommend that student-loan payments not exceed
10% of a young adult's starting salary. At New York University, for example, about 60%
of last year's graduates had loans, which averaged a hefty $34,000.
If they took out the maximum in federal loans and made up the difference with private
loans, the typical borrower would owe about $460 a month, which is considered
affordable if you earn at least $55,000.
That may be no problem for chemical engineers, with an average starting salary of
$63,000, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers. But the
typical liberal arts major earns just $33,000, which would make those payments a real
challenge.
Of course, for most families, choosing a college is not simply a financial decision; it's a
highly personal one as well. Yes, you have to think about what kind of career that degree
will lead to.
College, though, is also about forging lifelong friendships, being challenged by
professors and students and sharing traditions - all of which are impossible to quantify.
Still, there's no reason to overpay for the experience. From a purely economic point of
view, the best advice might be this: Save your money; you'll need it for graduate school.
http://chronicle.com/daily/2008/08/4281n.htm
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
A Peek Into the Mind of the Average College Freshman
By DON TROOP
Yes, professor, you really are getting old. Just take a look at the members of this year's freshman class.
Assuming the students in that class were born in 1990, they would have been conceived about the same time
as the World Wide Web, taken their first steps as Clarence Thomas took the Supreme Court oath, and had
their entire lives to angle for a gig with Teach for America. And the Warsaw Pact— what's that?
Each August, Beloit College publishes its Mind-Set List to help professors and administrators understand
the average incoming freshman's frame of reference by describing how things have "always been," or at
least how they've been for the past 18 years.
The two men who compile the list—Tom McBride, a professor of English, and Ron Nief, director of public
affairs—note that while many things have changed since the Class of 2012 was born, some things seem
remarkably similar to the world as it was in 1990: "Rising fuel costs were causing airlines to cut staff and
flight schedules; Big 3 car companies were facing declining sales and profits; and a president named Bush
was increasing the number of troops in the Middle East in the hopes of securing peace."
The Beloit College Mind-Set List
For these students, Sammy Davis Jr., Jim Henson, Ryan White, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Freddy Krueger
have always been dead.
1. Harry Potter could be a classmate, playing on their Quidditch team.
2. Since they were in diapers, karaoke machines have been annoying people at parties.
3. They have always been looking for Carmen Sandiego.
4. GPS satellite navigation systems have always been available.
5. Coke and Pepsi have always used recycled plastic bottles.
6. Shampoo and conditioner have always been available in the same bottle.
7. Gas stations have never fixed flats, but most serve cappuccino.
8. The students' parents may have dropped them in shock when they heard George Bush announce "taxrevenue increases."
9. Electronic filing of tax returns has always been an option.
10. Girls in head scarves have always been part of the school fashion scene.
11. All have had a relative—or known about a friend's relative—who died comfortably at home with
hospice.
12. As a precursor to "whatever," they have recognized that some people "just don't get it."
13. Universal Studios has always offered an alternative to Mickey in Orlando, Fla.
14. Grandma has always had wheels on her walker.
15. Martha Stewart Living has always been setting the style.
16. Häagen-Dazs ice cream has always come in quarts.
17. Club Med resorts have always been places to take the whole family.
18. WWW has never stood for World Wide Wrestling.
19. Films have never been X rated, only NC-17.
20. The Warsaw Pact is as hazy for them as the League of Nations was for their parents.
21. Students have always been "Rocking the Vote."
22. Clarence Thomas has always sat on the Supreme Court.
23. Schools have always been concerned about multiculturalism.
24. We have always known that "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten."
25. There have always been gay rabbis.
26. Wayne Newton has never had a mustache.
27. College grads have always been able to Teach for America.
28. IBM has never made typewriters.
29. Roseanne Barr has never been invited to sing the national anthem again.
30. McDonald's and Burger King have always used vegetable oil for cooking french fries.
31. The students have never been able to color a tree using a raw-umber Crayola.
32. There has always been Pearl Jam.
33. The Tonight Show has always had Jay Leno as its host and started at 11:35 p.m. Eastern time.
34. Pee-wee has never been in his playhouse during the day.
35. They never tasted Benefit cereal with psyllium.
36. They may have been given a Nintendo Game Boy to play with in the crib.
37. Authorities have always been building a wall along the Mexican border.
38. Lenin's name has never been on a major city in Russia.
39. Employers have always been able to do credit checks on employees.
40. Balsamic vinegar has always been available in the United States.
41. Macaulay Culkin has always been Home Alone.
42. The students' parents may have watched American Gladiators on TV the day they were born.
43. Personal privacy has always been threatened.
44. Caller ID has always been available on phones.
45. Living wills have always been asked for at hospital check-ins.
46. The Green Bay Packers (almost) always had the same starting quarterback.
47. The students have never heard a gasoline-station attendant ask, "Want me to check under the hood?"
48. Iced tea has always come in cans and bottles.
49. Soft-drink refills have always been free.
50. The students have never known life without Seinfeld references from a show about "nothing."
51. Windows operating systems have always made IBM PC's user-friendly.
52. Muscovites have always been able to buy Big Macs.
53. The Royal New Zealand Navy has never been permitted a daily ration of rum.
54. The Hubble Space Telescope has always been eavesdropping on the heavens.
55. 98.6 degrees F, or otherwise, has always been confirmed in the ear.
56. Michael Milken has always been a philanthropist promoting prostate-cancer research.
57. Off-shore oil drilling in U.S. waters has always been prohibited.
58. Radio stations have never been required to present both sides of public issues.
59. There have always been charter schools.
60. Students always had Goosebumps.
Copyright © 2008 by The Chronicle of Higher Education
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MSNBC.com
Half of college students consider suicide
Survey finds widespread problem demands new approach to treatment
MSNBC and NBC News
updated 5:33 p.m. CT, Mon., Aug. 18, 2008
AUSTIN, Texas - More than half of American college students have considered suicide at some points in their lives,
a new survey reveals.
The survey, results of which were presented Sunday at the annual convention of the American Psychological
Association in Boston, adds to the growing body of evidence that the prevalence of suicidal thoughts is far more
widespread among America’s college students than it is among the population in general. By contrast, only 15.3
percent of Americans overall have had such thoughts, the World Health Organization’s World Mental Health Survey
Initiative reported in February.
The survey, part of a wider-ranging continuing study on student suicidal behaviors being conducted by David
Drum, a professor of education psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, questioned 26,000 undergraduate
and graduate students at 70 U.S. institutions. The results raise the startling suggestion that suicidal thoughts
could be a common experience on par with substance abuse, depression and eating disorders, Drum said.
The survey defined considering suicide as having at least one episode of suicidal thinking at some point. Slightly
more than half of students said they fit that category, which is known as suicide ideation. When researchers asked
about more serious episodes, 15 percent said they had “seriously considered” attempting suicide.
5 percent try to kill themselves
More than 5 percent of students said they had actually attempted suicide, which is the second-leading cause of
death for college students, compared to its ranking of ninth among the U.S. population at large, according to the
National Alliance on Mental Health.
“Relief from emotional or physical pain” was the top reason students cited for suicidal thinking, followed by
problems with romantic relationships. A generalized desire to end their lives was next, followed by problems with
school or academics.
The study extrapolated that at an average college with 18,000 undergraduate students, 1,080 of them would
seriously contemplate taking their lives in any year, numbers that pose troubling issues for college administrators.
The survey identified growing levels of distress among college students and diminishing resources to handle the
consequences. They found that half of students who had had suicidal thoughts never sought counseling or
treatment.
“We know only a quarter of suicide patients are our clients, which means 75 percent of them never come through
our doors,” said Chris Brownson, director of the Counseling and Mental Health Center at the University of Texas.
Drum and other researchers said colleges needed a new model, shifting the emphasis from narrowly focused
treatments involving suicidal students and a small number of mental health professionals, to one that involved the
entire campus in addressing student stresses.
“Suicide is a public mental health issue,” Brownson said. “We need to focus on prevention, building resilience in
students and creating communities.”
Study: Cost often not factor when picking
college
By CANDICE CHOI – 8/20/08
NEW YORK (AP) — Even if a student plans on a major where the financial rewards
aren't so obvious, such as art history or philosophy, most American families don't factor
in their child's expected earning power when considering the potential debt load for
college.
That's according to a study released Wednesday by student lender Sallie Mae, which also
found 40 percent of families don't limit their search for a school based on the total
expense.
"When you think about how we make decisions for cars and mortgages, and how we
eliminate options based on cost, that's not necessarily the case for college," said Tom
Joyce, senior vice president of Sallie Mae.
The study also found that lower-income families use more grants and scholarships, while
middle-income families rely slightly more heavily on borrowing, and more affluent
families tap more savings and income.
Lower-income families were defined as households earning between $35,000 and
$50,000. Middle-income families were defined as households earning $50,000 to
$100,000 a year. Higher-income families were defined as earning more than $100,000.
Picking a school is "very much an emotional decision," but families still need to weigh
the financial impact of their choices, said Fredrick Adkins, a certified financial planner
and president of The Arkansas Financial Group Inc., based in Little Rock, Ark.
"At some point, if it's going to totally put a family's finances in jeopardy, rationality
needs to factor in," he said.
The study by Sallie Mae, formally SLM Corp., was based on telephone interviews with
1,400 parents and undergraduates enrolled in the 2007-08 academic year.
The study found there was no average funding formula used by families. For example,
while middle-class families relied most heavily on borrowing for total costs, some 53
percent of families did not borrow at all.
The higher borrowing by some middle-class families may be a result of their reaching to
pay for pricier schools. Despite their moderate incomes, middle-class students reported
attending private four-year universities at nearly the same rate as more affluent students
(20 percent, compared to 22 percent).
On average, parents footed nearly half the cost of tuition, paying for 32 percent with
current income and savings, and borrowing for another 16 percent. Students paid for a
third of costs through borrowing, income and savings.
Scholarships and grants covered 15 percent, according to the study.
Other advantageous options for paying for college — such as 529 college savings funds
— are not being widely used; only 9 percent of families reported using the tax-free
accounts. But of those who did, the average amount was $7,964, the highest source of
any personal contribution.
Universities turn to Web to recruit new generation
By Sherry Saavedra
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
August 19, 2008
Gone are the days when universities courted prospective students solely through college fairs, direct mail
campaigns and high school visits.
Today, Point Loma Nazarene University posts promotional videos on YouTube. Alliant International University
is advertising on Facebook and preparing podcasts for iTunes. One department chair at National University is
about to start blogging on at least a dozen social and business networking sites.
Looking to gain an edge in the college admissions game, a growing number of universities are using interactive
online social media in their quest for top applicants, whether it's social networking sites, podcasts, message
boards or online video.
“They don't have a choice. It's really that simple,” said Nora Ganim Barnes, director for the Center for Marketing
Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, who recently conducted a study that found use of social
media by marketing teams at higher education institutions outpaced Fortune 500 companies. “You've got to go
where your audience is, and for people in the age group they're targeting, life exists online. Schools that don't
have an online presence in social media are going to be sidelined.”
In Ganim Barnes' nationwide study, 33 percent of 453 university admissions departments surveyed said they
blogged for recruitment purposes, and 29 percent used social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace.
Fifty-one percent viewed social media as very important to their marketing and recruitment strategy.
“I think it's smart,” said Greg Zweig, a prospective student in Pacific Beach who contacted the head of San Diego
State University's sports MBA program after spotting the director's page on Facebook. “I don't really check my
mail that often except when I know bills are coming, and I throw brochures away, but I check Facebook two,
three times a day.”
According to annual surveys by the National Association for College Admission Counseling, nearly 29 percent of
colleges use blogs as a recruitment tool, while the percentage of colleges using online chat rooms jumped from 12
percent in 2002 to nearly 35 percent in 2006.
“That type of recruiting has taken a great leap forward on the Web,” said David Hawkins, the association's
director of public policy and research. “It gives colleges an edge and keeps them relevant. If colleges don't engage
in this medium they simply risk missing a lot of students.”
Alliant International University recently launched its first Facebook ad for its Center for Forensic Studies, which
will debut at the system's flagship campus in San Diego this fall. The ad targets Facebook users with bachelor's
degrees in psychology who watch the show “Criminal Minds.” Facebook users typically include personal
information in their profiles, such as education and favorite TV shows. This enables advertisers like Alliant to
hone their ads toward a carefully hand-picked population.
In this case, users were asked to take an online quiz to find out how much they knew about serial killers. The
answer page gave them the option of joining the forensic program's Facebook group or linking to the program's
home page.
Close to 5,000 people took the quiz, and nearly 500 have landed on the how-to-apply page for the department.
“We were just amazed at how well this worked – beyond our wildest dreams,” Alliant spokeswoman Nicolette
Toussaint said. “It's been the single best performing ad campaign in the history of Alliant.”
Gracia Bone, systemwide director of marketing and media relations for Alliant's forensic program, said 80
percent of her budget today is spent on online marketing because it is the most effective recruitment method.
“If I were to advertise in a major magazine with a general audience we just wouldn't get this return,” Bone said.
However, Bob Bontrager, director of consulting for the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and
Admissions Officers, said there's a danger in allocating too many resources to online social media, especially if it
supplants other, more basic recruitment tools with proven effectiveness.
“I've seen cases where institutions devoted scarce resources to a blog while their main Web site was subpar,” he
said. “In that kind of situation they would have been better off not diverting their resources to the new whizbang technology.”
Other industry experts say schools have a long way to go in perfecting their use of online social media.
However, Joan Van Tassel, a department chair in National University's School of Media and Communication,
said she spent months researching social and business networking sites, including Twitter and Plaxo, where it
would make sense to start blogs as part of a pilot program.
“Web 2.0 offers opportunity for a conversation,” Van Tassel said. “I'm not just sending somebody a flier and
saying, 'You figure it out.' ”
In addition to its two YouTube admissions videos, which have generated well more than 1,000 hits each, Point
Loma Nazarene is preparing to open a Facebook account and hire students to write campus-life blogs for the
admissions office.
“We feel we need to jump on board because a lot of our competitors are doing the same,” said Chip
Killingsworth, director of undergraduate admissions.
Scott Minto, director of SDSU's sports MBA program, advertises on Facebook and set up a page with photo
albums, program updates and a link to a student-run blog. When students inquire about the MBA program, he'll
befriend them on Facebook and review their profiles.
“It gives me an entrée into a much fuller way of knowing who they are,” Minto said. “I can see what their
background is, where they're located, what they studied in college, what their interests are. I can see if they're
avid sports fans who might be a good fit for my program.”
Steven Price, a North Carolina resident, said connecting with Minto and a student on Facebook and seeing
pictures of the program inspired him to attend a recent program open house.
“I saw pictures of students doing things I'm interested in – working with the San Diego Padres, different
basketball games and the Torrey Pines PGA Tour deal,” Price said. “It's expensive for me to travel, and without
having that Facebook connection to make it more real for me it would have been tough.”
http://chronicle.com/jobs/news/2008/08/2008081901c.htm
HEADS UP
Keep Your Emeriti Close
How can deans and chairs find appropriate ways to involve retired professors in the life of the
college?
By GARY A. OLSON
An education dean asked my advice recently about how to "handle" retired professors. I was astonished to
learn that she, and apparently some of the department heads at her institution, viewed emeritus faculty
members as a nuisance.
"They're like the proverbial bad penny," she told me. "They keep coming back around, and they interfere in
departmental business as if they still worked here full time."
She assumed that, since I am a dean, I would share her view, and she hoped I had some remedy. When I
explained that my college makes a special effort to embrace our emeritus faculty members and to involve
them in the life of the college, she was incredulous.
Former faculty members are a storehouse of historical and procedural knowledge about their departments,
colleges, and universities; they often remain active in their disciplines after retirement; many are eager to
continue participating in the life of the university; and they often give back to the institution in substantive
ways. An institution impoverishes itself when it fails to tap into that wealth of experience.
In fact, keeping your retired professors close can have substantial payoffs. (While some institutions reserve
the title of emeritus for a distinguished subset of retirees, other universities, such as my own, use the term to
refer to all retired faculty members.)
Many academic departments find ways to accommodate their retirees — by extending departmental mail
privileges, setting aside a shared office on the campus, asking them to deliver public lectures or speak to
student groups. Many science departments allow active researchers to maintain their laboratories and
continue their work well into retirement.
Some colleges publish a regular newsletter for retirees focusing on their recent accomplishments (I like to
joke that our retired professors seem more productive than our regular faculty members, but, in some cases,
that's not far from the truth).
One department chairman I know has been especially successful in making retired faculty members feel like
they still belong to the department. He invites them to all departmental events, often asking them to serve as
guest speakers. Each year he holds a picnic at his home for former faculty members. The provost and dean
typically attend as well — a nice way of showing that the top leaders haven't forgotten those faculty
members. The event allows retirees to reconnect with one another and the institution.
When a faculty member is about to retire, that same chairman organizes a daylong conference in the retiree's
honor. Scholars from the department and from across the country present papers and posters on subjects
related to the retiree's area of research. The chairman himself takes photographs throughout the day and
assembles an album for the honoree that includes both the photos and texts of the papers. What a fitting
tribute to a scholar at the end of a long academic career.
That chairman's efforts have paid off in significant ways for his department. It enjoys an unusually strong
sense of community across generations, and many of its emeritus professors have made substantial
donations to the department to support student scholarships and a lecture series. Others have given back to
the institution by offering to teach courses without compensation.
One way to recognize outstanding emeritus professors and involve them productively in the department or
college is to create an emeritus-faculty advisory board.
Four years ago, my college created a board composed of 28 former faculty members that was intended to
enhance the relationship between the college and its retirees for the benefit of both. The board "provides the
dean with input on current college initiatives; helps narrate the institutional history of the university,
particularly the history of the college; and assists in the development of new initiatives for enhancing the
retirement experiences of all emeriti faculty."
The board is far from simply a feel-good social group. Its members have led important programs and served
as stalwart advocates for their fellow retirees. For example, using college money, the board created a grant
program to help pay for students' attendance at professional conferences. In its role as advocate, the board
urged the college to intercede on behalf of retirees to persuade the library administration to grant full faculty
privileges to emeritus professors rather than, as had been the case, the equivalent of student privileges. The
policy was changed.
Because the board members are actively involved in the life of the college, their dedication to the university
runs deep. Many board members have made financial donations to the college, including in one case a
sizable estate gift.
Institutions can involve emeritus professors in a number of other ways. Each year my college considers
retired faculty members for potential induction into our Hall of Fame — an honorary society composed
mostly of distinguished alumni.
When I recently informed a retiree that she would be inducted into our college's Hall of Fame, she became
teary-eyed and said, "I was among the first women admitted to the professoriate, and every day was a
struggle for me and for other women like me around the country. Now, after all those decades, I feel
validated, appreciated."
Her commitment to the institution is solid but tempered by a history of lack of recognition. Inducting her
into the Hall of Fame crystallized her commitment by helping her realize that despite the challenges she
faced as a woman in a male-dominated academic world, the institution values her and her many
contributions to its intellectual life.
Every year my college sponsors a luncheon for retired faculty members at which the guests hear updates
about the college and have the opportunity to socialize. It typically draws about 200 people and is among
the most popular events we sponsor.
Certainly, the dean who asked for advice on "handling" her retired faculty members had a point: Some
professors do interfere in departmental business long after they retire, attempting to exercise control over
policies and practices in which they no longer have a stake. As a dean, you need to deal with those folks on
an individual basis.
But in my experience, the vast majority of emeritus professors genuinely wish to remain involved in
appropriate and productive ways. I, for one, intend to keep them close.
Gary A. Olson is dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Illinois State University and can be contacted
at [email protected]. To read his previous columns, see
http://chronicle.com/jobs/news/archives/columns/heads_up
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