This topic thread opened up with a link to Dr. Witt's comments. Dr. Witt said "The University of Alabama is a university in transition, and the end point of that transition is recognition as one of the leading public universities in the country." Based on a few of the replies I've read, I'm not sure some read his remarks in full. To have a better idea where the University is headed it would also help to review the Campus Master Plan. Opinions in developing that plan are solicited from everyone. There is a link on the site for students, faculty, staff, alumni, or any concerned party to offer their input. The primary goal of the strategic plan is to "Return the campus to its first principles of organization, planning and design while responding to new needs and demands: Creating an Academic Village, Pedestrian acessibility, and to create prominent outdoor spaces to support student life."
I am not questioning anyone's love for the University. I believe some of the comments posted here are sincere, but some are sincerely wrong.
Biglittlelittle, you asked for a different perspective. I will offer you one and I will base mine on the facts.
You said the growth would be okay if it were a 10 year plan and not a 3-5 year plan. The fact is it is a 10 year plan and we are in the third year of that 10 plan. The goal is a modest and resonable 4% increase over the 10 years to put the enrollment at 28,000 in 2012.
You said you run into as many people with 17 ACT's and 2.5 high school gpa's as you do with those who have the top end ACT scores. You must be wandering around somewhere off campus because it will require a 20 on the ACT for this year's incoming freshmen. You can call undergraduate admissions in the morning to confirm that fact. Yes, there are some exceptions but the 18's and 19's with the 2.5 gpa's start in summer school on a fast-start program before being fully admitted in the fall. Since Dr. Witt implemented his plan three years ago, the average ACT scores have gone up with every incoming freshmen class. The requirements to be admitted have also gone up every year. This fall's incoming freshmen class will have the highest average gpa of any previous incoming freshmen class. As of last Friday there will be a total of 187 National Merit Finalist and National Hispanic Scholars -and that total could pass 200 this fall. The number of students enrolled into Honors College will also be a record. This year's incoming freshmen class will be the largest ever and it will be come with the highest academic qualifications.
You said the University intentionally inflated the enrollment numbers to over 21,000 for the sake of rankings but the actual number was closer to 20,000. I am tempted to ask how you were able to personally determine and verify that count. The fact is that the University is required to report their actual enrollment numbers to the state each October. That actual number escapes me right now but I believe it was close to 21,725 last fall.
You expressed concerns about the professor to student ratio. Those are legitimate concerns and Dr. Witt is committed to maintaining the existing low ratio. Of the public universities in the south (ACC and SEC) the University of Alabama ranks number three -only behind UVA and UNC in professor to student ratio. When Dr. Witt arrived on campus he conducted a study that determined our classroom facilities were dramatically under utilized. He realized we could eaily increase enrollment and promised the faculty they would be compensated for the increased enrollment. He has delivered on that promise. He has also promised additional faculty would be hired to maintain our professor to student ratio and he is delivering on that promise by hiring new professors.
You said you wanted to maintain that small school "feel" and that we are losing it. Feelings are subjective and each of us feel things differently. I would never criticize your feelings, but I will share those of some of your classmates. This last weekend Nickless Devin was one of the students who spoke to the annual Denny Society meeting. Devin is a mechanical engineering senior from a small Texas town of 2,000. He had many scholarship offers coming out of high school and was on the way to investigate Ga Tech when he stopped in Tuscaloosa along the way. Out of curiousity he visited the University of Alabama. He never made it to Ga Tech. He will tell you of all the schools he visited that the University of Alabama was the one that had the small school feel and felt like a place he could belong. Nickless also served as a Capstone Man for three years and conducted countless campus tours for visitors and prospective students. The number one comment by visitors is that we have beautiful campus with a sense of community that is different from most other schools. Surveys of students who enroll and graduate from the University always list the sense of community as one of the most important features of the campus. If you read and understand the complete Campus Master Plan, I think most will see that is a primary goal of the plan. The core of the campus will become pedestrian and bikes only. Concrete will be replaced with green belts. The original campus was not designed to have automobiles or parking problems so they will be greatly reduced and eliminated in some places. Trollies will run 20-22 hours a day into the core of the campus and eliminate most of the traffic congestion problems. Academic villages for each college will make it possible for students to walk to their classes. You mentioned that "students will be taking buses from classes to classes". That will not be the case. I seriously doubt you are driving your car from class to class now.
You mentioned that one of your professors implied that to be a top 15 research university would detract from being a great teaching institution. I disagree. Being a great research institution brings in money in the form of grants, top professors to participate in the research, and top students to learn in that environment. Dr. Witt has brought in Dr. Keith McDowell whose job is to develop research money for the University. He has been very successful and so have our professors. Dr. Robin Rogers from our school of chemistry is doing some very exciting and profitable work in the area of ionic liquids in the green chemistry field. Recently the chemical giant BASF bought the rights to that research with a contract that could provide the University over $200 million dollars in the next few years. The University of Indiana developed Crest toothpaste and is still receiving millions every year from thqat discovery. In addition to his research Dr. Rogers is one of our most passionate educators on campus.
Lowend, You mentioned that you were offered a Presidential Scholarship to attend the University of Alabama coming out of high school. Congratulations, and I mean that sincerely since I know what you had to do to earn that opportunity. I serve on a number of scholarship committees and boards and yours was a top tier scholarship opportunity. Let me ask a few questions for you to answer to yourself. You said YOU decided on your own free will to turn down that scholarship, is that correct? You chose to go elsewhere, didn't you? I respect that choice for whatever reasons you made it. When you transferred back to Alabama you complained that you got no financial aid. Did you expect the University to hold that scholarship money for you, or pass it on to someone else who earned, desired and needed it? You act as if scholarship money is an entitlement but it is not. It was offered to you as a gift but you declined to accept it, didn't you? Did you decide to transfer back to Alabama on your own free will from the B'ham school where you wish you could get your diploma now? Were you forced to transfer to Alabama? You have announced that the University Alumni will not get any of your donations. That is certainly your choice. I firmly believe that they that develop the resources should have the right to distribute them however they chose to do so. But do you know what the Alumni Association does with their money? They offer it to students in the form of scholarships, scholarship money that YOU declined to accept.....and you blame the alumni for your choice. For the record the University of Alabama Alumni offered and distributed a record amount of scholarship money last year. It was more than any other Alumni Association in the country. They have been #1 in that category for 9 of the last 10 years.
CT you mentioned that a few of your professors have seen a reduction of the average quality of incoming students. I don't doubt they said that but the enrollment facts dispute that claim. I know a number of our professors and call many friends, but most professors find it very easy to complain They especially dislike change. Some would find it very difficult to exist outside the academic world. I was having coffee with one of our long time professors from the business school one day when the discussion turned to a subject before the faculty senate. I asked the professor if she had ever considered serving in the senate. Her response was classic, "Are you kidding? They are all a bunch of crazies with their own personal agendas and looking for a platform. No body in their right mind would want to get involved in that mess." I am certainly not saying that all outspoken professors are "crazies" or are wrong in their comments, but I have learned that many have their own personal agenda when they speak out.
The Riverside and Lakeside resident halls were built outside the core of the campus but close enough for those students to walk to their classes. The peaceful lake (Palmer Lake) which you referred to was a cesspool of drainage from the entire campus. It will be cleaned and enlarged and the new lake will support marine life. The biology department will study both plant and marine life in the new much cleaner lake. Unfortunately your walking view of the lake will be somewhat restricted by the new dining hall that will sit next to the lake. The lower level of the dining hall will have a large terrace that sits out on the lake. When the old dorms (Palmer, Sommerville, Paty and the others) are taken down there will be a large green Quad like area around the lake. Some of those dorms will start coming down in the next two weeks. Yes, there will be some new dorms built in the area but there will be significantly more green space in the area between Rose and the core campus. Dr. Witt will not "rip away campus beauty by adding cement sidewalks". The exact opposite will occur when the Master Plan is implemented. Less cars, less traffic, fewer streets but more walkers, more bicycles, more green areas, more trees should all add up to make the campus even more beautiful.
Yes, The University of Alabama is growing but it is growing towards the worthy goals that Dr. Witt has set for our University. As he mentioned in his opening remarks of the linked article, we are in a period of transition. Change does disrupt some things. We may not all agree what are the best changes, but change is essential for growth and development. Does anybody remember the seating capacity of Bryant Denny Stadium when it was originally built? Seems like it was 29,000 or so. But the game of football has grown and changed. The players are faster and bigger. They wear different pads, equipment and helmets. The MDB uniforms and the music the band plays is different. The cheerleaders wear totally different uniforms. This fall when the expanded new stadium opens there will be a record number of fans in the stadium. Having the new end zone expansion will create a new exciting atmosphere at BDS. The growth of the University over the next few years will bring the same result. If any of us had been a student at the University in '29 and a spectator in the stands of that first game, none of us could have possibly imagined the growth of the University and BDS in less than a century.
Change is inevitable. It is coming to the University whether we prepare for it or not. We should be thankful we have a visionary leader like Dr. Bob Witt who has a strategic plan for our growth. Simply put, I think he will make the University a better place....and I think Mike Shula will do the same thing for the football team! I think our best days are ahead of us.
