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May 14, 2008
Wow, what a year! In an attempt to synthesize and give “parting shots,” as it were, we at The Journal have a few suggestions for the next school year.
Serving Students
We understand that the University is in a budget crunch, that state funds are not always forthcoming, and that rising tuition will always be a reality. However, some costs are really exorbitant and downright ridiculous. Why are visitors being charged money to park on campus during Sangamon Auditorium shows? Are we really that tacky? Or how about charging students to work in the form of course fees for AST internships? And what happens to all that extra meal plan money at the end of the semester? How come students can’t receive a refund for not using all of their food money?
Disability Services
Listen, it is no longer a secret that something is wrong with ODS. The worst thing that can be done is to keep trying to convince everyone that everything is “A-OK.” Here’s a suggestion with which to start: try apologizing. We know it’s a novel concept. However, the administration is not fooling anyone by calling investigations from Champaign “visits,” as if they are only here for tea and crackers. Also, don’t think that this issue is going to simply “blow over” during the summer, especially as more people come forward and new information comes to light.
Sexual Assault
Sexual assault on college campuses is nothing new, and, likewise, it is not necessary to “reinvent the wheel” to find ways to curb such assaults. In fact, that goes for many of the problems facing UIS-- it always seems that problems are being “examined” and “discussed,” as if this is the only university in the nation that has been confronted with such issues.
Sexual assault is indicative of a much larger societal problem that can’t be addressed simply by putting more campus police on the street or issuing campus “alerts” to tell everyone that “everything’s still safe!” A little money spent on reinvigorating sexual assault and gender violence education could go a long way to addressing these issues and at least make it seem like the University is genuinely concerned about such issues, instead of just paying lip-service.
Faculty and Staff
The Campus Senate is pushing for more faculty involvement in student affairs and administration. This should be welcomed by the administration. However, faculty and staff members that become more involved must be prepared to take their share of the blame when things go awry. From instances of improper involvement in student elections to a general failure to organize and unionize effectively, the faculty is by no means “beyond reproach.” However, such a diverse group of learned individuals, if they were to become more cohesive, could be exactly what this university needs and could go a long way to helping UIS through some of it’s current obstacles.
It has come to be that many people at UIS consider any dissenting voice or critical eye to be “UIS bashing.” This is truly a sad state for a campus climate, when criticism is not taken seriously and is even downright discouraged.
Sure UIS has a lot of problems, but between the students, the faculty, and the example set by similar institutions, it also has the resources to solve these problems. Let’s hope that during the next school year, we can finally get what we need-- a little less talk and a lot more real and honest solutions.
