Rutgers Plans Sweeping Changes
Tradition of admitting undergrads into individual colleges would end
Friday, July 15, 2005
BY KELLY HEYBOER AND SOFIA KOSMETATOS
Star-Ledger Staff
Rutgers University is considering scrapping its decades-old system of admitting undergraduates into individual colleges and replacing it with a more streamlined method that is already drawing the ire of alumni.
Under a plan to be unveiled Monday, students on the state university's New Brunswick/Piscataway campus will stop applying to Cook, Douglass, Livingston and Rutgers colleges. Instead, undergraduates will apply to a newly created Rutgers College of Arts and Sciences.
The old colleges -- including Douglass, the nation's largest public women's college -- will be stripped of much of their academic power and reduced to residential campuses. The proposal calls for renaming the colleges Cook Campus, Douglass Campus, Livingston Campus and Old Queens Campus.
The reorganization, which must be approved by the state university's board of governors, will help improve education for the campus' 26,000 undergraduates, said Barry Qualls, a veteran English professor who led a task force that came up with the plan.
Eliminating the colleges would simplify a system many students and faculty find confusing and archaic, Qualls said. Though Rutgers students can take classes on any campus, each college currently has its own academic requirements and procedures.
"It looks like a maze. It's a Byzantine structure," Qualls said. "We're trying to clarify the Rutgers organization."
The proposal -- which could be in place for students applying for fall 2007 admission -- would be the most sweeping changes to Rutgers academics since the faculty and academic departments at the New Brunswick and Piscataway colleges were consolidated in the early 1980s. It would further simplify the system but is not designed to save money, said Rutgers President Richard McCormick.
"Efficiency is important, but educational quality is more important," McCormick said.
Rutgers alumni are already mobilizing to fight the plan.
Yesterday, Douglass College alumnae launched a Web site (www.savedouglasscollege.org) and a letter-writing campaign to keep one of the nation's few remaining all-female public colleges from being reduced to Douglass Campus.
"The elimination of Douglass College is not acceptable," said Rachel Ingber, executive director of the Associate Alumnae of Douglass College. "There is absolutely no correlation between a campus and a college. A campus is merely a space of land."
Student reaction was mixed on whether the changes would help unify the university or strip Rutgers of much of its historic character.
"It's good in a way, because then everyone can say they're from Rutgers University," said Amy Paz, a Livingston College senior working in a cafe in the student center.
But other students were adamant about keeping the college system.
"I don't want to lose Douglass," said Leah Peticolas, a junior from the women's college. "One of the cool things about Rutgers University as a whole is that it is a few different colleges in one."
Cook College senior Robert Tupe said many Rutgers students consider their colleges part of their identity.
"That's what it comes down to," Tupe said. "It's just pride. Pride for your campus."
NEW PROCEDURE
Under the current system, students must choose which colleges they want to apply to when they fill out a Rutgers application.
"Our colleges compete with each other for students," said Philip Furmanski, Rutgers' executive vice president for academic affairs.
Rutgers College is traditionally the most difficult to get into, while Livingston, the newest college, is considered the easiest. Douglass emphasizes women's leadership and Cook is a land-grant college with an environmental focus.
Under the new system, undergraduates would apply to the Rutgers College of Arts and Sciences. Then, they would be allowed to chose whether they want to live in the dorms at Cook, Douglass, Livingston or Old Queens (the proposed new name for the College Avenue campus in Rutgers' historic center).
Instead of being affiliated with one college for four years, students would probably be permitted to move from residential campus to residential campus each year based on their interests, Rutgers officials said.
The proposal calls for each college to keep its dean. Students will be asked to decide later if Cook, Douglass, Rutgers and Livingston should keep their individual student governments or combine into one large body, Rutgers officials said.
Busch, a Rutgers campus in Piscataway, will remain intact under the proposal. Though Busch is not currently a college, the task force recommends giving the campus its own dean and staff so it is on par with the other campuses after the reorganization, school officials said.
Rutgers officials expect to discuss the plan with the campus community over the next six months before a final decision is made by the Rutgers board of governors.
In other business, the board met yesterday to raise base tuition 8 percent, from $6,793 to $7,336 a year for in-state undergraduates. The board also raised mandatory student fees and room and board charges.
Under the new plan, a typical Rutgers College student living on campus will pay a total of $17,799 next year. That includes tuition, $1,885 in mandatory student fees and $8,578 for room, board and related charges.
The board also approved an additional $1.55 million in student financial aid to help students cover the hikes.
"Rutgers is committed to providing a quality education for New Jersey's top high school graduates that is both accessible and affordable," said Al Gamper, chairman of the board of governors.
"The tuition and fees that the board has approved today, along with the university's improved financial aid offerings, will allow Rutgers to continue meeting these important goals," he added.
Kelly Heyboer covers higher education. She can be reached at kheyboer@starledger.com or (973) 392-5929.
Source: http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1121403568187000.xml&coll=1
Let me be the first to say: I used to take a "wait and see" attitude about McCormick's policies, but I think I've come to my senses.
"Our colleges compete with each other for students," said Philip Furmanski, Rutgers' executive vice president for academic affairs.
Is that really such a bad thing? One would think that the competition would encourage them to create the best quality environment for the students. (Or perhaps I'm stuck in ideal world again.)
Nobody I know is particularly fond of this idea, and I fully intend on writing letters expressing that sentiment to the BoG.
Friday, July 15, 2005
BY KELLY HEYBOER AND SOFIA KOSMETATOS
Star-Ledger Staff
Rutgers University is considering scrapping its decades-old system of admitting undergraduates into individual colleges and replacing it with a more streamlined method that is already drawing the ire of alumni.
Under a plan to be unveiled Monday, students on the state university's New Brunswick/Piscataway campus will stop applying to Cook, Douglass, Livingston and Rutgers colleges. Instead, undergraduates will apply to a newly created Rutgers College of Arts and Sciences.
The old colleges -- including Douglass, the nation's largest public women's college -- will be stripped of much of their academic power and reduced to residential campuses. The proposal calls for renaming the colleges Cook Campus, Douglass Campus, Livingston Campus and Old Queens Campus.
The reorganization, which must be approved by the state university's board of governors, will help improve education for the campus' 26,000 undergraduates, said Barry Qualls, a veteran English professor who led a task force that came up with the plan.
Eliminating the colleges would simplify a system many students and faculty find confusing and archaic, Qualls said. Though Rutgers students can take classes on any campus, each college currently has its own academic requirements and procedures.
"It looks like a maze. It's a Byzantine structure," Qualls said. "We're trying to clarify the Rutgers organization."
The proposal -- which could be in place for students applying for fall 2007 admission -- would be the most sweeping changes to Rutgers academics since the faculty and academic departments at the New Brunswick and Piscataway colleges were consolidated in the early 1980s. It would further simplify the system but is not designed to save money, said Rutgers President Richard McCormick.
"Efficiency is important, but educational quality is more important," McCormick said.
Rutgers alumni are already mobilizing to fight the plan.
Yesterday, Douglass College alumnae launched a Web site (www.savedouglasscollege.org) and a letter-writing campaign to keep one of the nation's few remaining all-female public colleges from being reduced to Douglass Campus.
"The elimination of Douglass College is not acceptable," said Rachel Ingber, executive director of the Associate Alumnae of Douglass College. "There is absolutely no correlation between a campus and a college. A campus is merely a space of land."
Student reaction was mixed on whether the changes would help unify the university or strip Rutgers of much of its historic character.
"It's good in a way, because then everyone can say they're from Rutgers University," said Amy Paz, a Livingston College senior working in a cafe in the student center.
But other students were adamant about keeping the college system.
"I don't want to lose Douglass," said Leah Peticolas, a junior from the women's college. "One of the cool things about Rutgers University as a whole is that it is a few different colleges in one."
Cook College senior Robert Tupe said many Rutgers students consider their colleges part of their identity.
"That's what it comes down to," Tupe said. "It's just pride. Pride for your campus."
NEW PROCEDURE
Under the current system, students must choose which colleges they want to apply to when they fill out a Rutgers application.
"Our colleges compete with each other for students," said Philip Furmanski, Rutgers' executive vice president for academic affairs.
Rutgers College is traditionally the most difficult to get into, while Livingston, the newest college, is considered the easiest. Douglass emphasizes women's leadership and Cook is a land-grant college with an environmental focus.
Under the new system, undergraduates would apply to the Rutgers College of Arts and Sciences. Then, they would be allowed to chose whether they want to live in the dorms at Cook, Douglass, Livingston or Old Queens (the proposed new name for the College Avenue campus in Rutgers' historic center).
Instead of being affiliated with one college for four years, students would probably be permitted to move from residential campus to residential campus each year based on their interests, Rutgers officials said.
The proposal calls for each college to keep its dean. Students will be asked to decide later if Cook, Douglass, Rutgers and Livingston should keep their individual student governments or combine into one large body, Rutgers officials said.
Busch, a Rutgers campus in Piscataway, will remain intact under the proposal. Though Busch is not currently a college, the task force recommends giving the campus its own dean and staff so it is on par with the other campuses after the reorganization, school officials said.
Rutgers officials expect to discuss the plan with the campus community over the next six months before a final decision is made by the Rutgers board of governors.
In other business, the board met yesterday to raise base tuition 8 percent, from $6,793 to $7,336 a year for in-state undergraduates. The board also raised mandatory student fees and room and board charges.
Under the new plan, a typical Rutgers College student living on campus will pay a total of $17,799 next year. That includes tuition, $1,885 in mandatory student fees and $8,578 for room, board and related charges.
The board also approved an additional $1.55 million in student financial aid to help students cover the hikes.
"Rutgers is committed to providing a quality education for New Jersey's top high school graduates that is both accessible and affordable," said Al Gamper, chairman of the board of governors.
"The tuition and fees that the board has approved today, along with the university's improved financial aid offerings, will allow Rutgers to continue meeting these important goals," he added.
Kelly Heyboer covers higher education. She can be reached at kheyboer@starledger.com or (973) 392-5929.
Source: http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1121403568187000.xml&coll=1
Let me be the first to say: I used to take a "wait and see" attitude about McCormick's policies, but I think I've come to my senses.
"Our colleges compete with each other for students," said Philip Furmanski, Rutgers' executive vice president for academic affairs.
Is that really such a bad thing? One would think that the competition would encourage them to create the best quality environment for the students. (Or perhaps I'm stuck in ideal world again.)
Nobody I know is particularly fond of this idea, and I fully intend on writing letters expressing that sentiment to the BoG.