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USM Forum -- Message Board -> AAUP-USM MESSAGE BOARD -> Students & Alums are getting the USM they deserve
Post Info TOPIC: Students & Alums are getting the USM they deserve
qwerty

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Students & Alums are getting the USM they deserve
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Reading the letters-to-the editor, and seeing the hostility towards the faculty in the community has led me to conclude that SFT is giving the students and alumni of USM exactly the university they want and deserve.

I'm a graduate of a leading southern state univeristy that really does have a "world class" reputation, and the differences between how students and alumni there and at USM regard the quality of their respective institutions is striking.

At my alma mater, students see a direct connection between the quality of their education, and the quality of the faculty and library facitilites. They see a direct connection between the reputation of the institution and their future career prospects in business and professional or graduate school. My alumni magazine recently had a major feature on ways in which the school is raising salaries to fight off raids on the faculty.

Over the years, students have voted to increase their student fees to support the library (which has faced cutbacks, like everywhere else). Students have supported tuition increases earmarked for faculty salary increases. I know that if the head of the school tried to fire tenured professors, the campus would explode. I think this situation would apply to most leading universities in the country where alumni see themselves as stewards of the school and its reputation.

USM is quite different, and I don't exactly know why. Many students seem to resent faculty, particularly faculty who hold first-rate credentials, and they are absolutely unconcerned with the quality of the library. Alumni seem completely unconnected to the place. For all the talk of athletics, I've never been to a sold out football or basketball game.

One reason may be that few of our students go on to leading professional/graduate programs or pursue business careers out-of-state, and therefore, are much less concerned with the quality and reputation of their credentials. It is odd, and for the students and alumni, quite self-defeating. I'm puzzled by it all. What do y'all think. Am I seeing this all wrong?

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USM Alum

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That's by far the most insightful post, I've read.  I certainly have been perplexed by it all.  But Thames, and I know this first hand, tried selling himself as a visionary and a lot of alumni agreed with his goals.   He also blamed the faculty for holding USM back, and still does.  Therefore, get rid of the faculty that have been stalling the growth process and USM has thrived.  He had a record - polymer science - and it was easy to back a person such as that despite all the warnings.  He at least seemed like a leader.  Well it's over for him.  The alumni that publicly back him are few and in private one's with clout (sp?) do so because the IHL still does.  Once he is gone true feelings will come out.


Also, the faculty have not helped themselves with all this "share governance" academic mumbo jumbo.  We, who look at this board,  generally know this is the right way to run a university, but publicly it comes across like Thames was right and the faculty is out of control.  Hence, it is hard for alumni to back the faculty because they sound like a bunch of liberal commy cry babies.


It has been hard for most alumni to pick a side because one side, Thames, is incompetent, egotistical, egomaniac, etc., but at least appears to want to move forward and the other side, faculty, are seen as malcontents.



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The time is now

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This is why Dr. Richard Croft is so credible and why Saturday's HA article (repeated Sunday in the SH) was so powerful.  Thank you Kevin Walters.  The tide has turned on Shelby and he can't stop it with all his usual maneuverings this time.

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USM Sympathizer

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Qwerty, I hope you will consider submitting your letter to the HA; people in Hattiesburg need to read it.  I, too, have been astonished by the (relative) silence of alumni and people in the community. 

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Invictus

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RE: Students & Alums are getting the USM they dese
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That was an excellent post, qwerty & I'll repeat the sentiment above that you should consider using it as the basis for a letter to the editor.

USM Alum also has some good points in his/her follow-up, too, especially the thoughts on why it has been difficult for many alumni to make up their minds about what's going on at USM.

I would like to toss in my usual worth about why USM's alumni are so "disconnected" to the university...

Shortly after I enrolled at USM in the early '70s, the university implemented a "trimester system." The idea was that a student could complete a baccalaureate degree much faster under that plan. In my own case, I graduated exactly three calendar years after I began. I didn't go "straight through" summers, either -- I basically finished in 9 quarters. Thus, in the waning years of the McCain administration USM was actively styling itself as a place where a degree could be "earned" faster. When Lucas first became president, USM was calling itself the "career university." It wasn't about getting an undergraduate education; it was about getting credentialled to get a job. If one had to crack a book along the line, it was probably by mistake.

As a friend of mine puts it, USM was all about getting a "ticket punched" quickly. Faster, cheaper, easier. I perceive that "faster, cheaper, easier" is still the mantra at USM.

People ultimately don't value things that they can get faster, cheaper & easier.

Another factor that comes into play is the fact that USM has the highest proportion of community/junior college transfers of any state university. These folks are really only at the university for two years & they really develop only the "connection" to the institution that one would expect a traditional sophomore to form. A great number of these students never live on campus & spend a lot of their out-of-class time working, again, forming little long-term connection to the university. I don't know if this issue can ever really be addressed by the university ... or even if the university would not be doing a disservice to the broader community to try to do something about it.

Now, I know there are exceptions to both of these explanations I've outlined. Some students work very hard at USM. And some juco transfers "connect" to USM very strongly. I don't think these exceptions disprove what I'm trying to say. Any time one deals with thousands of human beings there will be exceptions.

But at the root of the answer to the "why don't alumni care" question is the explanation that a lot of USM alumni really aren't university alumni but are simply graduates of an institution that allowed them to get their credentials faster, cheaper & easier.





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Blue Light Special

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: Invictus
Shortly after I enrolled at USM in the early '70s, the university implemented a "trimester system." The idea was that a student could complete a baccalaureate degree much faster under that plan. In my own case, I graduated exactly three calendar years after I began. I didn't go "straight through" summers, either -- I basically finished in 9 quarters. Thus, in the waning years of the McCain administration USM was actively styling itself as a place where a degree could be "earned" faster. When Lucas first became president, USM was calling itself the "career university." It wasn't about getting an undergraduate education; it was about getting credentialled to get a job. If one had to crack a book along the line, it was probably by mistake. As a friend of mine puts it, USM was all about getting a "ticket punched" quickly.

Invictus,


Your posting demonstrates precisely why USM was called "The WalMart of Higher Education." There were entirely too many "Blue Light Specials." Too many of the students viewed themselves as "renters" rather than "owners." Many still do. USM has never been able to quite shake that image.


 



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ram

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: Blue Light Special
"  Too many of the students viewed themselves as "renters" rather than "owners." Many still do. USM has never been able to quite shake that image.  "

In the foundation and development world, they talk about students who perceive that the educational experience is the result of a relationship rather than a mere transaction.  Ole Miss excels at making the student feel that relationship.  We never have. 


Unfortunately, I find myself lapsing into transaction mode as the Thames presidency continues.  I begin to think, "The hell with it. I paid my tuition and passed the tests; I got my degree. It's over." 


I've never seen it analyzed, but I expect that athletics plays a big part in building the relationship with a university.  Also, I suspect that other activities that promote socialization (e.g., the Greek organizations) are a big boost.  Paraphrasing something said the other day, the continuing loyalties are to people, and I would add, to shared experience. 


Commuters come, commuters go.  I suspect that distance learning is really the ultimate capitulation to transaction based education. There's often not even a shared classroom experience.


Just wondering. Does the University of Phoenix even have an alumni association or foundation?



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foot soldier

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RE: Students & Alums are getting the USM they deserve
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This is a rather depressing thread, but I must say that I agree with lots that has been said on it.
The tough part of working at USM was that the push from the administration was not towards improving the education of the students, but toward the consumer, buy an online degree model.
I felt as if everything I valued about higher education was being thrown away--perhaps it was never valued there to begin with.

I did have graduate students who were concerned about the library (though they also didn't always take full advantage of what it had to offer). I also had some very fine students at USM who were able to get what they needed to go on to fine graduate schools elsewhere. But given the current situation, I'm not sure that would be possible anymore.

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OLDIEGOLDIE

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"Shortly after I enrolled at USM in the early '70s, the university implemented a "trimester system." The idea was that a student could complete a baccalaureate degree much faster under that plan. In my own case, I graduated exactly three calendar years after I began. I didn't go "straight through" summers, either -- I basically finished in 9 quarters"


To be fair, it should be noted that during that era many schools across the nation adopted this model - the trimesters.  Much of the impetus for this came from the burgeoning college enrollments and the need to more fully utilize the physical plant facilities.  In addition, it was touted as the way to get more "balanced" course coverage across the various terms.  Think about what the difference is in the regular terms vs the summer.  For those students who find it impractical to take a summer off, it worked well.  Non-traditional students, for example. 


 



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View from a Distance

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RE: Students & Alums are getting the USM they dese
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My daughter is looking at schools and I was surprised to see in the Barron's Guide that USM is listed as "less competitive" - not even MVSU had a listing that low.

What gives?


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Straight Man

Date:
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quote:
Originally posted by: View from a Distance
"My daughter is looking at schools and I was surprised to see in the Barron's Guide that USM is listed as "less competitive" - not even MVSU had a listing that low. What gives? "
Maybe they were talking about athletics.  Just kidding. We all could stand a little humor today.

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Athena

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RE: Students & Alums are getting the USM they deserve
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Uh, could it be SACS probation?

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College Counselor in the making

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RE: RE: Students & Alums are getting the USM they dese
Permalink Closed

quote:
Originally posted by: View from a Distance
"My daughter is looking at schools and I was surprised to see in the Barron's Guide that USM is listed as "less competitive" - not even MVSU had a listing that low.

What gives?
"


The competitivity ratings I believe are based on application acceptance rates and the average scores (AP scores, SAT or ACT scores, high school GPAs) of those accepted. I was under the impression that USM accepted 99% of applicants (essentially open enrollment, though perhaps now it is so explicitly) and that the average scores of incoming students as a class were less than desirable, leading to this ranking.

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