2008 Woodie Awards
Community Meeting Addresses Concerns of Faculty, Staff and Students
Samantha Egan
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Retention rates, dining hall issues, and community life were popular concerns expressed at this semester's community meeting in Gottesman on Feb. 27.
Students, faculty and staff gathered at common hour, where they voiced their questions and were able to get instant responses from others in the room, including President Friedman. Dr. Marie Werner began the discussion, stating that the meeting was an opportunity for the community to come together to discuss issues of relevance. Other topics included security, school closing announcements, and disciplinary actions.
The topic of retention rates was brought up in several different ways. A freshman student asked why the Pace Promise was taken away, since the increase of tuition each year is a key reason for students to transfer.
Friedman answered this question by stating that the Pace Promise caused the cost for each entering freshman class to be higher, since they were paying for the increased expenses of the students before them. The high price of tuition, he explained, caused enrollment to decrease.
A junior asked why, if the Pace Promise caused negative effects, it took so long for it to be eliminated.
"I don't have an answer to that," Friedman said. "If I was here I probably would have acted sooner."
Another freshman stated that retention rates not only suffer because of financial issues but also because of weak community life.
Patrick Love, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs stated there are "many reasons why that has developed."
He said that his department, along with Robina Schepp, Vice President of Enrollment Management, and Steve Johnson, Associate Vice President of Student Services and University Registration, are working to set up a network of faculty, staff and students who are considering transferring. The purpose of the network is to collect information on reasons why students wish to transfer, to collect data on the issue for long term solutions.
Addressing the topic of Pace's community life, a junior stated that "it's hard to get involved at Pace because of scheduling."
She stated that her last class ended at nine, the same time that a Greek meeting started, with an intramural game at 9:15, illustrating that she often needs to choose between activates rather than doing both.
Robert Klaeger, head of the Communications and Media Art department, stated that it is difficult to avoid scheduling night classes, due to the fact that many specialized courses are taught by faculty who have careers in their fields and are unable to teach during the day. He also said having a common hour each day makes scheduling "extremely difficult."
A sophomore and volunteer for Relay For Life, which is to be held at Pace this April, asked what the organization could do to have the whole Pace community involved.
"We want to see as many people out there as possible," she said, while also adding that it is not a requirement for participants to stay all night. After describing the details of the event, the room applauded.
Bernice Houle, Associate Dean of the School of Computer Science and Information Systems, stated that the women's and men's basketball teams have made it to the playoffs and urged the Pace community to attend the games and support the teams.
Werner asked why Pace's summer school rates were significantly higher than other schools. For example, she stated our cost per credit was $845, while Fordham University charges $620 per credit.
Schepp said it was a "difficult subject." Although cheaper rates would attract students outside of Pace, if courses are offered significantly cheaper in the summer, less Pace students would sign up for those courses during the fall and spring, therefore lowering the profits during those semesters.
She did add however, that the way financial aid is distributed during the summer would be looked at.
The annual institution fee was brought up by another student. As of Feb. 27, the Pace portal stated it would be $725 dollars.
Schepp, however, said this was a mistake on the website. The actual figures have since been updated. The current fee that students pay is $276, a number that will increase to $290 for the 2008-2009 school year, according to an email from Pace.
Another student involved in Greek like and athletics inquired about the frozen staff positions, stating that there are no Greek advisors and few coaches. Athletics and Greek life, the student stated, are important in the community life that helps retain students.
"We need to be in a position where our revenues can cover our expenses," Freidman said, estimating that next year Pace will be in such a position.
He said that the frozen positions are being looked at one by one. The critical positions, he said, are unfreezing now, while some of the ones that are being eliminated.
Dinning hall issues at both campuses were also brought up by several students.
One Briarcliff resident asked why dining hall hours at Briarcliff weren't extended like the Pleasantville dining hall was in October.
Mary Ann Walker, the Director of food services, stated that the majority of students eat their breakfast in Pleasantville, according to a survey. In Briarcliff, there is a larger response at lunch and dinner time.
Students also reported that the dining halls on both campuses failed to open on time and closed early, and that the prices for items such as liters of Pepsi and cans of soup are too expensive.
Lisa Bardill Moscaritolo, Dean for Pleasantville Students, told students to stop by her office when they experienced inadequate hours and to report it at Residence Hall Association (RHA) meetings.
As for the prices, Walker said that those items were meant as a convenience for students, and that they are a third party when it comes to purchasing them, giving the staff limited power to lower the price.
An RHA member said they were looking into it and suggested to Walker that they purchase the items at wholesale clubs to save money.
A handful of other issues were also discussed.
A faculty member asked what steps Pace was taking to secure the campus in light of the recent shootings at colleges such Northeastern Illinois University this month.
Frank McDonald, University Security Director said the department is currently reviewing and updating Pace's emergency response plan, adding that they are also working "very closely" with the local police.
One faculty member suggested that the emergency plan be printed in the course syllabuses.
Friedman said it was an "interesting and creative idea," but pointed out that the procedure may be too lengthy to include.
Heather Novak, from the Center of Community Outreach, inquired about the timing of school closings, adding that she noticed a "two hour lap between when [the weather] starts to get really bad and when an announcement is made."
McDonald said they would try to be more sensitive to this issue in the future.
One student brought up a discipline instance, stating that he felt athletes were given preferential treatment. He said he was involved in a physical fight and received a punishment which he felt was harsher than the baseball player involved received.
Bardill Moscaritolo said Pace has a "private discipline process" for each student. "We work on a daily basis to make sure we are consistent with discipline." She also added that often athletes get "double jeopardy" in disciplinary cases, since they receive punishment from their coaches, in addition to administrators.
Several faculty members gave out their email addresses for faculty, staff and students to use if they had any further questions. Love told students to use osafeedback@pace.edu for incidents relating to the Office of Student Assistance, and success@pace.edu for other issues. Walker also provided her email, mwalker@lackmann.com for incidents relating to the dining halls.
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