8 - The Michigan Daily - Orientation Edition 2002 OP/ED The University: Poised for greatness? ZAC PESKOWITZ THE LOWER FREQUENCIES LETTER TO THE EDITOR TE h e Tversity is one of a handful of >'<_national uni- versities in this country. It continuous- ly draws stu- dents from throughout the United States and its alumni can be found in every state. The University's reputation is as strong in San Francisco and Miami as it is in Chicago or Detroit. The University, while maintaining an unparalleled reputation throughout the Midwest, has not become a regional university. This incredible advantage over schools that have lower student-to-faculty ratios and better attention to the needs of stu- dents, has propelled the University into a position as the university with the most research spending in the country and created a school that is wildly popular and well-known with students throughout the nation. Too often this national reputa- tion and the job prospects that await students after graduation allow the University to ignore undergraduates academic needs. Classes are too large, office hours are too short, GSIs are too busy with their disser- tations and cross-disciplinary expe- riences and independent studies are too rare. Football Saturdays become the defining and most significant experiences for students at the Uni- versity. These are the qualities that shape our educational experience here. It is difficult to understand how the selection of Mary Sue Cole- man as the 13th president of the University will fit into this prob- lem. She attended Grinnell Col- lege, a small liberal arts school known for its dedication to teach- ing and attention to students. At Iowa, she championed undergradu- ate education and attempted to increase study abroad programs and interdisciplinary offerings. But Coleman is also a professor of biochemistry, noted for her ability to raise large donations and strongly supported research. She earned a reputation for her attention to the University of Iowa Medical Center. While the relationship between research and undergraduate teaching does not have to be a zero-sum game, Coleman must recognize the centrality of undergraduates to the University. The University needs to use its resources not as an excuse to offer sub-par academics, but as a supplement to improve the world- view of its students. That is what the President's Commission on the Undergraduate Experience failed to recognize. The solution to these problems is not to assume more control over students' lives by requiring students to live in the residence halls for longer exten- sions of time. The University is not a cloister, nor should it be. Students live on their own and deal with the pressures of adult life, experiences that create students with a maturity often absent in other schools. The solution is to combine the unique freedoms that education at a large public university offer with the educational ethic and life of the mind that is synonymous with the nation's best universities. Through the University's national renown and the unique culture that its stu- dents have created, the University is one of the most popular colleges. The University now has an unmatched ability to change its direction and improve undergradu- ates' academic experience. With acceptance to colleges and universities becoming more difficult to achieve, a growing col- lege-age population, increasing access to financial aid and an international body of applicants that is continuously expanding, the University can create a new model for education. A model that neither follows the cold and detached Ger- man research university or the col- legial and caring of British undergraduate institutions. There needs to be a synthesis between the superior aspects of each sys- tem. A system that provides all undergraduates with a thorough knowledge of the humanities, while offering the possibility of specialization and advanced work in the sciences. Combined with a deep respect for students' rights and freedoms, the University can produce students of intellectual depth with the worldly experience that is often neglected at the nation's elite private universities. To achieve this goal, Coleman must devote her attention to under- graduates and consider substantive changes to the curriculum. The implementation of a core curricu- lum for all undergraduates should be considered to correct the deficien- cies and gaps in knowledge that the present curriculum does not address. Simultaneously, the University must not capitulate to the desires to increase in loco parentis or strengthen control over non-academic aspects of student life. Although the Univer- sity of Iowa is known for its parental role and control over students lives, this history is much older than Cole- man's tenure at the University of Iowa. Coleman must do more to fight against these incursions into students' autonomy. The University is in a position to offer its students an education and experience that is unique amongst this nation's institutes of higher edu- cation. The independence of stu- dents' lives is central to this goal. Zac Peskowitz can be reached at zpeskowi@umich.edu. Incoming 'U' president will be very pro-student To THE DAILY: I was a little surprised at the article on the University of Iowa response to Mary Sue Coleman's departure, "Iowans say Coleman had challenging presidency" (05/30/02). I find it incom- plete and cast negatively. While I am not familiar with Students Organizing for Labor and Economic Equality in Ann Arbor, United Students Against Sweatshops did get their way. Coleman did agree to the policies that SAS inquired about in the end. SAS demanded that a dele- gation be sent to the Worker Rights Consortium found- ing meeting on April 7 in New York. Coleman and the University named Ned Bertz, a member of SAS and the rights committee, Laraine Carmichael Nelson, the Nursing School student services director and the chairwoman of the rights committee and Marcella David, a UI professor of law, would represent UI. SAS found this unsatis- factory, claiming that the UI needed to ioin. The Univer- sity would like to find out about the consortium before making a decision. Furthermore, the Daily Iowan reported on May 2, 2000, UI officials agreed with the rights committee's recommendation in that they will establish a code of conduct for companies licensed to make UI appar- el. Coleman will appoint members of an advisory committee to draft the code. Dean Rhodes said the code would force the companies to disclose information about the conditions under which the apparel is manu- factured before the UI would license its logo. SAS protested anyway. I am not claiming that SAS's claims were not legit- imate. Conversely, I think 4 they informedtthe public and were mildly successful in their efforts. However, I think the argument that Coleman was naive and non-responsive to SAS's needs is a misperception that needs to be cleared up. Coleman is a great leader, politician and some- one that will be missed by 4 Iowa. I want to let those at the University know that she does work well with student groups. JASON GARDNER Student Universit ofiowa Welcome New Students! 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