Ball State University is like "the little engine that could." Asa state university undergraduate college, BSU is a classic story ofhow a valiant little engine (BSU) comes to the rescue of a strandedtrain (Indiana higher education).
Doug McConkey is the engineer of this train. As vice presidentfor student affairs and enrollment management, McConkey is thearchitect of Ball State's efforts to make the quality of thecurrent freshman class one of the highest in universityhistory.
The goals championed by the BSU enrollment manager includeenhancing the academic reputation, improving the quality ofstudents, and becoming competitive for the best students. All ofthis is accomplished while increasing enrollment, retention rates,and the graduation rate. Average SAT scores are now 19 points abovethe national average, and 38 points above the Indiana average.
BSU ranks second in the Mid-American Conference and second amongIndiana's public universities in the number of National MeritScholars. Better quality students are being enrolled, saysMcConkey, and they are committed to completing their degrees.
Now what is skewed with this picture of Ball State promise andprospect?
The academic culture of BSU is one of lower expectations.Indiana University administators are known to tell prospectivestudents, "if you cannot stand the academic heat at IU, you canalways go to Ball State."
When lower expectations become the production norm, professorsand students produce less for themselves and Indiana taxpayers. Thework is devalued. The word gets out to Indiana's high schools: BallU is a place of academic mediocrity — or worse.
Popular "professional majors" at Ball State aretelecommunications and criminal justice.
Tcomm and criminal justice majors do not provide Oxford,Cambridge, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and even IU, as universities,with any semblance of prestige. Ideas, honesty, and hard workcreate great colleges and universities. Numerous professors and BSUbureaucrats invest in promoting mediocrity — and a lot ofphony baloney.
English and Journalism suffer from dysfunctions too. It's a"dual employment" scenario. Half of the English and Journalismprofs have PhDs and are positioned to demand higher standards. Theother half are full-time part-timers. They go by the "pay your feeand get your B" in-and-out method. The result is that theproduction is soon dumbed down to the lowest common denominator.All decisions are short term.
A final BSU dysfunction is that only 20-25 percent of theemployees are actually doing the professorial work. Seventy-fivepercent of the non-teaching work force is service staff to the20-25 percent who teach.
I agree with Vice President McConkey. His example, like theengine that could, gives inspiration to all the BSU proud.
But how can higher expectations defeat the downside of localculture and — in the eyes of many Hoosiers — change aBSU culture which demands a second rate intellectualexperience?
Vice President McConkey, President Blaine Brownell and ProvostBev Pitts should initiate establishment of a Faculty Senate.Professors deserve direct, substantive, and long-lasting inputs forchanging the curriculum. The BSU curriculum needs elevating to meetthe quality performance of the most recently admitted freshmen.
Civics, foreign languages, sociology, geography, religion,science and history are mandatory requirements for every BSUgraduate.
Ball State is that engine that could. But this academiclocomotive, huffing and puffing up a very steep grade, is pullingtoo many baggage cars.
I think I can, I think I can. But will we?
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