Twenty-seven people trickled into the town-hall meeting at the Polytechnic campus on Monday afternoon to discuss with University officials the repercussions of the University cuts to campus-specific programs.
Last Friday, about 35 people — about eight of whom were students — attended a similar town-hall meeting at the same campus.
If we’re doing our math right — and we’re pretty sure we are — that total comes up to 62 people.
That’s 62 people out of an estimated 8,700 students — and that number grows when counting faculty and staff — currently taking classes at the Polytechnic campus, according to the ASU Web site.
The reason for Friday’s small turnout can be partially credited to the late notice given to students by University administration. According to Polytechnic campus student-body president Kelley Stewart, there was less than 24-hours notice of the first meeting.
While that may be a sufficient explanation for a low attendance of that first gathering, what about the second meeting?
Keith Hjelmstad, the vice president and dean of the campus’s only remaining college, the College of Technology and Innovation, reassured the audience during the meetings that all students would have the time and opportunity to complete their degree programs, even if they were being re-integrated, reorganized, moved, or just flat out disestablished. This reassurance seems especially necessary for students studying professional golf management, fire service management and certain concentrations in applied science.
Hjelmstad also reminded the audience that ASU’s goal has been and will always be to provide the best education possible to the students who so desire it. This is an assurance that all students need to hear, especially when rising tuition costs could be on the horizon.
So, where were all these students who are potentially affected by these changes?
It’s understandable that a 24-hour or even a weekend’s notice of these kinds of meetings can be tough on students, especially with set-in-stone class schedules and busy social lives. But if what Stewart called an “identity crisis” is in fact setting in over the Polytechnic campus, one would think there’d be a bigger showing at town-hall meetings, where University officials would supposedly quell fears and answer questions.
It’s indisputable that this is a tumultuous time for ASU, especially for all the students, professors and staff at the Polytechnic and West — now the New College — campuses. But just because the cuts have been made doesn’t mean it’s OK to be complacent about their effects. By being evident in our actions, we can show legislators and University officials that we do care about the well being of our campuses.
And sometimes, those actions can be as simple as showing up to an afternoon meeting.
