Collegiate Times

Last week we held “The VP Is In” sessions and various students came by to talk about their concerns, issues and suggestions. As I have been doing with the previous sessions, let me give you a cryptic look at what was on the minds of the students who stopped by.

1. There was continuing interest in a 24-hour study facility other than the Math Emporium. (We’re working on this with the SGA for a pilot project in Torgersen Hall.)

2. Discussion came up of a letter that came in to the university from an individual who reported observing and filming “disgusting” behavior of some Tech students during a spring break cruise. (Students were very concerned, and letters of apology have gone out from Brandon Carroll, SGA president and Tom Brown, dean of students.)

3. One student had some confusion between what constitutes the university’s alcohol policy and what is entailed in state law about alcohol.

4. Great concern and disappointment over the planned April 9 visit of Westboro Baptist Church protestors. I was pleased to hear on that afternoon and since about the positive ways in which students are planning to react.

5. Much concern over the condition of some of our aging academic buildings and some of their specific classrooms. Although our classroom renovation program is continuing, students present felt there is a need for better lighting and seating and more outlets in these “nominated” buildings and classrooms: Randolph, McBryde, Litton Reaves, Davidson 3, Engel 223, Robeson 210 and the GLC Auditorium.

6. Anxiety about our budget cuts and courses being dropped or changed to online. One student was specifically concerned about why Spanish 2114 was being cancelled. (We checked with the Spanish Program office afterward and found that although there is a very high demand for Spanish courses, they have not had enough funding to be able to offer 2114 “in years.”) One student suggested that as courses are changed in format, the CRN listing should provide “full information and full disclosure” about the nature of the course.

7. Students were concerned about the possibility (at the time of our meeting) of our losing men’s basketball head coach Seth Greenberg. Fortunately, news of his agreeing to a new contract came in over the weekend.

8. We talked about the Boise State Game on Labor Day evening at FedEx Field. Some wondered if we might have spirit buses and special shirts and if classes might be cancelled on that Monday or Tuesday. I shared that although buses and shirts seemed like a great idea, it was unlikely that classes would be cancelled on either day. We simply need to keep in mind that the academic calendar is just that: an academic calendar. It would set a terrible precedent if we began making changes in the academic calendar for athletic reasons.

9. Turning to the corps of cadets, we talked about how its numbers appear to be increasing again for next year, the reasons for its “corps only” program and the impact of its “Spend the Night” recruitment program. Interestingly, research on those who drop out of the corps shows that it is very rare for anyone who spent the night with the corps to later drop out of the corps (a good example of the importance of trying things out and making sure
you understand your future environment).

10. Finally, we talked about the past, present, and future of the remembrances of April 16, 2007 and how individual expectations and reactions differ so much.
In brief, these are the topics we talked about last week and it gives us a “pulse check” on student issues and concerns. I invite you to share other questions and concerns with me by e-mail at espencer@vt.edu or by coming to the next “The VP is In” session in the SGA Office in Squires at 3 p.m., on Wednesday, April 21. See you around the campus.

A version of this article appeared in the Mar 31 issue of the Collegiate Times.