Last week, Chancellor Wiley announced several prestigious campus improvement projects would be delayed indefinitely because of budget and fundraising problems. The state is broke and UW is scared and, necessity aside, it seems now is not the time to be investing hundreds of millions of dollars in massive infrastructure upgrades.
Unfortunately, I can provide neither a solution nor a large check for this serious issue. I can, however, suggest a few ways we as a university should direct much smaller amounts of money to still make a meaningful impact on campus.
Outdoor chalkboards. Every spring and summer, we students dutifully plead with our instructors to hold class outside. And with predictable regularity, our requests are rebuffed. The standard excuse? “We need the chalkboard.”
From the concrete terraces of the baby-boomer behemoths to the grassy slopes that meet the more stately structures, there are plenty of open spaces on campus that would be perfect for a class — if only there were a chalkboard in front.
A modest capital commitment would finally liberate countless classes from subbasements across campus. And with our current weather, these boards could be utilized all year long.
Moreover, student groups would welcome a more effective means of self-promotion, and the rain would keep the boards clean at no cost.
Dedicated study rooms. Van Hise Hall has one — and it’s always full. Computers are fine, but sometimes students just need a place to sit, congregate, eat lunch or catch up on some homework between classes. Narrow and poorly lit hallways just aren’t the answer.
Granted, some buildings are experiencing a space crunch, but the administration should make a long-term commitment to establishing at least one dedicated common area in every major academic building. Even now, there are classrooms that sit empty for the bulk of the day; some paint and a couple signs could transform even the most undesirable rooms into acceptable student sanctuaries.
TV evenings. The university has spent a good deal of money outfitting many of our large auditoriums with late 20th Century technology. We should consider using it.
In other words, we should actually turn on the expensive video projectors that so often lose out to the enduring and endearing overhead projector. And then, we might as well show something on them.
The Social Sciences or Psychology buildings could, for example, play host to “Saturday Night Live,” “Monday Night Football,” and Thursday night anything but UPN. Free cable television would be one of those drinking diversions the administration is always looking for, and ASM could pitch in for clean-up costs.
This cooperative approach has worked for Union South’s successful midnight movies program, and it ought be used to bring Bart Simpson to the big screen.
An updated version of “The Buildings of the University of Wisconsin” by Jim Feldman. I’ve mentioned it before, and I’ll probably mention it again. This book belongs all over campus — and online, too. A version that reflects our changing campus would only make it better.
Improved website. I was shocked yet pleased to discover the UW homepage’s recent facelift. But the functionality of the website still leaves much to be desired, especially when compared with other universities. Our person and resource directories are noticeably antiquated; thousands of students occasionally disappear from the database, and a search for “registrar” returns a convoluted 99-line display. We can do better.
More university internships. With regard to the website proposal, the argument could perhaps be made that UW’s nonacademic departments are simply too overburdened to tackle such a project. All the recent griping about UW’s bureaucracy ignores the very real fact that a number of our divisions and departments desperately need people.
There is a partial solution. UW offers many majors that are actually relevant to the support operations of the university. Students in business, accounting, urban and regional planning, and computer science (to mention a few) possess tremendous skills, have clear topical interests and often need a summer or part-time job.
Substantially increasing the number of internship opportunities on campus would not only give more students real-life experience in their fields of study, it would also bring energy, new ideas and skilled manpower to the university administration.
There are issues; interns are certainly no panacea to understaffing, and some divisions are so starved of resources that they don’t even have the time to assist or supervise. But there is also great potential. The university should embrace internships as part of its educational mission and promote them wherever possible.
What do you think?
Bryant Walker Smith (bsmith@badgerherald.com) is a senior majoring in civil engineering.