Ithaca College did not properly prepare for a large incoming class
By Bryant Francis
As the fall 2009 semester began, Ithaca College found itself host to the largest incoming class of freshmen in the history of the school. All well and good, since last year’s class fell a bit short of the expected goals, but this year’s massive acceptance rate has reflected strange, if not poor judgment on the part of the admissions office in taking in so many new students.
For starters, the overcrowding issues have struck at the heart of campus life. Most of the dorms have lost their TV and study lounges, which were converted into four-person rooms that primarily house members of the class of 2013. Dining halls have become incredibly crowded during peak hours. While these conditions certainly aren’t bringing about the end of the world, two off-putting factors underline this issue.
The first is that despite all these negative impacts, tuition has not changed for returning students who didn’t take the offer to vacate their dorms. We are paying the same amount of money for what is in many ways a weaker product. When Apogee failed to provide a high speed Internet service last year, they offered a small refund in exchange for the weaker service. The college has not offered any such refund.
Second, there is an ever-growing list of strange decisions that reflect the college’s mistake in accepting so many freshmen. One lounge converted into a four-person dorm in Terrace 3 only holds two people. The fitness center is boasting expensive new treadmills with TVs and iPod capabilities. This list just goes on.
The college has taken some actions to alleviate the pressure—lounges have been converted into very livable spaces and Terrace 13 was quickly constructed over the summer. However, the question still remains, why bring in so many students, but make so few changes?
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Bryant Francis is a sophomore cinema production major. E-mail him at [email protected].