Over the course of this past semester, the Editorial Board has commented on numerous developments, some of which have been solved and others of which have not. While the University should address even the most minor issues, it is essential that administrators thoroughly re-examine the way they communicate with students, particularly in regard to advising, scheduling, and public safety.
At the end of last year, the School of General Studies lost two advising deans and spent the entire semester with an understaffed Dean of Students office. Students left without permanent advisers were shunted from advising dean to advising dean, while some deans were forced to cut short advising hours in exchange for extra administrative duties. Since advisers are vital to students’ academic progress, the administration should not have compromised this communicative link. While GS will welcome two new deans next semester, in the future, the University must ensure that it maintains proper communication between advising staff and students in all its schools, despite staff departures.
Furthermore, the University must respond to persistent student complaints and criticism, particularly when they concern academic performance. For years, students have complained that holding classes the Wednesday before Thanksgiving creates unnecessary academic and economic stress. As it stands, most Wednesday classes are either poorly attended or cancelled altogether. Ending classes on Tuesday would make holiday travel cheaper and more convenient, and would ensure that students can stay for all their academic obligations. In addition, the proposed “Study Day”—as opposed to the traditional three-day study period—next fall also threatens to jeopardize students’ curricular achievement. In both cases, the University should respond to student criticisms by actually making changes.
But perhaps the most important—and most dangerous—lapses in communication this semester have come from Barnard’s Security Department and Columbia’s Department of Public Safety. By ignoring students’ suggestions and concerns, both Columbia and Barnard have adopted policies that are ineffective or even detrimental to students’ well-being. A recent policy Barnard instituted to ward off unwanted visitors has led to regular public safety patrols of student dormitories. Yet with this policy, the school has ignored both student wishes for privacy and the real problem. Swipe access would more efficiently keep out unwelcome visitors without violating students’ privacy. Moreover, a report published earlier this fall about crimes committed on and near campus provided some alarming statistics about the changing nature of Columbia public safety. Though the department has busted increasing numbers of student parties, the number of serious crimes committed on or near campus has risen. What’s more, Public Safety has been slow to notify students about safety threats. It took the department nearly three days to inform students in Columbia College and School of Engineering and Applied Science about a string of assaults that occurred only a block from campus. It must inform students promptly when serious crimes occur in their vicinity. In all these cases, Columbia and Barnard administrators have failed to respond to students, exacerbating the issues at hand.
As the University moves forward, it is this board’s deepest wish that the administration listens to students and institutes changes for everyone’s benefit. As we turn over the reins to a new Editorial Board, we hope that students will continue fighting to be heard.
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