reform

I originally had intended this column to be a list of specific reforms that, if implemented, would benefit students at Columbia. Before I could write it, however, I was preempted by the announcement that Lerner 6 will be used to host a consolidated student advising center. I do have one large reform to suggest, however, one aimed at solving multiple problems simultaneously.

There is nothing new about universities supporting international collaborative efforts—research projects, exchanges of students and faculty, specific short-term partnerships around urgent issues, etc. What then, if anything, is different in the project of “the global university,” one that a growing number of universities in the U.S. are now heralding?

It’s easy to harp on problems, but it’s much harder to creatively generate solutions from whole cloth. We need a vision. In this task, Columbia’s administration, and especially President Bollinger and Dean Quigley, must take the reins.