ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, December 22, 1995 TAG: 9512220018
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MARY WHITLOCK and PAT BRYANT
ON NOV. 8, after 18 months of intense restructuring, faculty and staff of the College of Education at Virginia Tech received a surprise letter from university President Paul Torgersen informing them of his decision to close the College of Education. At a Nov. 16 universitywide Staff Senate meeting, the president further discussed his rationale for the decision and took questions from the audience.
His answers indicated he is misinformed on several issues. As the college's future is being decided, it is important that the university and broader community have accurate information about the College of Education, its current status and its 18-month restructuring effort. Accordingly, we offer clarification on the issues addressed by President Torgersen in the meeting:
The president stated that,when a 20-percent budget reduction was imposed in January 1994, the College of Education was asked to "give serious consideration to being assimilated into another college." The Jan. 31, 1994, memorandum from then-Provost Fred Carlisle actually stated that a new college plan should be guided by several objectives, one of which was "closer collaborations with faculty and programs in other colleges with common interests - including serious consideration of program and department mergers and mergers into other colleges." However, with regard to the appropriateness of an administrative mandate to merge, in a letter dated Feb. 18, 1994, to all Virginia public-school superintendents and the State Department of Education, President Torgersen stated: "The particulars of the reorganization of the College of Education will be worked out within the College itself, not mandated by the University administration."
The president also stated that there was "another letter about a year ago raising this question [of assimilation], but the College did not adequately address the proposal." We believe the second letter to which President Torgersen refers is a memorandum dated Oct. 17, 1994, from then-Provost Carlisle to Wayne Worner, interim dean of the College of Education, and the then-dean of the College of Human Resources, Peggy Meszaros. In it, Carlisle states: "With President Torgersen's endorsement, I would like to appoint a joint committee of faculty from the two colleges to begin serious discussions about further collaboration. I have no specific outcome in mind, but I do expect serious discussion. You may remember that I did not prescribe the details of the Education restructuring plan. Those have been left to the dean and the faculty."
The joint committee was appointed by Provost Carlisle. It deliberated, and made recommendations on June 30, 1995, to new Provost Meszaros, who succeeded Carlisle. The committee concluded: "The committee recognizes the uniqueness of the two colleges, but also the cooperation and collaboration currently under way and the opportunities for additional collaborative efforts. We offer the following recommendations and believe that if fully implemented these two colleges will be well-positioned to be a significant part of the model land-grant university of the 21st century." In a July 13 letter to Dean Worner, Provost Meszaros lauds the final report of the committee: "I believe they have done a very good job and now our work is before us .... The recommendations are clearly in keeping with our restructuring emphasis and offer new ways to think about our future."
Neither of the colleges was told to merge. Faculty from both colleges did what they were asked and the outcome was endorsed by Provost Meszaros. President Torgersen's characterization that the College of Education "did not adequately address the proposal" is not consistent with the facts.
In the meeting, President Torgersen referred to "the Department of Higher Education Administration and Policy." In fact, a program in higher-education administration was eliminated as part of the college's 20-percent downsizing a year ago. The correct name is the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.
President Torgersen characterized the College of Education's Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies as "largely doctoral." In fact, fall enrollment in the Department of Teaching and Learning is one half undergraduate (684, including 357 students enrolled in other colleges who are seeking teaching certification) and one half graduate students (653). Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, which is exclusively graduate, enrolled 561 students, fewer graduate students than Teaching and Learning.
The president stated that "a considerable amount of money" would be saved by the closing of the dean's office. In a Dec. 8 open forum, Tech's executive vice president, who oversees financial management and business operations, admitted that no study had been done on the effects of the closing of the College of Education on student enrollment or budget. Furthermore, in 1994-95, all College of Education administrators did double duty, both as administrators and as teachers, advisors and doctoral-committee members. The average productivity standard for these individuals was the same as the average for regular Tech faculty.
President Torgersen said it "seemed this faculty operated separate from the rest of the university." In fact, all of our teacher-education programs (30 percent of our effort) are intercollegiate. The elementary-education programs have been jointly conducted by the College of Human Resources and the College of Education for more than 20 years. We have had jointly appointed faculty with the College of Arts and Sciences for 25 years in secondary-education programs. Our graduate programs routinely require substantial cognate work taken outside of the College of Education. Doctoral students are also required to choose committee members from other colleges. We recently entered into agreements with the College of Veterinary Medicine to share facilities and equipment. We are also sharing an appointment of a faculty member in the College of Engineering. Education faculty have delivered workshops on college teaching to engineering students. Additionally, a course on college teaching heavily enrolls graduate students from throughout campus, especially from the College of Engineering. These are only a few examples of the collaborative efforts of College of Education faculty.
These clarifications are made to correct any misperceptions that may have resulted from the president's comments. We hope they are helpful to the university community and everyone interested in the relationship between the state's only land-grand institution and the future of public education in Virginia.
Mary Whitlock is president, and Pat Bryant is president-elect, of the classified staff of the Virginia Tech College of Education.
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