The past semester has been a tumultuous one, to say the least. It has been a semester of transformation for the University, rocky at times, with both good and bad changes. From the overwhelming success of the football team, to the widespread impact of the state budget cuts, to the looming consolidation of the liberal arts colleges, it seems no part of Rutgers has been untouched by the hand of change.
The most impacting change on the University appears to be the budget cuts. By now, one would be hard pressed to find a student who can say without a doubt they have remained unaffected. From elimination of courses and class sections, to the closure of offices and removal of phones, nearly every department at the University has been hard-pressed to cut costs in order to fit into the new budget. Unfortunately, some of the decisions made were not the best choices. The closure of offices on Cook and Douglass could be seen as a wise move, since they were likely the least used administrative facilities, but perhaps the elimination of facilities could have been spread throughout the University more fairly. Instead of closing so many offices on Cook and Douglass, there could have been a few left open and one or two more cut on College Avenue or Busch.
However, despite this, possibly the most unfair decision made directly affecting students was the decision to no longer accept credit cards for term bills in person, and to require an additional surcharge for online payments. Most students who are paying their term bills with a credit card are probably doing so because they haven't received enough financial aid and a credit card is their last option to ensure their bill is paid on time. Adding an additional burden of surcharges on top of already increasing tuition may have saved the University money, but directly impacts students who are already at a financial disadvantage.Furthermore, it is disappointing that the University still does not have the housing policy ironed out for next year, and the student governing associations have been unable to ratify the constitution for the new structure of government that coincides with the consolidation of liberal arts colleges.
But not all has been bad. The changes construed as positive, all seem to have one thing in common. Things many people never thought would actually happen here at Rutgers have actually occurred. The football team went 10-2 and nearly won the Big East Championship, College Avenue is finally being redesigned and Rutgers has a new logo to go with the newly consolidated liberal arts colleges. However, are these things really that positive? It seems like they are mere distractions from academic life at the University. Whether the football team wins or not doesn't really make a difference on how a student is fairing in his English class.
The most deplorable part of all this is the general attitude of the students at the University in regard to such things. Just assuming nothing can be done, it's the old "RU Screw" that we should just take whether we like it or not, serve only to make such developments appear to be accepted by the general student population. Now is the most important time for students to stand up for what they believe they deserve. To ensure the University doesn't lose focus despite the enormous amount of things currently going on, it is important students pay attention to what is going on at the University. Students should be a driving influence on what happens here, and must let their voices be heard, as the developments over the next few months will set the stage for years to come.
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