Both sides of people on this issue make arguments that I don't understand. If the argument is "elitism," then opponents of the GC closure ought to be careful to avoid labeling 2 year and 4 year MnSCU institutions as inferior to the U. Incautious and fired-up GC defenders have been tossing around a suspect set of numbers in defense of the GC, and in the process have directly and indirectly denigrated the students and instructors at MnSCU schools.
Speaking as a community college instructor and a former (briefly) CNR student at the U as an undergraduate, the claim that the U presents a uniquely superior learning environment for underprepared learners is tenuous at best. GC Dean Taylor has been tossing around statistics trumpeting the 31% 6-year matriculation rate for GC entrants and contrasting it with nationwide numbers on transfer-bound 2-year institution entrants that track at around 22% graduation in 6 years. But this comparison is apples to oranges; GC admission is highly selective (is that elitist?) As they are fond of pointing out to some audiences, the GC selects underprepared or underacheiving students that demonstrate significant potential. The 2 year institutions in MnSCU (such as MCTC, Normandale, Century, and St. Paul College) admit all eligible students. Not to mention that these numbers do not compare MN community and technical colleges to the GC, but are a nationwide sample. The "land grant" argument that says the U is supposed to be open to all is blind to the fact that the U is already a selective institution. This year, approximately 1 in 4 applicants will be admitted to the U (with the GC admissions included.) The GC is selective in its admissions. If you believe that the U is currently open to all, you are not in tune with reality. All of that said, folks who pooh-pooh the importance of the GC are also missing the boat on one important issue - the diversity of the student body. The underprepared learners that the GC serves are also disproportionately lower income and students of color. There is an important benefit to all students from learning in classrooms with diversity in all of its senses (economic, age, experience, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation being just some of these dimensions). Since GC admits more diverse students than CLA and other colleges, the closure of the GC will negatively impact access for poor students and students of color, and that negatively impacts the university. Please refrain from implying that community college education is inferior to the GC, unless you are willing to prove it. Your choice of arguments is putting off folks like me who should be your allies. aaron klemz Cooper Instructor of Speech-Communication, Century College +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Aaron Klemz, Minneapolis, Minnesota [EMAIL PROTECTED] +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com REMINDERS: 1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in violation, contact the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[email protected] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
