USC has the Right Idea

Promoting higher education is about more than just advocating “College Access for All.”  I think a deeper understanding of the business, ethics and philosophy of higher education is necessary.  Many colleges start new programs or committees to address various issues on diversity, access, prep, etc. all of which are good, but I think only scratch the surface.  USC is taking philosophies on enrollment policies to another level and one that I think will have a deeper impact.  A new research center will take a close look at admissions practices and will bring together scholars, professionals and business leaders.  In an article written by James Grant in the USC Chronicle, the founding executive director Jerome A. Lucido says, “Today in America, a laser light is focused on the point of college access.  Parents and students view the college admission process as a gateway to future prosperity, health, security and satisfaction.  This new research center will look at critical questions, including; ‘Why is the admissions office door the focus of all these hopes and dreams?’  ‘What barriers exist within admissions processes that continue to separate many Americans from the opportunities and benefits of higher education?’ ”

In the article, USC Provost C.L. Max Nikias states, “The mission of this center could not be more relevant or timely.  A university campus is, in our day, far more than a collection of classrooms and laboratories held together by ivy and landscaping.  Today, a university campus houses nothing less than the full range of our society’s ambitions and aspirations.  Enrollment management policies and questions must be addressed vigorously and answered in meaningful ways, if colleges and universities of the United States are to serve our constituencies to the fullest of our ability.”

Click here for entire article.

One Student’s Perspective on College Visits

This past fall I started working part-time in the college counseling office at Cate School.  Margo Dorion and Emilie Griffin, the two counselors I work with are wonderful and I enjoy the community at Cate.  This type of work is just what I know … working with young adults in an environment sharing information about college.  With students rushing the office sometimes with anxiety about the details of applying, SAT’s, deadlines … “Ms. Griffin, Ms. Griffin … what if … and what if …”  Calmly and with encouraging words Margo and Emilie seem to settle nerves — of students AND parents.  One of our seniors, Hallie McPherson, wrote a piece for the school newspaper, on visiting campuses.  I found her approach and perspective funny and I was glad to see a young adult who “gets it” and is attempting not to take the process of college too seriously. 

She starts, “I had deliberately avoided my itinerary for a month, ignoring words like “Harvard,” “Yale,” and “Swarthmore” like minor cavities that you forget not to tongue, and cringe when you do.  College talk makes me catty on my best days, murderous on my worst, and my dad has learned to speak quickly whenever we’re on the topic; too many minutes at a time produces in me a strange kind of minor hysteria. … Click here for her entire article on her visits to 12 colleges in nine days.