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By
Jan Wopperer
The next five years will bring about much-needed improvements
in the Buffalo State College infrastructure, President Muriel
A. Howard and Vice President Stanley Kardonsky said in the
State of the College Address March 1.
The President’s Address
Howard, president of Buffalo State, gave a speech about
the college's current facilities and ongoing initiatives.
In her address, "Working in an Environment of Change,"
she talked about her hopes and visions for the college,
including more restructuring of services for students, more
consolidation of academic departments, and creation of four
new schools:
• the School of Professions
• the School of Education
• the School of Arts and Humanities
• the School of Natural and Social Sciences
“Nationally, we see campuses wrestling with increased
costs, changing technology, and declining resources. Seemingly
every state is trying to reconcile tuition costs and state
allocation models,” Howard said.
Even as Buffalo State College faces the same difficulties
as other colleges, she said she remains "pathologically
optimistic.”
Howard spent time talking about changes to University College
and the increase in services offered to "students without
majors... we no longer call them undeclared students,"
she added.
"In order for students to be successful, they must
feel engaged, well-advised and feel connected," Howard
said.
Roswell Park, director of academic support programs and
coordinator of individualized studies at University College,
attended the address and had this to say: "The emerging
success of University College suggests that the new synergies
the President discussed are indeed possible. The process
is the critical element."
Howard would like to see more diversity, consolidation and
transitions into an "environment of implementation
and change" in her future years here. One of her major
goals is to put Buffalo State on the map and be a nationally
recognized institution.
The Vice President’s Presentation
Kardonsky, vice president for finance and
management, gave a presentation on the current and future
infrastructure of Buffalo State.
"All of the things that President Howard described...
they work only if the environment around them works,"
he said.
With a five-year budget allocation total of $159.9 million,
there are plans to:
• build new facilities like a new dorm in one of the
existing parking lots
• use $100 million for the H. H. Richardson Complex
restoration
• update the fire alarm system
• maintain existing buildings and build new ones
• revamp classrooms with new technology
• make the campus more attractive by organizing space
and landscaping
• maintain already existing buildings, build new facilities
and renovate the Science Building
"It is clear to all that the Science Building needs
some immediate ‘TLC,’ but the planned renovation
is really what is required. The update to the building will
foster the best possible learning environment, for both
undergraduates taking a couple of science courses and science
majors who deserve such a space to study and learn... All
involved are excited about the possibilities," said
Dr. Gary S. Solar, assistant professor of earth sciences
at Buffalo State.
Students Respond
When asked what Buffalo State needs to work
on, no student mentioned anything about building new facilities.
Main concerns were fixing what is already broken, and of
course, parking.
"Parking's always been a big issue. We can't go anywhere
until 5 o’clock, because otherwise we won't find a
place anywhere... parking is such a hassle sometimes,"
said communications major Sarah Clark.
"More parking in other areas would help, but it would
still kind of be an inconvenience as far as distance goes,
to have parking lots all the way over there. I'd much rather
have the parking that the new dorm will take away,"
she added.
Kardonsky discussed the ongoing quest to buy houses in the
area, knock them down and put parking lots in those areas
or build buildings on the larger areas of land they acquire.
"Parking lots? That sounds good for the commuter but
bad for the community. I'd much rather see those houses
used for actual housing instead of land for places to put
more cars," said criminal justice major Jon Lannon.
"I think that Buff State needs to work
on its image more than anything right now. It seems like
they're more worried about getting money than fixing actual
problems. Food needs to be more available on the weekends,
dorms need to be cleaner and classes need to be harder,"
said Erin Wegman, a pre-communications major.
As part of the plans to make Buffalo State
better to look at, the space between the Student Union and
Butler Library will be redone so it will no longer look
like a patchwork of different pavements.
"Cleaning up that area would be a great
idea. Perhaps you wouldn’t feel like you were walking
through a depressing broken place every time you had classes,"
said political science major Meghan Kane.
There are also plans to get the “WiFi”
wireless Internet up and running in the near future.
When asked if she'd ever have a chance to
take advantage of that, Kane replied: "Sure would.
If the weather ever improved, I could do computer-related
research outside or anywhere else in the building and not
be restricted by a cord."
The other, larger-scale plans for the future
include the Campus Center (the mega complex for student
life, clubs and services), and the Great Lakes Center, which
is currently "out of sight," Kardonsky said.
"Why don't we just work improving the
buildings we already have? And then after Buffalo State
has updated facilities and a nice-looking campus, they can
build new ones. That seems to make the most sense,"
said Clark.
Jan Wopperer can be reached at: jannygrl1@yahoo.com.
Links:
Howard’s State of the College Address:
http://www.buffalostate.edu/president/speeches/index.asp?speech=state05
Science Building Map:
http://www.buffalostate.edu/tour/index.asp?sectid=sc&phnum=1%20
University College:
http://www.buffalostate.edu/bengalnews/feb05/arangements.htm
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