Atlanta68

University of Alabama News UA Reaches Record 28,807 Students

Enrollment highlights include:

The entering freshman class, at 5,207, is the largest and most academically talented class in UA history.
The freshman class includes 102 National Merit Scholars and 25 National Achievement Scholars. Last year, UA ranked 11th in the nation among public universities in the enrollment of National Merit Scholars. The University is generally ranked in the top five public universities in the enrollment of National Achievement Scholars.
The freshman class includes 1,173 students with a 4.0 high school grade point average, up from 1,012 in fall 2008.
The number of high school seniors applying for admission to UA for fall 2009 reached a record 19,449, up more than 165 percent over the 7,300 applications received for fall 2002. The percent of students admitted has decreased since 2002 as UA has become a more selective institution.
Enrollment in graduate and first professional degree programs is 5,105, up from 4,709 last year.
Total enrollment includes students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and more than 70 foreign countries.

feenotype

Really? It's only 28K? Feels more like 40K...

Atlanta68

The current enrollment is more than 50% higher than the peak enrollment when I attended from 87-91. What is it like to be on campus with that many people? What are some of the problems you have experienced since the rapid growth? Are most students supportive of the growth or not? The up side of this growth is the huge increase in revenue that will add prestige to your degree. Still, it seems obvious that UA will have to tighten admission standards even more to avoid congestion. Would be interested to hear from more UA students about their feelings about the rapid growth.

feenotype

There have been multiple problems associated with the rapid growth. The facilities are just not there to support the increase in enrollment. Just look at the Ferguson Center during lunchtime - people are having to sit on the floor in hallways and stairwells because every single spot in the dining hall is taken. Try getting a quick workout at the rec center in the evening. The only way it will be quick is if you turn right around and leave.

Class sizes have ballooned. For all the fervor the university has displayed in getting more enrollment (+$$$), it sure hasn't transferred some of that fervor into getting more faculty (-$$$). Classes in my department that pre-2004 hardly broke 25 per semester now regularly have 60+ per semester. Lounges and computer labs are packed.

On a more general scale, the campus is just more crowded. The only major academic expansion of the campus of the past 10 years has been the construction of Shelby Hall, and that started before President Witt got here. His contribution has been in building all those residence halls on the north of campus. So basically, he has overseen the dumping of an additional 10,000 students on the core of campus, without an real expansion in the facilities to handle them. Even those residence halls (which were so shoddily built, I hear, that they are already experiencing problems) aren't enough to handle it all. The university actually has to rent an off-campus apartment complex to house students who are on housing scholarships.

There are other things I could start on (parking, tuition, football, etc), but they don't bother me as much as the things listed above. So, overall, count me as against this entire boondoggle.

feenotype

But maybe I'm just a bitter grad student. Somebody else could have a completely different take on things.

mom2collegekids

Class sizes have not ballooned...as a matter of fact, UA has a very large number of university honors classes (UH ###) which are limited to 15 students and departmental honors classes that are limited to 30.

I have 2 kids there and rarely have they had a large class (more than 30). Actually, they have had some very small classes with less than 10 students. The school has done a very good job managing growth with infrastructure needs (more dorms, more classrooms, more profs, more dining venues, larger rec center, etc).

My younger son is in a brand new residence hall this year. And, UA is opening several more dining venues in January '10.

BTW...Shelby Hall is amazing...along with the new addition that is on the east side of Shelby.

Right now, about 20-25% of the school population qualifies for honors classes. President Witt was asked if he was going to raise the bar for honors admittance since those classes are more expensive. He said "no" - he'd rather spend the money on the smaller classes since the students are doing so well in them.

BTW...even the rare times my kids have had large lecture classes, those classes have included small labs where more "one on one" attention can be had.

mom2collegekids

>>>> Even those residence halls (which were so shoddily built, I hear, that they are already experiencing problems) aren't enough to handle it all. The university actually has to rent an off-campus apartment complex to house students who are on housing scholarships. <<<<

This has not been my kids' experience at all. They love the new dorms...not shoddily built at ALL. This is DS1's 3rd year in the honors dorms (a diff res hall each year) and he's not had any experience with "shoddy" buildings.

Yes, Ferg Dining area is crowded at lunch time (what college doesn't have THAT problem..lol ), but UA has added other venues....Lakeside Dining feeds more kids than the Ferg...and Burke dining feeds a lot, too.

And, for those who are invited (not required) to accept housing on the off-campus apartment complex, they accept willingly because those very newish apartments have bedrooms each with a private bathroom AND each apartment has its own washer and dryer. So, that is certainly nothing to complain about.

The rec center was expanded to accomodate more students - the weight machine area was practically doubled by adding another floor....the rock-climbing area was also enlarged. My kids go there all the time. I know that I have visited the rec center many, many times and often it isn't full at all.

I will look up the amount of expanded classroom space that has been built since the expansion. I know that it is a lot.

BTW...the honors computer lab is frequently near empty.

New parking structures have been built and are being built...but, like most universities, having enough parking is a challenge. However, neither of my kids had any problems getting a parking permit for their cars. If parking were truly a problem at UA, then UA would deny freshmen the right to bring a car to campus (as some other colleges do)...BUT..UA does allow freshmen to have cars on campus.

mom2collegekids

>>> ...The University of Alabama is actively recruiting faculty and staff, and building and expanding programs – the result of our appropriate focus on significant growth in our enrollment and dramatic improvement in the academic quality of our entering classes.
...... All of our renovation and construction projects are on schedule. The multi-year renovation of Lloyd Hall will be completed this fall, providing much-needed classroom space, faculty office space and additional dining space. We’ll soon launch a major renovation of Foster Auditorium that will return this historic building to its original use.

Our new Science and Engineering building (Phase 2) will open this August..... the campus’s new Science and Engineering Complex that includes Shelby Hall and some 900,000 square feet of new, interdisciplinary science and engineering classrooms, auditoriums, laboratories and support facilities for Chemistry, Engineering, and Computer Science....... This completes phase 2 of 3 for the Science and Engineering Complex. Phase 3 will begin in 2010.


Ridgecrest South will open in August as well, providing 960 additional residence hall beds for our students and a 1,000-slot underground parking deck. We have broken ground on our new nursing building; the stadium expansion is under way; and we will begin construction of our third engineering and science building this fall. <<<


So...I think that saying that UA has only added the Shelby Building and the Science and Engineering Complex is like saying the U.S. ONLY added the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. By building such an incredibly large Science and Engineering complex, not only did it add many, many classrooms and labs to the campus, it "freed up" many of the classrooms and labs in the buildings that formerly held science, chemistry, computer science, and engineering classes, so that those classes could be used for other subjects.

feenotype

Well, like I said, you may have a completely different experience than I do. But I stand by what I say.

Yeah, but like you said, only 20-25% of students qualify for honors classes, and I'm guessing not all those who qualify actually get in. So, what of the other 80% of students? What are their class sizes like?

Indeed they are. It's good to see them catching the facilities up to the enrollment, but a lot of good that did the student who caught the brunt of the over-expansion of 2004-2009.

I'm just going by what people I know who have lived there have told me. Also, I have heard from people with inside knowledge that the new residence halls will have to either be extensively remodeled or rebuilt in the next 15 years since they were built so quickly.

Ick, I hate Lakeside, the food in there always makes me feel ill afterwards. However, I think Fresh Food Company (the dining hall inside the Ferg) is superb. I actually haven't been to Burke in years because its on the opposite side of campus from where I "work".

My point was not whether or not the residents at The Bluff were suffering or not (and yes, I'm sure they are very comfortable), but the fact that University over-expanded to the point where they couldn't house everybody to whom they offered a housing scholarship.

The Rec Center expansion was planned and started in the late 90s/early 2000s by the previous administration. It was already almost finished when Witt got here. I don't know what the design specs for the expansion were, but I doubt the planners had any idea that would increase enrollment 50% in a decade. The Rec Center can be quite empty if you go at the right time, but most people can only find time to go in the evening.

Again, what about everybody else?

That may be starting to be true now, but that wasn't always the case. When Shelby Hall opened, the chemistry department moved en masse (except for the freshman chemistry labs because there wasn't room for them ><) to the new building, but Lloyd Hall was unusable until now because it required extensive renovations.

Wrapping up, I should reiterate what I said earlier: you may have a completely different experience than I do. But I stand by what I say.

mom2collegekids

My Quote:
Yes, Ferg Dining area is crowded at lunch time (what college doesn't have THAT problem..lol ), but UA has added other venues....Lakeside Dining feeds more kids than the Ferg...and Burke dining feeds a lot, too.

Feen Quote:
Ick, I hate Lakeside, the food in there always makes me feel ill afterwards. However, I think Fresh Food Company (the dining hall inside the Ferg) is superb. I actually haven't been to Burke in years because its on the opposite side of campus from where I "work".


My Quote:
And, for those who are invited (not required) to accept housing on the off-campus apartment complex, they accept willingly because those very newish apartments have bedrooms each with a private bathroom AND each apartment has its own washer and dryer. So, that is certainly nothing to complain about.

Feen Quote:
My point was not whether or not the residents at The Bluff were suffering or not (and yes, I'm sure they are very comfortable), but the fact that University over-expanded to the point where they couldn't house everybody to whom they offered a housing scholarship.

Actually, UA doesn't offer that many housing scholarships for the honors dorms. Most in honors housing are paying for their housing; only the NM and the Elites are getting free housing. The "problem" actually is that UA is requiring freshmen live on campus, so they "ran out of rooms." However, UA acted responsibly and found "better" housing for the "over flow"...at least that is MUCH better than what some colleges do...other colleges will just stick more bunk beds in a dorm and tell the kids to "live with it"!!!!

Lakeside Dining rightly has gotten some criticisms and they are working on that. Anyone who has a bad experience at any dining venue should complain, complain, complain to upper management (not just to the venue's mgmt) and to the newspaper Crimson White. The squeaky wheel does get the grease!!!

The food at Fresh Food and at Burke is very good. Frankly, I think that if the management at Lakeside can't "get it together" to match quality, they should be replaced. I know that when the "top people" are contacted (the outside company that runs the meal plan dining halls), they do listen and respond. So, start "yapping" at the top guys!

Atlanta68

Shelby Hall and the new S and E Building adjacent to Shelby are huge, and beautiful additions. And Loyd is now renovated to allow for additional classroom space. UA is actually one of the few colleges in the nation still hiring large numbers of faculty despite the recession. One should ask, why would someone go to UA if the problems Feenotype raises are as bad as he suggests? Surely the word would get out and reduce applications. Just the reverse has happened.

Now, I have read Dr. Witt say that UA will continue to grow, but at a much slower pace than it has over the last six years. And he has stated that the only way to grow UA any more is to acquire the adjacent Bryce campus. So chill Feenotype. I think Dr. Witt has your same concerns and will not allow UA to continue to expand if it detracts from the overall "Alabama" experience.

mom2collegekids

For those who may not know...the UA president lives on campus...which I think is a big plus.

Dr. Robert Witt’s vision for the University of the future has three cornerstones:

To be a university of choice for the best and brightest students;
To be a student-centered tier-1 research university;
To be an academic community united in its commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all Alabamians.

Now in his sixth year as president, Dr. Witt came to UA with 35 years experience in the University of Texas System. He received his B.A. in economics from Bates College, his M.B.A. from Tuck School at Dartmouth College, and his Ph.D. from Penn State University.

He recently chaired the board of directors of the West Alabama Chamber of Commerce, serves on the board of directors of the Black Warrior Council Boy Scouts of America and is a member of the Tuscaloosa County Industrial Development Authority. Dr. Witt and his wife Sandee have three grandchildren.

feenotype

No, he does not. Well, Dr. Witt does not. I know this for a fact from my SGA contacts. They do stay on the President's Mansion for important campus events (read: football weekends). If that was supposed to be classified university information, sorry.

That's news to me. My department has shrunk since Dr. Witt and Dr. Karr (engineering dean) came in.

Maybe it's the oodles and oodles of money given to people to come here? I surely wouldn't complain if I wasn't paying to come here and deal with this.

Well, it's too late for me. My experiences will certainly factor in to my decision the next time I receive a solicitation for an alumni donation.

feenotype

And I should make it clear than I do not dislike UA or President Witt. My rather heated stance on this topic is solely directed to the execution of this expansion strategy. If it is true that growth will slow down to focus on allowing facilities to catch up, that's all for the better. But I can't pretend that everything was and continues to be gumdrops and lollipops

mom2collegekids

Feenotype...

Why do you go to UA since you are so unhappy? Seems like you might be happier on another campus.


BTW..you can't look at sheer numbers for faculty...the number might shrink at a dept because less part-time are needed because they have been replaced with full-time profs.