The end of the semester is as good a time as any for some introspection. Whenever you complete a task, it is always good to analyze what was successful and what was not. Sports teams and special forces do it, so why not college students? In that spirit, we have decided again this year to offer our suggestions on what could be improved at Shippensburg University. 

First on the list is the university’s curriculum and what it prioritizes. Shippensburg University, like many schools, focuses a lot on the school-to-career pipeline, prioritizing degrees that employers look at while shifting away from the concept of the classical liberal arts education that academia traditionally focused and built its reputation on. This pivot in priorities has impacted some departments and students in recent years.

Last year, the art department faced a rocky future due to a lack of replacement professors getting hired to fill the positions of retiring ones, and the sociology department saw the elimination of the anthropology major for ostensibly the same reason. While popular programs such as education, business and engineering attract students, the focus on them has left other programs to wither on the vine and disappear.

While upsetting, these changes are not surprising, as universities need to adapt to change. For example, the advent of artificial intelligence has seen a decline in computer science majors and increase in engineering ones, as students and their parents read headlines about AI’s computer code writing abilities.

The university is a business, and consideration needs to be given to its interest in a financially solvent, but one cannot neglect the value of the knowledge that is lost. Anthropology, for example, is more than just the study of Neanderthals. The program provides knowledge on navigating diverse cultures, religions and languages, which is crucial for multiple career fields in a diverse, globalized economy. 

The elimination of degrees causes other issues besides knowledge deprivation. It muddies the rationale behind required courses. Students are told that they must take perfunctory math and science courses as an English major, or that engineering majors must take communications and arts courses to give them a “well-rounded” education. But the university undercuts this argument when it starts cutting liberal arts classes because their path to a career is less direct.

This leaves us to ask: which is it? Are we trying to prepare for the workforce or acquire a well-rounded liberal arts education? 

This university’s coffers seem to favor the former while the rest of the administration requires the latter. These opposing viewpoints often frustrate certain majors who feel their classification is confused. For example, it has long irked psychology majors that their discipline is considered an arts degree as opposed to a science one, and these pages have argued in the past communication journalism majors — a science degree — should not have a high-level foreign language requirement. 

It is time to clean it up. Students and the university would both benefit from a coherent philosophy, more academic freedom for students to pursue their interests or a more streamlined career-oriented path, as is common in European universities.

Continuing the theme of the university’s priorities, our next suggestion looks at the disparity of clubs and groups. There are many excellent opportunities and clubs for students to engage in, but there are favored ones that get a disproportionate amount of support.

Greek life, sports and SGA are groups that most students and faculty know about. But what about the others? Many groups are snubbed in comparison to the priority given to these bigger and marketable groups, and the students both see and feel it. 

Students of a certain age, for example, may remember a time when campus walkways and building entrances were essentially a parking lot for electric scooters — a favorite of student athletes. 

But focusing on athletes and Greek life is nothing new for universities, but would be nice if students pursuing other interests got some attention from the university.

Speaking of attention, some needs to be given to campus communication. Do students know why they had to throw out all their food that was spoiled in the recent blackout? The Slate managed to get some answers, but as the blackout drags on to its third day with a fourth predicted as finals weeks approaches, it is worth pondering why students do not know more.

Often, for students to get answers to questions about campus incidents, it feels like trying to get answers from the White House. With the exception of telling students where to go and what food will be available to them, students are figuratively and literally, in the case of the recent blackout, left in the dark.

Shippensburg University is not a high school, and its students are not children. They are paying customers who deserve answers, whether the administration agrees or not. There is no classified executive privilege here. This is a public university, and it should be transparent about all incidents on campus. The vacuum of information that often exists does nothing but fuel rumor and speculation, which in a blackout can cause a panic that snowballs into disorder.

None of this is to disparage the university. We only wish the best for it and its success. Shippensburg University is a place that benefits greatly from excellent professors who carry with them a passion for their subject matter that is often contagious and spreads to their students. It is a place where young adults can grow and mature into responsible actors who usher forth the next generation of professionals. Let us all work toward a better tomorrow. 

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