2008 Woodie Awards
Guest Column: BSOS: the neglected college
Matthew Lyons
Issue date: 4/9/08 Section: Opinion
Ever been stuck in a massive, jam-packed, musty, uncomfortable chamber, forced to listen to endless droning from faces that barely register your existence? I have - every Tuesday and Thursday at 2 p.m., in fact. I'm talking about one of your friendly BSOS lecture halls.
The state of our BSOS lecture halls parallels the state of BSOS. Funding for the College of Behavioral and Social Science is abysmal. BSOS is the largest college at the university in terms of undergraduate enrollment, yet somehow, as of fall 2006, it received the second-least amount of funding.
The effects of this funding gap are reflected everywhere you look. According to various BSOS professors, last year the average class size at the university was 37 students, yet in BSOS, it was 67. The typical criminology class was crowded with 100 students, and psychology majors were shoved into average lecture sizes of 79 students.
Students also find themselves with a complete lack of guidance in BSOS. Freshmen and sophomores often never even meet with an adviser during their first two years of school, the time when they are forming the foundation of their college career and need the most advice. When students do take the initiative to meet with an adviser, they are handed off to different people each time they come. This leaves students with no chance to build a relationship with the people who are helping them outline four of the most important years of their lives.
To a point, it is understandable the university is behind on its BSOS funding. In the course of the past 16 years, BSOS has experiences dramatic growth in its student body. Reasonably, the university needs time to adjust its funding to the rate of student growth.
Yet when given a golden opportunity to really address the problem, administrators have consistently turned a blind eye. In the Strategic Plan published by the university in 2000, BSOS funding was mentioned in only one sentence, and no concrete goals were established.
The only way the university will really tackle the problems with BSOS is if students take action. Fortunately, some students are already getting to work. The BSOS legislators of the Student Government Association have established the first-ever BSOS Student-Faculty Dinner, which will occur at the end of the month. This is the perfect way to overcome huge classes by networking with teachers in a casual setting.
Taking from this progress, student representation next year must start where the current SGA left off. We need to expand established traditions and find new ways to bring the problems with BSOS into the limelight.
As a member of the Students Party running as a BSOS legislator, I, along with my two running mates, will fight to put pressure on the administration. While the SGA's political power regarding BSOS funding is limited, our social power is limitless. That is why, if elected, we will organize thousands of students to sign a petition demanding that university officials fund BSOS fully and find innovative ways to bring media attention to our cause. Only by bringing exposure to the problem can we get the university to discuss a solution.
We often hear administrators compare the university to other top public institutions such as Michigan and Berkeley, yet one glaring difference sticks out. These schools invest heavily in their social sciences. Being a 10-minute Metro ride away from the political capital of the world, there is no excuse for not funding our social scientists. If university officials will not take the initiative to rethink the way BSOS is funded, we will.
Matthew Lyons is a junior government and politics major and is a candidate for BSOS legislator with the Students Party. He can be reached at mlyons@umd.edu.
The state of our BSOS lecture halls parallels the state of BSOS. Funding for the College of Behavioral and Social Science is abysmal. BSOS is the largest college at the university in terms of undergraduate enrollment, yet somehow, as of fall 2006, it received the second-least amount of funding.
The effects of this funding gap are reflected everywhere you look. According to various BSOS professors, last year the average class size at the university was 37 students, yet in BSOS, it was 67. The typical criminology class was crowded with 100 students, and psychology majors were shoved into average lecture sizes of 79 students.
Students also find themselves with a complete lack of guidance in BSOS. Freshmen and sophomores often never even meet with an adviser during their first two years of school, the time when they are forming the foundation of their college career and need the most advice. When students do take the initiative to meet with an adviser, they are handed off to different people each time they come. This leaves students with no chance to build a relationship with the people who are helping them outline four of the most important years of their lives.
To a point, it is understandable the university is behind on its BSOS funding. In the course of the past 16 years, BSOS has experiences dramatic growth in its student body. Reasonably, the university needs time to adjust its funding to the rate of student growth.
Yet when given a golden opportunity to really address the problem, administrators have consistently turned a blind eye. In the Strategic Plan published by the university in 2000, BSOS funding was mentioned in only one sentence, and no concrete goals were established.
The only way the university will really tackle the problems with BSOS is if students take action. Fortunately, some students are already getting to work. The BSOS legislators of the Student Government Association have established the first-ever BSOS Student-Faculty Dinner, which will occur at the end of the month. This is the perfect way to overcome huge classes by networking with teachers in a casual setting.
Taking from this progress, student representation next year must start where the current SGA left off. We need to expand established traditions and find new ways to bring the problems with BSOS into the limelight.
As a member of the Students Party running as a BSOS legislator, I, along with my two running mates, will fight to put pressure on the administration. While the SGA's political power regarding BSOS funding is limited, our social power is limitless. That is why, if elected, we will organize thousands of students to sign a petition demanding that university officials fund BSOS fully and find innovative ways to bring media attention to our cause. Only by bringing exposure to the problem can we get the university to discuss a solution.
We often hear administrators compare the university to other top public institutions such as Michigan and Berkeley, yet one glaring difference sticks out. These schools invest heavily in their social sciences. Being a 10-minute Metro ride away from the political capital of the world, there is no excuse for not funding our social scientists. If university officials will not take the initiative to rethink the way BSOS is funded, we will.
Matthew Lyons is a junior government and politics major and is a candidate for BSOS legislator with the Students Party. He can be reached at mlyons@umd.edu.
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