Letter to the Editor

To the Editor:

I read the December article of The Metropolitan about the disagreement between the administration and the Student Senate regarding the printed schedules. Thank you for bringing this issue to the forefront. However, due to a lapse in communication with writer Meghan Dusek, some aspects of our position were not conveyed as accurately or as fully as would be appropriate. I would also like to take this opportunity to address some of the administration’s claims.

It should be noted that similar efforts to discontinue printed class schedules have occurred at other state universities. The difference between Metropolitan State and, for example, Winona State, is that the latter has ensured universal online /computer access through their laptop program.

Additionally, many of the other state universities have a large percentage of students that reside on campus. This makes it much easier for those students to access online schedules at their leisure. We would like to point out that our student body is entirely made up of commuters, some of whom come from considerably further than the greater twin city area. This makes library and computer access challenging.

One of the main contentions brought forth by administration is their claim that, “the print class schedule is inaccurate the moment it goes to the printer.” However, the administration has not addressed to what degree the schedules are inaccurate. Most students polled have stated that they have used the print schedules regularly and understand that their will be some degree of imprecision. These anticipated and acceptable changes should not inconvenience the students here at Metropolitan State.

This dilemma is a problem that our administration itself should find a reasonable solution for. The Student Senate has proposed one: Print a reasonable quantity of hard copy schedules. Additionally, the administration asserts that many Metropolitan State University staff are, ostensibly, in support of the discontinuation of the printed class schedules. However, they have yet to show any evidence of this statement and we have heard just the opposite. Further, though we respect views of opposition, the view of the student who is directly affected must be heard. The administration has also failed to show the Student Senate any verification of their claim that the student body was appropriately consulted prior to this decision, nor have they offered any proposal as to how they are planning to ascertain the efficacy of the print schedule discontinuation.

We would like to conclude by making clear that what we want is a compromise, not a complete return to the practices and policies of past years; a reduced number of printed copies which are closely monitored for usage and waste in order to determine an appropriate number of copies to print each semester seems to be an elementary solution.

On Behalf of the Student Body,
Melissa Heinz
President, Student Senate
Metropolitan State University