Our Take

Majority opinions of The Red & Black's editorial board

By:

Posted: 12/3/08

University bailout

The Board of Regents may add a $100 fee to the amount you owe next semester

Here's some cheery news during this holiday recession: the Board of Regents wants you to cough up another $100 to help bail out the University during its budget cuts.

Tossing guidelines for implementing new fees out the window, the Regents are voting today on a temporary fee, which would go into effect in January.

The Red & Black urges the Regents to reconsider before casting their votes.

Yes, an 8 percent budget cut for the University System of Georgia is a huge deal. That's a lot of cutbacks and sacrifices for each institution.

But asking students and their families to pay an extra $100 - which, incidentally, the HOPE Scholarship will not cover - is not right, especially considering the mere month-long notice.

This economic crisis hasn't just affected the University System. Students and their families also are being forced to make do with less.

It may seem as if every student on campus is from metro Atlanta, with parents willing to write blank checks for any whim, but that just isn't the case.

And the Regents want to spring a new, temporary fee on us just in time for the new year?

Sure, $100 isn't a lot of money in the long run, but what about students who are working to put themselves through school?

And what does the student whose father works for Ford or General Motors, for example, tell his family? Jobs everywhere, in practically every industry, are being eliminated, and it's likely that most families are experiencing "budget cuts" of their own.

Forgive us if bailing out the University isn't our first priority.

- Shannon Otto for the editorial board

Scantron season

Make sure you take the time to submit course evaluations with honest answers

Course evaluations. They're back.

The lists of multiple-choice questions and Scantron sheets may bring back memories of pointless high school tests, but these evaluations can make a big difference in your experience at the University.

It may be tempting to decline to complete the survey or to "Christmas-tree" the Scantron, but it is worth spending 20 minutes to review your classes.

University officials take evaluation responses seriously. Instructors and their bosses read and consider the multiple-choice answers and your comments after the evaluations are submitted and tallied. Then, when instructors go for promotions or tenure, University officials also consider your rankings.

Would you prefer a professor spend less time discussing material you already read and not enough time addressing practical applications?

Then write that in the comments section. The professor may adapt his or her teaching style for next semester.

Is your lab instructor the most helpful educator you've had at the University? Let him know. It's fun to write a rave review, noting the intricacies of the course.

So, when your instructor drops off that manila envelope full of surveys for your class to complete, please take your time and complete it honestly.

- Kristen Coulter for the editorial board