University of Virginia Library

The Growing University

Almost two weeks ago the Admissions
Committee appointed by President Shannon
came to the natural conclusion that next
year's entering class should be no larger than
the current crop of entering students. A
Student Council endorsement quickly
followed. We feel that it would be extremely
wise to follow the advice of the Admissions
Committee. This year the University is
experiencing, for really the first time,
problems related to expansion such as parking
difficulties, crowded classrooms, lack of
financial aid, and even a long wait to eat at
the Contract Cafeteria. But these problems
are relatively minor when compared to the
housing shortage.

At this point there are plans to build as
many as 1,000 units of housing on Lambeth
Field, probably in the form of some high-rise
apartment complex. We think that because of
the additional cost and the lack of time for
planning, residential colleges are being given
less attention than they really deserve, By
building these apartment complexes the
University will succeed in easing the housing
shortage, but will, we feel, do irreparable
damage to the "sense of community" which
we now have.

By making no increase in the number of
entering first-year students, the University
will have to cut down on the number of
entering first-year men if the schedule for the
coeducation of the University established by
the Board of Visitors is to be followed. This
entails admitting 550 additional women who
are to be added to next year's entering class
and an equal decrease in the number of men
admitted. The students who will be turned
sown can probably manage tolerably well
elsewhere, and the University will be left with
more time to rationally plan for the
University's rapid expansion over the next
decade. There will undoubtedly be pressures
from the state to increase the enrollment but
it is only logical to have accommodations for
students before they are admitted, rather than
the other way around.

Unfortunately many students now feel
that there should be a permanent, rather than
a temporary limitation on the growth of the
University. We do not agree. Universities such
as Michigan and Berkeley have shown that
academic excellence is not incompatible with
large numbers of students. But at the same
time, this University must plan intelligently to
avoid the problems of alienation that arise
when an individual enters a large University.

Years ago a school could offer a relatively
small selection of departments and courses
and still remain a "major university." But to
keep that label institutions of higher learning
in these times must grow to include new
courses which will train people to solve the
new problems of society.

The University will eventually almost
double in size. Twenty years from now close
to one half of the students on the Grounds will
live and study in buildings not constructed at
the present time. If insufficient planning and
lack of resources force this school to build
monstrosities the damage done will be much
worse over the long run than having to turn
down a few hundred qualified students next
year.