University of Virginia Library

Etceters

There are other areas of growth
that could be covered in this
column. One is parking, another is
the quality of food services, and a
third is the impact of growth on the
sense of community that is quickly
dying in Charlottesville. To go into
these matters here, however, would
by time consuming and quite
boring. We must instead seek a
solution to the problem of inept
planning for growth.

The basic solution is fairly
evident. First, we must establish
what kind of growth, if any, would
be beneficial to the University in
general and to the state through the
University's position as the
capstone of higher education in
Virginia. And then, we must plan
this growth after much thought and
consideration from all viewpoints.

This call for reasoned planning
is easier said than done, however. It
is harder to do exactly because no
one really seems to know how and
where the decisions are being made.
Indeed, the above citing of those
"responsible" for certain inept
planning was not a condemnation
of individuals but rather just a
general indication of where specific
planning has lacked wisdom. It is
impossible to lay the onus for
unwise growth itself upon anyone
either in Charlottesville or in
Richmond because no one knows
who is making the decisions.

The perfect example of this
problem is last year's Future of the
University Committee, a University
committee appointed by the
President and chaired by the
Provost, which is delegated the task
clearly indicated in its title. Yet,
despite all the plans for growth
promulgated last year, the
committee only met twice and
according to one of its members,
one of the two meetings was purely
social in nature.

This past summer I paid a visit
to the University of Wisconsin in
Madison. This sprawling
megaversity was once considered
one of the finest institutions of
higher education in the nation.
Now it is just another state
university. The cause for its demise
is fairly obvious: poorly planned
growth. It seems that unless the
University begins to plan its future
wisely, it is destined to follow in
Wisconsin's footsteps.

Therefore, the call is out. We
must plan wisely for the future. But
who can we turn to for leadership?
This week the Board of Visitors is
meeting in Charlottesville. The
question of growth will certainly be
a topic of concern. Although we do
not know how decisions are
reached at the University, we most
certainly know that the Board of
Visitors plays an important part in
the decision making process. We,
the members of the University
community must therefore make
our opinions felt in the highest of
places in all manner and forms
possible. The call is for
participation in the planning of the
growth of this university. We must
write and talk to the Visitors, to
President Shannon, to Governor
Holton, and to our elected
representatives. For if we do not
help to change the destiny of our
University no one else will.