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wednesday, october 9, 2013
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THE VOLANTE
University's ROTC program to close in 2015 Students must choose to stay at USD or transfer to continue officer training Emily Niebrugge The Volante
Fourteen students enrolled in the Reserve Officer's Training Corps program at the University of South Dakota will have to make the decision whether to stay or leave after the U.S. Army announced a week ago that the USD program was going to be cut. Last Wednesday, Lt. Col. Ross Nelson, military science department chair, and USD President James Abbott received a letter from the U.S. Army notifying them the program would be dropped by the organization at the end of the 2014-15 academic school year. "It kind of came out of the blue," Nelson said of the announcement. Twelve other programs across the country will also be cut, including North Dakota State University. Nelson and Abbott both said the reason behind the cut is unclear, but Nelson said the closure of the program is based off of a study done in 2011. "They never released the results of that study, but it looked at demographics, geographical location, academic offerings and diversity," Nelson said. Currently enrolled juniors and seniors at USD will be able to graduate and finish out the program, but first-years and sophomores will not be able to finish the program. Nelson said those students have the option to transfer to apply to another university or stay at USD by getting out of their contract with no commitment to the Army. Lauren Hill was set to come to USD to be an officer in the ROTC program this coming spring, but because of the announcement, is reconsider-
ing her options. Hill is currently in training, and said USD is still an option because of the medical and track programs. "It's just one of those things where you didn't think that kind of a program would be cut — you wouldn't plan for it," she said. "I was set on my plans, and if you're apart of the ROTC program you can't deploy, so that's a problem — I was looking forward to getting all through college with no deployment, and this kind of ruins all of those plans." Nelson said when he told students, they were both
other Schools to see CUt: North Dakota State University Arkansas State University University of North Alabama University of Southern Mississippi Morehead State University University of California Santa Barbara Northern Michigan University University of Wisconsin Lacrosse University of Tennessee at Martin Georgia Regents Augusta State University East Tennessee State University Tennessee Technological University
shocked and disappointed. "A lot of them were immediately wondering how this would affect them, and I told them they didn't have to make any decisions right away," he said. " I'm going to sit down with each student individually and go over their situation with them and talk to them and try to help them decide between myself, academic advisers and their own personal situation what the best decision for them is." Senior Matthew Martinez will be able to graduate from the program, but said he was disheartened when he heard the ROTC program would be cut. Martinez is originally from Arizona, and said he came to South Dakota specifically for USD's ROTC program because of the size and ratings. "I remember when my mom told me to check out the school, I told my mom I would never come to school here, but I did, and I'm glad I did," he said. "Our smaller program allowed me to have more opportunities and more one-on-one contact with our instructors." Martinez said ROTC members do try to help the university as well as the community — something he thinks will be missed once the program is cut. Within the last week, Martinez said the ROTC has painted the USD letters outside of campus for Dakota Days, worked as ball boys during the football game and brought in the colors for the Oct. 5 football game. He also said they have done work for Military Appreciation Day and helped with trash cleanup on the roads and lower Vermillion. To combat the cut, Abbott said he has contacted South Dakota Rep. Kristi Noem and Sen. Tim Johnson "to do every-
cristina drey /the volante
ROTC members walk in the beginning of the Dakota Days parade Saturday, Oct. 5. USD's ROTC program will be dropped by the end of the 2014-15 academic school year.
thing we can to overturn or delay the action." Abbott, who pushed for retention and recruitment during his Oct. 2 University Address, said the cut will hurt USD. "I don't know the breakdown between male and female, but it is predominantly male, and of course, it's no secret women attend liberal arts colleges in greater numbers than men, so it's a disappointment," he said. "But it's mostly a disappointment for the fact that our students who want that option
won't get it any longer." Students who enroll in the program, Nelson said, are typically better students who succeed professionally as well as personally. "(The ROTC) is one leadership group where the university trains students," he said. "We've had a number of distinguished graduates come out of this program who have been quite successful whether that's in the military or in life, running their own businesses or politically." Martinez said the students
who will not have these opportunities will be the hardest part of the cut. "I'm really glad I got the opportunity to come out here," he said. "I've seen a lot of good results. I've had a lot of good experiences." Reach reporter Emily Niebrugge at Emily.K.Niebrugge@coyotes.usd.edu
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Check out The Volante's website to see the letter President Abbott and Lt. Col. Nelson received notifying them of the closure.
Departments allow Number of students taking online flexibility in degrees courses increases by 38 percent Cole Bockelmann The Volante
While structure and rigorous study are two common elements exemplified by college students, the University of South Dakota is offering several majors that allow students to get a little loose — with the freedom of selecting their own coursework to receive a degree. At just a year old, the sustainability program is one such major. Meghann Jarchow, assistant professor of biology and head of the sustainability program, said the advantage of the program is the flexibility. “It lets students tailor their major to what interests them the most,” Jarchow said. The sustainability program was created because of student interest, Jarchow said, and allows them to choose the majority of classes they take. Once students declare sustainability as their major, they have the option to specialize in either natural or social sciences. After choosing a specialization, students can take a variety of classes that fit their interests and specialization. The advantage of a program that allows for this kind of self-selecting coursework, Jarchow said, is it increases credited research and internship opportunities, and allows working with other students in the program to solve issues in sustainability. “Some majors with strict requirements can be problematic for indecisive students, but having a sustainability major allows students to study what they enjoy the most,” she said. Steve Ward, director of the Academic and Career Planning Center, said biology majors are also allowed some freedom, with two different pathways of study: ecology and human biol-
ogy. Other programs at USD, Ward said, offer different pathways and specializations, such as English, communication studies, contemporary media and journalism and history. Ward also said the freedom to mix and match classes is not enough for a broad education. “I want students to hear that the classes they take are not enough, and to be marketable, they must get experience outside of the classroom," he said. One of the 15 current sustainability majors at USD is sophomore Emily Roberson. Roberson is a double major in anthropology and sustainability and said she chose this path because she wants to help people on a large scale, rather than on a small scale. "I see problems now that prevent sustainability, and I want fix those problems,” she said. Roberson chose the social sciences path in the program and said there are a lot of discussion classes where everyone gets to give their opinions and you get to hear many different perspectives. Roberson is also in favor of modeling other programs like the sustainability program. “In some programs that are more strict, students have no chance to figure out what interests them,” she said. Senior criminal justice major Austin Welker also encouraged the idea of a broader education encouraged by allowing students more freedom from the usual general education courses to graduate. “The more options for students, the better,” he said.
Reach reporter Cole Bockelmann at Cole.Brockelmann@coyotes.usd.edu
Megan Koch The Volante
Nicholas tifft /the volante
Students study online in the math emporium. The number of USD students taking classes online this year is 34 percent. Megan Koch The Volante
Online classes are trending for nearly one-third of undergraduate students who attended the University of South Dakota last year. Nearly 34 percent of students at the university were enrolled in online courses, while seven percent were taking only online courses. Michael Card, interim director of the graduate school and division of continuing and distance education said USD offers 39 degree programs entirely online and over 350 courses. When an academic department decides to take a program and its courses online, the Continuing and Distance Education center helps them pursue that by marketing and recruiting students into the program. CDE also facilitates training of instructors into the online environment through the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). Card said the number of students taking classes off-
campus increased 38 percent from the academic year of 2007 to 2012. Flexibility is the central reason why adult students prefer online classes, he said. “Like with Hulu Plus and Netflix today, you don’t have to be in front of the TV when the show airs to be able to see it — you can watch it at a time more convenient for you,” Card said. According to a study conducted in 2011 from Babson Survey Research Group, more than 6.1 million students took at least one online class during fall 2010, a 10.1 percent increase over 2009. Bill Richardson, chair of the political science department, teaches an online course concerning political theory, said though traditional classes are most beneficial to students, those who must take online courses have access to similar benefits. “The opportunity to have co-chat sessions with the students is the closest we
get to in-class experience, peers," she said. "Being able but they have to be volun- to work at your own pace tary because these people is a great feature of online are running full-time jobs classes; you just have to and families,” Richardson remember to do the work." Although difficult to said. However, Richardson keep up with, junior Erika said only about a fourth of Gravning said online classes his students actually partici- helped keep her on track for pate in the co-chat sessions. graduation. “My online class was hard Card said students who enjoy independent work to keep up with, but defiand the use of technology nitely convenient," she said. can have online success, "Instead of walking across while those who need per- campus." In 2011, Card said, the sonal contact and a structured learning environment number of faculty teachare less likely to benefit from ers on campus increased 34 an online learning environ- percent, and in the academic year 2012, that number ment. “Computer mediated increased with USD hiring communication or online more instructors with praclearning is a self-driven and tical experience. “These teachers are likely more autonomous than face-to-face experience,” to teach at least one online Card said. “Online students class,” Card said. need a higher degree of personal responsibility and disReach reporter Megan Koch cipline." at Megan.Koch@coyotes.usd.edu Junior Angie Edward said she prefers the traditional Tweet @thevolante class experience. “I prefer being in class Why would/wouldn't you take an because of interaction with online class?
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