Change can be hard and it can be scary. But, it also can be promising. Because with change comes opportunity.
That’s the spirit that must be tapped as the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education moves forward with seismic change: the merger of six of its member universities into two.
Amid contention and opposition, leaders of the state system agreed unanimously — and with the vocal support of the state system Chancellor Daniel Greenstein — to move forward with the plan that will combine three universities in the west and three in the northeast. Impacted on this side of the state are the universities of Clarion, Edinboro and California.
There will be a lot of work as well as consternation as the nuts and bolts are tightened on the integration initiatives that will culminate in the first class of students at the combined institutions in August 2022.
Everything, from coursework to marketing to sports, will be changed in some way. And it will be difficult. And necessary.
The state system is in an existential crisis. Enrollment has fallen. State financial support is weak, at best. Stronger schools have been pilfered to support the weaker among them. A makeover was necessary.
The new structure of the state system is an opportunity to build anew. Many particulars are unknown and have yet to be worked out. But, Mr. Greenstein said that students enrolled in the affected universities will be able to finish their degrees and that a full complement of sports will be maintained on all campuses. These are important promises — promises that must be kept.
The opportunity for a fresh start far from absolves Pennsylvania lawmakers of the duty to support a public higher education with adequate funding. Pennsylvania fares poorly in the ranking of public financial support for public higher education. The state system mergers constitute a necessary structural change. Now, lawmakers must follow with a serious assessment of its duty; loosen the purse strings. Some $200 million over three years in one-time help from the state for “redesign” is not enough.
— Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS
