vision2020
Re: DN editorial on corridor
It is possible that some of the policy changes Daniel Kronemann is speaking of have to do with
analyses of the connections between fees students pay and the courses they take at the University
of Idaho. The reason for undertaking these analyses was most certainly not to discourage exchange
programs such as the WSU / UI cooperation, interdisciplinary programs, and so forth. Indeed, great
pains have been taken to "give credit" to each department, through the faculty member who is
teaching each course. These analyses have thus separated out the UI students who are taking
courses at WSU, as there is no "department" considered appropriate to assign those credits. On the
other side of the coin, the WSU students who pay fees at WSU and take courses at UI need to be
identified, be counted in the UI courses and have credits (and revenue) assigned to them.
It's possible that some advisors and department heads at UI have the impression that they are
losing revenue when UI students take courses at WSU. While I don't believe that is the case, and I
have been running virtually all the numbers on this personally, they are perhaps in a better
position than I am to judge what is in their best interest and the best interest of their
department, and, of course the students' best interest.
To date, these analyses have been just that, analyses. While I anticipate that some funding
decisions may be based on the results in the future, it seems premature to be suggesting that
attending classes at the sister institutions will somehow result in penalties assessed against
students or departments. I certainly have not heard about students having to pay tuition or fees
at the other institution for these cooperative programs. However, I am not privy to policy changes
at WSU, and that may be a part of the picture.
Archie George, Moscow, Idaho
----- Original Message -----
From: "Daniel Kronemann" <kron4155@uidaho.edu>
To: "Priscilla Salant" <psalant@moscow.com>
Cc: <vision2020@moscow.com>
Sent: Saturday, April 27, 2002 4:43 PM
Subject: Re: DN editorial on corridor
>
> Priscilla and Visionaries:
>
> There was a point raised in the email about development between Moscow and
> Pullman that I found quite interesting, and more far reaching than just
> the issue of development.
>
> Getting help from the University of Idaho and Washington State University
> for community development is a wonderful idea. Could you imagine what we
> could do if these to entities of higher education would combine there
> resources not only for community development and local issues, but in an
> effort as merging the academic and educational goals, what we could do for
> education, not only here but for the nation and the world?
>
> However, it seems there is relentless de facto opposition to this, which
> has its basis, as most opposition does, in money. As a student in the
> Microbiology/Biochemistry Department at the University of Idaho, I
> remember students being able to take classes from both Universities at no
> penalty, financial or academic. But recently, the powers that be, decided
> that if students from the UI went to WSU for certain classes, and vice
> versa, the corrosponding departments didn't really need as much money they
> were given, seeing as how the individual departments were not directly
> giving the classes. So for each student sent across the Washington/Idaho
> border to attend a class at the other University, money was taken from the
> department that sent the student over. Finally, our department couldn't
> afford it and had to pass the expense on down to the student. We can
> still take classes over there, but not without paying out of state tuition
> and dealing with the bureacracy ourselves, something the department was
> doing for us.
>
> So the potential for a great agglomeration of education here on the
> Palouse, consisting of the UI and WSU, is not possible. So if you want UI
> and WSU cooperation in helping with local development, and in the future
> with other issues, you must not financially penalize them.
>
> I don't know. This is a hard and complicated issue to address. People
> want services but they don't want to pay for them. Its a never ending
> vicious cycle.
>
> Regards
>
> Daniel Kronemann
>
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