Having read the administration’s recent comments on the budget, I think I now have a clearer idea of the student recruiting campaign slogan, “The Ohio University Promise”.
I understand there have been a few changes in the original script to accommodate the new realities.
Here is a draft of the new document directed at potential students:
We promise you:
—Overcrowded classrooms and fewer courses.
—Less advising and course assistance time with faculty who are teaching more courses.
—Under-maintained buildings and grounds due to staff reductions.
—Higher tuition and room and board fees.
—And we promise “increased instructional efficiency” (please note: “efficient” is not to be confused with “effective”; that we cannot promise, given the increased class sizes and teaching loads).
I have seen the future of OU, and it is not promising.
Barry Thomas is a professor emeritus of German.
