Interim
President Howard Cohen had a master plan: During his term as President he was
ambitious enough to tackle a few of the problems that were plaguing Buffalo
State College; the first being enrollment issues. Enrollment growth was one of
the main priorities during his short term at the college. The beginning of the
Fall 2014 semester alone brought in 3000 first year and transfer students. That number increased the overall average of
undergraduate students to 10,000. With
the entry of new President Dr. Katherine Conway – Turner, it seems as though
she has taken this project under her wings instead of leaving it altogether.
The
admittance of freshman alone has begun to be an eye sore for students on
campus. “The lines in retail have become unbearable, I don’t even want to eat
anymore by the time its my turn.”, says Katherine Middleton a senior at the
college. This has left many students wondering what is going on. The answer is
plain and simple: profit. Even though schools are here to educate, money is
needed in order to do so. Salaries have to be paid and buildings have to be
taken care of.
The
biggest issue with the number of students arriving is the overcrowding in the
residence halls. Every freshmen hall on
campus is now a triple room, which means the average dorm room, has three people
in it as opposed to the standard two. “This hall is filled with triples but it’s
not as hectic as you would think,” says Bruna Lima, a Residential Assistant in
Neumann Hall on campus. “The only real problem we have here are how fast the
bathrooms get dirty and the lack of toilet paper.” Bruna is a 3rd
year student from Brazil; this is her 2nd year as a Residential
Assistant.
Michael Bryan, a freshman who lives in Porter
Hall says, “I don’t really mind having a triple, it’s more crowded but I meet
more people because of it.” Dean J. Reinhart, the Associate Director of
Admissions jokes that even if students are not getting along, they sure have an
experience to bond over.
According
to Reinhart, there has not been much worry over the wave of students that
entered the school this year. Surprisingly, the student teacher ratio has not
changed drastically neither has the ease of registration for students.
Buffalo
State College has plans to expand its campus in the next 5 years. According to
Reinhart “The President will set the direction of the campus.”
