Something I noticed before I even enrolled at Ohio University was that it was incredibly disorganized. I applied there in November, and afterward received letter after letter requesting a transcript or paper that I'd submitted weeks before. None of the other colleges I'd applied to were like this-----even Ohio State, with its mammoth enrollment numbers. I related this issue to my other applicant friends, who reported that they'd encountered the same problem.

And once I arrived, I realized that Ohio University's problems with irresponsibilty were much deeper. And who creates the central problems of this university?

The Administration

Within weeks of my arrival at OU, located in Athens, Ohio, it was reported that the university was approaching an eighteen-million-dollar budget deficit (their budget is usually around five-hundred-million). President Roderick McDavis perfunctorily blamed the issue on rising operational costs and decreasing state-funding. That would be sufficient, but he forgot one thing: the university is building a purely ostentatious Student Center. It's all for show. No one needed it. If an organization wanted to schedule a meeting or host a speaker at the old center, they had no problems finding a room. So why does the University Center website brag that the new university center will have more student programming, organization, and study spaces? They are unnecessary. But if you attend Ohio University, your tuition will rise to pay for these things.

The university resolved that they needed to act on the deficit. Thus, they decided to downsize the faculty. That's right, teachers would be losing their jobs because of someone else's poor decisions. The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) became contentious. Hearing their complaints, the Provost responded that the ones complaining were the ones who had never contributed anything to the university in the first place. (insert sarcasm) That's class, Kathy Krendl. (end sarcasm)

The AAUP asked the Board of Trustees to allow university-sponsored confidence-petitions on the President and Provost, which the Trustees disallowed (this after they had heinously given McDavis a $40,000 bonus, and later an $8,000 raise, even though average incoming ACT scores had significantly decreased for the 2005-2006 year). The AAUP fundraised the money required, and circulated the petitions. 45.5% of the faculty participated, and 76% expressed a lack of confidence in the President, while 62% expressed a lack of confidence in the Provost. If you attend Ohio University, your money will be going to these two officials.

What about the faculty? Most of them have exactly what you'd desire in a university professor. They are articulate, dynamic, and helpful. My Philosophy 101 prof made the subject exponentially more interesting than any of my elders told me it would be. Mid-quarter, my English 321 teacher passed around evaluations of his job as a teacher so that the quality of the class's latter weeks would be improved. Even the duller lecturers still possess a subtle sense of humor. And these people are being fired for their jobs? This also means increased class-sizes at a university where a good schedule is already difficult to create (I say this in comparison with other universities).

Amidst all of these issues, the University had other problems. There was a plagiarism scandal in the Russ College of Engineering (for grad students) which made national headlines, subtracting even more value from your degree. The scandal still continues. On top of this, the Princeton Review also ranked Ohio University as the #2 party school, which, from my experience there, can't be too far from the truth (Playboy also ranked the college) and had three female students featured in its party-schools issue). Hackers recently broke into both the alumni and health center datacase and copied thousands of social security numbers. Before the city's notorious Halloween street party, the President sent letters home to parents, suggesting that they tell their children to be cautious over the weekend. How polite of him to tell parents how to govern people who are already adults. Of course, he didn't hesitate to forgive the head football coach after he'd been caught drunk-driving.

But if you're attending Ohio University purely for the social aspect, you are in for a great time. The students are gregarious and cordial; they will go out of their way to chat with you even if you are the hall recluse (i.e., me). The university is also located in a great town----if you dig corporations, there are plenty of them here (Wendy's, Taco Bell, Follett's Bookstore). If you dig small businesses, there are plenty of them here (Haffa's Records, Donkey Coffee, Big Mamma's Burritos, Avalanche Pizza). The restaurants here overflow with goodness, and the campus itself is very beautiful-----there are multitudinous trees, bushes, and squirrels, the latter of which many students have a personal relationship with.

Yet amidst all the pulchtritude, the fact still remains: attending Ohio University is like dating a beautiful blonde. It's very pretty on the outside, but it's difficult to stand all of the stupidity after a few days.

Recommended: No