Comm department not feeling the love
Tara Wellman
Issue date: 2/4/10 Section: Opinion
First impressions are everything. Comparing schools is easy if you find a department that is impressive enough.
Imagine one tour leads down an old staircase to a basement that doesn't make much of a statement. It's just a basement. But the sign that says "TV studio" sparks visions of bright lights on the set of the 6:00 p.m. news.
Each professor seems filled with all the expertise a student could want. They show examples of award-winning newscasts, regionally broadcast basketball games, promos and commercials run on the school's cable channel, all produced in that very room.
Then, you go into the bathroom.
The ceiling tiles - the ones that are actually left in the ceiling - are crumbling from the water leaking through the pipes above.
The walls could use some paint. The carpet is ripped and stained. Most of the computers are only slightly newer than the original, 1960s versions. Some of them can hardly handle turning on, much less connecting to the Internet.
The tape decks, tripods and even the cameras have obviously been rebuilt, because they're older than nearly every senior on campus.
It doesn't matter anymore what kind of education the school offers. If they can't keep up with the basic housekeeping, they'll never keep up with ever-changing technology like a big university can.
It's time for a reality check. What SAU offers is larger than expensive equipment. The hands-on opportunities and the atmosphere are incomparable. The one-on-one attention can't be beat. And for students - and their parents - looking for those things, there's not much stopping that high school kid from setting his sights on SAU.
But for the faculty, staff and students who watch helplessly as cameras and editing software become outdated, basic structures like flooring and lighting remain unkempt, and other facilities - even many off campus - receive not only updates, but complete makeovers, it seems the communications department keeps getting the old, "red-headed stepchild" treatment.
Imagine one tour leads down an old staircase to a basement that doesn't make much of a statement. It's just a basement. But the sign that says "TV studio" sparks visions of bright lights on the set of the 6:00 p.m. news.
Each professor seems filled with all the expertise a student could want. They show examples of award-winning newscasts, regionally broadcast basketball games, promos and commercials run on the school's cable channel, all produced in that very room.
Then, you go into the bathroom.
The ceiling tiles - the ones that are actually left in the ceiling - are crumbling from the water leaking through the pipes above.
The walls could use some paint. The carpet is ripped and stained. Most of the computers are only slightly newer than the original, 1960s versions. Some of them can hardly handle turning on, much less connecting to the Internet.
The tape decks, tripods and even the cameras have obviously been rebuilt, because they're older than nearly every senior on campus.
It doesn't matter anymore what kind of education the school offers. If they can't keep up with the basic housekeeping, they'll never keep up with ever-changing technology like a big university can.
It's time for a reality check. What SAU offers is larger than expensive equipment. The hands-on opportunities and the atmosphere are incomparable. The one-on-one attention can't be beat. And for students - and their parents - looking for those things, there's not much stopping that high school kid from setting his sights on SAU.
But for the faculty, staff and students who watch helplessly as cameras and editing software become outdated, basic structures like flooring and lighting remain unkempt, and other facilities - even many off campus - receive not only updates, but complete makeovers, it seems the communications department keeps getting the old, "red-headed stepchild" treatment.
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