Approximately 20 students raised questions and voiced personal concerns regarding diversity, security and degree requirements at the quarterly roundtable discussion held by Chancellor Robert Coombe last Wednesday.
Senior Kelley Pasmanick spoke on behalf of DU’s disabledcommunity, telling the chancellor that “accessibility needs to be improved” and “there need to be major changes.”
Pasmanick cited examples of small bathrooms that do not fit wheelchairs and broken elevator sensors in Sturm Hall where the doors close on students. In buildings like John Greene Hall, there are no elevators so the handicapped students cannot go up the stairs.
“It’s been a hindrance worrying about accessibility instead of focusing on my academic studies which is what I came here to achieve,” Pasmanick explained.
Coombe responded, “This is always something we think about deeply.” He suggested she talk to the director of diversity, but Pasmanick said that she has and no changes, or empathy, have resulted.
When Coombe said that perhaps the university architect can offer suggestions on campus, Pasmanick replied, “Architects have no perspective on what it is like to be a handicapped person. If you had an inside source, that would be beneficial.”
Sophomore Dillion Lanius and Associate Provost for Student Life Jo Calhoun discussed what kind of events DU should be responsible for paying for students. Lanius asked Coombe about the pricing of concerts at Magness Arena and if there was any way to lower them to make events more affordable for students. Coombe explained that events held at venues like Magness Arena and the Newman Center for the Performing Arts are sometimes difficult to make available at a reduced cost because “they are public venues as well as academic or athletic centers.”
Calhoun said that “we have to ask ourselves, what does ‘afford’ mean and how can we make a difference?” She said that the university has to pick and chose what kind of events it should subsidize. Calhoun brought up the AUSA Senate’s initiative from last fall to raise the student activity fee so that all NCAA events, including hockey games, will be free to DU students.
Junior Katherine Walsh spoke about security in DU housing. Walsh, who lives in the Greek sorority house Delta Delta Delta, said the sorority’s request for a $5,000 surveillance camera was turned down by the director of security. Walsh explained that there have been a number of break-ins in the Greek houses as well as auto theft in the area. Even though Campus Safety has been patrolling the area more regularly as requested, Walsh said, “We feel the school should be protecting the house.”
Sophomore Stacey Lestina inquired about the relationship between degrees. Lestina said she planned to double-major in international business and public policy, but was told this was impossible because these majors lead to different degrees.
Coombe suggested constructing an individualized major, which would be put together in her own program and advised by a faculty advisor. Calhoun told Lestina that “there is a coherence in your idea” and that the faculty is rethinking the current requirements.
Coombe also addressed “balancing the level of admits” for the university while accepting a new freshman class for next fall.
Unlike the slew of colleges nationwide facing shrinking admission numbers this year, DU has maintained its 56 percent acceptance rate, planning to admit about 1,100 new first-year students in the fall, the same as last year.
